Worth Knowing, Probably Not Quite Threadworthy 9/19

[SVPete]

FAU autism center director resigns after Epstein fund scheme plea

https://www.palmbeachpost.com/story/news/crime/2026/09/18/fau-autism-center-director-resigns-after-epstein-fund-fraud-plea/91826084007/

The director of Florida Atlantic University's Center of Autism and Related Disabilities resigned Thursday, Sept. 17, after pleading guilty in federal court to falsifying documents in an effort to receive $750,000 from a compensation fund for Palm Beach sex predator Jeffrey Epstein's victims.

Jennifer Percival, who worked at FAU for 12 years, submitted her resignation on Sept. 17, three days after entering a plea agreement in federal court in New York.
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(Epstein's) estate created the Jeffrey Epstein Victims Compensation Program to compensate victims. During a Sept. 14 hearing, Percival admitted that she sought permission in 2024 to apply to it but was found ineligible.

Percival then submitted an altered version of the EVCP letter falsely stating she had been approved for compensation and had already received $500,000.

The Epstein Victims Compensation Program sent Percival $750,000 in May 2024 based on the fraudulent document, court records show.

A year later, Federal Bureau of Investigation agents interviewed Percival and confronted her with the original letter. Percival said she lied to the agents, claiming she had successfully appealed that decision to the EVCP fund and had subsequently been approved for compensation.

Percival said she directed her attorney to submit fabricated emails to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York in an effort to defer prosecution related to the fraud scheme.

[SVPete]

Blockbuster 2A Win, As Fifth Circuit Strikes Down Fed Ban on Interstate Handgun Sales

https://redstate.com/beccalower/2026/09/18/blockbuster-win-as-fifth-circuit-strikes-down-federal-ban-on-interstate-handgun-sales-n2207109

A major win for the Second Amendment happened with a court ruling released on Friday.

It comes just weeks after another court struck down a major part of the National Firearms Act (NFA) involving suppressors, short-barreled rifles, and short-barreled shotguns, as we previously wrote.

The big news out of the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday involves Elite Precision Customs v. ATF, and comes via SCOTUS Wire, who shared it as part of a thread with some analysis after the story broke:

They wrote:

The majority said the ban implicates the Second Amendment because the right to keep arms necessarily includes the right to purchase them. It then found the government’s historical analogues too dissimilar to justify a categorical ban on direct interstate handgun sales.

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In a statement by Firearms Policy Coalition (FPC), the nonprofit which represented Elite Precision Customs and its co-defendants, the group claimed "a major victory."

Firearms Policy Coalition (FPC) announced today a major victory in Elite Precision Customs v. ATF, with the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit holding that the federal government’s ban on direct interstate handgun purchases violates the Second Amendment. The Court reversed the lower court’s dismissal of the case and rendered judgment for FPC and its co-plaintiffs.
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The federal laws challenged by FPC categorically prohibit people from directly purchasing handguns from licensed dealers outside their state of residence. While federal law provides exceptions for interstate rifle and shotgun purchases, handgun buyers are instead forced to arrange an additional transfer through a licensed dealer in their home state—a process that depends on another dealer agreeing to participate and typically imposes additional fees and delays.

The Fifth Circuit’s conclusion was unequivocal: “The Ban sullies the plain text of the Second Amendment and is inconsistent with the nation’s tradition of firearms regulation.” The Court reversed the district court and rendered judgment for FPC and the other plaintiffs.

[SVPete]

BREAKING: Comedian Carrot Top rushed to hospital after suicide attempt: report

https://thepostmillennial.com/breaking-comedian-carrot-top-rushed-to-hospital-after-suicide-attempt-report

Comedian Carrot Top was hospitalized in Las Vegas after a reported suicide attempt, according to TMZ.

Sources familiar with the situation told the outlet that the longtime Las Vegas performer, whose real name is Scott Thompson, attempted suicide Friday in the Las Vegas area before being taken to a local hospital.
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Carrot Top has been embroiled in a recent scandal involving accusers who claim he sent them explicit and inappropriate messages. One of the accusers, singer Brian Evans, recently launched a new lawsuit against the comedian, claiming that a $500,000 settlement offer was "portrayed as extortion" by Carrot Top's lawyer. The suit claims fraudulent misrepresentation, negligent misrepresentation, declaratory relief, and defamation per se.

Another accuser, Zachary Defazio, recently came forward to back Evans and make claims of his own. "I am a victim of Scott 'Carrot Top' Thompson," he said in a legal filing.

[SVPete]

Starbucks Caves on DEI in Landmark Legal Settlement.

https://thenationalpulse.com/2026/09/18/starbucks-caves-on-dei-in-landmark-legal-settlement/

On Thursday, Starbucks agreed to pay $1 million to the Florida Department of Legal Affairs and comply with civil rights laws following a lawsuit from Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier (R). The lawsuit accused Starbucks of using quotas and preferential treatment that discriminated against white employees, citing the company’s 2020 diversity targets, which included filling 40 percent of retail and manufacturing roles and 30 percent of corporate roles with employees from minority backgrounds by 2025. Executive bonuses were tied to achieving the company’s diversity targets. The agreement applies to all Starbucks operations across the United States. The company has also agreed to refuse participation with any organization seeking to increase the racial diversity of its board of directors. “We’re pleased to have resolved this matter without admission of wrongdoing and appreciate the constructive engagement of the Attorney General’s Office throughout this process,” said Pilar Ramos, Executive Vice President and Chief Legal Officer of Starbucks. The lawsuit was initially filed in December 2025 after complaints that white employees and job applicants had been treated unfairly by the company, leading to allegations of “systematic discrimination.”