Inside the Harry & Meghan Paparazzi Chase

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🗞 THE HARRY & MEGHAN CAR CHASE

Prince Harry and his wife Meghan said they were involved in a “near catastrophic” two hour paparazzi car chase late Tuesday in NYC. Others, including the taxi driver that drove them for part of the ride, say that’s not quite what happened.

WHAT WE KNOW
The incident took place after Harry, Meghan and Meghan’s mother (Doria Ragland) attended an award ceremony in New York City on Tuesday night. The group reportedly wanted to return to an Upper East Side apartment where they were staying for the night, without revealing their final location to the press. They spent about an hour (accompanied by a security guard) driving in circles between FDR Drive and West 57th Street as they tried to lose photographers driving behind them, before going to a local police precinct and briefly hailing a cab. The photographers were reportedly following them in a black Honda Accord and an older gray Honda CR-V. They eventually returned to the police precinct and climbed back into their original vehicle, before going home for the night.

HE SAID, SHE SAID, EVERYONE SAID:

A spokesperson for the couple: “Last night, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex and Ms. Ragland were involved in a near catastrophic car chase at the hands of a ring of highly aggressive paparazzi. This relentless pursuit, lasting over two hours, resulted in multiple near collisions involving other drivers on the road, pedestrians and two NYPD officers.”

An NYPD spokesperson: “There were numerous photographers that made their transport challenging… The Duke and Duchess of Sussex arrived at their destination and there were no reported collisions, summonses, injuries, or arrests.” They added that no 911 calls or collision reports were made.

New York City Mayor Eric Adams: "I would find it hard to believe there was a two-hour high-speed chase." However, he said “even if it was a 10-minute chase, it would still be extremely dangerous in New York City."

Taxi Driver, Sukhcharn Singh, who drove the couple for part of their journey, told the Washington Post: “I don’t think I would call it a chase…. I never felt like I was in danger. It wasn’t like a car chase in a movie. They were quiet and seemed scared but it’s New York — it’s safe.”

⏳ SPEED READ

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📌 Drug shortages (including cancer medications) near an all-time high, leading to rationing (NY TIMES)

📌 Democrats spar over George Santos: Kick him out now or let Republicans stall (POLITICO)

📌 World likely to breach 1.5 degree climate threshold by 2027, scientists warn (GUARDIAN)

📌 Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes loses bid to stay out of prison, hit with huge fine (REUTERS)

📌 Teens say social media is stressing them out. Here's how to help them (NPR)

📌 Senate Dems to Biden: Bypass Republicans and end debt fight forever (INSIDER)

📌 Supreme Court leaves Illinois assault weapons ban in place for now (USA TODAY)

📌 Idaho college students' suspected killer Bryan Kohberger indicted by grand jury (NBC NEWS)

📌 Target expects organized retail crime-fueled losses to jump to over $1 billion in 2023(CNBC)

📌 Minnesota man indicted for theft of ruby slippers from 'Wizard of Oz' (ABC)

🗓 ON THIS DAY: MAY 18

1860: Abraham Lincoln became the Republican candidate for the U.S. presidency on the third ballot at the Republican National Convention in Chicago.

Yes, that’s a BEARDLESS Lincoln in the photo above. He reportedly grew the beard shortly into his presidency to look more distinguished.

1980: Following an earthquake with a magnitude of 5.1 on the Richter scale, Mount St. Helens erupted in one of the greatest volcanic explosions ever recorded in North America.

1985: ‘Don’t You (Forget About Me)’ by Simple Minds reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100

2001: Shrek — with voices provided by Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy, and Cameron Diaz, among others — was released in theaters. It went on to become the first movie to win the Academy Award for best-animated feature.