Latest news with #Griswold
Yahoo
14 hours ago
- General
- Yahoo
Former Anne Arundel register of wills appeals theft conviction
Anne Arundel County Register of Wills Erica Griswold. (Photo courtesy Former Anne Arundel County Register of Wills Erica Griswold is appealing her May shoplifting conviction, according to court documents. Griswold, 50, remains free on a $300 bond after appealing her conviction to the Circuit Court of Anne Arundel County. No hearing date has been set. Griswold was arrested in March for attempting to leave a Severn-area Walmart with more than $160 in sheets and curtains, according to a police report filed with the court. Prosecutors in May told a judge during a bench trial that while using a self-service checkout area at the store, Griswold failed to ring up some items and used a tag from a lower-priced item to make it appear as if she was ringing up others, citing video from the store that appeared to support the accounts of police and a store security employee. A defense attorney described Griswold's checkout as 'chaotic.' The attorney said Griswold at times scanned items and placed them on all sides of the register and on the floor. Her attorney argued some were placed in a second empty cart provided by a store employee who was, at times, attempting to assist Griswold. CONTACT US During her own testimony, Griswold claimed she was rushing out of the store because of a call about an uncle who had just been admitted to the hospital. Under cross-examination, she told prosecutors that the call came just as she arrived at the self-checkout lane. Video of the area did not show a phone call. Neither Griswold nor her attorney offered evidence of a call or a hospital admission. Anne Arundel District Court Judge Shaem Spencer rejected Griswold's explanation. As he watched a 21-minute store surveillance video showing Griswold completing four separate transactions, Spencer described in open court what he saw — Griswold scanning items the judge said he believed were lower cost. He said Griswold 'concealed' other unscanned items or moved more expensive items into her cart. Spencer sentenced Griswold to six months in jail, but suspended that sentence and tacked on 3 years of supervised probation. Griswold was already serving a sentence of unsupervised probation stemming from a June 2024 guilty plea to misconduct in office, after she was charged with stealing $6,600 in estate taxes paid to her office when she served as Anne Arundel County register of wills. As a result of the plea, Griswold was forced out of office. She was sentenced to 18 months in jail. The judge suspended that sentence and ordered Griswold to serve two years of supervised probation. If her latest conviction stands, Griswold could face potential repercussions for violating her probation in the first case. No hearing has been set for a new trial for Griswold in the shoplifting case. A conference before a judge is scheduled for July.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Cortez man sentenced for threats against Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold
DENVER, Colo. (KREX) — On Thursday, a Federal District Court Judge for the District of Colorado sentenced Teak Ty Brockbank to 37 months of confinement and three years of supervised release. Brockbank had sent threats to multiple public officials between September 2021 and August 2022, including Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold and former Arizona Secretary of State and current Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs. Brockbank pleaded guilty to a count of transmitting interstate threats back in October 2024. He was found in unlawful possession of firearms at the time of his arrest. He was arrested in August 2024 in Cortez, Colorado. Brockbank argued through his counsel that he was influenced by online conspiracy theories and 'brainwashed' by the ecosystem on Gab and Rumble, which perpetuated unfounded conspiracy theories. He asked for leniency for his sentence, citing Trump's pardons of January 6 insurrectionists. Secretary Griswold issued the following statement: 'The far right has spread conspiracy theories to incite threats and violence against secretaries of state and election officials. I will not be intimidated and I will not back down in protecting our democracy and our freedoms.' At least three other individuals have been convicted of or pleaded guilty to making threats of violence toward Secretary Griswold. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Miami Herald
27-05-2025
- Health
- Miami Herald
Convenience stores eyed as way to provide morning-after pill
St. PAUL, Minn., May 27 (UPI) -- Women's health advocates say they want to expand the availability of morning-after pills to convenience stores as new state abortion laws sow confusion about their legality and pharmacies are closing nationwide. Emergency contraception deserts are arising in many areas of the United States where morning-after pills, although still legal everywhere, have become almost impossible to find due to a combination of misconceptions about their function and the ongoing drug store closures, healthcare experts told UPI. Some suggest that wider availability of morning-after pills for women at convenience stores and other non-traditional outlets, such as gas stations, grocery stores, corner delis, travel retailers and hotels, could ease the problem. Levonorgestrel, also known as "Plan B," or the morning-after pill, is a first-line oral emergency contraceptive pill approved from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the World Health Organization to prevent pregnancy. It is to be used within 72 hours of unprotected sexual intercourse or when a presumed contraceptive failure has occurred. It has an average cost about $40 to $50, with generics generally costing less at about $11 to $45. Approved in 2007 Levonorgestrel earned FDA approval to be sold over the counter without a prescription in 2007 after the agency deemed it to be safe following years of debate. Since then, it has been available without a prescription at drug stores alongside male contraceptives, such as condoms. But while condoms are widely available in many different settings, women's health advocates are warning that the lack of similar availability for Plan B pills outside traditional pharmacies has created emergency contraception deserts in many areas. Adding to the problem is confusion about how Plan B pills function and whether they're still legal in the wake of the Supreme Court's landmark 2022 Dobbs vs. Jackson Women's Health Organization decision thatallowed states to enact local abortion bans. Uncertainty has arisen in states with the toughest abortion restrictions about whether the pills even remain legal as people confuse levonorgestrel, which prevents pregnancy, with mifepristone and misoprostol, which induce medical abortions, according to the women's health advocates. Polls indicate that as many as 73% of people incorrectly think morning-after pills can end a pregnancy in its early stages. In fact, the right to such contraception is currently protected by two other landmark Supreme Court decisions, Griswold vs. Connecticut (1965) and Eisenstadt vs. Baird (1972), but this confusion is believed to have led to declines in their use since Dobbs, they argue. Challenging economics They also point to the challenging economics of the retail pharmacy industry. Walgreens, for instance, announced in October that it will close roughly 1,200 of its stores through 2027 and seeks to close at least 500 stores by the end of 2025 alone. It says one-quarter of its roughly 8,700 U.S. store locations are unprofitable. About one-third of all U.S. pharmacies have closed since 2010 due to mergers of large pharmacy chains and the closure of stores deemed not profitable enough, according to a study published last year. As these factors accelerate, some 7,000 U.S. ZIP codes in both urban and rural areas now qualify as emergency contraception deserts in which "healthcare services are lacking and there are few or no drug stores to fulfill the needs of the approximately 23 million women of childbearing age who live there," according to Cadence OTC, an Oakland, Calif.-based public benefit company that makes and markets a brand of levonorgestrel called "Morning After Pill." Cadence officials say they have spent the last few years working hard to convince convenience retailers that stocking Morning After Pill benefits both their bottom lines and the health of their communities. They have so far succeeded in getting the product into 11,000 locations in 48 states after forging a partnership with Lil' Drug Store Products, the nation's top supplier of health and beauty care products to convenience stores. Sales in remote areas "A lot of college campuses and military bases are in remote areas and are filled with young people, so these are priorities for contraceptive access," the company said in a statement issued to UPI. "C-stores are in every neighborhood and they are open long hours." Stocking emergency contraceptives makes sense for convenience stores as a way to replace revenue lost as cigarette purchases decline, Cadence said, adding, "Urgent healthcare products are a logical expansion space for C-stores, and the profit margins are generally higher than food and soft drinks. "Ninety percent of C-stores already carry condoms, so it makes sense to offer female contraceptives. as well." The challenge "is to increase awareness among consumers to think of C-stores for these healthcare items," company officials said in a statement. "Many C-stores are excited about playing a more important role in serving young women, leaning into urgent OTC healthcare is a smart business strategy." Health benefit One gynecologist who has studied the availability of emergency contraception in the aftermath of the Dobbs decision said the push to get morning-after pills into convenience stores would provide a public health benefit. Dr. Frank "Will" Williams III, who specializes in treating complicated pregnancies for Ochsner Health in New Orleans, co-authored a 2023 study that found only 35% of locally owned, independent pharmacies in the city had emergency contraception in stock. They were also much more likely than chain stores to keep the product behind the counter, require identification and carry no brand that cost under $50. "The independent pharmacies are the ones who are not likely to have a gaggle of lawyers on retainer who can tell them, 'Yes, emergency contraception is fine, they're not discussed at all in any of the abortion legislation, you guys can keep going with this,'" Williams told UPI. "They didn't have that luxury, so when Dobbs came through, that's where we really saw an absence of access to contraception." Now with many chain-owned pharmacies closing as well, the push to expand emergency contraception into non-traditional retail venues is needed, he said. Greater accessibility "If I'm traveling and need ibuprofen, I can find it a grocery store or convenience store, so there's no reason why that can't also be true for emergency contraception," Williams said. "Whatever we can do to make sure that people have accessible options regarding their health seems like a win to me." Agreeing is Dima Mazen Qato, an associate professor at the University of Southern California's Alfred E. Mann School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences and a senior scholar at the USC Schaeffer Center for Health Policy & Economics. Qato has researched the causes behind the wave of pharmacy closures and their effects on socioeconomic and racial health disparities across the country. Getting emergency contraception into non-traditional venues "makes sense, although I don't know what the price point is for it to be affordable and to actually be used by those who need it," she told UPI. "It's important to make sure it's affordable at these different access points, and also that there's no ID required -- that's just available like anything else." She added it's "definitely a great way to distribute emergency contraception, especially in states that, since Dobbs, have banned or partially banned abortion care. I think any effort to expand access to emergency contraception is needed across the country." Copyright 2025 UPI News Corporation. All Rights Reserved.
Yahoo
27-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Convenience stores eyed as way to provide morning-after pill
St. PAUL, Minn., May 27 (UPI) -- Women's health advocates say they want to expand the availability of morning-after pills to convenience stores as new state abortion laws sow confusion about their legality and pharmacies are closing nationwide. Emergency contraception deserts are arising in many areas of the United States where morning-after pills, although still legal everywhere, have become almost impossible to find due to a combination of misconceptions about their function and the ongoing drug store closures, healthcare experts told UPI. Some suggest that wider availability of morning-after pills for women at convenience stores and other non-traditional outlets, such as gas stations, grocery stores, corner delis, travel retailers and hotels, could ease the problem. Levonorgestrel, also known as "Plan B," or the morning-after pill, is a first-line oral emergency contraceptive pill approved from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the World Health Organization to prevent pregnancy. It is to be used within 72 hours of unprotected sexual intercourse or when a presumed contraceptive failure has occurred. It has an average cost about $40 to $50, with generics generally costing less at about $11 to $45. Approved in 2007 Levonorgestrel earned FDA approval to be sold over the counter without a prescription in 2007 after the agency deemed it to be safe following years of debate. Since then, it has been available without a prescription at drug stores alongside male contraceptives, such as condoms. But while condoms are widely available in many different settings, women's health advocates are warning that the lack of similar availability for Plan B pills outside traditional pharmacies has created emergency contraception deserts in many areas. Adding to the problem is confusion about how Plan B pills function and whether they're still legal in the wake of the Supreme Court's landmark 2022 Dobbs vs. Jackson Women's Health Organization decision that allowed states to enact local abortion bans. Uncertainty has arisen in states with the toughest abortion restrictions about whether the pills even remain legal as people confuse levonorgestrel, which prevents pregnancy, with mifepristone and misoprostol, which induce medical abortions, according to the women's health advocates. Polls indicate that as many as 73% of people incorrectly think morning-after pills can end a pregnancy in its early stages. In fact, the right to such contraception is currently protected by two other landmark Supreme Court decisions, Griswold vs. Connecticut (1965) and Eisenstadt vs. Baird (1972), but this confusion is believed to have led to declines in their use since Dobbs, they argue. Challenging economics They also point to the challenging economics of the retail pharmacy industry. Walgreens, for instance, announced in October that it will close roughly 1,200 of its stores through 2027 and seeks to close at least 500 stores by the end of 2025 alone. It says one-quarter of its roughly 8,700 U.S. store locations are unprofitable. About one-third of all U.S. pharmacies have closed since 2010 due to mergers of large pharmacy chains and the closure of stores deemed not profitable enough, according to a study published last year. As these factors accelerate, some 7,000 U.S. ZIP codes in both urban and rural areas now qualify as emergency contraception deserts in which "healthcare services are lacking and there are few or no drug stores to fulfill the needs of the approximately 23 million women of childbearing age who live there," according to Cadence OTC, an Oakland, Calif.-based public benefit company that makes and markets a brand of levonorgestrel called "Morning After Pill." Cadence officials say they have spent the last few years working hard to convince convenience retailers that stocking Morning After Pill benefits both their bottom lines and the health of their communities. They have so far succeeded in getting the product into 11,000 locations in 48 states after forging a partnership with Lil' Drug Store Products, the nation's top supplier of health and beauty care products to convenience stores. Sales in remote areas "A lot of college campuses and military bases are in remote areas and are filled with young people, so these are priorities for contraceptive access," the company said in a statement issued to UPI. "C-stores are in every neighborhood and they are open long hours." Stocking emergency contraceptives makes sense for convenience stores as a way to replace revenue lost as cigarette purchases decline, Cadence said, adding, "Urgent healthcare products are a logical expansion space for C-stores, and the profit margins are generally higher than food and soft drinks. "Ninety percent of C-stores already carry condoms, so it makes sense to offer female contraceptives. as well." The challenge "is to increase awareness among consumers to think of C-stores for these healthcare items," company officials said in a statement. "Many C-stores are excited about playing a more important role in serving young women, leaning into urgent OTC healthcare is a smart business strategy." Health benefit One gynecologist who has studied the availability of emergency contraception in the aftermath of the Dobbs decision said the push to get morning-after pills into convenience stores would provide a public health benefit. Dr. Frank "Will" Williams III, who specializes in treating complicated pregnancies for Ochsner Health in New Orleans, co-authored a 2023 study that found only 35% of locally owned, independent pharmacies in the city had emergency contraception in stock. They were also much more likely than chain stores to keep the product behind the counter, require identification and carry no brand that cost under $50. "The independent pharmacies are the ones who are not likely to have a gaggle of lawyers on retainer who can tell them, 'Yes, emergency contraception is fine, they're not discussed at all in any of the abortion legislation, you guys can keep going with this,'" Williams told UPI. "They didn't have that luxury, so when Dobbs came through, that's where we really saw an absence of access to contraception." Now with many chain-owned pharmacies closing as well, the push to expand emergency contraception into non-traditional retail venues is needed, he said. Greater accessibility "If I'm traveling and need ibuprofen, I can find it a grocery store or convenience store, so there's no reason why that can't also be true for emergency contraception," Williams said. "Whatever we can do to make sure that people have accessible options regarding their health seems like a win to me." Agreeing is Dima Mazen Qato, an associate professor at the University of Southern California's Alfred E. Mann School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences and a senior scholar at the USC Schaeffer Center for Health Policy & Economics. Qato has researched the causes behind the wave of pharmacy closures and their effects on socioeconomic and racial health disparities across the country. Getting emergency contraception into non-traditional venues "makes sense, although I don't know what the price point is for it to be affordable and to actually be used by those who need it," she told UPI. "It's important to make sure it's affordable at these different access points, and also that there's no ID required -- that's just available like anything else." She added it's "definitely a great way to distribute emergency contraception, especially in states that, since Dobbs, have banned or partially banned abortion care. I think any effort to expand access to emergency contraception is needed across the country."
UPI
27-05-2025
- Health
- UPI
Convenience stores eyed as way to provide morning-after pill
St. PAUL, Minn., May 27 (UPI) -- Women's health advocates say they want to expand the availability of morning-after pills to convenience stores as new state abortion laws sow confusion about their legality and pharmacies are closing nationwide. Emergency contraception deserts are arising in many areas of the United States where morning-after pills, although still legal everywhere, have become almost impossible to find due to a combination of misconceptions about their function and the ongoing drug store closures, healthcare experts told UPI. Some suggest that wider availability of morning-after pills for women at convenience stores and other non-traditional outlets, such as gas stations, grocery stores, corner delis, travel retailers and hotels, could ease the problem. Levonorgestrel, also known as "Plan B," or the morning-after pill, is a first-line oral emergency contraceptive pill approved from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the World Health Organization to prevent pregnancy. It is to be used within 72 hours of unprotected sexual intercourse or when a presumed contraceptive failure has occurred. It has an average cost about $40 to $50, with generics generally costing less at about $11 to $45. Approved in 2007 Levonorgestrel earned FDA approval to be sold over the counter without a prescription in 2007 after the agency deemed it to be safe following years of debate. Since then, it has been available without a prescription at drug stores alongside male contraceptives, such as condoms. But while condoms are widely available in many different settings, women's health advocates are warning that the lack of similar availability for Plan B pills outside traditional pharmacies has created emergency contraception deserts in many areas. Adding to the problem is confusion about how Plan B pills function and whether they're still legal in the wake of the Supreme Court's landmark 2022 Dobbs vs. Jackson Women's Health Organization decision that allowed states to enact local abortion bans. Uncertainty has arisen in states with the toughest abortion restrictions about whether the pills even remain legal as people confuse levonorgestrel, which prevents pregnancy, with mifepristone and misoprostol, which induce medical abortions, according to the women's health advocates. Polls indicate that as many as 73% of people incorrectly think morning-after pills can end a pregnancy in its early stages. In fact, the right to such contraception is currently protected by two other landmark Supreme Court decisions, Griswold vs. Connecticut (1965) and Eisenstadt vs. Baird (1972), but this confusion is believed to have led to declines in their use since Dobbs, they argue. Challenging economics They also point to the challenging economics of the retail pharmacy industry. Walgreens, for instance, announced in October that it will close roughly 1,200 of its stores through 2027 and seeks to close at least 500 stores by the end of 2025 alone. It says one-quarter of its roughly 8,700 U.S. store locations are unprofitable. About one-third of all U.S. pharmacies have closed since 2010 due to mergers of large pharmacy chains and the closure of stores deemed not profitable enough, according to a study published last year. As these factors accelerate, some 7,000 U.S. ZIP codes in both urban and rural areas now qualify as emergency contraception deserts in which "healthcare services are lacking and there are few or no drug stores to fulfill the needs of the approximately 23 million women of childbearing age who live there," according to Cadence OTC, an Oakland, Calif.-based public benefit company that makes and markets a brand of levonorgestrel called "Morning After Pill." Cadence officials say they have spent the last few years working hard to convince convenience retailers that stocking Morning After Pill benefits both their bottom lines and the health of their communities. They have so far succeeded in getting the product into 11,000 locations in 48 states after forging a partnership with Lil' Drug Store Products, the nation's top supplier of health and beauty care products to convenience stores. Sales in remote areas "A lot of college campuses and military bases are in remote areas and are filled with young people, so these are priorities for contraceptive access," the company said in a statement issued to UPI. "C-stores are in every neighborhood and they are open long hours." Stocking emergency contraceptives makes sense for convenience stores as a way to replace revenue lost as cigarette purchases decline, Cadence said, adding, "Urgent healthcare products are a logical expansion space for C-stores, and the profit margins are generally higher than food and soft drinks. "Ninety percent of C-stores already carry condoms, so it makes sense to offer female contraceptives. as well." The challenge "is to increase awareness among consumers to think of C-stores for these healthcare items," company officials said in a statement. "Many C-stores are excited about playing a more important role in serving young women, leaning into urgent OTC healthcare is a smart business strategy." Health benefit One gynecologist who has studied the availability of emergency contraception in the aftermath of the Dobbs decision said the push to get morning-after pills into convenience stores would provide a public health benefit. Dr. Frank "Will" Williams III, who specializes in treating complicated pregnancies for Ochsner Health in New Orleans, co-authored a 2023 study that found only 35% of locally owned, independent pharmacies in the city had emergency contraception in stock. They were also much more likely than chain stores to keep the product behind the counter, require identification and carry no brand that cost under $50. "The independent pharmacies are the ones who are not likely to have a gaggle of lawyers on retainer who can tell them, 'Yes, emergency contraception is fine, they're not discussed at all in any of the abortion legislation, you guys can keep going with this,'" Williams told UPI. "They didn't have that luxury, so when Dobbs came through, that's where we really saw an absence of access to contraception." Now with many chain-owned pharmacies closing as well, the push to expand emergency contraception into non-traditional retail venues is needed, he said. Greater accessibility "If I'm traveling and need ibuprofen, I can find it a grocery store or convenience store, so there's no reason why that can't also be true for emergency contraception," Williams said. "Whatever we can do to make sure that people have accessible options regarding their health seems like a win to me." Agreeing is Dima Mazen Qato, an associate professor at the University of Southern California's Alfred E. Mann School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences and a senior scholar at the USC Schaeffer Center for Health Policy & Economics. Qato has researched the causes behind the wave of pharmacy closures and their effects on socioeconomic and racial health disparities across the country. Getting emergency contraception into non-traditional venues "makes sense, although I don't know what the price point is for it to be affordable and to actually be used by those who need it," she told UPI. "It's important to make sure it's affordable at these different access points, and also that there's no ID required -- that's just available like anything else." She added it's "definitely a great way to distribute emergency contraception, especially in states that, since Dobbs, have banned or partially banned abortion care. I think any effort to expand access to emergency contraception is needed across the country."
