Latest news with #redemption


Daily Mail
a day ago
- Sport
- Daily Mail
Former Aussie bikie Ryan Peake vows he will return to the British Open after redemption story for the ages
Ryan Peake cut a frustrated figure after bowing out of his maiden British Open, but the Australian golfer whose redemption story captivated Royal Portrush reckons his great adventure on the links has persuaded him he belongs among the game's elite. Peake, the former biker gang member who served jail time for an assault but rebuilt his life through his golfing prowess, had too much to do to make the weekend's action after his first-round 77, despite improving with a two-over 73 on Friday. 'Dry and miserable,' sighed the 32-year-old, when asked how he felt after escaping the rain. 'Obviously, it's been a great build-up. I feel we've done the right prep, the venue's been fantastic, the crowds great. 'The hospitality, treatment side, everyone goes above and beyond to do everything for you. So in that aspect, everything's been great. Just the golf was disappointing. 'I'll reflect on the experience later down the track, but it was disappointing not playing the weekend.' Peake enjoyed playing alongside his fellow left-hander Phil Mickelson for two rounds, with the six-time major champion qualifying for the weekend again at 55. 'Playing with Phil obviously was great. I was trying to play my game as well, but he was friendly, he was chatting,' reflected the man from Perth. 'It's not like I've played this week and think that's the best player I'm ever going to play with or it's the biggest event I'm ever going to play with. 'I'm not exactly here this week to try and embrace it all as the coolest moment of my life, because I believe I belong here. 'I'm going to keep trying to do it again, and I believe I've got the game to do it. Just this week, I didn't have it, and it's just a little bit disappointing.' But as he reflected on how far he's come since imprisonment, Peake had every reason to feel proud. 'It was never on the cards (playing in a major). I don't want to come across too miserable and then be sitting here like beating myself up, but for the next little while I'm allowed to be disappointed with the performance that I've done. 'It's just something else to grow from, I guess. 'It sucks that it's gone this way, but obviously I'm honoured to have had the privilege to do it. 'Maybe next time will be better.' Peake is determined to build on his first major experience, which he grabbed following his epic win at the New Zealand Open in March. 'I've got a busy schedule now,' he said. 'I'm about to head home back to Perth. 'I've got about three or four weeks off, and then I'll go over my calendar. 'I've got about 13 events on the back end of Asia that we have to finish this season. 'So I'll discuss what events I'm going to play and then build into Europe for the end of the year.


CBS News
a day ago
- Health
- CBS News
Man shares his 31-year journey to sobriety amid Baltimore's ongoing opioid crisis
Vincent Johnson remembers the moment everything changed. "The cracking moment was just being sick and tired of being sick and tired," he said. "In and out of jail… waking up in the morning, so miserable, not loving yourself." Johnson, a former drug dealer and heroin addict, is now celebrating 31 years of sobriety. His story of redemption comes at a time when Baltimore continues to grapple with the deep-rooted challenges of drug abuse — especially following last week's mass overdose at the intersection of Pennsylvania and North Avenues, where 27 people overdosed in one day from a bad batch of fentanyl laced with a powerful sedative. At age 18, Johnson says he "crossed the street" on East Baltimore's Greenmount Avenue — both literally and metaphorically — into a lifestyle of drug sales and use. "What they didn't tell me is what would come with running across that street," Johnson said. Heroin quickly became his drug of choice, leading to a cycle of addiction, incarceration, and personal shame. So when he heard about the recent mass overdose, his response was immediate. "Wow… thank you, Lord, that Vincent wasn't there," he said. "Because at one time, Vincent might have been there." Just blocks from the epicenter of the overdose, the Tuerk House in West Baltimore continues to offer a lifeline. The facility's Crisis Stabilization Center operates 24/7, providing detox beds, medical supervision, and therapy for those ready to begin recovery. "This is a treatment center — we call it the emergency room for substance use," said Dr. Maud Ayree, director of the stabilization center. "So someone just used and came in, their mind is not clear… we get them through to a bed." Dr. Ayree said their approach meets clients "where they are," even if they're employed or caring for families while battling addiction. Pierre Thomas, director of admissions at Tuerk House, said the center serves more than 300 people each month. "We want them to feel like we care about them," Thomas said. "They're getting hot meals, individual therapy, and support that feels like home." Johnson's transformation now includes becoming a licensed child care provider and a deacon at his church. He credits his faith — and one prayer in particular — for helping sustain him through recovery. "God grant me the serenity of the things I cannot change… the courage to change the things I can… and the wisdom to know the difference," Johnson recited, quoting the Serenity Prayer that's a staple in many recovery programs. While many in Baltimore continue to battle addiction, Johnson's story offers a powerful reminder: recovery is possible. For more information about the 24/7 services at the Tuerk House, people can call 410-735-1701 or visit their website.


Reuters
2 days ago
- Reuters
Bank robber-turned Georgetown law professor convicted in domestic violence case
July 18 (Reuters) - A Georgetown University law professor who spent more than a decade in prison for bank robbery before becoming a lawyer was convicted on Friday of multiple criminal charges stemming from a September 2023 domestic violence incident. Shon Hopwood, 50, was found guilty by a District of Columbia Superior Court jury of three counts of simple assault, five counts of contempt and two counts of obstructing justice, federal prosecutors in Washington said Friday. Hopwood had spent 11 years in federal prison for robbing several banks in Nebraska when he was in his early 20s. His journey from felon to Georgetown law professor was featured on a 60 Minutes segment in 2017 billed as a "story of redemption." Hopwood's lawyer did not immediately respond to a request for comment. His sentencing is set for Sept. 18 before D.C. Superior Court Judge Errol Arthur. "A D.C. jury is demanding accountability from the batterer who not only beat his wife but was on the faculty of Georgetown Law teaching criminal law," D.C. U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro said in a statement following the verdict. Hopwood was still listed as a member of the faculty of Georgetown University Law Center as of Friday afternoon but has been on leave. A spokesperson for the law school said it respects the jury's decision and will review the matter. "Domestic violence is horrific and antithetical to our values as an institution," the spokesperson said. Prosecutors said police in September 2023 went to Hopwood's Washington home after receiving a call that his wife Ann Marie had been locked in the basement. Hopwood allegedly told police that his wife was out of town, but an officer eventually found her with a broken finger and chipped tooth, which she said she sustained during a fight several days earlier. In an application for a temporary protection order, she detailed four instances in which she said Shon Hopwood hurt her. Hopwood was originally scheduled for a non-jury trial in June 2024, but prosecutors said he tried to pressure his wife against cooperating with the government in an effort to get the case dismissed, which led to more criminal charges being filed against him. Hopwood attended the University of Washington after he was released from prison in 2009. He eventually landed a job teaching at Georgetown University Law Center, where he became a prominent advocate for criminal justice reform and mentored Tiffany Trump, daughter of President Donald J. Trump, when she was a student there.

ABC News
2 days ago
- Sport
- ABC News
Tim Tszyu focusing on present ahead of redemption world title clash with Sebastian Fundora
Tim Tszyu is a man on a mission. He's not unique in that aspect. Every boxer is the same. Focus directed on the job at hand, honing everything in on that next fight. The most important fight. The redemption fight. "The typical thing is that the next one is always the most important," Tszyu (25-2) tells ABC Sport before he left Australia for the USA earlier this month. "But this one's got a little bit more meaning towards it. "The fact that what's happened in the past, the history, and the newest chapter that's about to be written. "It's a big part of my life." Tszyu is, of course, talking about his upcoming trip to Las Vegas, when he will meet Sebastian Fundora (22-1-1) for the second time in his career, at the MGM Grand. Tszyu's last trip to Vegas did not go to plan. Now he needs to put it right. The loss of his WBO super welterweight title, a defeat paid for in copious amounts of blood, is in the past. "What could have been? Who knows. I don't look to it, I really just focus on the present," Tszyu says. "The first one was one hell of a spectacle and a fight to be remembered for the ages. "That's why we're gunna come back and re-live the memory." The bloodbath of the T-Mobile Arena saw Fundora add Tszyu's WBO strap to his WBC crown. For those that need reminding, the towering American — a late call up to fight Tszyu on just 11 days notice — opened a sickening gash in Tszyu's head in just the second round of what turned into a 12-round epic 16 months ago. Fundora has, in recent weeks, argued that the cut had little impact on Tszyu and that the Australian could see him just fine for the rest of the contest that the American won by a desperately narrow, split decision. The evidence of anyone who has seen the fight would suggest that Tszyu is correct in calling out that claim as "bulls***". Nevertheless, Tszyu says that despite losing his world title to Fundora, he was still able to take plenty from the fight. "The fact that I was able to show my true self, and who I am as a person, with my heart, my determination, the values that I've been bought up with, I got to show it on an audience for the whole world to see," Tszyu says. "That's what I'm about. "I think, in life, every lesson you learn is from hard failures, from hard situations that helps you grow as a person. "That gash unfortunately made me lose, but it turned me into a different person." There was far less to take from his next trip to America. There's no way of softening what IBF champion Bakhram Murtazaliev inflicted on Tszyu in Florida last October last year. It was a savage beat down, the Aussie being knocked down three times in the second round and once in round three before the towel was thrown in. If the Fundora loss left physical scars, the monstering from Murtazaliev exposed some of the mental ones, as well as adding a few more for good measure. It was a brutalisation that few, if any, saw coming. But a confidence-boosting beating of Joey Spencer in Newcastle in April has put Tszyu back on the path towards righting those wrongs. While Tszyu had 11 days to adjust to the challenge posed by 197cm-tall Fundora instead of the 171cm-tall Keith Thurman, this time he has directed all his sparring at tall, lanky left-handers. If he was caught out last time, he won't be this time around. "The height, that's all he's really got on me," Tszyu says. "Never kick the small man down." Fundora has only fought once since beating Tszyu and becoming unified champion at 153lb, beating Chordale Booker by TKO after a one-sided four rounds in Las Vegas in March. Tszyu says he's not obsessed with beating Fundora, but accepts the challenge of facing him is what is driving him forward. "I believe everyone in life needs a challenge, a goal to work towards," he says. "I don't stay up at night or wake up in the morning and have Sebastian Fundora on my mind. It's not like that. "I know what I'm capable of and I know what I can do in the ring, so I don't need to think about that. I just think of it week by week, day by day and just become the best version [of myself]." Also fighting on the card will be boxing legend Manny Pacquiao, the 46-year-old eight-weight world champion making his return to the ring for the first time since 2021 to fight Mario Barrios for the WBC welterweight title. The addition of Pacquiao to the card as headliner has made the ticket sales go "crazy", according to Tszyu. But the added global interest is not daunting him. "The platform that I'm in right now is crazy," Tszyu says. "The audience is so big, so the fact is that I have to not just win, but win in dominant fashion and prove to everyone exactly who I really am."


Daily Mail
2 days ago
- Sport
- Daily Mail
Aussie ex-bikie who was jailed for assault has major fanboy moment with Phil Mickelson on golf major debut
It has been a long road to redemption for Australian golfer Ryan Peake, who spent five years in prison before turning his life around and earning a place the 2025 Open Championship in the UK. In 2014, at just 21, Peake became involved with the Rebels outlaw motorcycle gang in Western Australia. That same year, he took part in a violent assault on a rival gang member that left the victim with a fractured skull. Peake was arrested weeks later and sentenced to five years in prison for assault causing grievous bodily harm. He served his time at Hakea Prison, where he began to reflect on his life and slowly reconnect with his old passion for golf - encouraged by former coach Ritchie Smith. After his release from prison in 2019, Ryan Peake committed himself to rebuilding his life through golf. It has been a major turnaround for Peake, who used to be in a motorcycle gang before landing in prison He trained quietly for years, supported by Smith, working as a greenskeeper to stay close to the game while refining his swing and mindset. In 2024, his comeback became real when he secured a spot at the New Zealand Open, marking a remarkable return to professional golf. Peake earned his place at the 2025 Open Championship by claiming victory in his second crack at the New Zealand Open this year, his first professional title, which granted him automatic entry via the Open Qualifying Series. His eligibility was further confirmed when he secured the necessary clearance and used his British passport, inherited through his father, to qualify for the UK field. As if lining up against the world's best was not enough, Peake then realised that he would be playing alongside golfing great Phil Mickelson. 'I don't think he needs to introduce himself; I was well aware of who he was,' Peake said after the five-time major winner walked up to introduce himself. 'But obviously I was nervous. I wouldn't say nervous because I was playing next to Phil. It's just, I guess, your first major and things like that. But I've just got to get better at that.' The occasion got the better of Peake this time, though, with the Aussie revealing he couldn't help but get a memento from the occasion. Mickelson's caddie was handing out golf balls to fans in the crowd, with Peake asking 'what about me?'. 'He had a laugh, thought I was being sarcastic, and he said, 'are you serious?', and I said, 'no, I'm deadly serious'. I said, 'can you sign a glove as well?'. 'He's your hero growing up. My own boy is out here this week and he loves him as well. I'm not going to ask him on the 1st tee, but I'll ask him after the round.' Despite earning the rare opportunity to play alongside golfing royalty, Peake said he resisted getting tips to improve his game - even as he sunk to a disappointing six-over par 77 in the first round. 'I would have known I was in a bad place if he'd come over and started offering me help,' Peake said. 'I know everyone is going to look at it and say you take the experience in and stuff like that, but obviously very disappointed with the round. Not what I want.' Overall it was a disappointing day for the Aussies, with leading hopes Cameron Smith and Adam Scott way down the field, tied for 45th place heading into today's second round.