With Ana Hummel filling in for Dawn Stensland, we move through the recurring Dawn’s Big Three portion of the morning while Ana expands her stack into what the crew teases as her “Big 12.” Music and history start the hour with Elvis Presley, Jimi Hendrix, Ringo Starr, Mötley Crüe and the August 18 ratification of the 19th Amendment. Congressional candidate Elijah Manley’s attack on Debbie Wasserman Schultz in Florida’s 20th District follows just as Linda Kearns arrives carrying funeral cupcakes for the anniversary of Elvis Presley’s death.
Ana then brings a string of stories that includes Gannon Jacox and Brooklyn Hicks being accused of barging into another family’s cruise cabin and attacking them, rising exemptions from kindergarten vaccination requirements and Unitree’s “Superman” humanoid robot, which the company says can sprint faster than Usain Bolt’s top speed. The robot story sends us into the prospect of robot athletic competitions, Olympic events and curling before the news turns far more serious.
Nick Reiner’s effort to gain access to a $1.5 million trust while facing charges in the deaths of his parents leads Rooney and Linda into the legal questions surrounding California’s slayer statute. We then turn to the Tupac Shakur murder trial, where prosecutors say Duane “Keffe D” Davis helps orchestrate the 1996 shooting while his defense attacks his own prior statements and memoir. The lawyers explain why defendants should stop talking publicly, compare the memoir issue with O.J. Simpson’s If I Did It, and discuss how a claimed confession in a book or music could be handled before the crew closes out the morning and hands the studio to Linda.
