McKinney Pool Partier Sues for $5 Million. Surely the words “McKinney pool party” is enough for most to recall the 2015 video of police officers responding to a disturbance at a community pool in Craig Ranch. The most memorable moment of the clip, viewed nearly 13 million times on YouTube, is when officer Eric Casebolt pins a 15-year-old girl to the ground. Casebolt resigned four days later, but the incident made national news and continues to haunt the city of McKinney. Last June the teenager involved, Dajerria Becton, sought a $2.5 million settlement. The city did not make the deal. Now, Becton’s attorney has filed a $5 million lawsuit against Casebolt, McKinney, and the police department, citing mental anguish and loss of quality of life.
Rex Tillerson Cuts Ties to Exxon Mobil. After retiring from the company on December 31, Tillerson reached an agreement with Exxon’s board of directors on Tuesday evening in an effort to comply with the conflict-of-interest requirements necessary for his confirmation as Trump’s secretary of state. The DMN reports that if Tillerson is confirmed, “Exxon will transfer into the trust the value of more than 2 million deferred shares that Tillerson would have received over the next 10 years.” The estimate of that value: $181.78 million.
The Bushes Will Attend Trump’s Inauguration. George and Laura may not have voted for Donald Trump, but the former president and former first lady announced they are “pleased to witness the peaceful transfer of power” on January 20th.
Alexa Costs Local Parents a Couple Hundred Bucks. A personal note: My husband got the smart-home device Amazon Echo Dot for Christmas, and Alexa, the Siri-like know-it-all, has quickly become a member of the family. The only problem being that every time I ask Alexa to play music, my three-year-old finds it hilarious to chime in and yell “Alexa turn it off!” So she does. And apparently I’m not the only one who’s had some kid-related Alexa issues. Recently, a Dallas family unknowingly bought a 4-pound tin of cookies and a $170 dollhouse all because their daughter had a chat with the digital assistant.
