2024 is almost over. It has been a crazy year, but it’s not over yet. Everytime you turned on the news or looked at your phone, a new story was breaking and everyone was talking about it. Here are a few of those stories that will make 2024 a year to remember.
Karen Read Trial
The backstory of this trial dates back to 2022, when Karen Read’s boyfriend John O’Keefe was found dead outside a friend’s home in Canton, Massachusetts. Karen Read was arraigned and charged with murder. Her criminal trial began in April of this year and lasted for three months until the verdict ended in a hung jury and Karen Read was not charged with her boyfriend’s murder. The trial made local headlines here in Massachusetts as well as national headlines throughout 2024. Read is still facing a civil lawsuit from O’Keefe’s family but is presumed innocent until proven guilty.
Menendez Brothers: Up For Parole?
From one murder case to another, this one stretches back three decades, when brothers Erik and Lyle Menendez were convicted of killing their parents in 1996. But in October of this year, Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascon began reviewing an appeal that could make the brothers eligible for parole. However George Gascon was voted out and new D.A. Nathan Hochman has not said whether he would appeal the Menendez brother’s conviction.
Laken Riley’s Murder and Her Killer’s Conviction
In February 2024, a 22-year old Georgia nursing student named Laken Riley was beaten and killed while on a morning jog. Her slayer was eventually found to be Jose Ibarra, who has a lengthy criminal history and was convicted in November for the murder and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Helene and Milton
In September 2024, category four hurricane Helene swept through the southeast of the United States. The 140 mile per hour wind caused over $100 billion in damage and the deaths of at least 234 people across seven states. It was the deadliest hurricane since Maria in 2017. Later in October, as the south was recovering from Helene, Hurricane Milton formed in the Atlantic Ocean and swept Florida and Georgia as a category three storm, causing $85 billion in damage and 35 fatalities.
Biden Drops Out
Following a lackluster debate performance and the lowest approval rating of his term, President Joe Biden announced he would not seek a second term as president and dropped out of the 2024 race in July, becoming the first president to not seek reelection since Lyndon Johnson in 1968. Biden endorsed his vice president Kamala Harris and she was officially nominated at the Democratic National Convention in August.
Total Solar Eclipse
In April 2024, the first total solar eclipse since 2017 stretched across Mexico, Canada and the United States. While visible to nearly the entirety of the continent, only about 44 million people were in the path of totality from Durango, Mexico to Newfoundland, Canada. The next total eclipse to cross America will be in August 2044.
Jake Paul v. Mike Tyson
In November, influencer Jake Paul and boxing legend Mike Tyson met in the ring in a highly-anticipated fight promoted for over a year. This was Tyson’s first fight since 2005 and over 60 million people worldwide tuned in to watch the match, a milestone for the sport. It also made over $80 million. Despite being a poorly received match due to Tyson’s older age and “ring rust”, the boxing bout was still made to be a history event.
Election 2024
The quadrennial presidential election on November 5th saw the non-consecutive reelection of Donald Trump, the first since Grover Cleveland in 1892. It was the first election since 2004 in which a Republican presidential candidate won the popular vote. Republicans also won the Senate and House of Representatives.
UnitedHealthcare CEO killed
In a shocking recent development, the now former CEO of UnitedHealthcare Brian Thompson was brutally killed in the early morning of December 4th by an unknown assailant in New York City. The killer escaped New York and was found by police days later in a rural Pennsylvania McDonald’s with anti-capitalist manifesto, and his internet history was found to have been very radical with the killer seemingly praising Unabomber Ted Kaczinsky. Almost immediately, anti-healthcare advocates began praising the murderer and defending his actions.
