Friday to Sunday May 26-28, 2023

The San Juan Star

Justice Chief: Abortion Bill Not ‘Tempered to’ Age of Consent

Getting

Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Top 5 Places to Visit in San Juan

Military Spending Emerges as Key Dispute in Debt Limit Talks

Governor to Submit Draft Amendments to Budget Approved by Fiscal Board

GOOD MORNING

The San Juan Daily Star, the only paper with News Service in English in Puerto Rico, publishes 7 days a week, with a Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday edition, along with a Weekend Edition to cover Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

Governor to submit draft amendments to budget approved by fiscal board

By THE STAR STAFF

Gov. Pedro Pierluisi Urrutia announced Thursday that he will submit a draft of amendments to the budget approved by the Financial Oversight and Management Board, in order to address various items.

“We will continue to work with the Legislative Assembly to ensure that the funds go to where our people need them, and we will submit a draft of amendments to the budget resolution submitted to address these discrepancies that we have with the Board,” the governor said in a message broadcast by WIPR. “We are confident that we will be able to pass a consensus budget that benefits our people. You can count on my government to continue to work tirelessly for every citizen of this beautiful land.”

INDEX

and improvements and rehabilitation of facilities of the Department of Health, including in public hospitals and in the residences of medical students,” Pierliuisi said in his message. “Meanwhile, we obtained additional resources to continue improving public safety facilities, and for the acquisition of equipment for our police, paramedics and firefighters. We also secured $76 million for the new boat terminal in Ceiba, repairs to maritime transportation vessels and improvements in the port of San Juan.”

Pierluisi noted that among the amendments, he will seek to eliminate the responsibility of the municipalities in the contribution to the government Health Plan, and to secure additional funds beyond the minimum required by law to support the University of Puerto Rico, particularly for the Resident Medical Program and to meet its accreditations, its infrastructure and its student recruitment plans.

“The board has submitted a budget resolution for the General Fund of the Government of Puerto Rico to the Legislative Assembly. In the executive branch we agree with the amount of the budget, which totals $12.47 billion and is the largest in our history. In large part, it is an adequate budget that will allow us to prioritize essential services to our people, particularly in light of the growth of our economy and the increase in government revenues,” the governor said. “However, there are several areas in which it will be necessary to improve the budget submitted by the board to ensure that it reflects the needs and priorities of our people, as well as to enforce the public policy of our government.”

The submitted budget invests over $170 million to expand and improve the Public Service Reform in terms of salary increases. It also adds $37 million for the implementation of new classification and compensation plans in the judicial branch and provides incremental funding for government oversight agencies.

It also provides more than $20 million to bolster services for older adults, such as foster care and the housekeeping program, and includes funds needed to combat gender-based violence, as well as more resources to support nonprofits that serve vulnerable populations.

“We managed to get the budget to contain about $341 million for the acquisition of medical equipment,

The submitted budget also includes funds to continue supporting initiatives against climate change, for ecological restoration projects such as Caño Martín Peña and for flood control. It also will allow more investment in the promotion of Puerto Rico as a tourist destination and more capital investment. Some $64 million in technology services are also allocated for government interoperability, which the governor said will result in greater efficiencies and savings in the short and long term.

“At our insistence, the board allocates an encompassed item under which we can assist the municipalities and the university,” Pierluisi said. “We agree that concrete actions should be required of municipalities before receiving additional funds, such as administrative efficiencies and initiatives to increase [tax] collections. However, our municipalities have been suffering large cuts for years despite the fact that they are an extension of the government and provide essential services that complement or replace those of the central government, so we have to ensure that they have the resources they need.”

Gov. Pedro Pierluisi

Justice chief: Abortion bill could violate rights of pregnant girls

By THE STAR STAFF

During Thursday’s continuation of public hearings on Senate Bill (SB) 495 held by the Senate Committee on Life and Family Affairs, chaired by Sen. Joanne Rodríguez Veve, Justice Secretary Domingo Emanuelli Hernández testified that continuing with the measure as drafted, without accepting his agency’s recommendations, could violate the rights of young women in matters of abortion.

“This legislative assembly is presenting a bill to recognize rights in this case to unborn children and on the other hand, to protect particularly the safety and welfare of minors,” Rodríguez Veve said. “As for SB 495, I think it is fair to recognize that far from taking away rights, it seeks to regulate them to ensure the protection of minors. Not to remove, but to recognize through a statute the right to life in the womb.”

SB 495 seeks to establish the law to require the intervention of at least one parent or legal custodian of a minor under 18 years of age at the time of consenting to an abortion in Puerto Rico.

As part of his appearance before the committee, the

Justice secretary said that “under an analysis of our Constitution, we understand that continuing with the legislative process of this measure, as drafted and without considering the aspects indicated here, could violate the right to privacy of young Puerto Rican women in matters of abortion.”

At the same time, the Justice chief said in response to questions from Rodríguez Veve that “for me any limitation to a minor seeking an abortion must be very careful and

does not have to be fixed in the age, but in the minor to be discerned and the medical criterion, determine if it was the product of a rape. If you in the Legislature want to put a limitation it would be 16 years, but I would leave it as it is.”

In this regard, Emanuelli Hernández indicated that it should be considered that in the island legal system the minimum age for a minor to legally consent to sexual relations is 16 years. He noted that the provisions of the legislation impose a regulation on all children under 18 years of age.

“In any case, the regulation proposed in SB 495 must be tempered to the age of consent already recognized in Puerto Rico,” Emanuelli Hernández said.

In addition, the Justice secretary pointed out that minors do not have the option to choose the judicial procedure from the beginning. According to Article 7, one of the elements that the minor has to prove to the Court is that “none of the persons whose consent is to be obtained is available or, if available, refuses to give consent.”

“Therefore, in order to avoid a situation of greater vulnerability, the alternative could be granted that, within the regulatory framework provided in the measure, she is allowed to choose to appeal to the court without having to first require the consent of one of her parents,” Emanuelli Hernández said as part of his recommendations on the measure.

House takes up bill that would limit transgender athletes’ participation

By THE STAR STAFF

The House Social Welfare Committee on Thursday launched hearings on House Bill 764, which seeks to stop transgender athletes from participating on sports teams made up of the gender with which they identify. The measure provides that any sports team from a public school or public university, or that competes against them, can only establish rosters made up exclusively of biological males, or females, or mixed membership.

“It is necessary and urgent for us to advocate for women’s rights in sports and fight to prevent the displacement of each one and the loss of their rights,” Committee Chairwoman Rep. Lisie Burgos Muñiz said. “Therefore, I am not willing to give in in any way in the search to guarantee the rights of women.”

The bill focuses on women’s sports leagues since women’s sports, the bill’s proponents say, have been threatened internationally due to the participation of males on female teams and delegations.

Similarly, the legislation entitled “Law to

Save Women’s Sports” explicitly establishes that “no school or academic institution will admit males as members of a sports team made up exclusively of persons of the female sex.”

During the hearing, attorney Fabiola Acaron Porrata-Doria and Sandra Mercado of Female Athletes Asking for Equality (FAPI) both endorsed the legislation and emphasized their rejection of the participation of trans women in sporting events who wish to compete against biological women.

“Placing a woman to compete against a trans person who has had their puberty period developed would place the woman at a disadvantage,” Porrata-Doria said.

“Our goal is to exalt the presence of anyone who wishes to compete at the level that satisfies them, as long as particular measures are taken to ensure fair competition and representation,” she added. “We must not foster inequality and assimilate biodiversity as a factual reality.”

Any dispute about a student-athlete arising from the measure will be resolved by the school or university institution to which the student

belongs, according to the bill’s language.

Likewise under the legislation, no government entity, accreditation or licensing agency, or athletic association or organization, may

hear complaints, open investigations, or take any other adverse action against a school or university institution for maintaining separate sports teams for female students.

Sen. Joanne Rodríguez Veve

Rep. Lisie Burgos Muñiz

June 6 hearing set to estimate size of PREPA bonded-debt claim payment

By THE STAR STAFF

The federal Title III bankruptcy court will conduct a hearing on June 6 to estimate the size of the debt the bankrupt Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (PREPA) can pay to its bondholders, who are insisting on payment in full of the more than $8 billion in bonded debt.

U.S. District Court Judge Laura Taylor Swain, who is overseeing PREPA’s bankruptcy process, said the parties’ expert witnesses will be required to proffer their direct testimony in the form of declarations, which must be filed by June 1. PREPA has been in bankruptcy since 2017 to restructure close to $10 billion in debt.

As expected, the Financial Oversight and Management Board and the bondholders are at odds as to the amounts the bankrupt electric utility can pay back to the bondholders.

Maureen M. Chakraborty, the expert witness for the PREPA Ad Hoc Group of Bondholders, submitted a report in which she forecasted the amount of surplus revenues PREPA could collect from the bankruptcy petition date, July 2, 2017, until the PREPA Bonds were repaid. The surplus revenues are defined as revenues PREPA could reasonably be capable of collecting each year by increasing electricity rates while keeping them affordable, minus the expenses contemplated in the Financial

Oversight and Management Board 2017 fiscal plan. Chakraborty calculated debt service payments as the surplus revenues applied to the bondholders’ claim and conducted other mathematical calculations.

She concluded that PREPA could generate surplus revenues sufficient to fully pay outstanding principal and interest on the PREPA bonds as of the petition date as well as further interest accrued during the repayment period.

“Under the most conservative scenario that I modeled, complete repayment occurs

approximately 36 years after the petition date and the nominal amount of cumulative Surplus Revenue paid on principal and interest to bondholders totals $19.91 billion,” Chakraborty said. “Under the least conservative assumptions that I modeled, complete repayment occurs approximately 25 years after the petition date and the nominal amount of cumulative Surplus Revenue paid on principal and interest to bondholders totals $15.96 billion.”

She also estimated the net present value (NPV) of the cash flows used to fully repay outstanding bonds.

“The NPV of the cash flows associated with repaying the Bondholders’ Claim as of the Petition Date ranges from $8.39 billion to $8.56 billion for my most conservative scenario and my least conservative scenario, respectively,” she said in her report.

The PREPA debt plan proposes to restructure PREPA’s debt principally through an issuance of $5.68 billion of new bonds to fund partial recoveries on creditors’ claims. PREPA owns about $8.26 billion in revenue bonds, plus some $218 million in prepetition accrued interest on such bonds. The utility also owns $700 million in fuel line loans and projects some $246 million to $4.9 billion in general unsecured claims. It also has over $3 billion in unfunded pension liabilities.

Under the proposed plan, PREPA will pay for the new bonds over a 35-year period through revenues from a legacy charge to PREPA’s customers. but the board has said an affordable and sustainable legacy charge will generate only $5.68 billion in additional net revenues. The plan imposes a legacy charge for certain customers not currently benefiting from subsidized electricity rates that would be, on average, about $19 a month that will be added to the utility bill. The PREPA legacy charge, which will be used to pay bondholders, would exclude qualifying low-income residential customers from a connection fee and kilowatt-hour (kWh) charge for up to 500 kWh per month. For non-subsidized residential customers, the proposed PREPA legacy charge would be: a flat $13 per month connection fee, and 75 cents per kWh for up to 500 kWh per month of electricity provided by PREPA, and 3 cents per kWh for electricity above 500 kWh per month.

For commercial, industrial and government customers, the PREPA legacy proposed charge would entail: a connection fee of between $16.25 for small business customers, $20 per month for smaller industrial companies, and $1,800 per month for large businesses proportional to their current rate. They will pay between 97 cents and 3 cents per kWh per month for electricity provided by PREPA.

National Weather Service predicts 12-17 named storms for this season

By THE STAR STAFF

The National Weather Service (NWS) on Thursday released the 2023 hurricane season forecast for the Atlantic Ocean predicting a possibility of the formation of 12 to 17 named storms and five to nine hurricanes, of which between one and four could be severe.

Man charged with femicide in Naguabo slaying

By THE STAR STAFF

The Puerto Rico Police Police Bureau and the island Department of Justice said Thursday that criminal charges have been filed against Jeison Rijos Martínez, 23, of Naguabo, who is charged with the crimes of femicide, destruction of evidence and Weapons Law violations in connection with the discovery of the body of a woman in an abandoned residence in the eastern coastal town.

According to the police report, the victim was identified as Judith Torres Pantoja, 40. It is believed that Rijos

Martínez, using a knife, killed Torres Pantoja, with whom he had had an intimate relationship.

Officials said the charges were consulted with prosecutor Daniel Feliciano of the Specialized Unit on Gender Violence, who instructed authorities to file the corresponding charges.

The evidence was presented before Judge Carlos Capó of the Court of Humacao, who determined cause for arrest and set bail at $3 million, which was not provided, according to the police report. Rijos Martínez will remain in a prison institution until the preliminary hearing on June 7.

Among the names that are in line to be used this season are: Arlene, Bret, Cindy, Don, Emily, Franklin, Gert, Harold, Idalia, Jose, Katia, Lee, Margot, Nigel, Ophelia, Philippe, Rina, Sean, Tammy, Vince and Whitney.

The report does not contemplate the areas of impact, if any. However, as the NWS always insists, “you have to prepare, because you only need one.”

U.S. District Court Judge Laura Taylor Swain

Lin-Manuel Miranda’s San Juan

awards — Tonys, Grammys, a Pulitzer — to the Galería. With one notable exception.

“For Christmas, my dad gave me the Emmy I won for ‘Hamilton’ — it got sent to his house nine months prior. He was like, ‘We found it was in our house, so merry Christmas!’ I was like, ‘Your gift is an award I won?’” said Miranda, laughing so hard he had trouble getting the words out. “So I still have the ‘Hamilton’ Emmy … because I got it for Christmas.”

Here are five of Miranda’s favorite places to visit in and around San Juan.

1. Hotel El Convento

When he was a “young, almost adult,” Miranda said, “I would rent a car and drive around Old San Juan myself and just take it all in — the colonial buildings, the cobblestone streets.”

The ocean lapping at these shores is especially gentle. “The waves are so chill, you can let the kids and the dog run around, and it’s so easy to get into and out of the water in Puerto Rico. I just see that coastline, and it’s home.”

4. Café Manolín

“Cafe Manolín is the best example of great Puerto Rican food,” Miranda said of the upscale diner in Old San Juan that he counts as a recent discovery — “it’s already my new old hang,” he said. “You’re going to get plantains in some form, whether you want them sweet as maduros or salted and fried. You’re going to get a rice — could be white rice, it could be brown rice. And you’re going to get beans — you could get red beans, you could get black beans, you could get lentils.”

“Those are the food groups in my experience in Puerto Rico: rice, beans, plantains, meat,” he said. “For me: white rice with red beans and maduros — I like plantains sweet

By DANIELLE PERGAMENT

“When I was a kid, my bond was really with my grandparents,” said Lin-Manuel Miranda, a songwriter, actor, director and producer. “I would go to Puerto Rico with my family for a month every year. As my sister and I got older, I guess you could say we got sent there for a month a year.”

Those months went on to inform

Miranda’s taste in food, art and culture. “I didn’t stay in a hotel, I stayed in town, I ate Puerto Rican food. That’s different than being a tourist.”

Over the years, Miranda has become one of the most prominent advocates for Puerto Rico. Next month, he will bring his musical “Hamilton” back to San Juan’s Centro de Bellas Artes Luis A. Ferré for two weeks, hosting a fundraiser to support the Hispanic Federation and the Flamboyan Foundation, a charity devoted to educational equity in Puerto Rico.

Miranda’s San Juan is one with a lot of history and authenticity — and, of course, one that leans heavily into the arts, including two places of special importance to the composer: Placita de Güisin, a community space with shops and food, and Galería LinManuel Miranda, with exhibitions dedicated to Miranda’s art and his family history. Miranda has donated most of his

One of those buildings was also one of his favorite luxury hotels: Hotel El Convento, a former convent that dates back to the 17th century. It’s a “charming hotel overlooking the bay,” he said, adding that “the hotel’s Spanish Colonial architecture serves as a reminder of the archipelago’s past.” It’s also “steps from the beating heart of the city’s nightlife and historic sites.”

2. Centro de Bellas

Artes Luis A. Ferré

A few years ago, Miranda performed “Hamilton” in the theater of the Centro de Bellas Artes Luis A. Ferré and recently returned for the unveiling of a new mural by Éktor Rivera, dedicated to Rita Moreno. “It is gorgeous,” he said of the center. “I saw a production of ‘West Side Story’ there, and there’s always something going on.”

“When we were doing ‘Hamilton,’ there was a kid’s Christmas production sharing backstage space with us — you really feel part of the theater community on the island when you’re there,” he said.

3. Cerro Gordo Beach

“This is where all my childhood summer pictures are,” said Miranda of the generous stretch of sand in Vega Alta about half an hour from the center of San Juan. He would spend most of his time at his grandparents’ house while they worked, but occasionally in summer, “we’d go to the beach — and it’s beautiful. It’s my childhood beach.”

— and chicken or steak chicharrones.”

5. The Puerto Rico Museum of Art

For years, Miranda has been active in raising money for the arts and arts organizations in Puerto Rico, and “one of the things we discovered was that there’s a treasure trove of Puerto Rican art from the 17th century onward that was just sitting in vaults,” he says. “Not a lot of it is being displayed.”

The Puerto Rico Museum of Art, in the Santurce neighborhood, opened in 2000, although the new permanent collection didn’t open until 2019. “They have an exhibit from the 17th century to current masters, and you really see a through line,” Miranda said. “It’s wild to see techniques that were celebrated all over the world and how they manifested in Puerto Rico, with a local Puerto Rican flavor — even in a portrait of a governor from the 17th century.”

Lin-Manuel Miranda on a coffee farm that benefits from his philanthropic efforts, in Jayuya, Puerto Rico, Oct. 24, 2018. (Christopher Gregory/The New York Times)

Cerro Gordo Beach, Lin-Manuel Miranda says, “is where all my childhood summer pictures are,” in Vega Alta, about a halfhour from the center of San Juan, Puerto Rico, May 5, 2023. (Sebastian Castrodad/The New York Times)

A photo provided by Hotel El Convento shows the hotel, a former convent building that dates to the 17th century, in Old San Juan, Puerto Rico. (Hotel El Convento via The New York Times)

Military spending emerges as big dispute in debt-limit talks

By JIM TANKERSLEY

Funding for the military has emerged as a key sticking point in reaching an agreement to raise the nation’s borrowing limit and prevent a catastrophic default, with Republicans pushing to spare the Defense Department from spending caps and make deeper cuts to domestic programs like education.

President Joe Biden has balked at that demand, pointing to a long series of past budget agreements that either cut or increased military spending in tandem with discretionary programs outside of defense.

How the sides resolve that issue will be critical for the final outcome of any debt deal. It remains possible that in order to reach a deal that prevents a default, Democrats will accept an agreement that allows military spending to grow even as nondefense spending falls or stays flat.

Biden’s aides and congressional Republicans deputized by Speaker Kevin McCarthy are trying to negotiate an agreement to lift the borrowing limit before the government runs out of money to pay its bills on time, which could be as soon as June 1. Republicans have refused to raise the limit unless Biden agrees to cuts in federal spending outside of the military.

The talks over spending cuts have narrowed in focus to mostly cover a relatively small corner of the budget — what is known as discretionary spending. That spending is split into two parts. One is money for the military, which the Congressional Budget Office estimates will total $792 billion for the current fiscal year. The other half funds a wide range of domestic programs, like Head Start preschool and college Pell Grants, and federal agencies like the Interior and Energy departments. It will total $919 billion this year, the budget office estimates.

A separate category known as mandatory spending has largely been deemed off-limits in the talks. That spending, which is the primary driver of future spending growth, includes programs like Social Security and Medicare.

Administration officials have proposed freezing both halves of discretionary spending for next year. That would amount to a budget cut, compared with projected

spending, under the way the budget office accounts for spending levels. Spending for both parts of the discretionary budget would be allowed to grow at just 1% for the 2025 fiscal year. That could also amount to a budget cut, since 1% would almost certainly be less than the rate of inflation. That proposal would save about $1 trillion over the span of a decade, compared with current budget office forecasts.

Republicans rejected that plan at the bargaining table. They are pushing to cut nondefense spending in nominal terms — meaning, spend fewer dollars on it next year than the government spent this year. They also want to allow military spending to continue to grow.

“It just sends a bad message, and Republicans feel like it would not be in our best interest to cut spending at this juncture, when you’re looking at China and Russia and a lot of instability around the world,” said Rep. Robert Aderholt, R-Ala., who sits on an Appropriations panel that oversees Pentagon spending. “That’s been the basic position that most Republicans have.”

McCarthy sounded a similar note when speaking to reporters Thursday. “Look, we’re always looking where we could find

savings and others, but we live in a very dangerous world,” he said. He added, “I think the Pentagon has to actually have more resources.”

Republicans included 10-year caps on discretionary spending in a bill they passed last month that also raised the debt ceiling through next year, and party leaders said they would exempt the military from those caps. Biden has vowed to veto the bill if it passes the Senate in its current form, which is unlikely.

White House officials have hammered Republicans over concentrating their proposed discretionary savings on domestic programs, saying their bill would gut spending on border enforcement, some veterans’ care, Meals on Wheels for older Americans and a host of other popular programs.

“House Republicans have been very clear how they see moving forward and the cuts that they’ve put forth — those 22% cuts in veterans’ and health care and public safety — that’s going to hurt American families,” Karine Jean-Pierre, the White House press secretary, said this month.

Congressional Democrats, including members of committees that oversee military spending, have attacked Republi-

cans for focusing largely on nondefense programs.

“If you’re going to freeze discretionary spending, there’s no reason on earth why defense shouldn’t be part of that conversation,” said Rep. Adam Smith of Washington, the top Democrat on the Armed Services Committee. Republicans, he said, “are taking a hostage to advance their very narrow agenda. I’m not a fan of that. That’s not something I’m going to want to support.”

Any agreement that increased military spending while freezing or cutting other discretionary spending would break from a budget deal tradition that dates to 2011, when House Republicans refused to raise the debt limit until President Barack Obama agreed to spending cuts. The deal that avoided default was centered on spending caps that split their reductions evenly between defense and nondefense programs.

The push to increase military funding while cutting more heavily elsewhere reflects a divide in the House Republican caucus. It includes a large faction of defense hawks who say the military budget is too small, alongside another large faction of spending hawks who want to significantly shrink the fiscal footprint of the federal government.

McCarthy needs both factions to retain his hold on the speakership, which he narrowly won this year after a marathon week of efforts to secure the votes. And he will need to navigate them both as he tries to pass any debt limit agreement with Biden through the House.

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), left, and President Joe Biden speak to reporters at the White House in Washington this week as debt-limit talks continued.

By JONATHAN SWAN, SHANE GOLDMACHER and MAGGIE HABERMANE

Gov. Ron DeSantis’ glitch-marred 2024 debut on Twitter was a distraction from his chance to introduce himself as a serious contender to take down former President Donald Trump.

It was a much-anticipated moment for the Florida governor to reset after months of dropping in the polls, which made the painfully long 20-plus minutes of Twitter malfunctions on Wednesday all the more disappointing to his supporters.

For all the media attention on the Twitter fiasco — The Daily Mail called it a “De-Saster,” Fox News a “disaster,” Breitbart News a “DeBacle” — DeSantis appeared to have later found his footing on the familiar airwaves of Fox News, a far more traditional — and effective — method of communicating to primary voters. His appearance there was the first time he laid out a substantive case for what a DeSantis presidency would look like.

Still, it was a night his team will be eager to put behind them. And it highlighted both DeSantis’potential successes as a candidate but also a campaign still in formation while under intense attack from a dominant Republican front-runner.

Here are five takeaways.

Taking risks on twitter backfired

The delay was longer than some campaign speeches.

For more than 25 minutes, Twitter wheezed its way through what was supposed to be DeSantis’ grand pronouncement of his 2024 candidacy, with long stretches of dead air interrupted by frantic, hot-mic whispers before they pulled the plug and started over.

A presidential announcement is the rarest of opportunities. It is the moment when a candidate can draw all the attention on themselves and their vision. Instead, DeSantis wound up almost as a panelist at his own event, sharing the stage with Elon Musk and his malfunctioning social media site.

Fox News splashed a banner headline at one point on

Five takeaways from a rocky 2024 debut

its website that featured a photo of Musk, not DeSantis. “Want to actually see and hear Ron DeSantis?” read a breaking news alert on the site. “Tune into Fox News.”

Even in advance, the decision to begin his campaign on Twitter with Musk had drawn mixed reviews. It was innovative, yes — and a chance to reach a potentially huge online audience — but also risky.

The technically challenged result obscured some of DeSantis’ arguments and sapped him of listeners, and potential donors. For a candidate whose promise of competence is a Republican selling point, it was a less-than-ideal first impression. Trump and President Joe Biden both mercilessly mocked the rollout.

His aides said DeSantis raised $1 million in an hour, a sizable amount but far from the record for a presidential kickoff, with no details provided about how many individual donors gave small contributions.

Biden’s campaign was also seeking to capitalize, buying Google ads to show Biden donation pages for those searching for terms like “DeSantis disaster” and “DeSantis flop.”

The candidate of educated right-wingers

The DeSantis-Musk discussion on Twitter meandered at times into a cul-de-sac of the hyper-online right.

Here’s a taste of the highly ideological and wonky message DeSantis delivered:

“Some of the problems with the university and the ideological capture — that didn’t happen by accident, you can trace back all the way to the accreditation cartels. Well, guess what? To become an accreditor, how do you do that? You’ve got to get approved by the U.S. Department of Education. So we’re going to be doing alternative accreditation regimes, where instead of saying, ‘You will only get accredited if you do DEI,’ you’ll have an accreditor that will say, ‘We will not accredit you if you do DEI. We want a colorblind, merit-based accreditation scheme.’”

Got that?

DeSantis repeatedly highlighted his blue-collar roots. But it has long been apparent that DeSantis polls far better with college-educated Republicans than he does among those without college degrees, who heavily favor Trump and form the increasingly rural base of the Republican Party. And his campaign introduction night showed why that’s the case.

The conversation detoured into complaints about the horrors of The Atlantic and Vanity Fair magazines and into discussions of cryptocurrencies and the “de-banking” of “politically incorrect businesses.”

Later, in his interview with Trey Gowdy on Fox News, DeSantis rattled off acronyms — ESG (environmental, social and governance investing) was just one — without explaining what they meant.

DeSantis is ready to hit Trump — only indirectly

DeSantis made clear on Wednesday that he isn’t ready to punch Trump just yet — but he signaled where he will aim once he does.

He went through the Twitter Spaces session and two interviews — one on Fox News with Gowdy, his former congressional colleague, and the other on the radio with conservative host Mark Levin — without uttering Trump’s name. (The word

did come out of his mouth at one point: “Merit must trump identity politics,” the governor said during the Twitter talk.)

DeSantis blamed the Federal Reserve — Jerome Powell was appointed the Fed’s chair by Trump — for exacerbating inflation. And he said he would fire the FBI director, Christopher Wray, another Trump appointee, on Day 1. (A Trump senior adviser noted on Twitter that DeSantis publicly supported the selection of Wray at the time.)

DeSantis took his sharpest jab at Trump in the final moments with Gowdy, who asked him what he would say to candidates who may not want to debate. It was a clear reference to Trump, who has indicated he may skip one or both of the first Republican debates. DeSantis, who needs the debates in order to have breakout moments, called for people to take part.

“Nobody’s entitled to anything in this world, Trey, you’ve got to earn it,” DeSantis said. “That’s exactly what I intend to do, and I think the debates are a big part of the process.”

DeSantis made his case as a China hawk

DeSantis previewed his hard-line policies to confront the Chinese Communist Party. While Trump focused largely on the trade dimension of the relationship during his presidency, DeSantis talked more broadly about countering China’s influence, territorial expansion and military ambitions.

On Fox News, DeSantis called for a 21st-century version of the Monroe Doctrine to counter China’s influence in Latin America. The Monroe Doctrine, laid out by President James Monroe in the early 19th century, warned European countries not to colonize America’s backyard.

DeSantis also said the U.S. needed to form stronger partnerships with India, Australia and other allies to counter Chinese expansion in the Pacific. And he called for the reshoring of critical manufacturing — saying the U.S. was too closely mingled, economically, with China.

DeSantis plans broad use of executive power

DeSantis laid the groundwork for what his allies say will be one of his most important contrasts against Trump: his skill in using power effectively.

In his Twitter Spaces live chat, DeSantis talked about his extensive record of enacting conservative policies as governor in Florida. He cited his talent for using governmental power for conservative ends. He said he had studied the “different leverage points under Article 2” of the Constitution and would put that knowledge to work if elected president. On Fox News, he repeated his plans to use Article 2 to remake the government.

DeSantis hinted that he would be more heavy-handed than Trump was with the federal bureaucracy. It is part of one of his core arguments: that not only will he fight harder than Trump but that he’ll deliver sweeping change where the former president fell short.

In his interview on Fox News, he portrayed the FBI as one of many federal agencies run amok, and said he would exert much stronger control over the entire Justice Department.

He rejected the notion that presidents should view these agencies as independent and said if, as president, he learned that FBI officials were colluding with tech companies — a reference to requests by government officials to Twitter to take down content viewed as harmful — then “everybody involved with that would be fired.”

Gov. Ron DeSantis during an event at Liberty University in Lynchburg, Va, on April 14, 2023. Ron DeSantis’s official run for the White House got off to an embarrassing start as the planned livestream with Twitter was marred by technical problems and dead air.

In capitols and courthouses, no end to national divide over gun policy

By SHAILA DEWAN

Less than a month after 19 children and two teachers died in the elementary school shooting last year in Uvalde, Texas, the U.S. Senate passed the most significant gun control bill since the long-expired federal ban on assault weapons.

The very same day, June 23, the Supreme Court upended gun policy in jurisdictions with some of the country’s strictest laws, like New York; Washington, D.C.; and California, saying for the first time that people have the right to carry guns outside their homes.

In a country already raw with anger over gun policy, the new law from Congress and the sweeping decision by the Supreme Court only intensified the national fight over guns, spurring fresh legal challenges and legislative debates in courts and statehouses across the country.

And in the year since Uvalde — the deadliest school shooting since the 2012 massacre in Newtown, Connecticut — both sides of the issue have made gains and endured setbacks as they seek to define the role of guns in American life.

From Colorado to Michigan to New Jersey, proponents of gun regulation have passed laws intended to limit access to firearms or blunt the effects of the Supreme Court case, New York State Rifle & Pistol Association Inc. v. Bruen.

Opponents have moved swiftly to contest many such restrictions, using Bruen as the basis for one court challenge after another. And in states that were already gun-friendly, gun rights groups have worked to further expand access to firearms.

In April, Florida became the largest state besides Texas to do away with permit requirements, joining the broad swath of the country where it has become easier than ever to carry a gun.

Even in the face of such striking changes, gun control supporters say their side is gaining ground. They point to a succession of legislative wins and to polls showing increasing public support for some degree of regulation. A poll released Wednesday by NPR, PBS and Marist College found that 60% of Americans, including 4 in 10 who own guns, think it is more important to control gun violence than to protect gun rights.

In the past week, Minnesota and Michigan became the 20th and 21st states to enact red flag laws designed to keep firearms out of the hands of people who are at risk of

Demonstrators confront gun enthusiasts as they enter the NRA annual convention in Houston, Texas, just days after the shooting in Uvalde, on May 28, 2022. In the year since Uvalde — the deadliest school shooting since the 2012 massacre in Newtown, Conn. — both sides of the issue have made gains and endured setbacks as they seek to define the role of guns in American life.

harming themselves or others. In New York last August, the state established gun-free zones in sensitive areas like Times Square. And in New Jersey in December, the governor signed into law a long list of places where guns were not permitted.

The court challenges to some of those laws have been swift. In New York, a federal judge blocked parts of the law, but it has remained in effect while the state appeals. And just last week, a federal judge issued a preliminary injunction blocking many provisions of the New Jersey law. The judge said the state could not forbid guns in many of the settings set forth in the new law, including bars, doctors’ offices and zoos, though private business owners could chose to do so.

Dudley Brown, the president of the National Association for Gun Rights, which opposes any restrictions on gun ownership, said the Bruen decision was a bulwark against regulation and would help his organization win a host of lawsuits against gun restrictions.

But he said that even with the Bruen ruling, a monumental victory in the Supreme Court, the fight would be playing out for years in state legislatures and lower courts that now have to interpret the decision. “It often feels like one step forward, two steps back,” he said.

Public opinion has long favored limiting access to guns, with the share of Americans

saying that “laws covering the sale of firearms should be made more strict” rarely dipping below half, according to Gallup. After the Uvalde shooting, the share rose to two-thirds of Americans.

And gun control advocates have learned from their defeats, organizing and building political infrastructure. “I worked in Congress for many years. I was never lobbied by a representative of a gun safety organization,” said Peter Ambler, referring to groups like the one he now directs, the Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, that support limiting access to firearms. Now, Ambler said, such

organizations have public opinion on their side and clout on Capitol Hill.

Mass shootings have brought days of fiery protests even to statehouses where gun rights have long been sacrosanct, like Austin, Texas, where the families of Uvalde victims waited long hours to testify; and Nashville, Tennessee, where thousands of people clamored for an assault weapons ban, a red flag law and other gun control measures after three adults and three children were fatally shot by an assailant at the Covenant School in March.

Gun regulation advocates say that red flag laws could prevent shootings like the one in Nashville, in which the suspect identified by the police had been in treatment for an emotional disorder and had recently purchased seven guns.

But the Legislature took no action, other than expelling two Democratic lawmakers who took the protest to the chamber floor. Now Gov. Bill Lee, a Republican, is saying that he will call lawmakers to a special session in August to address public safety. “There is broad agreement that action is needed,” the governor said in a statement.

Some gun control advocates say that efforts to make it easier to carry guns can coexist with measures that keep guns out of the hands of those who intend to do harm. “Laws that actually use a scalpel to really identify risk, and laws that can prevent that risk from turning into mayhem, is the most important thing to focus on,” said John Feinblatt, the president of Everytown for Gun Safety, a gun control group founded by Michael Bloomberg, the billionaire media magnate and former New York City mayor. “This can’t be a referendum on gun ownership. This is a referendum on safety.”

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Elon Musk’s event with Ron DeSantis exposes Twitter’s weaknesses

By RYAN MAC

Hosting Florida’s governor, Ron DeSantis, in a Twitter audio event earlier this week to announce his presidential run was supposed to be a triumphant moment for Elon Musk, the owner of Twitter.

Instead, the event began with more than 20 minutes of technical glitches, hot mic moments and drowned-out and half-said conversations before the livestream abruptly cut out. Minutes later, the livestream restarted as hundreds of thousands of listeners tried to tune in. DeSantis had not said a word at that point.

“That was insane, sorry,” Musk said.

Behind the stop-start Twitter Space, an audio-only livestream on the social network, was a company that has undergone major changes in recent months. Since Musk bought Twitter last year for $44 billion, he has reshaped it by cutting more than 75% of its workforce, changing the platform’s speech rules and reinstating suspended users. Outages have been on the rise, as have bugs that have made Twitter less usable.

The technical problems Wednesday showed how Twitter is operating far from seamlessly, turning what was supposed to be a crowning event for Musk into something of an embarrassment.

DeSantis’ announcement had been an opportunity for Musk, an unpredictable executive with interests in many fields, to promote his multiple agendas. Those included a political coming-out for the billionaire, who has flirted with right-wing accounts and politics for years on Twitter but has never embraced a presidential candidate the way he has the Republican governor. And it was supposed to be a way for Musk to advance his business interests by highlighting Twitter, which he is trying to turn around.

Yet as the Twitter audio livestream faltered, the reaction — including on Twitter itself — was shock and scorn that what should have been a carefully choreographed announcement

“That was insane, sorry,” Elon Musk said after technical glitches marred Twitter Space’s livestream of Gov. Ron DeSantis’s announcement that he is running for president.

of a presidential run had stumbled so badly. The hashtag #Desaster appeared on many posts. Others took potshots at the failure, with President Joe Biden’s personal @JoeBiden account tweeting a donation link with the words, “This link works.”

David Sacks, a tech executive who moderated the audio event with DeSantis and who is a confidant of Musk’s, tried downplaying the technical problems.

“We got so many people here that we are kind of melting the servers, which is a good sign,” he said during the first livestream, which sputtered out.

Musk did not respond to a request for comment.

Inside Twitter, employees had been alarmed by Musk’s turn to politics and whether the social media site could handle the influx of traffic, three employees said. There was no planning for what are known as “site reliability issues” for the event with DeSantis, two of the people said, and workers were prepared to do whatever they could to keep the social network running.

When the audio event began at about 6 p.m. Eastern time, more than 600,000 listeners joined, causing Twitter’s mobile apps and website to sputter or crash, two employees

said. Musk later said that his account, which has 140 million followers and which promoted and launched the livestream, had brought in too many listeners and that Twitter’s systems had been unable to handle them.

Twitter’s systems recovered, the employees said, but the restarted livestream with DeSantis had a smaller audience, with about 275,000 listeners.

Even before the glitches, the event had drawn criticism, especially since Musk has said Twitter is a politically neutral platform. Michael Santoro, a professor of management and entrepreneurship at Santa Clara University, said the event “undermines” the claim of impartiality.

“As the owner of the company, he’s using major resources and power and outreach of the company to express any view,” Santoro said of Musk.

But others said they were not surprised that Musk was trying to mold the social platform in his own image and beliefs.

A self-proclaimed moderate, Musk voted for Democratic presidential candidates like Barack Obama and Biden. But in recent years, he has taken a rightward turn, which has been laid out in full on his Twitter profile. He has posted critically about what he calls the “woke mind virus” affecting Democratic politics, has shared right-wing conspiracy theories and has repeatedly praised DeSantis for nearly a year.

Jason Goldman, a former vice president of product at Twitter, compared Musk’s moves with Twitter to the creation of an echo chamber where has put his own interests front and center.

“He is the moderator, and the content surfaced and promoted is that which is most pleasing to him,” Goldman said.

In recent months, fears about Twitter’s reliability have surfaced repeatedly. After Musk began laying off thousands of its employees last year, many users were so alarmed by the cuts that #RIPTwitter and #GoodbyeTwitter began trending. The company staved off any shutdowns and continued operating, but outages rose.

In February alone, Twitter experienced at least four widespread outages, compared with nine in all of 2022, according to NetBlocks, an organization that tracks internet outages.

The company’s technology operations have become more precarious since November, current and former employees have said. Musk also ended operations at one of Twitter’s three main data centers, slashed the teams that work on the company’s back-end technology such as servers and cloud storage, and eliminated leaders overseeing that area.

On Wednesday, after the Twitter Space restarted, DeSantis finally got the chance to speak. He made his stump speech, then complimented Musk for buying Twitter. He also praised Musk, who often declares his support for free speech, for that commitment and said the Twitter owner would surely make money off his investment in the company.

Musk is “a good businessman,” DeSantis said. And Twitter Spaces, he later added, “is a great platform.”

Nasdaq jumps over 1% as Nvidia forecast sparks AI-driven rally

The tech-heavy Nasdaq rose more than 1% on Thursday as Nvidia shares soared on a blowout forecast that also lifted other AI-related companies, while investors watched for signs of progress in U.S. debt ceiling talks.

Shares of Nvidia Corp NVDA.O, the world’s most valuable listed chip company, jumped 26.3% to hit a record high, after it forecast quarterly revenue 50% higher than estimates and said it was ramping up supply to meet demand for its artificial-intelligence (AI) chips.

Heavyweight AI players such as Microsoft Corp MSFT.O and Alphabet Inc GOOGL.O rose about 3.2% and 2.8%, respectively.

The Philadelphia SE Semiconductor index .SOX advanced 5.9% to its highest level in more than a year and will log its biggest daily percentage rise in more than six months, if gains hold.

“It has become fairly clear that AI is the beginning of a big investment boom and will be solving real problems. They have immediate applications and it also benefits major companies that are already the backbone of the stock market,” said David Russell, vice president of market intelligence at TradeStation.

Other chip companies including Advanced Micro Devices Inc AMD.O, Micron Technology Inc MU.O and Broadcom Inc AVGO.O rose between 3.4% and 10.3%. Intel Corp INTC.O, which has little AI exposure, fell 6.8%, limiting gains for S&P 500 .SPX.

Wall Street’s main indexes have dropped sharply in the last two sessions and could log their worst week in more than two months as investors await clarity on a deal to raise the nation’s $31.4 trillion debt ceiling or risk a default.

U.S. President Joe Biden and Republican lawmaker Kevin McCarthy were edging close to a deal on the U.S. debt ceiling, with the parties just $70 billion apart on discretionary spending, Reuters reported, citing a source familiar with the talks.

Reflecting the market uncertainty, two-year yields US2YT=RR hit their highest since March after ratings agencies Fitch and DBRS Morningstar put the United States on a credit watch for a possible downgrade. US/

Meanwhile, data showed the number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits rose only moderately last week, while a Commerce Department report confirmed economic growth slowed in the first quarter.

Ralph Lauren CorpRL.N rose 8.6% after the luxury retailer beat profit estimates.

Electronics retailer Best Buy Co Inc BBY.N rose 1.2% on upbeat quarterly earnings, while discount store chain Dollar Tree Inc DLTR.O fell 11.3% on cutting its annual profit outlook.

Declining issues outnumbered advancers by a 2.67-to-1 ratio on the NYSE and by a 2.35-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.

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The S&P index recorded nine new 52-week highs and 30 new lows, while the Nasdaq recorded 41 new highs and 124 new lows.

What does Russia’s success in Bakhmut mean for the war in Ukraine?

millions of bottles aged underground in gypsum caves.

Months of artillery bombardment — followed by grinding street battles where soldiers often fought block by block as the Russians closed in — reduced Bakhmut’s leafy streets and apartment buildings to an urban wasteland. All but a few thousand residents have fled. The damage is so severe that Bakhmut has been compared to Aleppo, the Syrian city that was razed during that country’s civil war. What happened?

On Saturday, the head of Russia’s Wagner paramilitary group said that his mercenaries had captured Bakhmut. The following day, the Russian Defense Ministry declared that Bakhmut had fallen, giving partial credit to Wagner forces.

For a time, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine and his military insisted that the fighting was continuing. But on Monday, a deputy Ukrainian defense minister, Hanna Maliar, essentially acknowledged that the city had been lost, saying that the Russians were “mopping up” to clear the remaining Ukrainian soldiers from the ruins.

or wounded in the battle for the city. Ukraine has also suffered substantial losses.

On the Russian side, the soaring death toll reflected the Kremlin’s use of waves of soldiers, including lightly trained new recruits and former convicts who had joined the Wagner paramilitary group, to mount near-suicidal ground assaults to test Ukrainian defenses. Wagner’s founder, Yevgeny Prigozhin, said in an interview published late Tuesday that he had lost 20,000 troops, half of which were former convicts, in the battle. The other half were professional recruits, which Wagner had been forced to rely on as its ill-trained prisoner brigade was depleted by losses. Russian paratroopers and special forces soldiers also joined the fight in recent months.

A State Department spokesperson said the United States believes that Prigozhin’s estimate is a significant undercount of Russia’s casualties in Bakhmut.

Russia has declared victory in its devastating, nearly yearlong assault on Bakhmut, and its Wagner mercenaries have begun to withdraw. Ukraine, whose forces have made small gains on the outskirts, has signaled that it is now focused on making it difficult for Moscow to hold onto the city.

Whatever comes next, Ukraine’s setback in Bakhmut is a significant moment in Russia’s invasion, its first military success since last summer. Ukraine says a small number of its soldiers are still in the eastern city, but has all but conceded that the intense and bloody defense of the city is over.

After Moscow launched its assault on Bakhmut, the city became the scene of the war’s deadliest and most prolonged urban combat in Europe since World War II, with tens of thousands of casualties estimated on both sides.

While military analysts say that Bakhmut holds little strategic significance, Russia and Ukraine have remained firm in their justifications for fighting there, each viewing the battle as vital for weakening the other.

Here is a look at the battle and what it could mean for the future of the war.

Where is Bakhmut?

The 16-square-mile city, which was home to some 70,000 people before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, is in the eastern industrial region known as the Donbas. Surrounded by sunflower fields and salt mines, Bakhmut was long known for a sparkling-wine plant where

Why did Russian President Vladimir Putin want to capture Bakhmut?

Bakhmut emerged as one of Moscow’s primary targets in eastern Ukraine, with Russian officials calling it a necessary prize in the campaign to seize the entire region known as the Donbas.

But the city itself is not particularly valuable in military terms, according to U.S. officials. They believe that Moscow’s unrelenting commitment to wresting it from Ukraine was an indication of the Kremlin’s desperation for a battlefield victory after months of losses and retreats along the northeastern and southern fronts.

Why was Bakhmut important to Ukraine?

Zelenskyy has defended his military’s efforts to hold Bakhmut, even as losses mounted, saying that the battle helped wear down Russian forces and prevented them from advancing deeper into eastern Ukraine.

Ukraine had used national guard and border guard troops to defend the city’s perimeter, then relied on more experienced combat soldiers in recent months as its hold on the city weakened. Soldiers fought in close-range combat from abandoned buildings, basements and trenches, with thousands of others stationed in surrounding fields and villages.

The tenacious defense staved off recurring waves of Russian attacks aimed at encircling and capturing the city. Zelenskyy referred to the city as Ukraine’s “fortress,” and “Hold Bakhmut” became a national rallying cry.

Ukrainian troops’ familiarity with the mazes of ruins and hiding places hindered Russia’s ability to fully leverage its superior weaponry and artillery. And by drawing out the battle, Ukraine’s military sought to buy time to amass more ammunition and weapons from Western allies and prepare its troops for a counteroffensive expected in the coming weeks.

How many have died in Bakhmut?

Losses on both sides have been staggering, especially given the minimal amount of territory that changed hands, although there is no reliable estimate of the toll. President Joe Biden said over the weekend that around 100,000 Russian soldiers had been killed

While the Ukrainians have not divulged their own losses, medics operating on the front line said that they had been overwhelmed by wounded soldiers each day at the height of the fighting.

How does Ukraine’s setback in Bakhmut change things?

A full Russian victory in Bakhmut may be largely symbolic. The city is smaller than other urban areas in the Donbas that the Kremlin has sought to claim, and, while it lies near some important highways, Bakhmut may not necessarily serve as a springboard for Russian forces to push deeper into the Donbas.

Russia’s plans for a renewed offensive in eastern Ukraine fizzled over the winter, with Ukrainian forces ambushing a tank assault on the coal-mining town of Vuhledar and holding on to the town of Avdiivka despite relentless shelling. Like last summer, when Russia seized the cities of Sievierodonetsk and Lysychansk only after prolonged, deadly battles, Ukraine’s defense of Bakhmut may have degraded Russia’s ability to immediately seize more territory.

Analysts say that Russia has lost so much in its attempts to secure Bakhmut that it seems unlikely Moscow’s troops will be able to marshal new resources to mount successful battles on the same scale elsewhere in the region. Communication problems in the Russian ranks, and long-standing tensions between Wagner and Russia’s military leadership, could hinder Moscow’s efforts to hold the city or to redeploy forces elsewhere, according to experts.

Prigozhin announced Thursday that his troops had started to withdraw from Bakhmut and would transfer their positions to regular Russian forces. That could leave Russian troops in the city vulnerable to counterattacks from the Ukrainians, who have secured territory on the city’s outskirts in recent weeks and are preparing for a broader offensive elsewhere along the 600-mile front line. The Ukrainian military may also be looking to exploit any weaknesses that emerge as Russia rotates its troops.

But the battle could also have implications for Ukraine’s ability to carry out a counteroffensive. Defending Bakhmut cost Ukrainian forces some of their most capable troops, along with at times thousands of artillery shells a day, leading the Pentagon at one point to warn Ukraine against wasting ammunition it might need elsewhere in the war.

A Ukrainian soldier wounded in an artillery strike receives medical treatment at a clinic in Bakhmut, Ukraine, on Oct. 19, 2022.

Orcas sank 3 boats in southern Europe in the last year, scientists say

By ISABELLA KWAI

Hours into a journey to Portugal from Morocco, the crew of a 46-foot sailing cruiser noticed something was wrong with the rudder. Then, someone shouted what they saw slicing through the choppy waves: “Orcas! Orcas!”

The orcas kept pace with the boat, slamming into its side and chewing at the rudder, according to its skipper, a photographer onboard and video of the encounter. For about an hour, the crew signaled their predicament to the Spanish Coast Guard and tried to stay calm.

“There was nothing we could do,” said Stephen Bidwell, the photographer, who was two days into a weeklong sailing course with his partner when the ramming began. “You’re in awe at the same time as you are nervous.”

The skipper, Gregory Blackburn, said he wrestled for control of the boat as the orcas banged into it, interfering with the rudder. “It’s a reminder of where we are in the food chain and the natural world,” he said.

Eventually the boat managed to motor back to Tangier, Morocco. But marine scientists took note of the episode, on May 2, and said it continued a puzzling pattern of behavior by a small group of orcas off the Iberian Peninsula’s western coast. The orcas, according to the researchers, have caused three boats to sink since last summer and disrupted the trips of dozens of others.

Wild orcas, although apex predators that hunt sharks and whales, are not generally considered dangerous to humans. The animals, the largest of the dolphin family, have been known to touch, bump and follow boats, but ramming them is unusual, marine scientists say. A small group of orcas, numbering about 15, started to batter boats around Spain in 2020, with re-

searchers calling the behavior uncommon and its motivations unclear.

“We know that it is a complex behavior that has nothing to do with aggression,” said Alfredo López Fernandez, a biologist at the University of Aveiro in Portugal who worked on a study published last June on the subject. The orcas show no sign of wanting to hurt humans, he said.

In most sightings, the orcas do not change their behavior or make physical contact, according to the Atlantic Orca Working Group, which began tracking direct interactions — as well as sightings — in 2020.

Since an initial surge that year, orcas have been documented approaching or reacting to vessels about 500 times, causing physical damage about 20% of the time, in the hightrafficked seas near Morocco, Portugal and Spain, the group said.

The orcas off the Iberian coast are considered an endangered population: The group ar-

rives in waters near the Strait of Gibraltar every spring from waters deeper and farther north up the coast to hunt tuna. But while they are a usual sight, scientists do not know how to stop the small group’s recent behavior, which has left sailors worried about safety and ship damage, and which has caught the attention of Spanish and Portuguese authorities.

“Every week there is an incident,” said Bruno Díaz López, a biologist and the director of the Bottlenose Dolphin Research Institute who was not involved in last year’s research. “We really don’t know the reason.”

In the most recent example, orcas battered a sailboat off the coast of Spain, causing it to sink in the early hours of May 5. Spanish authorities quickly arrived, and the four people onboard were rescued “in good humor,” said Christoph Winterhalter, the president of the Swiss company that was operating the boat, Hoz Hochseezentrum International.

The University of Aveiro biologist, López Fernandez, said that it was possible that the three boats sank over the past year because they were vulnerable to leaks or not equipped to endure the damage. (“The condition of the boat was very good,” Winterhalter said of the one his company had chartered.)

The small group of orcas, including only two adults, were responsible for a majority of the interactions with boats, which number some 200 a year and range from the North African coast to France, according to López Fernandez.

Researchers do not know what is behind the behavior. Some have speculated that it is an “aversive behavior” that could have started after an incident between an animal and a boat, like an entanglement in fishing line, or an invented behavior from young orcas that is being repeated.

Those remain only theories, though López Fernandez said it appeared that the behavior might be passing between local animals.

“We know that orcas share their culture with their young and with their peers,” he said, adding that they learned from imitation. But because the behavior has been observed only in this particular subpopulation of orcas, he said that it was unlikely to pass onto distinct orca groups that populate waters around the world.

Given the lack of evidence and the presence of young orcas in the group, other scientists expressed skepticism that the behavior stemmed from a boat incident and believed that the animals might simply be playing.

“They’re getting some sort of reward or thrill from it,” said Erich Hoyt, an orca expert and research fellow with Whale and Dolphin Conservation, a wildlife charity. “Play is part of being a predator.”

Scientists say that aside from having sailors avoid the area, they do not know how to stop orcas from bothering sailboats, which tend to be quieter than most vessels and therefore more attractive to the animals.

It has also left conservationists worried about how humans will treat the orca population, especially as sailors in the region express growing frustration with the animals.

“I hope that they stop doing it as quickly as they started, because it’s actually imposing a risk on themselves,” said Hanne Strager, a marine biologist and the author of “The Killer Whale Journals,” adding that it was putting pressure on an already vulnerable species.

Bidwell, the photographer, said the episode would not stop him and his partner from booking another sailing trip in June, though perhaps with some changes. “Maybe we don’t go that same route,” he said.

A small group of orcas slammed into the side of a sailing cruiser and chewed its rudder.

With climate panel as a beacon, global group takes on misinformation

By STEVEN LEE MYERS

Two years ago, at a virtual gathering organized by the Nobel Foundation, Sheldon Himelfarb outlined the idea that the world’s leading scholars should join forces to study misinformation the way that scientists of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change documented the global effect of carbon emissions.

That new group gathered for its official introduction in Washington on Wednesday, uniting more than 200 researchers from 55 countries with a similar sense of urgency and alarm as the threat of global warming. In the group’s first report, the researchers questioned the effectiveness of fighting falsehoods online with content moderation, one of the most common strategies to combating misinformation, saying other tactics had more scientific evidence behind them.

“You have to approach the information environment in the same way scientists approached the environment,” said Himelfarb, the group’s executive director and the chief executive of PeaceTech Lab, an advocacy organization affiliated with the United States Institute of Peace in Washington.

The group, the International Panel on the Information Environment, has registered as a nongovernmental organization in Zurich at a time when the fight against misinformation has become increasingly mired in a broader erosion of trust in government, news organizations and other public institutions.

“Algorithmic bias, manipulation and misinformation has become a global and existential threat that exacerbates existing social

problems, degrades public life, cripples humanitarian initiatives and prevents progress on other serious threats,” the panel wrote in its inaugural announcement.

The panel was introduced during a three-day meeting, organized by the Nobel Foundation and the National Academy of Sciences, devoted to the erosion of public understanding and trust in science.

Speaker after speaker at the meeting described an onslaught of disinformation that has become a dispiriting fact of public life across the globe and that, with the recent explosion

of artificial intelligence, could soon become even worse.

Maria Ressa of the Philippines, a winner of the Nobel Peace Prize in 2021, issued a manifesto demanding that democratic governments and Big Tech companies become more transparent, do more to protect personal data and privacy and end practices that contribute to disinformation and other threats against independent journalism. It has 276 signatories representing more than 140 organizations.

One challenge facing these efforts is overcoming the increasingly fierce arguments over what exactly constitutes misinformation. In the United States, the efforts to combat it have run aground on First Amendment protections of free speech. The biggest companies have now shifted focus and resources away from the fight against misinformation, even as new platforms emerged promising to forgo policies that moderate content.

On Wednesday, the panel’s researchers presented the summary of its first two studies, which reviewed 4,798 peer-reviewed publications examining misleading information on social media and aggregated the findings on the effectiveness of countermeasures to it.

The findings suggest that the most effective responses to false information online are labeling content as “disputed” or flagging

sources of state media and publishing corrective information, typically in the form of debunking rumors and disinformation.

Far less certain, the report argues, is the effectiveness of public and government efforts to pressure social media giants like Facebook and Twitter to take down content, as well as internal company algorithms that suspend or play down offending accounts. The same is true of media literacy programs that train people to identify sources of misinformation.

“We’re not saying that information literacy programs don’t work,” said Sebastián Valenzuela, a professor at the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile who oversaw the study. “What we’re saying is that we need more evidence that they work.”

The panel’s inspirational model, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, was founded in 1988, a time when climate change was equally contested. Its scientists, working under the auspices of the United Nations, toiled for decades before its assessments and recommendations came to be recognized as scientific consensus.

When it comes to the digital landscape, and the impact on society of abuses, the science of disinformation could prove even harder to measure in concrete terms. Climate change is “hard science,” said Young Mie Kim, a professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison who serves as vice chair of a committee focused on research methodology.

“So, relatively speaking, it’s easier to develop some common concepts and tool kits,” Kim said. “It’s hard to do that in social science or humanities.”

The new panel eschews a governmental role — at least for now. It plans to issue regular reports, not fact-checking individual falsehoods but rather looking for deeper forces behind the spread of disinformation as a way to guide government policy.

“It’d be too hard to put a bunch of scientists on evaluating the truth claims in any particular piece of junk,” said Philip N. Howard, director of Oxford University’s Program on Democracy and Technology and chairman of the new panel.

“What we can do is look for infrastructural interference,” he went on. “What we can do is audit an algorithmic system to see if it’s got lousy or unintended outcomes. It’s still hard, but I think that’s within reach as a research objective.”

A group of researchers from the International Panel on the Information Environment during the Nobel Prize Summit at the National Academy of Sciences in Washington, May 24, 2023.

Death, Napoleon and debt

By PAUL KRUGMAN

Whenever I write about debt and deficits, I receive the same letter — OK, not exactly the same letter, but a number of letters with more or less the same gist. They read something like this: “If I borrow money from the bank, the bank expects me to pay the money back. Why isn’t the same true for the government? Why can we keep borrowing when we already owe $31 trillion?”

Just about every economist will reply that it’s misleading to make an analogy between household and government finances. But it seems to me that we often aren’t clear enough about why, perhaps because we don’t say it bluntly enough. So here’s the difference: You are going to get old and eventually die. The government isn’t.

I don’t mean that governments are immortal. Nothing is, and no doubt someday America will, as Rudyard Kipling put it, be “one with Nineveh and Tyre.” But individuals face a more or less predictable life cycle in which their earnings will eventually dwindle.

And lenders therefore demand that individual borrowers pay off their debts while they still have the income to do so.

Governments, on the other hand, normally see their revenues rise, generation after generation, as the economies they regulate and tax grow.

Governments, then, must service their debts — pay interest and repay principal when bonds come due — but they don’t necessarily have to pay them off; they can issue

new bonds to pay principal on old bonds, and even borrow to pay interest as long as overall debt doesn’t rise too much faster than revenue.

In fact, when governments for one reason or another run up large debts, it is, as far as I can tell, unusual to pay those debts off.

The most famous example, albeit one that many people apparently don’t know about, is the debt America incurred to fight World War II. By the war’s end, this debt was around 100% of gross domestic product — roughly comparable to the debt level today. So how did we pay off that debt?

We didn’t. John F. Kennedy entered the White House with federal debt roughly the same as it was on V-J Day. Why, then, wasn’t the 1960 election dominated by questions of how to pay off the national debt? Because although the dollar value of debt hadn’t gone down, economic growth and modest inflation meant that the ratio of debt to GDP had fallen by half.

This kind of thing could in some cases happen for an individual family: If people buy a house when they’re young then make substantial income gains, their mortgage payments may dwindle as a percentage of their income even before the mortgage is paid off. But it’s normal for governments, which can expect to see their tax receipts grow year after year with no end in sight.

Revisiting the story of America’s failure to repay World War II debt, I found myself wondering whether governments borrowing large sums that they never repay could be thought of as a newfangled, dubious innovation — hey, this is the 1950s we’re talking about, but there are people out there who are still predicting doom from Franklin D. Roosevelt’s decision to take us off the gold standard in 1933.

before seen in history — hence the Crystal Palace — that growth was still fairly slow by later standards. As a result, debt relative to national income was still quite high in 1851: 130%t of GDP.

Yet, as far as I know, panicky moralizing about the debt didn’t dominate British politics, which seemed to adopt the attitude satirized in “1066 and All That”: “The National Debt is a very Good Thing and it would be dangerous to pay it off, for fear of Political Economy.” Instead, the public was preoccupied with issues such as the Great Stink of 1858.

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Well, governments have often borrowed to fight wars, sometimes on an impressive scale. By the end of the Napoleonic Wars, the British government’s debt, according to Bank of England estimates, was 184% of GDP — far above America’s debt at the end of World War II. Most of that debt, by the way, consisted of consols — perpetual bonds that pay interest forever but never require repayment of principal. Still, even those can be retired. So how did Britain pay off its Napoleonic debt? It didn’t.

British public debt in 1851, when Prince Albert opened the Crystal Palace exposition celebrating industrial and technological progress, was basically unchanged from its level when the Duke of Wellington won the Battle of Waterloo 36 years earlier. The idea that we should expect governments to pay off their debt isn’t just illinformed, it’s also centuries out of date.

In fact, Britain’s willingness to let its Napoleonic debt just sit there is in a way even more remarkable than America’s later willingness to live with its World War II debt. After all, 19th century Britain didn’t experience sustained inflation, and although it was experiencing economic growth at a rate never

In much more recent history, when governments were mistakenly pursuing fiscal austerity in the face of high unemployment, I used to accuse deficit scolds of being obsessed with Victorian virtues. I was, I now realize, being unfair to the Victorians.

So, for all those whose instinct is to assume that a responsible government would, like a responsible individual, pay off its debts as soon as it can, again: Governments aren’t like people. If death and taxes are the only sure things in life, well, death isn’t an issue for governments, and taxes are an asset — a growing asset — rather than a liability.

Dr. Ricardo Angulo Publisher

POR EL STAR STAFF

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Los congresistas Eric Swalwell (D-CA) y Jenniffer González Colón (R-PR) presentaron un proyecto de ley bipartita para ayudar a las comunidades a prepararse, responder y recuperarse mejor de los desastres naturales.

La presentación del proyecto de ley se da inmediatamente después de un nuevo informe de la Organización Meteorológica Mundial que encontró que han habido más de 12,000 fenómenos extremos meteorológicos, climáticos y relacionados con el agua en los últimos 50 años, que han resultado en la muerte de más de dos millones de personas y $4.3 billones en daños económicos.

La Ley de Prevención de Nuestro Próximo Desastre Natural (H,.R. 3655) haría varios cambios en el programa de subsidios de mitigación previa al desastre de la Agencia Federal para el Manejo de Emergencias (FEMA, por sus siglas en inglés) al aumentar los fondos, asegurando que las comunidades que más lo necesitan (aquellas con alto riesgo de peligro y las llamadas comunidades de justicia ambiental) recibir acceso a este financiamiento y mejorar la recopilación de datos para rastrear y administrar mejor los recursos antes y después de los desastres naturales.

“Desde inundaciones costeras hasta incendios

Secretario

POR CYBERNEWS

E L CAPITOLIO – El secretario de Justicia, Domingo Emanuelli Hernández se enfrascó este jueves en un careo con la senadora de Proyecto Dignidad, Joanne Rodríguez Veve por el tema del aborto en menores de edad, medida que rechazó.

“Este pueblo ha sido sometido en muchas ocasiones. Pero en cuanto a la Libertad, en términos individuales en cuanto al derecho de la intimidad, este pueblo siempre ha defendido las causas justas. Y yo creo que con ese tipo de movimiento que están haciendo ustedes en términos de violentar los derechosa las mujeres, lo que faltaría ponerle una capucha a las mujeres, para que no se les veala cara y un cinturón de castidad. Y créame, eso es algo impropio”, dijo el secretario de Justicia en vista pública.

De inmediato, la senadora Joanne Rodríguez Veve refuó el comentario del funcionario público: “Secretario, me parece que sus expresiones no son respetuosas”.

forestales catastróficos, el East Bay ha visto un número cada vez mayor de desastres naturales debido al cambio climático”, dijo el representante Swalwell. “Estas crisis no van a parar y es fundamental que tomemos las medidas necesarias para prepararnos. La Ley de Prevención de Nuestro Próximo Desastre Natural proporcionaría fondos a las comunidades que son más vulnerables a los desastres naturales para ayudarlas a prepararse mejor para estas crecientes amenazas”.

“El impacto del huracán Fiona el año pasado, así como de Irma y María en el 2017, nos muestra que las situaciones de desastres naturales no son una cuestión de si, sino de cuándo, y la implementación de medidas de mitigación antes de que vuelva a ocurrir es esencial para proteger vidas y propiedades en nuestras comunidades”, dijo la comisionada residente González Colón. “Me complace unirme nuevamente a mi colega, el representante Swalwell, para presentar la Ley de Prevención de Nuestro Próximo Desastre Natural, para ayudar a garantizar que FEMA tenga los recursos necesarios disponibles para implementar programas más eficientes, como su subvención de mitigación previa al desastre. Siempre apoyo aquellas iniciativas que buscan que FEMA mejore su recopilación de datos y realice un seguimiento de los fondos y recursos antes, durante y después de un desastre para estar

mejor preparados para ayudar a los afectados. La historia de Puerto Rico con los desastres naturales ha demostrado la necesidad de brindar un acceso más rápido y transparente a los recursos para las entidades locales, acelerar el proceso de reconstrucción y estar mejor preparados para riesgos futuros, que es la meta de esta legislación”.

El proyecto de ley cuenta con el respaldo de The Union of Concerned Scientists, Habitat for Humanity, The League of Conservation Voters, The Natural Resources Defense Council y The National Wildlife Federation.

“No, las expresiones son respetuosas porque mas irrespetuoso es lo que ustedes pretender hacer con la mujer puertorriqueña”, refutó el funcionario.

“Cuando yo veo que son diferencias, cosas totalmente incorrecta, mire, uno tiene que hablarles claro porque ustedes sí tienen derecho a legislar, peroustedes no pueden volverse locos y estar quitándole derechosa todo el mundo”, le dijo el secretario a Rodríguez Veve.

“Déjeme hablar porque usted me citó y me tiene que permitir hablar. Usted tiene capacidad para legislar, no para latigar. Son dos cosas distintas. Usted legisla, pero tiene que legislar con conciencia. Ver un sinnúmero de personas que llevan años y años queriendo que sus derechos valgan y han estado cincuenta años queriendo que sus derechos valgan y usted quiere ahora cercenar. No mire, no se puede permitir en un país. Y yo vengo aquí como secretario de Justicia y vengo también como ser humano porque eso es un abuso lo que quieren hacer”, dijo Emanuelli Hernández.

Acto seguido, la senadora Rodríguez Veve respondió: “Señor secretario le voy a pedir que cuando haga

acusaciones fundamente sus planteamientos”.

“Los estoy fundamentando porque usted es parte de ese grupo”, dijo el titular de Justicia.

“Y me parece a mí que como secretario de Justicia, son expresiones discriminatorias por razón de ideas políticas. Que quede para récord”, expuso la senadora en la vista pública.

de Justicia dice que los senadores “se vuelven locos” quitando derechos

Congresistas Swalwell y González Colón presentan proyecto para ayudar a las comunidades a prepararse mejor para los desastres naturales

By BEN SISARIO

Like all the greatest pop icons, Tina Turner, who died Wednesday at 83, had more than one life. She started off as an R&B shouter and inexhaustible dancer who, alongside her husband Ike, put on the most exhilarating live show this side of James Brown. Then she was a rock heroine who toured with the Rolling Stones and served as the Who’s Acid Queen. And finally she became the ultimate survivor — the abused woman who left her man in the dust and, without apologies, claimed a crown all her own.

Here are some of Tina Turner’s greatest musical moments, on record and on film.

Ike & Tina Turner, “A Fool in Love” (1960): Ike and Tina’s early R&B hits are electrifying moments of raw musical power, but in retrospect they are also deeply creepy in their lyrical content. The duo’s first single introduces Tina’s larger-than-life howl and has her sing about a troubled relationship in which her man mistreats her and “got me smilin’ while my heart is in pain,” yet she still promises to “do anything he wants me to.” Those words were written by Ike Turner, who has sole credit as the songwriter.

Ike & Tina Turner, “I Idolize You” (1960): More strange and uncomfortable lyrics: Tina professes not love but idolatry, and says that in return, “just a little bit attention you know will see me through.” Tina’s guttural cry atop a walking bass line was the sexiest, most unfiltered sound in music at the time, but it is all but impossible to hear these songs now without wincing at the horror show Tina would later describe about her marriage to Ike.

Ike & Tina Turner, “It’s Gonna Work Out Fine” (1961): The biggest hit of Ike & Tina’s early years — it went to No. 2 on Billboard’s R&B chart and was Top 20 pop — is a lighter back-and-forth routine about a couple persevering through their troubles. Again, eww. But at least this time the song was not by Ike. It was written by Rose Marie McCoy along with Joe Seneca and James Lee, and R&B duo Mickey & Sylvia were involved in the recording.

Ike & Tina Turner, “River Deep — Mountain High” (1966): Phil Spector had seen the Ike & Tina Turner Revue — their incredibly high-energy live show, featuring Tina singing and dancing with the backup Ikettes — and recorded this single, written by Spector with Jeff Barry and Ellie Greenwich, for his label, Philles. It tones down Tina’s howls and replaces Ike’s tight band with a somewhat hazy version of Spector’s signature “wall of sound.” The single was a flop, which caused the album of the same title to be delayed by three years in the United States.

Ike & Tina Turner, “Proud Mary” (1971): “We never ever do nothin’ nice and easy. We always do it nice and rough.” Thus Tina introduces her biggest hit with Ike, a rollicking Creedence Clearwater Revival remake that went to No. 4. After a stripped-down, “nice and easy” run through the first couple of verses, the full band, with horns and Ikettes, joins in to take it energetically to the finish line.

Ike & Tina Turner, “Nutbush City Limits” (1973): Tina, as the sole credited songwriter, tells her own story for once, detailing her upbringing in rural Tennessee,

Tina Turner’s 11 essential songs

where “you go to the field on weekdays and have a picnic on Labor Day.” It’s played as acid funk, with periodappropriate electric keyboards and a Moog solo. But the song is still a reverie, never imagining a life beyond the small-town simplicities.

“The Acid Queen” (1975): For the film version of the Who’s “Tommy,” Tina was cast as the Acid Queen, the “Gypsy” with a wild scream and quivering lips who uses sex and drugs to try to cure the boy. By this point, Tina was a world-famous sex symbol, and her name alone was shorthand for feminine power. It was also not long before she left Ike. But the world would not know her secret for years.

“What’s Love Got to Do With It” (1984): By the 1980s, Tina was in her 40s and long past Ike, and her brand was survival. The songs on “Private Dancer,” her breakthrough solo album, were mostly written by men, but they perfectly fit the role of an independent woman who isn’t resigned to being alone. “What’s Love Got to Do With It” is the story of a woman with a broken heart who’s tempted but afraid to try again with love, “a secondhand emotion.”

“Better Be Good to Me” (1984): A confident and defiant demand to a man, this was co-written by Holly Knight and was originally released by her band Spider. But it has been Tina’s song ever since, giving her a chance not only to declare “I don’t have no use for what you loosely call the truth,” but also to unleash her raspy roar with “should I?”

“We Don’t Need Another Hero (Thunderdome)” (1985): Tina donned a white mane and postapocalyptic tribal garb for “Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome,” in

which she starred alongside Mel Gibson. The theme song is squeaky-clean ’80s torch pop, though Tina keeps her costume on for the music video.

“The Best” (1989): Originally recorded by Bonnie Tyler, “The Best” is a song of praise to a lover. But if you squint, or sing along as a fan, it could be a paean to Tina herself: “You’re simply the best, better than all the rest.”

By ERIC ASIMOV

For many reasons, boxed wines make an enormous amount of sense. The bag-inbox method is a great way to package easygoing wines that are not intended for aging. Still, the category faces stubborn resistance among both consumers and producers.

Why? It’s sort of a chicken-and-the-egg situation: Consumers have equated boxes with bad wine because for so long, with scattered exceptions, only bad wine was sold in boxes in the United States. And producers wouldn’t put better wines in boxes because they are aware of the fierce stigma.

To everybody’s benefit, these entrenched attitudes seem to have softened in the last few years, primarily because of the climate crisis.

Motivated by the ecological advantages of bag-in-box packaging, a growing number of producers and merchants are opting to box good wine intended for immediate consumption rather than use glass bottles.

It’s now widely understood that wine bottles are a significant environmental problem. Their production and transport makes up the biggest proportion of the wine industry’s carbon footprint, and sadly, in the United States, at least, a low percentage of glass is recycled.

The industry has experimented with reusable, returnable glass bottles, but consumers did not return them, regardless of the incentives offered. As a result, many environmentally minded producers see bag-in-box packages as a good intermediate step toward a time when consumers will accept the wisdom of reusable bottles.

An open box of wine lasts longer. When you uncork a bottle and pour out a drink, air fills the empty space in the bottle, causing the wine to slowly deteriorate. Depending on the age and quality of the wine, an open bottle may stay good for a day or two, or maybe up to a week.

But when you tap and pour a bag-inbox, the plastic liner shrinks around the remaining wine, keeping air out. Wine can stay fresh for a month or so. In addition, the standard unit for boxed wine is three liters, the equivalent of four bottles, so the amount of waste is proportionately less.

Bag-in-box is not appropriate for all wines. Unlike bottles, which are impervious

to air, bag-in-box is permeable, so it’s not good for wines intended for aging more than a year or so. But for those intended for early consumption — the vast majority of wines produced — boxes are great.

As with any wine, it’s best to store them in a cool place. Put a box of white wine in the fridge and pour a cool glass anytime. Reds can be kept anywhere that’s convenient.

While the food-grade plastic used inside the box is not recyclable, the benefits of boxes, advocates say, still outweigh the drawbacks.

“If we are looking at the fact that it’s a larger format, and the fact that it’s one bit of packaging versus four bottles of wine, and it’s 75% recycled cardboard, waste is reduced significantly,” said Melissa Monti Saunders, CEO of Communal Brands, an importer and distributor that offers four boxed wines in its portfolio.

Saunders believes that ultimately the world will need to shift to returnable, reusable bottles. But she also believes that consumers are not yet ready to accept them. Communal Brands has been selling boxes since 2016.

“The carbon footprint is about a tenth of the emissions for the production of four single-use bottles, not even taking into consideration weight and transport,” she said. “No way around it, boxes are significantly better for the planet, even with a plastic liner.”

Megan Glaab, who owns Ryme Cellars in Sonoma County, California, with her husband, Ryan, released a boxed wine in 2020,

during the pandemic, almost as a joke. Ryme packaged the wine, a 2019 organic vermentino, as a sort of back-to-school kit for adults who might be daunted by the prospect of remote schooling and working from home.

“We got the most incredible reaction, with customers writing us and asking us to do it again,” she said. Ryme did, with three more wines in boxes, and they sold out in a matter of weeks.

The key to changing consumer perceptions of boxed wines is to fill them with good wine. Ryme did that, as has Tablas Creek, a California producer in Paso Robles, and Bedrock Wine Co. in California.

Even charging upward of $70 for a box, more than twice as much as many other boxed wines, did not deter Glaab’s customers.

For years, the only boxed wines that I’ve felt good about recommending came from two importers: Jenny & François’ From the Tank boxes, and Wineberry America’s Wineberry Boxes. Both offer a series of unpretentious, good wines from various regions in France. Slowly but surely, they are now being joined by a host of other good boxed wines.

I recently shopped for boxed wines in retail stores in the New York area. They weren’t easy to find, although I could have had my fill of Bota Boxes, Black Boxes, Franzia and Barefoot on Tap, the sort of mass-produced boxes that have not won the genre friends among quality-minded consumers.

But I did find 10 boxes that I feel confident in recommending. And with good boxes

like these, perhaps we will see more in the near future.

“People are seeing market interest in boxes, so they want to get in on it,” Saunders said. “The more quality boxes on the market, the more it becomes legitimized.”

Here are the 10 boxes. I’ve listed them in order of preference, but they’re all good.

10 boxed wines to try

Ryme Cellars Mendocino Fox Hill Vineyard Sangiovese-Friulano 2020, 12.3%, $72

Would you pay $72 for a boxed wine? Perhaps you would if it were as good as this blend. It’s juicy and vivacious, a rare American sangiovese that is not over-the-top fruity or sweet. At 85% sangiovese and 15% friulano, it’s an homage to the days when white grapes (more likely malvasia or trebbiano than friulano) were blended into Chianti to create a fragrant, easygoing wine. This wine is certainly fragrant, but also has enough structure to stand up to grilled beef dishes, chili con carne or red sauce pastas. As for the cost? Three liters at $72 equates to $18 a bottle. Not bad for wine made from organically farmed Mendocino grapes.

Neleman Valencia Good Wine Book Red 2020, 13.5%, $29

This makes no bones about its purpose, or at least, its marketing strategy: “Good Wine to Save the World.” I don’t know if it will, but it sure is good. It’s bright and fresh, full of red fruit flavors but not sweet or cloying, and its lively acidity makes it deliciously refreshing. It’s ablend of tempranillo and monastrell, as mourvèdre is known in Spain, all organically grown. Chill ever so lightly and you are in for a pleasant treat and a great value.

(Sounder Imports, Staten Island, New York.)

Schplïnk! Austria Grüner Veltliner 2021, 12.5%, $29

Saunders of Communal Brands believes boxes are a good intermediate step before, inevitably, we will turn to reusable wine bottles. Schplïnk is an excellent example of the sort of unpretentious wines that benefit from this packaging. It’s pure and delightful, with the herbal, grassy qualities that can make grüner veltliner so pleasant and refreshing. The grapes come from eastern Austria and are grown organically by Norbert Bauer, a longtime family estate. (Communal Brands, New York)

Various boxed wines in New York, May 2, 2023. Thoughtful winemakers, motivated by environmental concerns, are turning to boxes.

10 boxed wines that are really good, seriously

Hérisson Côteaux Bourguignons Vin Rouge 2021, 13%, $39

This light-bodied blend of pinot noir and gamay from the Mâconnais region of southern Burgundy, another Communal Brands box, is an ideal thirst-quenching red. It’s fresh, lightly fruity, deliciously refreshing and it goes down easy. You don’t need to ponder its intricacies. It’s just the thing for any gathering of friends, or for when you just want a glass. Give it a light chill and serve with anything. (Communal Brands)

From the Tank Vin de France Rosé NV, 13%, $30

Jenny & François Selections was one of the first American importers of natural wines, and an early proponent of boxes. This rosé uses wine from one of the importer’s producers, Domaine de la Patience in southern France. It’s a blend of grenache and cinsault, and is a wonderful choice for parties, barbecues or any sort of outdoor gathering where you want something fresh, lively and resonant. This is an easydrinking wine, but chances are you’ll pause a moment in the festivities to say, “Wow, this is good.” (Jenny & François Selections, New York)

Sandy Giovese Italy Vino Rosso NV, 12%, $30

Here is an archetypal boxed wine: juicy, simple and fresh, made for drinking, not thinking. It comes from Italy, from a winery based in Le Marche, although it’s not clear where the grapes were grown. It’s mostly made from sangiovese, with 15% trebbiano, a white grape, added to lighten it up. The website says they are grown organically, but the box says merely that the farmers are “earth friendly,” whatever that means. Wine lovers may be frustrated by the lack of transparency. Those who care only about how it tastes will enjoy it. (Sandy Wines/ Massanois Imports, New York)

Wineberry Château Moulin de la Roquille Bordeaux Côtes de France 2018, 14%, $47

For years, Wineberry America, an importer that specializes in Bordeaux, has offered its wooden Wineberry Boxes, filled with a wide variety of simple but delicious French wines that are generally good values. This one, from the region’s eastern reaches, is oldschool Bordeaux, mediumbodied, modestly structured and not overwhelmingly fruity. It’s easy-drinking with charcuterie or burgers. (Wineberry America, Valley Cottage, N.Y.)

Caspri & Co Rosso Toscano Rosso No. 3 NV, 13.5%, $42

Caspri & Co, in Italy, is focused on good values and

environmentally sensitive packaging. This boxed Tuscan red qualifies on both counts. It’s a blend of 80% sangiovese, 10% canaiolo (a traditional grape for blending with sangiovese) and 10% merlot, from two different vintages, all grown organically. It’s juicy yet structured and medium-bodied. My only objection is that the bitter chocolate of the merlot feels a bit out of place in the blend. But it’s still very good.

(Field Blend Selections, New York)

Cedric Vin de France Malbec 2020, 14%, $39

Cedric, another box from Communal Brands, comes from the Cahors area of south western France, where malbec has been the leading red grape for centuries. This wine, made from organically grown grapes, is struc tured and lightly fruity, yet herbal as well, with light, stony flavors. It’s different from an Argen tine malbec, and not as sweet or fruity as many inexpensive Mendoza wines can be, yet it will go equally well with a skirt steak. (Communal Brands)

Powers Washington State Chardonnay

that price, it’s hard to imagine a better deal.

Wineberry Château Moulin de la Roquille Bordeaux Côtes de France 2018, in New York, May 2, 2023.

Sandy Giovese Italy Vino Rosso NV, in New York.

A half-century of surgeon general warnings

By REMY TUMIN

Awarning issued by the United States surgeon general, Dr. Vivek Murthy, on Tuesday provided guidance about an issue that has been front of mind for American parents for years: the negative effects of social media on the mental health of young people.

These types of public health advisories are infrequent, but sometimes become turning points in American life.

Cigarettes

It took a surgeon general’s report in 1964 and decades of effort that followed to change the perception of smoking in America from a glamorous habit to one with deadly consequences.

The annual per capita cigarette consumption in the United States had increased from 54 cigarettes in 1900 to more than 4,000 cigarettes in 1963 when the first research suggested links between smoking and cancer.

That prompted Dr. Luther L. Terry, the surgeon general under Presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson, to issue a landmark report on the health hazards and consequences of smoking in 1964.

Terry described the crisis as a “national concern.”

The fallout was swift. In 1965, Congress required all cigarette packages distributed in the United States to carry a health warning. In 1970, cigarette advertising on television and radio was banned.

Tobacco has continued to be a target of surgeons general, who in later years highlighted concerns about secondhand smoke and tobacco promotions that targeted children. And in 2016, Murthy published a comprehensive

report that called e-cigarettes and tobacco vaping “a major health concern.”

Cigarette smoking remains the leading cause of preventable disease and death in the United States today, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But there has been progress: Smoking has declined from 21% of adults in 2005 to 11.5% in 2021.

AIDS

Dr. C. Everett Koop, the surgeon general under President Ronald Reagan, was credited with changing the public discourse around the HIV/AIDS epidemic during the 1980s. In 1986, he issued a generation-defining report on AIDS. In plain language, the report discussed risk factors and ways that people could protect themselves, including the use of con-

doms for safer sex.

But frank discussion of sexual topics later tripped up a surgeon general who served under President Bill Clinton, Dr. Joycelyn Elders. Although her efforts to expand access to health screenings and sex education were praised by some, she resigned under pressure in 1994 after she proposed the distribution of contraceptives in schools and condoned teaching children about masturbation as a way to prevent the transmission of HIV, among other views that drew the ire of conservatives.

Violence on TV and in video games

In 1972, Dr. Jesse L. Steinfeld, the surgeon general under President Richard Nixon, called for “appropriate and immediate remedial action” after a report found a “uniformly adverse effect” on children who watch televised violence.

A decade later, Koop said that video games might be hazardous to the health of young people who are becoming addicted to the machines “body and soul” and that the games created “aberrations in childhood behavior.”

The reality is murkier. The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry has recognized some harm from children engaging with violent media, but has called for moderation.

Drunken driving

In the late 1980s, the numbers were startling: About 25,000 people in the United States died in drinking-related traffic accidents annually.

In one of his last acts as surgeon general, Koop called for tough new blood-alcohol level standards for drivers in 1989, as well as an increase in taxes on alcoholic beverages and a restriction of advertising of alcoholic beverages. He also called for the elimination of happy hours and the immediate suspension of any licensed driver found to be above the legal limit.

These and other measures have greatly reduced drunken-driving deaths. In 2021, about 13,380 people were killed in motor vehicle crashes involving alcohol-impaired drivers, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Obesity

By the turn of this century, some 300,000 Americans were dying from illness caused or worsened by obesity, prompting Dr. David Satcher, a surgeon general under Clinton, in 2001 to call for major steps to act on what he described as an epidemic.

But the crisis has only grown. From 1999 through 2017, the prevalence of obesity in the U.S. increased to 42% from 30%, and severe obesity increased to 9% from 5%, according to the CDC.

Gun violence and loneliness

Social media is not the only concern of the current surgeon general. Murthy has also called gun violence in America a public health issue and more recently an epidemic.

He has called for more research and government intervention. Former surgeons general and researchers have also called for a policy change centered around treating gun violence as a public health crisis. Nearly 50,000 Americans died from gun-related injuries in 2021, more than in any other year on record, according to the CDC. It is the leading cause of death among children in the United States.

And this month, Murthy issued a surgeon general advisory and new framework to address “the public health crisis of loneliness, isolation, and the lack of connection in our country.” This trend was magnified by the coronavirus pandemic, he said.

The physical health consequences of poor or insufficient connection include higher risks of other health ailments.

Notably, the report on loneliness does not recommend social media as a form of connection, and urges Americans to ensure digital interactions do not “detract from meaningful and healing connection.”

The San Juan Daily Star

An empty pack of cigarettes displaying the surgeon general’s warning.

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Demandados

Civil Núm.: BC2022CV00112.

Sobre: COBRO DE DINERO Y EJECUCIÓN DE HIPOTECA POR LA VÍA ORDINARIA. EDICTO DE SUBASTA. ESTADOS UNIDOS DE AMÉRICA, EL PRESIDENTE DE LOS ESTADOS UNIDOS, EL ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO, SS. A: LA PARTE DEMANDADA, AL (A LA) SECRETARIO(A) DE HACIENDA DE PUERTO RICO Y AL PÚBLICO

GENERAL:

Certifico y Hago Constar: Que en cumplimiento con el Mandamiento de Ejecución de Sentencia que me ha sido dirigido por el (la) Secretario(a) del Tribunal de Primera Instancia, Sala Superior de Manatí, en el caso de epígrafe procederá a vender en pública subasta al mejor postor en efectivo, cheque gerente, giro postal, cheque certificado en moneda legal de los Estados Unidos de América al nombre del Alguacil del Tribunal de Primera Instancia, en mi oficina ubicada en el Tribunal de Primera Instancia, Sala de Manati, el 5 DE JULIO DE 2023 A LAS 9:00 DE LA MAÑANA, todo derecho título, participación o interés que le corresponda a la parte demandada o cualquiera de ellos en el inmueble hipotecado objeto de ejecución que se describe a continuación: RÚSTICA: Parcela marcada con el número 795 en el plano de parcelación de la Comunidad Rural Angostura del Barrio Florida Afuera del término municipal de Barceloneta, con una cabida superficial de 505.15 metros cuadrados. En lindes por el NORTE,

con parcela número 794 de la comunidad; por el SUR, con las parcelas número 797 y la número 796 de la comunidad; por el ESTE, con la parcela número 796 y la calle de la comunidad; y por el OESTE, con parcela número 798 de la comunidad. Consta inscrita al folio 165 del tomo 145 de Barceloneta, finca número 9679, Registro de la Propiedad de Puerto Rico, Sección de Manatí. Propiedad localizada en: PR 140 KM 57.2, Angostura Comm, Barceloneta, PR 00617. Según figuran en la certificación registral, la propiedad objeto de ejecución no está gravada con cargas anteriores o cargas posteriores a la inscripción del crédito ejecutante. Se entenderá que todo licitador acepta como bastante la titularidad de la propiedad y que todas las cargas y gravámenes anteriores y los preferentes al crédito ejecutante antes descritos, si los hubiere, continuarán subsistentes. El rematante acepta dichas cargas y gravámenes anteriores, y queda subrogado en la responsabilidad de los mismos, sin destinarse a su extinción el precio del remate. Se establece como tipo mínimo de subasta la suma de $56,649.99, según acordado entre las partes en el precio pactado en la escritura de hipoteca. De ser necesaria una SEGUNDA SUBASTA por declararse desierta la primera, la misma se celebrará en mi oficina, ubicada en el Tribunal de Primera Instancia, Sala de Manatí, el 12 DE JULIO DE 2023

A LAS 9:00 DE LA MAÑANA, y se establece como mínima para dicha segunda subasta la suma de $37,766.66, 2/3 partes del tipo mínimo establecido originalmente. Si tampoco se produce remate ni adjudicación en la segunda subasta, se establece como mínima para la TERCERA SUBASTA, la suma de $28,324.99, la mitad (1/2) del precio pactado y dicha subasta se celebrará en mi oficina, ubicada en el Tribunal de Primera Instancia, Sala de Manatí, el 19 DE JULIO DE 2023 A LAS 9:00 DE LA MAÑANA. Dicha subasta se llevará a cabo para, con su producto satisfacer a la parte demandante, el importe de la Sentencia dictada a su favor ascendente a la suma de $32,245.42 de principal, intereses al tipo del 8.556% anual según ajustado desde el día 1ro. de agosto de 2018 hasta el pago de la deuda en su totalidad, un balance diferido que no genera intereses en la cantidad de $10,122.55, más la suma de $11,330.00 por concepto de honorarios de abogado y costas autorizadas por el Tribunal, más

las cantidades que se adeudan mensualmente por concepto de seguro hipotecario, cargos por demora, y otros adeudados que se hagan en virtud de la escritura de hipoteca. La venta en pública subasta de la referida propiedad se verificará libre de toda carga o gravamen posterior que afecte la mencionada finca, a cuyo efecto se notifica y se hace saber la fecha, hora y sitio de la PRIMERA, SEGUNDA Y TERCERA SUBASTA, si esto fuera necesario, a los efectos de que cualquier persona o personas con algún interés puedan comparecer a la celebración de dicha subasta. Se notifica a todos los interesados que las actas y demás constancias del expediente de este caso están disponibles en la Secretaría del Tribunal durante horas laborables para ser examinadas por los (las) interesados (as). Y para su publicación en el periódico The San Juan Daily Star, que es un diario de circulación general en la isla de Puerto Rico, por espacio de dos semanas consecutivas con un intervalo de por lo menos siete (7) días entre ambas publicaciones, así como para su publicación en los sitios públicos de Puerto Rico. Expedido en Manatí, Puerto Rico, hoy día 27 de abril de 2023. WILFREDO RODRÍGUEZ CARRIÓN, ALGUACIL CONFIDENCIAL PLACA #135, ALGUACIL DE SUBASTAS, TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA, CENTRO JUDICIAL DE MANATÍ, SALA SUPERIOR.

LEGAL NOTICE

ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO CENTRO

JUDICIAL DE BAYAMÓN TRI-

BUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA SALA SUPERIOR DE BAYAMÓN

BANCO POPULAR DE PUERTO RICO

Demandante V. IVÁN RÍOS TORRES; SU ESPOSA MARÍA MARGARITA MELÉNDEZ TORRES, Y LA SOCIEDAD LEGAL DE BIENES GANANCIALES COMPUESTA POR

AMBOS

Demandados

Civil Núm.: BY2021CV04958. Sala: 506. Sobre: EJECUCIÓN DE HIPOTECA “IN REM”. ESTADOS UNIDOS DE AMÉRICA, EL PRESIDENTE DE LOS ESTADOS UNIDOS, ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO, SS. AVISO DE SUBASTA. El que suscribe, Alguacil del Tribunal de Primera Instancia, Sala Superior, Centro Judicial de Bayamón, Baya-

món, Puerto Rico, hago saber, a la parte demandada y al PÚBLICO EN GENERAL: Que en cumplimiento del Mandamiento de Ejecución de Sentencia expedido el día 28 de abril de 2023, por la Secretaría del Tribunal, procederé a vender y venderé en pública subasta y al mejor postor la propiedad que ubica y se describe a continuación: URBANA: Propiedad Horizontal: Condominio Colinas Del Sol 2 de Bayamón Sur, Puerto Rico. Apartamento: 4322. Cabida: 95.43 metros cuadrados, localizado en el segundo (2do) piso del Edificio número cuarenta y tres (43) del Condominio Colinas del Sol II, el cual está situado en el Barrio Buena Vista del municipio de Bayamón, Puerto Rico. Unidad individual de vivienda residencial de un nivel de altura construida de hormigón reforzado y bloques de concreto, con puertas de madera y ventanas de aluminio y cristal, compuesto de: sala-comedor, cocina, cuarto de lavandería (“laundry”), baño en el área de pasillo, dos (2) dormitorios con closet cada uno y un dormitorio principal (“master bedroom”) con closets con pasillo (“walk-in-closet”) y un año. Según se detalla en el plano, este apartamento colinda por el NORTE, con área común general, en un distancia de treinta pies siete pulgadas (30’7”), equivalentes a nueve punto treinta y dos metros (9.32 m.); por el SUR, con área común general, en una distancia de treinta pies siete pulgadas (30’7”), equivalentes a nueve punto treinta y dos metros (9.32 m.); por el ESTE, con área común general, apartamento cuarenta y tres veintiuno (4321), escaleras, pasillo (“hallway”) y entrada, en una distancia de treinta y cinco pies cero pulgadas (35’00”), equivalentes a diez punto sesenta y siete metros (10.67 m.) y por el OESTE, con pared medianera que lo divide del apartamento cuarenta y cuatro veintiuno (4421) en una distancia de treinta y cuatro pies diez pulgadas (34’-10”), equivalentes a diez punto sesenta y dos metros (10.62 m.). La entrada principal de este apartamento está localizada en su lindero Este, la cual conecta la salacomedor del apartamento con el pasillo (“hallway”) del segundo (2do) piso del Edificio número cuarenta y tres (43), del Condómino Colinas del Sol II, el cual es un elemento común general del Condominio Colinas del Sol II. Este apartamento consta de un área de construcción bruta de mil veintisiete punto veintidós pies cuadrados (1,027.22 p. c.), equivalentes a

noventa y cinco punto cuarenta y tres metros cuadrados (95.43 m.c.), como área privada de vivienda. Le corresponde a este apartamento, como anejo al mismo y como un elemento privado de uso exclusivo, dos (2) espacios de estacionamiento al descubierto de tamaño doble (“Back to Back”) identificados con los números cuarenta y tres veintidós A (4322A) y cuarenta y tres veintidós B (4322B) con una cabida aproximada de trescientos veinticinco punto sesenta y un pies cuadrados (325.61 p.c.) equivalentes a treinta punto veinticinco metros cuadrados (30.25 m.c.) y dimensiones aproximadas de dos punto setenta y cinco metros (2.75 m.) de ancho y once metros (11.00 m.) de largo. A este apartamento le corresponde una participación de un cero punto tres tres tres tres tres tres por ciento (0.333333%) en los elementos comunes generales del Condominio Colinas del Sol II. Inscrita en la finca número 81,280, al tomo Karibe de Bayamón Sur. Registro de la Propiedad de Puerto Rico, Sección I de Bayamón. Propiedad ubicada, según pagaré, en: Condominio Colinas del Sol II, Apartamento 4322, Bayamón, Puerto Rico. Además, el Alguacil que suscribe, hago saber a todos los acreedores que tengan inscritos o anotados sus derechos sobre los bienes hipotecados con posterioridad a la inscripción del crédito del ejecutante, o de los acreedores de cargas o derechos reales que los hubiesen pospuesto a la hipoteca ejecutada y las personas interesadas en, o con derecho a exigir el cumplimiento de instrumentos negociables garantizados hipotecariamente con posterioridad al crédito ejecutado, siempre que surjan de la certificación registral, para que puedan concurrir a la subasta si les convenga o satisfacer antes del remate el importe del crédito, de sus intereses, costas y honorarios de abogados asegurados, quedando entonces subrogados en los derechos del acreedor ejecutante: Aviso de Demanda de fecha 6 de diciembre de 2021, expedido en el Tribunal de Primera Instancia, Sala Superior de Bayamón, en el Caso Civil número BY2021CV04958, sobre Cobro de Dinero y Ejecución de Hipoteca, “In REM”, seguido por el Banco Popular de Puerto Rico, versus Iván Ríos Torres y su esposa María Margarita Meléndez Torres, por la suma de $109,619.73 más intereses y otras sumas, anotado el día 28 de diciembre de 2021, al tomo Karibe de Bayamón Sur, finca

número 81,280, Anotación A. El producto de la subasta se destinará a satisfacer al demandante hasta donde alcance, la SENTENCIA dictada a su favor, el día 27 de marzo de 2023, archivada en autos y notificada el 27 de marzo de 2023, en el presente caso civil, a saber la suma de $109,619.73 por concepto de principal, más los intereses sobre dicha suma a razón del 3.75%, anual desde el 1ro de febrero de 2020, hasta su completo pago, más las primas de seguro hipotecario, recargos por demora y cualesquiera otras cantidades pactadas en la escritura de primera hipoteca, desde la fecha antes mencionada y hasta la fecha del pago total de las mismas, más la suma de $11,979.00 para costas, gastos y honorarios de abogado; y demás créditos accesorios garantizados hipotecariamente. La adjudicación se hará al mejor postor, quien deberá consignar el importe de su oferta en el acto mismo de la adjudicación, en efectivo (moneda del curso legal de los Estados Unidos de América), giro postal o cheque certificado a nombre del alguacil del Tribunal. LA PRIMERA SUBASTA se llevará a efecto el día 22 DE JUNIO DE 2023 A LAS 9:15 DE LA MAÑANA, en el cuarto piso, Oficina de Alguaciles de Subastas de Centro Judicial de Bayamón, Bayamón, Puerto Rico. Que el precio mínimo fijado para la PRIMERA SUBASTA es de $119,790.00. Que de ser necesaria la celebración de una SEGUNDA SUBASTA la misma se llevará a efecto el día 29 DE JUNIO DE 2023 A LAS 9:15 DE LA MAÑANA, en el cuarto piso, Oficina de Alguaciles de Subastas de Centro Judicial de Bayamón, Bayamón, Puerto Rico. El precio mínimo para la SEGUNDA SUBASTA será de $79,860.00, equivalentes a dos terceras (2/3) partes del tipo mínimo estipulado para la PRIMERA subasta. Que de ser necesaria la celebración de una TERCERA SUBASTA la misma se llevará a efecto el día 6 DE JULIO DE 2023 A LAS 9:15 DE LA MAÑANA, en el cuarto piso, Oficina de Alguaciles de Subastas de Centro Judicial de Bayamón, Bayamón, Puerto Rico. El precio mínimo para la TERCERA SUBASTA será de $59,895.00, equivalentes a la mitad (1/2) del tipo mínimo estipulado para la PRIMERA subasta. Si se declarase desierta la tercera subasta, se adjudicará la finca a favor del acreedor por la totalidad de la cantidad adeudada si ésta es igual o menor que el monto del tipo de la tercera subasta, si el Tribunal lo

estima conveniente; se abonará dicho monto a la cantidad adeudada si esta es mayor, todo ello a tenor con lo dispone el Articulo 104 de la Ley Núm. 210 del 8 de diciembre de 2015 conocida como “Ley del Registro de la Propiedad Inmueble del Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico”. La propiedad a ser ejecutada se adquiere libre de toda carga y gravamen que afecte la mencionada finca según el Artículo 102, inciso 6. Una vez confirmada la venta judicial por el Honorable Tribunal, se procederá a otorgar la correspondiente escritura de venta judicial y se pondrá al comprador en posesión física del inmueble de conformidad con las disposiciones de Ley. Para conocimiento de la parte demandada y de toda aquella persona o personas que tengan interés inscrito con posterioridad a la inscripción del gravamen que se está ejecutando, y para conocimiento de todos los licitadores y el público en general, el presente Edicto se publicará por espacio de dos (2) semanas consecutivas, con un intervalo de por lo menos siete días entre ambas publicaciones, en un diario de circulación general en el Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico y se fijará además en tres (3) lugares públicos del Municipio en que ha de celebrarse dicha venta, tales como la Alcaldía, el Tribunal y la Colecturía. Se les informa, por último, que: a. Que los autos y todos los documentos correspondientes al procedimiento incoado estarán de manifiesto en la secretaría del tribunal durante las horas laborables. b. Que se entenderá que todo licitador acepta como bastante la titularidad y que las cargas y gravámenes anteriores y los preferentes, si los hubiere, al crédito del ejecutante continuarán subsistentes. Se entenderá, que el rematante los acepta y queda subrogado en la responsabilidad de los mismos, sin destinarse a su extinción el precio del remate. EXPIDO, el presente EDICTO, en Bayamón, Puerto Rico, hoy día 09 de mayo de 2023. EDGARDO ELÍAS VARGAS SANTANA, ALGUACIL AUXILIAR PLACA #193, DIVISIÓN DE SUBASTAS, TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA, SALA SUPERIOR DE BAYAMÓN.

LEGAL NOTICE

ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA

SALA SUPERIOR DE SAN JUAN

REVERSE MORTGAGE FUNDING

Demandante Vs. SUCESION CARMEN

LUCILA GONZALEZ

GONZALEZ T/C/C CARMEN LUCILA GONZALEZ T/C/C

CARMEN GONZALEZ GONZALEZ T/C/C

CARMEN LUCIA

GONZALEZ GONZALEZ T/C/C CARMEN L. GONZALEZ COMPUESTA POR LUCILA GONZALEZ, DENISE THIESFELDT

GONZALEZ, WILLIAM THIESFELDT GONZALEZ, DEBORAH THIESFELDT GONZALEZ, SHEILA THIESFELDT

GONZALEZ; JOHN DOE Y JANE DOE COMO POSIBLES HEREDEROS DESCONOCIDOS; SUCESION DE MARGARITA ROSA

GONZALEZ COMPUESTA POR DENISE THIESFELDT GONZALEZ, WILLIAM THIESFELDT GONZALEZ, DEBORAH THIESFELDT GONZALEZ, SHEILA THIESFELDT GONZALEZ; JOHN ROE Y JANE ROE COMO POSIBLES HEREDEROS DESCONOCIDOS; ESTADOS UNIDOS DE AMERICA; CENTRO DE RECAUDACION DE INGRESOS MUNICIPALES Demandados Civil Núm.: SJ2022CV01813. Sobre: EJECUCIÓN DE HIPOTECA. EDICTO DE SUBASTA. ESTADOS UNIDOS DE AMÉRICA, EL PRESIDENTE DE LOS ESTADOS UNIDOS, EL ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO, SS. A: La Parte Demandada, al (a la) Secretario(a) de Hacienda de Puerto Rico y al Público General: Certifico y Hago Constar: Que en cumplimiento con el Mandamiento de Ejecución de Sentencia que me ha sido dirigido por el (la) Secretario(a) del Tribunal de Primera Instancia, Sala Superior de San Juan, en el caso de epígrafe, venderé en pública subasta y al mejor postor, por separado, de contado y por moneda de curso legal de los Estados Unidos de América y/o Giro Postal y Cheque Certificado, en mi oficina ubicada en el Tribunal de Primera Instancia, Sala de San Juan, el 12 DE JUNIO DE 2023, A LAS 10:00 DE LA MAÑANA, todo derecho

título, participación o interés que le corresponda a la parte demandada o cualquiera de ellos en el inmueble hipotecado objeto de ejecución que se describe a continuación: URBANA: Solar marcado con el numero Noventa y Nueve (99) en el plano de inscripción condicionado de la URBANIZACION EXTENSION SAN AGUSTIN, radicado en el Barrio Sabana Liana del sitio denominado Rio Piedras del término municipal del gobierno de la capital de Puerto Rico, con una cabida superficial de TRESCIENTOS VEINTICINCO PUNTO CERO CERO METROS CUADRADOS (325.00 M.C.). En lindes por el NORTE, en trece punto cero cero metros (13.00 m.), con la Calle número Diez (10) del mencionado plano, por el SUR, en trece punto cero cero metros (13.00 m.), con el Solar Ciento Trece (113) del mencionado plano, por el ESTE, en veinticinco punto cero cero metros (25.00 m.), con el Solar Cien (100) del mencionado plano; y por el OESTE, en veinticinco punto cero cero metros (25.00 m.), con el Solar Noventa y Ocho (98) del mencionado plano. Enclava una casa. Inscrita al folio 6 del tomo 55 de Sabana Llana, finca 2,237, Registro de la Propiedad de San Juan, Sección V. La Hipoteca Revertida consta inscrita al folio 418 del tomo 1,129 de Sabana Llana, finca 2,237, Registro de la Propiedad de San Juan, Sección V, inscripción 26ª. Propiedad localizada en: EXTENSION SAN AGUSTIN, 364 CALLE 8, SAN JUAN, PUERTO RICO 00926.

Según figuran en la certificación registral, la propiedad objeto de ejecución está gravada por las siguientes cargas anteriores o preferentes: Nombre del Titular: N/A. Suma de la Carga:

N/A. Fecha de Vencimiento:

N/A. Según figuran en la certificación registral, la propiedad objeto de ejecución está gravada por las siguientes cargas posteriores a la inscripción del crédito ejecutante: Nombre del Titular: Secretario de la Vivienda y Desarrollo Urbano. Suma de la Carga: $352,500.00. Fecha de Vencimiento: 4 de octubre de 2072. Se entenderá que todo licitador acepta como bastante la titularidad de la propiedad y que todas las cargas y gravámenes anteriores y los preferentes al crédito ejecutante antes descritos, si los hubiere, continuarán subsistentes. El rematante acepta dichas cargas y gravámenes anteriores, y queda subrogado en la responsabilidad de los mismos, sin destinarse a su extinción el precio del remate. Se establece como tipo de mínima subasta la suma de $235,000.00, según acordado entre las partes en el precio pactado en la escritura de hipoteca. De ser necesaria una SEGUNDA SUBASTA por

declararse desierta la primera, la misma se celebrará en mi oficina, ubicada en el Tribunal de Primera Instancia, Sala de San Juan, el 20 DE JUNIO DE 2023, A LAS 10:00 DE LA MAÑANA, y se establece como mínima para dicha segunda subasta la suma de $156,666.67, 2/3 partes del tipo mínima establecido originalmente. Si tampoco se produce remate ni adjudicación en la segunda subasta, se establece como mínima para la TERCERA SUBASTA, la suma de $117,500.00, la mitad (1/2) del precio pactado y dicha subasta se celebrará en mi oficina, ubicada en el Tribunal de Primera Instancia, Sala de San Juan, el 27 DE JUNIO DE 2023, A LAS 10:00 DE LA MAÑANA. Dicha subasta se llevará a cabo para, con su producto satisfacer a la parte demandante, el importe de la Sentencia dictada a su favor ascendente a la suma de $246,772.37 por concepto de principal, la cual no incluye intereses y otros gastos acumulados hasta el 31 de marzo de 2022. La suma total incluyendo intereses y otros gastos acumulados hasta esa fecha es de $293,353.53; costas, gastos y honorarios de abogado en caso de reclamación judicial y que correspondan a intereses y cargos por demora posterior a dicha fecha; así como cualquier otra suma que se haga en virtud de la escritura de hipoteca. Dichas sumas están vencidas, son líquidas y exigibles. La venta en pública subasta de la referida propiedad se verificará libre de toda carga o gravamen posterior que afecte la mencionada finca, a cuyo efecto se notifica y se hace saber la fecha, hora y sitio de la PRIMERA, SEGUNDA Y TERCERA SUBASTA, si esto fuera necesario, a los efectos de que cualquier persona o personas con algún interés puedan comparecer a la celebración de dicha subasta. Se notifica a todos los interesados que las actas y demás constancias del expediente de este caso están disponibles en la Secretaría del Tribunal durante horas laborables para ser examinadas por los (las) interesados (as). Y para su publicación en el periódico The San Juan Daily Star, que es un diario de circulación general en la isla de Puerto Rico, por espacio de dos semanas consecutivas con un intervalo de por lo menos siete (7) días entre ambas publicaciones, así como para su publicación en los sitios públicos de Puerto Rico. Expedido en San Juan, Puerto Rico, hoy 5 de mayo de 2023. EDWIN E. LÓPEZ MULERO, ALGUACIL AUXILIAR PLACA #368.

SALA SUPERIOR DE TOA ALTA BANCO POPULAR DE PUERTO RICO

Parte Demandante Vs. MARÍA RIJOS CRUZ, ESTADOS UNIDOS DE AMÉRICA REPRESENTADO POR EL SECRETARIO DE LA VIVIENDA Y DESARROLLO URBANO (HUD)

Parte Demandada

Civil Núm.: TA2023CV00310. (201 A). Sobre: COBRO DE DINERO, EJECUCIÓN DE HIPOTECA POR LA VÍA ORDINARIA. EMPLAZAMIENTO POR EDICTO. ESTADOS UNIDOS DE AMÉRICA, EL PRESIDENTE DE LOS E.E.U.U., EL ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO.

A La Parte Demandada: MARÍA RIJOS CRUZ A SUS ÚLTIMAS DIRECCIONES CONOCIDAS: URB. PABELLONES, K-06

CALLE PABELLÓN DE GUATEMALA, TOA BAJA, PR 00951, URB. PABELLONES, 372 PABELLÓN DE GUATEMALA, TOA BAJA, PR 00949-2264, 2RD INT. 19.2 KM, CANDELARIA

WD, TOA BAJA, PR 00949, Y 4230 PECK RD APT B, EL MONTE, CA 91732-2168.

Queda usted notificado que en este Tribunal se ha radicado demanda sobre ejecución de hipoteca por la vía ordinaria en la que se alega que se adeuda las siguientes cantidades $38,019.55 de principal, más intereses sobre dicha suma al 5.95% anual desde el 1 de septiembre de 2022 hasta su completo pago, más $33.87 de recargos acumulados, los cuales continuarán en aumento hasta el saldo total de la deuda, más la cantidad estipulada de $6,211.80 para costas, gastos y honorarios de abogados, así como cualquier otra suma que contenga el contrato del préstamo, incluyendo pero sin limitarse a gastos de mantenimiento, inspecciones y otros adelantos “corporate advances”. La propiedad que garantiza hipotecariamente el préstamo es la siguiente: RÚSTICA: Lote de terreno localizado en la calle Pabellón de Guatemala de la Urbanización Pabellones en el Barrio Sabana Seca del Municipio de Toa Baja, Puerto Rico, identificado en el plano de inscripción aprobado por la Administración de Reglamentos y Permisos para la urbanización como solar K-6. El mismo tiene una cabida superficial de

300.0232 metros cuadrados.

Linderos: NORTE: con el lote número K-7 en una distancia de 22.5500 metros; por el SUR: con el lote número K-5 en una distancia de 22.5500 metros; por el ESTE: con el lote número K-19 en una distancia de 13.3048 metros; por el OESTE: con la calle Pabellón de Guatemala en una distancia de 13.3048 metros. En el solar enclava una estructura de hormigón armado y bloques. La misma consta de 3 cuartos dormitorios, un baño, sala, comedor, cocina, marquesina y demás dependencias. Inscrita al folio 175 del tomo 660 de Toa Baja, Finca 30346. Registro de la Propiedad de Bayamón, Sección II. La escritura de hipoteca consta inscrita al folio 175 vuelto del tomo 660 de Toa Baja, Finca 30346. Registro de la Propiedad de Bayamón, Sección II. Inscripción segunda. La demandante es la tenedora por endoso en blanco, por valor recibido y de buena fe del referido pagaré objeto de la presente acción. La parte demandada deberá presentar su alegación responsiva a través del Sistema Unificado de Administración y Manejo de Casos (SUMAC), al cual puede acceder utilizando la siguiente dirección electrónica: https://unired. ramajudicial.pr, salvo que se represente por derecho propio, en cuyo caso deberá presentar su alegación responsiva en la secretaría del Tribunal. Se le advierte que si no contesta la demanda, radicando el original de la contestación en este Tribunal y enviando copia de la contestación a la abogada de la Parte Demandante, Lcda. Belma Alonso García, cuya dirección es: PO Box 3922, Guaynabo Puerto Rico 009703922, Teléfono y Fax: (787) 789-1826, (787) 708-0566 correo electrónico: oficinabelmaalonso@gmail.com, dentro del término de treinta (30) días de la publicación de este edicto, excluyéndose el día de la publicación, se le anotará la rebeldía y se le dictará Sentencia en su contra, concediendo el remedio solicitado sin más citarle ni oírle. EXPEDIDO bajo mi firma y el sello del Tribunal, hoy 16 de mayo de 2023, en Toa Alta, Puerto Rico. LCDA. LAURA I. SANTA SÁNCHEZ, SECRETARIA. MARTHA E. ROSARIO ROSA, SUB-SECRETARIA.

LEGAL NOTICE

ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA SALA DE BAYAMÓN BANCO POPULAR DE PUERTO RICO

Demandante, V. ANSELMO PÉREZ RIVERA, ELBA REVERÓN FUENTES Y

LA SOCIEDAD LEGAL DE GANANCIALES COMPUESTA

POR AMBOS, ADMINISTRACIÓN DE LOS SISTEMAS DE RETIRO DE LOS EMPLEADOS DEL ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO, JOHN DOE Demandadas Civil Núm.: BY2023CV01694. Sobre: CANCELACIÓN DE PAGARÉ EXTRAVIADO POR LA VÍA JUDICIAL. EMPLAZAMIENTO POR EDICTO. ESTADOS UNIDOS DE AMÉRICA, PRESIDENTE DE LOS ESTADOS UNIDOS, ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO, S. S.

A: ANSELMO PÉREZ RIVERA, ELBA REVERÓN FUENTES Y LA SOCIEDAD LEGAL DE GANANCIALES COMPUESTA POR AMBOS POR AMBOS COMO TENEDORES DESCONOCIDOS DEL PAGARÉ a favor de Sistema de Retiro de los Empleados del Estado Libre Asociado De Puerto Rico, o a su orden, por la suma principal de $36,700.00 con intereses a razón del 9.25% anual, vencedero en 30 años, conforme a la escritura número 38, otorgada en San Juan, Puerto Rico, el 8 de noviembre de 1978, ante el Notario Ángel Ramírez Ramírez, inscrita al olio 233 vuelto del tomo 1118 de Bayamón Sur, finca 49,940 de Bayamón Sur, Registro de la Propiedad de Puerto Rico, Primera Sección de Bayamón.

Por la presente se le emplaza y notifica que debe contestar la demanda incoada en su contra dentro del término de treinta (30) días a partir de la publicación del presente edicto. Usted deberá presentar su alegación responsiva a través del Sistema Unificado de Manejo y Administración de Casos (SUMAC), al cual puede acceder utilizando la siguiente dirección electrónica: https://unired.ramajudicial. pr/sumac/, salvo que se represente por derecho propio. Si usted deja de presentar y notificar su alegación responsiva dentro del referido término, el Tribunal podrá dictar sentencia en rebeldía en su contra y conceder el remedio solicitado en la Demanda, o cualquier otro, si el Tribunal, en el ejercicio de su sana discreción, lo entien-

de procedente. Los abogados de la parte demandante son.

ABOGADOS DE LA PARTE

DEMANDANTE:

Lcdo. Reggie Díaz Hernández RUA Núm.: 16,393

BERMUDEZ & DIAZ LLP

Suite 209

500 Calle De La Tanca San Juan, Puerto Rico 00901

Tel.: (787) 523-2670

Fax: (787) 523-2664 rdíaz@bdprlaw.com

Expido este edicto bajo mi firma y el sello de este Tribunal, hoy 11 de mayo de 2023. LCDA.

LAURA I. SANTA SÁNCHEZ, SECRETARIA REGIONAL. VERÓNICA RIVERA RODRÍGUEZ, SECRETARIA AUXILIAR DEL TRIBUNAL I.

LEGAL NOTICE

ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA SALA DE BAYAMÓN LUNA RESIDENTIAL III LLC.

Parte Demandante Vs. WILMA IRIS

COLLAZO RODRIGUEZ

Parte Demandada Civil Núm.: BY2022CV04057. Sobre: EJECUCIÓN DE HIPOTECA POR LA VÍA ORDINARIA Y COBRO DE DINERO. ANUNCIO DE SUBASTA. El suscribiente, Alguacil del Tribunal de Primera Instancia de Puerto Rico, Sala de Bayamón, a los demandados de epígrafe y al público en general hace saber que los autos y documentos del caso de epígrafe estarán de manifiesto en la Secretaría del Tribunal durante horas laborables y que venderá en pública subasta al mejor postor, en moneda de curso legal de los Estados Unidos de América en efectivo, cheque certificado, o giro postal a nombre del Alguacil del Tribunal de Primera Instancia, en mi oficina en el Centro Judicial de Bayamón, Sala 410, Cuarto Piso, Bayamón, Puerto Rico, el derecho que tenga la parte demandada en el inmueble que se relaciona más adelante para pagar la SENTENCIA por $78,401.69 de balance principal, el cual se compone de $73,971.06 de primer principal y la suma de $4,430.63 de balance diferido, más los intereses calculados sobre la suma de $73,971.06 a razón del 7% anual, desde el primero de noviembre de 2018 hasta su total pago y completo pago; más el 5% computado sobre cada mensualidad; cargos por demora devengados, más la suma de $7,410.00 estipulada para honorarios de abogado, pactada en la escritura de hipoteca; y cualesquiera otras sumas que por cualesquiera concepto legal se devenguen hasta el día de la subasta. La propiedad a venderse en pública subasta se describe como sigue: URBA-

NA: Predio de terreno radicado en el barrio Mucarabones del

término municipal de Toa Alta, Puerto Rico, con una cabida superficial de quinientos cuarenta y dos punto seis mil novecientos sesenta y dos (542.6962) metros cuadrados. En lindes por el NORTE, en veintiocho punto trescientos ochenta y uno (28.381) metros, con el remanente de la finca principal de la cual se segrega; por el SUR, en veintinueve punto seiscientos sesenta y ocho (29.668) metros, con terrenos propiedad del señor Miguel Batista; por el ESTE, en dieciocho punto cero cinco cinco (18.055) metros, con terrenos del señor Camildo Ortiz; y por el OESTE, en diecinueve punto cuatrocientos cincuenta (19.454) metros, con terrenos propiedad de la señora Amalia Torres. Inscrita al folio cincuenta y uno (51) del tomo doscientos sesenta y dos (262) de Toa Alta, finca número doce mil setecientos once (13711), Registro de la Propiedad de Bayamón III. Dirección Física: RD 3 1 KM 7G, Buccarrabones Ward, Toa Alta, PR 00953. La PRIMERA SUBASTA se llevará a cabo el día 5 DE JULIO DE 2023, A LAS 9:30 DE LA MAÑANA, y servirá de tipo mínimo para la misma la suma de $74,100.00 sin admitirse oferta inferior. En el caso de que el inmueble a ser subastado no fuera adjudicado en la primera subasta, se celebrará una SEGUNDA SUBASTA el día 12 DE JULIO DE 2023, A LAS 9:30 DE LA MAÑANA, y el precio mínimo para esta segunda subasta será el de dos terceras partes del precio mínimo establecido para la primera subasta, o a sea la suma de $49,400.00. Si tampoco hubiera remate ni adjudicación en la segunda subasta, se celebrará una TERCERA SUBASTA el día 19 DE JULIO DE 2023, A LAS 9:30 DE LA MAÑANA, y el tipo mínimo para esta tercera subasta será la mitad del precio establecido para la primera subasta, o sea, la suma de $37,050.00. El mejor postor deberá pagar el importe de su oferta en efecto, cheque certificado o giro postal a nombre del Alguacil del Tribunal. Si se declarase desierta la tercera subasta, se dará por terminado el procedimiento, pudiendo adjudicarse el inmueble al acreedor hipotecario dentro de los diez días siguientes a la fecha de la última subasta, si así lo estimase conveniente, por la totalidad de la cantidad adeudada conforme a la sentencia, si ésta fuera igual o menor que el monto del tipo de la tercera subasta y abonándose dicho monto a la cantidad adeudada si ésta fuera mayor. Se avisa a cualquier licitador que la propiedad queda sujeta al gravamen del Estado Libre Asociado y CRIM sobre la propiedad inmueble por contribuciones adeudadas y que el pago de dichas contri-

buciones es la responsabilidad del licitador. Que se entenderá por todo licitador acepte como suficiente la titulación y que los cargos y gravámenes anteriores y los preferentes al crédito del ejecutante continuarán subsistentes en entendiéndose que el rematador los acepta y queda subrogado en la responsabilidad de los mismos, sin destinarse su extinción al precio rematante. Todos los nombres de los acreedores que tengan inscritos o anotados sus derechos sobre los bienes hipotecados con posterioridad a la inscripción del crédito del ejecutante, o de los acreedores de cargas o derechos reales que los hubiesen pospuesto a la hipoteca ejecutada y las personas interesadas en, o con derecho a exigir el cumplimiento de instrumentos negociables garantizados hipotecariamente con posterioridad al crédito ejecutado, siempre que surgen de la certificación registral, para que puedan concurrir a la subasta si les convenga o satisfacer antes del remate el importe del crédito, de sus intereses, costas y honorarios de abogados asegurados, quedando entonces subrogados en los derechos del acreedor ejecutante. La propiedad a ser ejecutada se adquirirá libre de cargas y gravámenes posteriores. Y para conocimiento de licitadores, del público en general y para su publicación en un periódico de circulación general diaria en Puerto Rico y en los sitios públicos de acuerdo a las disposiciones de la Regla 51.7 de las de Procedimiento Civil, así como para la publicación en un periódico de circulación general diaria y en el Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, por espacio de dos semanas con antelación a la fecha de la primera subasta y por lo menos una vez por semana. Los autos y todos los documentos correspondientes al procedimiento indicado estarán de manifiesto en la Secretaría del Tribunal durante las horas laborables. (Art. 102 (1) de la Ley núm. 2102015). Expedido el presente en Bayamón, Puerto Rico a 15 de mayo de 2023. MARIBEL LANZAR VELÁZQUEZ, ALGUACIL PLACA #735, ALGUACIL DEL TRIBUNAL PRIMERA INSTANCIA, SALA DE BAYAMÓN.

LEGAL NOTICE

ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA SALA SUPERIOR DE BAYAMÓN

BANCO POPULAR DE PUERTO RICO

Demandante V. LA SUCESIÓN DE DOMINGO ORTIZ HERNÁNDEZ COMPUESTA POR

FULANO DE TAL Y MENGANO DE TAL, LOS POSIBLES HEREDEROS DESCONOCIDOS Y JOSEFINA NIEVES AGOSTO POR SÍ Y P/C DE JOEL FEBUS NIEVES Y COMO HEREDERA DE DOMINGO ORTIZ HERNÁNDEZ DEPARTAMENTO DE HACIENDA Y DEPARTAMENTO DE JUSTICIA

Demandados

Civil Núm.: BY2023CV00247.

Sobre: COBRO DE DINERO Y EJECUCIÓN DE HIPOTECA POR LA VÍA ORDINARIA. EMPLAZAMIENTO POR EDICTO. ESTADOS UNIDOS DE AMÉRICA, PRESIDENTE DE LOS ESTADOS UNIDOS, ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO, S. S. A: SUCESIÓN DE DOMINGO ORTIZ HERNÁNDEZ, COMPUESTA POR FULANO DE TAL Y MENGANO DE TAL, LOS HEREDEROS DESCONOCIDOS Y JOSEFINA NIEVES AGOSTO POR SÍ Y P/C DE JOEL FEBUS NIEVES Y COMO HEREDERA DE DOMINGO ORTIZ HERNÁNDEZ.

Por la presente se le emplaza y notifica que debe contestar la demanda dentro del término de treinta (30) días a partir de la publicación del presente edicto.

Usted deberá presentar su alegación responsiva a través del Sistema Unificado de Manejo y Administración de Casos (SUMAC), al cual puede acceder utilizando la siguiente dirección electrónica: https://unired. ramajudicial.pr, salvo que se represente por derecho propio, en cuyo caso deberá presentar su alegación responsiva en la secretaría del tribunal. Se le apercibe que, de no contestar la demanda dentro del término aquí estipulado, se le anotará la rebeldía y se dictará sentencia sin más citarle ni oírle. Por la presente el Tribunal de Primera Instancia, conforme al caso de Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria vs. Latinoamericana de Exportación, Inc., 164 D.P.R. 689 (2005), le ordena que en el término de treinta (30) días, haga declaración aceptando o repudiando la herencia de la SUCESIÓN DE DOMINGO ORTIZ HERNÁNDEZ. Se le apercibe que de no expresar su intención de aceptar o repudiar la herencia dentro del término que se le fijó, la herencia se tendrá por aceptada. Los abogados de la parte demandante son: Lcdo. Guillermo A. Somoza Colomba-

ni, P.O. Box 366603, San Juan, PR 00936-6603. Tel. (787) 9190073, Fax (787) 641-5016. Expido este edicto bajo mi firma y sello de este Tribunal, hoy 17 de mayo de 2023. LCDA. LAURA I. SANTA SÁNCHEZ, SECRETARIA REGIONAL. MIRCIENID GONZÁLEZ TORRES, SECRETARIA AUXILIAR.

LEGAL NOTICE

ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO TRIBUNAL GENERAL DE JUSTICIA TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA SALA DE TRUJILLO ALTO EN CAROLINA SAN CARLOS MORTGAGE, LLC Vs

ALVAREZ BERRIOS, PEDRO MANUEL

Caso: FECI201501100. Sobre: EJECUCIÓN DE HIPOTECA. NOTIFICACIÓN DE SENTENCIA POR EDICTO ENMENDADA.

A: PEDRO MANUEL

ALVAREZ BERRIOS T/C/C

PEDRO M. ALVAREZ

BERRIOS; DORKAS

ALVAREZ POMALES Y LOIDA ALVAREZ

POMALES TODOS POR

SI Y COMO MIEMBROS DE LA SUCESION DE MERARI POMALES

SERRANO T/C/C MERARI

POMALES SERRAO, JANE Y JOHN DOE COMO

POSIBLES HEREDEROS DESCONOCIDOS DE LA SUCN DE MERARI

POMALES SERRANO

T/C/C MERARI POMALES

SERRAO, DIRECCION

CONOCIDA: URB EL CONQUISTADOR G 16

CALLE 6 TRUJILLO ALTO RP 00976.

EL SECRETARIO(A) QUE SUSCRIBE LE NOTIFICA A USTED QUE EL 27 DE FEBRERO DE 2019, ESTE TRIBUNAL HA DICTADO SENTENCIA, SENTENCIA PARCIAL O RESOLUCIÓN EN ESTE CASO, QUE HA SIDO DEBIDAMENTE REGISTRADA Y ARCHIVADA EN AUTOS DONDE PODRÁ USTED ENTERARSE DETALLADAMENTE DE LOS TÉRMINOS DE LA MISMA. ESTA NOTIFICACIÓN SE PUBLICARÁ UNA SOLA VEZ EN UN PERIÓDICO DE CIRCULACIÓN GENERAL EN LA ISLA DE PUERTO RICO, DENTRO DE LOS 10 DÍAS SIGUIENTES A SU NOTIFICACIÓN. Y, SIENDO O REPRESENTANDO USTED UNA PARTE EN EL PROCEDIMIENTO SUJETA A LOS TÉRMINOS DE LA SENTENCIA, SENTENCIA PARCIAL O RESOLUCIÓN, DE LA CUAL PUEDE ESTABLECERSE RECURSO DE REVISIÓN O APELACIÓN DENTRO DEL TÉRMI-

NO DE 30 DÍAS CONTADOS A PARTIR DE LA PUBLICACIÓN POR EDICTO DE ESTA NOTIFICACIÓN, DIRIJO A USTED ESTA NOTIFICACIÓN QUE SE CONSIDERARÁ HECHA EN LA FECHA DE LA PUBLICACIÓN DE ESTE EDICTO. COPIA DE ESTA NOTIFICACIÓN HA SIDO ARCHIVADA EN LOS AUTOS DE ESTE CASO, CON FECHA DE 19 DE MAYO DE 2023. LIC. DESEDA BELAVAL, RAQUEL. RDESEDA@DELGADOFERNANDEZ.COM. ENMENDADA A LOS FINES DE NOTIFICAR NUEVAMENTE, SEGÚN LA ORDEN DEL JUEZ LIZARDO W. MATTEI ROMAN. EN CAROLINA, PUERTO RICO, EL 19 DE MAYO DE 2023. LCDA. KANELLY ZAYAS ROBLES, SECRETARIA. IDA FERNÁNDEZ RODRÍGUEZ, SECRETARIA AUXILIAR.

LEGAL NOTICE

ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA

SALA DE TOA BAJA

FINANCE OF AMERICA

REVERSE, LLC

Demandante Vs.

SUCESIÓN DE ÁNGEL

LUIS LOZADA RAMÍREZ

T/C/C ÁNGEL L. LOZADA

RAMÍREZ T/C/C ÁNGEL

LOZADA RAMÍREZ T/C/C

ANGEL LUIS LOZADA

T/C/C ÁNGEL L. LOZADA

T/C/C ANGEL LOZADA

COMPUESTA POR MARÍA DE LOS ANGELES

PLUGUES PIÑEIRO

T/C/C MARÍA DE LOS ANGELES PLUGUEZ

PIÑEIRO T/C/C MARÍA DE LOS ANGELES PLUGUEZ

PINERO T/C/C MARÍA

PLUGUEZ DELOZADA

T/C/C MARÍA PLUGUEZ DE LOZADA T/C/C MARÍA

PLUGUEZ T/C/C MARÍA A.

PLUGUEZ PINEIRO T/C/C

MARÍA A. PLUGUEZ, JUAN CARLOS

LOZADA PLUGUES, MARÍA LOZADA, FULANO DE TAL Y

SUTANO DE TAL COMO

POSIBLES HEREDEROS DE NOMBRE DESCONOCIDO; MARÍA DE LOS ANGELES

PLUGUES PIÑEIRO T/C/C

MARÍA DE LOS ANGELES

PLUGUEZ PIÑERIRO

T/C/C MARÍA DE LOS

ANGELES PLUGUEZ

PINERO T/C/C MARÍA

PLUGUEZ DELOZADA

T/C/C MARÍA PLUGUEZ DE LOZADA T/C/C MARÍA

PLUGUEZ T/C/C MARÍA

A. PLUGUEZ PINEIRO

T/C/C MARÍA A. PLUGUEZ POR SÍ; CENTRO DE RECAUDACIÓN DE INGRESOS MUNICIPALES Y LOS ESTADOS UNIDOS DE AMÉRICA Demandados

Civil Núm.: TB2023CV00045. Sobre: EJECUCIÓN DE HIPOTECA - IN REM (HIPOTECA REVERTIDA). MANDAMIENTO DE INTERPELACIÓN. ESTADOS UNIDOS DE AMÉRICA, EL PRESIDENTE DE LOS ESTADOS UNIDOS, EL ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO. POR CUANTO: En el presente caso se ha dictado la siguiente Orden: “ORDEN DE INTERPELACIÓN: Vista la Demanda presentada por la parte demandante solicitando la interpelación judicial de la Sucesión de Ángel Luis Lozada Ramírez compuesta por María de los Ángeles Plugues Piñeiro, Juan Carlos Lozada Plugues, María Lozada; Fulano de Tal y Sutano de Tal como posibles herederos de nombre desconocido, conforme al Artículo 1578 del Código Civil de Puerto Rico edición de 2020. Se Ordena a los herederos de la Sucesión a que dentro del término legal de treinta (30) días contados a partir de la notificación de esta Orden, acepten o repudien la participación que les corresponda en la herencia del causante. Se le Apercibe a los herederos antes mencionados que: (a) de no expresarse dentro del término de treinta (30) días en torno a su aceptación o repudiación de la herencia; o (b) de no solicitar término adicional para ello dentro del término de treinta (30) días; la herencia se presumirá por aceptada, respondiendo con ello por las obligaciones, por los legados y por las cargas hereditarias hasta el valor de los bienes hereditarios que recibe, según dispone el Artículo 1587 del Código Civil de Puerto Rico de 2020. NOTIFÍQUESE. Dada en Bayamón, Puerto Rico, a 20 de abril de 2023. FDO. ANNETTE M. PRATS PARLEM, JUEZA.” POR TANTO, en vista de la Orden dictada, se libra este Mandamiento de Interpelación a ser diligenciado por la parte demandante sobre los herederos que componen la Sucesión de Ángel Luis Lozada Ramírez. En Bayamón, Puerto Rico, a 25 de abril de 2023. LCDA.

LAURA I. SANTA SÁNCHEZ, SECRETARIA REGIONAL. NEREIDA QUILES SANTANA, SECRETARIA AUXILIAR DEL TRIBUNAL I.

LEGAL NOTICE

ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO TRIBUNAL GENERAL DE JUSTICIA SALA

SUPERIOR DE CAROLINA ISLAND PORTFOLIO SERVICES, LLC

COMO AGTE DE FAIRWAY ACQUISITIONS FUND, LLC

Demandante V. MIGUEL A. ROBLES TRUJILLO Demandado(a)

Civil: CA2022CV03197. Sala: 406. Sobre: COBRO DE DINERO ORDINARIO. NOTIFICACIÓN DE SENTENCIA POR EDICTO. A: MIGUEL A. ROBLES TRUJILLOBO CANOVANILLA SCTR EL TROMPITO, CARR 857

KM 4.6 CAROLINA PR 00987. (Nombre de las partes a las que se le notifican la sentencia por edicto)

EL SECRETARIO(A) que suscribe le notifica a usted que el 19 de mayo de 2023, este Tribunal ha dictado Sentencia, Sentencia Parcial o Resolución en este caso, que ha sido debidamente registrada y archivada en autos donde podrá usted enterarse detalladamente de los términos de la misma. Esta notificación se publicará una sola vez en un periódico de circulación general en la Isla de Puerto Rico, dentro de los 10 días siguientes a su notificación. Y, siendo o representando usted una parte en el procedimiento sujeta a los términos de la Sentencia, Sentencia Parcial o Resolución, de la cual puede establecerse recurso de revisión o apelación dentro del término de 30 días contados a partir de la publicación por edicto de esta notificación, dirijo a usted esta notificación que se considerará hecha en la fecha de la publicación de este edicto. Copia de esta notificación ha sido archivada en los autos de este caso, con fecha de 22 de mayo de 2023. En CAROLINA, Puerto Rico, el 22 de mayo de 2023. LCDA. MARILYN APONTE RODRÍGUEZ, SECRETARIA. MARICRUZ APONTE ALICEA, SECRETARIA AUXILIAR.

LEGAL NOTICE

ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA SALA SUPERIOR DE SAN JUAN

BANCO POPULAR DE PUERTO RICO

Parte Demandante Vs. MILDRED QUIÑONES T/C/C MILDRED PÉREZ IRIZARRY POR SÍ Y COMO MIEMBRO DE LA SUCESIÓN DE JOSÉ QUIÑONES MARTINO; FULANO DE TAL, SUTANO DE TAL COMO MIEMBROS DESCONOCIDOS DE LA SUCESIÓN DE JOSÉ QUIÑONES MARTINO; CENTRO

DE RECAUDACIONES DE INGRESOS MUNICIPALES; Y LOS ESTADOS UNIDOS DE AMÉRICA

Parte Demandada Civil Núm.: SJ2021CV06797.

(604). Sobre: EJECUCIÓN DE HIPOTECA - IN REM. EMPLAZAMIENTO POR EDICTO.

ESTADOS UNIDOS DE AMÉRICA, EL PRESIDENTE DE LOS EE.UU., ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE P.R., SS.

A: FULANO DE TAL Y SUTANO DE TAL COMO MIEMBROS DESCONOCIDOS DE LA SUCESIÓN DE JOSÉ QUIÑONES MARTINO. Quedan emplazados y notificados de que en este Tribunal se ha radicado una demanda de ejecución de hipoteca In Remen sus contras. Se les notifica para que comparezcan ante el Tribunal dentro del término de treinta (30) días a partir de la publicación de este edicto y exponer lo que a sus derechos convenga, en el presente caso. Se les notifica que deberán presentar su alegación responsiva a través del Sistema Unificado de Manejo y Administración de Casos (SUMAC), al cual puede acceder utilizando la siguiente dirección electrónica: https:// unired.ramajudicial.pr, salvo que se represente por derecho propio, en cuyo caso deberán presentar su alegación responsiva en la Secretaría del Tribunal Superior de Puerto Rico, Sala de San Juan y enviando copia de su contestación a la parte demandante, GLS LEGAL SERVICES, LLC, Atención: Lcda. Yara A. Santiago Durieux, Dirección: P.O. Box 367308, San Juan, PR 009367308, Teléfono: 787-758-6550, se les anotará la rebeldía en su contra y se dictará sentencia en su contra, conforme se solicita en la Demanda, sin más citárseles, ni oírseles. Se ORDENA a los herederos del referido causante a saber: FULANO DE TAL Y SUTANO DE TAL COMO MIEMBROS DESCONOCIDOS DE LA SUCESIÓN, a que dentro del mismo término de treinta (30) días contados a partir de la fecha de la notificación, ACEPTEN o REPUDIEN la participación que les corresponda en la herencia del causante, JOSÉ QUIÑONES MARTINO. Se les apercibe a los herederos antes mencionados que de no expresarse dentro de ese término de treinta (30) días en torno a su aceptación o repudiación de herencia, se tendrá por aceptada. Expedido bajo mi firma y sello del Tribunal, a 9 de febrero de 2023. GRISELDA RODRÍGUEZ COLLADO, SECRETARIA REGIONAL. MARÍA I. RÍOS LÓPEZ, SECRETARIA DE SERVICIOS A SALA.

LEGAL NOTICE

ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO TRIBUNAL GENERAL DE JUSTICIA

TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA SALA SUPERIOR DE FAJARDO ISLAND PORTFOLIO

SERVICES, LLC, COMO AGENTE DE FAIRWAY ACQUISITIONS FUND, LLC

Demandante V. MARY A. VÁZQUEZ

Demandado(a)

Civil: LU2022CV00181. Sobre: COBRO DE DINERO. NOTIFICACIÓN DE SENTENCIA POR EDICTO.

A: MARY A. VÁZQUEZ; URB BRISAS DEL MAR GG31 CALLE G LUQUILLO, PUERTO RICO 00773.

(Nombre de las partes a las que se le notifican la sentencia por edicto)

EL SECRETARIO(A) que suscribe le notifica a usted que el 22 de mayo de 2023, este Tribunal ha dictado Sentencia, Sentencia Parcial o Resolución en este caso, que ha sido debidamente registrada y archivada en autos donde podrá usted enterarse detalladamente de los términos de la misma. Esta notificación se publicará una sola vez en un periódico de circulación general en la Isla de Puerto Rico, dentro de los 10 días siguientes a su notificación. Y, siendo o representando usted una parte en el procedimiento sujeta a los términos de la Sentencia, Sentencia Parcial o Resolución, de la cual puede establecerse recurso de revisión o apelación dentro del término de 30 días contados a partir de la publicación por edicto de esta notificación, dirijo a usted esta notificación que se considerará hecha en la fecha de la publicación de este edicto. Copia de esta notificación ha sido archivada en los autos de este caso, con fecha de 23 de mayo de 2023. En Fajardo, Puerto Rico, el 23 de mayo de 2023. WANDA I. SEGUÍ REYES, SECRETARIA REGIONAL. IVELISSE SERRANO GARCÍA, SECRETARIA AUXILIAR.

LEGAL NOTICE

ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO TRIBUNAL GENERAL DE JUSTICIA SALA

SUPERIOR DE SAN JUAN

JHOMARY MATTA

HERNANDEZ T/C/C

JOMARI MATTA SANTOS

Demandante (a) Vs. FIRST MORTGAGE

CAPITAL, INC.;

EXTRAVIADO ÚLTIMO

TENEDOR CONOCIDO Y/ O CUALQUIER TENEDOR DESCONOCIDO Y FULANO DE TAL

Demandado (a) Civil Núm.: SJ2023CV02255. Sala: 803. Sobre: ACCIÓN CIVIL, CANCELACIÓN DE PAGARÉ HIPOTECARIO PREVIAMENTE SALDADO. NOTIFICACIÓN DE SENTENCIA POR EDICTO.

A: FIRST MORTGAGE CAPITAL, INC, ÚLTIMO TENEDOR CONOCIDO, CUALQUIER TENEDOR DESCONOCIDO, FULANO DE TAL.

EL SECRETARIO(A) que suscribe le notifica a usted que el 23 de mayo de 2023, este Tribunal ha dictado Sentencia, Sentencia Parcial o Resolución en este caso, que ha sido debidamente registrada y archivada en autos donde podrá usted enterarse detalladamente de los términos de la misma. Esta notificación se publicará una sola vez en un periódico de circulación general en la Isla de Puerto Rico, dentro de los 10 días siguientes a su notificación. Y, siendo o representando usted una parte en el procedimiento sujeta a los términos de la Sentencia, Sentencia Parcial o Resolución, de la cual puede establecerse recurso de revisión o apelación dentro del término de 30 días contados a partir de la publicación por edicto de esta notificación, dirijo a usted esta notificación que se considerará hecha en la fecha de la publicación de este edicto. Copia de esta notificación ha sido archivada en los autos de este caso, con fecha de 23 de mayo de 2023. En San Juan, Puerto Rico, el 23 de mayo de 2023. GRISELDA RODRÍGUEZ COLLADO, SECRETARIA REGIONAL. KAROLYN RIVERA NAVARRO, SECRETARIA AUXILIAR.

LEGAL NOTICE

ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA SALA SUPERIOR DE CAROLINA. NICHOLE OFARILL TORRES Peticionaria Vs. DAVID ALEXIS

GUTIERREZ FIGUEROA Peticionado Civil Núm. TJ2023RF00013. SOBRE: Alimentos. Estados Unidos de América, El Presidente de los Estados Unidos, El Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico.

A: DAVID ALEXIS

GUTIERREZ FIGUEROA

Por la presente se le notifica a usted que se le ha presentado ante este Honorable Tribunal, una Solicitud de Alimentos. Usted deberá presentar su alegación responsiva a través del Sistema Unificado de Manejo de Administración de Casos (SUMAC), al cual puede ac-

en este pleito; $208.60 por concepto de “Escrow Advances’’ y la suma $4,135.00 para costas, gastos y honorarios de abogado; y demás créditos accesorios garantizados hipotecariamente (“Sentencia”). La adjudicación se hará al mejor postor, quien deberá consignar el importe de su oferta en el acto mismo de la adjudicación, en efectivo (moneda del curso legal de los Estados Unidos de América), giro postal o cheque certificado a nombre del alguacil del Tribunal. LA PRIMERA SUBASTA se llevará a efecto el día 31 DE JULIO DE 2023 A

LAS 11:45 DE LA MAÑANA, en la Oficina / Sala de Alguaciles de Subastas del Tribunal, Sala Superior de Carolina, Carolina, Puerto Rico. Que el precio mínimo fijado para la PRIMERA SUBASTA es de $41,350.00. Que de ser necesaria la celebración de una SEGUNDA SUBASTA la misma se llevará a efecto el día 7 DE AGOSTO DE 2023 A

LAS 11:45 DE LA MAÑANA, en la Oficina / Sala de Alguaciles de Subastas del Tribunal, Sala Superior Carolina, Carolina, Puerto Rico. El precio mínimo para la SEGUNDA SUBASTA será de $27,566.66, equivalentes a dos terceras (2/3) partes del tipo mínimo estipulado para la PRIMERA subasta. Que de ser necesaria la celebración de una TERCERA SUBASTA la misma se llevará a efecto el día 14 DE AGOSTO DE 2023 A

LAS 11:45 DE LA MAÑANA, en la Oficina / Sala de Alguaciles de Subastas del Tribunal, Sala Superior de Carolina, Carolina, Puerto Rico. El precio mínimo para la TERCERA SUBASTA será de $20,675.00, equivalentes a la mitad (1/2) del tipo mínimo estipulado para la PRIMERA subasta. Si se declarase desierta la tercera subasta, se adjudicará la finca a favor del acreedor por la totalidad de la cantidad adeudada si ésta es igual o menor que el monto del tipo de la tercera subasta, si el Tribunal lo estima conveniente; se abonará dicho monto a la cantidad adeudada si esta es mayor, todo ello a tenor con lo dispone el Articulo 104 de la Ley Núm. 210 del 8 de diciembre de 2015 conocida como “Ley del Registro de la Propiedad Inmueble del Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico”. La propiedad a ser ejecutada se adquiere libre de toda carga y gravamen que afecte la mencionada finca según el Artículo 102, inciso 6. Una vez confirmada la venta judicial por el Honorable Tribunal, se procederá a otorgar la correspondiente escritura de venta judicial y se pondrá al comprador en posesión física del inmueble de conformidad con las disposiciones de Ley. Para conocimiento de la parte demandada y de toda aquella persona o personas que tengan interés inscrito con

posterioridad a la inscripción del gravamen que se está ejecutando, y para conocimiento de todos los licitadores y el público en general, el presente Edicto se publicará por espacio de dos (2) semanas consecutivas, con un intervalo de por lo menos siete días entre ambas publicaciones, en un diario de circulación general en el Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico y se fijará además en tres (3) lugares públicos del Municipio en que ha de celebrarse dicha venta, tales como la Alcaldía, el Tribunal y la Colecturía. Se les informa, por último, que: a. Que los autos y todos los documentos correspondientes al procedimiento incoado estarán de manifiesto en la secretaría del tribunal durante las horas laborables. b. Que se entenderá que todo licitador acepta como bastante la titularidad y que las cargas y gravámenes anteriores y los preferentes, si los hubiere, al crédito del ejecutante continuarán subsistentes. Se entenderá, que el rematante los acepta y queda subrogado en la responsabilidad de los mismos, sin destinarse a su extinción el precio del remate. EXPIDO, el presente EDICTO, en Carolina, Puerto Rico, hoy día 12 de mayo de 2023. HÉCTOR L. PEÑA RODRÍGUEZ, ALGUACIL DE LA DIVISIÓN DE SUBASTAS, TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA, SALA SUPERIOR DE CAROLINA.

LEGAL NOTICE

ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO TRIBUNAL GENERAL DE JUSTICIA TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA SALA DE HUMACAO

ORIENTAL BANK

Demandante V. GLADYS CINTRÓN

FIGUEROA, ALFREDO CINTRÓN FIGUEROA, MARIEDNA CINTRÓN

FIGUEROA, CYNTHIA

CINTRÓN FIGUEROA, ANA L. CINTRÓN

FIGUEROA COMO

MIEMBROS CONOCIDOS DE LA SUCESIÓN DE ALFREDO CINTRON BRAC Y DE LA

SUCESIÓN DE GLADYS

FIGUEROA MENDEZ; JOHN DOE COMO MIEMBRO

DESCONOCIDO DE LA

SUCESIÓN DE ALFREDO CINTRON BRAC; RICHARD ROE COMO MIEMBRO

DESCONOCIDO DE LA

SUCESIÓN DE GLADYS

FIGUEROA MENDEZ

Demandados

Civil Núm.: NG2021CV00119.

Sobre: COBRO DE DINERO Y EJECUCIÓN DE HIPOTECA.

LOS ESTADOS UNIDOS DE AMÉRICA, EL PRESIDENTE DE LOS EE.UU., EL ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE P.R., SS. AVISO DE PÚBLICA SUBASTA. El que suscribe, Alguacil del Tribunal de Primera Instancia, Sala Superior de Humacao, hago saber a la parte demandada GLADYS CINTRÓN FIGUEROA, ALFREDO CINTRÓN FIGUEROA, MARIEDNA CINTRÓN FIGUEROA, CYNTHIA CINTRÓN FIGUEROA, ANA L. CINTRÓN FIGUEROA como miembros conocidos de la Sucesión de ALFREDO CINTRON BRAC y de la Sucesión de GLADYS FIGUEROA MENDEZ; JOHN DOE como miembro desconocido de la Sucesión de ALFREDO CINTRON BRAC; RICHARD ROE como miembro desconocido de la Sucesión de GLADYS FIGUEROA MENDEZ y al PÚBLICO EN GENERAL; que en cumplimiento del Mandamiento de Ejecución de Sentencia expedido el 20 marzo de 2023, por la Secretaría del Tribunal, procederé a vender y venderé en pública subasta por el precio mínimo de $68,000.00 y al mejor postor, pagadero en efectivo, cheque de gerente o giro postal, a nombre del alguacil del tribunal, la propiedad que se describe a continuación: 32

CALLE RUIZ BELVIZ, NAGUABO, PR 00718, y que se describe de la siguiente manera:

URBANA: Solar situado en la Calle Ruíz Belvis del término municipal de Naguabo, con una cabida superficial de trescientos metros cuadrados (300.00 m.c.), en lindes por el NORTE, por donde mide doce metros (12.00 m.) con la finca principal de donde se segrega; por el SUR, por donde mide doce metros (12.00 m.) con la Calle Ruíz Belvis; por el ESTE, por donde mide veinticinco metros (25.00 m.) con la finca principal de donde se segrega; y por el OESTE, por donde mide veinticinco metros (25.00 m.) con la Calle Juan R. Garzot. Contiene una casa de cemento armado de una sola planta dedicada a fines residenciales. Finca 1820 inscrita al folio 135 del tomo 211 de Naguabo, Registro de la Propiedad de Humacao. La finca antes descrita se encuentra afecta a los siguientes gravámenes: (i) Hipoteca constituida por Alfredo Cintron Brac casado con Gladys Figueroa Mendez, en garantía de un pagaré, aff#.517, a favor de Oriental Bank and Trust, o a su orden, por $68,000.00, al 9.625%, vencedero a la presentación, según Esc. #473, en San Juan, a 22 de diciembre de 2000, ante Manuel E. Maldonado Pérez, inscrita al folio 135 del tomo 211 de Naguabo, finca #1820, inscripción 9, Registro de la Propiedad de Humacao. La hipoteca objeto de esta ejecución es la que ha quedado descrita en

el inciso (i). Será celebrada la subasta para con el importe de la misma satisfacer la sentencia dicta el 9 de febrero de 2023, mediante la cual se condenó a la parte demandada pagar a la parte demandante la suma de $48,186.34 de principal, más $2,513.39 de interés, al 24 de diciembre de 2019, que continuarán acumulándose hasta el saldo total al 9.250% anual, $58.30 de “escrow balance”, $167.82 de cargos por demora, $1,193.63 de otros gastos, $6,800.00 de costas, gastos y honorarios de abogado, más cualquier otro desembolso que haya efectuado o efectúe la parte demandante durante la tramitación de este caso para otros adelantos de conformidad con el Contrato Hipotecario, incluyendo primas de seguro de hipoteca, prima de seguro de siniestro y cargos por demora. La PRIMERA SUBASTA será celebrada el día 22 DE JUNIO DE 2023 A LAS 9:30

DE LA MAÑANA, en la oficina del Alguacil, sita en el Tribunal de Primera Instancia, Sala de Humacao, Puerto Rico. Servirá de tipo mínimo para la misma la cantidad de $68,000.00, sin admitirse oferta inferior. De no haber remate ni adjudicación, celebraré SEGUNDA SUBAS-

TA el día 29 DE JUNIO DE 2023 9:30 DE LA MAÑANA, en el mismo lugar, en la que servirá como tipo mínimo, dos terceras (2/3) partes del precio pactado para la primera subasta, o sea, $45,333.33. Si no hubiese remate ni adjudicación en la segunda subasta, celebraré TERCERA SUBASTA el día 6 DE JULIO DE 2023 A LAS 9:30 DE LA MAÑANA, en el mismo lugar en la que regirá como tipo mínimo, la mitad del precio pactado para la primera subasta, o sea, $34,000.00. El Alguacil que suscribe hizo constar que toda licitación deberá hacerse para pagar su importe en moneda legal de los Estados Unidos de América, de acuerdo con la Ley y de acuerdo con lo anunciado en este Aviso de Subasta. Los autos y todos los documentos correspondientes al procedimiento incoado estarán de manifiesto en la Secretaría del Tribunal durante horas laborables. Se entiende que todo licitador que comparezca a la subasta señalada en este caso acepta como bastante la titulación que da base a la misma. Se entiende que cualquier carga y/o gravamen anterior y/o preferente, si la hubiere al crédito que da base a esta ejecución continuará subsistente, entendiéndose, además, que el rematante los acepta y queda subrogado en la responsabilidad de los mismos, sin destinarse a su extinción cualquier parte del remanente del precio de licitación. La propiedad a ser ejecutada se adquirirá libre de cargas y gravámenes

posteriores. Por la presente se notifica a los acreedores que tengan inscritos o anotados sus derechos sobre los bienes hipotecados con posterioridad a la inscripción del crédito del ejecutante o acreedores de cargas o derechos reales que los hubiesen pospuesto a la hipoteca ejecutada y las personas interesadas en, o con derecho a exigir el cumplimiento de instrumentos negociables garantizados hipotecariamente con posterioridad al crédito ejecutado, para que puedan concurrir a la subasta si les convenga o satisfacer antes del remate el importe del crédito, de sus intereses, costas y honorarios de abogados asegurados, quedando subrogados en los derechos del acreedor ejecutante. Vendida o adjudicada la finca o derecho hipotecado y consignado el precio correspondiente, en esa misma fecha o fecha posterior, el alguacil que celebró la subasta procederá a otorgar la correspondiente escritura pública de traspaso en representación del dueño o titular de los bienes hipotecados, ante el notario que elija el adjudicatario o comprador, quien deberá abonar el importe de tal escritura. El alguacil pondrá en posesión judicial al nuevo dueño, si así se lo solicita dentro del término de veinte (20) días a partir de la confirmación de la venta o adjudicación. Si transcurren los referidos veinte (20) días, el tribunal podrá ordenar, sin necesidad de ulterior procedimiento, que se lleve a efecto el desalojo o lanzamiento del ocupante u ocupantes de la finca o de todos los que por orden o tolerancia del deudor la ocupen. Y PARA CONOCIMIENTO DE LOS LICITADORES Y DEL PUBLICO EN GENERAL y para su publicación de acuerdo con la Ley, expido el presente Edicto bajo mi firma y sello de este Tribunal. En Humacao, Puerto Rico, hoy 14 de abril de 2023. JOSÉ RODRÍGUEZ HERNÁNDEZ, ALGUACIL REGIONAL INTERINO, TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA, SALA DE HUMACAO.

LEGAL NOTICE

ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA SALA SUPERIOR DE MAYAGÜEZ BANCO POPULAR DE PUERTO RICO

Parte Demandante Vs. FEDERAL DEPOSIT INSURANCE CORPORATION COMO SÍNDICO DE WESTERNBANK OF PUERTO RICO, JUAN ORTEGA MARTÍNEZ, ZAIDA

LINA TORRES SOTO Y

LA SOCIEDAD LEGAL DE GANANCIALES COMPUESTA POR AMBOS, FULANO Y MENGANO DE TAL, POSIBLES TENEDORES DESCONOCIDOS DEL PAGARÉ

Parte Demandada Civil Núm.: MZ2023CV00452. (206). Sobre: CANCELACIÓN DE PAGARÉ EXTRAVIADO POR LA VÍA JUDICIAL. EDICTO. ESTADOS UNIDOS DE AMÉRICA, EL PRESIDENTE DE LOS E.E.U.U., EL ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO.

A: FULANO Y MENGANO DE TAL, POSIBLES TENEDORES DESCONOCIDOS DEL PAGARÉ.

Queda usted notificado que en este Tribunal se ha radicado demanda sobre cancelación de pagaré extraviado por la vía judicial. El 5 de febrero de 1998, Juan Ortega Martínez y su esposa Zaida Lina Torres Soto constituyeron una hipoteca en Mayagüez, Puerto Rico, mediante a la Escritura núm. 43 autorizada por el notario Roberto M. García Rullán en garantía de un pagaré suscrito bajo testimonio núm. 18,745 por la suma de $50,000.00 a favor del PORTADOR, con intereses al 15% anual y vencimiento a la presentación. El 30 de enero de 2003, la referida hipoteca fue modificada para un nuevo interes de 6.99% anual o al 1% sobre el “prime rate” y extender el vencimiento al 30 de enero de 2029, según la Escritura núm. 67 otorgada ante el notario José A. Amador López.. Estas transacciones fueron constituidas sobre la siguiente propiedad: RÚSTICA: Solar identificado con el número dos en el plano de parcelación, radicado en la Urbanización Alturas de Mayagüez en los Barrios Algarrobo y Miradero de Mayagüez, Puerto Rico, con una cabida superficial de 630.378 metros cuadrados, equivalentes a .160 cuerdas. Colinda por el NORTE, en 20.914 metros lineales, con terrenos de Luis Hernandez; por el SUR, en 23.189 metros lineales, con solar marcado como uso público; por el OESTE, en 25.474 metros lineales, con solar número uno; y por el ESTE, 33.314 metros lineales, con la finca principal de la cual se segrega. La propiedad y la escritura de hipoteca constan inscritas al tomo móvil 1457 de Mayagüez, Finca 40346. Registro de la Propiedad de Mayagüez. Inscripción tercera. La escritura de modificación de hipoteca consta inscrita al tomo Karibe de Mayagüez, Finca 40346. Registro de la Propiedad de Mayagüez. Inscripción cuarta. La parte demandada

deberá presentar su alegación responsiva a través del Sistema Unificado de Administración y Manejo de Casos (SUMAC), al cual puede acceder utilizando la siguiente dirección electrónica: https://unired.ramajudicial. pr, salvo que se represente por derecho propio, en cuyo caso deberá presentar su alegación responsiva en la secretaría del Tribunal. Se le advierte que, si no contesta la demanda, radicando el original de la contestación en este Tribunal y enviando copia de la contestación a la abogada de la Parte Demandante, Lcda. Belma Alonso García, cuya dirección es: PO Box 3922, Guaynabo, PR 00970-3922, Teléfono y Fax: (787) 789-1826, correo electrónico: oficinabelmaalonso@gmail.com, dentro del término de treinta (30) días de la publicación de este edicto, excluyéndose el día de la publicación, se le anotará la rebeldía y se le dictará Sentencia en su contra, concediendo el remedio solicitado sin más citarle ni oírle. EXPEDIDO bajo mi firma y el sello del Tribunal, hoy 18 de mayo de 2023 en Mayagüez, Puerto Rico. LCDA. NORMA G. SANTANA IRIZARRY, SECRETARIA. JOSSIE BOBE RODRÍGUEZ, SUB-SECRETARIA.

LEGAL NOTICE

ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO TRIBUNAL GENERAL DE JUSTICIA TRIBUNAL SUPREMO TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA SALA SUPERIOR DE SAN GERMÁN

COOPERATIVA DE AHORRO Y CREDITO DE CABO ROJO

Demandante V. JULISA NICOLE

FELICIANO ALFAU

Demandado(a)

Civil: SG2022CV00607. Sobre: COBRO DE DINERO Y REPOSICIÓN DE VEHÍCULO DE MOTOR. NOTIFICACIÓN DE SENTENCIA POR EDICTO.

A: JULISA NICOLE

FELICIANO ALFAU. (Nombre de las partes a las que se le notifican la sentencia por edicto) EL SECRETARIO(A) que suscribe le notifica a usted que el 16 de mayo de 2023, este Tribunal ha dictado Sentencia, Sentencia Parcial o Resolución en este caso, que ha sido debidamente registrada y archivada en autos donde podrá usted enterarse detalladamente de los términos de la misma. Esta notificación se publicará una sola vez en un periódico de circulación general en la Isla de Puerto Rico, dentro de los 10 días siguientes a su notificación. Y, siendo o representando usted una parte en el procedimiento sujeta a los términos de la Sentencia, Sentencia Parcial o Resolución, de la cual puede establecerse recurso de revisión o

apelación dentro del término de 30 días contados a partir de la publicación por edicto de esta notificación, dirijo a usted esta notificación que se considerará hecha en la fecha de la publicación de este edicto. Copia de esta notificación ha sido archivada en los autos de este caso, con fecha de 22 de mayo de 2023. En San Germán, Puerto Rico, el 22 de mayo de 2023. LCDA. NORMA G. SANTANA IRIZARRY, SECRETARIA. LYDIA SANTIAGO MORALES, SECRETARIA AUXILIAR. LEGAL NOTICE

ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA CENTRO JUDICIAL DE CAGUAS SALA SUPERIOR BANCO POPULAR DE PUERTO RICO

Demandante Vs. LUIS JAVIER DEL TORO ALONSO, WIZELIA ENITH TORRES PEREZ Y LA SOCIEDAD LEGAL DE BIENES GANANCIALES COMPUESTA POR AMBOS

Demandados

Civil Núm.: CG2023CV01053. Sobre: COBRO DE DINERO Y EJECUCIÓN DE HIPOTECA (VÍA ORDINARIA). EMPLAZAMIENTO POR EDICTO. ESTADOS UNIDOS DE AMÉRICA, EL PRESIDENTE DE LOS ESTADOS UNIDOS, EL ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO.

A La Parte CoDemandada: LUIS JAVIER DEL TORO ALONSO, WIZELIA ENITH TORRES PÉREZ Y LA SOCIEDAD LEGAL DE BIENES GANANCIALES COMPUESTA POR AMBOS, A SU DIRECCIÓN CONOCIDA: URB. CAGUAS MILENIO II #111 CALLE 8 (CALLE DEL PADRO) CAGUAS, PR 00725. Por la presente se le(s) notifica que se ha radicado en la Secretaría de este Tribunal una Demanda en Cobro de Dinero y Ejecución de Hipoteca en su contra, en la cual se alega entre otras cosas que la parte demandada adeuda a la parte demandante por concepto de hipoteca la suma $115,650.19 por concepto de principal, desde el 1ro de noviembre de 2022, más intereses al tipo pactado de 3.75% anual que continúan acumulándose hasta el pago total de la obligación. Además la parte demandada adeuda a la parte demandante los cargos por demora equivalentes a 4.00% de la suma de aquellos pagos con atrasos en exceso de 15 días calendarios

Fernando Tatis Jr. finds his way back

By SCOTT MILLER

Fernando Tatis Jr. has favored pink accessories to highlight his uniform since he made his major league debut in 2019. Be it shoelaces, sweatbands, a belt, a headband or cleats, something pink is often on display. It is a signal to his mother, as he plays the game, that she is always on his mind.

On Saturday night in San Diego, it was a pink glove that stood out in the fourth inning when he galloped across the right-field turf and, his leaping body fully extended, reached up at the last second to stab a rocket out of the evening air. With two on and two out, Boston’s Triston Casas had drilled a screaming drive toward the outfield wall with an exit velocity of 108 mph. It was sailing over Tatis’ head … until it wasn’t.

In so many ways, with his bat, his glove and his celebrations, it is back to business as usual for Tatis, a 24-year-old superstar whose career had spiraled out of control in more ways than one.

“It’s every day now,” manager Bob Melvin said, marveling at Tatis and his tendency toward breathtaking plays. “Give him some reps, and he can play any position in any sport.”

Upon his reentry to the sport April 20, following two surgeries and one 80-game suspension for a positive test for steroids, Tatis had not played a Major League Baseball game for more than a year. Expectations for his return were immense, but so, too, were the questions.

How diluted might his game be after more than a year away? Would his surgically repaired left shoulder, which had dislocated several times in 2021, diminish his ability at the plate? Did a second operation on the right wrist he fractured in a motorcycle accident in the Dominican Republic finally get things right?

Then there were the extra-baggage questions: After the public shaming that came with a positive test for clostebol, an anabolic steroid, and his subsequent punishment, how would Tatis handle the spotlight during his return? And had he sufficiently repaired the breached trust with his teammates?

“It was not going to be easy,” Tatis said during a conversation in the Padres’ clubhouse last weekend. “This is probably the hardest game in the world. I prepared myself. There is a mental grind, a physical grind. But, you know, I’m just trying to be ready all the way around.”

As the Padres travel to Yankee Stadium this weekend and Tatis faces perhaps his most stern test yet in terms of public blowback, the

biggest gamble in Padres history — a 14-year, $340 million contract awarded to Tatis after only 143 major league games — appears to be back on track to pay dividends. The young star is once again rising to the occasion, and people around the Padres are talking of his grace and newfound humility.

“Accountability definitely has been there for him,” said Joe Musgrove, San Diego’s ace starting pitcher. “And it started about 80 games ago. After the suspension, he went through a low period for a few weeks, and it was understandable. But he’s done a good job of putting it behind him. He’s mending fences with the players, coaching staff and fans. He’s forgiven himself and moved past his mistakes.

“Some mistakes you can’t fix. Some you can. This one, he can.”

The tone from Musgrove, as he talked about Tatis’ behavior since the suspension, was sharply different than it had been over the last two seasons as tensions routinely boiled over among Tatis, his teammates and the Padres’ coaching staff. The dugout fights and questions about Tatis’ maturity have, at least for now, fallen away as he has stayed out of trouble and worked to get ready for his return.

A large part of that preparation, Tatis said, involved the mental side of his game. He knew the noise would be roaring, from opponents and rival fans who would be looking for any weakness they could find. He spent significant time over the winter “having good conversations about baseball with good baseball guys,” he said. “I feel like I put it all together.”

The conversations started, according to Tatis, with his father, Fernando Tatis Sr., who played in the majors from 1997 to 2010. At home in the Dominican Republic, Tatis Jr. also conversed with mentors like Wilton Veras, who played briefly for the Red Sox, and with his friend Robinson Canó, the former major league star who was suspended twice for performance-enhancing drugs.

“It’s always good to talk about baseball with that guy,” Tatis said of Canó. “And more guys are on the list, but if I started mentioning them all, it probably wouldn’t end today.”

The Padres brought Tatis to their FanFest in early February specifically to check one early box: His reentry into public life. It was a friendly, local crowd at Petco Park, but it served its purpose. Even if the suspension wasn’t complete, it allowed him a foot out of the penalty box and let him focus entirely on baseball going forward.

Melvin, who was without Tatis for his first 182 games as manager of the Padres, was thrilled to pencil the young star into a lineup.

“It was a celebratory day for both of us, re-

ally,” Melvin said. “He had been watching on the side for so long. And really, he was one of the reasons I came here.”

Tatis, who said hitting would be the most difficult thing about his comeback, went 0 for 5 at the plate in his first game back, but he collected at least one hit in each of his next nine games. Overall he has hit .267 with seven home runs, through Tuesday, falling short of his peak standards but showing regular flashes of his old self.

Public reaction, while abrasive at times, hasn’t ruffled Tatis.

When he homered during a Class AAA rehabilitation assignment in early April, the pitcher he torched, San Francisco Giants minor leaguer Kade McClure, responded by tweeting, “cheater hits a homerun on a rehab assignment during a steroid suspension.” Tatis shrugged off the since-deleted message. He said he expected reactions like that and he’s going to keep playing the game and enjoying himself.

True to his word, when fans in Wrigley Field serenaded him with chants of “He’s on

steroids!” Tatis disarmed them with a playful shimmy.

“I wouldn’t say that’s how I would have went about it,” center fielder Trent Grisham said. “But smiles usually do defuse hostility.”

Added Melvin: “He’s kind of the ultimate entertainer, right? As far as baseball goes.”

The reactions to his first trip to Dodger Stadium this month were noticeably muted — hostility there remains directed mostly at Padres infielder Manny Machado — but Tatis smiled when asked to look ahead to this weekend’s visit to Yankee Stadium.

“That’s going to be a good one,” he said. “We’ll see. New York. The good thing is, there’s going to be a lot of Dominicans out there. So that’s on the positive side. But it’s still New York.”

He chuckled as he spoke, the various pink accouterments practically glowing behind him from his locker. A 24-year-old kid who once again has his career in front of him and is eager to experience whatever Yankee Stadium has to offer.

Thriving for the Padres after a year lost to a steroids suspension and injuries, the outfielder heads to Yankee Stadium this weekend. He’s ready to hear the boos.

This runner finished last, but her perseverance won over a nation

By SUN NARIN and MIKE IVES

Runner number 401 was dead tired and suffering from low blood pressure. She was also last by a wide margin in the 5,000 meters and plodding alone, through a raucous rainstorm, around the track of a near-empty stadium.

Bou Samnang, 20, finished the race anyway.

Her rain-soaked performance at the Southeast Asian Games — this year’s edition was hosted this month by her home country, Cambodia — would have been a footnote in a tournament that is unknown to most sporting fans outside the region. But when video of it circulated widely on social media, she became an unlikely national celebrity.

“I knew that I would not win, but I told myself that I should not stop,” she said in an interview.

As she struggled on, it helped that a small group of supporters were applauding furiously, she added, and that she felt a duty to finish because she was representing her country.

After she crossed the finish line, she acknowledged the fans, started to cry and buried her face in a Cambodian flag.

Bou Samnang, who graduated from high school last year, did not expect to attract international attention when she arrived on May 8 for the 5,000-meter final in Phnom Penh, the capital and her hometown. She was grateful just to be competing.

A few weeks earlier, Bou Samnang had suffered from a particularly bad bout of low blood pressure, a result of her chronic anemia, while she was train-

ing in the southwestern Chinese city of Kunming. A doctor told her to stop running for a while, and her coach, Kieng Samorn, did not insist otherwise.

“She has a health problem,” Kieng Samorn said. “We can’t force her.”

But Bou Samnang said she was eager to run at the Southeast Asian Games, her first international competition, and her coach did not stand in her way.

In the 5,000-meter women’s final, held in a lightly attended 60,000-seat stadium, Bou Samnang gathered at the starting line alongside some of the region’s best runners. The eventual winner, Nguyen Thi Oanh of Vietnam, is an Olympian who had won multiple golds at previous Southeast Asian Games.

After the starting gun sounded and the runners fell into formation, Bou Samnang took a position toward the back of the pack. Within a minute or so, she had fallen so far behind that she was not visible in much of the television coverage.

But she kept going, even as Oanh and other runners finished, the skies opened up, and some fans lost interest.

Bou Samnang would finish in 22 minutes and 54 seconds — nearly six minutes behind Oanh of Vietnam and about 90 seconds behind a compatriot, Run Romdul. By then the stadium floodlights were out, water was pooling on the track, and her pink shoes and red uniform were completely soaked through.

Her performance recalled other runners who persevered, including a few who famously won track events after falling. One is Sifan Hassan of the Netherlands, who did so in the 1,500-meter event at the Tokyo Olympics two years ago.

Runners don’t tend

to win much praise if they lose by a wide margin. One exception is in longdistance events, where it’s common to celebrate the last finisher, said Steve Brammar, the secretary-general of the Trail Runners Association of Hong Kong. An ultramarathon trail race that he directs there has an “Ultimate Finisher” trophy for just that purpose.

Bou Samnang’s “perseverance was inspiring and really seems to have warmed hearts and captured imaginations,” Brammar said in an email.

After finishing last in the 5,000-meter race this month, Bou Samnang’s health prevented her running the 1,500-meter event, as planned, her coach said. But after video of her determined performance circulated online, she received public praise from Cambodia’s king and a $10,000 bonus from Prime Minister Hun Sen and his wife, equivalent to several years of an average Cambodian’s earnings.

Bou Samnang, whose father died in 2018, is the third of four children. She said she would use the bonus to study law at a Cambodian university, and that she planned to keep running competitively.

Her mother, Mai Met, said that she cried after hearing that her daughter had finished last in the 5,000-meter race. But that sadness was tempered by the outpouring of public support that came later.

“I am delighted,” said Mai Met, 44, who has long supported the family by working in garment factories.

Her determined finish illustrated an “ideal of sport,” said Edgar K. Tham, a sports psychologist in Singapore who works with athletes around Southeast Asia.

He said the attention Bou Samnang has received is notable in part because Cambodian athletes tend to fare better at combat sports than track events in regional competitions.

But the example she set, he added, will resonate far beyond Southeast Asia.

“That’s what life’s about: moving forward and using failures as lessons to bounce back,” he said. “If you take it in this spirit, it’s something inspirational.”

Ms. Bou Samnang finished the race alone, nearly six minutes after the winner.

dolor

Sudoku

How to Play:

Fill in the empty fields with the numbers from 1 through 9.

Sudoku Rules:

Every row must contain the numbers from 1 through 9

Every column must contain the numbers from 1 through 9

Every 3x3 square must contain the numbers from 1 through 9

Crossword

Answers on page 30

Aries (Mar 21-April 20)

A surge of romantic passion could move you to rendezvous with a lover no matter what obstacles bar your way. Take care to notice what your partner wants! Enterprises that you may have been pursuing with business colleagues could take a giant step forward, as both you and your partners are feeling especially strong and motivated. Move forward with caution, Aries, but move forward.

Taurus (April 21-May 21)

Minor ailments may awaken a new determination to improve your health. You feel especially energetic today, Taurus, so you might go to the gym. Just don’t overdo it. You might also be considering several changes you’d like to make in your home or workplace. Give them careful thought before moving ahead.

Gemini (May 22-June 21)

The desire to bring important personal projects to a close might have you focusing a lot of energy on them, Gemini. You might need to run several errands before you can finish. Your energy is high, so consider playing some sports or getting a good workout at the gym. Push yourself, but not beyond your limits, Gemini. “No pain, no gain” is a fallacy!

Cancer (June 22-July 23)

The desire for independence may have some family members thinking about breaking out on their own. Others could desire to make some extra money for their own projects. Your house could be busy today, if you’re in it at all. Don’t be surprised if everyone spends most of the day somewhere else.

Leo (July 24-Aug 23)

Your mind is especially acute today, Leo. You may come up with ideas for new projects. You’re feeling especially motivated and courageous. Don’t be surprised if you try to achieve the impossible. Friends or groups could play a strong role in whatever you try. Move ahead cautiously, but move ahead. Don’t let the day’s advantages pass you by.

Virgo (Aug 24-Sep 23)

Strong intuition concerning ways to generate extra income might pop into your head all day. Some of them may seem off the wall, but don’t let that stop you. Look into the possibilities. They might not be that outrageous. This is definitely a day to move your interests forward, Virgo. You have the energy and motivation to do wonders. Make the most of today!

Libra (Sep 24-Oct 23)

Group activities or projects you’re working on with friends could prove inspiring today. Your enthusiasm is high, Libra, as is your energy, so you’re likely to want to channel your personal power into whatever goals you have. Today you have the courage to focus on matters that others wouldn’t even attempt. Move forward with caution, but go to it!

Scorpio (Oct 24-Nov 22)

A surge of inner power and intuition could have you thinking about embracing an unusual profession. Your desire for independence is strong now, Scorpio, so you might be thinking about working on your own, perhaps in an artistic field or a service profession. You have the power to do wonders today. Be practical and move forward with caution, but follow your heart!

Sagittarius (Nov 23-Dec 21)

Today you might channel one final, powerful burst of energy into completing a goal that means a great deal to you. Your courage and determination are high, and you have the ability to accomplish a lot at this time, Sagittarius. If you’ve been considering projects that others think are impossible, this is the day to act. Move forward with caution, but go for the gold!

Capricorn (Dec 22-Jan 20)

Determination could advance career and money matters today. If you’ve been thinking about striking out on your own, Capricorn, this is the day to start. Some in-depth research might be required. Your need for independence in career matters is high, as well as the courage to go for what you want. Use caution and discretion, but move ahead anyway. Don’t let the day’s advantages pass you by!

Aquarius (Jan 21-Feb 19)

You may desire freedom today, Aquarius. Projects involving partnerships could get a strong push forward because you’re feeling especially motivated to get things done. Your partners could be inspired to get the ball rolling, and all of you may feel courageous enough to try the impossible. Don’t confuse courage with foolhardiness. Caution is always called for in tricky situations.

Pisces (Feb 20-Mar 20)

You may have been working on projects that make you feel good over the past few weeks, Pisces, particularly projects that relate to attaining more independence in your career. In the process, you’ve probably developed some new skills and now feel confident enough to use them. Today’s one last burst of determination and inner power could complete the process and reach the goals you want.

Speed Bump