World News: Verdict: Rape in the third degree

Monday, February 24

Harvey Weinstein arrives at courthouse for his sex-crimes trial in New York, Feb. 5, 2020.

Harvey Weinstein found guilty. Kobe and Gianna Bryant's memorial. It's Monday's news.

Harvey Weinstein in handcuffs. Kobe Bryant fans in mourning. And a not-so-great day for the stock market.

It's Ashley with the news you need to know.

But first, it's not the Loch Ness monster: A bizarre fish that washed up on the beaches of California captivates scientists from around the world.

The Short List newsletter is a snappy USA TODAY news roundup. Subscribe here!

Verdict: Harvey Weinstein guilty on two sex crimes charges

Harvey Weinstein, the ex-movie mogul whose sexual misconduct jump-started the #MeToo movement, was convicted of two sex crimes after a historic trail that lasted weeks. Once a powerful figure in Hollywood, the former top producer was immediately taken into custody after the verdict.

•	What's the verdict? Weinstein was found guilty of a criminal sexual act in the first degree and rape in the third degree.
•	The verdict was only a partial win for the prosecution: Weinstein escaped the two most serious charges, which spared him the possibility of a sentence that included life in prison.
•	"Today is a powerful day": The conviction comes after reports in 2017 detailed decades of alleged assault by Weinstein. More than 80 women accused Weinstein of sexual misconduct. The verdict prompted stars to speak out.
•	What's next? Weinstein faces a prison sentence of at least five years and possibly as long as 25 years. He is scheduled to be sentenced March 11.

Harvey Weinstein, convicted of sex crimes, will be sentenced in March.

Scott Heins, Getty Images

Stars and fans say goodbye to Kobe and Gianna Bryant

Thousands gathered to attend a memorial for basketball legend Kobe Bryant and his 13-year-old daughter Gianna in Los Angeles on Monday. The crowd rose to its feet for Kobe's wife, Vanessa, who delivered a heartfelt eulogy for her husband and daughter. Vanessa, showing incredible strength, spoke about the heartbreak of never getting to see Gianna walk down the aisle or achieve her WNBA dreams. She spoke about losing her best friend and husband in Kobe. NBA legends Shaquille O'Neal and Michael Jordan also spoke, sometimes through tears: "When Kobe died, a little piece of me died," Jordan said. Bryant, who spent his entire 20-year NBA career with the Lakers and helped them win five NBA championships, was killed in a helicopter crash Jan. 26, along with Gianna and seven others.

•	Emotional photos from the public memorial for NBA legend Kobe Bryant.
•	Vanessa Bryant filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the helicopter company involved in the crash that killed Kobe.

Vanessa Bryant delivered an emotional eulogy for Kobe and Gianna Bryant.

ROBERT HANASHIRO, USA TODAY SPORTS

What everyone's talking about

•	Guilty as charged: Sen. Charles Schumer admitted he has dropped almost $9,000 on his favorite cheesecake.
•	They're a "scientific marvel": The world's first in vitro cheetah cubs were born.
•	Katy Perry thanked first responders after a gas leak at an "American Idol" audition venue caused her to collapse.
•	You're going to face a tsunami of disinformation again this election cycle, experts warn.

The Dow took a nosedive

U.S. stocks tumbled Monday after a sharp rise in coronavirus cases outside China revived concerns about the economic fallout from the outbreak. The Dow plunged more than 1,000 points – its biggest one-day drop since February 2018.

To the woman who helped us reach for the stars

Katherine Johnson, the adored NASA mathematician depicted in the film "Hidden Figures," died Monday at 101 years old. Her groundbreaking contributions to bringing Americans into space were plenty: Johnson worked on the first NASA mission in 1961 to carry an American, Alan Shepard, into space. In 1962, she verified computer calculations that plotted John Glenn's orbits around Earth. According to NASA, Glenn entrusted Johnson to calculate the trajectories by hand more than the state-of-the-art computers available at the time.

NASA's Katherine Johnson died at 101 Feb. 24, 2020.

NASA

Real quick

•	WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange's U.S. extradition hearing opened with claims of retribution against the media and danger to U.S. informants.
•	MLB player Madison Bumgarner secretly competed in rodeos under a fake name.
•	Presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg shared an emotional moment when a 9-year-old boy asked for his help coming out as gay.
•	Chicago could see the biggest snow of the season as a winter storm targets the Midwest and Northeast.

News to make you feel warm inside

But not in the good way: Climate change could turn into a "catastrophic" threat to national and global security in the coming decades, warns a report released Monday. "Even at scenarios of low warming, each region of the world will face severe risks to national and global security in the next three decades," the report released by the Center for Climate and Security says. To avoid such dire impacts, the report recommends "quickly reducing and phasing out greenhouse gas emissions."

A break from the news

•	The 5 best Amazon deals you can get Monday.
•	How to make Cajun-style jambalaya in a Dutch oven.
•	It pays to know the shortcuts: Do these 3 things if you want a larger tax refund.