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PHOENIX (AP) — Arizona must stop enforcing abortion restrictions that predate and contradict a 2024 voter-approved constitutional amendment guaranteeing abortion rights, a judge ordered in a ruling released Friday.

Abortion Lawsuit-Arizona

Maricopa Superior Court Judge Greg Como found that the older laws present unnecessary obstacles to getting an abortion, including barring one if a woman was seeking it because the fetus had a non-fatal genetic abnormality, and requiring patients to see a doctor twice, at least 24 hours apart, before obtaining one.

He also took issue with the laws because they required abortion seekers to undergo ultrasounds and Rh blood testing, and barred doctors from prescribing abortion pills by telehealth and mailing them to patients. Pills are the most common way abortion is obtained.

"Each of these laws infringe on a woman's 'autonomous decision making' by mandating medical procedures and disclosure of information regardless of the patient's needs and wishes," Como wrote.

Kris Mayes, the state's Democratic attorney general, supported the plaintiffs.

Two of Arizona's top legislative Republicans — House Speaker Steve Montenegro and Senate President Warren Petersen — intervened in the lawsuit in support of the restrictions, arguing that abortion rights advocates wanted to sweep away health and safety regulations in the name of the constitutional amendment.

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Peterson's office said the ruling will be appealed.

In Arizona and many other states, abortion law has been in flux since the U.S. Supreme Courtoverturned Roe v. Wadein 2022 and cleared the way for states to ban abortion. Even after voters approved the abortion rights amendment, throwing out a 2022 law that banned abortion after 15 weeks' gestation, some older restrictions remained on the books.

Two obstetricians and the Arizona Medical Association sued last year over the continued enforcement of the old laws. They said the voter-backed constitutional amendment guaranteed the "fundamental right to abortion" and specifically barred the state from enacting, adopting or enforcing a law that "denies, restricts or interferes with that right before fetal viability."

"My patients will no longer be forced to make additional unnecessary visits for care, nor will I be required to give them disinformation that stigmatizes abortion." Dr. Laura Mercer, an OB-GYN and member of the board at the Arizona Medical Association, said in a statement Friday.

Ingrid Duran, the National Right to Life Committee's state legislative director, told The Associated Press on Friday that she's disappointed but not surprised by the ruling. She said the group intends to work on educating people in Arizona about its position to "expand our base into more pro-lifers who believe that the unborn child deserves protection." But she said the group doesn't expect the ruling to be overturned.

Since Roe was overturned, voters in several stateshave passed lawsallowing abortion, while voters in others have rejected such measures. Missouri voterswill decide this yearwhether to overturn a voter-backed amendment guaranteeing abortion rights. ___

Mulvihill reported from Haddonfield, New Jersey.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Repairs on a pipe rupture that hassent sewage flowinginto the Potomac River northwest of Washington, D.C., will take weeks more to repair because of an unexpected blockage, according to the local water authority.

In a release posted on its website Thursday, DC Water, which operates the sewer system, said a video inspection of the pipeline revealed the blockage inside the collapsed sewer line "is far more significant" than originally thought. It said it discovered a large rock dam about 30 feet (9 meters) fromthe breach in the sewage line,which requires treatment before the current spill can be addressed.

It will take an estimated 4 to 6 weeks longer than initially anticipated to get a system in place, including bringing in bigger equipment, to address the problem and begin removing the large rocks and boulders inside the sewer line, DC Water said.

The 72-inch (183-centimeter) pipeline, called the Potomac Interceptor, collapsed Jan. 19, shooting sewage out of the ground and into the river just north of Washington in Montgomery County, Maryland. In its initial announcement, DC Water said the leak was causing an estimated 40 million gallons (about 150 million liters) a day of wastewater — enough to fill about 66 Olympic-size swimming pools— to escape into the Potomac River.

DC Water said it knew the pipe, first installed in the 1960s, was deteriorating, and rehabilitation work on a section about a quarter-mile (400 meters) from the break began in September and was recently completed.

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The agency has been assessing water quality for bacteria contamination and said that while E. Coli levels are well beyond safe levels at the site of the leak, the levels are within safe levels at other sampling sites downstream into Washington.

The Washington Department of Energy and Environment said in an emailed statement that it was continuing to advise that the public and their pets avoid contact with the water until the situation is fully resolved and bacteria levels are reported as safe. "DC drinking water remains safe for everyone to drink and use."

DC Water did not immediately respond to questions about how much sewage had spilled into the river since the collapse began and how long repairs were expected to take initially, before the discovery of the blockage extended the timetable.

The notice came the same day that the Potomac Riverkeeper Network and researchers at the University of Maryland announced they had found high levels of fecal-related bacteria and disease-causing pathogens in the Potomac River and were calling for public health advisories in Washington and Maryland on recreational use of the river.

Dean Naujoks, the Potomac Riverkeeper and part of an environmental nonprofit, said he was concerned about the additional bacterial and pathogenic dangers and criticized DC Water for what he said was misleading information and changing versions of what had transpired.

CHICAGO — The text messages a Border Patrol agent sent to colleagues and family members after he repeatedly shot a Chicago woman in October can be released to the public, a federal judge ruled Friday. In messages previously made public,the agent braggedabout his marksmanship.

U.S. District Judge Georgia Alexakis stated in court that the text messages provide insight into the agent's and theDepartment of Homeland Security's credibility, as well as into how DHS leadership perceived the shooting.

The agent, Charles Exum, shot Marimar Martinez five times on Oct. 4, after she allegedly rammed her car into agents' vehicles. Martinez denies ramming them andsaid agents were the aggressors. Exum did not have his body camera turned on during the incident.

In one text message previously released,he bragged about his shooting skills,writing: "I fired 5 rounds and she had 7 holes. Put that in your book boys."

Government lawyers argued that the release of Exum's text messages would further sully the agent and his family.

The judge pushed back. "I don't know why the United States government has expressed zero concern for the sullying of Ms. Martinez's reputation," Alexakis said.

Martinez's attorney, Chris Parente, said his team would work over the weekend with government lawyers on redactions, and Martinez's legal team would be releasing the evidence no earlier than Monday.

Martinez pleaded not guilty in October to Justice Department charges that she used her vehicle "to assault, impede, and interfere with the work of federal agents in Chicago." The governmentdropped its case against Martinez, but her lawyers say officials have refused to correct the record afterbranding her a "domestic terrorist."

The judge ruled Friday that more evidence in Martinez's case could be made public, including emails, text messages, investigative reports and statements by higher ranking DHS officials. Martinez's lawyer said these will shine a light on their thinking and how they are instructing their officers. As part of this ruling, body camera footage from an agent who was in the vicinity of the shooting can also be released, as well as photos and reports from after the crash and audio from Martinez's 911 call.

Alexakis noted that DHS has not publicly addressed that they dropped the case with prejudice — meaning they cannot seek to charge her in the case in the future.

In court filings, Parente wrote that recent fatal shootings in Minnesota show why the evidence in Martinez's case is important to the public interest.

"Based on recent events in Minneapolis, Minnesota, involving the execution of two U.S. citizens who were engaged in similar peaceful protests as Ms. Martinez at the time of their killings, Ms. Martinez believes certain information disclosed in her case, and currently subject to the Protective Order, would be useful for both the public and elected officials to know regarding how DHS responds in cases where their agents use deadly force against U.S. citizens," he wrote.

Parente also laid out a series of high-ranking officials in the Trump administration who had made misstatements about Martinez.

That included an Oct. 6 post FBI Director Kash Patel shared from a different account that included a video on X that read: "This is the video where Marimar Martinez, aka La Maggie, rammed a white DHS vehicle who had their emergency lights on. Another DHS black SUV then attempts to ram Marimar's SUV from behind. One DHS agent is on the passenger side firing shots. Democrats are insane."

As of early Friday,Patel had not taken downthat post.

Martinez's attorneys also asked for the release of Flock surveillance camera footage from 30 days before the shooting — arguing that it would show her engaged in everyday activities and rebut DHS' statements that she has a history of doxxing federal agents and ambushing them.

The judge ruled in favor of releasing that footage but not license plate reader camera data, saying it would have "little value" to clear Martinez's name.

At one point during the court hearing, Parente said there would be no need to release any of the footage if the U.S. government publicly said that Martinez is not a domestic terrorist. The judge said the court wasn't expected to handle negotiations such as that.

After the hearing, lawyers for Martinez said they will continue to fight to clear her reputation.

"You can't call a U.S. citizen with no criminal history who's a Montessori school teacher a domestic terrorist, which is such a loaded word in this country, and repeat it over and over as late as yesterday," Parente said.

Euan Cherry/PEACOCK

This article contains spoilers forThe Traitorsseason 4, episode 8, "A Queen Never Comes Off Her Throne."

Against all odds,Colton Underwoodsurvived every roundtable he was at onThe Traitors... but that's only because he got murdered instead.

To add insult to injury, the gayBacheloralum was killed by his own castle BFF Rob Rausch, who allowed his fellow Traitor Candiace Dillard Bassett to make the decision, knowing it would expose her own game. By not telling Candiace that Colton had been saying her name the previous night, Rob stood back and let Candiace dig her own grave with Colton's murder, resulting in her immediate banishment at the roundtable.

Now that Colton is gone fromThe Traitors,he's able to speak freely about his entire experience on the Peacock reality competition series. And he mostly wants to praise the streamer forreleasing a statement to viewers condemning cyberbullying, and asking fans to stop sending hate to the contestants online.

Colton tellsEntertainment Weeklythat the statement was not just to protect him, although he has been the target of a lot of online hate for reasons both personal and regarding how he played the game.

"The statement was really important, and I'm really proud of Peacock for standing up for its cast, and also just the people who, we're playing heightened versions of ourselves on this competition reality show," he says. "And the statement was not fully and solely for me. I know there's other members of the cast struggling and going through some hard times too. And at the end of the day, it is a game."

Colton says he's not taking the negative comments personally.

"I understand what makes this show so brilliant is everybody comes into the game with their own fans and people rooting for them, and when you get the fans' player out, you're going to have some people who aren't happy," he explains. "I'm in a place in my life right now where I have support, I have love, I have what I call human Xanax, my little baby boy running around and giving me hugs, and I focus inward on that.... Everybody knows everything about my life now. I didn't have to sort of slowly come out of the closet, I'm already out, so I'm doing well."

Below, Colton reveals the messagehe wants to tell Lisa Rinna at the upcoming reunion, how he feels about his own murder, why he wanted to be recruited as a Traitor, and more.

Euan Cherry/PEACOCK

ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: If you had not been murdered and gotten banished at the Roundtable instead, what would you have said in the Circle of Truth?

COLTON UNDERWOOD:To be honest with you, I've never thought of it, because if I was going to go out, I wanted to go out getting murdered. If you get banished, that sort of means, in my opinion, you didn't defend yourself well enough. You didn't play the game well enough. I would consider [getting banished] a loss at the Roundtable, and I really took a lot of pride in how I showed up there.

I didn't mind being challenged at the Roundtable — that's the whole point of the game, to just show that you could stand on business and you could bring facts and you could defend yourself, and then you can get the heat off of you.

How do you think you would have done if you hadn't been murdered? Would you have been the target at the next banishment?

The way that I played the game at that point, in order for me to make it to the end, I would've had to have been recruited. I think there would've been really a slim chance of me winning as a Faithful. I think I knew that the game that I played was big and bold and very proactive, and I knew that that was going to put a target on my back. There was only so much I could do to try to protect myself by being as loud as I could about some of the voices, but I knew ultimately if I was going to winTraitors, I had to become a Traitor.

What was your reaction to learning that your castle BFF Rob was a Traitor, and that he allowed you to be murdered to expose Candiace?

I think it was a genius move by Rob. It was, in my opinion, the best move of the game so far for him. I know he's been playing an excellent, excellent game, but the way that he handled that with precision, of letting Candiace basically dig her own grave without her even realizing that like, "Oh, Colton has been saying my name," and him holding that card, was the best play at the game so far.

Is there anyone you're looking forward to confronting the most at the reunion?

Confronting? No. I think everybody showed up and played a great game. I think there's going to be a lot of conversations that fans are going to be very interested in hearing. I had the chance to spend time with Tiffany in New York, and I know she's going to have some questions in front of everybody for me as well, and I'll be willing to answer those.

My time on the show was so enjoyable. The fact that I got to meet these incredible people, that I was able to go against Lisa Rinna on a television show, was an honor. I just can't wait to see everyone, and I think if anything, people might have some questions for me and how I played the game. I'm excited to talk them through my strategy and how I showed up forThe Traitors.

What do you hope to say to Lisa at the reunion?

In regards to Lisa, I think what I would tell her is just it was an honor to play against her. What a fun opportunity. I know I pushed some buttons by calling her a Housewife. I now know she's so much more than that. She's a great competitor and was, in my opinion, one of the best TV nemesis. I had so much fun going against her, so I would just say it was an honor.

Additional reporting by Selena Schorken

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NEED TO KNOW

• Crown Princess Mette-Marit of Norway has apologized for her "friendship" with Jeffrey Epstein

• Email correspondence between the Crown Princess, 52, and Epstein were released by the U.S. Department of Justice in its latest batch of Epstein files on Jan. 30

• Crown Prince Haakon also spoke out on Friday in support of his wife

Crown Princess Mette-Maritof Norway is officially apologizing for her friendship with Jeffrey Epstein.

On Feb. 6, the Royal House of Norway released a newstatementfrom the Crown Princess, 52. The update came one week after the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ)publishedover three million additional pages related to the Epstein Files Transparency Act, including what appeared to be emails between Mette-Marit and Epstein that indicated a friendship.

"I would like to express my deepest regret for my friendship with Jeffrey Epstein. It is important for me to apologize to all of you that I have disappointed," began the statement from Crown Princess Mette-Marit, translated into English.

"Some of the content of the messages between Epstein and me does not represent the person I want to be. I also apologize for the situation that I have put the Royal Family in, especially the King and Queen," she continued, referring to her in-laws,King HaraldandQueen Sonja.

Rune Hellestad - Corbis/Corbis via Getty; Rick Friedman/Corbis via Getty

Mette-Marit's apology was shared within a longer statement from the Royal House of Norway, which underscored her regret about her association with Epstein. The disgraced American financier was a convicted sex offender who died in prison while awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges in August 2019.

According to an English translation, the statement from the palace began, "We understand the strong reactions people have to what has emerged in recent days. The Crown Princess strongly disavows Epstein's abuse and criminal acts. She is very sorry for not having understood early enough what kind of person he was."

"The Crown Princess wants to tell about what happened and explain herself in more detail. She cannot do that now. The Crown Princess is in a very demanding situation," it continued. "She hopes for understanding that she needs time to gather herself."

The difficult predicament that the palace referenced could have been an allusion to the ongoing court case involving her son, Marius Borg Høiby. Marius, 29, is Crown Princess Mette-Marit's son from a relationship prior to her marriage toCrown Prince Haakon, and heheaded to trial this week on Feb. 3on 38 charges, including four counts of rape.

On Tuesday, he pleaded not guilty to four counts of rape and one count of domestic violence, and pleaded guilty to offensive sexual behavior, speeding and driving without a valid license,Reuterssaid.

Ane Hem / NTB / AFP via Getty

In December 2025, the palace also announced that the princess was being assessed for a lung transplant amid a "clear worsening" of her health. Mette-Marit haschronic pulmonary fibrosis, a lung disease that occurs when lung tissue becomes scarred, and lung transplants are an option for treatment.

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The palace's Feb. 6 statement also outlined Crown Princess Mette-Marit'sJan. 31 mea culpaabout regretting her contact with Epstein and detailed that she met Epstein in "social contexts, most of them in the United States." It also included Mette-Marit's December 2019 statementdisavowing her links to Epstein, a remark she released after then-Prince Andrewannounced hisstep back from his royal rolefollowing a damaging BBC interview about his ties to Epstein.

On Friday, Crown Prince Haakon, 52, spoke out to the press about the scandals affecting his family and his ongoing support for his wife. The future king of Norway "asked a large press corps to gather" before he spoke, opening up amid an official visit to Oslo Sami kindergarten,NRKreported.

"When there is a lot happening at once, as it has been for our family now, I am a little concerned that we must have the priorities in the right order," the outlet reported that Crown Prince Haakon said, per an English translation.

"For me, the most important thing in recent days has been to take care of the flock. We support Marius in the situation he is in, we look after the other children – they must also be looked after – and I have to look after and take care of the Crown Princess," he continued. "Fortunately, she takes care of me too."

Haakon acknowledged the attention around Mette-Marit and stressed that she wanted to respond.

Fredrik Varfjell/NTB via AP

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"The Crown Princess understands that there are many who want to hear from her. She would like to tell. But now she can't. And I also tell her that she is not allowed to," he said. "She would like to tell more about the case, and we hope there is understanding that she needs some time."

The prince's mention of children referencedPrincess Ingrid Alexandra, 21, and Prince Sverre Magnus, 20, his daughter and son whom he shares with his wife.

At this time, Crown Prince Haakon is acting as regent while his father, King Harald, 88, is in Italy for the Winter Olympics.

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