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| Happy Thursday, Daily Briefing readers! If you're one of the millions of people planning to travel for Christmas or New Year's Eve, you might want to leave early. The jury in the trial of former Minnesota police officer Kim Potter for the death of Daunte Wright will deliberate for a fourth day. And, it's the Tennessee Titans vs. the San Francisco 49ers on "Thursday Night Football." |
| It's Jane and Steve, with Thursday's news. |
| 🦠 As the omicron variant continues to spread, new data shows it may cause millions more new infections per day but fewer hospitalizations and deaths compared to the delta variant. For the latest COVID updates, tap here. |
| ⚖️ The Supreme Court said it will hear oral arguments in a number of challenges to President Joe Biden's COVID-19 vaccine-or-testing requirements for large employers and health care facilities. |
| 🚨 The parents of actor Alicia Witt were found dead inside their Worcester, Massachusetts home after she called a relative to check on them. |
 | | Alicia Witt stars in 'The Mistletoe Inn.' | | Kailey Schwerman | |
| 🚘 "Give her the car": "Wheel of Fortune" fans are not happy after a pretty unfortunate moment when a contestant missed out on the final round. |
| 🏈 Former NFL wide receiver Vincent Jackson died of "chronic alcohol use," according to an autopsy report. |
| 🏀 "Why's KD being so mean?" A video of an eighth grader's flashy basketball move drew sharp criticism in a tweet from NBA star Kevin Durant. Others piled on. |
| 🚨 "Tragic loss": Seven people who were found dead inside a Minnesota home are believed to have died from carbon monoxide poisoning, police said. |
| 🎧 On today's 5 Things podcast, Supreme Court correspondent John Fritze tells us more about the the case involving President Joe Biden's vaccine-or-testing mandates. You can listen to the podcast every day on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or on your smart speaker. |
| Here's what's happening today: |
Millions expected to hit the road for the holidays |
| More than 109 million people are expected to hit the road between Dec. 23 and Jan. 2, driving up congestion across the nation – especially along popular corridors in major cities. While traffic will likely still fall below 2019 levels, a recent report from AAA and transportation analytics company Inrix forecasts 34% more travelers on the roads compared to last year. Travel times are influenced by a number of factors, including road closures, crashes and weather. Also, certain regions may face additional delays thanks to a shortage of snowplow drivers. Where will it be worst? Major metro areas like New York, Washington, Chicago, Seattle, Detroit and Atlanta. Here's a day-by-day look at when to hit the road. |
Jury in Kim Potter trial enters fourth day of deliberations |
| The jury in the manslaughter trial of Kim Potter , a former police officer in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, who fatally shot 20-year-old Black motorist Daunte Wright during a traffic stop earlier this year while yelling "Taser," will begin a fourth day of deliberations Thursday. The jurors deliberated for more than nine hours Wednesday and did not submit any questions to the judge. Ted Sampsell-Jones, a professor at Mitchell Hamline School of Law in Minnesota, told USA TODAY: "The length of deliberations and the jury's recent actions suggests that there's a good chance we're heading toward a hung jury and a mistrial." He added that result isn't certain, "but it may be the most likely outcome at this point." |
Just for subscribers: |
| 🚙 Honda, Toyota, BMW and Kia have discontinued several vehicles. What won't be back in 2022. |
| 🦠 As omicron spreads, will the cruise industry shut down as it did in March 2020? |
| 🩰 After a long COVID shutdown, New York City Ballet soloist Emilie Gerrity was grateful for a chance to be dancing in the Nutcracker — and then omicron came along. |
| 🏚 "Hidden gems": In these 10 housing markets, prices are low and homes could soon surge in value. |
| These articles are for USA TODAY subscribers. You can sign up here. Here is all of our subscriber content. |
Newsmakers in their own words: Duchess Kate delivers a heartfelt message |
 | | Duchess Kate of Cambridge in the first trailer for "Royal Carols: Together At Christmas," a Christmas carol service hosted by Kate at Westminster Abbey. | | Getty Images Europe photo; USA TODAY Life graphic | |
| On Christmas Eve, when her royal carols service at Westminster Abbey airs in Britain, listeners will hear a relatively rare recording of the Duchess of Cambridge, 39, introducing the broadcast. |
| Her message acknowledges the horrors of the past two years but asserts the possibilities of recovery through love and compassion, according to a transcript and video clip released by Kensington Palace. |
| The carols service was intended to be a "huge thank you" to Brits who have supported their communities through the pandemic, and to recognize those whose struggles have been less visible, she said. |
What to know about rapid tests during the holidays |
| As millions of people seek coronavirus tests before upcoming holiday trips, they are encountering long testing lines and sold out home tests. Areas such as New York City are quickly adding testing and distribution sites, but experts say the nation's supply remains uneven 20 months into the pandemic. The shortage comes as the omicron variant accounts for about three out of every four new COVID-19 cases. Need to get a test before traveling? While rapid antigen tests are less sensitive – meaning they are slightly less likely to detect the virus when compared to PCR tests – advocates say they are accurate enough to detect the virus when a person is infectious. If you're considering an at-home test before your holiday trip, this is what you need to know. |
James Franco speaks on sexual misconduct allegations |
| James Franco speaks for the first time in an interview airing Thursday following sexual misconduct allegations against him. Franco is the subject of a recorded interview with host Jess Cagle on SiriusXM's The Jess Cagle Podcast. The 43-year-old actor agreed to pay a $2.2 million settlement earlier this year after his former acting students filed a 2019 lawsuit alleging he pushed students at his Studio 4 school into sexual and exploitative scenes on camera. Franco said at one point in the interview in part that, "over the course of my teaching I did sleep with students, and that was wrong." |
 | | Actor James Franco | | Associated Press photo; USA TODAY Life graphic | |
ICYMI: Some of our top stories yesterday |
| 🦠 Uncounted: Inaccurate death certificates across the country hide the true toll of COVID-19. |
| ⛪️ Utah billionaire Jeff Green said he was donating $600,000 to a LGTBQ group and resigning from his Mormon church, accusing the church of hindering the progress of civil rights and taking advantage of its members. |
| 🛳 A cruise line didn't provide a COVID test to a symptomatic passenger. After disembarking, she tested positive. |
| 🐕 "You're a bad dog!" An Amazon delivery driver in Las Vegas recently had to make an unscheduled stop – to save a woman and small dog being attacked by a pit bull. |
| 🔴 Chris Noth, Sarah Jessica Parker and the demand that women respond when men are accused of abuse. |
Contenders Titans and 49ers meet in final 'Thursday Night Football' game |
| Just two days after the completion of Week 15, Week 16 in the NFL kicks off with the final "Thursday Night Football" game of the season. The Tennessee Titans will host the San Francisco 49ers with each team jockeying for playoff positions in their respective conferences (8:20 p.m. ET, NFL Network). The Titans (9-5) enter the game on top of the AFC South standings, and only one game behind the Kansas City Chiefs, who are No. 1 seed in the AFC. While the Titans aim to earn home field advantage in the playoffs, the 49ers (8-6) are clinging on to the final playoff spot in the NFC, one game ahead of the Minnesota Vikings, Philadelphia Eagles and New Orleans Saints. |
📸 Photo of the day: Dancer savors her chance to perform 'The Nutcracker' 📸 |
 | | Emilie Gerrity as the Sugarplum Fairy in New York City Ballet's production of George Balanchine's The Nutcracker. | | Erin Baiano/New York City Ballet | |
| "I finally feel like I'm back." Emilie Gerrity said, two hours from commanding the Lincoln Center stage as Sugarplum Fairy in New York City Ballet's Nutcracker. |
| The pandemic has taught Gerrity how precious every opportunity is — in dance and in life. "Each time I step on the stage, I try and enjoy each moment. We didn't know this before the pandemic, but now we know that it can be taken away — so quickly." |
| Click here to see more photos of Gerrity dancing in her return to The Nutcracker in New York City. |
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