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Authorities in Georgia asked for the public's assistance on Monday, Feb. 9, after two inmates facing violent crime chargesescaped from jailover the weekend.

Two inmates escaped custody from the Sumter County Jail at around 9:30 p.m. local time on Sunday, Feb. 8, according to theSumter County Sheriff's Office. The Sumter County Jail is located in Americus, Georgia, a small city about 139 miles south of Atlanta.

The inmates, identified as Ricky Martin, 20, and Kentravious Holmes, 21, were being held on multiple charges, including murder, aggravated assault, and aggravated battery, according to the sheriff's office. The escape prompted a widespread search involving multiple law enforcement agencies, and authorities released a be on the lookout,or BOLO, alert for the inmates on the morning of Monday, Feb. 9.

Authorities did not immediately release details on how the inmates escaped, but Sheriff Eric Bryant told local television stationWALBthat investigators were "still following up on different things that we're finding inside the building."

The sheriff added that it appears that there was "some type of mechanical failure with the locking system" at the facility, according to WALB.

During a news conference on Monday, Feb. 9, Albany Police Chief Michael Persley said the inmates were spotted in a stolen vehicle by license plate cameras, WALB reported. One of the inmates has family and other potential contacts in Albany, Georgia, a city about 38 miles south of Americus, Persley said.

It was unclear if escaped inmates were still in the area. Authorities have asked anyone with information on the inmates and their whereabouts to call 911 or contact the Sumter County Sheriff's Office.

The Sumter County Sheriff's Office and the Albany Police Department did not immediately respond to USA TODAY's requests for comment on Monday, Feb. 9.

Getting away with murder:These fugitives fled prisons – and were never caught

Escaped inmates were arrested in connection with separate shootings

The sheriff's office described Martin as 5 feet, 4 inches in height and weighing about 120 pounds, with "un-twisted dreads."

Holmes was described as about 5 feet, 8 inches tall and weighing about 155 pounds, "with un-twisted dreads, and multiple tattoos on his face and neck, including a '$' sign, a broken heart, and 'Baby Kay' over his right eye," according to the sheriff's office.

Martin was booked into the Sumter County Jail in February 2025 after he was arrested and charged with murder, aggravated assault, and aggravated battery, according to theGeorgia Bureau of Investigation. He was arrested in connection with a shooting in Americus that left two dead and another injured.

At the time, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation said local police responded to a shooting on Feb. 8, 2025, and discovered multiple victims suffering from gunshot wounds. Peyton Brielle Roberts, 5, died after being transported to the hospital, while a 19-year-old, later identified as Jotavis Roshon Leverette, died from his injuries at a hospital.

Holmes was arrested in May 2025 and transported to the Sumter County Jail, according to theAmericus Police Department. He was accused of fatally shooting 21-year-old Amon Kevone Harvey in April 2025,WALBreported at the time.

New Orleans jailbreak:After nearly five months, how 10 jail escapees from New Orleans are back behind bars

Recent jailbreaks across the United States

The escape in Georgia comes afterthree inmates fled from a county jaileast of Atlanta in December. The three inmates, including one charged with murder, were captured about a day after their escape.

Earlier that month,another Georgia inmateescaped from custody at a hospital and used ride-hailing services, including an Uber ride, to evade sheriff's deputies. The inmate, identified as Timothy Shane, 52, was captured after about three days in Covington, Georgia, a small city outside Atlanta, authorities said.

On Dec. 19, authoritiesarrested the last of three inmateswhoescaped from a Louisiana jailin early December by removing mortar and concrete blocks from a degraded part of a wall.

In June 2025, aformer Arkansas police chief, convicted murderer and rapistGrant Hardin, was recaptured after a 12-day manhunt. Hardin had escaped from prison disguised as a guard and made it only a mile from the facility before he was found.

Earlier in the year,10 inmatesbrazenly escaped from aNew Orleans jail. Authorities said the inmates fled through a hole in a cell wall after ripping away a toilet and sink unit on the morning of May 16, 2025.

Most of the escapees werecaught in the weeks after, and since then, multiple people have beencharged with helping the inmates escape or stay on the run. The final inmate wasrecaptured Oct. 8in Atlanta, nearly five months after the escape.

Contributing: Jeanine Santucci and N'dea Yancey-Bragg

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Georgia authorities are searching for 2 inmates who escaped from jail

Monday isa big dayin the long-running — and still very much not-over — saga ofthe Jeffrey Epstein files.

That's because we could begin to learn more about the Justice Department'scontroversial redactions, when lawmakers have an opportunity to review theunredactedfiles.

One prominent House Democrat, Rep. Jamie Raskin of Maryland, said Monday afternoon that he had reviewed the unredacted documents and saw "tons of completely unnecessary redactions."

"I saw the names of lots of people who were redacted for mysterious or baffling or inscrutable reasons," Raskin said.

As millions of documents have trickled out and been sorted through, one of the major subplots is what DOJ chose to redact. Its redaction decisions in many caseswent well beyondwhat the legislation passed by Congress called for.

Perhaps no redactions have garnered more attention than the suspected co-conspirators who are described in internal Justice Department documents and others who exchanged eyebrow-raising emails with Epstein.

The latter instances include emails that read as if people were evaluating and even scouting women or girls for Epstein. In other cases, they reference questionable behavior.

The redactions have raised concerns among Republican Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky and Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna of California, who led the charge on the bill that forced the Trump administration to release the Epstein files. They've also raised concerns among Epstein's survivors. Onetold CNNthat DOJ was "shielding predators." Another said DOJ has "protected the Epstein class with blanket redactions."

But on Monday, lawmakers, including Massie and Khanna, will have the chance to evaluate the redactions and possibly raise any concerns when the Justice Department begins allowing themto review the unredacted files.

CNNwrote about some of these emailslast week. The Justice Department suggested any such redactions were women or girls who might have been victims at one point.

"In many instances, as it has been well documented publicly, those who were originally victims became participants and co-conspirators," a DOJ official told CNN. "We did not redact any names of men, only female victims." FBI and law enforcement names were also redacted, the DOJ official said.

So which documents are at issue? Below are some noteworthy examples.

'Your littlest girl was a little naughty'

In a2014 email, a sender whose name is redacted emails Epstein: "Thank you for a fun night… Your littlest girl was a little naughty."

'I found at least 3 very good young poor …'

In a2018 email, a redacted sender emails Epstein: "I found at least 3 very good young poor but we was so tired."

The sender then suggests the subject of the email was women or girls: "Meet this one, not the beauty queen but we both likes her a lot."

'She is like Lolita from Nabokov , femme miniature :)'

In a2017 email, a redacted sender emails Epstein, "I met [REDACTED] today. She is like Lolita from Nabokov , femme miniature :) So now I should send you her type of candidates only ?"

"Femme miniature" in French literally translates to small woman. "Lolita from Nabokov" refers to Vladimir Nabokov's 1955 novel about a middle-aged man who falls in love with a 12-year-old girl and sexually abuses her. (Epstein's airplane has often been dubbed the "Lolita Express" because of allegations that it was used to exploit girls.)

The draft indictment

Some of the biggest news to come out of the latest document dump was that we finally laid eyes ona draft indictmentof Epstein from the 2000s, before he escaped with a sweetheart deal.

The draft indictment is particularly notable because it includes three co-conspirators that prosecutors apparently considered charging. The co-conspirators are described as being employed by Epstein, but their names are redacted.

A chart with other suspects redacted

The documents also includea chart, apparently from law enforcement, that shows Epstein, his accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell and his longtime assistant Lesley Groff (whose first name is misspelled as "Leslie"). Groff's lawyer told CNN his client had no comment.

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But redacted are three employees and a "girlfriend" of Epstein's whom authorities thought might be recruiting for Epstein and in some cases otherwise participating in crimes.

It says of one of them: "Unknown if she was directly responsible for recruiting girls but at least 10 girls state she is the direct point of contact for scheduling his massage appointments."

Other such charts featuresimilar redactions.

Sending Epstein details of women and their appearances

In a2017 email, a redacted person emails Epstein detailed information about women to be considered for an unspecified opportunity.

One is described as wanting "the job badly. But not as pretty as other applicants." Another is labeled "not very young but beautiful and diligent, well educated and simple, not ambitious."

'And this one is (i think) totally your girl.'

In oneextended 2015 email exchangebetween Epstein and a redacted interlocutor, Epstein asks, "any friends for jeffrey while you are recovering?"

The person responds by citing a close friend described as "Sweet girl. 20y. American." (Epstein responds that the person looks like the sender, suggesting the email included a photo.) The person later cites someone else: "She's australian, super cool, 23y, lot of fun ;)) (dark hair girl at picture) ."

The person later adds: "I'm always think about you when I'm meeting new girls." And then: "And this one is (i think) totally your girl. … Just medsaged her to check up."

'I loved the torture video'

In a2009 email, Epstein writes a brief email to a redacted recipient that includes the words, "where are you? are you ok I loved the torture video."

'New Brazilian just arrived, sexy and cute, 19yo'

In a2013 email, a redacted sender from a modeling agency writes to Epstein: "New Brazilian just arrived, sexy and cute, 19yo." The email appears to come with images attached. (CNN has reached out to the modeling agency.)

In other versions of the same email released by DOJ, the sender's affiliation with themodeling agency is redacted. Some versions of the email also included an "=" sign in place of the "1" – the files include many documents with "=" in place of characters – leading some to believe the email described a 9-year old. Butit did not.

'I just saw the most beautiful little girl on Madison with long soft blonde hair'

In a2014 email, a redacted sender emails Epstein: "I can't take it anymore!!!!!!! I just saw the most beautiful little girl on Madison with long soft blonde hair."

'My favorite from Lithuania, [REDACTED], 19.'

In a2018 email, a redacted sender writes an email that includes an image, but which appears as a broken image in the file that was released.

"My favorite from Lithuania, [REDACTED], 19. Will meet when I am there," the sender says.

Epstein responds: "full name instagram?"

A photo of a woman in a SpaceX shirt

In a 2013 email, a redacted person sends Epstein an email with no text but that includes a photo of a female posing while wearing a SpaceX shirt. The person's face is blocked out.

An email about 14- and 15-year-old girls and 'reproductive age'

In a2015 email, a redacted sender emails Epstein about teenage girls.

"the key are the 14 to 15 year old girls—i am a sexual pervert because i say they are now of a reproductive age?" the sender says.

The sender adds: "being called a sexual pervert is no fun. less so if you have served time for the crime. as i have not—they are calling me one merely for not urging your death by beheading."

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LOS ANGELES (AP) — A federal judge on Monday blocked a California law from going into effect that would ban federal immigration agents from covering their faces, but they will still be required to wear clear identification showing their agency and badge number.

California became the first state to ban most law enforcement officers from wearing facial coverings under a bill that was signed in September following the summer of high-profile raids by Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers in Los Angeles.

The Trump administrationfiled a lawsuitin November challenging the laws, arguing that they would threaten the safety of officers who are facing harassment, doxing and violence and that they violated the constitution because the state is directly regulating the federal government.

Judge Christina Snyder said she issued the initial ruling because the mask ban as it was enacted did not also apply to state law enforcement authorities, discriminating against the federal government. The ruling could have national implications as states grapple with how to deal with federal agents enforcing the Trump administration's immigration crackdown.

It left open the possibility to future legislation banning federal agents from wearing masks if it applied to all law enforcement agencies, with Snyder writing "the Court finds that federal officers can perform their federal functions without wearing masks." The ruling will go into effect Feb. 19.

Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom signed the bill in September banning some law enforcement officers fromwearing masks, neck gaiters, and other facial coverings. It was slated to go into effect Jan. 1 but was put on hold due to the lawsuit.

In addition to exempting state law enforcement officers, it made exceptions for undercover agents, protective equipment like N95 respirators or tactical gear, and other situations where not wearing a mask would jeopardize an operation. Snyder sided with the federal government, which argued this exemption was discriminatory against federal agents.

Newsom also signed into law a measure requiring law enforcement to wear clear identification showing their agency and badge number while on the job, which was challenged by the federal government but upheld by the judge. In a statement, Newsom called the judge's decision a "a clear win for the rule of law."

California State Sen. Scott Weiner, who proposed the original bill to ban facial coverings, said Monday he would immediately introduce new legislation to include state police in the law.

"ICE and Border Patrol are covering their faces to maximize their terror campaign and to insulate themselves from accountability," Weiner said in a news release. "We will ensure our mask ban can be enforced."

At a Jan. 14 hearing, Snyder repeatedly asked the government's lawyer, Tiberius Davis, to explain why banning masks would impede the federal law enforcement in carrying out their duties, if officers rarely wore masks prior to 2025.

Davis cited claims by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security that there has been a multifold increase in assaults and threats against federal officers. He also brought up an incident in Los Angeles where three women are being accused of livestreaming whilefollowing an ICE agenthome and posting the address on Instagram.

"There is real deterrence on the officer's safety and ability to perform their duties," Davis said.

Cameron Bell, California Department of Justice attorney, challenged his claims, saying there was no concrete evidence that federal agents can't perform their duties withoutfacial coverings.

Bell referenced declarations from U.S citizens who have been detained by federal agents but thought they were being kidnapped.

"It's obvious why these laws are in the public interest," Bell said.

The federal government also argued in legal briefs that allowing California's legislation could lead other states to be "emboldened to impose similar unconstitutional restraints."

Davis cited a statement from Newsom in July 2025during an interviewposted online where he discussed the mask ban bill, saying, "It appears that we don't have the legal authority for federal agents but we do for other law enforcement authorities."

Los Angeles County supervisors voted in December to enact a local ordinance banning law enforcement from wearing masks that went into effect Jan. 8. However, the sheriff's department said it would not enforce the ordinance until after the court ruled on the statewide mask ban. The Los Angeles Police Department had also said it wouldn't enforce the mask ban.

The two remaining lawsuits againstCleveland BrownsquarterbackDeshaun Watsonhave been dismissed by the women who filed them just weeks before they werescheduled to go to trial in February and March.

Both were among 27 lawsuits filed against Watson since March 2021, all by women who accused him of sexual misconduct. Of the 27 cases, 24 ended with confidential settlements and one was withdrawn shortly after being field in 2021. The last remaining two were dismissed with prejudice in Houston Friday Jan. 6, indicating they also were settled with confidential terms.

Plaintiffs attorney Tony Buzbee represented 26 of the 27 women, including one of the final remaining plaintiffs, Lauren Baxley, who previously declined to settle after filing suit in March 2021. She was one of the first women tocome forward publiclyand accuse Watson of misconduct during a massage session.

"Case is settled," Buzbee said Monday. "That's all I can say about it. That's the last case so that ends my involvement with Deshaun Watson litigation."

Watson denied wrongdoing and said some of the encounters with these women were consensual. But the NFL investigated and eventuallysuspended him for 11 games in 2022.

The Baxley case was set for trial in Houston on March 30. The other remaining case was set for trial Feb. 18 and involved the only plaintiff who wasn't represented by Buzbee. That woman's attorney didn't immediately return a message seeking comment.

That plaintiff had accused Watson of forcing her into oral sex during a massage session at theHoustonian Hotelin December 2020. Watson's attorney, Rusty Hardin, called her lawsuit a"sham" after it was filed in October 2022. He didn't immediately return a message seeking comment.

All cases generally allegedmisconduct during massage sessionsin 2020 and early 2021, when Watson played for the Houston Texans. That team alsoreached confidential settlements with 30 womenwho made claims related to Watson's behavior and accused the team of enabling his behavior and failing to prevent it. In March 2022, the Texans traded him to the Browns, who gave him a five-year contract worth $230 million guaranteed.

But because of the suspension and injuries, Watson only has played in 19 games for the Browns since then. Last season, Watson, 30, didn't play at all after undergoing surgery to repair a ruptured Achilles tendon.

Follow reporter Brent Schrotenboer@Schrotenboer. Email: bschrotenb@usatoday.com

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Final two Deshaun Watson lawsuits dismissed by women who filed them

Tennis superstar Serena Williams could be on her way back to the court after being listed by theInternational Tennis Integrity Agencyas eligible to return on Feb. 22.

This comes nearly six months after Williams registered with the sports drug testing organization and, as of Monday, has been listed on the ITIA's website reinstatement page. While there is no official plan in place for Williams' return, thisprocess has opened a pathway for a return if she so chooses.

When news broke last year that Williams had signed up to re-enter the ITIA drug testing pool, she responded to fans via social media. "Omg yall I'm NOT coming back. This wildfire is crazy."

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Williams is one of the most decorated competitors in the sports history but has not competed since the 2022 U.S. Open. She stepped away from the sport in 2022 to focus on family and other business ventures outside of her tennis career. At the time, Williams did not want to use the word "retiring," but chose to say she was evolving away from tennis.

Pro athletes who return to testing under ITIA supervision must provide information on their whereabouts, times when they can give samples and their location when not at official events. Athletes who retire while on the list and choose to come back later must be available for six months of testing before they can be allowed to officially return to competition.

Among Williams' treasure chest's worth of accolades are 73 career titles (23 Grand Slams), four Olympic gold medals and a career singles record of 858-156.