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Trump tells troops ‘fear’ is powerful motivator in difficult Iran talks

February 13, 2026 7:53 PM UTC / Reuters

FORT BRAGG, North Carolina, Feb 13 (Reuters) – President Donald Trump told U.S. troops on Friday that Iran has been “difficult” in nuclear negotiations and suggested that instilling fear in Tehran may be necessary to resolve the standoff peacefully.

“They’ve been difficult to make a deal,” Trump said of the Iranians before an audience of active-duty soldiers at Fort Bragg Army base in North Carolina after U.S. officials said they were sending a second aircraft carrier to the Middle East.

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“Sometimes you have to have fear. That’s the only thing that really will get the situation taken care of.”

During his address Trump also referenced the U.S. bombing of Iran’s nuclear sites last June.

Earlier, he said the deployment of the world’s largest aircraft carrier was being made so “we’ll have it ready” should negotiations with Iran fail.

Oman facilitated talks between Iran and the U.S. last week, which a spokesperson for Iran’s foreign ministry said had allowed Tehran to gauge Washington’s seriousness and showed enough consensus for diplomacy to continue. The date and venue of the next round of U.S.-Iran talks have yet to be announced.

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U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a visit at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, U.S., February 13, 2026. REUTERS/Elizabeth Frantz [Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab]

The president traveled to Fort Bragg to meet special forces troops involved in the audacious January 3 operation to seize Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.

Maduro, who faces narco-terrorism and drug trafficking charges in U.S. court, denies wrongdoing and maintains he is the rightful leader of Venezuela. In the weeks since the Venezuelan leader’s capture, Trump has worked with Maduro’s interim successor Delcy Rodriguez and sought broad control over the country’s oil industry.

Fort Bragg is home to some 50,000 active-duty soldiers. It also sits in one of the country’s more competitive political states.

North Carolina is expected to host closely fought races for both the Senate and House of Representatives in November’s congressional election. The state will be one of the biggest prizes in the 2028 presidential election.

During the visit, Trump broke with presidential norms and delivered an openly political speech to the troops, blasting his political opponents and warning that Democrats would undermine the military if they won control of Congress in the elections.

Trump’s public approval ratings have slid since his January 2025 inauguration, with voters mainly concerned about the high cost of living. Aides have said the president will eventually travel weekly to competitive states to speak with voters.

Reporting by Steve Holland in Fort Bragg, North Carolina, and Trevor Hunnicutt in Washington, editing by Ross Colvin and Diane Craft

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Medical groups urge US judge to block vaccine policy shifts under RFK Jr

February 13, 2026 9:16 PM UTC / Reuters

• Summary

• Kennedy replaced all 17 experts on key vaccine panel
• CDC’s new schedule reduces recommended childhood vaccines to 11
• Judge Murphy faces tight timeline for decision

BOSTON, Feb 13 (Reuters) – Major U.S. medical groups urged a judge on Friday to block the Trump administration from implementing new guidance cutting the number of vaccines routinely recommended for children and bar Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s handpicked vaccine advisory panel from holding its next meeting.

Lawyers for the American Academy of Pediatrics and other groups told U.S. District Judge Brian Murphy in Boston that health officials acted unlawfully to fulfill Kennedy’s goals by upending national immunization policies in ways that would harm public health and reduce vaccination rates.

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“This is a clear and present danger to public health,” said James Oh, a lawyer for the groups.

He said the “most egregious” action taken under the watch of Kennedy, a long-time vaccine skeptic, was when the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on January 5 issued a new immunization schedule that cut the number of routinely recommended childhood vaccinations to 11 and downgraded six others.

Oh said that decision, which removed the broad recommendation for childhood vaccines for diseases including rotavirus, influenza and hepatitis A, “set off alarms” in the medical community and occurred without any rational explanation from the agency.

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Instead of a recommendation, the CDC said parents should consult healthcare providers under what it calls shared clinical-decision-making, and said insurance providers would continue to cover the costs of the shots.

Oh said the decision occurred after Kennedy last year removed and replaced all 17 independent experts on a key panel whose recommendations shape vaccine practices.

He urged the judge to prevent that panel, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, from holding its February 26-27 meeting. Oh said it is now dominated by people aligned with Kennedy’s anti-vaccine views, in violation of the Federal Advisory Committee Act’s mandates that it be fairly balanced and free of inappropriate influence.

Murphy, who was appointed by Democratic President Joe Biden, appeared open to arguments the panel was unlawfully constituted and asked whether he could consider the “broader public health impacts” of the vaccine policy changes.

U.S. Department of Justice lawyer Isaac Belfer told him HHS was not pursuing an anti-vaccine agenda and welcomed “spirited debate about vaccine policy.” But he said it had broad authority to change policy to address a decline in public trust in vaccines following the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The court cannot substitute its judgment in place of the agency,” Belfer said.

Murphy did not immediately rule but, with the meeting upcoming, said he “must make a decision in this case on an uncomfortably tight timeline.”

Reporting by Nate Raymond in Boston, Editing by Rosalba O’Brien

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Federal officers appear to have lied about lead-up to immigrant shooting, ICE director says

February 13, 2026 9:54 PM UTC / Reuters

By Christian Martinez

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U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Acting Director Todd Lyons attends a Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., U.S., February 12, 2026. REUTERS/Kent Nishimura Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab

Feb 13 (Reuters) – Two federal officers appear to have lied about the events that led up to the shooting of a Venezuelan immigrant in Minneapolis last month, acting U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Director Todd Lyons said Friday.

In a statement, Lyons said a review of video footage by ICE and the Department of Justice “has revealed that sworn testimony provided by two separate officers appears to have made untruthful statements.”

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Both officers have been placed on administrative leave and the U.S. Attorney’s office is investigating the false statements, Lyons said.

“Upon conclusion of the investigation, the officers may face termination of employment, as well as potential criminal prosecution,” Lyons said.

The announcement comes a day after the Justice Department moved to drop charges against the Venezuelan immigrant, Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis, who was shot in the leg, and another man accused of assaulting a federal officer.

The top federal prosecutor in Minnesota, Daniel Rosen, asked a judge to dismiss the charges, writing “newly discovered evidence in this matter is materially inconsistent with the allegations.” Rosen sought the dismissal with prejudice, which means the charges cannot be reintroduced.

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ICE and federal agents have faced strong push back against their immigration enforcement surge in Minneapolis during which two U.S. citizens have been killed. Earlier this week, President Donald Trump’s border czar Tom Homan said the surge would be winding down.

Reporting by Christian Martinez and Kristina Cooke; editing by Michelle Nichols

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Virginia high court clears way for congressional redistricting vote, boosting Democrats

February 13, 2026 7:35 PM UTC / Reuters

By Joseph Ax

Feb 13 (Reuters) – The Virginia Supreme Court said on Friday it would allow a Democratic-backed redistricting effort to head to a voter referendum in April, potentially paving the way for the party to flip as many as four Republican seats in the U.S. House of Representatives this fall.

A state judge last month blocked the Democrats’ redistricting effort, ruling that lawmakers had used an invalid process to advance it. In agreeing to hear Democrats’ appeal of that ruling on Friday, the high court also said an April 21 special election could move ahead in the meantime.

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A woman a her child walk past voting booths during an election at a polling site in New York City, U.S., November 4, 2025. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab

While the court could still rule against the redistricting plan in the future, the decision to let the referendum proceed was a victory for Democrats, who have proposed a new House map that would give them the advantage in 10 of the state’s 11 districts. Currently, Democrats control six seats.

The battle in Virginia is part of a broader nationwide redistricting war that was triggered last summer, when President Donald Trump successfully urged his fellow Republicans in Texas to approve a new map targeting five Democratic seats.

Since then, both Democratic and Republican states have advanced new maps, with neither party emerging as a clear winner just yet. Redistricting typically occurs only at the start of each decade after the U.S. Census is completed.

Democrats have to flip only three Republican-held seats in November’s midterm elections to win a House majority.

Virginia’s constitution gives an independent commission the authority to draw congressional lines, forcing Democratic lawmakers to undertake a multi-step process to approve a constitutional amendment and seek voter approval before they can install a new map.

Reporting by Joseph Ax; editing by Diane Craft

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FDA’s Makary backs measles vaccinations as South Carolina cases rise

February 13, 2026 10:16 PM UTC / Reuters

U.S. Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Martin Makary attends a press conference in the Roosevelt Room at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., May 12, 2025. REUTERS/Nathan Howard [Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab]

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Feb 13 (Reuters) – U.S. Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Martin Makary, in an interview on Friday, urged Americans to get vaccinated for measles, as the country faces its largest measles surge in more than three decades.

“When we hear about cases of measles in an outbreak in South Carolina, that should serve as a good reminder for parents to make sure that their kids are vaccinated,” Makary said during an appearance on MS NOW’s “Chris Jansing Reports”.

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The measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) two-shot protocol remains recommended at the federal level starting at 12 months of age, with a second at 4 to 6 years of age.

South Carolina reported 950 measles cases on Friday, including 17 new infections since Tuesday, according to state health officials. No deaths have been reported by the state.

Among those infected, a significant majority of 883 individuals were unvaccinated, and 19 were partially vaccinated with one of the recommended two-dose measles-mumps-rubella vaccines.

“I think everyone in this administration has been pretty clear that the best way to prevent measles is to get your kid vaccinated against measles,” Makary added.

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Earlier this week, National Institutes of Health Director Jay Bhattacharya also expressed his support for Americans getting vaccinated against measles.

“The answer is yes,” Bhattacharya said about the vaccines when asked by Reuters about recent outbreaks.

On Sunday, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz also urged Americans to take the measles vaccine in an interview with CNN. “Take the vaccine, please,” he said.

Reporting by Sneha S K in Bengaluru; Editing by Vijay Kishore

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US airlines must certify use of merit-based hiring for pilots, FAA says

February 13, 2026 10:22 PM UTC / Reuters

WASHINGTON, Feb 13 (Reuters) – The Federal Aviation Administration said on Friday that all U.S. airlines must certify they are conducting merit-based hiring for pilots or face a federal investigation.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said the action was to address “allegations of airlines hiring based on race and sex,” and added under the directive “all U.S. carriers will be required to certify this practice is terminated.”

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Shortly after taking office in January 2025, President Donald Trump issued sweeping executive orders to dismantle diversity, equity and inclusion programs in the United States and pressured the private sector to join the initiative.

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There is no evidence that any U.S. airline is employing unqualified pilots. The FAA notice Friday said airlines must “ensure pilot hiring is exclusively merit-based to fulfill its duty to provide the highest possible degree of safety.”

Airlines for America, which represents major passenger airlines including American Airlines, United Airlines, Delta Air Lines and Southwest Airlines said “safety is, and always will be, the top priority for U.S. airlines.” The group said its “carriers comply with all federal regulations and laws, including those related to qualifications, training and licensing.”

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U.S. airline pilots have historically been overwhelmingly white and male.

United, which in 2021 set a goal to train 5,000 new pilots by 2030 with at least half being women or people of color, said at the time that only about 7% of its roughly 12,000 pilots were women and 13% were people of color. The airline declined to comment on Friday.

Three weeks into the Trump administration, the FAA reversed a four-year-old decision to rename safety messages to pilots and reinstating the prior “Notice to Airmen” term.

In December 2021, the FAA under former President Joe Biden renamed the messages “Notices to Air Missions,” commonly known as NOTAMs, saying it was “inclusive of all aviators and missions.”

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Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Chris Reese and Diane Craft

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The January CPI report is the best inflation news we’ve had in months. Here’s why.

February 13, 2026 / 4:00 PM EST / CBS News

The January inflation reading offered encouraging signs for consumers and the U.S. economy, with the Consumer Price Index coming in below Wall Street expectations and falling to its lowest level in nine months.

Although Americans continue to grapple with elevated prices and cost-of-living concerns, the trajectory of inflation in recent months offers some relief for consumers, experts said. Inflation rose at an average annual rate of 2.6% from November through January — down from nearly 2.9% from July through September. (October’s CPI report was canceled due to the government shutdown.)

“Inflation fell to the lowest level since May, and key items such as food, gas and rent are cooling off,” Heather Long, chief economist at Navy Federal Credit Union, said in an email. “This will provide much-needed relief for middle-class and moderate-income families.”

Here are five takeaways from today’s CPI report, which tracks changes in prices of goods and services across the U.S.

Inflation came in cooler than expected

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Friday’s report showed that inflation in January dipped to 2.4% on an annual basis, a shade below economists’ forecasts of 2.5%.

The softer reading surprised some experts because January CPI data often comes in hotter than other months due to seasonal factors and more rapid price changes at the start of the year, the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston said in an analysis earlier this month.

To be sure, while inflation is cooling, prices continue to rise faster than economists and the Federal Reserve would like.

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“They’re going up at a slower pace, and that’s what we want, but they’re still going up,” Stephen Kates, a financial analyst at Bankrate, told CBS News ahead of the CPI release.

So-called core inflation, which strips out the more volatile food and energy prices, rose 2.5% year over year, a sign that prices remain somewhat sticky.

Some grocery costs eased

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Price hikes at the grocery store are easing, providing some relief for consumers. Food at home — a category that tracks food bought at grocery stores and other retailers for consumption at home — rose 2.1% from a year earlier, cooler than the overall CPI rate.

Grocery items that dropped in price last month compared with a year ago include cheese, fresh fruit and eggs, with the latter declining 34%. To be sure, some foods are still seeing significant price hikes, including ground beef and roasted coffee, with the cost of both items up 17% in January from a year ago.

Prices at restaurants and other eateries rose 4% last month from a year earlier, exceeding the overall inflation rate.

Lower prices at the pump

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One standout from Friday’s report was energy prices, which showed a notable deceleration and helped lower the overall inflation reading, EY-Parthenon senior economist Lydia Boussour said in an email.

Within the energy category, gasoline prices dipped 7.5%.

By contrast, electricity prices continue to climb sharply, rising 6.3% year-over-year. That comes amid an increase in electricity demand, partly from data centers powering the spread of AI services, that has driven up consumers’ utility bills. Those price pressures are likely to persist. The U.S. Energy Information Administration forecasts residential electricity prices will rise nearly 4% in 2026.

Housing costs slowed

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Housing costs, categorized as “shelter” in the CPI, slowed in January. The category rose 3% from a year earlier, down from 3.2% in the prior month.

One caveat: Experts say that the year-over-year shelter figures have been softer in recent months, likely due to the lingering effects of the government shutdown in fall 2025, which disrupted federal data collection.

“The Bureau of Labor Statistics did not have data from October, and they had to impute what they think it was going to be, and that has very likely created some artificially low numbers on housing,” Kates explained, adding that he expects numbers to normalize around March or April.

Fed likely to hold off on March rate cut

---

Many experts think the Federal Reserve will leave its benchmark interest rate unchanged at its March meeting, despite today’s CPI report showing inflation edging closer to the central bank’s goal of a 2% annual rate.

While January’s CPI data will be “welcome news for the Federal Reserve,” there may be concerns about some data distortions remaining from last fall’s government shutdown, noted Bernard Yaros, lead economist at Oxford Economics, in a Friday report.

Meanwhile, other inflation gauges suggest it’s too early for the central bank to declare victory. Although the latest CPI numbers show that core inflation is fading, the Fed’s preferred inflation gauge — Personal Consumption Expenditures, another measure of consumer spending — remains stuck at nearly 3%, well above the central bank’s 2% annual target.

The Fed will also likely be monitoring the labor market for signs of stabilization, Yaros added. Oxford is forecasting two rate cuts in 2026, at the Fed’s June and September meetings.

Edited by Aimee Picchi

Attorney General Bondi deflected queries about Nancy Guthrie case and El Paso airport closure during brief Capitol Hill scrum

By Chad Pergram, Fox News

Published February 13, 2026 4:46pm EST

Attorney General Pam Bondi briefly answered questions from Fox News chief congressional correspondent Chad Pergram on Jeffrey Epstein, Nancy Guthrie and El Paso during a Capitol hallway exchange.

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The overstuffed white binders appeared a few moments before Attorney General Pam Bondi exited her motorcade, and strode through the horseshoe entrance of the Rayburn House Office Building.

Roll Call photographer Tom Williams and I stood in the hallway, negotiating our positions for Bondi’s entrance. Williams would position himself on the far side. I slid to the wall nearest the horseshoe entrance. Ali Vitali of MS NOW and Jay O’Brien of ABC worked the sidewall.

A coterie of Bondi’s aides appeared. One bogged down by the massive binders.

BONDI HEARING DEVOLVES INTO CHAOS OF SHOUTS AS AG ACCUSES TOP DEMOCRATS OF ‘THEATRICS’

Attorney General Pam Bondi arrives at the Rayburn House Office Building on Capitol Hill and takes questions from Fox News chief congressional correspondent Chad Pergram ahead of a House hearing.(Tom Williams)

“Let her get into the room,” instructed the aide.

I politely reminded the aide that the corridor was an open hallway on Capitol Hill. It wasn’t closed off by the U.S. Capitol Police. So, tossing questions at the Attorney General was fair game.

And, thus began another dance between reporters, security details, the U.S. Capitol Police, aides and Cabinet members when they appear for major Congressional hearings.

At the time, we had no clue what was in the binders. But you couldn’t ignore the sheer size of them.

It’s not uncommon for aides to haul in briefing books for a principal when they testify. However, no one has seen binders like this since Kinko’s was still in business.

The contents of what the binders contained was about to play a central role in Bondi’s testimony to the House Judiciary Committee.

But the first charge of the morning was to query Bondi. There was so much going on. All of which were subjects that the Attorney General could address.

Speaking of files…

Bondi wasn’t there to testify about the Epstein files, per se. But Democrats – and one Republican – would make the Justice Department’s release of partially redacted documents the focus of the hearing. So there was plenty to ask Bondi about that.

DOJ’S EPSTEIN DISCLOSURE DRAWS FIRE FOR WEBSITE GLITCHES, MISSING DOCUMENTS, REDACTIONS

Attorney General Pam Bondi arrives at the Rayburn House Office Building on Capitol Hill and takes questions from Fox News chief congressional correspondent Chad Pergram ahead of a House hearing.(Tom Williams)

However, there were overnight developments from Arizona. Authorities detained a person near the Mexico border in connection with the disappearance of Nancy Guthrie. What Bondi might know about the FBI’s role in this was worth a question.

Then, there was a cryptic alert that officials were shutting off the airport in El Paso to all air traffic for ten days. Was there a threat of terrorism? Something about cartels? Finally, a story broke overnight that the Justice Department sought to indict six Democratic lawmakers for their video telling service members they didn’t have to comply with unlawful orders. A District of Columbia grand jury refused to indict any of them.

So the press corps waited for Bondi and her security detail to breeze through the door. We’d have about a minute to pepper her with questions as she walked from the horseshoe entrance to a back anteroom.

Reporters must be strategic with such brief “walk-and-talks.” Rapid, Gatling gun-like questions. Succinct. Straight to the point. And agile enough to skip to the next line of inquiry if the figure arriving on Capitol Hill doesn’t answer or gives a brief response.

In another universe, I may have started with Epstein. But the Nancy Guthrie story has consumed the nation for weeks now. There was a development overnight. Nearly every story on the planet always occupies a lane somewhere on Capitol Hill. The Nancy Guthrie saga was no exception.

I had positioned myself on the inside track as we walked down the hall. Able to sidle up close to Bondi as she moved through the building.

“Madam Attorney General, any comment about the investigation of Guthrie? Any update on that right now?” I began, getting to Bondi first.

“Yeah, I can’t talk about that now. Praying for Savannah and her family,” replied Bondi.

Check. Moving on.

“What happened in El Paso? Why did they close off El Paso? Is that something you don’t know about? Or you just can’t comment?” I asked.

“I cant discuss it,” responded Bondi.

EPSTEIN FILES EXPLODE OPEN AS DOJ DETAILS DISCOVERY OF POWERFUL FIGURES AND MORE THAN 1,200 VICTIMS

Attorney General Pam Bondi testifies before a House Judiciary Committee oversight hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2026, in Washington, as Jeffrey Epstein survivors, stand left.(Tom Brenner/AP Photo)

Then, the main event.

“And what about the Epstein files? A lot of members have been upset that some of these files have not been fully unredacted. What do you say to that?” I inquired.

“We’re going to discuss that today,” answered Bondi.

I backed off to allow my colleagues a chance to pose questions.

“But why was certain information redacted that’s against the nature of the law? Why was certain information redacted that’s against the law?” asked Vitali.

No response.

So I tagged back in, returning to the initial lines of questioning.

“Did you get any updates overnight on the Guthrie investigation? Were they keeping you informed overnight on that? And when did you first find out about the El Paso situation? When did you first hear about the El Paso situation, Madam Attorney General?”

Bondi was silent.

The scrum processed down the hall, camera operators and reporters bumping all over one another, edging backwards. A semi-blob of security personnel slightly shielded Bondi.

But the end was near. The throng approached the backdoor to the Judiciary Committee. Bondi would soon turn right and disappear inside.

Just enough time for one final topic.

“What about the attempt to prosecute the six lawmakers? Any comment on that failed grand jury indictment?” I hollered.

“I’ll refer that to U.S. Attorney Pirro,” replied Bondi, referring to U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeannine Pirro, who tried to indict the six.

HOW PAM BONDI AND THE DEMOCRATS TURNED A HEARING INTO HYSTERIA, RIGHT IN FRONT OF JEFFREY EPSTEIN’S VICTIMS

The Department of Justice released a trove of Epstein documents on Dec. 19 following President Trump’s signature on the Epstein Files Transparency Act in Nov. 2025.(Joe Schildhorn/Patrick McMullan via Getty Images)

“Do you know why that went wrong?” I asked.

But that was it. The shot clock expired.

Bondi ignored the question, turning right with her security detail and retreating into the anteroom.

When he hosted Meet the Press on NBC, late host Tim Russert would sometimes boast that they had the Vice President or Secretary of State “for the whole hour.”

The exchanges with Bondi were a fraction of that, consuming a meager one minute and three seconds. From 9:42:03 am et until 9:43:06 am et. There was efficient questioning. And Bondi fielded the questions. But there wasn’t a lot which advanced any of the stories. Still, it’s important to pose the questions and get the exchanges on camera. That made it a productive exercise. Sometimes the Capitol press corps never even sees the big witnesses arrive. Or if we do, they don’t even respond to questions.

The group of aides ducked into the Judiciary Committee suite, one aide lugging the ginormous binders like a stack of Christmas presents.

These binders were about to become the most famous folios in American politics since former Sen. Mitt Romney (R-UT) proclaimed he had “binders full of women” during a 2012 debate with President Obama.

The hearing would start a few moments later, carried live on multiple TV networks. The purpose of the binders soon became clear. Each binder contained dossiers on every single Democrat on the Judiciary Committee. Bondi would turn to a specific section in each binder, mining for barbs to lob back at Democrats on the dais. Sometimes about their voting history. Sometimes about a law enforcement or immigration issue in their district. Bondi frequently lashed Democrats – and Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) – with ad hominem attacks. She derided Massie as a “failed politician.” She called Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD), the top Democrat on the panel “a washed-up, loser lawyer.”

US Representative Thomas Massie, Republican from Kentucky, questions US Attorney General Pam Bondi before a House Judiciary Committee hearing on “Oversight of the Department of Justice” on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, on Feb. 11, 2026.(ROBERTO SCHMIDT / AFP via Getty)

Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D-FL) tried to bait Bondi, asking her to “give me your best” bit of opposition research. The Florida Democrat would then grade what Bondi’s staff concocted.

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The hearing devolved into five hours of shouting, screaming and mayhem. One of the most chaotic, cacophonous hearings in recent memory. The spectacle spoke volumes.

All of which could fill a stack of overstuffed binders.

Chad Pergram currently serves as Chief Congressional Correspondent for FOX News Channel (FNC). He joined the network in September 2007 and is based out of Washington, D.C.

Au pair gets 10-year sentence for scheme to kill lover’s wife and another man in Virginia

February 13, 2026 / 2:32 PM EST / CBS/AP

An au pair who schemed with her employer-turned-lover to kill his wife and another man received a 10-year sentence on Friday.

Prosecutors had recommended immediate release for Juliana Peres Magalhães in exchange for her guilty plea to a downgraded manslaughter charge in the February 2023 killing of Joseph Ryan. She testified that she fatally shot Ryan as Brendan Banfield was fatally stabbing his wife, Christine, in the couple’s bedroom.

Instead, Fairfax Chief Circuit Court Judge Penney S. Azcarate delivered the maximum possible sentence to the woman from Brazil, citing “an intentional and calculated level of violence that is the most serious manslaughter scenario that this court has ever seen.”

“Your actions were deliberate, self-serving, and demonstrated a profound disregard for human life,” Azcarate said at the sentencing on Friday, according to CBS affiliate WUSA. “So let’s get straight — you do not deserve anything other than incarceration and a life of reflection on what you have done to the victim in this family. May it weigh heavily on your soul.”

Magalhães had remained silent for months before agreeing to cooperate with prosecutors in their case against Banfield, who was convicted by a jury this month of aggravated murder in the deaths of his wife and Ryan. Prosecutors said they continued their affair for months after the killings.

At his trial, Magalhães testified that she and Banfield, an IRS agent, had created an account in the name of his wife, a pediatric intensive care nurse, on a social media platform for people interested in sexual fetishes. Ryan connected with the account and agreed to meet for a sexual encounter involving a knife.

Juliana Peres Magalhães testifies during the double murder trial for Brendan Banfield in Fairfax County Circuit Court, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in Fairfax, Va. Tom Brenner / AP

Magalhães said she and Banfield took the couple’s 4-year-old child to the basement, and then entered the bedroom, where she said Banfield shot Ryan. When she saw Ryan moving, Magalhães said, she fired the second shot that killed him.

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Magalhães testified that she was in the room when Banfield killed Christine, but that she crouched behind the bed and covered her eyes and ears while Banfield repeatedly stabbed his wife, WUSA reported.

She wasn’t arrested until eight months later, and didn’t talk with investigators for more than a year, until she changed her mind as her own trial date approached. Banfield’s attorney scrutinized the former au pair’s motives during his trial, arguing that she was only saying what prosecutors wanted to hear.

Magalhães read a prepared statement before her sentencing.

“I know my remorse cannot bring you peace,” Magalhães said to the victims’ families. “I lost myself in a relationship, and left my morals and values behind.”

Ryan’s mother and aunt both gave victim impact statements. Christine’s family had letters prepared but were not allowed to speak because Magalhães was only charged in Ryan’s death, according to WUSA.

Brendan Banfield looks on during the double murder trial for Brendan Banfield in Fairfax County Circuit Court, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in Fairfax, Virginia. Tom Brenner / AP

“Do I think or dare hope that there will be justice for Joe’s death? For my loss as his mother? I don’t believe that’s possible,” said Ryan’s mother, Dierdre Fisher. “What I do hope is that even for a moment, that the world and you, Judge, will say Joe meant more than nothing. That he was someone worthy of dignity and life who didn’t deserve to be used and thrown away, treated as utterly disposable.”

Banfield was found guilty of two counts of aggravated murder, one count of child endangerment, and one count of using a firearm in the commission of a murder, WUSA reported. Aggravated murder charges in Virginia carry a mandatory life sentence with no chance of parole. He will be sentenced on May 8.

President Donald Trump recounted the military’s strength during the successful operation to capture Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro during an event in Fort Bragg, North Carolina, Friday honoring U.S. special forces and their families for their roles in the capture.

“It was in a matter of minutes before (Maduro) was on a helicopter being taken out of there. They had to go through steel doors,” Trump said Friday afternoon. “The steels were like it was like papier-maché. You know what papier-maché is? That’s weak paper.”

U.S. special operations forces carried out the successful capture of Maduro and his wife on sweeping narcotics charges. Trump celebrated that the mission did not kill any U.S. military personnel or damage U.S. military equipment in a nation that is heavily militarized, with Maduro himself living on a protected military base.

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[STATE DEPT CONFIRMS ‘LIMITED NUMBER’ OF PERSONNEL IN CARACAS WORKING TO RESUME VENEZUELA DIPLOMATIC RELATIONS]

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Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick, left, waits for President Donald Trump to speak during a visit to the Army base in Fort Bragg, North Carolina, Feb. 13, 2026.(Nathan Howard/Getty Images)

“These guys blasted through every door,” Trump continued Friday. “They got up to him before he got to the big safe. But that wouldn’t have worked either, because they had equipment that was going to knock that out in a matter of minutes, but he never got there. It went so fast.”

Trump continued that the operation had been “precise” and “incredible.”

[HEGSETH SIGNS OFF ON WOUNDED US TROOPS KEEPING BULLETS, SHRAPNEL REMOVED FROM THEIR BODIES AFTER MADURO RAID]

“Think of it in a matter of minutes,” he continued. “When people realize what happened, they’re looking up, and there’s the helicopter heading back to the aircraft carriers. So that night, the entire world saw what the full military might the U.S. military is capable of. And that was an unbelievable operation, but that was a smaller operation.”

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Captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro arrives at the Downtown Manhattan Heliport, New York, Jan. 5, 2026.(Eduardo Munoz/Reuters)

[WIFE OF FORMER AMERICAN DETAINEE RELEASED AFTER MORE THAN A YEAR IN VENEZUELAN PRISON]

Maduro was whisked off on a helicopter, before he was brought to the U.S., where he faces federal charges, including narco-terrorism conspiracy, cocaine-trafficking conspiracy and weapons-related offenses. He’s being held in federal custody at the Metropolitan Detention Center in New York City.

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President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump traveled to North Carolina on Feb. 13, 2026, to meet with military members after the capture of Venezuela’s Maduro.(Nathan Howard/Getty Images)

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First lady Melania Trump joined the president on the trip to North Carolina, with Trump joking that they enjoy the area so much, they might move there in the future.

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“Maybe I’ll maybe I’ll move here with our great movie star,” Trump quipped, giving a nod to Melania Trump’s new documentary, “Melania.” “We’ll move here with our first lady. We’ll move to Fort Bragg. Would you like that, darling?She loves you. It’s a possibility.”