A convicted killer was caught on video smiling and giggling in a Florida courtroom earlier this week as the judge described the murder. The judge soon asked why he was laughing — and most definitely wasn’t amused by his answer.

Marcus Terry, 43, was found guilty last December of second-degree murder for killing his cellmate in the Dade Correctional Institute in Homestead in 2021, WTVJ-TV reported.

‘I’m not sure why you’re laughing.’

Terry was back in court Tuesday, and his attorney Steven Yermish requested that Judge Ellen Sue Venzer grant his client a new trial, claiming that inadmissible evidence made it into the December trial, the station said.

Venzer denied the motion for the new trial and continued with Terry’s sentencing, WTVJ reported.

The judge described the murder — during which the victim was stabbed in the brain with a pen — and said “he shoved a pillowcase into his mouth. When the guards came in to find out what was going on, he was standing on top of this man, and his hand was bloodied,” the station said.

During the murder description, however, Terry started to smile and giggle, according to WTVJ.

“I’m not sure why you’re laughing,” Venzer told Terry, the station said.

And how did the convicted killer respond?

RELATED: Thug who grinned in arrest photo after boy was murdered just got his sentence — and it should wipe smile right off his face

“You are amusing,” he told the judge, according to WTVJ.

As you might imagine, the judge didn’t take kindly to Terry’s response.

“I found nothing amusing about your behavior or the death of this gentleman,” Venzer said, according to the station.

“God have mercy on your soul,” the judge added while issuing a life sentence without the possibility of parole, WTVJ reported.

Terry can appeal his sentence, the station added.

Terry already was serving a life sentence for armed burglary and armed robbery when he killed fellow inmate Ray Matos, WTVJ said, citing court records.

The two had been cellmates for less than a week, the station said, citing a warrant.

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Filmmaker R.J. Moeller has a keen sense about people and pairings.

He recalls helping to connect Dennis Prager and comic Adam Carolla, two media personalities with wildly different skill sets and backgrounds. Yet Prager and Carolla clicked, and they toured the country as a very odd but endearing couple. They later co-starred in the 2019 documentary “No Safe Spaces,” which Moeller produced.

Most documentaries don’t move the cultural needle, but ‘Call Sign Courage’ gave its star a real-life happy ending.

Moeller also sensed something special about Lt. Col. Matt Lohmeier, a former Air Force pilot fired by the Biden administration in 2021 for slamming the military’s DEI culture on “The Steve Gruber Show.”

Lohmeier decried the military’s diversity initiatives, citing their ties to critical race theory.

That led Moeller to produce “Call Sign Courage: The Matt Lohmeier Story.” The documentary, recently promoted by X’s own Elon Musk on the social media platform, recalls Lohmeier’s battle against a formidable system.

He lost his job at Space Force and his pension, but the military veteran wouldn’t give up. His battle is the heart of “Call Sign Courage.” That story felt like a natural for the right documentary filmmaker, Moeller recalls, including Lohmeier’s faith and family connections.

‘Jon Hamm meets John Wayne’

“I thought, ‘This dude is special.’ The character, the depth, what he did when no one else wasn’t looking,” Moeller says. It didn’t hurt that his subject “looked like Jon Hamm meets John Wayne.”

Except Lohmeier wasn’t eager for his close-up.

“These news cycles move fast. He was happy to be forgotten about … he was exploring taking a high school teaching position,” Moeller says.

A mutual friend connected them all the same, and the filmmaker convinced Lohmeier to share his story with the world via film.

“If you give me 12 months … we’re going to make you a film,” the producer told him, sealing the deal.

Crucial allies

Funding is always tight for documentary filmmakers, but Lohmeier’s story attracted the Heritage Foundation’s attention, which helped pick up some critical fees. The nonprofit helped release the film free on X for a limited time last week. Now, the film — directed by Marshall Lee, who cut his teeth editing movies like “What Is a Woman?” and “Am I Racist?” — is available on Apple TV, Prime Video, and other VOD platforms.

Musk screened the film and helped arrange for the free X window. The result? Moeller says roughly five million people watched some or all of it over the weekend.

Moeller, who also produced “Live Not By Lies” for Angel Studios, understood how his subject matter’s fight to call out the military’s Marxist turn mattered to the film. Not everyone was happy to see that element included in the documentary.

“I cannot tell you how many conservative people in D.C., when they heard about this film or saw cuts of it, said, ‘Eh, don’t talk about Marxism so much.’”

“I’m leaving it in the film … it’s the most powerful stuff,” he says. “The more they tell us to not talk about Marxism, the more we’re going to do it.”

RELATED: Killer bear flick ‘Backcountry’ puts big-budget thrillers to shame

IFC Midnight

10,000 hours

Moeller is part of an emerging right-leaning brand of storytellers, the kind who once had little access to the public. Now, with X, YouTube, and other social media platforms, he’s able to share his skills with the public.

It all started for him in the existing movie ecosystem.

“I’m proud of the 10,000 hours I put into traditional Hollywood … you need to cut your teeth out there,” he says. Now, he’s eager to leverage what he calls the “wild, wild west” of storytelling outside the industry’s glittery walls.

“Hollywood failed by overspending and making stuff people didn’t want. Don’t make the same mistakes in the conservative film world,” he says.

The existing film industry “has things to teach us, like professionalism,” he says. “We need to bring in our values, our own money, and our audiences … we need to be really good stewards of that, to under-promise and over-deliver in this space.”

Making inroads

He remains hopeful that David can, if not slay Goliath, make inroads in the pop culture landscape.

“The center-right entertainment ecosystem is doing its best, and platforms like Angel Studios are taking big swings, but how to find and monetize an audience remains the biggest struggle for independent filmmakers,” he says. “We know the audience is there, but lining up quality work with proper distribution, especially marketing, so that everyone can turn a profit and rinse-and-repeat that 1,000 times is easier said than done.”

Moeller is hard at work on a new project, a pilot for a dramedy called “Are We There Yet?” with comedian Jeff Dye. The show, following a stand-up comedian “struggling with his faith, marriage, career, and sobriety,” will be shopped to streamers and potential buyers this summer, he says.

Most documentaries don’t move the cultural needle, but “Call Sign Courage” gave its star a real-life happy ending.

“The Trump campaign found out about the fact that we were telling Matt Lohmeier’s story, and they invited him to a campaign rally in North Carolina right before the 2024 election,” he says. “At that event, Trump offered Matt a position in his administration.”

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In a truly free nation, 10 things must be present, says Glenn Beck: “rule of law,” “free, fair, and regular elections,” “protection of individual rights,” “separation of powers,” “independent judiciary,” “a free press and open information,” “civilian control of the military,” “protection of minority rights,” “economic freedom and property rights,” and “a culture that values freedom.”

When weighed against these standards, Canada, he argues, is the opposite of free.

To prove his case, he lists 20 recent examples of how Canada has abandoned these core pillars of freedom.

1. Lab scandal cover-up

In 2021, Canadian Parliament learned that a top-security lab scientist had sent live Ebola samples to the Wuhan Institute of Virology and worked with the Chinese military on biological weapons research. Parliament demanded the documents four times, but the Liberal Party repeatedly blocked access, sued to prevent disclosure, delayed, and even triggered a snap election to shut down the probe.

“That’s rule of law being violated and separation of powers being violated,” says Glenn.

2. Corruption shielded

Three years after the lab scandal, the auditor general uncovered roughly $400 million in clear corruption. The Liberals in Parliament immediately shut down further investigation and discussion.

“Accountability, independent oversight — violated,” Glenn notes.

3. Rule by executive fiat

Following Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s resignation in 2025, a tiny elite group (just 0.33% of Canadians) installed Mark Carney as prime minister. During this period, the House of Commons suspended operations for eight months, leaving the country ruled entirely by executive orders with zero parliamentary debate, votes, or oversight.

“No oversight, no debate, no votes. Where’s your representation? Separation of powers? That’s not a democracy. That’s ruled by fiat,” Glenn warns.

4. Foreign election interference ignored

The Canadian Security Intelligence Service confirmed that China interfered in both the 2019 and 2021 federal elections by financially backing 11 candidates. Trudeau was informed but took no action.

“That’s free and fair elections out the window,” he states.

5. Unequal justice

A Liberal member of Parliament publicly encouraged people to claim a Chinese Communist Party bounty placed on a Conservative candidate. No charges or consequences followed.

“Equal application of the law — violated,” says Glenn.

6. Democracy by manipulation

In subsequent voting, 121 mail-in ballots were left uncounted, Elections Canada printed incorrect postal codes on envelopes (creating a 327-vote swing favoring the Liberals in one riding), and data errors distorted results. Additionally, five MPs switched to the Liberal Party within five months, conveniently giving the Liberals a two-seat majority.

“Democracy by design, or is it democracy by manipulation?” he asks.

7. Crushing peaceful protests

The government invoked the Emergencies Act against the 2022 Freedom Convoy truckers’ protest. They froze bank accounts of participants and their financial supporters nationwide. Two federal courts, including the Court of Appeal, unanimously ruled the action unjustified, illegal, and a direct breach of charter rights. The government continues to appeal despite the court rulings.

“That’s a silencing of free speech and assembly and property rights” as well as an abandonment of “judicial authority and rule of law,” Glenn emphasizes.

8. Government control of news

Bill C-18 (Online News Act) required Google and Meta to pay Canadian news outlets for simply linking to their content. Meta responded by blocking all news on Facebook and Instagram for Canadian users. This gave the government indirect control over what information reaches the public.

“Free press, information flow — controlled,” he asserts.

9. State regulation of culture and speech

Bill C-11 (Online Streaming Act) placed platforms like Netflix, YouTube, and Spotify under federal regulation, imposing Canadian content quotas and DEI requirements. This allows the state to influence what people watch, listen to, and create.

“That’s [violating] speech” and “cultural expression influenced by the state,” Glenn declares.

10. Ignoring the public will

The government maintained the carbon tax even though two-thirds of Canadians opposed further increases. They removed the visible consumer tax but quietly kept hidden regulations and industrial carbon taxes that raised fuel prices. They also attempted an outright 100% electric vehicle sales mandate by 2035 before switching to indirect emissions rules that achieve the same goal.

“Transparency? There’s none there,” he observes.

“Property rights? Optional.”

11. Seizure of private land

Ontario’s Bill 212 gives the provincial government power to fast-track highway projects, override local bylaws, and quickly remove property owners from their land.

“No property rights,” Glenn reiterates.

12. Secret land grab

In Waterloo, authorities used confidential NDAs and threats of forced expropriation to seize 770 acres of prime farmland for an undisclosed “mega site.” Local farmers only learned about it after the deal was done.

Glenn calls it yet another violation of property rights.

13. Politicized justice

In New Brunswick, a judge deliberately shortened a convicted criminal’s sentence to prevent his deportation, prioritizing the man’s skills over proper enforcement of immigration law.

It’s a clear violation of “equal justice,” he argues.

14. Government competing against citizens

Toronto city council approved government-operated grocery stores that would avoid paying the same taxes as private businesses, allowing them to undercut regular competitors.

“Fair market violation,” Glenn notes.

15. Crushing local taxpayers

In rural New Brunswick, forced municipal mergers led to sudden property tax increases of 50% to 60% on homeowners.

16. Permission-based economy

British Columbia is shifting toward a permission-based economy where residents must obtain government approval for routine activities (such as selling eggs or offering riding lessons) or face fines up to $50,000 per day.

“Economic freedom? Gone,” Glenn concludes.

17. Gun confiscation

The government banned approximately 2,500 types of firearms previously owned legally. The buyback program was labeled “voluntary,” but citizens were warned they could face jail time for keeping their lawfully purchased guns past the deadline.

“[Are] there any property rights?” he asks.

18. Death as health care solution

Medical Assistance in Dying was introduced in 2016, and safeguards were removed in 2021. By 2024, over 22,500 people requested it and nearly 16,500 received it — accounting for 5.1% of all deaths that year. Since legalization, more than 76,000 Canadians have died through the program. It is now the fourth leading cause of death among adults and is increasingly offered for treatable conditions like back pain or mental health issues, while patients wait an average of 28 weeks for regular medical care.

“When the state controls your health care and offers death as a solution to its own failures, you’re no longer a citizen. You’re a cost center,” Glenn warns.

19. Criminalizing dissent

The “Combating Hate” bill (C-9) is advancing in Parliament. It introduces vague new criminal penalties for “hate” that could potentially outlaw religious beliefs, peaceful protests, and political dissent.

“There’s no freedom of speech there,” he stresses.

20. Exit tax on citizens

A former Google executive proposed a $500,000 “exit tax” on educated Canadians who choose to leave the country, effectively charging people for the right to emigrate.

“Isn’t that a Berlin wall of sorts?” asks Glenn.

All considered, Canada is no longer a free nation; and it’s no democracy either. “It’s a managed oligarchy with democratic trappings,” he warns.

And if America isn’t careful, she will fall into the same dystopia.

“Now recognize America, this is your future,” says Glenn. “We are already letting unelected bureaucrats and activists and judges rewrite the rules.”

“If we allow and tolerate foreign interference and media capture; if we accept that the government can freeze your bank account for protesting, seize your farm for progress; if we trade liberty for equity, safety, and Canadian content, we’re going to wake up in the morning in exactly the same place.”

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To enjoy more of Glenn’s masterful storytelling, thought-provoking analysis, and uncanny ability to make sense of the chaos, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream.

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On Wednesday, the first major televised California gubernatorial debate was hosted by Nexstar Media Group. Six leading candidates participated: Democrats Xavier Becerra, Katie Porter, Tom Steyer, and Matt Mahan; and Republicans Chad Bianco and Steve Hilton.

BlazeTV host Sara Gonzales watched the debate and came away with one conclusion: Some Democrats are so bad, they make even Gavin Newsom — one of the most far-left governors in America’s history — look almost competent.

“Things are looking bleak when California Governor Gavin Newsom looks like a good governor, a good leader,” she sighs. “And I got to tell you, he looks like a rock star right now compared to the Democrats who are trying to win his job in the election.”

“This isn’t a compliment to Gavin Newsom. That’s just how bad everyone else is.”

On this episode of “Sara Gonzales Unfiltered,” Sara reviews three lowlights from the debate.

Candidates were asked about President Trump’s Enforcing Commonsense Rules of the Road for America’s Truck Drivers executive order. Signed in April 2025, the order directs federal agencies to strictly enforce English proficiency requirements for commercial truck and bus drivers while cracking down on non-domiciled (foreign/non-resident) CDLs by limiting them mostly to specific temporary work visa holders and improving background checks — all in the name of road safety.

Predictably, three out of the four Democrats strongly opposed the policy. Xavier Becerra called it “reckless”; Katie Porter vowed she would “absolutely fight the Trump administration” to protect Californians from Trump; and Tom Steyer equated requiring English understanding to “racial profiling.”

Sara can’t help but laugh at the absurdity of these responses to what is a commonsense safety policy.

“I actually don’t care if you have, like, Whitey McWhiterson from Norway or Sweden who comes here and doesn’t speak a lick of English,” she quips in response to Steyer.

Referencing Porter, she gibes, “She said, ‘We have to protect Californians.’ Yeah, I think Californians are like, ‘I would like to also not just be run over by a truck driver who shouldn’t be here, who can’t read the road signs.”’

“You can never have nice things in California. That’s the rule. It’s unwritten, but that’s what the Democrats have decided,” Sara concludes.

In another part of the debate, the candidates were asked to give Newsom a letter grade on his performance handling homelessness.

Both Republicans gave Newsom an F, while Democrats gave him three B’s and one A.

“The homelessness is out of control. Anyone who has been to California understands that,” Sara says.

But the best moment in the debate in Sara’s view was when Katie Porter was asked about the viral Politico video from October 2025 showing her berating a staffer with phrases like, “Get out of my f**king shot!”

The first words out of Porter’s mouth were, “I apologized that day to that staffer four years ago.”

Sara can’t stress enough how critical it is that a Republican wins the California governor’s race.

“[California] is such a hellhole,” she says.

“Republicans, this is probably your last chance. It may be gone if you guys don’t take it back.”

To hear more of Sara’s commentary and watch clips from the debate, check out the episode above.

Want more from Sara Gonzales?

To enjoy more of Sara’s no-holds-barred takes on news and culture, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream.

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A viral video of a Las Vegas slot machine has viewers concerned that yet another old piece of media has predicted the future.

Typically, “The Simpsons” is the most-cited show known for its eerily accurate depictions of future events, but in this case, a 1960 episode of “The Twilight Zone” is popping up on social media feeds.

‘This machine mocks me, it teases, it beckons.’

The video in question stems from the Global Gaming Expo in Las Vegas, where a creepy, mobile gaming machine was seen moving about the showcase floor, seemingly begging passersby to give it a whirl.

“Slot machines can now follow you across the casino floor,” the caption read.

In addition to several commenters expressing concern about an incoming robot apocalypse, others quickly pointed out how closely this mimics the January 29, 1960, episode of “The Twilight Zone” called “The Fever.”

The episode follows a married couple who wins a vacation to Las Vegas, with the husband warning his wife that gambling is a “miserable, terrible waste of a time.”

But when a drunk man gives him a dollar, the man gives in, pulls the arm on a slot machine, wins, and gets addicted. The money and slots start calling his name, literally.

“Franklin,” they say, compelling him to leave his wife in the night. After 24 hours of losing money, Franklin is brought back to his hotel room after tipping over a machine that ate his last dollar. Still hearing his name, he opens the hotel room door to find the now-mobile slot machine in the hallway. The machine soon enters the hotel room and begins encroaching on Franklin, causing him to fall out of a window to his death.

RELATED: Arizona files 20 criminal charges against Kalshi for flouting state gambling laws

– YouTube

Although the slot machine’s assault was shown to be a hallucination, it is later seen ejecting a dollar coin toward Franklin’s corpse in the streets of Las Vegas. The voiceover accepts Franklin’s prior explanation that it was an evil, sentient being.

As for the new machine, it is actually several years old. In fact, Jacob Orth, who posted the viral video now seen 16 million times on X, posted the exact same video in 2025 with the exact same caption. However, that video only garnered around 100,000 views.

A different Vegas-centric account actually pointed out the machines during the 2023 Global Gaming Expo held at the Venetian Expo in Las Vegas, Nevada.

“It’s all fun and games until the slot machine chases you down,” the account wrote.

RELATED: Trump has cut taxes for waitresses and bartenders across the country — but many have no clue about it

The machine, created by Apex, was criticized by a Vegas-focused account with about 220,000 followers, stating, “Slot makers have run out of ideas and the casino industry is doomed.”

The model does not appear to have made its way into any casinos, but closely resembles Apex’s typical product line.

The idea of the mobile slot machine perhaps reflects the 66-year-old TV program after all, given that Franklin said the “inhuman” machine teased him at every turn.

“This machine mocks me, it teases, it beckons.”

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