Friday briefing: Trump indictment; Finland’s NATO move; Gwyneth Paltrow verdict; severe storms; Final Four schedule; and more

(Illustration by Katty Huertas/The Post)

1

Former president Donald Trump has been indicted by a New York grand jury.

• What charges? We don’t yet know the specifics. But the panel had been hearing evidence about Trump’s role in hush-money payments to an adult-film star during his 2016 campaign.
• It’s a big deal: He’s the first person in U.S. history to serve as president and then be charged with a crime. As for his 2024 presidential campaign, he can still run, even if convicted.
• What’s next? Trump is expected to turn himself in and appear in court in New York on Tuesday, but his team is still “working out those logistics.”

2

Finland took a big step toward joining the NATO military alliance.

• How? Turkey’s parliament voted to approve Finland’s membership yesterday, clearing the last major roadblock. The move would double NATO’s land border with Russia.
• What else to know: Russia arrested Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich on spying charges Wednesday. The Journal called for all Russian journalists working in the U.S. to be expelled.

3

Severe storms are expected today across the central U.S.

• The forecast: Thunderstorms, destructive winds and the potential for tornadoes. The risk is especially high in parts of Tennessee, Arkansas, Iowa and Illinois.
• What else? The risk area stretches from Mississippi to Wisconsin and includes the same areas hit by last Friday’s deadly tornadoes.

4

Millions of people will start losing Medicaid coverage tomorrow.

• Why? Another pandemic-era policy is going away. People on the public health insurance had been allowed to keep it throughout the pandemic, regardless of state qualifications or limits.
• Tomorrow: Five states will begin cutting off people who no longer qualify. Other states will follow between May and July.
• Why this matters: Experts expect a bumpy transition and that 6.8 million people who still qualify could mistakenly lose benefits.

5

A jury ruled that Gwyneth Paltrow wasn’t to blame for a 2016 ski collision.

On March 30, a jury ruled that actress Gwyneth Paltrow was not liable for a 2016 ski collision in Utah. She then briefly interacted with the man who sued her. (Video: Reuters)

• How we got here: A man claimed the actress hit him on a slope in Utah, leaving him with life-changing injuries. The two-week trial has been full of uncomfortable moments.
• Yesterday’s verdict: The jury said the collision was 76-year-old Terry Sanderson’s fault and awarded Paltrow $1 in damages.

6

The Final Four is this weekend in women’s and men’s college basketball.

• Tonight: The women get underway. Virginia Tech plays LSU at 7 p.m. Eastern, followed by South Carolina and Iowa at 9 p.m. (ESPN). The winners go to Sunday’s championship.
• On the men’s side: San Diego State plays Florida Atlantic on Saturday at 6:09 p.m., followed by Connecticut and Miami (CBS). The championship is Monday.

7

Your idea of what the T. rex looked like is probably wrong.

• How? The dinosaurs had lips that covered their teeth, a new study found. With lips, they would have looked more like Barney and less like the bare-toothed monsters from movies.
• The big picture: Our ideas about what dinosaurs looked like have changed dramatically as scientists have dug up new evidence.

And now … what to watch this weekend: The new “Dungeons & Dragons” film is in theaters. What to read: 10 books to check out in April.

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