The Verdict, The L.A. Review, and Serena's Return

Summary

The Breakfast Club: The Verdict, The L.A. Review, and Serena's Return

Date: June 3, 2026
Host: Mimi Brown (Front Page), with clips from DJ Envy, Jess Hilarious, Charlamagne Tha God, and guests
Network: The Black Effect Podcast Network & iHeartPodcasts

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Episode Overview

This episode of The Breakfast Club’s news segment, Front Page, is a hard-hitting review of three major stories:

• The controversial acquittal in the South Carolina shooting of a Black teenager.
• New legal trouble for Sean "Diddy" Combs as Los Angeles prosecutors review sexual assault allegations.
• The underreported 150th anniversary of the Tulsa Race Massacre.
• Serena Williams’ much-anticipated return to tennis after years in retirement.

The tone is urgent, socially conscious, and deeply reflective, shining a light on issues of justice, remembrance, and historic achievement.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. South Carolina Verdict: Rick Chow Acquitted in Teen Shooting

(Starts at 01:30)

• Story Recap:
  Mimi Brown recounts the case of Rick Chow, a convenience store owner in Columbia, SC, acquitted for the murder of Cyrus McCormack Belton, a 14-year-old Black boy accused of stealing water bottles.

  • Incident happened Memorial Day weekend, 2023.
  • Chow chased Cyrus outside his store and fatally shot him in the back.
  • The defense claimed self-defense, asserting Chow’s son was threatened.
  • Prosecution, led by Byron Gibson, cited lack of evidence that Cyrus was armed.

• Quote of Note:
  South Carolina solicitor Byron Gibson, reinforced by Mimi:

  “Multiple witnesses testified they never saw anything in Cyrus’ hands while he was running from the store. No gun, nothing.” (03:45)

• Community Response:
  Todd Rutherford, attorney for the Belton family, highlights grief and disbelief:

  “I’ve been practicing law for almost 30 years. I’ve never seen anything like this. … He ran away and he got shot in the back. Should not happen. Shouldn’t have happened.” (03:58)

• Aftermath:
  The family plans a civil lawsuit.

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2. The L.A. Review: Sean "Diddy" Combs Faces New Investigations

(Starts at 04:22)

• Legal Developments:

  • LA prosecutors are reviewing a sexual assault case tied to Combs, in parallel to his current federal imprisonment (50 months, prostitution-related charge).
  • New accusations come from music producer Jonathan Hay, involving incidents alleged in 2020 (L.A.) and 2021 (Florida).
  • No charges yet; Combs’ legal team calls claims “false and defamatory”.

• Defense Statement:

  “There was no sex trafficking. There was no racketeering. Everything was consensual. Everything was adult, which is why he was convicted only of the prostitution offense.”
  — Combs’ Attorney (05:03)

• Potential Consequences:
  If charged and convicted, Combs could see additional prison time.

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3. The Underplayed: Tulsa Race Massacre’s 150th Anniversary

(Starts at 06:13)

• History Forgotten:
  Mimi Brown devotes a segment to the massive national silence following the 150th anniversary of the Tulsa Race Massacre—the 1921 destruction of Greenwood, or Black Wall Street, by a white mob.

  • 16 hours of violence destroyed 35 blocks, with up to 300 Black Americans killed.
  • Ongoing excavations of mass grave sites.
  • Lawsuit for reparations dismissed in 2024 by Oklahoma Supreme Court.
  • Few survivors remain; mainstream media and government offered no recognition.

• Commentary:

  “For the Tulsa race massacre, most Americans went 100 years not knowing about it at all. The story was actively kept out of textbooks, out of news coverage, out of memory.”
  — Mimi Brown (09:09)

  She points out the rare case where the HBO show Watchmen educated more people than school history classes.

• Call to Action:

  “If you have kids, tell them about Greenwood. If you have a community, talk to them about it. If you have a platform, use it. Because the last living survivor of one of the worst racial massacres in American history is sitting in Tulsa right now and the country is not paying attention.”
  — Mimi Brown (09:50)

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4. Serena’s Return to Tennis

(Starts at 10:09)

• Announcement:
  Serena Williams, at 44, announces her first competitive tennis appearance in nearly four years, entering as a doubles wild card at the HSBC Championships in London on June 8.

• Significance:

  • She’s been focused on family, entrepreneurship, and her VC firm.
  • The event is a major Wimbledon warm-up; the sports world speculates on a possible extended comeback.

• Serena’s Gratitude:

  “I’m just so grateful to every single person that’s ever said ‘Go Serena’ in their life. I’m just so grateful because, yeah, you got me here.”
  — Serena Williams (clip) (10:26)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

| Timestamp | Speaker | Quote | |-----------|--------------------------|-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 03:58 | Todd Rutherford | “He ran away and he got shot in the back. Should not happen. Shouldn’t have happened.” | | 05:03 | Combs’ Attorney | “Everything was consensual. Everything was adult, which is why he was convicted only of the prostitution offense.” | | 09:09 | Mimi Brown | “For the Tulsa race massacre, most Americans went 100 years not knowing about it at all.” | | 09:50 | Mimi Brown | “If you have kids, tell them about Greenwood. … and the country is not paying attention.” | | 10:26 | Serena Williams (clip) | “I’m just so grateful to every single person that’s ever said ‘Go Serena’ in their life.” |

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• South Carolina verdict recap: 01:30–04:22
• Diddy legal update: 04:22–06:13
• Tulsa Race Massacre anniversary: 06:13–10:09
• Serena Williams’ return: 10:09–10:37

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Episode Tone & Final Thoughts

The episode is direct, empathetic, and refuses to shy away from sensitive or overlooked stories. Mimi Brown and featured guests give voice to anger, frustration, and heartbreak over legal injustices and neglected history, while ending with note of hope and triumph through Serena Williams’ comeback.

Listeners leave more informed, aware of what’s missing from mainstream narratives, and encouraged to keep important conversations alive—both at home and in public.

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For listeners seeking in-depth context on current justice issues, historical memory, and icons in sports, this episode packs powerful reporting and commentary into a tightly focused 10 minutes.

Transcript

[Mimi Brown]

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[Jonas Brothers (Joe, Kevin, Nick)]

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[Mimi Brown]

Nope.

[Jonas Brothers (Joe, Kevin, Nick)]

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[Mimi Brown]

A South Carolina jury has acquitted a store owner of murder in the shooting death of a 14 year old black boy over four water bottles.

[Todd Rutherford]

This makes us feel as if our children don't matter. And they do.

[Mimi Brown]

And Los Angeles prosecutors are now reviewing a sexual assault case against Sean Diddy Combs.

[Sean Diddy Combs' Attorney]

We're gonna appeal. We think we're right.

[Mimi Brown]

And Serena Williams is coming back to tennis.

[Jonas Brothers (Joe, Kevin, Nick)]

I'm just so grateful to every single person.

[Mimi Brown]

It's Wednesday, June 3rd. From the black Effect Podcast Network, I'm Mimi Brown. This is front page and here are the day's biggest stories. Plus, today on the underplayed, the anniversary that just passed without national news coverage and what that silence is telling us. Stay with. A South Carolina jury has found a convenience store owner not guilty in the shooting death of 14 year old Cyrus McCormack Belton. A case that's drawn national attention ever since it happened nearly three years ago. Rick Chow, the owner of a gas station convenience store in Columbia, South Carolina was acquitted Monday night after being charged with murder. This case goes back to Memorial day weekend in 2023. According to investigators, Cyrus walked into Chow's convenience store with friends. Employees believe the 14 year old had taken four bottles of water without paying. Cyrus then left the store and started running down the street. That's when prosecutors say Rick Chow and his adult son chased after him outside. During that chase, Chow pulled out a gun and fired. Cyrus was struck in the lower back and died at the scene. The shooting shocked the community immediately, especially after Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott publicly addressed the case and said even if the teenager had stolen water bottles, quote, that's not something you shoot anybody over, much less a 14 year old. But Chao's defense attorneys argued self defense, saying Chao believed his son was in danger during the confrontation outside the store. The defense claimed Cyrus pointed a gun during the encounter. But the prosecution, led by South Carolina solicitor Byron Gibson, argued the opposite. He pointed out that multiple witnesses testified they never saw anything in Cyrus hands while he was running from the store. No gun, nothing. The jury came back Monday with the verdict not guilty. Here is Todd Rutherford, the attorney for the Belton family.

[Todd Rutherford]

I've been practicing law for almost 30 years. I've never seen anything like this. I don't understand it. I'm at a loss to explain it to his father, Troy, standing beside me. I'm at a loss to explain it to his mother who couldn't take it and had to leave. I'm at a loss to explain it to his family because I too don't understand it. He ran away and he got shot in the back. Should not happen. Shouldn't have happened. And unfortunately we're going to have to deal with the end results of it.

[Mimi Brown]

The family says they will now pursue a civil lawsuit. Sean Diddy Combs is now facing a new criminal review in Los Angeles while already serving time in federal prison. The Los Angeles County District Attorney's office confirmed this week that prosecutors are reviewing a sexual assault investigation connected to Combs. This is separate from the federal case that already sent him to prison. Right now, Combs is serving a 50 month sentence at a federal prison in New Jersey after a New York jury convicted him last year on prostitution related charges involving transportation across state lines.

[Sean Diddy Combs' Attorney]

I mean, the jury's verdict was was resoundingly clear. There was no sex trafficking. There was no racketeering. Everything was consensual. Everything was adult, which is why he was convicted only of the prostitution offense.

[Mimi Brown]

Combs is currently appealing that conviction. But now a second legal battle may be developing on the West Coast. According to reports, both the Los Angeles Police Department and the LA County Sheriff Department spent the last year investigating allegations from a music producer and publicist named Jonathan Hay. Investigators later turned their findings over to the Los Angeles County DA's office for review. This week, the office confirmed prosecutors are actively looking at the case. Hay alleges there were two separate incidents involving Combs, one in Los Angeles in 2020 and another in Florida in 2021. The Los Angeles allegation includes claims of sexual battery. Now, Combs legal team, they have denied the allegations. One of his attorneys previously called the claims false and defamatory and said Combs denies sexually abusing anyone. At this point, prosecutors have not announced charges and there's no timeline for when a decision could come. But if Los Angeles prosecutors do move forward, it could mean additional prison time for Combs on top of the sentence he's already serving federally. Every Wednesday on FRONT page, this is what we do. One story that didn't get the coverage it deserved this week because some of the most important news in the country right now is happening on page eight. Today's Pick Sunday and Monday, May 31 and June 1 mark the 150th anniversary of the Tulsa race massacre. If you have not heard about the anniversary this week, that is the story. May 31 through June 1, 1921 Tulsa, Oklahoma. A white mob deputized by local police descended on a black neighborhood called Greenwood. Greenwood was at the time the wealthiest black community in America. People called it Black Wall Street. Over the course of about 16 hours, the mob destroyed it all. They burned every black owned business. They burnt every black owned home over 35 city blocks. They machine gunned residents from the ground. They dropped firebombs from private planes. They arrested almost every survivor. Estimates of the dead range from 150 to 300 black Americans. Most are buried in unmarked graves. Tulsa has been excavating mass burial sites for the last several years. Not a single white attacker was ever charged. Survivors and their families were never compensated. In 2020, a lawsuit was filed in Oklahoma state court. Two of the last known survivors, Viola Fletcher and Leslie Benningfield Randall, were the lead plaintiffs. Both were over 100 years old. They asked for a public nuisance ruling, acknowledgment and reparations. In June of 2024, the Oklahoma Supreme Court dismissed the case. The state's argument the harm was too old. The legal claim was barred and the court agreed. Mother Randall passed away last year. Mother Fletcher is as of this anniversary 112 years old. The number of confirmed survivors of the Tulsa race massacre is now extremely small. The anniversary just passed. There were no major network specials, no White House proclamation, no federal recognition, no reparations. Bill moving in Washington. If you missed the anniversary this week, most American newsrooms did, too. For context, when we remember other American tragedies, we remember them every year. The country grinds to a stop. We name the dead. We hold ceremonies. We do not forget. But for the Tulsa race massacre, Most Americans went 100 years not knowing about it at all. The story was actively kept out of textbooks, out of news coverage, out of memory. The HBO show Watchmen taught more Americans about Tulsa in 2019 than every American history class combined in the previous century. That is the Legacy. And the 150th anniversary just came and went. So if you have kids, tell them about Greenwood. If you have a community, talk to them about it. If you have a platform, use it. Because the last living survivor of one of the worst racial massacres in American history is sitting in Tulsa right now and the country is not paying attention. That is the underplay. And finally, Serena Williams is officially stepping back onto the tennis court. The tennis icon announced this week that she'll compete in the HSBC Championships in London beginning June 8, marking her first competitive tournament since retiring nearly four years ago. And for tennis fans, this is a pretty big moment. Serena is now 44 years old and has spent the last several years focus on her life off the court, raising her daughters, building businesses, producing projects, and running her venture capital company. But now she's returning to competition as a wild card entry in the doubles tournament on the grass courts and Queen's Club in London.

[Jonas Brothers (Joe, Kevin, Nick)]

I'm just so grateful to every single person that's ever said, go Serena in their life. I'm just so grateful because, yeah, you got me here.

[Mimi Brown]

And this tournament matters because it's one of the major warmup events leading into Wimbledon later this month. So naturally, the tennis world is already buzzing about whether this is just a one time appearance or the beginning of a bigger Serena return heading into Wimbledon. So far, Serena isn't saying that's yous Front Page. I'm Mimi Brown. This podcast was brought to you by the Black Effect Podcast Network.

[Jonas Brothers (Joe, Kevin, Nick)]

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[Todd Rutherford]

I'm Joe.

[Jonas Brothers (Joe, Kevin, Nick)]

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[Mimi Brown]

This is an iHeart podcast. Guaranteed Human.