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Eagles ready for Falcons, N.J. doctor accused in wife's murder makes first court appearance | Morning Newsletter

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Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan throws the football against the Eagles on Sunday, Nov. 13, 2016 in Philadelphia.
Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan throws the football against the Eagles on Sunday, Nov. 13, 2016 in Philadelphia.Read moreYONG KIM / Staff Photographer

Happy Friday, Philly. Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Ray Boyd and I look forward to delivering this newsletter to you every Friday morning from now on (Don't worry. Aubrey will be back Monday).

If you like what you're reading, tell your friends it's free to sign up here. I would love to hear your thoughts, ideas, and feedback, so please email me, tweet me @RayBoydDigital, or reach our social team on Facebook. Thank you for reading.

— Ray Boyd

» READ MORE: Foles, Eagles will attempt to keep season alive as Falcons fly North

The Eagles begin their playoff quest tomorrow against the Falcons. While there is still time to break things down, our four Eagles beat writers share their predictions for the outcome.

National media has been siding with the Falcons, but one NFL Network host, Kyle Brandt, is calling the piling on lazy and explains why the Eagles will win. Let's just say he's pretty fired up.

The Eagles made history this week when the Vegas odds made them the first No. 1 seed to be listed as an underdog to open the playoffs. A sports psychologist breaks down the dual psyche of Philly fans that makes us believe the best situations will end badly. If that wasn't grim enough, even the forecast is turning on Eagles fans.

» READ MORE: Defendant accused in a decade-long, plot to kidnap, enslave, and torture disabled adults pleads guilty

It was a discovery that sent shockwaves throughout Philadelphia in 2011 when police found four disabled adults chained up in a Tacony apartment basement. The ringleader, Linda Weston, struck a deal with prosecutors in 2015, to avoid a possible death sentence, later pointing the finger at her lawyers.

On Thursday, Nicklaus Woodard, described as Weston's one-time boyfriend, reached his own deal with prosecutors instead of taking a chance on facing an 85-year sentence.  

The plea deal brings an end to the first federal hate-crime prosecution of its kind – one in which the protected victims were mentally and physically disabled adults.

» READ MORE: N.J. doctor makes first court appearance after being charged with arranging his wife’s murder

Dr. James Kauffman made his first court appearance Thursday after being charged with arranging for his wife, April Kauffman, to be killed.

Prosecutors say the plot to kill his wife was in connection to the Pagan Outlaw motorcycle gang and was related to a drug distributing ring out of Kauffman's office. They add that co-defendant, Ferdinand Augello, was recorded on several occasions, admitting to an informant the details of the drug ring and the murder.

April's daughter and James' stepdaughter, Kimberly Pack, expressed that she and her mother both had fears about Kauffman and that the details of the slaying were "gut-wrenching."

What you need to know today

  1. New country, familiar pattern for the Sixers. The Celtics erased a 22-point Sixers lead in yesterday's NBA London Game. Despite the loss, the Sixers wouldn't mind going international in the future.

  2. Blaze Bernstein's body was found in a Southern California park after he went missing on Jan. 2. The University of Pennsylvania sophomore is being remembered for his joy and his talent for writing.

  3. Today, mourners will say farewell to fallen Philadelphia Fire Department Lt. Matthew LeTourneau at a viewing and a funeral mass. The first viewing was held yesterdayLeTourneau, 42, died battling a fire in North Philadelphia.

  4. A juvenile lifer is continuing his fight for exoneration, but his chance for freedom hinges heavily on a promise from new Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner.

  5. Change has been the early theme for Krasner and he filled a key role on Thursday, naming an 83-year-old former Common Pleas Court judge as his first assistant.

  6. Philadelphia's District Attorney's office is not the only one going through a shake up. City Controller Rebecca Rhynhart has cleaned house, though she took a slightly different path than Krasner.

  7. Kendrick Lamar, Eminem and the Killers are just some of the big names that will grace the stage in June at the Firefly Music Festival in Delaware. The full lineup has been announced and tickets go on sale today.

  8. Speaking of the Killers, if you're headed to the Eagles game tomorrow, you might want to carefully plan out your South Philly travel because the rock band will be playing next door.

  9. Philadelphia plans to turn its trolley system into more of a light rail service that will change not only how people ride them, but how they drive, park and bike near them. The billion-dollar plan has taken a step forward.

» READ MORE: #OurPhilly

We want to see what our community looks like through your eyes. Show us the park that your family walks through every weekend with the dog, the block party in your neighborhood or the historic stretch you see every morning on your commute to work.

Tag your Instagram posts or tweets with #OurPhilly and we'll pick our favorite each day to feature in this newsletter and give you a shout out to build those followers!

That’s Interesting

  1. Philly fans will get to see their Eagles fly over the pond for a match up with the Jaguars in London next season. Someone please make this meeting happen.

  2. Television Critic Ellen Gray examines the HBO film Paterno. Al Pacino says playing the former Penn State coach helped him reach a conclusion about what he believes Paterno knew.

  3. The Philadelphia Museum of Art boasts works from "outsider artists" and is adding to its collection with a group of pieces by self-taught African-American artists.

  4. Philly comedian Todd Glass spent more than a decade leaving bizarre voicemails for fellow comedian Blake Wexler. Today, Wexler is releasing those messages in the form of an album, which would have never happened without a fateful trip to Philadelphia.

  5. Can you name the last Eagles quarterback to win a playoff game at Lincoln Financial Field? As my colleague David Murphy writes, Jeff Garcia can.

  6. For that special someone in time for Valentine's Day: Pennsylvania's first medical marijuana will be harvested and delivered to dispensaries by the second week of February.

  7. PHL17 is known to Philadelphia-area television watchers as the station that shows the Mummers, but some changes could be on the horizon after a multi-billion dollar deal and a new owner.

  8. More than 1 million children in the United States suffer a sports-related concussion, yet physicians are only starting to understand what is happening inside the brain and how to treat it.

Opinions

"I am not insensitive to arguments about illegal immigration, even though I have a hard time discussing the issues with people who tend to confuse immigrants with terrorists and compare people who enter the country without permission to axe murderers. That kind of gross thinking is just, well, gross."
— Columnist Christine Flowers writes that individuals who rely on Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals are victims of our political system.
  1. Philadelphia is working on the city's first citywide affordable housing plan, but The Inquirer Editorial Board points out that the only way any plan will work, is if City Council members don't undermine it.

  2. Oprah for President? Columnist Jenice Armstrong writes Oprah may be the best option for 2020 and after 2016, says naysayers need a better argument than she doesn't have any political experience.

What we’re reading

  1. Long before "don't ask, don't tell," Helen James was expelled from the Air Force for being a lesbian. Now 90, she is hoping to rewrite history with a federal lawsuit against the U.S. Air Force, The Washington Post writes.

  2. We've gotten used to seeing those blue docking stations for Indego bikes around the city, but as PlanPhilly explains, Philly could be going "dockless" soon — which has a few downsides.

  3. Philly is not the only American city battling the opioid crisis. Vox highlights a map that shows where facilities are that treat drug addiction across the country and there are some shocking gaps they say must be closed.

  4. Michael Wolff has made waves with his new book Fire and Fury. He explained to Time why he finds President Trump's reaction to it, "ludicrous" but "good for the book."

  5. From West Philadelphia, born and raised, Will Smith has shown the acting range necessary to go from movies like Ali to Men in Black. Esquire takes a look back at every Smith movie — ranked.

Your Daily Dose of | Quinta B

Philly-born comedian/actress Quinta B continues to inspire and make us laugh. Now, she's taking her talents to Facebook's newest product.