Brooklyn man convicted for racially motivated slaying in December.
December 20 is the 354th day of 2025, leaving eleven days before the new year. Records list significant historical events that occurred on this date.
In 1803 France transferred Louisiana to the United States, expanding U.S. territory. In 1860 South Carolina was the first state to secede from the Union, prompting other southern states to follow.
The film It’s a Wonderful Life premiered on March 25, 1946 at New York City’s Globe Theatre and is still celebrated annually. In 1986 youths attacked three Black men on Howard Beach; one of them died. The attack remains a significant moment in the neighborhood’s history.
The collision between the passenger ship Doña Paz and tanker Vector off Mindoro in 1987 killed 4,300 people. Operation Just Cause launched in 1989 removed Manuel Noriega’s government from Panama. American Airlines Flight 965 crashed near Cali, Colombia, in 1995, killing 159 of 163 aboard.
In 2019 President Trump signed the 2020 Defense Authorization Act, creating the U.S. Space Force. A vehicle crashed into a Christmas market in Magdeburg, Germany, in 2024, killing six and injuring over 200; the Saudi‑born driver was detained. Individuals celebrating birthdays today include Peter Criss (80), Dick Wolf (79), Alan Parsons (77), Sandra Cisneros (71), Michael Badalucco (71), Chris Robinson (59), Todd Phillips (55), Jonah Hill (42), and Kylian Mbappé (27).