When they boarded a small plane bound for upstate New York this past weekend, the six passengers — a pair of close-knit siblings, their parents and partners — were on the cusp of a new chapter in a family life already replete with personal and professional accomplishment.

A private plane that crashed in upstate New York over the weekend was carrying a close-knit family of physicians and distinguished recent student-athletes, bound for a trip to the Catskills for a birthday celebration and the Passover holiday.

It was unclear as of Saturday what had caused the plane that was carrying six people to crash near Copake, N.Y.

A jury was selected on Monday for the retrial in Sarah Palin's lawsuit against the New York Times for allegedly defaming the former Alaska governor and Republican vice presidential candidate in a 2017 editorial about gun control.

Another jury is hearing former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin's defamation lawsuit against the New York Times after a second federal trial got underway on Tuesday.