Mayors and police officials around the U.S. are rolling out familiar strategies in response to the traditional summer bump in violent crime. The push for more police and community involvement comes despite a continuing decline in homicides and other violent crimes that spiked in 2020. Chicago and Baltimore are among the large U.S. cities reporting fewer homicides overall. But totals remain far higher than before the pandemic, and crime among young people is a concern. To combat the violence, city officials are promoting more engagement between officers and communities. In some cases, they're enlisting people outside law enforcement to enforce curfews and keep the peace.
Police in a suburb south of Chicago say a 9-year-old boy has been fatally shot and a 20-year-old woman wounded during an altercation outside a home. Matteson police said Friday that officers responded about 6 p.m. Thursday to a report of a shooting and that a caller told 911 dispatchers that her grandson had been shot. The boy suffered a gunshot wound to his abdomen and died at a hospital. The woman's wounds were not considered life-threatening. WMAQ-TV reported that the Cook County medical examiner’s office identified the boy as Omuiri Jones Brown.
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A 64-year-old Chicago woman says she was beaten and her French bulldog was stolen at gunpoint as she was taking it for a walk in her northwest side neighborhood. Alicja Pierzchala said the attack occurred Wednesday evening in Portage Park. Pierzchala said she struggled with the gunman and was later treated at a hospital for cuts to her wrists, forehead and a concussion. She adopted Peppa nearly two months ago. Police said no arrests have been made. In 2021, a dog walker for pop star Lady Gaga was shot and wounded and two of the singer’s French bulldogs were taken during an armed robbery in Hollywood. The value of the breed can run into the thousands of dollars.
Body-camera footage shows former police officers who were indicted by a Mississippi grand jury laughing about a man who died in their custody. The footage also shows one of them questioning whether to immediately call an ambulance for the man. Officials in the state capital of Jackson announced Wednesday that a grand jury had indicted two former police officers on murder charges and another ex-officer on a manslaughter charge in the death of Keith Murriel. Murriel is Black and is seen on video being pinned down and repeatedly shocked with stun guns during a New Year’s Eve arrest. The city released hours of body-camera footage detailing the encounter.
Anniversary of George Floyd's killing: Changes were made, but short of 'reckoning' on racial justice
The murder of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police was three years ago today, and the fervent protests that erupted around the world in response seemed like the catalyst needed for a nationwide reckoning on racism in policing. Along with a few other cities, Minneapolis has issued bans on chokeholds and neck restraints, and restrictions on no-knock warrants. But activist calls to defund the police and to hold officers accountable have mostly failed. The killing of Tyre Nichols by Memphis police earlier this year underscored just how long it’s taking to achieve meaningful change. On Thursday night, more than 100 people gathered at the site of Floyd's killing, known as George Floyd Square to remember him with music, dancing and a candlelight vigil.
Arnold Britt, 40, of Ballwin, was charged Thursday with felony receiving stolen property and misdemeanor fraud. A former Mizzou football player, Britt has been St. Louis firefighter since 2013.
Authorities say a man wielding an ax has been fatally shot by a police officer who was called to assist paramedics at a suburban Chicago apartment building. Des Plaines police say 55-year-old Scott MacDonald was shot about 7:37 p.m. Wednesday in a hallway. He was pronounced dead at a hospital. The police department said that before the shooting, officers were advised that MacDonald “was breaking things, possibly having a psychotic breakdown," and may have had access to an ax or machete. Police say Thursday that body-worn camera footage shows MacDonald was armed with an ax while approaching officers in a threatening manner. The officer who shot MacDonald has been placed on paid administrative leave.
Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey is urging Kansas City police to enforce a state law that bans transgender health care for minors after the city's police chief said earlier this week that the department will not do so. Bailey sent a letter Wednesday to the Kansas City Board of Police Commissioners, which controls the police department, saying the board has a constitutional duty to enforce the law. He also objected to Kansas City recently declaring itself a sanctuary city for people seeking transgender care. Police Chief Stacey Graves said in a statement earlier this week that the law is outside the department's jurisdiction because it does not pertain to criminal conduct.
The family of a Georgia woman who died last year after she fell from a moving patrol car has filed a civil rights lawsuit. The lawsuit announced Wednesday says sheriff’s deputies improperly arrested her and ultimately caused her death. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation found that the deputies who put Brianna Grier in the back of a patrol car to take her to the Hancock County Sheriff’s Office failed to close the rear passenger-side door before driving away. Grier, who was 28, suffered brain trauma when she hit her head in the July 15 fall and was in a coma until she died July 21 at an Atlanta hospital.
Protesters cut short a rare outdoor meeting of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors Tuesday where the board president had planned to question Mayor London Breed over the city's drug crisis. Board President Aaron Peskin moved the first part of the board's weekly meeting to a plaza nearby where open-air drug dealing is rampant. But heckling and shouting from the crowd forced him to move the meeting back to City Hall. The fentanyl crisis has hit all of California, including San Francisco. Gov. Gavin Newsom sent in the California Highway Patrol and California National Guard to the city in April to help crack down on drug traffickers as overdose deaths have soared.
The parents of a 22-year-old Colorado man killed by a sheriff’s deputy while suffering a mental health crisis will get $19 million from state and local agencies and changes to how officers are trained under a settlement.
Portuguese police aided by German and British officers have resumed their search for Madeleine McCann, the British child who disappeared in the country’s southern Algarve region 16 years ago. Some 30 officers could be seen in the area by the Arade dam, about 50 kilometers (30 miles) from Praia da Luz, where the 3-year-old was last seen alive in 2007. On Monday, Portuguese police set up a blue base tent and cordoned off the area to the media and public. Eyewitnesses said police began work shortly before 8 a.m. Tuesday in an area some kilometers (miles) away from the base tent. Madeleine’s disappearance stirred worldwide interest for several years, with reported sightings stretching as far away as Australia.
Police say a hand grenade exploded in Indiana, killing a man and wounding his two teenage children as the family went through a grandfather's belongings over the weekend. The Lake County sheriff's department says the explosion killed 47-year-old Bryan Niedert at a home in Lakes of the Four Seasons, 30 miles southeast of Chicago. A 14-year-old boy and 18-year-old girl were taken to a hospital with shrapnel wounds. The family had been going through belongings when the grenade was found. Investigators were trying to determine what caused it to explode and why the family had the grenade.
“National Police Week” honor passed by 413-2 vote. Bush and U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Michigan, said resolution just pushes GOP’s “false narrative.”
A sharp uptick in thefts of Hyundais and Kias over the past two years has been linked to viral videos posted to TikTok and other social media platforms that teach people how to exploit a security vulnerability to steal the cars. Police and others say despite voluntary fixes from the automakers, waves of thefts have continued, illustrating the lingering effects of dangerous content that gains traction with teens looking to go viral. Police departments are frazzled, attorneys generals have urged federal intervention and cities and consumers have resorted to lawsuits to hold car companies accountable. Still, some point the finger at social media platforms unable to remove content at the breakneck speed it appears.
Police say three people were killed and two others wounded in a shooting at a Kansas City bar early Sunday just before closing time. Kansas City police say one of the wounded is in critical condition. Multiple officers responded to the shooting at Klymax Lounge early Sunday and began providing medical aid. Police say two of the victims died at the scene. A third victim died at the hospital. Details about what led up to the shooting were not immediately available. Family members said Jason McConnell was one of the victims who died while working security at the door. The bar featured a performance by a local rap artist who performs under the name “Nutty Still Gassin” Saturday night.
Authorities say a feud over a woman led a man to fatally shoot his coworker at a General Motors engine factory in Ohio. Moraine Police Sgt. Andrew Parish says the shooter then shot himself in the head. It happened at the DMAX plant in Moraine on Thursday night. Parish said Friday that the shooting stemmed from “a feud between the two men, apparently over a female.” Parish said more than 12 rounds were fired from a handgun. Another employee who apparently was not a target of the shooter was wounded as well, possibly by a stray bullet. The suspected shooter's name has not been released.
Harrowing video of a driver fleeing from Iowa police with an officer on his hood and roof has emerged as the motorist was sentenced this month to up to five years in prison. Twenty-nine-year-old Dennis James Guider Jr. was sentenced last week after pleading guilty to serious injury by vehicle, a felony. Video shows the officer approaching Guider on March 5, 2021. Guider is from the Chicago area and had an outstanding arrest warrant in an Illinois forgery case. His attorney argued that as a Black man Guider was fearful of a white officer, noting the murder of George Floyd less than a year earlier.
Social media has law enforcement facing increasing pressure to release information fast amid a surge of mass shootings. Police began to harness social media a decade ago, most famously after the Boston Marathon bombing in 2013. The four-day manhunt ended with police tweeting: “CAPTURED!!! The hunt is over." It was groundbreaking at the time. Now experts says it is the the basic level expected of law enforcement. The issue is that bystanders are sometimes shooting videos of the bodies and posting them online, as happened after a recent mall shooting in Texas. When police don't talk, that is what the public finds when they search for information.
Republican Missouri Gov. Mike Parson on Friday named Gabe Gore, a former assistant U.S. attorney, as the new chief prosecutor in St. Louis, three days after Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner’s sudden departure. Gardner had been the subject of an ouster effort by Republican Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey. Simultaneously, state lawmakers were considering a bill allowing Parson to appoint a special prosecutor to handle violent crimes, effectively removing the bulk of Gardner’s responsibilities. She also faced potential contempt of court after her office failed to have an attorney present for the start of a trial. Gardner announced on May 4 that she would resign effective June 1. Then unexpectedly on Tuesday, she announced her resignation was effective immediately.
The Missouri State Highway Patrol says Kansas City police shot and killed a man after he reportedly fired shots at officers during a standoff at a home. The man was identified Friday as a 40-year-old local man named Tyrone Payne. Officers responded to a report late Thursday of a man firing shots at the home. When they arrived, the man allegedly fired shots inside the home. The patrol says officers returned fire but he was not hit. More officers arrived and negotiations began to get Payne to surrender. The patrol during the negotiations, Payne, who was outside the home, fired at officers again and police returned fire, hitting him. He died at the scene.
The suspect in the fatal stabbing of Cash App founder Bob Lee on the streets of San Francisco has pleaded not guilty to a murder charge. Tech consultant Nima Momeni appeared in court Thursday, and his lawyer entered the plea on his behalf. Prosecutors say Momeni stabbed Lee three times on April 4 following an apparent dispute over Momeni's sister. Defense attorney Paula Canny told reporters the two had an argument but that Momeni’s actions were both a measure of self-defense and an accident. She says Momeni didn't know that Lee had been mortally wounded. The case has attracted national attention, partly because of Lee's status in the tech world.
The man who killed five co-workers at a Kentucky bank had made plans for the shooting, according to police. Some recently released search warrants in the case also say he had placed his phone in a front shirt pocket to livestream the killings. The search warrants say the shooter, 25-year-old Connor Sturgeon, had also attempted suicide around the same time last year. The warrants were sent to Google, AT&T, Apple and Snap Inc. seeking access to information on his phone. They were recently unsealed by a judge. They say police also found a “manifesto or note” inside his Louisville residence.
Pakistani police are keeping up their siege around the home of Imran Khan as a 24-hour deadline given to the former premier to hand over suspects sheltered inside expired. The siege and the authorities' demand for the suspects, wanted in violent protests over Khan’s recent detention, has angered the former prime minister’s many followers. It is also raising concerns about more clashes between them and the security forces on Thursday. Last week, Khan’s supporters attacked public property and military installations after he was dragged out of a courtroom and arrested. At least 10 people were killed in clashes with police across the country. The violence subsided only when Pakistan’s Supreme Court ordered Khan’s release.