July 18, 2022 3:34 am
BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) – The white gunman charged with killing 10 Black people in a racist mass shooting at a Buffalo supermarket pleaded not guilty to federal hate crime charges punishable by the death penalty. Along with hate crimes and weapons counts, the 27-count indictment returned last week accuses nineteen-year-old Payton Gendron of engaging in substantial planning to commit an act of terrorism. It also alleges he took aim at vulnerable older people at the Tops Friendly Market on May 14. Gendron pleaded not guilty to federal charges at an arraignment Monday. The store reopened to shoppers last week. (Photo: ABC News)
July 18, 2022 3:33 am
GREENWOOD, Ind. (AP) – Authorities say a gunman who shot five people at a suburban Indianapolis shopping mall, killing three of them before a shopper shot and killed him, was a 20-year-old local man who was apparently facing eviction. Greenwood Police Chief James Ison said at a news conference Monday that Jonathan Sapirman, of Greenwood, began firing after leaving a bathroom at the Greenwood Park Mall shortly before it closed Sunday evening. He says Sapirman continued shooting people until 22-year-old Elisjsha Dicken, of Seymour, shot and killed him. Authorities say Dicken was shopping at the mall with his girlfriend and that he acted heroically. Ison says investigators are still trying to determine a motive, but that Sapirman’s relatives say he was facing eviction.
July 18, 2022 3:32 am
UVALDE, Texas (AP) — A report says nearly 400 law enforcement officials rushed to a mass shooting that left 21 people dead at a Uvalde elementary school. But “egregiously poor decision-making” resulted in a chaotic scene that lasted more than an hour before the gunman was finally confronted and killed. The report is the first to criticize both state and federal law enforcement, and not just local authorities in Uvalde, Texas, for the bewildering inaction at Robb Elementary School. The Texas House of Representatives report released Sunday says the gunman fired approximately 142 rounds inside the building and it is “almost certain” that 100 shots came before any officer entered. A hallway surveillance video also was released Sunday showing a hesitant and haphazard tactical response.
July 18, 2022 3:31 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — Jury selection is scheduled to begin Monday in the trial of former presidential adviser Steve Bannon. He faces criminal contempt of Congress charges after refusing for months to cooperate with the House committee investigating the U.S. Capitol insurrection. Bannon is charged in Washington’s federal court with defying a subpoena that sought his records and testimony. Bannon is one of the most prominent of former President Donald Trump’s allies to refuse to testify before the committee. A conviction on each count carries a minimum of 30 days of jail and as long as a year behind bars.
July 18, 2022 3:22 am
PITTSBURGH (WPXI) — Pittsburgh police say one person is dead after a shooting in Larimer. Officers said they responded to the 6500 block of Shetland Street in Larimer for two different ShotSpotter alerts at around 10:03 p.m. When they arrived at the scene they found Isaiah Massey, 23, suffering from three gunshot wounds. Massey was later pronounced dead at the scene. The Violent Crimes Unit is investigating. There are no suspects or arrests at this time.
July 18, 2022 3:19 am
UNIONTOWN, Pa. (WPXI) — An arrest warrant has been issued for a suspect following a standoff situation in Uniontown on Saturday. According to Fayette County 911, first responders were dispatched to the scene on Mifflin Avenue at 11:08 a.m. Uniontown City police said that when state police entered the residence where a man was allegedly barricaded inside, no one was found. No injuries were reported in the incident. A warrant has been issued for the arrest of the suspect, Jason Mills. Anyone with information on his whereabouts should contact law enforcement.
July 18, 2022 3:15 am
WAYNESBURG, Pa. — PennDOT has scheduled single lane restrictions on Route 188 (Jefferson Road) in Franklin Township, Greene County this week. The restrictions will be located between Route 21 (E. Roy Furman Highway) and Elm Drive and will be in place on Tuesday, July 19 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Traffic will be controlled with flaggers and will allow Norfolk Southern crews to perform maintenance on the overhead railroad bridge.
July 17, 2022 8:00 am
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — Four years, five months and four days after Nikolas Cruz murdered 17 at Parkland’s Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, his trial for the deadliest U.S. mass shooting to reach a jury begins Monday with opening statements. Delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic and legal wrangling, the penalty-only trial is expected to last four months with the seven-man, five-woman jury being exposed to horrific evidence throughout. The jurors will then decide whether Cruz, 23, is sentenced to death or life without the possibility of parole. “Finally,” said Lori Alhadeff, who wants Cruz executed for murdering her 14-year-old daughter Alyssa. “I hope for swift action to hold him responsible.” All victim’s parents and family members who have spoken publicly have said directly or indirectly they want Cruz sentenced to death. The former Stoneman Douglas student pleaded guilty in October to the Feb. 14, 2018, massacre and is only challenging his sentence. Nine other U.S. gunmen who fatally shot at least 17 people died during or immediately after their attacks by suicide or police gunfire. Cruz was captured after he fled the school. The suspect in the 2019 killing of 23 at an El Paso, Texas, Walmart is awaiting trial.
July 17, 2022 7:52 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Democrat John Fetterman posted a massive $11 million fundraising haul during the second quarter. He’s on an advertising spree that’s made him a near-constant presence on television in Pennsylvania. And he grabs attention with snarky, irreverent social media posts. The only thing missing from one of the most competitive U.S. Senate races this year is the candidate himself. Fetterman, 52, has yet to return to the campaign trail in a significant way since a May 13 stroke required surgery to implant a pacemaker with a defibrillator and prompted a revelation that he had a serious heart condition. The advertisements currently on the air were recorded before the stroke. He hasn’t fielded questions from the press. And when the hoodie- and shorts-wearing Fetterman did make a campaign appearance, it was under controlled circumstances and without advance notice to reporters.
July 17, 2022 3:50 am
A fifth defendant that was accused of attempted homicide had her charges dismissed on Friday. Desiree Valle, 19 of Monessen was set free from the Washington County Jail on Friday after witnesses for the prosecution failed to show for the preliminary hearing. The judge dismissed 5 charges of conspiracy to commit homicide The District Attorney’s office said that if any status changes, they will refile charges. According to police, Valle was involved with a group of individuals that were arguing with another group in Charleroi in April of this year. Timothy Pace came out of his Sixth Street home to try and diffuse the situation. When he and his sons were returning to their home, shots rang out, one of them grazing the head of Pace. Charges against four other defendants were dismissed at an earlier preliminary hearing. Three defendants, Kyrese Hall, Micha Craig and Omarion Rainey were ordered to stand trial. All three are being held without bond.
