February 18, 2023 4:04 am
MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) – The mother of Tyre Nichols says none of the five former Memphis, Tennessee, police officers charged with killing her son would look her in the eye in court. The former officers pleaded not guilty Friday to second-degree murder and other charges. Mother RowVaughn Wells said at a news conference after the hearing that the officers will see her at every court date “until we get justice for my son.” They were fired after a police investigation into the Jan. 7 arrest and are out on bond. The case is the latest to prompt nationwide protests and renew public discussion about police brutality.
February 18, 2023 4:03 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – President Joe Biden says the U.S. is developing “sharper rules” to track, monitor and potentially shoot down unknown aerial objects. This follows three weeks of high-stakes drama sparked by the discovery of a suspected Chinese spy balloon transiting much of the country. Biden has directed national security adviser Jake Sullivan to lead an “interagency team” to review U.S. procedures after the downing of the Chinese balloon, as well as three other objects that the U.S. now believes are most likely “benign.” Biden said Thursday he hopes the new rules will help “distinguish between those that are likely to pose safety and security risks that necessitate action and those that do not.”
February 18, 2023 4:02 am
ARKABUTLA, Miss. (AP) – Mississippi officials say six people have been fatally shot in a small, rural town near the Tennessee state line. State Department of Public Safety spokesperson Bailey Martin confirms the killings in Arkabutla, in Tate County. Gov. Tate Reeves’ office says he has been briefed on the shootings and a male suspect is in custody. It is believed he acted alone, and officials do not have a motive yet. It is the first mass killing in the U.S. since Jan. 23, which saw the last of six in a three-week period. Arkabutla lies about 30 miles (50 kilometers) south of Memphis, Tennessee, and is home to 285 residents according to the 2020 Census.
February 18, 2023 4:01 am
(AP) – Authorities in West Virginia say the body of an infant has been found in a submerged car after floodwaters swept through the state. The flooding came amid thunderstorms that inundated the South. A woman called 911 saying her car was stuck in high water in the southern West Virginia town of Pax and she couldn’t find the baby. Sheriff Mike Fridley says the vehicle was found submerged Friday afternoon with the 11-week-old boy inside. Investigators determined the woman misjudged the water’s depth and drove into the road before realizing it was too deep. She then attempted to remove the baby from the vehicle but it was swept away.
February 18, 2023 3:55 am
PITTSBURGH — (WPXI) – The man accused of killing Officer Sean Sluganski appeared in court this morning, where the judge heard he told investigators he had PTSD but was having a “good day” when Officer Sluganski and Officer Charles Thomas were shot. Johnathan Morris is facing multiple charges, including homicide of a law enforcement officer and criminal attempted homicide of a law enforcement officer. Police say Morris is responsible for the Feb. 6 shooting death of Officer Sean Sluganski, who was laid to rest Tuesday, and for shooting and injuring Officer Thomas. The officers were responding to a call from Morris’ mother, who said her son was having a PTSD episode, according to court documents.
February 18, 2023 3:55 am
The United States Attorney’s Office in Wheeling announced Friday that Dallas Michael Acoff, 34, was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison. Acoff was convicted in October 2022 on five federal drug distribution counts. Acoff was convicted of selling cocaine near Fulton Playground in Wheeling in August 2021. Six months later, Wheeling Police attempted a traffic stop on Acoff’s car on Wheeling Island when he fled from police in his car, then on foot. He was apprehended and police found fentanyl, cocaine, and methamphetamine. Acoff has previously been convicted for wanton endangerment with a firearm and attempted murder for a 2015 Wheeling homicide.
February 18, 2023 3:39 am
The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board announced Friday that January gaming revenue across the state was up 18.5% over last January, with a total of $464.4 million. The Hollywood Casino at the Meadows took in $19.5 million last month, a 16.81% increase over a year ago, with slots revenue up 22.73%, but table game revenue down over 28.6%. Over $202 million was wagered on sports betting in January at the Hollywood Casino, with just over $4 million in revenue, an increase of 28%. Meanwhile, the Rivers Casino in Pittsburgh saw a total increase of just shy of 2% in January at $29 million, and the Lady Luck Casino at Nemacolin outside Uniontown was down 7.7%, taking in just over $1.5 million. The sources of gaming revenue includes slot machines, table games, internet gaming, sports wagering, fantasy contests, and VGTs (video gaming terminals).
February 17, 2023 4:26 pm
(AP) – Stella Stevens, a prominent leading lady in 1960s and 70s comedies perhaps best known for playing the object of Jerry Lewis’s affection in “The Nutty Professor,” has died. She was 84.
Stevens’ estate said she died Friday in Los Angeles after a long illness. Born Estelle Caro Eggleston in Yazoo City, Mississippi in 1938, she married at 16 and gave birth to her first and only child, actor/producer Andrew Stevens in 1955 when she was 17, and divorced two years later. She started acting and modeling during her time at Memphis State University and made her film debut in a minor role in the Bing Crosby musical “Say One for Me” in 1959, but she considered “Li’l Abner” her big break. “The head of publicity at Paramount basically made me a worldwide sex symbol,” Stevens told FilmTalk in 2017. “He had me doing a lot of layouts with photographers – indoors, outdoors, here and there – being seen in different places, going to the best restaurants, meeting with wonderful actors and directors . those were the golden years of Hollywood. It was a very exciting time.” (Photo: AP)
February 17, 2023 4:12 am
WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) – Hosts at Fox News had serious concerns about allegations of voter fraud in the 2020 presidential election being made by guests who were allies of former President Donald Trump. That’s according to new court filings in a $1.6 billion defamation lawsuit filed by a voting machine company against the network. Excerpts of internal Fox communications were included in a redacted summary judgment brief filed Thursday by attorneys for Dominion Voting Systems. Host Tucker Carlson referred to attorney Sidney Powell in a text as an “unguided missile,” and “dangerous as hell.” Fellow host Laura Ingraham, meanwhile, told Carlson that Powell is “a complete nut.” Attorneys for Fox say the lawsuit is an assault on the First Amendment.
February 17, 2023 4:10 am
ATLANTA (AP) – A special grand jury that investigated efforts by then-President Donald Trump and his allies to overturn his election loss in Georgia is expressing concerns that “one or more witnesses” called to testify may have lied under oath. The panel recommends that the district attorney “seek appropriate indictments for such crimes where the evidence is compelling.” But the report does not name the people who are alleged to have lied. In addition to the section on perjury, the report’s introduction and conclusion were released Thursday. But any recommendations on potential criminal charges for specific people will remain under wraps for now.
