Chicago Fire Department cleans up the crime scene where numerous people were shot at Artis Restaurant and Lounge/Kyle Mazza/Anadolu via Getty Images
(CHICAGO) — Four people were killed and 14 others wounded in a mass shooting Wednesday night in Chicago, police said.
The carnage erupted in the River North neighborhood, on the 300 block of West Chicago Avenue, when a vehicle pulled up to a location and at least one gunman opened fire on a crowd standing outside, Chicago police said.
The vehicle fled the scene immediately and no one has been taken into custody, police said.
Four people were killed — two men and two women — and 14 others were wounded, including several who were hospitalized in critical condition, according to police.
“When I arrived last night it was absolute chaos,” Pastor Donovan Price, who works to help victims of violence, told reporters. “From people screaming, to blood on the streets, to people laying on the streets, a massive police presence. Just horrific. More than I’ve ever seen.”
The hospitals were “almost as chaotic” as the crime scene as people searched for their loved ones, Price said.
The injured victims are all in their 20s and 30s and 11 of the 14 people hurt are women, police said.
“Seems there was some album release party, people coming from that. An SUV pulls up and just opens fire on a crowd of people,” Price said.
“It can happen anywhere,” he warned. “It’s devastating.”
Despite the shooting, murders were down 32% year-to-date in the city as of June 29 and shooting incidents were down 39%, according to Chicago’s crime data.
(TEXAS) — A federal judge in Texas has ruled that the family of the man charged in the deadly Molotov cocktail attack in Boulder, Colorado, can be deported, dismissing a challenge to their removal filed last month.
Hayam El Gamal, the wife of Mohamed Sabry Soliman, was apprehended following the attack and was initially slated for expedited deportation.
The deportation case involving Soliman’s wife and five children was transferred to Texas. Last month, a judge issued a temporary order halting the family’s deportation, which remained in place until now.
Dismissing the family’s legal challenge, U.S. District Judge Orlando Garcia wrote, “Upon review of the parties’ advisories, the record, and the applicable law, the Court finds that it lacks jurisdiction to grant Petitioners the relief they seek and must dismiss this case without prejudice.”
Soliman has been hit with several state charges, including first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder and assault. A preliminary hearing in the state case is set for July 15.
Soliman, who is being held in federal custody, has pleaded not guilty to federal hate crime charges.
Authorities said Soliman threw Molotov cocktails at a group of marchers who were advocating for the release of the Israeli hostages outside the Boulder courthouse on June 1, yelling “Free Palestine” during the attack.
(GALENA PARK, Texas) — A 9-year-old girl has died in after she was intentionally left alone in a hot car while her mom was at work, according to Harris County, Texas, Sheriff Ed Gonzalez.
The girl’s 36-year-old mother left the child unattended in a white Toyota Camry on Tuesday from approximately 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. while she worked at a manufacturing plant in Galena Park, Texas, near Houston, the sheriff’s office said during a press conference.
The mother left the child with some water, partially rolled down the windows of the vehicle and then “proceeded to go to work for the day,” officials said.
“There’s never an excuse to leave a child unattended,” Gonzalez said during the press conference.
Upon returning to the vehicle later in the afternoon when her shift ended, the mother found her daughter unresponsive. Law enforcement was contacted at approximately 2:06 p.m. and detained the mother, officials said. Temperatures in the Houston area reached around 93 degrees Fahrenheit on Tuesday, according to the National Weather Service.
The child was transported to a local hospital, where she was pronounced dead, officials said.
Detectives continue to speak with the mother to gain more insight on why the child was kept in the car and the exact timeline of how long she was alone in the vehicle, the sheriff said. Officials are also waiting to receive the child’s autopsy results before deciding whether to press any charges.
Gonzalez said the incident, “which could have been prevented,” is a “unique” situation, since most hot car deaths are typically an accident.
“Maybe she has to make ends meet and keep food on the table and work. But the risk of death or harm — there’s just no reconciling that in my mind. You got to make other arrangements. It’s not worth it to put a child at risk like this, for any particular reason,” Gonzalez said.
He went on to say that nothing at this point shows that the mother “thought this would be the outcome.”
This tragedy marks the third hot car death to occur in Texas in the last four days and at least the 13th child to die in a hot car nationwide this year, according to Kids and Car Safety, an organization focused on “saving the lives of children and pets in and around vehicles.”
(NEW YORK) — Ward Sakeik — a stateless Palestinian woman who was detained on her way back from her honeymoon — has been released from ICE detention nearly five months after her arrest, her husband confirmed to ABC News.
Sakeik, who is married to a U.S. citizen, was arrested at the St. Thomas Airport in the U.S. Virgin Islands in February.
“The Trump administration’s brazenly unconstitutional attempt to deport this young woman in violation of a federal court order should shock the conscience of every American. Had we not intervened, she may very well be in a foreign country right now, separated from her family like so many others illegally deported to third countries,” Eric Lee, Sakeik’s attorney, said in a statement Wednesday.
The government had attempted to deport Sakeik twice — the first of which was to Israel just hours before it launched its attack on Iran in June. The second attempt to deport her was made despite a federal judge ordering that she remain in the northern district of Texas and not be removed from the U.S.
Sakeik’s family is from Gaza, but she is legally stateless and has lived in the U.S. since she was 8 years old. Her family had traveled to the U.S. on a tourist visa and applied for asylum, according to Shaikh.
Sakeik was issued a deportation order more than a decade ago after her asylum case was denied, but she was permitted to stay in the U.S. under what’s known as an “order of supervision,” in which she was given a work permit and regularly checks in with federal immigration authorities, according to her attorney and her husband.
The first stage of her Green Card application was approved last week, according to her husband, Taahir Shaikh.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
(MOSCOW, Idaho) — Bryan Kohberger admitted to the killings of four University of Idaho students at his change of plea hearing on Wednesday, pleading guilty to all five counts, despite the former criminology student’s initial eagerness to be exonerated in the high-profile case.
At the Ada County Courthouse in Boise, Idaho, Judge Steven Hippler asked Kohberger how he pleads for each count. Kohberger quickly said “guilty” each time, showing no emotion.
Kohberger — who was charged with four counts of first-degree murder and one count of burglary in connection with the 2022 killings of the four students — will be spared the death penalty as a part of the plea, according to a letter sent to victims’ relatives. He’ll be sentenced to four consecutive life sentences on the murder counts and the maximum penalty of 10 years on the burglary count, according to the agreement.
At the start of the hearing, Kohberger briefly answered questions from Hippler with “yes” and “no,” marking the first time since his arrest that Kohberger spoke during court proceedings.
He was asked if he was thinking clearly, and Kohberger responded, “yes.” When asked if he was promised anything in exchange for the plea, Kohberger responded, “no.” Asked if he was pleading guilty because he is guilty, Kohberger responded, “yes.”
Hippler asked Kohberger if he “killed and murdered” each victim, naming the four students: Kaylee Goncalves, Madison Mogen, Xana Kernodle and Kernodle’s boyfriend, Ethan Chapin. Kohberger responded “yes” each time, showing no emotion.
Kohberger’s father shook his head as the victims’ names were read.
Prosecutor Bill Thompson outlined for the judge the state’s evidence against Kohberger, including Kohberger’s DNA matching the male DNA on a knife sheath left by Mogen’s body.
Kohberger also waives his right to appeal as a part of the agreement.
The plea comes just weeks before Kohberger’s trial was to get underway. Jury selection was set to start on Aug. 4 and opening arguments were scheduled for Aug 18.
Prosecutors — who met with victims’ families last week — called the plea a “sincere attempt to seek justice” for the families.
But the dad of 21-year-old victim Kaylee Goncalves blasted the move, accusing the prosecutors of mishandling and rushing the plea deal.
Steve Goncalves said outside court on Wednesday that the prosecution “made a deal with the devil.”
The Goncalves family told ABC News they contacted prosecutors on Tuesday asking for the terms of Kohberger’s deal be amended to include additional requirements: they asked for a full confession and for the location of the alleged murder weapon — described by authorities as a KA-BAR-style hunting knife — which has never been found.
The family said prosecutors turned down the request, explaining that an offer already accepted by the defendant could not ethically be changed. The family said the prosecutors indicated they’re asking the court to allow the prosecution to include a factual summary of the evidence against Kohberger at Wednesday’s hearing, and that more information about Kohberger’s actions would be presented at his sentencing hearing.
The family of 20-year-old victim Ethan Chapin said in a brief statement that they’re at the hearing “in support of the plea bargain.” This is the Chapins’ first appearance at court since their son was killed.
Idaho law requires the state to afford violent crime victims or their families an opportunity to communicate with prosecutors and to be advised of any proposed plea offer before entering into an agreement, but the ultimate decision lies solely with the prosecution.
Kohberger’s parents also attended Wednesday’s hearing, their first time in court with their son since his arrest in Pennsylvania more than two years ago. Attorneys for the Kohberger family said in a statement on Tuesday, “The Kohbergers are asking members of the media for privacy, respect, and responsible judgment during this time. We will continue to allow the legal process to unfold with respect to all parties.”
Prosecutors allege Kohberger fatally stabbed Goncalves, Mogen, Kernodle and Chapin in the students’ off-campus house in the early hours of Nov. 13, 2022.
Two roommates in the house survived, including one roommate who told authorities in the middle of the night she saw a man walking past her in the house, according to court documents. The roommate described the intruder as “not very muscular, but athletically built with bushy eyebrows,” according to the documents.
Kohberger, who was studying for a Ph.D. in criminology at nearby Washington State University at the time of the crime, was arrested at his parents’ home in Pennsylvania in December 2022.
Shareif Ziyadat/Getty Images for Sean “Diddy” Combs
(NEW YORK) — After the split verdict in his federal sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy trial was read, acquitting him of the most serious offenses, Sean “Diddy” Combs turned to his family and exclaimed, “I’m coming home, baby!”
After a two-month trial, the New York jury found the 55-year-old hip-hop mogul not guilty of racketeering conspiracy, the most serious charge.
The jury did find him guilty of two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution, one in connection with his ex-girlfriend, Cassie Ventura, and one in connection with an ex-girlfriend who testified under the pseudonym “Jane.”
He was found not guilty of both charges of sex trafficking by force, fraud, or coercion in connection with Ventura and “Jane.”
When the verdict was read in the Manhattan federal courtroom on Wednesday, Combs was overcome with emotion, his feet visibly shaking throughout the reading.
He pumped his fist slightly when he heard he was found not guilty of racketeering conspiracy. Some members in the gallery gasped.
Combs continued to look straight ahead as the remaining verdicts were read. When he heard the first guilty verdict, he rubbed his forehead.
When Combs was found not guilty of sex trafficking in connection with Ventura, there were screams of joy in the gallery.
There was very little reaction from Combs’ family as the verdict was read. His son Justin leaned down and put his head in his lap while others looked straight ahead. Dana Tran, the mother of his youngest child, was in tears.
As each juror confirmed that the verdict read was accurate, Combs nodded his head and mouthed “thank you” to each of them.
When the verdict was confirmed and the judge gave the jurors instructions, Combs turned in his seat to his family and said, “I’m coming home, baby! I’m coming home!”
As the jury left the courtroom, Combs clasped his hands in front of his chest and again mouthed, “Thank you.”
Combs kneeled on the ground and appeared to pray briefly after the jury was out of the room.
After the judge left the bench, the defense team hugged and congratulated each other and the Combs family broke into applause. One person exclaimed that the defense attorneys were the “dream team.”
As Combs left the courtroom, he said to his family, “I love you, I’ma be home soon.”
Sean Combs’ mother, Janice Combs, told ABC News as she left the courtroom that her heart was fluttering as the verdict was read.
His son Christian told ABC News outside the courthouse, “We love everybody watching. We’re so happy, my Pops is coming home. God bless.”
U.S. District Judge Arun Subramanian said he will decide whether Combs gets released on Wednesday.
He said the decision might take some time — including giving the lawyers time to write letters arguing for and against release — but will happen sometime on Wednesday.
Defense attorney Marc Agnifilo said Combs should be released on Wednesday and argued for $1 million bond.
“I am not saying it is not a serious crime. It is a crime of a vastly different nature,” he said. “I believe that a significant change in conditions is warranted.”
When the judge said he thought Combs likely didn’t want to return to Metropolitan Detention Center Brooklyn, Combs comically shook his head no and put up prayer hands, as the gallery broke out in laughter.
Combs has already served about nine months in federal prison while awaiting trial.
Each charge of transportation to engage in prostitution carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison.
Assistant United States Attorney Maurene Ryan Comey said the government plans to pursue “significant incarceration” for Combs.
(MIAMI) — A man was arrested and charged after allegedly attacking a fellow passenger on a Frontier fight “unprovoked,” according to the Miami Dade Sheriff’s Office.
Ishaan Sharma, 21, has been charged with battery and is facing a $500 bond, according to jail records.
Miami Dade Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to a report of a battery that occurred on a Frontier Airlines Flight coming into Miami International Airport on Tuesday, according to an arrest affidavit.
On the scene, the victim told police the attack was “unprovoked” and occurred when Sharma allegedly “approached him and grabbed his neck while returning to his assigned seat,” according to the affidavit.
A physical altercation then occurred between the two passengers, with Sharma suffering a “visible laceration to his left eyebrow which required medical assistance,” the affidavit said.
The victim only suffered superficial cuts and refused medical assistance on the scene.
Sharma was taken into custody and transported to Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center after being cleared at Jackson West Hospital.
(MOSCOW, Idaho) — Bryan Kohberger is expected to plead guilty on Wednesday to all counts in the killings of four University of Idaho students, despite the former criminology student’s initial eagerness to be exonerated in the high-profile case.
Kohberger — who was charged with four counts of first-degree murder and one count of burglary in connection with the 2022 killings of roommates Kaylee Goncalves, Madison Mogen and Xana Kernodle and Kernodle’s boyfriend, Ethan Chapin — will be spared the death penalty as a part of the plea, according to a letter sent to victims’ relatives.
He’ll be sentenced to four consecutive life sentences on the murder counts and the maximum penalty of 10 years on the burglary count, according to the agreement.
Kohberger will also waive all right to appeal, the agreement said.
The plea comes just weeks before Kohberger’s trial was to get underway. Jury selection was set to start on Aug. 4 and opening arguments were scheduled for Aug 18.
Prosecutors — who met with victims’ families last week — called the plea a “sincere attempt to seek justice” for the families.
But the dad of 21-year-old victim Kaylee Goncalves is blasting the move, accusing the prosecutors of mishandling and rushing the plea deal.
“At the least, justice starts with an interview of the families to ask them what justice is. And we didn’t get that,” Steve Goncalves told ABC News.
The Goncalves family told ABC News they contacted prosecutors on Tuesday asking for the terms of Kohberger’s deal be amended to include additional requirements: they asked for a full confession and for the location of the alleged murder weapon — described by authorities as a KA-BAR-style hunting knife — which has never been found.
The family said prosecutors turned down the request, explaining that an offer already accepted by the defendant could not ethically be changed. The family said the prosecutors indicated they’re asking the court to allow the prosecution to include a factual summary of the evidence against Kohberger at Wednesday’s hearing, and that more information about Kohberger’s actions would be presented at his sentencing hearing.
The family of 20-year-old victim Ethan Chapin said in a brief statement that they’ll be in Boise on Wednesday “in support of the plea bargain.”
Idaho law requires the state to afford violent crime victims or their families an opportunity to communicate with prosecutors and to be advised of any proposed plea offer before entering into an agreement, but the ultimate decision lies solely with the prosecution.
Prosecutors anticipate sentencing to take place in late July, as long as Kohberger enters the guilty plea as expected on Wednesday, according to a letter prosecutors sent to victims’ families. In the event Kohberger fails to enter the pleas, prosecutors indicated they are ready to proceed to trial in August, the letter said.
Attorneys for the Kohberger family said in a statement on Tuesday, “The Kohbergers are asking members of the media for privacy, respect, and responsible judgment during this time. We will continue to allow the legal process to unfold with respect to all parties.”
Prosecutors allege Kohberger fatally stabbed Goncalves, Mogen, Kernodle and Chapin in the students’ off-campus house in the early hours of Nov. 13, 2022.
Two roommates in the house survived, including one roommate who told authorities in the middle of the night she saw a man walking past her in the house, according to court documents. The roommate described the intruder as “not very muscular, but athletically built with bushy eyebrows,” according to the documents. University at the time of the crime, was arrested at his parents’ home in Pennsylvania in December 2022.
Kohberger, who was studying for a Ph.D. in criminology at nearby Washington State University at the time of the crime, was arrested at his parents’ home in Pennsylvania in December 2022.
Defense lawyers have said Kohberger was driving around alone on the night of the murders.
ABC News chief legal analyst Dan Abrams said Kohberger may have agreed to the plea because the defense has lost numerous arguments to the judge.
“The defense had tried to get the death penalty taken off the table again and again, and they kept losing. Most recently, they tried to point the finger at other possible suspects,” but the judge rejected that argument, citing a lack of evidence, Abrams told “Good Morning America” on Tuesday.
With the prosecution’s DNA evidence, video evidence and cellphone records, the defense was faced with “a pretty bad case in the end,” Abrams said.
A key piece of evidence against Kohberger is his DNA, which was found on a knife sheath left by one of the victim’s bodies, prosecutors said. Kohberger’s defense attorneys sought to exclude DNA evidence, but the judge denied their request.
“You put it all together and it was tough to figure out exactly where the defense was gonna go with this,” Abrams said.
(SANTA NELLA, Calif.) — A woman was arrested after leaving over 100 cats inside a U-Haul in a Southern California parking lot, according to the Merced County Sheriff’s Office.
Jeannie Maxon, 69, was arrested on Sunday after deputies were dispatched to a parking lot of a Taco Bell in Santa Nella, California, to “check on the welfare of several cats in a U-Haul van,” the sheriff’s office said in a statement on Monday.
Once on the scene, the deputy observed “at least 20 cats in distress” through the window of the vehicle, officials said.
Animal control then responded to the scene and located 106 “extremely emaciated cats, as well as 28 deceased cats” in the vehicle without food or water, officials said.
Photos from the scene show the felines pressed against the front windshield of the van, with others found in cardboard boxes inside the vehicle.
All of the cats — which ranged from one week to 8 years old — were seized and taken to the Merced County Animal Shelter, officials said.
Once the cats are medically cleared by veterinary staff, they will be available for adoption, officials said.
Maxon, who is from Long Beach, California, was charged with 93 counts of animal cruelty and booked into the Merced County Jail.
The sheriff’s office said the investigation remains active and they will provide updates regarding the adoption process of the cats.
Officials reminded the public of the dangers of keeping an animal inside an unattended vehicle, especially on a summer day.
“On a warm day, temperatures inside a car can soar to extreme levels in just a few minutes, even with the windows open. Please ensure that when you’re traveling with your pet, they’re provided with a cool place to stay, offering plenty of shade, lots of water and food,” the sheriff’s office said in a statement.
It is unclear whether Maxon remains in custody as of Tuesday or whether she has an attorney that can speak on her behalf.
(WILMINGTON, Del.) — A severe thunderstorm turned deadly Monday night in Wilmington, Delaware, when a falling tree killed a 79-year-old woman riding in a car, Delaware State Police said.
Meteorologists warn the storm marks the beginning of a dangerous weather pattern along the Eastern Seaboard.
The crash happened about 10:08 p.m. on Lancaster Pike when the storm caused a tree to fall into the path of an SUV, according to state police. The driver, a 79-year-old man from Newark, Delaware, tried to swerve but couldn’t avoid the collision, police said.
The driver was taken to a hospital with serious injuries, but his female passenger, also from Newark, died at the scene, police said. Authorities are withholding the victim’s name until relatives are notified.
The incident came as powerful storms swept through the region, part of a broader weather system that continues to threaten more than 30 million Americans along the I-95 corridor.
The National Weather Service reported a weak tornado touched down near Omar, Delaware, on Monday afternoon, damaging only a small patch of trees.
The dangerous weather pattern intensified early Tuesday when southeastern Pennsylvania declared a flash flood emergency after 4 to 6 inches of rain fell in 10 hours.
Multiple water rescues were required in the Pennsylvania counties of Lancaster and Lebanon, particularly near Mount Joy and Manheim.
The severe weather threat is ramping back up Tuesday, with damaging winds and flash flooding remaining the primary concerns.
The threat zone spans from central Virginia to New York City, including major metropolitan areas like Washington, D.C., Baltimore, and Philadelphia.
The storms are causing significant travel disruptions. As of 11:10 a.m. Tuesday, airlines canceled 623 flights nationwide, with more cancellations expected throughout the afternoon.
Officials warn that ground stops and delays are likely at major airports along the I-95 corridor, particularly in Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., and New York.
Delaware State Police continue to investigate Monday night’s fatal crash and urge witnesses to contact the department or Delaware Crime Stoppers at 1-800-847-3333.
For those affected by the tragedy, the Delaware State Police Victim Services Unit offers 24-hour support through their hotline: 1-800-VICTIM-1 (1-800-842-8461).
