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(PHILADELPHIA) — A small medical transport jet carrying a child and her mother along with four other people was in the air for less than a minute after taking off from Northeast Philadelphia Airport before coming down in a fiery “high-impact” crash near a busy mall Friday evening.

The Learjet 55, operated by Jet Rescue Air Ambulance, took off at 6:06 p.m. Friday, climbed to about 1,500 feet in the air and then rapidly descended, National Transportation Safety Board investigator Bill Hicks told reporters during a press briefing Saturday.

“The entire flight lasted less than a minute,” Hicks said.

All six people aboard the jet died in the crash, including the child, who had just received care from Shriner’s Hospital in Philadelphia and was returning home with her mother. There were also four crew members on board. All were Mexican citizens, according to a statement from the Mexican government.

In addition to those aboard the aircraft, at least one person in a vehicle died in the crash, and there were at least 19 other people on the ground — in parking lots, in cars and nearby homes — were injured, Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker said in an earlier press briefing Saturday.

There was no indication of a problem radioed from the flight deck of the jet back to Air Traffic Control before the crash, NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy told reporters. “In fact, in the recording that we have, there is an attempt by air traffic controllers to get a response from the flight crew that they didn’t receive,” she said.

The NTSB has classified the crash as an accident.

The “high-impact” crash left debris scattered across four to five city blocks, Homendy said. Investigators have yet to recover the jet’s black box, which she said may have been damaged or destroyed.

“It could be intact,” she said. “But likely it is damaged. It may be fragmented.”

Philadelphia residents or business owners who find debris should email the NTSB at witness@ntsb.gov, Homendy said.

Earlier, the mayor said residents could also call 911 if they come across airplane debris.

Investigators will spend several days and, possibly, weeks collecting debris from the scene, the NTSB chair said.

At least five homes caught fire in the aftermath of the crash, Philadelphia officials said.

The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating.

The crash of the medical jet came just two days after an Army Black Hawk helicopter collided with a regional American Airlines jet near Reagan National Airport just outside Washington, D.C., killing 67 people.

Homendy said her agency is able to carry out both investigations simultaneously.

“We are a highly skilled agency,” she said, adding that it’s not unusual for the board to investigate two incidents.

In a message posted on social media platform X, U.S. Transportation Sean Duffy called the back-to-back disasters a “heart-wrenching week.”

Regarding the Philadelphia crash, Duffy said, “We’re not going to have answers right away. It’s going to take time. But as I get those answers, I’m going to share it with all of you.”

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(PHILADELPHIA) — At least seven people were killed and 19 others injured after a medical transport plane, carrying a child, her mother and four other people, crashed in Philadelphia Friday night near a busy mall, according to city officials.

Everyone aboard the flight was killed in the crash and one person was killed on the ground, Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker said at a press conference Saturday.

The Learjet 55 crashed near the Roosevelt Mall in northeast Philadelphia around 6:30 p.m. after departing from Northeast Philadelphia Airport, according to authorities.

“Many people on the ground — in parking lots, on streets, in cars and homes in the area — were injured,” the office of Mayor Parker said Saturday. “A number of people were transported to Temple University Hospital, Jeans Campus in the Northeast.”

“Right now, we’re just asking for prayers,” Parker told reporters Friday night. She urged residents to stay away from the scene.

In a statement, Shriner’s Hospital said the child had received care from the Philadelphia hospital and was being taken back to her home country of Mexico along with her mother on a contracted air ambulance when the crash happened.

The flight was headed to Missouri and was only in the air for a short period of time before something went wrong, according to Parker.

The company that operated the flight, Jet Rescue Air Ambulance, said in a statement there were four crew members on board.

“At this time, we cannot confirm any survivors,” the company said in the statement. “No names are being released at this time until family members have been notified. Our immediate concern is for the patient’s family, our personnel, their families and other victims that may have been hurt on the ground.”

The air ambulance was en route to Springfield-Branson National Airport in Missouri, according to Flight Radar24 data.

“I regret the death of six Mexicans in the plane crash in Philadelphia, United States,” Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said in a statement Saturday. “The consular authorities are in permanent contact with the families; I have asked the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to support them in whatever way is required. My solidarity with their loved ones and friends.”

A large fire burned in the wake of the crash, prompting a significant response.

“We heard a loud explosion and then saw the aftermath of flames and smoke,” eyewitness Jimmy Weiss told local ABC station WPVI near the scene.

He added, “It felt like the ground shook .. it was a loud boom. It was startling.”

The National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration are investigating.

An NTSB investigator arrived at the scene Friday night with additional team members expected to arrive Saturday.

Temple University Hospital told ABC News it had received six patients hurt in the crash, although it was not clear if they were in the plane or people who were on the ground.

Three of those patients were treated and released and three remain hospitalized in fair condition, the hospital said.

Speaking at a follow-up press briefing Friday night, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said dozens of state troopers and other state personnel were on on hand to offer help and praised local responders and community members.

“We saw neighbor helping neighbor. We saw Pennsylvanians looking out for one another,” he said.

In a statement posted to social media platform Truth Social, President Donald Trump said: “So sad to see the plane go down in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. More innocent souls lost. Our people are totally engaged. First Responders are already being given credit for doing a great job. More to follow. God Bless you all.”

Immediately after the crash, the FAA issued a ground stop at Northeast Philadelphia Airport due to “an aircraft incident.”

The FAA had initially reported there were two people on board the aircraft but later corrected that report.

The investigation into the crash remains active and ongoing.

ABC News’ Ayesha Ali and Sam Sweeney contributed to this report.

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(PHILADELPHIA) — A medical transport plane, carrying a child, her mother and four other people, crashed in Philadelphia Friday night near a busy mall, killing all aboard and resulting in an untold number of injuries on the ground.

The Learjet 55 crashed near the Roosevelt Mall in northeast Philadelphia around 6:30 p.m. after departing from Northeast Philadelphia Airport, according to authorities.

The exact number of the injured is not yet available, officials said.

“Many people on the ground – in parking lots, on streets, in cars and homes in the area – were injured; the number of injured is yet to be released but the information shared at this time reports that a number of people were transported to Temple University Hospital, Jeans Campus in the Northeast,” the office of Mayor Cherelle Parker said Saturday.

“Right now, we’re just asking for prayers,” Parker told reporters Friday night. She urged residents to stay away from the scene.

In a statement, Shriner’s Hospital said the child had received care from the Philadelphia hospital and was being taken back to her home country of Mexico along with her mother on a contracted air ambulance when the crash happened.

The company that operated the flight, Jet Rescue Air Ambulance, said in a statement there were four crew members on board.

“At this time, we cannot confirm any survivors,” the company said in the statement. “No names are being released at this time until family members have been notified. Our immediate concern is for the patient’s family, our personnel, their families and other victims that may have been hurt on the ground.”

The air ambulance was en route to Springfield-Branson National Airport in Missouri, according to Flight Radar24 data.

“I regret the death of six Mexicans in the plane crash in Philadelphia, United States,” Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said in a statement Saturday. “The consular authorities are in permanent contact with the families; I have asked the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to support them in whatever way is required. My solidarity with their loved ones and friends.”

A large fire burned in the wake of the crash, prompting a significant response.

“We heard a loud explosion and then saw the aftermath of flames and smoke,” eyewitness Jimmy Weiss told local ABC station WPVI near the scene.

He added, “It felt like the ground shook .. it was a loud boom. It was startling.”

The National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration are investigating.

An NTSB investigator arrived at the scene Friday night with additional team members expected to arrive Saturday.

Temple University Hospital told ABC News it had received six patients hurt in the crash, although it was not clear if they were in the plane or people who were on the ground.

Three of those patients were treated and released and three remain hospitalized in fair condition, the hospital said.

Speaking at a follow-up press briefing Friday night, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said dozens of state troopers and other state personnel were on on hand to offer help and praised local responders and community members.

“We saw neighbor helping neighbor. We saw Pennsylvanians looking out for one another,” he said.

In a statement posted to social media platform Truth Social, President Donald Trump said: “So sad to see the plane go down in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. More innocent souls lost. Our people are totally engaged. First Responders are already being given credit for doing a great job. More to follow. God Bless you all.”

Immediately after the crash, the FAA issued a ground stop at Northeast Philadelphia Airport due to “an aircraft incident.”

The FAA had initially reported there were two people on board the aircraft but later corrected that report.

ABC News’ Ayesha Ali and Sam Sweeney contributed to this report.

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(PHILADELPHIA) — A medical transport plane, carrying a child, her mother and four other people, crashed in Philadelphia Friday night near a busy mall, killing all aboard and resulting in an untold number of injuries on the ground.

The Learjet 55 crashed near the Roosevelt Mall in northeast Philadelphia around 6:30 p.m. after departing from Northeast Philadelphia Airport, according to authorities.

The exact number of the injured is not yet available, officials said.

“Many people on the ground – in parking lots, on streets, in cars and homes in the area – were injured; the number of injured is yet to be released but the information shared at this time reports that a number of people were transported to Temple University Hospital, Jeans Campus in the Northeast,” the office of Mayor Cherelle Parker said Saturday.

“Right now, we’re just asking for prayers,” Parker told reporters Friday night. She urged residents to stay away from the scene.

In a statement, Shriner’s Hospital said the child had received care from the Philadelphia hospital and was being taken back to her home country of Mexico along with her mother on a contracted air ambulance when the crash happened.

The company that operated the flight, Jet Rescue Air Ambulance, said in a statement there were four crew members on board.

“At this time, we cannot confirm any survivors,” the company said in the statement. “No names are being released at this time until family members have been notified. Our immediate concern is for the patient’s family, our personnel, their families and other victims that may have been hurt on the ground.”

The air ambulance was en route to Springfield-Branson National Airport in Missouri, according to Flight Radar24 data.

“I regret the death of six Mexicans in the plane crash in Philadelphia, United States,” Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said in a statement Saturday. “The consular authorities are in permanent contact with the families; I have asked the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to support them in whatever way is required. My solidarity with their loved ones and friends.”

A large fire burned in the wake of the crash, prompting a significant response.

“We heard a loud explosion and then saw the aftermath of flames and smoke,” eyewitness Jimmy Weiss told local ABC station WPVI near the scene.

He added, “It felt like the ground shook .. it was a loud boom. It was startling.”

The National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration are investigating.

An NTSB investigator arrived at the scene Friday night with additional team members expected to arrive Saturday.

Temple University Hospital told ABC News it had received six patients hurt in the crash, although it was not clear if they were in the plane or people who were on the ground.

Three of those patients were treated and released and three remain hospitalized in fair condition, the hospital said.

Speaking at a follow-up press briefing Friday night, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said dozens of state troopers and other state personnel were on on hand to offer help and praised local responders and community members.

“We saw neighbor helping neighbor. We saw Pennsylvanians looking out for one another,” he said.

In a statement posted to social media platform Truth Social, President Donald Trump said: “So sad to see the plane go down in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. More innocent souls lost. Our people are totally engaged. First Responders are already being given credit for doing a great job. More to follow. God Bless you all.”

Immediately after the crash, the FAA issued a ground stop at Northeast Philadelphia Airport due to “an aircraft incident.”

The FAA had initially reported there were two people on board the aircraft but later corrected that report.

ABC News’ Ayesha Ali and Sam Sweeney contributed to this report.

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(PHILADELPHIA) — A small plane crashed in Philadephia on Friday, officials said, with a fiery explosion observed upon impact.

The incident occurred near the Roosevelt Mall in northeast Philadelphia.

The Learjet 55 crashed around 6:30 p.m. after departing from Northeast Philadelphia Airport, according to the Federal Aviation Administration.

A large fire burned in the wake of the crash, prompting a large response. Vehicles could also be seen on fire.

There were two people on board, according to the FAA. The agency did not have any update on their condition.

The plane was en route to Springfield-Branson National Airport in Missouri.

The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board are investigating.

The Philadelphia Fire Department advised residents to avoid the area of Calvert and St. Vincent streets.

Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy said he is monitoring the crash in Philadelphia and heading to the FAA to get information.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

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(WASHINGTON) — A group of immigrant advocacy centers and nonprofits has filed a lawsuit against the Department of Justice and the Department of Homeland Security for shutting down legal orientation programs for immigrants, including people detained at ICE detention facilities.

The lawsuit was filed a week after the Department of Justice told legal service providers who receive federal funding to stop providing legal orientation and other work intended to support immigrants at immigration court and detention facilities.

“With increased detentions, rapid deportation processes, and new detention centers, legal access to these detention centers to ensure these activities are being carried out following applicable laws has never been more important,” the lawsuit says. “The Programs at issue here are thus essential: they provide basic due process to noncitizens and they ensure lawyers are regularly inside detention centers to observe or be told about potential legal violations.”

The groups argue that legal orientation programs were stopped without advanced notice and that many of the nonprofits lost access to detention facilities across the country.

“By denying Program providers access, Defendants ensure that no legal service providers’ eyes are watching what the government does inside,” the complaint says.

Officials with the Department of Homeland Security declined to comment when contacted by ABC News. The Justice Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

In the 51-page complaint, the groups argue that because immigration courts don’t guarantee individuals the right to counsel, the programs are necessary because they give noncitizens facing deportation critical access to basic legal information.

The programs that were shut down include the Legal Orientation Program; the Immigration Court Helpdesk; the Family Group Legal Orientation Program; and the Counsel for Children Initiative, which provides legal representation to children in immigration court proceedings.

“The information the Programs provide is the most basic level of the due process to which noncitizens in removal proceedings are entitled,” the complaint says.

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(WASHINGTON) — When the Office of Management and Budget issued a sweeping order this week freezing trillions of dollars in federal grants and loans, senior White House officials had not reviewed it beforehand, according to sources familiar with the matter.

The order was rescinded following legal challenges and intense backlash amid widespread confusion and disruptions to critical services like Medicaid.

And now, amid the fallout, finger pointing has begun inside the administration, sources said, with the attention turning to Mark Paoletta, OMB’s general counsel, who played a key role in drafting the order.

Top White House policy adviser Stephen Miller and staff secretary Will Scharf were among those who had been left out of the review process, sources said.

The fallout has already led to discussions about reassigning Paoletta away from his position as OMB’s general counsel, though no final decision has been made, according to multiple sources.

Sources said senior advisers were caught off guard and frustrated that they had not reviewed the memo before its release, seeing its rollout as a stain on what had otherwise been smooth messaging around President Donald Trump’s rapid rollout of executive orders.

Meanwhile, some rank-and-file officials at OMB were themselves left confused both when the memo was issued and after it was rescinded, sources said.

OMB officials did not respond to a request for comment from ABC News.

On Wednesday, a federal judge signaled he would issue a temporary restraining order barring the Trump administration from freezing federal loans and grants. That’s now raised concerns that the White House will try to enact the same policy described in the now-rescinded memo.

District Judge John McConnell Jr. had harsh words for the Trump administration following a social media post by White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, in which Leavitt said it was the memo that was being rescinded, not the freeze itself.

“This is NOT a rescission of the federal funding freeze,” Leavitt posted on X, defending the policy after the memo was rescinded. “It is simply a rescission of the OMB memo. Why? To end any confusion created by the court’s injunction. The President’s EO’s on federal funding remain in full force and effect and will be rigorously implemented.”

Despite the Office of Management rescinding their directive, Judge McConnell said he believed there was “sufficient evidence” that the government still plans to carry out the policy based on Leavitt’s social media post.

“That’s my read of the tweet. I can’t believe I’m saying that, but that’s my read of the tweet,” Judge McConnell said.

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(LOS ANGELES, Calif.) — Police in Los Angeles said they are looking for a man who stabbed a woman while she was walking down a street and then fled.

The Los Angeles Police Department this week released surveillance footage that captured the disturbing attack as they attempt to identify the suspect.

The incident occurred midday on Jan. 18 in the area of Santa Monica Boulevard and Edgemont Street in East Hollywood, according to the LAPD.

The victim was walking with two other individuals when the suspect approached her from behind and stabbed her twice, police said. He then fled east on Santa Monica Boulevard to the Vermont/Santa Monica MTA Station, police said.

Paramedics responded and transported the unidentified victim to a local hospital, where she was treated for non-life-threatening injuries, police said.

Police released an 11-second video of the attack and an image of the suspect while asking for the public’s help in identifying him. The woman could be seen grabbing her head and doubling over following the assault.

An LAPD spokesperson told ABC News on Friday that there are no updates in the case at this time.

Police described the suspect as a Hispanic man in his 30s with black hair and brown eyes, standing 5 feet, 6 inches tall and weighing 180 pounds.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the LAPD’s Rampart Detective Division at 213-484-3631 during regular business hours or 877-527-3247 during non-business hours and weekends. Those wishing to remain anonymous can go to lacrimestoppers.org.

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(WASHINGTON) — Mayor Eric Adams’s criminal defense attorney was at Justice Department headquarters in Washington on Friday to discuss the future of the mayor’s criminal bribery case, sources familiar with the matter told ABC News.

Adams’ attorney Alex Spiro attended the meeting along with federal prosecutors from the U.S. Attorney’s office in Manhattan, including acting U.S. Attorney Danielle Sassoon and acting chief of the criminal division Perry Carbone, the sources said.

Spiro was seen by an ABC News reporter departing the Justice Department following his meeting but he declined to comment when asked whether DOJ leadership agreed to drop Adams’ case.

Adams, the first sitting New York City mayor to be indicted, has pleaded not guilty to taking luxury travel benefits in exchange for helping expedite the opening of the Turkish consulate in Manhattan, among other crimes.

Federal prosecutors accused Adams of accepting more than $100,000 in improper benefits over nearly a decade, many of which came in the form of flight upgrades and stays in luxury hotels, none of which were publicly divulged as required.

The indictment also alleged Adams and a staffer knowingly worked with Turkish nationals to send foreign money to straw donors for his mayoral campaign and used that money to rake in over $10 million from New York City’s matching funds program.

Adams has insinuated that the indictment was politically motivated by President Joe Biden, without any evidence.

He has had several meetings with President Donald Trump since the election but has denied that the talk of dropping the charges or a pardon has come up. Adams canceled appearances at two New York City Martin Luther King Jr. Day events at the 11th hour to attend Trump’s inauguration.

Trump has also criticized the investigation into Adams.

The criminal trial is slated to begin on April 21.

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(CALIFORNIA) — A California man has agreed to pay more than $65,000 in restitution and faces up to a year in federal prison for operating a drone that collided with a firefighting aircraft during the early days of the Palisades Fire, prosecutors announced Friday.

Peter Akemann, 56, of Culver City, has agreed to plead guilty to one count of unsafe operation of an unmanned aircraft for the Jan. 9 drone collision, which damaged the Canadian “super scooper” and took it out of commission for several days amid the devastating fire, according to federal prosecutors in Los Angeles.

According to the plea agreement, filed Friday, Akemann admitted his reckless operation of the drone interfered with the firefighting aircraft’s operations and “posed an imminent safety hazard” to the two-person crew.

The impact of the collision caused an approximately 3-inch-by-6-inch hole in the aircraft’s left wing, prosecutors said. The aircraft, which is designed to scoop water from bodies of water and drop it on fires, was able to land safely and was taken out of service for approximately five days for repairs, prosecutors said.

“We’re in the largest wildfire ever to hit Southern California. We need all the planes that we can have at the time. And now we have one down for five days,” acting U.S. Attorney Joseph McNally said during a press briefing on Friday. “That has a real impact on operations.”

Investigators recovered parts of the damaged drone and were able to trace that to a specific drone, which led them to Akemann, prosecutors said.

Akemann launched the drone from the top of a parking garage in Santa Monica out of curiosity to observe the wildfire damage, but lost sight of it after it flew about 1.5 miles, according to McNally.

The Federal Aviation Administration had issued temporary flight restrictions at the time that prohibited drone operations near the Los Angeles County wildfires.

There is no evidence that the collision was intentional, according to FBI Assistant Director in Charge Akil Davis.

McNally said the message to the public is “deterrence.”

“If you fly a drone around wildfires and you do so recklessly, law enforcement is going to find you and we’re going to hold you accountable,” he said.

Akemann has not yet entered a guilty plea. He is expected to appear in court Friday afternoon.

“Mr. Akemann is deeply sorry for the mistake he made by flying a drone near the boundary of the Palisades fire area on January 9, 2025, and for the resulting accident,” his attorneys, Vicki Podberesky and Glen Jonas, said in a statement to ABC News. “He accepts responsibility for his grave error in judgment and is cooperating with the government in effort to make amends.”

As part of the plea agreement, Akemann has agreed to pay full restitution to the government of Quebec, which supplied the super scooper, and the company that repaired the plane — estimated to be at least $65,169.

He has also agreed to complete 150 hours of community service in support of the Southern California wildfire relief effort, prosecutors said.

The misdemeanor offense carries a prison sentence of up to one year in federal prison. Any prison sentence will ultimately be determined by a judge, McNally said.

“I’ll highlight the fact that he has agreed to plead guilty and accept responsibility, which I think is important here,” McNally said.

Akemann’s attorneys said there are a “number of mitigating factors” that will be brought up in court, including his “reliance on the DJI Drone’s geo fencing safeguard feature and the failure of that feature.”

The Palisades Fire ignited on Jan. 7 and has burned more than 23,400 acres in Los Angeles County. It is now 98% contained, according to Cal Fire. Nearly 8,000 structures are estimated to have been damaged or destroyed by the fire.

The cause remains under investigation.

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