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(NEW YORK) — The sheriff for Illinois’ Sangamon County Sheriff’s Office, which employed the former deputy who shot and killed Sonya Massey in her home earlier this month after she called 911 to report a possible intruder, said during public comments Monday night that they had “failed” her.

“Sonya Massey – I speak her name and I’ll never forget it,” Sangamon County Sheriff Jack Campbell said during a “Community Healing & Listening Session” Monday night at Union Baptist Church in Springfield. “She called for help and we failed. That’s all she did: call for help.”

“I’m going to say something right now I’ve never said in my career before: we failed,” Campbell continued. “We did not do our jobs. We failed Sonya. We failed Sonya’s family and friends. We failed the community. I stand here today before you with arms wide open to ask for forgiveness.”

Sean Grayson, the now-former deputy who fatally shot Sonya Massey in her Illinois home on July 6 while responding to her 911 call, has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder, aggravated battery with a firearm, and official misconduct in Massey’s death, and remains in custody.

Many attending Monday’s gathering applauded Campbell’s comments, but some expressed fear and outrage concerning law enforcement and community relations in the area.

“I live alone, and even though I already preferred not to call the police, I’m definitely not calling the police now,” Sierra Helmer, a Springfield resident, said Monday. “If I do need help, I should be able to call the police. Police officers are meant to protect and serve, but here in Springfield, apparently, and shown on camera, they harassed and unfortunately kill. Sonya’s tragic death has sparked an outrage in me as a single Black woman who was raised by a Black woman and having many other Black women raise me.”

Helmer’s comments also were met with applause and some cheers from community members.

“I asked Ms. Massey and her family for forgiveness,” Campbell said. “I offer up no excuses. What I do is offer our attempt to do better, to be better.”

“We will probably never know why he did what he did,” Campbell continued, referring to Grayson, “but I’m committed to providing the best service we can to all of you.”

Campbell also said Monday night that he will not resign his position.

“I cannot step down,” he said. “I will not abandon the sheriff’s office at its most critical moment. That will solve nothing. The incident will remain.”

Grayson, 30, and a second, unnamed deputy responded to Massey’s 911 call on July 6 reporting a possible intruder at her Springfield home.

Body camera footage released last week and reviewed by ABC News shows Massey, who was unarmed, telling the two responding deputies, “Please, don’t hurt me” once she answered their knocks on her door.

Grayson responded, “I don’t want to hurt you, you called us.”

Later in the video, while inside Massey’s home as she searches for her ID, Grayson points to a pot of boiling water on her stove and says, “We don’t need a fire while we’re in here.”

Massey then pours the water into the sink and tells the deputy, “I rebuke you in the name of Jesus.”

Grayson then shouts at Massey and threatens to shoot her, the video shows, and Massey apologizes and ducks down behind a counter, covering her face with what appears to be a red oven mitt. She briefly rises, at which time Grayson shoots her three times in the face, the footage shows.

The footage is from the point of view of Grayson’s partner, because Grayson did not turn on his own body camera until after the shooting, according to court documents.

A review by Illinois State Police found Grayson was not justified in his use of deadly force. He was fired from his position with the Sangamon County Sheriff’s Office on July 17, the same day the charges were filed against him.

Massey family attorney Ben Crump has said the U.S. Department of Justice has opened an investigation into the shooting. However, Chicago ABC station WLS-TV reported last week that the Justice Department told them in a statement that it “is aware of and assessing the circumstances surrounding the tragic officer-involved death of Ms. Sonya Massey and extends condolences to her family and loved ones.”

Grayson himself has a history of problematic behavior. Prior to his time in public law enforcement, he was discharged from the U.S. Army for unspecified “misconduct (serious offense),” according to documents obtained by ABC News.

ABC News also learned that Grayson was charged with two DUI offenses in Macoupin County, Illinois, in August 2015 and July 2016, according to court documents.

James Wilburn, Massey’s father, criticized Sheriff Campbell for his role in Grayson’s employment and called for Campbell to resign at a press conference last week.

“The sheriff here is an embarrassment,” Wilburn said. “[Grayson] should have never had a badge. And he should have never had a gun. He should have never been given the opportunity to kill my child.”

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(KAPOHO, Hawaii) — A man recently identified as a suspect in the 1991 murder of a 23-year-old woman has died by suicide, days after a DNA swab from his cheek matched DNA evidence collected at the crime scene 33 years ago, according to the Hawaii Police Department.

Albert Lauro Jr., 57, was identified as a suspect in the murder of Dana Ireland, who had been kidnapped and raped in the Kapoho area of Hawaii Island on Dec. 24, 1991, according to police. She died a day later at a local hospital.

“This case is still under investigation. Albert Lauro Jr. has been linked to the victim by DNA; however, his exact involvement is still under investigation. And his death was ruled a suicide by the forensic pathologist,” Hawaii Police Department Captain Rio Amon-Wilkins told ABC News.

DNA evidence had been recovered from a swab taken from Ireland’s body, from a sheet used to transport her to the hospital and from a t-shirt found at the scene and was used by police to identify a suspect in her murder this month, according to Hawaii PD.

At the time of the murder, there was no match for the evidence in any DNA database, police said.

In 2008, the DNA evidence was sent to the Forensic Analytical Crime Lab in California, and additional DNA evidence was collected from the T-shirt, which matched other samples from the scene, according to Hawaii PD.

DNA experts are now able to take data from a DNA sample and build a family tree based on known DNA from relatives. Earlier this year, an FBI agent from the Honolulu Field Office contacted police investigators with the names of some people who could potentially match the DNA sample — including Lauro Jr., according to Hawaii PD.

Lauro Jr. lived in the Kapoho area at the time of the murder, so police surveilled him, eventually collecting a utensil that he had been using and then threw away. The DNA collected from the utensil matched the DNA evidence connected to the crime, police said.

The evidence established probable cause for the crime of rape. The statute of limitations for the crime had run out, but investigators were able to continue to investigate the case as a murder — though they did not have enough evidence to establish probable cause and arrest Lauro Jr., according to Hawaii PD.

Investigators obtained a court order for a cheek swab from the suspect, then asked him to come to the station and talk to investigators — but he was not taken into custody at the time. After the swab was taken he asked to leave and was allowed to do so. The swab then matched the DNA taken from the scene of the crime 33 years ago after it was analyzed at the California lab, according to Hawaii PD.

“The Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution protects individuals from unwarranted search and seizure,” Hawaii Police Department Chief Benjamin Moszkowicz said in a statement. “In order to obtain a search warrant, investigators would have to have established probable cause for the crime of murder and explained specifically what evidence it was seeking.”

“We remain focused on Dana Ireland, a young woman who was brutally murdered. There is still a lot about this case that we do not know and our investigation into this case continues to push forward. Our search for the truth is not over,” Moszkowicz said.

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(SPRINGFIELD, Ill.) — An Illinois chief deputy’s concerns regarding Sean Grayson, the former sheriff’s deputy charged with murder in the fatal shooting of Sonya Massey, an unarmed mother of two, are documented in an audio file released Monday.

The recorded 2022 conversation is with Grayson’s then-boss, Logan County Chief Deputy Nathan Miller, who addresses Grayson’s mishandling of a traffic case.

“Seven months on, how are you still employed by us?” Miller said. Grayson responds, “I don’t know.”

The exchange centers around Grayson, who would eventually leave Logan County and join the Sangamon County Sheriff’s Office in 2023, being accused of violating department policy and submitting inaccurate reports.

Miller said he and Grayson have “had this conversation before” and called Grayson’s behavior “extremely concerning.”

“Just me asking you those questions, you got a report writing violation for policy. You got an accuracy violation for policy. You got a standard of conduct violation for policy and we’re 48 seconds into this,” Miller said.

Grayson did not receive any policy violations, as Miller put a hold on the report to discuss the inaccuracies with him before officially submitting the document.

Grayson’s integrity was also questioned.

“I’m calling you on your integrity. How does that make you feel?” Miller asked. Grayson replied that he was learning from it.

“If we can’t trust what you say and what you see, we can’t have you in our uniform,” Miller said.

Miller goes on to remind Grayson that “a lot of officers have been charged and end up in jail,” and reminding him that “official misconduct will land you in jail.”

Grayson’s application to Logan County, where he worked from May 2022 to April 2023, included a letter he wrote explaining and apologizing for his two DUIs, as they were flagged in the hiring process.

Grayson, 30, was charged with two DUI offenses in Macoupin County, Illinois, in August 2015 and July 2016, according to court documents. He pleaded guilty to both charges and paid over $1,320 in fines and had his vehicle impounded as a result of the 2015 incident. In 2016, Grayson paid over $2,400 in fines, according to court records.

Documents obtained by ABC News from Logan state that Grayson resigned in April 2023. He began his full-time job as a sheriff’s deputy at Sangamon County three days after leaving Logan.

Grayson is now behind bars, denied bond, charged with three counts of first-degree murder, aggravated battery with a firearm and official misconduct in Massey’s death. He has pleaded not guilty.

“I’m going to say something right now I’ve never said in my career before: we failed,” Sangamon County Sheriff Jack Campbell said at a community event in Illinois Monday evening, “We did not do our jobs. We failed Sonya. We failed Sonya’s family and friends. We failed the community. I stand here today before you with arms wide open to ask for forgiveness.”

Grayson’s attorney has declined to comment.

The Illinois Fraternal Order of Police Labor on Tuesday said it was dropping its initial grievance seeking to have Grayson reinstated and would not be proceeding any further.

The audio file was released as Grayson’s employment history shows he held six different police jobs in the state of Illinois since 2020, according to the Illinois Law Enforcement Training and Standards Board.

According to employment records, Grayson was hired for his first known police job at the Pawnee Police Department in August 2020 and was fired from his most recent job as a sheriff’s deputy at the Sangamon County Sheriff’s Department after the July 6 deadly shooting of Massey.

Prior to his time in law enforcement, Grayson was discharged from the U.S. Army for “misconduct (serious offense),” according to documents obtained by ABC News.

Grayson was discharged on February 24, 2016, after beginning service in the U.S. Army on May 5, 2014. He served for a total of one year, nine months and 19 days, Grayson’s certificate of discharge from active duty shows.

The U.S. Army, citing the Privacy Act and Department of Defense policy, said it is prevented from releasing information relating to the misconduct of low-level employees or characterization of service at discharge.

Grayson was a 91B (Wheeled Vehicle Mechanic) in the Regular Army from May 2014 to February 2016. He had no deployments and left the Army in the rank of private first class, according to an Army spokesman.

Massey’s heartbroken family continues to mourn her death as they seek justice.

“Our whole family is in a disarray. The main focus of everybody is that this animal gets justice and gets exactly what he deserves,” James Wilburn, Massey’s father, told ABC News affiliate KATV.

ABC News’ Tesfaye Negussie contributed to this report.

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(CHICAGO) — Joaquin Guzman Lopez, the son of infamous Mexican drug lord “El Chapo,” pleaded not guilty to drug trafficking charges during his first court appearance since his high-profile arrest last week.

Guzman Lopez, 38, appeared in federal court in Chicago on Tuesday in an orange jumpsuit before Judge Sharon Johnson Coleman for charges in an indictment brought by the U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Illinois.

He could face the death penalty if convicted, his lawyer, Jeffrey Lichtman, confirmed to reporters following the court appearance.

His next court date has been set for Sept. 30. Lichtman said there is “massive amounts of discovery” to go through over the next few weeks.

Guzman Lopez was one of two top leaders of the Mexican Sinaloa drug cartel taken into custody by U.S. authorities last week to face charges for their roles in leading the group’s vast drug trafficking enterprise, the Department of Justice said. The operation had been planned for several months, a Homeland Security Investigations official told ABC News.

Guzman Lopez and Sinaloa cartel co-founder Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada were placed under arrest in El Paso, Texas, on Thursday, according to Attorney General Merrick Garland.

The two are accused of overseeing the trafficking of tens of thousands of pounds of cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine and fentanyl into the U.S.

Zambada’s attorney, Frank Perez, claimed that Guzman Lopez “forcibly kidnapped” his client.

“My client neither surrendered nor negotiated any terms with the U.S. government. Joaquin Guzman Lopez forcibly kidnapped my client,” Perez said in a statement on Sunday. “He was ambushed, thrown to the ground, and handcuffed by six men in military uniforms and Joaquin. His legs were tied, and a black bag was placed over his head. He was then thrown into the back of a pickup truck and taken to a landing strip. There, he was forced onto a plane, his legs tied to the seat by Joaquin, and brought to the U.S. against his will. The only people on the plane were the pilot, Joaquin and my client.”

Lichtman told reporters there is no agreement between the defendant and the U.S. government.

“I know that there’s been a massive amount of rumors and things printed in the press,” Lichtman said. “I don’t know what’s real. I don’t know what’s not real. But it shouldn’t really surprise anybody that there’s a story that seems to be changing every few minutes.”

Zambada made his initial appearance Friday morning in El Paso federal court before Judge Anne Berton, according to court records. He pleaded not guilty to the 12 charges in his 2012 indictment in the Western District of Texas and was ordered detained pending his next hearing, scheduled for Wednesday, according to court records.

Zambada faces multiple federal indictments in jurisdictions across the U.S. for his alleged role in the cartel and has been on the run from U.S. and Mexican law enforcement for years. His fellow co-founder of the Sinaloa cartel, Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzman, was extradited to the U.S. in 2017, convicted in 2019 and sentenced to life in prison.

Guzman Lopez’s brother, Ovidio Guzman Lopez, was charged last year with two dozen others as part of a crackdown targeting a global drug trafficking network run through the Sinaloa cartel. According to the charges, the cartel used precursor chemicals shipped from China to fuel the fentanyl crisis plaguing the U.S.

Lichtman currently represents Ovidio Guzman Lopez as well. The court discussed the conflict Tuesday, with Lichtman saying that both brothers are fine with him representing them. The government said they are OK with it as well.

Lichtman has also represented El Chapo and his wife, Emma Coronel Aispuro, in federal cases.

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(LOS ANGELES) — Two men are dead after they fatally shot one another in an apparent road rage incident in Southern California, according to the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department.

One of the men had his two children in the car — ages 2 and 5 — at the time of the double shooting.

“It could’ve been so incredibly simple, but unfortunately we have two people who lost their lives instead,” Mara Rodriguez, spokesperson for the sheriff’s department, told Los Angeles ABC station KABC.

Jonathan McConnell, 38, who was driving a motorcycle, was involved in a hit-and-run traffic collision on the 210 Freeway with Aaron Harris, 37, who was driving a sedan, according to the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department.

McConnell split lanes and collided with the sedan occupied by Harris and his two children, the sheriff’s department said.

Harris then followed McConnell off the freeway and into a parking lot. McConnell met several people known to him in the parking lot, according to the sheriff’s department.

Harris then stopped his vehicle and shouted threats at McConnell. When McConnell approached the vehicle, Harris fired a gun at him, authorities said.

McConnell then returned fire. Both men died after they were shot, the sheriff’s department said.

An unnamed adult male at the scene also received a non-fatal gunshot wound to his hand during the incident, the sheriff’s department said.

The children were unharmed in the exchange of gunfire, officials sad.

“We all get angry on the roads sometimes, especially these days there’s so much traffic out there and so many things going on,” Rodriguez told KABC. “But this is a great example of how things can go so wrong so quickly.”

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(LOS ANGELES) — As the Park Fire in Northern California became the fifth largest wildfire in state history on Tuesday, firefighters were dealt a new challenge when another blaze erupted in Southern California and quickly blew up into a major conflagration, prompting mass evacuations, officials said.

At the same time, Colorado firefighters attacked the Alexander Mountain Fire that ignited Monday near the Roosevelt National Forest in Larimer County north of Boulder and quickly spread to more than 1,800 acres as more than 20 different state agencies, including 12 local fire companies, raced to battle the out-of-control flames.

The Nixon Fire

California firefighters were confronting 15 active blazes on Tuesday, including three that started on Monday. Among the biggest new fires is the Nixon Fire that ignited around 12:30 p.m. local time Monday off Richard Nixon Boulevard in Riverside County, northeast of the town of Aguanga, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire).

As of Tuesday morning, the Nixon Fire had grown to 3,750 acres and was 0% contained, according to Cal Fire.

Several structures in the fire zone were damaged, but it was unclear if they were homes. More than 1,100 structures were being threatened by the fire, according to Cal Fire.

The Riverside County Sheriff’s Office issued mandatory evacuation orders for residents in the area.

At least 255 fire personnel, including 44 fire engine crews, two helicopter crews and numerous firefighting air tankers, were battling the fire on Tuesday.

The Park Fire

As of Tuesday morning, the Park Fire, which was deliberately started on Wednesday and spread through Butte, Plumas, Shasta and Tehama counties in Northern California, had grown to 383,619 acres — which sent it leapfrogging over the 2020 Creek Fire, which tore through Central California’s Sierra National Forest, to become the fifth largest wildfire in state history, officials said.

The Park Fire has destroyed 192 structures, including homes and commercial property, and damaged another 19 structures in a path of destruction that started in Bidwell Park near the city of Chico and spread about 90 miles north to the Lassen National Forest, according to Cal Fire.

The monster blaze, encompassing nearly 600 square miles, was 14% contained on Tuesday morning, up from 12% on Monday, according to Cal Fire.

As more than 5,300 firefighters fought the Park Fire from the air and ground on Monday evening, Butte County Sheriff Kory Honea issued a dire warning to residents defying mandatory evacuation orders.

“If the fire blows over, I can’t make any promise or guarantee that we can get up there to save your life,” Honea said during a news conference.

Meanwhile, the suspect arrested on suspicion of starting the Park Fire was formally arraigned on Monday. Ronnie Dean Stout II, 42, of Chico, was charged with felony arson with an enhancement of special circumstances due to prior convictions. His arraignment was continued to Thursday, when he is expected to enter a plea. Stout was ordered to be held without bail.

Stout was allegedly spotted just before 3 p.m. PT on Wednesday pushing a burning car down a gully called “Alligator Hole” in Bidwell Park, near Chico, sparking the Park Fire, prosecutors said.

Weather conditions in the Chico area will be heating up in the coming days. The high temperatures will reach the lower 90s on Tuesday, but on Wednesday, temperatures are forecast to climb into the upper 90s and reach triple digits by Thursday and into the weekend.

The Alexander Mountain Fire in Colorado

Colorado firefighters were trying to get the upper hand on the Alexander Mountain Fire, which was first reported around 10:30 a.m. local time on Monday, according to the Larimer County Sheriff’s Office. The fire burning in a remote mountainous area near Roosevelt National Park grew to 1,820 acres by Tuesday afternoon and was 0% contained, according to the sheriff’s office.

The sheriff’s office ordered residents in the Alexander Mountain and Palisade Mountain areas to “evacuate immediately” as local fire crews and firefighting aircraft raced to battle the blaze.

“We are thankful for the incredible support and partnership from the community and partner agencies,” Larimer County Sheriff John Feyen said of the multiple fire departments that responded to the fire. “The Larimer County community rallied in support of us today — listening to the evacuation orders, and pulling together in our time of need.”

Smoke spreading across the Northwest

The fires in the West are spreading smoke across the Northwest.

By Wednesday afternoon, the smoke is expected to remain heavy in the Northern California region, but farther east, it will be pushed south. Medium to heavy smoke is possible from Salt Lake City to Denver on Wednesday afternoon, while places farther north that have been under heavy smoke for days will finally get a break as they get rainfall and cooler temperatures.

Air quality alerts were issued for Boise, Idaho, and Denver due to the smoky conditions, officials said.

Red flag warnings signaling elevated fire danger were issued for at least Idaho, Wyoming, Utah and Colorado.

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(NEW YORK) — Fred Trump III, the nephew of former President Donald Trump, said his uncle is “atomic crazy,” that he witnessed him using racial slurs decades ago — and that he plans to vote for Kamala Harris.

The Trump way was to be “complex and sometimes cruel,” Fred Trump said in an interview with ABC News’ Aaron Katersky.

“And within every family — people know this — families are complicated. Every family has their crazy uncle. My Uncle Donald is atomic crazy. And … he has put his mark on the family history,” he said, as he promoted his new book, All in the Family: The Trumps and How We Got This Way.

Pressed to explain further, Fred Trump said it “means he does things that, even as much as I know him when he’s out there now, I sort of shudder and say, ‘Is this the same guy I knew? What’s making him change? … What got him this way?’ But that all being said, I’ve always had a good relationship.”

He added, “But he’s done really horrific things to me, which some people will say, ‘How could you still want to have a relationship with him?’ He’s my uncle. He’s family, and that means a lot.”

Fred Trump, the son of the former president’s late older brother Fred Trump II, who died in 1981 at 43, says he wrote the book in part to advocate for people with severe developmental disabilities, like his adult son William. He says this latest Trump family tell-all is not a political hit job, but rather the “full-on truth” about his uncle, who is the Republican nominee for president.

In a statement to ABC News, Trump Campaign Communications Director Steven Cheung denied the claims about the former president.

“This is completely fabricated and total fake news of the highest order,” he said. “It is appalling a lie so blatantly disgusting can be printed in media. Anyone who knows President Trump knows he would never use such language, and false stories like this have been thoroughly debunked.”

The younger Trump’s new book includes a chapter titled, “The Race Card.” In that chapter, he details his uncle using a racial slur, he said.

“I was about 10 years old, and I was at my grandparents’ house, like I was a lot,” Fred Trump said. “And Donald — I could hear him screaming. And I went down to the driveway of my grandparents’ house, and there was his white El Dorado convertible with two slashes. Still remember it. And he had electrical tape, because the roof was black. And he used the word — the N-word — twice just saying who he thought probably had done this.”

The former president has consistently denied using the racial slur. Fred Trump said that despite being young when the incident occurred, he “absolutely” remembered the moment as it happened.

“OK. He did twice that day,” Fred Trump said when ABC News brought up Donald Trump’s repeated denials.

Fred Trump wrote in his book that some people have labeled the former president as racist, and some say he is not. But what does he believe?

“He, at time[s], espouses things that people who I believe are racist espouses. That’s the best I can answer that question,” he said.

“I don’t believe he’s a racist,” Fred Trump added when pressed on the question. “I just think that he uses people, whether they’re Black or they’re — whoever can help him he will use them. And, you know, call it racist or not, I don’t believe in that. He uses them as props. And when he gets what he needs out of them — votes — he’ll cast them aside.”

After his uncle was elected president in 2016, Fred Trump saw an opportunity to advocate for the disabled, he said.

“I was in the Oval Office 12 times about. And that was our mission: to advocate for people with complex disabilities,” he said.

He added, “It culminated in May of 2020 in the Oval Office. Donald was there, and he was very gracious. Several other folks were there, including the group that we brought down. We dispersed. I was asked to go back and see Donald. He greeted me with his familiar, ‘Hey, pal. How’s it going?'”

He says he “sat down for a bit” with his uncle.

“And he just came out with, ‘These people, all the expenses. They should just die,'” Fred Trump recalled. “He’s talking about human beings who have complex issues, and the first thing he could say was they should just die.”

Fred Trump said the comment wasn’t an isolated incident. He described a phone call to alert his uncle that the medical fund set up by the family for his son William was running low, a fund he says his uncle consistently replenished.

“A couple of years ago … I called him. I said, ‘Donald, the fund’s running out.’ And without hesitation, he said, ‘Your son doesn’t recognize you. Let him die and move to Florida,'” Fred Trump said.

Asked if he was surprised by the comment, Fred Trump said he was. He said he told his uncle that his son did recognize him.

“Was I surprised? I don’t think you could hear something like that and not be surprised,” Fred Trump said. “But that is what he has become. It’s sad.”

“You describe your uncle as incredibly cruel. Why would you want a relationship with him?” ABC News asked.

“I’m not gonna change him I don’t think there’s anybody that could change him,” Fred Trump said. “But I’ve always enjoyed time with him. And I would hope if he’s not elected that he’ll calm down. I don’t know if that’s possible. But my guess is I may not be welcome to any of the golf courses anymore. I’ll find others. But I do thank him for the entree to those courses. I’m a heck of a golfer.”

Fred Trump said he planned to vote for Harris, but would attend the inauguration if his uncle wins and if he’s invited.

Tune into “Good Morning America” Tuesday at 7 a.m. ET to watch more of Aaron Katersky’s interview with Fred Trump III.

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(GREENSBORO, N.C.) — A 19-year-old woman has been found dead on a picnic table under a pavilion at a park in North Carolina, police say.

The woman was found on Sunday at approximately 7:27 p.m. when officers from the Greensboro Police Department responded to the 2900 block of Haig Street after a caller expressed concern about “a person lying on a picnic table under a pavilion in the park at that location,” according to a statement from the Greensboro Police Department detailing the incident.

“The caller advised that the person was not moving. The caller said they had heard what they thought were fireworks about an hour earlier,” the statement said. “On closer inspection, the caller reported that the person was not breathing and had injuries that the caller described as gunshot wounds.”

Responding officers immediately went to the scene where they located the victim — later identified as 19-year-old Jakala Marie Goode — and pronounced her deceased at the scene.

Police are investigating Goode’s death as a homicide but did not disclose any potential motives or suspects in the case.

This is the 22nd homicide in Greensboro this year and police are asking for anybody with information to call Greensboro/Guilford Crime Stoppers at 336-373-1000.

All tips to Crime Stoppers are completely anonymous and the investigation is currently ongoing.

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(NEW YORK) — Police in Fort Lee, New Jersey, fatally shot a woman who was experiencing a mental health crisis on Sunday, the state attorney general’s office said.

The woman has not been publicly identified. The incident is now under investigation.

Fort Lee Police Department officers responded to a home at about 1:25 a.m. Sunday after a man called 911, saying his sister was having a mental health crisis and needed to go to the hospital, according to the attorney general’s office. The man said she was holding a knife, the attorney general’s office said.

In the hallway outside the apartment, the man who called 911 spoke to a responding police officer, at which point the officer opened the door to the unit and saw two women inside, according to the attorney general’s office.

The two women, one of whom was believed to be the 911 caller’s sister, “told the officer not to come in and shut the door,” the attorney general’s office said.

The officer knocked on the door, asking the women to open it, but they allegedly did not comply, the office said. More officers then arrived and breached the door.

The sister then “approached the officers in the hallway,” at which point one officer “fired a single shot, striking the female in the chest,” the attorney general’s office said.

It is unclear if the woman was holding a knife at the time she approached the officers, the attorney general’s office said.

Officers then began rendering medical aid to the woman, who was then transported to the hospital, officials said.

She was pronounced dead at the hospital at 1:58 a.m.

The attorney general’s office said a knife was recovered at the scene.

All deaths that take place during law enforcement encounters are required to be investigated by the New Jersey Attorney General’s Office.

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(LOS ANGELES) — One of the largest wildfires in California history, the Park Fire in Northern California, continued to rage Monday morning, racing across four counties and threatening more than 4,200 structures as thousands of firefighters struggled to increase containment lines, officials said.

The blaze, which authorities said was deliberately ignited Wednesday afternoon, had spread to 368,256 acres by Monday morning, or more than 560 square miles, through Butte, Plumas, Shasta and Tehama counties, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE). Containment on the fire remains at 12%, officials said.

The Park Fire is the largest fire burning in the state and the nation right now, surpassing the 288,690-acre Durkee Fire in eastern Oregon, which was sparked on July 17 by a lightning strike and was 49% contained as of Sunday evening, according to the Oregon State Fire Marshal’s Office.

The Park Fire is now the seventh largest fire recorded in California history, officials said. It comes as the state battles 22 other fires, including some as small as 12 acres as of Monday.

More than 100 structures have been confirmed destroyed, and at least five others damaged, according to CAL FIRE. There have been no reports of deaths or people unaccounted for, officials said.

The Butte County Sheriff’s Office lifted some evacuation orders on Sunday. But evacuees like Nalley Orozco told ABC News they had nothing to return to but charred rubble.

Orozco, of the Butte County town Cohasset, was one of more than 3,800 people forced to evacuate as the Park Fire consumed her home and reptile-breeding business Killer Clutches.

“We left everything behind, all personal belongings, all of the enclosures, all the supplies,” Orozco told ABC News, adding that she was able to save all of her animals but lost her home and business.

The rapid spread of the fire is being fueled by an abundance of vegetation and one of the hottest and driest summers on record in the area, officials said.

Temperatures in the area, which have been in the triple digits, cooled slightly to a high of 92 degrees on Sunday in the Chico area, according to the National Weather Service. Winds also died down in the area, but gusts of up to 20 mph are expected on Monday.

In an updated statement Sunday evening, CAL FIRE said that the cooler night and morning temperatures of about 70 degrees moderated the fire behavior, “allowing fire crews the opportunity to actively combat the fire outside of the National Forest lands.”

“This proactive approach aims to safeguard the communities and ecological and cultural resources that may be at risk from the fire,” CAL FIRE said in its statement.

The high temperature on Monday in the fire zone is forecast to be 94 degrees, according to the National Weather Service. By the end of this week, temperatures are forecast to spike back into the 100s, according to the weather service.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency for Butte and Tehama counties due to the Park Fire, as well as Plumas County, where the Gold Complex Fire, which started on July 22, has burned more than 3,000 acres and was 50% contained on Monday.

Ronnie Dean Stout II, 42, was arrested on suspicion of arson in the Park Fire after he allegedly pushed a burning car into a gully in Bidwell Park, near Chico, according to Butte County District Attorney Mike Ramsey. Stout, who is being held without bail in the Butte County Jail, is scheduled to be arraigned on Monday afternoon.

“I don’t know if I’d say I’m angry, but frustration and unnecessary, yes,” Chico-area rancher John Russell told ABC News of learning the fire was deliberately set.

Russell said the fire burned up to this property line but was stopped by firefighters who cut a fire line around his land with a bulldozer to save his barn and cattle.

“I know I’m being recorded, so I won’t say obviously, I’ll put it tactfully… Our cattle survived. We can go on. We can fix the rest. But truly, the real damage and sadness and anger would come from the people who have lost everything,” Russell said.

There are more than 4,700 personnel, 16 helicopters and 337 fire engines assigned just to the Park Fire, officials said.

“Numerous firefighting air tankers from throughout the state are flying fire suppression missions as conditions allow,” according to CAL FIRE.

A fire burning near the Sequoia National Park, the 2024 SQF Lightning Complex Fire in Tulare and Kern counties in Central California, is the second largest blaze burning in the state, having consumed 82,699 acres since starting on July 13, according to CAL FIRE. The blaze was 33% contained on Monday.

The heavy smoke from fires in Northern California and Oregon is spreading across several states, including Nevada, Idaho, Utah, Wyoming and Montana. By Monday afternoon, some of the heavy smoke is expected to reach as far as the Dakotas and Nebraska.

ABC News’ Mola Lenghi and Jaclyn Lee contributed to this report.

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