(DALLAS) — A 25-year-old police officer was killed traveling to work for the start of his shift when he was hit by a driver going the wrong way on the highway.
The incident occurred close to midnight on Tuesday at approximately 11:48 p.m. when Jacob Arellano of the Dallas Police Department was driving to work going northbound on Spur 408 near Kiest Boulevard in Dallas, Texas, when the SUV he was driving was struck by a vehicle driving southbound in the same lane.
“Officer Arellano was driving in the middle of the three lanes when a sedan going southbound in the northbound lanes hit the off-duty officer’s vehicle head-on,” the Dallas Police Department said in a statement announcing the tragic accident on social media. “The crash caused the officer’s vehicle to go into the right lane where it was hit by a tractor trailer. The officer’s vehicle rolled several times and stopped on the right shoulder of Spur 408.”
Officer Arellano was immediately taken to a local hospital where he was listed in critical condition. He later died from his injuries. The unnamed suspect who struck Arellano was also taken to the hospital and was listed in serious condition following the crash.
The Dallas Police Department posted a video thanking the public for the support they have shown Arellano’s friends and family in the aftermath of his death as well as to all of those who worked with him on the force.
Following an initial investigation, the Dallas Police Department determined that the wrong way driver may have been intoxicated, authorities said. Police did not give any further information on their ongoing investigation or the current condition of the suspect involved in the crash.
Arellano had been a member of the Dallas Police Department since June of 2019 and worked in the Northwest Patrol Division. He is survived by his parents, girlfriend and infant child as well as his brother who also works as a Dallas Police Officer.
(BRISTOL, Conn.) — Two police officers have been shot and killed and one left with serious injuries in a shooting that took place overnight in Bristol, Connecticut.
Connecticut State Police personnel have been requested to assist the Bristol Police Department with an investigation of a shooting involving three police officers that reportedly took place on Redstone Hill Road, authorities said.
“There were 3 officers involved in this OIS. We are still working on gathering info & providing a press conference. Once we have a location & time we will update everyone. Please be patient as we are working with investors & all that are involved to gather accurate info,” Connecticut State Police said in a statement released on social media.
“We ask your thoughts and prayers be with the families, the officer and all those impacted,” Connecticut State Police said.
(WASHINGTON) — A former member of the Oath Keepers militia group testified Wednesday about the large stash of weapons stored by the group at a hotel just outside Washington, D.C., during the Jan. 6, 2001, assault on the Capitol, as prosecutors provided more details on the group’s planning and private communications leading up to the attack.
“I had not seen that many weapons in one location since I was in the military,” said Terry Cummings, a former member of the group’s Florida chapter who was subpoenaed for his testimony and has not been charged or accused of wrongdoing in connection with Jan. 6.
Cummings testified that he traveled to D.C. with Oath Keeper Jason Dolan, one of three members of the group who earlier pleaded guilty to seditious conspiracy, as well as with Oath Keeper Kenneth Harrelson, one of the five defendants — including Kelly Meggs, Jessica Watkins, Thomas Caldwell, and Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes — who are currently being tried on seditious conspiracy charges. All five have pleaded not guilty.
Cummings said he stored his AR-15 style weapon at the group’s so-called “QRF” or Quick Reaction Force hotel in Virginia, and showed members of the jury the weapon as well as a canister apparently filled with ammunition magazines.
Prosecutors have previously released photos showing Harrelson in the hotel rolling what appears to be at least one rifle case down a hallway.
They displayed another surveillance photo during Wednesday’s hearing showing Cummings with Harrelson in the hallway together.
Cummings testified that his intention of bringing his weapon was not for use in an “offensive situation” but rather in a “show of force,” as a means of deterring potential attacks. Defense attorneys for the Oath Keepers currently on trial have made similar arguments, noting that at no point were members of the QRF instructed to come into the city.
Cummings said that on the morning of Jan. 6 he traveled to the Ellipse in D.C. where the “Stop the Steal” rally was taking place. He said he was told that Meggs was in touch with the organizers of the rally, and that they were given passes to the rally’s VIP area. He said he and other Oath Keepers then met with a VIP who they were supposed to escort to the Capitol — a Hispanic woman whose name he didn’t recall.
Cummings testified that the group left before Trump’s speech ended and began walking to the Capitol — at which point Meggs received word the Capitol had been “breached.”
Cummings said that when they got to the Capitol, it was like nothing he had ever seen. He said that when he heard Meggs suggest they go into the Capitol building, he didn’t think it was a good idea.
“My understanding was that Congress was in session, and I knew the vice president was going to be there, and I personally I didn’t think it was a good idea to enter,” Cummings testified.
On cross-examination from Rhodes’ attorney, Cummings testified that he was never part of a conversation in the days leading up to the attack or on Jan. 6 in which people discussed plans to storm the Capitol building. Rhodes’ attorney stressed to the jury that when the group was told during their walk to the Capitol that the building had been breached, no members began running to join the riot or otherwise discussed plans to enter the building.
Prosecutors, meanwhile, introduced texts and private messages between Rhodes and several of the Oath Keepers who have already pleaded guilty in connection with the case, including Dolan, Brian Ulrich and Joshua James.
In one message from Dec. 5, Ulrich wrote, “I seriously wonder what it would take just to get every patriot marching around the Capitol armed just to show our government how powerful they are.”
On Dec. 14, Rhodes texted a group of Georgia Oath Keepers, “Things are in the works. That’s all I can say, I am still in DC for a reason. Yes, take that as a big hint.”
He then added, “I have to try to get Trump the message on the necessity of him waging a war on the enemy NOW while he is still President and Commander in Chief.”
One day later, according to records, Rhodes told the group he passed a message to Trump “through one contact” and was working with others.
According to the messages, the group began discussing traveling to D.C. for Jan. 6 as early as Dec. 20, one day after Trump’s tweeted that Jan. 6 “Will be wild.”
The trial could last until mid-November, D.C. district judge Amit Mehta said.
(LOS ANGELES) — Former Los Angeles City Council President Nury Martinez announced Wednesday she has resigned her seat, amid demands for her to step down after a recording emerged of her making racist and offensive comments about fellow council members.
In a lengthy statement, Martinez, who served on the council for the past nine years, thanked her staff, saying, “I’m sorry that we’re ending it this way. This is no reflection on you. I know you all will continue to do great work and fight for our district. I’ll be cheering you on.”
“While I take the time to look inwards and reflect, I ask that you give me space and privacy,” she said.
The resignation comes hours after the Los Angeles City Council adjourned its meeting before even starting after protesters demanded the resignations of Martinez and two other council members on the recording.
Protesters chanting in the LA City Council’s chambers caused repeated delays to the start of the meeting, chanting “no resignation, no meeting” and “step down or we shut down.”
A recording posted anonymously to Reddit over the weekend captured Martinez making allegedly racist and offensive comments about a fellow council member’s son. Two other city council members were also on the recording, with protesters calling on them to resign, as well.
The three council members on the recording were not in the chamber Wednesday, according to President Pro Tempore Mitch O’Farrell.
“For Los Angeles to heal, and for its City Council to govern, there must be accountability. The resignation of Councilmember Nury Martinez is the first, necessary step in that process,” O’Farrell said in a statement, while calling on the two other council members implicated in the scandal to resign, as well.
“There is no other way forward,” he said.
Martinez resigned from her role as city council president on Monday, but remained a member of the council. On Tuesday, she announced she was taking a leave of absence from her position.
O’Farrell tried to quiet protesters several times on Wednesday, even saying the council would open the floor for public comments, but protests continued. O’Farrell called two recesses at the beginning of the meeting to quiet protesters, without success. The meeting was scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. and was adjourned just over an hour later after the council was unable to conduct any business.
Protesters could be heard criticizing members of the council who were in the chamber for trying to continue the meeting.
In a recording of three Latino city council members, Martinez allegedly referred to white council member Mike Bonin’s son, who is Black, as an “accessory.” The recording was first posted to Reddit and later deleted. The Los Angeles Times reviewed the recording and confirmed it was authentic.
ABC News has not independently confirmed the authenticity of the recording.
In the recording, Martinez allegedly said Bonin’s young son behaved “parece changuito,” or “like a monkey.” In a statements released on Monday and Tuesday, Martinez apologized to her colleagues, Bonin and his family.
Bonin appeared at the beginning of the meeting via video call, telling the council he tested positive for COVID-19 and would be appearing remotely.
Protesters gathered at City Hall on Tuesday, calling for Martinez and the city council members in the recording to resign from their positions. protesters even made their way into the chamber where a council meeting was being held, disrupting it from starting while chanting “resign now” and “not one more day.”
Bonin condemned the statements and called for Martinez and the two other city council members allegedly speaking with her on the recording — Kevin de León and Gil Cedillo — to resign.
The California Department of Justice announced it was launching an investigation into the Los Angeles City Council redistricting process on Wednesday as well. The recording that captured the racist comments was made while the three were discussing redistricting, offering a rare look into the bitterness surrounding those decisions.
“The leaked audio has cast doubt on a cornerstone of our political processes for Los Angeles,” California Attorney General Rob Bonta said in a statement. “Given these unique circumstances, my office will investigate to gather the facts, work to determine the truth, and take action, as necessary, to ensure the fair application of our laws. We will endeavor to bring the truth to light as part of the sorely-needed work to restore confidence in the redistricting process for the people of our state.”
On Tuesday, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said President Joe Biden was “glad to see” Martinez’s resignation, and added that all participants in the conversation “should resign.”
Jean-Pierre did not appear to recognize that Martinez only resigned as president of the council, not as a member.
“The president is glad to see that one of the participants in that conversation has resigned but they all should,” Jean-Pierre said. “He believes that they all should resign. The language that was used and tolerated during that conversation was unacceptable, and it was appalling.”
ABC News’ Sarah Kolinovsky contributed to this report.
(WATERBURY, Conn.) — A Connecticut jury awarded hundreds of millions of dollars in damages to 15 plaintiffs defamed by conspiracy theorist Alex Jones when the Infowars host called the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting a hoax staged by actors following a script written by the government to build support for gun control.
With the plaintiffs sobbing in the gallery, the clerk read out the verdict in which the jury decided compensatory damages for both slander and for emotional distress.
The compensatory damages total about a billion dollars, far exceeding the award in a prior case in Texas. He was ordered to pay just shy of $50 million in that case, which was decided in August.
The jury also awarded attorneys fees and costs Wednesday.
Jones, who was on the air with his radio program as the verdict was read, told his listeners, “This must be what hell is like — they just read out the damages, even though you don’t got the money.”
His attorney, attorney Norm Pattis, told reporters they plan to appeal the decision.
“Candidly, from start to finish, the fix was in in this case,” Pattis said outside the courthouse. “We disagree with the basis of the default, we disagree with the court’s evidentiary rulings.”
“In more than 200 trials in the course of my career, I’ve never seen a trial like this,” he continued.
The plaintiffs, relatives of victims and an FBI agent who responded to the scene, testified that they were tormented by Jones’ followers who believed his lies about the massacre. The families said they were harassed and threatened in the decade since the shooting.
One of the plaintiffs, Robbie Parker, whose 6-year-old daughter Emilie was killed in the Sandy Hook massacre, thanked his lawyers for helping him “fight and stand up to what had been happening to me for so long.”
“I’m just proud that what we were able to accomplish was just to simply tell the truth. And it shouldn’t be this hard. And it shouldn’t be this scary,” he said in an emotional statement given outside the courthouse.
Parker expressed gratitude for the jury “not just because of their verdict, but for what they had to endure, what they had to listen to,” he continued.
Jones testified he believed at the time the shooting might have been staged but he has since said he now believes it’s real. He declined to apologize to the families on the stand in this trial, saying he had already apologized enough.
A judge last year found Jones and Infowars’ parent company, Free Speech Systems, liable in the defamation lawsuit, with plaintiffs that include an FBI agent who responded to the scene and eight families of victims that Jones called actors.
The plaintiffs’ attorney had asked that Jones pay $550 million to a group of Sandy Hook parents, who claim the Infowars host spread lies about the mass shooting that killed 26 people, including 20 elementary school children.
The attorney, Chris Mattei, asked the six jurors to “think about the scale of the defamation,” citing as one example Jones’ claim the families, “faked their 6- or 7-year-old’s death.”
Pattis told jurors it was not their job to bankrupt Jones so he would stop broadcasting lies.
Pattis said he represents a “despised human being” but balked at the half-billion-dollar sum proposed by the plaintiffs’ attorney.
“It would take a person earning $100,000 a year hundreds of years to make $550 million,” Pattis said during his closing statement.
Jones faces a third, and final, trial that could result in another hefty damage award.
(PHILADELPHIA) — Three members of a Philadelphia SWAT team were shot while serving a warrant Wednesday morning, according to police, who again pleaded for an end to the city’s gun violence.
It appears all the injured officers will be OK, Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney said.
This shooting occurred just after 6 a.m. as SWAT officers tried to serve a warrant on a person who was wanted for an August homicide and was suspected of participating in multiple armed robberies, Philadelphia Police First Deputy Commissioner John Stanford said at a news conference.
As officers approached the door, the 19-year-old suspect shot at them through the door and window, Stanford said.
The suspect tried to flee, and when the SWAT officers followed, the suspect fired at them, according to Stanford.
SWAT officers returned fire and the suspect was pronounced dead at 7:32 a.m., he said.
Two of the injured officers are expected to be released from the hospital later on Wednesday, Stanford said. One officer was struck in the leg, one in the hip and the third was hit in the upper chest, Stanford said.
“It’s good to see them sitting up, talking, and their families around them,” Kenney told reporters.
Stanford called the level of gun violence in Philadelphia “ridiculous,” adding, “it’s enough.”
“There’s not a day that goes by that we don’t either have a child that is shot, or multiple people shot, because there are too many people out here carrying guns and they don’t have consequences,” he said. “Some people need to be in jail.”
“This should not be happening — this is not normal,” he said. “Unfortunately we have come to believe that this is the normal course of events — it’s not … it is troubling.”
Stanford stressed that Wednesday’s suspected gunman was just 19 years old.
“Something has been broken in this young man’s life for a long time, and it just didn’t start today,” he said.
(BALTIMORE) — Marilyn Mosby, state’s attorney for Baltimore City, who made the decision to drop the murder case against Adnan Syed, said on Wednesday that her office’s re-investigation of the case had raised “major red flags.”
“Our review of the case quickly turned from making a mere recommendation for release to a re-investigation to claim actual innocence,” Mosby said on ABC News’ Good Morning America on Wednesday, “because there were major red flags.”
Prosecutors in Maryland dropped charges against Syed, the man who was convicted of killing his former girlfriend in 2000, a case made popular by the 2014 “Serial” podcast that investigated issues with the prosecution.
Mosby said her office was approached by the public defender’s office about the case.
“As we started to dig into the case, one of the things that we saw was not all the evidence was tested,” Mosby said. “The first round of DNA testing we did didn’t produce results, but following the second round of DNA, we found that there was a DNA mixture of multiple contributors. And they excluded Adnan Syed.”
Coupled with the “integrity” of the investigation, there were “so many red flags,” she said.
“This was really the nail in the coffin that assured me, which is why I instructed my prosecutors to dismiss the case yesterday,” Mosby said.
The murder case of Hae Min Lee, Syed’s ex-girlfriend, is open and pending, Mosby said.
Mosby said she never listened to the “Serial” podcast.
(NEW YORK) — A man arrested in Georgia has confessed to murdering five people in South Carolina, authorities announced Tuesday.
James Douglas Drayton, 24, was taken into custody in Georgia’s Burke County on Monday morning, after he allegedly committed an armed robbery and fled the scene in a stolen vehicle that authorities said was registered to a family member of one of the victims in South Carolina’s Spartanburg County, about 145 miles away.
“He confessed to the crime,” Spartanburg County Sheriff Chuck Wright said during a press conference on Tuesday. “He basically said he’d been hearing voices. Not sure what that means for him, but he knew he’d been using meth and had been up for like four days. Hadn’t slept in four days, probably not thinking.”
The murders took place over the weekend in the town of Inman at a home that Wright described as a “safe haven” for drug use. Deputies from the Spartanburg County Sheriff’s Office responded to a death call at the residence on Bobo Drive on Sunday evening. Upon arrival, deputies discovered four people who had been shot to death — identified as Thomas Ellis Anderson, 37, Adam Daniel Morley, 32, Mark Allen Hewitt, 59, and Roman Christean Megael Rocha, 19.
A fifth victim was found still showing signs of life and was transported to Spartanburg Medical Center, where they died. Their identity was not released because their family has not yet been notified, according to the Spartanburg County Sheriff’s Office.
“This is the largest single murder we’ve had in Spartanburg County,” Wright told reporters.
Wright said all five victims were drug users and were known to Drayton, who investigators believe had been staying at the home for about two weeks. The victims were also living there at the time of the incident and investigators located belongings with Drayton’s name, according to the Spartanburg County Sheriff’s Office.
“Wouldn’t have mattered to me if they were church members and never did any of that stuff, or they were heroin addicts. They were still somebody’s son, brother, friend, dad,” Wright said. “They are all a child of God — they didn’t deserve what they got.”
After the shootings, Drayton allegedly stole a car from the home, which he crashed during a brief, high-speed chase in Georgia, where he was apprehended and is now awaiting extradition to South Carolina. He will be charged with five counts of murder, Wright said.
Drayton gave investigators a “full confession” about the murders, providing “specific information” about the crime scene, including the location of the five victims, according to the Spartanburg County Sheriff’s Office.
“I don’t have answers as to why. He said some things in his interviews that I’m going to hold on to because his attorney probably needs to process some of this stuff,” Wright said. “It’s awful.”
Burke County’s online jail records did not list an attorney for Drayton.
Although the suspect was arrested, Wright said the victims “did not get justice at all.”
“Just because we have someone in custody doesn’t make things better for these families,” he added. “It just means that they don’t have to wonder.”
(PHILADELPHIA) — Three members of a SWAT team were shot in North Philadelphia while serving a warrant early on Wednesday morning, ABC News’ WPVI-TV reported.
The officers were taken to Jefferson University Hospital, where they were listed in stable condition.
(NEW YORK) — Damage from weather and climate disasters in 2022 could exceed $100 billion in the U.S. by the end of the year, according to estimations from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
So far this year, 15 events — including the recent Hurricanes Fiona and Ian — have incurred damages of more than $1 billion, NOAA announced on Tuesday. It is the eighth consecutive year in which the U.S. has endured 10 or more billion-dollar disaster events.
The current tally for 2022 is $29.3 billion in destruction, but the costs from Fiona, Ian and the wildfires in the West are still being tallied, according to NOAA.
More than 340 people have died in these events, but death tolls could rise as search and rescue crews continue to comb through battered portions of Southwest Florida and Puerto Rico.
Ian made landfall in Florida on Sept. 28 as a strong Category 4 hurricane and tracked across the state before exiting into the Atlantic Ocean and making another landfall in South Carolina as a Category 1 storm. Entire neighborhoods on Sanibel Island and Fort Myers Beach were decimated with storm surge and up to 150 mph winds.
On Sept. 18, Fiona brought major flooding, damage and loss of life to Puerto Rico — five years after the island was devastated by Hurricane Maria.
Since 1980, the U.S. has sustained 338 weather and climate disasters in which the overall damages exceeded $1 billion, according to NOAA. The total cost of those 338 events exceeds $2.295 trillion.
Climate scientists warn that extreme weather events such as hurricanes, wildfires and drought will become more severe as global temperatures continue to rise.
