(WASHINGTON) — An alleged gunman accused of shooting three Metropolitan Police Department officers in Washington, D.C., surrendered Wednesday night after a lengthy standoff, the Metropolitan Police Department confirmed.
The incident unfolded Wednesday morning around 7:30 a.m. when the officers went to a residence to serve an arrest warrant on a subject wanted on a charge of cruelty to animals.
Officers tried to make contact with the individual inside the home, but the suspect refused to go outside, Police Chief Pamela Smith told reporters earlier Wednesday.
Officers then tried to go inside the home, and the suspect then fired at them, Smith said.
The three officers suffered non-life-threatening gunshot wounds and were said to be in “good spirits” at local hospitals, Smith said. A fourth officer was injured but was not shot, she said. All are expected to recover, the MPD said Wednesday night.
The alleged gunman stayed barricaded until Wednesday evening. Authorities negotiated with the subject throughout the day.
The MPD identified the suspect as Julius James, 46, of Southeast, D.C.
He was arrested following his surrender and charged with Cruelty to Animals.
Authorities said additional charges for the assault on the four officers are pending.
ABC was not immediately able to find a legal representative for James.
Samantha Miller of the Humane Rescue Alliance told ABC News that dozens of dogs were recovered Wednesday.
“Officers with the Humane Rescue Alliance removed 31 dogs, 20 adults and 11 puppies, from the home. The dogs are in the care of HRA at a secure location, where they will be examined and provided with the care they need,” Miller said.
President Joe Biden is praying for the officers’ recoveries, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters Wednesday.
“This shooting is yet another distressing and painful reminder of the toll gun violence is inflicting on families in our communities, and obviously on our nation,” Jean-Pierre said. “The president has taken executive actions to help keep guns out of the dangerous hands, and [the Department of Justice] is implementing the new gun trafficking law in the bipartisan Safer Communities Act, but it’s not enough. We need the Republicans in Congress to act — we need them to be willing to make sure that communities are safer.”
Kansas City police are seen at Union Station, where a shooting broke out during the Chiefs’ Super Bowl victory rally on Wednesday, Feb. 14, 2024, in Kansas City, Missouri. (Glenn E. Rice/The Kansas City Star/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)
(KANSAS CITY, Mo.) — Investigators are searching for answers after gunfire erupted near the end of the Kansas City Chiefs’ Super Bowl celebration on Wednesday, killing one person and injuring at least 21 others.
The mass shooting unfolded outside Union Station in Kansas City, Missouri, as Chiefs fans were leaving a parade and rally for the NFL champions. More than 800 law enforcement officers were on duty in the area, as one million paradegoers were expected to attend Wednesday’s celebration, according to Kansas City Missouri Mayor Quinton Lucas.
Three suspects were detained and at least one firearm was recovered from the scene, according to the Kansas City, Missouri, Police Department. An investigation into the shooting was ongoing, with the motive unclear.
Multiple law enforcement sources told ABC News on Wednesday that there was no evidence pointing to terrorism thus far and the local police department would remain the lead agency in the investigation for now.
“I am angry,” Kansas City Missouri Police Chief Graves told reporters Wednesday. “The people who came to this celebration should expect a safe environment.”
Investigators are still working to determine the total number of victims from the incident. Twenty-two people sustained gunshot wounds and one of them died, police said. Eight of the gunshot victims were hospitalized with “immediately” life-threatening injuries and seven with life-threatening injuries, according to the Kansas City Missouri Fire Department.
Children’s Mercy Kansas City Hospital admitted and treated a total of 12 patients from Wednesday’s shooting, including 11 children between the ages of 6 and 15, according to Senior Vice President and Chief Nursing Officer Stephanie Meyer. Nine of the patients were gunshot victims and three were being treated for “incidental injuries,” Meyer said. All were expected to make a full recovery.
Local radio station KKFI 90.1 FM confirmed that its DJ, Lisa Lopez-Galvan, was killed in the shooting.
“It is with sincere sadness and an extremely heavy and broken heart that we let our community know that KKFI DJ Lisa Lopez, host of Taste of Tejano lost her life today in the shooting at the KC Chiefs’ rally. Our hearts and prayers are with her family,” the radio station said in a statement Wednesday. “This senseless act has taken a beautiful person from her family and this KC Community.”
All Chiefs players, coaches and staff were confirmed safe.
So far this year, there have been at least 48 mass shootings in the United States, with 81 killed and 165 wounded.
(NEW YORK) — When Donald Trump first entered a Manhattan, New York courtroom last April for his arraignment on hush money charges, the moment was historic for the country and novel for the former president.
But in the year that followed, Trump faced four additional indictments and spent about three weeks in New York courtrooms to attend his civil trials — denying wrongdoing in each case. The unprecedented became the norm for a former president simultaneously fighting multiple criminal cases while vying for the presidency.
Trump plans to return to that same New York courtroom on Thursday for the final scheduled hearing before he goes to trial on March 25 for what prosecutors allege was “an expansive and corrupt criminal scheme” to conceal information from voters ahead of the 2016 election.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg charged Trump with 34 felony counts of falsifying business records, alleging that Trump falsified Trump Organization records to hide payments he made to his former lawyer Michael Cohen, who allegedly used the money to kill stories about Trump’s long-denied extramarital affairs with Stormy Daniels and Karen McDougal just days before the 2016 election.
Trump pleaded not guilty to all charges and has denied all wrongdoing.
The judge overseeing the case, Juan Manuel Merchan, scheduled Thursday’s hearing late last year to resolve pretrial motions and finalize the trial date, which appears likely to be Trump’s first criminal trial this year.
Motion to dismiss
In October, Trump’s lawyers filed a motion to dismiss the charges by arguing that the case itself was politically motivated, that it interferes with the 2024 election, that it’s barred by the statute of limitations, and that it includes multiple technical defects.
“The pendency of these proceedings, and the manner in which they were initiated, calls into question the integrity of the criminal justice process, is inconsistent with bedrock due process principles, and is interfering with the campaign of the leading candidate in the 2024 presidential election,” Trump’s attorney Todd Blanche said in the motion.
Blanche argued that the payments to Cohen were lawful money transfers from Trump’s own personal bank accounts.
“President Trump cannot be said to have falsified business records of the Trump Organization by paying his personal attorney using his personal bank accounts,” Blanche wrote.
In response, prosecutors argued that Trump is asking for special treatment because he is running for president.
“Courts have repeatedly rejected defendant’s demands for special treatment and instead have adhered to the core principle that the rule of law applies equally to the powerful as to the powerless,” prosecutors wrote.
Meanwhile, in Georgia
As Trump attends the hearing in New York, a separate hearing in his Georgia election interference case is scheduled to take place in Atlanta.
Judge Scott McAfee, who is overseeing Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis’ sprawling racketeering case against Trump and 18 co-defendants, has set a two-day hearing to hear motions on whether Willis should be disqualified from the case after multiple defendants accused her of benefiting financially from a personal relationship with a prosecutor she hired in the case. Willis has denied the allegation.
“I think it’s clear that disqualification can occur if evidence is produced demonstrating an actual conflict or the appearance of one,” Judge McAfee said during a Monday hearing. “The state has admitted a relationship existed. And so what remains to be proven is the existence and extent of any financial benefit, again if there even was one.”
Despite the high stakes in Georgia, Trump opted to attend the New York hearing instead of the Fulton County one. He is not required to attend either hearing, and can leave the hearing whenever he wants.
“President Trump will be attending court in New York on Thursday,” Trump’s attorney in Georgia, Steve Sadow, said in a statement Tuesday.
Trump’s trial calendar
Of Trump’s four criminal trials, only two currently have set trial dates. His New York trial is scheduled to begin March 25 and his federal classified documents case in Florida is scheduled to start on May 20, although that trial date appears unlikely to stick given the complexity of the case.
Trump’s federal election interference case in Washington, D.C. was initially scheduled to begin on March 4, but the proceedings have been frozen since December while Trump advances his appeal on the grounds of presidential immunity. Last week a three-judge panel in the U.S. Court of Appeals rejected Trump’s claim of presidential immunity as it pertains to the case, and on Monday Trump asked the Supreme Court to stay that decision in order to allow the appellate process to play out.
The Supreme Court is currently considering Trump’s application for an emergency stay of the proceedings.
If or when the federal election case resumes, U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan would likely need to give the parties at least two months to prepare for a trial, according to NYU Law Professor Richard Pildes.
With that case stalled, Judge Merchan in New York appears positioned to oversee Trump’s first criminal trial and has already begun communicating with the parties about the jury selection process.
(KANSAS CITY) — One person has died and at least 21 others were injured by gunfire when a shooting broke out in Kansas City, Missouri, following the parade and rally for the Chiefs’ Super Bowl win, officials said Wednesday.
The shooting took place west of Union Station, outside near the garage, as Chiefs fans were leaving, according to Kansas City police.
Paradegoer Arnold Sauther said when the rally ended, the Chiefs went into Union Station, and fans followed the players to get autographs.
“Then, all of a sudden they all started running out, and you see all these policemen come running in there — and you knew something happened in the station,” Sauther told Kansas City ABC affiliate KMBC-TV.
One woman told KMBC that they hid near an elevator and “prayed.”
“There was yelling, and we didn’t know if it was safe to leave, so we tried to block the doors. We heard the elevator start to move, so we opened the doors and ran out — there were officers there,” she told the station. “I’ve never been so glad to see an officer in my life.”
Gunshot victims were transported to several hospitals in the area, including eight with “immediately” life-threatening injuries and seven with life-threatening injuries, according to Interim Kansas City Fire Chief Ross Grundyson.
Children’s Mercy Kansas City Hospital treated 12 total patients from the rally, including 11 children between the ages of 6 and 15, Senior Vice President and Chief Nursing Officer Stephanie Meyer told reporters Wednesday. Nine of the patients were gunshot victims and three were being treated for “incidental injuries,” she said. All are expected to make a full recovery.
Authorities are still working to determine the total number of victims in the incident.
On Wednesday night, KKFI 90.1 FM confirmed Lisa Lopez-Galvan, a DJ at the station, had been killed in the incident.
“It is with sincere sadness and an extremely heavy and broken heart that we let our community know that KKFI DJ Lisa Lopez, host of Taste of Tejano lost her life today in the shooting at the KC Chiefs’ rally. Our hearts and prayers are with her family. We encourage anyone who feels they saw something to reach out to law enforcement at 816 234 5111,” the station’s statement read.
“This senseless act has taken a beautiful person from her family and this KC Community,” KKFI’s statement concluded.
Three suspects have been detained, Kansas City Police Chief Stacey Graves said at a media briefing Wednesday, calling the shooting a “tragedy.”
At least one firearm has been recovered, the chief said. A motive remains unclear.
Authorities said Wednesday the scene would remain active as investigators had a “large ground to cover.”
About one million paradegoers had been expected at Wednesday’s celebration.
The police chief said 800 law enforcement officers were at the parade and rally.
“I am angry,” Graves said. “The people who came to this celebration should expect a safe environment.”
All Chiefs players, coaches and staff were safe, officials confirmed later in the afternoon.
Chiefs’ players, including quarterback Patrick Mahomes, linebacker Drue Tranquill, guard Trey Smith and tight end Travis Kelce spoke out on social media about the shooting.
Mahomes wrote, “Praying for Kansas City… 🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽,” on his X page.
“Please join me in prayer for all the victims in this heinous act,” Tranquill wrote on X. “Pray that doctors & first responders would have steady hands & that all would experience full healing.”
Smith thanked the first responders “who ran towards the sound of danger.”
“You’re the ones who should be celebrated today,” he posted.
Travis Kelce wrote on X, “I am heartbroken over the tragedy that took place today. My heart is with all who came out to celebrate with us and have been affected. KC, you mean the world to me.”
Missouri Gov. Mike Parson said he and first lady Teresa Parson were present at the celebration when shots broke out.
“Thanks to the professionalism of our security officers and first responders, Teresa and I and our staff are safe and secure,” he said in a statement.
“We commend local first responders and our state Missouri Disaster Medical Assistance Team for their quick actions to stop the threat and treat those in need,” his statement continued. “State and local law enforcement were prepared, they had a plan, and they ran towards danger when presented, undoubtedly saving lives. … As we wait to learn more, our hearts and prayers go out to the victims of this senseless violence.”
President Joe Biden said in a statement Wednesday night that the Kansas City shooting “cuts deep in the American soul,” and should “shame us into acting.”
“We have to decide who we are as a country,” Biden wrote. “For me, we’re a country where people should have the right to go to school, to go to church, to walk the street — and to attend a Super Bowl celebration — without fear of losing your life to gun violence.”
The president said he and the first lady are praying for the victims and the country.
(WASHINGTON) — Two protesters dumped red powder on the encasement protecting the U.S. Constitution at the National Archives, prompting the closure of its rotunda and galleries Wednesday afternoon.
Around 2:30 p.m., two men poured red powder on themselves and the encased Constitution in the Archives’ rotunda. D.C. police responded to the scene where they arrested them for destruction of federal property.
There was no damage to the Constitution.
In a video posted on X, two men covered in the red powder are standing in front of the Constitution, one of them saying, “We all deserve clean air, water, food and a livable climate.”
Climate protesters have recently targeted works of art and other landmarks to draw attention to their cause. On Tuesday, two climate activists attached images of recent flood damage in the Tuscany region on the protective glass of Botticelli’s masterpiece “The Birth of Venus” hanging at Florence’s Uffizi Gallery.
The National Archives released a statement condemning the vandalism on the sacred documents.
“The National Archives Rotunda is the sanctuary for our nation’s founding documents. They are here for all Americans to view and understand the principles of our nation. We take such vandalism very seriously and we will insist that the perpetrators be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” Dr. Colleen Shogan, archivist of the United States, said in the statement.
The rotunda houses the Constitution, Declaration of Independence and Bill of Rights.
The National Archives said the rotunda will be closed for clean up and is set to open at its scheduled time Thursday.
(MIAMI) — An activity permission slip for a reading of a Black author’s book at a Miami-Dade public school library stoked anger and confusion among parents and school board members.
In a now-viral post on social media, a parent posted a photo of a required permission slip for an event in which “students will participate and listen to a book written by an African American” hosted during Black History Month, the slip read.
The district told ABC News that officials “realize that the description of the event may have caused confusion, and we are working with our schools to reemphasize the importance of clarity for parents in describing activities/events that would require parental permission.”
The district clarified that permission slips were sent home because of the guest speakers who would be participating in the school-authorized education-related activity.
In a Feb. 13 hearing about the incident, Dr. Jose L. Dotres, superintendent of the Miami Dade Public Schools, said he spoke to leaders of the school that issued the permission slip.
“There is absolutely no need for any parent permission slip. Absolutely none,” he said at the hearing.
He said he is working with educators and administrators in what will be “an ongoing process to make sure that we seek the clarity that’s required to make sure that we only use parent permission slips for when they’re needed.”
The permission slip request highlighted the ongoing scrutiny of the state’s restrictions concerning education on race.
The state’s 2022 Individual Freedom Act, also known as the Stop WOKE Act, restricts race-related curriculum in schools, including topics like unconscious bias and privilege. Classroom lessons can’t cause students to feel any responsibility, guilt, or anguish, in relation to past actions committed by people of their race, according to the legislation.
Critics of these policies have said they are too vague and cause teachers to avoid or self-censor subjects that relate to race for fear of violating the law.
Supporters of the bills argue it protects students from “indoctrination,” according to Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration.
The Florida Board of Education has also come under scrutiny for changing the state’s standards on African American history in July 2023, requiring that students be taught that “slaves developed skills which, in some instances, could be applied for their personal benefit.”
The standards also conflate incidents of race-based violence against Black Americans with “acts of violence perpetrated … by African Americans,” the new standards read.
The Florida Department of Education told ABC News in 2023 that the version of the course at the time was “inexplicably contrary to Florida law and significantly lacks educational value.”
Education Commissioner Manny Diaz Jr. defended the move in a tweet at the time, writing, “Florida is focused on teaching true and accurate African American history.”
DeSantis’ administration also rejected an AP African American history course in 2023. The Florida Department of Education told ABC News the version of the course at the time was “inexplicably contrary to Florida law and significantly lacks educational value.”
The decision stoked criticism from educators across the country and even the White House.
“The state chooses to block a course that is meant for high-achieving high school students to learn about their history of arts and culture,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters during a press briefing at the time. “It is incomprehensible.”
Law enforcement and medical personnel respond to a shooting at Union Station during the Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl LVIII victory parade, Feb. 14, 2024, in Kansas City, Missouri. (Jamie Squire/Getty Images)
(KANSAS CITY, Mo.) — A celebration turned into chaos on Wednesday in Kansas City, Missouri, after gunfire erupted following the parade and rally for the Chiefs’ Super Bowl win.
One person was killed and at least 21 people injured by gunfire in the shooting, according to Kansas City police.
The incident occurred west of Union Station, outside near the garage, as Chiefs fans were leaving, according to police. Three people have been detained for investigation in the shooting, police said.
About one million paradegoers were expected at Wednesday’s celebration. Several recounted the fear and panic that pervaded following the shooting.
Julie Mobley told ABC News that the Chiefs players had just finished speaking when she thought she heard fireworks. Then her daughter pulled her to the ground.
“It was very scary,” said Mobley, who took off work to attend the parade with her daughter. “To have something like this was absolutely horrible.”
Mary Althiser, who was at the parade with Mobley, also ducked to the ground.
“At first it didn’t seem like anything but then you saw this huge rush of crowd trying to jump in to where you were,” Althiser told ABC News.
Paradegoer Arnold Sauther said when the rally ended the Chiefs went into Union Station, and fans followed the players to get autographs.
“Then, all of a sudden they all started running out, and you see all these policemen come running in there — and you knew something happened in the station,” Sauther told Kansas City ABC affiliate KMBC-TV.
“People started crashing forward, everybody started running, there was screaming,” one woman visiting from New Hampshire told KMBC. “We didn’t know what was happening, but in this day and age when people run, you run.”
She said they sought shelter near an elevator and “prayed.”
“There was yelling and we didn’t know if it was safe to leave, so we tried to block the doors. We heard the elevator start to move so we opened the doors and ran out — there were officers there,” she said. “I’ve never been so glad to see an officer in my life.”
Witness Jennifer Wilbers told KMBC she heard gunshots and started running.
“We look over and there’s a guy next to us on the ground,” she told the station.
Kansas City Police Chief Stacey Graves called the shooting a “tragedy.” Authorities are still working to determine the number of victims in the incident, she said.
A motive remains under investigation, the chief said.
Gene Hamilton told ABC News he is worried about how gun violence will impact young paradegoers.
“I look at the children. They have to grow up with this — very disturbing,” Hamilton said. “This is a celebration.”
Paradegoer Zachary Dial told ABC News he and his family were stranded and unable to get to their car due to a lockdown following the shooting.
“I just wanted to make sure that my woman was good, my niece was good and that we could get home safely. I feel sorry for the ones that didn’t,” Dial said.
Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas, who was at the parade with his wife and mother, was also among those who ran for safety.
“We never would have thought that we, along with Chiefs players, along with fans, hundreds of thousands of people, would be forced to run to our safety today,” he said during a press briefing on Wednesday.
He said he is “heartbroken” for the victims and their families.
“This is a day that a lot of people look forward to, something they remember for a lifetime,” he said. “And what they shouldn’t have to remember is the threat of gun violence marring a day like this, injuring them and their families.”
(GREENSBORO, N.C.) — The family of Marissa Carmichael say they are devastated as they’ve marked one month since her disappearance and police in Greensboro, North Carolina, are sharing new information about the search for the missing mother of five.
Carmichael, 25, vanished on Jan. 14 from an Exxon gas station in the 800 block of E. Market St. in Greensboro shortly after making a distressed call to 911, according to police.
Police said in a statement on Tuesday night that they have reviewed surveillance footage that shows Carmichael getting into the car of a man at the Exxon gas station where she was last seen shortly after she called 911.
Police say they have identified and interviewed the driver of that vehicle, who is currently considered a witness in this case.
Carmichael called 911 from the Exxon gas station and told the dispatcher that a man drove off with her cell phone, leaving her stranded, according to a recording of the call obtained by ABC News. In the call, Carmichael asked police for help finding a ride home.
Carmichael’s younger sister and only sibling, Emma Villegas, shared an emotional message with ABC News on Tuesday night, hoping it would reach her sister.
“If Marissa is possibly seeing this, you know for a fact that we’re not going to stop looking for you. We’re never going to stop looking for you until you are found safely,” Villegas said. “The kids are worried about you, the kids miss you so much. We’re going to drive ourselves crazy looking for you. But we are going to find you. And whoever has her, you are just evil.”
Sara Carmichael, Marissa’s mother and who filed a missing person’s report, told ABC News that the family is “devastated” and believes that her daughter is being “held against her will.”
Police declined comment on whether they believe foul play is involved, saying it’s an ongoing matter, but they urged the public in a statement on Feb. 6 to share any information about Marissa Carmichael’s whereabouts and said that they have received “limited leads” in this case and were becoming “increasingly concerned for her welfare.”
According to police, Carmichael contacted Guilford Metro 911 at 3:40 a.m. on Jan. 14 from the Exxon and told the dispatcher that a man who took her phone left her there and she asked police to help her find a way to get home.
Guilford Metro dispatched the police department at 4:19 AM, police said, but when an officer arrived at 4:21 a.m. Carmichael had already left the immediate area.
Sara Carmichael expressed frustration about the police’s response time after she reported her daughter missing on the afternoon of Jan. 14, saying that she was told police had to wait 48 hours before they considered her daughter a missing person.
“[Police] didn’t even start doing anything until the middle of that week. By then I had already been to the Airbnb. I had already been to the Exxon [ to conduct] on my own investigation,” Sara Carmichael said. “Now they’re taking it serious, but those first few days are critical,” she added.
Sara Carmichael said that the family last saw Marissa on Saturday, Jan. 13 and were with her all day, but since Jan. 14, her daughter — an avid social media user — has not been active on her accounts and her phone has been turned off, and goes straight to voicemail.
According to Carmichael, on the night before her disappearance, Marissa told her sister Emma that she is going to the club and asked her not to tell her mother because she didn’t want her to worry.
Sara Carmichael said after talking to her daughter’s friends, she learned that Marissa went to One17 SofaBar & Lounge, and then later went to an Airbnb for an after party, after which she was dropped off at the Exxon station.
“When I woke up around lunchtime, Sunday (Jan. 14), and she wasn’t home, and then I found out she didn’t go to work, and that’s just not like her at all,” she said when asked what prompted her to report her daughter missing. “She’s always in touch with me. So, I had a feeling.”
She added that she also grew more suspicious about her daughter’s whereabouts because she noticed missed calls from an unfamiliar number at around 5 a.m. and thought it could have been Marissa trying to reach her. However, when she contacted the number, she said she had a concerning conversation over text with someone who tried to reassure her that Marissa was okay.
“He told me Marissa’s asleep. And then I said ‘Let me speak to her.’ And then he said well, ‘she walked up to the store.’ And then he just kept, you know, any reason to not get her on the phone,” Sara Carmichael said. “So I said well what’s the address that I can come or send somebody to get her, and the address that he sent me was a Sheets store … and she was not at no Sheets, she was nowhere to be found.”
Sara Carmichael said that the family set up a GoFundMe account and hopes to raise enough money to hire a private investigator.
“I feel like if I’m not spending my time investigating, searching, that I’m failing her,” she said. “There’s days I just don’t want to get up out of bed. I just don’t want to do life, but I have to … she needs help. She needs us, and I have to find answers.”
Carmichael is described as a 5’4″ biracial female and is approximately 260 pounds with long black and blonde braids, police said. She also has a heart tattoo on her face and a butterfly near her eye and was wearing a white Tweety Bird T-shirt, blue jeans, and yellow sneakers when she was last seen.
Police are asking anyone with information about her whereabouts to call Greensboro/Guilford Crime Stoppers at 336-373-1000.
People take cover during a shooting at Union Station during the Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl LVIII victory parade, Feb. 14, 2024, in Kansas City, Missouri. (Jamie Squire/Getty Images)
(KANSAS CITY, Mo.) — Bystanders sprung into action as gunfire rang out at the Kansas City Chiefs’ Super Bowl parade on Wednesday, which left one person dead and at least 21 others injured, according to authorities.
Alyssa Marsh-Contreras told ABC News her father, Paul Contreras, tackled a man believed to be a shooting suspect who appeared to be fleeing on foot; Contreras could be seen as one of the bystanders who tackled the man in a video obtained by ABC News.
Kansas City Police Chief Stacey Graves confirmed three people are detained and under investigation, in a press conference after the deadly shooting, which she called a “tragedy.”
In video posted to X, two individuals can be seen tackling the suspect to the floor, pinning them down and repeatedly punching them until two police officers ran up and detained the suspect.
The shooting took place west of Union Station, near the garage, as Chiefs fans were leaving, according to Kansas City police.
Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas said there were 600 Kansas City, Missouri Police Department officers and 250 officers from outside agencies present at the scene.
The mayor has spoken to the Kansas City Chiefs who clarified that their prayers are with everyone at the parade today and that their players, coaches and staff are all accounted for and safe.
About one million paradegoers were expected at Wednesday’s celebration.
Paradegoer Arnold Sauther told KMBC-TV that when the rally ended, the Chiefs players went into Union Station, and fans followed to get autographs.
“I am angry,” Graves said. “The people who came to this celebration should expect a safe environment.”
Missouri Gov. Mike Parson released a statement following the deadly shooting, saying, “I want to start with a thank you to Kansas City Police along with other state and local first responders who were able to quickly take two individuals into custody and provide critical care to victims following today’s shooting.”
“This was a tragic conclusion to a celebration we had all looked forward to,” he wrote.
The mayor, who was at the parade with his wife and mother, was among the many who ran for safety.
(LOS ANGELES) — Ali Zacharias said she has such a bond with her French bulldog Onyx that she went to extremes when the 1-year-old pup was snatched last month.
Zacharias told “Nightline” that she was completely caught off guard when the dognapper allegedly took Onyx while Zacharias was eating lunch in downtown Los Angeles and put the bulldog in a car. But at that moment, which was caught on camera and went viral, she said she went into guardian mode and chased after the alleged thief.
“I ran in front of the car. I just sort of grab onto the windshield wipers and I just decide to [be] like, ‘Hold on, you’re not driving anywhere,'” she said. “I just didn’t expect to be in the fight mode like Indiana Jones.”
Zacharias is recovering from injuries after she was flung from the suspect’s car. A woman was arrested last week in connection with the dognapping, but Onyx’s whereabouts remain a mystery.
“They must be desperate, and I feel for them, but if I don’t get this dog back I’m going to be so upset,” Zacharias said.
Her ordeal has become part of a growing list of nightmare stories that many dog owners across the country are fearing as the number of dognappings of expensive French bulldogs has skyrocketed.
The crimes are leaving many dog owners on edge fearing they could be next.
Tom Sharp, the CEO of American Kennel Club Reunite, told “Nightline” that owner-reported dognappings to his nonprofit have risen 140% since 2020.
“In 2023, twice as many French bulldogs were reported stolen to us as the next breed,” Sharp said.
“Frenchies” have become more popular among pet owners over the last couple of years. In 2022, they nudged out Labradors to become the country’s top favorite breed, according to data from the American Kennel Club.
The dogs have been popular among celebrities and have even become influencers on social media.
Sharp noted that French bulldogs can carry a higher price tag than other breeds.
“So a bulldog puppy can go anywhere from $3,000 to $10,000 to try to buy one. And that’s beyond a lot of people’s means, yet they still want one,” he said.
Several factors behind their cost: most female French bulldogs need artificial insemination and cesarean sections to have puppies. And the average litter produces just three pups, which is typically fewer than other breeds.
Law enforcement experts say the pricey pups can fetch top dollar when they’re resold or when a ransom is paid by desperate owners.
In 2021, a man shot Lady Gaga’s dogwalker and stole two of her French bulldogs in Los Angeles. James Howard Jackson pleaded guilty a year later and was sentenced to 21 years in prison.
The dogwalker survived the shooting nad has been recuperating from his injuries. The dogs were returned to Lady Gaga.
Teffiney Worthy of Washington, D.C., recalled the terror she faced last November when a man holding a Taser demanded she give up her Frenchie, Hendrix.
“He left on his way down the stairs and put [Hendrix], in the backseat,” Worthy told “Nightline.” “He was just laughing and drove away.”
Worthy turned to social media for help and, two days later, she received a message on Instagram from a woman who claimed she bought Hendrix for $900.
D.C. Metro Police and a private investigator helped her coordinate Hendrix’s safe return home. No arrests have been made and the investigation is ongoing.
Sharp said there are steps that Frenchie owners can take to protect themselves, including getting a microchip for their pets that contain the owner’s information and not taking them outside without strict supervision.
He emphasized that owners should also be wary about the information they put on social media about their dogs.
“[If] you say, ‘Hey, I’ll be at the park at 2:00 today with my beautiful little French bulldog puppy,’ you’re almost inviting strangers to take that dog from you,” Sharp said.
