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Russia-Ukraine live updates: 100K Russian casualties this winter, US says

May 2, 2023 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — More than a year after Russian President Vladimir Putin launched a full-scale invasion of neighboring Ukraine, the countries are fighting for control of areas in eastern and southern Ukraine.

Ukrainian troops have liberated nearly 30,000 square miles of their territory from Russian forces since the invasion began on Feb. 24, 2022, but Putin appeared to be preparing for a long and bloody war.

Here’s how the news is developing. All times Eastern:

May 02, 12:38 PM EDT
Marine veteran killed while evacuating civilians in Ukraine

A 26-year-old U.S. Marine Corps veteran was killed in a mortar strike last month in Ukraine while working to evacuate civilians, his family confirmed to ABC News this week.

Cooper Andrews died on April 19 in the Bakhmut area, his cousin Willow Pastard, who is speaking on his family’s behalf, told ABC News.

The State Department announced Monday that an American citizen died in Ukraine, though did not provide more details or an identity “out of respect for the family’s privacy during this difficult time.”

“We are in touch with the family and providing all possible consular assistance,” a spokesperson for the agency said in a statement.

At least nine deaths of U.S. citizens who have volunteered to fight in Ukraine have been officially reported since the war began last year, according to the State Department.

-ABC News’ Shannon Crawford

May 01, 3:54 PM EDT
2 dead, 40 wounded in latest Russian strikes

Two men were killed and at least 40 people, including children, were injured after Russian missiles struck Pavlograd, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and other officials said.

Serhii Lysak, the head of the military administration of the Dnipropetrovsk, said 19 high-rise buildings, 25 private houses, six schools and preschool education institutions and five shops were hit by the missiles.

Five children were among the wounded officials said. The youngest victim is 8 years old, according to officials.

-ABC News’ Wil Gretsky

May 01, 3:07 PM EDT
Russia suffered 100K casualties in Bakhmut since December: White House

The U.S. estimates that Russia has suffered over 100,000 casualties, including over 20,000 killed in action, from the battles in Bakhmut since December, White House spokesman John Kirby said Monday

Half of the 20,000 killed in action were members of the Russian-backed private military Wagner Group, according to Kirby. The majority of Wagner fighters killed were allegedly ex-convicts, according to Kirby.

Kirby said that the data came from “some downgraded intelligence,” that the U.S. has been able to collect. He was unable to provide data on deaths of Ukrainian fighters.

Kirby emphasized that the U.S. thinks Bakhmut holds “very little strategic value for Russia” and if captured by Russia it “would absolutely not alter the course of the war in Russia’s favor.”

-ABC News’ Ben Gittleson

May 01, 1:41 PM EDT
State Department confirms US citizen dies in Ukraine

The State Department announced Monday that an American citizen died in Ukraine.

“We are in touch with the family and providing all possible consular assistance,” a spokesperson for the agency said in a statement.

The State Department declined to provide more details or an identity “out of respect for the family’s privacy during this difficult time.” It is not immediately clear when the death took place.

At least 10 U.S. citizen deaths in Ukraine have been officially confirmed by the State Department since the war began last year. The majority of those deaths were of Americans who volunteered to fight alongside Ukrainians, according to officials.

-ABC News’ Shannon Crawford

Apr 30, 5:48 PM EDT
Russian missile attack in Dnipropetrovsk region hits Ukrainian cities: Reports

A Russian missile airstrike was reported in different areas of Ukraine Sunday evening.

Sixteen Russian Tu-95 bombers were reported in the air from various airfields and explosions were reported in the Dnipropetrovsk region of Ukraine at 10:51 p.m. local time.

“Presumably, Kh-101 cruise missiles are actively flying at the Pavlograd-1 and Pavlograd-2 railway stations, where trains with APU (Ukrainian Armed Forces) equipment and people were located,” a Russian Telegram channel, Military Chronicle, said.

Several explosions were heard in the city of Pavlograd, in the Dnipropetrovsk region, local Ukrainian media reported.

An air alert was announced for the region at 9:30 p.m. local time and about 10:00 p.m., social networks began to report explosions in Pavlograd.

According to local media, repeated explosions were heard in the city at 10:20 p.m.

The strikes destroyed Ukrainian anti-aircraft missiles for the S-300 complex on Pavlograd, Russian Telegram channel Intel Slava reported.

S-300s are long-range surface-to-air missiles.

Supply vehicles with reserve ammunition that belong to the Ukrainian Armed Forces were also hit, the channel said, citing eyewitness accounts.

Intel Slava is funded by the Russian government.

“The detonation of rockets has been going on for almost an hour,” the Intel Slava post said.

It’s unclear how many people were injured or killed.

-ABC News’ Fidel Pavlenko and Anastasia Bagaeva

Apr 30, 2:00 PM EDT
Leader of Russian mercenary group threatens mutiny

The Russian oligarch behind the Wagner private paramilitary group fighting for the Kremlin in Ukraine is threatening a mutiny if his forces are not resupplied with ammunition soon.

Yevgeny Prigozhin, owner and curator of the Wagner group, penned a letter to Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigue, demanding ammunition be provided to his forces on the battlefield.

In the letter, Prigozhin wrote that if supply problems are not fixed fast, he will complain to Russian President Vladimir Putin and his mercenaries would abandon their positions in Bakhmut, Ukraine, where heavy fighting has been going on for weeks, The Moscow Times reported.

“I appeal to Shoigu with a request to immediately issue ammunition. In case of refusal, I consider it necessary to convey to the Supreme Commander-in-Chief information about the existing problem in order to make a decision and about the advisability of further presence of Wagner PMC in Bakhmut in the conditions of a shortage of ammunition,” Prigozhin wrote.

He added, “If the deficit is not replenished … we will be forced to withdraw part of the units from this territory, and then everything else will crumble. Therefore, the bell is already ringing — it is called an alarm.”

Emphasizing the urgency, Prigozhin noted that Ukraine is planning to launch a counteroffensive soon.

There was no immediate public response from Shoigu or the Kremlin.

“We need to stop deceiving the population and telling that everything is fine with us,” Prigozhin wrote. “I must honestly say: Russia is on the brink of disaster. If these screws are not adjusted today, the ‘aircraft’ will crumble in the air.”

Apr 30, 12:19 PM EDT
Zelenskyy braces soldiers for battles ‘coming soon’

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Sunday wished Ukrainian military forces success in what he described as the “main battles” that are “coming soon.”

Zelenskyy’s statement came a day after he said at a news conference in Kyiv that Ukrainian forces will soon launch a counteroffensive, likely before F-16 fighter jets promised by Western allies arrive.

“Dear warriors, the main battles are coming soon. We must free our land and our people from Russian slavery,” Zelenskyy said at an event where he bestowed medals to members of the county’s Border Guard forces.

Apr 30, 5:52 AM EDT
Counteroffensive expected ahead of Western jet deliveries

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the Ukrainian counteroffensive will start before Ukraine receives F-16 fighter jets promised by Western countries.

“Frankly speaking, it would help us a lot. But we also understand that we can’t drag it [the counteroffensive] out, which is why we’ll start before we receive F-16 [aircrafts] or other models,” Zelenskyy said at a news conference for Scandinavian media held in Kyiv on Saturday, according to a script provided by Reuters.

He added, “But to calm Russia down with the fact that we’d still need a couple of months to train on the aircrafts and only then we’d start; No, this won’t happen. We’ll start and go forward, while at the same time, simultaneously, I think this is very important [to receive western fighter aircrafts.]”

He said Ukraine is “capable of putting an end to this war.”

Also on Saturday, Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said Ukraine received a signal from some countries about the readiness to start training Ukrainian pilots on F-16 fighter jets.

According to Kuleba, the F-16 fighter jet is the ideal aircraft due to its technical characteristics, although Kyiv does not overlook other aircraft, either. The minister added that the decisive word on issuing F-16s will be with the United States, because these are American fighters.

-ABC News’ Edward Szekeres and Max Uzol

Apr 29, 1:49 PM EDT
23 dead in Russian attack on high-rise building, 17 saved from rubble

A Russian attack on a high-rise building in Uman has left 23 people dead. Among the dead were six children between the ages of one and 17 years old, according to the Ukrainian Minister of Internal Affairs, Ihor Volodymyrovych Klymenko.

Rescuers, policemen and volunteers managed to save 17 people from the rubble. Heavy machinery and special equipment were involved, according to officials.

Two more women are considered missing, officials said. But the search and rescue operation has concluded, officials said.

“My sincere condolences to the relatives of the deceased. We will punish this evil. We will not allow it to grow. We will definitely stand up and win,” Klymenko said.

-ABC News’ Tatyana Rymarenko

Apr 28, 12:18 PM EDT
Russian strikes on Ukrainian cities kill 24, including children

Russian airstrikes targeted several cities across Ukraine early Friday, killing at least 24 people, Ukrainian officials said.

The city of Uman in central Ukraine’s Cherkasy Oblast was the worst affected. Several buildings were damaged or destroyed. One of the strikes hit an apartment building, killing at least 22 people, including three children, and injuring another 18 people, according to Cherkasy Oblast Gov. Ihor Taburets. The attack happened at around 4:30 a.m. local time, when most people would have been asleep. An entire section of the nine-story building collapsed, with 27 apartments completely destroyed. There were 109 people who lived in that part of the building, according to Ukrainian police. Rescue teams were expected to spend all day and night searching for survivors in the rubble.

Dnipro, Ukraine’s fourth-largest city and a major industrial hub located in southeastern Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, was hit by “high-precision” strikes in the early morning hours, leaving a woman and a 3-year-old child dead, according to Dnipro Mayor Boris Filatov.

Russian strikes also targeted Kyiv, Ukraine’s capital and largest city, but there were no reports of any casualties or damages. It was the first such attack on the capital in 51 days, according to the Kyiv City Military Administration. Preliminary data shows 11 cruise missiles and two drones were destroyed in Kyiv’s airspace, the city military administration said.

Apr 28, 11:54 AM EDT
Ukraine says it’s ‘ready’ for counteroffensive

Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov said Friday the military is “ready” to launch a counteroffensive against Russian forces.

“It’s up to the general staff and the command,” Reznikov said during a press briefing in Kyiv. “We will do it as soon as there is God’s will, the weather and the commanders’ decision.”

Ukraine has received Patriot missile defense systems from the United States as well as Germany and the Netherlands. The Ukrainian military has been trained on how to use the systems and “mastered” them within weeks, according to Reznikov.

“The exact number of batteries, I’m sorry, I won’t say,” he added. “Let the enemy guess.”

Meanwhile, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba urged the world not to consider or call the anticipated counteroffensive “a decisive battle.” Speaking at a press conference in Odesa on Friday, Kuleba said the decisive battle is the one that will lead to the liberation of all occupied Ukrainian territories.

Apr 27, 12:59 PM EDT
Missile strike in Mykolaiv kills 1, wounds 23

One person was killed and 23 people, including a child, were wounded in a Russian missile strike in Mykolaiv early Thursday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said.

The missile struck a block that had apartments, houses and a historic building, according to Zelenskyy.

“The terrorists will not get away with this yet another crime against humanity,” the president said in a statement.

-ABC News’ Will Gretsky

Apr 26, 12:50 PM EDT
Zelenskyy has 1st call with China’s Xi Jinping since war began

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke with Chinese President Xi Jinping in what was the two leaders’ first official contact since January 2022, before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Xi announced that he will send a special envoy to visit Ukraine and “other countries” to work on a political solution.

“I believe that this call, as well as the appointment of Ukraine’s ambassador to China, will give a powerful impetus to the development of our bilateral relations,” Zelenskyy said in a statement on Twitter.

The Chinese government’s official position still refuses to call the war an “invasion.”

The call between the two leaders is said to have lasted an hour, according to Zelenskyy’s office.

“Before the full-scale Russian invasion, China was Ukraine’s number one trading partner. I believe that our conversation today will give a powerful impetus to the return, preservation and development of this dynamic at all levels,” Zelenskyy said in a statement.

-ABC News’ Karson Yiu, Cindy Smith and Will Gretsky

Apr 25, 1:03 PM EDT
At least 2 dead, 10 injured in strike that hit Ukrainian museum

At least two people were killed and 10 injured after a Russian missile hit a Ukrainian museum Tuesday, officials said.

The local history museum is located in the city center of Kupiansk, in the Kharkiv region.

“The terrorist country is doing everything to destroy us completely. Our history, our culture, our people,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on social media while sharing a video that showed the damaged building. “Killing Ukrainians with absolutely barbaric methods.”

Apr 24, 5:48 AM EDT
Russian passports pushed on occupied Ukraine

Russian officials have warned Ukrainians in occupied Kherson that they may be “deported” if they don’t accept Russian passports, the U.K. Ministry of Defence said Monday.

“Russia is using passports as a tool in the ‘Russification’ of the occupied areas, as it did in Donetsk and Luhansk before the February 2022 invasion,” the ministry on Twitter.

Residents of Kherson have been warned of penalties for those who don’t accept Russian passports by June 1. Some may be removed from the territory or may have their property seized, according to the U.K.

Nonprofit offers $50,000 reward for details in Rasheem Carter investigation

May 2, 2023 by WDNY Radio

Nonprofit offers ,000 reward for details in Rasheem Carter investigation

(LAUREL, Miss.) — A national nonprofit organization is offering a $50,000 reward for any information that will lead to the “arrest and conviction” of a 25-year-old Black man’s killer.

Rasheem Carter was reported missing last October and was last seen in Laurel, Mississippi. His mother, Tiffany Carter, said her son warned her and the police that he was being targeted by white men in the community. “Three truckloads of white guys” were trying to kill him, Rasheem Carter told his mother before his disappearance.

Last Saturday, Carter’s family and community members protested his death, demanding transparency in the investigation. A fourth set of remains were identified as Carter’s on April 30, according to attorneys.

“This has really been a struggle for our family, but we’re going to do the best we can to fight,” Tiffany Carter said during the protest. “We’re going to do what we gotta do to get the justice that we deserve to have.”

You Are The Power, the nonprofit offering the $50,000 award, has been searching for leads in the Carter case.

“When Rasheem Carter needed help, police refused,” the nonprofit said in an Instagram post. “But we can help bring justice to Rasheem’s killer(s), and closure to his loved ones.”

According to its website, the organization has over 50 million social media followers and has relationships with activists and organizations across all 50 states.

“Our purpose is to use localized, grassroots, single-issue activism to empower people to work together to set our communities free, restore individual rights, and take the power away from government and put it back in your hands, where it belongs,” according to You Are The Power’s site.

On Nov. 2, the first set of Rasheem Carter’s remains were found in a wooded area south of Taylorsville. His head was severed from his body, with his spinal cord recovered in an area separate from his head, according to family attorney Ben Crump.

The medical examiner ruled that the cause and manner of death were undetermined.

“Rasheem was killed last October, and local police have refused to do anything about it. They claim there is ‘no evidence’ of foul play, even though his head was removed from his body,” You Are The Power said on Instagram.

The Smith County Police Department originally ruled out foul play in the case. According to Crump, officials later recanted their statement.

“From the beginning of this case, the family has been misled,” Crump said. “At first, when the first of Rasheem’s remains were discovered with his head decapitated from his body, officials told the family that it was animals that killed Rasheem. Then officials admitted that they believed he was murdered.”

Crump, along with his co-counsel Carlos Moore, is calling for the U.S. Department of Justice to open a federal investigation into Carter’s death.

Muslim mayor speaks out after Secret Service denies him White House entry

May 2, 2023 by WDNY Radio

(PROSPECT PARK, N.J.) — A Muslim mayor who has represented Prospect Park, New Jersey, for nearly two decades said Tuesday he has not heard from the White House since the U.S. Secret Service blocked him from attending President Joe Biden’s evening Ed al-Fitr celebration.

Mayor Mohamed Khairullah said he was about half an hour away from joining fellow Muslim leaders on Monday to mark a belated end of the holy month of Ramadan when he got a call from a White House aide telling him not to come.

“At this point, we still did not receive any explanation,” he told CNN on Tuesday morning. “All that happened is I received that call as I was entering D.C. And I was told by a staffer from the White House social events department that the Secret Service advised them that I cannot attend the event and that Secret Service did not provide them with any explanation.”

A spokesman for the U.S. Secret Service said in a statement to reporters late Monday the agency regrets the inconvenience but couldn’t comment further.

“While we regret any inconvenience this may have caused, the mayor was not allowed to enter the White House complex this evening. Unfortunately we are not able to comment further on the specific protective means and methods used to conduct our security operations at the White House,” said Anthony Guglielmi, chief of communications for the Secret Service.

Khairullah, born in Syria and a U.S. citizen since 2000, is now in his fifth term as mayor of Prospect Park. From his perspective, Monday’s experience “reeks of Islamophobia by certain federal agencies,” something he said he wishes to discuss with Biden if he’s invited back — an invitation he said he would accept.

“I think that the big question [for the White House] is what are we going to out the targeting of Arabs, Muslims, South Asians by federal agencies that are basically not telling us why we are being harassed at airports, border crossings, and now, for me to be denied entry into the People’s House is baffling,” he said.

“If someone like me who has a high profile, who has clearly served their community, who has demonstrated dedication to the local community and global community can be targeted like that — I have someone who could speak on my behalf — the average citizen doesn’t know who to turn to and who to speak to,” he told CNN.

Khairullah suspects his trouble stems from his name matching one that appeared on an FBI terrorism watch list, the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) told him in 2019. He said he’s faced many incidents of discrimination when flying, which can be embarrassing for his family, he added.

He called on the White House to apologize and to reinstate the mayor’s invitation.

“If these such incidents are happening to high-profile and well-respected American-Muslim figures like Mayor Khairullah, this then begs the question: What is happening to Muslims who do not have the access and visibility that the mayor has,” Maksut said.

A report from CAIR last year found a 9% increase in discrimination complaints from Muslim-Americans in 2021 compared to 2020.

Former police officer Tou Thao found guilty in George Floyd’s death

May 2, 2023 by WDNY Radio

(MINNEAPOLIS) — Former Minneapolis police officer Tou Thao has been found guilty of a charge of aiding in manslaughter, stemming from the 2020 death of George Floyd.

Story developing…

Fleeing Sudan’s warring factions, evacuees pass through Cairo amid ‘terrifying’ dayslong trek

May 2, 2023 by WDNY Radio

(CAIRO) — An international assistance group has come to the rescue of tens of Americans in Sudan, as they joined the thousands scrambling to flee amid fighting that’s raged for weeks between rival military forces.

Eighty-six people, most of whom are American citizens, were airlifted on Monday from Port Sudan to Egypt aboard a plane chartered by Project Dynamo, in the first private air evacuation of Americans from Sudan.

Mohamed Bakr, an American with Sudanese citizenship, was one of those arriving in Egypt. He took the dangerous 18-hour overland journey, traveling from the city of Omdurman to Khartoum, where he and his family joined one of the two U.S. government-organized convoys, and onward to Port Sudan on the Red Sea, some 840 kms, or about 520 miles, from the capital.

The convoy brought the family to a hotel there where they waited for about 12 hours without rooms, food or bathrooms, before they fortuitously learned about the private air operation from volunteer team members there.

“On the convoy’s way to Port Sudan we were stopped 10 times by the different [warring] groups. Some people lost their phones, some lost money. They took it. It was very dangerous,” Mohamed, who fled with his wife and two daughters, told ABC from a bus at the Cairo International Airport where his plane landed.

Others said hundreds of Americans, including those with Sudanese citizenship or permanent residency, who were brought by the U.S. convoys to the hotel in Port Sudan were left unassisted, sitting or sleeping on the ground at the hotel lobby as they waited for up to a whole day to be registered for forthcoming evacuation trips. Locally employed U.S. embassy staff there gave no information about when they were planned to be moved.

The U.S. airlifted diplomats from Khartoum in a military operation a week into the fighting that began on April 15, leaving behind an estimated 16,000 private American citizens. Later, two convoys carried U.S. citizens, locally employed staff and nationals from partner countries to Port Sudan as part of the effort to evacuate Americans from the conflict. Officials had maintained for over a week it was too dangerous to carry out border evacuation operations, amid anger from Americans in Sudan who felt they were abandoned in a dangerous situation.

More people were planned for Monday’s $410,000 evacuation operation but the RSF ambushed a bus of 20 people en route to Port Sudan and took passenger’s money, phones, documents and passports, leaving the rescue team unable to locate them, Project Dynamo CEO and co-founder Bryan Stern told ABC as he was waiting for evacuees to arrive.

Others had document problems and were unable to fly.

“The administrative piece of evacuation is often as complicated as the tactical execution of the operation,” Stern, a U.S. military veteran, said.

Sudan is the third country where the organization works to save Americans in trouble, after war-torn Ukraine and Afghanistan, where it rescued American citizens by air after the Taliban’s takeover following U.S. troops’ withdrawal. It has rescued over 6,000 people in its almost two years of operation.

The deadly violence between the Sudanese army and the powerful paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) group has killed hundreds and sent thousands fleeing for their lives. At least two Americans have been killed in the conflict.

The conflict has trapped many in their homes in Khartoum and other cities. It’s destroyed or shut down hospitals, caused food shortages and lengthy power and water cuts and led to looting of shops and homes. The United Nations warned over 800,000 people may flee the fighting for neighboring countries.

Intesar, another American with Sudanese citizenship, who was among those arriving in Egypt, made the overland journey from Khartoum to the country’s main Red Sea port after her house was caught in the crossfire.

“I spent seven days under heavy shelling. After that I decided to leave because everything in my house was shaking. We were almost hit by bullets. I found bullets in my yard. It was very scary,” she said.

With an internet outage caused by the fighting in her area, just a few kilometers from the flashpoint site of the military headquarters in Khartoum, Intesar had her Washington, D.C.-based daughter register for her online to be evacuated on the rescue plane. Her husband, a permanent U.S. resident, and two Sudanese sisters were also evacuated.

Almost 1,000 U.S. citizens have left Sudan since fighting broke out, according to the State Department.

“Those were terrifying days,” said American Mohamed Moussa, who joined the second U.S. convoy of around 10 buses. “It’s a very bitter feeling to leave like this and leave your family behind.”

More than 13,900 people killed in gun violence so far in 2023

May 2, 2023 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — Shootings have continuously made headlines in just the first few months of the year.

As of May 1, at least 13,959 people have died from gun violence in the U.S. this year, according to the Gun Violence Archive — which is an average of roughly 115 deaths each day.

Of those who died, 491 were teens and 85 were children.

Deaths by suicide have made up the vast majority of gun violence deaths this year. There’s been an average of about 66 deaths by suicide per day in 2023.

The majority of these deaths have occurred in Texas, California, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, Illinois and Louisiana.

The grim tally of gun violence deaths includes 460 people killed in officer-involved shootings.

There have also been 494 “unintentional” shootings, the Gun Violence Archive shows.

There have been 184 mass shootings in 2023 so far, which is defined by the Gun Violence Archive as an incident in which four or more victims are shot or killed. These mass shootings have led to 248 deaths and 744 injuries.

There have been at least 13 K-12 school shootings so far this year, including a recent incident in Nashville, Tennessee, on March 27 when three children and three staff members were shot and killed at the Covenant School, a Christian school for students in preschool through sixth grade.

In Michigan, three students were killed and five others were injured when a gunman opened fire at two locations on Michigan State University’s main campus in East Lansing on Feb. 13, police said.

California saw three mass shootings in a matter of days in January, with one shooting leaving at least 11 people killed and 10 others injured after a gunman opened fire at a dance studio near a Lunar New Year celebration in Monterey Park, California.

The U.S. has surpassed 39,000 deaths from gun violence per year since 2014, according to data from Gun Violence Archive. Still, gun deaths are down from 2016, 2017 and 2018, when the total number of deaths each year surpassed 50,000. There were 44,310 such deaths in 2022.

Last June, President Joe Biden signed into law a gun safety package passed by Congress. It was the first gun reform bill from Congress in decades.

But advocates for gun reform continue to push for tougher measures. Florida lawmakers Rep. Jared Moskowitz and Rep. Maxwell Frost spoke with ABC News’ GMA3 to mark the fifth anniversary of the tragic shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School and called on Congress to do more to curb gun violence.

“Five years later, we feel like we’ve made some progress and then we were reminded that nothing has changed,” Moskowitz said.

If you or someone you know is struggling with thoughts of suicide, free, confidential help is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Call or text the national lifeline at 988. Even if you feel like it, you are not alone.

Parents speak out after son’s suicide at elite boarding school

May 2, 2023 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — On the one-year anniversary of a student’s death, an elite boarding school in New Jersey released a statement publicly admitting its failure.

The Lawrenceville School released a statement acknowledging that it failed to protect student Jack Reid, who died by suicide in 2022, from bullying, saying it “fell tragically short” in Jack’s case. Jack was 17 at the time.

Elizabeth and Bill Reid, Jack’s parents, spoke to ABC News’ Good Morning America about their son’s suicide after bullying at The Lawrenceville School.

“We were well aware of what was going on and we were encouraging him. He advocated for himself. He talked to the school. He talked to his friends. We were meant to see him the next morning and the last words we spoke to him about were, ‘Dad, I’m doing better. I love you,'” Bill Reid recalled.

The school said in its statement that it had been made aware of the bullying and “cruel behavior” toward Jack and “there were steps that the school should have taken in hindsight and did not.” It promised to make changes and do better.

“Bullying and unkind behavior, and actions taken or not taken by the school, likely contributed to Jack’s death,” read part of the statement posted by The Lawrenceville School on April 30.

The statement was required as part of a settlement deal with the family of Jack Reid, who had filed a lawsuit against the school.

In the spring of 2021, an untrue rumor spread across The Lawrenceville School campus that Jack, who was a junior in high school at the time, had committed sexual assault by kissing a girl. Then, in September 2021, a false claim that Jack was a rapist was posted anonymously to a nationwide student app, in a letter from the school obtained by ABC.

The school reportedly investigated the rumors and found them false, but never publicly shared the results or told Jack, in the letter.

On April 30, 2022, a student, who was disciplined for bullying Jack, was expelled from the school for other reasons, however, the school admitted that the student was allowed to return “largely unsupervised” to the dorm where Jack lived, according to the statement. Students gathered with the expelled student and reportedly began bullying Jack, according to the statement released by the school. Later that night, he died by suicide, according to the statement from the school.

The school announced that it will create policies around spotting and stopping bullying and has since agreed to contribute to multiple nonprofits focused on bullying and suicide prevention per the school’s latest statement.

“Jack was universally regarded as an extremely kind and good-hearted young man, with an unwavering sense of social and civic responsibility and a bright future. We continue to mourn this loss,” the school said in part of the statement.

It added, “We acknowledge that more should have been done to protect Jack.”

If you or someone you know are experiencing suicidal, substance use or other mental health crises, please call or text 988. You will reach a trained crisis counselor for free, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. You can also go to 988lifeline.org or dial the current toll free number 800-273-8255 [TALK].

First Republic Bank fails: Was it a bailout?

May 2, 2023 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — The collapse of First Republic Bank on Monday left it under control of the U.S. government, which quickly sold the bank to JPMorgan Chase. The move aimed to shore up the financial system after a cascade of major bank failures.

JPMorgan Chase, the nation’s largest bank, retained the majority of First Republic’s assets and all of its deposits, JPMorgan Chase said on Monday. In turn, the deal fully protects depositors at First Republic, who immediately became customers of JPMorgan Chase.

To achieve the rescue, however, a federal agency provided $50 billion in financing to JPMorgan Chase, setting off questions about whether the government had orchestrated a bank bailout.

Speaking at the White House on Monday, President Joe Biden applauded the government effort and assured that the move would not require taxpayer support.

“Regulators have taken action to facilitate the sale of First Republic Bank and ensure that all depositors are protected and the taxpayers are not on the hook,” Biden said.

“These actions are going to make sure that the banking system is safe and sound,” he added.

Here’s what to know about the rescue of First Republic and whether it’s a bailout:

Is the First Republic rescue a bailout?

First Republic, the nation’s 14th-largest bank, fell into financial turmoil because it specialized in long-term mortgage loans to affluent clients.

As interest rates rose rapidly over the past year, the mortgage loans and other investments lost value, leaving the bank with losses on a sizable portion of its balance sheet.

After the failure of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank last month, panicked depositors withdrew a significant share of the bank’s funds in part because many of the customers held deposits that exceeded the limit covered by federal insurance.

If the bank had failed without a buyer, the remaining uninsured depositors may have lost their funds.

JPMorgan Chase on Monday agreed to acquire all of the bank’s $103.9 billion in deposits as well as the majority of its $229.1 billion in assets, according to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, a federal agency.

As part of the deal, the FDIC provided $50 billion in financing to JPMorgan Chase, the bank said on Monday. Ultimately, the final cost to the FDIC will be approximately $13 billion, the agency said.

The financing from the FDIC qualifies as a bailout since it marks the transfer of funds from the U.S. government to JPMorgan Chase as a condition of the sale of First Republic, some experts told ABC News.

“The biggest fear is banking runs and lost confidence — that is why the FDIC had to act quickly,” said Edward Moya, a senior market analyst at broker OANDA. “I would consider that a bailout.”

“The focus is to make sure the bank failure doesn’t significantly lead to a crisis,” he added.

Anat Admati, a professor at Stanford’s Graduate School of Business, echoed the sentiment, noting that the FDIC appears to have helped ease the acquisition of First Republic.

“This seems to be more that guaranteeing deposits, and then it becomes something that I would consider a bailout,” Admati told ABC News.

In backstopping First Republic customers, however, the FDIC ultimately carried out its mandate of guaranteeing depositors, even if by indirect means, Morris Pearl, a former managing director at asset manager BlackRock, told ABC News.

“It depends on your definition of the word ‘bailout,'” Pearl said. “It’s kind of like if you damage your car, the insurance company might pay to repair the car or they might say this car is beyond hope and we’ll give you money to buy a new car.”

JPMorgan Chase said the government chose it as a buyer because the bank’s bid gave the FDIC more favorable terms than rival offers.

“Our financial strength, capabilities and business model allowed us to develop a bid to execute the transaction in a way to minimize costs to the Deposit Insurance Fund,” JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon said in a statement.

Will the sale of First Republic cost U.S. taxpayers?

The government funds required for the sale of First Republic will come out of the Deposit Insurance Fund, a pool of billions of dollars kept in case the government needs to cover insured depositors after a bank failure, the FDIC said.

The Deposit Insurance Fund receives funding from banks, which pay insurance premiums in order to receive protection from the U.S. government and offer that guarantee for customers. The agency also derives income from investments made with the insurance revenue.

In turn, the bailout of First Republic will not draw on individual taxpayers, since the funds do not come from taxes levied on everyday Americans.

If the banking panic continues to spread, the federal government may have to take further action that draws on the Deposit Insurance Fund, potentially exhausting the fund and calling on taxpayers to supplement it with additional money.

For now, however, such an outcome appears remote. At the end of last year, the Deposit Insurance Fund held $128.2 billion, according to a quarterly report.

Alabama mother denied abortion despite fetus’ ‘negligible’ chance of survival

May 2, 2023 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — Kelly Shannon was excited when she found out she was pregnant. With a daughter under the age of 2, Shannon and her husband had been actively trying for a second child.

The Alabama couple’s happiness quickly turned to heartbreak when testing revealed just three days before Christmas there was an 87% chance the baby had Down syndrome.

Shannon had asked for genetic testing because the couple wanted to tell family the baby’s gender at Christmas. She was pregnant with a girl.

“I spent the next few weeks trying not to get too attached, but it’s hard not to love a baby you have prayed for,” Shannon told ABC News.

At an appointment with a maternal fetal medicine specialist in January, Shannon was counseled on resources available for parents of children with the disorder. However, more scans and test results showed there was evidence of swelling in the baby’s head and body wall, a heart defect and a tumor on the baby’s abdomen that was about one-third the size of the baby and growing.

While none of the baby’s conditions on its own would warrant a termination under the guidelines of the one hospital in the state still providing abortions, Shannon’s specialist strongly believed this combination of symptoms made it extremely unlikely the pregnancy would survive to term or through labor and delivery. Her physician believed the hospital would be able to provide her with abortion care despite Alabama law prohibiting abortions at all stages of pregnancy.

“The likelihood of the baby surviving was negligible,” Shannon said. “Even if she did survive to term, it would be unlikely she’d survived through labor. And if she did survive through labor, then we’d be looking at multiple corrective surgeries immediately after birth.”

A report from her physician that was shared with ABC News confirmed the doctor had “conveyed the high likelihood that the findings may lead to an intrauterine demise [of the fetus] due to heart failure or neonatal demise.”

Dr. Carrie Rouse, a maternal fetal medicine specialist in Indiana who did not treat Shannon but reviewed some of her records, said that if she would have seen Shannon she would have counseled her on the same options: continuing her pregnancy and providing her the best care available, including potentially delivering early, or terminating the pregnancy.

These are the same options Shannon’s specialist in Alabama gave her, according to physician reports shared with ABC News.

“It is truly a tragedy that someone’s options for what to do with their pregnancy and their own body is dependent on their zip code,” Rouse told ABC News. “I just feel so sad for her and for her family and her physicians that are put in this position to where she can’t access — and they can’t provide — the care that she has been counseled about and has opted for in her own home. It’s so hard. It’s devastating.”

Alabama is one of 15 states that has ceased nearly all abortion services since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade last June, ending federal protections for abortion rights.

Shannon and her husband decided to pursue termination and she filled out the necessary paperwork. An abortion would need to be approved by several hospital committees made up of doctors.

On Jan. 20, Shannon’s specialist called her and informed her that while one committee had approved the abortion, a higher-level committee denied permission, telling Shannon this was the hardest phone call she had to make in her professional career, Shannon said.

“That was probably the lowest, maybe the lowest or second lowest point of the whole traumatic experience,” Shannon said. “I was sitting in my car talking to her and I couldn’t form words. I just sat there and sobbed. I was in a parking lot and I pulled out my phone, and I texted my husband, I was like, ‘I need you to come see me and I need you to bring our daughter.'”

“I didn’t even feel like I had the ability to get out of the car until I saw her and had a reason. I didn’t have any motivation to move until I could see my daughter again,” Shannon added.

Shannon said the committee — made up of 13 physicians in the University of Alabama, Birmingham’s Maternal Fetal Medicine Department — said its decision was final unless the fetus developed a complication called hydrops fetalis, in which large amounts of fluid build up in a baby’s tissues and organs causing extensive swelling.

“The committee felt that since each condition was by itself potentially survivable — not that they would lead to any kind of quality of life, just that they could potentially lead to life — that under Alabama law they did not think that my case met the criteria for termination,” Shannon said.

Shannon’s fetus did not develop hydrops, so she was left unable to access abortion care, she said.

“The other thing that was happening was the state district attorney in Alabama was also going on the news and actively talking about pursuing convictions for anybody in performing abortions in Alabama,” Shannon said.

“UAB is the only place in the state that provides that service, so they were also trying really hard to make sure that they could protect their ability to do that for other women,” Shannon said.

ABC News requested comment from Shannon’s doctor, but they declined. Instead, UAB Hospital said in a statement to ABC News: “UAB does not perform elective abortions. We provide care to women who present to us in need of pregnancy-related care within the law.”

Shannon had to drive to Richmond, Virginia, to access abortion care. She left at 11 a.m. and arrived in Richmond at 2 a.m., after stopping several times along the way, she said.

The hospital arranged housing for Shannon at no cost through a hotel partner. While her insurance was employer-based and covered the procedure, Shannon said she received a $2,089 bill from Virginia Commonwealth University. She said she had already paid about $600 for the procedure.

The couple said it still hopes to grow their family when they are ready.

“This has been the single most painful and traumatic experience of my life and our lives, and anybody who wants to stand up and say that abortions are wrong or that people shouldn’t be able to make their own decisions about abortion care just need to recognize that it’s not a black and white issue,” Shannon said. “It is complicated and I wouldn’t wish this on anybody.”

US Surgeon General calls for action regarding the ongoing ‘epidemic of loneliness and isolation’

May 2, 2023 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — The U.S. Surgeon General released an advisory on Tuesday calling attention to the public health crisis of loneliness, isolation and lack of connection in the United States.

“Lacking connection increases the risk for premature death to more than 60%. Put simply, this social disconnection increases the risk for premature death to the same levels as smoking up to 15 cigarettes a day,” U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy said in a statement.

The report cites recent research showing that approximately half of U.S. adults experienced loneliness daily, even before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

It highlights that a lack of social connection can present significant health risks, as loneliness can increase risk of premature death by 26% and social isolation by 29%, according to a meta-analysis cited in the advisory.

According to the report, insufficient social connection has also been linked to an increased risk of heart disease, stroke, anxiety, depression and dementia.

Additionally, loneliness was reported among the primary motivations for self-harm, according to a systematic review cited in the advisory.

“Given the profound consequences of loneliness and isolation, we have an opportunity, an obligation, to make the same investments in addressing social connection that we have made in addressing tobacco use, obesity and the addiction crisis,” Murthy said.

Social connection can reduce the health risks associated with isolation and loneliness. One study found that frequently confiding in others is associated with up to 15% reduced odds of developing depression among people who are at higher risk due to a history of traumatic or adverse life experiences.

The advisory lays out a framework for a National Strategy to Advance Social Connection, which provides recommendations for individuals, governments, workplaces, health systems and community organizations that aim to increase social connection and improve overall health. This type of strategy has never been implemented before in the United States.

These recommendations include infrastructure changes, such as developing parks and libraries that enhance social connection, policy changes allowing for paid family leave and accessible public transportation, and more research to efficiently address social isolation.

The framework also includes training for healthcare providers to allow for intervention if a patient is at risk for loneliness and its significant health consequences. It also notes that digital environments should be further evaluated, particularly how online interactions can potentially hinder meaningful connections.

Lastly, the recommendations call for the cultivation of a culture of connection, stating that the informal interactions of everyday life can significantly influence social connection.

“By taking small steps every day to strengthen our relationships, we can rise to meet this moment together… And we can ensure our country and the world are better posed than ever to take on the challenges that lay ahead,” Murthy said.

There are some immediate steps you can take to reduce loneliness and increase social connection, such as reaching out to a friend or family member.

“People often incorrectly assume that disclosing painful truths or emotions with a trusted other will be a turn off or perceived as a burden. Quite the opposite typically occurs,” Justin Baker, the clinical director of the Suicide and Trauma Reduction Initiative (STRIVE), told ABC News.

“Instead of feeling like a burden, sharing a common struggle typically brings people together and strengthens the existing relationship,” Baker said.

If you are experiencing suicidal thoughts, substance use or other mental health crises please call or text 988. Trained crisis counselors are available for free, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

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