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GOP hits Biden for baby formula shortage as White House looks to boost supply

May 12, 2022 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — The White House is moving to deal with yet another crisis with potentially damaging political consequences: a nationwide shortage of baby formula.

President Joe Biden spoke Thursday with retailers and infant formula manufacturers — including Target, Walmart, Reckitt and Gerber — on efforts to make more supply available to American families, according to senior administration officials.

In the meantime, the White House will be urging states to let parents use their benefits from the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) to purchase formula. The administration is also calling on the Federal Trade Commission and state officials to crack down on any instances of price gouging.

The FDA is expected to announce ways the U.S. can import more formula products from abroad in the coming days.

Even as one company said it could take up to two months to get its product back in stores, the FDA wouldn’t provide an estimate on when shelves will be replenished.

“We absolutely recognize the frustration that American families are feeling right now,” one official said on Thursday, “and that’s why the president has acted to direct administration to pull additional levers, take additional action to make more supply available as quickly as possible.”

Or as House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a California Democrat put it during her weekly press conference: “Right now the baby’s crying, the baby’s hungry, we need to address it right now.”

“President Biden has directed the administration to work urgently to ensure that infant formula is safe and available for families,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Thursday

Asked why Biden and the administration hadn’t acted earlier, Psaki insisted that administration efforts had been “underway for months.”

“The steps the President took today are an acknowledgment and a recognition that more needs to be done. That we do not want parents, mothers, families out there to be stressed and worried about feeding their babies,” she said. “We are working. We are seeing increases over the last couple of weeks. More needs to be done. We are going to cut every element of red tape we can cut. We are going to work with manufacturers, we’re going to import more, to expedite this as quickly as possible.”

“If you are a parent who is looking for formula right now, struggling to find what you need, do you have, even have a rough guess of how long these shortages are going to last? pressed ABC News Senior White House Correspondent Mary Bruce.

“Well, we’ve already seen an increase in supply over the past couple of weeks. What we are seeing, which is an enormous problem, is hoarding. People hoarding because they’re fearful,” Psaki answered. “Our message to parents is we hear you, we want to do everything we can and we’re going to cut every element of red tape to help address this and make it better for you to get formula on the shelves.”

.@MaryKBruce: “When will parents be able to get the formula they need?”

Psaki: “FDA took a step to ensure that babies were taking safe formula…We’re going to work with manufacturers, we’re going to import more to expedite this as quickly as possible.” https://t.co/9KEtZZ0mlF pic.twitter.com/qZSdrHH3ry

— ABC News Politics (@ABCPolitics) May 12, 2022

A shortage of formula has been a long-standing problem because of supply chain problems, but the situation was made even worse when Abbott — one of the largest manufacturers of formula in the nation — announced in February a recall of three popular brands and shut down its Sturgis, Michigan, plant due to contamination concerns.

The company took the action after complaints of Cronobacter sakazakii and Salmonella Newport infections in infants who consumed the formula. Two of the infants died.

Parents report scrambling to find formula as the out-of-stock rate for baby formula hit 43% at the end the first week of May, according to a report from the real-time data tracking agency Datasembly.

Public outcry has garnered the attention of lawmakers on Capitol Hill — providing Republicans with another line of attack against the Biden administration.

Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., read letters he received from worried parents and grandparents aloud the floor of the Senate on Thursday.

“This outrageous, unacceptable situation has been unfolding in slow motion over several months,” McConnell said. “Much of it stems from a recall that resulted in a plant being shut down. But it seems that while President Biden’s administration and the FDA knew all about this problem as it developed, they had been asleep at the switch in terms of getting production back online as fast as possible.”

A group of House Republicans held a press conference Thursday to discuss the issue, hitting Biden for not getting ahead of the problem.

“This is not a Third World country” said Republican Rep. Elise Stefanik. “This should never happen in the United States.”

As outrage from the public intensifies, the FDA this week said it’s doing “everything in our power to ensure there is adequate product available where and when they need it.”

“Ensuring the availability of safe, sole-source nutrition products like infant formula is of the utmost importance to the FDA,” Commissioner Robert M. Califf said in a statement. “Our teams have been working tirelessly to address and alleviate supply issues and will continue doing everything within our authority to ensure the production of safe infant formula products.”

Abbott has said it could restart operations at its Michigan plant within two weeks, so long as it gets a green light from the FDA. From there, it would take the company six to eight weeks to get the new product to shelves.

“We would begin production of EleCare, Alimentum and metabolic formulas first and then begin production of Similac and other formulas,” the company said.

ABC News’ Benjamin Siegel, Mariam Khan and Benjamin Gittleson contributed to this report.

Two men arrested in mass shooting at Dallas concert that left one dead, 16 injured

May 12, 2022 by WDNY Radio

(DALLAS) — Two suspected gunmen were arrested in connection with a mass shooting at a concert in Dallas last month that left one man dead and 16 people injured, including three juveniles, police said Thursday.

The suspects were identified as Astonial Calhoun, 25, and Devojiea Givens, 26, according to police. They were arrested Wednesday by Dallas police, the U.S. Marshals Service North Texas Fugitive Task Force and the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Crime Task Force, officials said.

Both men were charged with felony deadly conduct and were being held Thursday at the Dallas County Jail, pending an arraignment, according to the Dallas Police Department.

Dallas homicide investigators found evidence connecting Calhoun and Givens to the shooting that occurred in the early morning hours of April 3 at the Second Annual Epic Easter Bike Out & Field Party, police said in a statement. The event was billed as a family-fun trail ride and outdoor concert.

During a news conference Thursday afternoon, Dallas Police Chief Eddie Garcia declined to disclose what evidence led homicide detectives to arrest Calhoun and Givens.

“A preliminary investigation has determined that following a fight that broke out at the event, Calhoun and Givens both fired handguns,” Garcia said. “The preliminary investigation determined Givens and Calhoun shot into the crowd.”

At the time of shooting, Givens was free on bond after being arrested in late January on another deadly conduct charge stemming from an incident in the Dallas suburb of Hutchins, Garcia said.

Garcia said the investigation is ongoing and detectives are working to identify other suspects they allege fired weapons, as well as those involved in the fight that preceded the shooting.

“Our thoughts continue to be with our victims, their families and we have an incredible team of men and women working this case to find those who were ultimately responsible,” Garcia said.

Attorney information for the two men arrested was not immediately available.

Police asked that anyone with video footage or photos of the fight and shooting to upload them to the police department’s evidence collection online portal.

A witness told ABC affiliate station WFAA in Dallas that the event was “jam-packed” with people and described a chaotic scene as gunfire prompted concert goers to run in all directions seeking cover. The chaos prevented police and emergency vehicle from quickly entering the scene to treat victims.

Police said the organizers of the concert that drew about 2,000 people did not have a permit to hold the event or an emergency plan.

The event’s organizer, Germaud Lyons, who goes by the nickname Bossman Bubba, said in a statement on Facebook April 3 that he was saddened by the shooting and blamed the incident on a higher than expected turnout.

“We took the necessary steps to offer safety by having Dallas Police officers and security personnel on scene. Additionally, emergency officers and vehicles were on standby. However, some things were still out of our control,” the statement said.

The person killed was identified by police as 26-year-old Kealon Dejuane Gilmore. Police said Gilmore was found lying near the stage with a gunshot wound to the head and was pronounced dead at the scene.

Sixteen other people were injured in the shooting and taken to hospitals in private vehicles or by ambulances, police said.

Senate bill would create federal watchdog for Big Tech

May 12, 2022 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — Sen. Michael Bennet on Thursday introduced a bill that would create a federal watchdog for the oversight of Big Tech companies, empowering the new agency to address controversial issues like algorithm bias and transparency in content moderation.

The bill from the Colorado Democrat comes as the tech giants face heightened scrutiny from both sides of the aisle in Congress, which has generated high-profile hearings and adversarial rhetoric but has struggled to pass legislation.

The latest push for reform follows a series of bombshell revelations from Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen as well as an agreement among European Union lawmakers over a landmark law that would closely regulate the sector. The Washington Post first reported Bennet’s bill.

“As a country, we should take pride that most of the world’s leading tech companies were founded in America. But they aren’t start-ups anymore. Today they rank among the most powerful companies in human history,” Bennet said in a statement on Thursday.

“It’s past time for a thoughtful and comprehensive approach to regulating digital platforms that have amassed extraordinary power over our economy, society, and democracy,” he added.

The new agency would develop and enforce rules that regulate company conduct, mimicking the role played by oversight bodies that police pharmaceutical drugs or media standards, according to a summary of the bill provided by Bennet’s office.

The proposed legislation calls for the formation of the Federal Digital Platform Commission made up of five members, who would hold hearings, carry out investigations, and implement new rules. The agency would also include a Code Council featuring individuals from the industry and civil society who can offer further technical expertise, the bill summary said.

The bill will likely face a difficult path to passage in the Senate, where Democrats hold a narrow 50-50 majority due to a potential tie-breaking vote from Vice President Kamala Harris. While some Republicans have criticized Big Tech firms over perceived anti-conservative bias and other faults, they have also shown a reluctance to expand the regulatory reach of the federal government.

Meanwhile, some Big Tech leaders have expressed support for a sector-specific regulatory agency like the one outlined in the bill. At a congressional hearing in March 2021, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said a new agency “could be very effective and positive for helping out.” Microsoft President Brad Smith last month at a privacy summit signaled his approval of such an oversight body.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC), led by legal scholar and Big Tech critic Lina Khan, serves as a major regulatory agency for the tech giants. Last July, President Joe Biden signed an executive order that called on the FTC to develop rules on data collection and to challenge prior company mergers. But progress on regulation at the agency remains limited.

In a separate effort from the Biden administration, the Justice Department has brought a lawsuit against Google over alleged antitrust violations.

Current watchdogs have proven insufficient for the new challenges posed by the tech industry, said Tom Wheeler, a former chairman of the Federal Communications Commission who called the proposed bill “historic.”

“Our existing regulatory agencies were built in the industrial era on industrial-age concepts, and the challenge of 21st-century regulators is: How do you take statutes built in response to entirely different realities and relate them to what’s happening in the digital world?” said Wheeler, who previously called for the formation of such a watchdog.

“Let’s create an inherently digital agency,” he added.

COVID-19 nurse reflects on 1 million American virus deaths: ‘We are still mourning losses’

May 12, 2022 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — Last July, a tearful Felicia Croft sat in her car after a long shift in the COVID-19 intensive care unit, and expressed her deep despair about watching young patients die of the virus.

“People are younger and sicker, and we’re intubating and losing people that are my age and younger people with kids that are my kids’ age that are never going to see their kids graduate. They’re never gonna meet their grandkids,” the nurse from Willis-Knighton Medical Center, in Louisiana, told ABC News at the time.

With vaccination rates lagging in Louisiana — fewer than 40% then — Croft said she was frustrated to see preventable deaths occurring.

“We have seen people [in the hospital] that have been vaccinated, but they usually go home to raise their kids, and to hug their husband or their wife. I can’t explain the feeling of defeat. When you do everything you pour everything into a patient and it’s not enough,” Croft explained.

Now, as the nation mourns the loss of 1 million lives to COVID-19, Croft shared a new video diary reflecting on the milestone and the last two years, expressing her relief that fewer patients are dying of the virus at her hospital.

“Today, I am standing here, and I am doing an empty room, in our empty COVID Unit, at the hospital, which is really, really exciting,” Croft said.

Reflecting on earlier experiences caring for a dear family friend, Croft described the pain of seeing people steadily deteriorate as they were intubated, and terribly sick with COVID-19.

As she spoke to the mother of her friend on the phone, Croft recalled feeling helpless as she was not able to truly comfort to his family.

“I remember his mom crying, and me not being able to go to her, and not being able to just love on and comfort somebody that I love, because we’re trying to save another life. That was so difficult,” Croft said.

And although at Willis-Knighton, the need for COVID-19 related care has slowed, Croft said she and her colleagues are still mourning the losses of all of the patients, friends, and family members that died of COVID-19.

“COVID has thankfully dwindled down, but we are still mourning losses, and seeing the effects of just how it’s changed a lot of people, a lot of people’s long-term health, a lot of people’s outlook and it’s just very humbling. It’s been a very humbling experience,” Croft said.

Delaware officials call for investigation into alleged racial profiling of lacrosse team

May 12, 2022 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — Delaware officials are calling for an investigation into allegations of racial profiling after Georgia deputies conducted a drug search of a bus transporting female student-athletes at a historically Black university.

The Delaware State University Women’s Lacrosse Team was returning home from a game in Florida on April 20 when officers in Liberty County, Georgia, pulled the bus over for an alleged traffic violation.

Deputies then proceeded to conduct a drug search of the team’s bags in the luggage racks beneath the bus, including with the use of a K9, video and body-camera footage from the scene shows. Nothing illegal was found, authorities and school officials said.

The incident came to light after one of the team’s lacrosse players wrote about the search in the school’s newspaper last week with the headline, “Delaware State Women’s Lacrosse Team Felt Racially Profiled by Police in Georgia.”

The student-athlete also posted a video of the incident that was referenced by Delaware State University President Tony Allen in a message to the school community this week. In the video, a deputy informed the team that they were going to search their luggage.

“If there is anything in y’all’s luggage, we’re probably gonna find it,” the deputy said in the video. “If there is something in there that is questionable, please tell me now because if we find it — guess what? We’re not gonna be able to help you. We are in the state of Georgia. Marijuana is still illegal in the state of Georgia.”

Allen said videos such as this one “clearly show law enforcement members attempting to intimidate our student-athletes into confessing to possession of drugs and/or drug paraphernalia” and called the incident a “trying and humiliating process” for the team.

An incident occurred in Georgia when the Delaware State University Women’s Lacrosse Team was returning home from a game in Florida. Read a message from President Allen in which, again, he says, “We shall not be moved.” https://t.co/IihQ6yV3pt pic.twitter.com/RBC6jZF5C2

— Delaware State University (@DelStateUniv) May 9, 2022

Sophomore lacrosse player Sydney Anderson, who was behind the school’s article and video, told ABC Philadelphia station WPVI there was “a clear indication of racism” in the search.

“If we got pulled over for a traffic violation, there’s no correlation between them checking our personal luggage and violation of traffic,” she told the station.

The team’s head coach, Pamella Jenkins, also charged that it was an incident of racial profiling.

“I definitely felt it by the accusatory tone of the police officer,” Jenkins told WPVI. “And while talking about narcotics, he went straight to marijuana.”

In response to the allegations, Liberty County Sheriff William Bowman said this week that the deputies followed protocol and that there was probable cause for the luggage search due to an alert from the K9.

“At the time, or even in the weeks following, we were not aware that this stop was received as racial profiling,” Bowman said. “Although I do not believe any racial profiling took place based on the information I currently have, I welcome feedback from our community on ways that our law enforcement practices can be improved while still maintaining the law.”

The sheriff’s office this week also released body-camera footage from the incident, which showed deputies interacting with the bus driver and student-athletes and going through their bags.

“Believe it or not, the majority of the drugs and large amounts of money, trafficking children, trafficking anything up and down these interstates, that’s what we look for,” the deputy can be heard telling the student-athletes on the bus. “We’re not saying that it’s even happening here. But however, this is how we start an investigation.”

Prior to conducting the search, the deputy can be heard while in his cruiser saying, “There’s a bunch of dang school girls on the bus. There’s probably some weed. Maybe.”

Bowman said the traffic stop is being reviewed to ensure there were no policy violations.

The university’s president said the school has contacted Delaware officials, including the governor and attorney general, and is “exploring options for recourse — legal and otherwise.”

“We do not intend to let this or any other incident like it pass idly by,” Allen said. “We are prepared to go wherever the evidence leads us. We have video. We have allies. Perhaps more significantly, we have the courage of our convictions.”

He further called for an investigation following the release of the body-camera footage and pushed back against statements from the sheriff’s office, including the claim that no personal items were searched. Bowman later clarified that while the front luggage area was checked, no players were searched.

“It has become abundantly more clear that this incident must be investigated by objective, external authorities,” Allen said in a statement Wednesday. “We continue to push forward toward that objective.”

Delaware Attorney General Kathleen Jennings said Wednesday that she has written to the U.S. Department of Justice about the incident “urging a full examination and I have every reason to believe one will occur.”

Mattel’s latest lineup of diverse dolls includes a Barbie with hearing aids

May 12, 2022 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — Mattel’s latest launch of Barbie dolls keeps diversity and inclusion at the forefront.

The toymaker has released this year’s new 2022 Barbie Fashionista collection with several new dolls including the first Barbie with behind-the-ear hearing aids, a doll with a prosthetic leg, a Ken doll with vitiligo and much more.

The first-of-its-kind doll with visible hearing aids is styled wearing a floral print dress, pink booties and a high ponytail.

“Ready to make waves? Dip into new #Barbie Fashion Dolls – our most diverse and inclusive doll line, offering a variety of skin tones, eye colors, hair colors and textures, body types, disabilities, and fashions, to inspire even more stories,” the brand captioned a photo revealing the exciting new lineup.

Barbie’s new doll with hearing aids was created to further expand the Fashionistas line to reflect people with disabilities such as hearing loss, and to accurately portray the hearing aids, the company tapped leading educational audiologist and hearing loss advocate Dr. Jen Richardson.

Richardson shared in a statement that she felt “honored” to have worked with Barbie for the release of its doll with behind-the-ear hearing aids. “As an educational audiologist with over 18 years of experience working in hearing loss advocacy, it’s inspiring those who experience hearing loss reflected in a doll. I’m beyond thrilled for my young patients to see and play with a doll who looks like them.”

Since revealing the new doll on Wednesday, lots of people have already praised Barbie for promoting representation within its latest offerings.

“My daughter is so excited that there will finally be a Barbie that has hearing aids like her,” Laura Ford said in a comment. “We have modified so many dolls so they have puff paint hearing aids but it is definitely not the same as being able to see her go into a store to purchase a doll that looks like her. Thank you!!!!”

Two years ago, Barbie was also praised for introducing its first doll with vitiligo which ended up being one of its best Fashionistas sellers in the U.S. that year. This year, the brand is expanding to include a Ken doll with vitiligo to allow for more storytelling and reach an even wider community of children.

Other amazing additions include Ken options with short hair and new dolls with different body types. These dolls will accompany other successful launches such as a doll with a wheelchair and a Black doll with a beautiful afro hairstyle.

“Barbie wholeheartedly believes in the power of representation, and as the most diverse doll line on the market, we are committed to continuing to introduce dolls featuring a range of skin tones, body types and disabilities to reflect the diversity kids see in the world around them,” said Mattel executive vice president and global head of Barbie and Dolls Lisa McKnight.

She continued, “It’s important for kids to see themselves reflected in product and to encourage play with dolls that don’t resemble them to help them understand and celebrate the importance of inclusion.”

The new 2022 Barbie Fashionista collection will be available in June at a variety of mass retailers.

Jan. 6 committee subpoenas Kevin McCarthy, other GOP members for testimony

May 12, 2022 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — The House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack subpoenaed House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy and four other Republican members of Congress on Thursday for testimony about events surrounding the Capitol riot and efforts to overturn the 2020 election.

McCarthy and the other members — Reps. Jim Jordan of Ohio, Andy Biggs of Arizona, Mo Brooks of Alabama and Scott Perry of Pennsylvania — had rejected the committee’s voluntary requests for cooperation in recent months.

“Before we hold our hearings next month, we wished to provide members the opportunity to discuss these matters with the committee voluntarily,” Committee Chair Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.) said in a statement regarding the subpoenas. “Regrettably, the individuals receiving subpoenas today have refused and we’re forced to take this step to help ensure the committee uncovers facts concerning January 6th. We urge our colleagues to comply with the law, do their patriotic duty, and cooperate with our investigation as hundreds of other witnesses have done.”

In Thompson’s letter informing McCarthy of the subpoena, which the committee chair released to the media, Thompson said, in part, “The Select Committee has tremendous respect respect for the prerogatives of Congress and the privacy of its members. At the same time, we have a solemn responsibility to investigate fully the fact and circumstances of the violent attack on the United States Capitol and issues relating to the peaceful transfer of power.”

The subpoenas mark a dramatic escalation in the committee’s tactics and follow weeks of internal debate over whether to try to force Republicans to testify behind closed doors about their conversations with former President Donald Trump and involvement in various parts of the effort to overturn the election and contest the certification of the results.

The Republican members are unlikely to comply with the requests, which could prompt a legal — and, at minimum, political — battle with McCarthy and other lawmakers who are expected to be in the majority next year and in position to seek retribution.

The committee is expected to begin a series of public hearings on their investigation next month, ahead of issuing a final report on their inquiry in the fall. The report will be the product of nearly 1,000 interviews, and tens of thousands of pages of records obtained by investigators.

Supreme Court justices meet for first time amid fallout from leaked draft abortion opinion

May 12, 2022 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — Supreme Court justices met Thursday for the first time since the bombshell leak of a draft opinion showing the Court’s conservative majority is poised to overturn Roe v. Wade.

The private conference is for the justices only, no staff or aides are allowed in the room.

The meeting came as abortion rights activists showed no signs of slowing down, gathering outside the homes of Chief Justice John Roberts, Associate Justice Samuel Alito and Associate Justice Brett Kavanaugh.

The protests, while peaceful, have prompted Attorney General Merrick Garland — the nation’s top law enforcement official — to direct additional support to ensure the safety of the nine justices.

“Attorney General Garland continues to be briefed on security matters related to the Supreme Court and Supreme Court Justices,” Justice Department spokesperson Anthony Coley said in a statement on Wednesday. The Attorney General directed the U.S. Marshals Service to help ensure the Justices’ safety by providing additional support to the Marshal of the Supreme Court and Supreme Court Police.”

On Wednesday, additional height was installed to the already “unscalable” eight-foot-high fence erected outside the Supreme Court last week. The barrier was similar to that placed around the U.S. Capitol after the violence on Jan. 6, 2021 and it comes ahead of a large-scale protest planned for Saturday.

The increased security at the Supreme Court and for the justices comes as Republicans continue to blast the demonstrations, despite no reports of violence.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., on Thursday said Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and the White House won’t “condemn the harassment.”

McConnell also hit Garland for not doing more to enforce a statute some say makes it illegal for protesters to picket or parade with the intent of influencing a judge at a building or residence occupied or used by such judge.

“One would think a DOJ run by the former chief judge of the D.C. Circuit would need no prodding, no prodding to protect judicial safety and judicial independence. But at least so far the attorney general was quicker to pounce on concerned parents at school board meetings,” McConnell said on the Senate floor. “The governors of Maryland and Virginia have had to write a joint letter to the attorney general begging him to make his U.S. attorneys do their job and uphold the law.”

Maryland GOP Gov. Larry Hogan and Virginia GOP Gov. Glenn Youngkin wrote to Garland on Wednesday asking the Justice Department to provide “appropriate resources to safeguard the Justices and enforce the law as it is written.”

White House press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters Tuesday that the administration believes in peaceful protest, and that “violence, threats and intimidation of any kind have no place in political discourse.”

But she also took aim at Republicans, saying those criticizing these protests were “silent for years on protests that have happened outside of the homes of school board members, the Michigan Secretary of State, or including threats made to women seeking reproductive healthcare, or even an insurrection against our Capitol.”

“I know that there’s an outrage right now, I guess, about protests that have been peaceful to date — and we certainly continue to encourage that — outside of judges’ homes,” Psaki added. “And that’s the president’s position. But the silence is pretty deafening about all of the other intimidation that we’ve seen to a number of people.”

$20K reward offered in search for gunmen in deadly Philadelphia gas station ambush

May 12, 2022 by WDNY Radio

(PHILADELPHIA) — A $20,000 reward is being offered in the search for a pair of gunmen caught on security video apparently stalking and then opening fire in broad daylight at a busy Philadelphia gas station, killing a 30-year-old man.

The Philadelphia Police Police Department released surveillance video Wednesday of the brazen ambush shooting in the Mt. Airy section of the city.

The footage captured the two gunmen pulling into the Liberty gas station in a 2009 red Mazda 3 sedan at around 2:30 p.m. Monday and opening fire on the victim as he was pumping gas into his vehicle.

The video shows the suspects’ car with the New Jersey license plate V62-PWX first stopping near the crowded gas pumps and backing up after apparently spotting the victim. The footage showed the car, driven by a third person, parking nearby and the gunmen, both dressed all in black, springing from the rear seat, rushing up to the victim commando-style and unleashed a barrage of gunfire.

Police said one of the gunmen appeared to be armed with an AK-47 rifle and the other looked to be firing a handgun with an extended magazine clip.

“The offenders fired multiple shots at the victim, striking him throughout the body,” police said in a statement.

The victim, identified by police as Brandon Dixon of Philadelphia, was taken to Einstein Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead, authorities said.

Police described the shooting as a “brazen act of viciousness” that put multiple innocent bystanders in jeopardy as the gunmen fired wildly at Dixon, who tried to run as he was being shot. The video showed the gunman running back to the four-door Mazda and driving away.

Dixon’s mother, Lisa Dixon, went to the gas station on Wednesday, saying she was “searching for answers.”

“I’m just hurt,” Lisa Dixon told ABC station WPVI in Philadelphia. “I came back here because I just need to be where he was last alive.”

Fighting back tears, she added, “He didn’t deserve this. He didn’t deserve this. My son did not deserve to die like this.”

Southern California brush fire that destroyed dozens of homes grows to 200 acres

May 12, 2022 by WDNY Radio

(LAGUNA NIGUEL, Calif.) — A fast-moving wildfire in Southern California that has destroyed more than 20 homes grew to approximately 200 acres as of Thursday morning, according to the Orange County Fire Authority.

The Coastal Fire, in the hills southeast of Laguna Beach, has spread quickly due to a combination of extremely dry brush and winds gusting from 25 to 35 mph.

One firefighter was injured fighting the blaze Wednesday. They were taken to the hospital in stable condition after suffering from a medical condition, Assistant Chief of Field Operations for the Orange County Fire Authority TJ McGovern said at a press conference Thursday.

Winds of 30 mph are common in the coastal hills of Southern California throughout the year, according to the National Weather Service.

However, the record dry start to the year in California is making the region extra vulnerable to wildfires. The first four months of 2022 were the driest start to a year in the state’s history, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Gusty winds will continue for coastal Southern California. But these winds will not be unusual and there are no wind alerts for Orange County.

Further up the coast, north of Los Angeles, a high wind watch has been issued for gusts expected to reach nearly 65 mph.

Orange County activated and staffed its Emergency Operations Center with county agency representatives Wednesday afternoon.

Laguna Niguel communities north of the intersection of Flying Cloud Drive and Pacific Island Drive to the intersection of Highlands Avenue and Pacific Island Drive are under a mandatory evacuation order. The area south of Flying Cloud Drive and Pacific Island Drive to the intersection of Pacific Island Drive and Crown Valley Parkway is currently under a voluntary evacuation order, according to the Orange County Sheriff’s Department.

An evacuation warning has been lifted for the Balboa Nyes (Portafina) neighborhood in Laguna Beach, and those who chose to voluntarily evacuate can return to their homes, according to the sheriff’s department.

The city asked residents to remain vigilant overnight, but there is no immediate threat to the city of Laguna Beach from a vegetation fire burning in Laguna Niguel, according to the sheriff’s department.

A red flag warning has been issued from New Mexico to Nebraska, where critical fire danger if forecast on Thursday. Winds could gust to 65 mph with bone dry conditions.

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