(NEW YORK) — In what appears to be part of the Trump administration’s ongoing campaign against sanctuary cities, the Justice Department is investigating a sheriff in upstate New York who released an undocumented man later taken into custody by federal agents.
The US Attorney’s office for the Northern District of New York “is looking into the circumstances” surrounding the release by Tompkins County Sheriff Derek Osborne of Jesus Romero-Hernandez, a 27-year-old Mexican citizen.
Romero-Hernandez pleaded guilty to a state assault charge and was sentenced to time served, necessitating his release. He left local custody in Ithaca before Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrived to pick him up on a federal complaint charging him with illegally re-entering the United States after a prior removal.
Ithaca adopted a sanctuary law in 2017.
ICE, the U.S. Marshals Service and Homeland Security Investigations later apprehended Romero-Hernandez.
“The Tompkins County Sheriff’s Office in Ithaca, NY, a self-described sanctuary city, appears to have failed to honor a valid federal arrest warrant for a criminal alien with an assault conviction,” Acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove said. “I applaud the U.S. Attorney’s commitment to investigate these circumstances for potential prosecution.”
Tompkins County and the Tompkins County Sheriff’s office issued a joint statement refuting the DOJ’s claims.
The officials said ICE was “notified of when the individual in question was going to be released and had every opportunity to come to the jail to obtain the individual in question without any need for a pursuit or other incident.”
“There was no interference with federal immigration enforcement efforts. DOJ’s assertion that the Tompkins County Sheriff did anything to put federal law enforcement officers in danger is false and offensive,” the offices said.
Bove convened all 93 US attorney’s offices on a phone call on Thursday to convey that they should focus on surging resources toward immigration enforcement. He likened the threat posed by undocumented immigrants to the threat posed by terrorists.
It represents a significant shift for the Justice Department redirecting law enforcement resources away from previous national security priorities and toward immigration enforcement.
(WASHINGTON) — Mayor Eric Adams’s criminal defense attorney was at Justice Department headquarters in Washington on Friday to discuss the future of the mayor’s criminal bribery case, sources familiar with the matter told ABC News.
Adams’ attorney Alex Spiro attended the meeting along with federal prosecutors from the U.S. Attorney’s office in Manhattan, including acting U.S. Attorney Danielle Sassoon and acting chief of the criminal division Perry Carbone, the sources said.
Spiro was seen by an ABC News reporter departing the Justice Department following his meeting but he declined to comment when asked whether DOJ leadership agreed to drop Adams’ case.
Adams, the first sitting New York City mayor to be indicted, has pleaded not guilty to taking luxury travel benefits in exchange for helping expedite the opening of the Turkish consulate in Manhattan, among other crimes.
Federal prosecutors accused Adams of accepting more than $100,000 in improper benefits over nearly a decade, many of which came in the form of flight upgrades and stays in luxury hotels, none of which were publicly divulged as required.
The indictment also alleged Adams and a staffer knowingly worked with Turkish nationals to send foreign money to straw donors for his mayoral campaign and used that money to rake in over $10 million from New York City’s matching funds program.
Adams has insinuated that the indictment was politically motivated by President Joe Biden, without any evidence.
He has had several meetings with President Donald Trump since the election but has denied that the talk of dropping the charges or a pardon has come up. Adams canceled appearances at two New York City Martin Luther King Jr. Day events at the 11th hour to attend Trump’s inauguration.
Trump has also criticized the investigation into Adams.
(CALIFORNIA) — A California man has agreed to pay more than $65,000 in restitution and faces up to a year in federal prison for operating a drone that collided with a firefighting aircraft during the early days of the Palisades Fire, prosecutors announced Friday.
Peter Akemann, 56, of Culver City, has agreed to plead guilty to one count of unsafe operation of an unmanned aircraft for the Jan. 9 drone collision, which damaged the Canadian “super scooper” and took it out of commission for several days amid the devastating fire, according to federal prosecutors in Los Angeles.
According to the plea agreement, filed Friday, Akemann admitted his reckless operation of the drone interfered with the firefighting aircraft’s operations and “posed an imminent safety hazard” to the two-person crew.
The impact of the collision caused an approximately 3-inch-by-6-inch hole in the aircraft’s left wing, prosecutors said. The aircraft, which is designed to scoop water from bodies of water and drop it on fires, was able to land safely and was taken out of service for approximately five days for repairs, prosecutors said.
“We’re in the largest wildfire ever to hit Southern California. We need all the planes that we can have at the time. And now we have one down for five days,” acting U.S. Attorney Joseph McNally said during a press briefing on Friday. “That has a real impact on operations.”
Investigators recovered parts of the damaged drone and were able to trace that to a specific drone, which led them to Akemann, prosecutors said.
Akemann launched the drone from the top of a parking garage in Santa Monica out of curiosity to observe the wildfire damage, but lost sight of it after it flew about 1.5 miles, according to McNally.
The Federal Aviation Administration had issued temporary flight restrictions at the time that prohibited drone operations near the Los Angeles County wildfires.
There is no evidence that the collision was intentional, according to FBI Assistant Director in Charge Akil Davis.
McNally said the message to the public is “deterrence.”
“If you fly a drone around wildfires and you do so recklessly, law enforcement is going to find you and we’re going to hold you accountable,” he said.
Akemann has not yet entered a guilty plea. He is expected to appear in court Friday afternoon.
“Mr. Akemann is deeply sorry for the mistake he made by flying a drone near the boundary of the Palisades fire area on January 9, 2025, and for the resulting accident,” his attorneys, Vicki Podberesky and Glen Jonas, said in a statement to ABC News. “He accepts responsibility for his grave error in judgment and is cooperating with the government in effort to make amends.”
As part of the plea agreement, Akemann has agreed to pay full restitution to the government of Quebec, which supplied the super scooper, and the company that repaired the plane — estimated to be at least $65,169.
He has also agreed to complete 150 hours of community service in support of the Southern California wildfire relief effort, prosecutors said.
The misdemeanor offense carries a prison sentence of up to one year in federal prison. Any prison sentence will ultimately be determined by a judge, McNally said.
“I’ll highlight the fact that he has agreed to plead guilty and accept responsibility, which I think is important here,” McNally said.
Akemann’s attorneys said there are a “number of mitigating factors” that will be brought up in court, including his “reliance on the DJI Drone’s geo fencing safeguard feature and the failure of that feature.”
The Palisades Fire ignited on Jan. 7 and has burned more than 23,400 acres in Los Angeles County. It is now 98% contained, according to Cal Fire. Nearly 8,000 structures are estimated to have been damaged or destroyed by the fire.
The aircraft went down in the frigid Potomac River, breaking into multiple pieces. The flight — which had departed from Wichita, Kansas — was approaching Reagan National Airport at the time of the collision, officials said. There were no survivors in the crash, officials said.
There were 64 passengers aboard the plane, and three Army soldiers in the helicopter, according to officials.
Among those lost in the crash were 14 people who were returning home from a national figure skating development camp in Wichita, according to Doug Zeghibe, the CEO and executive director for the Skating Club of Boston.
“Skating is a tight-knit community where parents and kids come together 6 or 7 days a week to train and work together. Everyone is like family,” Zeghibe said in a statement.
Here’s what we know about the victims so far:
Vadim Naumov and Evgenia Shishkova
Vadim Naumov and Evgenia Shishkova, a married couple, were killed in the crash, according to the Skating Club of Boston.
Naumov and Shishkova, who were figure skating coaches, were world champions in pairs competition in 1994.
They joined the club in 2017, Zeghibe said.
Jinna Han and Jin Han
Jinna Han, a figure skater, and Jin Han, her mother, were killed in the crash, according to the Skating Club of Boston.
Spencer Lane and Christine Lane
Skater Spencer Lane and his mother, Christine Lane, were among the victims, the Skating Club of Boston said.
Doug Lane, Spencer’s father and Christine’s husband, told WCVB he and his wife adopted Spencer from South Korea.
Spencer Lane, 16, “just had amazing athletic abilities,” and once he got interested in something, “you couldn’t stop him,” his father said.
The teen decided to try skating three years ago after seeing Nathan Chen in the Olympics and “committed himself to it,” his dad said.
Christine Lane, 49, who worked as a graphic designer, was “such a beautiful person” who “just connected with everyone,” he said. She had just gotten her real estate license, and was also a talented quilter and volunteered at a local animal rescue, he added.
His wife would “do everything for her children, including fly to Wichita, Kansas, for a week,” Doug Lane said. “She just gave parenting her all.”
Alexandr Kirsanov
Alexandr Kirsanov was a coach of two of the youth ice skaters on board, his wife, Natalya Gudin, told ABC News.
“I lost everything,” Gudin said. “I lost my husband, I lost my students, I lost my friends.”
Gudin said Kirsanov traveled with two youth skaters to attend a development camp in Kansas this week. Gudin, who also coaches students with her husband in Delaware, said she stayed home to be with their other skaters.
She last spoke with her husband as he boarded the flight on Wednesday, she said.
“I need my husband back,” Gudin said. “I need his body back.”
Samuel Lilley
Samuel Lilley, the first officer on board American Airlines Flight 5342, recently got engaged, his sister, Tiffany Gibson, told ABC News.
“He was an amazing person. He loved people. He loved adventure. He loved traveling. He was excited. He was young. He was so young, and he was excited about life and his future and getting a dog and a house and kids. And it’s just, this is just tragic,” she said.
Samuel Lilley’s former brother-in-law, Greg Gibson, remembered him for his passion for flying and willingness to help others.
Samuel Lilley died on the same flight path his father, Timothy Lilley, flew for years. Timothy Lilley flew Black Hawk helicopters for the Army, transporting passengers over the Potomac River from his base in Virginia.
“We were stationed in Virginia, and [Timothy Lilley] flew that same route back and forth to the Pentagon, over and over and over again until he retired,” Tiffany Gibson said.
Ryan O’Hara
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp identified one of the victims as Ryan O’Hara.
Kemp offered his condolences to the family of both O’Hara and Lilley, who he said were both from Georgia.
“Both of these young Georgians shared a passion for flight and for serving others, and this terrible tragedy is that much more difficult knowing their lives were cut so unexpectedly short,” he said in an X post. “Marty, the girls, and I ask that all Georgians join us in keeping their loved ones in our thoughts and prayers.”
Ian Epstein
The family of Ian Epstein, the flight attendant onboard American Airlines Flight 5342, is remembering him as a cherished father, husband, brother and stepfather.
“Ian Epstein was full of life. He loved being a flight attendant because he truly enjoyed traveling and meeting new people. But his true love was his family. He was a father, a stepfather, a husband and a brother! He will be truly missed. The family appreciates the outpouring of love and support we’ve received, but at this time we would ask for privacy as we process and grieve our loss,” his family said in a statement.
Wendy Jo Shaffer
The family of one victim, Wendy Jo Shaffer, confirmed she had been on the plane.
“We are devastated. Words cannot truly express what Wendy Jo meant as a daughter, a sister, a friend, a wife and most importantly, a mother. The family is requesting privacy at this time,” the family said in a statement.
Brielle and Justyna Beyer
Brielle Beyer, 12, and her mother, 42-year-old Justyna, were both killed in the crash, according to Andy Beyer, Brielle’s father and Justyna’s husband.
Andrew is left with the couple’s 6-year-old son, he said.
Andy Beyer said his wife and daughter were returning from the U.S. Figure Skating National Development Camp in Wichita, Kansas.
Brielle was a member of the Skating Club of Northern Virginia and beat cancer when she was just 4 months old.
“She was just such a fighter in everything she did,” Andy Beyer said of his daughter, in an interview with ABC News. “She just lived life to the fullest with everything.”
He added, “She was so proud of herself in figure skating for the progress she had made … Making that team was one of her life goals. And she achieved it. And she was just so, so proud of herself.”
He remembered his daughter’s passion and beautiful singing voice.
“She just lit up the house with her wonderful voice,” he said.
Andy Beyer said his wife and daughter had been away for six days for the figure skating camp.
“I missed them… Figure skating at that level, it’s a lifestyle,” he said. “It’s a full family commitment.”
Elizabeth Keys
Elizabeth Keys was a Washington-based attorney who caught an early flight home to go on a date for her birthday with her long-term boyfriend David, who remembered Elizabeth for being the person who always “pushed you to be the best version of yourself.”
Sean Kay
Sean Kay was traveling with his skating coach Alexandr Kirsanov after attending the U.S. Figure Skating’s National Development Camp. His death was confirmed in a statement by Delaware Sen. Chris Coons.
Angela Yang
Angela Yang was traveling with her skating coach Alexandr Kirsanov after attending the U.S. Figure Skating’s National Development Camp. Her death was confirmed in a statement by Delaware Sen. Chris Coons.
Casey Crafton
Casey Crafton was a father to three sons and husband from Salem, Connecticut. His death was confirmed in a statement by Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont.
Grace Maxwell
Grace Maxwell was an engineering student from Wichita, Kansas who was aboard American Airlines 5432, according to a statement from Cedarville University.
University president Thomas White described Grace as a “thoughtful, quiet student leader” who helped teach other undergraduates about engineering.
She recently signed up to create a hand-stabilizing device to help a disabled child feed himself without assistance from others.
“Grace was a quiet person with a keen interest in helping others through engineering,” said Tim Norman, her adviser.
Olivia Ter
Olivia Ter, 12, was a treasured member of the Tucker Road Ice Rink in Fort Washington, Maryland, who inspired her peers and coaches, according to a statement from the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission.
She was one of four elite skaters from her region to attend the U.S. Figure Skating National Development Camp in Wichita, Kansas, and earned praise for her ” talent, determination and sportsmanship.”
“The impact of Olivia’s life will continue to resonate in our youth sports community, and she will be sorely missed,” stated Bill Tyler, director of the commission’s Department of Parks and Recreation in Prince George’s County, Maryland.
Kiah Duggins
Kiah Duggins was a civil rights attorney and an incoming Howard University professor.
Duggins was a Wichita, Kansas, native and attended Wichita State University, received a Fulbright grant, attended law school at Harvard and worked as a civil rights attorney.
In the fall, Duggins was planning to begin teaching as a professor at Howard University School of Law.
“As a civil rights lawyer, she dedicated her career to fighting against unconstitutional policing and unjust money bail practices in Tennessee, Texas and Washington, D.C,” a statement from the university said.
Duggins worked to challenge police misconduct, fight cash bail policies, and pursued prison industrial complex abolition, according to her professional biography. She also was a White House intern during the administration of former President Barack Obama.
Lindsey Fields
Lindsey Fields, the president-elect of the National Association of Biology Teachers, was flying from Wichita to D.C. to “advocate for excellence in life science education,” according to the organization.
She was a professor and biology department chair at Butler Community College in Kansas, where she taught anatomy and physiology.
She loved to garden and had a keen interest in wildlife, including restoring native prairie plants, according to her professional biography.
“This is a tremendous loss,” the National Association of Biology Teachers said in a statement. “Please keep Lindsey, the other victims, and their families in your hearts.”
Donna Smojice Livingston, Peter Livingston, Everly Livingston and Alydia Livingston
Donna Smojice Livingston, her husband Peter Livingston, and their daughters Everly Livingston and Alydia Livingston all died in the crash, according to Indiana University of Pennsylvania.
Everly and Alydia were the famed duo behind the “Ice Skating Sisters” Instagram account, and their last photo depicted them near the ice in Wichita.
Jesse Pitcher, 30
Pitcher was one of five members of the United Association of Union Plumbers and Pipefitters killed in the crash, the union said. He was a member of UA Local 5.
“May God bless each of our fallen Brothers, and all those who knew and loved them,” the union said in a statement Friday.
Charles ‘Charlie’ McDaniel, 44
McDaniel was one of five members of the United Association of Union Plumbers and Pipefitters killed in the crash, the union said. He was a member of UA Local 602.
Jonathan Boyd, 40
Boyd was one of five members of the United Association of Union Plumbers and Pipefitters killed in the crash, the union said. He was a member of UA Local 602.
Michael ‘Mikey’ Stovall, 40
Stovall was one of five members of the United Association of Union Plumbers and Pipefitters killed in the crash, the union said. He was a member of UA Local 602.
Alexander ‘Alex’ Huffman, 34
Huffman was one of five members of the United Association of Union Plumbers and Pipefitters killed in the crash, the union said. He was a member of UA Local 602.
Ryan O’Hara
One of the three soldiers on the helicopter during the training mission was identified as Staff Sgt. Ryan Austin O’Hara, 28, of Lilburn, Georgia, the Army said.
O’Hara had been an Army helicopter repairer since July 2014 and he served in Afghanistan in 2017.
“His awards include Army Commendation Medal w/C Device, Army Commendation Medal, Army Achievement Medal x4, Army Good Conduct Medal x3, National Defense Service Medal, Afghanistan Campaign Medal with campaign star, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, Noncommissioned Officer Professional Development Ribbon, Army Service Ribbon, NATO Medal, Aviation Badge and Senior Aviation Badge,” the Army said.
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp offered his condolences to the families of both victims from Georgia: O’Hara and Lilley, who was the first officer on board the American Airlines flight.
“Both of these young Georgians shared a passion for flight and for serving others, and this terrible tragedy is that much more difficult knowing their lives were cut so unexpectedly short,” he said in an X post. “Marty, the girls, and I ask that all Georgians join us in keeping their loved ones in our thoughts and prayers.”
Andrew Eaves
Another soldier on the helicopter was identified as Chief Warrant Officer 2 Andrew Loyd Eaves, 39, of Great Mills, Maryland, the Army said.
Eaves served in the Navy from 2007 to 2017 and then transitioned to an Army UH-60 pilot.
“His awards include Army Commendation Medal x3, Navy Commendation Medal, Army Achievement Medal, Navy Achievement Medal x3, Navy “E” Ribbon x2, Navy Good Conduct Medal x3, National Defense Service Medal, Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, Armed Forces Service Medal, Military Outstanding Volunteer Service Medal, Army Service Ribbon, Navy & Marine Corps Overseas Service Ribbon and Army Aviator Badge,” the Army said.
(WASHINGTON) — Federal workers across the government on Friday received emails from top officials at their agencies informing them that the resignation offers they received earlier this week are “valid, lawful, and will be honored.”
The White House’s Office of Personnel Management had told government workers in an email Tuesday that if they quit by Feb. 6, they would still get paid through Sept. 30.
Employment lawyers questioned whether such an offer was lawful because Congress, not the White House, is responsible for authorizing workers’ paychecks. Many agencies are expected to run out of money this spring, with the federal government only funded through March, raising questions about how the Trump administration can promise those who take the buyouts would still get paid if the executive branch doesn’t control spending.
Many federal workers also wondered whether the memo, titled “A Fork in the Road,” was a phishing scam, prompting OPM to release a new memo assuring workers they are “most welcome [to] stay at home and relax or to travel to your dream destination. Whatever you would like.”
On Friday morning, senior officials at the various agencies sent memos to staffers assuring them the offers were indeed real.
“On behalf of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), I am informing you that the offer is valid, lawful, and will be honored by USDA,” said one such memo signed by Kailee Tkacz Buller, chief of staff at the Department of Agriculture.
“If you accept the deferred resignation offer, you will receive pay and benefits through September 30, 2025, and will not be subject to a reduction-in-force or other premature separation,” she wrote.
However, Max Alonzo, the national secretary-treasurer for the National Federation of Federal Employees, a labor union that represents 110,000 federal workers, said his union is advising federal workers not to respond to the email.
In part, he said, the union is worried about the lack of clarity and specifics in the offer email. He pointed to the lack of a contract and the fact that Congress has not allocated funds for large-scale federal buyouts, and he worried people might offer to resign but not actually be paid in the end or may have their benefits stripped.
“Absolutely do not resign. There is nothing that says that the day that you resign, that they can’t just let you go,” he said. “They don’t have to pay you — there’s nothing that says they have to pay you till Sept. 30. This is nothing that has been done before. This is not in our regulations. There’s no regs about it. We’re not even sure if it’s actually legal. So, yeah, absolutely do not resign.”
The buyout offers come as President Donald Trump has pushed for federal employees to return to working in person, signing an executive order on his first day in office calling for an end to teleworking.
(WASHINGTON) — The U.S. Department of Agriculture has directed agency officials to review and remove content related to climate change from its public websites, according to internal emails obtained by ABC News.
The directive instructs web managers to identify, archive, or unpublish materials mentioning climate change by “no later than close of business this Friday,” according to the emails.
In an email sent Thursday, USDA Director of Digital Communications Peter Rhee detailed the process, requiring staff to “identify and archive or unpublish any landing pages focused on climate change” and track related content in an attached Excel spreadsheet for review.
“OC will review the submitted materials and make determinations on next steps,” Rhee wrote, referring to the department’s Office of Communications.
A separate email sent to website managers at the Agricultural Research Service (ARS) emphasized the urgency of the request.
“USDA and ARS OC are requesting you comply with the instructions below from USDA’s Office of Communications,” the email read, instructing ARS staff to submit their content audit by 3 p.m. ET Friday to meet the department’s deadline.
USDA officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment from ABC News.
According to the spreadsheet provided to website managers and obtained by ABC News, content is being categorized into three levels of urgency. Pages dedicated entirely to climate change are marked as “Tier 1,” while those where a significant portion of the content relates to climate change are labeled “Tier 2.”
Pages where climate change is mentioned in passing but is not the main focus should be identified under “Tier 3,” according to the spreadsheet.
“For each piece of content, include the title, link, and your recommendation on how the content should be handled,” the email reads.
The USDA has long been involved in climate research and in studying how rising temperatures and shifting weather patterns impact agriculture. The department’s website includes extensive resources on climate science, carbon sequestration, and adaptation strategies for farmers.
A USDA webpage published in 2022 provides information on “Climate Change Adaptation and USDA.”
“Producers, ranchers, forest landowners, and communities across the country are facing challenges posed by the effects of climate change,” the webpage states. “Some of these effects are familiar but occurring more frequently or intensely while others are new and unprecedented.”
The directive to remove mentions of climate change from websites follows President Donald Trump’s executive orders reversing key climate policies, which include withdrawing from the Paris climate agreement, expanding fossil fuel production, weakening environmental protections, and revoking EV incentives.
Critics warn these actions will accelerate climate change and disproportionately harm vulnerable communities.
(TROY, Mich.) — A 5-year-old boy was killed and his mother was injured Friday after a hyperbaric chamber exploded at a medical facility in Troy, Michigan.
The chamber contained 100% oxygen, making it extremely flammable, according to Lt. Keith Young of the Detroit Fire Department.
Officers and firefighters responded to the explosion shortly before 8 a.m.
“Upon arrival, the first responding units unfortunately discovered a 5-year-old boy deceased on the scene,” Lt. Ben Hancock of the Troy Police Department said at a press conference.
The boy’s mother was standing next to the chamber when it exploded and suffered injuries to her arms, officials said. A few medical staff members were also present but were not seriously hurt.
It’s not clear what kind of treatment the boy was receiving at the time.
The explosion was contained to the chamber and firefighters quickly brought the fire under control, they said.
“I’ve been with the department for 10 years, and we’ve never responded to anything like this,” Young said.
The cause of the explosion is still under investigation, and multiple state agencies are involved in examining safety regulations at the facility. In the meantime, the medical center remains closed.
Kent Nishimura for The Washington Post via Getty Images
(WASHINGTON) — An investigation is just beginning into the fatal plane crash over the Potomac River in Washington, with no cause determined yet by the National Transportation Safety Board.
President Donald Trump, though, was quick to try to assign blame on Thursday as he gave a press conference at the White House while recovery crews navigated the icy waters searching for victims.
“We do not know what led to this crash, but we have some very strong opinions,” he said.
Trump first claimed, without evidence, that diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives under Democratic presidents could be a factor. He later doubled down on the unsubstantiated claim while he signed executive orders in the Oval Office.
Trump also suggested the helicopter pilots navigating the U.S. Army Black Hawk should have moved out of the way but at one point said warnings to the crew were given “very late.”
On Friday, he continued to question the chopper’s movement as it appeared to be flying above the mandated 200 feet. “That’s not really too complicated to understand, is it???” he wrote on his social media platform Truth Social.
Leading the investigation into the crash is the NTSB, with a preliminary report due in 30 days but a final report on probable cause not likely for at least a year.
NTSB member Todd Inman, during an appearance on “Good Morning America” on Friday, said it is far too early to make a determination.
“The only conclusion I know is last night we met with several hundred family members who lost their loved ones in the Potomac,” he said. “We don’t need that to happen anymore. … We’re going to find out what happened, and we’re going to try to stop it from happening again.”
Trump accused former President Joe Biden and former President Barack Obama of hiring air traffic controllers based on diversity goals.
“I put safety first — Obama, Biden and the Democrats put policy first, and they put politics at a level that nobody’s ever seen,” Trump claimed at Thursday’s news conference.
When pressed by ABC News Chief White House Correspondent Mary Bruce what proof he had that the crash was caused by DEI efforts, Trump responded: “It just could have been.”
DEI or any similar program does not apply to hiring for air traffic control, which requires rigorous health examinations and a multiyear training process. Applicants must pass a medical exam, an aptitude test and a psychological test that is more stringent than that required of a pilot, said Chris Wilbanks, FAA deputy vice president of safety and technical training.
Trump pointed to a New York Post article as he accused Democrats of pushing to hire people with severe mental disabilities at the Federal Aviation Administration. But the diversity language referenced in the article was on the FAA website during the entirety of Trump’s first term and has been on the site for more than a decade, according to Snopes.
Trump’s attacks, though, are in line with his agenda to dismantle DEI from the federal government. In his first week in office, he signed multiple orders to place federal employees working on DEI on administrative leave and to remove DEI efforts from the Pentagon.
Democrats pushed back on Trump’s claims about the crash.
“Listen, it’s one thing for internet pundits to spew off conspiracy theories. It’s another for the president of the United States to throw out idle speculation as bodies are still being recovered and families still being notified,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said on Thursday. “It just turns your stomach.”
Pete Buttigieg, Biden’s transportation secretary and another target of Trump’s criticism in the wake of the crash, called Trump’s comments “despicable.”
“President Trump now oversees the military and the FAA,” Buttigieg wrote in a social media post. “One of his first acts was to fire and suspend some of the key personnel who helped keep our skies safe. Time for the President to show actual leadership and explain what he will do to prevent this from happening again.”
ABC News’ Selina Wang, Benjamin Siegel, Sam Sweeney, Fritz Farrow and Hannah Demissie contributed to this report.
Emergency units respond to airplane wreckage in the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington Airport on January 30, 2025 in Arlington, Virginia. An American Airlines flight from Wichita, Kansas collided with a helicopter while approaching Ronald Reagan National Airport. (Photo by Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
(WASHINGTON) — Fourteen figure skaters — including some young athletes called the “rising stars” of the sport — are among the victims of the first major commercial plane crash in the United States since 2009, officials said.
The Skating Club of Boston was devastated by the crash, according to Doug Zeghibe, the club’s CEO and executive director, who said six of the victims were from the Boston club, including two coaches, two teenage athletes and two moms of athletes.
“Our sport and this club have suffered a horrible loss with this tragedy,” Zeghibe said. “Skating is a tight-knit community where parents and kids come together six or seven days a week to train and work together. Everyone is like family. We are devastated and completely at a loss for words.”
Zeghibe identified the skaters from the Skating Club of Boston as Jinna Ha and Spencer Lane. Ha’s mother, Jin Han, and Lane’s mother, Christine Lane, were also on board.
He identified the two coaches as Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov. The two were 1994 World Pair Champions who joined the club in 2017, Zeghibe said.
“Six is a horrific number for us but we’re fortunate and grateful it wasn’t more than six,” Zeghibe said. “This will have long reaching impacts for our skating community.”
The figure skaters and coaches were returning from a training camp held in conjunction with the recent U.S. national championships in Wichita, Kansas. They were aboard the American Airlines flight that collided with a Black Hawk helicopter near Reagan National Airport on Wednesday evening, officials said. No survivors were expected in the crash, officials said Thursday. There were 64 people aboard the plane and three in the helicopter, according to officials.
Natalya Gudin, the wife of Alexandr Kirsanov, a coach of two youth ice skaters on board the flight, said she has “lost everything” in the crash. Gudin, also a skating coach, decided to stay home in Delaware while Kirsanov flew to Kansas for the development camp. She says she spoke with her husband as he boarded the flight on Wednesday.
“I lost my husband, I lost my students, I lost my friends,” Gudin told ABC News. “I need my husband back. I need his body back.”
The University of Delaware said Sasha Kirsanov, a former figure skating club coach, was also on the airplane, along with two young skaters who were also members of the club.
“Our hearts go out to the families and friends of all of the victims of this horrible tragedy,” said President of the University of Delaware Dennis Assanis.
The U.S. Figure Skating community has been struck by tragedy in a plane crash before. An entire U.S. figure skating team died in a plane crash on Feb. 15, 1961. The plane, Sabena Flight 548, was carrying the team to the World Figure Skating Championships in Prague, Czechoslovakia. Along with the team, 16 family members, coaches and friends of the skaters died in the crash.
“Like today, 1961 was a tragic moment, it was the day the music stopped, very much like this,” said longtime member of the Skating Club of Boston Paul George during a Thursday press conference. “It was a very vivid reminder of 1961. My wife tapped me on the shoulder at 6:30 (a.m.) and told me, much as my father had done 64 years ago at about the same time of day.”
Olympic gold medalist Brian Boitano told ABC News he knew the two Russian skating coaches, Naumov and Shishkova, and had handed the fourth-place award to the pair’s son at the U.S. championships in Wichita last weekend.
“We are a really close-knit community. The skaters — we are all connected. So when something happens to one of us, it reverberates through everyone.”
The U.S. figure skating world has emerged from the shadows of tragedy before, he said.
“From the 1961 plane crash, we did rise from that,” Boitano said, adding “It took years to build.”
During a press conference Thursday, Olympic medalist and renowned figure skater Nancy Kerrigan fought back tears as she explained the impact of the crash on the skating community, urging others to “tell people around you that you love them, because you just never know.”
“Skating teaches you the main lesson in life: You get back up,” Kerrigan said. “Even when it’s hard, even when you’re crying, even when you’re hurt. And that’s what we all have to do now — together.”
Oklahoma City figure skating coach Jackie Brenner was in Wichita with the skaters, coaches and officials who later boarded the flight.
“I was there on Sunday at a coaching workshop, which was the first day of U.S. figure skating development camp as they were coming into their two days of training,” Brenner said. The camp draws the sport’s “rising stars,” she said.
“That’s our next generation for U.S. figure skating,” she told ABC News, adding, “You can just imagine how devastated U.S. figure skating community is.”
CEO of U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee Sarah Hirshland said the young skaters who were lost “represented the bright future of Team USA, embodying the very essence of what it means to represent our country — perseverance, resilience and hope.”
“They were remarkable young people and talents, passionately pursuing their dreams, and they will forever hold a cherished place in the Team USA family,” Hirshland said in a statement. “We extend our sincerest condolences during this unimaginable time.”
The last commercial plane crash in the U.S. happened on Feb. 12, 2009, when Colgan Air Flight 3407 crashed during landing near Buffalo Niagara International Airport, killing all 49 people onboard.
(WASHINGTON) — President Donald Trump on Wednesday directed the Defense Department and the Department of Homeland Security to prepare the naval base at Guantanamo Bay to hold up to 30,000 immigrants awaiting deportation from the U.S.
ABC News’ Phil Lipof on Wednesday spoke with Karen Greenberg, director of the Center on National Security at Fordham University School of Law, to discuss the plan for the military base in Cuba.
ABC NEWS: The director of the Center on National Security at Fordham Law School, Karen Greenberg. Karen, thanks for being with us. We are talking about an American military base on foreign soil. What does that mean for immigrants’ access to due process?
KAREN GREENBERG: OK, so first, it’s not really foreign soil in the United States’ terms — it’s an outpost of the United States. And that’s always been one of the confusing things about Guantanamo.
What it is is a place where, repeatedly, the United States has sought to place individuals without the kinds of protections by law that they have in the United States on the homeland, as we’ve seen with the detention of war on terror detainees. And also, you know, we can talk about the migration center as well, but it is not correct to call it on foreign soil. It is on a U.S. base located in Guantanamo Bay.
ABC NEWS: All right, so you’ve been to that facility where they’d be held at Guantanamo Bay. What challenges will the administration face in trying to implement the plan?
GREENBERG: So one big challenge that they’re going to face is basically the numbers he was throwing around. He threw out 30,000 — I don’t know that they have the capacity for that, but I have never heard that before. At the height that I knew about it, in the old days and the ’90s, I think they held 21,000 at the most.
They’ve held refugees repeatedly. In current context, President Biden talked about using it for migrants as well, but never, and we’re using it now for some intercepted asylum seekers and migrants. But that kind of capacity, that kind of number, hasn’t been thrown around before.
So I’m assuming that will mean they will need to build up some kind of facility, not just for the numbers they’re talking about in terms of migrants, but also for the guards, the health facilities, etc., etc., that we’ll need there.
And just to make a point there, they had to build Guantanamo detention facility, also, you know, for the war on terror detainees. And they did that very rapidly. They did it within 100 days, and built, you know, state-of-the-art maximum security prisons and housing for those who would need to attend to them. So it can be done quickly.
ABC NEWS: As you point out, the base has been used to hold much smaller numbers of immigrants for years. What could some of their experiences tell us about Guantanamo?
GREENBERG: Well, the reports are not good. And I want to say that it’s not just the past reports that are not good. It’s also, there was a report released in September by the International Refugee Assistance Project, which sort of detailed the conditions that migrants are held in currently at Guantanamo, which included unsanitary conditions, mistreatment, not to mention this sort of fuzzy legal status.
So I don’t think that’s projected well in the past, there’s also been in these prior times, in the ’70s and the ’90s also, you know, allegations of, and documents of mistreatment and unsanitary conditions, etc.
ABC NEWS: Certainly a lot to work out moving forward. Karen Greenberg, thank you.
