(PIGEON KEY, Fla.) — A woman was killed and two children injured in a parasailing accident in the Florida Keys on Monday, authorities said.
The individuals were parasailing shortly before 5:30 p.m. when the vessel’s tow line snapped, causing them to drag across the water, according to a Florida Department of Law Enforcement incident report.
The winds had “picked up” and the parasail struck the Old Seven Mile Bridge near Pigeon Key, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission said in a statement Tuesday.
The woman and one of the boys were unconscious following the collision, police said. A good Samaritan helped bring the three individuals to a nearby dock, according to the incident report.
The woman was pronounced dead at the scene after first responders attempted life-saving measures, police said. The boy regained consciousness and was transported to Miami Children’s Hospital for treatment, authorities said. His current condition is unclear. The other boy suffered minor injuries, authorities said.
There were between 10 to 12 family members at the scene, including the woman’s husband, according to the incident report.
The victims, who have not been publicly identified, were from Schaumburg, Illinois, and had been on a parasail ride with Lighthouse Parasail, based in Marathon, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. ABC News did not immediately hear back from Lighthouse Parasail for comment.
(WASHINGTON) — The Supreme Court on Thursday blocked a Texas law that would ban social media companies from removing users and the content they post because of a particular viewpoint expressed.
The court did not elaborate on the decision, which is temporary while legal challenges proceed through lower courts.
“We are relieved that the First Amendment, open internet, and the users who rely on it remain protected from Texas’s unconstitutional overreach,” said Chris Marchese, an attorney for NetChoice, the industry trade group representing Meta, TikTok, YouTube and others, in a statement.
NetChoice says the law, which took effect earlier this month, would effectively force social media platforms to disseminate dangerous content, including propaganda, hate speech and threats of violence, in violation of their First Amendment rights.
Republican sponsors of the law — the first of its kind in the country — say the measure is meant to end alleged censorship of conservative users on the social networks, which they argue are modern-day “public squares.”
Four justices — Elena Kagan, Samuel Alito, Clarence Thomas and Neil Gorsuch — indicated they would have let the Texas law remain in force while the legal battle plays out.
Justice Alito, in a dissent joined by Thomas and Gorsuch, explained that he would not have interfered with a lower court decision to let the law take effect, suggesting that the justices would likely hear the dispute on appeal in due time.
“The law before us is novel, as are applicants’ business models,” wrote Alito “It is not at all obvious how our existing precedents, which predate the age of the internet, should apply to large social media companies.”
At the heart of the dispute is the First Amendment’s protection of freedom of speech and thorny questions around private companies’ censorship across networks of more than 50 million users.
Texas Republicans enacted the law in response to longstanding frustration from conservatives who feel silenced or sidelined by the media companies’ moderation policies.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who is leading defense of the law, has argued the companies’ size rivals public utilities in influence and importance to Americans’ daily lives and therefore should be regulated accordingly.
“The platforms are the 21st-century descendants of telegraph and telephone companies: that is, traditional common carriers,” he wrote. The government can require common carriers to generally accept all users.
The NAACP and Anti-Defamation League are siding with the companies, warning of enhanced risk to public safety if the law is allowed to stand and more like it take hold across the country. They say the private companies have a right and obligation to police content on their sites to ensure the welfare of members.
Florida’s GOP-controlled state legislature enacted a similar law this spring, but it was temporarily blocked by a federal appeals court last week.
“Social media platforms exercise editorial judgment that is inherently expressive,” wrote Judge Kevin Newsom in the panel’s decision. “When platforms choose to remove users or posts, deprioritize content in viewers’ feeds or search results, or sanction breaches of their community standards, they engage in First Amendment-protected activity.”
If and when the Supreme Court takes up the Florida or Texas law on the merits, the decision could have sweeping impact on the future of speech on the Internet and private companies’ ability to moderate content on their sites, online legal experts say.
(NEW YORK) — Even as the first funerals of the 21 victims of the Uvalde, Texas, school shooting were commencing, gunfire continued to wreak havoc across the United States over the Memorial Day weekend as police in eight major cities investigated incidents in which three or more people were shot, including 16 children.
The gun violence was especially acute in Philadelphia and Chicago, where police departments in both cities dispatched officers to more than 40 shootings between Friday afternoon and Monday night.
According to the Gun Violence Archive, a website that keeps track of shootings across the country, there have been 17 episodes across the nation in which four or more people have been shot since the Uvalde mass shooting on May 24.
14 fatally shot in Philly
At least 14 people, including a 9-year-old boy and his father, were killed in Philadelphia over the holiday weekend.
Philadelphia has already recorded 209 homicides this year, just three less than at this time in 2021 — a year that saw a record 562 homicides, according to Philadelphia Police Department crime statistics.
Among those killed this weekend in Philadelphia were 37-year-old Gerald Parks and his 9-year-old son, Jamal. Police said the father and son had just arrived home in the city’s Wissinoming section Sunday night when a barrage of gunfire erupted.
Parks and his son, who were coming from a holiday cookout, were found dead in their car. No arrests had been made as of Tuesday.
In a separate episode Monday evening, one person was killed and another was seriously injured when at least 70 shots were fired in a North Philadelphia neighborhood near Temple University, police said. Apparently several shooters, who remain unidentified and at large, were involved in the incident at about 6:30 p.m. and four guns were found at the scene, according to police.
Hours later, more than 40 gunshots rang out at a party in the Port Richmond section of Philadelphia, leaving a 16-year-old girl and a 21-year-old woman dead, according to police. Investigators believe that at least two gunmen were involved in the shooting that also left a 14-year-old girl and a 21-year-old man injured. No arrests have been announced.
Also on Monday, three people were shot, one fatally, on a street in West Philadelphia, police said. One of the victims shot is believed to be an innocent bystander who was hit by a stray bullet, according to police.
The shooting happened around 11 p.m. When officers arrived at the scene, they found a 32-year-old man with multiple gunshot wounds. He was taken to a hospital and pronounced dead.
Police also learned a 29-year-old woman who was a passenger in a moving car was hit by a stray bullet and critically injured. The third victim ran and was found shot twice in the leg a few blocks away by officers and paramedics.
Police said at least 34 spent shell casings were found at the West Philadelphia crime scene.
“This violence must stop. Families and friends are losing loved ones, and our youth are having their lives and potential cut short,” Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney tweeted Monday night. “We must all work together to end this heartbreaking, maddening epidemic and make a safer city for everyone.”
9 killed in Chicago
At least 47 people were injured and nine killed in a series of shootings across Chicago over the weekend, according to police.
Five people, including a 16-year-old girl, were shot in one incident in Chicago’s West Garfield Park neighborhood early Sunday morning. The shooting occurred during a gathering to commemorate a teenager who was fatally shot two years ago, according to police.
Shell casings from at least three guns, including an AK-47 rifle, were found at the scene, police said. No arrests have been announced.
Also on Sunday, a 69-year-old man was killed and four other people were injured in a shooting that erupted in Chicago’s West Humboldt Park neighborhood, police said. Police said the shooting stemmed from a domestic violence incident and that a 23-year-old man who was shot in the foot has been arrested in connection with the incident.
Chicago has recorded 232 homicides this year, a 10% decrease from the same period in 2021, according to police department crime statistics.
The shootings in Chicago this weekend came despite an order canceling days off for police officers over the Memorial Day weekend and the city expanding the hours of a curfew on minors unaccompanied by adults in Millennium Park, a major tourist attraction where a 16-year-old boy was fatally shot two weeks ago.
10 people shot in Charleston
Ten people, including a 17-year-old, were injured in downtown Charleston, South Carolina, late Monday night, including a police officer, when gunfire erupted. The incident remained under investigation Tuesday.
The shooting unfolded at about 11:40 p.m., police said.
In the aftermath of the shooting, several fights broke out and two officers were assaulted, according to police. Two women were arrested and charged with the assaults on the police officers, authorities said.
6 teenagers shot in Chattanooga
Six teenagers were shot and wounded, two critically, Saturday night when multiple people opened fire in downtown Chattanooga, Tennessee, during a confrontation between two large groups of young people, authorities said.
Chattanooga police officers were patrolling the downtown area at around 11 p.m. when they heard the gunshots and immediately responded to help those injured, Chattanooga Police Chief Celeste Murphy said during a news conference on Sunday.
No arrests have been announced.
7 injured, 1 killed, in shooting at Memorial Day event in Oklahoma
One person was killed and seven were injured after a shooting broke out during a Memorial Day festival in Oklahoma.
About 1,500 people were in attendance at the festival at the Old City Square in Taft, about 45 miles southeast of Tulsa, when the shooting took place just after midnight Sunday, according to the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation.
A 39-year-old woman was killed in the incident and a 9-year-old child was among those injured, authorities said.
Police said the 26-year-old suspect, Skyler Buckner, turned himself in Sunday afternoon.
4 shot at Houston party
Gunfire erupted at a Houston house party Sunday night, leaving four people wounded, according to the Harris County Sheriff’s Office.
All of the victims suffered non-life-threatening injuries. But police said one of the shooting victims hit and killed a motorcyclist while attempting to drive himself to a hospital.
Teenager killed, five injured in Phoenix shooting
An 18-year-old man was fatally shot and five other teenagers were wounded during a shooting at a house party in Phoenix, Arizona early Sunday.
Police said the wounded victims ranged in age 16 to 18, and all are expected to survive.
No arrests have been announced and police said at least two different guns were used in the shooting.
1 dead, 6 hurt, in Michigan bar shooting
A shooting outside a Michigan bar left a 19-year-old man dead and six other people injured early Sunday morning.
The shooting unfolded around 2:30 a.m. outside the Ajay’s Lounge and A and D Liquor Store in Benton Harbor.
Witnesses told ABC affiliate WBND in South Bend, Indiana, that prior to the shooting, a fight broke over a ticketed event Ajay’s Lounge in which a rapper people thought was going to perform only made an appearance.
No arrests have been announced in the shooting.
7 hurt in Nevada freeway shooting involving motorcycle gangs
Seven people were injured, two critically, Saturday when gunfire erupted on a freeway in Henderson, Nevada, police said.
The Henderson Police Department said a preliminary investigation indicates the shooting occurred just before noon on Interstate 95 and stemmed from an altercation between members of rival motorcycle gangs.
Three suspects were identified and arrested on charges of attempted murder, felony battery, conspiracy to commit murder and discharging a gun at occupied vehicles. Police identified the suspects as 66-year-old Richard Devries, 46-year-old Stephen Alo and 26-year-old Russell Smith.
4 people shot in Memphis
Four people were shot Friday night near a rogue car show in Memphis, Tennessee, police said.
One of the people wounded in the shooting was arrested and charged with being a convicted felon in possession of a handgun.
It was unclear if the 27-year-old man taken into custody was involved in the shooting.
Police said the victims all suffered non-life-threatening injuries.
6 shot at Alabama graduation party
Six people, including a 14-year-old child, were injured in a shooting at a graduation party in Anniston, Alabama, on Friday, police said.
About 150 people were at the party when the shooting broke out in the town about 64 miles east of Birmingham, police said.
Investigators said they recovered dozens of shell casings at the scene and that multiple cars in the area were struck by gunfire.
No arrests were announced.
Florida house party shooting leaves 4 wounded
Four teenagers were shot when a fight broke out at a house party in Malabar, Florida, on Saturday night, according to the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office.
The shooting erupted just before midnight in the city about 77 miles southwest of Orlando, authorities said.
The victims ranged in age from 15 to 18 and all suffered non-life-threatening injuries, the sheriff’s office said.
No arrests have been announced.
1 killed, 3 injured in Fresno, California
A teenager was killed and three others were injured in a shooting near a park in downtown Fresno, California, on Friday, police said.
The shooting started about 9 p.m. near Radio Park and left a 17-year-old boy dead. A 15-year-old boy and two 16-year-olds were wounded in the shooting, according to the Fresno Police Department.
The injured victims are all expected to survive, police said.
No arrests have been made.
1 dead, 3 injured in Colorado Springs
An 18-year-old man was killed and three 18-year-old women were wounded in a drive-by shooting early Friday in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
The victims were standing in the parking lot of a bar around 1:15 a.m. when gunfire erupted from a passing car, police said.
No arrests have been announced.
A mother, 3 children fatally shot in Michigan
A 40-year-old mother and her three children — ages 6, 4 and 3 — were allegedly shot to death on Friday by the stepfather of the children, police said.
The quadruple homicide occurred at a house in Austin Township, Michigan, north of Grand Rapids, according to the Mecosta County Sheriff’s Office.
The stepfather of the children, identified by relatives as Charles Gillard, 51, is suspected of committing the killings around 2:30 p.m. Friday, according to the sheriff’s office.
Charles Gillard was found with an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head and was in critical condition at a hospital on Tuesday, the sheriff’s office said.
Relatives identified the victims as Dawn Gillard and her children, 6-year-old Katelynn, 4-year-old Ronald, and 3-year-old Joshua.
“I am in total shock. I am so devastated,” Hailey Salisbury, the daughter of Dawn Gillard’s daughter and the half-sister to the young children who were killed, told ABC affiliate station WZZM in Grand Rapids.
Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images, FILE
(WASHINGTON) — Second gentleman Doug Emhoff called attention to the “epidemic” of antisemitism and reflected on the history he has made while speaking Tuesday at a virtual event on U.S. Jewish military history.
“This role has enabled me to use this microphone to speak out and to speak up on issues that are important to not only us Jews but all of us — all around the world,” Emhoff, an entertainment attorney and the first Jewish spouse of a president or vice president, said on the final day of Jewish American Heritage Month honoring the accomplishments and history of Jews in the United States.
“And as the vice president said so eloquently in Buffalo the other day: It’s an epidemic of hate,” Emhoff said, referencing wife Kamala Harris’ trip to New York in the wake of the fatal shooting of 10 people at a supermarket in a predominantly Black neighborhood earlier in May. The suspected shooter’s writings included both anti-Black and anti-Jewish screeds; separately, advocacy groups say antisemitic incidents hit a high in 2021.
“It’s an epidemic of hate that not only includes antisemitism but includes all forms of hate,” Emhoff said Tuesday. “And we as Jews, and we as Americans, we all need to stand up and speak up.”
Emhoff also talked more personally, saying that the reaction to his identity as a Jewish second gentleman surprised him. While his faith was always a big deal to him, “I did not expect my Jewish faith to be such a big deal in this role,” he said.
“I’ve been at schools making matzah [flatbread eaten on the Jewish holiday of Passover], I’ve talked to my dad’s 85-year-old friends who, you know, gossip with him and they’ll tell him how much I mean to them,” he continued.
Though his importance to others surprised him, he took it seriously, he said: “It has nothing to do with political party or anything like that. It’s just seeing me in this role, it has engendered some feelings in people they didn’t even know they had … it really pushes me to do as well as I can.”
“To be able to live openly and joyfully as an American Jew, as I always have, but to do it so publicly, has really impacted people,” he said.
Emhoff has participated in both public and private Jewish events in his capacity as second gentlemen, which like the role of first lady includes a number of ceremonial duties and the championing of select causes. He helped light the national menorah for Hanukkah last December near the White House. In his Tuesday remarks, he looked back at other appearances.
“Whether it’s hanging the first mezuzah [a box containing a scroll with some scripture] at the vice president’s residence, having the first in-person [Passover] Seder there … lighting a menorah at the residence … and to just show up, just show everyone what we’re doing, like we’ve always done, but just to have the American people and the world see it is just really, really incredible,” Emhoff said.
President Joe Biden marked Jewish American Heritage Month with a proclamation at the end of April where he emphasized the contributions of Jewish Americans in building the U.S. and contributing to public life.
“The story of America was written, in part, by Jewish Americans who, through their words and actions, embraced the opportunity and responsibility of citizenship knowing full well that democracy is not born, nor sustained, by accident,” Biden said.
He also denounced the increase in antisemitism: “As the scourge of white supremacy and antisemitic violence rises, my Administration remains committed to ensuring that hate has no safe harbor.”
Jimmy Eat World has announced a new batch of North American headlining tour dates.
The outing kicks off September 8 in Cleveland and will wrap up September 29 in Toronto. Tickets go on sale this Friday, June 3, at 10 a.m. local time.
For the full list of dates and all ticket info, visit JimmyEatWorld.com.
You’ll also be able to catch Jimmy Eat World at a number of festivals this September and October, including the much-anticipated When We Were Young festival in Las Vegas.
Earlier this year, Jimmy Eat World launched a co-headlining tour with Dashboard Confessional.
Volume one of the soundtrack to the fourth season of the hit Netflix series Stranger Things is available now via digital formats.
In addition to the previously announced Bryce Miller/Alloy Tracks remix of Journey‘s 1983 hit “Separate Ways (Worlds Apart),” the album features songs by such other veteran rock artists as The Beach Boys, Talking Heads, Dead or Alive and KISS.
The track list includes The Beach Boys’ “California Dreamin’,” Talking Heads’ “Psycho Killer,” Dead or Alive‘s “You Spin Me Round (Like a Record)” and KISS’ “Detroit Rock City,” as well as songs by Extreme, Baltimora, Kate Bush, Musical Youth, The Surfaris, Falco and Ricky Nelson.
The release of Stranger Things: Soundtrack from the Netflix Series, Season 4, Volume I coincided with the premiere of the latest season of the series, which is split into two parts.
As previously reported, Volume II of theStranger Things‘ season 4 soundtrack will be released digitally on July 1, the day that the second part of the series’ current season premieres.
The digital version of Volume II will feature all of the songs that appear on Volume I, as well as additional music heard in the second run of episodes of Stranger Things‘ fourth season.
The full Stranger Things: Soundtrack from the Netflix Series, Season 4, including both volumes, will be released on CD and cassette on September 9, while a two-LP vinyl edition will be made available later in 2022.
Here’s the full track list of Stranger Things: Soundtrack from the Netflix Series, Season 4, Volume I:
“Separate Ways (Worlds Apart)” (Bryce Miller/Alloy Tracks Remix) — Journey
“California Dreamin'” — The Beach Boys
“Psycho Killer” — Talking Heads
“Running Up That Hill” — Kate Bush
“You Spin Me Round (Like a Record)” — Dead or Alive
“Chica Mejicanita” — Mae Arnette
“Play with Me” — Extreme
“Detroit Rock City” — KISS
“I Was a Teenage Werewolf” — The Cramps
“Pass the Dutchie” — Musical Youth
“Wipeout” — The Surfaris
“Object of My Desire” — Starpoint
“Rock Me Amadeus (The Gold Mix)” — Falco
“Travelin’ Man” — Ricky Nelson
“Tarzan Boy” — Baltimora
“Dream a Little Dream of Me” — Ella Fitzgerald & Louis Armstrong
Kesha is headlining this year’s Stonewall Day outside of New York City’s historic Stonewall Inn on June 24, which will stream on PRIDE LIVE’s YouTube channel. Adam Lambert will provide a video message for the event.
Lil Nas X suffered some car trouble over the Memorial Day weekend. He filmed himself dancing in front of his car that “broke down in traffic” as cars sped down the highway.
Speaking of Lil Nas X, he’s teaming with M&M’s to, according to the candy company, “leverage the power of music to lay the groundwork for a new platform that brings people together to celebrate music, build connections, and enjoy more moments of fun through a series of initiatives set to kick off later this year.” In a statement, Nas says, “M&M’S is iconic and I’m a huge fan of the brand. I’m excited to work with them on some really cool projects this year that are as colorful as they are.”
Halsey shared a teaser of their new song “So Good” on their TikTok and said it was a “fiasco” to release it. To recap, Halsey claimed their label refused to release the song until they could manufacture a fake viral moment. With “So Good” dropping June 9, Halsey joked they can now go back to “using witchcraft to take over the world.”
A new tattoo for Selena Gomez! Her new ankle tattoo declares “By God” written vertically behind the bone.
Diplo was hired to DJ a ritzy yacht party during the Cannes Film Festival — but he said security “wouldn’t let me in” because he wasn’t on the guest list. The “Lean On” DJ shared a video of the embarrassing mixup. Diplo eventually got in after the yacht owner spoke with security.
Sam Smith shared a behind-the-scenes video of their “Love Me More” music video, which looks like it is playing on an old VHS player thanks to its slightly fuzzy graphics.
After yanking the release date for her new EP La Tormenta, Christina Aguilera released it and the sultry “Sueltame” collab with singer Tini on streaming. She also released Aguilera, a new album that compiles the songs off her all-Spanish EPs La Tormenta and La Fuerza.
Sam Smith shared a behind-the-scenes video of their “Love Me More” music video, which looks like it is playing on an old VHS player thanks to its slightly fuzzy graphics. Fans can see how much fun Sam and the gang had filming the emotional clip.
After yanking the release date for her new EP La Tormenta, Christina Aguilera released it and the sultry “Sueltame” collab with singer Tini on streaming. Christina postponed the EP’s release following the Uvalde, Texas, school shooting. She also released Aguilera, a new album that compiles the songs off her all-Spanish EPs La Tormenta and La Fuerza.
Kelly Clarkson belted out a haunting version of Alanis Morissette’s 1998 hit “Uninvited” on her daytime talk show Tuesday. Kelly will be releasing a Kellyoke EP on June 9, which contains her fan-favorite covers. This track will not appear on it — and fans are already begging her to make a sister EP and to put “Uninvited” on its track list.
Lindsey Stirling says it’s possible to be both a rock star and a violinist. If you don’t believe her, she says, “Go check out my YouTube channel, bro.” She added in an Instagram comment, “Don’t let anyone else tell you what you can and can’t be… unless it’s your mom being a wise mom.”
After teasing it for several days, Train finallyreleased the music video for “Cleopatra,” which features singer Sofia Reyes. The music video takes us back to the 70s, which shows frontman Pat Monahan making tropical cocktails at his very retro home bar.
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson is a famously charismatic guy, which was proven again when a two-dimensional version of him went viral.
An Instagram user called @smilesweetsraccoon showed off a cardboard cutout of the movie star/TV star/entrepreneur, which she took out for a very special day.
“Thank you @therock for taking me to prom. I had so much fun,” she posted. “Best date a person could ask for.”
To her apparent surprise, Johnson hit her back online, reposting the picture to his 318 million Instagram followers, “It was absolutely my honor…and you were the best prom date EVER!!” The Black Adam star and XFL owner added, “Great to meet your family and friends too!” along with a clinking champagne emoji.
Meanwhile, Johnson’s oldest daughter, Simone, has declared she’s joining the family business: Simone is following her famous father into the WWE, wrestling under the name Ava Raine.
To those who thought The Rock’s offspring should be known as The Pebble — and there were many — the 20-year-old vented, “i beg of you guys to find a new joke. anything.”
Simone, aka Ava, will be a fourth-generation wrestler: her dad’s father, Rocky Johnson, and his maternal grandfather, PeterMaivia, were both in the business.
(UVALDE, Texas) — The Uvalde Police Department and the Uvalde Independent School District police force are no longer cooperating with the Texas Department of Public Safety’s investigation into the massacre at Robb Elementary School and the state’s review of the law enforcement response, multiple law enforcement sources tell ABC News.
A spokesman for Texas DPS, which is running the state’s investigations, declined to comment.
The Uvalde police chief and a spokesperson for the Uvalde Independent School District did not immediately respond to requests for comment from ABC News.
According to sources, the decision to stop cooperating occurred soon after the director of DPS, Col. Steven McCraw, held a news conference Friday during which he said the delayed police entry into the classroom was “the wrong decision” and contrary to protocol.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
