Authorities are examining security camera footage from a home in the Tucson area near Nancy Guthrie’s property that shows a man wearing a backpack trying to scale a wall near a home the morning of her disappearance.
The video, which was captured on a Ring camera about 1:54 a.m. Feb. 1, shows a bald man wearing a gray jacket and a backpack similar to the one worn by the masked man outside Guthrie’s door before she was abducted. Another video, which is also being reviewed, shows a man wearing a baseball cap and a black backpack pulling on a car door handle outside a home in the neighborhood the morning after the 84-year-old vanished.
Sources told The Times the videos are being looked at as part of the investigation into Guthrie’s abduction. But it’s unclear whether or how they might be connected.
Sheriff‘s officials have also asked residents to pull any video from Jan. 1 to Feb. 2 that includes vehicles, people or anything deemed “out of the ordinary” or possibly important to the investigation.
Kimberlee Guluzian, a lecturer at Cal State Long Beach and a forensic consultant who spent decades as a crime scene investigator, said that in addition to reviewing videos, detectives probably are pulling data from license plate readers and cell towers to see who was in the area in the days and weeks before Guthrie’s kidnapping.
It could be an indication that authorities suspect the person may have cased Guthrie’s home before the abduction, she said.
“They’re trying to look for people or cars that typically aren’t in the area,” she said. “So if it was a rental car, they’re going to try to get a license plate and go back to the company to see who rented that vehicle. They’re just trying to find any lead possible at this point.”
The latest piece of video evidence comes as Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos says more people are likely to be detained in the case.
Guthrie was discovered missing from her home 12 days ago after she didn’t show up at a friend’s house to watch a church service. She was taken from her home without any of her medication, and it’s unclear how long she can survive without it.
Guthrie’s children have been holding on to hope that their mother will be found. “Today” show host Savannah Guthrie, one of her daughters, posted a tribute to her mother on Instagram on Thursday morning.
The short video shows a much younger Nancy Guthrie picking pink flowers in the garden with her elementary school-aged children. Guthrie smiles as one of her young daughters places the flowers near her nose, an invitation to smell the fragrant blossoms.
“Our lovely mom. We will never give up on her,” Savannah Guthrie wrote in the caption. “Thank you for your prayers and hope.”
The unusual case has seemingly hit a host of dead ends in recent days.
Authorities on Tuesday detained a 36-year-old man after a traffic stop south of Tucson, but released him hours later. Deputies and FBI forensics experts and agents searched his family’s home overnight but did not locate Guthrie. Authorities have not said whether or how he might be connected to the case or what evidence led them to search his family’s home.
A Sheriff’s Department spokesperson said the man’s detention “was part of follow-up on incoming leads.”
Footage from the Nest camera outside Guthrie’s home led to roughly 4,000 new tips over the course of 24 hours, according to the Sheriff’s Department. Meanwhile, investigators on Wednesday scoured along roadways in the foothills north of Tucson for any evidence that could help them crack the case.
Investigators discovered “several items of evidence including gloves” that are being tested, according to the Sheriff’s Department.
A Honduran man who lived and worked in the U.S. for 26 years died after being held at a California immigration detention facility for more than a month, and his family is calling for an investigation, saying he complained of deteriorating health conditions before his death.
Luis Beltrán Yanez-Cruz, 68, died on Jan. 6 at 1:18 a.m. at the John F. Kennedy Memorial Hospital in Indio after suffering from heart-related health issues, according to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials. He was being held at the Imperial Regional Detention Facility in Calexico before he was transferred to the hospital.
Federal officials said Yanez-Cruz was “encountered” during a Nov. 16 enforcement operation in Newark, N.J., but he was not the target of the operation, his daughter said. He was put into removal proceedings, which were pending at the time of his death.
A photo of Luis Beltrán Yanez-Cruz, 68, is displayed during his memorial. Yanez-Cruz died this month in ICE custody.
His daughter, Josselyn Yanez, blames ICE for not taking his health concerns seriously and not providing medical attention as his health deteriorated. In a statement, ICE said Yanez-Cruz was put in the detention facility’s medical unit for chest pains before being sent to El Centro Regional Medical Center. He was then transported by helicopter to Indio.
“There needs to be an investigation because this is not normal,” Yanez said. “He started having symptoms weeks ago; they could have done something.”
In response to the family’s claims, a Homeland Security official said in a statement, “ICE has higher detention standards than most US prisons that hold actual US citizens. All detainees are provided with 3 meals a day, clean water, clothing, bedding, showers, and toiletries, and have access to phones to communicate with their family members and lawyers.”
Luis Beltrán Yanez-Cruz was being held at the Imperial Regional Detention Facility in Calexico before being hospitalized in Indio.
(Google Maps)
Last September another detainee at the facility died after experiencing a seizure at the facility, ICE officials said.
As for Yanez-Cruz, officials said he illegally entered the U.S. and was arrested near Eagle Pass, Texas, in June 1993 and removed from the U.S. Between 1999 and 2012, the agency said, he submitted applications for temporary protected status but was denied.
Yanez said claims that her father was deported and never granted TPS are false. She said her father had been granted TPS when he entered the U.S. in 1999, and it allowed him to visit Honduras on at least two occasions. His status lapsed because he was unable to renew it, she said.
On Nov. 16 her father, who worked in construction, had gotten breakfast around 10 a.m. at a McDonald’s in Newark when he stopped to chat with friends in an area known for day laborers to gather and pick up work, she told The Times. Suddenly, ICE agents pulled up and began arresting people, including her father.
Yanez, who lives in Houston, said she learned of it about an hour later. Her father was in detention in New Jersey before being moved to Calexico. He spent Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s in detention.
Members of Todec Legal Center attend a memorial for Luis Beltrán Yanez-Cruz, who was from New Jersey and died far from home without any family by his side. “Although we did not know el señor Luis, his death being in our backyard, it’s so close to us,” a member of the immigrant rights group said. “It’s one pain after another. We did not know him, but his family’s pain is our pain.”
Yanez-Cruz spent 26 years in the U.S., working construction and paint jobs to help his family get ahead, Yanez said.
“He was an extraordinary father,” she said. “He was always looking out for us, even as we got older and became adults. He looked out for his grandchildren … He always worried about them and called to ask how they were doing.”
He called regularly, even while he was detained, Yanez said. But his health appeared to worsen the longer he was in detention, she said, even though he had been healthy before his arrest.
Inside the facility he was suffering from stomach and chest pains and sometimes felt like vomiting when he ate, she said. He suffered from shortness of breath walking around the facility and when he reported it to the staff, they only gave him pills to ease the pain, she said.
Yanez said the last time she spoke to her father was Jan. 3, a usual check-in when he asked about her children as she walked home from work. At the end of the call he said “Cuidate, te amo mucho.” Take care, I love you a lot.
Her brother spoke to him the next day and he seemed fine, she said. But as she waited for his call the following day she received one from a former detainee who told her he heard her father had been transferred to the medical unit after he had difficulty breathing. Yanez said she tried to call the facility but couldn’t get information until the next day when they called to tell her he died during the early morning hours.
Parish staff and members of Todec Legal Center lead a procession after the memorial service.
Yanez-Cruz’s passing hit family members hard because they were not there in his final moments, his daughter said. They have been sharing stories of his life and the sacrifices he made for them.
Her father, she said, departed Honduras in 1999 after Hurricane Mitch devastated the country and left him, like millions of others, struggling in the aftermath. He traveled north to the U.S. to help his family, Yanez said, and continued to work hard. He made friends easily, she said, and when he died she received calls from people who met him and shared kind words.
Luz Gallegos, executive director of Todec Legal Center, an immigrant rights group based in the Coachella Valley, said her group learned about Yanez-Cruz’s story after he died at the hospital in nearby Indio. On Friday the legal center helped organize a memorial mass in honor of Yanez-Cruz at the Our Lady of Soledad Catholic Church, to honor Yanez-Cruz and others who died in custody, Gallegos said.
“Although we did not know el señor Luis, his death being in our backyard, it’s so close to us,” she said. “It’s one pain after another. We did not know him, but his family’s pain is our pain.”
Emmy Award-winning actor and director Timothy Busfield is facing a new allegation of sexual abuse from his time in Sacramento, according to court documents.The allegation appeared in court documents filed in Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court in New Mexico that argue Busfield should be detained before trial in a child sex case there because of Busfield’s alleged history of sexual misconduct. In New Mexico, Busfield faces two counts of criminal sexual contact of a minor and one count of child abuse that stem from allegations of inappropriate touching of twin child actors while he was directing the series “The Cleaning Lady.” Busfield called the allegations against him “lies” in a video shared with TMZ. He made an initial court appearance Wednesday and a hearing about whether he should continue to be detained before trial will take place within five business days. His attorney told Hearst station KOAT that, “Tim Busfield denies the allegations in the criminal complaint and maintains they are completely false. As a voluntary step, he submitted to an independent polygraph examination regarding those allegations and passed.” According to the new court documents, a man told law enforcement Tuesday that Busfield sexually abused his daughter “several years ago.”While auditioning before Busfield at Sacramento’s B Street Theatre when she was 16 years old, the teen reported that Busfield “kissed her, put his hands down her pants and touched her privates,” the documents say. “The defendant begged the family to not report to law enforcement if he received therapy,” the documents say. The father, “a therapist himself thought at the time that was the best thing to do,” the documents say. KCRA 3 is not naming the man at this time because it could identify the daughter. But KCRA 3’s Cecil Hannibal spoke to the father, who said the incident that changed the trajectory of his daughter’s life happened back in 1999. The father said that he was at a meeting with Busfield where, “this guy’s crying, he’s showing remorse. He’s, he’s, he’s, apologizing. … And so I said, basically, ‘I’ll tell you what,’ you know, he was he was basically begging me not to go to the police.”The father said he now regrets not having gone to the police at the time. Busfield is the co-founder, along with his brother Buck, of the B Street Theatre. They also established the Fantasy Theater.The B Street Theatre released a statement on Tuesday before the new allegations surfaced. That statement noted that the allegations in New Mexico “did not occur at B Street Theatre, nor do they involve any activity connected with our organization, its staff, or our programs.”“Mr. Busfield does not have any role presently with B Street Theatre,” the statement said. “He was a co-founder of the theatre but has not served in any capacity since 2001. He is listed on our website as an emeritus member of the board, however he has not attended a board meeting in that capacity since 2001.”KCRA 3 again reached out to the B Street Theatre for comment, along with Sacramento police, about the new allegation. In an updated statement, the B Street Theatre said it was aware of “an incident alleged to have occurred at B Street Theatre approximately 25 years ago.””B Street Theatre retained legal counsel at the time to conduct an internal investigation, and Mr. Busfield has not had any role in the organization since 2001,” the statement said. The New Mexico court documents also mention other allegations against Busfield that have been previously reported. One incident, a 1994 allegation of sexual assault against an 17-year-old extra on “Little Big League,” led to a private settlement. Busfield was later ordered to pay attorney costs after he countersued for defamation and the case was tossed. Another allegation of sexual battery at a LA movie theater involving a 28-year-old woman did not lead to prosecution over slim evidence, according to the court documents. Busfield is best known for his appearances in “The West Wing,” “Field of Dreams,” “Thirtysomething” and “Revenge of the Nerds.” He is listed as an actor, director or producer on more than 100 projects, according to IMDB. Busfield was also inducted into the Sacramento Area Baseball Hall of Fame after pitching for the Sacramento Smokeys. An NBC spokesperson said that the network has pulled an episode of “Law & Order: SVU” featuring Busfield that was supposed to air this week. Busfield is now married to actress Melissa Gilbert, from “Little House on the Prarie.” Gilbert’s publicist said she would not talk about her husband’s case while the legal process unfolds. See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter | Find us on YouTube here and subscribe to our channel
Emmy Award-winning actor and director Timothy Busfield is facing a new allegation of sexual abuse from his time in Sacramento, according to court documents.
The allegation appeared in court documents filed in Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court in New Mexico that argue Busfield should be detained before trial in a child sex case there because of Busfield’s alleged history of sexual misconduct.
Busfield called the allegations against him “lies” in a video shared with TMZ. He made an initial court appearance Wednesday and a hearing about whether he should continue to be detained before trial will take place within five business days.
His attorney told Hearst station KOAT that, “Tim Busfield denies the allegations in the criminal complaint and maintains they are completely false. As a voluntary step, he submitted to an independent polygraph examination regarding those allegations and passed.”
According to the new court documents, a man told law enforcement Tuesday that Busfield sexually abused his daughter “several years ago.”
While auditioning before Busfield at Sacramento’s B Street Theatre when she was 16 years old, the teen reported that Busfield “kissed her, put his hands down her pants and touched her privates,” the documents say.
“The defendant begged the family to not report to law enforcement if he received therapy,” the documents say.
The father, “a therapist himself thought at the time that was the best thing to do,” the documents say.
KCRA 3 is not naming the man at this time because it could identify the daughter. But KCRA 3’s Cecil Hannibal spoke to the father, who said the incident that changed the trajectory of his daughter’s life happened back in 1999.
The father said that he was at a meeting with Busfield where, “this guy’s crying, he’s showing remorse. He’s, he’s, he’s, apologizing. … And so I said, basically, ‘I’ll tell you what,’ you know, he was he was basically begging me not to go to the police.”
The father said he now regrets not having gone to the police at the time.
Busfield is the co-founder, along with his brother Buck, of the B Street Theatre. They also established the Fantasy Theater.
The B Street Theatre released a statement on Tuesday before the new allegations surfaced.
That statement noted that the allegations in New Mexico “did not occur at B Street Theatre, nor do they involve any activity connected with our organization, its staff, or our programs.”
“Mr. Busfield does not have any role presently with B Street Theatre,” the statement said. “He was a co-founder of the theatre but has not served in any capacity since 2001. He is listed on our website as an emeritus member of the board, however he has not attended a board meeting in that capacity since 2001.”
KCRA 3 again reached out to the B Street Theatre for comment, along with Sacramento police, about the new allegation.
In an updated statement, the B Street Theatre said it was aware of “an incident alleged to have occurred at B Street Theatre approximately 25 years ago.”
“B Street Theatre retained legal counsel at the time to conduct an internal investigation, and Mr. Busfield has not had any role in the organization since 2001,” the statement said.
The New Mexico court documents also mention other allegations against Busfield that have been previously reported.
One incident, a 1994 allegation of sexual assault against an 17-year-old extra on “Little Big League,” led to a private settlement. Busfield was later ordered to pay attorney costs after he countersued for defamation and the case was tossed.
Another allegation of sexual battery at a LA movie theater involving a 28-year-old woman did not lead to prosecution over slim evidence, according to the court documents.
Busfield is best known for his appearances in “The West Wing,” “Field of Dreams,” “Thirtysomething” and “Revenge of the Nerds.”
He is listed as an actor, director or producer on more than 100 projects, according to IMDB.
Busfield was also inducted into the Sacramento Area Baseball Hall of Fame after pitching for the Sacramento Smokeys.
An NBC spokesperson said that the network has pulled an episode of “Law & Order: SVU” featuring Busfield that was supposed to air this week.
Busfield is now married to actress Melissa Gilbert, from “Little House on the Prarie.” Gilbert’s publicist said she would not talk about her husband’s case while the legal process unfolds.
HOUMA, La. — For nearly 50 years, James Blanchard has made his living in the Gulf of Mexico, pulling shrimp from the sea.
It’s all he ever wanted to do, since he was around 12 years old and accompanied his father, a mailman and part-time shrimper, as he spent weekends trawling the marshy waters off Louisiana. Blanchard loved the adventure and splendid isolation.
He made a good living, even as the industry collapsed around him. He and his wife, Cheri, bought a comfortable home in a tidy subdivision here in the heart of Bayou Country. They helped put three kids through college.
But eventually Blanchard began to contemplate his forced retirement, selling his 63-foot boat and hanging up his wall of big green fishing nets once he turns 65 in February.
“The amount of shrimp was not a problem,” said Blanchard, a fourth-generation shrimper who routinely hauls in north of 30,000 flash-frozen pounds on a two-week trip. “It’s making a profit, because the prices were so low.”
Blanchard is a lifelong Republican, but wasn’t initially a big Trump fan.
In April, Trump slapped a 10% fee on shrimp imports, which grew to 50% for India, America’s largest overseas source of shrimp. Further levies were imposed on Ecuador, Vietnam and Indonesia, which are other major U.S. suppliers.
But for Blanchard, those tariffs have been a lifeline. He’s seen a significant uptick in prices, from as low as 87 cents a pound for wild-caught shrimp to $1.50 or more. That’s nowhere near the $4.50 a pound, adjusted for inflation, that U.S shrimpers earned back in the roaring 1980s, when shrimp was less common in home kitchens and something of a luxury item.
It’s enough, however, for Blanchard to shelve his retirement plans and for that — and Trump — he’s appreciative.
“Writing all the bills in the world is great,” he said of efforts by congressional lawmakers to prop up the country’s dwindling shrimp fishermen. “But it don’t get nothing done.”
Wild-caught domestic shrimp make up less than 10% of the market. It’s not a matter of quality, or overfishing. A flood of imports — farmed on a mass scale, lightly regulated by developing countries and thus cheaper to produce — has decimated the market for American shrimpers.
In the Gulf and South Atlantic, warm water shrimp landings — the term the industry uses — had an average annual value of more than $460 million between 1975 and 2022, according to the Southern Shrimp Alliance, a trade group. (Those numbers are not adjusted for inflation.)
A boat moves up a canal in Chauvin, La.
Over the last two years, the value of the commercial shrimp fishery has fallen to $269 million in 2023 and $256 million in 2024.
As the country’s leading shrimp producer, Louisiana has been particularly hard hit. “It’s getting to the point that we are on our knees,” Acy Cooper, president of the Louisiana Shrimp Assn., recently told New Orleans television station WVUE.
In the 1980s, there were more than 6,000 licensed shrimpers working in Louisiana. Today, there are fewer than 1,500.
Blanchard can see the ripple effects in Houma — in the shuttered businesses, the depleted job market and the high incidence of drug overdoses.
Latrevien Moultrie, 14, fishes in Houma, La.
“It’s affected everybody,” he said. “It’s not only the boats, the infrastructure, the packing plants. It’s the hardware stores. The fuel docks. The grocery stores.”
Two of the Blanchards’ three children have moved away, seeking opportunity elsewhere. One daughter is a university law professor. Their son works in logistics for a trucking company in Georgia. Their other daughter, who lives near the couple, applies her advanced degree in school psychology as a stay-at-home mother of five.
(Cheri Blanchard, 64 and retired from the state labor department, keeps the books for her husband.)
It turns out the federal government is at least partly responsible for the shrinking of the domestic shrimp industry. In recent years, U.S. taxpayers have subsidized overseas shrimp farming to the tune of at least $195 million in development aid.
Seated at their dining room table, near a Christmas tree and other remnants of the holidays, Blanchard read from a set of scribbled notes — a Bible close at hand — as he and his wife decried the lax safety standards,labor abuses and environmental degradation associated with overseas shrimp farming.
James Blanchard and his wife, Cheri, like Trump’s policies. His personality is another thing.
The fact their taxes help support those practices is particularly galling.
“A slap in the face,” Blanchard called it.
::
Donald Trump grew slowly on the Blanchards.
The two are lifelong Republicans, but they voted for Trump in 2016 only because they considered him less bad than Hillary Clinton.
Once he took office, they were pleasantly surprised.
Republican National Committee reading material sits on the counter of James Blanchard’s kitchen.
Still, there are things that irk Blanchard. He doesn’t much care for Trump’s brash persona and can’t stand all the childish name-calling. For a long time, he couldn’t bear listening to Trump’s speeches.
“You didn’t ever really listen to many of Obama’s speeches,” Cheri interjected, and James allowed as how that was true.
“I liked his personality,” Blanchard said of the former Democratic president. “I liked his character. But I didn’t like his policies.”
It’s the opposite with Trump.
Unlike most politicians, Blanchard said, when Trump says he’ll do something he generally follows through.
“I have no issue at all with immigrants,” he said, as his wife nodded alongside. “I have an issue with illegal immigrants.” (She echoed Trump in blaming Renee Good for her death last week at the hands of an ICE agent.)
“I have sympathy for them as families,” Blanchard went on, but crossing the border doesn’t make someone a U.S. citizen. “If I go down the highway 70 miles an hour in that 30-mile-an-hour zone, guess what? I’m getting a ticket. … Or if I get in that car and I’m drinking, guess what? They’re bringing me to jail. So what’s the difference?”
Between the two there isn’t much — apart from Trump’s “trolling,” as Cheri called it — they find fault with.
Blanchard hailed the lightning-strike capture and arrest of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro as another example of Trump doing and meaning exactly what he says.
“When Biden was in office, they had a $25-million bounty on [Maduro’s] head,” Blanchard said. “But apparently it was done knowing that it was never going to be enforced.”
More empty talk, he suggested.
Just like all those years of unfulfilled promises from politicians vowing to rein in foreign competition and revive America’s suffering shrimping industry.
James Blanchard aboard his boat, which he docks in Bayou Little Caillou.
Trump and his tariffs have given Blanchard back his livelihood and for that alone he’s grateful.
There’s maintenance and repair work to be done on his boat — named Waymaker, to honor the Lord — before Blanchard musters his two-man crew and sets out from Bayou Little Caillou.
A woman whose body was pulled from the Santa Ana River in Orange County on New Year’s Day has been identified as 39-year-old Alejandra Ramirez Torres, coroner’s officials said. Her body had been carried by the river’s current from Santa Ana to Fountain Valley before it could be retrieved by fire crews.
Ramirez Torres was the mother of two daughters, ages 11 and 16, according to a GoFundMe page created by her relatives.
Orange County fire officials said crews responded to 911 calls before noon Thursday after bystanders reported seeing a body in the river near Warner Avenue and Harbor Boulevard.
Some 60 firefighters responded to the scene, including swift-water rescue teams. They found Ramirez Torres’ body south of the river’s juncture with the 405 Freeway, north of the Gisler Avenue river trail in Costa Mesa, about 1.5 miles from where witnesses first saw the woman.
A ladder truck was used to lower a rescuer to the water and retrieve Ramirez Torres, who was pronounced dead at the scene, officials said.
“This sudden and heartbreaking loss has deeply affected our family. We are doing everything we can to support Alejandra’s girls as they face an uncertain future without their mother,” states the GoFundMe page, which relatives said was set up to cover the costs of Ramirez Torres’ funeral and provide support for her daughters.
The woman was a possible transient at the time of her death, Orange County Sheriff’s Department spokesperson Sgt. Lizbeth Gwisdalla confirmed Friday to the Daily Pilot.
How and why she entered the river was not known.
Cardine writes for The Times’ sister publication the Daily Pilot.
The first woman to ride in the Kentucky Derby, Diane Crump, has died.She was 77.”Mom passed away peacefully tonight. She ended her life surrounded by friends and family. Thank you for being the best support system. We have been truly blessed by your generosity and kindness. I hope my mom’s legacy of following dreams and helping others continues through those that were touched by her amazing life,” said Crump’s daughter, Della Payne, in a GoFundMe post on New Year’s Day.In the player up top: Diane Crump’s Kentucky Derby boots on display at Kentucky Derby MuseumCrump had been battling glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer.For the first 95 years of the Kentucky Derby’s existence, only male jockeys were allowed to compete. But that all changed in 1970 when Crump became the first woman to ride in the Derby.She received her jockey license just one year prior and would go on to finish 15th in the 96th Run for the Roses.Through 1,682 starts, Crump amassed 228 wins and collected more than $1.2 million in earnings during her jockeying career.“Diane Crump was an iconic trailblazer who admirably fulfilled her childhood dreams. As the first female to ride professionally at a major Thoroughbred racetrack in 1969 and to become the first female to ride in the Kentucky Derby one year later, she will forever be respected and fondly remembered in horse racing lore. The entire Churchill Downs family extends our condolences to her family and friends,” Churchill Downs said in a statement.Following her career as a jockey, Crump started Diane Crump Equine Sales as a way to connect buyers and owners in the sporthorse world. She also volunteered at hospitals and nursing homes with her dachshunds to provide animal-assisted therapy.
The first woman to ride in the Kentucky Derby, Diane Crump, has died.
She was 77.
“Mom passed away peacefully tonight. She ended her life surrounded by friends and family. Thank you for being the best support system. We have been truly blessed by your generosity and kindness. I hope my mom’s legacy of following dreams and helping others continues through those that were touched by her amazing life,” said Crump’s daughter, Della Payne, in a GoFundMe post on New Year’s Day.
In the player up top: Diane Crump’s Kentucky Derby boots on display at Kentucky Derby Museum
Crump had been battling glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer.
For the first 95 years of the Kentucky Derby’s existence, only male jockeys were allowed to compete. But that all changed in 1970 when Crump became the first woman to ride in the Derby.
She received her jockey license just one year prior and would go on to finish 15th in the 96th Run for the Roses.
Through 1,682 starts, Crump amassed 228 wins and collected more than $1.2 million in earnings during her jockeying career.
“Diane Crump was an iconic trailblazer who admirably fulfilled her childhood dreams. As the first female to ride professionally at a major Thoroughbred racetrack in 1969 and to become the first female to ride in the Kentucky Derby one year later, she will forever be respected and fondly remembered in horse racing lore. The entire Churchill Downs family extends our condolences to her family and friends,” Churchill Downs said in a statement.
Following her career as a jockey, Crump started Diane Crump Equine Sales as a way to connect buyers and owners in the sporthorse world. She also volunteered at hospitals and nursing homes with her dachshunds to provide animal-assisted therapy.
A car lost control along California Highway 50 on Christmas morning, leaving its occupants in a life-threatening situation until a U.S. Air Force staff sergeant stepped in to help.SSgt. Ruben Tala, stationed at Travis Air Force Base, was traveling with his family through the Sierra corridor shortly after 8 a.m. when he saw an SUV spin out of control.“During that time, I mean, I think it’s the adrenaline kicking in,” Tala said.The SUV was teetering hundreds of feet above the ground. Video shared with sister station KCRA shows Tala gripping the driver’s side door as the vehicle dangled over the edge.“I thought about my wife and my daughter. What if there’s a family in that car? Somebody has to help,” Tala told KCRA.As Tala worked to stabilize the situation, other good Samaritans stopped and joined the rescue effort. Together, they were able to help the driver and his wife reach safety. The woman was visibly shaken and clutching the couple’s two dogs.Highway 50 is known for hazardous winter driving conditions, particularly during storms, when snow and ice can make the roadway treacherous even for experienced drivers.Tala said the gratitude from the family left a lasting impression. One detail, he added, stood out to him afterward.“It’s funny too, because one of their dog’s names is Luna, which is my daughter’s name,” he said. “I was like, how’s that a coincidence, right?”Tala and his wife, Yvett, share a 22-month-old daughter and were on their way to the snow for the holiday when the crash unfolded.”SSgt Tala and Yvett’s quick action and courage are a direct reflection of our Core Value of Service Before Self,” Lt. Col. Jason Christie, 60th Force Support Squadron commander, said in a statement.”We’re so proud to have them as our teammates and witness them ready to help anyone in need.”
A car lost control along California Highway 50 on Christmas morning, leaving its occupants in a life-threatening situation until a U.S. Air Force staff sergeant stepped in to help.
SSgt. Ruben Tala, stationed at Travis Air Force Base, was traveling with his family through the Sierra corridor shortly after 8 a.m. when he saw an SUV spin out of control.
“During that time, I mean, I think it’s the adrenaline kicking in,” Tala said.
The SUV was teetering hundreds of feet above the ground. Video shared with sister station KCRA shows Tala gripping the driver’s side door as the vehicle dangled over the edge.
“I thought about my wife and my daughter. What if there’s a family in that car? Somebody has to help,” Tala told KCRA.
As Tala worked to stabilize the situation, other good Samaritans stopped and joined the rescue effort. Together, they were able to help the driver and his wife reach safety. The woman was visibly shaken and clutching the couple’s two dogs.
Highway 50 is known for hazardous winter driving conditions, particularly during storms, when snow and ice can make the roadway treacherous even for experienced drivers.
Tala said the gratitude from the family left a lasting impression. One detail, he added, stood out to him afterward.
“It’s funny too, because one of their dog’s names is Luna, which is my daughter’s name,” he said. “I was like, how’s that a coincidence, right?”
Tala and his wife, Yvett, share a 22-month-old daughter and were on their way to the snow for the holiday when the crash unfolded.
“SSgt Tala and Yvett’s quick action and courage are a direct reflection of our Core Value of Service Before Self,” Lt. Col. Jason Christie, 60th Force Support Squadron commander, said in a statement.”We’re so proud to have them as our teammates and witness them ready to help anyone in need.”
Indonesian rescuers recovered the body of a female victim believed to be part of the family of a Spanish soccer coach and his three children who went missing after a tour boat sank three days ago.The rescue team discovered the body just after dawn Monday, floating near the northern waters of Serai island, about 1 kilometer (0.6 mile) from the site of the sinking, after a local resident spotted the victim, said Fathur Rahman, the Maumere Search and Rescue Office chief.He said the body was transported to a hospital in Labuan Bajo, a gateway town to eastern Indonesia’s Komodo National Park, for identification.“Relatives of the victim joined the ambulance to ensure identification through medical and forensic procedures,” Rahman said.The family holiday in the park area turned tragic for Valencia CF Women’s B coach Fernando Martín, 44, when the boat also carrying his wife, their four children, four crew members and a local guide, went down Friday evening after suffering engine failure on a trip within the park that attracts thousands of international visitors for diving, trekking and wildlife tours.Martín’s wife and another child, along with four crew members and a local guide, were rescued in the hours following the incident. But Martin, his two sons and another daughter, aged 9, 10 and 12, were unaccounted for.Rahman said Martin’s wife, Andrea, their youngest daughter, Mar, and other survivors are in good health and that authorities are investigating the cause of the accident.Komodo National Park is a UNESCO World Heritage site famous for its rugged landscapes, pristine beaches and the endangered Komodo dragon.The search operation, on its fourth day Monday, continues for the remaining family members. Efforts have been reinforced with nearly 100 personnel, supported by police and navy, who were combing four sectors in inflatable boats, navy ships and rescue vessels with the assistance of local fishers and residents. Divers were also deployed.The search area had been doubled from the initial one centered on a 9-kilometer (5.6-mile) radius from the site of the sinking, where rescue teams found the boat debris, Rahman said. Indonesian law calls for searches to continue for seven days and may be extended if necessary.In a statement on X, the Valencia CF football club expressed condolences, calling the tragedy “a devastating loss” for the club and its community.Spain’s La Liga expressed its heartfelt support in a message of solidarity while other soccer clubs, including Real Madrid and Barcelona, also offered condolences.Indonesia is an archipelago with more than 17,000 islands, where boats are a common form of transportation. With lax safety standards and problems with overcrowding, accidents occur frequently.
JAKARTA, Indonesia —
Indonesian rescuers recovered the body of a female victim believed to be part of the family of a Spanish soccer coach and his three children who went missing after a tour boat sank three days ago.
The rescue team discovered the body just after dawn Monday, floating near the northern waters of Serai island, about 1 kilometer (0.6 mile) from the site of the sinking, after a local resident spotted the victim, said Fathur Rahman, the Maumere Search and Rescue Office chief.
He said the body was transported to a hospital in Labuan Bajo, a gateway town to eastern Indonesia’s Komodo National Park, for identification.
“Relatives of the victim joined the ambulance to ensure identification through medical and forensic procedures,” Rahman said.
The family holiday in the park area turned tragic for Valencia CF Women’s B coach Fernando Martín, 44, when the boat also carrying his wife, their four children, four crew members and a local guide, went down Friday evening after suffering engine failure on a trip within the park that attracts thousands of international visitors for diving, trekking and wildlife tours.
Martín’s wife and another child, along with four crew members and a local guide, were rescued in the hours following the incident. But Martin, his two sons and another daughter, aged 9, 10 and 12, were unaccounted for.
Rahman said Martin’s wife, Andrea, their youngest daughter, Mar, and other survivors are in good health and that authorities are investigating the cause of the accident.
Komodo National Park is a UNESCO World Heritage site famous for its rugged landscapes, pristine beaches and the endangered Komodo dragon.
The search operation, on its fourth day Monday, continues for the remaining family members. Efforts have been reinforced with nearly 100 personnel, supported by police and navy, who were combing four sectors in inflatable boats, navy ships and rescue vessels with the assistance of local fishers and residents. Divers were also deployed.
The search area had been doubled from the initial one centered on a 9-kilometer (5.6-mile) radius from the site of the sinking, where rescue teams found the boat debris, Rahman said. Indonesian law calls for searches to continue for seven days and may be extended if necessary.
In a statement on X, the Valencia CF football club expressed condolences, calling the tragedy “a devastating loss” for the club and its community.
Spain’s La Liga expressed its heartfelt support in a message of solidarity while other soccer clubs, including Real Madrid and Barcelona, also offered condolences.
Indonesia is an archipelago with more than 17,000 islands, where boats are a common form of transportation. With lax safety standards and problems with overcrowding, accidents occur frequently.
Indonesian rescuers searched for a Spanish soccer coach and his three children on Saturday after a tour boat carrying 11 people sank overnight near Padar Island, a popular destination within Komodo National Park, officials said.The boat was carrying a family of six, four crew members and a local guide when it went down on Friday evening after suffering engine failure on a trip from Komodo Island to Padar, said Fathur Rahman, who heads the Maumere Search and Rescue Office.He said three people were rescued by a passing vessel, and four others were picked up by a search and rescue team. The survivors included the Spanish mother and one daughter. The father, two sons and another daughter were missing, he said. The Spanish soccer club Valencia said that a coach for its women’s reserve team, Fernando Martín, and three of his children were among the victims. In a statement on X, Valencia CF expressed condolences, saying their deaths were confirmed by local authorities. Real Madrid CF also offered condolences on the death of Martin, 44, and his three children. However, Rahman said the search was suspended Saturday evening because of bad weather and poor visibility and will resume early Sunday.”Our teams have been combing the northern waters of Padar Island until dusk,” Rahman said. “We are determined to find the victims.”Komodo National Park is a UNESCO World Heritage site famed for its rugged landscapes, pristine beaches and the endangered Komodo dragon. The park attracts thousands of visitors for diving, trekking and wildlife tours.The survivors were treated at the port office in Labuan Bajo city as strong waves up to 2.5 meters (8.2 feet) high and darkness hampered emergency responders overnight, Rahman said. The search involved multiple rescue units in inflatable boats, a navy vessel with diving equipment and a rescue ship, with the assistance of local fishermen and residents. It was centered on a 5-nautical-mile (9-kilometer) radius of the sinking site, where rescuers found the boat debris, Rahman said.Indonesia is an archipelago with more than 17,000 islands, where boats are a common form of transportation. With lax safety standards and problems with overcrowding, accidents occur frequently.
JAKARTA, Indonesia —
Indonesian rescuers searched for a Spanish soccer coach and his three children on Saturday after a tour boat carrying 11 people sank overnight near Padar Island, a popular destination within Komodo National Park, officials said.
The boat was carrying a family of six, four crew members and a local guide when it went down on Friday evening after suffering engine failure on a trip from Komodo Island to Padar, said Fathur Rahman, who heads the Maumere Search and Rescue Office.
He said three people were rescued by a passing vessel, and four others were picked up by a search and rescue team. The survivors included the Spanish mother and one daughter. The father, two sons and another daughter were missing, he said.
The Spanish soccer club Valencia said that a coach for its women’s reserve team, Fernando Martín, and three of his children were among the victims. In a statement on X, Valencia CF expressed condolences, saying their deaths were confirmed by local authorities. Real Madrid CF also offered condolences on the death of Martin, 44, and his three children.
However, Rahman said the search was suspended Saturday evening because of bad weather and poor visibility and will resume early Sunday.
“Our teams have been combing the northern waters of Padar Island until dusk,” Rahman said. “We are determined to find the victims.”
Komodo National Park is a UNESCO World Heritage site famed for its rugged landscapes, pristine beaches and the endangered Komodo dragon. The park attracts thousands of visitors for diving, trekking and wildlife tours.
The survivors were treated at the port office in Labuan Bajo city as strong waves up to 2.5 meters (8.2 feet) high and darkness hampered emergency responders overnight, Rahman said.
The search involved multiple rescue units in inflatable boats, a navy vessel with diving equipment and a rescue ship, with the assistance of local fishermen and residents. It was centered on a 5-nautical-mile (9-kilometer) radius of the sinking site, where rescuers found the boat debris, Rahman said.
Indonesia is an archipelago with more than 17,000 islands, where boats are a common form of transportation. With lax safety standards and problems with overcrowding, accidents occur frequently.
Just three days before Christmas, a man shot and killed his wife, shot his 13-year-old stepdaughter and then shot and killed himself, according to the Polk County Sheriff’s Office.PCSO is investigating the incident as a murder-suicide.Deputies responded to a home on Lemon Avenue in the Highland City area of Lakeland after receiving a 911 call around 11 p.m. The caller said her 12-year-old neighbor ran to her house and asked her to call 911 because his stepfather and mother were fighting, according to deputies. He told the woman his mom, Crystal, asked him to call 911 as the argument was escalating, PCSO said. Deputies arrived minutes later and said they located Crystal with a gunshot wound to the head. She was pronounced dead on the scene. PCSO also located a 13-year-old girl, the victim’s daughter, in her bedroom with two gunshot wounds. She was taken to the hospital, where she is in critical but stable condition. Deputies also found their 1-year-old daughter asleep in her crib, unharmed.Investigators determined 47-year-old Jason Kenney was in his shed when he decided to go back inside the house to watch the end of an NFL game in the living room, where his wife was. Crystal told him that she didn’t want to watch football, and an argument ensued, PCSO said.Deputies said she then shouted to her son, asking him to call 911, which is when he ran from the house and said he heard a single shot go off.Kenney fled the scene in his truck after shooting his wife. He called his sister, who is not in Florida, and told her he had done something bad, and he was not going to jail.Kenney told his sister she would “see it on the news.”After deputies found Kenney at his father’s home in Lake Wales, they told him to come outside. That’s when they heard a single gunshot, PCSO said.PCSO entered the shed on his father’s property to find Kenney had shot himself in the head. Kenney was pronounced dead at the scene. “Three days before Christmas, this man shot and killed his wife, shot his stepdaughter, and then shot and killed himself. This is horrific, but destroying a family and the mental health of these children so close to Christmas is especially horrific. We will do everything we can to help this family get through this difficult time,” said Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd.The 13-year-old remains in critical condition, and the other two children are with their grandparents.
POLK COUNTY, Fla. —
Just three days before Christmas, a man shot and killed his wife, shot his 13-year-old stepdaughter and then shot and killed himself, according to the Polk County Sheriff’s Office.
PCSO is investigating the incident as a murder-suicide.
Deputies responded to a home on Lemon Avenue in the Highland City area of Lakeland after receiving a 911 call around 11 p.m.
The caller said her 12-year-old neighbor ran to her house and asked her to call 911 because his stepfather and mother were fighting, according to deputies.
He told the woman his mom, Crystal, asked him to call 911 as the argument was escalating, PCSO said.
Deputies arrived minutes later and said they located Crystal with a gunshot wound to the head. She was pronounced dead on the scene.
PCSO also located a 13-year-old girl, the victim’s daughter, in her bedroom with two gunshot wounds. She was taken to the hospital, where she is in critical but stable condition.
Deputies also found their 1-year-old daughter asleep in her crib, unharmed.
Investigators determined 47-year-old Jason Kenney was in his shed when he decided to go back inside the house to watch the end of an NFL game in the living room, where his wife was.
Crystal told him that she didn’t want to watch football, and an argument ensued, PCSO said.
Deputies said she then shouted to her son, asking him to call 911, which is when he ran from the house and said he heard a single shot go off.
Kenney fled the scene in his truck after shooting his wife. He called his sister, who is not in Florida, and told her he had done something bad, and he was not going to jail.
Kenney told his sister she would “see it on the news.”
After deputies found Kenney at his father’s home in Lake Wales, they told him to come outside. That’s when they heard a single gunshot, PCSO said.
PCSO entered the shed on his father’s property to find Kenney had shot himself in the head. Kenney was pronounced dead at the scene.
“Three days before Christmas, this man shot and killed his wife, shot his stepdaughter, and then shot and killed himself. This is horrific, but destroying a family and the mental health of these children so close to Christmas is especially horrific. We will do everything we can to help this family get through this difficult time,” said Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd.
The 13-year-old remains in critical condition, and the other two children are with their grandparents.
Debra Newton was arrested by Marion County sheriff’s deputies after a tip led to a father and daughter reuniting for the first time in more than 40 years. Body camera video captured the moment deputies approached a woman they knew as Sharon Neely.”How are you doing, Ms. Sharon?” said one deputy.She was known in her Marion County community, but according to deputies, her real identity is Debra Newton.Newton was arrested by Marion County deputies for a warrant out of Kentucky after authorities said she abducted her own child.”When the tip came in, it says they recognized this lady from the social media post as being a person who was wanted out of Kentucky,” said Valerie Strong, public information officer for the MCSO.That tip was the last piece that ended a cold case from more than four decades ago.Joe Newton and his wife, Debra, were preparing to move to Georgia in 1983, but when Joe came home, Debra had taken off with their 3-year-old daughter, Michelle.After the pair disappeared, Joe searched for the two. For years, the family didn’t know if Michelle was alive.After Debra’s arrest, Michelle reunited with her father.”She’s always been in our hearts. I cannot explain that moment of that woman walking in and getting to put my arms back around my daughter,” Joe said.The news also meant Michelle had to learn her identity. She said she came home from work to find police at her door.”You are not who you think you are. You are a missing person. You are Michelle Marie Newton,” she was told.Michelle learned she had a family who never stopped searching for her and a father who never stopped loving her.”I wouldn’t trade that moment,” Joe said. “It was just like seeing her when she was first born. It was like an angel.”Despite life turning upside down, Michelle showed no anger toward her mother. She said she wants to heal and move forward.”My intention is to support them both through this and trying to navigate and help them both just wrap it up so that we can all heal and hopefully, you know, there’s just apologies and start healing,” she said.Debra was sent back to Jefferson County in Louisville, Kentucky, where she appeared in court Monday. She has been arraigned on a felony charge of custodial interference, according to the Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office in Jefferson County. Felony custodial-kidnapping charges carry no statute of limitations in Kentucky. She is due back in court in January.
MARION COUNTY, Fla. —
Debra Newton was arrested by Marion County sheriff’s deputies after a tip led to a father and daughter reuniting for the first time in more than 40 years.
Body camera video captured the moment deputies approached a woman they knew as Sharon Neely.
“How are you doing, Ms. Sharon?” said one deputy.
She was known in her Marion County community, but according to deputies, her real identity is Debra Newton.
Newton was arrested by Marion County deputies for a warrant out of Kentucky after authorities said she abducted her own child.
“When the tip came in, it says they recognized this lady from the social media post as being a person who was wanted out of Kentucky,” said Valerie Strong, public information officer for the MCSO.
That tip was the last piece that ended a cold case from more than four decades ago.
Joe Newton and his wife, Debra, were preparing to move to Georgia in 1983, but when Joe came home, Debra had taken off with their 3-year-old daughter, Michelle.
After the pair disappeared, Joe searched for the two. For years, the family didn’t know if Michelle was alive.
After Debra’s arrest, Michelle reunited with her father.
“She’s always been in our hearts. I cannot explain that moment of that woman walking in and getting to put my arms back around my daughter,” Joe said.
The news also meant Michelle had to learn her identity. She said she came home from work to find police at her door.
“You are not who you think you are. You are a missing person. You are Michelle Marie Newton,” she was told.
Michelle learned she had a family who never stopped searching for her and a father who never stopped loving her.
“I wouldn’t trade that moment,” Joe said. “It was just like seeing her when she was first born. It was like an angel.”
Despite life turning upside down, Michelle showed no anger toward her mother. She said she wants to heal and move forward.
“My intention is to support them both through this and trying to navigate and help them both just wrap it up so that we can all heal and hopefully, you know, there’s just apologies and start healing,” she said.
Debra was sent back to Jefferson County in Louisville, Kentucky, where she appeared in court Monday. She has been arraigned on a felony charge of custodial interference, according to the Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office in Jefferson County. Felony custodial-kidnapping charges carry no statute of limitations in Kentucky. She is due back in court in January.
Sneak peek: Three Days Before Christmas – CBS News
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48 Hours Live to Tell: Two sisters who survive a deadly home invasion just before Christmas share their journey to hell and back. Watch Saturday, Dec. 20 at 10/9c on CBS and streaming on Paramount+.
Video gaming platform Roblox is facing more lawsuits from parents who allege the San Mateo, Calif., company isn’t doing enough to safeguard children from sexual predators.
A Los Angeles County mother, whose identity wasn’t revealed in a November lawsuit, alleges that her daughter met a predator on Roblox who persuaded her child to send sexually explicit photos of herself over the social media platform Discord. The woman is suing both Roblox and the San Francisco company Discord.
When her daughter signed up for the gaming platform last year at 12 years old, the woman thought Roblox was safe because it was marketed for children and as educational, according to the lawsuit filed in a Los Angeles County Superior Court.
But then her daughter befriended a person on Roblox known as “Precious” who claimed to be 15 years old and told her child that she had been abused at home and had no friends, the lawsuit said. Her daughter, accompanied by a friend’s parents, met up with the Roblox user at a beach and the person appeared older and attempted to introduce her to a group of older men.
After they met, the predator tried to persuade the girl to visit her apartment alone in Fullerton and tried to alienate her from her family. The child suffered from psychological trauma, depression and other emotional distress because of her experiences on Roblox and Discord, according to the lawsuit.
The lawsuit accuses Roblox and Discord of prioritizing profits over safety, creating a “digital” and “real-life nightmare” for children. It also alleges the companies’ failures are systematic and other children have also suffered harm from encountering predators on the platforms.
“Her innocence has been snatched from her and her life will never be the same,” the lawsuit said.
Roblox said in a statement it’s “deeply troubled by any incident that endangers any user” and prioritizes online safety.
“We also understand that no system is perfect and that is why we are constantly working to further improve our safety tools and platform restrictions to ensure parents can trust us to help keep their children safe online, launching 145 new initiatives this year alone,” the statement said.
Discord said it’s committed to safety and requires users to be at least 13 years old to use its platform.
“We maintain strong systems to prevent the spread of sexual exploitation and grooming on our platform and also work with other technology companies and safety organizations to improve online safety across the internet,” the company said in a statement.
The lawsuit is the latest scrutiny facing Roblox, a platform popular among young people. More than 151 million people use it daily. Earlier this year, the platform faced a wave of lawsuits from people in various states who allege that predators are posing as kids on the platform and sexually exploiting children.
NBC4 News, which reported earlier on the lawsuit, also reported that Roblox is facing another lawsuit from a California family in Riverside who allege their child was sexually assaulted by a man the child met on Roblox. That man was sentenced to 15 years in prison.
Roblox has been taking new steps this year to address mounting child-safety concerns. In November, the company said it would require users to verify their age to chat with other players. Roblox users would provide an ID or take a video selfie to verify their age. The verification feature estimates a person’s age, allowing the company to limit conversations between children and adults.
The lawsuit by the Los Angeles County woman called safety changes made in 2024 by Roblox “woefully inadequate” and said they were made “too late.”
“These changes could all have been implemented years ago,” the lawsuit said. “None of them involve any new or groundbreaking technology. Roblox only moved forward when its stock was threatened.”
A Long Beach man who previously served time in prison for felony child abuse was arrested Tuesday on suspicion of torturing and murdering his 14-month-old daughter, authorities said.
The toddler’s father, Alfredo Munoz, 40, and stepmother Kelly Munoz, 34, were taken into custody in the 200 block of East Louise Street in connection with the child’s death, according to the Long Beach Police Department.
Officers initially responded to a hospital on Nov. 7 where the toddler was unresponsive with signs of severe trauma, police said. She was put on life support and died three days later. Her identity is being withheld.
Over the course of a two-week investigation, homicide detectives determined that the toddler had been a victim of ongoing abuse and that her death was a direct result of abuse from her father and stepmother, police said.
Both suspects are being held without bail at the Long Beach Jail, and detectives plan to present the case to the L.A. County district attorney’s office for filing consideration next week.
Alfredo Munoz was previously sentenced to four years in state prison in December 2021 after he pleaded no contest to one count of willful cruelty to a child causing possible injury or death, according to court records.
A law enforcement source confirmed the man charged in the prior Long Beach abuse case was the same man arrested Tuesday. The source spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the case with the media.
Munoz had been released from custody at the time the alleged abuse of the now-deceased toddler took place.
Anyone with information regarding this incident is asked to contact Homicide Dets. Ethan Shear and Kelsey Myers at (562) 570-7244. Anonymous tips can be left at (800) 222-8477 or at www.lacrimestoppers.org.
Authorities this past week announced the arrest of a 76-year-old man in the 1987 killing of Margit Schuller, a 34-year-old mother found shot outside a laundromat near her home at the Palmetto Apartments.Beaufort County Sheriff P.J. Tanner on Wednesday said Cortez Sabino Lake, a former Navy corpsman stationed at Parris Island, who lived in the same apartment complex at the time, was arrested Tuesday and charged with murder. Lake is being held pending a bond hearing.Schuller was last seen between 8:15 and 8:45 a.m. on Nov. 1, 1987, folding clothes inside the complex laundromat. Her 12-year-old daughter later found her under a tree outside. Investigators determined Schuller had been shot inside the laundromat and crawled outside. A second blood trail leaving the scene indicated the assailant was injured.Cold case investigator Bob Bromage said DNA taken from that trail in 1987 was first profiled in 2005 and uploaded to CODIS, but produced no hits. In 2019, forensic genealogy and a composite analysis by Parabon Nanolabs helped narrow the focus. Investigators recently obtained Lake’s DNA – first through noncooperative means and then via a court-ordered sample – which matched in the “septillions,” Bromage said. Detectives also recovered the murder weapon in 1989 at a construction site on U.S. 21 and matched it to a casing found in the laundromat. Bromage said investigators believe sexual assault was the motive based on evidence at the scene.Lake, who lived at Battery Creek Apartments in 1987 and later worked more than three decades at Beaufort Memorial Hospital, was not named as a suspect at the time, Bromage said. The Sheriff’s Office is asking anyone who knew Lake in the late 1980s – particularly residents of Battery Creek or Palmetto Apartments – to come forward with information. Tips can be provided to investigators or through Crime Stoppers.Schuller worked as a cardiac care nurse. Her husband, Jozsef, a Navy corpsman, was deployed for training in San Diego when the killing occurred. They were both originally from Hungary and immigrated to the U.S. in 1982.
BEAUFORT, S.C. —
Authorities this past week announced the arrest of a 76-year-old man in the 1987 killing of Margit Schuller, a 34-year-old mother found shot outside a laundromat near her home at the Palmetto Apartments.
Beaufort County Sheriff P.J. Tanner on Wednesday said Cortez Sabino Lake, a former Navy corpsman stationed at Parris Island, who lived in the same apartment complex at the time, was arrested Tuesday and charged with murder. Lake is being held pending a bond hearing.
Schuller was last seen between 8:15 and 8:45 a.m. on Nov. 1, 1987, folding clothes inside the complex laundromat. Her 12-year-old daughter later found her under a tree outside. Investigators determined Schuller had been shot inside the laundromat and crawled outside. A second blood trail leaving the scene indicated the assailant was injured.
Cold case investigator Bob Bromage said DNA taken from that trail in 1987 was first profiled in 2005 and uploaded to CODIS, but produced no hits. In 2019, forensic genealogy and a composite analysis by Parabon Nanolabs helped narrow the focus. Investigators recently obtained Lake’s DNA – first through noncooperative means and then via a court-ordered sample – which matched in the “septillions,” Bromage said.
Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office
Detectives also recovered the murder weapon in 1989 at a construction site on U.S. 21 and matched it to a casing found in the laundromat. Bromage said investigators believe sexual assault was the motive based on evidence at the scene.
Lake, who lived at Battery Creek Apartments in 1987 and later worked more than three decades at Beaufort Memorial Hospital, was not named as a suspect at the time, Bromage said. The Sheriff’s Office is asking anyone who knew Lake in the late 1980s – particularly residents of Battery Creek or Palmetto Apartments – to come forward with information. Tips can be provided to investigators or through Crime Stoppers.
Schuller worked as a cardiac care nurse. Her husband, Jozsef, a Navy corpsman, was deployed for training in San Diego when the killing occurred. They were both originally from Hungary and immigrated to the U.S. in 1982.
Tatiana Schlossberg, granddaughter of slain President John F. Kennedy, is battling a rare form of leukemia and may have less than a year to live.
In an essay published Saturday in the New Yorker, the 35-year-old environmental journalist wrote her illness was discovered in May 2024 after she gave birth to her daughter. She was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia with a rare mutation known as Inversion 3 and has undergone several treatments, including chemotherapy and bone marrow transplants.
In her essay, Schlossberg acknowledged that her terminal illness adds to a string of tragedies that has befallen the famous political family. Her grandfather was assassinated in Dallas in 1963. Nearly five years later, his brother, Sen. Robert F. Kennedy, was fatally shot in Los Angeles after giving a victory speech at the Ambassador Hotel following his California presidential primary win. Her uncle, John F. Kennedy Jr., died in 1999 when his small plane crashed.
“For my whole life, I have tried to be good, to be a good student and a good sister and a good daughter, and to protect my mother and never make her upset or angry,” Schlossberg wrote.
“Now I have added a new tragedy to her life, to our family’s life, and there’s nothing I can do to stop it.”
She wrote her diagnosis was stunning. She had just turned 34, didn’t feel sick and was physically active, including swimming a mile one day before she gave birth to her second child at Columbia-Presbyterian hospital in New York.
After the delivery, her doctor became alarmed by her high white blood cell count.
At first, medical professionals figured the test result might be tied to her pregnancy. However, doctors soon concluded she had myeloid leukemia, a condition mostly observed in older patients. She ended up spending weeks in the hospital.
“Every doctor I saw asked me if I had spent a lot of time at Ground Zero, given how common blood cancers are among first responders,” Schlossberg wrote. “I was in New York on 9/11, in the sixth grade, but I didn’t visit the site until years later.”
She has endured various treatments. Her older sister, Rose, was one of her bone marrow donors.
In the article, Schlossberg mentioned the Kennedy family’s dilemma over controversial positions taken by Robert F. Kennedy Jr., her mother’s cousin. Schlossberg wrote that while she was in the hospital in mid-2024, Kennedy suspended his long-shot campaign for president to throw his weight behind then-Republican candidate Donald Trump.
Trump went on to name Kennedy to his Cabinet as secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, which oversees the Food and Drug Administration, National Institutes of Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
In one of his early moves, Trump demanded a cut in government money to Columbia University, which employs her husband, George Moran.
“Doctors and scientists at Columbia, including George, didn’t know if they would be able to continue their research, or even have jobs,” she wrote. “Suddenly, the health-care system on which I relied felt strained, shaky.”
On Saturday, her brother Jack Schlossberg, who recently announced his bid for Congress in a New York district, shared on Instagram a link to her New Yorker essay, “A Battle with My Blood.”
A Christian missionary father and his daughter were killed when a small plane bound for a hurricane relief mission in Jamaica crashed in a South Florida neighborhood.Christian ministry organization Ignite the Fire identified the two victims of the Monday morning crash as the group’s founder, Alexander Wurm, 53, and his daughter Serena Wurm, 22.The pair were bringing humanitarian aid to Jamaica, according to the organization, when the Beechcraft King Air plane they were flying in crashed into a pond in a residential area of the Fort Lauderdale suburb of Coral Springs, narrowly missing homes. As of Tuesday morning, investigators had not reported any other victims. In recent weeks, Alexander Wurm had helped deliver medical supplies, water filters and StarLink satellite internet equipment to Jamaica for the relief organization Crisis Response International, according to a video statement the group posted online. “He really made a difference in the lives of the people on the ground by getting the resources in that he did. He saved lives and he gave his life,” Crisis Response International founder Sean Malone added. According to Federal Aviation Administration records, the plane was manufactured in 1976 and its registered owner is listed as International Air Services, a company that markets itself as specializing in providing trust agreements to non-U.S. citizens that enable them to register their aircraft with the FAA. A person who answered the company’s phone Monday afternoon declined to answer questions from a reporter, stating “no comment” and ending the phone call.Posts by Alexander Wurm on social media in recent days suggested the evangelist had recently acquired the plane to further his missionary work across the Caribbean, describing the aircraft as “an older King Air with brand new engines,” and “perfect” to ferry deliveries of generators, batteries and building materials to Jamaica. Photos and videos on social media show Wurm posing for a picture in the plane’s cockpit and unloading boxes of supplies from the packed aircraft with teams of volunteers.The flight tracking website FlightAware shows the plane made four other trips to or from Jamaica in the past week, traveling between George Town in the Cayman Islands and Montego Bay and Negril in Jamaica, before landing in Fort Lauderdale on Friday. A powerful Category 5 storm, Hurricane Melissa made landfall in Jamaica on Oct. 28 and tied for the strongest landfalling Atlantic hurricane in history. The storm also caused devastation in Cuba, Haiti and the Dominican Republic and prompted relief organizations to mobilize.
Christian ministry organization Ignite the Fire identified the two victims of the Monday morning crash as the group’s founder, Alexander Wurm, 53, and his daughter Serena Wurm, 22.
The pair were bringing humanitarian aid to Jamaica, according to the organization, when the Beechcraft King Air plane they were flying in crashed into a pond in a residential area of the Fort Lauderdale suburb of Coral Springs, narrowly missing homes. As of Tuesday morning, investigators had not reported any other victims.
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In recent weeks, Alexander Wurm had helped deliver medical supplies, water filters and StarLink satellite internet equipment to Jamaica for the relief organization Crisis Response International, according to a video statement the group posted online.
“He really made a difference in the lives of the people on the ground by getting the resources in that he did. He saved lives and he gave his life,” Crisis Response International founder Sean Malone added.
According to Federal Aviation Administration records, the plane was manufactured in 1976 and its registered owner is listed as International Air Services, a company that markets itself as specializing in providing trust agreements to non-U.S. citizens that enable them to register their aircraft with the FAA. A person who answered the company’s phone Monday afternoon declined to answer questions from a reporter, stating “no comment” and ending the phone call.
Posts by Alexander Wurm on social media in recent days suggested the evangelist had recently acquired the plane to further his missionary work across the Caribbean, describing the aircraft as “an older King Air with brand new engines,” and “perfect” to ferry deliveries of generators, batteries and building materials to Jamaica.
Photos and videos on social media show Wurm posing for a picture in the plane’s cockpit and unloading boxes of supplies from the packed aircraft with teams of volunteers.
The flight tracking website FlightAware shows the plane made four other trips to or from Jamaica in the past week, traveling between George Town in the Cayman Islands and Montego Bay and Negril in Jamaica, before landing in Fort Lauderdale on Friday.
A powerful Category 5 storm, Hurricane Melissa made landfall in Jamaica on Oct. 28 and tied for the strongest landfalling Atlantic hurricane in history. The storm also caused devastation in Cuba, Haiti and the Dominican Republic and prompted relief organizations to mobilize.
An Ohio couple tied the knot in Covington during a special ceremony in front of a special guest.This wedding centered on their 3-year-old daughter, who was born with serious health complications. The new Mr. and Mrs. Wise exchanged vows surrounded by their sweet children. The magical night was also a miracle night because their little girl was there.Doctors told the couple that the odds were stacked against baby Oakleigh.“They told us that, you know, she may not be here for this. So it is definitely very emotional,” said dad Mike.Mike and Samantha spent years making wishes in hospital waiting rooms and years wishing for more moments with their little girl.Wednesday, when it came time to kiss the bride, Oakleigh was by her parents’ side.The couple says Kenton County Magistrate Stephen Hoffman made their wish come true.Hoffman was touched by their story. He says he wanted to surprise the couple with something special, so he planned the ceremony.”I just wish that they have the best of life and everything they can do for their whole family,” says Hoffman.This special occasion is proof that love conquers all.”Have faith in your heart, because things can always turn around, and I think we’re proof of that,” said Mike.Next week, the Wise family is getting another wish granted thanks to Make-A-Wish. The foundation is sending them to Florida for a Disney World vacation.
An Ohio couple tied the knot in Covington during a special ceremony in front of a special guest.
This wedding centered on their 3-year-old daughter, who was born with serious health complications.
The new Mr. and Mrs. Wise exchanged vows surrounded by their sweet children. The magical night was also a miracle night because their little girl was there.
Doctors told the couple that the odds were stacked against baby Oakleigh.
“They told us that, you know, she may not be here for this. So it is definitely very emotional,” said dad Mike.
Mike and Samantha spent years making wishes in hospital waiting rooms and years wishing for more moments with their little girl.
Wednesday, when it came time to kiss the bride, Oakleigh was by her parents’ side.
The couple says Kenton County Magistrate Stephen Hoffman made their wish come true.
Hoffman was touched by their story. He says he wanted to surprise the couple with something special, so he planned the ceremony.
“I just wish that they have the best of life and everything they can do for their whole family,” says Hoffman.
This special occasion is proof that love conquers all.
“Have faith in your heart, because things can always turn around, and I think we’re proof of that,” said Mike.
Next week, the Wise family is getting another wish granted thanks to Make-A-Wish. The foundation is sending them to Florida for a Disney World vacation.
“Well, if you’re reading this obituary, I’m dead. I died of FOMO due to complications from ALS,” reads an obituary for Linda Murphy, also written by Linda Murphy.Justine Hastings smiled as she read her mother’s obituary, because she knew how much she feared missing out on life.”She would be the one on the dance floor, starting the party; she was the party,” Hastings said.The Massachusetts woman passed on Sept. 21, and her heart shone through in the obituary she wrote herself, using humor to describe how her life was impacted by an ALS diagnosis, like when she started using a respirator at night.”We became a throuple about a year and a half ago when hose, my bipap, moved into the marital bed,” Murphy wrote.Her ALS diagnosis came in 2022, about a decade after she fought and beat breast cancer. She even wrote a book about that battle.”She always wanted to say – ‘As long as I can be positive in my little world, maybe it can spread,'” Hastings said.Her obituary urged people to show kindness to strangers and avoid negativity.”Please be kind to everyone: the telemarketer, the grocery clerk, the Dunkin’s staff, the tailgater, your family, your friends. Speak nicely and positively. Is there really ever a reason to be negative? I don’t think so,” the obituary says.Hastings said her mother “wanted to go viral, spread a message to spread happiness and be kind.”The obituary also gives directions to those who plan to attend her funeral service.”If you were a stinker and meanie to me or my family or friends during my lifetime … Please do everyone a favor and STAY AWAY, we don’t want your negative drama & energy. Only nice, loving people are welcome,” she wrote. Murphy also told her loved ones, “PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE don’t waste money on flowers.””Buy a bunch of scratch tickets and give them out to strangers along your way. Make people happy, that is the best way that you can honor my memory,” she wrote.Now, Hastings hopes her 60-year-old mother’s final words can reach people around the world.”My advice is to say yes to party, trip, adventure, raise a glass to me in cheers,” Murphy wrote in her obituary. “Just live life to the fullest. Never know what tomorrow brings, so say yes to today.”
“Well, if you’re reading this obituary, I’m dead. I died of FOMO due to complications from ALS,” reads an obituary for Linda Murphy, also written by Linda Murphy.
Justine Hastings smiled as she read her mother’s obituary, because she knew how much she feared missing out on life.
“She would be the one on the dance floor, starting the party; she was the party,” Hastings said.
The Massachusetts woman passed on Sept. 21, and her heart shone through in the obituary she wrote herself, using humor to describe how her life was impacted by an ALS diagnosis, like when she started using a respirator at night.
“We became a throuple about a year and a half ago when hose, my bipap, moved into the marital bed,” Murphy wrote.
Her ALS diagnosis came in 2022, about a decade after she fought and beat breast cancer. She even wrote a book about that battle.
“She always wanted to say – ‘As long as I can be positive in my little world, maybe it can spread,'” Hastings said.
Her obituary urged people to show kindness to strangers and avoid negativity.
“Please be kind to everyone: the telemarketer, the grocery clerk, the Dunkin’s staff, the tailgater, your family, your friends. Speak nicely and positively. Is there really ever a reason to be negative? I don’t think so,” the obituary says.
Hastings said her mother “wanted to go viral, spread a message to spread happiness and be kind.”
The obituary also gives directions to those who plan to attend her funeral service.
“If you were a stinker and meanie to me or my family or friends during my lifetime … Please do everyone a favor and STAY AWAY, we don’t want your negative drama & energy. Only nice, loving people are welcome,” she wrote.
Murphy also told her loved ones, “PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE don’t waste money on flowers.”
“Buy a bunch of scratch tickets and give them out to strangers along your way. Make people happy, that is the best way that you can honor my memory,” she wrote.
Now, Hastings hopes her 60-year-old mother’s final words can reach people around the world.
“My advice is to say yes to party, trip, adventure, raise a glass to me in cheers,” Murphy wrote in her obituary. “Just live life to the fullest. Never know what tomorrow brings, so say yes to today.”
