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Tag: vandalism

  • Owner of Rio Linda pizza place says repeated vandalism threatening business’ future

    Owner of Rio Linda pizza place says repeated vandalism threatening business’ future

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    Some business owners in Rio Linda are growing increasingly frustrated after persistent vandalism at their shops in recent months. According to the Rio Linda Elverta Chamber of Commerce, at least five had windows broken just over the holiday weekend.“This costs small businesses thousands of dollars to replace and it affects them giving to the community,” said Chamber President Wendy Stirnaman Tuesday.The window outside of Famous Pizza in the Rio Linda Shopping Center is boarded up – again. “There’s always been a problem, but to be honest, this past year it got worse. It got way worse,” said the owner, who only wished to go by Matt. He said he’s poured his life savings into running the pizza shop, but with at least four broken windows in six months, it’s becoming more and more difficult to stay open. “This is my life. I’m not rich,” he said. “I worked really, really hard to even start this. You know what I mean? This is my livelihood.”According to the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office, deputies have responded to the shop four times in the last six months for reports of broken windows. Most recently on Sunday, a spokesperson said.Owners of other businesses nearby also shared their concerns with KCRA 3 about Sunday’s vandalism.Stirnaman, a small business owner herself, said she’s also heard similar concerns from small business owners in the area.“All of us kind of band together, do the best we can,” she said. “If we can all just focus on trying to make it better, come out, support them. I know it’s hard times for everybody to spend money, but if you did it in our community, it would go a long way.”Stirnaman said it’s small businesses that support free community events, like the upcoming Rio Linda Country Faire later this month, and local sports teams.“We don’t have taxpayer money,” she said. “We do it out of the kindness of our hearts.”Stirnaman said the Chamber is working on expanding and increasing its funding to further support struggling small businesses. “Chamber doesn’t have a whole lot of funds, so we can’t help businesses actually replace things,” she said. “(But we can) support them and get people out there. We’re growing our chamber and doing the best we can.”Matt said he is too and wants his Famous Pizza location to succeed and to be a place for local families. He’s brought in games, offers family rates on meals and is committed to doing what he can to make it a safe and fun space for the community. He hosts a pizza and game night on Wednesdays from 4 to 8 p.m.He thanked his landlord, employees and regular customers for their support as he navigates the challenges with broken windows.“Thank you,” he said. “I couldn’t do this without them.”See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter

    RIO LINDA, Calif. —

    Some business owners in Rio Linda are growing increasingly frustrated after persistent vandalism at their shops in recent months. According to the Rio Linda Elverta Chamber of Commerce, at least five had windows broken just over the holiday weekend.

    “This costs small businesses thousands of dollars to replace and it affects them giving to the community,” said Chamber President Wendy Stirnaman Tuesday.

    The window outside of Famous Pizza in the Rio Linda Shopping Center is boarded up – again.

    “There’s always been a problem, but to be honest, this past year it got worse. It got way worse,” said the owner, who only wished to go by Matt.

    He said he’s poured his life savings into running the pizza shop, but with at least four broken windows in six months, it’s becoming more and more difficult to stay open.

    “This is my life. I’m not rich,” he said. “I worked really, really hard to even start this. You know what I mean? This is my livelihood.”

    According to the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office, deputies have responded to the shop four times in the last six months for reports of broken windows. Most recently on Sunday, a spokesperson said.

    Owners of other businesses nearby also shared their concerns with KCRA 3 about Sunday’s vandalism.

    Stirnaman, a small business owner herself, said she’s also heard similar concerns from small business owners in the area.

    “All of us kind of band together, do the best we can,” she said. “If we can all just focus on trying to make it better, come out, support them. I know it’s hard times for everybody to spend money, but if you did it in our community, it would go a long way.”

    Stirnaman said it’s small businesses that support free community events, like the upcoming Rio Linda Country Faire later this month, and local sports teams.

    “We don’t have taxpayer money,” she said. “We do it out of the kindness of our hearts.”

    Stirnaman said the Chamber is working on expanding and increasing its funding to further support struggling small businesses.

    “Chamber doesn’t have a whole lot of funds, so we can’t help businesses actually replace things,” she said. “(But we can) support them and get people out there. We’re growing our chamber and doing the best we can.”

    Matt said he is too and wants his Famous Pizza location to succeed and to be a place for local families. He’s brought in games, offers family rates on meals and is committed to doing what he can to make it a safe and fun space for the community.

    He hosts a pizza and game night on Wednesdays from 4 to 8 p.m.

    He thanked his landlord, employees and regular customers for their support as he navigates the challenges with broken windows.

    “Thank you,” he said. “I couldn’t do this without them.”

    See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter

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  • Bronze statue of John Lewis replaces more than 100-year-old Confederate monument

    Bronze statue of John Lewis replaces more than 100-year-old Confederate monument

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    DECATUR, Ga. (AP) — A large bronze statue of the late civil rights icon leader and Georgia congressman John Lewis was installed Friday, at the very spot where a contentious monument to the confederacy stood for more than 110 years in the town square before it was dismantled in 2020.

    Work crews gently rested the 12-foot-tall (3.7-meter-tall) statue into place as the internationally acclaimed sculptor, Basil Watson, looked on carefully.

    “It’s exciting to see it going up and exciting for the city because of what he represents and what it’s replacing,” Watson said, as he assisted with the install process.

    Lewis was known for his role at the front lines of the Civil Rights Movement and urged others to get in “good trouble” for a cause he saw as vital and necessary. In DeKalb County where the Confederate monument stood for more than a century, protesters have invoked “good trouble” in calling for the swift removal of the obelisk.

    Back in 2020, the stone obelisk was lifted from its base with straps amid jeers and chants of “Just drop it!” from onlookers in Decatur, Georgia, who were kept at a safe distance by sheriff’s deputies. The obelisk was erected by the United Daughters of the Confederacy in 1908.

    Groups like the Beacon Hill Black Alliance for Human Rights and Hate Free Decatur had been pushing for the monument to be removed since the deadly 2017 white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia.

    The monument was among those around the country that became flashpoints for protests over police brutality and racial injustice, following the death of George Floyd at the hands of police in Minneapolis. The city of Decatur then asked a Georgia judge to order the removal of the monument, which was often vandalized and marked by graffiti, saying it had become a threat to public safety.

    The statue of Lewis will be officially unveiled on Aug. 24.

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  • Neighbors help clean up after Minnesota state senator’s home tagged with racist graffiti

    Neighbors help clean up after Minnesota state senator’s home tagged with racist graffiti

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    Minnesota lawmaker says they were targeted by racist graffiti


    Minnesota lawmaker says they were targeted by racist graffiti

    00:49

    ROCHESTER, Minn. — Police in Rochester are investigating after a state lawmaker’s home was tagged with racist graffiti.

    Rep. Kim Hicks, DFL-Rochester, says it happened early Saturday morning.

    Her home and political signs for the Biden and Harris campaigns were defaced with swastikas, racial slurs and Ku Klux Klan signatures.

    Hicks says her home security video showed two or three people spray painting her property — but she says it won’t change her approach to her job.

    “We don’t scare easily, so we’re just going to keep talking to folks about the vision we have for Rochester and for Minnesota,” Hicks said. “This isn’t who Rochester is. This isn’t who Minnesota is. This is a small group of people who have hate in their heart.”

    Neighbors and other DFL lawmakers came over to help repaint what they could and get rid of the graffiti.

    Hicks is running for reelection and says her diverse family and her position as a lawmaker makes her a target.

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    WCCO Staff

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  • Vandalism hits communication lines in France, but the Paris Olympics aren’t affected

    Vandalism hits communication lines in France, but the Paris Olympics aren’t affected

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    PARIS — The French government was investigating after multiple telecommunications lines were hit by acts of vandalism Monday, affecting fiber lines and fixed and mobile phone lines as cities around France host events for the 2024 Paris Olympics.

    Organizers for the Paris Games say their operations were not affected. France’s second largest telecommunications company said it had made repairs in several areas already or workarounds kept the scale of the impact low. Some other providers also got things back up and running later Monday.

    The vandalism came after arson attacks hit train networks around France on Friday, hours before the Olympics opening ceremony.

    A national investigation has been launched into the attacks on optic cables and “the damage to the telecommunications systems,” according to Paris prosecutors. The crimes they’re investigating include damaging property with an intent to harm vital national interests and attacking data processing systems by an organized group, which carry 10- to 15-year prison sentences, prosecutors said.

    Marina Ferrari, secretary of state in charge of digital affairs, posted on X that damage in several regions overnight Sunday to Monday affected telecommunications operators. She said that led to local impact on access to fiber lines and fixed and mobile telephone lines.

    A French police official said there were issues in at least six of the country’s administrative departments, which include the region around the Mediterranean city of Marseille, hosting Olympic soccer and sailing competitions.

    Paris 2024 organizers said they have been informed of acts of sabotage on fiber optic networks across several French departments but “we can only confirm that there is no impact on our operations.”

    SFR, France’s second-largest telecommunications company, said its long-distance network “was the target of acts of vandalism at five points in five departments between 1 a.m. and 3 a.m.”

    “Maintenance teams are on site to carry out repair work,” SFR said in a statement. It added that the impact of the vandalism acts on its customers was “very low because there are sufficient backups and workarounds.”

    Up to eight French and international operators, who use SFR’s infrastructure, have been affected, the company also said, adding that full service has already been restored by Monday afternoon in several areas.

    Telecom operators Bouygues and Free confirmed they were affected. Free later said service had been restored after an “incident effecting multiple networks in 11 departments.”

    A national investigation also is underway into last week’s train sabotage, which disrupted travel for nearly a million passengers in France as well as people in London and in other neighboring countries. Train traffic had largely resumed by Monday.

    French media reported that an extreme-left activist was arrested at a rail facility on Sunday in the Seine-Maritime region of western France. But the Paris prosecutor’s office said it was unconnected to what happened Friday and that no one has been arrested so far in the national investigation into the arson attacks. ___

    Surk reported from Nice. Nicolas Vaux-Montagny contributed from Lyon.

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  • Labeling pro-Palestinian graffiti as ‘antisemitic’ at U-M regent’s office is disingenuous, activists say

    Labeling pro-Palestinian graffiti as ‘antisemitic’ at U-M regent’s office is disingenuous, activists say

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    Jordan Acker, a Jewish member of the University of Michigan Board of Regents, quickly condemned the vandalism of his office early Monday as “antisemitism” because the graffiti messages criticized Israel’s attacks on Palestinians.

    Elected officials, along with CNN and other corporate media outlets, repeated the same claims.

    But is it antisemitic to criticize Israel?

    More than 36,000 Palestinians are estimated to have been killed by Israeli bombardments and ground operations in Gaza since Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7. On May 20, the chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court sought arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanhayu and his defense minister Yoav Gallant, alleging they committed war crimes.

    For reasons that aren’t difficult to understand, Palestinian sympathizers are tired of watching innocent civilians getting slaughtered by the thousands. At university campuses, students are doing what they can to oppose the brutality: They are calling on colleges to divest from companies connected to Israel.

    That’s exactly what led up to the vandalism at Acker’s law office in Southfield. At the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor last month, police in riot gear used batons and pepper spray to drive pro-Palestinian activists back from their protest encampment. Acker and other regents have refused the calls to divest and have openly supported Israel’s attacks on Gaza, prompting protesters, including some Jewish students, to protest outside the board members’ homes in May.

    Among the board members, Acker was the most outspoken opponent of the protest.

    When activists scrawled pro-Palestinian graffiti on Acker’s law office early Monday, he called it a “disgusting anti-semitic attack” on the social media platform X and in media interviews. Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson and state Sen. Jeremy Moss were among the elected officials who also called it antisemitic.

    But the graffiti contained no anti-Jewish messages. It read, “Free Palestine,” “Divest Now,” “UM Kills,” and “Fuck You Acker.” Red handprints were also left on the office’s doors.

    Law enforcement officials adopted similar rhetoric. Southfield police Chief Elvin Barren called the graffiti “a hate crime.” The FBI also joined the investigation.

    Dawud Walid, director of the Michigan chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-MI), says supporters of Israel’s war are trying to silence dissent by labeling anti-genocide messages as antisemitism.

    “It’s a very disturbing trend that people who are calling for a ceasefire are being equated to antisemites and Hamas supporters,” Walid tells Metro Times. “This is a very troubling trend. It’s as if Americans can’t hold two ideas at once. We can say that Hamas committed an atrocity, and at the same time, say the Israeli government is committing crimes against humanity.”

    Walid points out that many opponents of Israel’s war are Jewish. In fact, one of the most vocal advocacy groups against the attacks in Gaza is the Jewish Voice for Peace, which supports the liberation of Palestinians. Leaders of the group recently called on the Hamtramck City Council to pass a resolution endorsing a movement that advocates for boycotts and divestment from Israel to pressure the government to stop its brutality.

    Walid also points to Israeli political scientist and author Ilan Pappe, who says he was detained and harassed by federal agents at Detroit Metro Airport last month for being a human rights advocate for Palestinians.

    “Another unfortunate aspect of this is that there are Jewish voices who are being silenced by this narrative,” Walid says. “That’s the irony of this. Their voices are being silenced. It’s bizarre.”

    On X, dozens of people challenged Ackers’s narrative that the graffiti was antisemitic.

    “Call it vandalism, call it criminal, but I don’t see how ‘Free Palestine’ is antisemitic,” @WolverLion wrote.

    Another X user chimed in, “What about this is antisemitic, exactly Jordan? We can’t keep throwing words around like this, they’ll lose their meaning.”

    “This is not antisemitism,” @alex_k99999 tweeted. “If you want to end petty vandalism, stop aiding genocide.”

    At a news conference on Monday, Acker repeated the antisemitism claims, saying he was targeted because he’s Jewish.

    “Make no mistake that targeting individual Jewish elected officials is antisemitism,” Acker told reporters.

    “This has nothing to do with Palestine or the war in Gaza or anything else,” Acker continued. “This is done as a message to scare Jews. I was not targeted here today because I am a regent. I am a target of this because I am Jewish.”

    To anyone who disagrees with him, Acker wrote on X, “it might be a good time to check yourself as to why.”

    Pro-Palestinians disagreed.

    “It’s vandalism and that’s wrong,” @yourauntifa responded. “Is supporting divestment antisemitic? You assume you were targeted because you’re Jewish. Might you have been targeted because you’re very vocal and visible and the culprits knew it would get this level of attention, which they crave?”

    Meanwhile at Wayne State University, pro-Palestinian activists, along with staff and faculty members, are holding a news conference and rally at the corner of Warren and Second to protest campus police’s handling of an encampment last week.

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    Steve Neavling

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  • Vandals destroy over $10K worth of Meals on Wheels food in Northern California

    Vandals destroy over $10K worth of Meals on Wheels food in Northern California

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    (FOX40.COM) — Over $10,000 worth of Meals on Wheels food was lost after vandals broke into a Northern California facility and cut power to the charity’s refrigeration system.

    Meals on Wheels is a non-profit organization that delivers meals to senior citizens who may not have the mobility to pick up their own food. There are over 5,000 offices throughout the United States.

    “For a week, we’ve been mourning the loss of an estimated $10,000+ worth of prepared frozen meals, perishable food inventory, and the labor required to clean-up and recover from this unanticipated incident,” Yolo County Meals on Wheels Executive Director Joy Cohan said in a statement on Monday.

    Cohan said when food services staff arrived at the Meals on Wheels – Sutter Health Senior Nutrition Center in Winters on May 28, the Tuesday following a holiday weekend, the electrical power was off. Winters Police Department determined that vandals accessed the panel at the rear of the building and deliberately switched off the power 24-48 hours prior.

    “Fortunately, no senior went without a meal thanks to our second kitchen facility in Woodland,” Cohan said. “However, 500 meals intended to advance our program over the past week, as well as raw ingredients to prepare another 2,100 meals, sadly were lost to the whims of a weekend prankster in Winters.”

    MOW said the organization’s insurance is not covering 100% of the loss and asked donors for help with leftover expenses.

    Cohan added, “Your support today assists MOW Yolo with this unplanned expense, ensures that no senior will be at risk of a missed meal, and restores faith in the community’s fortitude and compassion to come together in the face of malicious mischief.”

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    Veronica Catlin

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  • Arrest log

    Arrest log

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    The following arrests were made recently by local police departments. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty. Massachusetts’ privacy law prevents police from releasing information involving domestic and sexual violence arrests with the goal to protect the alleged victims.

    LOWELL

    • Leslie Carneiro, 32, homeless; warrants (failure to appear for possession of Class A drug, and receiving stolen property).

    • Joshua McDermott, 41, 365 East St., Apt. D4, Tewksbury; warrant (failure to appear for vandalizing property).

    • Isaac Lombardi, 44, 701 Hickory Lane, Louisville, Ky.; warrants (larceny under $1,200, conspiracy).

    NASHUA, N.H.

    • Erica Carmen Ramos, 40, 29 Temple St., Nashua; nonappearance in court.

    • Steven Coburn, 64, 31 Yarmouth Drive, Nashua; out of town warrants.

    • Kevin Gray, 32, 100 Ridgecrest Drive, Cheshire, Conn.; nonappearance in court.

    • Hilario Alejandro Campos, 23, 85 Langholm Drive, Nashua; suspension of vehicle registration, driving motor vehicle after revocation/suspension.

    • Oscar Verde Reyes, 34, 29 New Dunstable Road, Nashua; operation of motor vehicle without valid license, uninspected motor vehicle.

    • John Meadows, 34, 21 South St., Concord, N.H.; criminal trespass.

    • Brandon Paul Lavoie, 23, 60 Prescott St., Nashua; nonappearance in court.

    • John Peter Wilcox, 52, no fixed address; disorderly conduct.

    • Stefano Renda, 30, 155 Chestnut St., Apt. 2, Nashua; theft lost/mislaid ($0-$1,000), credit card fraud ($0-$1,000).

    • Jerry Summers, 41, 46 Spring St., Apt. 14, Nashua; three counts of simple assault, criminal mischief.

    • Jonathon Rogers, 36, 27 Newcastle Drive, Apt. 4, Nashua; driving motor vehicle after license revocation/suspension, driving motor vehicle without giving proof.

    • Sean Buckley, 41, 10 Barker Ave., Nashua; driving under influence (second offense), disobeying an officer, operating motor vehicle with suspended/revoked license for driving while intoxicated, traffic control device violation.

    • Taher Bashir, 18, 356 Laurel St., Apt. 1, Manchester, N.H.; theft by unauthorized taking ($1,001-$1,500), theft by deception ($0-$1,000), receiving stolen property, theft by unauthorized taking ($0-$1,000).

    • Connor Gorman, 22, 7 Alex Circle, Nashua; two counts of simple assault.

    • Larry Thompson, 43, 18 Fifield St., Nashua; violation of protection order, stalking, second-degree assault.

    • Luis Antonio Fernandez Feliciano, 46, 39 Kinsley St., Apt. A, Nashua; operation of motor vehicle without valid license.

    • Jeremy Moncada, 34, 77 Lock St., Apt. 4, Nashua; criminal trespass.

    • Ronalda Brunner-Cummings, 60, 445 S. Main St., Nashua; driving motor vehicle after license revocation suspension, driving without giving proof.

    • Louis Jean Soucy, 47, no fixed address; criminal trespass.

    • Leo Laterza, 55, 1 Beacon Court, Apt. 2FL, Nashua; failure to appear at arraignment.

    • Jose Perlera, 20, 9 Pratt St., Lunenburg; out of town warrant.

    • Melissa Graves, 48, 31 Pemberton Road, Nashua; warrant.

    • Philip Levesque, 45, 25 Gleneagle Drive, Nashua; violation of restraining order, stalking.

    • Randy Howard Widmer, 37, no fixed address; nonappearance in court.

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  • Mitch McConnell Fast Facts | CNN Politics

    Mitch McConnell Fast Facts | CNN Politics

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    CNN
     — 

    Here is a look at the life of Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Republican from Kentucky.

    Birth date: February 20, 1942

    Birth place: Colbert County, Alabama

    Birth name: Addison Mitchell McConnell Jr.

    Father: Addison Mitchell McConnell

    Mother: Julia (Shockley) McConnell

    Marriages: Elaine Chao (1993-present); Sherrill Redmon (1968-1980, divorced)

    Children: with Sherrill Redmon: Porter; Claire; Eleanor

    Education: University of Louisville, B.A., 1964; University of Kentucky, J.D., 1967

    Religion: Baptist

    Contracted polio at age 2 and was not allowed to walk for two years while completing physical therapy.

    His wife, Elaine Chao, served as secretary of the Department of Labor under President George W. Bush and deputy secretary of the Department of Transportation under President George H.W. Bush. Chao served as the secretary of the Department of Transportation under President Donald Trump.

    1968-1970 – Chief legislative assistant to Senator Marlow Cook.

    1974-1975 – Deputy Assistant United States Attorney for Legislative Affairs.

    1975 – Acting Assistant Attorney General.

    1978-1985 – Judge-Executive of Jefferson County, Kentucky.

    1984 – Elected to the US Senate to represent Kentucky.

    1990 – Reelected to the US Senate.

    1996 – Reelected to the US Senate.

    2002 – Reelected to the US Senate.

    2003-2007 – Senate Republican Whip.

    November 16, 2006 – Elected Senate Republican leader. McConnell replaces Bill Frist.

    January 4, 2007-January 6, 2015 – Senate Minority Leader.

    2008 – Reelected to the US Senate.

    October 23, 2010 – During an interview with the National Journal, McConnell says, “The single most important thing we want to achieve is for President [Barack] Obama to be a one-term president.”

    November 4, 2014 – Reelected to the US Senate.

    November 13, 2014 – McConnell is reelected leader of the Republican party in the Senate. When Congress reconvenes in January 2015, McConnell will take over as Senate majority leader from Harry Reid.

    January 6, 2015–January 20, 2021 – Senate Majority Leader.

    December 12, 2016 – Announces he supports a congressional investigation into findings that Russian hackers attempted to influence the election.

    June 12, 2018 – Becomes the longest-serving Republican leader in the Senate’s history, surpassing former Sen. Robert Dole’s record.

    August 4, 2019 – McConnell fractures his shoulder after falling in his Kentucky home. “This morning, Leader McConnell tripped at home on his outside patio and suffered a fractured shoulder,” David Popp, McConnell’s communications director, says in a statement. “He has been treated, released, and is working from home in Louisville.”

    August 15, 2019 – McConnell undergoes surgery to repair the fracture in his shoulder. “The surgery was performed without incident, and the Leader is grateful to the surgical team for their skill,” Popp says in a statement.

    November 3, 2020 – Wins reelection to the US Senate, defeating Democratic opponent Amy McGrath and her massive fundraising efforts to unseat him.

    November 10, 2020 – McConnell is reelected as a Senate party leader, but the party holding the Senate majority won’t be determined until two runoff elections in Georgia take place in January.

    December 15, 2020 – Six weeks after Election Day McConnell finally acknowledges Joe Biden’s victory and refers to him as president-elect.

    January 2, 2021 – Police report that McConnell’s home has been vandalized. The damage takes place after the Senate stalls on increasing stimulus checks to $2,000. The home of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, the other highest-ranking member of Congress, was vandalized the previous day.

    January 20, 2021-present – Senate Minority Leader.

    February 13, 2021 – McConnell directly blames former President Trump for instigating last month’s riot at the Capitol but votes to acquit him anyway of inciting an insurrection.

    November 16, 2022 – Wins a secret-ballot leadership election, putting him on pace to become the longest-serving Senate party leader in US history. McConnell defeats Florida Sen. Rick Scott in a 37-10-1 vote, his first challenger in his 15 years atop his conference.

    March 8, 2023 – McConnell is being treated for a concussion and is staying at a hospital for observation after a fall at the Waldorf Astoria hotel in Washington, DC.

    July 26, 2023 – McConnell stops speaking in the middle of remarks at his regularly scheduled weekly news conference on Capitol Hill. After a 30-second pause, his colleagues crowded around to see if he was OK and asked him how he felt. He later tells reporters that he’s “fine.”

    August 30, 2023 – Appears to freeze for about 30 seconds while speaking with reporters after a speech in Covington, Kentucky.

    February 28, 2024 – McConnell will step down at GOP leader in November, a source tells CNN.

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  • Mourners leave flowers, letters for Flaco at his favorite tree in Central Park

    Mourners leave flowers, letters for Flaco at his favorite tree in Central Park

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    UPPER WEST SIDE, Manhattan (WABC) — At Flaco’s favorite oak tree in Central Park, many were leaving flowers and letters – it is just a glimpse at how loved he was.

    If only Flaco knew what he meant to New York City.

    Emily Einhorn of the Wild Bird Fund responded to the tragic discovery near West 89th Street on the Upper West Side Friday. An initial evaluation showed the Eurasian Eagle Owl flew into the window of a building and suffered fatal injuries.

    Flaco’s flight to stardom began in February 2023 when someone broke into the Central Park Zoo and freed him.

    He spent the last year out of captivity – roaming New York City, warming hearts and really defying odds – odds stacked so firmly against wildlife in the city.

    The Wild Bird Fund says light pollution at night is part of the problem – some activists are pushing for the city to pass ‘Flaco’s Law’ – anything to prevent the demise of a wild, beautiful creature.

    “Flaco’s loss is a big loss for the city. He was able to capture the imaginations of so many people,” said NYC Audubon Director of Conservation Dr. Dustin Patridge.

    ALSO READ | Newark holds first lottery to pick residents who can buy houses for $1

    Toni Yates has the story.

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  • Mother Bethel AME Church’s stained glass windows smashed by vandal

    Mother Bethel AME Church’s stained glass windows smashed by vandal

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    A vandal shattered four windows at the historic Mother Bethel AME Church in Society Hill, police say.

    Police found the front-door window smashed, along with three stained glass windows, when they arrived to the church at 419 S. Sixth St. at 9:31 a.m. Monday. No arrests have been made, and no description of the suspect is available at this time. The investigation is ongoing.

    MORE: Francisville fire damages 2 buildings, displaces about 20 people

    A cleaning crew first alerted church officials to the damage on Monday morning. Rev. Mark Kelly Tyler, the church’s pastor, does not believe racism or religious intolerance was a factor in the vandalism.

    “I’ve been on the receiving end of that before,” he said. “And generally there’s some kind of messaging to enforce the fact that that’s what people are trying to say. Same with some kind of religious violence. There’s nothing to suggest that, or even anything political. Seems like we were in the wrong place at the wrong time as far as this particular person was concerned.”

    Tyler believes repairs to the windows will cost nearly $20,000. The church is now seeking to upgrade its security system, which could add another $12,000 in fees.

    Mother Bethel AME Church sits on the oldest parcel of land continuously owned by Black people in the U.S. It is the mother church of the African Methodist Episcopal denomination, which was formed in 1816 by the pioneering Philadelphia preacher Richard Allen. The current structure was built in 1890, and was designated a historic landmark in 1974.

    The Preservation Alliance for Greater Philadelphia is now fundraising to help cover the repairs, an effort Tyler says was “unexpected and unsolicited.” The windows will be boarded while the church and its supporters work to amass the money.

    Mother Bethel AME Church recently served as the launchpad for a week-long interfaith march from Philadelphia to Washington, D.C. Protestors, who departed the church on Feb. 14, are calling for a permanent ceasefire in Gaza. They are expected to arrive at the White House on Wednesday.

    This story has been updated with comments and information from Rev. Mark Kelly Tyler.

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    Kristin Hunt

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  • Man who shoveled new channel into Lake Michigan convicted of 2 misdemeanors

    Man who shoveled new channel into Lake Michigan convicted of 2 misdemeanors

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    A man accused of diverting a national park river to ease boat access to Lake Michigan has been convicted of two misdemeanors.

    Andrew Howard of Frankfort, Michigan, was found guilty of tampering and vandalism Wednesday during a brief trial in front of U.S. Magistrate Judge Ray Kent.

    In August 2022, a National Park Service ranger witnessed Howard digging with a shovel so the Platte River in the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore would be diverted into one of the Great Lakes, prosecutors said in a court filing.

    platte-river-michigan-before-and-after-diversion-aug-2022.png

    U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Michigan


    “Within days, the natural power of the water and the constructed dam caused the river to divert and created a new channel to Lake Michigan that grew to approximately 200 feet wide,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Lauren Biksacky said.

    “It stayed approximately that wide for the summer and fall season,” she added. “There was then an influx in the number of fishermen that came to Platte River boat launch to take advantage of the favorable conditions of access created by the new channel.”

    The Associated Press left a voicemail and email seeking comment from Howard’s attorney Thursday.

    U.S. Attorney Mark Totten said Howard had a policy dispute with the National Park Service and “took matters into his own hands.”

    The Park Service no longer dredges the Platte River. As a result, sediment and sand build up, reducing the ability to get boats to Lake Michigan.

    When the diversion first occurred, some state and local officials, businesses owners and angler groups expressed support for the increased boat access and argued that it actually benefitted the river, local news site Mlive.com reported. Township officials have called for the river mouth dredged, arguing that its shallowness is a safety hazard that impedes access to Platte Bay for rescue boats.

    According to Mlive.com, since dredging stopped in 2016, two people have died in the bay —a teenager from Holt drowned swimming and a 21-year-old died when his kayak capsized.

    “it would be nice for a rescue boat to be able to get out there in a timely fashion,” Kyle Orr, owner of Riverside Canoe Trips, told Mlive.com. 

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  • CBD crime: Cakeshop, pub, cathedral hit in Napier vandalism – Medical Marijuana Program Connection

    CBD crime: Cakeshop, pub, cathedral hit in Napier vandalism – Medical Marijuana Program Connection

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    Police are investigating at least three attacks on buildings in the Napier CBD early on Wednesday morning.

    In separate incidents, targeting front entrances, with no entry gained and all thought to be between 3am and 4am, a man using a rubbish bin smashed a window at fledgling business Cuteney’s Cakes in Dalton St, while a beam was smashed into a window at The Rose Irish Pub in Hastings St and another window beside the Brown St entrance of Waiapu Cathedral.

    CCTV captured two of the offences being committed, but it was not clear if the same person was involved or if the incidents were related.

    Boutique cake-shop proprietor Courtney Booth has had her business up and running just four months and was stunned when she was advised of the damage, but ultimately asked “Why ?” when it became apparent that the hit, by an apparently shoeless man at 3am, appeared to be nothing other than a random assault by an angry man.

    AdvertisementAdvertise with NZME.
    The scene on Wednesday morning in Dalton St, Napier after Cuteney’s Cakes was the target of early-morning vandalism. Photo / Caron Copek

    It was to have been the shop’s first Wednesday open, a trial run for Valentine’s Day next week, and the doors were closed for the day. A recent ram-raid victim provided their no-longer-needed boarding-up frame to cover the frontage until a glass firm had the window replaced by mid-afternoon.

    The cake shop would reopen for its market-friendly midday-8pm hours on Thursday. It opens 10am-9pm Friday…

    Original Author Link click here to read complete story..

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  • Column: Vandalism or street art? What the graffiti-tagged high-rises say about L.A.

    Column: Vandalism or street art? What the graffiti-tagged high-rises say about L.A.

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    From a parking lot on the corner of 12th and Figueroa streets, Michael Lopez carefully commandeered his drone through the skyline around LA Live.

    A video screen showed the drone’s slow ascent. Up and up it went, until it framed a shot almost straight out of Ansel Adams. The cloud-covered San Gabriel Mountains. Green foothills glimmering from recent rains. And an abandoned, half-finished skyscraper plastered in bright, bubbly graffiti.

    Two other towers were similarly hit, virtually every floor of each 20-plus-story building featuring graffiti on the corners.

    The unfinished Oceanwide Plaza in downtown L.A. is marked with graffiti after being tagged this week.

    (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

    The audacity and visibility of the taggers’ feat — you can see it from the 10 Freeway and as far away as the Sixth Street Bridge — and the fact that the Grammys will be held on Sunday across the street at Crypto.com Arena has attracted worldwide attention.

    It’s also become L.A.’s latest Rorschach test.

    For civic leaders and professional L.A. haters, it’s the latest proof that the city is spiraling down in a doom cycle, another nightmare to add to our dumpster fire of street takeovers, homeless encampments and mass break-ins. The $1 billion behemoth, called Oceanwide Plaza, was once one of the biggest real estate projects in the city, but construction was halted five years ago when its Chinese developer ran out of money.

    For Lopez, however, the graffed-up buildings, which were supposed to feature hotel and retail space as well as luxury condominiums and apartments, are the latest thing to love about his hometown.

    “It’s beautiful. It’s amazing,” he said. He held his drone shot and waved over a friend who goes by Juan G. The two had driven up from South L.A. to take in the scene.

    “I know it’s getting mixed reviews,” Juan deadpanned, before adding, “I’m sure the people who live in the lofts across the street didn’t like getting peeped at!”

    He continued to crane his neck upward. I rattled off some tags visible from the lower floors — Axion. Inkz. Cuts. XN28.

    “You’re never going to see something like this again,” Juan continued. “The rules are going to change. The security is gonna come in here hard. But to have been a part of that? To see this up close? It’s a once-in-a-lifetime moment.”

    I’m no fan of graffiti, but I couldn’t help but admire what the taggers had accomplished. Before us was a monument to the Los Angeles of the moment, highlighting so many issues, consciously or not. Rampant overdevelopment downtown. Civic corruption. Out-of-control graffiti.

    A place with so much potential, yet so much desmadre.

    If someone tried this at Art Basel, it would sell for millions. If Banksy pulled off a project of this scope, he’d be hailed as a genius. Since it’s a bunch of mostly anonymous people (two have been arrested and released), polite L.A. is in an uproar. Even Kevin de León, the city council member who represents downtown, emerged from his hiding hole on Groundhog Day to tell KTLA Channel 5 that Los Angeles should not be an “open canvas [for] budding artists.”

    It’s easy to portray the taggers as vandals intent on destroying L.A. But the towers have rotted while L.A.’s bureaucracy has done little to address the situation.

    Taggers have graffitied what appears to be more than 25 stories of a downtown Los Angeles skyscraper

    Oceanwide Plaza has sat empty and mostly forgotten, until a group of taggers spray-painted graffiti on the towers.

    (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

    Instead, the taggers took it upon themselves to transform something ugly into something far more vibrant. Isn’t that L.A. at its finest?

    That they used the medium of street art makes their work that much more Angeleno.

    The city has felt under siege from graffiti for decades. I used to estimate my drive time on the 10 by tracking the exit ramps on the freeway signs. Now, I can do it based on which giant tag on which huge warehouse I just passed.

    Graffiti at its worst does nothing to beautify neighborhoods. But what happened at Oceanwide Plaza wasn’t some spur of the moment scribble. The ingenuity in methodically bombing every corner with dozens of names, exemplifies the teamwork we should all aspire to. The failure here was from a company that has no money to afford security guards and a city government that should never have approved the pie-in-the-sky venture in the first place.

    Besides, graffiti has been a part of working-class Southern California for decades. Even I, a nerdy teen, scratched “Pharaoh” on windows and wooden desks in eighth grade until security guards at my Anaheim school took away my etching tool. There was something liberating — validating even — to see an art form long demonized as vandalism, at the same time that large corporations have appropriated it, take over such a visible part of downtown.

    “All of this doesn’t just belong to the developers,” Lopez said. “It belongs to all of us.”

    Above the parking lot where he and Juan stood loomed a two-story mural featuring Clippers superstar Kawhi Leonard, street-art style. He was surrounded by bromides such as “Never Never Give Up” and “Follow Your Dreams” in scrawls that tried to mimic graffiti but were as cool as mom jeans.

    “They call this art,” Juan said before waving back toward the skyscrapers, “and not that?”

    I left them and walked to the front of the Crypto.com Arena. There, I found Zack Woodard taking photos of the tagged-up high rises before asking a friend to capture him with the buildings as a backdrop. High above him, a tattered, pockmarked white banner that read “Oceanwide Plaza” hung from an unfinished structure.

    “When I Ubered to here on Wednesday, it was only half-done,” said Woodard, who’s in town for the Grammys as program director for the Grammy Museum Mississippi. “It’s really impressive to see how quickly they finished it.”

    Another friend, Rachel Patterson, continued to look upward. “I couldn’t imagine going all the way up there!”

    “People say it makes the skyline look bad,” Woodard said. “But it’s not going to be there forever. It’s done nice. Besides, street art is a part of L.A. history.”

    He asked me what the buildings were supposed to have been. When I told him residential and retail, Woodard scoffed — “Just like everything else in L.A.”

    As I drove off, I passed by the parking lot where I had met Lopez and Juan. More people surrounded them, all looking up, all with big smiles on their faces.

    I smiled, too. There are a lot of things wrong with Los Angeles, but tagged-up ruins that bring happiness to locals and tourists alike are the least of them.

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    Gustavo Arellano

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  • Two arrested in connection with tagging graffiti-covered L.A. skyscraper across the street from Grammys venue

    Two arrested in connection with tagging graffiti-covered L.A. skyscraper across the street from Grammys venue

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    Two people were arrested, cited and released this week in connection with spray painting graffiti across more than two dozen stories of an unfinished skyscraper in downtown Los Angeles, according to authorities.

    On Tuesday around 12:43 a.m., Los Angeles Police Department officers responded to a vandalism call on South Figueroa Street, the site of the unfinished and long-idle Oceanwide Plaza development, the department said in a news release. The LAPD’s Air Support Division reported seeing more than a dozen suspects trespassing and possibly spray painting the building.

    By the time more officers arrived, all the suspects except for two had fled the location, authorities said. The two — Los Angeles residents Victor Daniel Ramirez, 35, and Roberto Perez, 25 — were arrested and transported to the Central Area station, where they were cited for trespassing on private property and released.

    Two days later, officers returned to the construction site around 12:52 p.m. to respond to another vandalism call, this time involving spray painting on the 30th floor, according to the news release. Officers were told by the site’s security guards that the suspects fled the building in a car.

    Police found a car matching the description they’d been given and told the driver to stop, but the driver didn’t yield, the department alleged. Officers eventually found the vehicle a short distance away and the driver was cited for failure to yield to an officer.

    The investigation is still ongoing.

    Taggers spray painted at least 27 floors of the building this week, judging by aerial footage of the building.

    Oceanwide Plaza was once one of the biggest real estate development projects in Los Angeles, but construction was halted five years ago when its Chinese developer ran out of money. The project was supposed to feature hotel and retail space as well as luxury condominiums and apartments.

    The buildings have remained unfinished ever since in the popular LA Live complex, which includes shops, restaurants and the Grammy Museum. Crypto.com Arena anchors the complex and will host the 66th Grammy Awards on Sunday.

    Nella McOsker, president and chief executive of the Central City Assn., condemned the taggers in a statement.

    “We are disturbed by the images of the vandalism of Oceanwide Plaza,” said McOsker, whose organization advocates for businesses and nonprofits in downtown Los Angeles. “This is a representation of the very real neglect that DTLA has gone through over the past decade. We see it every day with the number of unhoused Angelenos experiencing mental health crises in the streets, the shuttered businesses we walk past and lack of public safety that we hear of too often.”

    Not everyone condemned the graffiti as senseless crime, however.

    Stefano Bloch, a former graffiti writer and a professor of geography at the University of Arizona, expressed admiration for the taggers making use of abandoned space.

    “It’s graffiti writers who find value in these spaces and enliven them,” he said. “That’s not to romanticize it as art or to demonize the crime. Someone was making use of this building and it wasn’t the builder or the occupants.”

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    Summer Lin

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  • Stolen Jackie Robinson statue found

    Stolen Jackie Robinson statue found

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    Police in Kansas are searching for a suspect after a bronze statue of Jackie Robinson was vandalized and stolen last week. The dismantled remains of the artwork were found Tuesday morning by the Wichita Fire Department when it responded to a small trash fire.

    Wichita police said Monday it had located the truck that was believed to be used in the theft of the artwork, but added that detectives and officers were still searching for the people responsible.

    The life-size statue, which was erected in 2021 as part of the Jackie Robinson Pavilion in Wichita, is one of just four statues of the athlete in the nation. It was cut off from the ankles up and put in a pickup truck in the very early hours of Thursday morning, according to police.

    Stolen Jackie Robinson statue
    Stolen Jackie Robinson statue

    Wichita Police Department


    The burglary has sparked outrage from members of the community and League 42, the nonprofit organization that put the statue up. Police are not yet sure of the motive for the vandalism, and believe the perpetrators could have stolen the statue to salvage the bronze metal.

    “I’m frustrated by the actions of those individuals who had the audacity to take the statue of Jackie Robinson from a park where kids and families and our community gather to learn the history of Jackie Robinson,” Wichita Police Department Chief Joe Sullivan said Friday in a news conference.

    “What troubles me even more is that the theft occurred just before the beginning of February, which marks the start of Black History Month,” Sullivan said, adding that the timing of this robbery will be considered in the investigation.

    Bob Lutz, the founder of League 42, said in a statement on the fundraising platform GoFundMe, “As law enforcement searches for the statue and the culprits of this crime, we remain devoted to our mission of providing low-cost baseball and education opportunities for our 600 kids, ages 5-14. They are as heartbroken over this theft as any of us and we are determined to either repair the original sculpture or create a new one.”

    Simrin Singh

    Simrin Singh is a social media producer and trending content writer for CBS News.

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  • LAPD: San Fernando Valley possible hate crimes suspect arrested

    LAPD: San Fernando Valley possible hate crimes suspect arrested

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    LOS ANGELES – The Los Angeles Police Department said that Topanga Area patrol officers have arrested the suspect in a series of acts of vandalism in the northwestern area of the San Fernando Valley over this past weekend.

    64-year-old Edelidio David Wallace was apprehended in the 21000 block of Victory Boulevard at 3:30 p.m. Monday afternoon. The LAPD’s Major Crimes Division, is seeking additional victims of a vandalism suspect in the Topanga area.

    An LAPD spokesperson said that Wallace is the man seen in multiple surveillance videos throwing rocks and cement bricks to smash glass windows and doors at over five businesses.

    Hate crime investigation in vandalism of Jewish-owned businesses

    Related

    On January 6, 2024, at approximately 3:00 a.m., Topanga Area patrol officers responded to three vandalism incidents within three blocks of the 20900 block of Victory Boulevard. The suspect used rocks and cement bricks to smash glass windows and doors belonging to several closed businesses. The suspect fled from the location on foot.

    On January 8, 2024, between 1:00 a.m. and 4:00 a.m., the same suspect vandalized additional closed businesses on Vanowen Street, Topanga Canyon Boulevard, and Sherman Way, again throwing rocks and bricks. All the vandalism occurred within a two-mile radius. Major Crimes Division is investigating the vandalism series to determine if there is a hate crime nexus based on three businesses being Jewish-owned. The rocks recovered had “Glory” and “Pay Up” written on them.

    Major Crimes Division is also investigating additional vandalisms that occurred on January 5th and January 7th in the same general area to determine if they are related.

    Clothing Description:
    January 6, 2024: Nike green sweatshirt, black pants, white Nike shoes
    January 8, 2024: Nike burgundy sweatshirt, black pants, white Nike shoes

    Investigators believe there are other victims who have yet to be identified. A photograph of the suspect is being released in hopes to identify and speak with additional persons who may have been victimized.

    If you have been a victim or have information about this investigation, you are urged to contact Major Crimes Detectives Beard or Patin at 213-486-7280. During non-business hours or on weekends, calls should be directed to 1-877-LAPD-24-7 (877-527-3247). Anyone wishing to remain anonymous should call the LA Regional Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (800-222-8477) or go directly to www.lacrimestoppers.org. Lastly, tipsters may also download the “P-3 Tips” mobile application and select the LA Regional Crime Stoppers as their local program.

    Suspect arrested in connection with possible hate crime spree in Canoga Park 

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    Brody Levesque

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  • At least 5 more potential hate crime acts in Canoga Park 

    At least 5 more potential hate crime acts in Canoga Park 

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    LOS ANGELES — Project Angel Food saw a remarkable gathering of celebrities and 200 dedicated volunteers coming together to prepare and deliver 2,000 traditional turkey meals to critically ill clients on Thanksgiving Day, Thursday, Nov. 23, 2023. The initiative culminated in a total of more than 5,000 meals prepared and delivered throughout Thanksgiving week.

    Thanksgiving Day at Project Angel Food was not just about distributing meals but also about the spirit of giving back while cherishing moments with family and friends.

    Melissa Rivers attends Thanksgiving at Project Angel Food on November 23, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Tommaso Boddi/Getty Images for Project Angel Food)

    Melissa Rivers, who recently got engaged to lawyer Steve Mitchel on Oct. 13, made a notable appearance — showcasing her stunning 5.6 carat, emerald-cut engagement ring as she volunteered alongside adult son Cooper Endicott. She shared, “Sometime maybe in 2025. It would be my second marriage and his second marriage so if anything, we’ll have a party, and a ceremony might break out. But nobody’s in any rush.”

    Amanda Kloots, host of “The Talk”, expressed her deep affection for Project Angel Food, stating that she fell in love with the cause while filming a segment for the hit CBS talk show. She returned with Zach Braff and her four-year-old son Elvis, emphasizing, “I think it is so important to show our kids how blessed we are and how we can help one another.”

    Harry Hamlin attends Thanksgiving at Project Angel Food on November 23, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Tommaso Boddi/Getty Images for Project Angel Food)

    Joining the ranks, Lisa Rinna and her husband Harry Hamlin continued their annual tradition of giving back at Project Angel Food on Thanksgiving. Harry offered, “It goes without saying the people of L.A. need to be fed, and we’re here to do it, especially on Thanksgiving.” Lisa added, “It makes you feel good to give back, always, and we need to do it more.”

    Actor and model Sam Asghari, marking his first Thanksgiving after his divorce from Britney Spears, refrained from discussing the split but reflected “I think it is important when you have a platform and a voice, and you have the ability to help others it is important to do.”

    Sam Asghari attends Thanksgiving at Project Angel Food on November 23, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Tommaso Boddi/Getty Images for Project Angel Food)

    Unlikely friends Charo and Kat Von D were among the initial celebrity arrivals. Von D explained their unique bond, stating, “We’re Yin and Yang and complement each other. Since she had heard of Project Angel Food through Charo, she wanted to join.” Charo expressed her enthusiasm for volunteering, exclaiming, “I love people. This is my passion!”

    The event saw the participation of other notable celebrity volunteers, including Amy Yasbeck, singer Em Beihold, Eve Mauro, Jai Rodriguez, Supervisor Kathryn Barger, Laura Pierson, Lauren Tom, Lawrence Zarian, Lisa Foxx, Loni Love, Mary-Margaret Humes, Michael Hitchcock, Peter Porte, Rachel Lindsay, Sandra Lee, Tamara Brown, and Tim Bagley.

    Project Angel Food CEO Richard Ayoub expressed heartfelt gratitude stating, “Every day is like Thanksgiving at Project Angel Food. But on this day, we are especially grateful to our celebrity friends and hundreds of volunteers committed to bringing a little light to the thousands of critically ill men, women and children we serve.”

    The meals were provided through “drive-by” pick-up for volunteers who then delivered them to Project Angel Food clients. The traditional Thanksgiving dinners included roasted turkey, root vegetables, stuffing, gravy, cranberry sauce, and a slice of pumpkin cheesecake. Additionally, vegetarian meals were also provided. The Thanksgiving Day meals were sponsored by The Stanley & Joyce Black Family Foundation, with additional support from Joybird, which furnished the Joybird VIP Love Lounge, allowing volunteers to take a break during the morning of service.

    Lisa Rinna, Harry Hamlin, Richard Ayoub, Lawrence Zarien and Melissa Rivers attend Thanksgiving at Project Angel Food on November 23, 2023 in Los Angeles, California.
    (Photo by Tommaso Boddi/Getty Images for Project Angel Food)

    Beyond serving meals to 2,000 critically ill individuals, Project Angel Food extended its support by providing Thanksgiving Day meals for 500 people at PATH. PATH works tirelessly to end homelessness by building affordable housing and offering supportive services. Furthermore, actress and director Joely Fisher sponsored Project Angel Food meals, hosting a SAG/AFTRA “Friendsgiving” at Hollywood United Methodist Church for 200+ union members affected by the 118-day SAG/AFTRA strike on Wednesday, Nov. 22, 2023.

    Project Angel Food remains dedicated to providing daily meals to 2,500 critically ill individuals and delivering more than 1.5 million medically tailored meals annually across Los Angeles. Their clients often grapple with serious illnesses compounded by challenges such as poverty, aging, and isolation. Established in 1989 by Marianne Williamson, the organization has prepared and delivered more than 17 million meals in its 34-year history.

    Project Angel Food serves up Thanksgiving meals for Angelenos:

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    LA Blade Digital Staff

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  • Controversial Police Encounters Fast Facts | CNN

    Controversial Police Encounters Fast Facts | CNN

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    CNN
     — 

    Here’s a look at controversial police encounters that have prompted protests over the past three decades. This select list includes cases in which police officers were charged or a grand jury was convened.

    March 3, 1991 – LAPD officers beat motorist Rodney King after he leads police on a high-speed chase through Los Angeles County. George Holliday videotapes the beating from his apartment balcony. The video shows police hitting King more than 50 times with their batons. Over 20 officers are present at the scene, mostly from the LAPD. King suffers 11 fractures and other injuries.

    March 15, 1991 – A Los Angeles grand jury indicts Sergeant Stacey Koon and Officers Laurence Michael Powell, Timothy Wind and Theodore Briseno in connection with the beating.

    May 10, 1991 – A grand jury refuses to indict 17 officers who stood by at the King beating and did nothing.

    April 29, 1992 – The four LAPD officers are acquitted. Riots break out at the intersection of Florence and Normandie in South Central Los Angeles. Governor Pete Wilson declares a state of emergency and calls in the National Guard. Riots in the next few days leave more than 50 people dead and cause nearly $1 billion in property damage.

    May 1, 1992 – King makes an emotional plea for calm, “People, I just want to say, can we all get along? Can we get along? Can we stop making it horrible for the older people and the kids?”

    August 4, 1992 – A federal grand jury returns indictments against Koon, Powell, Wind, and Briseno on the charge of violating King’s civil rights.

    April 17, 1993 – Koon and Powell are convicted for violating King’s civil rights. Wind and Briseno are found not guilty. No disturbances follow the verdict. On August 4, both Koon and Powell are sentenced to 30 months in prison. Powell is found guilty of violating King’s constitutional right to be free from an arrest made with “unreasonable force.” Koon, the ranking officer, is convicted of permitting the civil rights violation to occur.

    April 19, 1994 – King is awarded $3.8 million in compensatory damages in a civil lawsuit against the City of Los Angeles. King had demanded $56 million, or $1 million for every blow struck by the officers.

    June 1, 1994 – In a civil trial against the police officers, a jury awards King $0 in punitive damages. He had asked for $15 million.

    June 17, 2012 – King is found dead in his swimming pool.

    November 5, 1992 – Two white police officers approach Malice Wayne Green, a 35-year-old black motorist, after he parks outside a suspected drug den. Witnesses say the police strike the unarmed man in the head repeatedly with heavy flashlights. The officers claim they feared Green was trying to reach for one of their weapons. Green dies of his injuries later that night.

    November 16, 1992 – Two officers, Larry Nevers and Walter Budzyn, are charged with second-degree murder. Sgt. Freddie Douglas, a supervisor who arrived on the scene after a call for backup, is charged with involuntary manslaughter and willful neglect of duty. These charges are later dismissed. Another officer, Robert Lessnau, is charged with assault with intent to do great bodily harm.

    November 18, 1992 – The Detroit Free Press reports that toxicology tests revealed alcohol and a small amount of cocaine in Green’s system. A medical examiner later states that Green’s head injuries, combined with the cocaine and alcohol in his system, led to his death.

    December 1992 – The Detroit police chief fires the four officers.

    August 23, 1993 – Nevers and Budzyn are convicted of murder after a 45-day trial. Lessnau is acquitted. Nevers sentence is 12-25 years, while Budzyn’s sentence is 8-18 years.

    1997-1998 – The Michigan Supreme Court orders a retrial for Budzyn due to possible jury bias. During the second trial, a jury convicts Budzyn of a less serious charge, involuntary manslaughter, and he is released with time served.

    2000-2001 – A jury finds Nevers guilty of involuntary manslaughter after a second trial. He is released from prison in 2001.

    August 9, 1997 – Abner Louima, a 33-year-old Haitian immigrant, is arrested for interfering with officers trying to break up a fight in front of the Club Rendez-vous nightclub in Brooklyn. Louima alleges, while handcuffed, police officers lead him to the precinct bathroom and sodomized him with a plunger or broomstick.

    August 15, 1997 – Police officers Justin Volpe and Charles Schwarz are charged with aggravated sexual abuse and first-degree assault.

    August 16, 1997 – Thousands of angry protesters gather outside Brooklyn’s 70th Precinct to demonstrate against what they say is a long-standing problem of police brutality against minorities.

    August 18, 1997 – Two more officers, Thomas Wiese and Thomas Bruder, are charged with assault and criminal possession of a weapon.

    February 26, 1998 – Volpe, Bruder, Schwarz and Wiese are indicted on federal civil rights charges. A fifth officer, Michael Bellomo, is accused of helping the others cover up the alleged beating, as well as an alleged assault on another Haitian immigrant, Patrick Antoine, the same night.

    May 1999 – Volpe pleads guilty to beating and sodomizing Louima. He is later sentenced to 30 years in prison.

    June 8, 1999 – Schwarz is convicted of beating Louima, then holding him down while he was being tortured. Wiese, Bruder, and Bellomo are acquitted. Schwarz is later sentenced to 15 and a half years in prison for perjury.

    March 6, 2000 – In a second trial, Schwarz, Wiese, and Bruder are convicted of conspiring to obstruct justice by covering up the attack. On February 28, 2002, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals overturns their convictions.

    July 12, 2001 – Louima receives $8.75 million in a settlement agreement with the City of New York and the Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association.

    September 2002 – Schwarz pleads guilty to perjury and is sentenced to five years in prison. He had been scheduled to face a new trial for civil rights violations but agreed to a deal.

    February 4, 1999 – Amadou Diallo, 22, a street vendor from West Africa, is confronted outside his home in the Bronx by four NYPD officers who are searching the neighborhood for a rapist. When Diallo reaches for his wallet, the officers open fire, reportedly fearing he was pulling out a gun. They fire 41 times and hit him 19 times, killing him.

    March 24, 1999 – More than 200 protestors are arrested outside NYPD headquarters. For weeks, activists have gathered to protest the use of force by NYPD officers.

    March 25, 1999 – A Bronx grand jury votes to indict the four officers – Sean Carroll, Edward McMellon, Kenneth Boss and Richard Murphy – for second-degree murder. On February 25, 2000, they are acquitted.

    January 2001 – The US Justice Department announces it will not pursue federal civil rights charges against the officers.

    January 2004 – Diallo’s family receives $3 million in a wrongful death lawsuit.

    September 4, 2005 – Six days after Hurricane Katrina devastates the area, New Orleans police officers receive a radio call that two officers are down under the Danziger vertical-lift bridge. According to the officers, people are shooting at them and they have returned fire.

    – Brothers Ronald and Lance Madison, along with four members of the Bartholomew family, are shot by police officers. Ronald Madison, 40, who is intellectually disabled, and James Brisette, 17 (some sources say 19), are fatally wounded.

    December 28, 2006 – Police Sgts. Kenneth Bowen and Robert Gisevius and officers Robert Faulcon and Anthony Villavaso are charged with first-degree murder. Officers Robert Barrios, Michael Hunter and Ignatius Hills are charged with attempted murder.

    August 2008 – State charges against the officers are thrown out.

    July 12, 2010 – Four officers are indicted on federal charges of murdering Brissette: Bowen, Gisevius, Faulcon and Villavaso. Faulcon is also charged with Madison’s murder. Bowen, Gisevius, Faulcon and Villavaso, along with Arthur Kaufman and Gerard Dugue are charged with covering up the shooting.

    April 8, 2010 – Hunter pleads guilty in federal court of covering up the police shooting. In December, he is sentenced to eight years in prison.

    August 5, 2011 – The jury finds five officers guilty of civil rights and obstruction charges: Bowen, Gisevius, Faulcon, Villavaso and Kaufman.

    October 5, 2011 – Hills receives a six and a half year sentence for his role in the shooting.

    April 4, 2012 – A federal judge sentences five officers to prison terms ranging from six to 65 years for the shootings of unarmed civilians. Faulcon receives 65 years. Bowen and Gisevius both receive 40 years. Villavaso receives 38 years. Kaufman, who was involved in the cover up, receives six years.

    March 2013 – After a January 2012 mistrial, Dugue’s trial is delayed indefinitely.

    September 17, 2013 – Bowen, Gisevius, Faulcon, Villavaso and Kaufman are awarded a new trial.

    April 20, 2016 – Bowen, Gisevius, Faulcon, Villavaso and Kaufman plead guilty in exchange for reduced sentences.

    November 25, 2006 – Sean Bell, 23, is fatally shot by NYPD officers outside a Queens bar the night before his wedding. Two of his companions, Joseph Guzman and Trent Benefield, are wounded. Officers reportedly fired 50 times at the men.

    March 2007 – Three of the five officers involved in the shooting are indicted: Detectives Gescard F. Isnora and Michael Oliver are charged with manslaughter, and Michael Oliver is charged with reckless endangerment. On April 25, 2008, the three officers are acquitted of all charges.

    July 27, 2010 – New York City settles a lawsuit for more than $7 million filed by Bell’s family and two of his friends.

    2009 – Oakland, California – Oscar Grant

    January 1, 2009 – San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) officer Johannes Mehserle shoots Oscar Grant, an unarmed 22-year-old, in the back while he is lying face down on a platform at the Fruitvale BART station in Oakland.

    January 7, 2009 – Footage from station KTVU shows demonstrators vandalizing businesses and assaulting police in Oakland during a protest. About 105 people are arrested. Some protesters lie on their stomachs, saying they are showing solidarity with Grant, who was shot in the back.

    January 27, 2010 – The mother of Grant’s young daughter receives a $1.5 million settlement from her lawsuit against BART.

    July 8, 2010 – A jury finds Mehserle guilty of involuntary manslaughter. At the trial, Mehserle says that he intended to draw and fire his Taser rather than his gun. On November 5, 2010, Mehserle is sentenced to two years in prison. Outrage over the light sentence leads to a night of violent protests.

    June 2011 – Mehserle is released from prison.

    July 12, 2013 – The movie, “Fruitvale Station” opens in limited release. It dramatizes the final hours of Grant’s life.

    July 5, 2011 – Fullerton police officers respond to a call about a homeless man looking into car windows and pulling on car handles. Surveillance camera footage shows Kelly Thomas being beaten and stunned with a Taser by police. Thomas, who was mentally ill, dies five days later in the hospital. When the surveillance video of Thomas’s beating is released in May 2012, it sparks a nationwide outcry.

    May 9, 2012 – Officer Manuel Ramos is charged with second-degree murder and involuntary manslaughter, and Cpl. Jay Patrick Cicinelli is charged with involuntary manslaughter and felony use of excessive force. On January 13, 2014, a jury acquits Ramos and Cicinelli.

    May 16, 2012 – The City of Fullerton awards $1 million to Thomas’ mother, Cathy Thomas.

    September 28, 2012 – A third police officer, Joseph Wolfe, is charged with involuntary manslaughter and excessive force in connection with Thomas’ death. The charges are later dropped.

    July 17, 2014 – Eric Garner, 43, dies after Officer Daniel Pantaleo uses a department-banned chokehold on him during an arrest for allegedly selling cigarettes illegally. Garner dies later that day.

    August 1, 2014 – The New York City Medical Examiner rules Garner’s death a homicide.

    December 3, 2014 – A grand jury decides not to indict Pantaleo. Protests are held in New York, Washington, Philadelphia and Oakland, California. Demonstrators chant Garner’s last words, “I can’t breathe!”

    July 14, 2015 – New York settles with Garner’s estate for $5.9 million.

    August 19, 2019 – The NYPD announces Pantaleo has been fired and will not receive his pension.

    August 21, 2019 – Pantaleo’s supervisor, Sgt. Kizzy Adonis, pleads no contest to a disciplinary charge of failure to supervise, and must forfeit the monetary value of 20 vacation days.

    August 9, 2014 – During a struggle, a police officer fatally shoots Michael Brown, an unarmed 18-year-old.

    August 9-10, 2014 – Approximately 1,000 demonstrators protest Brown’s death. The Ferguson-area protest turns violent and police begin using tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse the crowd. Black Lives Matter, a protest movement that grew out of the Trayvon Martin shooting in 2012, grows in visibility during the Ferguson demonstrations.

    August 15, 2014 – Police identify the officer as 28-year-old Darren Wilson. Wilson is put on paid administrative leave after the incident.

    August 18, 2014 – Governor Jay Nixon calls in the Missouri National Guard to protect the police command center.

    November 24, 2014 – A grand jury does not indict Wilson for Brown’s shooting. Documents show that Wilson fired his gun 12 times. Protests erupt nationwide after the hearing.

    November 29, 2014 – Wilson resigns from the Ferguson police force.

    March 11, 2015 – Ferguson Police Chief Thomas Jackson resigns a week after a scathing Justice Department report slams his department.

    August 9-10, 2015 – The anniversary observations of Brown’s death are largely peaceful during the day. After dark, shots are fired, businesses are vandalized and there are tense standoffs between officers and protestors, according to police. The next day, a state of emergency is declared and fifty-six people are arrested during a demonstration at a St. Louis courthouse.

    June 20, 2017 – A settlement is reached in the Brown family wrongful death lawsuit against the city of Ferguson. While the details of the settlement are not disclosed to the public, US Federal Judge Richard Webber calls the settlement, “fair and reasonable compensation.”

    October 20, 2014 – Chicago police officer Jason Van Dyke shoots and kills Laquan McDonald, 17. Van Dyke says he fired in self-defense after McDonald lunged at him with a knife, but dashcam video shows McDonald walking away from police. Later, an autopsy shows McDonald was shot 16 times.

    April 15, 2015 – The city agrees to pay $5 million to McDonald’s family.

    November 19, 2015 – A judge in Chicago orders the city to release the police dashcam video that shows the shooting. For months, the city had fought attempts to have the video released to the public, saying it could jeopardize any ongoing investigation. The decision is the result of a Freedom of Information Act request by freelance journalist, Brandon Smith.

    November 24, 2015 – Van Dyke is charged with first-degree murder.

    December 1, 2015 – Mayor Rahm Emanuel announces he has asked for the resignation of Chicago Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy.

    August 30, 2016 – Chicago Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson files administrative charges against six officers involved in the shooting. Five officers will have their cases heard by the Chicago Police Board, which will rule if the officers will be terminated. The sixth officer charged has resigned.

    March 2017 – Van Dyke is indicted on 16 additional counts of aggravated battery with a firearm.

    June 27, 2017 – Three officers are indicted on felony conspiracy, official misconduct and obstruction of justice charges for allegedly lying to investigators.

    October 5, 2018 – Van Dyke is found guilty of second-degree murder and of 16 counts of aggravated battery with a firearm, but not guilty of official misconduct. Though he was originally charged with first-degree murder, jurors were instructed on October 4 that they could consider second-degree murder. He is sentenced to six years and nine months in prison. On February 3, 2022, Van Dyke is released early from prison.

    January 17, 2019 – Cook County Associate Judge Domenica Stephenson finds three Chicago police officers not guilty of covering up details in the 2014 killing of McDonald. Stephenson’s ruling came more than a month after the officers’ five-day bench trial ended.

    July 18, 2019 – The Chicago Police Board announces that four Chicago police officers, Sgt. Stephen Franko, Officer Janet Mondragon, Officer Daphne Sebastian and Officer Ricardo Viramontes, have been fired for covering up the fatal shooting of McDonald.

    October 9, 2019 – Inspector General Joseph Ferguson releases a report detailing a cover-up involving 16 officers and supervisors.

    April 4, 2015 – North Charleston police officer Michael Slager fatally shoots Walter Scott, 50, an unarmed motorist stopped for a broken brake light. Slager says he feared for his life after Scott grabbed his Taser.

    April 7, 2015 – Cellphone video of the incident is released. It shows Scott running away and Slager shooting him in the back. Slager is charged with first-degree murder.

    October 8, 2015 – The North Charleston City Council approves a $6.5 million settlement with the family of Walter Scott.

    May 11, 2016 – A federal grand jury indicts Slager for misleading investigators and violating the civil rights of Walter Scott.

    December 5, 2016 – After three days of deliberations, the jury is unable to reach a verdict and the judge declares a mistrial in the case. The prosecutor says that the state will try Slager again.

    May 2, 2017 – Slager pleads guilty to a federal charge of using excessive force. State murder charges against Slager – as well as two other federal charges – will be dismissed as part of a plea deal. On December 7, 2017, Slager is sentenced to 20 years in federal prison.

    April 12, 2015 – Police arrest 25-year-old Freddie Gray on a weapons charge after he is found with a knife in his pocket. Witness video contains audio of Gray screaming as officers carry him to the prisoner transport van. After arriving at the police station, Gray is transferred to a trauma clinic with a severe spinal injury. He falls into a coma and dies one week later.

    April 21, 2015 – The names of six officers involved in the arrest are released. Lt. Brian Rice, 41, Officer Caesar Goodson, 45, Sgt. Alicia White, 30, Officer William Porter, 25, Officer Garrett Miller, 26, and Officer Edward Nero, 29, are all suspended.

    April 24, 2015 – Baltimore police acknowledge Gray did not get timely medical care after his arrest and was not buckled into a seat belt while being transported in the police van.

    April 27, 2015 – Protests turn into riots on the day of Gray’s funeral. At least 20 officers are injured as police and protesters clash on the streets. Gov. Larry Hogan’s office declares a state of emergency and activates the National Guard to address the unrest.

    May 21, 2015 – A Baltimore grand jury indicts the six officers involved in the arrest of Freddie Gray. The officers face a range of charges from involuntary manslaughter to reckless endangerment. Goodson, the driver of the transport van, will face the most severe charge: second-degree depraved-heart murder.

    September 10, 2015 – Judge Barry Williams denies the defendants’ motion to move their trials out of Baltimore, a day after officials approve a $6.4 million deal to settle all civil claims tied to Gray’s death.

    December 16, 2015 – The judge declares a mistrial in Porter’s case after jurors say they are deadlocked.

    May 23, 2016 – Nero is found not guilty.

    June 23, 2016 – Goodson is acquitted of all charges.

    July 18, 2016 – Rice, the highest-ranking officer to stand trial, is found not guilty on all charges.

    July 27, 2016 – Prosecutors drop charges against the three remaining officers awaiting trial in connection with Gray’s death.

    August 10, 2016 – A Justice Department investigation finds that the Baltimore Police Department engages in unconstitutional practices that lead to disproportionate rates of stops, searches and arrests of African-Americans. The report also finds excessive use of force against juveniles and people with mental health disabilities.

    January 12, 2017 – The city of Baltimore agrees to a consent decree with sweeping reforms proposed by the Justice Department.

    2016 – Falcon Heights, Minnesota – Philando Castile

    July 6, 2016 – Police officer Jeronimo Yanez shoots and kills Philando Castile during a traffic stop in Falcon Heights. Castile’s girlfriend, Diamond Reynolds, live-streams the aftermath of the confrontation, and says Castile was reaching for his identification when he was shot.

    November 16, 2016 – Yanez is charged with second-degree manslaughter and two felony counts of dangerous discharge of a firearm.

    December 15, 2016 – The Justice Department announces it will conduct a review of the St. Anthony Police Department, which services Falcon heights and two other towns.

    February 27, 2017 – Yanez pleads not guilty.

    June 16, 2017 – A jury finds Yanez not guilty on all counts. The city says it will offer Yanez a voluntary separation agreement from the police department.

    June 26, 2017 – It is announced that the family of Castile has reached a $3 million settlement with the city of St. Anthony, Minnesota.

    November 29, 2017 – The city of St. Anthony announces that Reynolds has settled with two cities for $800,000. St. Anthony will pay $675,000 of the settlement, while an insurance trust will pay $125,000 on behalf of Roseville.

    September 16, 2016 – Tulsa Police Officer Betty Shelby fatally shoots Terence Crutcher, a 40-year-old unarmed black man, after his car is found abandoned in the middle of the road.

    September 19, 2016 – The Tulsa Police Department releases video of the incident captured by a police helicopter, showing Shelby and other officers at the scene. At a news conference, the police chief tells reporters Crutcher was unarmed. Both the US Department of Justice and state authorities launch investigations into the officer-involved shooting.

    September 22, 2016 – Officer Shelby is charged with felony first-degree manslaughter.

    April 2, 2017 – During an interview on “60 Minutes,” Shelby says race was not a factor in her decision to open fire, and Crutcher “caused” his death when he ignored her commands, reaching into his vehicle to retrieve what she believed was a gun. “I saw a threat and I used the force I felt necessary to stop a threat.”

    May 17, 2017 – Shelby is acquitted.

    July 14, 2017 – Shelby announces she will resign from the Tulsa Police Department in August. On August 10, she joins the Rogers County, Oklahoma, Sheriff’s Office as a reserve deputy.

    October 25, 2017 – A Tulsa County District Court judge grants Shelby’s petition to have her record expunged.

    June 19, 2018 – Antwon Rose II, an unarmed 17-year-old, is shot and killed by police officer Michael Rosfeld in East Pittsburgh. Rose had been a passenger in a car that was stopped by police because it matched the description of a car that was involved in an earlier shooting. Rose and another passenger ran from the vehicle, and Rosfeld opened fire, striking Rose three times, Allegheny County police says.

    June 27, 2018 – The Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, district attorney charges Rosfeld with criminal homicide.

    March 22, 2019 – A jury finds Rosfeld not guilty on all counts.

    October 28, 2019 – A $2 million settlement is finalized in a wrongful death lawsuit filed against Rosfeld and East Pittsburgh.

    September 1, 2018 – During a traffic stop, O’Shae Terry is gunned down by an Arlington police officer. Terry, 24, was pulled over for having an expired temporary tag on his car. During the stop, officers reportedly smelled marijuana in the vehicle. Police video from the scene shows officer Bau Tran firing into the car as Terry tries to drive away. Investigators later locate a concealed firearm, marijuana and ecstasy pills in the vehicle.

    October 19, 2018 – The Arlington Police Department releases information about a criminal investigation into the incident. According to the release, Tran declined to provide detectives with a statement and the matter is pending with the Tarrant County Criminal District Attorney’s Office. Tran is still employed by the police department but is working on restricted duty status, according to the news release.

    May 1, 2019 – A grand jury issues an indictment charging Tran with criminally negligent homicide. On May 17, 2019, the Arlington Police Department announces Tran has been fired.

    March 13, 2020 – Louisville Metro Police officers fatally shoot Taylor, a 26-year-old EMT, after they forcibly enter her apartment while executing a late-night, no-knock warrant in a narcotics investigation. Taylor’s boyfriend, Kenneth Walker III, is also in the apartment and fires one shot at who he believes are intruders. Taylor is shot at least eight times and Walker is charged with attempted murder of a police officer and first-degree assault. The charges are later dismissed.

    April 27, 2020 – Taylor’s family files a wrongful death lawsuit. In the lawsuit, Taylor’s mother says the officers should have called off their search because the suspect they sought had already been arrested.

    May 21, 2020 – The FBI opens an investigation into Taylor’s death.

    June 11, 2020 – The Louisville, Kentucky, metro council unanimously votes to pass an ordinance called “Breonna’s Law,” banning no-knock search warrants.

    August 27, 2020 – Jamarcus Glover, Taylor’s ex-boyfriend and the focus of the Louisville police narcotics investigation that led officers to execute the warrant on Taylor’s home, is arrested on drug charges. The day before his arrest, Glover told a local Kentucky newspaper Taylor was not involved in any alleged drug trade.

    September 1, 2020 – Walker files a $10.5 million lawsuit against the Louisville Metro Police Department. Walker claims he was maliciously prosecuted for firing a single bullet with his licensed firearm at “assailants” who “violently broke down the door.” In December 2022, Walker reaches a $2 million settlement with the city of Louisville.

    September 15, 2020 – The city of Louisville agrees to pay $12 million to Taylor’s family and institute sweeping police reforms in a settlement of the family’s wrongful death lawsuit.

    September 23, 2020 – Det. Brett Hankison is indicted by a grand jury on three counts of wanton endangerment in the first degree. The other two officers involved in the shooting are not indicted. On March 3, 2022, Hankison is acquitted.

    April 26, 2021 – Attorney General Merrick Garland announces a Justice Department investigation into the practices of the Louisville Police Department.

    August 4, 2022 – Garland announces four current and former Louisville police officers involved in the raid on Taylor’s home were arrested and charged with civil rights violations, unlawful conspiracies, unconstitutional use of force and obstruction. On August 23, one of the officers, Kelly Goodlett, pleads guilty.

    May 25, 2020 – George Floyd, 46, dies after pleading for help as Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin kneels on Floyd’s neck to pin him – unarmed and handcuffed – to the ground. Floyd had been arrested for allegedly using a counterfeit bill at a convenience store.

    May 26, 2020 – It is announced that four Minneapolis police officers have been fired for their involvement in the death of Floyd.

    May 27, 2020 – Gov. Tim Walz signs an executive order activating the Minnesota National Guard after protests and demonstrations erupt throughout Minneapolis and St. Paul.

    May 27, 2020 – Surveillance video from outside a Minneapolis restaurant is released and appears to contradict police claims that Floyd resisted arrest before an officer knelt on his neck.

    May 28-29, 2020 – Several buildings are damaged and the Minneapolis police department’s Third Precinct is set ablaze during protests.

    May 29, 2020 – Chauvin is arrested and charged with third-degree murder and manslaughter, according to Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman.

    June 3, 2020 – Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison announces charges of aiding and abetting second-degree murder for the three previously uncharged officers at the scene of the incident. According to court documents, Thomas Lane and J. Alexander Kueng helped restrain Floyd, while officer Tou Thao stood near the others. Chauvin’s charge is upgraded from third- to second-degree murder.

    October 21, 2020 – Hennepin County Judge Peter Cahill drops the third-degree murder charge against Chauvin, but he still faces the higher charge of second-degree unintentional murder and second-degree manslaughter. On March 11, 2021, Judge Cahill reinstates the third-degree murder charge due to an appeals court ruling.

    March 12, 2021 – The Minneapolis city council unanimously votes to approve a $27 million settlement with Floyd’s family.

    April 20, 2021 – The jury finds Chauvin guilty on all three counts. He is sentenced to 22 and a half years.

    May 7, 2021 – A federal grand jury indicts the four former Minneapolis police officers in connection with Floyd’s death, alleging the officers violated Floyd’s constitutional rights.

    December 15, 2021 – Chauvin pleads guilty in federal court to two civil rights violations, one related to Floyd’s death, plus another case. Prosecutors request that he be sentenced to 25 years in prison to be served concurrently with his current sentence.

    February 24, 2022 – Lane, Kueng and Thao are found guilty of depriving Floyd of his civil rights by showing deliberate indifference to his medical needs. The jurors also find Thao and Kueng guilty of an additional charge for failing to intervene to stop Chauvin. Lane, who did not face the extra charge, had testified that he asked Chauvin twice to reposition Floyd while restraining him but was denied both times.

    May 4, 2022 – A federal judge accepts Chauvin’s plea deal and will sentence him to 20 to 25 years in prison. Based on the plea filed, the sentence will be served concurrently with the 22.5-year sentence tied to his murder conviction at the state level. On July 7, Chauvin is sentenced to 21 years in prison.

    May 18, 2022 – Thomas Lane pleads guilty to second-degree manslaughter as part of a plea deal dismissing his murder charge. State and defense attorneys jointly recommend to the court Lane be sentenced to 36 months.

    July 27, 2022 – Kueng and Thao are sentenced to three years and three and a half years in federal prison, respectively.

    September 21, 2022 – Lane is sentenced to three years in prison on a state charge of aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter in Floyd’s death.

    October 24, 2022 – On the day his state trial is set to begin on charges of aiding and abetting in George Floyd’s killing, Kueng pleads guilty.

    December 3, 2022 – Kueng is sentenced to 3.5 years in prison for his role in the killing of Floyd.

    May 1, 2023 – A Minnesota judge finds Thao guilty of aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter, according to court documents. He is sentenced to four years and nine months in prison.

    June 12, 2020 – Rayshard Brooks, 27, is shot and killed by Atlanta police officer Garrett Rolfe outside a Wendy’s restaurant after failing a sobriety test, fighting with two officers, taking a Taser from one and running away.

    June 13, 2020 – Rolfe is terminated from the Atlanta Police Department, according to an Atlanta police spokesperson. A second officer involved is placed on administrative leave.

    June 14, 2020 – According to a release from the Fulton County, Georgia, Medical Examiner’s Office, Brooks died from a gunshot wound to the back. The manner of death is listed as homicide.

    June 17, 2020 – Fulton County’s district attorney announces felony murder charges against Rolfe. Another officer, Devin Brosnan, is facing an aggravated assault charge for standing or stepping on Brooks’ shoulder while he was lying on the ground. On August 23, 2022, a Georgia special prosecutor announces the charges will be dismissed, saying the officers acted reasonably in response to a deadly threat. Both officers remain on administrative leave with the Atlanta Police Department and will undergo recertification and training, the department said in a statement.

    May 5, 2021 – The Atlanta Civil Service Board rules that Rolfe was wrongfully terminated.

    November 21, 2022 – The family of Brooks reaches a $1 million settlement with the city of Atlanta, according to Ryan Julison, a spokesperson for Stewart Miller Simmons Trial Attorneys, the law firm representing Brooks’ family.

    April 11, 2021 – Daunte Wright, 20, is shot and killed by Brooklyn Center police officer Kimberly Potter following a routine traffic stop for an expired tag.

    April 12, 2021 – During a press conference, Brooklyn Center Police Chief Tim Gannon announces Potter accidentally drew a handgun instead of a Taser. According to Gannon, “this was an accidental discharge, that resulted in a tragic death of Mr. Wright.” Potter is placed on administrative leave. According to the Hennepin County Medical Examiner’s Office, Wright’s death has been ruled a homicide.

    April 13, 2021 – Gannon submits his resignation. CNN is told Potter has also submitted a letter of resignation.

    April 14, 2021 – Potter is arrested and charged with second degree manslaughter. Washington County Attorney Pete Orput issues a news release which includes a summary of the criminal complaint filed against Potter. According to the release, Potter shot Wright with a Glock handgun holstered on her right side, after saying she would tase Wright. Later, the state amends the complaint against Potter, adding an additional charge of manslaughter in the first degree.

    December 23, 2021 – Potter is found guilty of first and second-degree manslaughter. On February 18, 2022, she is sentenced to two years in prison. In April 2023, Potter is released from prison after serving 16 months.

    June 21, 2022 – The city of Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, agrees to pay $3.25 million to the family of Wright. The sum is part of a settlement deal the family struck with the city, which also agreed to make changes in its policing policies and training, the Wright family legal team said in a news release.

    2022 – Grand Rapids, Michigan – Patrick Lyoya

    April 4, 2022 – Patrick Lyoya, 26-year-old Black man, is shot and killed by a police officer following a traffic stop.

    April 13, 2022 – Grand Rapids police release video from police body camera, the police unit’s dashcam, a cell phone and a home surveillance system, which show the police officer’s encounter with Lyoya, including two clips showing the fatal shot. Lyoya was pulled over for an allegedly unregistered license plate when he got out of the car and ran. He resisted the officer’s attempt to arrest him and was shot while struggling with the officer on the ground.

    April 19, 2022 – An autopsy commissioned by Lyoya’s family shows the 26-year-old was shot in the back of the head following the April 4 encounter with a Grand Rapids police officer, attorneys representing the family announce. The officer has not been publicly identified.

    April 21, 2022 – Michigan state officials ask the US Department of Justice to launch a “pattern-or-practice” investigation into the Grand Rapids Police Department after the death of Lyoya.

    April 25, 2022 – The chief of Grand Rapids police identifies Christopher Schurr as the officer who fatally shot Lyoya.

    June 9 ,2022 – Schurr is charged with one count of second-degree murder in the death of Lyoya. Benjamin Crump. the Lyoya family attorney says in a statement, “we are encouraged by attorney Christopher Becker’s decision to charge Schurr for the brutal killing of Patrick Lyoya, which we all witnessed when the video footage was released to the public.” On June 10, 2022, Schurr pleads not guilty.

    January 7, 2023 – Tyre Nichols, a 29-year-old Black man, is hospitalized following a traffic stop that lead to a violent arrest. Nichols dies three days later from injuries sustained, according to police.

    January 15, 2023 – The Memphis Police Department announces they immediately launched an investigation into the action of officers involved in the arrest of Nichols.

    January 18, 2023 – The Department of Justice says a civil rights investigation has been opened into the death of Nichols.

    January 20, 2023 – The five officers are named and fired: Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, Emmitt Martin III, Desmond Mills Jr. and Justin Smith.

    January 23, 2023 – Nichols’ family and their attorneys view police video of the arrest.

    January 26, 2023 – A grand jury indicts the five police officers. They are each charged with second-degree murder, aggravated assault, two charges of aggravated kidnapping, two charges of official misconduct and one charge of official oppression, according to both Shelby County criminal court and Shelby County jail records.

    January 27, 2023 – The city of Memphis releases body camera and surveillance video of the the traffic stop and beating that led to the Nichols’ death.

    January 30, 2023 – Memphis police say two additional officers have been placed on leave. Only one officer is identified, Preston Hemphill. Additionally, the Memphis Fire Department announces three employees have been fired over their response to the incident: emergency medical technicians Robert Long and JaMichael Sandridge and Lt. Michelle Whitaker.

    May 4, 2023 – The Shelby County medical examiner’s report shows that Nichols died from blunt force trauma to the head. His death has been ruled a homicide.

    September 12, 2023 – The five police officers involved are indicted by a federal grand jury on several charges including deprivation of rights.

    November 2, 2023 – Desmond Mills Jr., one of the five former Memphis police officers accused in the death of Nichols, pleads guilty to federal charges and agrees to plead guilty to related state charges as part of a plea deal with prosecutors.

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  • More incidents reported in L.A. after antisemitic graffiti discovered outside Canter’s Deli

    More incidents reported in L.A. after antisemitic graffiti discovered outside Canter’s Deli

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    The same day that antisemitic graffiti was found painted outside Canter’s Deli in the Fairfax district this week, at least half a dozen other similar incidents of vandalism were discovered at Jewish businesses, synagogues and schools around L.A., authorities said.

    Some of the other incidents of vandalism were reported on Wednesday in the Pico-Roberston neighborhood, known for its large Jewish community, and included anti-Israel and pro-Palestinian messages, according to the Anti-Defamation League. The incident outside Canter’s is being investigated as a possible hate crime, Los Angeles police said.

    The graffiti included messages in white paint under the popular Fairfax Community Mural, which faces Canter’s parking lot and features historic figures of Los Angeles’ Jewish community, such as Dodgers legend Sandy Koufax. The graffiti included messages that read, “Israel’s only religion is capitalism,” “How many dead in the name of greed?” and “Free Gaza.”

    Jewish and civic leaders denounced the incidents as antisemitic attacks on their community, which come amid an escalating war between Israel and Hamas militants, who launched a brutal offensive from neighboring Gaza on southern Israel on Oct. 7.

    Since then, more than 1,400 people have died on the Israeli side, with Palestinian militants continuing to hold about 220 people hostage. More than 8,300 Palestinians have been killed in the war, mostly women and children, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry.

    After the Oct. 7 attack, the Anti-Defamation League has said harassment, vandalism and attacks against Jews have surged around the country.

    “Vandalizing and targeting synagogues, Jewish neighborhoods and a mural about local Jewish history on the wall of the iconic Canter’s Deli on Fairfax Boulevard is heinous and antisemitic,” said Jeffrey Abrams, Los Angeles regional director of the Anti-Defamation League in Los Angeles.

    In addition to the Canter’s incident, the Los Angeles Police Department also confirmed a second act of vandalism in the 300 block of La Brea Avenue, which is also being investigated as a possible hate crime.

    In all, five additional incidents were reported Wednesday to the Anti-Defamation League and relayed to the LAPD, according to the Jewish civil rights organization. A spokesperson for the LAPD could not confirm that reports were taken for those incidents.

    Two utility boxes located in front of a yeshiva, a Jewish academy of Talmudic learning, in the 1200 block of South La Cienega Boulevard were tagged with “Free Gaza,” according to the ADL. A similar message was found two blocks away, near the intersection of Whitworth Drive and South Orlando Boulevard.

    A poster at a bus stop was also spray-painted with the message “Free Gaza” near the intersection of Pico Boulevard and Alfred Street. A construction site near Melrose and La Brea avenues was vandalized with “I$rael Killers” in white paint.

    And Congregation Bais Yehuda, in the 360 block of North La Brea Avenue, was also spray-painted with “Free Gaza,” according to the ADL.

    The incidents, reported to the ADL, included images of the graffiti, which were reviewed by The Times.

    On the social media site X, formerly known as Twitter, Los Angeles City Councilwoman Katy Yaroslavsky called the incidents “disgusting.” Yaroslavsky, whose districts includes the locations where the graffiti was found, said her staff responded to a total of seven incidents in her district.

    “Jews in L.A. have been sounding the alarm on the rise in anti-semitism for years,” she wrote on X. “It’s disgusting and it has no place in Los Angeles.”

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  • Fake placenames with anti-Israel messages flood Google Maps’ depiction of the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt | CNN Business

    Fake placenames with anti-Israel messages flood Google Maps’ depiction of the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt | CNN Business

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    CNN
     — 

    When Google Maps users navigated to the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt on Tuesday, they might have seen placenames that included, “F**k Israel,” and “May god curse Israel’s Jerusalem.”

    Cyber activists appeared to have targeted the service to post anti-Israel messages, likely by taking advantage of a feature on Google Maps that allows people to create and contribute information about businesses and landmarks that appear on the service.

    CNN found dozens of anti-Israel placenames created in Arabic and English, including one in Arabic that read, “Palestine is free, may god forgive us.”

    There is no evidence that any Google systems were breached or compromised as part of this stunt which, Ben Decker, CEO of online threat analysis company Memetica, described as “cyber vandalism.”

    “Cyber vandalism traces its origins back to the early stages of the internet,” Decker said, “when communities would hack into and deface websites.”

    Google, which also owns the map service Waze, said on Monday it was disabling its live traffic data in Israel and Gaza as Israeli forces prepare for a potential ground invasion of Gaza.

    The company did not say if the action was at the request of the Israel Defense Forces. CNN reached out to the IDF for comment.

    Google took the same action at the beginning of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last year after online researchers used live traffic data to track the movements of Russian troops.

    It is unclear if the targeting of Google Maps with anti-Israeli messages was the result of the company’s decision to disable live traffic data.

    After CNN shared several examples of fake anti-Israel placenames with Google on Tuesday, a company spokesperson said, “On Google Maps, we strive to strike the right balance of helping people find reliable information about local places, and reducing inaccurate or misleading content. We have clear policies for user contributions – we are actively reviewing the examples you shared and are in the process of removing policy-violating content.”

    Many of the fake placenames were still live as of Tuesday evening.

    Memetica’s Decker said cyber vandalism is “a politically agnostic form of hacktivism that has been used by online communities around the world.”

    “The reason cyber vandalism is far more prevalent than real-world vandalism, particularly when it comes to geopolitical conflicts like Israel-Gaza, is that it can be a completely faceless and anonymous act,” he said.

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