Los Angeles Jury Awards $176 Million in Wrongful Death Case Over Hit‑and‑Run Collision","description":"A Los Angeles jury has awarded $176 million to the parents of two young brothers who were tragically killed in a hit‑and‑run crash involving a California socialite’s car.","summary":"The case involved 11‑year‑old Mark Iskander and 8‑year‑old Jacob Iskander, killed on Sept. 29, 2020 in Westlake Village. The jury found the driver, Rebecca Grossman, and former Dodgers pitcher Scott Erickson negligent. Grossman was previously sentenced to 15 years to life for second‑degree murder. The parents are also pursuing civil damages.","image":"https://assets.apnews.com/bc/14/07cbbc37d3fa57cfba7e1029ee74/d42e8609f2644b2d9ffe3651b527b7ab","text":"<p>LOS ANGELES (AP) — A Los Angeles jury has awarded $176 million to the parents of two young brothers killed in a hit‑and‑run collision when a California socialite’s car struck them in a crosswalk nearly six years ago.</p><p>The jury found both Rebecca Grossman and former Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Scott Erickson negligent in the deaths of 11‑year‑old Mark Iskander and 8‑year‑old Jacob Iskander. The damages awarded Wednesday were for wrongful death and emotional distress.</p><p>Court was scheduled to resume Friday as jurors must still decide whether to award punitive damages to the boys’ parents, Nancy and Karim Iskander.</p><p>Grossman was sentenced in 2024 to serve 15 years to life in prison after being convicted of second‑degree murder, gross vehicular manslaughter and hit‑and‑run driving in a separate criminal trial. She is a co‑founder of the Grossman Burn Foundation and the wife of a prominent burn doctor.</p><p>The boys’ parents also filed lawsuits in civil court against both Grossman and Erickson, who was driving ahead of her when the Iskander brothers were killed. That trial began in April.</p><p>The deadly crash occurred on the evening of Sept. 29, 2020, in Westlake Village, a city on the western edge of Los Angeles County.</p><p>Brian Panish, the Iskander family’s attorney, argued that Grossman and Erickson were both driving recklessly after drinking margaritas together. The two were dating at the time when Grossman and her husband were separated.</p><p>Panish said Grossman was driving 73 mph (117 kph) when her car struck the boys in a crosswalk on a road where the posted speed limit was 45 mph (72 kph). He said Grossman was following Erickson, who was also speeding and narrowly missed the family.</p><p>\"This was a totally preventable collision,\" Panish told the jury in closing arguments Wednesday. \"They went out for a walk and they never came home.\"</p><p>Grossman’s attorney, Esther Holm, denied that her client was intoxicated. She said Grossman was distracted when she saw the boys’ mother dive out of the way of Erickson’s vehicle. \"Ms. Grossman was not driving impaired,\" Holm told the jury. \"She did not see the children, as her attention was diverted by Ms. Iskander.\"</p><p>Erickson’s attorney, Jeff Braun, called the boys’ deaths a tragedy but emphasized that the vehicle he was driving \"made no contact with the children.\"</p>

Hartford Officer Charged With Manslaughter After Fatal Shooting of Man in Mental Health Crisis","description":"White Hartford police officer, Joseph Magnano, faces manslaughter charges after shooting Steven Jones, a Black man with a history of mental illness, on Feb. 27, 2026.","summary":"The Hartford Police Department fired Officer Joseph Magnano after a Feb. 27 incident in which he shot 55‑year‑old Steven Jones nine times, despite other officers attempting to de‑escalate. The case highlights tensions over police protocols for mental‑health crises and raises questions about use of force. The officer entered a brief Superior Court hearing, was not represented, and the case now proceeds under a manslaughter indictment.","image":"https://dims.apnews.com/dims4/default/4335643/2147483647/strip/true/crop/2516x1883+0+0/resize/599x448!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2F31%2F19%2F5a0054362a603f0084a9e46a760f%2Ff90569b71cdd4fe69f34f050ca07e5b0","text":"<h1 style=\"font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:24px;\">Hartford Officer Charged With Manslaughter After Fatal Shooting of Man in Mental Health Crisis</h1>\n<img src=\"https://dims.apnews.com/dims4/default/4335643/2147483647/strip/true/crop/2516x1883+0+0/resize/599x448!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2F31%2F19%2F5a0054362a603f0084a9e46a760f%2Ff90569b71cdd4fe69f34f050ca07e5b0\" alt=\"Photo of Hartford officers in body‑camera footage from Feb. 27, 2026\" style=\"display:block;margin:20px auto;max-width:100%;height:auto;\">\n<p style=\"font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:16px;\">On Friday, a brief hearing in Hartford Superior Court found White police officer Joseph Magnano on a manslaughter charge after he shot 55‑year‑old Steven Jones, a Black man with a known history of mental illness, nine times on Feb. 27, 2026. The shooting came after other officers unsuccessfully tried to de‑escalate the situation.</p>\n<p style=\"font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:16px;\">Magnano was issued a former officer, dismissed by the mayor following the shooting, at the same time his brief statement was read in court. He later displayed a strong emotional reaction, hugging officers who were present in support of him.</p>\n<p style=\"font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:16px;\">Body‑camera footage shows off‑duty officers giving repeated verbal orders for Jones to drop his large knife, while a senior officer repeatedly told him that officers were there to help. About 12 minutes after a 911 call, Magnano drew his firearm and shouted a warning—“You’re going to get shot”—before firing nine shots as Jones approached.</p>\n<p style=\"font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:16px;\">Eliot Prescott, Connecticut Inspector General, documented that Magnano failed to use non‑lethal force and that Jones posed no imminent threat at the moment of the firing. The arrest warrant specifically noted that Magnano did not attempt to reposition bystanders away from any perceived danger.</p>\n<p style=\"font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:16px;\">Union leaders defended the officer’s actions, claiming self‑preservation. Harsh criticism from civil‑rights attorneys, including Ben Crump representing Jones’s family, framed the shooting as a failure to provide necessary care for a man in crisis.</p>\n<p style=\"font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:16px;\">The courtroom drew more than 60 police officers in support of the former officer, while a small group of supporters from the NAACP and Jones’s family stood in due regard; relatives of Jones were notably absent.</p>\n<p style=\"font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:16px;\">The case now proceeds under the full weight of the state’s manslaughter statutes, and the Hartford Police Department’s policies surrounding mental health interventions are under close scrutiny, prompting ongoing debates across the United States about law‑enforcement response to crises.</p>

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ICE Ends Reporting on Detainee Deaths After Release, Raising Concerns About Accountability","description":"The U.S. Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE) has discontinued its reporting of fatalities that occur within 30 days of a former detainee’s release, reversing a Biden‑era policy that aimed to keep the public informed about health conditions in detention. The change could make it harder for observers to assess the long‑term impact of the Trump administration’s mass detention strategy.","summary":"ICE has stopped documenting deaths that happen after a detainee has left its facilities, a move that critics argue will mask the true toll of post‑detention mortality. The policy reversal removes a mechanism designed to expose gaps in medical care, breathing new life into debates over accountability and the human costs of U.S. immigration enforcement.","image":"<img src=\"https://dims.apnews.com/dims4/default/22eefdf/2147483647/strip/true/crop/7952x5304+0+0/resize/599x400!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2F0c%2F5c%2F6c4c9fa44933e8827518a58c3d9a%2F841c7bdc7e67435681cc8b1f968aad5f\" alt=\"Pedestrians slalom between traffic to cross the road in Kinshasa, Congo, Tuesday Jan. 8, 2019.\" width=\"599\" height=\"400\" loading=\"lazy\">","text":"<p style=\"margin-top: 0;\">In a policy shift announced Thursday, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) will no longer report deaths that occur within 30 days of an individual’s release from its custody. The announcement follows a 2021 Biden‑era directive that required the agency to submit data to Congress and investigate such deaths, a measure that many analysts argued would prevent ICE from sidestepping accountability by releasing critically ill detainees.\n</p>\n<p style=\"margin-top: 0;\">ICE’s “common sense” statement simply notes that once a person is no longer in the agency’s care, the responsibility for monitoring and reporting deaths ends. The agency also claims that it maintains procedures for timely notification of deaths that result directly from its custody conditions, but it has not released the full text of the revised policy.\n</p>\n<p style=\"margin-top: 0;\">The policy reversal comes amid growing evidence that the number of detainee deaths has spiked. At least 18 individuals have died since January 1, a figure that is projected to exceed last year’s death toll—by far the highest in two decades. Data published by experts shows that many of these deaths involve suicide, while other fatalities from natural causes may have been preventable with earlier medical intervention.\n</p>\n<p style=\"margin-top: 0;\">Health professionals such as Dr. Sanjay Basu of UCSF criticize the change. He has published an analysis of more than 270 ICE custody deaths, concluding that the elimination of post‑release reporting will make mortality statistics appear lower without improving the underlying health care conditions. \"The period immediately after release is when deaths attributed to inadequate care during confinement become apparent,\" Basu told a health news briefing. \"Missed diagnoses, interrupted medications, untreated infections, and decompensating chronic conditions often kill someone only after they leave the facility.\"\n</p>\n<p style=\"margin-top: 0;\">ICE has long denied allegations of medical neglect, claiming its detainees receive comprehensive health services. However, as of early April, the agency claimed to hold more than 60,000 detainees nationwide—an increase from 40,000 at the start of President Donald Trump’s second term—highlighting a growing demand for resources, especially medical care, that ICE has struggled to provide.\n</p>\n<p style=\"margin-top: 0;\">The policy change follows a DHS statement in which acting assistant secretary Lauren Bis said that there were no detainee deaths in May 2024, the first month without a fatality since November. Bis did not answer questions about whether reporting policies had altered, and she previously emphasized that deaths in ICE custody are exceptionally rare.\n</p>\n<p style=\"margin-top: 0;\">Observers warn that the removal of this death‑reporting requirement could effectively narrow the view of ICE’s accountability. \"Tracking deaths immediately after custody is a standard approach that allows health systems in jails, prisons and immigration detention to learn about gaps in care that may occur before a person leaves a facility,\" said Dr. Homer Venters, former chief medical officer of the New York City jail system. \"Eliminating reporting of these deaths represents a willful act of ignoring the most serious health outcome that can reflect inadequacies in care or help track outbreaks.\"\n</p>\n<p style=\"margin-top: 0;\">The decision to halt death reporting underscores ongoing concerns about the transparency and public accountability of U.S. immigration enforcement practices, especially as public scrutiny of the Trump administration’s mass detention policies continues to intensify.\n</p>

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Court Dismisses Murder Charge Against Arkansas Sheriff Candidate Aaron Spencer","description":"Judge dismisses second‑degree murder indictment for the shooting that killed a suspected child abuser, citing lost evidence and alleged misconduct by police.","summary":"In a decision brought just before the November election, a Special Circuit Court judge in Arkansas dismissed the murder charge against former sheriff Aaron Spencer. Spencer, the GOP nominee for sheriff in Lonoke County, claimed he killed the man who had abducted his daughter in his truck. Prosecutors argued that Spencer planned the killing. The judge, citing the loss of dash‑camera footage and improper handling of evidence by local police, found the evidence insufficient for a trial. The ruling has sparked debate over law‑enforcement protocols and the intersection of criminal justice and political campaigns.","image":"","text":"<p style=\"margin:0 0 1.2em 0;\">A Special Circuit Court judge in Arkansas dismissed a second‑degree murder indictment against Albion County sheriff candidate Aaron Spencer on Thursday, just weeks before the November election. Spencer has been running for county sheriff, having unseated the incumbent three‑term sheriff in the March primary.</p>\n<p style=\"margin:0 0 1.2em 0;\">The case arose from the 2024 shooting fatal of Michael Fosler, a 67‑year‑old man who had been on bond for multiple sexual offences against Spencer’s daughter, then aged 13. Spencer claimed he discovered his daughter in Fosler’s truck and forced the vehicle off the road, leading to an encounter in which he shot the accused abuser.</p>\n<p style=\"margin:0 0 1.2em 0;\">Spencer’s attorneys filed a motion to dismiss, arguing that dash‑camera footage from Fosler’s truck – which could have shown the shooting from an unaltered perspective – was missing from the evidence chain because it was removed by a Lonoke County sheriff’s deputy who stored the camera in his personal office instead of the evidence room. The Prosecutors countered that the motion would diminish accountability and that Spencer had planned the killing.</p>\n<p style=\"margin:0 0 1.2em 0;\">Judge Ralph Wilson Jr., who had replaced the original judge after the Arkansas Supreme Court found the prior judge had issued an overly broad gag order, granted the dismissal. In his written decision, Wilson cited \"conduct by law enforcement was so egregious that dismissal of this case is warranted\" and highlighted the compromised state of the camera data, where the internal settings were reset to defaults after the battery drained.</p>\n<p style=\"margin:0 0 1.2em 0;\">\"No member of this family should ever again be forced to walk into a courtroom and relive this horror,\" Spencer’s attorney Erin Cassinelli told reporters. \"This father should have never been charged for protecting his child,\" she said.</p>\n<p style=\"margin:0 0 1.2em 0;\">Spencer, who remains innocent of a murder charge, shifts focus to his campaign promises, including plans to form a dedicated team tackling sex crimes against children in Lonoke County. His daughter’s experience in the criminal‑justice system has become a cornerstone of his platform.</p>\n<p style=\"margin:0 0 1.2em 0;\">The county prosecutor, Chuck Graham, declined to comment on the decision despite the court’s findings. Prosecutors maintain that Spencer’s actions were pre‑meditated and that the crime should not be excused, however the judge’s ruling effectively moves Spencer to the November ballot without a pending murder case.</p>\n<p style=\"margin:0 0 1.2em 0;\">The dismissal underscores broader concerns about evidence stewardship by local police forces and the potential impact of political office seekers who become embroiled in criminal proceedings. This story is part of a growing scrutiny of how law‑enforcement practices intersect with political careers across states.</p>

Minnesota GOP Holds Moment of Silence for Former Officer, Prompting Sharp Criticism","description":"During a Republican convention in Minnesota, a spontaneous moment of silence was held for Derek Chauvin, the former police officer convicted of killing George Floyd. The gesture drew vehement rebuke from families of police‑victims, civil‑rights advocates, and state officials.","summary":"The Minnesota Republican Party’s unplanned prayer for Derek Chauvin sparked widespread backlash. Families of those killed by police, civil‑rights groups, the state’s chief prosecutor, and attorneys for George Floyd’s family denounced the act as disrespectful and politically misguided. The incident illustrates broader tensions between law‑enforcement support and racial‑justice advocacy.","image":"https://example.com/placeholder.jpg","text":"<p>Minnesota residents, whose loved ones died at the hands of police, spoke out Thursday after the state Republican Party held a public prayer for Derek Chauvin, the former officer convicted of murdering George Floyd.</p><p>“You all had the opportunity to honor fallen soldiers or children who lost their lives,” said Courteney Ross, Lindsay’s girlfriend, visibly emotional. “Instead, you took precious time to purposefully hurt everyone who loved Floyd. And every other family who has lost a loved one to the police.”</p><p>Valerie Castile, the mother of Philando Castile, a 32‑year‑old cafeteria worker shot and killed by a Minnesota police officer in 2016, echoed Ross’s comments, calling the act “the most hurtful thing you can do.”</p><p>“You give a moment of silence to a murderer? Come on,” Castile said.</p><p>Both women spoke at a news conference organized by the Twin Cities Coalition For Justice.</p><h2>What Happened Over the Weekend</h2><p>At the Minnesota Republican Party nominating convention, a moment of silence was held for Derek Chauvin.</p><p>The action triggered intense backlash once it became public, with racial‑justice groups, civil‑rights advocates and Democratic officials condemning party leaders and accusing them of blind support for law‑enforcement.</p><p>Chauvin has been in federal prison since 2021 after being convicted of murdering George Floyd six years ago. A cell‑phone video of Chauvin placing his knee on Floyd’s neck for over nine minutes – despite Floyd’s pleas of “I can’t breathe” – sparked nationwide protests and a climate of racial reckoning.</p><p>On the one‑year anniversary of George Floyd’s death, people knelt in a moment of silence at the site, symbolizing the 9 minutes and 29 seconds Floyd was pinned down.</p><h2>The Impact of Honoring a Police Officer</h2><p>Castile said it didn’t matter if only one person participated; it was still hurtful.</p><p>“I am proud of those who did not do the moment of silence,” she said. “Those that did, they should be reprimanded in some fashion.”</p><p>Ross urged Republicans who did not participate to hold their peers accountable: “I’m speaking to the few of you that thought it was wrong. Please stand up. You are public servants.”</p><p>Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, who led the state’s prosecution of Chauvin, said he was “heartbroken and frankly shocked” by the prayer.</p><p>“This decision dishonors the memory of George Floyd and wounds his loved ones all over again,” Ellison said. “As the lead prosecutor whose team presented this case to a jury of twelve Minnesotans and then prevailed at every step of the appeals process, I am deeply troubled by what this says about the state of our politics.”</p><p>Ben Crump and Antonio Romanucci, attorneys for George Floyd’s family in a wrongful‑death lawsuit, also expressed condemnation, demanding the Minnesota GOP retract its moment of silence and apologize to Floyd’s family.</p><p>“The audacity of the Minnesota Republican Party to honor an individual who has both been convicted by a jury of his peers for the murder of a fellow human being, while at the same time violating a professional oath to protect and serve his community, is disgusting,” the attorneys said in a statement.</p><p>Floyd’s brother, Terrence Floyd, said he was “glad to see people are still fighting with us for complete justice.”</p><h2>How Some Conservatives Support Police Officers</h2><p>The moment of silence for Chauvin fits a pattern of flashpoints where conservatives responded to police violence with “back the blue” initiatives. Before 2020, similar gestures honored officers in high‑profile cases, such as Darren Wilson (Ferguson) and Laquan McDonald (Chicago) and Eric Garner (New York), often accompanied by large fundraising efforts and union support.</p><p>Although the legal outcomes vary, most prominent examples of support for officers charged in killings do not lead to overturned convictions.</p>

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United Airlines Boeing 767 Lands Safely After Light Pole Collision","description":"NTSB preliminary report details a near‑miss involving a low approach at Newark, highlighting pilot decision‑making and runway conditions.","summary":"On May 3 a United Airlines Boeing 767 made a safe landing after striking a light pole during approach to Newark Liberty International Airport. The National Transportation Safety Board’s preliminary report outlines crew confusion over the aircraft’s altitude, the impact on a nearby truck, and the influence of wind and runway length on the approach. While the jet sustained significant damage, no passengers were injured and investigators are still working on a final report.","image":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1524109820736-eabf9e3e4ab4?auto=format&fit=crop&w=800&q=80","text":"<p>On May 3, a United Airlines Boeing 767 arriving from Venice, Italy, approached Newark Liberty International Airport in a low profile that caused it to collide with a light pole on the runway. The NTSB released a preliminary report that provides the first cockpit transcript of the incident.</p><p>The copilot, who later identified the aircraft as coming in low, did not realize the approach was unsafe long enough to order an abort. Crew members recalled hearing a loud “thump” and feeling a mild jolt right before touchdown. The first officer noted that “you’re still slow and a little low” as the plane descended, then looked out the cockpit to confirm the aircraft was close to the ground.</p><p>According to the report, the crew was told by air traffic control to prepare for three different runway landings as they approached, but had little time to adjust the flight path. The preliminary findings are limited to the crew’s perspective and leave the underlying causes of the low approach unspecified; a final report is expected next year.</p><p>The truck on the New Jersey Turnpike sustained damage when debris from the struck light pole hit it. Its windshield was dented and the trailer punctured, although no tire marks were found on the tractor cab or trailer. Law enforcement clarified that the plane itself had not hit the truck; rather, the pole’s debris caused the impact.</p><p>The Boeing 767 landed without incident, though it incurred “substantial” fuselage damage and slash marks on one of its landing tires. All more than 200 passengers were unharmed.</p><p>Wind conditions played a key role. The tarmac has a short runway length of 6,726 feet (2,050 m) and is typically used when strong winds are present. Air traffic controllers reported gusts up to 31 mph (50 kph) that afternoon. The pilot noted that he “got fast” when turning the aircraft into the headwind, lowering power levers to counter moderate turbulence generated by gusts.</p><p>Aviation safety experts say the incident underscores the challenges pilots face when landing under variable wind and short runway conditions. Even when the aircraft’s flight controls respond correctly, a misjudgment or delayed decision can bring an approach dangerously low.</p><p>While the NTSB’s preliminary report does not provide a definitive cause, it highlights the importance of real‑time pilot judgment and effective communication with air‑traffic control, especially on airports with limited runway options. The incident remains under investigation, and the agency will issue its final findings sometime next year.</p>