1 killed, 5 hurt in shooting at manufacturing facility in Ohio; police investigating motive

(NEW ORLEANS , LA) — An Army veteran who was “hell-bent” on killing as many people as possible drove a rented pickup truck around barricades and plowed his vehicle through a crowd of New Year’s revelers on Bourbon Street in New Orleans at a high rate of speed, leaving at least 15 dead and injuring dozens of others early Wednesday, city and federal officials said.

After mowing down numerous people over a three-block stretch on the famed thoroughfare while firing shots into the crowd, the suspect — identified by sources as Shamsud-Din Jabbar, 42 — allegedly got out of the truck wielding an assault rifle and opened fire on police officers, law enforcement officials briefed on the incident told ABC News. Officers returned fire, killing Jabbar, a U.S.-born citizen from Texas, sources said. At least two police officers were injured, one by gunfire and the other was hurt when officer was pinned by the truck, authorities said.

Althea Duncan, assistant special agent in charge of FBI New Orleans field office, said investigators do not believe Jabbar acted alone.

“We do not believe that Jabbar was solely responsible,” Duncan said during a news conference Wednesday afternoon. “We are aggressively running down every lead, including those of his known associated. That’s why we need the public’s help. We are asking if anybody had any interaction with Shamsud-Din Jabbar in the last 72 hours that you contact us.”

New Orleans police have reviewed surveillance video that appears to show several people planting potential explosive devices in advance of the vehicle attack, which led them to believe he was not “solely responsible,” sources said. Investigators are urgently working to identify the individuals who were seen on camera and take them into custody.

Duncan said Jabbar was an Army veteran. In addition to the assault rifle, Jabbar was allegedly armed with a handgun, sources told ABC News.

New Orleans Coroner Dr. Dwight McKenna released a statement late Wednesday afternoon that said “As of now, 15 people are deceased.”

“It will take several days to perform all autopsies. Once we complete the autopsies and talk with the next of kin, we will release the identifications of the victims,” McKenna’s statement continued.

Rep. Troy Carter, D-Louisiana, told ABC News earlier Wednesday afternoon that the number of people killed in the incident had risen from 10 to 15. He said another 25 people were hospitalized with injuries. During Wednesday’s news conference, New Orleans Police Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick said that she could only confirm that at least 10 had died, but she said several people had suffered life-threatening injuries.

On Wednesday afternoon, the FBI in Houston and the Harris County, Texas, Sheriff’s Office, posted a message on social media that they are are “currently conducting law enforcement activity near the intersection of Hugh Road and Crescent Peak Drive in north Houston.”

“We have secured a perimeter in that area and are asking people to avoid the area,” the notice said. “FBI Houston personnel and specialized teams will be on-site for several hours. This activity is related to this morning’s New Orleans attack, but due to the ongoing nature of the investigation, no further information can be provided.

Security bollards not working at the time
Kirkpatrick said security bollards were not working at the time because they were in the process of being replaced for the upcoming Super Bowl. She confirmed that the suspect drove on the sidewalk to get around a police car blocking the intersection.

“We did indeed have a plan but the terrorist defeated it,” Kirkpatrick said.

Duncan said improvised explosives devices (IEDs) and other weapons were found inside the pick truck. She said two additional IEDs were discovered in the French Quarter and rendered safe.

The IEDs found in and around the scene on Bourbon Street were apparently determined to be viable and investigators were looking for more in the city’s French Quarter, multiple law enforcement sources tell ABC News. The FBI said two devices were found and rendered safe. Crude pipe bombs stuffed with coils and nails were found at the scene along with a grenade, sources said.

In a YouTube video posted in 2020, the suspected attacker said he was born and raised in Beaumont, Texas, and spent a decade working in the U.S. military before becoming a realtor in the Houston area. His years in the military, he said in the video that has since been removed from YouTube, were spent working as a human resources and IT specialist.

It appears that the truck the suspect rented was spotted in Texas on Tuesday, but it was not clear if the suspect was in the vehicle at the time, according to a source citing preliminary law enforcement information. An ISIS flag was attached to the pickup rear hitch, Duncan said, adding that the FBI is trying to assess the suspect’s connection to the terror groups.

The Sugar Bowl between the University of Georgia and Notre Dame has been postponed from Wednesday night to Thursday night, Sugar Bowl CEO Jeff Hundley announced at Wednesday’s news conference. The game was set to kickoff Wednesday night at the New Orleans, where police remain focused on securing the French Quarter after the vehicle ramming attack.

Jason Williams, the district attorney of Orleans Parrish, which includes New Orleans, told ABC News that investigators are conducting a grid search to determine if other explosive devices were planted.

New Orleans police and agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobaco, Firearms and Explosives have cordoned a home believed to be an AirBnB in the St. Roch neighborhood about 2 miles from downtown. It was not immediately clear if the suspect is associated with the AirBnB rental.

Investigated as terror attack

New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell described the horrific incident a “terrorist attack” and the FBI said it was being investigated as an act of terror. The bloodshed comes on the heels of a deadly vehicle ramming attack in Germany. Fears of such attacks were a growing concern among law enforcement as well as attacks by lone actors at winter holiday events.

Police Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick said the driver had attempted to kill as many people as possible. The truck used in the attack appeared to be a F-150 Lightning, an electric vehicle. A black flag appeared to be attached to the vehicle, but its significance was not immediately known.

By the time the melee had ended, at least 35 people were injured, New Orleans police and city officials said. Most of the victims appeared to be local, officials said.

“He was hell-bent on creating the carnage that he did,” Kirkpatrick said at a news conference early Wednesday.

The New Orleans Police Department said the attack occurred despite the force being “staffed 100%” for New Year’s Eve and the Sugar Bowl, a college football game played annually on New Year’s Day. An additional 300 officers were on duty from partner agencies, the police department said.

Despite discussions about canceling or postponing the Sugar Bowl, the game was expected to be played Wednesday evening, sources briefed said. Some events and parties around the game were canceled, however.

President Joe Biden has been briefed on the attack and has been in touch with Cantrell to offer support, according to the White House.

“I will continue to receive updates throughout the day, and I will have more to say as we have further information to share,” Biden said in a statement. “In the meantime, my heart goes out to the victims and their families who were simply trying to celebrate the holiday. There is no justification for violence of any kind, and we will not tolerate any attack on any of our nation’s communities.”

President-elect Donald Trump posted a statement on his Truth Social platform, saying, Our hearts are with all of the innocent victims and their loved ones, including the brave officers of the New Orleans Police Department. The Trump Administration will fully support the City of New Orleans as they investigate and recover from this act of pure evil!”

Local authorities asked the FBI for assistance early on Wednesday, a senior federal law enforcement source told ABC News. A command center was being set up, the source said. The FBI was set to lead the investigation.

‘Horrific act of violence’

“A horrific act of violence took place on Bourbon Street earlier this morning,” Gov. Jeff Landry said, adding that his family was praying for the victims and first responders.

Witness Jimmy Cothran of New Orleans told ABC News that he and a friend were walking on Bourbon Street when the truck attack began. He said they ducked into a bar and within minutes, four frantic women pushed through security, rushed into the bar and hid under tables.

“When we got on the balcony, what we saw was insanity,” Cothran, a certified emergency medical technician, said. “I mean it was something out of a movie, the graphic nature of it. It was unbelievable. We instantly counted I’d saw 10 bodies, six clearly graphically deceased and the others yelling with one around. Everyone had just cleared the street completely.”

Cothran said he tried to go out and help the injured but was stopped by security.

Another witness, who requested to be identified only as Paul S., told ABC News he was startled awake by the sound of what he initially thought was fireworks.

“Around 3:15 [a.m.], we heard a ‘pop, pop, pop, pop’ sound followed by a sound that sounded like fireworks going off, like big fireworks all at once,” Paul S. said. “Then it turned out that was the crash.”

He said he looked outside his hotel window, he saw a chaotic scene with bodies strewn on the street below.

“What I was was if you can imagine a street with brick and whatnot littered all around the sidewalk, and then there were bodies laid up next to garbage cans and people rushing to give aid,” Paul S. said.

He said he observed a man who had been thrown from his wheelchair lying on the ground next to the truck involved in in the attack writhing in pain.

“There was also a body underneath a scissor lift,” Paul S. said.

Truck apparently rented through app

The Ford F-150 Lightning truck used in the attack was apparently rented through the Turo app — a car sharing company, according to Rodrigo Diaz, the owner of the truck. Diaz told ABC News he rented the truck to an individual through the app and is currently talking to the FBI. He declined further comment.

Diaz wife, Dora Diaz, told ABC News that she and her husband are devastated by the incident.

“My husband rents cars through the Turo app. I can’t tell you anything else. I’m here with my kids, and this is devastating,” Dora Diaz said.

Deploying ‘every available resource

Attorney General Merrick Garland confirmed the FBI is investigating the incident as an act of terrorism. He said the the Justice Department’s National Security Division, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Louisiana are working with local law enforcement and “will deploy every available resource to conduct this investigation.”

“The country woke up this morning to news of a terrible tragedy in New Orleans that killed at least 10 people and injured many more,” Garland said in a statement. “My heart is broken for those who began their year by learning people they love were killed in this horrific attack, and my prayers are with the dozens who were injured, including the New Orleans Police Department Officers who risked their lives to save others.”

Leading up to the holidays, federal law enforcement and intelligence had warned police around the country that low-tech vehicle ramming was a key area of concern and that they needed to prepare — and that was before the German Christmas market attack on Dec. 20, in which five people were killed and hundreds were injured.

In a Dec. 9 assessment for the Times Square New Year’s Eve celebration, federal and local agencies wrote: “We remain concerned about the use of vehicle ramming against high-profile outdoor events…Vehicle ramming has become a recurring tactic employed by threat actors in the West, marked by a continued interest by (terrorists, extremists) and lone offenders in targeting crowded pedestrian areas.”

“There are 30 injured patients that have been transported by NOEMS and 10 fatalities,” the city said, using an acronym for the New Orleans Emergency Medical Services.

The police later said at least 35 people were injured and taken to five local hospitals — University Medical Center, Touro Hospital, East Jefferson General Hospital, Ochsner Medical Center Jefferson Campus and Ochsner Baptist Campus.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

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(NEW YORK) — A federal judge in New York on Monday held Rudy Giuliani in contempt of court for failing to turn over personal property and information to two Georgia election workers he was found to have defamed.

Judge Lewis Liman sided with Ruby Freeman and Shaye Moss, who said Giuliani has “not turned over a single dollar” to satisfy the $148 million judgment against the former New York City mayor.

The election workers said Giuliani failed to relinquish “a signed Joe DiMaggio shirt, signed Reggie Jackson picture, signed Yankee Stadium picture, or many of the various household goods or furnishings that he valued at $20,000 and which public photographs show he possessed in his New York Apartment.”

Giuliani was found liable in 2023 for defaming Freeman and Moss by falsely accusing them of tampering with the 2020 presidential vote in Georgia.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

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(SEATTLE) — A federal judge in Seattle has signed a temporary restraining order blocking President Donald Trump’s executive order on birthright citizenship.

U.S. District Judge John Coughenour on Thursday heard a request made by four Democratic-led states to issue a temporary restraining order against the executive order signed by Trump that purports to limit birthright citizenship — long guaranteed by the 14th Amendment — to people who have at least one parent who is a United States citizen or permanent resident.

“I have been on the bench for over four decades,” said Judge Coughenour, who was nominated to the bench by President Ronald Reagan in 1981. “I can’t remember another case where the question presented is as clear as it is here. This is a blatantly unconstitutional order.”

“In your opinion, is this executive order constitutional?” he asked DOJ attorney Brett Shumate.

“Yes, we think it is,” Shumate said, drawing the judge’s rebuke.

“I have difficulty understanding how a member of the bar can state unequivocally that this is a constitutional order. It boggles my mind,” Coughenour said. “Where were the lawyers when this decision was being made?”

Shumate implored Coughenour to hold off on blocking the order, saying that it does not take effect until Feb. 19.

“It’s enough to say there is no imminent harm that the states will incur as a result of this order,” Shumate said. “We urge the court not to grant any temporary order today on the merits. What makes sense is to have a full briefing on the preliminary injunction.”

“Births cannot be paused while the court considers this case,” said Lane Polozola, an attorney representing the state attorneys general, who said Trump’s executive order attempts to change a part of the Constitution that is “off limits” after being settled across a century of legal precedent.

Judge Coughenour appeared convinced, ending the hearing by saying that he signed the temporary restraining order and that he would consider whether to grant a long-term injunction over the coming weeks.

Coughenour’s order temporarily enjoins Trump and any federal employee from enforcing or implementing the executive order.

“The Plaintiff States have also shown that they are likely to suffer irreparable harm in the absence of preliminary relief,” Coughenour wrote, citing the costs of medical care, social services, and administrative work encountered by the four states who sued Trump.

“The balance of equities tips toward the Plaintiff States and the public interest strongly weighs in favor of entering temporary relief,” the order said.

Thursday’s ruling was the first legal test of Trump’s executive order reinterpreting the 14th Amendment’s guarantee of birthright citizenship, which Trump long promised on the campaign trail. The executive action is expected to spark a lengthy legal challenge that could define the president’s sweeping immigration agenda.

Democratic attorneys general from 22 states and two cities have sued Trump over the executive order, and the president faces at least five separate lawsuits over the policy.

In an interview with ABC News after the hearing, Washington state Attorney General Nick Brown said he plans to continue fighting the executive order if the Trump administration appeals to a higher court.

“I don’t think it ends here,” Brown said. “First and foremost, there are other cases being brought across the country, and so those cases will continue to move forward, and this president and this administration certainly has a propensity to keep these fights going, and so I anticipate that will happen moving forward.”

Coughenour scheduled Thursday’s in-person hearing in the case brought by the attorneys general of Arizona, Oregon, Washington and Illinois. In a federal complaint filed on Tuesday, the four attorneys general argued that Trump’s policy would unlawfully strip at least 150,000 newborn children each year of citizenship entitled to them by federal law and the 14th Amendment.

“The Plaintiff States will also suffer irreparable harm because thousands of children will be born within their borders but denied full participation and opportunity in American society,” the lawsuit says. “Absent a temporary restraining order, children born in the Plaintiff States will soon be rendered undocumented, subject to removal or detention, and many stateless.”

The lawsuit argues that enforcement of Trump’s executive order would cause irreparable harm to the children born from undocumented parents by preventing them from enjoying their right to “full participation and opportunity in American society.”

“They will lose their right to vote, serve on juries, and run for certain offices,” the complaint says. “And they will be placed into lifelong positions of instability and insecurity as part of a new underclass in the United States.”

Lawyers for the Department of Justice, now under new leadership, opposed the request for a temporary restraining order in a court filing Wednesday.

Intended to take effect next month, Trump’s executive order seeks to reinterpret the 14th Amendment’s guarantee of birthright citizenship by arguing a child born in the United States to an undocumented mother cannot receive citizenship unless his or her father is a citizen or green card holder.

While most countries confer a child’s citizenship based on their parents, the United States and more than two dozen countries, including Canada and Mexico, follow the principle of jus soli or “right of the soil.”

Following the Civil War, the United States codified jus soli through the passage of the 14th Amendment, repudiating the Supreme Court’s finding in Dred Scott v. Sanford that African Americans were ineligible for citizenship.

“President Trump and the federal government now seek to impose a modern version of Dred Scott. But nothing in the Constitution grants the President, federal agencies, or anyone else authority to impose conditions on the grant of citizenship to individuals born in the United States,” the states’ lawsuit argued.

The Supreme Court further enshrined birthright citizenship in 1898 when it found that the San Francisco-born son of Chinese immigrants was an American citizen despite the Chinese Exclusion Act restricting immigration from China and prohibiting Chinese Americans from becoming naturalized citizens.

By seeking to end birthright citizenship, Trump’s executive order centers on the same phrase within the 14th Amendment — “subject to the jurisdiction thereof” — that the Supreme Court considered in 1898. Trump’s executive order argues that text of the 14th Amendment excludes children born of parents who are not “subject to the jurisdiction” of the United States, such as people who are unlawfully in the U.S.

While legal scholars have expressed skepticism about the legality of Trump’s executive order, the lawsuit could set the stage for a lengthy legal battle that ends up before the Supreme Court.

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