One dead as landslide sweeps across roads, into homes in Alaska, officials say
(KETCHIKAN, Alaska) — A landslide in Ketchikan, Alaska, blocked roads and damaged houses, killing at least one person, officials said.
Three other people were transported to a nearby hospital, Kacie Paxton, a public information officer for the Ketchikan Gateway Borough, said in a statement. One of those people was later released, she said.
Forced mandatory evacuations were put in place after the landslide swept through several streets in Ketchikan at about 4 p.m. on Sunday, Paxton said. Alaska State Troopers and local authorities were undertaking search and rescue operations.
Gov. Mike Dunleavy issued an Alaska Disaster Emergency Declaration. A separate Joint Disaster Emergency Declaration was issued by Borough Mayor Rodney Dial and City of Ketchikan Mayor Dave Kiffer.
“In my 65 years in Ketchikan, I have never seen a slide of this magnitude,” Kiffer said in a statement. “With the slides we have seen across the region, there is clearly a region-wide issue that we need to try to understand with the support of our state geologist.”
He added, “The loss of life that we have encountered is heartbreaking, and my heart goes out to those who lost their homes.”
An evacuation was ordered for homes near the landslide, along Third Avenue, Second Avenue and Water Street, First Avenue, and White Cliff Avenue between Austin Street and Nadeau Street, officials said.
Photos released by the borough appeared to show a pile of trees and loose soil up against several hillside homes, at least one of which appeared to have been pushed into another home. Other photos appeared to show roads covered with debris, including trees.
“Our prayers are with the families, the injured, those recovering, and the community,” Sen. Dan Sullivan said on social media, later adding, “My team and I stand ready to help facilitate any federal assistance that may be necessary.”
(ST. LOUIS) — A judge in St. Louis issued a written order Monday vacating the murder conviction of Christopher Dunn, who has served 33 years in a Missouri prison for a murder he has maintained he did not commit.
The order follows a hearing two months ago during which Circuit Court Judge Jason Sengheiser heard evidence in favor of Dunn’s exoneration, including findings from an evidentiary hearing four years ago in which the presiding judge declared that if Dunn were tried today given the current evidence, “reasonably, properly instructed jurors would find [Dunn] not guilty.”
“In conclusion, the only evidence inculpating Dunn has been recanted,” court documents of Sengheiser’s ruling stated. “The [St. Louis] Circuit Attorney [Gabe Gore] has made a clear and convincing showing of ‘actual innocence’ that undermines the basis of Dunn’s convictions because in light of the new evidence, no juror, acting reasonably, would have voted to find Dunn guilty of these crimes beyond a reasonable doubt.”
Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey’s office did not immediately return ABC News’ request for comment, nor did the state prosecutor’s office return ABC News’ request for a statement, including when Dunn might be released from prison.
Dunn, 52, was given a life sentence without the possibility of parole for a first-degree murder conviction in the death of 15-year-old Rico Rogers, who was shot to death in May 1990.
There is no physical evidence linking Dunn, who was 18 at the time, to Roger’s murder. His conviction was based on the testimony of two eyewitnesses who said they saw Dunn nearby just before the shooting. The witnesses — DeMorris Stepp, then 14, and Michael Davis Jr., who was 12 — recanted their testimonies in 2005 and 2015, respectively.
The eyewitnesses said they were coerced by prosecutors and police to testify that Dunn was guilty. The state attorney general’s office testified during the hearing, which began May 21, that they never coerced, manipulated or threatened the witnesses.
Defense attorneys for Dunn argued during the hearing that Stepp and Davis’ alleged false testimonies were “inconsistent, uncertain and unsure” and made while they were children, and that Stepp and Davis corrected their testimony when they became adults.
Gore filed the motion to vacate Dunn’s murder conviction in February this year.
“There remains no evidence upon which a reasonable jury could return a verdict of guilty,” Gore said in closing statements during the hearing earlier this year. “In fact your honor, in this case, there simply remains no evidence at all.”
Prosecutors from the Missouri Attorney General’s office maintained that Dunn was guilty, arguing that regardless of their testimonies, the witnesses were still able to identify Dunn via photo and a live lineup.
This is the second time a judge has heard Dunn’s case for exoneration. In a 2020 evidentiary hearing, Texas County Judge William Hickle ruled that given the new evidence, and the recantations of the testimonies, “reasonably, properly instructed jurors would find [Dunn] not guilty.”
Still, Dunn was not exonerated on account of a 2016 Missouri Supreme Court ruling that only allowed death row inmates to make a “freestanding” claim of innocence.
“We are overjoyed to soon be welcoming home MIP [Midwest Innocence Project] client Christopher Dunn,” his defense team told ABC News in a statement. “The Attorney General’s Office is continuing to waste taxpayer money as it fights Chris’ release even though two judges have now found that no jury would convict Chris today.”
In 2021, Missouri adopted a new law that expands the rights of incarcerated persons without death sentences to file for an exoneration. The law allows prosecutors to request hearings to vacate a conviction if they have information that demonstrates that the convicted person is not guilty, or was otherwise wrongfully convicted.
During the May hearing, Dunn’s defense attorneys brought up Judge’s Hickle’s findings in 2020 that Dunn had met the standard for exoneration, and called on Judge Sengheiser to “establish actual innocence and allow you to do what Judge Hickel could not do. Vacate the wrongful conviction of Christopher Dunn.”
(NEW YORK) — The next tropical system is forming in the Atlantic and is forecast to strengthen into Tropical Storm Ernesto before it reaches the eastern and northern Caribbean.
A tropical storm watch has been issued for Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, where up to 10 inches of rain and flash flooding are possible Tuesday night through Wednesday.
After hitting Puerto Rico, most computer models show Ernesto strengthening into a hurricane.
Ernesto is forecast to move east of the U.S. mainland and approach Bermuda by Friday night into Saturday morning.
Ernesto is expected to bring rough surf and rip currents to the East Coast next weekend, but it isn’t forecast to make landfall on the U.S. mainland.
(VIRGINIA BEACH, Va.) — An alleged abduction of three Virginia Beach children ended in a car crash Thursday morning that left the youngest dead, according to police.
Virginia State Police responded to a stabbing Wednesday night in an incident they said they believe to be “domestic-related.”
Two female victims — one adult and one juvenile — were transported to the hospital with multiple stab wounds, and are currently in stable condition, police said.
The suspect, Dana Plummer, 36, is believed to have stabbed the two victims and then fled the scene with his children, police said.
The three children were identified as 7-year-old Zayin Plummer, 5-year-old Zayir Plummer and 1-year-old Za’riyah Plummer.
An AMBER Alert — which has since been canceled — was issued Thursday morning for the children.
Law enforcement identified the suspect’s vehicle thanks to a tip from a member of the public and attempted to initiate a traffic stop, but the vehicle refused to stop and fled north on the highway into Maryland, police said.
While fleeing, the driver lost control of the car and crashed, police said.
The three missing children were located at the scene. The 1-year-old was transported to a hospital, but later succumbed to her injuries, police said.
Police apprehended Plummer at the scene.
He has been charged with two counts of aggravated malicious wounding, three counts of parental abduction, four counts of contributing to the delinquency of a minor, and domestic assault, police said.
“Our hearts go out to the family and loved ones who are grieving this morning,” Virginia State Police Chief Paul Neudigate said in a statement. “This is an unimaginable tragedy, and on behalf of the VBPD, I extend our deepest sympathies to those affected by this loss.”