Many noncitizens deported under Alien Enemies Act did not have criminal records: ICE official
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(WASHINGTON) — Many of the noncitizens who were deported pursuant to the Alien Enemies Act on Saturday did not have criminal records, an Immigration and Customs Enforcement official said in a sworn filing overnight.
In a sworn declaration, ICE Acting Field Office Director of Enforcement and Removal Operations Robert Cerna argued that “the lack of specific information about each individual actually highlights the risk they pose” and “demonstrates that they are terrorists with regard to whom we lack a complete profile.”
“While it is true that many of the [Tren de Aragua gang] members removed under the AEA do not have criminal records in the United States, that is because they have only been in the United States for a short period of time. The lack of a criminal record does not indicate they pose a limited threat,” Cerna said.
The admission that many of the men lacked criminal records – and were deported on the assumption that they might be terrorists – comes as top Trump administration officials insist that the men were violent criminals, with President Donald Trump labeling them “monsters.”
Cerna wrote that some of the men have been convicted or arrested for crimes including murder, assault, harassment, and drug offenses, writing that ICE personnel “carefully vetted each individual alien to ensure they were in fact members of TdA.”
To determine whether a noncitizen was a “member of TdA,” he said law enforcement allegedly used victim testimony, financial transactions, computer checks, and other “investigative techniques.”
“ICE did not simply rely on social media posts, photographs of the alien displaying gang-related hand gestures, or tattoos alone,” Cerna said.
The declaration was included in the Trump administration’s recent motion to vacate Judge James Boasberg’s temporary restraining orders blocking deportations pursuant to the AEA.
“These orders are an affront to the President’s broad constitutional and statutory authority to protect the United States from dangerous aliens who pose grave threats to the American people,” Department of Justice lawyers argued.
Boasberg ordered the Department of Justice to submit, by noon Tuesday, a sworn declaration about how many noncitizens were deported under the AEA and when they were removed from the country.
(CHAMBERS COUNTY, AL) — A fire chief in Alabama has been shot and killed after he stopped to help a driver who had hit a deer with their vehicle, police said.
The incident occurred at approximately 5 p.m. on Sunday when Chambers County deputies in Alabama were dispatched to County Road 267 near U.S. 431 in the Stroud — located about 100 miles northeast of Montgomery — and found three individuals suffering from gunshot wounds upon their arrival, according to a statement from Chambers County Alabama Sheriff’s Office released on Monday.
One of the shooting victims — identified as 54-year-old James Bartholomew Cauthen from Moreland, Georgia — was deceased when authorities arrived. The other two were taken by helicopter to LaGrange and Columbus trauma centers, police said.
“Early investigation indicates that Chief Cauthen was attempting to assist individuals that had struck a deer while traveling on County Road 267,” police said. “Another individual (William Randall Franklin) that resided in the area opened fire on Chief Cauthen and the individual that struck the deer. All individuals were injured during the shootout. Chief Cauthen succumbed to his injuries prior to deputies arriving on the scene.”
Police did not immediately say why Franklin may have opened fire on Cauthen and the unnamed person who struck the deer with their car, but they did say that Cauthen was a battalion fire chief with Coweta County Fire.
“At this time, investigators are working to piece together the events that led to this horrific scene,” Chambers County Alabama Sheriff’s Office said. “Our hearts and prayers go out to Coweta County for his loss.”
An arrest warrant for murder was issued for Franklin and police said he will be arrested upon release from treatment at Piedmont Medical Center.
“Coweta County Fire Rescue continues to be devastated by the tragic passing of Battalion Chief Bart Cauthen,” Coweta Fire and Rescue said in a statement following Cauthen’s death. “Cauthen has been with our department for more than 24 years. He was an amazing, hard-working man with a gentle soul. Just like many of you, we have many questions as we navigate through this horrible tragedy. Our hearts and prayers go out to Cauthen’s family, friends and our brothers and sisters in the Fire Rescue family who worked closely with him.”
Anyone with information pertaining to this case is asked to contact the Criminal Investigations Division at Chambers County Alabama Sheriff’s Office.
The investigation into the shooting currently remains open.
Douglas Chevalier/The Washington Post via Getty Images
(WASHINGTON) — An American Airlines regional jet collided with a military helicopter near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Virginia on Wednesday night before both aircraft plummeted into the Potomac River.
Sixty-four people were on the plane, which departed from Wichita, Kansas. Three Army soldiers were aboard the helicopter, which was on a training flight at the time, officials said. No survivors are expected.
The incident recalls a similar tragedy that took place 43 years ago.
On Jan. 13, 1982, Air Florida Flight 90 crashed into the 14th Street Bridge in downtown Washington, D.C., and plunged into the icy waters of the Potomac.
The Boeing 737-200 that was en route to Tampa departed from Runway 36 at Washington National Airport at 4 p.m., despite the dangerous blizzard conditions, according to various media reports at the time.
The plane, struggling to gain altitude, only rose a few hundred feet in the air after takeoff before suddenly dropping toward the bridge, shearing off the tops of cars and crashing into the river.
In total, 78 passengers, crew members and motorists died in the crash, according to officials. Five people were rescued from the frigid waters of the Potomac.
The National Transportation Safety Board determined the cause of the crash to be pilot error, along with improper deicing procedures. The Federal Aviation Administration said in a report that the flight “experienced difficulty in climbing immediately following rotation and subsequently stalled.”
“Loss of control was determined to be due to reduction in aerodynamic lift resulting from ice and snow that had accumulated on the airplane’s wings during prolonged ground operation at National Airport,” the FAA said.
Flight attendant Kelly Duncan, the only crew member on board who survived, told ABC News in 1982 that the crash seemed unreal.
“My next feeling was that I was just floating through white and I felt like I was dying and I just thought, ‘I’m not really ready to die,'” she said at the time.
Brandon assists Janice with daily exercises, as well as helps her move around the house. ABC News
(CHICAGO) — Janice Will was diagnosed in 2012 with Parkinson’s, a condition that causes parts of the brain to deteriorate, causing tremors and balance problems.
“When she broke her femur and it was close to the artery…it could have been lights out,” Brandon Will, Janice’s son, said about his mother.
Brandon, who lives with his mother near Chicago, Illinois, soon realized his mom needed 24/7 access to care.
Since then, Janice, who is now 73, has seen the emotional, physical and financial strain of needing care and spoke to ABC News about often feeling like a burden to her son.
“He likes to tell me I’m not a burden, but I feel like a burden because he would have been on a career in New York…he sort of edited his dream to be different, by including me.”
Brandon, 42, reminds his mom that she is not weighing him down, telling her, “Parkinson’s is the burden. It’s one we share.”
“I think people get to these points where there is an illness or something that comes earlier than you’d expect. You realize how many systems aren’t in place,” Brandon told ABC News.
Janice and Brandon’s story mirrors the struggles many Americans are forced to reckon with when a loved one falls ill.
In the U.S., 48 million people have taken on the role of becoming a caregiver to a family member — with little to no financial help, according to Susan Reinhard, formerly the senior vice president of AARP’s Public Policy Institute and chief strategist for the organization.
“There are 48 million family caregivers who are unpaid. And if you did have to pay them, it would be $600 billion. I keep emphasizing the billion dollars because it’s quite amazing. It’s more than all out-of-pocket spending in the United States on health care,” Reinhard told ABC News.
Reinhard said that caregivers need support to avoid a financial crisis, saying the services many seek are provided through the state and federal program called Medicaid, but access and resources vary state by state.
And while help is out there, Brandon and his mom could only access the Medicaid benefits they needed in Illinois, moving from Michigan to be able to do so.
In Illinois, Brandon applied through Medicaid to get paid as a familial caregiver. However, he only gets paid for 19 hours a week, even though he provides around-the-clock care for his mom.
“I’ll hand her her clothes in the morning, help her pick out an outfit…just ‘cause she can’t, at this point, stand in front of the closet.”
His hourly rate is less than the state’s minimum wage.
Brandon and Janice are still researching and applying for as many benefits as they can to stay afloat. They are currently using the Meals on Wheels program in their area and are looking for a part-time caregiver so Brandon can focus on his career outside of care work.
However, he says the state and federal program is already stretched thin. “There’s like 20,000 people on the list in Illinois who are like us, who qualify for a home health aide. And they just aren’t available.”
In January, Brandon and Janice Will hosted an open mic, sharing stories through the viewpoints of those living with caregiving, disability, illness and aging.Now, Brandon Will has concerns following the Trump administration’s executive orders to remove diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts.
“With these orders to kind of remove all the DEIA. This administration, they added the A to the end of it that was never there and it’s for accessibility,” Brandon told ABC News. Brandon said his and his mother’s fears spurred him to start the open mic reading series.
“I think anybody who is dealing with disability or aging or caregiving knows that like willpower only gets you so far. You know, like you need it. It’s crucial. But, you know, you can’t really get anywhere without a community,” Brandon said.
To caregivers — even minimal resources can be crucial while juggling two or more jobs. An AARP report highlighted that 60% of family caregivers are working jobs in addition to being caregivers; 40% are men, but, at 60%, it is mainly women taking on this role. And on top of having a job and doing care work, 30% of those caregivers take care of their own children, too.
People like Ty Lewis.
In an apartment complex just outside of Los Angeles, Lewis, 45, and her husband are caring for Ty’s mother, Gertrude Jordan.
Jordan, 80, was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s nearly 10 years ago, a disease 6.9 million Americans are living with. Lewis explained watching her mom’s slow progression throughout the years has been hard. “As a woman, it kind of shakes you. It does something to you because it’s just like … that’s your mom, the woman that gave birth to you.”
Lewis told ABC News her mom still receives a pension of $66,000 annually from her years of teaching –but it’s not enough. Her care each month costs more than $6,000.
“Last year was $90,000,” Lewis said about the annual cost of her mother’s care in 2023. “She only made $66,000. She doesn’t have it. Her savings are depleted. Currently, we are not getting any support because they keep saying my mom makes too much money. Just recently, my mom’s balance was $3.14.”
The financial strain cuts deep into both families. But it’s not just about the money. Each caregiver acknowledged the emotional and physical challenges they face daily — adding to the difficulties of the job.
“Caregiving has shifted things in me. Because it’s not really happening in everyone’s home or you don’t see it, people really don’t understand the magnitude of what’s coming,” Lewis told ABC News.
In December, Lewis went to Capitol Hill to advocate for the Older Americans Act (OAA), which targets older adults who are in greatest need by improving support for family caregivers and direct care workers and expands healthy aging programs. The Senate passed reauthorization for OAA in December and the bill is currently pending in the House.
Lewis also is pushing for care givers to be able to qualify for Medicaid. “I want it to look the same from state to state for every caregiver,” Lewis told ABC News.
AARP’s Reinhard warned Americans, saying, “If we do not help family caregivers, if they can no longer do what they’re doing, then we’re going to have a huge cost problem. There is definitely a care crisis in America right now.”
Taking each day in stride, Lewis hopes to spread awareness on the struggles caregivers face daily, documenting her journey with her mother by posting clips on social media.
“I want people to know that they can find joy in the journey. That’s my whole mission. And so, while it is hard, I want to show people that it’s hard, but it’s doable. It’s hard, but it’s beautiful.”
