Hispanic, LGBTQ communities receive hateful emails after racist text surge
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(NEW YORK) — A week after cellphone users across the U.S. reported a flurry of racist text messages, members of the Hispanic and LGBTQ communities are now receiving text messages saying they have been selected for deportation or to report to a re-education camp, according to a new statement from the FBI.
The messages follow reports of African American and Black residents receiving racist texts in the days after the 2024 election that they were selected to “pick cotton on a plantation,” according to the FBI. Cellphone users in at least nine cities — New York, Atlanta, Charlotte, Raleigh, Houston, Huntsville, Texas, Los Angeles, Norfolk, Virginia, and Tuscaloosa, Alabama — reported receiving the messages.
The new message also include some emails, the FBI said in its statement.
TextNow, a mobile provider that allows people to create phone numbers for free, said last week it discovered “one or more” of its users allegedly sending out racist text messages to phone numbers across the country and that the service quickly shut down the accounts.
The FBI has said it is in contact with the Justice Department and other federal authorities on the matter.
Recipients of these messages include high school and college students.
“Although we have not received reports of violent acts stemming from these offensive messages, we are evaluating all reported incidents and engaging with the Department of Justice Civil Rights Division,” the FBI said in its Friday statement. “We are also sharing information with our law enforcement partners, and community, academia, and faith leaders.”
Anyone who receives these messages — or any threats of violence — is encouraged to report them to the FBI.
(NEW SWEDEN, Maine) — Authorities are pleading with the public to help them find a Maine teenager who has been missing for months.
The FBI is offering a reward up to $15,000 for information leading to Stefanie Damron’s safe return, or the arrest and prosecution of anyone involved in her disappearance, FBI Boston’s Assistant Special Agent in Charge Kimberly Milka said at a news conference Monday.
“Any detail, no matter how small, could be helpful,” she said.
Stefanie was last seen walking out of her house and into the woods behind her home on Sept. 23, 2024, according to Maine State Police. She was reported missing the next day.
Stefanie was 13 at the time she disappeared; she’s now 14.
Her family is desperately looking for answers, Milka said. They live in New Sweden in northern Maine, about 20 miles from the Canadian border.
Stefanie had a history of running away, police noted.
“This behavior has not been uncommon for Stefanie, which is why I think the family waited a little bit of time” before calling police, Maine State Police Maj. Scott Gosselin said at the news conference.
But “since she hasn’t turned up, we slowly ratcheted up all the investigative resources,” he said.
Police have spent hundreds of hours investigating, including a neighborhood canvas and video search, but there have been no credible sightings, Gosselin said.
Stefanie, who was homeschooled, didn’t take any electronic devices with her and she has no apparent history of mental health concerns, police said.
Anyone with information is urged to call the Maine State Police at 1-800-824-2261 or 207-532-5400, or the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI.
(FANNIN COUNTY, Ga.) — A mom in Georgia is speaking out about being arrested for reckless conduct after her then-10-year-old son was found walking alone.
Brittany Patterson, 41, was arrested by deputies on Oct. 30 after a witness reported “a juvenile in the roadway” who had gone into and left a nearby Dollar General store, according to a Fannin County Sheriff’s Office report.
Patterson’s son, Soren, now 11, was later found by deputies around one mile from the family’s home. Patterson had left Soren to take another one of her children to a doctor’s appointment and didn’t report him missing, according to the report.
In the state, neglect by a parent can be defined as a “failure to provide a child with adequate supervision necessary for such child’s well-being,” according to a guideline.
Patterson told ABC News’ Andrea Fujii in an interview Friday that she had been annoyed Soren didn’t tell her where he was going, but didn’t think he was in any danger.
“I wasn’t panicking or concerned because it’s just a short walk from our house. He knows how to get home,” Patterson said.
In bodycam footage released by the sheriff’s office, Patterson can be seen asking a deputy, “What am I under arrest for?”
“For reckless endangerment,” the deputy replied.
“And how was I recklessly endangering my child?” Patterson asked, before another deputy responded, “We’re not talking about it.”
The deputies then handcuffed the mom.
During the arrest, Patterson also said to one of the deputies, “Last time I checked, it wasn’t illegal for a kid to walk to the store.”
But the deputy replied, “It is when they’re 10 years old.”
The arrest warrant claimed Patterson “willingly and knowingly did endanger the bodily safety of her juvenile son.”
In an interview with ABC News, Patterson’s lawyer David Delugas questioned the charge she is facing.
“Our criminal justice system is built on the fact that you did something or you were negligent. You did something criminally negligent. So what is it she did?” DeLugas said.
Authorities said they would drop the charge against Patterson if she signs a safety plan that involves the use of a GPS tracker on her son’s phone but Patterson told ABC News she is refusing to sign it.
“I just felt like I couldn’t sign that and that in doing so, would be agreeing that there was something unsafe about my home or something unsafe about my parental decisions and I just don’t believe that,” Patterson said.
Patterson, who is currently out on bail, faces up to 1 year in jail with the reckless conduct charge.
(LOS ANGELES) — As calls grow for the Menendez brothers to be released from prison, the incoming Los Angeles County district attorney says he has a lot of evidence to review before showing his support.
Hochman questioned the motivation behind Gascón’s decision to support resentencing so close to the election.
“Part of the problem with the Gascón timing of his decision is there’s a cloud over that credibility. Is it a just decision, or was it just a political ploy?” Hochman said.
“There will be no cloud over whatever decision I do,” he added.
Gascón denied his decision was politically motivated, telling ABC News, “I believe that they should be released and they should be released cleanly within the law.”
“I base my decision in the review of 30 years of … information about their behavior, as well as a very thorough understanding of what they were convicted of and the elements of the crime,” Gascón said. “So my decision was appropriately based.”
The infamous case dates back to 1989, when Lyle Menendez, then 21, and Erik Menendez, then 18, shot and killed their parents, Jose and Kitty Menendez, in the family’s Beverly Hills home. The defense claimed the brothers acted in self-defense after enduring years of sexual abuse by their father, but prosecutors alleged they killed for money.
The first trial, which had separate juries for each brother, ended in mistrials. In 1996, after the second trial — during which the judge barred much of the sex abuse evidence — the brothers were convicted and both sentenced to two consecutive terms of life without parole.
As Gascón’s appeal for the brothers’ resentencing makes its way through the courts, Hochman — who is set to take office on Dec. 2 — said he plans to read through the new alleged evidence, trial transcripts, confidential prison files and interviews with family, lawyers and law enforcement.
“What these files say is too important an issue to delegate to somebody else. I need to actually do the work myself,” he told ABC News.
The next hearing in the resentencing case is Dec. 11. Hochman, a former federal prosecutor, said he’ll “work as expeditiously as possible,” adding, “If we need some additional time to formulate our position, I’ll ask the court for it.”
“I’m not going to ask for delay, just for delay’s sake,” he added. “We’ll ask for the minimal amount of time necessary to do this work, because we owe it to the Menendez brothers, we owe it to the victim family members, we owe it to the public to get this decision right.”
The brothers’ case was propelled back into the spotlight this fall with Netflix’s release of a scripted series and a documentary — and now a new generation is calling for their release.
“If you decide this case based on just reviewing a Netflix documentary, you’re doing a disservice to the Menendez brothers, to the victims’ family members, to the public,” Hochman said.
One path is through resentencing. Gascón announced last month that he was recommending the brothers’ sentence of life without the possibility of parole be removed, and they should instead be sentenced for murder, which would be a sentence of 50 years to life. Because both brothers were under 26 at the time of the crimes, with the new sentence, they would be eligible for parole immediately, Gascón said.
The DA’s office said its resentencing recommendations take into account factors including the defendants’ ages, psychological trauma or physical abuse that contributed to carrying out the crime and their rehabilitation in prison. Gascón praised the work Lyle and Erik Menendez did behind bars to rehabilitate themselves and help other inmates.
The second path is the brothers’ request for clemency, which they’ve submitted to California Gov. Gavin Newsom.
The third path is their habeas corpus petition, which was filed last year for a review of new evidence not presented at trial.
One piece of evidence is allegations from a former boy band member who revealed last year that he was raped by Jose Menendez.
The second piece of evidence is a letter Erik Menendez wrote to his cousin eight months before the murders detailing his alleged abuse. The cousin testified about the alleged abuse at trial, but the letter — which would have corroborated the cousin’s testimony — wasn’t found until several years ago, according to the brothers’ attorney.
The next hearing on the habeas corpus petition is set for Nov. 25.
ABC News’ Alex Stone, Jenna Harrison and Ashley Riegle contributed to this report.
