Jury hears opening arguments in trial against Nevada official accused of killing journalist
(NEW YORK) — The murder trial against Robert Telles — the former Clark County public administrator accused of killing journalist Jeff German in September 2022 — began with opening statements on Wednesday.
Telles, 47, has been accused of stabbing the Las Vegas Review-Journal reporter to death outside his home after an investigation into corruption in his office destroyed his political career and marriage. German’s story detailed the alleged hostile work environment in Telles’ office, which included accusations of bullying, retaliation, and an “inappropriate relationship” between Telles and a staffer. Telles denied the allegations.
In her opening statement Wednesday, Chief Deputy District Attorney Pamela Weckerly walked through the timeline of the murder and how Telles came to be pinpointed as the suspect.
“In the end, this case isn’t about politics,” Weckerly said. “It’s not about alleged inappropriate relationships. It’s not about who’s a good boss or who’s a good supervisor or favoritism at work — it’s just about murder.”
Telles was arrested days after German was found dead outside his Las Vegas home. DNA evidence found in Telles’ home tied him to the crime scene, according to police, and a straw hat and sneakers — which the suspect was seen wearing in surveillance video — were found cut up in his home.
His DNA was also found on German’s hands and fingernails, police said.
Police took Telles into custody with what they said were non-life-threatening, self-inflicted stab wounds.
Telles’ attorney, Robert Draskovich, defended his client in his opening statement, suggesting he was framed for German’s death.
Draskovich said the “old guard” in the public administrator’s office was upset by Telles’ efforts to root out and eliminate internal corruption.
He also claimed that, due to German’s track record of reporting on corrupt figures, other people may have wanted him dead.
“There were others that had far more motive to make it look like [Telles] was the killer, and to conduct this killing because Jeff German was a good reporter — he would ultimately get to what the truth was,” Draskovich said.
Draskovich suggested Telles should be presumed innocent due to a lack of DNA evidence found in his car and on his clothing, and said police “never positively identified” a car present at the crime scene — which matched a description of Telles’ car — as his.
He also emphasized that Telles’ cellphone was not detected in the area at the time of the murder. Police have said they believe Telles left his phone at home during the alleged murder.
His suicide attempt, Draskovich contended, was not out of guilt, but because his “life was coming apart.”
Draskovich praised Telles, detailing his career and describing him as a “loving father and husband.”
“He’s a family man,” the defense attorney said.
Testimony in the case against Telles is now underway, and Draskovich has said Telles will testify during the trial.
Telles has pleaded not guilty to two counts of murder and could face life in prison if convicted.
German was the only journalist killed in the United States in 2022, with a total of at least 67 journalists killed worldwide that year, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists.
Las Vegas Sheriff Joseph Lombardo previously described the case against Telles as “unusual,” and said that “the killing of a journalist is particularly troublesome.”
“It is troublesome because it is a journalist. And we expect journalism to be open and transparent and the watchdog for government,” Lombardo said. “And when people take it upon themselves to create harm associated with that profession, I think it’s very important we put all eyes on and address the case appropriately such as we did in this case.”
(NEW YORK) — A new Instagram filter will allow Jackson Hole visitors to interact with nature while keeping a safe distance from wildlife.
Every summer season, when school is out and the weather is warm enough to explore preserved land around the country, images circulate of people attempting to get too close to wildlife, often to snap a picture with the unsuspecting animal.
The occurrence is so prevalent that in 2023, Yellowstone National Park issued a message to tourists who spot wild animals: “Leave it alone and give it space.”
Tourism experts are now getting creative in finding ways to encourage visitors to keep their distance from wildlife, even docile-seeming giants like bison.
Visit Jackson Hole has launched the “Selfie Control” filter, an Instagram filter that will warn guests when they are getting too close to comfort.
Users can search for the filter on Instagram and then navigate through the animal options to the type of wildlife they are looking at, according to the tourism board.
If the live animal appears bigger than the icon featured on the filter, it means the user is too close. Once visitors move back to the appropriate distance, they can take a photo and tag @visitjacksonhole before sharing as a Story or in-feed post.
The tourism board decided to create the filter after noticing a “really big increase” in human-wildlife encounters, Crista Valentino, executive director of the Jackson Hole Travel & Tourism Board, told ABC News.
The increase in interactions is likely stemming from a rise in the number of visitors, but Valentino believes that the emergence of smartphones and social media may have contributed to the growing trend of too-close calls between visitors and wildlife as well.
“Many of them are coming without the information of knowing and understanding that these are wild animals, that this is not a zoo, and that these animals need space,” Valentino said.
In May 2023, a video of a woman filmed standing precariously close to a fully grown bison went viral. Although the bison seemed unperturbed, nature experts warn against misjudging their slow, calm nature to mean that they can interact with them, Valentino said.
The tourism board has witnessed people take their children and place them on top of the 3,000-pound animals or get dangerously close to them for the perfect shot, she added.
“And if you get between a mom and a baby moose, that mom will very quickly close that gap and defend its young,” Valentino said.
In addition to the potential for the humans themselves to get hurt, after interactions with humans, wildlife can sometimes be put down because they are rejected from their herd, Valentino said.
National Parks visitors are required to stay at least 25 yards away from all wildlife, including bison, elk and deer, and at least 100 yards away from bears and wolves. Each violation can result in fines up to $5,000 and six months in jail, according to the National Park Service.
“For professional photographers and amateurs alike, it’s hard to tell if a moose or bison is 25 or 100 yards away just by ‘eyeballing’ it, especially when you’re in a place like Grand Teton or Yellowstone National Park with sprawling, wide-open spaces,” said Erik Dombroski, chair of the Jackson Hole Travel & Tourism Board.
Similar incidents occur in Australia, another country known for its natural wonders.
Last year, professional photographers in Australia urged national parks visitors to stop messing with the numbats, a marsupial that lives in the western part of the country. The number of numbats is dwindling, with less than 1,000 estimated to still be living in the wild, according to the World Wildlife Fund.
Visit Jackson Hole reminded guests that staying the appropriate distance is more than a suggestion — it’s a requirement. The filter will help visitors to avoid creating dangerous situations for themselves or others, Valentino said.
“We’re hoping to really see those those negative interactions decline,” Valentino said.
(WINDER, Ga.) — Two students and two teachers were killed in a shooting at Apalachee High School in Winder, Georgia, on Wednesday morning, according to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.
Richard Aspinwall, 39, and Christina Irimie, 53, were the two teachers killed in the incident, officials said at a Wednesday night news briefing. Students Mason Schermerhorn, 14, and Christian Angulo, also 14, were also killed, officials confirmed.
Another nine victims — eight students and one teacher — were taken to hospitals with injuries following the shooting, the GBI said earlier in the day.
The suspect — 14-year-old Colt Gray, a student at Apalachee High School — was encountered by officers within minutes, and he immediately surrendered and was taken into custody, the GBI said. He will be charged with murder and he will be tried as an adult, the GBI said. Gray was set to be booked on Wednesday night, according to an official.
It’s not clear if any of the victims were targeted, authorities said.
Chris Hosey, the director of the GBI, said at Wednesday night’s briefing that an AR-platform-style weapon was used in the incident.
Emergency responders were alerted to the shooting due to teachers having a form of identification that had a type of panic button on it, a law enforcement member said at the news briefing. He added that they had only had those kinds of IDs for “about a week.”
Earlier Wednesday night, the FBI confirmed on X that the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office, on an alert from the organization, interviewed Wednesday’s alleged shooting suspect in 2023.
“In May 2023, the FBI’s National Threat Operations Center received several anonymous tips about online threats to commit a school shooting at an unidentified location and time,” the FBI post read. “Within 24 hours, the FBI determined the online post originated in Georgia and the FBI’s Atlanta Field Office referred the information to the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office for action.”
The agency added that the sheriff’s office “located a possible subject, a 13-year-old male, and interviewed him and his father. The father stated he had hunting guns in the house, but the subject did not have unsupervised access to them. The subject denied making the threats online,” the FBI said.
The Jackson County Sheriff’s Office “alerted” schools in the area regarding “monitoring” of the teen, and there was no probable cause for arrest, the FBI said in its post.
“To confirm, the subject referred to as the 13 year old is the same subject in custody related to today’s shootings at Apalachee High School,” the FBI added in a subsequent post.
Apalachee High School is in Barrow County, not far from Jackson County.
Hosey said Wednesday night that law enforcement is aware of previous contact that Family and Children Services had with the family earlier and they are investigating.
He also praised the teachers at the high school as heroes, who prevented a much larger tragedy.
Students and parents speak out
Senior Sergio Caldera, 17, said he was in chemistry class when he heard gunshots.
“My teacher goes and opens the door to see what’s going on. Another teacher comes running in and tells her to close the door because there’s an active shooter,” Caldera told ABC News.
He said his teacher locked the door and the students ran to the back of the room. Caldera said they heard screams from outside as they “huddled up.”
At some point, Caldera said someone pounded on his classroom door and shouted “open up!” multiple times. When the knocking stopped, Caldera said he heard more gunshots and screams.
He said his class later evacuated to the football field.
Kyson Stancion said he was in class when he heard gunshots and “heard police scream, telling somebody, ‘There’s a shooting going on, get down, get back in the classroom.'”
“I was scared because I’ve never been in a school shooting,” he told ABC News.
“Everybody was crying. My teacher tried to keep everybody safe,” he added.
Dad Jonathan Mills said he experienced an “emotional roller coaster” as he and his wife rushed to the school and waited to get a hold of their son, Jayden.
It was “exhilarating” and “overwhelming” to reach Jayden, a junior, and learn he was OK, Mills told ABC News.
Mills, a police officer, said, “Growing up in this area, you don’t expect things like that to happen.”
“I have three children. All three of them go to this cluster of schools, and you never think about that,” he said.
Winder is about 45 miles outside of Atlanta.
Barrow County Schools will be closed through the end of the week, the superintendent said.
Barrow County Sheriff Jud Smith called the shooting “pure evil.”
Among the victims, Northeast Georgia Health System said three people with non-life-threatening gunshot wounds were taken to its hospitals. Five people with symptoms related to anxiety and panic attacks also came to its hospitals, it said.
Leaders react
President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris were briefed on the shooting, according to the White House.
“Jill and I are mourning the deaths of those whose lives were cut short due to more senseless gun violence and thinking of all of the survivors whose lives are forever changed,” Biden said in a statement. “Students across the country are learning how to duck and cover instead of how to read and write. We cannot continue to accept this as normal.”
The president highlighted his work to combat gun violence, including signing the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act into law and launching the first White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention. But he stressed that more must be done.
“After decades of inaction, Republicans in Congress must finally say ‘enough is enough’ and work with Democrats to pass common-sense gun safety legislation,” Biden said. “We must ban assault weapons and high-capacity magazines once again, require safe storage of firearms, enact universal background checks, and end immunity for gun manufacturers. These measures will not bring those who were tragically killed today back, but it will help prevent more tragic gun violence from ripping more families apart.”
Harris said at a campaign event in New Hampshire, “Our hearts are with all the students, the teachers and their families.”
“This is just a senseless tragedy on top of so many senseless tragedies,” she said. “We have to end this epidemic of gun violence.”
“This is one of the many issues that’s at stake in this election,” Harris said.
“Let us finally pass an assault weapons ban and universal background checks and red flag laws,” she said. “It is a false choice to say you are either in favor of the Second Amendment, or you want to take everyone’s guns away. I am in favor of the Second Amendment, and I know we need reasonable gun safety laws in our country.”
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp said he is “heartbroken.”
“This is a day every parent dreads, and Georgians everywhere will hug their children tighter this evening because of this painful event,” he said in a statement. “We continue to work closely with local, state, and federal partners to make any and all resources available to help this community on this incredibly difficult day and in the days to come.”
Kemp canceled a planned speech in front of the Republican Jewish Coalition in Las Vegas Wednesday night to fly back to Georgia in the wake of the shooting, a source confirmed to ABC News.
In Atlanta, authorities will “bolster patrols” around schools on Wednesday “out of an abundance of caution,” Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens said in a statement.
“My prayers are with the high school students, staff and families affected by the senseless act of violence,” Dickens said.
(FOREST PARK, Ill.) — Four people were killed in a shooting early Monday on a Chicago Transit Authority train in Forest Park, Illinois, officials said.
The Forest Park Police Department received a 911 call about three people shot on a westbound train at the CTA Blue Line station in Forest Park, just west of Chicago, around 5:30 a.m. local time, according to a statement from police.
Authorities cleared the station, finding four victims. Three were pronounced dead on scene and the fourth was taken to Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood, where they died.
Forest Park police, along with CTA security, used video surveillance to help identify the offender. Then the Chicago Police Department located a suspect who matched the description on a CTA Pink Line train. The subject was taken into custody and a firearm was found, Forest Park police said.
According to Forest Park officials, the shooting appears to have been an isolated incident with no immediate additional threat to the community.
In a statement, the CTA called the incident a “heinous and egregious act of violence” that “should never have occurred, none the less on a public transit train.”
“As soon as it was reported, CTA immediately deployed resources to assist the Forest Park Police in their investigation into the matter, including review of all possible security camera footage, which proved to be vital in aiding local enforcement,” the statement read.
The CTA commended the Forest Park Police Department and the Chicago Police Department for their rapid response and coordination.
CTA said it will continue to work with local law enforcement regarding the ongoing investigation.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.