Man and dog killed in suspected bear attack in Florida: Officials
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(JEROME, Fla.) — A man and a dog were killed in a suspected bear attack in Florida, officials said.
The Collier County Sheriff’s Office said it received a call shortly after 7 a.m. Monday involving a “bear encounter.”
The incident was reported in the area of State Road 29 and U.S. 41, just south of the Big Cypress Wildlife Management Area, a conservation area, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission.
“The FWC is actively investigating a suspected fatal wildlife attack, that’s been reported to involve a bear, near Jerome in Collier County,” the commission said in a statement. “Preliminary information notes that the attack resulted in the death of a man and a dog.”
The FWC warned residents and visitors that the animal may still be in the area as authorities work to locate it and secure the perimeter.
“Out of an abundance of caution, we urge residents and visitors to remain vigilant, and avoid the area,” the FWC said.
(MILWAUKEE) — Attorneys for Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge Hannah Dugan are seeking to dismiss her federal indictment on charges alleging she helped an undocumented immigrant evade arrest, claiming in a new court filing that she is immune from federal prosecution for official acts.
In the filing, Dugan’s attorneys cite the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in President Donald Trump’s immunity case as support.
A federal grand jury indicted Dugan on Tuesday on charges she concealed a person from arrest and obstructed a proceeding before a department or agency of the United States.
Dugan appeared briefly in court Thursday morning. Her lawyers entered a plea of not guilty to the two federal charges. U.S. Magistrate Judge Stephen Dries, who presided over the arraignment, set a trial date for July 22. The trial will be overseen by U.S. District Court Judge Lynn Adelman, and was estimated to take about a week.
The government has not yet filed a response to Dugan’s motion to dismiss the indictment.
“This is no ordinary criminal case, and Dugan is no ordinary criminal defendant,” her attorneys, Rick Resch and Steven Biskupic, wrote in the motion filed Wednesday. “The government’s prosecution of Judge Dugan is virtually unprecedented and entirely unconstitutional.”
Dugan was arrested on April 25 at the Milwaukee County Circuit Courthouse after being charged in a criminal complaint. Prosecutors allege she was attempting to help a defendant appearing in her courtroom evade federal agents who were in a public hallway outside her courtroom waiting to arrest him for immigration violations.
“The problems with this prosecution are legion, but most immediately, the government cannot prosecute Judge Dugan because she is entitled to judicial immunity for her official acts. Immunity is not a defense to the prosecution to be determined later by a jury or court; it is an absolute bar to the prosecution at the outset,” her attorneys wrote in the motion. “The prosecution against her is barred. The Court should dismiss the indictment.”
In three instances in the motion, Dugan’s attorneys cite the Supreme Court decision in the Trump immunity case as support for their position that Dugan is immune from prosecution for official acts.
Federal authorities allege that Dugan went into a hallway in the Milwaukee courthouse and directed the agents away from her courtroom, then instructed the defendant, Eduardo Flores-Ruiz, to leave the courtroom through a non-public entrance, allegedly in an effort to allow him to evade arrest. In a post on social media following her arrest, FBI Director Kash Patel claimed Dugan “intentionally misdirected federal agents away from the subject to be arrested in her courthouse.”
But Dugan’s lawyers contend in their motion that the doorway Flores-Ruiz used to exit the courtroom leads to the same public hallway a few feet away from the doors to Dugan’s courtroom. There, agents involved in the operation spotted him, followed him to an elevator and then arrested him after a short foot chase outside.
“Even if (contrary to what the trial evidence would show) Judge Dugan took the actions the complaint alleges, these plainly were judicial acts for which she has absolute immunity from criminal prosecution,” her lawyers wrote. “Judges are empowered to maintain control over their courtrooms specifically and the courthouse generally.”
Her lawyers also argued that whatever Dugan’s motivations might have been, they are “irrelevant” to the issue of immunity.
The Wisconsin Supreme Court suspended Dugan in the wake of her arrest, stating in an order that it found it was “in the public interest that she be temporarily relieved of her official duties.”
Dugan’s legal team draws from four different firms and is led by Biskupic, a former Wisconsin federal prosecutor appointed by former President George W. Bush.
Another of her lawyers, Dean Strang, will be familiar to viewers of the Netflix docuseries, “Making a Murderer.” Strang was one of the defense attorneys for Steven Avery in a controversial homicide case, who became an unlikely star.
The legal team also includes Paul Clement. A former U.S. solicitor general during the George W. Bush presidency, Clement has argued before the Supreme Court more than 100 times. His Washington, D.C.-based law firm is listed in a court filing on Wednesday as being part of Dugan’s legal team, but Clement has not yet entered an appearance in the case.
Chicago Fire Department cleans up the crime scene where numerous people were shot at Artis Restaurant and Lounge/Kyle Mazza/Anadolu via Getty Images
(CHICAGO) — Four people were killed and 14 others wounded in a mass shooting Wednesday night in Chicago, police said.
The carnage erupted in the River North neighborhood, on the 300 block of West Chicago Avenue, when a vehicle pulled up to a location and at least one gunman opened fire on a crowd standing outside, Chicago police said.
The vehicle fled the scene immediately and no one has been taken into custody, police said.
Four people were killed — two men and two women — and 14 others were wounded, including several who were hospitalized in critical condition, according to police.
“When I arrived last night it was absolute chaos,” Pastor Donovan Price, who works to help victims of violence, told reporters. “From people screaming, to blood on the streets, to people laying on the streets, a massive police presence. Just horrific. More than I’ve ever seen.”
The hospitals were “almost as chaotic” as the crime scene as people searched for their loved ones, Price said.
The injured victims are all in their 20s and 30s and 11 of the 14 people hurt are women, police said.
“Seems there was some album release party, people coming from that. An SUV pulls up and just opens fire on a crowd of people,” Price said.
“It can happen anywhere,” he warned. “It’s devastating.”
Despite the shooting, murders were down 32% year-to-date in the city as of June 29 and shooting incidents were down 39%, according to Chicago’s crime data.
(CORVALLIS, Ore.) — Two women have been arrested in connection with a dating app scheme that led to the shooting of a man in Corvallis, Oregon, authorities said.
Julia Dell Yepez, 20, and Alexa Montano Corral, 20, were taken into custody following an investigation into the May 17 shooting of a man they allegedly met through the Chispa dating app, according to the Benton County Sheriff’s Office.
Investigators believe the women used the app to lure the victim with the intention of robbery. The victim, who has not been identified, remains hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries.
Chispa is a dating app where Latino and Latina singles can connect with others in their area. The company did not immediately respond to ABC News’ request for comment.
According to investigators, Yepez and Corral are also suspects in similar criminal activity in a nearby county.
The incident unfolded around 5:30 a.m. local time on May 17 when emergency dispatchers received a 911 call reporting a shooting near Highway 99W and Lakeside Drive in Corvallis. Witnesses described seeing two Hispanic women, one wearing a long-sleeve black shirt, fleeing the scene on foot.
Yepez was arrested Tuesday and faces multiple charges, including attempted murder, first-degree assault and kidnapping. She is being held at the Benton County Jail on $300,000 bail, court records show.
Corral, who was arrested Thursday, faces multiple conspiracy charges. Her bail was set at $250,000, according to court records.
The case has prompted authorities to issue renewed warnings about dating app safety.
“Always meet in public and never isolate yourself until you are certain of the other person’s intentions,” the sheriff’s office advised in a statement.
Anyone who may have had contact with either suspect through dating apps is urged to contact the Benton County Sheriff’s Office or submit anonymous tips at 541-573-8477.
The investigation remains ongoing with assistance from multiple law enforcement agencies, including the U.S. Marshals Service.
