Month: November 2025

KYW

By Josh Sanders, Casey Kuhn

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    PHILADELPHIA (KYW) — It’s a Thanksgiving tradition that helps law enforcement families who have lost loved ones feel less alone during the holidays.

Sitting at the same table, Judy Cassidy and Alexandra Carrero understand what it means to lose a partner.

“I think of him all day,” Cassidy said. “He was nothing like he was on the job. He was funny and silly with the kids.”

It’s been nearly two decades since Cassidy lost her husband, Philadelphia police Officer Charles Cassidy, who was shot and killed during a robbery at a doughnut shop in 2007.

Two years ago, Carrero and her daughter Mia lost their husband and father, Sgt. Richard Mendez, in a shooting at Philadelphia International Airport. The two men responsible for Mendez’s murder were convicted this week.

“We’re thankful that we got the closure that we desperately needed,” Carrero said. “We’re thankful that justice was served.”

On Wednesday morning, the two families joined dozens of other families at the 19th annual Holiday Meals for Heroes. The program, founded by Jimmy Binns, supports families of fallen first responders.

For Police Commissioner Kevin Bethel, Wednesday is about honoring legacy.

“There’s a piece of our holiday missing for all of them, like going forward,” Mia Carrero said. “Thanksgiving, Christmas. All of them, they don’t feel the same without my dad.”

These two families and dozens of others here are moving forward through a shared understanding of pain.

“We’re all connected through pain,” Mia Carrero said, “but we’re all growing together through the pain, and it’s just building the connection with the children, with the wives, with all the family members.”

Wednesday was a day filled with gratitude as these families navigate their loss together.

“We got new family,” Alex Carrero said.

“I look forward to this,” Cassidy said. “We come here. We have fun. We get to see everybody. Everyone is happy.”

In the spirit of Thanksgiving, these families are thankful to be with each other, and founder Jimmy Binns says that’s what this is all about.

This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting.

Please note: This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Josh Sanders, Casey Kuhn

Click here for updates on this story

    PHILADELPHIA (KYW) — It’s a Thanksgiving tradition that helps law enforcement families who have lost loved ones feel less alone during the holidays.

Sitting at the same table, Judy Cassidy and Alexandra Carrero understand what it means to lose a partner.

“I think of him all day,” Cassidy said. “He was nothing like he was on the job. He was funny and silly with the kids.”

It’s been nearly two decades since Cassidy lost her husband, Philadelphia police Officer Charles Cassidy, who was shot and killed during a robbery at a doughnut shop in 2007.

Two years ago, Carrero and her daughter Mia lost their husband and father, Sgt. Richard Mendez, in a shooting at Philadelphia International Airport. The two men responsible for Mendez’s murder were convicted this week.

“We’re thankful that we got the closure that we desperately needed,” Carrero said. “We’re thankful that justice was served.”

On Wednesday morning, the two families joined dozens of other families at the 19th annual Holiday Meals for Heroes. The program, founded by Jimmy Binns, supports families of fallen first responders.

For Police Commissioner Kevin Bethel, Wednesday is about honoring legacy.

“There’s a piece of our holiday missing for all of them, like going forward,” Mia Carrero said. “Thanksgiving, Christmas. All of them, they don’t feel the same without my dad.”

These two families and dozens of others here are moving forward through a shared understanding of pain.

“We’re all connected through pain,” Mia Carrero said, “but we’re all growing together through the pain, and it’s just building the connection with the children, with the wives, with all the family members.”

Wednesday was a day filled with gratitude as these families navigate their loss together.

“We got new family,” Alex Carrero said.

“I look forward to this,” Cassidy said. “We come here. We have fun. We get to see everybody. Everyone is happy.”

In the spirit of Thanksgiving, these families are thankful to be with each other, and founder Jimmy Binns says that’s what this is all about.

This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting.

Please note: This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Aliyah Chavez

Click here for updates on this story

    FARMINGTON, New Mexico (KOAT) — After years of searching for answers, the family of Zachariah Juwaun Shorty, a Navajo citizen found dead five years ago, is finally seeing justice as three men have been indicted on federal charges related to his murder.

Shorty, who was last seen alive at a motel in Farmington, was found in a field with multiple gunshot wounds on July 25, 2020. His mother told KOAT she was informed of his death three days later.

Three men—Austin Begay, Jaymes Fage, and Joshua Watkins—are now facing federal charges in connection with Shorty’s death.

Begay has been charged with first-degree murder for allegedly using a semi-automatic weapon to shoot and kill Shorty, according to prosecutors. Fage is accused of aiding in the crime, while Watkins is charged with concealing the murder.

Acting U.S. Attorney for the District of New Mexico Ryan Ellison’s office brought the charges, adding “… eventually, following a trial, hopefully [the office will] bring this person to justice and bring the family some closure,” Ellison said.

Shorty’s mother Vangie Randall-Shorty expressed her relief at the progress in the case, saying, “I’ve waited five years for this day.” She also shared her determination to never give up on her son.

Federal agents were brought in as part of the FBI’s Operation Not Forgotten, which aims to provide a new set of eyes on long-pending cases. “They bring a fresh perspective and a new look at these cases that have been pending for quite some time,” Ellison said.

If convicted, Begay and Fage face life in prison, while Watkins could face up to three years.

Begay is expected to stand before a judge for arraignment in federal court on Wednesday morning. The timeline for a trial remains unclear.

The FBI is urging the public to provide any additional information on Zachariah’s murder by calling 1-800-CALL-FBI or submitting a tip online.

This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting.

Please note: This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Felix Cortez

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    SALINAS, California (KSBW) — A high-speed chase from Salinas ended early Tuesday morning after some alleged cannabis thieves made a wrong turn down a dead-end street in Gilroy, resulting in a huge pot bust.

“It was like Christmas, you know, the whole thing, the whole block was lit up,” said Christian Aguirre after a dozen law enforcement units lit up his neighborhood on the 700 block of Catherine Court.

Monterey County Sheriff’s deputies say the driver and two occupants fled law enforcement because the stolen Tesla they were driving was packed with large-sized bags filled with marijuana- allegedly stolen from a cannabis operation on Potter Road south of Salinas.

“It looked like a body, but instead of being a body, it was a big bag of weed,” Aguirre said.

“So I could tell you that in my 25 years of law enforcement history, this is by far the most amount of marijuana that I’ve seen in one single vehicle,” added Andres Rosas, spokesman for the Monterey County Sheriff’s Office.

The amount of marijuana and its value have yet to be determined, but a security guard reported three to four suspects loading the cannabis into the Tesla, and possibly a silver or grey Honda.

Questions remain on how the suspects were able to get onto the premises of the large cannabis cultivation site.

“I don’t know that’s we’re going to be looking into all of these details,” Rosas said.

A 17-year-old arrested at the Gilroy scene might provide some answers, but two others fled on foot. The Honda was found ditched alongside Highway 101 at Gould Street, south of Salinas.

“Actively processing the vehicles that were involved and again, seeking information from the public as to any detail that could help to identify the additional two persons that fled from the car or anybody else that may have been involved in coordinating this burglary,” Rosas said.

The juvenile arrested is not from the central coast, leading investigators to believe all those involved are from out of the area.

This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting.

Please note: This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Brittany Decker

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    MOUNTAIN BROOK, Alabama (WVTM) — Lulu Gribbin, a teen from Mountain Brook, is known around the country for surviving a shark attack.

She has spent every day since then proving her resilience and using her story to advocate for others.

“Life might throw curveballs at us,” she said. “You never give up, and you just keep swimming.”

Gribbin was swimming in shallow water last June when a shark attacked her. She remembers the moment clearly.

“When I was attacked, I knew everything that had happened,” she said. “I was in so much shock that I didn’t feel it bite me.”

The reality hit moments later.

“I raised my arm out of the water, and there was just nothing there,” she said.

She lost a hand, a leg and the world she once knew.

Today, you can find her on a golf course, one leg planted, an adaptive attachment locked onto her club. She stands over the ball, takes a breath, and swings. Clean contact. Then again. And again.

She rebuilt her balance, her mechanics and her confidence alongside professional adaptive golfer Chris Biggins, who jokes that he has fallen more times than she has. During their first lesson, he asked if she was worried about getting hurt.

“No,” she told him. “I can fall down. It’s encouraged. Let’s go full force.”

Everything after June 7, 2024, had to be relearned.

“I just wanted to get better, and I wanted to prove the doctors wrong,” she said. “If they gave me a challenge, I would get it done as soon as possible because I’m very competitive.”

She learned to walk, then run. She returned to sports, tried new ones, and eventually worked her way back behind the wheel. With modified pedals and steering equipment, she earned her driver’s license.

“I love having my own freedom,” she said. “Driving, listening to music– it’s been fun, even if it doesn’t look like a normal teenage life.”

One opportunity surprised her: public speaking. Instead of fear, she found joy in it.

“When I do speeches, I make fun of people,” she said, laughing. “Your hands can’t spin in a circle, but my wrist can.”

She now uses her voice to advocate for amputees and to push for better resources. Through her Lulu Strong Foundation, she hopes to make prosthetics lighter, more functional, and more accessible.

“The Lulu Strong Foundation is on a mission to advance prosthetic technologies and cutting-edge therapies that aim to restore independence and confidence for amputees at speeds we previously never thought were possible. We are dedicated to empowering individuals and communities through compassion, resilience, and action,” the foundation’s website states.

The foundation officially launches this Friday at The Edge on Green Springs Highway, with family-friendly activities, live music and a chance to meet Lulu in person.

Her advocacy has already reshaped safety efforts along the coast. She helped pass “Lulu’s Law,” a new alert system designed to warn swimmers about shark activity.

“I was very thrilled to be able to implement this law into action,” she said.

She defines courage differently now.

“Courage is stepping into something you’re fearful of, but then stepping out fearless,” she said.

And in a full-circle moment, she returned to the water just months after the attack.

“Just keep swimming in life,” she said. “Keep going. It doesn’t matter what hard thing gets thrown your way.”

Because sometimes, she says, the very waves that crash hardest are the ones that carry you forward.

“Where there’s a storm, there’s always a rainbow,” Gribbin said.

This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting.

Please note: This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.