Month: January 2026

By Dean Fioresi

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    LOS ANGELES (KCAL, KCBS) — So-called “graffiti-proof” ivy that was recently installed along the 101 Freeway in downtown Los Angeles was vandalized over the weekend, just hours after it was put in place by Caltrans crews.

The artificial ivy was being installed near the Main Street and Los Angeles Street exits on Sunday morning as part of a pilot program aimed at “removing” graffiti from the busy thoroughfare, according to Caltrans officials. They said that the program began two weeks ago and was expected to be finished later this week.

The graffiti was reported over the weekend and was 90% cleared on Monday, Caltrans reported.

“Due to a mural and related agreements at this location and several walls along U.S. 101 in downtown Los Angeles, Caltrans is not legally allowed to paint over or remove graffiti,” said a statement from Caltrans. “As a temporary measure, to protect the mural artworks, Caltrans has been installing artificial ivy which has aesthetic benefits and acts as a graffiti deterrent and is a more environmentally friendly solution to graffiti removal.”

They said that other artificial ivy previously installed along the 101 in November last year was “successful in mitigating graffiti.” The ivy is installed in 1’x1′ squares, which are easily removable and replaced, Caltrans said. The previous installment only required removal three times, which they said was an “improvement for the region.”

“In the past year, Caltrans spent $336,160 removing 318,793 square feet of graffiti on US 101 in downtown Los Angeles,” said the Caltrans statement. “Across District 7 in the past year, Caltrans spent $4,194,344 removing 3,973,054 square feet of graffiti.”

Caltrans officials also noted that the ivy installation was not a part of the Clean California initiative, a $1.1 billion campaign from Gov. Gavin Newsom, which aims to expand trash removal from state highways and fund local beautification projects.

Before being largely overtaken by graffiti, the walls along the 101 Freeway were previously covered in a series of murals that were commissioned in 1984, the last time the city hosted the Summer Olympics. Los Angeles will host the games for the third time in 2026, and ongoing beautification projects are taking place across the region.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. 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 Alan Gionet

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    DENVER (KCNC) — Colorado Parks and Wildlife is looking for information on the shooting of a bald eagle in the northern part of the Denver metro area two weeks ago.

It happened at the Croke Reservoir in Northglenn, located off Huron Street near 104th. The bird was spotted in apparent trouble and was captured by city park rangers and animal control officers.

X-rays at a wildlife rehabilitation clinic showed the bird was shot in the wing by a ball bearing. The bird underwent surgery and is recuperating.

Injuring or killing a bald eagle is illegal under the federal Migratory Bird Treaty Act and the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act.

“There’s a difference between being a licensed waterfowl hunter and being out there and just shooting at any bird that flies across the sky. And we think that this is probably a case of the latter, and we want somebody to really come forward and let us know what happened here,” said CPW spokesperson Kara Van Hoose.

Bald eagles are a migratory bird in Colorado. They come through mostly in the winter to nest, lay eggs and raise their young. Bald eagles mate for life. Van Hoose says there are 350 known active nests in the state. The numbers have recovered significantly since the suspension of the use of pesticides like DDT in the 1970s. Eagle numbers rose significantly first in the 1990s, then continued to increase.

A ball bearing may have been shot from a firearm or slingshot or some other device.

“That’s crazy. That’s like, who would shoot an eagle?” asked Eric Sanchez, a student at Front Range Community College who was out photographing birds at the Croke Reservoir along with his girlfriend on Monday. “They’re huge!” exclaimed Lindsey Reyes, who has seen eagles at the reservoir.

Van Hoose says they’d like tips to locate the person responsible.

“We want to talk to anybody who has any information, and if you don’t feel comfortable leaving your name or contact info, you can also report these anonymously to us through our Operation Game Thief email and phone number.”

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. 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 DeJanay Booth-Singleton

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    BLOOMFIELD TOWNSHIP, Michigan (WWJ) — Police in Bloomfield Township, Michigan, released bodycam video of one of its K9s helping officers locate a missing teen on Monday.

Police say Rollo, a 17-month-old Belgian Malinois/Shepard mix, is still new to the job but was put to the test. The video showed the dog leading an officer through the snow in a field. The dog was then seen bringing the officer to the side of a road, where police eventually located the teen walking.

Police say that because Rollo is new, “any change in environment can affect a track.” However, they praised the dog for still being able to complete the job, adding that he “powered through it like a beast.”

According to the police department, Rollo joined Bloomfield Township police in November 2025 as an explosive detection patrol dog.

He’s being honored at the Bloomfield Township Board of Trustees meeting.

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By Nick Lunemann

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    MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — Greg Ketter has spent nearly five decades selling comic books and science fiction novels at DreamHaven Books and Comics in Minneapolis. This week, his phone hasn’t stopped ringing.

Ketter said his store has seen a surge of online orders and messages of support after a photo of him at a recent protest circulated widely on social media. The image appears to show Ketter moving through a cloud of tear gas during a demonstration following the killing of Alex Pretti, which happened just minutes away from his store.

Ketter said he went to the protest after learning about Pretti’s death.

“This is personal, being right here in Minneapolis,” Ketter said. “I mean, this is the U.S. government attacking its own people, and that’s what just got to me.”

Ketter, 69, said he did not intend to draw attention to himself and was surprised to learn he had been photographed. “I wasn’t even running,” he said. “I just walked.”

In the days since, customers from across the country — and even internationally — have contacted the store to place orders or express support. Ketter said the volume of traffic temporarily overwhelmed DreamHaven’s website.

“It’s been insane,” he said. “I never pictured anything like this. It’s gone truly global.”

Among those who visited the store in person were Jeff and Rachel McMahon, who said they were moved by the image and wanted to support Ketter and his business.

“When I saw the photo of Greg and looked into who he was in the community, we felt like we had to come down and thank him,” Jeff McMahon said.

Rachel McMahon described Ketter as a hero, a label he rejects.

“I don’t know why I deserved all that,” Ketter said. “People have been amazingly kind.”

Ketter said any donations made through an old GoFundMe page connected to the store will be redirected to local food shelves. He said he hopes the attention leads to positive action within the community.

Despite the attention, Ketter said he plans to keep doing what he has always done — running his store and serving customers.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. 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 Briauna Brown, Marvin Hurst, Amelia Mugavero, S.E. Jenkins

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    FRISCO, Texas (KTVT) — A North Texas family and community are mourning after a sledding accident left a 16-year-old girl dead and another teen critically injured Sunday.

According to the Frisco Police Department, at about 2:30 p.m., officers were called to the incident in the area of Majestic Gardens Drive and Killian Court. When they arrived, officers found two 16-year-old girls suffering from life-threatening injuries and immediately began life-saving measures.

Police said a 16-year-old boy was driving a Jeep Wrangler and pulling the two girls on a sled. Witnesses told officers that the sled struck a curb and hit a tree.

The two girls were transported to the hospital, where one later died of her injuries.

The victim’s parents identified her as Elizabeth Angle. They told CBS News Texas that the other teen who suffered injuries was Angle’s best friend, Grace, who remains on life support.

Angle’s parents said she was their middle child, leaving behind two sisters aged 18 and 12.

They said Angle was loved by everyone, a kind spirit, outgoing and magnetic.

They also shared that she had recently earned her driver’s license and was excited about the future ahead of her.

Angle’s school shared those sentiments. She was a sophomore at Wakeland High School in Frisco, and in a letter to parents, school officials said the teen was a soccer player who was “well-liked by peers and teachers.” School officials said Angle will be honored during the 2nd period when classes resume after being closed due to icy roads following this past weekend’s winter storm. Also, counseling will be available if needed for students and staff.

“Our entire campus community is impacted by this tragedy,” the school said.

Angle’s club soccer coach, Luis Ramos, described her as a natural leader and a source of light for her teammates.

“As a coach, she was just blowing me away,” Ramos said. “She was a natural leader. She was more than a friend to our teammates. She leaves a lot of sisters behind.”

Ramos, who is currently in Puerto Rico, said he planted a tamarind tree in Angle’s honor and is working with the community to establish a soccer scholarship in her name.

Through their grief, the family said they hope their daughter’s death serves as a reminder about the dangers of sledding behind vehicles — even in quiet neighborhoods.

They are urging parents and children to take safety seriously, saying what may seem like harmless winter fun can turn tragic in an instant.

Frisco PD said the investigation into the accident is ongoing with support from the Denton County District Attorney’s Office. Anyone with information regarding this incident is requested to contact the Frisco Police Department at 972-292-6010. No arrests have been made.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. 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 Todd Feurer, Jermont Terry, Tara Molina

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    CHICAGO (WBBM) — The Archdiocese of Chicago has fired a substitute teacher with a long history of child molestation allegations in Illinois and other states.

The announcement on Monday has raised questions about how Brett Smith was hired in the first place, and parents at the school where he most recently worked in Evergreen Park are fired up.

The archdiocese said Smith, formerly known as Brett Zagorac, worked in at least four Catholic schools in the city and suburbs over the past 16 months.

Smith was a long-term substitute teacher last school year at St. Walter-St. Benedict School, which has campuses in the Morgan Park neighborhood and south suburban Blue Island. He also worked for a third-party vendor at Pope John Paul II School in the Brighton Park neighborhood at the beginning of this school year. He was a substitute teacher at Queen of Martyrs School in Evergreen Park this month. He also has worked as a private tutor for at least one family enrolled at a Catholic school in the south suburbs.

While the archdiocese said they are not aware of any allegations of sexual misconduct against Smith while working at St. Walter-St. Benedict, Pope John Paul II, or Queen of Martyrs schools, one family in the south suburbs filed a complaint against him for conduct while he was tutoring in their home.

“The presence of this individual in some of our schools and with some of our students is very alarming. We want to thank parents at Queen of Martyrs who have been instrumental in shedding light on this situation,” the archdiocese said in a statement. “We regret that this individual has been in several of our schools and are deeply committed to providing a safe environment for all our students.” Evergreen Park police confirmed they are investigating Smith, and a report of a possible incident involving a child, but wouldn’t address questions related to the case.

The archdiocese said they immediately moved to remove Smith from their schools and to fire him after they learned of his history of child molestation allegations. Officials said, despite that history, he had passed state background checks and fingerprint checks when he was first hired in 2024.

The archdiocese said it is cooperating with the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services and two suburban police departments as it seeks to learn more about Smith’s background.

A spokesperson for DCFS confirmed they’ve opened an investigation.

Illinois State Police said both the archdiocese and the Chicago Board of Education requested fingerprint checks for Smith in 2024 and 2025, but said they could not share the information provided by those criminal history checks.

Smith legally changed his name in 2019. He used to go by Brett Zagorac. Officials said he also goes by BJ Smith and has used the name BJ Wilhelm.

In Arizona, that state’s attorney general has accused Smith of legally changing his name to hide his past in 2021.

Accused by multiple families of inappropriately touching children, he was sentenced to probation on a forgery charge in 2022.

12News in Phoenix spoke to an Indiana parent who was the first to report him to police more than 20 years ago.

“The more I read this, the more it makes me angry he’s still doing it,” the parent told 12News.

In 2010, before changing his name, Smith was working as a tutor and was charged with child molesting in Porter County, Indiana. A jury convicted him of misdemeanor battery of a 5-year-old.

In 2015, he was charged with aggravated criminal sexual abuse in Wilmette. He pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of battery/physical contact.

Parents at Queen of Martyrs did not want to go on camera on Monday, but in a statement, they called for new safeguards to prevent this in the future.

Smith is not facing any current criminal charges. Officials at the archdiocese asked anyone whose child has had contact with Smith that makes them uncomfortable to call their local police department or the DCFS Hotline (1.800.25.ABUSE). They can also contact the Archdiocese Office for the Protection of Children and Youth at 312-534-5254.

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