Month: March 2026

By Jennifer McRae

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    COLORADO (KCNC) — A student has been arrested and accused of bringing a gun to Arapahoe Ridge High School in Boulder, Colorado. According to the Boulder Valley School District, the alleged incident happened on Tuesday when a student told a staff member that a classmate had brought a gun on campus.

The student claimed the gun was concealed on the student.

Investigators said the student was located, but a search was not conducted because the student left the campus. BVSD said staff followed the student off campus and informed law enforcement, who then responded. The high school is located at 6600 E. Arapahoe Road in Boulder.

BVSD said out of an abundance of caution, additional security personnel were brought to the school, as well as law enforcement, which allowed for close monitoring of the campus for the remainder of the day.

Boulder police contacted the 17-year-old male student, who is facing charges of unlawful possession of a weapon on school grounds, unlawfully carrying a concealed weapon, and possession of a handgun by a juvenile.

BVSD said the student is currently not permitted on any school campus in the district.

Anyone with additional information about this case has been asked to contact the Boulder Police Department.

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 Carlos Cristian Flores

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    ALLEGHENY COUNTY, Pennsylvania (WTAE) — Americans and diplomats have been advised to leave the Middle East, but getting home has been a challenge with canceled flights.

Jonathan and Elaine Widich, of Bethel Park, Allegheny County, are stranded in Dubai.

“We’re not terribly concerned, and we like it here; it’s a nice place, but we would really like to get home,” Jonathan Widich told Pittsburgh’s Action News 4 reporter Carlos Flores on Thursday morning.

The couple said they received airstrike alerts on Saturday, prompting them to speak with hotel staff about safety measures.

“We spoke to the people down there, and they said, well, we think you’re OK, we think everything’s OK and we have a shelter prepared,” Jonathan Widich said.

Widich said he saw a drone being struck down while he was having a cup of coffee. They also heard the noise coming from the Fairmont Hotel a few miles down the road after it was hit by a strike.

The Widiches were set to return home Friday, but their British Airways flight was canceled. They managed to book a tentative flight for Sunday, but that flight, too, has now been canceled.

Jonathan Widich said they attempted to contact the State Department for guidance but have not had any success. They are hearing stories of others facing similar issues trying to reach someone by phone.

A view of the damaged facade of Gandi Hospital in Tehran on March 5, 2026, after it was hit on March 1 when a projectile struck a state TV communications tower and nearby buildings during the ongoing joint U.S.-Israeli campaign on the capital, following U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28 that killed Iran’s supreme leader and top military leaders and prompted retaliatory strikes on Israel and across the region. Trump says he should help pick Iran’s next leader and rules out Khamenei’s son “For the first several days, apparently, when you punched your way through and finally got your way through the ‘push 1, push 2’ kind of thing, there was no help, basically, at the end of the trail, so it was a little frustrating,” he said.

Widich said they are keeping their fingers crossed and will move to “Plan C” if necessary, although they are not yet sure what that would be.

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By Paula Wethington

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    Detroit (WWJ) — A mother has been charged in connection with Monday’s fatal accidental shooting of a 6-year-old in a shopping center parking lot.

“The alleged facts of this case are among the worst child safe storage cases that we have seen,” Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy said.

Tonya Charisse-Annice Johnson, 41, of Detroit, has been charged with firearms – safe storage violation, three counts of second-degree child abuse and four counts of felony firearm, the prosecutor’s office said. Arraignment is scheduled for Thursday afternoon at the 36th District Court in Detroit.

The victim, a 6-year-old girl, was one of Johnson’s children, authorities said.

The accidental fatal shooting happened about 12:06 p.m. Monday in a parking lot in the 9700 block of Harper Avenue. Johnson had left her five children, ages 2 to 11, in the vehicle while she walked to a restaurant in the shopping center.

Prosecutors said the 11-year-old boy found an unsecured handgun in the vehicle and fired it, striking the 6-year-old in the head.

Medics took the girl to an area hospital, where she was pronounced dead.

“This will affect these children forever. The loss of the life of one of their siblings in a closed compartment of the defendant’s car cannot be unseen,” Worthy said.

New gun safety measures became law in Michigan two years ago, requiring gun owners to keep unattended weapons unloaded and locked with a locking device or stored in a locked box or container if a minor is present.

If a minor fires the gun and inflicts harm on themselves or another individual, the person who failed to store the gun properly could face a felony punishable by up to 10 years in prison, a maximum fine of $7,500, or both.

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By Angela Rozier

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    MARTIN COUNTY, Florida (WPBF) — Law enforcement officials have reported that Thomas Steffens, a suspended neurosurgeon accused of sexual assault in Colorado, was involved in a shootout with law enforcement in Vero Beach.

According to a statement from the Grand Junction Police Department in Colorado, officers were dispatched on Jan. 28 at about 3:30 p.m. Mountain Time to investigate a suspected sexual assault.

“Law enforcement shows up there, they see she’s been battered significantly, she had strangulation marks around her neck, she got bruising in her inner thighs,” Martin County Sheriff John Budensiek said.

Former neurosurgeon wanted for sexual assault and drugging woman injured in Vero Beach shootout After an investigation, a warrant was issued on Feb. 25 for Steffens, who is 72 years old.

“He had prescribed, or they believe had prescribed, medication and did essentially the date rape routine, putting drugs in her drink, sedating her raping her,” Budensiek said.

On March 2, Steffens was located in Vero Beach, where he was involved in a shootout with law enforcement officers. According to the Colorado Department of Regulatory Agencies Division of Professions and Occupations, Steffens was issued a medical license in August 1982. Officials say that changed last year.

“Our suspect worked as a neurosurgeon at the VA hospital but was suspended in 2025 for some of his inappropriate activities, so he was no longer actively functioning as a doctor,” Budensiek said.

The Grand Junction Police Department is working with the district attorney’s office, the U.S. Marshals Service, and law enforcement in Martin and Indian River County as the investigation continues. Officials say Steffens remains in custody, with no word yet on when he will face attempted murder charges.

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By Meghan Moriarty

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    MERRITT ISLAND, Florida (WESH) — In the coming weeks, Artemis II is set to make history, flying four astronauts around the moon.

It comes as NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman announced major changes to the Artemis program and how to move it forward.

He wants to launch every 10 months, with two moon landings in 2028. Isaacman said NASA needs to move with urgency and purpose.

“I think it’s definitely a win,” Don Platt said.

The director of spaceport education at Florida Tech has experience developing, testing and flying different types of avionics, communications and rocket propulsion systems.

“It’s a win for the country and for NASA,” he said.

In collaboration with the Office of Personnel Management, NASA launched NASA Force on Wednesday. The new branch of Tech Force is meant to recruit top engineers and technologists.

“To allow NASA to then have the expertise to continue to develop those systems and that technology, and to also point out areas where NASA may have been failing. For instance, we know that NASA’s Artemis program has traditionally been way behind schedule and way over budget,” Platt said. “I think it makes sense to have industry help with that.”

Isaacman recently made changes to the Artemis program, including increasing launch cadence, standardizing hardware and adding missions. This is all in an effort to test systems, reduce risks and build overall confidence before landing.

The agency is adding a new mission in 2027 to reduce the risk of attempting a lunar lander with humans in 2028 without more practice.

Isaacman said it mirrors the formula that led to the Apollo moon landing in 1969: focus, competition and the nation’s best talent working on the hardest problems.

“This is how NASA once changed the world — and this is how we’re going to do it again,” Isaacman said.

According to NASA’s blog, applications will be live soon.

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By Erika Stanish

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    PITTSBURGH (KDKA) — The Ollie’s Bargain Outlet store in Greensburg has temporarily closed after the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture found a rodent infestation this week.

According to the report, a food facility inspection on Feb. 24 found evidence of “rodent activity in multiple areas of the store. Excess droppings and urine noted.”

Customers were seen showing up all day Wednesday, only to find the doors locked.

“I was out for a walk, and just thought I’d stop by, and I saw that they were closed. I was a little surprised,” Mike Todaro said.

Video shared with KDKA-TV by an Ollie’s customer showed mice inside the store in a box where bags of potato chips were stored on a shelf.

“Did you see it?” someone in the video could be heard asking.

Another customer can then be heard saying, “Yes. Oh my gosh, it’s right there.”

KDKA-TV has learned this isn’t the first time the store has faced this issue. An inspection report in August 2025 shows the store was in violation after inspectors found rodents in the birdseed area.

The state Department of Agriculture stated in its most recent report that the store must remain closed until all pests are eliminated and the facility is cleaned.

“I hope they get it all worked out,” Todaro said.

KDKA-TV reached out to Ollie’s for comment, but did not hear back as of Wednesday evening.

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By Mike Darnay

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    Pittsburgh (KDKA) — The Woodland Hills school board has voted to move their superintendent from paid leave to unpaid leave stemming from an internal district investigation.

Superintendent Joe Maluchnik had been on paid leave for the past three months during an internal investigation within the school district.

Last week, that investigation found evidence that Maluchnik engaged in sex discrimination and harassed multiple female employees, favoring male employees instead.

The investigation’s findings also come on the heels of a similar complaint lodged by a female employee in the Wilkinsburg School District, where Maluchnik had served as an interim superintendent. Last week, the Wilkinsburg board approved an out-of-court settlement with that employee for an undisclosed amount.

One Woodland Hills board member claimed Maluchnik was really suspended for asking questions about district finances. Other members dispute that.

“This board member had no idea of anything he could’ve found, that he was going to blow a whistle,” Melanie Timbers said. “I didn’t know that. I wish that he had given us the opportunity to know that in executive meetings. Some people may have known, some board members. I’m telling you, this board member did not.”

During a public comment period at Wednesday’s meeting, some criticized the board for a lack of transparency.

“It’s about the kids,” one person said. “It seems to be that every time you put out a statement, it’s always about transparency. Is it transparent that you wanted to wait until yesterday to announce this meeting when the media already knew about it on Friday and you announced it yesterday? Do you consider it transparent that you didn’t tell anyone that was on the agenda today just now, before the public speaking here?”

Maluchnik has denied all all allegations and can request a hearing before the board.

In a statement, Maluchnik’s attorney said his client “looks forward to presenting the full truth at the appropriate time and in the appropriate forum.”

“He remains committed to ethical leadership, fiscal responsibility, and most importantly, serving students and communities,” the statement continued.

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By James Curtis

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    CAPE CORAL, Florida (WBBH) — The Cape Coral Police Department helped the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission rescue two manatees Wednesday.

A mother manatee was hit by a propeller 20-22 times, and her baby would not leave, so both had to be rescued, police said. Officer Wolfe with CCPD was a part of the rescue efforts.

It took nearly a dozen people on FWC’s Marine Mammal Rescue boat to rescue the manatees.

This rescue comes after at least 25 dead manatees were reported in Lee County between Feb. 13 and Feb. 18, possibly due to cold stress, according to FWC.

FWC also said that its crews and partners rescued six manatees in Lee County from Feb. 19 to Feb. 26 after responding to reports of the animals showing signs of cold stress, watercraft injuries and malnutrition.

If you encounter a manatee that is sick, injured or deceased, you can report it to FWC’s Wildlife Alert Hotline by dialing 888-404-FWCC (3922).

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.