Dream open first team practice as Angel Reese settles in, Brionna Jones out after knee surgery

CNN Newsource on April 21, 2026

By Christopher Harris

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    ATLANTA, Georgia (WUPA) — Day two of training camp gave a clearer look at what the Atlanta Dream are trying to build this season, and why expectations are rising.

Under new head coach Karl Smesko, the Dream are continuing to lean into a faster, more up-tempo style, focused on spacing the floor and creating easy scoring chances in transition. After opening camp Sunday with individual workouts, Monday’s session shifted to more team drills and live action as players began to build chemistry.

That process now includes one of the team’s biggest offseason additions, All-Star forward Angel Reese, who was acquired in a trade from the Chicago Sky earlier this month.

Reese was active throughout practice, showing off her defensive instincts with a steal that led to a fast-break opportunity alongside Allisha Gray.

After practice, Reese said she’s focused on growth and adjusting to her new environment.

“Continuing to get better every single day, that’s what coach talks about,” Reese said. “Being uncomfortable in ways that you haven’t been before. That’s something that I’m not used to. So just being able to be coached and really pushed every single day to get better.”

The Dream are coming off a franchise-best season and return a strong core that includes Gray, Jordin Canada and Rhyne Howard, along with Reese as a centerpiece of the revamped roster.

But there is already one early concern.

The team announced Monday that center Brionna Jones recently underwent right knee surgery at Emory Hospital, leaving her status uncertain for the start of the season. Jones suffered a meniscus tear in late January while playing for USK Prague in the Czech Women’s Basketball League.

The four-time All-Star was expected to anchor the frontcourt alongside Reese but did not participate in drills during Monday’s practice.

Even with that uncertainty, there were encouraging signs on the floor. Rookie Madina Okot worked in units with Reese, while guard Indya Nivar made several hustle plays in transition, fitting the high-energy style Smesko appears to be trying to install.

Smesko said he’s already seeing progress.

“I’m really excited about the start,” Smesko said. “The players have had great energy, great attitudes. I thought today we improved upon what we worked on yesterday, and that’s all you can ask.”

He added that the team is ahead of where it was at the same point last season.

“It’s just Day 2, but we are a lot further ahead than we were a year ago,” he said. “We have so many players who know the system, and they’re helping the younger players along. It’s not just the coaches, it’s the whole team trying to get things going fast.”

Atlanta opens the preseason April 29 on the road against the Chicago Sky.

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Community mourns as First Lady foundation offers aid for funeral costs

CNN Newsource on April 21, 2026

By KTBS Web Staff

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    SHREVEPORT, Louisiana (KTBS) — Residents in the Cedar Grove neighborhood continue to mourn the children killed in a mass shooting Sunday as a memorial of balloons and stuffed animals grows at the site of the tragedy.

The Louisiana First Lady’s foundation announced it will cover the funeral expenses for the children. This support comes as families begin making formal arrangements to lay the victims to rest following the weekend violence.

Community members have spent the days following the shooting adding to a makeshift memorial to honor the young lives lost. Local leaders and neighbors have gathered at the site to offer prayers and support for the grieving families.

In response to the emotional toll on the community, Brentwood Hospital has established a pop-up crisis support clinic. The facility offers free mental health screenings and emotional support for residents, first responders, and families impacted by the event.

The clinic is operating out of the Shreve Memorial Library on Line Avenue. Licensed clinicians are available to provide trauma-informed care and connect individuals with ongoing behavioral health resources.

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.

Homeowner describes final moments with suspect in deadly Shreveport rampage

CNN Newsource on April 21, 2026

By Jonathan McCall

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    BOSSIER CITY, Louisiana (KTBS) — A homeowner says a man accused of killing eight children in Shreveport came to his door likely seeking safety before dying in a confrontation with police Sunday morning. However, authorities have not determined whether officers killed the suspect or if he took his own life.

Shamar Elkins died after leading Shreveport police on a chase that ended at a home in north Bossier City, according to investigators. Officers made contact with him around 6:30 a.m. in the 400 block of Brompton Lane, and he was pronounced dead at 7:03 a.m. following an exchange of gunfire.

The homeowner, Michael Mayence, said in a social media post that he had known Elkins since childhood and had served with him in the U.S. Army, describing him as a “former young soldier of mine.” He said Elkins may have come to his home looking for refuge.

Mayence said the two spoke the day before about personal struggles, including a possible divorce. When Elkins arrived Sunday morning, Mayence said he recognized his voice at the door.

According to Mayence, their conversation lasted less than a minute before Elkins “put the gun to his mouth” and fired. He said officers then shot in response, and Elkins was injured during the exchange.

Shreveport Police Chief Wayne Smith confirmed that officers fired their weapons but said it remains unclear what caused Elkins’ death.

“We are not sure. There was an exchange of gunfire. It has not been determined yet what the exact cause of death was,” Smith said, adding that the Louisiana State Police are leading the investigation into the incident.

The Louisiana National Guard said Elkins served from August 2013 to August 2020.

Family members told investigators Elkins had been struggling with mental illness and ongoing domestic issues involving his wife. Authorities said two women were shot in the violence, including his wife, who survived.

Police said the confrontation followed a series of violent events in Shreveport, where Elkins is accused of fatally shooting eight children before carjacking an SUV and fleeing.

Louisiana State Police will determine the exact circumstances surrounding Elkins’ death.

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.

Man acquitted of Phylicia Barnes’ murder set for trial again for attempted killing in Baltimore County

CNN Newsource on April 21, 2026

By Mike Hellgren

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    BALTIMORE, Maryland (WJZ) — A jury was selected Monday in the trial of Michael Maurice Johnson for the attempted murder and rape of a teenager in Baltimore County.

Johnson made headlines more than a decade ago after he was charged with the murder of Phylicia Barnes, a teenager visiting her sister in Baltimore City. He was acquitted of that crime after three trials.

Opening statements in the new case are scheduled to start at 9 a.m. Tuesday, April 21, in Baltimore County Circuit Court.

Alleged attempted murder and rape

For the past two years, 42-year-old Michael Maurice Johnson has been locked up in Baltimore County, accused of a brutal crime inside an apartment in Rosedale.

Prosecutors alleged he strangled a teenager in an attack that lasted six hours, using his hands and a fan cord.

The victim was so badly injured, charging documents stated, she could not speak and had to communicate with police by text.

That victim was in foster care and told police Johnson became enraged when he thought he heard her talking about a boy during a phone call with her sister.

But Johnson claimed the victim attacked him and beat him because he was texting another woman.

Bringing back painful memories

Phylicia Barnes’ father fought for years for justice in her case.

“We want to see the justice system not to fail this young lady and her family as they failed us,” Russell Barnes told WJZ Investigator Mike Hellgren when the Baltimore County charges were announced.

His daughter was a 16-year-old honor student from North Carolina visiting her half sister in Northwest Baltimore when she was killed just after Christmas in 2010.

The killer dumped her body in the Susquehanna River.

“It just brings back how Phylica was murdered and what happened to her, her innocence and how her life was taken,”

her father said. “We believe she was asphyxiated and was strangled to death after she was raped.”

New case begins Johnson’s defense argued at a motions hearing Monday the medical record showed no sign the victim had a concussion or brain injury in the 2024 assault and rape.

His public defender said she plans to fight back against assertions the victim had life-threatening injuries.

Prosecutors have expert medical witnesses, and Judge Jan Alexander provided some guardrails about their testimony Monday afternoon.

Also, the parties have agreed to exclude mentioning any past domestic violence allegations involving Johnson and the victim.

Johnson, who lived in York, Pennsylvania prior to his arrest, was in court Monday and wore an orange prison jumpsuit as he sat next to his lawyers.

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19-year-old charged after shooting himself in dorm trying to steal designer hat, police say

CNN Newsource on April 21, 2026

By Adam Thompson

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    BALTIMORE, Maryland (WJZ) — A 19-year-old is being held without bond after allegedly shooting himself in a Towson University residence hall while attempting to steal a student’s designer hat.

Gage Flood has been charged with armed robbery, first-degree assault, and other firearm offenses following his arrest on April 16.

Students witness police response at Towson dorm Police said Flood shot himself in the leg while in a struggle with a group of students in the stairwell of Tower C in the 150 block of Cross Campus Drive.

Flood allegedly attempted to steal a Celine hat, which is a designer hat, according to charging documents. No other injuries were reported.

Flood was taken to a hospital with a non-life-threatening gunshot wound, officials said. Police said Flood was not a student at Towson.

“I was standing over there around that pavilion, and I’m hearing somebody shot themselves and I’m like, ‘Huh?’ So I walked up the stairs and saw endless cop cars, endless ambulances, I didn’t know what was going on,” said Mack, a freshman student at Towson.

Students took a video that showed police responding to the campus dorm.

“It was just kind of scary because you don’t know what’s happening. All you know is shots are fired, someone got shot. And I’m like, oh my God, that’s actually insane,” said Edwardina Beeko, a junior at Towson.

Students told CBS News Baltimore that the dorm residents are required to swipe their Towson student ID card to get into the building, and any guests must be signed in by someone who lives there.

“It’s like dang, a random dude could just come in there with a gun, and you would never know. What if the dude wasn’t robbing someone but wanted to kill people, wanted to shoot the school up, or something? I don’t feel safe,” Mack said.

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.

Gauchos score in every inning but one in win at Cal Baptist

KEYT on April 21, 2026

Mike Klan

RIVERSIDE, Calif. (KEYT) – For the second day in a row, the UC Santa Barbara Baseball team (26-12) took a big early lead and hung on late, this time out-lasting California Baptist (31-10) in a rollercoaster, 11-6 victory. The Gauchos scored the first eight and last three runs of the game, while surviving a six-run eighth inning from the Lancers. Santa Barbara smacked six extra-base hits, including home runs from both Liam Barrett and Colin Beazizo, with Barrett, Corey Nunez and Xavier Esquer all finishing with multiple RBIs on the night. Two-out clutch was the theme of the night, as eight of the Gauchos’ 11 runs (and all six of the Lancers’) came with no margin for error in that column.

On the mound, Calvin Proskey’s four scoreless innings of work helped the Gauchos build their big lead, Josh Jannicelli made it stick, then Chase Hoover led the firefighting efforts when things got wild late. Jannicelli got the win and Hoover his third save of the season.

HOW IT HAPPENEDSanta Barbara showed up at James W. Totman Stadium, a venue where they had never previously won, and got right to the business of hitting, scoring in each of the first six innings. Nunez was hit by a pitch to set up Nate Vargas’ RBI single in the first, then Barrett’s two-out walk kept the second inning alive for Esquer to drive a double into the left-center gap. A misfield out there let Esquer get to third and Barrett home to double the lead.

Nunez then started the third inning on third base with a straight-up triple to center field, coming home on William Vasseur’s RBI groundout. It was back to two-out magic in the fourth, as Barrett’s double preceded back-to-back hit batters to load the bases and bring Nunez back to the dish. He promptly smacked a two-run single up the middle and it was 5-0 Gauchos. Rowan Kelly’s double set up Nick Husovsky to single him home in the fifth (you guessed it, with two outs), then Liam Barrett clobbered a home run well over the tall wall in right field to lead off the sixth. For the second time in as many days, the Gauchos were up a touchdown.

While the offense was turning the Lancers’ pitches into batting practice, Proskey was busy reminding everyone why he was Santa Barbara’s Saturday starter last season. He picked up where he had left off at UCLA, allowing just three hits and no walks or runs over four innings, while striking out four. He won a nine-pitch at-bat for one of those punchouts as part of a perfect second, then finished a perfect third with back-to-back K’s, including a seven-pitch at-bat. To end his evening, he escaped a two-on-no-outs jam in the fourth.

Jannicelli took over and showed why he is the next man up in the Gauchos’ line of pitching succession. The freshman retired the first six batters he faced, issuing four of his five strikeouts on the night in that span. Despite a pair of errors, Jannicelli got out of the seventh unscathed before finally surrendering the two runs on his ledger in the eighth.

The Gauchos put up their eighth run in the top of that eighth inning on Beazizo’s home run to straightaway center field, but the Lancers finally found an answer in the bottom half of the frame. A sequence of a home run, walk, double, double, single and home run got the home team back within two before Hoover entered and put out the fire with a backwards K.

If the double play is a pitcher’s best friend, what the Gauchos’ offense did in the top of the ninth must be a very close second. A hit batter and a walk set up Noah Karliner for a pinch-hit, RBI single to get one of those six runs back, then Barrett’s sacrifice fly brought home Santa Barbara’s 10th run of the game to put the Gauchos four runs clear. Esquer’s two-out single brought home Karliner and got Santa Barbara out of “slam range,” with their 11-6 lead meaning not even a grand slam would tie the game. Not that they would have to worry about such a thing. Hoover was not perfect but he got the job done, striking out the side around a two-out single and error.

UP NEXTThe Gauchos come home this weekend, hosting Cal State Fullerton in a Big West series April 24-26, then hosting No. 1 UCLA on Tuesday, April 28 at Caesar Uyesaka Stadium. Tickets for all home games are on sale now at ucsbgauchos.com/tickets.

(Article courtesy of UCSB Athletics).

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U.S. Olympic silver medalist and Teton Valley native Jaelin Kauf honored in Driggs

KIFI on April 21, 2026

David Pace

DRIGGS, Idaho (KIFI) — Olympic hero Jaelin Kauf was welcomed to Driggs today with a boisterous hometown parade.

The 29-year-old athlete and three-time Olympic silver medalist returned from the icy slopes of Cortina, Italy, to the sunny streets of the community where it all began.

“Getting to compete on the Olympic stage is so amazing and to be representing such an amazing place, such an amazing community, and group of people on that stage just makes it extra special,” Kauf said.

Now the most decorated American moguls skier in history, she grew up carving the slopes at Grand Targhee Ski Resort.

“She got silver in both single moguls and dual moguls, the first U.S. athlete to ever do that,” said her mother Patti Kauf.

Children and Teton Valley residents thronged the streets, holding iconic “J” signs – eager to meet a local Olympic athlete.

Teton County Commissioners declared Monday “Jaelin Kauf Day” in her honor, following her return from the Milan Cortina Olympics.

“Being able to compete in the first ever dual moguls on the Olympics stage and take home a medal from that was amazing,” Jaelin said. “I mean, it’s historic!”

U.S. Olympian and Teton Valley native Jaelin Kauf smiles Monday with her three silver medals from the Milan Cortina and Beijing Olympics.

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City of Columbia officials detail adapting to ongoing challenges one year after tornado destroys recycling facility

KMIZ on April 21, 2026

Olivia Hayes

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

It’s been one year since a tornado destroyed Columbia’s recycling facility and city officials told ABC 17 News the city is spending more money to transport recyclables than what it makes in return.

Recovery Supervisor Tom Elliot with the city’s Solid Waste Division said the revenue impact is due to profit sharing and contaminated material, but operations are still within budget.

“Currently, we’re getting very little value. However, it is staying out of the landfill, which is our primary objective,” Elliot said.

Elliot said the facility has also seen a drop in incoming material, meaning fewer households recycling.

“For the first half of fiscal year ’25 – that would have been October 2024 through March 2025 – there was just under 5,000 tons,” Elliot said. “The same time period from ’25 to 2026, we were right at 2700 tons of incoming material, so that’s a pretty good drop.”

Following the tornado the city contracted to split materials it takes in with a company in Jefferson city. The company helps Columbia’s operation to bale together the materials, and the bales are shipped to a processing plant in Illinois.

The money that is sent back for the materials is then split between the two operations.

Elliot explained the city used to get the full profit back when the facility had the ability to process and bale the materials completely themselves. According to Elliot the profit is even less when contaminants are found in the bales, like glass.

“We’ve asked that glass no longer be put in the co-mingled recycling,” Elliot said. “Most of the contamination that we were getting was from the drop off sites.”

One year later, Elliot said the facility is as fully operational as it can be, but with no structure to cover machinery, its all weather dependent.

In Dec. 2025, the Columbia City Council unanimously approved the construction of a new building for the recycling site. The city expects the construction to cost $3.5 million and the funds will come from an insurance reimbursement and capital funds.

The city is now taking bids for the design and build plans of the building structure, the funds do not include any machinery. Elliot said he wants the building construction to be finished by the beginning of 2028.

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City Council approves plan for 240-unit housing complex in east Columbia

KMIZ on April 21, 2026

Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The Columbia City Council on Monday approved the development plan and preliminary plat of a 240-unit, multi-family housing complex in east Columbia.

The 50.8-acre complex – known as The Vantage — will be located on the east and west sides of Rolling Hills Road, south of Richland Road. The approval also comes with a revised statement of intent.

In February, the Planning and Zoning Commission voted to send the plan to the City Council. During the Feb. 5 meeting, residents had raised concerns about traffic congestion at nearby intersections. Similar concerns were raised by nearby residents over Ashford Place, a proposed triplex development that the City Council rejected in January, according to previous reporting.

Meeting documents show that sidewalks are proposed for Richland and Rolling Hills roads and the possible construction of a roundabout at the intersection of Richland Road, Grace Lane and Rolling Hills Road.

A timeline for the construction of the roundabout was not listed in city documents. Those same documents say Tori-Bens Farms would pay a “proportional contribution to offset the costs of constructing the future roundabout.”

Previous reporting shows additional plans for traffic easement included widening Richland Road to four lanes, which could be finished by 2031.

Previous reporting shows the city has cited a 2024 Boone County and City of Columbia Housing Study that identified a shortfall of roughly 900 multi-family rental units each year.

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Columbia City Council sets date for public hearing about construction of new northside fire station  

KMIZ on April 21, 2026

Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A public hearing will be held early next month about the construction of a new Columbia fire station.

The Columbia City Council on Monday approved to schedule a public hearing for Monday, May 4 for the construction of a new Fire Station No. 5 that is proposed for the intersection of Ballenger Lane and Ria Street. An interested parties meeting was held on March 18.

Previous reporting shows that $5 million was allocated by the city last year to replace the aging fire station.

Columbia Fire Assistant Chief Jeffrey Heidenreich previously said the current station is the third-busiest in the city next to the downtown station and the location on Worley Street.

The current Fire Station No. 5 was built in 1971, and city documents and previous reporting say the building is nearing the end of its lifespan, citing  the deteriorating and sinking conditions of the station. City documents describe the problems at the station as “unsolvable.”

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