Month: August 2026

By DeJanay Booth-Singleton

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    ST CLAIR SHORES, Michigan (WWJ) — A St. Clair Shores, Michigan, couple has been charged after prosecutors say they lit and threw an explosive device in their 72-year-old neighbor’s yard.

According to the Macomb County Prosecutor’s Office, Jason and Megan Showers, ages 45 and 38, are charged with one count of placing explosives near property and one count of possession of bombs with unlawful intent. Jason Showers is also charged with possession of a weapon by a prohibited person, possession of ammunition by a prohibited person, two counts of felony firearm and habitual offender-fourth offense.

Prosecutors allege that on Aug. 3, Megan Showers lit the red explosive, written with the words, “BYE BYE,” before Jason Showers threw it over to the neighbor’s property. Prosecutors say the neighbor was able to extinguish the device.

Authorities executed a search warrant at the Showers’ home, finding firearms, ammunition and materials for assembling explosives, according to prosecutors.

Jason Showers received a $100,000 cash bond, while Megan Showers received a $20,000 bond with a 10% option. The couple is ordered to wear a GPS tether if released and must have no contact with each other or the victim.

If released, Jason Showers is not allowed to return home, according to prosecutors.

“The allegations in this case are serious and especially troubling because they involve a senior member of our community. My office is committed to protecting public safety and prosecuting cases where individuals are accused of endangering others,” said Macomb County Prosecutor Peter J. Lucido in a statement.

The couple is due back in court for a probable cause conference on Aug. 14.

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 Elaine Rojas-Castillo

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    DETROIT, Michigan (WWJ) — Cooley High School, a landmark on Detroit’s west side for nearly a century, is being torn down after years of vacancy left the historic building too deteriorated to save.

The Detroit Public Schools Community District confirmed demolition is underway and is expected to be completed by the end of the month. The school opened in 1928 and closed in 2010.

DPSCD had previously considered preserving part of the building as the site was redeveloped, but the district ultimately decided to move forward with full demolition. Years of vacancy, vandalism and fires had badly deteriorated the structure.

The district said the demolition will eliminate blight and a source of crime in the neighborhood.

Once the building comes down, DPSCD plans to develop the Cooley Athletic Complex on the site. According to the district, the complex will include a walking track, basketball courts and youth soccer, lacrosse and football fields. A new Cody High School football stadium is also planned as part of the project.

The district said historic artifacts from the building have already been preserved, including the bell towers and entrance and will be incorporated into the new complex. Cooley state championships will also be honored at the site. DPSCD said it has already shared a process for alumni and community members to reserve bricks from the building.

The demolition is part of a broader challenge DPSCD faces with aging school buildings across the district.

“Despite investing $700 million, we still today have a $1.2 billion facility challenge,” said DPSCD Superintendent Dr. Nikolai Vitti.

Vitti made those remarks about the district’s facilities overall, not about Cooley specifically.

“If we wanted to make all of our schools brand new, which we obviously do, and that’s what children and staff deserve, we don’t have funding to do that,” Vitti said.

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By Dawn White

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    ARLINGTON, Texas (KTVT) — People packed inside Globe Life Field in Arlington on Thursday, but they weren’t cheering on the Texas Rangers – they were hoping to score a job.

“I’m from New Braunfels, Texas, and it was about a 4.5‑hour drive. I want to get my foot in the door really early. I know for new nurses, it’s going to be really competitive,” Dilsa Lalji said.

About 68,000 job seekers filled the stadium, facing roughly 670 employers looking to hire. The North Texas Job Fair is hosted by Congresswoman Beth Van Duyne.

“I think what makes this a lot different is one, it’s all under the same roof, but also if previous years are any indication, about 30% of the jobs are $100,000‑and‑above jobs,” Van Duyne (R‑Texas) said.

Open positions ranged from medicine and finance to transportation and technology.

“The job market is not good right now. I’ve been looking for about six months, graduated last year, and I can’t get a single interview,” Logan Wetmore said.

Wetmore isn’t alone. In June, the U.S. unemployment rate was 4.2%, including 4.4% in Texas – something Acting U.S. Secretary of Labor Keith Sonderling said the federal government is working to address.

“We’re working very closely with the Texas workforce boards and the education systems, and what we want is to make sure that those workers who want to get back in the workforce have the opportunities to have the skills for these high‑paying, private‑sector jobs,” Sonderling said.

A recent report shows that 26% of all layoffs are tied to artificial intelligence, and many candidates at the job fair said AI has affected their job searches.

“I’ve heard people use AI for their cover letters, their resumes, and then employers to kind of narrow down their search to find the people they’re looking for,” Lalji said.

“AI is a big problem. It just scans my resume. It doesn’t think I’m good enough, and no human ever sees it,” Wetmore said.

Wetmore and others hope that meeting employers face‑to‑face will be the key to landing a coveted job.

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 Marvin Hurst

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    ROYSE CITY, Texas (KTVT) — A three‑and‑a‑half‑minute video clip compilation is among the evidence alleged victims say should be used to fire a Royse City police officer accused of excessive force.

The Royse City Police Department said the officer, who was not named in a statement, has been placed on administrative leave while an internal investigation is underway. The department said it is aware of social media posts showing officers responding to a disturbance call at a community pool on Monday.

Two people were arrested, but charges were dropped pending the outcome of the internal review after complaints about the use of force. The department said it would not comment further.

“This mother stands beside me to my right with more than six dreadlocks removed because the police officer snatched them out of her head,” Minister Dominique Alexander said. “We saw a police officer literally muff, push, sling around a mother and her children, not telling them one time what was the thing that they were accused of. Why are they being detained? And what’s the problem?”

Alexander’s group, Next Generation Action Network (NGAN), is assisting the victims. Three were with him Thursday outside the Royse City Police Department headquarters, demanding body camera video and the officer’s termination.

Witness accounts describe chaotic scene In the video, as many as five officers can be seen, and shrieks, screams, and cries are heard.

“We were at the pool or whatnot, and there was a couple, an older couple, there,” Amaiyah Allen-Smith said. “It was me, my sisters, all of us, or whatnot. The rest, they’re not here. And there was an older couple there. We were listening to music.”

Allen-Smith said the woman in the couple alerted a pool attendant, then called police. None of that is shown in the NGAN-released video, so CBS News Texas does not have video context of how the incident began. All sides said it stemmed from the call at the community pool.

In the video circulating on social media, a young woman holding a child is shoved in the face by an officer. He appears to be in duty mode when she approaches, before he pushes her, and she strikes back.

Feet away, another officer strikes a shirtless person who appears to be a child multiple times. The officer is also seen putting a woman in a patrol car — the same woman who is shown on the ground having her hair yanked by an officer.

Victims describe lasting trauma and fear “My anxiety is out the roof. I didn’t think that it would ever get close to home. Right here to happen to me and my family,” Janiaca Wheeler said.

Wheeler said her 4-, 6- and 10-year-old children watched what happened to her. Meanwhile, Zoey Manning said she is still dealing with physical and mental wounds.

“I have soreness in my neck and in my jaw, but mentally it’s been straining. It was very traumatic watching everything happen with them and then also me being assaulted as well,” Manning said.

The timeline for the investigation is unclear. Alexander said they will continue pushing for the release of the body camera video because he believes his clients’ only “charge is being Black.” NGAN plans to attend Royse City’s next city council meeting on Tuesday, Aug. 11.

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 Tara Lynch

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    WEST BALTIMORE, Maryland (WJZ) — A West Baltimore family says their 3-year-old Shiba Inu was stolen from their front yard in broad daylight Tuesday.

Arthur Cook, who has owned his home in the Evergreen Lawn neighborhood for 47 years, said his dog, Bandit, was let outside in the gated front yard as usual. When the family checked on the dog at 5:30 p.m., they said Bandit was gone.

“Let him out like we normally do, and he likes to run in and out all day long,” Cook said. “I knew right away he just didn’t run off. Someone had taken him.”

The front gate to the Harlem Avenue home is secured by a strap to make sure Bandit stays on the property and can’t get out on his own. When they realized the four-legged friend was gone, they also saw that the gate was open.

Family tries to track AirTag Bandit’s collar was equipped with an AirTag, so the family began to track his location through West Baltimore.

“We were able to track to about the 2,800 block of Baltimore Street,” Cook said. “But never could catch up with the person.”

Cook said the AirTag was ditched in that area in the brush.

Bandit was last seen on security video, walking on a leash with a stranger near Mosher Food Market at the corner of W. Baltimore Street and N. Franklintown Road.

“I was upset, really upset. Yeah, but at that point, it wasn’t anything I could do,” Cook said.

“Close to like being a child” The family said they’ve found some comfort that he is with someone rather than roaming the streets alone. They hope he’s being treated well.

The family filed a report with the Baltimore Police Department on Thursday. The department told WJZ it is investigating and no suspects have been arrested.

A dog owner all his life, Cook said nothing like this has ever happened to him before. He called Bandit a member of the family and said he is sad he’s missing.

“Close to like being a child,” Cook added. “I walk him, and I need to walk, so the two of us walk every day… He loves to play. His favorite thing is a water bottle, so I’ll give him a water bottle, and he’ll wrestle around with it.”

The family is offering a monetary reward if the dog is returned. They hope he comes back home soon.

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 Bryan Lynn

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    HARTFORD COUNTY, Maryland (WJZ) — A deacon for the Catholic Church in Maryland’s Harford County has been arrested and charged with two counts of sexual solicitation of a minor, the sheriff’s department announced on Thursday.

Sheriff Jeffrey Gahler identified the suspect as 45-year-old Kenneth Goedeke, of Bel Air, Maryland.

Gahler said in a statement that Goedeke was taken into custody by deputies after communicating with an undercover detective whom he believed to be a 15-year-old boy. The suspect then allegedly arrived at a location to engage in sexual activity with the child.

The Archdiocese of Baltimore released a statement confirming that Goedeke served as a Catholic Church deacon and former Catholic school teacher. It said that before Goedeke was hired, he underwent “a thorough employment screening, which included FBI/CJIS fingerprint criminal history check, and a comprehensive background and reference check.”

Archdiocese of Baltimore statement The Archdiocese of Baltimore said it was informed by the Harford County Sheriff’s Office of the arrest of Goedeke on charges of soliciting a minor. “Goedeke served as a deacon at St. Margaret Parish in the Archdiocese of Baltimore and began employment at St. Ignatius Church in Hickory in July of 2026. According to communications from law enforcement officials, these charges are not related to anyone at the parishes or schools where he served.”

The Archdiocese said Goedeke was ordained as a deacon in 2023. He served at St. Patrick Havre de Grace and St. Joan of Arc in Aberdeen before working at St. Margaret Church in Bel Air, beginning in 2025. He also previously worked at St. Isaac Jogues Church from 2005 to 2012 and the John Carroll School, a Catholic high school, from 2020 to 2026.

John Carroll School comments on arrest A statement from the John Carroll School said Goedeke had not been employed by the school since February of this year and that the suspect no longer had any ties to the institution.

“While the school cannot comment on an active law enforcement case, the allegations against former employee Deacon Ken Goedeke are deeply concerning and directly conflict with The John Carroll School’s values and mission,” the statement said.

It added: “The safety and well-being of our students remain our top priority. The John Carroll School has thorough policies and safeguarding protocols in place to protect our students.”

Sheriff cautions parents Sheriff Gahler said he felt “angry, disgusted, and deeply thankful” about the arrest.

“Angry that someone in a position of trust attempted to victimize a child. Disgusted that any adult would ever consider exploiting a child in such a vile and predatory way. And thankful that our detectives acted decisively, intervening before a child was harmed and ensuring that this predator was stopped before he could carry out his intentions,” he said in his statement.

Gahler urged parents and caregivers “to talk openly with their children, not only about this case, but about the broader dangers posed by trusted adults who misuse their positions and by online predators who target our youth.”

Community reacts to deacon’s sexual abuse allegations The Abuse Survivors Coalition (ASC), an advocacy group for abuse survivors, is encouraging others who may have been abused by Goedeke to come forward and reach out to the Harford County Sheriff’s Office tip line at cactips@harfordsheriff.org.

The organization also credited the sheriff’s office who stopping the activity through a sting operation.

“I would like to hold up with special honor Sheriff Jeffrey Gahler for releasing a statement that unequivocally supports survivors and anyone who may have been a victim of Goedeke,” ASC stated. “Too often officials minimize or ignore the damage done by predators, Sheriff Gahler did not.”

ASC added, “the Archdiocese of Baltimore released a statement today after Goedeke’s arrest. Sadly, it was a feeble attempt at acknowledging his actions, and already defending itself citing that background checks and fingerprints were done. There was no information as to whether previous complaints were made regarding Goedeke, but he was suddenly terminated from John Carroll high school months ago, and we can only question why.”

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 Mike Toole, Tammy Mutasa

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    BROCKTON, Massachusetts (WBZ) — A Brockton mother who was sentenced to life in prison for killing her two young sons in 2018 will get a new trial.

The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court vacated the December 2022 conviction of Latarsha Sanders Thursday, saying Plymouth Superior Court Judge William Sullivan was wrong when he would not allow the jury to hear about her troubling mental illness while she was awaiting trial in prison and in a state psychiatric hospital.

Sullivan is currently overseeing the Lindsay Clancy murder trial. Clancy admits she killed her three children in their Duxbury home in January 2023. She’s charged with first-degree murder. Her attorney said Clancy was experiencing extreme postpartum psychosis.

Sanders admitted to stabbing her sons to death in February 2018. Her defense attorney argued that she was insane at the time.

According to the ruling, the jury never saw thousands of pages of medical records compiled after the murders, where doctors found she suffered from “hallucinations” and “paranoid schizophrenia [that was] undetected and untreated for decades.”

Plymouth County District Attorney Timothy Cruz said her boys, 8-year-old Edson “Marlon” Brito and 5-year-old La’son Brito, died in a “ritualistic incident” and that Sanders practiced Voodoo.

The jury deliberated for about four hours and found her guilty of two counts of first-degree murder. She was automatically sentenced to life in prison without parole under Massachusetts law.

Plymouth County District Attorney Timothy Cruz said her boys, 8-year-old Edson “Marlon” Brito and 5-year-old La’son Brito, died in a “ritualistic incident” and that Sanders practiced Voodoo.

The jury deliberated for about four hours and found her guilty of two counts of first-degree murder. She was automatically sentenced to life in prison without parole under Massachusetts law.

Plymouth County District Attorney Timothy Cruz said her boys, 8-year-old Edson “Marlon” Brito and 5-year-old La’son Brito, died in a “ritualistic incident” and that Sanders practiced Voodoo.

The jury deliberated for about four hours and found her guilty of two counts of first-degree murder. She was automatically sentenced to life in prison without parole under Massachusetts law.

“There is no doubt the defendant committed these incomprehensible crimes. The sole issue before a Superior Court jury was whether she lacked criminal responsibility,” the justices on the state’s highest court wrote in their ruling Thursday.

“We hold that the exclusion of the defendant’s relevant medical records relating to the diagnoses or treatment of mental illness constituted prejudicial error, and as a result, the defendant is entitled to a new trial.”

Sanders was convicted one month before Clancy killed her children.

“Mental illness and criminal responsibility issues have been around since we’ve had a criminal justice system,” WBZ-TV legal analyst Jennifer Roman said. “Now we just talk about mental illness more.”

The Plymouth County District Attorney’s office is currently reviewing the SJC’s opinion and “determining our next steps going forward.”

“It is our duty as a prosecutors’ office to be a voice for victims of crime, like Marlon and La’Son Brito, and we will continue to do so in their memory,” a spokesperson for the Plymouth DA said.

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By Aaron Parseghian

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    SCARBOROUGH, Maine (WBZ) — More than half a dozen white sharks have been spotted close to shore in Scarborough, Maine over a 48-hour period, prompting warnings and increased monitoring near a popular beach.

The sightings have generated interest from both beachgoers and biologists. Scarborough Marine Resource Officer Daryen Granata said many of the sharks spotted in the area are juveniles, including one captured on video by a paddleboarder.

“Usually we’ll see one or two [sharks] here and there. This is a large volume, larger than I’ve seen, and I’ve worked this area for 30-plus years,” Granata said. “Five to seven, fairly good-sized sharks, probably six to eight feet. And then there were some drone videos of some larger ones. You know, 10-12 feet, but we’re just keeping an eye on it.”

Granata joined biologists on a boat to survey the waters near a popular sandbar at Pine Point Beach where the sharks have been spotted. The area is also frequently used by swimmers and people fishing from the water.

“We know it’s a place where people recreationally fish in waist-deep water; they typically swim right there,” Granata said. “They’re right in an intertidal zone. At low tide, it’s exposed. At high tide, there’s 10 feet of water.”

“We started flying aircrafts and drones, and making sure that we can keep track. And they’ve been there consistently for the last 48 hours,” Granata added.

While it is not rare to see sharks along the New England coast this time of year, some less common sights are becoming more frequent. Like the volume of sharks in Maine and the variety, like the tiger shark, which was reeled in off the coast of Falmouth, Massachusetts, this week.

New England Aquarium adjunct scientist John Chisholm, who was with the crew aiming to tag sharks in Scarborough, said warmer water is making the region more hospitable to some sharks.

“[Tiger Sharks] were just coming up here occasionally. Now they’re coming up here reliably year after year because the water temperature is hospitable to them,” Chisholm said. “The waters in New England are warming faster than any other places in the ocean around the world.”

“That’s more like numbers we see down when we’re tagging off of the Cape; the numbers were a little surprising,” Chisholm said about the number of sharks seen in Maine. “But it’s definitely not unusual for white sharks to be in this area this time of year.

Chisholm said the recent sightings are also a reminder that people entering the ocean are entering a wild environment.

“Be aware of your surroundings and prepare before you go to the beach because you’re going into a wilderness area,” Chisholm said.

At Pine Point Beach, beachgoer Mark Coleman said sharks are something he keeps in mind while visiting the coast.

“I don’t want to get eaten, but no problem. Sharks are sharks; they’ll stay out there, and I’ll stay here, no worries,” Coleman said.

For those who do choose to enter the water, experts recommend avoiding splashing, seals and schools of fish.

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By Shelley Bortz

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    WEST MIFFLIN, Pennsylvania (KDKA) — The driver police say caused a deadly crash in West Mifflin last month is facing homicide and DUI charges.

Investigators say Keith Scherba Jr. stole a pickup truck in Pittsburgh before driving recklessly across the city and into West Mifflin, where he allegedly ran a red light and crashed into Shelly Hunter’s SUV on July 11. The charges come nearly one month after the 60-year-old woman — a mother and patient care technician at Jefferson Hospital — was killed.

According to investigators, Scherba stole a Chevrolet Silverado from a business in Pittsburgh’s Oakland neighborhood before driving away. Police say he struck another vehicle on the Birmingham Bridge and drove away before stopping on East Carson Street on the city’s South Side.

There, investigators say he stopped outside the city’s FBI field office and admitted to security personnel that he’d stolen the truck before taking off again toward West Mifflin. Police say his drive ended at the intersection of Buttermilk Hollow and Lebanon Church roads. Investigators say Scherba ran the red light and slammed into Hunter’s SUV, killing her and seriously injuring another driver.

The criminal complaint details the moments before the deadly collision. Police say witnesses watched the stolen pickup speeding and weaving through traffic. Surveillance video allegedly shows the truck crossing into oncoming traffic to pass two vehicles before cutting back into its lane.

GPS data recovered from the truck shows it was traveling about 91 miles per hour just 600 feet before impact. According to the criminal complaint, Scherba later admitted he’d used drugs, telling detectives he’d used “a little bit of everything.” Lab testing later found THC in his blood, authorities said.

When detectives asked why he was driving so fast, he answered: “Because I’m crazy.” Scherba faces a slew of charges, including homicide by vehicle while DUI.

For neighbors, the tragedy is heartbreaking, but not surprising. Ayouba Sheriff said he has witnessed four crashes at this intersection since moving into the neighborhood five months ago and believes it’s time to do something to make it safer.

“More lights, more traffic control, just a lot more care for the people who live around here,” he said.

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By Andy Sheehan

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    NEW KENSINGTON, Pennsylvania (KDKA) — An officer with the New Kensington Police Department is on leave and under investigation after a violent confrontation with a suspect who ended up in the hospital with serious facial injuries.

Police say a man and a woman were looking to break into an abandoned house last week, but the two told friends they were only picking up fallen apples in the yard. Moments later, the woman was in handcuffs and the man, identified as Anthony Delarosa, tussled with officers when he sustained broken cheekbones and other facial injuries.

Now, Delarosa is out on bond, charged with aggravated assault, resisting arrest, loitering and prowling at night. However, New Kensington Police Officer Nathaniel Cochran — who investigators say inflicted the facial wounds — has been taken off the street.

The city clerk, John Zavadak, told KDKA-TV that “It’s a pressing issue. The city is reviewing it, and it’s been referred to the Westmoreland County District Attorney’s Office for investigation. Officer Cochran is on administrative leave.” The DA’s office confirmed the investigation.

According to the incident report, Cochran and an officer from nearby Arnold responded to the abandoned house due to a 911 call of a man and a woman on bikes suspected of trying to break in. But when police arrived, there was no one there. The two police officers soon confronted the pair, who were riding their bikes down an alley, when a tussle ensued, the report says.

The officer who wrote the report says when he arrived, the woman was in handcuffs and Cochran and the officer from Arnold were tussling with Delarosa on the ground. The arriving officer says he shocked Delarosa three times with a Taser but to no avail.

The report says Delarosa flailed and resisted orders to put his hands behind his back, stating he then tried to bite Cochran on the thigh. The report states: “Officer Cochran delivered a few elbow strikes to Delarosa’s facial region in an attempt to prevent him from biting.”

Family members who declined to be interviewed say that after being released from jail, Delarosa went to the hospital for broken cheekbones and a fractured jaw.

Delarosa is well known to the New Kensington police, having been arrested and convicted time and again in the past two decades for drug possession, disorderly conduct and fights. Cochran has been a police officer in New Kensington for the past three years.

But for now, Cochran is on administrative leave in relation to this incident, which remains under investigation.

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