Month: September 2026

By Erika Stanish

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    PITTSBURGH (KDKA) — A Fayette County man who was arrested and charged over a year ago after five children were found living in “deplorable conditions” inside his Redstone Township home has been released on bond.

James Kahl and Carly Kahl were arrested on Sept. 3, 2025, after police said they found five children under the age of 14 living in filth.

“Troopers observed deplorable living conditions to include no beds, boarded up windows, feces covered on the bedroom walls, fleas, limited clothing and food, etc.,” troopers said in police paperwork filed last year.

The children were ages 14, 13, 10, 9 and 5, according to police. Police said James Kahl would lock the children’s bedroom door from the outside, trapping them inside for part of the day.

“This room functioned as a dungeon with video cameras hardwired to the father’s room. There were three deadbolt locks on the outside of the door and no door handle for the children to escape,” troopers said.

Both James Kahl and Carly Kahl were taken to jail where they were denied bail. Fast-forward to one year later, James Kahl was released on bond with a no-contact order.

“It is further ordered and directed that as a condition of Bond, the Defendant is to have no contact with the alleged victims in this matter and undergo Pre-Trial Services directed through the Adult Probation Office,” paperwork from the Fayette County Clerk of Courts stated.

“My concern is for the safety of me and my children,” said Rachel Silbaugh, the mother of two of the children who were locked in their bedroom at Kahl’s house last year.

Silbaugh told KDKA-TV on Thursday that she questions the judicial system after James Kahl’s release and fears for her and her children’s safety.

“He’s violated the past PFA orders. Just because there’s a no-contact doesn’t mean that he’s not going to try to do something,” Silbaugh said.

She claims that James Kahl knows where her children live and has a violent history.

“He has never listened to a court order. He’s acted out. He’s came to my house. He’s went after me in the courthouse,” Silbaugh said.

According to paperwork shared with KDKA-TV, Silbaugh has filed multiple PFAs over the years on behalf of her and her children and claims she has reported concerns for the children while in James Kahl’s care before he was ever arrested in this case.

She said his release from jail is another example of the system failing her.

“They’re letting him out again and letting us all be in danger again,” Silbaugh said.

According to Pennsylvania Rule 600, the commonwealth has 180 days to bring a criminal defendant in jail to trial. That date expired in May. Kahl’s hearing was not until June.

His attorney filed a petition for bond, which allowed Kahl’s release while he waits for trial. Fayette County District Attorney Mike Aubele said his office is trying to get the case prepared for trial but said it takes time.

Aubele said if Kahl violates his no-contact order, his office “will take whatever means necessary to protect the public.”

“I just hope that they do what’s right and put him back where he needs to be and protect me and my children because I’m fearful of what he’d do,” Silbaugh said.

Aubele said he’s hopeful the case will go to trial in the next month or two. James Kahl’s attorney, Nicholas Clark, told KDKA-TV that his client will receive “a zealous defense.”

As for Carly Kahl, she remains behind bars.

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 Jesse Zanger, Andrew Ramos

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    New York (WCBS) — One person is dead after an explosion on a barge on Staten Island Thursday afternoon, the NYPD said.

The blast prompted a hazmat response, according to the FDNY.

Video from the scene shows the explosion tore open the top of a barge in Mariners Harbor.

The FDNY said it got the call at 2:37 p.m. for the incident on Richmond Terrace between South and Arlington avenues. The response grew to a second alarm at 3:18 p.m., with 160 emergency personnel responding to the scene.

Police said a man was found dead at the scene. The victim has not yet been identified. His cause of death is not yet known.

Two firefighters suffered minor injuries.

Residents in the area described hearing three explosions that then sparked a fire on a container on the barge.

“There were three explosions, but the first one was the biggest, and I said ‘That’s bad.’ And then I was praying that nobody got hurt,” one area resident said.

“I told them it was an explosion. I get down here, and that’s when the other explosions go, I called back again. I’m like, no, y’all really need to get here because it’s bad. They came really fast,” said another woman.

The fire has since been knocked down. Units remained on scene to secure the petroleum from the shipping container.

The cause of the blast is under investigation.

Residents were urged to avoid the immediate area.

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 Neal Riley

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    BOSTON (WBZ) — The lawyer for Janette MacAusland, the Wellesley, Massachusetts, mother accused of killing her two children, is urging prosecutors to take a second look at the first-degree murder charges in the wake of the Lindsay Clancy mistrial but says there are key differences between the two cases.

MacAusland, 49, allegedly confessed to killing her 6-year-old daughter Ella and her 7-year-old son Kai at their Edgemoor Avenue home in April. She was in a custody battle at the time with her husband Samuel, who had filed for divorce the previous October, court records show.

Investigators say she went to her aunt’s house in Vermont after the murders and confessed to her, “I wanted the three of us to go to God together but it didn’t work.” She had dried blood on her neck from a large cut.

“I strangled them and then I tried to kill myself,” MacAusland allegedly told police, according to an affidavit.

“This is not Lindsay Clancy 2.0” After a hearing at Dedham District Court Thursday, defense attorney Joseph Krowski Jr. told the media that he’s “cautiously optimistic” that prosecutors might be taking a second look at MacAusland’s case after the Clancy trial. The jury failed to reach a verdict, and jurors have said there was just one man who refused to find Clancy not guilty by reason of insanity.

“This is not Lindsay Clancy 2.0,” Krowski Jr. said. “Janette MacAusland is her own woman, but there’s been a discussion, a discourse that’s opened up in this country about whether or not we want to criminalize mental illness.”

In Clancy’s case, the defense argued she was suffering from postpartum psychosis and could not be held criminally responsible for her actions. Krowski Jr. said it’s too soon to say if he’ll pursue an insanity defense for MacAusland.

“This is not a postpartum situation, right? The children are older,” he said. “Until I get all of the information I’m not prepared to say anything about any potential defenses, but everything is on the table.”

Janette MacAusland had “history of mental illness,” lawyer says Krowski Jr. did say that MacAusland had a “history of mental illness.” He’s appealing to outgoing Norfolk County District Attorney Michael Morrissey and his successor to revisit the charges.

“Let’s not go back and fall back on the same default position that when a woman that is obviously mentally ill is involved or associated with a horrific tragedy like this, we automatically prosecute them criminally to the fullest extent of the law,” he said. “These district attorneys nationwide have to start taking note, because the public is taking note, aren’t they? You saw that in the Clancy case.”

Court proceedings against MacAusland have been delayed because the medical examiner has yet to determine a cause and manner of death for her two children. Krowski Jr. asked the judge to either dismiss the charges or set bail for MacAusland, but his requests were denied. Her next court date is Oct. 29.

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 Tammy Mutasa

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    BOSTON (WBZ) — Volunteers and students came together Thursday evening in Boston’s Public Garden to plant nearly 3,000 flags, each one a tribute to the lives lost on Sept. 11, 2001.

Behind each flag is a name, a family, and a life representing the 2,977 people killed in the terrorist attacks. Twenty-five years later, the sea of red, white and blue stands on the Public Garden as a reminder to never forget.

Among the flags, one is honoring Mark Bavis, who was aboard one of the two hijacked planes that took off from Boston’s Logan Airport that morning. Teaming up with the Massachusetts 9/11 fund, his brother Patrick has now made it his mission to make sure younger generations understand what happened that day and always remember.

“It seemed like yesterday,” said Patrick Bavis. “The young kids are the future of this country, they got to understand that life isn’t fair and people get taken from you. For us in Boston, 206 victims were taken that day.”

Helping put the display together were the Navy Junior ROTC at John D. O’Bryant School and Scouting America who were learning while remembering.

“I want to give them my respects as well as honor them because that’s a really big moment in our history even though it wasn’t the best one, it’s something we all want to pay attention to,” said ROTC student Karissa Jean-Michel.

The impact of 9/11 heightens our appreciation for our first responders and service members like retired Air Force Gen. Jonathan Treacy, who commanded Otis Air National Guard Base fighter jets to respond to the attacks.

“It’s a little surreal, 25 years have gone so very fast,” said Treacy. “Those lessons that we’ve learned from 9/11 aren’t something that get passed on unless every generation has a sense for what happened, why it happened, the incredible impact of what happened and the loss of life.”

And as long as the flags stand, they also symbolize the resolve of our country after one of its darkest days.

“Nineteen terrorists took us to our knees that day, yeah they beat us that day, but the next day America came back, and I want the students today to understand that we can be strong together,” said Bavis.

The 9/11 commemoration events start at the State House on Friday at 8:30 a.m. with a reading of the names of the 219 victims with ties to Massachusetts, a moment of silence at 8:46 a.m., and the presentation of the Madeline “Amy” Sweeney Award for Civilian Bravery inside the House Chamber.

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.