Author: CNN Newsource

By Marvin Hurst

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    TEXAS (KTVT) — Hood County Sheriff dispatch audio reveals an elderly person in a critical situation. The man, who CBS News Texas is not identifying, called the sheriff’s office with a weak voice seeking help.

DISPATCH: Hood County 911, what’s your emergency?

CALLER: I’m calling to get someone to bring water to my house.

DISPATCH: To do what?

CALLER: Get someone to bring water to my house.

A rise in the dispatcher’s voice conveyed a sense of shock in the request. However, the weak voice on the end kept calm.

DISPATCH: Like, is there something going on?

CALLER: Yeah, I’m out of water.

DISPATCH You’re out of water?

CALLER: Yes, sir.

DISPATCH: Okay, so you called 911.

CALLER: Yes.

The deputy connected the man in his 70s to the pantry at the Granbury Church of Christ. The meals from the church would get delivered, but it wasn’t enough. The man had called the emergency line at least twice. He became more specific.

CALLER: Well, I have no water.

DISPATCH: I’m sorry, what’s going on?

CALLER: I have no water and no food.

CALLER: My truck broke down, so I’m stuck here at the house with no water and no food. I’ve been here now for 13 days with no water or food.

Hood County faces growing need for senior meals as funding cuts impact local services Mary Flores is the crime victims’ liaison for Hood County. She also serves on the Salvation Army’s advisory board. This was a different call for her.

“We have about 10 or 11 food pantries here in Hood County,” she said. “For this particular man to call law enforcement for food and water, we knew that there was a need.”

Flores, who has worked for HCSO for 10 years, said she could tell something was wrong with the man. She said he had no family in Texas. He did not have running water or an operating septic system.

“I knew he wasn’t feeling well,” she said. “I knew he was sick. I can tell.”

Meals on Wheels faces long waiting lists amid budget cuts She got him to agree to sign up for Meals on Wheels only to find out he’d be on a waiting list. The Hood County Meals on Wheels lost $181,000 in funding. That money has impacted transportation, congregate meals at the senior center in Granbury and the Meals on Wheels program.

“We make in-person visits, with a ready-to-eat meal, through volunteers to ensure safety, nutrition and emotional well-being,” Meredith Corrigan said. “Our patrons that walk into our doors every day have a sense of community and engagement that they may not get elsewhere.”

Corrigan, the Senior Center’s director, has 65 seniors on a waiting list now. In January, the center separated services for 47 seniors. In November, 25 more are a possibility to make the budget align.

Senior Center director warns of rising isolation and food insecurity “Without programs like these, seniors and their caregivers will become more isolated, some will have increased food insecurity, and others be forced into institutional living at a much higher cost,” she said.

The man Flores wanted to help was retired. He had some life in church. She asked him to put his hand on the Bible that he would go to the doctor to get checked. The man agreed. He found he had cancer.

“My biggest concern would have been if we had found him dead in his home,” she said.

Even if he had been well, the waiting list would not have shortened the time to get a meal. Kristi Mann is a volunteer who delivers meals in Hood County.

“I guess I didn’t realize we were actually delivering to people who had no means of obtaining food, or even driving to get food. So if you’re not the one taking the food to them, they really have no way of getting it,” Mann said.

The 46-year-old said she was not prepared for what she’s seen among the elderly. She is certain the interactions are fruitful, and for some, it’s the only person they will see.

“Some of the houses that I’ve driven up to, half of the house might be burned. And the other half of the house is something they might have been living in temporarily, or an RV next to the burned-down house,” she said.

In five years, she said her route has decreased from 20 to two people.

Records show the man called HCSO on May 27 and June 13. He was hospitalized for treatment. According to Flores, he is out of the hospital with his children. His face is still imprinted on her life.

“When I heard about that number on that wait list, I saw his face. There’s more of him,” Flores said. “There’s more people out there like him. And we shouldn’t have people like that in our communities needing food and water.”

Hood County approved $100,00 from its emergency disaster fund to combat hunger during the government shutdown, to be divided among its participating non-profits. In the meantime, Flores wrote a proposal to the Salvation Army to adopt 25 seniors so they would not go hungry.

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By Leigh Searcy

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    GEORGETOWN, Kentucky (WLEX) — A Michigan man has been charged after home security video captured him attempting to get children at a northern Scott County home to open their front door by falsely claiming their parents were injured outside.

Anthony Britton, 35, of Southfield, Michigan, was charged with falsely reporting an incident and second-degree burglary after the November 15 incident, according to Sheriff Jeremy Nettles.

The security footage shows Britton knocking on the door around 6:45 p.m. and telling the children inside that their parents were hurt and lying on the ground outside.

“Your mom and dad are out here hurt. They’re laying on the ground right here, I promise you,” Britton can be heard saying on the video. “I was walking through the neighborhood, I promise you, I’m not harming anybody. They are hurt.”

The children were home with a babysitter and never came to the door. The babysitter reported the man but didn’t initially realize everything he had said, Nettles said.

“This evening could have went bad based upon this individual’s actions and the way he was talking trying to lure somebody outside or at least trying to open the door,” Nettles said.

Police say Britton had walked away from a nearby recovery center. On the same night, he called 911 asking for help and claiming people were chasing him in the woods. Deputies responded and gave him a ride to a different location but didn’t connect the two incidents at the time.

It wasn’t until several days later that the parents watched and shared the security video with deputies, realizing the seriousness of the situation. That’s when the sheriff’s department connected Britton to the man caught on camera.

“It’s really scary that what could have happened that night. I’m glad no one answered the door and he didn’t try to force his way in,” Nettles said.

Deputies say Britton appeared to be under the influence during the incident. Nettles said Britton was apologetic but couldn’t explain his actions.

“We don’t know what his intent was that night, what he was planning to do if somebody were to open that door. It’s a scary situation,” Nettles said.

Nettles said the case serves as a reminder for people to always lock their doors.

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By Lauren Victory, Marissa Sulek, Sara Machi

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    CHICAGO (WBBM) — A new reward is being offered for information to help find the shooter who killed a 14-year-old boy Friday night in the Loop, in the first of two shootings downtown, which left one teen dead and eight others wounded.

The gunfire erupted after thousands of people had gathered to celebrate the Christmas tree lighting in Millennium Park.

Cook County Crime Stoppers immediately offered a $10,000 reward for information leading to the identification and arrest of those responsible for the two shootings.

On Monday, the Youth Peace and Justice Foundation – a Texas-based nonprofit – offered a $5,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of those responsible for the death of 14-year-old Armani Floyd, who was killed in the second of those two shootings.

The first shooting happened around 9:50 p.m. Friday, when seven teens were shot outside the Chicago Theatre, in the 100 block of North State Street. All seven victims were taken to hospitals in good or fair condition.

Around 10:40 p.m., two more teens were shot near Dearborn and Adams streets, a few blocks away. Armani Floyd, 14, was shot multiple times and was taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. An 18-year-old man was also shot in the leg and was taken to Northwestern in serious condition.

Amari was part of Project sWISH Chicago, a nonprofit basketball program for teens. Project sWISH founder and basketball coach McKinley Nelson said he’s not sure what led to Amari’s death, but he was shocked to hear the news.

Nelson described Amari as “super funny, super competitive, great kid, right?”

“I played basketball some years ago. I mean, he always, like, wants to challenge me, right? Like, old man or unc, like, ‘you don’t got it anymore,’ like, that kind of stuff, right?” Nelson said. I told him if he beat me in a one-on-one, I would get him a pair of shoes for Christmas. He did not beat me, but I still promised him a pair of shoes for Christmas.

Project sWISH won’t play a game the next time they meet. Instead, therapists will be available to talk to Armani’s friends about his death.

Mayor Brandon Johnson said Chicago police were aware of social media posts promoting a so-called “teen takeover” downtown on Friday night, and that Chicago Public Schools had sent letters home to parents. Police also put an extra 700 officers on patrol, using some of the same precautions that prevented teen takeovers in the summer.

“What we put in place did not do enough for what we were concerned about from actually manifesting,” Mayor Johnson said. “Our young people have to understand that they should not attend these unauthorized events that are advertised on social media. They are extremely dangerous due to the number of individuals that may be carrying weapons, especially semiautomatic weapons.”

“So, the precautions themselves and the measures that we took, we learned a lesson that they don’t work 100% of the time,” said Ald. Brian Hopkins (2nd).

Hopkins said he’s talking to other councilmembers about re-visiting the idea of a snap curfew since they knew about the crowds of teens days before they met up.

“This is a tool that would have been used by the police at that time. They actually did start enforcing the curfew when the law allowed them to Friday night, which was 10 p.m., but by then it was too late. The shootings had already occurred,” he said.

Hopkins said there were other major red flags earlier in the night on Friday. He said when police initially tried to break up some crowds of kids, some of the teens used pepper spray on police, one even tried to pull a stun gun on officers.

Johnson said 18 arrests were made Friday night, and five guns were recovered in the aftermath of the shooting. The mayor called the shootings a setback for the city. Hopkins said another 18 teens faced curfew detentions after the 10 p.m. curfew went into effect.

As of Monday morning, no one was in custody for either shooting.

Vigil held for Armani Floyd in South Shore Dozens, including the father, a violence prevention advocate, and siblings of Floyd, were in the South Shore neighborhood on Monday evening to grieve the tragic loss.

The vigil was held near Gary Comer Middle School. Each person in attendance had a balloon with a message on it, which they released in honor of the 14-year-old they describe as an athlete, comedian, and a go-getter.

“Armani always had the biggest smile on his face. A smile never left Armani’s face,” Breanna Thomas said.

“He was going to have a very bright future. He was going places in basketball. He stayed fresh. Everyone loved Armani.” Nyah DeBerry said.

“He didn’t deserve that, he really didn’t,” Ayesha Harkness said.

City officials said social media warned them of a teen trend or a large gathering, and they did nothing.

Ald. William Hall (6th Ward) is now proposing a city ordinance that requires social media companies to take down posts advertising the teen gatherings if the city tells them to.

“If we are asking communities to partner with us. If we are asking parents to partner with us how is it that social media companies are exempt from this?” he said.

“My son was downtown that night as well, and so, I was just shocked because this was someone who he was just recently with.” Precious Edmondson said.

Edmondson and Pam Peterson are parents who knew Floyd well. After the weekend, they want to see more resources in the community for teens to keep them from downtown.

“I usually don’t let my son do stuff like that, but you know, when you are a teen mom, you have to let go,” Edmondson said. “That night I did, and I don’t regret it because that was his last night with Armani.”

In the ordinance Hall is proposing, he said social media platforms must take down posts about teen gatherings in six hours. If they don’t, they must explain wh,y or they will be fined $50,000.

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By Alex Orenczuk

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    ST. JAMES CITY, Florida (WFTX) — A heartwarming rescue unfolded in St. James City when a charter boat captain helped save a baby dolphin that became stranded in shallow water near Monroe Canal Marina.

Captain Shane Kelly said he was heading out with his clients near the Monroe Canal Marina, where they spotted several dolphins.

“There’s a bunch of dolphins that hang out in that area,” said Kelly. “And it’s nice because clients get to see dolphins right away.”

But Kelly noticed the dolphins were staying in the same general area, not swimming up and down the canal which he said is typical.

“They just kept rolling around in the same area over and over and over,” Kelly told Fox 4.

That’s when Kelly said he heard a loud squeaking.

“So, I go a little closer and you could see the top of the baby dolphin sticking out of the water in half of his back,” said Kelly.

Video captured by a Fox 4 viewer shows the dramatic moment Kelly hopped in the water and guided the young dolphin back to deeper water, where it was able to swim away and reunite with its mother.

“I think the coolest part definitely wasn’t even being that close to him or touching him or anything like that,” Kelly said. “It was pushing him off and then him getting with his mom and just taking off. And then we were out there this afternoon again and he was sitting there jumping around playing with his mom.”

The rescue had a happy ending, with the dolphin pair swimming away together safely.

However, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission reminds the public that touching wild dolphins is not recommended. If you encounter a dolphin in distress, FWC asks that you call them first so an agent can provide guidance on the appropriate response.

This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. WFTX verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.

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By Bradley Davis

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    PUEBLO WEST, Colorado (KRDO) — Pueblo West show dog, Jax (Superjax), is proving old dogs can learn new tricks.

“He’s not going to stop,” Jax’s owner, Drea Incitti, said about her 10-year-old dog. “He’s like a missile.”

For nine years, Drea and Jax have been a duo to be reckoned with in Dock Diving.

Dock Diving is a canine sport where competitors jump as far as they can off a “dock” into a pool. The handler throws a stick-like toy over the water, and the dog runs after to catch it before landing in the pool. Incitti’s role is like a pitching coach trying to deliver a perfect pitch to their hitter during the home run derby.

Jax and Drea competed for the final time just a few weeks ago. Looking like a dog five years his Junior, Jax delivered his best performance yet, winning second place in North America for his age group.

“Tears just started to come out of my eyes, and I had to reflect on the whole journey we’d taken together. It meant something in that moment, like, we did it!” Incitti said.

Even though his competition days are past him, Jax still begs for throws into the pool. It’s a request Drea is happy to oblige. She said she relishes every moment the two get together.

“Wherever I go, he goes,” Incitti said. “He’s like my child. I didn’t have any, so this is my kid. He’s pretty special. He’s my heart dog.”

Jax really is man’s (and woman’s) best friend. Drea said he’s also trained to throw trash away for you, grab you a tissue, or even a beer from the fridge.

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