Author: CNN Newsource

By Da Lin

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    SEBASTOPOL, California (KPIX) — The city of Sebastopol recently made a surprising administrative mistake: it approved the opening of a Little Caesars pizza restaurant in the downtown core, an area where chain businesses have been banned since 2018, with a few exceptions.

Francesca Malerba-Locke, who owns Attico, a local consignment furniture store, said the error goes beyond pizza. She values Sebastopol for its small shops, local flavors, and a downtown that feels unique.

“Disappointing that a big mistake like this would go through,” Malerba-Locke said. “It doesn’t add to the charm of the [town].”

She added that it could take away the commercial space from a restaurant that would have provided a better food option for locals.

City leaders discovered the mistake only after Little Caesars had already begun building out the space. By that point, officials said they couldn’t legally stop the project.

“It’s an error. The city of Sebastopol has taken ownership and admitted we’ve made an error, an administrative error on approval. But Little Caesars, I guess, took that approval and ran with it and started making improvements. And so they had a vested interest by the time we realized our error. And we had to let them move forward,” said Councilmember Neysa Hinton.

Not all residents are upset. Some younger Sebastopol residents said they welcome the fast, inexpensive option.

“For me specifically, I do like it. Because I’m a big fan of it,” said AJ Mercado, a local worker. “I mainly just like it because it’s cheap. It’s not really the best food, but it’s cheap enough for me.”

Hinton said that ultimately, the decision is up to the customers.

“The consumer now will decide whether they like it or not with their pocketbook. I point out we don’t have a Burger King and we don’t have a McDonald’s in Sebastopol. They both went out of business,” she said.

Others said they will continue supporting local businesses.

“What do I think about Little Caesars? I don’t think it’s necessarily a part of our community here in Sebastopol. There’s a lot better pizza to be had in Sebastopol. So that’s where I’ll be going,” said resident Rick Rocklewitz.

Steve DeCosse, who runs Acre Pizza — the only pizzeria in the downtown core — said the new chain won’t impact his business.

“We’re just building a resilient community, one pizza at a time. It won’t impact us because of the quality of what we do, and we’re really supported by our community, and they understand this,” he said.

For Malerba-Locke, the main takeaway is ensuring that future applications don’t slip through the cracks.

“Original as possible so that people coming to town and they see stores that are unique,” she said.

The city said it has added safeguards to prevent a similar mistake in the future. Little Caesars plans to open to the public sometime in the next week.

This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting.

Please note: 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 Taylor Hess

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    SHREWSBURY, Pennsylvania (WGAL) — Sidney Wilcox was at a red light when she noticed her car starting to smoke, prompting her to drive to a nearby parking lot to get herself and her 11-month-old son to safety, where a police officer’s act of kindness left a lasting impression.

“Just pure, just terror, not knowing what was going to happen, not knowing if he was going to get out safely or not,” Wilcox said. “You know what? If the door was locked.”

After pulling into the parking lot, Wilcox said everything went wrong at once.

“Yeah, I lost my brakes and I lost my steering. Right. As soon as I pulled in and I couldn’t pull into a spot or anything,” she said.

Not long after, the community jumped into action, with a few bystanders trying to put out the fire using fire extinguishers they had on hand. The police department and fire crews soon arrived to assist.

Officer Hanson from the Southern Regional Police Department was among those who helped the family.

“I was sitting in his car. He asked me and Henry to sit in his car because it was chilly out. You know, get warm,” Wilcox said. “So he came over and he said, ‘Whoever’s picking you up, do they have a car seat?’ And I’m like, ‘My parents are coming. I don’t know, I don’t think so.'”

In the midst of the chaos, Hanson offered a moment of pure kindness that Wilcox will never forget.

“I’m going to go ahead and I’m going to go get you a car seat. We can go up to Walmart, and we can go grab you one just so he has to take me home,” Wilcox said.

The kindness extended beyond putting out the fire.

“He said, ‘Pick out anyone you want.’ I said, ‘What’s my budget?’ And he goes, ‘Pick any one you want.’ So yeah, he was awesome,” Wilcox said.

Wilcox expressed her gratitude for the stranger who became the support her family needed in that moment.

“Thank you for being a genuine human. Because in my time of need, you were there,” she said.

Thankfully, Wilcox and her son escaped unharmed.

This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting.

Please note: 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 Barry Simms

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    BALTIMORE (WBAL) — November is Lung Cancer Awareness Month, and one Baltimore police officer shared his story of dedication to himself, his family and his job.

In March 2024, Stephen Diggs began working in the city’s Western District, an assignment he requested after graduating from the police academy. It’s a place he could not wait to get back to after battling a devastating illness.

Still, to most people’s surprise, Diggs says he’s blessed — blessed that he had Stage 3 lung cancer and not Stage 4.

Now, he is back on duty after doctors removed his left lung. He has had an extremely tough but remarkable journey. Diggs said it all started with a persistent and troubling cough. Soon after, tests showed he had a grapefruit-sized tumor in his left lung.

“I freaked out initially, the first nine days, I would say. I was having a moment with myself,” Diggs said.

Doctors performed surgery and needed to remove the whole lung.

“He took my left lung, and post-surgery, everything seemed fine for the first 12 hours. After that, I rapidly declined,” Diggs said.

Diggs was put on a ventilator for 22 days.

“I was in a coma-like state on the ventilator. There were two times I was no longer living. The doctors were great. I’m back, you know,” Diggs said.

Diggs’ recovery included learning how to walk again. He fulfilled his goal of coming back to full duty with the Baltimore police.

Now, he is again serving in the Western District, including the Penn North area — the scene of recent mass drug overdoses. He goes after guns and drugs.

“The drug aspect hits personally. My mom was an addict,” Diggs said. “She was a drug prostitute. My brother and I didn’t have a father growing up. I relate to a lot of the kids here. I think that’s why my heart is here,” Diggs said.

An African American officer intervened in Diggs’ life, and it inspired him.

“Just growing up in instability, I tell the young people here, ‘You don’t have to be a product of the environment you are in. You can overcome this,'” Diggs said.

Diggs believes he is a testament to that, and shares his experiences about life, love, caring and support with others.

This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting.

Please note: 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 Jasmine Franklin

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    NEW ORLEANS (WDSU) — Moments after tying the knot on her wedding day, a bride who works at Ochsner Hospital stepped in to save a life, while she was still wearing her wedding dress.

The same night Heather Schubert walked down the aisle celebrating her new union, she ended up at a crash scene.

“We saw a man laying across the road, and his car, all the airbags were deployed,” Heather Ramsey Schubert said.

As newlyweds, Heather and her husband were driving home on I-10 Saturday night, the off-duty nurse saw a call to action.

“When you’re a nurse and you always put other people first, that’s always my first instinct,” Schubert said.

She wasted no time, rushing to help a man critically injured in a crash, before EMS arrived.

“I assisted in the manner of seeing what his pupils were like if we had any trauma responses, which he, in fact, did have trauma. His pupils were not reactive to light,” Schubert said.

Schubert works to save lives each day at Ochsner Hospital as a nurse. She says it’s just in her blood to protect.

“There’s never a question or a hesitation, I will probably always be the person to run into the accident and see if I can help,” Schubert said.

Critical care paramedic Steven Tafoya said emergency teams are trained on how to respond to situations like this.

“Just because we’re off the clock doesn’t mean that instinct stops,” Tafoya said. “So what this lady did on her wedding day was remarkable and shows her commitment to health care in general.”

Although it was not the ending Heather expected for her wedding day, she said she would not change a thing.

“I would hope that anybody, whether they’re a nurse or not, anybody if they see someone in trouble would run and do the same thing,” Schubert said.

The victim’s condition is unclear, but everyone involved hopes for a full recovery.

This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting.

Please note: 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 Kendall Keys; Sam Schmitz

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    BROOKFIELD, Wisconsin (WISN) — A family is calling for answers after a man was found dead on a Brookfield golf course.

Brookfield police said first responders found the man hanging from a tree at the Brookfield Hills Golf Course near I-94 and Moorland Rd. early Thursday morning, Nov. 13.

Family identified the man to WISN 12 News as 39-year-old Torrance, or Tory, Medley.

Chief Chris Garcia said while their investigation remains open, evidence points to Medley’s death being a suicide.

Medley’s family said they’re without closure. They’re calling on police to conduct a thorough investigation.

“When I called and they told me what happened, I just was in a state of disbelief,” Shena Medley said. “It just doesn’t seem real.”

Shena Medley, Tory’s older sister, spoke with WISN 12 News from Hawaii about her brother. She said the family grew up in Mukwonago. Tory moved to California for some time before moving back to the Milwaukee area. Shena remembers her brother for his heart.

“He’s very mild-mannered, very sweet, very kind. I’ve never heard him speak ill of anything or anyone. He just had a very innocent spirit. One of his classmates mentioned he was a gentle, gentle soul. And that definitely was Tory,” Shena said.

“Does he have any connection to that golf course that you know about?” WISN 12 News reporter Kendall Keys asked.

“No, not that we know of,” Shena said. “He was living in Milwaukee. He was living down off of Saint Paul. So, he didn’t have a vehicle. And so the question is, how did he get out there? When did he get out there? Why did he go out there?”

Brookfield police said Tory was found with a strap around his neck. The other end was attached to a tree branch.

“None of us understand this. It’s important to know because there are other people who live in that community, if something did actually happen, people need to know how to look out and protect their children, their nieces, their nephews,” Shena said. “It’s not just, you know, a family issue for us. it’s an issue for the entire community. If it was suicide, we’ll accept that. But if it was something else, we’ll accept that, too. We just need to know that all I’s have been dotted, T’s have been crossed, and it’s been fully reviewed and investigated, which is only fair.”

Shena said that while she recognizes her brother had struggles, she doesn’t believe he would have taken his own life.

“If you ask me, honestly, I don’t think he did this, but he had some mental health challenges, so it is a possibility. But, you know, he left messages for family members talking about employment opportunities and this and that. So it didn’t sound like somebody who’s done with their life,” Shena said.

Shena asked anyone with information or possible surveillance video of her brother to come forward.

“I just wanted people to know that he had a name. That he was a really good person, a good man, and he had a family that loved him incredibly,” Shena said.

“Our hearts go out to Mr. Medley’s family and loved ones. We are still actively investigating his death. The investigation still indicates he died by suicide,” Garcia said.

On Nov. 23, the City of Brookfield Police Department said in a release that they met with Medley’s family to provide an update on their investigation.

In their Sunday release, they said there is no indication of foul play in Medley’s death. Other than injuries caused by asphyxiation, there were no other obvious signs of trauma to his body. Police said there was no evidence at the scene suggesting anyone was else was there at the time of his death.

Police said they were aware of Medley experiencing mental health challenges in the days prior to his death.

Police also said they are still working to collect as much surveillance video as possible, including places he frequented, businesses near the golf course and footage from Milwaukee County Transit System buses.

“We understand the public’s desire for answers, and we share that commitment,” Chief Christopher Garcia of the City of Brookfield Police Department said. “However, the spread of inaccurate information does not help the investigation nor the family. We will continue to follow the facts wherever they lead, and we will share additional verified information when available. Our thoughts remain with Mr. Medley’s family during this difficult and painful time.”

If you or someone you know is struggling with mental health, help is available 24/7. Text or call 988 for the National Suicide Prevention Hotline.

This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting.

Please note: 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 Steve Large

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    SACRAMENTO, California (KMAX, KOVR) — A Sacramento skid pad for drivers to do donuts all day long aims to give them the thrill of spinouts without the threat of arrest.

The acre of asphalt located on Jackson Highway is for drivers daring to turn their vehicles into thrill rides.

“You don’t have to do it on the street, that’s the big thing,” said Flora Harding, who owns an automotive business that caters to racing.

Harding created this space for drivers to test and tune their cars, and is now attracting anyone seeking a safe and legal wild ride.

“Lately, there’s been a lot of sideshows and it’s affecting businesses, it’s affecting our streets, it’s affecting police activity,” Harding said. “It’s affecting a lot of stuff.”

“So we decided, you know what, we can give these people a safe place to do this, so they don’t get into trouble,” Harding continued. “So they don’t hurt themselves or other people.”

“We’re coming out just having some fun drifting on the weekend,” driver Matthew Gershey said.

Gershey is one of the drivers who paid the $100 price for admission.

“It’s a legal spot to do it and you don’t have to worry about risking your driver’s license on the streets or anything like that,” Gershey said.

Sacramento police are just one of many local law enforcement agencies working to crack down on illegal sideshows. Street takeovers can lead to impounded cars and fines and jail time. The governor signed four laws increasing penalties statewide in 2024.

“It’s kind of a little bit of like let’s get these kids off the street and let’s help our local police officers that have to deal with this every day,” Harding said.

An EMT is on site during operating hours and a helmet is required.

This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting.

Please note: 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.