Author: CNN Newsource

By Mark Prussin, Elle McLogan

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    NEW YORK, New York (WCBS) — A concertgoer fell to his death during rock band Goose’s performance Saturday at Madison Square Garden, the New York Police Department said.

The victim has been identified as Paul Kueker, 51.

Connecticut father dies at concert Police said Kueker fell from an elevated surface inside the Garden just before 10 p.m. According to police sources, he fell from the arena’s 300 level.

Cell phone video shows first responders at the scene, the section cleared out moments after the tragic fall. Police said he was unconscious and unresponsive.

Kueker was rushed to Bellevue Hospital, where he was pronounced dead, the NYPD said.

A witness told CBS News New York the concert resumed about half an hour after the incident.

Police said Kueker was at the concert with his wife. The couple was from Connecticut, and they have two children.

Police sources say no criminality is suspected. The investigation continues.

“While we await the police report on the tragedy at last night’s Goose concert, we are deeply saddened by the loss of a fan’s life at Madison Square Garden. Our hearts go out to the family and friends of the concertgoer,” MSG said in a statement to CBS News New York.

Band reacts to tragedy “We are deeply saddened and heartbroken to learn of the tragic event that occurred at tonight’s show. We extend our deepest sympathy to everyone affected. Thank you to the emergency personnel and venue staff who stepped in with care and support,” Goose said in a statement on the band’s Instagram account Saturday night.

Goose performed Sunday at SummerStage in Central Park. They addressed the death at the beginning of their concert.

“We just wanted to take a moment to address some of the tragic events that happened at last night’s show, and extend our deepest condolences to Paul, his family, his friends and everybody who was affected by what happened,” band member Peter Anspach said.

They then held a moment of silence for Kueker.

“In moments like this, you realize life is so fragile, we’re so lucky to have an incredible community here around us. Everybody, if you’re struggling with something, please don’t be afraid to reach out to somebody in your life or send us a message. You know, please,” Anspach continued. “We got to help each other out. That’s why we’re here. People are meant to talk and be with people, so thank you everybody for coming tonight, and we really appreciate you guys so much. We love you.”

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 Jenna DeAngelis

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    NEW YORK, New York (WCBS) — Police shot a suspect who allegedly hit multiple officers with a vehicle in the Bronx on Sunday, the New York City Police Department said.

It happened near East Fordham Road and Webster Avenue.

NYPD tracks stolen vehicle According to police, around 5:35 p.m., a license plate reader flagged a Kia Sportage that had been reported stolen Saturday in the Bronx. The vehicle was first detected traveling through Washington Heights, then flagged a second time about 10 minutes later crossing the University Heights Bridge.

Police said NYPD Aviation began tracking the vehicle and notified local community response team units, who were able to locate the vehicle and follow it.

Officers saw the driver stop once to drop off a passenger, then when the vehicle stopped a second time just before 6 p.m., police said six unmarked NYPD vehicles surrounded the Kia Sportage.

Multiple officers got out of their vehicles, repeatedly telling the driver and a passenger to get out of the car, police said.

Multiple officers injured The driver allegedly reversed the vehicle into an unmarked police car and multiple members of the NYPD, then put the car into drive and drove forward, striking a sergeant, who was thrown to the ground. Police said another officer jumped onto a parked vehicle to avoid being hit.

Police said the driver then put the vehicle back into reverse.

“With the sergeant on the ground in front of the Kia and multiple additional officers in close proximity to the car, the officer on top of the parked vehicle discharged his firearm at the driver,” NYPD Assistant Chief Aneudy Castillo said.

The driver was struck at least once in the arm. He was taken to a local hospital in stable condition.

Police said the sergeant and multiple officers were taken to local hospitals to be treated for various injuries. All are reported to be in stable condition. Police did not immediately have an exact count of how many officers were injured.

The Sergeants Benevolent Association said in a statement, “We are grateful that our Sergeant, who was involved in this incident was not seriously injured and is expected to make a full recovery. Moving forward it is imperative that the Bronx District Attorney prosecute this perp to the fullest extent of the law.”

Video of the incident was captured on body-worn cameras.

The suspect has not yet been identified, but police said he is 18 years old and was arrested in February of this year in connection to a shooting in the Bronx.

A passenger who was in the vehicle was also taken into custody.

No charges have been filed yet.

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 Steve Maugeri

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    MIAMI, Florida (WFOR) — Smoke from a series of wildfires that have burned more than 20,000 acres across South Florida began to ease Sunday, bringing clearer skies to some communities after days of heavy haze and poor air quality.

For airboat captain Gregory Mislow, the fires created an unusual backdrop for his weekend tours.

“This close to the city, it was the biggest one I’ve ever seen in my life,” Mislow said. “There were times you had to cover your mouth because of it.”

Mislow captured video showing firefighters and Florida Forest Service crews working to contain the flames. He said smoke conditions became especially severe during the weekend.

“The storm rolled in right at sunset, and the smoke was so thick you couldn’t see my neighbor’s house from where I was standing,” he said. “It was crazy.”

Officials say the wildfires have burned more than 20,000 acres combined. Firefighters continue working to contain the blazes, though authorities have not provided a timeline for when they expect the fires to be fully extinguished.

The fires also disrupted travel across parts of Miami-Dade County. Officials temporarily closed sections of Krome Avenue, creating significant traffic delays for drivers.

“I had one lady tell me it took her three hours to get around a spot that should have taken 15 minutes,” Mislow said.

On Saturday, smoke drifted farther inland, with some residents reporting ash falling onto vehicles and property.

“My apartment is full, full, full of smoke, and my dog is having a hard time,” said Jefferson Godoy of Doral. “He’s an old dog, so it’s not an easy situation we’re going through right now.”

Miami-Dade Fire Rescue is urging people with respiratory conditions to limit their time outdoors while smoke remains in the area. Although major roadways are currently open, the Florida Department of Transportation warns that conditions could change depending on fire activity and visibility concerns.

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 Marybel Rodriguez, Steven Yablonski

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    MIAMI, Florida (WFOR) — Closing arguments are set to begin Monday in the fatal boat crash trial of Miami real estate developer George Pino after an emotional and sometimes tense eight days of testimony.

Court is expected to resume around 9:30 a.m.

Judge Marisa Tinkler Mendez wants closing arguments to begin at 10 a.m., and will then send the jury to lunch. When they return, she’s expected to give them their instructions and then send them to deliberate.

Prosecutors and Pino’s defense attorneys will deliver their final arguments to the jury Monday morning.

The jury, which is made up of five men and one woman, will decide whether 54-year-old Pino is guilty or not guilty of manslaughter and vessel homicide charges stemming from the fatal boat crash off Boca Chita Key in Biscayne Bay over the Labor Day holiday weekend in 2022.

Lucy Fernandez, who was 17-year-old at the time, was killed and Katy Puig, now 21, was left with permanent disabilities from the injuries she suffered in the crash.

On Sept. 4, 2022, George Pino crashed into a channel marker, and during the trial the jury saw video of the 12 girls who were on the boat at the time.

The jury also left the courtroom to see the boat involved in the crash.

Mendez told the legal team that if they pass a certain time on Monday, she will buy the jury dinner and send them into the jury room to keep deliberating.

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 Charlie Lapastora

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    SACRAMENTO, California (KOVR) — A Stanislaus County woman is sharing her story of overcoming racism and disappointment in the world of classical music, while finding purpose through faith, family and perseverance.

For Renita Alexander, playing the piano has always been more than a hobby.

“It’s soothing for the soul,” Alexander said. “It allows you to just dream of possibilities of where your life can go.”

A melodious symphony, reciting what she learned from memory as a child growing up in Oakland, Alexander has a gift. But a crescendo of voices in her head saying “nobody cares” and “I’m not good enough” played throughout her mind after experiencing what she described as prejudice and racism.

“In the ’70s, ’80s, all the way up to the ’90s, doors just kept being closed in my face,” Alexander said. “I was always the only Black person in the room or at the competitions.”

Despite the obstacles, she continued playing.

“I just tried over and over and over, but they would always give me runner-up or first place,” Alexander said. “And then when I actually won, they just told me there were no scholarships that year.”

One of the defining moments came in 1980 when she represented California as one of three finalists in a nationwide competition associated with Liberace.

Alexander said she spent a year preparing for the event and believed she had delivered a flawless performance.

“I knew I had won,” she said.

Instead, another contestant was named the winner.

“My music teacher was there and she went to the judges, and she argued with them,” Alexander said. “She demanded to see the scores and when you read the scores, it had me as number one, all three judges. But I didn’t get it.”

The experience devastated her.

“I remember I didn’t touch the piano for like a year,” she said.

Alexander eventually stepped away from pursuing music professionally. She changed her college major and earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration.

Looking back, she believes discrimination played a role in many of the setbacks she faced.

“I had learned it wasn’t about the music,” Alexander said. “It was my skin color that just wasn’t good enough. And that was hard.”

But rather than allow bitterness to define her life, Alexander focused on her faith and her family.

“God has told me nothing is lost,” Alexander told CBS News Sacramento. “I’m still able to play. I’m still able to enjoy it. You’re standing in a home where this is a miracle home, absolute miracle. I had no money, but yet I bought this brand new home, single parent.”

As a single mother, Alexander raised two sons who both went on to earn college degrees.

Her eldest son, Edward Brown, said his mother’s resilience shaped his life.

“She’s had a lot of wrong done to her, a lot of injustice done to her,” Brown said. “But my mom always turns around and does the right thing, and that’s powerful for me and my brother to have as examples.”

Alexander said she made a conscious decision not to pass her pain on to her children.

“I decided that I will raise my children not to hate, not to have prejudice,” she said. “So I am proud of that. So out of that pain, something positive did come out of that.”

Today, Alexander continues playing piano and remains active in her community. She recently joined the Patterson Planning Commission and is working on a seven-part book series focused on faith.

If she could give advice to her younger self, Alexander said it would be simple: “Don’t quit. Keep the faith.”

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 Alan Gionet

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    DENVER, Colorado (KCNC) — A rescue mission flown to retrieve an injured climber last weekend is now the highest known hoist rescue ever in Colorado.

On June 13, a Colorado Army National Guard UH-60L Black Hawk helicopter lifted two hoist rescue technicians to an injured man from a saddle on the east side of Crestone Peak near the border of Custer and Saguache Counties.

The Army National Guard says the man was hoisted at 14,356 feet, with the UH-60L Blackhawk maintaining a peak hover at 14,380 feet with 180 feet of cable extended.

The climber was a man who had fallen 30 feet and while he was wearing a helmet he complained of head and other injuries.

Search and rescue teams from Custer and Saguache Counties as well as Alamosa were hiking in on the ground as two hoist rescue specialists from Alpine Rescue were lowered in from the air. Two other medical helicopters were nearby on either side of the peak to assist as well.

Once the man was lifted off the mountain, he was airlifted to medical care and at last word was doing well. Saturday’s rescue exceeded the height flown during a rescue in 2025 on Torreys Peak in which a lightning victim was retrieved. That person was hoisted from an altitude of over 14,200 feet. High altitude flying is inherently risky because of the lack of lift in thin air.

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 Sarles

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    DENVER, Colorado (KCNC) — A man is in the hospital in western Colorado after another man allegedly shot him with a crossbow. That’s according to the Mesa County Sheriff’s Office, which says the crime happened earlier this week in Clifton.

Curtis Fryer, 47, was arrested is accused of firing the crossbow at the victim on Tuesday night in the 400 block of Cougar Run Court.

Fryer, who lives in Clifton, is now charged with assault, menacing and reckless endangerment.

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 Lauren Victory

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    CHICAGO, Illinois (WBBM) — Four Black-owned construction firms joined forces with a fifth company to create a model never seen before in the industry and oversee the construction of the newly opened Obama Presidential Center. Now they’re hoping to leave behind a lasting legacy.

The dream of what eventually became Lakeside Alliance started while President Barack Obama was still in office. A 2015 lunch meeting between construction competitors turned foes into family.

“We all became one big working family,” said Kelly Powers Baria, executive vice president at Powers & Sons Construction, which teamed up with Brown & Momen, Safeway Construction, UJAMAA Construction, and Turner Construction Company to form Lakeside Alliance. “Ten years ago, we would’ve thought of ourselves much more as competitors.”

Baria represents the third generation of Powers & Sons. It was her father’s idea to go big on a bid for the Obama Presidential Center project by collaborating with other construction firms – specifically Black-owned companies, like Jimmy Akintonde’s UJAMAA Construction.

“We needed to be not just be part of the construction process, we needed to lead it, and that was his idea, and that’s when he planted it in my head. I thought he was a little crazy,” Akintonde said.

Crazy because such an alliance was unheard of. The four minority contractors are rivals turned revolutionizers.

On their own, they wouldn’t have been hired for this large of a job, because their businesses were too small.

“There are limitations up to a certain point,” said Ernest Brown, founder of Brown & Momen.

So the four companies pooled their talent, resources, and experience to make it happen.

“Everyone’s path to get here was different, so everyone’s past experience and what they could bring to the table was different,” Baria said.

Turner Construction helped navigate those challenges as the fifth founding member of Lakeside Alliance. The megafirm books billions of dollars of work a year: airports, hotels, data centers, and more.

“This is a generational project. Because of the complexity of the building – the building’s complex, the building is you know, very high quality, but it’s also who the building is for and what that represents,” said Junisa Brima, vice president and construction executive at Turner Construction.

The huge undertaking with not one but five companies in charge meant a lot of cooks in the kitchen.

“That added some complexity, for a bunch of company cultures coming together, but it also added to the sense of one team,” Brima said.

Akintonde said Lakeside Alliance proved they could collaborate successfully on such a large project. The team shrugs off criticism that the end result was overbudget and overdue. The project initially was estimated to cost $500 million and to be completed in 2021, but by selecting historic Jackson Park for the site of the center led to a lengthy federal review process and legal challenges. The cost of the project ended up being $850 million.

“There are adjustments on any project. I don’ot care how small or large it is,” Brown said.

Lakeside Alliance said they’re focused on and proud of what they accomplished together. It’s a list that’ll keep growing as the team takes on other projects.

“The idea of collaboration, especially when it’s lived, it’s a really nice thing to have,” Akintonde said. “It’s an industry future.”

A future full of representation that they hope young eyes will notice.

Safeway Construction CEO John W. Bonds, sadly, did not live to see the Obama Presidential Center completed. He passed away last year, but Lakeside Alliance said he was an integral part of the team, who had an uncanny ability to get them laughing whenever something went

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 Kristina Rex

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    DUXBURY, Massachusetts (WBZ) — For one of the final hearings ahead of her July 20 murder trial, Lindsay Clancy was wheeled into the Plymouth courtroom in a wheelchair.

Clancy is paralyzed after a suicide attempt on the same night she allegedly killed her three children back in 2023 in Duxbury, Massachusetts. She receives full-time care at Tewksbury Hospital and receives rides with nurses’ care 64 miles to and from the Plymouth court.

Prosecutors allege that Clancy murdered her three young children on a January night in 2023, as her husband Patrick was out getting the family takeout.

“She takes responsibility,” Clancy’s lawyer Kevin Reddington said after the hearing. “She, as the kids say, she owns it. She’s not running away from anything here. This whole case is an extreme tragedy.”

Reddington said nobody disputes what happened the night of the children’s death. Rather, they dispute why.

Clancy’s defense will focus on her mental health. Her lawyer alleges that postpartum mental health issues caused the tragic result that night. Prosecutors, rather, claim the acts were planned and deliberate.

Husband will testify in trial In one of the final hearings ahead of the trial on Thursday, prosecutors revealed that Patrick Clancy, Lindsay’s husband and the father of the three children, will testify in the trial. They also asked the judge for permission to play his harrowing 911 call, during which he discovers his children’s lifeless bodies.

Judge Sullivan said he’s likely to allow the entire 911 clip to be played for the jury but wants to listen to it first to determine if any of it needs to be excluded from trial.

There were some heated moments in the hearing, as lawyers sparred over whether Lindsay Clancy’s parents and sister should be allowed in the courtroom before they’re called to testify.

“We’ve tried to meet with these witnesses, with the defendant’s parents and sister, but they’ve refused to meet with us for trial prep,” prosecutor Jennifer Sprague told the judge.

Defense attorney Kevin Reddington replied emphatically, “Well, here we go I guess – starting right out of the gate. That is absolutely improper to represent that they refused to meet with the district attorney.”

“We have been extremely cooperative,” Reddington said.

One other contentious point, the man who now owns Clancy’s Duxbury home is asking the court to prohibit the jury from a “view” to see the crime scene. “I find it very disingenuous of the homeowner, who is an attorney and not only an attorney, but he was a prosecutor in our office and so he knows how we handle cases,” Prosecutor Sprague told the judge. “He knows how we do trials. And now he’s a defense attorney in this county.”

The judge disregarded the homeowner’s privacy concerns and said he would allow the jury to go on a “view” to the scene during trial.

Lindsay Clancy’s presence in courtroom Regarding Clancy’s presence, attorney Reddington told reporters he’s inclined to get permission to keep her out of the courtroom for especially gruesome testimony, including autopsy photos.

Still, he said his client would likely want to be present if the court so orders despite the pain. “I don’t understand how she’s going to be able to have the strength to go through that,” Reddington said. “Well, people say, ‘well you know she did it so she’s going to have to go through it.'”

Clancy has another hearing on July 13 and jury selection starts on July 20. The trial is expected to last four to six weeks.

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.