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By Jonathan Greco

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    STEPHENS COUNTY, Oklahoma (KOCO) — Authorities arrested a suspect in connection with a deadly Stephens County shooting after he admitted to investigators that he was target practicing with a gun he had gotten for Christmas.

Around 3:15 p.m. Thursday, Survival Flight EMS and the Meridian Fire Department responded after a person was shot on County Road 1800. That person later died.

The Stephens County Sheriff’s Office said an investigation revealed that a person received a gun for Christmas and was target practicing in his backyard. Investigators believe the person was pointing the gun in the direction of the scene where the victim was shot.

Authorities said investigators spoke with someone who said he was shooting at a target in his backyard and that he had heard that someone died from a gunshot wound a couple of roads over.

An arrest was later made for first-degree manslaughter. Information about the victim and suspect has not been released.

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 KC Downey

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    MANCHESTER, New Hampshire (WMUR) — A rare, brightly colored lobster was found recently off the Isles of Shoals.

A woman told WMUR her father caught the blue lobster a couple of weeks ago.

She said this was the fourth blue lobster her dad had captured.

The lobster was then taken to Newick’s Lobster House for a few days before it was transferred to the Seacoast Science Center in Rye.

It’s estimated that about 1 out of 1 million lobsters is blue.

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 Cecilio Padilla

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    SACRAMENTO (KOVR) — An investigation is underway at Lake Natoma near Sacramento after the body of a man was recovered late Monday morning.

California State Parks officials confirmed that the body of a man was found and recovered from the lake around 11:20 a.m.

Search crews had been out at the lake since the weekend, looking for a man who was last seen late on Dec. 27.

The missing man’s e-bike and belongings were found along the western edge of Lake Natoma, just downstream of Black Miner’s Bar, officials say. Search crews were out all weekend looking for the man.

Officials did not release the name of the missing man. State parks also didn’t confirm if the person found dead on Monday was the missing man.

The Sacramento County Coroner’s Office is responding to the lake for further investigation.

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 Mary Eber

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    MARYLAND (WJZ) — Maryland has some of the highest cases of Lyme disease in the nation, yet funding for research is in jeopardy.

Lyme disease is the most common and fastest-growing vector-borne disease in the United States. Approximately 476,000 Americans are diagnosed and treated for it each year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

In Maryland, Lyme disease cases have nearly doubled since 2020, according to the latest data from the Maryland Department of Health.

The infection is spread by black-legged tick bites, or deer ticks, which are most common across the eastern U.S. In early stages of the disease symptoms appear as flu-like, but if left untreated, it can affect the joints, heart, and nervous system.

“It’s not an illness that can be taken lightly, said Nicole Baumgarth, director of the Lyme and Tickborne Diseases Research and Education Institute at Johns Hopkins University. “These long ongoing symptoms can really change some person’s life.”

Push for renewed funding Baumgarth said the Kay Hagan Tick Act was a big source of funding for Lyme disease research. It provided $30 million annually from 2021-2025 for prevention, early detection, and treatment of tick-borne and other vector-borne diseases.

The funding enabled the first-ever clinical trial for a Lyme disease vaccine for humans, which is currently underway at the MaineHealth Institute for Research.

Now some lawmakers are pushing to renew the Kay Hagan Tick Act. The new reauthorization act would provide more than $27 million annually through 2030. It’s named after former North Carolina Senator Kay Hagan who died from a tick-borne disease in 2019.

Democratic Rep. Jamie Raskin of Maryland is a co-sponsor of the companion bill in the House bill to reauthorize the Kay Hagan Tick Act.

A date has not yet been scheduled for a full vote in the Senate.

Impact of funding cuts In 2025, researchers across the country faced federal funding cuts and tick-borne disease researchers were no exception.

Funding from the Department of Defense for Lyme and other tick-borne disease research was eliminated in 2025, after previously receiving $7 million in Fiscal Year 2024.

Congress’s March 2025 continuing resolution to fund the government for the rest of the fiscal year included a 57% cut to the Department of Defense Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP). Funding for the Tick-Borne Disease Research Program (TBDRP), fell under this umbrella and was cut for 2025.

In June, Johns Hopkins University joined a federal lawsuit to block cuts to research funding by the Department of Defense. Johns Hopkins has active grants from the Department of Defense totaling approximately $375 million across multiple years, according to the university.

Baumgarth said she applied for grant funding with colleagues through CDMRP.

“We spent weeks and months writing, and it’s just not being considered,” said Baumgarth.

It was for research to identify biomarkers that could tell early on if a patient was likely to develop Post-Treatment Lyme Disease Syndrome, sometimes referred to as “long Lyme.” It’s when patients experience prolonged symptoms of the disease.

Another source of funding for Baumgarth’s lab is the National Institutes of Health.

“The NIH has massive funding delays currently,” said Baumgarth. “That affects, of course, everybody, not just tick-borne illnesses, but that is still our biggest source of funding.”

One grant Baumgarth submitted studies the impact of Borrelia burgdorferi infection (the disease-causing agent of Lyme disease) on gastrointestinal health and immune dysfunction. It’s undergone both peer review and NIH council review, but she has not been told whether it will be funded.

Another grant application she’s submitted focuses on developing a predictive model of what type of ticks may be in a particular location, what diseases they may transmit and the likelihood of that transmission. Baumgarth is hoping to learn more once it undergoes a peer review set for early January.

“Playbook has changed” “Every researcher that runs a lab is running, in a way, a small business, said Baumgarth. “We hire people, we have to lay people off if the funding runs out, and so we are used to the sort of coming and going of grants, but it seems that the playbook has changed and so it’s very hard to predict where the money comes [from], when it will come, will it come in the total amount we requested or half the amount and so that uncertainty makes it very difficult.”

Baumgarth said she is fortunate her lab has not had to lay people off yet, but said that might change in the future.

Johns Hopkins University consistently receives more funding from the NIH than any other university or entity in the U.S. In fiscal year 2024, it received approximately $1,022,300,000 in research funding from NIH, according to the university. In February, Johns Hopkins joined a federal lawsuit against the National Institute of Health over medical research funding cuts.

Where are Lyme disease cases found? Most Lyme disease cases are found in states in the Northeast including Maryland, New York, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts and New Jersey.

“Certainly, climate is driving a lot of this,” said Baumgarth. “Ticks like it warm, and they like it moist, and so as the northern hemisphere is currently increasing in temperature, clearly that becomes more hospitable for ticks.”

Climate change exacerbates the problem because ticks that carry the Lyme-causing bacteria are expanding their ranges, according to the CDC. As of 2023, Wisconsin now has the fifth highest number of Lyme disease cases in the U.S.

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 Christopher Harris

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    DORAVILLE, Georgia (WUPA) — A small twin-engine plane crashed into a Doraville homeowner’s backyard on Sunday morning after experiencing engine trouble just miles from its destination, authorities said.

The six-seater Beechcraft King Air B90 went down around 9:35 a.m., about three miles from DeKalb-Peachtree Airport. DeKalb County police said the plane struck trees before crashing near 2692 Homeland Drive in Doraville. Officials said the aircraft did not directly strike any homes or other structures.

DeKalb County Fire Rescue officials said the plane was only a couple of miles from the runway when the crew reported engine trouble. The plane had departed from Miami earlier that morning.

“They decided they were gonna try to ground it,” said DeKalb County Fire Rescue Battalion Chief Kevin Cavanaugh. “They hit the pine trees about 80 or 90 feet up and basically stopped at the trees and landed straight down in between two houses. No structures involved.”

Two people were on board at the time of the crash. DeKalb County police confirmed both were transported to the hospital in stable condition. Fire officials said the injuries were minor, including scratches, with no broken bones reported.

Cavanaugh said both occupants were able to walk away from the wreckage, and he spoke with them at the scene.

“Considering the conditions, they seemed like they were in good shape for what they’ve been through,” he said.

There was no fire following the crash.

Doraville police shut down several nearby streets as crews worked the scene and dealt with a large debris field.

The National Transportation Safety Board said it has opened an investigation̄ investigation into Sunday morning’s crash. Its investigation will focus on three main areas: the pilot, the aircraft and the operating environment. Investigators will review flight track data, air traffic control communications, aircraft maintenance records and the pilot’s license, ratings and recent flight experience.

Anyone who witnessed the crash or has surveillance video or other information is asked to contact the NTSB at witness@ntsb.gov.

The FAA and NTSB are leading the investigation.

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By Emily Pofahl

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    MILWAUKEE (WISN) — A Milwaukee mother and business owner’s car was stolen from her driveway Christmas Eve, then involved in a fiery crash that sent three people to the hospital Christmas Day.

Milwaukee police say the crash happened at about 3 p.m. near 68th Street and Fiebrantz Avenue when a driver of an SUV failed to yield the right of way and collided with another car. The SUV then hit an unoccupied vehicle and then a tree. It then caught on fire.

Video of the fiery aftermath was posted online.

“I knew instantly when I saw the video, I’m like, ‘Oh my God, that is my car,'” said Baboonie Tatum, the car’s owner.

Tatum’s daughter discovered the car missing on Christmas Eve, along with discovering that two other family cars in their driveway near 27th and State streets had been ransacked. Tatum said the thieves stole multiple items and opened some Christmas gifts the family had stored in the vehicles.

Tatum believes the thieves used a key fob programmer to access the locked cars without breaking any windows. WISN 12 News has previously reported on the rise in the use of technology that makes it easier to break into vehicles.

“We need to talk to the car dealerships and the people that are making these gadgets that are able to start cars,” she said.

Two 18-year-olds and a 19-year-old inside Tatum’s car were taken to the hospital and subsequently arrested. Police told Tatum the three found with her car after the crash are the three who stole it in the first place.

“It’s just frustrating, though, you know? I work hard. I don’t bother anybody. I go to work, I go home, that’s it. For somebody to take something that I work hard for — it’s frustrating,” Tatum said.

The police confirmed that the three individuals taken to the hospital will survive and have been arrested, with charges being referred to the district attorney.

Despite the setback, Tatum, who owns Rise and Grind Cafe on MLK Drive, plans to start saving for a replacement car.

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 Allen Cone

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    BOYNTON BEACH, Florida (WPBF) — Boynton Beach police arrested a 24-year-old man in connection with the death of a 17-year-old boy during a dispute at a residence on Sunday morning.

Stay up to date: The latest headlines and weather from WPBF 25

Trenton Robinson, of Boynton Beach, is facing a second-degree murder charge. He was booked into the Palm Beach County Jail at 4:22 p.m. Sunday.

During a first appearance Monday, a judge ordered him held on no bond, with his next court date set for 10:30 a.m. Jan. 27.

Around 9:15 a.m. Sunday, police received a report of a minor who had been shot near the 500 block of Northwest Ninth Avenue in Boynton Beach. During the 911 call, Robinson could be heard saying, “It was an accident.”

BBPD officers found 17-year-old Josiah Jones suffering from a gunshot wound to the abdomen. Boynton Beach Fire Rescue took Jones to Delray Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.

According to a preliminary investigation, Robinson came to the residence to pick up his 2-year-old son from the mother of his child, 24-year-old Zariah Jones.

An argument occurred between Zariah and Robinson, police said.

As the situation escalated, Zariah’s brother, Josiah Jones, attempted to separate the two arguing individuals.

Robinson retrieved a gun from his pocket and discharged one round, striking Jones, police said.

Robinson told investigators that Jones had him pinned to a bed and that he was attempting to remove an unholstered gun from his sweatshirt pocket to avoid shooting himself. The gun accidentally discharged, police said.

Police found a .40-caliber handgun at the scene along with one shell casing.

Zariah told investigators that Josiah and Robinson were not in a physical fight and there was no reason to pull out a gun.

Robinson remained on scene for questioning before he was taken to the jail.

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