Author: CNN Newsource

By Mark Prussin

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    NEW YORK (WCBS) — A New York home health aide accused of trying to kill an elderly patient in her sleep with a chef’s knife has been indicted for attempted murder.

Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly said Amanda Fraser, 23, stabbed the 84-year-old woman and held the knife to her torso for over 15 minutes at the elderly woman’s home in Massapequa last month.

“An excruciating 16 minutes” Fraser, who was arraigned on multiple charges Friday on Long Island, repeatedly told the woman to “just let go” and “stop fighting it” during the attack in October, Donnelly said.

“In the middle of the night as her elderly patient laid in her bed, this defendant allegedly brandished an approximately eight-inch blade and plunged it into the sleeping woman’s body,” Donnelly said in a statement. “For an excruciating 16 minutes as the woman moaned in agony, Amanda Fraser – the woman’s home health aide – held the knife firm in her body and repeatedly whispered for the woman to succumb. When she did not die, the defendant left the home, and the woman she was employed to care for, bleeding and alone in her bed.”

The injured woman was treated for a puncture wound to her lung and was hospitalized for weeks with an infection stemming from the injury, Donnelly’s office said.

Stabbing caught on surveillance video, family says Fraser, a Queens resident, was arrested after the alleged victim’s family said surveillance video showed her getting into the bed and stabbing the woman.

Sources told CBS News New York she went to the hospital for a psychiatric evaluation before should could be arraigned.

Aides at Home, Fraser’s employer at the time, told CBS News New York the stabbing was a tragedy and an isolated incident.

“The investigation is ongoing. We’re cooperating fully,” a manager at the Hicksville office said.

Fraser was charged with second-degree attempted murder, first-degree assault, second-degree assault, endangering the welfare of a vulnerable elderly person, and endangering the welfare of an incompetent or physically disabled person. She faces up to 25 years in prison if convicted.

The DA’s office said she is due back in court on Dec. 9.

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By Paul Burton

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    BOSTON (WBZ) — A 71-year-old man died in a tragic accident at a cranberry bog on Cape Cod Friday morning.

The man, who has not been identified, was working at a bog behind County Road in Bourne, Massachusetts when something went wrong just after 8 a.m.

In a statement, police said he was “operating a piece of equipment in the cranberry bogs, when it rolled over on top of him, pinning him under the equipment.” Fire officials explained that the man was using the tractor to sand the bog in preparation for next season when something went wrong. The man had been in the industry for decades.

“When the tractor that this gentleman was driving started to go down a ramp to get to the bog, it flipped over, and he was trapped. His fellow workers who were with him did their best to get him out of there and they did” State Representative Stevem Xiaros said.

Officers and paramedics rushed in and attempted CPR, but the man died. The victim’s identity has not been released.

State and local police are looking into what happened, along with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). The medical examiner’s office was also called in as part of the probe.

“The Bourne Police Department’s collect thoughts are with the family, friends, and co-workers of the victim in this incident,” police said in their statement.

Xiaros said that he spoke with the owner of the cranberry bog on Friday. The bog has been in the man’s family for five generations.

“He’s just a hard-working man and he ‘s very upset and struggling with the loss of his friend,” Xiaros explained.

No other information is available at this point in the investigation.

Bourne, Massachusetts is about 57 miles south of Boston.

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By Tara Lynch

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    BALTIMORE (WJZ) — An Anne Arundel County man now faces a 15-count federal indictment for his role in a sex trafficking ring based in the Philippines.

Philip Andrew Turner, 46, is charged with five counts of sexual exploitation of a child, four counts of coercion and enticement, three counts of receipt of child pornography, and two counts of possession of child pornography.

Turner was arraigned on Friday before a federal judge and is currently being held at the Chesapeake Detention Facility in Baltimore City. He was taken into federal custody on Nov. 6 after a complaint was filed.

According to the federal indictment, Turner used an online account to connect with known traffickers in the Philippines. This started in October 2017 and happened as recently as May 2025.

The indictment accuses him of “using the internet to persuade, induce, entice and coerce USER 1 [the trafficker] and the minor females to engage in sexually explicit conduct. Court documents say the victims were between 10 and 14 years old.

The feds say Turner negotiated the price for the content with the sex traffickers, chose the children he wanted to watch, and the sex acts he wanted to see. He allegedly received child sexual abuse images, saving them online and on his laptop. He also had live Skype calls with victims while they engaged in sexually explicit conduct, according to court documents.

Neighbors shocked in Linthicum Heights According to neighbors, Turner lived on Hawthorne Road for about 10 years. His neighbors told WJZ that they rarely interacted with him and that he kelp to himself.

“You either hear about it on the news or you know you read it about it on social media, but you have it happening on your street is …awful,” Kim Hill, who lives across the street, said. “We have, probably in the past two years, had quite a few families move in with little kids… I’ll even be more protective.”

TurnAround, Inc. is a local organization helping victims of sex crimes and trafficking. It says social media and the internet have made these types of crimes more common.

“It is unfortunately becoming very common because of the ease with which it can be facilitated online, and the kind of material can be exchanged,” Jean Henningsen, chief communications officer for the organization, said.

Prior charge in Anne Arundel County Cellphone video shows when Anne Arundel County and state investigators raided Turner’s home at the end of October before the federal charges were brought. On Oct. 28, Maryland State Police arrested Turner, charging him with child pornography, possession of child pornography, and other related charges.

In 2024, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) began investigating several individuals in Maryland connected to a sex trafficking ring in the Philippines. The traffickers allowed people to direct the sexual exploitation of minors via a live camera feed.

Investigators focused on Turner, alleging he directed juvenile females to engage in child pornography globally.

He faces a 15 to 30-year sentence for each count of sexual exploitation of a child. If convicted on the first five counts alone, Turner could face a minimum of 75 years in federal prison and a maximum of 150 years behind bars.

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By Peyton Headlee

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    SACRAMENTO (KCRA) — Sacramento State students are protesting against a new university policy that requires them to live on campus for their first two academic years.

The university, which has long been known as a commuter campus, announced the change last month. The university said the new policy is aimed at “student success, community engagement, and academic achievement.”

“I’m sure a ton of you know why we’re here, and it’s because we don’t like the housing requirements,” Emma Beck said to the dozens of protestors gathered outside of the library on Thursday evening.

Beck, the student who organized the protest, highlighted the financial burden the new policy could impose on students who choose to commute to class.

“A lot of students have negative feelings about the requirement,” she said. “I chose to live on campus my first semester here because it was convenient, but then I chose to move away because it was too expensive. So, there’s two sides of the coin that they’re not really seeing.”

The university said it plans to offer a number of exemptions, including students facing financial hardships or those living locally.

Beginning fall 2026, students living with immediate family within 50 miles of campus will be exempt, but the distance will be reduced to 30 miles in 2027.

Other exemptions include those age 21 or older by the first day of classes, students considered independent on the FAFSA, active-duty service members, those required to live at their job site (like caregivers), study abroad students, and those with disabilities or medical conditions that cannot be accommodated in student housing.

Nadine Kelly, executive director of the university’s housing services, explained the policy’s focus on student success and community engagement.

“I think that there’s an opportunity to shift the direction and shift us to a residential destination. There’s something to be said about calling a place home,” Kelly said. “Students that live on campus tend to have higher GPAs, tend to graduate on time, and are having a different experience than students that live off campus.”

Despite the university’s stance, students continue to express dissatisfaction with the change, emphasizing their desire for autonomy in choosing where to live.

“The benefits to living on campus are fantastic, where you have better access to all the resources here. But the financial burden just outweighs everything else,” Beck said.

Sacramento State noted it would have expanded residence options when the new requirement goes into effect. That includes a new residence hall, Mt. Whitney Hall, which is set to open in fall 2026 and provide 335 new beds for first-year students. Riverview Hall will also have an additional 150 single beds converted from upper-division housing.

With the new policy, the university also indicated it plans to promote more programming tailored toward first and second-year students, aiming to build a sense of belonging.

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By Anum Siddiqui

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    NEW ORLEANS (WDSU) — The New Orleans Drug Enforcement Administration reports two Mexican cartels are responsible for flooding the New Orleans area with deadly drugs.

Special Agent in Charge Steven Hofer says the Sinaloa and Jalisco New Generation cartels are pushing all drugs, but their focus is cracking down on meth, fentanyl and cocaine.

“We are up against two powerful, ruthless organizations,” Hofer said.

Since January 2025, the New Orleans DEA office has seized the following:

nearly $10 million in assets, which includes vehicles, homes and more about 140 kilograms of cocaine, about 20 kilos of fentanyl, and about 400 kilograms of marijuana The agency is on track to outpace all of last year’s seizures.

This year, nearly 400 people in New Orleans have been arrested. Hofer says operatives in New Orleans are from all different backgrounds, including Louisiana natives.

“Anyone who is willing to sell their drugs for them, smuggle drugs, do finance, be an enforcer for them, they are going to take that person on,” Hofer said.

The cartels have expanded operations in over 40 countries and in almost all 50 U.S. states. Hofer says New Orleans geography attracts cartel business.

“New Orleans works out well for the cartels because of the interstate system, with Houston not being far away from Atlanta and even Florida, and, of course, the waterways,” he said.

Recently, the Trump administration designated the cartels as foreign terrorist organizations. Assistant Special Agent in Charge Michael Arnett says the decision from the federal government gives the DEA additional resources to investigate cartels.

“These drugs are so potent these days. I mean, we were up to eight out of 10 pills that we were seizing at the DEA lab that could cause an overdose, it fluctuates,” Arnett said.

WDSU was given exclusive access to a DEA operation in the metro area. The video can be found above. In addition, WDSU Reporter Anum Siddiqui interviewed one of several undercover agents working in New Orleans. Part two of WDSU’s ‘Cartel Crackdown’ series will air Friday night at 6 p.m. on WDSU News.

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By Kilee Thomas

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    OKLAHOMA (KOCO) — With a new Oklahoma law came a second chance for survivors of domestic violence, but only one success story has come from it.

The Oklahoma Survivors Act was designed to reduce the sentences of domestic abuse survivors who committed a crime against their abuser. Lisa Wright, who was in prison for 34 years at the Mabel Bassett Correctional Center for her role in her husband’s death, has been the only person released under the new law.

Other survivors are still being denied early release.

Lisa’s story

A lot has changed since 1990. Cellphones, the internet and even the dome at the Oklahoma state Capitol are all new for Wright.

Wright now walks free for the first time in decades. She was sentenced to prison for killing her husband, Mike Moss.

“Sitting on a life without the possibility of parole sentence, no one ever anticipated that I’d be out, much less be the only woman out on the Oklahoma Survivors Act,” Wright said.

On Jan. 8, 2025, a Seminole County judge granted her relief. She became the first ever case to win under the Oklahoma Survivors Act.

“Oh, gosh. When the judge said, ‘Time served. Free to go.’ Like, I get emotional about that because I wasn’t quite sure it was going to happen. I remember sitting in the courtroom holding Colleen’s hand, my attorney, and as the judge is declaring the verdict, and I jump up and hug her, and the next person I see is my daughter. It was a long time coming. She was five when I went in,” Wright said.

For years, court records show Wright was sexually, physically, psychologically and financially abused. The details are too graphic for distribution.

“Once I got pregnant, things just escalated, and my daughter and I were both abused,” Wright said.

Her 5-year-old daughter was also being molested. Wright initially kept it a secret because she was afraid of her husband, but she ended up reporting the abuse to the Oklahoma Department of Human Services and the district attorney.

Nothing was done.

Eventually, she told her brother, Richard, about what was happening.

On Jan. 17, 1990, court records say that Richard shot Moss and staged it as a robbery. Richard pleaded guilty, and he received a sentence of life without the possibility of parole.

Wright received the same sentence despite not being the person who fired the gun.

“I don’t think anyone wanted to hear what happened. They just wanted conviction,” Wright said. “There were a lot of people that were hurt because I didn’t handle things the right way, and I knew that I had to figure out how to live inside prison, so I didn’t really believe–I always prayed for–there was always a slim sliver of hope, but for the most part I knew that was probably my fate.”

Three decades later, in 2024, that sliver of hope emerged from the Oklahoma state Capitol.

The Oklahoma Survivors Act grants victims of domestic abuse who committed a crime against their abuser a shot at a sentence reduction if that abuse played a significant contributing factor in the crime.

“What was different from the initial trial to this one?” KOCO’s Kilee Thomas asked Wright.

“I was heard. Someone wanted to hear what happened, and someone believed us,” Wright said. “We kept trying to tell what happened back in 1990, and no one wanted to hear, not even my attorney. I was silenced back then, and I don’t want to be silenced anymore.”

What is the law?

State Rep. Danny Williams co-authored the Oklahoma Survivors Act.

“It’s hard to change, but when people change, there should be a reward for that,” Williams said.

When the Oklahoma Survivors Act came across the lawmaker’s desk, he thought of Wright.

“I actually taught her Sunday school class back in the day, so I knew the family, and I knew her circumstances,” Williams said. “She made one mistake that changed the trajectory of her life, so how much do you need to pay for one mistake?”

After 34 years, her abuse was heard, and her freedom was granted.

Wright thought she would be a beacon of change for other survivors, but that hasn’t happened.

“You’re the only person in Oklahoma who has been granted relief under the Oklahoma Survivors Act. Why do you think that is?” Kilee asked Wright.

“It so saddens my heart that the other ladies are not out. I thought that this would open the floodgates and I would be first to pave the way and that everyone else would come right behind me,” Wright said.

Two recent denials have sparked questions about the initial intent and language of the bill.

“It’s heartbreaking, and that’s not the intent of the law,” Wright said.

Colleen McCarty, executive director of Oklahoma Appleseed Center for Law and Justice, said the Oklahoma Survivor Act is being misunderstood in the courtroom.

“This isn’t a stand your ground. It’s not a self-defense. It’s not a battered women’s syndrome defense,” McCarty said. “It is something that has been sort of confused with some of those other defenses to say, ‘Well, they need to be in fear of their life, or they needed to have been not able to escape, or they needed to have been actively being abused when they created the crime,’ and that is not the case.”

Williams said there shouldn’t be a gray area when it comes to the law.

“When a judge is making an evaluation, it has to be based on the law, not on opinions, not on emotions. It needs to be based on fact,” Williams said. “Are the circumstances large enough to contribute to a modified sentence? That’s the question.”

To date, Wright is the sole survivor who has won her case under the Oklahoma Survivors Act.

“We’re not trying to prove guilt or innocence. We’ve already been proven guilty, and the Oklahoma Survivors Act, it doesn’t take away that guilt. It doesn’t take away that felony conviction. All it does is say, ‘You were a victim of domestic violence, and that’s why you committed your crime, and you deserve a little relief,'” Williams said.

Lisa’s fight continues

Despite that, Wright has sat in every hearing so far, offering support to other women who have that same sliver of hope she once did.

“Do you still have hope that this Oklahoma Survivors Act will work?” Kilee asked.

“Yeah, I have faith to believe that it will,” Wright said.

It has been almost a year since Wright was released from prison. KOCO spoke to her the day the judge granted her freedom.

“Don’t give up. Trust God that there is a way. People believe them. They’re fighting for them on the other side. We are fighting for them on the other side and just don’t give up,” Wright said after she was released.

Wright now has a passport, and she took her first flight to be reconnected with her daughter.

But Wright said her biggest dream is to walk back into prison and bring hope to other survivors of domestic abuse, telling them that there is a second chance at life.

“For me, these women have been silenced. They were silenced going through the abuse. They were silenced probably through the court system. I know I was, and they deserve their voice to be heard. They deserve an opportunity to have their voices heard and believed,” Wright said.

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By Madison Perales

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    OMAHA, Nebraska (KETV) — The Omaha Police Department is leaning into modern technology with a little over $2 million in grant money.

OPD announced its ‘Drones as First Responders’ program Thursday, with the Omaha police chief saying no taxpayer dollars went into making this happen.

The police agency has two new drone docks on their rooftop which have already been in use since Monday.

It’s designed to respond to 9-1-1 calls and arrive in just two minutes.

“We are constantly looking for new ways to improve,” Omaha Police Chief Todd Schmaderer said.

He said this new initiative is meant to enhance safety for both the public and for OPD law enforcement.

“If you need help, you could see a drone in two minutes, coordinating, speaking with the officers responding to help,” Schmaderer said.

That includes better resource allocation, and situational awareness for officers on the ground.

“It’s critically important that we always keep safety in mind,” Omaha Mayor John Ewing Jr. said. “And that we always keep response times in mind and make sure that we are there when people need us in their most critical moments of their lives.”

Schmaderer said it’s the first drone first responder program of its kind in Nebraska.

“The first beyond visual line of sight waiver in the state of Nebraska,” Schmaderer said. “Which is critical for allowing drones to fly and launch autonomously without a pilot physically present on the scene.”

Omaha Police Chief Pilot Frank Peck said the drones can even fly through buildings, if necessary, but it has safety features.

“The Omaha Police Department drones have a parachute on it,” Peck said. “That’s to mitigate any issues that maybe we have should something happen.”

OPD is partnered with Axon, which also provides body-worn cameras, and in-car video recorders to connect seamlessly with the drones.

Officials said in severe weather like blizzards or fog, the drones will not operate. But the docks are weather resistant to combat Omaha’s intense climate.

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