Author: CNN

KCNC

By Karen Morfitt

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    COLORADO (KCNC) — Aviation Park in Lakewood used to be filled with parents and their children. Recently it has transformed into a refuge for many of the Colorado city’s unhoused residents.

“What is beautiful and what made me decide to live here … is like a nightmare,” Cat Stone said.

Stone bought her condo next to the park four years ago. The balcony, she said, was the selling point.

“The part that I liked the best (was) walking out with my mug of coffee early in the morning to see those beautiful sunrises and look out on the park,” Stone said.

Now, her balcony overlooks a growing number of tents and the activity of the people living there.

“It used to be one or two occasionally, but then I don’t know what happened,” she said.

As the number of tents continues to grow, so do concerns about public health and safety.

“People are finding syringes, human excrement, condoms, Narcan boxes … just trash, trash, trash all over the place,” she said.

Stone says she has called police and filed multiple reports with the City of Lakewood.

“I got a nice letter that says, you know, it’s very difficult what we are doing, we are understaffed and overworked, and sometimes it will take up to 48 hours for us to react to one of your reports. Then a few days later I get a message that ‘This case has been closed,'” Stone said.

“Even though nothing’s really changed?” CBS Colorado reporter Karen Morfitt asked.

“Nothing,” Stone replied.

She shared her frustration with neighbors on Nextdoor and found many who echoed her concerns.

CBS Colorado requested records to find out how many 911 calls have come from Aviation Park. In roughly three months, the park generated nearly 150 calls for service — everything from burns, drugs and noise complaints to outstanding warrants.

Kerry Wrenick, the regional homeless coordinator for Jefferson County, says Lakewood is not alone. The county saw a 27% increase in people experiencing homelessness from 2024 to 2025, according to the annual Point-in-Time Count — the largest increase in the Denver metro area.

“The hidden homelessness — people don’t think about it, but when you are driving down the street and you see it day in and day out, that’s when people begin to recognize we are seeing an increase in unsheltered homelessness,” Wrenick said. “We don’t have emergency shelter options across the way to meet the needs, and we don’t have housing that’s within reach for those making minimum wage. So the visibility is becoming the prominent piece.”

She says cities across Jefferson County are now working together to bring more resources online. Lakewood, she says, is leading that effort by opening the first navigation center in the county.

“Everybody wants a solution, but the solution is hard to come by when you say, ‘Yes, but not here or there.’ I think having open and honest dialogue is going to be imperative right now,” Wrenick said.

“This is what I say to the city: whatever’s happening here is not a solution, and it’s not going to make anything any better,” Stone said.

CBS Colorado asked Lakewood police and city officials for comment about their response to the situation around Aviation Park, and what is being done to balance the needs of all residents.

The city provided a statement saying :

“We are quite aware of concerns about those who are unhoused camping in and around Aviation Park, and we also understand the impact this has on residents, the neighborhood and the community’s overall quality of life.”

“The city, including the Police Department, continues to work diligently to address the issues surrounding homelessness through a number of measures to provide a continuum of responses and services to resolve this community concern. We have a cross-departmental team that works continuously on this issue to respond as quickly and as timely as possible. However, as is the case with cities across the metro area and the country, the increase in homelessness continues to outstrip the city’s resources and ability to manage it. As a result, resolving encampments often takes longer than we or the residents would like to see. Even so, addressing homelessness remains a top priority for the city and the Police Department.”

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.

WWJ

By Julia Avant, Nick Lentz

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    Detroit (WWJ) — Police and loved ones are looking for a 25-year-old Wyandotte, Michigan, man who, family says, was declared missing on Friday.

Tyler Bojanowski was last seen on Thursday around 2:30 a.m., according to a Facebook post by the Allen Park Police Department.

His mother, Nicole Dillon, says she last saw him on Wednesday and that their texts and calls didn’t seem out of the ordinary.

Dillon added that she’s been caring for Bojanowski after he was involved in a serious car crash that left him with a brain injury.

“He called me and said that he was going to a friend’s house,” she said.

Bojanowski hasn’t returned home since the phone call.

According to police, his truck was found on Enterprise Drive near the Best Western Greenfield Inn in Allen Park, and his family says his passport was found at Dingell Park in Ecorse, Michigan.

Recent security footage of Bojanowski showed him walking alone without a coat, according to Dillon.

“Tyler, if you’re out there, and if you’re watching this, please just call me. Please just come home,” Dillon said on Sunday afternoon. “I don’t care, whatever happened or what you think you did, or anything like that, I do not care about any of that. You know that nothing that you could do would ever make me not love and support you.”

Police said Bojanowski is 5 feet 9 inches tall, weighs 200 pounds, has blonde hair and blue eyes and wears glasses.

Anyone with information on his whereabouts is asked to call the Wyandotte Police Department, which told CBS News Detroit they have an ongoing investigation into his disappearance.

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.

WBBM

By Adam Harrington, Marissa Sulek

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    CHICAGO (WBBM) — A Round Lake Beach woman and her boyfriend appeared in court for the first time on Sunday, both facing first-degree murder and child endangerment charges.

It comes two days after her 8-year-old son was found dead in their home from apparent abuse and malnourishment.

Neighbors with white balloons in hand created a vigil for the child.

“Today we are going down to pay our respects and stuff to the family,” said Sharon Renae Bell with Activities for Kids and Seniors.

They said they were shocked and hurt to hear that a boy who lived in the Cedar Villas rental community was found dead behind the memorial inside the townhouse with the yellow tag on the door.

“I was just like, oh my god, like crying, like this is terrible. I have six children, I have 14 grandkids, I couldn’t even imagine something like that to a child,” said Aneshia Dougherty.

Dougherty says her daughter-in-law moved in a few doors down a couple of months ago.

She said the boy’s mother, 33-year-old Dominique Servant, and her boyfriend, 38-year-old Joey Ruffin, charged with first-degree murder and child endangerment, both kept to themselves.

Dougherty said she does not remember seeing the 8-year-old or his 10-year-old sister outside often, but they were surprised to see police at the complex Friday night.

Another neighbor said she would see the 8-year-old boy struggling to take the trash out. She also said the boy and his sister would take the bus to school, but she had not seen them at the bus stop in the last year.

“I now think of that other sibling, the 10-year-old, who now has to live their life without their sibling, probably in foster care,” said Char Rivette, CEO of Chicago Children’s Advocacy Center.

Rivette said she worries for the 10-year-old sibling who will need therapy and counseling to cope with what she’s dealt with.

The Lake County Children’s Advocacy Center said the sibling also had signs of abuse and malnourishment.

Now the community is wondering if the tragedy could have been prevented.

“Where were these kids in terms of access to community? Did they go to school? Were they actively engaged in school? How long did they live in the place they were living?” Rivette said.

Neighbors said they wish they had known and been more aware of what was going on behind the family’s door.

“We could have talked to them, you know, talked to the children, talked to the parent to see what was going on – can we help in any kind of way and stuff, you know?” Bell said.

Lake County State’s Attorney Eric Rinehart said in a statement on Sunday:

“This eight-year-old child should still be alive, and this horrific crime was preventable. In light of the ongoing nature of this investigation, the moral mandate that we secure justice, and the need to hold every responsible party accountable, we will be providing limited information prior to a full presentment of charges to the grand jury.

“I will say this: if you see signs of a child being abused or malnourished, report it. If you need help as a parent, get it. If you are abusing your child, stop it now. If you are abusing your child or criminally neglecting their basic needs, and that child dies, you will be prosecuted for murder in Lake County.”

CBS Chicago reached out to the Department of Children and Family Services to see if there was an active case involving this family.

In a statement, they said:

“The death of a child is profoundly heartbreaking, especially when the alleged perpetrators are the ones that are supposed to protect and care for the child. This family was not receiving services from DCFS and the Department is actively working with Round Lake law enforcement to investigate the circumstances around this child’s death. Illinois law restricts the information DCFS can share about child abuse and neglect investigations and we are unable to provide further comment about the specifics of this case at this time.”

Servant and Ruffin have a detention hearing in Lake County on Monday afternoon.

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.

KYW

By Wakisha Bailey

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    Philadelphia (KYW) — In an age shaped by social media and constant information, many parents struggle with how much of the world children should be exposed to. The nonprofit A Book A Day believes the right book can help children better understand the world around them and themselves.

Step inside founder Sibylla Shekerdjiska-Benatova’s home, and it feels less like a house and more like a living library. Thousands of children’s books line the shelves and fill boxes, each one chosen with intention.

“Books are museums,” Sibylla said. “The types of books we choose have gorgeous illustrations.”

Those books aren’t just meant to spark imagination. They’re meant to preserve history and offer comfort. In 2000, Shekerdjiska-Benatova immigrated to the United States from Soviet-era Bulgaria with just one suitcase.

Inside it were some clothes and about 25 children’s books.

“Books were my comfort blanket,” she said.

Years later, concerned by what she saw in school libraries — outdated collections, offensive titles and a lack of funding — Shekerdjiska-Benatova took action. She created A Book A Day to put new, diverse and meaningful books into the hands of children who might not otherwise have access to them.

“No new books were coming into libraries because there were no funds,” she said. “What was there was very outdated, sometimes even offensive.”

What started with two books delivered to two schools each week has now grown into an operation serving thousands of kids across the region. The goal is simple: to show children what’s possible.

“We wanted to show children that they have the tools,” Shekerdjiska-Benatova said. “That they can do things as well.”

A core part of the mission is representation.

“Children of color need to see themselves and White children need to see children of color,” Shekerdjiska-Benatova said.

The organization also distributes multilingual books, opening doors for children to explore new languages, cultures and experiences. Staff members describe each book as a portal, often to joy and sometimes to wonder.

One story in particular hits close to home for Shekerdjiska-Benatova — a book about a young girl forced to leave her country, navigating a world where she isn’t always welcomed.

“I know what those gestures meant to me,” she said. “Friends who were kind and welcoming.”

Today, A Book A Day serves schools, medical centers and community spaces throughout the region. Now, Shekerdjiska-Benatova is working on something deeply personal: her very own children’s book.

It’s a full-circle moment that underscores the heart of the mission: how one book, placed in the right hands, can change how a child sees the world.

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.

WWJ

By Paula Wethington

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    Detroit (WWJ) — A 4-year-old girl who drowned at a private club swimming pool in Southeast Michigan was with other children, but no adults, at the time, deputies reported.

The Oakland County Sheriff’s Office has issued a follow-up report on Friday evening’s incident at Deer Lake Athletic Club in Independence Township, saying the child was in a group of five other children ranging in age from 6 to 12 at the time.

The girl who drowned was a 4-year-old from Sterling Heights, an update to earlier reports from authorities that indicated she was 5.

Deputies said that two adult women had brought their children to the pool, placed several floatation devices in the water, and then left the children unattended. The pool was about 3 to 5 feet deep.

The women went to the club’s bar and restaurant area, where they ordered food and beverages.

The women were away from the children for about 35 minutes, officers said.

“No adult supervision was present at the pool when the drowning occurred,” deputies said.

An older sister got the child out of the water.

When officers were called to the facility about 7:30 p.m., they found the child on the pool desk where two men and a woman were doing CPR on the child. Independence Township Fire Department paramedics took her to a local hospital, where she was pronounced dead.

According to the club’s pool policies, swimming is only allowed when a lifeguard is present, and those under 16 must be supervised by an adult.

“This is a horrific and tragic death that easily could have been avoided,” Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard said. “We always encourage that not only is there an adult present for any children swimming activity, but one adult is specifically tasked with watching and not just in the area. We have seen cases where children have drowned in a pool surrounded by adults.”

The investigation will be submitted to the Oakland County Prosecutor’s Office for review.

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.