Category: CNN Regional

By Jennifer McLogan

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    NEW YORK (WCBS) — Mourners on Long Island wore pink to honor 18-year-old Emily Finn, who was allegedly shot and killed by her ex-boyfriend in what police called a botched murder-suicide attempt.

Finn’s devastated parents, brother and grandparents joined the Sayville community at her funeral on Monday amid their heartbreak and tears after the gifted ballerina’s death right before Thanksgiving.

Finn came home to West Sayville from college the day before Thanksgiving and went to her ex’s home in Nesconset to say goodbye and retrieve some of her belongings, according to Suffolk County Police.

After she arrived, the 17-year-old boy shot Finn to death before shooting himself in the face, Suffolk County Police said. His parents then called 911 and he was rushed to the hospital, according to police.

The boy, who has since turned 18, was in critical but stable condition at Stony Brook University Hospital, police said.

He was charged with second-degree murder, but police said his name was not released due to his age at the time of the shooting.

Finn posted pictures of her and the boy together on Instagram months before their breakup.

“I can’t believe this happened to her. She didn’t deserve that. I’m going to miss her so much,” friend Maia Toth said.

Loved ones tied pink ribbons around the trees in their town and wore pink, her favorite color, during the funeral.

“A great young lady. Had the whole world ahead of her and, she’s very loved and she’ll be very missed,” cousin Francis Finn said.

Emily Finn spent years dancing at the American Ballet Studio in Bayport.

Her teacher, Kathy Kairns-Scholz, said she was filled with talent and compassion. The studio will dedicate their “Nutcracker” performances to Finn.

The Youth Peace and Justice Foundation will also sponsor an annual scholarship in Finn’s name. The youth gun violence initiative will also plant a tree in an upstate national forest in her name, memorializing young people whose lives were lost to gun violence.

In October, Suffolk reported domestic violence calls jumped 43% and formed a coalition to help spot red flags and bring resolution.

“Tremendous sadness. Domestic violence is something that we worry about all the time, and the numbers are much too high,” Suffolk County Executive Ed Romaine said.

“We work very closely with our community-based organization to ensure that we can provide counseling and crisis intervention immediately,” Dr. Sylvia Diaz, deputy county executive for health, human services and education.

Finn attended SUNY Oneonta and dreamed of becoming a teacher.

She was a graduate of Sayville High School.

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.

WCBS

By Jennifer McLogan

Click here for updates on this story

    NEW YORK (WCBS) — Mourners on Long Island wore pink to honor 18-year-old Emily Finn, who was allegedly shot and killed by her ex-boyfriend in what police called a botched murder-suicide attempt.

Finn’s devastated parents, brother and grandparents joined the Sayville community at her funeral on Monday amid their heartbreak and tears after the gifted ballerina’s death right before Thanksgiving.

Finn came home to West Sayville from college the day before Thanksgiving and went to her ex’s home in Nesconset to say goodbye and retrieve some of her belongings, according to Suffolk County Police.

After she arrived, the 17-year-old boy shot Finn to death before shooting himself in the face, Suffolk County Police said. His parents then called 911 and he was rushed to the hospital, according to police.

The boy, who has since turned 18, was in critical but stable condition at Stony Brook University Hospital, police said.

He was charged with second-degree murder, but police said his name was not released due to his age at the time of the shooting.

Finn posted pictures of her and the boy together on Instagram months before their breakup.

“I can’t believe this happened to her. She didn’t deserve that. I’m going to miss her so much,” friend Maia Toth said.

Loved ones tied pink ribbons around the trees in their town and wore pink, her favorite color, during the funeral.

“A great young lady. Had the whole world ahead of her and, she’s very loved and she’ll be very missed,” cousin Francis Finn said.

Emily Finn spent years dancing at the American Ballet Studio in Bayport.

Her teacher, Kathy Kairns-Scholz, said she was filled with talent and compassion. The studio will dedicate their “Nutcracker” performances to Finn.

The Youth Peace and Justice Foundation will also sponsor an annual scholarship in Finn’s name. The youth gun violence initiative will also plant a tree in an upstate national forest in her name, memorializing young people whose lives were lost to gun violence.

In October, Suffolk reported domestic violence calls jumped 43% and formed a coalition to help spot red flags and bring resolution.

“Tremendous sadness. Domestic violence is something that we worry about all the time, and the numbers are much too high,” Suffolk County Executive Ed Romaine said.

“We work very closely with our community-based organization to ensure that we can provide counseling and crisis intervention immediately,” Dr. Sylvia Diaz, deputy county executive for health, human services and education.

Finn attended SUNY Oneonta and dreamed of becoming a teacher.

She was a graduate of Sayville High School.

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 Louisa Moller

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    MILFORD, Massachusetts (WBZ) — Police arrested a man who they say who used a “Ghostface” mask and BB gun to rob a convenience store in Milford, Massachusetts.

Just after 7 p.m. on Sunday, police received a 911 call from an employee at Riverside Gas reporting that a man in a mask stole multiple cigarette packs and attempted to steal cash from the store’s register.

Investigators found the suspect’s Ghostface mask and BB gun in the area of the crime scene. “Ghostface” is a character in the “Scream” horror film series.

Police Chief Robert Tusino told WBZ-TV that officers were able to track down the suspect because his description was known from an earlier crime.

“Interestingly enough, he had been previously arrested for shoplifting at that same establishment. It was actually the clerk manager that recognized his shoes,” Tusino said.

Police arrested Adam Busuito, who also had an outstanding warrant for armed robbery out of Boston Municipal Court.

The frustrated police chief said Busuito is well-known to his detectives.

“Twice he promised to appear, didn’t. They still released him,” Tusino said. “We need to get off this merry-go-round.”

During his arrest, Busuito allegedly struck an officer. Tusino questions why nothing more was done by the court system in his Boston case.

“I don’t know how he was released once again,” Tusino said. “How are we serving this individual as a community? Could we have offered him services in between the time that he was arraigned the first time. It appears that nobody did anything.”

The court system declined to comment on this story.

Busuito was arraigned in Milford District Court on charges of armed robbery, armed assault to rob, and assault with a dangerous weapon, among others. He was ordered held without bail pending his next court hearing on Friday.

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.

WBZ

By Louisa Moller

Click here for updates on this story

    MILFORD, Massachusetts (WBZ) — Police arrested a man who they say who used a “Ghostface” mask and BB gun to rob a convenience store in Milford, Massachusetts.

Just after 7 p.m. on Sunday, police received a 911 call from an employee at Riverside Gas reporting that a man in a mask stole multiple cigarette packs and attempted to steal cash from the store’s register.

Investigators found the suspect’s Ghostface mask and BB gun in the area of the crime scene. “Ghostface” is a character in the “Scream” horror film series.

Police Chief Robert Tusino told WBZ-TV that officers were able to track down the suspect because his description was known from an earlier crime.

“Interestingly enough, he had been previously arrested for shoplifting at that same establishment. It was actually the clerk manager that recognized his shoes,” Tusino said.

Police arrested Adam Busuito, who also had an outstanding warrant for armed robbery out of Boston Municipal Court.

The frustrated police chief said Busuito is well-known to his detectives.

“Twice he promised to appear, didn’t. They still released him,” Tusino said. “We need to get off this merry-go-round.”

During his arrest, Busuito allegedly struck an officer. Tusino questions why nothing more was done by the court system in his Boston case.

“I don’t know how he was released once again,” Tusino said. “How are we serving this individual as a community? Could we have offered him services in between the time that he was arraigned the first time. It appears that nobody did anything.”

The court system declined to comment on this story.

Busuito was arraigned in Milford District Court on charges of armed robbery, armed assault to rob, and assault with a dangerous weapon, among others. He was ordered held without bail pending his next court hearing on Friday.

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 Mike Hellgren

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    BALTIMORE (WJZ) — The union representing a Baltimore City Department of Transportation employee who died after being assaulted on the job said they should have been alerted immediately after he was attacked.

They are calling for better protection for city employees.

“As president of a union, to get the call after the fact is unacceptable, absolutely unacceptable,” City Union of Baltimore president Antoinette Ryan-Johnson told WJZ. “I was extremely disheartened, and I was disheartened because I was notified on the day of his death. I didn’t even know that the incident had happened.”

Ryan-Johnson said she never learned about the October 17 attack on 71-year-old Gregory Turnipseed until after he died, the day before Thanksgiving.

“It is extremely shocking. It’s shocking, disheartening, upsetting,” Ryan-Johnson said. “At the end of the day, he was my member. He belonged to this union. But he was somebody’s personal family member. They now don’t have a father to come home. He should have been able to come home at the end of the day and spend Thanksgiving with them, but that will no longer happen.

Ryan-Johnson continued, “So, yes, I’m angry. I’m very angry. We should have been notified.”

According to charging documents, Turnipseed was on the job for the Baltimore Department of Transportation when he stopped to help in a dispute over a parking space on St. Paul Street.

Police said a 15-year-old girl got out of an SUV and punched him in the face while her mother, 49-year-old Kiannah Bonaparte, jumped on his back and then kicked him repeatedly in the head.

Turnipseed died more than a month later after bleeding in the brain.

His daughter, Gerri Turnipseed, told WJZ Investigator Mike Hellgren her father suffered slurred speech, issues with walking, and memory loss after the assault.

You can read more of the exclusive interview with her here.

“I know sometimes people have road rage, or people have tempers, or they don’t have patience,” Gerri Turnipseed said. “We don’t think these things will happen. We think it’s OK to maybe have a back and forth with someone, and you just never know what they’re going through, their intentions, if they’re a good person.”

Authorities have not commented on any possible punishment for the juvenile.

Bonaparte is charged with assault, which police say is being amended after Turnipseed’s death.

The state’s attorney’s office told WJZ on Monday, “The investigation is still underway before additional charges can be brought forward.”

The union is calling on the city to conduct an independent, transparent investigation into what happened and work with the union to develop better safety protocols.

“My traffic enforcement officers in the Department of Transportation have been assaulted, have had liquids thrown on them, gun drawn on them, things of that magnitude,” Ryan-Johnson told WJZ. “This is absolutely unacceptable at this point. Absolutely unacceptable. And if somebody downtown does not understand that something that has to be done, we can’t keep losing employees and members like this. It’s tragic.”

She is hopeful city leaders will listen to her plea for worker safety.

“The city has to ensure, as the employer, that their workers are safe when they come to work,” Ryan-Johnson said.

Turnipseed worked for Baltimore for 14 years.

The mayor called him an exemplary public servant.

Ryan-Johnson offered her condolences to Turnipseed’s loved ones.

“We are committed to standing with his family,” she said. “We extend our sincerest condolences, and please know we are grieving with you, and we feel your pain. We are saddened and disheartened that your father, your family member, is no longer here with you.”

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.

WJZ

By Mike Hellgren

Click here for updates on this story

    BALTIMORE (WJZ) — The union representing a Baltimore City Department of Transportation employee who died after being assaulted on the job said they should have been alerted immediately after he was attacked.

They are calling for better protection for city employees.

“As president of a union, to get the call after the fact is unacceptable, absolutely unacceptable,” City Union of Baltimore president Antoinette Ryan-Johnson told WJZ. “I was extremely disheartened, and I was disheartened because I was notified on the day of his death. I didn’t even know that the incident had happened.”

Ryan-Johnson said she never learned about the October 17 attack on 71-year-old Gregory Turnipseed until after he died, the day before Thanksgiving.

“It is extremely shocking. It’s shocking, disheartening, upsetting,” Ryan-Johnson said. “At the end of the day, he was my member. He belonged to this union. But he was somebody’s personal family member. They now don’t have a father to come home. He should have been able to come home at the end of the day and spend Thanksgiving with them, but that will no longer happen.

Ryan-Johnson continued, “So, yes, I’m angry. I’m very angry. We should have been notified.”

According to charging documents, Turnipseed was on the job for the Baltimore Department of Transportation when he stopped to help in a dispute over a parking space on St. Paul Street.

Police said a 15-year-old girl got out of an SUV and punched him in the face while her mother, 49-year-old Kiannah Bonaparte, jumped on his back and then kicked him repeatedly in the head.

Turnipseed died more than a month later after bleeding in the brain.

His daughter, Gerri Turnipseed, told WJZ Investigator Mike Hellgren her father suffered slurred speech, issues with walking, and memory loss after the assault.

You can read more of the exclusive interview with her here.

“I know sometimes people have road rage, or people have tempers, or they don’t have patience,” Gerri Turnipseed said. “We don’t think these things will happen. We think it’s OK to maybe have a back and forth with someone, and you just never know what they’re going through, their intentions, if they’re a good person.”

Authorities have not commented on any possible punishment for the juvenile.

Bonaparte is charged with assault, which police say is being amended after Turnipseed’s death.

The state’s attorney’s office told WJZ on Monday, “The investigation is still underway before additional charges can be brought forward.”

The union is calling on the city to conduct an independent, transparent investigation into what happened and work with the union to develop better safety protocols.

“My traffic enforcement officers in the Department of Transportation have been assaulted, have had liquids thrown on them, gun drawn on them, things of that magnitude,” Ryan-Johnson told WJZ. “This is absolutely unacceptable at this point. Absolutely unacceptable. And if somebody downtown does not understand that something that has to be done, we can’t keep losing employees and members like this. It’s tragic.”

She is hopeful city leaders will listen to her plea for worker safety.

“The city has to ensure, as the employer, that their workers are safe when they come to work,” Ryan-Johnson said.

Turnipseed worked for Baltimore for 14 years.

The mayor called him an exemplary public servant.

Ryan-Johnson offered her condolences to Turnipseed’s loved ones.

“We are committed to standing with his family,” she said. “We extend our sincerest condolences, and please know we are grieving with you, and we feel your pain. We are saddened and disheartened that your father, your family member, is no longer here with you.”

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.