Category: CNN Regional

By Don Davis

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    CATALINA FOOTHILLS, Ariz. (KGUN) — It has been over three months since Savannah Guthrie’s mother, 84-year-old Nancy Guthrie, went missing from her Tucson home. Today, a new message was found in front of the home at a makeshift memorial.

It reads:

To The Abductor

Your Mom would be ashamed if she knew what you did. So before you take her flowers on Mothers Day, TAKE NANCY HOME or tell the family where she is so they can celebrate on Mothers Day. Do the right thing

Then you can go home to yours.

It is unknown who left the letter in front of the Guthrie home. Mother’s Day is this Sunday, May 10.

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 Anabel Munoz

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    LOS ANGELES, California (KABC) — A South Los Angeles student is celebrating the incredible accomplishment of receiving 65 college acceptance letters.

The straight-A student from Verbum Dei Jesuit High School is picking an Ivy League school, but he had to do a lot to get to this point.

At 17 years old, Lamont Newell smiles ear to ear as he holds a few of the 65 college acceptance letters he’s received so far.

Where he’s holding them is also significant. He spoke to Eyewitness News at a recreation center in South L.A.’s South Park. He learned to code there as a kid in summer camp.

He now plans to study industrial engineering at Columbia University.

“I felt proud. I never thought I’d make it that far, to be able to go into Ivy League, especially New York City,” Newell told Eyewitness News.

The valedictorian with a 4.4. GPA earned a full ride.

“One of my goals is actually to create an institution where I teach Black kids how to work in STEM,” Newell said.

South Park is also where he and his family found refuge while experiencing homelessness.

“There were times where we didn’t have a roof over our head, but we had a car. We didn’t have a place to stay so we would come and sleep in this parking lot,” Newell’s mother Antanika Barnes said.

Newell watched his mother go to college and persevere through many challenges.

“It was a hard road. I was a single mom. I had Lamont at 21,” Barnes said.

“As a parent, it is your duty to find out what your kids are good at, and I knew my son academically was a high achiever from a very young age,” Barnes said. “I probably couldn’t have done it myself, but it was my job to figure out who could help and where I could get those resources from.”

Newell was also fueled to set an example for his younger brother.

“I realized if I didn’t try hard enough, who would for him?” Newell said.

Newell is the first male in his family to graduate high school. His mother says the family has been impacted by gang violence and incarceration, making the achievement layers deep.

“This not only means something great to me but it’s very influential to my family as a whole because now the youth that comes after him are going to see that there’s another way out,” Barnes said.

Both offer encouragement for those listening.

“You may feel like during your situation there is no path out, but there is always an exit to your destination,” Newell said. “In a million years, we could have never thought we would be in this situation.”

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 Kevin Ozebek

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    LOS ANGELES, California (KABC) — The Los Angeles Police Department estimates it will cost $1.15 billion to staff the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games, according to a memo presented Thursday to the City Council’s Budget and Finance Committee.

The projection – detailed in a letter from LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell attached to the memo – is equivalent to roughly half of the department’s current annual budget of about $2 billion.

McDonnell wrote that LAPD can provide only a fraction of the staffing needed for the Games.

“The Department can self-supply only about one-third of peak Games staffing demand. The remaining two-thirds must be filled by outside law enforcement at premium rates, which is the single largest driver of the total cost,” he said.

The estimate includes personnel costs for LAPD officers as well as lodging and pay for outside agencies brought in to help secure venues and manage crowds. It also accounts for the staffing needed to maintain regular police service across Los Angeles during the Games.

The memo also notes that sworn staffing is projected to fall to about 8,400 officers – more than 200 fewer than the department has now – indicating retirements are expected to outpace hiring.

City Administrative Officer Matt Szabo wrote that state and federal funding may be available to cover the projected security costs.

He also said the state may take the lead in coordinating and managing the deployment of outside law enforcement agencies.

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 Kaitlyn Ross

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    LILBURN, Georgia (WXIA) — What started as a struggling air conditioning system at a metro Atlanta nonprofit turned into an $80,000 act of generosity that’s already making a difference for veterans and the dogs trained to serve them.

At Top Dogg K9 Foundation in Lilburn, the sound of barking fills the building. It’s where service dogs are trained before being paired with veterans living with post-traumatic stress disorder.

But for months, the nonprofit was battling the Georgia heat.

“We’ve been suffering, summer after summer, with a 30-year-old system, doing a lot of patch work,” said founder Blake Rashad.

The aging air conditioning unit was failing, creating an increasingly difficult environment for both the dogs and the people who care for them.

That’s when Jeremy Melton, owner of Impact Service Group, learned about the situation.

“It wasn’t 10 minutes into the conversation,” Rashad said. “He said, ‘I love what you’re doing. I support what you’re doing, and I’m going to help.'”

Melton followed through — in a big way.

Working alongside a network of partners, Impact Service Group replaced the entire HVAC system for both buildings at the facility, free of charge.

The project included labor, materials and supplies from Impact Service Group, ductwork from BHW Metals and electrical work from Ayers Electric.

Equipment for the new system was supplied by Mingledorff’s through the network of a Corvant company, Rogers Mechanical.

Altogether, the effort totaled an estimated $80,000.

“My passion is to help people. At the end of the day, I just want to help people,” Melton said.

For Rashad, the impact is immediate.

“I was floored. I was speechless. I didn’t know how to respond,” he said. “What he’s doing for us — it’s going to change the lives of my veterans.”

The upgraded system is now fully operational, just in time for rising temperatures across metro Atlanta.

Rashad says the improvement means more than comfort; it’s peace of mind.

For the first time in a long time, he says he can rest easy knowing the dogs are safe, and the mission can continue without interruption.

And for the veterans who will one day be paired with those dogs, the ripple effect of that generosity could be life-changing.

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 Jason McNabb, T.J. Wilham

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    ALBUQUERQUE, New Mexico (KOAT) — An Rio Rancho man says he received multiple speeding tickets from Albuquerque’s speed cameras for a car he doesn’t own, raising concerns about the reliability of the city’s traffic camera system.

Jerry Delmore received a $100 speeding ticket in the mail, but when he opened it, he realized the car in the photo wasn’t his.

“I didn’t do it, so I asked my wife, like, hey, is this you? She says, no. So I opened it up, and it was neither of us,” Delmore said.

The ticket showed a white Ford Explorer with a license plate similar to Delmore’s, but one letter was different. His plate begins with a “D,” while the car caught on camera had a “U.”

“With human eyes, you can see it’s a U,” Delmore said. “It was similar, I’d give it that.”

Dan Mayfield, press secretary for Mayor Tim Keller, said the city’s camera system is designed to prevent such errors.

“Our cameras actually, they take a video,” Mayfield said. “It’s a little short video clip, a three-second video clip of all the cars speeding, plus three different photographs of the cars.”

Mayfield explained that the out-of-state vendor reviews the citations, and Albuquerque Police Department officers double-check the videos and photographs before signing off on each ticket.

“APD officers watch every video, double-check all of the photographs, and then an officer actually signs off on every single citation,” Mayfield said.

Delmore questioned whether the process is being followed.

“This is, it’s sworn or affirmed by this APD person, so they’re not doing their job, or this is just auto-penned,” he said.

Delmore shared a video of one of the citations he received, showing a white Ford Explorer with a plate one letter off from his, allegedly speeding at 75 mph on Coors Boulevard. His vehicle, however, is a blue Ford F-150 truck, and his registration clearly states “blue.”

“Somebody just, they’re just pencil whippin’ this,” Delmore said.

“It’s frustrating, and I think it would be frustrating for most people to get blamed for something that you didn’t do,” he added.

Mayfield said errors like Delmore’s case are rare, occurring about five times per 30,000 tickets issued each month. With 550,000 citations issued earlier this year, that means nearly 100 people could have received incorrect tickets.

“This is a teaching moment for us,” Mayfield said. “We can always tell APD, listen, sometimes these plates, especially in the DV plates, like this one, they’re smaller letters, and just give it a double check.”

After Delmore contacted Target 7, the city voided both of his tickets. However, he said the resolution could have been simpler.

“They called it up, saw it right there on the screen, saw the email that I had sent in with my license plate, saw the mistake. They could physically verify everything that I have said. But they couldn’t do anything about it,” Delmore said. “They didn’t give me an explanation.”

Mayfield said it’s easy to get a citation dismissed in similar situations. Drivers can set up an e-hearing using the link on the back of the ticket and upload a copy of their registration to prove the car cited doesn’t match their vehicle.

“We think there was a mistake, wrong license plate, something like that, wrong car. And you can upload a copy of your registration, and we can prove from that that the registration does not match the license plate of the car that was cited,” Mayfield said.

Delmore, unaware of the e-hearing option, signed up for an in-person hearing.

“I didn’t do anything wrong,” he said. “But I’m having to deal with a lot of crap because of it.”

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 Mariana La Roche, Amy Fleury

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    WAUKESHA COUNTY, Wisconsin (WISN) — A Waukesha County jury reached a verdict in the trial of Thomas Felser, a 63-year-old former Pewaukee school bus driver accused of sexually assaulting multiple young girls on his route.

Felser was convicted on three counts of repeated sexual assault of the same child, one count of first-degree child sex assault and four counts of sexual misconduct by school staff or a volunteer.

He was found not guilty on three counts of sexual misconduct by school staff or volunteer.

Felser is scheduled to be sentenced on July 24. Given his age, he could spend the rest of his life in prison.

“We are very satisfied with the jury’s verdict. We are thankful of the time and attention that the jury has taken in evaluating this case. We’re very thankful for the investigators from the Village of Pewaukee Police Department and really, we’re thankful for how brave these girls have been in this process,” Waukesha County Assistant District Attorney Vivien Morris said after the verdict was read.

The trial, which began Monday, centered on accusations that Felser sexually assaulted four girls, ages 4, 5 and 6, on his school bus. Felser, who taught in the Pewaukee School District for 37 years before becoming a bus driver, maintained his innocence throughout the proceedings.

During closing arguments Thursday morning, Morris argued the surveillance video evidence was clear.

“It is not reasonable to ignore what we all saw in those videos, if the defense’s argument requires you to set aside what you saw with your own eyes in that video, that’s not reasonable doubt, that’s a rejection of reality,” Morris said.

Defense attorney Craig Powell argued that intentional sexual contact could not be proven in the footage and cautioned the jury against relying on the forensic interviews of the young children.

“You may question his judgment, you may can believe his decision-making was inappropriate in some of those instances, but inappropriate is not illegal, inappropriate is not sexual assault,” Powell said.

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By Kilee Thomas

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    OKLAHOMA CITY, Oklahoma (KOCO) — An Oklahoma Department of Human Services employee is accused of embezzling $2 million from the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), which provides financial aid for utility bills to residents in need.

Court documents outline how the employee allegedly siphoned millions of dollars into their personal bank account by creating fake utility companies and forging bank letters and business P.O. boxes to make the companies appear legitimate.

Investigators said the first suspicious payments date back to 2017, but the alleged scheme was uncovered this spring during a state audit of the LIHEAP program.

In a statement, State Auditor Cindy Byrd said her office reported repeated oversight deficiencies within LIHEAP, and investigators identified “urgent concerns.”

The Office of Inspector General informed the state auditor that they believe a DHS employee “misappropriated” $2 million.

The DHS employee was arrested Monday on charges of embezzlement. A judge set bond at $100,000, which the employee posted.

The first court appearance is scheduled for June 2.

In a statement, DHS said they routinely evaluate oversight measures: “We can confirm the Office of Inspector General within Oklahoma Human Services initiated a coordinated investigation into potential criminal activity connected to one of our programs. Accountability matters, and this is exactly why our oversight and safeguards exist.

Because this is an active investigation, there are limits to what can be discussed publicly, but it appears to be a complex scheme by a single employee who has since been terminated.

OKDHS routinely evaluates oversight measures, and system changes implemented over the last year appear to have helped prevent this type of activity from continuing.

OKDHS remains committed to protecting the integrity of our programs and the people we serve.

“We applaud the dedication of our Office of Inspector General and Internal Audit teams as they work to uphold the integrity of our programs,” said OKDHS Director Jeffrey Cartmell. “We will continue working with state and federal partners strengthening safeguards against fraud to protect the programs serving vulnerable Oklahomans.

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By Angela Rozier

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    MARTIN COUNTY, Florida (WPBF) — A Jensen Beach man has been charged with animal cruelty after witnesses reported him strangling his five-month-old puppy, which was later determined to be suffering from cocaine exposure, according to Martin County Sheriff John Budensiek.

The sheriff’s office began investigating the case on April 28 when witnesses reported the case.

Investigators responded and shared a photo of the puppy, named Inga, who remains in protective custody with the Humane Society as detectives continue their investigation.

“The dog’s pupils were blown,” Budensiek said. “Similar to a human being’s pupils.”

Witnesses reported hearing the puppy’s cries and allegedly saw 62-year-old John Sparhawk holding the dog above his head and strangling it.

Casey Rosica was one of the witnesses.

“I ran out of the truck, and I see a dog about six and a half feet in the air and it’s screaming for its life, and I said, ‘Hey, what are you doing with that dog?’ And he freaked out, he really didn’t know how to respond, and he drops the dog,” Rosica said.

The Humane Society confirmed that Inga was transported to an emergency veterinary hospital. Sparhawk reportedly told neighbors the puppy was suffering from a seizure and asked them to take it to a hospital.

Veterinarians later determined the dog’s condition was caused by cocaine exposure, which triggered the medical episode. Sparhawk told detectives the puppy may have eaten something bad in the woods, but veterinarians confirmed the symptoms were consistent with cocaine intoxication.

“I’m not sitting here saying the dog stole his stash or it was his stash at all or that he injected the dog with cocaine. I’m just simply telling you that the dog was highly intoxicated on cocaine,” Budensiek said.

Deputies were called to the Humane Society after Sparhawk showed up there, reportedly threatening workers.

“He was there yesterday kind of showing out a little bit, threatening the workers at the Humane Society. Our deputies responded out there, trespassed him, and he cannot go back on their property. The dog is safe, and he was arrested because we had a warrant for him,” Budensiek said.

Sparhawk was taken into custody and later released. Inga remains in protective custody with the Humane Society as investigators continue to determine what happened.

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.