Category: CNN Regional

By Evan Sery

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    DETROIT (WXYZ) — A Detroit man has been reunited with his stolen dog after six months — and Macomb County Animal Control says the happy ending came down to one small thing: a microchip.

We spoke one-on-one with Macomb County Animal Control Director Chief Jeff Randazzo, who says Max, a 9-month-old black lab mix, was found inside a Roseville home last month after the tenants had just been evicted, and Max had been abandoned.

After scanning Max’s microchip, animal control was able to contact his owner, who had reported the dog stolen months earlier. The two were reunited Tuesday.

“When they called him, and said I think we have Max here, he’s microchipped to you, he’s like, ‘ Oh my God,” Randazzo said.

Randazzo says the owner had begun to lose hope.

“6 months is a long time, so he did think, you know, he was never gonna see his dog again,” Randazzo said.

But the reunion happened — and Randazzo says both Max and his owner, Mr. Shaw, made their feelings clear.

“Max was super excited to see Mr. Shaw; Mr. Shaw obviously felt the same way,” Randazzo said.

Randazzo is now urging all pet owners to take the same simple step that made this reunion possible.

“Making sure if your animals are microchipped, check that registration, that they’re currently registered, we register all our chips we plant,” Randazzo said.

Randazzo says all animals at Macomb County Animal Control are microchipped. In September, his department launched the region’s first public microchip scanning program, consisting of 4 scanning stations scattered across Macomb County. If a chip is detected, the scanner provides the ID number and resources to connect directly with the owner.

For Randazzo, the story of Max and Mr. Shaw says it all.

“It’s kind of just a great story of microchips do work,” Randazzo said.

This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Scripps editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.

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 Randy Wimbley

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    DETROIT (WXYZ) — A 9-year-old Detroit student says a substitute teacher directed other students to physically attack him, leaving him with a black eye, cuts on his face and a concussion. The Detroit Public Schools Community District says the substitute teacher has been placed on administrative leave while an investigation is underway.

C’Antae Fleming, a fourth grader at Robert Burns Elementary-Middle School on Detroit’s west side, says the incident happened on a Friday morning after the substitute teacher warned him to stay seated and away from the computer.

“That’s when she just like, trying to tell the kids to handle me, like try to push me to my desk. That’s what they were telling me to do and she said if I get up one more time, she’s gonna get the kids to jump me,” C’Antae said.

The 9-year-old says he was punched, held down and strangled by other students.

“Her hits just hurt and that’s what hurt, so that’s what made me sad and then the kids were choking me until my face was red,” C’Antae said.

His mother, Jay’Shelle Warfield, says she did not learn about the incident until C’Antae and his brother Chase got off the school bus that afternoon.

“Chase immediately comes to me. He says ‘mom, C’Antae got hit today. C’Antae got hit by a teacher.’ I say, ‘who?'” Warfield said.

Warfield says the account was later backed up by another parent.

“My old neighbor called me, and her children just started there two weeks ago, and she said her children came home and told her ‘momma, a little boy got punched by a teacher today and there kids were holding him and pinning him down,'” Warfield said.

Warfield says her son has a history of seizures, making the injuries to his head and face especially alarming.

“My son had seizures, so anything to his face or head, I’m gonna be concerned about. He has a history of seizures,” Warfield said.

DPSCD provided a statement saying:

“Detroit Public Schools Community District (DPSCD) became aware of an incident involving a substitute teacher who allegedly engaged in misconduct after school hours. The individual has been placed on administrative leave and is not permitted to accept substitute assignments in any DPSCD school while the matter is under investigation. We take matters involving student safety extremely seriously. A thorough investigation is underway, and any findings will be referred to law enforcement.”

Retired DPSCD Police Lt. David Wallace says incidents like this were rare during his time on the job but have become more common.

“Normally in my experience, the teacher was always in charge of the classroom and it comes down to classroom management,” Wallace said.

Wallace says the pressures on educators today are significant.

“Learning starts at home, so some of those traits that you have, you bring it into the classroom and then the teacher will have to deal with it. She has 25 or 30 other students with different personalities to deal with, and that’s stressful for an educator,” Wallace said.

“We all have to work together to ensure situations like this won’t happen again.”

C’Antae has not returned to school since the incident. His mother says she is working to enroll him elsewhere.

The investigation is ongoing. The substitute teacher cannot accept any substitute assignments while on administrative leave.

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This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Scripps editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.

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 Steven Rosenbaum

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    DALLAS (KTVT) — Dallas police SWAT officers shot and killed a wanted fugitive late Wednesday night, Chief Daniel Comeaux said early Thursday morning.

Comeaux said officers tracked the man to the parking garage of Children’s Medical Center Dallas in the Medical District, where they found him “barricaded” inside his vehicle. The officers deployed tear gas inside of the vehicle, and when the suspect came out, he pointed a gun at them.

The SWAT officers fired, and the suspect was pronounced dead at the scene.

Comeaux did not identify the suspect or say what he was wanted for. DPD said it will provide an update on the investigation later Thursday morning.

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 Shardaa Gray

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    LAKE VILLAGE, Indiana (WBBM) — An elderly couple died after a possible tornado ripped through the town.

The couple’s family said they’re shocked that Tuesday night’s tornado leveled their grandparents’ home and took their lives.

“Obviously, we’ve never seen anything remotely resembling this,” said son-in-law Steve Rhefeldt.

A place that Ed Kozlowski, 89, and his wife, Arlene, 86, once called home is now gone.

“They were wonderful, just really wonderful human beings. You know, tough old guy and sweet old lady,” he said.

The Indiana Urban Search and Rescue team was spotted on Wednesday sifting through the debris along with Rhefeldt and his son, Matthew, who traveled from Peotone to see the damage.

The elderly couple was unable to get out of the debris alive. Relatives believe that everything happened within the blink of an eye.

“They’ve lived a good life, and boy, you kind of… I have to imagine this was just “hey, what’s going on?” and it was over that quick,” Steve said.

The family said they were in the process of planning Ed’s 90th birthday at the home the couple had lived in for years. Everything the couple built is now gone.

“We were talking on the way here. These cars, there’s big heavy V8 engines in big trucks, and the wind is literally taking his car, which was parked somewhere, maybe right there, and taking it and flipping it upside down,” Steve said.

The couple had four kids, seven grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.

Lake Village was left with extensive damage that crews are just starting to clear. Steven Travis said he survived the tornado but lost everything.

“Roof’s gone all in 20 seconds. I walked in the bedroom, got knocked down, climbed in the closet, and it was over. Come back out, climbed out, and the roof’s gone, everything. Trees are down, windows blowed out. Lost everything,” Steven said.

North Newton High School in Lake Village is serving as an emergency shelter for anyone displaced by the storm. The Lake Village Fire Department is also serving as a rallying point.

Newton County officials confirmed that more than 100 buildings were damaged in Lake Village and more than 30 were destroyed.

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 CBS News Atlanta Digital Team

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    HINESVILLE, Georgia (WUPA) — Officers with the Hinesville Police Department responded Sunday after residents reported spotting the large reptile roaming near the Bradwell area, just outside Fort Stewart.

According to police, the tortoise had slipped out of its enclosure during the warm weather and managed to travel a surprising distance before being spotted by neighbors who called 911.

Officers arriving at the scene quickly realized the rescue would require more than just guiding the animal back home.

“With a little teamwork and a lot of muscle, officers were able to lift the very large, very determined, and very heavy tortoise and return him safely to his enclosure,” police said in a statement.

Police joked that the reptile, described by officers as a “dinosaur,” gave them an unexpected workout during the rescue.

After safely returning the tortoise, officers secured the gate of the enclosure to prevent the “shelled escape artist” from making another getaway.

No one was injured during the unusual rescue, and the tortoise is now back home.

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 Jenna Wells

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    MILWAUKEE (WDJT) — A jury trial is underway in Milwaukee County for a man accused of kidnapping a 79-year-old woman in 2022.

Timothy Olson faces several felony charges, and it’s been a tumultuous case.

Olson is representing himself in this trial after firing seven attorneys since this case began three years ago. He does have standby counsel but was ordered to only ask questions himself.

On the road to trial, Olson asked for competency exams for himself twice, but psychologists found him able to withstand trial.

The trial was supposed to begin Monday but was delayed because Olson was in the hospital with what the judge called a head injury he got in his cell. A jury was seated Tuesday, March 10.

Olson was charged in 2022 after a 79-year-old Franklin woman told police he’d gotten into her car and abducted her the night before Thanksgiving, forcing her to drive him around and then taking the wheel for hours, claiming he had a gun.

The woman said he forced her to drink whiskey and she eventually passed out, waking up the next morning with him still driving and then leaving her in a parking lot.

Wednesday, that woman, now 82 years old, was called as a witness by prosecutors to tell that story to the court:

“Were you afraid?” Attorney Sara Volden Sadowski asked.

“Oh yeah. It was the worst day of my life.”

“What were you thinking at the time?”

“I don’t think you can really think. You just pray. You pray.”

But her entire testimony wasn’t heard before a recess just before 11 a.m. – Olson appeared to be having some kind of medical emergency, choking and grunting with his head thrown back.

The jury and witness stand were cleared, and the judge had him taken for a medical evaluation with an intent to resume court at 1 p.m.

We saw Olson in the hallway with bailiffs, and he seemed to be alert and talking.

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 Maggie Kent

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    PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) — A South Philadelphia woman stepped in with empathy rather than anger when she spotted someone trying to steal a neighbor’s package.

Bernadette Williams quickly turned a tense moment into an unexpected act of kindness on Friday.

Williams said she reacted instinctively when she saw the woman reaching for the package. In doorbell camera video, Williams can be heard calling out, “Put that down, put that down.”

She then acts with compassion, offering the only money she had in her pocket.

“I’ll give you some money. Here’s $7, here’s $7,” she said in the recording.

Williams said she wanted to help rather than escalate the situation.

“I said, ‘She’s in trouble. How can I make a bad situation better?’ You have to be a part of the solution,” she said.

Williams offered the woman encouragement as well.

“You’re better than that. Get some help. You’re better than that. I love you. God loves you,” she told her. The woman responded with a quiet, “Thank you.”

Williams said she could see remorse in the woman’s expression.

“Her eyes of ‘I’m sorry.’ And that was in her heart and that’s what I read. And I hope that she will be fine. And I have faith that she will be fine,” she said.

A resident of the neighborhood for decades, Williams said she acted out of a sense of responsibility to her community.

“Let’s hope that all Philadelphians would say we are a part of our community and we can make our community better,” she said.

In the video, the would-be thief can be faintly heard apologizing. Williams hopes the interaction left a lasting impact.

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.