Category: CNN Regional

By Niki Kelly

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    Indiana (WFFT) — Gov. Mike Braun denied clemency to death row inmate Roy Lee Ward in an announcement early Monday morning.

“After carefully reviewing the unanimous recommendation from the State Parole Board, I have decided to allow the execution of Roy Lee Ward to proceed as planned for October 10,” he said.

Unless a court intervenes, Ward will be the third person executed since Indiana resumed capital punishment in December 2024, after more than a decade-long pause. Braun denied clemency for another death row inmate, Benjamin Ritchie, earlier this year.

The Indiana Parole Board last week recommended against granting clemency to Ward.

The five-member panel cited the “brutal nature” of Ward’s 2001 rape and murder of 15-year-old Stacy Payne, emphasizing that Payne was conscious during the attack and her “final hours living with the injuries that Roy Lee Ward inflicted on her.”

“Candidly, this Board reviews thousands of cases a year, many with gruesome facts, but the victimization of Stacy Payne stood out to us,” wrote parole board chairperson Gwen Horth.

Ward’s legal team has argued in court that Indiana’s current protocol creates a constitutionally unacceptable risk of pain and suffering, in violation of the Eighth Amendment.

The inmate’s legal team continues to challenge the use of the drug pentobarbital, citing evidence that it can cause flash pulmonary edema and sensations of drowning. They point to Ritchie’s execution in May, when witnesses reportedly saw the inmate “lurch upward, as if to sit up, in a spasm” after the injection, a reaction they say is “inconsistent with the normal effects of unadulterated pentobarbital.”

In pending federal litigation brought by Ward, the Indiana Attorney General’s office confirmed last week that the Department of Correction has obtained “three sets” of pentobarbital.

Indiana State Prison Warden Ron Neal said in a sworn declaration submitted to the Northern District judge that two of those sets will expire at the end of October and the third set expires in March 2026.

The governor previously disclosed that state officials spent $1.175 million on lethal injection doses over the past year — $600,000 of which was spent by former Gov. Eric Holcomb’s administration on drugs that expired before use. The cost has been between $275,000 and $300,000 per dose.

State officials have not responded to the Indiana Capital Chronicle’s questions about the amount paid for the latest three doses.

The state’s court filings also stressed that DOC is using “manufactured injectable pentobarbital” — not a compounded version — to carry out executions. Manufactured pentobarbital is produced in sterile facilities under federal quality controls, with longer shelf lives and stricter oversight than compounded alternatives, according to court filings.

Ward’s attorneys proposed that executions could be carried out more humanely if DOC administered a “pre-dose” of fentanyl or another opioid before pentobarbital, but Neal said in his declaration that the department “does not intend to use fentanyl as part of carrying out the death sentence” and that it is not included in the prison’s directives.

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By Aaron Hegarty

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    OMAHA, Nebraska (KETV) — An Omaha mom is celebrating the Food and Drug Administration’s approval of elamipretide for Barth syndrome.

The sign Jordan Karle held outside the White House in late August makes the alternative clear: “We implore the FDA to rescue our babies from certain death.”

Karle’s 1-year-old son Jaylin has Barth syndrome, a condition only 150 people in the U.S. are estimated to have.

At birth, Jaylin’s heart was failing, Karle said. But after beginning elamipretide, Jaylin left the hospital after a month, she said.

Jaylin has had a nightly injection of elamipretide since then, Karle said, but the manufacturer, Stealth BioTherapeutics, would not have been able to support creation for much longer without any FDA approval.

Elamipretide, which has a brand name of Forzinity, was granted accelerated approval on Sept. 19.

Karle and other advocates traveled to Washington, D.C., in August after a second FDA denial this year. While they were there, they landed a meeting with FDA Commissioner Marty Makary, Karle said.

Annie Kennedy, the director of policy and advocacy at the EveryLife Foundation for Rare Diseases, says their advocacy and data marked the reasons why the drug ultimately received approval.

Kennedy said approval was complicated by the fact that clinical trial data were for those 12 and older, though infants who see the onset of the condition in early life are the most adversely affected.

Karle said her advocacy is not done because the approval is only for those 66 pounds and above.

She said one in 10 Americans has a rare disease, and not many have an FDA-approved treatment.

“Disease communities tend to work together,” she said. She said they’re collectively advocating for funding for research for those diseases now. That’s something we’re all depending on right now, is to make sure that our federal agencies, our public health systems remain funded.”

The executive director of the Barth Syndrome Foundation, Emily Milligan, told KETV in a statement that she hopes the FDA’s turnaround marks the beginning of a new chapter for rare disease communities.

“We will continue to encourage the FDA to exercise this logic in the post-approval space regarding confirmatory evidence,” she told KETV. “The FDA’s bar must be achievable and realistic for such small populations like the Barth syndrome community to retain access and preserve children’s rights to life-saving medications.”

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By Josh Wallace

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    PIEDMONT, Oklahoma (KOCO) — Piedmont police recently took an odd call involving a fawn caught up in a fence and quickly responded to save the four-legged leaper.

In a video posted on social media, an officer can be seen with a large set of bolt cutters as the deer struggles with one hoof caught up in the wire fence.

After a few attempts, the officer snapped the wire around the hoof, dropping the fawn to the ground. After being dazed for a moment, the deer’s animal instincts kicked in, as it scurried away from the officer.

Its freedom run was short lived, as it attempted to vault over a nearby water bucket but tumbled to the ground after the failed attempt.

“When you finally get free… but freedom is confusing,” department officials wrote in the social media post. “Sometimes it takes a second to get your bearings after being stuck.”

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By Olivia Hickey

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    Oklahoma (KOCO) — A high-speed medical emergency unfolded Thursday morning when the driver of an Oklahoma Department of Corrections bus suffered a medical episode during an inmate transport.

Corporal Justin Black is being hailed as the hero who was able to take control and steer the bus to safety.

Black was not interested in speaking on camera about his actions, but his supervisor described his efforts as heroic, possibly saving the lives of everyone on board.

Bodycam footage captured the moment Black sprang into action.

“I looked up, and he was on the floor, and that’s when I jumped up and stopped the bus,” Black said in the body camera footage. “I’m trying to make sure he stayed awake.”

Sky 5 flew over the scene near Interstate 35 and Bryant Avenue, where many emergency responders were present, and Black was seen assisting.

“Thirteen inmates were on board. Some, during the initial contact, were very concerned with the officer and telling Corporal Black what a great job he did,” Lt. Jed Hasbell, supervisor of the Central Transportation Unit at ODOC, said.

He said the outcome could have been catastrophic.

“Every time he does something great, he’s the first to say, ‘I’m just doing my job,'” Hasbell said. “He potentially saved the lives of 15 people, including himself.”

ODOC has chosen to respect the privacy of the driver and will not be sharing updates on his condition.

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By Rachael Perry

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    RIVIERA BEACH, FL (WPBF) — If convicted and sentenced to death, a Riviera Beach mother could be the third woman to be executed in the state of Florida.

The State Attorney’s Office has filed paperwork to seek the death penalty against Naikishia Williams, who is accused of killing her 7-year-old daughter, Nia, in Riviera Beach.

However, her defense has filed several motions that experts say could be an attempt to stop that from happening.

Woman And Death Row Only two women have been executed after being sentenced to death in the state of Florida, and only one woman is currently sitting on death row. WPBF 25 News spoke with attorney Dave Aronberg on just how rare death sentences are for women.

“As far as a woman getting capital punishment, it’s very rare. Jurors generally don’t like to give the death penalty to women, especially mothers,” Aronberg said.

He said the people who commit these “atrocious crimes” of first-degree murder overwhelmingly are men who make up the majority of death row. However, Aronberg said prosecutors have sought the death penalty for women in the past.

“When it comes to women who are charged with these crimes, like a Susan Smith, who drove her kids into a body of water killing them, even she was spared the death penalty. It’s very hard for a jury to get their head around giving a mother the ultimate penalty,” he said.

As for why that is, Aronberg believes it comes down to human nature.

“Jurors are human beings like the rest of us, and even though they’re told not to let sympathy get in the way, they’re human beings,” Aronberg said.

Despite the fact that jurors are told to follow the evidence and the law, he said that might be a difficult ask for some.

“To say that the woman who is a mother should have her life ended by the state is a tough ask for people, and it is tougher when it is a woman than a man. It’s just human nature. It’s just reality,” he said.

Aronberg explained what goes into deciding if a person should be eligible for the death penalty. He said prosecutors have to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that at least one aggravator exists.

“Was it cold, calculated, and premeditated? Was it heinous, atrocious, and cruel? Were there specific victims involved in a vulnerable class? So, there are a number of potential aggravators. You need to have at least one that you believe you can prove beyond a reasonable doubt to even make that person eligible for the death penalty,” he told WPBF.

William’s Attorneys Seek Mental Health Experts In the case against Williams, her defense attorneys have filed several motions, including a motion to appoint a mental health expert and mitigation expert.

Aronberg said these experts are likely brought in to help the defense argue that the death penalty shouldn’t be considered.

“A mitigator could be anything, and that is allowed to be introduced during the penalty phase of a trial. For example, the brutal murderer in Parkland who slaughtered so many innocent young people a few years ago was spared the death penalty, in part because his lawyers argued that his mother smoked in the womb and he was mistreated,” he said.

Aronberg said the defense is able to hire a mitigating expert to come up with reasons why the individual should not be eligible for the death penalty, and then at trial, why this person should not get the death penalty in front of a jury.

He said the committee that oversees cases where the death penalty is being sought will review what those experts say.

“When you’re talking about the ultimate penalty, you can’t put the toothpaste back in the tube. I mean, you better get it right every time, and if there is a mental health issue at play, prosecutors want and need to know about that,” Aronberg said.

Williams’ attorneys have also filed a motion to determine competency. That would evaluate if she’s able to stand trial based on whether she understands the court proceedings and if she can assist in her own defense.

If someone is ruled incompetent, they’re transferred to a mental health facility until they regain competency. If the person doesn’t regain competency, the charges against them could be dismissed.

Aronberg explained the differences between competency and insanity in court proceedings.

“Competency is whether the person is able to stand trial. The insanity defense is whether the person at trial can prove that they had an established medical condition and did not know the difference between right and wrong. Insanity defense is rarely successful,” he said.

8-12 Needed To Sentence Someone to Death While prosecutors have filed paperwork to seek the death penalty for Williams, the court has not ruled on whether that will stand. If it does and she’s convicted, prosecutors would need eight out of 12 jurors to sentence her to death.

That was changed following the Parkland mass shooting, when the threshold for a death sentence was lowered. Instead of prosecutors needing a unanimous jury to give someone the death penalty in Florida, they only need eight out of 12.

“Florida changed this law after the Parkland massacre, after the killer there was able to escape the death penalty. His number was 9-3. So after he was able to escape the death penalty, the legislature ruled they were going to lower it all the way down to 8-4, which could implicate some constitutional issues,” Aronberg said.

He said Florida has the lowest threshold of any state for someone to be sentenced to death. However, Aronberg said it’s not yet ruled by the U.S. Supreme Court whether eight out of 12 is constitutional.

WPBF 25 News reached out to William’s attorney, who declined to comment on the specifics of why they’ve filed all of these motions; however, he said they already have several experts helping and will continue bringing in more to ensure the case is fairly adjudicated.

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By WGAL News Staff

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    FAIRVIEW TOWNSHIP, Pennsylvania (WGAL) — One person is dead after a crash on Exit 40A in York County.

Crews were dispatched to a reported single-vehicle crash just after 7:30 Sunday morning.

According to the York County Coroner, the driver of the vehicle, a 33-year-old man, died at the scene of the crash.

The vehicle reportedly left the roadway and struck a concrete barrier head-on.

The car then slid on top of the barrier, rupturing the fuel tank and immediately causing flames to engulf the car.

Pedestrians who witnessed the crash stopped and helped three people out of the vehicle.

They began giving CPR to the driver of the car, who was unconscious and injured.

Upon arrival, EMS continued resuscitation efforts, but the driver died at the scene.

The coroner was called to the scene around 8:10 a.m.

The driver of the vehicle has not been identified.

The two other crash victims were sent to a local hospital, but their conditions are unknown.

The ramp did not fully reopen until 3:45 p.m., according to a York County dispatcher.

State police are investigating the crash.

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By Jacob Hunziker, Taylor Hess

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    LEBANON, Pennsylvania (WGAL) — Four people, including three children, were killed in a fire Sunday morning in Lebanon.

The victims include a one-year-old, a four-year-old, a 17-year-old and a 73-year-old.

Group was gathered for birthday party The fire started in the 800 block of Church Street around 8:40 a.m.

The Lebanon Fire Department arrived to find both the first and the second floors of the home fully engulfed in flames.

Firefighters were immediately aware that people were trapped inside of the building and the fire was upgraded to a second alarm, according to Lebanon Mayor Sherry Capello.

After rescuing three victims from inside of the home, conditions deteriorated, forcing crews to leave the home and fight the fire from the outside. The three victims were sent to Good Samaritan Hospital.

When conditions stabilized, firefighters reentered the home and recovered two additional victims.

According to Capello, ten people were inside the home for a birthday celebration.

“With deep regret, I must report that four victims have passed away, one remains in critical condition, and one is in stable condition. The remaining four occupants escaped with minor injures,” Capello said in a statement.

The identities of the victims will be released at a later time.

“On behalf of the City, I extend our heartfelt condolences to the families of the deceased. Words cannot capture the depth of our sorrow for their loss. Our thoughts and prayers remain with all those impacted by this devastating event.”

Cause of fire Capello said the fire started from an electrical outlet in the first floor living room and has been ruled an accident.

The Pennsylvania State Police Fire Marshal’s Office is assisting with the investigation.

The Red Cross is assisting the victims.

First responders, community

“The City of Lebanon is fortunate to have such a courageous and dedicated community of first responders — neighbors who come together without hesitation in moments of greatest need to protect lives and property,” Capello said. “We are also deeply grateful to the friends, family members, and neighbors who provided comfort and support to the victims’ families during this tragedy.

Community support Bag of Hope on 720 Quentin Road in Lebanon will be open on Monday only to collect donations for the family affected by the fire.

If you want to make a donation, you can write your name and “family” on your donation bags.

The organization will post the clothing sizes that are needed as soon as they know them on Facebook.

You can contact Bag of Hope for pick ups at 717-454-0669, Ext 3.

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By Nick Matoney

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    PITTSBURGH (WTAE) — Pittsburgh police said a mother in the city’s East Hills neighborhood found a man passed out on the floor of her daughter’s room with his pants down.

Police said they were called to the 500 block of Haverhill Street at about 4:30 a.m. Sunday.

According to a criminal complaint filed against Miguel Meza, 23, of Miami, Florida, the mother reported finding Meza in the room with his breath smelling of alcohol.

Police said she woke him up and he ran out and sat on her porch as she kicked him in the back and screamed, “What are you doing in my daughter’s bedroom?”

Police said the mother fired two shots in the air from a handgun and four other men grabbed the suspect and took him to a home next door.

According to the criminal complaint, police went to the home next door and said that initially, no one would come out, but eventually the door was opened and police arrested Meza after finding him hiding in a closet under the covers.

He was taken to the Allegheny County Jail.

As of Sunday afternoon, Meza had not yet been arraigned.

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