Assault charge against officer fuels debate over handling mental health crises

CNN Newsource on June 2, 2026

By Gracie Palmer

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    SHELBY, North Carolina (WLOS) — The assault charge filed against a Shelby police officer is prompting renewed discussion about how law enforcement responds to people experiencing mental health crises.

Home security video obtained by CNN shows Shelby police officer Karson Hyder repeatedly punching 34-year-old Cherrie Moore during an arrest. The North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation announced on June 1 that Hyder was charged with one count of assault inflicting serious injury. Hyder turned himself in at the Cleveland County Detention Center at 10 a.m. on June 1, the SBI confirmed. He was then processed and released on a $10,000 secured bond.

He will be in Cleveland County court today to have electronic warrants assigned.

Moore’s father has said his daughter suffers from mental health issues.

News 13 spoke with Brandon McGaha, a staff representative with the North Carolina Police Benevolent Association. McGaha said Hyder, 22, is a member of the organization.

“Use of force situations are ugly. There’s no way to make them pretty. And they’re always going to look bad, especially when only part of the story is being released. That’s not anybody’s fault. That’s just kind of the way it must be,” McGaha said.

When asked whether situations like the one in Shelby are preventable, McGaha said it varies.

“You see some officers dealing with mental health crisis where they talk to the person, the person calms right down, right? And then you see the other ones where the uniform just sets the person off,” McGaha said.

He said training officers for these situations has improved over the years.

“For somebody who’s in crisis, it teaches you how to speak with that person and hopefully de-escalate the situation,” McGaha said.

At Asheville-Buncombe Technical Community College in their Basic Law Enforcement Training program, cadets are prepared for these instances.

“We train officers to take every situation differently. In order to use force, you have to have a good reason,” said Daryl Fisher, director of law enforcement training at A-B Tech.

“What we teach is whenever you are encountering someone who has any type of mental health issues is you want to make sure that you are not only dealing with the situation itself, but if that person needs some type of assistance, you try to get them that assistance,” Fisher said.

He said cadets also learn that their actions can have lasting consequences.

“Because if we don’t do things right, bad things happen, and our reputation is extremely important to us, not only as officers, but as trainers. We want to make sure we do things right,” Fisher said.

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.

Farmers in Kona calls for action by county after Big Island Earthquake

CNN Newsource on June 2, 2026

By Angela Cifone

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    HONOLULU (KITV) — When the earthquake struck, one local farmer says the damage inside his home was immediate.

“Everything that was glass or breakable was on the floor, broken. So took us a long time to even get outside to see what was going on,” said Colehour Bondera, a Farmer at Kanalani Ohana Farm.

But it wasn’t until he stepped outside that he discovered an even bigger problem.

“I heard water, and I lost my composure for a minute, because I knew it wasn’t raining,” said Bondera.

He followed the sound and found his farm’s water catchment tank had burst.

“I also knew at that moment there was nothing I was going to do about it, so I didn’t even look at it again. I just let it be, but I could tell from the flow of water that it was all history,” said Bondera.

Like hundreds of other residents who rely on catchment systems, he suddenly found himself without a reliable water supply.

He says finding replacement materials wasn’t easy and believes county officials need to be more proactive when disasters strike.

“I just think that we need sort of better emergency response capacity and treat an emergency like it’s an emergency,” said Bondera.

More than 150 people attended a community meeting at Yano Hall in South Kona last week to discuss recovery efforts.

Big Island Mayor Kimo Alameda says the county is working to connect residents with resources while pursuing additional funding.

“We’re kind of like the liaison; the county serves as a middle person, but we’re also looking for funding as well. States willing to help us, and so we’re exploring opportunities for funding,” said Hawaii County Mayor Kimo Alameda.

The mayor says the county is helping residents access water, replacement liners, and federal assistance programs, while also reviewing lessons learned from this event.

“It’s a team approach, working with our residents, our farmers, with the county, but you know, the state and the feds, like we all got to work together to make sure that we’re ready for any disaster, including an earthquake,” said Alameda.

For some, the most reliable support so far is neighbors helping neighbors.

”I think in the shorter term, to answer your question, it has to just be community support, because there’s nothing else we can rely on,” said Bondera.

As recovery continues, many farmers say that community spirit may be their most valuable resource.

For more information, you can check out GHawai Farm Bureau at hfbf.org.

This is the website to submit comments and concerns to the county.hawaiicounty.gov/our-county/mayor/comments-and-concerns

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.

New mural in San Francisco advocates for sex workers’ rights and LGBTQ rights

CNN Newsource on June 2, 2026

By Sooji Nam

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    SAN FRANCISCO (KPIX) — People walking down the 1800 block of Market Street in San Francisco may notice something new.

Along the side of the SF LGBT Center, local artist Tanya Wischerath spent days painting a bright and bold mural honoring sex workers’ rights.

“Sex worker justice is LGBTQIA+, racial, disability, immigrant, gender, HIV, justice,” Wischerath said, reading aloud part of her mural. “Really hope that anyone who has felt the effects of discrimination or marginalization because they fall into any of these categories, take a moment to examine their relationship internally with sex work and how they’ve been conditioned to think about it.”

Wischerath has collaborated with DecrimSexWorkCA, a community group that advocates for human rights and the well-being of sex workers.

“The mural isn’t about necessarily glamorizing sex work. It’s about giving dignity and justice to a group of people that already exist and will continue to exist,” she said.

The fight to protect the marginalized is personal for Wischerath.

“I came out when I was 13 in San Francisco. And, I found a lot of support, a lot of community,” she told CBS News Bay Area. “And I feel that it’s especially important now to look backwards as we go forwards. Because there’s a lot of fragmentation in the community.”

She finished the mural in a couple of days, and community activists have since gathered to write down their own message on the mural.

“To celebrate the contributions of Q, Trans, BIPOC, sex workers, and everything that we’ve done here in the state of California, and continue to do for sex worker rights and marginalized identity rights,” Lotus Lain, the vice president of DecrimSexWorkCA, told CBS News Bay Area.

She hopes that this mural will be one means of raising more awareness.

“Listen to sex workers. A lot of these laws that they passed do not include our voices, and yet they regulate our livelihoods and how we’re able to conduct business, how we’re able to make money, how we’re able to live. And fundamentally, that is not right,” she said.

As for Wischerath, she hopes that for those who see the mural, they will walk away with this message.

“It feels so celebratory, that’s it almost like saying there’s no shame, you know it’s a rejection of that tool,” she said. “Historically, celebration is really a big part of resistance. And we’re on the side of the LGBTQ building and I wanted to honor that history.”

The mural was officially unveiled on May 31, intentionally timed with “International Whores Day” on June 2, a global day of advocacy for sex workers’ rights. Organizers said their goal is to celebrate the contributions of LGBTQ and BIPOC sex workers, while pushing for greater protections and decriminalization.

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.

Five former hantavirus passengers leave UNMC quarantine in Nebraska

CNN Newsource on June 2, 2026

By Tyra Tillman

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    OMAHA, Nebraska (KETV) — Five former cruise ship passengers left UNMC’s quarantine unit and began finishing hantavirus monitoring at home.

Gov. Jim Pillen called it a positive development and said the departures were coordinated with UNMC, the CDC and health officials in the passengers’ home states.

In a statement, Pillen said no guest who posed a public health risk left the National Quarantine Unit “in an unsecured way or at an inappropriate time.”

Officials said the five passengers stayed symptom-free and will complete the rest of their 42-day monitoring period at home.

Travel was coordinated through the Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response and local health departments. Officials said the passengers did not travel on commercial flights, and biocontainment measures were in place.

Thirteen other former passengers remain in Omaha for monitoring.

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.

How one couple is helping grow the wheelchair tennis community

CNN Newsource on June 2, 2026

By Conor McGill

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    ROSEVILLE, California (KOVR) — May was National Tennis Month, and for one Roseville couple, the sport is about far more than competition.

Marty and Alycia Anderson are working to grow the game of wheelchair tennis while challenging misconceptions about athletes with disabilities.

For Marty Anderson, every day starts inside his garage, a space filled with tennis racquets, adaptive sports chairs and years of experience.

“You can see I got a little this and that all over the place,” Marty said. “But I’ve become the guy in Roseville that has the knowledge and passes it on to players who want to get involved.”

The sport changed Marty’s life.

At just 22 months old, he suffered a spinal cord injury after falling from a moving vehicle. He grew up using leg braces and crutches before eventually discovering wheelchair tennis.

Now, he’s helping others find their own purpose through the sport.

The game also brought him something else: love.

Marty met his wife, Alycia, through wheelchair tennis, and together they’re showing people the sport is fast, physical and highly competitive.

“There’s a lot of clichés in adaptive sports,” Marty said. “We like to discourage that myth that this is all just charity. It’s not.”

Alycia said the sport gives her a sense of confidence and freedom.

“When I roll onto the court, I feel like I can dominate a lot of the game,” she said. “But I also feel like I can play with anybody.”

Alycia has been connected to wheelchair tennis since childhood. She said she was the first junior player to play with the sport’s founder, Brad Parks, who helped create wheelchair tennis after a skiing accident left him paralyzed.

The sport took Marty around the world.

He competed for Team USA at the 2010 World Team Cup in Turkey, was ranked number three in the country and won the U.S. Open as a high school senior.

After his competitive career, Marty founded the Adaptive Athletics Association in 2010 to help grow wheelchair sports across the country.

“We can all get out here,” Marty said. “We’re all faced with different challenges, but at the end of the day, those are leveled and we’re just having fun.”

The Adaptive Athletics Association was recently one of just 44 programs nationwide to receive grant funding from the United States Tennis Association.

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.

Altadena’s Wind Phone offers healing, at no cost

CNN Newsource on June 2, 2026

By Jasmine Viel

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    ALTADENA, California (KCAL, KCBS) — A phone booth in Altadena has an old black rotary phone that doesn’t ring or have a busy signal, but it does offer healing for people carrying unimaginable loss.

Seamus Bozeman created a Wind Phone, where anyone can pick up the receiver and speak to loved ones who are gone too soon. He built it to connect to his father, who died from cancer two months before the Eaton Fire.

“It’s just the phone here, not connected to anything,” Bozeman explained inside the little booth he built at the Healing Arts Center of Altadena. “Don’t wait for a ring, start speaking what you want to say.”

Bozeman said just as he was mourning the loss of his father, the wind and flames came, forcing his family to flee their West Altadena rental home, which burned down in the Eaton Fire.

“We didn’t take much, and the next morning, the whole street was gone,” Bozeman said.

After struggling to process the grief, he decided to build something meaningful, a Wind Phone. He says it’s a quiet place where people can express their grief, joy, sorrow, or simply say the things left unsaid.

His mother, Leigh McDaniel, takes to the phone booth to express her grief.

“I miss you, the land you are on, miss you little house,” she said into the handset. She explained that with the help of family and friends, and donated materials, her son built the booth by hand.

Betty Corral had never seen a Wind Phone before, but moments after walking up, she stepped inside to call her father, who died 45 years ago. “Hi, Dad, talking to you, calling you,” she said.

The Wind Phone in Altadena is one of about 400 across the country, with a dozen in Southern California.

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.

Victims in Brent Metz case in Colorado say lengthy judicial process has taken a toll

CNN Newsource on June 2, 2026

By Alan Gionet

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    JEFFERSON COUNTY, Colorado (KCNC) — After a Colorado jury reached a split verdict in the case against Brent Metz on Monday, the two teenage victims spoke about the case in the Jefferson County Courthouse. Jack and Luke (CBS Colorado is not using their last names) say the judicial process has taken a toll on them but they’re glad a verdict is behind them.

“Think we were pretty happy about it,” said Jack, the victim who has recovered well physically from being shot in the face.

Metz was found guilty of assault in the third degree for the shooting, which happened outside his property in 2024 when Jack sat in a car after he and his friend Luke had tried to ask permission to take homecoming photos on the property in the Conifer area.

“It’s been a long process. I’m happy we’re getting close to the end,” Jack said.

But it has been difficult. It took close to two years for the case to come to trial.

“I was very stressed out about the whole thing. It was a lot,” Jack said about the verdict. He said in addition to himself, the case has taken “a big toll on … everyone around me.”

The jury also found Metz guilty of illegal discharge of a firearm, but acquitted him on menacing charges.

Luke — now 17, but 15 at the time of the shooting — was a key witness in the trial for the prosecution. He told of how Metz, a former town councilman in Mountain View, got out of his truck in 2024 and pointed the gun at them as they sat in the car writing a note to the homeowner, who turned out to be Metz.

“For me personally, I’m shocked that the 2nd degree charge was dropped down to a 3rd degree,” he said of the assault conviction.

Attorneys for Metz attempted to show that Luke’s memory was faulty and he didn’t properly recall what happened. They tried to convince the jury that Metz never pointed the gun at the teenagers.

“We don’t measure this as a win of a loss. There was a conviction. We were adamant that Mr. Metz was not guilty of all of the crimes that were charged, so we’re not happy with that,” said defense attorney Christopher Decker.

They planned to ask for a new trial or appeal, claiming the jury’s finding of guilty of illegal discharge of a weapon includes elements that contradict the first count of the charges, the third-degree assault conviction. That conviction indicates Metz was negligent, but not reckless, said the attorneys. The weapons charge, however, does carry the conclusion of recklessness.

“We’re struggling to understand how it could not be reckless in count one, but he knowingly or recklessly in count four,” said defense attorney David Jones.

The defense made its case in court claiming the shooting was not the fault of Metz, but of the weapon he had, a Sig Sauer P320, which they claimed was defective and could fire “un-commanded.”

They believe the jury’s verdict left room for making that conclusion.

The negligence they believed is, “A far different thing than knowingly or purposefully discharging the firearm. They can find him negligent and agree that the firearm was a part of it. That the defectiveness of the firearm was part of it. Just by the way he handled it.”

The victims, meanwhile, credit their faith and the support of the community in getting through all of what they’ve had to deal with since the shooting. Jack told the court after the shooting he still has some trouble with his eyesight.

Luke talked about the support around them.

“Having people from the community reach out and just seeing how much the people do care about this and having people wondering if we’re OK, reach out to mutual people that we both know, just trying to check on us has really meant a lot,” said Luke.

They declined to comment on whether the justice system has worked for them. But their friendship clearly had.

“I think that it has always been a huge value for both of us. There’s never been a time in either of our lives we weren’t friends. And I think at the end of the day just understanding this whole process and going through this together only brought us closer,” Luke said before they headed off to get ice cream.

Metz is scheduled for sentencing in two weeks. He could get 1-3 years for the illegal discharge of a firearm charge and up to a year in a county jail for the assault charge. But there’s no requirement of jail time and could get probation, the defense believes.

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.

Community supports grieving family after triple homicide

CNN Newsource on June 2, 2026

By Esteban Reynoso

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    MODESTO, California (KCRA) — The Modesto community is rallying to support the Nuñez family after three members of their family were killed on Thursday. The victims include 23-year-old Fabiola Gonzalez-Nuñez, her 11-day-old son Mateo Escoto Gonzalez, and her mother, 54-year-old Maria Sylvia Nuñez-Villalobos.

Homeland Security confirmed that the suspect, Joaquin Escoto Vasquez, had previously been deported and re-entered the country illegally. Vasquez, who is accused of the murders and a prior DUI, appeared in court Monday morning and pleaded not guilty to all charges. He is being held without bail and is scheduled to return to court in late July.

As the case unfolds, the Nuñez family is grieving the loss of their loved ones. On McHenry Avenue, a major street in Modesto, friends and supporters gathered to sell tacos and sodas to raise funds for the family.

“It’s not just good, it’ll help the family, and I think it’s awesome everyone is out supporting the family,” said Leiana Bailey, a Modesto resident.

Joel Garcia, a Modesto content creator, shared his thoughts on the community’s efforts.

“Now, to see the support, all the people coming by. It’s pretty awesome, it just shows you how much we can get together and support the community,” he said.

The fundraiser featured $2 tacos and drinks, with proceeds going directly to the Nuñez family.

“Thursday was a wild day. It was shocking for the whole community,” Garcia said.

Sofia Nuñez-Villalobos, the sister of Maria and aunt to Fabiola, expressed her heartbreak over the loss of her nephew Mateo, whom she had been excited to watch grow up.

“Angry. Angry that you’re in front of the person who took the life of your sister, niece and nephew—and you can’t do anything,” Nuñez-Villalobos said.

She added that her family learned about Vasquez’s criminal history on Monday morning. While he was the father of the newest member of their family, she said the focus should remain on the victims.

“We don’t care right now if he was an immigrant, if he did this, we care about what he did to our family. We want respect, we want respect for their names,” Nuñez-Villalobos said.

She also shared her faith in divine justice. “I know God is the only one that will give him what he deserves and punish him the way he deserves,” she said.

The family plans to continue fundraising efforts with a car wash near their home on Tuesday and another taco sale on Wednesday. They welcome anyone who wishes to support their cause.

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.

Former sheriff’s Lt. Sam Machado granted $1.5M bail in Esparto explosions case

CNN Newsource on June 2, 2026

By Daniel Macht, Cecil Hannibal

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    WOODLAND, California (KCRA) — A former sheriff’s lieutenant facing murder and other charges in connection with the Esparto explosions is entitled to bail as he awaits trial, a judge determined on Monday.

Bail was set at $1.5 million.

Sam Machado owned the rural property in Yolo County where seven men were killed last July after a million pounds of illegal fireworks exploded.

Deputy District Attorney Deanna Hays argued in court that Machado was part of a 10-year conspiracy to profit off illegal fireworks, which led to the murder of the workers at the site.

Hays said he actively deceived the county and was a trained law enforcement official in how explosives are supposed to be managed. Family members of victims would fear retribution if he was granted bail, the prosecutor said.

Machado’s defense attorney David Fischer countered that he was “only a landlord in this situation” and “did not set off a single device.”

“This was caused by human error inside the building,” he said. “This is not something that Mr. Machado had anything to do with.”

Yolo Superior Court Judge Daniel Maguire ruled that Machado was entitled to bail because he believed there was not a substantial likelihood that he would inflict great bodily harm on others if released.

The court took a recess to show the prosecution information on Machado’s finances before deciding on the bail amount.

Five other men facing charges also appeared in the Woodland courtroom, and their arraignments were continued.

Investigators have said the “overcharged” explosives that blew up at the Esparto site belonged to Blackstar Fireworks and Devastating Pyrotechnics.

Craig Cutright, the owner of Blackstar Fireworks and a former volunteer firefighter, was among those in court, but is not currently in custody. He remains out on $400,000 bail.

Others in court included Devastating Pyrotechnics owner Kenneth Chee; Jack Lee, a longtime operations manager for Devastating Pyrotechnics; Gary Chan Jr., who held the federal license associated with Devastating Pyrotechnics; and Douglas Michael Tollefsen, who was also associated with the company.

Machado, Lee, Chan and Tollefsen are among those charged with murder.

Much of the hearing focused on the prosecution’s request for a gag order to prevent attorneys and defendants from speaking with reporters.

Defense attorneys also requested access to information collected from the defendants’ cellphones and electronic devices.

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.

Maryland schools to implement AI guidance, training under new law taking effect Monday

CNN Newsource on June 2, 2026

By Breana Ross

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    BALTIMORE, Maryland (WBAL) — Maryland’s Artificial Intelligence Ready Schools Act took effect Monday, creating statewide guidance for the technology’s use in schools.

The new law requires school districts to develop policies and prepare students for an AI-driven workforce.

The idea of using AI in schools is still something that gets mixed reactions.

“I think it’s used too much,” said Dara Hoffman.

“I think there is a gray area where it’s coming out and people should know how to use it, but also know how to use it carefully and not just use it for answers and cheating and things like that,” said Natalie Barber.

The legislation’s sponsor, Sen. Katie Fry Hester, D-District 9, explained her motivation for the law.

“As a mom, I have just been super concerned about my kids’ interaction with it,” Hester told WBAL-TV 11 News. “They’re older now, but I know it’s affecting all of the grades, and I think all of our students across Maryland, they’re going to graduate in a world where nearly every career uses AI in some way, and so, I felt like it was our responsibility to make sure that they were prepared to enter the workforce knowing how to use AI.”

The senator, who represents a district that encompasses portions of Howard and Montgomery counties, explained how districts across the state had varying policies.

“If we don’t teach kids how to use it, they’re going to learn on their own and not learn well.”

“(The law) embraces (AI) and it also puts the guardrails in place. What we found was that some of the districts across the state were using AI in a pretty aggressive way. Others were banning certain tools, and many of the teachers had, like, little or no training,” Hester told WBAL-TV 11 News. “I just didn’t want Maryland students falling behind simply because their system lacked that level of guidance.”

Maryland State Department of Education leaders will develop guidance on how schools should use AI for instruction in grades K-12. The school districts will have to develop policies, get AI tools that align with the guidance and appoint an AI coordinator.

The law also provides professional development in AI for educators and school leaders, incorporates AI literacy into workforce preparation and computer science standards for K-12 students, and establishes an AI collaborative to share lessons, best practices and recommendations statewide.

Some districts, like Howard County, have already started integrating AI into classrooms. High school students in Howard County have access to education-based Gemini AI accounts.

“If we don’t teach kids how to use it, they’re going to learn on their own and not learn well,” said Danielle Dunn, a media specialist at Hammond High School in Columbia.

Hester confirmed that MSDE has started developing the guidance, which is expected to be rolled out soon.

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