Category: CNN Regional

By Christopher Harris

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    ATLANTA, Georgia (WUPA) — The man accused of stealing hard drives containing unreleased Beyoncé music from members of her team avoided a jury trial Tuesday by pleading guilty.

Kelvin Evans, 40, pleaded guilty in Fulton County Superior Court to entering an automobile and criminal trespass. Fulton County Superior Court Senior Judge Jane C. Barwick sentenced Evans to five years, with two years to serve in prison and the remainder on probation. As part of the plea deal, he has been ordered to stay away from the victims as well as the parking garage where the theft took place.

“He is looking forward to putting this relatively large part of his life behind him and hoping for a future where he can make money legitimately and be part of society like the rest of us,” Evans’ lawyer told the judge.

The guilty plea came just two days after jury selection began Monday in Evans’ trial.

Before accepting the plea, prosecutors showed surveillance footage of a red car, allegedly driven by Evans, pulling up next to the rental vehicle in the parking deck.

A second video showed the same red car arriving at an apartment complex, with Evans pulling out suitcases believed to belong to Beyoncé’s choreographer, Christopher Grant, and fellow dancer Diandre Blue. Prosecutors also said the stolen MacBook laptops had tracking technology that placed the items in Hapeville at the address seen in the second video.

Evans had previously rejected the same five-year plea deal in March, telling the court: “I’m ready for trial now.”

According to court documents, Evans broke into a 2024 Jeep Wagoneer belonging to Grant on July 8, 2025, while Beyoncé was in Atlanta on tour.

Grant and Blue had parked their rental vehicle in a parking deck on Krog Street around 8:09 p.m. When they returned less than an hour later, they found the rear window shattered and their luggage gone.

Among the stolen items were two MacBook laptops, Apple headphones, luxury clothing and accessories, and hard drives that investigators say contained unreleased Beyoncé material. Grant also told police he was carrying what he described as “personal sensitive information” belonging to Beyoncé.

Evans was arrested by Hapeville police on Aug. 26, 2025, and had remained in Fulton County Jail since his arrest.

A grand jury indicted him in October. He pleaded not guilty in January.

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 Rantala

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    Minnesota (WCCO) — Dramatic new video shows the moments a Twin Cities police officer was struck in the hand by gunfire, leading to him and another officer to fatally shooting a 27-year-old man.

In video recorded by Richfield police Sgt. Mario Leon’s body-worn camera on April 29, you see a scuffle with the officer and Desaver Hollis, a man they suspected of stealing items from a vehicle. The footage shows Hollis aiming a gun at the officer at point-blank range and firing.

Police say that bullet went through Leon’s hand, striking the Taser on his body armor. Sgt. Kristian Schultz also responded to the incident. On his camera, you see Schultz pull out a Taser. Hollis fires and Schultz fires his weapon a dozen times.

That same video shows a wounded Leon fire his weapon several times as well.

Right after that video came out, WCCO heard from Trisha Pohland, an attorney representing Hollis’ family. She says she has more questions than answers, adding that the footage only shows part of the story.

“We have another Black male who is dead after an interaction with a police department,” Pohland said. “His mother deserves the right to find out what exactly happened.”

Pohland was joined Monday by Hollis’ family, which is demanding answers and accountability five days after the shooting. Pohland says she wonders if officers fired their weapons more than necessary.

“What we know is that there were 20 shots fired,” Pohland said. “The question is whether those 20 shots were excessive.”

Meanwhile, they say they still want a complete picture of what happened. As the investigation unfolds, they’re asking the public to withhold judgement.

“I know she’s grieving, the whole family’s here grieving and we really want to get to the bottom of this,” Pohland said.

One week ago, some of Hollis’ family members stood in what they called quiet solidarity outside the St. Paul headquarters of the agency leading the investigation, the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension.

“To just say a weapon was brandished and gunfire was exchanged leaves a lot to question,” said Miss Nikki Holiday, a legal liaison for Hollis’ family.

Hollis’ family wants to see all footage captured by body and vehicle cameras, and to hear 911 calls from that day.

“A life was lost. Let’s get to the facts before we just put these narratives out there and start smearing the victim,” Holiday said.

Standing alongside the family Monday was Valerie Castile, the mother of Philando Castile, who was fatally shot by police during a traffic stop nearly a decade ago near the Minnesota State Fairgrounds in Falcon Heights.

“They just need some answers, and I’m here standing in solidarity because I’ve gone through the same thing and I didn’t have anyone there to navigate me through that process,” Castile said.

Police say they are not commenting further as the bureau continues its investigation.

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 Cheryl Fiandaca

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    CAMBRIDGE, Massachusetts (WBZ) — The gunman who allegedly opened fire on passing cars on Memorial Drive in Cambridge, Massachusetts Monday afternoon is 46-year-old Tyler Brown from Boston. Brown was shot and wounded by a State Police trooper and a civilian and taken into custody.

Two people in separate cars were struck by the gunfire and taken to Boston hospitals with life-threatening injuries.

Brown is no stranger to law enforcement. In 2020, he was charged with attempting to kill Boston Police officers.

At the time, Brown pleaded guilty to eight charges including armed assault with intent to murder and attempted assault and battery by means of discharging a firearm for firing at a Boston Police officer.

According to I-Team sources, a photo of Tyler Brown was included in an officer safety bulletin that went out Monday morning in Boston. At about 12:30 Monday afternoon, Boston Police officers attempted to do a wellbeing check at his home in Dorchester after his parole officer reported to police that he made suicidal statements.

He was also allegedly seen on Facetime video with an assault rifle and said he would use it. The bulletin also mentioned his phone was pinging in Cambridge.

Shortly after the bulletin went out, videos of Brown were recorded by witnesses on Memorial Drive. He is seen walking down the middle street, terrorizing drivers and waving and shooting a long gun. Witnesses said he shot at cars and in the air, before he was shot and taken into custody.

Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan said Brown is in custody at a hospital in the intensive care unit.

At the time of the armed assault in 2020, Brown was on probation for a 2014 conviction for assault and battery with a dangerous weapon and witness intimidation. In 2021, Brown was sentenced to 5-6 years in state prison followed by probation. He was also ordered to undergo mental health evaluations and treatment.

Rachael Rollins, who was the Suffolk County District Attorney at the time, wanted 10-to-12 years and said she was “disappointed” by the sentence.

“I strongly believe that the sentence we proposed – 10 to 12 years followed by five years of probation – was appropriate for the level of brazen violence committed. Of equal concern is the imposition of concurrent sentences for a prior and separate violent assault on a different member of our community,” Rollins said in August 2021.

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By WDJT News Staff

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    MILWAUKEE (WDJT) — More beagles are getting a second chance after leaving Ridglan Farms. Rescues across the country are taking in the dogs this week, including hundreds headed to Wisconsin Humane Society campuses, the Dane County Humane Society, and HAWS in Waukesha.

Monday night, the Wisconsin Humane Society Milwaukee campus welcomed their first transport of 20 beagles.

Staff members checked each dog as they came in, making sure they were healthy and safe after the long trip.

Ten of those beagles will be going out to foster homes immediately and 10 will stay at the shelter Monday night.

The humane society says 90 more beagles will be picked up from Dane County on Tuesday and Wednesday, with 65 of those dogs going to the Milwaukee campus and 25 going to their Green Bay campus.

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By Jacob Murphy

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    MILWAUKEE (WDJT) — Khalib Jones is a 14-year-old Milwaukee Public Schools (MPS) student in 8th grade at Wedgewood Park International School.

Jones says he was picked up and slammed to the ground by a janitor at school last Friday, May 8.

He says it was after a conversation about football with the janitor turned into an argument, and he walked away from him.

“People started saying he was coming up behind me, and I turned around and he picked me up and slammed me to the ground,” Jones said. “My head hurt and then my arm hurt, but it was mainly my head.”

MPD confirms the department is investigating a child abuse complaint that happened on Friday, May 8, and that a preliminary investigation says an MPS employee struck a student, causing the student pain.

Following the incident, a 26-year-old man was arrested, and criminal charges are being referred to the Milwaukee County District Attorney’s Office.

“He lifted me up pretty high into the sky and slammed me to the ground,” Jones said.

Khalib’s father, Sery Jones, says he wants the staff member to face consequences.

“It’s frustrating because you send your kids to school expecting them to be safe, and then all of a sudden you get that type of news,” Jones said. “Whatever charges they bring up, I hope they uphold them.”

Wedgewood Park International Principal Elhadji Ndaw sent a letter to parents on Friday.

“Today, we received a report that a staff member allegedly grabbed and pushed a student. We immediately notified the Milwaukee Police Department, and they are investigating. We also notified Child Protective Services. The individual is not currently working in the building,” the letter said.

Sery Jones said he spoke with police when he arrived on Friday.

“The two police officers explained to us what happened, the principal explained, I guess they showed the officers the video of what happened and the officers were like, yeah, you should definitely press charges,” Jones said.

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By Shelley Bortz

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    PITTSBURGH, Pennsylvania (KDKA) — A terrifying security breach at Denver International Airport is now raising urgent questions nationwide after a man got onto an active runway and was killed by a departing plane.

KDKA went to Pittsburgh International Airport to find out just how difficult it would be for someone to get close to restricted airfield areas here at home.

The incident in Denver is now shining a spotlight on airport perimeter security across the country. And today at Pittsburgh International on Monday, what stood out was how easy it is in some areas to walk right up to the fence surrounding the airfield. Using a cellphone for scale, we wanted to show you exactly what separates the public from active runway areas.

Passengers are screened, scanned and checked multiple times before ever stepping onto a plane. But after a deadly runway breach in Denver, KDKA wanted to know what security looks like outside the airport along the fencing surrounding restricted airfield areas.

Using a public roadway, we accessed an area directly beside the airport fencing. We remained there recording video for nearly 10 minutes, and during that entire time, no security personnel, patrol vehicles, or airport employees ever approached us.

Using a cellphone camera, we documented in real time just how close someone can get to restricted airfield areas from outside the airport perimeter.

And while this section of fence did include barbed wire, so did the area that was jumped in Denver, and the fact that no one appeared to be actively monitoring this area on Monday raises new questions about perimeter security and response.

KDKA’s Shelley Bortz is 5-foot-10, and standing up against the fence that surrounds the runway, you could see that it’s really not that much taller than her. When she raised her arm, you could see the fence is roughly around 8 feet high.

However, airports rely on multiple layers of security beyond fencing alone, including cameras, patrols and monitoring systems.

KDKA contacted Allegheny County Airport Authority about what we found, and in a statement, it says:

“Safety and security are always the top priority at Pittsburgh International Airport. Like any major security event in the industry, our team is aware and is reviewing the incident that occurred in Denver. While we can’t discuss specific security measures, our operations team along with Allegheny County Police, patrol and inspect perimeter areas around PIT which include publicly accessible areas. Our teams are constantly evaluating new technology to enhance security measures and make adjustments and additions is necessary. These evaluations have been ongoing long before the incident in Denver this past weekend.”

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By Mahsa Saeidi

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    NEW YORK, New York (WCBS) — Online shoppers looking for prom dresses are urged to be extra careful as there’s an uptick in scams targeting teens and families.

The Better Business Bureau (BBB) and Visa are both warning consumers to pause before making a purchase.

“We see a lot of bait and switch websites right now going on,” said Claire Rosenzweig, president and CEO of the BBB Metro New York.

She said these websites often have whimsical names, painting the perfect prom picture. It makes it look like the buyer is shopping from a legitimate boutique.

“They’re showing you these beautiful accessories, dresses, everything else. They’re putting some sort of a story with it, like it’s a family-owned business,” Rosenzweig said.

Visa’s risk department said they are seeing the same trend.

Red flags to look for Kausar Kenning, Visa’s vice president of intelligence and controls, said teens are being directed to fraudulent websites.

Kenning said if the deal looks too good to be true, it probably is.

She also said to look out for the return policy. If it’s vague or the contact information is unclear, chances are the buyer may never receive the dress they were expecting.

Another thing to watch out for is non-traditional payment requests like sending money through peer-to-peer payment apps. These platforms don’t offer the same protections as credit cards.

“Visa has that zero liability protection so that if you do report a scam, report fraud, you’re not going to be held liable for that,” Kenning said.

Scammers are also preying on emotions, hoping consumers will make a quick purchase before thinking.

“Scammers really have that emotional IQ,” Kenning said. “They prey on those vulnerabilities like, ‘Oh my god, there’s only one more dress left at that price. I want to hurry and get this deal.'”

How to make sure the online shop is real Experts say they are seeing an increase in the use of AI to create these websites, so it’s important to make sure they are real.

First, reverse search the dress to see if the same photos appear on other websites at vastly different prices.

Second, if there’s a physical address for the store, use Google Street View to see if the location actually exists.

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 Nate Eaton

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    IDAHO FALLS (eastidahonews.com) — A 55-year-old mother of six who has been in a coma for nearly 11 years died on Friday surrounded by her family.

Lauriann Bartell’s family has been caring for her in their Idaho Falls home since 2015, when a routine operation turned into a life-changing journey for her husband, Mike Bartell, and their children.

Lauriann, who went by Lauri, had surgery in August 2015 after doctors discovered an ulcer on her intestine that was bleeding. Following the procedure, Mike says his wife complained that she didn’t feel right. Two days later, still in the hospital, she suddenly woke Mike up.

“I was in the rocking chair next to her sleeping,” Mike told EastIdahoNews.com in 2018. “She told me something was wrong, so I called the nurses and doctors right away.”

he cauterization on her ulcer had broken loose and torn into a major artery.

“She asked me to give her a blessing. Those were the last words she said, and I was finishing the blessing as the doctors were going crazy trying to help her. The nurses were saying, ‘Ms. Bartell, Ms. Bartell,’ and shaking her and trying to get her to talk,” Mike recalled.

Lauri bled out and lost her pulse twice. She was rushed into emergency surgery and survived, but a lack of oxygen to her brain caused major damage. Doctors didn’t think she could pull through.

“I came home and told the children that it looked like Mom wasn’t going to make it,” Mike said. “Then they ran another CT scan, and there was a big change. She had brain activity again. So the neurologist told me if it was me, I wouldn’t give up. I’d take her home and try.”

That’s exactly what Mike did. After a six-week hospital stay, he brought Lauri home. She couldn’t speak, move, eat, respond or do much of anything – but that didn’t matter to him or the kids.

“I would rather take care of her here than have to send her somewhere else,” Sadie Bartell, the couple’s only daughter, told EastIdahoNews.com years ago.

There have been challenges over the years, but the community has rallied around the Bartells.

Over the past few months, Lauri’s health has declined and her organs have been failing. Her family made the decision to take her off life support last week, according to a GoFundMe, and Lauri passed away on Friday at home.

“She was a loving and devoted wife, mother, grandmother, daughter, sister, and friend,” Lauri’s obituary says. “She radiated kindness and compassion and had a gift for making everyone feel seen, loved, and welcomed. Lauri could talk to anyone and treated every person as a child of God. Her life was an example of Christlike love, service, and strength.”

EastIdahoNews.com does not assure that the money deposited to the account will be applied for the benefit of the persons named as beneficiaries.

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