Category: CNN Regional

By Caitlin Ashbaugh

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    HENDERSONVILLE, N.C. (WYFF) — The jury in a horrific wall collapse from 2021 has decided a record-setting, multi-million-dollar verdict for the state of North Carolina, bringing a yearslong dispute and six weeks of trial to a close.

$101 million will go to two of the four workers involved and one of their wives. Hajoca Corporation, the defendant and site of the incident, opted for a confidential settlement.

Hajoca provided the following statement to WYFF News 4:

“Hajoca disagrees with, but respects the jury’s verdict in this case. Rather than endure a lengthy appellate process, we were able to settle the case after verdict, and the terms of that settlement are confidential. Hajoca is pleased to conclude this matter after more than five years of ongoing litigation, and looks forward to continuing to serve its customers and the community of Hendersonville.”

The remaining workers settled cases before the trial began.

A 54-page complaint describes the moment a 12-foot retaining wall toppled over in 2021, burying four construction workers under tons of dirt and construction materials. The crush killed one man, a brick mason, and for hours the survivors were stuck and waiting for rescue.

Three of the workers survived with excruciating injuries, revealed in X-rays provided to WYFF News 4.

“As you can imagine, it is one of the most difficult things for them to talk about. He was conscious. He was slammed face down into the pavement. He was broken,” Attorney John McCabe said. “They define themselves by their work and by their family. And just were very committed. The voids in their lives are huge. When that wall fell, it shattered their bodies, and it shattered their lives. Their lives will never, ever be the same.”

Court documents claim the original wall was damaged in a storm months before, and this was an attempt to rebuild the structure. The complaint accuses Hajoca Corporation of negligent practices, including a lack of required permitting.

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 Clay LePard

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    AUSTINBURG, Ohio (WEWS) — Inside the garage of Shawn Shannon’s home, a team of volunteers operates like an assembly line, building a massive display for America’s 250th anniversary.

The display, dubbed “Project Postcard,” consists of drawings made by kids at Jefferson Area Local Schools, St. John School, Grand River Academy and SPIRE Academy, as well as from area churches.

“We used the theme of where would you like to go in America for your vacation or around the world — and draw your picture of where you want to go,” Shannon said.

Shawn Shannon remembers watching an enormous flag fly over Geneva Elementary during the Bicentennial in 1976.

“I believe it was 35 feet high and 90 feet long, and all the kids, they sewed the stars, and they sewed the stripes,” Shannon said. “This was really the thought that started all this.”

That memory inspired Shannon to dream big for America 250, an idea that is now inching closer to the same size as that bicentennial flag.

“We’re probably going to have 1,000 or better posters, and these are all going to go up,” Shannon said. “We have kids in kindergarten, preschool, all the way to high school. My guess is we’re going to be 20 feet up this way. So you’re looking 20 feet by 150 feet, so it could be very massive.”

For Shannon, an Army veteran and longtime history teacher, the project is personal.

“I get nostalgic when it comes to history, so this is right up my wheelhouse,” Shannon said. “We’re just trying to give America a little bit of love, make our community a little bit better at a time where community is fighting and a lot of things [are] going on in our world — here’s one day we put all of it away and celebrate together.”

The completed postcard display can be seen at two upcoming events.

The first is this Friday at Austinburg Park from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. as part of the annual Nickel Day Carnival.

The second is on the Fourth of July in downtown Jefferson as part of Ashtabula County’s America 250 celebration.

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By Emily Sanderson

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    NORWOOD, Ohio (WLWT) — The Norwood Skyline community is rallying around the family of a waitress who was stabbed to death at work Tuesday.

27-year-old Alyssa Hill was working during the lunch rush on Tuesday when her ex-boyfriend, Rick Wright, entered the restaurant and stabbed her.

Hill later died at the hospital.

Wright has been charged with murder and is being held without bond.

Countless messages online described Hill, a mother of two, as a hardworking, devoted mother who loved everyone she knew unconditionally.

Many people have come to the Skyline on Montgomery Road, laying flowers outside the place where Alyssa worked.

Skyline Chili posted to social media Thursday as the Norwood store reopened, sharing it’s devastated by the loss of Hill, a longtime server at the restaurant.

To support Hill’s family, Skyline said it will be donating 20 percent of the restaurant’s sales for the week of June 8 – 15 to an established fund that will directly benefit her two children.

Skyline says it has contributed $25,000 to this fund and its partners at Coca-Cola Consolidated have also contributed $25,000.

A GoFundMe has also been set up by family to help cover funeral expenses and provide support for Hill’s two children.

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By Metia Carroll

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    NEW ORLEANS (WDSU) — Actor Shia LaBeouf has pleaded guilty to a Mardi Gras Day incident in New Orleans.

On Wednesday, LaBeouf pleaded guilty to 3 misdemeanor counts of simple battery.

As part of that plea, he will be on probation and take anger management classes.

“The DA’s investigation proved exactly what Shia LaBeouf said from the beginning: this was nothing more than a Mardi Gras bar tussle. He came to court wanting to take accountability, and he has done so,” said LaBeouf’s attorney, Sarah Chervinsky.

Investigators say he was reportedly causing a disturbance and becoming increasingly aggressive at a Royal Street business.

A staff member attempted to remove Mr. LaBeouf from the establishment. Once removed from the building, NOPD says the victim told police LaBeouf punched him several times.

Detectives say LaBeouf then reportedly assaulted another person, punching him in the nose.

He will receive no jail time, and any allegations of a hate crime have been dismissed.

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By DeAndria Turner

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    LOUISVILLE, Kentucky (WLKY) — Volunteers planted fruits and vegetables on Wednesday in Louisville’s Smoketown neighborhood at a site tied to Muhammad Ali’s early life, marking the 10th anniversary of the boxing legend’s death with service projects across the city.

The garden sits at the former Presbyterian Community Center, one of the first gyms where Ali trained. Now part of the Smoketown Family Wellness Center, the space is being used to help address food insecurity in a neighborhood leaders describe as a food desert.

“We are located in the old Presbyterian Community Center, which housed one of the first gyms that Muhammad Ali trained in,” Charlotte Gay Stites said. “So to be a part of this Day of Compassion, and to uphold his beliefs and core values, is a big part of who we are.”

Stites said access to healthy food remains a challenge in Smoketown, making the garden especially meaningful.

“In some neighborhoods, particularly like Smoketown, we’re in a food desert,” she said. “Getting healthy foods is very difficult and challenging.”

Volunteer Vincent Zialen said spending a few hours helping was a simple way to honor Ali’s legacy.

“If we can get out here for two hours to kind of give back in that little sense, and kind of follow that same path and honor his legacy, it’s the very least we can do,” he said.

The gardening effort was one of more than 30 service projects organized for Ali’s annual Day of Compassion. More than 1,000 volunteers worked with nonprofit groups across Louisville, including at Feed Louisville, where volunteers, among them Ali’s widow, Lonnie Ali, packed food and supplies for people in need.

Garret McCorkle said the idea grew out of conversations about how best to remember Ali a decade after his death.

“It came about with me and a few colleagues going to Mrs. Ali and asking how she envisioned the 10th anniversary of Muhammad’s passing,” McCorkle said. “True to Muhammad and true to Mrs. Ali, they said they would love to see the city of Louisville giving back.”

Organizers said the goal was to reflect the spirit that filled Louisville after Ali’s death and to channel it into action.

Ten years later, the city is honoring its hometown champion not just with remembrance, but with service.

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By Alex Suckow

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    LOUISVILLE, Kentucky (WLKY) — Not one or two, but three new babies just joined the Louisville Zoo.

A trio of Amur tiger cubs were born on May 27 to parents Viktoria and Timmy. Viktoria just arrived herself in January.

These are the first Amur tiger cubs born there in 22 years.

The cubs are currently bonding with their mother behind the scenes under the care of the Zoo’s animal team.

You won’t be able to see them for awhile. The zoo said the outdoor habitat debut is still months away.

When asked whether the zoo would put up cameras to watch the babies, Director Dan Maloney said, “We’re hoping that we get a webcam up soon. There were two earlier attempts to get a webcam up, and one she bit right through the mesh. And the other one, she decided that it was better if she sprayed on it, and that cut it down as well. So apparently Viktoria doesn’t like to be watched too closely. But we are trying our best to get a cam in there.”

This comes just after the announcement of a new giraffe and a colobus monkey, the zoo teased the birth of yet another baby on Tuesday.

The monkey was born May 7, and the giraffe, recently named Silvia, was born May 3.

“Looks like it’s officially baby season at the Louisville Zoo,” the zoo said.

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By Eric Graves

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    RIVERSIDE, Missouri (KMBC) — Riverside, Missouri’s more than 4,000 residents are getting ready to welcome one of the biggest fandoms in world soccer.

The Netherlands National Team will soon drive into town to practice at the KC Current’s training facility.

Even though the team won’t be staying in town, Riverside is going all out to make the Dutch feel as welcome as possible.

Welcoming everyone to town right now are giant wooden cutouts of some of the most prominent Dutch players, a lion and the message “Welcome Oranje Legion.”

On the roads around the art, orange soccer balls have been painted onto the road, street posts have banners proclaiming “Oranje” and even restaurant employees are wearing orange shirts.

“I’d say we’re pretty ready here in Riverside,” said Shannon Rousseau, the Communications Director for the City of Riverside.

The Dutch national team will arrive in Kansas City next Tuesday, June 9, and they’ll start training at the KC Current’s practice facility on Wednesday, June 10.

Rousseau said they’re hoping the team takes note.

“I know that we are trying to rework their route to potentially come through the city so they can see everything we’ve set up,” Rousseau said.

If not, the 60 goodie bags the city has made for each player and coach on the Dutch national team might deliver the message.

“It has local items from our businesses,” Rousseau said. “So, we’ve got bourbon balls from down the street, we have Hallmark ornaments.”

The Riverside local businesses have all bought in.

For nearly 40 years, the Corner Cafe has been an institution in Riverside and the Kansas City metro.

Owner Jason Rule said they’ve added more orange in the landscaping, decorations and the staff are even wearing orange shirts.

One thing they aren’t changing is the food. Rule said he thinks Dutch visitors will want to try classic American eats like their cinnamon rolls and pie.

“Anytime that you visit another country, you want to embrace the food and the culture and I believe that, yes, the Dutch will be here in force,” Rule said.

The first training session for the Netherlands in Riverside will be open to the public.

Riverside is giving out 120 free tickets to Riverside residents.

“We have had 1,300 responses so far,” Rousseau said. “So, we’re going through the list verifying who is actually a Riverside resident, because that is exclusive to our residents who we’re going to pick.”

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By Thomas Burnam

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    ROGERS, Arkansas (KHBS, KHOG) — The Arkansas 250 Commission is set to dedicate a historical marker at the site of the first Walmart on Walnut Street Thursday.

This is one of 11 historical markers going up across Arkansas in honor of America’s 250th birthday.

The original Walmart opened 64 years ago last Tuesday, July 2, 1962, at 719 West Walnut St.

The director of Destination Rogers, J.R Shaw, said this is a special week for Walmart.

“That will be dedicated during the week that is associates’ week here in Northwest Arkansas. “It’s the week Walmart and Sam’s Club bring associates from all around the world into Northwest Arkansas for their shareholders’ meeting and different celebrations about everything to do with Walmart. So it’s a big, big deal for Rogers, and for Northwest Arkansas, and for the state of Arkansas.”

The original Walmart opened July 2nd in 1962 at 719 West Walnut Street.

The ceremony is set to start Thursday at 11 a.m. at the first Walmart location.

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By Jeremiah Martinez

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    FAIRFIELD, California (KCRA) — One person was killed and three others were injured in a shooting after a graduation ceremony at Fairfield High School’s Schafer Stadium, according to police.

The Fairfield Police Department said officers responded to a shooting around 7:15 p.m. at the parking lot at Fairfield High where a graduation ceremony took place for Sem Yeto High School.

A suspect has not yet been identified.

Luis and Amanda Prieto, a couple who live next to the school, told KCRA 3 about the moments they first heard shots fired. Amanda Prieto said she was on the phone in her backyard when she heard the shots.

“It dawned on me quickly how close that rapid fire was,” Amanda Prieto said. “I looked over the fence and people were just screaming and running through the parking lot. It was horrific.”

Luis Prieto said police had a rapid response as several patrol vehicles went on the scene. There were also ambulances that responded to the area, he said.

“I was immediately terrified, this was the third shooting I’ve witnessed at this school in the last three years,” Amanda Prieto said. “I was just immediately terrified. These kids can’t even graduate.”

Amanda Prieto added that their 17-year-old son attends Fairfield High.

“My husband was like ‘Do we need to pull him out of this school?,'” she said. “Because there was another shooting at the beginning of the school year as school was letting out and he witnessed as he was walking through the parking lot and it’s terrifying.”

A girl named Alyssa told KCRA 3’s Esteban Reynoso said shootings are a repeat occurrence in the area. She said she used to attend school in Fairfield.

“People keep getting shot at this school and it’s not getting fixed, nothing happening,” she said. “It’s sad. It’s really sad.”

Ryan Murphy told KCRA 3’s Andres Valle that he was trying to find family members when he gunfire and was feet away from where the shooting happened.

“Seeing the glass shatter from the windshield of the car that got hit and I’m just like, ‘Woah,'” Murphy said. “I stood frozen for a second. All I seen was some people started running past the car that was hit.”

Robert Dorsey, a 17-year-old graduate, said he saw some of the victims who were hurt.

“Last thing I saw was just him getting CPR and I just got out of there,” he said. “I didn’t witness all four people getting shot, but I did see a little girl get carried out.”

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