Month: July 2023

Law enforcement officers shot and killed a man wanted in the weekend killings of four people near Atlanta. Officials say that a sheriff’s deputy and a police officer were also injured as they attempted to take the suspect into custody. Police haven’t disclosed a motive.

Henry County Sheriff’s spokesperson Syntonnia Moore said suspect Andre Longmore, 40, was fatally shot during a widespread manhunt, which began shortly after the shootings. Georgia authorities had been on the hunt for Longmore, who was accused of gunning down three men and a woman in a subdivision on Saturday morning before fleeing the Dogwood Lakes subdivision in Hampton, about 40 miles south of Atlanta. Longmore was wanted on four counts of murder in the deaths.

Moore said law enforcement shot and killed Longmore on Sunday in a nearby area of Clayton County. Moore added that a Henry County sheriff’s deputy and a Clayton County police officer were injured during the attempt to arrest Longmore. Moore said she had no update on the condition of either officer.

The names of the victims killed have not been released, pending notification of their relatives. All of the victims were adults, authorities said.

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Police confirm that a woman who went missing in Hoover, Alabama on Wednesday after reporting to police she saw a child walking on the highway returned home late Saturday and was transported to a hospital for evaluation.

The Hoover Police Department said on Friday that Carlethia “Carlee” Russell, 25, made a 911 call to report a toddler walking alongside of Interstate 459 at around 9:30 p.m. on Wednesday. Russell reportedly stopped her vehicle to help the toddler along and then called a family member. When police arrived, she was gone, but her car and belongings were left behind. Responding officers also were unable to find a child in the area and have not received any calls about someone missing a small child; meanwhile, Russell remained missing until Saturday.

Hoover Police Captain Keith Czeskleba said it received a phone call about Russell returning home at about 10:45 p.m. Police traveled to her location, and then paramedics, who transported her to a local hospital. Captain Czeskleba said that more information was not “available for release at this time,” and declined to go into details on who informed them about Russell’s return and why there was a need for an evaluation. He said that the investigation into the case is ongoing.

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Officials said that an early-morning fire on Thursday killed nearly all the animals at a wildlife center in Madeira Beach, near St. Petersburg on Florida’s Gulf Coast. Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office deputies say the blaze was reported around 2 a.m. Thursday and impacted both the Alligator and Wildlife Discovery Center and Beach Bites & Burgers. Fire Chief Clint Belk of the Madeira Beach Fire Department said crews were forced to shift to a “defensive operation” due to deteriorating conditions, and the blaze was under control in about 45 minutes. Belk said: “We keep oxygen masks on the fire truck for dogs and cats, but this is just such a rare occasion. They’re all exotic animals.”  An investigation is underway to determine the cause.

A post on the wildlife center’s Facebook page said: “We suffered from a tragic fire last night. Nearly all of the animals are gone. We are devastated.” Sonny Flynn, who owns the center, told local Tampa Bay station WTSP that all of the mammals inside the building died and many of the reptiles were injured. Small mammals, lizards, amphibians, turtles and tortoises, fresh and saltwater marine life, and alligators were among the 250 animals at the center. Flynn said about 95% of the animals at the center were “pet surrenders because people didn’t know how to take care of them, or they weren’t able to take care of them,” adding, “they didn’t deserve this. This is my whole life They all have names, they all have personality, I come in every morning and talk to them like Dr. Dolittle.”

According to its website, the Alligator and Wildlife Discovery Center was founded in 2011, and has changed its focus to education and conservation: “Our immediate goal is the provision of humane, professional care for pet surrenders and orphaned native wildlife that cannot be safely returned to the wild.”

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Members of the Screen Actors Guild – American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) union are going on strike, after they were unable to reach a deal with producers and studios. Members of SAG-AFTRA will join up with more than 11,000 already striking Writers Guild of America (WGA), with the strike to start at midnight, July 14.

The failed negotiations with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers means film and television productions will immediately come to a halt, essentially shutting down Hollywood; the tandem strike of SAG-AFTRA and the Writers Guild of America marks the first of its kind in Hollywood since 1960.

The actors union had already granted one extension to its contract, which was originally set to expire July 1, and said it would not concede another. Hollywood performers were looking to improve wages, working conditions and health and pension benefits, as well as create guardrails for the use of artificial intelligence in future television and film productions. Additionally, the union is seeking more transparency from streaming services about viewership so that residual payments can be made equitable to that seen on linear TV.

Fran Drescher, president of the union, said during a press conference Thursday: “We are the victims here. We are being victimized by a very greedy entity. I am shocked by the way the people that we have been in business with are treating us. It is disgusting. Shame on them … You cannot change the business model as much as it has changed and not expect the contact to change, too.”

The WGA has been on strike since May, and is also seeking higher compensation and residuals, particularly when it comes to streaming shows. The WGA also shares similar concerns over the use of artificial intelligence when it comes to script writing.

SAG-AFTRA Contract Talks Fail To Reach Deal; National Board Meeting Thursday Morning To Launch Strike; Sides Issue Statements

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On Wednesday, President Joe Biden said in a speech that the U.S. and NATO allies reaffirm commitment to Ukraine, promising that its Western partners would not back away from its defense as Russia’s war on Ukraine past its 500th day.

Following a two-day high-level meeting with leaders at the NATO summit, Biden described support for Kyiv’s fight for democracy as “the calling of our lifetime.” The U.S. has sent more than $41 billion to bolster Kyiv in the nearly 18 months since Russian troops invaded Ukrainian borders. Biden said in his address from Lithuania’s capital, Vilnius: “We did what we always do. The U.S. stepped up, NATO stepped up and our partners in the Indo-Pacific stepped up. We will not waver … the U.S. will continue to support Ukraine ‘for as long as it takes.’”

The allies welcomed the arrival of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who reiterated calls to join NATO and vowed its membership would make the world’s most powerful military alliance stronger. Ukraine has sought NATO membership since 2002. It is bordered by four NATO allies: Poland, Slovakia, Hungary and Romania.

An announcement on the first day of the summit revealed that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has agreed to support Sweden’s bid to join the NATO alliance. Sweden and Finland began the formal process of applying to NATO last May, which requires approval from all 30 members of the alliance. In April, Finland joined the alliance. Following this summit, Sweden is set to become the group’s 32nd member.

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