Month: October 2023

An Alaska Airlines flight made an emergency diversion to Portland, Oregon, on Sunday after an off-duty pilot , identified as 44-year-old Joseph Emerson, unsuccessfully tried to shut down the plane’s engines midflight.

Alaska Airlines said in a statement that the incident happened onboard Alaska Airlines Flight 2059, which was operated by Horizon Air. The flight was heading from Everett, Washington, to San Francisco with 80 passengers and four crew members onboard, including Emerson. The airline said Emerson was traveling in the jump seat in the cockpit and unsuccessfully tried to “disrupt the operation of the engines.” The Horizon captain and first officer detained Emerson and landed the plane just before 6:30 p.m. PDT in Portland, where Emerson was taken into custody without incident. The FBI said that no injuries were reported.

Emerson was arrested by the Port of Portland Police Department after the plane landed safely at Portland’s airport, and was charged with 83 felony counts of attempted murder, 83 counts of reckless endangerment and one count of endangering an aircraft.  The FBI’s field office in Portland said it was also investigating the incident, and adding: “There is no continuing threat related to this incident.”

On Monday, the Federal Aviation Administration sent guidance to U.S. air carriers that the incident was “not connected in any way shape or form to current world events.”  Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg expressed gratitude to the flight crew and air traffic controllers who safely got the plane to Portland, posting on social media that the FAA will focus on “any safety considerations for the future that emerge from investigations.”

Alaska Airlines said, “We are grateful for the professional handling of the situation by the Horizon flight crew and appreciate our guests’ calm and patience throughout this event.”

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Hamas released two more hostages Monday, identified as Israelis Nurit Yitzhak and Yocheved Lifshitz. The announcement comes three days after the release of two Americans who had been held captive by Hamas in the Gaza Strip — Judith Raanan and her teenage daughter, Natalie.

In a statement on Telegram, the military wing of Hamas said it had decided to release the two women for “compelling humanitarian” reasons. Video broadcast on Egyptian state television showed the women on stretchers inside ambulances, speaking with people who appeared to be health workers. The ambulances appeared to be near the Rafah crossing, on Gaza’s southern border with Egypt. The International Committee of the Red Cross said in a statement posted on social media that it had facilitated the release of the two captives and transported them out of Gaza on Monday night local time: “We hope that they will soon be back with their loved ones.”

According to Israel Defense Forces spokesman Daniel Hagari, at least 212 people were taken hostage by Hamas after terrorists attacked Israel on Oct. 7, killing more than 1,000 people. Israel and Hamas have since been at war, and according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health, retaliatory airstrikes in Gaza killing at least 5,087 people as of Monday morning.

More than 200 hostages remain captive, however, Hamas has said it does not have custody of all the hostages and that some were taken captive by the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, another militant group based in Gaza. Hamas has said it will free its captives only when Israeli airstrikes in Gaza come to a halt.

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Samantha Woll, a Detroit synagogue president who led the congregation of Isaac Agree Downtown Synagogue, was found fatally stabbed outside her home Saturday morning. The Isaac Agree Downtown Synagogue confirmed the 40-year-old Woll’s death in a statement, sharing: “We are shocked and saddened to learn of the unexpected death of Samantha Woll, our Board President. May her memory be a blessing.” Mourners attended a funeral service for Woll on Sunday.

Authorities said a 911 caller early Saturday reported a person lying on the ground unresponsive at Woll’s home. Police discovered multiple stab wounds on Woll’s body and found a trail of blood leading to her house, where they believe the crime occurred. Detroit Police Chief James E. White asked the public for patience regarding Woll’s death: “I am asking that everyone remain patient while investigators carefully examine every aspect of the available evidence. It is important that no conclusions be drawn until all of the available facts are reviewed.” White said on Sunday that investigators were working with the FBI to analyze forensic evidence to piece together a timeline leading to Woll’s death, and were interviewing “individuals with information that may further this investigation,” adding that “no evidence has surfaced suggesting that this crime was motivated by antisemitism.” He said more information would come Monday. The state chapter of the Anti-Defamation League, ADL Michigan, also asked the public to refrain from speculation on what led to Woll’s death: “As we mourn her tragic passing, we urge the community to refrain from speculation and allow law enforcement to gather facts.”

Woll had ties to state Democrats, having previously worked for Rep. Elissa Slotkin. She also served on state Attorney General Dana Nessel’s re-election campaign. Rep. Slotkin praised Woll’s dedication to serving Detroit communities: “She did for our team as Deputy District Director what came so naturally to her: helping others & serving constituents. Separately, in politics & in the Jewish community, she dedicated her short life to building understanding across faiths, bringing light in the face of darkness.”  Attorney General Nessel added: “Sam was as kind a person as I’ve ever known. She was driven by her sincere love of her community, state and country. Sam truly used her faith and activism to create a better place for everyone.”

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Police in Tennessee are searching for the estranged son of Nashville’s police chief as the suspect in the shooting of two suburban police officers outside a Dollar General store. Police say the shooting happened during an altercation Saturday night in La Vergne, a suburb of Nashville.

A statement issued by The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation shared a statewide blue alert in an effort to locate the suspect, John Drake Jr.  They warned that the 38-year-old, who is now wanted on two counts of attempted first-degree murder, should be considered “armed and very dangerous.” The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, which issues blue alerts when there’s “an imminent threat to public safety and law enforcement personnel,” described the suspect as 5 feet, 11 inches tall, weighing 195 pounds. He has black hair and brown eyes. The agency said he was last seen in La Vergne around 2:30 p.m. Saturday “in the area of Stones River Road near Lake Forest Drive, wearing a black t-shirt with a hockey mask on it with red accents, and gray sweatpants.”

Metro Nashville Police Chief John Drake confirmed that the suspect is his son: “I am shocked and deeply saddened to learn that my estranged son, with whom I have had very minimal contact over many years, is the suspect in this afternoon’s shooting of the two La Vergne police officers. Despite my efforts and guidance in the early and teenage years, my son, John Drake Jr., now 38-years-old, resorted to years of criminal activity and is a convicted felon. He has not been a part of my life for quite some time.” Chief Drake added that his thoughts are with the wounded officers.

La Vergne Police Chief Christopher Moews said at a press conference: “Our officers were investigating a stolen vehicle. During that investigation, they made contact with a subject. They struggled with that subject, and during that struggle, the suspect produced a handgun and fired shots.” Moews said that the officers, who have both been with the force for less than three years, were transported to Vanderbilt University Medical Center with one officer shot in the shoulder, and the other shot in the groin and forearm. One officer was released Saturday evening and the other remains in the hospital in stable condition.

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President Joe Biden announced the U.S. has brokered an agreement during his one-day visit to Israel to send aid to Gaza, though agencies warned that the help could potentially come too late for the ravaged territory. Preparation was underway for an initial convoy of 20 trucks carrying humanitarian aid to pass through the Rafah crossing from Egypt to Gaza on Friday under a deal between the US, Israel and Egypt. Under conditions demanded by the Israelis, further consignments of relief supplies would be dependent on whether the first delivery was distributed without Hamas involvement.

Biden said he had also spoken to the Egyptian president, Abdel Fatah al-Sisi, who had agreed to reopen the Rafah. Biden said roads near the border would need repairs after they were damaged in Israeli strikes, but that aid could begin reaching the territory by Friday: “This has been a very blunt negotiation I’ve had. We want to get as many of the trucks out as possible. There’s, I guess, 150 or something there. Not all of them will go the first tranche. If there’s a second tranche – see how it goes.” He said Sisi had “agreed that what he would do is open the gate … to let up to 20 trucks through to begin with. They’re going to patch the road. They have to fill in potholes to get these trucks through. And that’s going to occur; they expect it’ll take about eight hours [on Thursday]. So, there may be nothing rolling through … probably until Friday. For this purpose. Not to allow a lot of people out, but to open it up for this purpose.” Biden added:“If Hamas diverts or steals the assistance, they will have demonstrated once again that they have no concern for the welfare of the Palestinian people, and as a practical matter it will stop the international community from being able to provide this aid.”

Humanitarian organisations have stockpiled life-saving supplies on the Egyptian side of the border, waiting for the crossing to open. UN aid chief Martin Griffiths, told the UN security council on Wednesday that the organization sought to bring aid deliveries to Gaza back to 100 trucks a day: “There is simply nowhere to go for civilians to escape the destruction and privation, both of which grow by the hour as missiles continue to fly and essential supplies, including fuel, food, medical items, water run low. Due to the scarcity of water, UNRWA [the UN relief agency] in some locations … is being forced to ration down to providing one litre of water per person per day. Bear in mind that the minimum by international standards should be 15 litres, and they’re getting one – and they’re the lucky ones.”

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Former Donald Trump attorney Sidney Powell pleaded guilty on Thursday to six misdemeanor counts in the Georgia election interference case. The 68-year-old Powell appeared in the Superior Court of Fulton County in Atlanta, where prosecutors laid out the terms of the plea deal — in exchange for her pleading guilty, Powell was sentenced to six years on probation and must pay a $6,000 fine and $2,700 in restitution to the state of Georgia. The judge overseeing the case signed off on the agreement at the hearing.

Powell was charged with violating the Georgia RICO Act, two counts of conspiracy to commit election fraud, conspiracy to commit computer theft, conspiracy to commit computer trespass, conspiracy to commit computer invasion of privacy, and conspiracy to defraud the state. She ultimately pleaded guilty to six misdemeanor charges.

Per ABC News, Judge Scott McAfee said Powell must “testify truthfully about any co-defendants” involved in the case moving forward. As a condition of her guilty plea, Powell will pay a fine and be required to testify at future trials as well as write an apology letter to the citizens of Georgia. Seated beside her attorney Thursday, Powell said she understood the terms of the plea agreement and admitted to the facts laid out by the prosecutor.

Powell, a vocal Trump ally, was among the conservative lawyers who pushed baseless claims of widespread fraud after the 2020 election, endorsing outlandish theories of foreign interference and ballot manipulation to try to reverse the results. She often appeared alongside Rudy Giuliani regarding those conspiracy theories, including that voting systems in the U.S. actually had ties to the late Venezuelan autocrat Hugo Chavez and were in fact secretly capable of switching, creating and destroying massive amounts of votes. She participated in a contentious meeting at the White House in December 2020, during which White House lawyers confronted her and lawyer Rudy Giuliani about their election claims.

Powell and 18 others, including Trump, were charged by a grand jury in Fulton County in August. Others include his former White House chief of staff, Mark Meadows; attorneys Rudy Giuliani, John Eastman, Jenna Ellis, Bob Cheeley, Ray Smith III and Kenneth Chesebro; former assistant U.S. attorney general Jeffrey Clark; former Georgia Republican Party Chairman David Shafer; and current Georgia state Sen. Shawn Still.

Powell is the second defendant to plead guilty in the sprawling case. Scott Hall, a bail bondsman, became the first when he changed pleaded guilty to five misdemeanor counts at the end of September. He was sentenced to five years probation, a $5,000 fine and 200 hours of community service.  Trump and the rest of the co-defendants have pleaded not guilty and denied all wrongdoing.  Powell’s guilty plea comes shortly before Powell and Kenneth Chesebro, another co-defendant, were set to go on trial. Chesebro has pleaded not guilty, and jury selection for his trial will begin as scheduled on Friday.

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