Month: February 2024

Two police officers and one firefighter were shot and killed in Burnsville, Minnesota, on Sunday after responding to a domestic violence call. According to a statement from the state’s department of public safety, the shooter in the case is also dead.

According to a statement from Gov. Tim Walz on X:  “Horrific news from Burnsville. While responding to a call of a family in danger, two police officers and one firefighter lost their lives, and other officers were injured. We must never take for granted the bravery and sacrifices our police officers and first responders make every day. My heart is with their families today and the entire State of Minnesota stands with Burnsville.” Walz said that other officers were reportedly injured, but details on their conditions were not provided.

The Burnsville Police Department confirmed there was an “active scene” but did not provide additional information. Police have been gathered in the Burnsville neighborhood since early Sunday morning. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives said on social media that it was responding to a scene in Burnsville “where there have been reports of officers involved in a domestic-related shooting.”

Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar posted on X that she was informed three officers were shot in Burnsville: “Learned from police this morning that three officers have been shot in Burnsville. They were doing their jobs. They were protecting our community. John and I are praying for them and their families and the Burnsville P.D. this morning.”

Both the city of Golden Valley, located 20 miles north of Burnsville, and the West St. Paul police departments offered condolences on social media. Burnsville is located south of both Minneapolis and St. Paul; according to the city’s website, it’s the ninth largest suburb in the metro area, with more than 64,000 residents.

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Officials in Texas said they have identified a person of interest, but are no closer to finding missing 11-year-old Audrii Cunningham. Authorities said 42-year-old Don Steven McDougal was arrested Friday night on an unrelated charge of aggravated assault, and has since been named as a person of interest in the disappearance after witnesses tied his dark blue 2003 Chevrolet Suburban to the case. The Texas Department of Public Safety are asking for the public’s help in reporting any sightings of the vehicle on Thursday or Friday, issuing a photo of the SUV on X with the vehicle’s license plate clearly visible in the photo.

Meanwhile, the search for Audrii Cunningham resumed Saturday morning, focusing on an area around Lake Livingston, a reservoir in East Texas north of Houston. Audrii’s mother, Cassie Mathews told reporters “I’m being told that they have possibly found her backpack in this area, but no signs of her.”

According to authorities, Audrii was dropped off at her bus stop in Livingston, Texas, Thursday morning but never made it on board. Her family reported her missing at 5:30 p.m. that day, leading to the Amber Alert. The Polk County Sheriff’s Office said Audrii was last seen near her home was wearing a black hoodie with white lettering, a camo backpack, black pants and black high-top tennis shoes at approximately 7 a.m., on Friday, in the 100 block of Lakeside Drive, in Polk County. PCSO said she should have caught the school bus at her neighborhood bus stop; however, school officials told the Sheriff’s Office the school bus did not pick Audrii up, nor did she report to school.

Authorities were seen searching in a wooded area near the Lake Livingston dam, but investigators – including the non-profit Texas EquuSearch – are also focusing on other areas of interest besides the lake area, without having publicly identified them.

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On Thursday, a New York judge presiding over Donald Trump’s New York criminal trial denied his bid to dismiss the charges against him and ordered his trial to proceed as scheduled next month on March 25.

Judge Juan Merchan told a Manhattan courtroom with Trump in attendance that the “defendant’s motions to dismiss have been denied … We will move ahead with jury selection on March 25th,” adding that he expected the trial would last about six weeks.

Trump attorney Todd Blanche said that going ahead with the March trial is a “great injustice” given his other legal cases, an argument the judge batted aside. Blanche maintained that date would be “election interference” because of the presidential primaries that month. Prosecutor Matthew Colangelo said that Blanche had told his office the March 25 date would “minimize disruption” to his client because there are only a few primaries during that time, and called his current stance part of “a continued pattern to evade accountability.” Blanche later again objected to the trial date, complaining his client “will spend the next two months preparing for this trial during a campaign. It is just not something that should happen in this country.” Trump himself said to reporters after the hearing: “It’s a disgraceful situation. I’m going to have to sit here for months on a trial in a rigged state, a rigged city. It’s ridiculous. I’ll be here during the day and campaigning during the night.”

Trump faces 34 felony charges in the case, in which prosecutors allege Trump falsified the business records in an effort to conceal a series of payments to former Trump attorney Michael Cohen, reimbursing Cohen for $130,000 he paid to adult film star Stormy Daniels on Trump’s behalf during the 2016 presidential election.  The case was the first of what is now four criminal cases Trump faces, all in which the former president Trump has pleaded not guilty. Trump has repeatedly claimed they criminal cases are part of a political “witch hunt” designed to hurt his 2024 run for the White House.

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Authorities said on Thursday that two of the three people detained after the deadly shooting following Wednesday’s parade celebrating the Kansas City Chiefs’ Super Bowl win were identified as juveniles. Kansas City Police Chief Stacey Graves shared that the preliminary findings from the investigation found that the shooting doesn’t have any connection to terrorism or homegrown violent extremism, instead appearing to stem from a ‘dispute between several people.’  Graves said no charges have been filed as of Thursday, and the investigation into the shooting is ongoing, noting “This is still under investigation. We do have 24 hours until we either have to file charges or release them.” Three people in total were detained, including one suspect was arrested after being chased by police shortly after the shots were fired. Several firearms has been recovered, Graves said. but authorities haven’t identified any of the suspects at this time.

At least one person was killed and over 20 people, including young children and teens, were wounded in the shooting near Union Station at the conclusion of the Chiefs’ Super Bowl victory parade Wednesday. The person who was killed in the shooting has been identified as Lisa Lopez-Galvan, 43, a local radio host. At least 22 other people were wounded in the shooting, with Kansas City Fire Department Chief Ross Grundyson sharing that eight were in critical condition, seven in serious condition and six had minor injuries. Graves said Thursday that the people injured in the shooting ranged between the ages of 8 and 47 years old, and half of the victims were under the age of 16.

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