A 38-year-old Ohio man was arrested Sunday after allegedly "pushing his way" through a crowd at a fair where Amy Acton, the Democratic gubernatorial nominee in Ohio, was speaking, according to authorities.
The suspect, identified by police as Patrick Havas, allegedly knocked two people to the ground before being taken into custody, according to the Mahoning County Sheriff's Office.
"After his arrest, two handguns and a set of 'brass knuckles' were recovered," a sheriff's office spokesperson said in a statement Sunday. "Investigators say no weapons were ever brandished or even removed from their holsters."
The Ohio State Highway Patrol said in a later statement that Havas was booked at the Mahoning County Jail on charges of disorderly conduct and two counts of assault.
Acton was not harmed, according to the OSHP, members of whom were with Acton at the time as part of her protective unit.
The alleged incident took place at the Canfield Fair in Canfield, Ohio, located near Acton's hometown of Youngstown, around 60 miles outside of Cleveland.
"Dr. Acton and Eric are grateful for the swift and decisive action of law enforcement and are praying for the recovery of those injured," Addie Bullock, Acton's campaign spokesperson, said in a statement Sunday, referring to Acton's husband. "This kind of violence has no place in Ohio. Dr. Acton will always stand up to the chaos, hate and vitriol that pits us against one another."
Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine said in a statement earlier Sunday that the alleged incident occurred when a "man tried to forcefully push himself toward Dr. Acton as she was speaking and injured other attendees at the Mahoning County Democrat booth."
"Violence or the threat of violence at political or public events is always unacceptable," DeWine said in a statement on social media Sunday, adding that he and his wife spoke with Acton and "she said to share with Ohioans that she is ok."
"This case is now in the hands of law enforcement and will be investigated thoroughly," DeWine said.
Acton previously served under DeWine when he appointed her as director of the Ohio Department of Health in 2019.
She is now running for governor in the November general election against Republican nominee Vivek Ramaswamy, whose campaign also issued a statement Sunday.
"Candidates should be able to meet with voters without having to worry about threats or violence," Ramaswamy's communications director Connie Luck said in a statement. "What happened today is completely unacceptable and has no place in politics, and we hope that no one was hurt."
Ramaswamy was also scheduled to appear at the Canfield Fair Sunday afternoon. His campaign did not immediately respond to questions from ABC News about whether the event took place.
Miami -- Five people are dead and five people are injured after an Amazon Air cargo plane from Puerto Rico overran a runway at Miami International Airport, Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava said in a news conference Sunday evening.
The names of the deceased and the injured have not been released.
The National Transportation Safety Board said Sunday it is sending a team, led by NTSB Chairwoman Jennifer Homendy, to investigate the incident, which took place Sunday afternoon.
Both the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and Amazon confirmed the incident in separate statements.
"21 Air Flight 7598 overran the runway after landing at Miami International Airport around 2 p.m. local time on Sunday, Sept. 6. The Boeing 767-300 cargo aircraft departed from Luis Munoz Marin International Airport in San Juan, Puerto Rico," the FAA statement said.
"We can confirm that an Amazon Air plane operated by 21 Air experienced an incident while attempting to land at Miami International Airport today," Kelly Nantel, a spokesperson for Amazon, said in a statement, adding that it was a "fast-moving situation" and that Amazon was "working closely with local authorities and officials to understand exactly what happened."
"Right now, our absolute priority is the safety, well-being, and care of everyone involved. We're doing everything we can to support those affected," the statement added.
Preliminary data from Flightradar24 shows the plane was going approximately 128 mph as it went off the runway.
A ground stop at Miami International Airport was lifted around three hours after the incident, with two of the four runways now reopened, according to officials.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
Severe, damaging thunderstorms targeted parts of the Southeast on Saturday, with more severe weather possible on Sunday.
Several homes were damaged due to fallen trees in Rogersville, Tennessee and the community of Persia, Tennessee, and injuries were reported. In North Carolina, Fayetteville Airport reported a 72 mph wind gust from thunderstorms.
On Sunday, a level 2 out of 5 "slight risk" for severe weather is in effect for parts of Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina, including Atlanta, Savannah, Columbia, Charleston and Charlotte.
Damaging winds and flash flooding are the main threats, but some hail is also possible.
The same "slight risk" for severe weather exists Sunday in parts of Montana, including Great Falls and Butte. Damaging winds and large hail are the main threats with storms later today in the area.
While portions of the Southeast faced severe weather for the first part of the holiday weekend, it's important to note that overall, much of the country is experiencing quiet conditions weather-wise for the Labor Day holiday weekend.
For the Labor Day holiday on Monday, there is no organized severe weather threat as much of the country continues to enjoy rather tranquil weather. Some areas could still see scattered thunderstorms which could bring lightning, gusty winds and downpours in spots.
Triple-digit heat scorches the Southeast
Dangerous heat persists for millions as the holiday weekend continues, with more than 40 million Americans under heat alerts Sunday from Kansas to Georgia.
Heat indices are soaring into the triple digits across this large swath of the country later Sunday afternoon.
Cooler and more comfortable conditions continue to settle in for much of the Northeast and will do the same farther south along much of the East Coast later Sunday.
Afternoon high temperatures will be in the mid-80s in Washington, D.C., Sunday and in the 70s in New York City Sunday and on Monday.
Raleigh, North Carolina will see highs decrease to the mid-80s Sunday after a long stretch of brutal heat.
However, parts of the Plains and South will remain very hot through the new workweek. An Extreme Heat Warning remains in place for Kansas City through Tuesday. Highs will be in the mid-90s each day, with feels-like temperatures up to 105 degrees during the afternoon.
Flash flood threat
On Sunday, the potential for flash flooding returns to parts of the Southwest, with a level 2 of 4 risk over parts of southern Nevada, northern Arizona and Utah.
This includes many national parks in Arizona and Utah on Sunday, including Grand Canyon National Park, Zion National Park and Bryce Canyon National Park, all which recently experienced significant flash flooding impacts from monsoon storms.
A Flood Watch has been posted for Sunday across portions of Utah, including Cedar City, Beaver Richfield and Price, as well as Zion National Park and Bryce Canyon National Park.
While the threat is not as widespread and intense as the previous event, scattered thunderstorms later in the day could bring downpours and frequent lightning. Flash flooding is possible where the heaviest rain develops.
Any burn scar areas from recent wildfires in Utah and Arizona will be especially vulnerable to any heavy rain that falls on Sunday.
Tropical storm warning issued for parts of Hawaii
Hurricane Lowell and Tropical Storm Karina will bring high surf impacts to the Hawaiian Islands through the holiday weekend, while Lowell is expected to bring heavy rain to Hawaii.
The National Weather Service issued a tropical storm warning for Kauai County on Sunday, saying tropical storm conditions were expected for Kauai Northwest Waters, Kauai Windward Waters, Kauai Leeward Waters and Kauai Channel on Monday morning and lasting through Tuesday afternoon.
Lowell has weakened slightly back to a Category 3 hurricane, with maximum sustained winds of 125 mph. It's moving to the north-northwest at 6 mph with the center currently located roughly 600 miles southwest of Honolulu.
Lowell is forecast to remain a major hurricane over the next 24 hours but a weakening trend is expected to take over as it continues its turn to the north. The tropical system is still forecast to pass west of the main Hawaiian Islands late Monday into Tuesday.
Lowell is already bringing high surf to the south- and southeast-facing shores of the islands. A High Surf Advisory in effect for waves up to 12 feet along these shorelines.
While landfall is not expected, some of the outer bands of Lowell could impact the western Hawaiian Islands early this week.
Plymouth Superior Court during Lindsay Clancy's murder trial on Aug. 26, 2026, in Plymouth, Massachusetts. (Mel Musto/Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) -- The murder trial of Lindsay Clancy, the Massachusetts mom who killed her three young children while in the family's home on Jan. 24, 2023, has ended in a mistrial after seven days of juror deadlock.
Clancy's defense attorney, Kevin Reddington, claims she was suffering from postpartum psychosis when she strangled her children and attempted to take her own life. The prosecutors, Jennifer Sprague and Shanan Buckingham, argue that Clancy -- who pleaded not guilty to three counts of first-degree murder -- is criminally responsible for her children's deaths.
Judge William Sullivan, who is overseeing the trial, has set a court date of Sept. 29, 2026, to reconvene and determine next steps.
(NEW YORK) -- An Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent who is accused of shooting a Venezuelan man in Minneapolis in January and then lying about the incident was charged with six federal counts of making materially false statements, according to a copy of the federal indictment unsealed Friday.
The charges mark the first federal case by the Trump administration against an ICE officer involved in its nationwide immigration surge enforcement operations.
The charges come just one week after Christian Castro, 52, was released from jail by authorities amid an extradition dispute over separate state-level charges leveled against him by officials in Minnesota.
The federal case stems from statements Castro allegedly made following shots he fired on Jan. 14 at the front door of a home in Minneapolis amid the Trump administration's immigration crackdown in the city, one of which hit the leg of Venezuelan immigrant Julio Sosa-Celis, according to the indictment.
Sosa-Celis was charged by the U.S. Attorney's Office in Minnesota following the shooting based on allegations leveled by Castro that Sosa-Celis and another individual in the residence attacked him, but the case was dropped after ICE said that video evidence surfaced showing Castro lied about the encounter.
The indictment accuses Castro of falsely claiming to the FBI that he only fired shots into the residence after being violently attacked by individuals using a broom and shovel to strike him. He is further accused of lying to the FBI after the shooting by claiming he fired one of the rounds while sitting after being attacked and claiming his scuffle with the man he was trying to apprehend prior to the shooting lasted "approximately three minutes," according to the indictment.
"This statement and representation was false because, as Castro then and there knew, the following facts were actually correct: The interaction described by Castro occurred over a period of approximately eleven seconds," the indictment stated.
Castro self-surrendered Thursday after being charged, according to sources familiar with the matter. He is expected to make his initial appearance before a federal judge in Texas on Friday.
An attorney for Castro could not immediately be reached for comment Thursday afternoon.
In May, Castro was separately charged by Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty with four counts of second-degree assault and one count of falsely reporting a crime, leading to a bitter fight between state officials in Minnesota and Texas, where the ICE agent was arrested.
Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison sued Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, seeking to force Castro's extradition, but last week a federal judge ruled he had no authority to intervene in extradition disputes between the states.
Castro has not yet entered a plea to the state or federal charges.
Career prosecutor involved in probe fired: Sources
The federal investigation into Castro has also led to new fallout between career prosecutors in Minnesota and officials at the Justice Department's headquarters in Washington, D.C., sources familiar with the matter told ABC News.
A career prosecutor who had previously helped lead the investigation was fired Thursday, sources told ABC News, after ProPublica published a letter they obtained in which he claimed he was being stymied by senior DOJ officials in bringing a more significant civil rights charge against Castro.
According to ProPublica, the assistant U.S. Attorney, Matthew Evans, said in the letter to Sosa-Celis' lawyer that the agent would likely only face lower-level false statements charges despite Evans' "strongest possible" objections.
According to ProPublica, Evans said he believed the office had sufficient evidence to charge Castro with a more significant civil rights offense known as "deprivation of rights under color of law," but claimed U.S. Attorney Daniel Rosen and officials at Main Justice headquarters overruled him.
Sources familiar with the matter told ABC News on Thursday that Evans has since been fired from the department and disputed his characterization of the investigation, saying the civil rights probe into Castro is still ongoing, and a determination still hasn't been made whether he'll face additional charges.
ABC News was not immediately able to reach Evans for comment Thursday, and received an auto-reply from his office email stating he was now "on leave."
A Justice Department spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Cordon tape blocks off a daytime emergency scene. (Getty Images stock photo/MattGush)
(MINNEAPOLIS) -- A man who allegedly shot and killed two residents and wounded several other people, including police officers, at his Minneapolis apartment building opened fire on the victims following a custody exchange, authorities said.
The suspect -- who was armed with a handgun -- is dead and an autopsy is underway, Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension Superintendent Drew Evans said at a news conference Thursday. His cause and manner of death are not clear but investigators believe he "died in an exchange of gunfire" with officers, Evans said.
Wednesday afternoon's shooting began outside the suspect's apartment building during what appeared to be an arranged custody exchange, Evans said. The gunman allegedly shot and wounded his child's mother, Evans said, adding that the child was able to escape and was not physically harmed.
As the gunman went inside the apartment building, he shot and wounded two building employees, Evans said.
The suspect then took the elevator to ninth floor -- where his apartment was -- and he allegedly shot and killed two men in their 60s who also lived in the building, Evans said.
Responding officers heard the gunfire and followed the sound to the ninth floor, where they encountered the suspect and exchanged gunfire, Evans said.
The suspect died and two officers were shot and injured, Evans said, noting that a third officer was not shot but also wounded.
When officers arrived on the ninth floor they "encountered a haze that significantly limited their visibility," Minneapolis Police Department spokesperson Garrett Parten said Wednesday.
Four officers "experienced adverse effects" from the hazy unknown substance, police said, and two additional officers were injured when their squad car was involved in a crash while responding to the shooting.
A motive is not clear, interim Minneapolis Police Chief Bill Peterson said Wednesday. Law enforcement sources told ABC News investigators are probing whether the suspect had some connection to the building, including whether he was a former or current tenant and whether he was under an eviction notice.
Asked about the potential eviction notice, Evans told reporters Thursday, "That will all be part of our investigation."
"The residents that were shot and killed on the ninth floor, the exact relationship he had with any of them, and whether or not they were a part of some of the information that was leading up to the eviction process that was underway by the building, is something that we will unpack, and I don't have specifics right now," Evans said.
Evans added, "This is once again a situation where domestic violence is center and central to a really terrible situation with multiple people shot. And the role that domestic violence continues to play in mass casualty incidents ... continues to be a problem."
ABC News' Luke Barr and Emily Shapiro contributed to this report.
Barry Morphew is shown in this booking photo released by the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office. (Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office)
(NEW YORK) -- A Colorado judge ordered that Barry Morphew be confined to his home after the murder suspect was allegedly involved in a hit-and-run incident while out on $3 million bond, according to the judge's order.
Morphew is set to go on trial next year after being indicted on first-degree murder over the death of his wife, Suzanne Morphew, whose body was found more than three years after the mother of two was reported missing. He pleaded not guilty and has denied any involvement in her death.
In her order issued Wednesday, District Court Judge Amanda Hopkins said that earlier that day, a "concerned citizen" alerted her that Morphew was involved in a hit-and-run accident in Denver on Aug. 26, in which he is alleged to have been "driving aggressively prior to striking two vehicles."
One of the drivers filmed her encounter, according to the filing, which cited a CBS News Colorado report on the incident that included some of the footage.
In the video, a "person who is very clearly" Morphew "refused to provide his name or identification," the judge stated. He then offered to pay the driver $300 for the damage and is seen buffing scratches on her vehicle with his shirt and hand, according to the filing.
The truck involved in the incident had the same Indiana license plate that Morphew is "alleged to have used on more than one vehicle," according to a motion the prosecution filed in his murder case, the judge said.
"When the other driver refused the Defendant's offer of cash and indicates that she was calling the police, the Defendant leaves the scene, almost striking another individual and driving over a curb to do so," the judge stated.
Hopkins ordered Morphew's GPS provider to submit its monthly report and provide her with all information related to permissions he may have had to be away from his home at the time of the incident, though the judge said the provider did not comply. Prior reports have shown no violations of Morphew's conditions of release, the judge said.
The terms of that release included that Morphew only leave his home for medical appointments or emergencies, work, meetings with his legal team and court, and that he not commit any felony offenses, the judge said.
In the order issued Wednesday, the judge said Morphew must now remain in his home at all times, "no exceptions."
"If the Defendant has a medical emergency during that time, he can call 911 and be transported by ambulance," Hopkins stated.
She said a hearing will be set for next week to discuss his bond.
The judge noted that while there "may potentially be felonious conduct implicated by the actions of the Defendant during the traffic incident," Morphew has not been charged in the incident by the local jurisdiction.
Following the judge's order, prosecutors filed a motion to modify Morphew's bond conditions, including that he no longer be given exceptions from his house arrest and that the financial conditions of his bond be increased, "given the increased flight risk demonstrated by his behavior in the hit and run incident."
"His driving in this case appears to put others at risk, and were he to flee in the present case, that is a new consideration for the Court as it pertains to community safety," prosecutors stated. "The fact that the driving appears to be in direct response to impending police involvement indicates a willingness to flee police specifically."
ABC News has reached out to Morphew's attorneys for comment on the order but has not yet received a response.
Morphew is set to go on trial for murder in July 2027.
His wife was reported missing on Mother's Day in May 2020. Her remains were found in September 2023 while investigators were searching in an unrelated case. Her death was subsequently ruled a homicide.
Her death was determined to have been caused by homicide "by undetermined means in the setting of butorphanol, azaperone, and medetomidine intoxication," according to the autopsy.
Morphew had previously been charged with his wife's presumed murder in 2021, but those charges were dropped in April 2022, just before the trial was supposed to begin.
(NEW YORK) -- Three Pennsylvania youth football coaches were charged Thursday, days after they were part of a massive brawl caught on video during the final minutes of a game, police said.
The clash took place during the final minutes of Saturday's game between Carlynton and Keystone Oaks, who were made up of 8 and 9-year-old players, in Carnegie, a Pittsburgh suburb. Carlynton coach DeQuay Canton, 24, was seen screaming at the sideline of the opposing team and then confronted one of their coaches, Frank McGrath, 37, the criminal complaint said.
Although referees tried to separate them, the fight escalated as more Keystone Oaks coaches came onto the field and fought with the Canton, according to the criminal complaint.
At one point during the fight, another Keystone Oaks coach, Joseph Kobiak, 35, and the Canton were seen throwing a punch at the other's head as bystanders looked on and called to watch the kids, according to the video and the criminal complaint.
On Thursday, the Carnegie Police Department charged Canton with disorderly conduct and harassment. The police allege he threw punches "which would have caused substantial harm and most definitely caused serious inconvenience."
Police also charged McGrath and Kobiak by summons with disorderly conduct and harassment for participating in the fight.
The investigation is ongoing. Attorney information for the coaches wasn't immediately available.
Steel City Youth Football League, which organized the game, said in a statement Monday that it suspended two coaches involved in the fight indefinitely.
The two teams independently suspended five additional members involved in the clash, according to the league.
"League officials are reviewing video footage, referee reports, and witness statements. The scope of this inquiry is not limited to the ejected individuals; the investigation may expand to include additional personnel, coaches, or spectators found to be involved," Steel City Youth Football League said in a statement.
People wait on line to enter Plymouth Superior Court during Lindsay Clancy's murder trial on Aug. 26, 2026, in Plymouth, Massachusetts. (Mel Musto/Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) -- After 30 hours of deliberations spanning five days, the jury in the murder trial of Lindsay Clancy has still not reached a verdict.
The extensive deliberations followed weeks of testimony concerning whether or not Clancy was suffering from postpartum psychosis when she strangled her children and attempted to take her own life in January 2023 and whether she should be held criminally liable for the killings.
On Wednesday afternoon, after the jury reported they were at an impasse for a second time in as many days, Judge William Sullivan read the jury a Tuey-Rodriguez instruction, encouraging them to continue working together toward a verdict.
The Tuey-Rodriguez instruction urges jurors to remember it is their "duty to decide this case if you can do so conscientiously," reminding them "there is no reason to suppose that the case will ever be submitted to six persons who are more intelligent, more impartial, or more competent to decide it than you are, or that more or clearer evidence will be produced on one side or the other."
Boston-based criminal defense attorney Peter Elikann said sending the jury back to deliberate again may force a hung jury if the deadlock continues.
"At that point, the judge has to declare a mistrial, unless he has the consent of the jury who would want to go out again, and that's rather doubtful," Elikann said in an interview with ABC News on Wednesday.
"This is really it. This is kind of the final push," Elikann added.
If a mistrial is declared, one of several next steps may transpire, according to ABC News legal analyst Brian Buckmire.
"First and foremost, the defense is probably going to ask for bail, some amount of money or release, that she does not have to be incarcerated pending the prosecution decision as to whether or not they're going to retry her," Buckmire said in an interview Wednesday.
Buckmire said the prosecution could make the decision to retry her "right then and there" or in the near future following a mistrial declaration.
Elikann said the prosecution could also choose to drop the case, though he added, "That's not all that likely."
Buckmire said a second trial is a likely scenario, in his opinion.
The second option, according to the attorneys, could be plea negotiations.
"In many cases, the prosecution, after having a deadlocked jury, will kind of say to the defense, 'Let's compromise. We'll break down the charges to something much lesser, and can we agree on that, that you'll plead to something, a much more minor charge,'" Elikann said.
Buckmire said it is possible, however, that prosecutors would not want to lessen any of the charges moving forward.
Speaking to the deliberations and the jury's inability thus far to reach a verdict in this case, Elikann said this sort of result was both rare and, in some ways, predictable.
"Most of the time, probably all the lawyers will tell you the conventional wisdom is that [an] insanity defense almost never works," he said, adding it usually ends in a conviction.
Elikann explained that Clancy's case was different.
"Everybody had a sense that they would never get 12 people to convict her of first-degree murder. And it was anticipated, by many people, that this would be either not guilty by reason of insanity or a hung jury," he said.
Gloria Steinem at 92NY on Feb. 2, 2026, in New York City. (Arturo Holmes/Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) -- Women's liberation icon Gloria Steinem has died at 92.
"Yesterday, Gloria Steinem passed away peacefully at her home in New York City, surrounded by some of the many who loved her," a post on an official social media channel said. "Gloria’s near-century on earth were years well-lived, and she continued working for equality until the very end."
The outspoken activist and journalist was born on March 25, 1934, in Toledo, Ohio. She studied government at Smith College in Massachusetts, and graduated magna cum laude in 1956.
Afterward, she spent two years studying and researching in India thanks to the Chester Bowles Fellowship, which inspired her grassroots activism later in life.
She would become known as one of the most prominent figures in the modern feminist movement, tackling politics, abortion, marriage and more through her writings and speeches.
"When humans are ranked instead of linked, everyone loses," she said in her book, "My Life on the Road."
In an interview with NPR, Steinem spoke about getting pregnant when she was 22 and seeking out an illegal abortion in 1957.
"I just knew that if I went home and married, which I would've had to do, it would be to the wrong person; it would be to a life that wasn't mine, that wasn't mine at all," she said in the interview.
"My Life on the Road" is dedicated to the doctor who recommended her for the abortion, Dr. John Sharpe.
The dedication read: "Knowing that she had broken an engagement at home to seek an unknown fate, he said, 'You must promise me two things. First, you will not tell anyone my name. Second, you will do what you want to do with your life.' Dear Dr. Sharpe, I believe you, who knew the law was unjust, would not mind if I say this so long after your death: I've done the best I could with my life."
At first, Steinem struggled to gain footing in the male-dominated journalism industry as a reporter on politics and social justice issues.
"I was angry because young men in politics were treated like rising stars and young women were treated like - well - young women," she wrote.
She continued, "I was angry about the human talent that was lost just because it was born into a female body, and the mediocrity that was rewarded because it was born into a male one."
She gained national attention in 1963 for her reporting on the working conditions at Hugh Hefner's Playboy Club.
In the exposé, she revealed the "not-so-glamorous, sexist, and underpaid life of the bunny/waitresses," according to the National Women's History Museum.
In 1968, she helped found New York magazine, and worked as an editor and political writer, largely focusing on the women's liberation movement, the National Women's History Museum reported. She also helped found the feminist magazine, "Ms."
In 1971, she was one of the founders of the National Women's Political Caucus, alongside other icons such as Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm.
The caucus remains the only "national organization dedicated exclusively to increasing women's participation in all areas of political and public life," according to the organization's website.
It was founded after Congress failed to pass the Equal Rights Amendment, and was spurred by the belief that "legal, economic and social equity would come about only when women were equally represented among the nation's political decision-makers."
She continued her advocacy work throughout her life, through her books and lectures, uplifting the civil rights and anti-racism movements along the way.
"We are here and around the world for a deep democracy that says we will not be quiet," she said at the 2017 Women's March on Washington. "We will not be controlled. We will work for a world in which all countries are connected. God may be in the details but the goddess is in connections."
Steinem was diagnosed with breast cancer in 1986. She overcame the disease after undergoing surgery and radiation treatment.
Her husband, entrepreneur and animal rights activist David Charles Howard Bale, died in 2003. Steinem, who famously denounced marriage as an institution, married Bale in 2000 and said her mind was changed because "marriage changed," according to The New Yorker.
She continued, "We spent 30 years in the United States changing the marriage laws. If I had married when I was supposed to get married, I would have lost my name, my legal residence, my credit rating, many of my civil rights. That's not true anymore. It's possible to make an equal marriage."
The post announcing her death said Steinem spent her recent years "being in community with others and writing." It also included a quote, which is said was from the writer's forthcoming book, "An Unexpected Life."
"I have now lived for more than fifty years in this brownstone," she wrote, "in rooms that have witnessed lives before mine, and will know others after I am gone."
Photo of Minneapolis Police Department exterior. (Facebook / Minneapolis Police Department)
(MINNEAPOLIS, Minn.) -- Two people are dead and multiple others injured after gunfire broke out in a high-rise apartment building in downtown Minneapolis on Wednesday, authorities said.
Two Minneapolis police officers are among those injured by gunfire, according to police.
The suspected shooter is dead, according to interim Police Chief Bill Peterson, who told reporters at a press briefing he was "truly sickened by this level of violence."
Officers responded to reports of a shooting at the building at 15 E. Grand St. shortly after 4:30 p.m. Wednesday.
Inside, officers encountered victims in the lobby and heard additional gunfire, Minneapolis Police Department spokesperson Garrett Parten told reporters at an earlier press briefing. "Officers followed the sound of gunfire to the upper floor of the building, and on that floor, officers encountered a haze that significantly limited their visibility," Parten said.
At a follow-up press conference, the interim police said police said they weren't sure yet what caused the haze.
A total of seven people were shot, authorities said.
One of the shooting victims was found dead at the scene, while a second died at a hospital, police said. Three other shooting victims were transported from the scene, according to police.
Of the wounded officers, one was shot in the leg and another was shot twice in the abdomen, the mayor said.
That officer was undergoing surgery, authorities said. A third officer was being evaluated for an apparent non-life-threatening injury, according to police.
In addition, four officers experienced adverse effects after "being exposed to an unknown airborne substance," police said in a news release. Two other officers were hurt when their squad car was involved in a crash while responding to the scene.
Peterson said it was his understanding that the officers were expected to make a full recovery.
It is unclear how the suspect died, police said. The interim chief said police were familiar with the suspect but said they do not yet have a motive.
Some of the victims lived in the building, Peterson said, but said police are still sorting that out.
In his remarks, the mayor praised the heroism of officers who he said rescued victims and brought people to safety "all while getting shot at themselves," Frey said.
"The one thing that is clear is that our Minneapolis police officers acted with incredible bravery and courage," he said.
In a statement on social media, Minnesota Gov. Tom Walz said he was relieved to hear the officers involved in the shooting were expected to make a full recovery. "We’re keeping all of the victims in our prayers as more information about this tragic shooting unfolds," he said.
Gloria Steinem speaks onstage during Ms. Foundation For Women's 24th Comedy Night at Carolines on Broadway on January 13, 2020 in New York City. (Photo by Astrid Stawiarz/Getty Images for Ms. Foundation for Women)
(NEW YORK) -- Women's liberation icon Gloria Steinem has died at 92.
"Yesterday, Gloria Steinem passed away peacefully at her home in New York City, surrounded by some of the many who loved her," a post on an official social media channel said. "Gloria’s near-century on earth were years well-lived, and she continued working for equality until the very end."
The outspoken activist and journalist was born on March 25, 1934, in Toledo, Ohio. She studied government at Smith College in Massachusetts, and graduated magna cum laude in 1956.
Afterward, she spent two years studying and researching in India thanks to the Chester Bowles Fellowship, which inspired her grassroots activism later in life.
She would become known as one of the most prominent figures in the modern feminist movement, tackling politics, abortion, marriage and more through her writings and speeches.
"When humans are ranked instead of linked, everyone loses," she said in her book, "My Life on the Road."
In an interview with NPR, Steinem spoke about getting pregnant when she was 22 and seeking out an illegal abortion in 1957.
"I just knew that if I went home and married, which I would've had to do, it would be to the wrong person; it would be to a life that wasn't mine, that wasn't mine at all," she said in the interview.
"My Life on the Road" is dedicated to the doctor who recommended her for the abortion, Dr. John Sharpe.
The dedication read: "Knowing that she had broken an engagement at home to seek an unknown fate, he said, 'You must promise me two things. First, you will not tell anyone my name. Second, you will do what you want to do with your life.' Dear Dr. Sharpe, I believe you, who knew the law was unjust, would not mind if I say this so long after your death: I've done the best I could with my life."
At first, Steinem struggled to gain footing in the male-dominated journalism industry as a reporter on politics and social justice issues.
"I was angry because young men in politics were treated like rising stars and young women were treated like - well - young women," she wrote.
She continued, "I was angry about the human talent that was lost just because it was born into a female body, and the mediocrity that was rewarded because it was born into a male one."
She gained national attention in 1963 for her reporting on the working conditions at Hugh Hefner's Playboy Club.
In the exposé, she revealed the "not-so-glamorous, sexist, and underpaid life of the bunny/waitresses," according to the National Women's History Museum.
In 1968, she helped found New York magazine, and worked as an editor and political writer, largely focusing on the women's liberation movement, the National Women's History Museum reported. She also helped found the feminist magazine, "Ms."
In 1971, she was one of the founders of the National Women's Political Caucus, alongside other icons such as Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm.
The caucus remains the only "national organization dedicated exclusively to increasing women's participation in all areas of political and public life," according to the organization's website.
It was founded after Congress failed to pass the Equal Rights Amendment, and was spurred by the belief that "legal, economic and social equity would come about only when women were equally represented among the nation's political decision-makers."
She continued her advocacy work throughout her life, through her books and lectures, uplifting the civil rights and anti-racism movements along the way.
"We are here and around the world for a deep democracy that says we will not be quiet," she said at the 2017 Women's March on Washington. "We will not be controlled. We will work for a world in which all countries are connected. God may be in the details but the goddess is in connections."
Steinem was diagnosed with breast cancer in 1986. She overcame the disease after undergoing surgery and radiation treatment.
Her husband, entrepreneur and animal rights activist David Charles Howard Bale, died in 2003. Steinem, who famously denounced marriage as an institution, married Bale in 2000 and said her mind was changed because "marriage changed," according to The New Yorker.
She continued, "We spent 30 years in the United States changing the marriage laws. If I had married when I was supposed to get married, I would have lost my name, my legal residence, my credit rating, many of my civil rights. That's not true anymore. It's possible to make an equal marriage."
The post announcing her death said Steinem spent her recent years "being in community with others and writing." It also included a quote, which is said was from the writer's forthcoming book, "An Unexpected Life."
"I have now lived for more than fifty years in this brownstone," she wrote, "in rooms that have witnessed lives before mine, and will know others after I am gone."
Jimmie Steverson, 23, is wanted for the death of Chris Fisher, a Warm Springs Police Department officer, who was killed late Tuesday night. (Georgia Bureau of investigation)
(NEW YORK) -- A 23-year-old man wanted in the fatal shooting of a Georgia police officer has been found after a manhunt ensued.
Jimmie Steverson, 23, is believed to have shot Chris Fisher, a Warm Springs Police Department officer, who was killed just before midnight, according to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.
On Tuesday night, Fisher concluded an unrelated traffic stop while on duty and in his patrol car in the parking lot of Meriwether Country Inn, according to GBI.
While he was stopped a black 2026 Chevrolet Silverado stopped beside Fisher's patrol car, according to GBI.
"The driver, later identified as Jimmy Lee Steverson, age 23, of Warm Springs, GA, then fired multiple shots into Officer Fisher’s patrol vehicle, hitting Officer Fisher. Steverson then fled the parking lot," according to GBI.
Fisher was pronounced dead at the scene and his body will be taken for an autopsy, according to GBI.
On Wednesday at around 11:30 a.m., the Anderson County Sheriff’s Office initiated a traffic stop on a car in Anderson, South Carolina and found Steverson, who was a passenger in the car, according to GBI.
"When law enforcement made contact with the car, they discovered Steverson injured from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound. Steverson was transported to a local hospital," GBI said in a statement.
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp said he is "deeply saddened" by the news of Fisher's killing.
"This is a tragic reminder of the dangers law enforcement face on a daily basis in service to their communities, and I ask that all Georgians lift up Fisher’s family and his fellow officers in prayer," Kemp said in a post on X.
This investigation is active and ongoing. Anyone with information is encouraged to contact the GBI Midland Regional Investigative Office at 706-565-7888.
(NEW YORK) -- The parents of a 5-year-old girl who was found dead after being reported missing in South Carolina have been arrested in connection with her death, with arrest warrants alleging they misled authorities during the search for their autistic child.
Saylor Hayes of Virginia went missing on Sunday after wandering away from a rental home in Pawleys Island, South Carolina, according to local authorities.
During an extensive search involving hundreds of people and multiple agencies, her body was found the following day in waters near where she was last seen, according to the Georgetown County Sheriff's Office.
Her parents -- John Herb Hayes III, 70, and Geordyn Nichole Hayes, 31, of Bristol, Virginia -- were arrested on Tuesday. They have been charged with unlawfully placing a child at risk/willfully abandoning a child "for their actions in the disappearance and subsequent death of their child," the Georgetown County Sheriff's Office said.
The couple were arrested in Carter County, Tennessee, and are awaiting extradition proceedings to be brought back to Georgetown County to face their charges, authorities said.
Arrest warrants for the parents allege that they placed Saylor "at an unreasonable risk of harm affecting her life and safety by failing to provide supervision and safeguards appropriate for a severely nonverbal, autistic five-year-old child with known affinity to water and history of elopement."
The girl had been equipped with a monitoring device since 2024, though the device was removed prior to the family leaving Virginia, according to the warrants.
"After the child was discovered missing, the defendant encouraged search efforts to be directed toward the use of tracking technology, despite knowing that the child was not wearing the monitoring device," the warrant for each parent stated.
The parents are also accused of directing search efforts away from a body of water near where they had allegedly left Saylor unsupervised, according to the warrants.
"The death of Saylor Hayes is a heartbreaking tragedy that has deeply affected our community and everyone who worked so hard to find her," Georgetown County Sheriff Carter Weaver said in a statement. "From the beginning, our responsibility has been to follow the evidence wherever it led. Following an extensive investigation, Saylor's parents have been arrested and charged under South Carolina law relating to unlawfully placing a child at risk of or causing harm, or willfully abandoning a child."
"Saylor was a vulnerable five-year-old child who depended upon the adults responsible for her care and protection," he added. "She deserved to be safe. She deserved to be protected."
The parents remain in custody in the Carter County Detention Center, online jail records show. It is unclear if they have an attorney at this time.
The sheriff's office in Washington County, Virginia, where Saylor lived, said the child had been enrolled in its monitoring program, Project Lifesaver, since June 2024. In the program, individuals who are at risk of wandering wear a transmitter that emits an individualized radio frequency, "allowing specially trained personnel to track and locate them if they become missing," the office said in a statement on Tuesday.
The Washington County Sheriff's Office said it provided authorities in Georgetown County with Saylor's assigned frequency after they requested it on Sunday, though search personnel were unable to detect it.
Washington County authorities subsequently tracked her transmitter to a vehicle at her residence in Bristol, the sheriff's office said. The transmitter can only be removed by physically cutting the band it's attached to, the office noted.
"Project Lifesaver works, and we believe strongly in this program," Washington County Sheriff Blake Andis said in a statement. "When our personnel searched for Saylor's assigned frequency, the equipment did exactly what it was designed to do. It detected her transmitter and led our personnel to its location."
"What makes this situation especially heartbreaking is that Saylor did not have her transmitter with her when she went missing," he continued. "Had Saylor been wearing her Project Lifesaver transmitter, we believe the technology could have assisted search teams in locating her much sooner."
Tyler Robinson, charged in the fatal shooting of Charlie Kirk, speaks with defense attorney Staci Visser as he sits during a preliminary hearing in 4th District Court on Sept. 1, 2026, in Provo, Utah. (Francisco Kjolseth, Pool via Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) -- A Utah judge ruled that Tyler Robinson can stand trial on a capital murder charge stemming from the fatal shooting of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
Judge Tony Graf's decision follows final oral arguments from both sides in the high-profile case in a Provo courtroom on Tuesday, during which attorneys primarily debated an aggravating factor that would make Robinson eligible for the death penalty if convicted.
"Viewed in the light most favorable to the prosecution, this evidence is sufficient at this stage to support a reasonable belief the defendant is the individual who shot and killed Charlie Kirk," Graf said.
The judge also found that there was a reasonable known risk of death to others at the time of the shooting, allowing prosecutors to pursue the death penalty.
A statement on behalf of the Kirk family said the judge's decision marked an important step in their pursuit of justice.
"Every step in this process carries the weight of all that Charlie’s murder has taken from his family, especially his children who will grow up without their father," the statement said. "We are grateful to all who have continued to pray for us, support us, and stand with us through a year of unimaginable grief."
The statement continued: "As the next phase of the judicial process begins, our family remains united in our love for Charlie, our commitment to the pursuit of justice, and our prayer for a transparent and timely process."
Robinson is accused of killing Kirk with a rifle shot fired from a building's rooftop approximately 415 feet from where the co‑founder of the conservative student organization Turning Point USA was speaking at an outdoor rally at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah, on Sept. 10, 2025.
The 23-year-old suspect was charged with aggravated murder, a capital felony, which alleges that others were knowingly endangered in the shooting. He was also charged with felony discharge of a firearm causing serious bodily injury, obstruction of justice, witness tampering and commission of a violent offense in the presence of a child.
Judge Graf found probable cause for Robinson to stand trial on all charges. Not guilty pleas were entered on the defendant's behalf following the judge's ruling.
Prosecutors have said they plan to seek the death penalty in the case.
"The defendant, this man, Tyler James Robinson, shot and killed Charlie Kirk because he disagreed with him, and he did it by firing a high-powered rifle into a crowd of over 3,000 people, which created a great risk of death that anyone would know about," Utah County prosecutor Ryan McBride told the judge during Tuesday's hearing.
McBride said there is a "mountain of evidence" proving Robinson is the gunman who killed Kirk -- citing video footage, DNA evidence on the suspected murder weapon and an alleged admission by Robinson in a note to his boyfriend -- and argued that the alleged politically motivated shooting posed a great risk of death to others, including children, who were at the rally.
"It's not that the defendant didn't see all these people. He obviously did. He had to. It's that he didn't care," McBride said. "He came on a mission to kill Charlie Kirk, and if he missed, so be it. He was prepared to take other shots. Let the casualties be what they may."
Defense attorney Staci Visser asked the judge to strike the "great risk of death" aggravating factor that makes the offense eligible for the death penalty, arguing during Tuesday's hearing that it's not supported by the facts of the case.
"There's nothing in this evidence showing that there was a great risk that someone else was going to be killed," she said.
Defense attorneys also challenged charges and enhancements alleging that Robinson knew children were present during the shooting, tampered with a witness by telling his boyfriend to "ask for a lawyer and stay silent" if questioned by the police, and targeted Kirk because of the conservative activist's political expression.
"There's no evidence as to really what was in Mr. Robinson's mind, if in fact he was the shooter, about Charlie Kirk, because we have no testimony that Mr. Robinson had ever spoken about Charlie Kirk, that he had ever heard anything he'd said, that he'd ever discussed anything," defense attorney Richard Novak said during Tuesday's hearing.
During a week-long preliminary hearing in July, prosecutors called several law enforcement witnesses and presented a series of security videos allegedly placing Robinson at the scene of the shooting. One of the videos showed Robinson on the roof of the building where the fatal shot that killed Kirk was fired from, prosecutors alleged.
Prosecutors also presented a video statement from Robinson's roommate and romantic partner, Lance Twiggs, who claimed in a redacted videotaped interview with prosecutors and detectives that Robinson confessed to killing Kirk in a letter, text messages, and in person.
In a written argument filed ahead of Tuesday's hearing, prosecutors said they showed there is enough probable cause to warrant a trial.
"This is likely as straightforward a bind-over decision as this Court will ever see," prosecutors stated.
In its written argument, the defense countered that the state failed to establish probable cause due to its "extensive use" of hearsay evidence that it said was not assessed for reliability.
"For this reason alone, the Court must decline bindover," the defense stated.
The defense cited alleged communications between Robinson and Twiggs, who did not testify in the preliminary hearing, that were admitted through Twigg's videotaped interview.
Defense attorneys also argued in the filing that prosecutors failed to meet the burden of proof for the aggravated murder charge.
Prosecutors alleged in their filing that Robinson "fired a high-powered rifle towards a crowd of thousands," endangering the lives of "everyone who was in his line of fire" or near Kirk. In response, the defense said only a single shot was fired above the crowd and argued that the evidence does not support that "the shooter was aware that there was a high probability that someone else may die from his single gunshot that hit the intended victim."
ABC News' Alex Stone and Bill Hutchinson contributed to this report.
Glenwood "Bubba" Pysher, 22, pictured in this undated photo, was fatally shot by a police officer in Upper Pottsgrove, Pennsylvania, Aug. 23, 2026. (Courtesy the Pysher family)
(NEW YORK) -- A Pennsylvania police officer has been charged with voluntary manslaughter stemming from the fatal shooting this month of a college student whose parents said he was mistaken for a burglar after knocking on the door of a residence he wrongly thought was a friend's house, authorities said.
Cpl. Sean Farrell, a veteran member of the Upper Pottsgrove Township Police Department, was charged in the Aug. 23 death of Glenwood "Bubba" Pysher, Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin R. Steele announced at a news conference Tuesday.
Steele said he is "obligated under the law" to charge Farrell, who allegedly shot Pysher twice after responding to a 911 call from a homeowner reporting a break-in in progress.
"At the time these two fatal shots were fired, Mr. Pysher had his hands up," Steele said, citing footage from Farrell's body-worn camera. "He had no weapon. He did not charge the officer or act aggressively in any way. He was not a threat to the homeowners who were inside their residence."
Steele further said that the body-worn camera video, which he did not play but from which he released a still image, showed Farrell claim to a colleague after the shooting that Pysher “charged” him while “screaming and yelling.”
“The body-worn camera video does not depict Pysher charging and does not depict yelling or screaming prior to the shooting,” Steele said.
Pysher's parents told ABC News last week that before the shooting, their son had been out bar-hopping with a group celebrating a friend's 21st birthday.
Pysher's mother, Erin Pysher, said that when the group decided to move the celebration to a friend's house, her son walked to what he wrongly thought was the correct address.
"He was walking down the road to what he thought was his friend's house. And after some drinks, he ended up walking in the dark at night. I guess he got mixed up, and he made a wrong turn and went to the wrong house," Erin Pysher said in a phone interview with ABC News.
Pysher said her son was a student at Saint Elizabeth University in Morris Township, New Jersey, and was expected to begin the new school year last week.
Steele said on Tuesday that while Pysher was apparently inebriated, he was complying with Farrell's orders to put his hands up when he was shot.
"He was not trying to escape and he did not commit a forcible felony. This is not a legal use of lethal force under Pennsylvania law," Steele said.
Farrell is being arraigned on the voluntary manslaughter charge Tuesday, according to Steele.
The entrance to Grand Canyon National Park on Feb. 23, 2025, in Grand Canyon, Arizona. (Brandon Bell/Getty Images)
(LOS ANGELES) -- Two people are dead and at least one person remains missing following a major flash-flooding event at the Grand Canyon over the weekend, as cadaver dogs are expected to be used in the ongoing search of the devastated areas, authorities said.
The current missing-person count is based on overnight camping permits issued by the park, officials said, while acknowledging that additional day hikers who did not have permits could also be missing.
"There are day hikers that come in the canyon that we don’t know about," Dave Black, the Grand Canyon National Park Service's incident commander, said at a news conference Monday evening.
Black said that the weather is expected to be clear Tuesday for the first time since Saturday afternoon's flash flood, allowing ground crews to be sent to the hard-hit areas. Four teams with cadaver dogs are planning to search the Bright Angel Creek and Phantom Ranch areas Tuesday, he added.
Authorities said hundreds of tips have been received but so far, there is no reason to believe anyone else is missing other than the one person already being sought.
A Border Patrol technical search team will search for the remaining confirmed missing person, Black said. Authorities said they will also use Bluetooth technology and a drone to search the area.
"We are absolutely holding out hope that that person is still alive," Black said.
The National Park Service confirmed that two people have been killed in the deadly flash flooding.
On Sunday evening, officials said the body of a 46-year-old man, whose name has not been released, was recovered near Crystal Rapids along the Colorado River. The family of the other recovered victim identified him as Dr. John Giusti, a Texas chiropractor and married father of three daughters.
Flash flooding unfolded about 2:30 p.m. local time Saturday in the Bright Angel Canyon and Phantom Ranch area, both popular destinations for hikers. Authorities said 82 people were rescued from the canyon, most by helicopter. A couple of people were able to hike out, they said.
Meanwhile, new details have emerged about the response to the flash flood emergency.
Deputy Superintendent Brian Drapeaux of the Grand Canyon National Park Service said at Monday's news conference that water-level gauges installed in Bright Angel Creek following last year's Dragon Bravo Fire on the North Rim of the Grand Canyon stopped working during the flood.
"That system started to alert us of rising waters, and then shortly after, that system went offline as water progressed down the creek and picked up speed and destructive force," Drapeaux said.
It's unclear why the water-level gauge system stopped working, Drapeaux said, adding that debris that filled the creek could have knocked it offline.
Flood survivors told ABC News that they ran for their lives when a flood swept through the floor of the Grand Canyon on Saturday afternoon, wiping out campgrounds, structures, hiking trails and vital infrastructure, according to officials.
"The National Park Service is asking anyone who knows of hikers or backpackers who were in the inner canyon along the Bright Angel Creek corridor on August 29, as well as anyone who had a campground reservation in the affected corridor, to provide information to the National Park Service Investigative Services Branch (ISB)," the National Park Service said in a statement.
On Sunday, NPS officials said more than 20 people had initially been reported missing and that 62 individuals were air evacuated from Grand Canyon's Phantom Ranch and the lower North Kaibab Trail, "which was affected by a significant flash-flood event Saturday afternoon."
"The flash flood resulted in significant impacts to infrastructure throughout Bright Angel Canyon. Nearly all footbridges spanning Bright Angel Creek were destroyed, eliminating hiker access across the creek," the Grand Canyon NPS said.
Saturday's flash-flood event occurred after four rounds of rain swept across parts of the Grand Canyon over a span of about six hours, according to the National Weather Service. The initial three rounds were not very heavy but saturated the soil and left the area much more prone to dangerous flash flooding once the fourth round of torrential rain moved through.
The steepness of the canyon and the burn scar from last year's Dragon Bravo Fire on the North Rim were likely major contributors, the NWS said.
Videos of the flooding obtained by ABC News show a roaring Colorado River as mudflows and debris from metal structures are seen floating down the river.
A Flock brand automatic license plate reader camera is attached to a utility pole on Aug. 19, 2026, in Washington, D.C. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) -- A nationwide wave of protesters and vandals targeting surveillance cameras made by Flock Safety did not deter a man in a Darth Vader costume from praising the devices at a recent city council meeting in San Diego, California. His "Star Wars"-themed acclaim, as it turned out, was anything but.
"The Emperor is a fan of Flock," the man told elected officials in a mocking tone last week. "We must continue utilizing Flock technologies so that we can follow and surveil the rebel scum."
So far this year, more than 50 cities and counties have canceled or deactivated automated license plate-recognition (ALPR) cameras of the type manufactured by Flock Safety and other firms, also known as Flock cameras, Politico found.
On Monday, Florida's state transportation office revoked the ability of local law enforcement to put license plate readers on state highways.
Flock cameras have been vandalized in at least 36 states, including incidents in which individuals sawed down the devices and shot at them with guns, NPR reported last month.
The neighborhood cameras have prompted pushback in localities big and small, dotting red and blue states. Privacy concerns have been stoked in part by instances of police officers tracking ex-partners or other relations, some analysts and advocates told ABC News.
Wariness about the role of artificial intelligence in the technology has deepened public unease, tapping into discontent about the possibility of AI acting beyond human oversight, they added.
"This is the biggest, most grassroots privacy backlash that I've ever seen in more than 20 years working on these issues," Jay Stanley, a senior policy analyst at the American Civil Liberties Union's Speech, Privacy, and Technology Project, told ABC News.
"It just shows people don't like mass surveillance," Stanley added.
Surveillance technology firms and a law enforcement expert, however, touted the cameras as a valuable tool for police departments, leaving officers better equipped to protect public safety.
"You can see in some cases unsolved crimes may have been solved if there were a Flock camera in the area at the time," Kenneth Gray, a lecturer in the Criminal Justice Department at the University of New Haven, told ABC News. "They can be useful."
More than 135,000 automated license plate-recognition cameras have been identified nationwide, and four of every five of those are made by Flock Safety, according to crowdsourced data from DeFlock.org. The company says its cameras operate in 49 states.
Flock cameras, which sit atop metal roadside poles resembling streetlights, capture a vehicle's license plate number and characteristics as it passes, Flock Safety says on its website. The devices do not identify individuals in a given car, nor do they record continuously, the company adds.
Earlier this month, the firm bolstered safeguards for its cameras, including a default data-retention period of seven days instead of 30, as well as an "Evidence Mode" for preserving data related to an active investigation.
"Flock is designed to help authorized users find relevant evidence for investigations without compromising safety and compliance," the Flock Safety website says. "Clear safeguards define how information is stored, accessed, shared, and reviewed."
Flock Safety did not immediately respond to ABC News' request for comment.
The technology has triggered some police abuse involving its recordings. A police officer in Kentucky was arrested last week after authorities alleged he used Flock cameras to track his ex-girlfriend more than 2,000 times. In Savannah, Georgia, six police department employees were fired in August over alleged abuse of Flock cameras, according to local ABC affiliate WJCL.
The nonprofit Institute for Justice, a libertarian law firm, says it has identified more than 100 incidents of ALPR abuse, among them stalking and wrongful stops.
"People have a sense, 'I wouldn't want someone following me around in a car; and I wouldn't want them doing it with a camera,'" Evan Greer, director of Fight for the Future, an advocacy group organizing against Flock cameras, told ABC News.
"Then when these stories come out about law enforcement officers using it to stalk their exes, it reminds people once you build a surveillance apparatus like this, it can and will be abused," Greer added.
The use of AI in Flock cameras has exacerbated concern among some critics, analysts said, since they fear data could be compiled and examined by the technology with limited oversight.
"These companies are not just recording that you were on this street at this time on this day; they're also allowing law enforcement to run algorithms to decide whether your movement patterns are 'suspicious,'" said Stanley, of the ACLU.
Surveillance companies and a law enforcement expert promoted the crime-fighting benefits of Flock cameras. They pointed to the unique information provided by a network of devices that can identify and track vehicle movements.
Flock Safety says it helped authorities locate more than 10,000 missing people last year, amounting to more than 27 per day. Roughly 1 million criminal investigations were supported by Flock in 2025, the company says.
Flock Safety cameras helped law enforcement identify the car belonging to a suspect in the murder of a Brown University professor last year, aiding efforts to track down the individual, Providence Police Chief Oscar Perez said in December. The suspect died by suicide before he was located.
The surveillance capability that unnerves some critics can be vital to a police investigation, according to Gray, of the University of New Haven.
"Because there's a series of Flock cameras, you can put together a pattern of where a particular car goes at a certain time of day along a particular route," he said. "That can be useful in putting together details that can be analyzed to try to fill in gaps for an investigation."
Still, Gray acknowledged, the camera system collects information on many innocent people, vacuuming up data of no utility for law enforcement.
"The Flock system is building a database without any allegation of criminal activity. It's useful to law enforcement after the fact, but it's also gathering up information on many people that have committed no crime," Gray said.
Critics of Flock cameras lauded local efforts to cancel or alter contracts with surveillance companies. They said they hoped additional restrictions would be implemented on a wider scale.
Greer, of Fight for the Future, advocated for a nationwide ban of the technology, saying "there are certain types of weapons we've decided as a society are too dangerous to sit in the basement of your local police department."
Torin Monahan, a professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill who specializes in surveillance, said law enforcement should be required to possess a judicial warrant in order to access Flock camera data.
"If they have to prove probable cause and protect people's 4th Amendment rights, as they do with other evidence, I think that would be reasonable," Monahan told ABC News.
Gray, the law enforcement expert, agreed.
"A warrant for the information from the database would protect the public from misuse," he said.
The backlash has prompted action from state and national elected officials belonging to both major parties.
Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbot last week paused state funding of Flock cameras. Meanwhile, Democratic Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said in recent days he would welcome a bipartisan bill to ban Flock cameras in the state.
Sen. Josh Hawley, a Missouri Republican, on Friday announced an investigation into Flock Safety, penning an open letter to the company that included a request for internal documents.
"I want law enforcement to have tools to catch offenders and keep the public safe. But Americans do not surrender their privacy rights when they drive to work, drop their kids off at school, or go to church," Hawley wrote.
Police at the scene of a stabbing in New York City's Times Square, Aug. 31, 2026. (WABC)
(NEW YORK) -- New York City police fatally shot an apparently emotionally disturbed woman after she allegedly stabbed two people in Times Square in a "random and unprovoked" attack on Monday afternoon, authorities said.
One of the victims, 32-year-old Erin Piacenti of Chester, New Jersey, died at the hospital from her injuries, according to the New York Police Department.
The other victim, a 68-year-old manfrom Rhode Island, was taken to a hospital with life-threatening injuries and is in stable condition, officials said.
The victims were stabbed within 20 seconds of each near 41st Street and Seventh Avenue, according to NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch.
The 68-year-old had just exited the subway and was waiting to cross the street with his wife when the suspect pulled two knives from a bag, waved them and then allegedly stabbed him in the abdomen "in what appears to be a random and unprovoked attack," Tisch said at a press briefing.
The suspect then went up Seventh Avenue toward 42nd Street, where she approached the second victim, who was similarly stabbed in the abdomen in an apparently random, unprovoked attack, Tisch said.
The suspect allegedly then fled north toward the NYPD substation, authorities said. Witnesses flagged down officers who confronted her for four minutes and "gave her numerous commands to drop the knife," which she refused, Tisch said.
"During the encounter, she told the officers, 'I'm not dropping anything. I would rather kill both of you.' She repeated, 'I will kill you,'" Tisch said.
Officers deployed Tasers before two officers discharged their service weapons, Tisch said.
The suspect, identified by police as 49-year-old Pamela Cisneros of Queens, was pronounced dead at a hospital. She had a "documented mental health history," Tisch said.
Police officials stressed the woman appeared emotionally disturbed and the incident is not terror-related.
Two knives were recovered from the scene, Tisch. The NYPD also released a photo of the recovered weapons.
"I want to thank the NYPD officers who stepped in and prevented a horrific attack from becoming even worse," NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani said during the press briefing. "This is what the men and women of this department do every single day to keep our city safe."
The NYPD will conduct an internal investigation and body-worn camera footage will be released to the public, the mayor said.
Gabriel Bergemann speaks about his horrific race to safety during a flash flood at the Grand Canyon in Arizona, Aug. 29, 2026. (ABC News)
(NEW YORK) -- Survivors of a deadly flash flood that swept through the floor of the Grand Canyon over the weekend described a horrific escape as they ran through rising muddy water in a desperate effort to reach higher ground.
Gabriel Bergemann and David Gregory told ABC News that they were backpacking together at the bottom of the national park on Saturday afternoon when disaster struck, and park rangers told them to run across a footbridge over a raging creek to higher ground.
Bergemann said that 10 minutes after crossing the bridge, a wall of water came through and washed it away.
"If they hadn't told us to evacuate when they did, I think a lot of people wouldn't have made it," he told ABC News.
Gregory added that the water level in the creek they crossed seemed to be "getting bigger and bigger as more water was coming into the creek."
"I was just thinking that if someone fell into the creek, I don't know how they would be able to get out," he said.
Grand Canyon National Park Service officials said on Monday that a second body had been recovered from the flooded area. A search continued for 14 people who remain missing or unaccounted for.
One of the individuals missing on Monday was identified in a Facebook post by his wife as Dr. John Guisti, a New York chiropractor, who was with a hiking group when the flash flood swept through the area where they were camping.
Guisti is a partner at Whipple City Family Chiropractic in New York, which posted his wife's message on Facebook, describing Guisti as a "deeply loved husband, father and pillar of our family."
More than 60 people, most of them hikers and campers, were air evacuated from Grand Canyon's Phantom Ranch and the lower North Kaibab Trail on Saturday, according to park officials.
The flood hit around 2:30 p.m. local time in the Bright Angel Canyon and Phantom Ranch areas of the Grand Canyon amid a monsoonal downpour that produced "a significant flash-flood event," officials said.
Erica Viola and her husband, Scott Svedin, told ABC News they were camping at Bright Angel Campground when they were told to evacuate immediately.
"This was something out of a movie," said Svedin, who described struggling through knee-high water and mud to reach safety.
Viola added, "We just heard people yell, 'Run, Run, Run.' And there's 40 of us running through this deep muddy water trying to make it to the bridge."
Viola said that once she and Svedin got across the footbridge, it was destroyed by the torrent of floodwater that turned the creek they had crossed into a raging river.
"Once we got to the bridge, that's when this 15-foot wall of water came through the campground at Phantom Ranch and just wiped out all the bridges in the creek," Viola said.
Viola said that she lost most of her belongings in the flooding.
The Grand Canyon National Park Service (NPS) said in a statement on Sunday that the flooding caused extensive damage to infrastructure in the inner canyon, including the Transcanyon Waterline, which supplies water from the canyon for use in the park.
"The flash flood resulted in significant impacts to infrastructure throughout Bright Angel Canyon. Nearly all footbridges spanning Bright Angel Creek were destroyed, eliminating hiker access across the creek," the Grand Canyon NPS said.
The Grand Canyon NPS said the Transcanyon Waterline is currently not operational, leaving the entire park with limited water reserves. As a result, all overnight guest lodging and concessions inside the park have been halted.
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