news
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Autopsy Reports in-Custody Death of Mich. Man as Accidental
On Wednesday the Kalamazoo, Mich., Public Safety Department released an update of its investigation into the death of James Dunigan, who died in custody 90 minutes after being arrested in the emergency room at Bronson Methodist Hospital, WWMT reports. Dunigan had been admitted to the ER at 2:13 a.m. for treatment of chest pains. According to…
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Kan. Woman Receives Racist Letter: 'This Neighborhood Does Not Need Any Blacks In It'
Nancy Wirths received an anonymous, racist letter Monday stating that black people were not welcome in her Wichita, Kan., neighborhood, KSN.com reports. Wirths says that the handwritten letter was an attack on her and her biracial family—six of her nine grandchildren are African American. “I look over my shoulder. I watch. The kids aren’t allowed…
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Ga. Man Who Threw Boiling Water on Gay Couple Sentenced to 40 Years in Prison
A Georgia judge sentenced a man to 40 years in prison Wednesday after he threw scalding water on a gay couple sleeping in an apartment, leaving them with severe burns, the Chicago Tribune reports. According to the report, jurors only deliberated for about 90 minutes before finding 48-year-old Martin Blackwell guilty of eight counts of…
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Army Reservist Who Killed 5 Dallas Officers Showed PTSD Symptoms: Documents
Micah Johnson, the Army reservist who shot and killed five Dallas police officers in an ambush last month, showed symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder after returning to the U.S. from Afghanistan in 2014, the Associated Press reports. According to the newly released documents from the Veterans Health Administration, Johnson sought treatment for anxiety, depression and…
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High School Alumni Raise Money to Create Scholarship in Philando Castile's Name
Alumni from Central High School in St. Paul, Minn., banded together over the weekend to host a fundraiser in order to raise money for a scholarship meant to honor Philando Castile, the Star Tribune reports. According to the report, more than 500 attended Sunday’s event—which included music, food and kids’ activities—at the St. Paul’s Dunning Recreation…
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Mother of Boy Who Cried 'Affluenza' Released From Home Confinement
The mother of Ethan Couch, the young man who killed four people in a drunken driving accident and blamed it on “affluenza,” was released from home confinement after being charged with hindering apprehension of a felon and money laundering, the Associated Press reports. Tonya Couch fled with her son to Mexico when a video surfaced of…
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NJ Man Told 2-Year-Old to Put Up His Fists Before Punching Him to Death: Report
A New Jersey man has been arraigned on murder charges after allegedly punching his girlfriend’s 2-year-old son to death, CBS Philadelphia reports. According to the report, 24-year-old Zachary Tricoche got into a fight with his girlfriend because she didn’t buy groceries he liked. During the fight the little boy, identified as Jamil Baskerville Jr., reportedly…
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Minn. Man Accused of Beating 7-Month-Old to Death After Discovering He Wasn't the Father
A Minnesota man is facing two counts of second-degree murder—and up to 30 years in prison if convicted—after prosecutors say he beat an infant to death after discovering that he was not the biological father of the child, the Washington Post reports. According to the report, staff at a day care center first began noticing…
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Wash. Community Bands Together to Remove Racist Vandalism Covering Black Family's Home
Marvin Phillips was called away from his first weekend camping vacation with his family Friday morning after being told that his home and truck had been vandalized. According to the Washington Post, no one wanted to tell Phillips—who happened to be one of the few African Americans in the small rural community of 1,800 people…