February 15 top stories
It is February 15. Here are today’s top stories.
Shooting at Chiefs Super Bowl parade
Local news reported that one person was killed and more than 20, including children, were wounded in a shooting after the Kansas City Chiefs’ Super Bowl victory parade Wednesday afternoon.
One of the parade’s DJs, Lisa Lopez-Galvan, host of Taste of Tejano, died in the shooting. The married mother of two was a DJ for more than 15 years. The shooting happened near Union Station as the victory rally was wrapping up.
An estimated 1 million people were in downtown Kansas City for the parade and rally to mark the Chiefs’ repeat championship win. Players were still on the stage of the victory rally when the shooting took place. None of them were hit. Missouri Gov. Mike Parson and the first lady were at the parade when shots were fired but safe.
Three people were detained by police in connection with the investigation. Officials said they have recovered at least one firearm. “They do not have a motive, but they are asking those who may potentially have any kind of motivation, a witness or video, to contact police,” the chief said at a Wednesday news conference.
Russia plans to put nuclear missile in space
According to multiple reports that emerged Wednesday after the chair of the House Intelligence Committee, Mike Turner, publicly urged the White House to declassify information on what he called a “serious national security threat,” that U.S. intelligence officials believe Russia wants to put a nuclear weapon in space. They warned that Russia is developing a nuclear capability that could threaten satellites in space. They would not deploy a nuke on Earth but potentially use it on satellites already in orbit.
The intelligence was briefed to Congress and key US allies, and some lawmakers say it is serious enough that it should be declassified and made public. While the intelligence is concerning, multiple senior members of Congress briefed on the information and emphasized that it does not pose an immediate threat to the US.
Russian military capabilities related to its efforts to deploy a nuclear weapon in space remain under development and are not yet in orbit. It is not clear how far the technology has progressed. A US official told news outlets that the threat does not involve a weapon that would be used to attack humans.
More recently, the U.S. military has been looking at ways to harden its most important satellites against a nuclear blast in space.
Vehicle crashes into Texas emergency room
A 57-year-old woman is dead and five people have been injured after a vehicle drove into the St. David’s North Austin Medical Center emergency room in Austin, Texas on Tuesday evening.
The crash happened at 5:38pm. The driver, Michelle Holloway, struck the north entrance of the emergency room. Holloway was extricated from the vehicle after the crash, hospital staff attempted to perform CPR on her. It was unclear if the crash caused her death.
Holloway’s vehicle hit an aquarium in the ER lobby that helped reduce the impact of the crash. Video captured by a witness showed the SUV’s wheels continuing to spin after the impact. Three hospital employees were able to get into her vehicle and turn it off.
[Shows video - CREDIT to KXAN]
The building was structurally sound, and there were no effects to operations outside of the emergency room. The ER was closed Tuesday night to ambulances, though it continued to accept walk-in patients. It was reopened to ambulances by Wednesday morning.
Five people who were in the ER lobby were injured by the crash. One of them was treated at St. David’s, while four others, including children, were taken to other hospitals. Austin police said none of their injuries are considered life-threatening.
The Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) said Holloway was an employee with the Driver License Division at DPS. The crash did not appear to be intentional nor was it the result of a “medical act,” an Austin police officer said Wednesday in a news conference. An investigation is ongoing.
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Iowa’s Caitlin Clark approaches all-time scoring record
History likely will be made Thursday night in Iowa City, as Iowa superstar Caitlin Clark is just seven points away from breaking a new NCAA Division I women’s college basketball scoring record of 3,527 points, held by Washington’s Kelsey Plum. Clark has 3,520 points and is averaging 32 points per game this season.
Iowa Hawkeyes star Caitlin Clark says, “I am not anxious about it really at all. I am just really excited. It is going to be a special night, about potentially becoming the NCAA Women’s basketball all-time leading scorer.
Clark and the Hawkeyes play host to Michigan at 8pm ET Thursday night. The game will be streamed on Peacock.
Ticket demand for Thursday’s potentially historic game in Iowa City is skyrocketing. According to online ticket marketplace TickPick, the overall average purchase price of a seat is $394, 206% more expensive than the same game back in November.
See Alex for the news brief about a deputy officer in Florida.
Deputy scared by an acorn hitting his cruiser opens fire in street
Thanks, Callie.
There is a viral bodycam video showing a deputy in Okaloosa County, Florida becoming spooked by the sound of a falling acorn that hit his patrol vehicle — he thought someone was shooting at him. When he heard the sound, he shouted, “shots fired!” before dropping to the ground and firing all of his bullets toward his patrol vehicle.
There was an unarmed person who was handcuffed inside the patrol vehicle at the time. His name is Marquis Jackson.
Another cop across the street reacted to the gunfire and also opened fire towards the patrol vehicle.
Fortunately, Jackson was not hit, but he said he is so traumatized that he feels he’s “damaged for life.”
The incident was in November. After an investigation, the deputy, Jesse Hernandez, was found to have used excessive force but was cleared of any criminal wrongdoing. He has resigned from his job.
Thanks for that brief. That is all the news stories for today. See you tomorrow and stay with the light!
Shooting at Chiefs Super Bowl parade:
https://www.kshb.com/news/crime/kcpd-responds-to-shooting-near-chiefs-champions-victory-parade-route
Russia plans to put nuclear missile in space:
Vehicle crashes into Texas emergency room:
Iowa’s Caitlin Clark approaches all-time scoring record:
https://apnews.com/article/caitlin-clark-iowa-12e078352a92fe2effb307888775cdb0
Deputy scared by an acorn hitting his cruiser opens fire in street:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2024/02/14/acorn-florida-police-shoot-unarmed/