Tied-up Toddler With Plastic Bag Over His Head Rescued From Burning Santa Paula Home; Mom Arrested
A woman was arrested after allegedly putting a plastic bag over her 3-year-old son’s head and tying him up as their Santa Paula home burned over the weekend, police said Monday.
Firefighters initially found the woman tied to a bed when they responded to a structure fire at a home on Bahia Circle about 6:10 p.m. Sunday, according to the Santa Paula Police Department.
While extinguishing the blaze in the downstairs living room, crews discovered the toddler alone in another bedroom. The boy had a plastic bag over his head and his hands were bound, a police news release stated.
Firefighters rescued the mother and child, and transported both to a local hospital where they received treatment for smoke inhalation.
After the blaze was put out, detectives and arson investigators were dispatched to the scene.
Police interviewed the woman, 47-year-old Maricela Magana Ruiz, and then arrested her. They determined Ruiz had placed the bag over the child’s head and tied his hands before situating him in the bedroom by himself, according to the release.
She was booked on suspicion of felony child endangerment and is being held at the Ventura County Jail on $50,000 bail.
A motive was not immediately known. Investigators are also trying to determine if the blaze was intentionally set.
Police have not released any additional information.
Photo Credit: Santa Paula Police Department
Wisconsin student shot by officer after allegedly bringing gun to school
WAUKESHA, Wis. — A Wisconsin high school is “safe and secure” after a student was shot by an officer for pointing a gun at law enforcement, police say.
Authorities said that a student at Waukesha South High School notified administrators after hearing that a student was in possession of a handgun at school.
“The school’s Resource Officer immediately responded to the classroom, the SRO made efforts to secure the classroom by getting the other students to safety,” said Waukesha Police Chief Russell Jack.
Other officers responded to the classroom and began talking with the suspect in an attempt to deescalate the situation. The 17-year-old student would not remove his hands from his pocket and continued to ignore officer’s commands, authorities said.
Eventually, police say the officer was forced to fire at the student when he would not remove his hands from his pocket.
“This is an isolated incident. We are not seeking anybody else we have no other persons of interest. We are in the investigative stage right now as the scene is stabilized,” police said on Twitter.
The student was taken to a local hospital with injuries, according to the Waukesha Police Department.
Students were dismissed for the day at 11:15 a.m., according to a statement from the school’s principal.
A 9th-grader at the school said he and his friends “thought it was just a drill.”
“We thought it was just a drill at the beginning,” the student said. “We were in there for like a whole hour.”
An emotional mother described the moment she saw her son safe “like giving birth all over again.”
This story was originally published on WTMJ.
Photo Credit: twitter.com
14-year-old boy accused of shooting sister, killing her boyfriend
KATY, Texas (AP) — Authorities say a 14-year-old boy shot and wounded his older sister and killed her boyfriend during “a house party gone bad” in a Houston suburb.
Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez says on Twitter that the boy shot his 18-year-old sister and her 20-year-old boyfriend with a shotgun at a home in Katy around 11:40 p.m. Saturday.
Gonzalez says there had been a “disturbance” between the boy and his sister’s boyfriend, and that there were about 10 young adults in the home at the time.
He says the 14-year-old was detained but isn’t in custody. Investigators will refer their findings to a juvenile prosecutor.
The sister is in stable condition at a hospital. Her boyfriend was declared dead at the scene.
The sheriff’s department hasn’t responded to requests for comment Sunday.
via: https://www.pix11.com/news/national/14-year-old-boy-accused-of-shooting-sister-killing-her-boyfriend
Photo Credit: Getty Images
Utah Students Stand Up to Substitute Teacher Who Berated Classmate After Saying He Was Thankful for His ‘Two Dads’
A substitute teacher berated a Utah fifth grader after he said during a pre-Thanksgiving lesson that he was thankful he’s finally going to be adopted by his two dads, the parents said.
The boy’s classmates said the teacher told him, “that’s nothing to be thankful for” and lectured the 30 kids in the class about her views on homosexuality. She said that “two men living together is a sin” and “homosexuality is wrong.”
Three girls asked the teacher to stop and eventually walked out of the room to get the principal, and the substitute was escorted from the building, the Salt Lake Tribune reported.
One of the dads, Louis van Amstel, said he appreciates the three girls stepping up and the school’s quick response. But he wonders how the substitute got in a classroom in the first place and wants to make sure she never comes back again — at the boy’s school or anywhere in Utah.
“It’s absolutely ridiculous and horrible what she did,” van Amstel said. “We were livid. It’s 2019 and this is a public school.”
The boy told his dads that he understood what the substitute was saying, but said he didn’t speak up because he’s had two failed adoptions before and didn’t want his dads to rethink their decision, with his final court hearing coming up on Dec. 19.
“This situation really hurt him. This person really hurt us,” said van Amstel, a former dancer on “Dancing with the Stars.”
The incident happened last month at Deerfield Elementary School in Cedar Hills, south of Salt Lake City. A spokesman for Alpine School District, David Stephenson, said he couldn’t speak in detail about a personnel issue but “appropriate action has been taken.” He also praised the girls who spoke up for their classmate.
“Fellow students saw a need, and they were able to offer support,” Stephenson said. “It’s awesome what happened as far as those girls coming forward.”
The district contracts with the staffing company Kelly Services to hire substitutes.
“We are concerned about any reports of inappropriate behavior and take these matters very seriously,” Kelly Services said in a statement. “We conduct business based on the highest standards of integrity, quality, and professional excellence. We’re looking into this situation.”
A few days after the incident, the family’s neighbors decorated their house with paper hearts that said, “We love you” and “We support you.”
Photo Credit: ktla.com
Brazilian woman who killed son for being gay gets 25 years in prison
A Brazilian woman was sentenced to more than 25 years in prison for killing her own son for being gay, according to reports.
Tatiana Ferreira Lozano Pereira is accused of stabbing her 17-year-old son, Itaberli Lozano, to death in Sao Paulo when hitmen failed to do the job in December 2016, Out magazine reported.
Prosecutors allege Pereira had been fighting with her son over his sexuality before she hired two thugs, Victor Roberto da Silva and Miller da Silva Barissa, to kill the teen.
The pair allegedly beat up the boy after his mother lured him home under the guise of reconciliation — but they refused to finish the job, leaving Pereira to stab him herself, the outlet reported.
Pereira admitted to killing her son at the trial, claiming that he had threatened her life, the outlet reported.
But relatives said that the teen wasn’t violent and his mother had always rejected him because he was gay, the Daily Mail reported.
“He had a job, he was very polite, [and] he never quarreled with anyone,” his uncle, Dario Rosa, told police. “He only had problems with his mother, who did not accept that he was a homosexual.”
A jury sentenced the mom last week to 25 years and eight months in prison in connection to the teen’s death.
via: https://nypost.com/2019/12/01/brazilian-woman-who-killed-son-for-being-gay-gets-25-years-in-prison/
Photo Credit: nypost.com
Alexa ruins Christmas by blurting out girl’s gift
A British mom says Alexa became the Grinch that stole Christmas.
Lizzy Nuttall, 41, contends the Amazon personal assistant announced that her daughter’s Christmas present had arrived — and that the camera she wanted was inside, according to The Sun.
“When we went into the kitchen yesterday, the yellow light was on to say there was a message. Then it blurted out, ‘Parcel arriving — Instax,’“ Nuttall told the newspaper.
Her 10-year-old daughter, Alice, clearly heard the news, she said.
“I think Alexa has turned into the Christmas Grinch,” the mom said. “Now we’ll have to get Alice another gift because she hasn’t got a surprise.”
Nuttall said she wanted to warn other parents about Alexa’s big mouth.
Amazon had said that the beginning on Nov. 17 Alexa would stop revealing
via: https://nypost.com/2019/11/30/alexa-ruins-christmas-by-blurting-out-girls-gift/
Photo Credit: nypost.com
‘Teacher of the Year’ Randi Chaverria allegedly gave student oral sex in classroom
A Texas educator once lauded as her district’s “Teacher of the Year” allegedly performed oral sex on a student in a classroom, authorities said.
Randi Chaverria, a 36-year-old family and consumer science teacher at Round Rock High School, was arrested Tuesday after a student told police she had performed oral on him twice in October, according to an affidavit obtained by KVUE.
Text messages sent between the student and Chaverria – who was named the Secondary Teacher of the Year by the school district in May – appear to be consistent with the teen’s accusations, investigators said.
Parents were notified in an email earlier this month that Chaverria had an improper relationship with a student, prompting to take personal leave. She later resigned from her position on Nov. 19, the station reports.
Round Rock High School Principal Matt Groff told parents that Chaverria had passed a state background check prior to being hired – and had solid prior employment checks, KXAN reported.
“Safety is the top priority of Round Rick High School and Round Rock ISD,” Groff wrote in the letter. “Ensuring a safe and secure learning environment requires partnership between students, parents, campus and district staff, as well as law enforcement.”
Chaverria, who had taught for the past six years, credited her family’s passion for education when she was recognized for her excellence in the classroom.
“The most important role of a teacher is to help shape future generations to become successful members of our community,” Chaverria said earlier this year. “More than any curriculum I teach my students, I hope that they will walk away from my classroom thinking of ways that they can make a difference in their community and impact the lives of others for the better.”
Chaverria also led the school’s Adopt-A-Child community service project, district officials said.
She has been released on bond after turning herself in to authorities at the Williamson County Jail on charges of improper relationship between educator and student, KVUE reported.
Photo Credit: Round Rock ISD/Williamson County Jail
Mom lives with cardboard cutouts of dead son after fatal stabbing
Her grief recovery is “outside the box.”
A British woman is coping with the stabbing death of her 25-year-old son by living with two life-sized cardboard cutouts of him — which she sometimes brings to weddings and birthday parties, according to a report.
Emma Caley-Taylor, of Wiltshire, England, had the 5-foot-7 dummy versions of her son Jordan printed after he was stabbed four times in 2017, according to the UK Sun.
She often speaks to her cardboard son at her farmhouse, where “he” is set up in his former bedroom.
“I walk in and say, ‘Alright, Jords’ — it’s like he’s there,” she told the outlet. “I got them on eBay. They were done to his height and everything. It’s like looking at Jordan.”
Caley-Taylor took one of the cutouts, of Jordan wearing a T-shirt and sunglasses, to a nightclub for his charity “birthday bash” last year.
She brought a second one, in which he’s sporting a tie and a grin, to relative’s wedding and set it up near the bride and groom’s dinner table.
In March 2017, Jordan was attacked by a knife-wielding 18-year-old during a spat fueled by “drunken silliness,” Caley-Taylor said.
In recent months, the grieving mom has spoken out against lenient sentences for knife-related crime in Britain, where stabbings have increased.
Her son’s killer, Hayden Maslen, was sentenced to just 20 months but served less than a year behind bars for carrying the weapon he used to stab Jordan.
via: https://nypost.com/2019/11/29/mom-lives-with-cardboard-cutouts-of-dead-son-after-fatal-stabbing/
Photo Credit: Emma Caley/facebook
Starbucks has fired employee who gave Oklahoma officer order with ‘PIG’ printed on the label
OKLAHOMA — The Starbucks employee who gave an Oklahoma police officer cups of coffee with the word “PIG” printed on the label has been fired, the company said in a statement Friday.
The Kiefer police officer went to the Starbucks in Glenpool on Thanksgiving day to pick up five drinks, CNN affiliate KTUL reported. Kiefer Chief Johnny O’Mara told the news station a customer pointed out the label on the cups to the officer.
“What irks me is the absolute and total disrespect for a police officer who, instead of being home with family and enjoying a meal and a football game, is patrolling his little town,” O’Mara wrote in a Facebook post, where he shared a picture of a cup with the “PIG” label on it.
The coffee company called the incident “absolutely unacceptable” and said it is “deeply sorry to the law enforcement officer who experienced this.”
“The Starbucks partner who wrote this offensive word on a cup used poor judgement and is no longer a partner after this violation of company policy,” the statement read. “This language is offensive to all law enforcement and is not representative of the deep appreciation we have for police officers who work tirelessly to keep our communities safe.”
In a joint statement, Starbucks and Kiefer police said they’re using the incident “as an opportunity to leverage our shared platforms to promote greater civility.”
The company will meet with Kiefer police to discuss ways to work together, including by jointly hosting a Coffee with a Cop event at Starbucks for local law enforcement to meet with baristas and community members to discuss “the critical role dispatchers and police offers play in keeping our communities safe,” the joint statement said.
Photo Credit: pix11.com
Guy who creates sculptures out of mashed potatoes recreated Tesla’s Cybertruck at his family’s Thanksgiving
Greg Milano studied art history and architecture. He has a law degree and works in real estate. But his most important resume line?
He’s a mashed potatoes master.
This Thanksgiving, Milano, 30, used his spuds to sculpt a perfect, miniature Tesla Cybertruck.
The holiday tradition started 20 years ago when Milano was making volcanoes out of mashed potatoes.
“I am just a big kid,” Milano told CNN. “Pablo Picasso summed it up well: ‘Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once he grows up.’ ”
Since then, he’s created a Pilgrim hat, football, snowman, and more.
For inspiration, Milano pulls ideas from news.
“I did a hostess cupcake and Twinkie because they were in bankruptcy,” the “mashterpiece” artist said. “White House because it was an election year, the DeLorean from ‘Back to the Future’ because it was when Marty went to the future, and BB8 when ‘Star Wars’ came out.”
This year, Milano chose to build a Tesla cybertruck after it became the topic of conversation for the technology lovers at his family’s Thanksgiving table.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk revealed the long-awaited electric pickup truck last week.
“The hardest part was definitely the geometric lines of the design, keeping the proportions correct, achieving the illusion that it is sitting on four wheels and creating the thin walls of the bed of the truck with the tailgate down,” Milano said.
After spending hours carving out windows, tires, and the trunk of the truck, Milano heated up his masterpiece, doused it in gravy, and munched it up.
Photo Credit: pix11.com