Vaping mom left in coma from mystery lung illness
A Texas mom of three says that her vaping habit was to blame for a mysterious lung illness that left her in a coma.
Sherie Canada of Abilene took to social media after a 24-day hospital stint to warn others that e-cigarettes “nearly killed” her.
“You have no idea of how precious [your lungs] are until they aren’t yours anymore and a machine is telling them to breath [sic] for you,” she wrote in Sept. 6 post on Facebook.
The mom of three revealed that she started using e-cigarettes three years ago after getting hooked on the flavors.
“You don’t think about it. Everyone else is doing it,” Canada told news station KWTX.
But around two months ago, she began to experience weight loss, had difficulty breathing and developed a cough.
As her health continued to deteriorate, she went to the emergency room, where fluid and blood clots were found in her lungs.
“I was so scared but more than anything [I was] in so much pain. I was fighting for days already and so tired!” she wrote on Facebook.
She was placed on a medically induced coma on June 18, six days after she was admitted to the hospital.
“When I woke up and one of the doctors told me how bad the vaping was,” Canada wrote on Facebook.
Though she has made a recovery, she said she felt “shame” due to the preventable medical episode.
“I was sent to the ICU on my middle son’s 13th birthday and intubated on my 15-year-old son’s birthday,” Canada told KWTX. “I felt a lot of guilt and shame. I did this to myself.”
Canada said she’s now using the experience to inform others about the dangers of vaping.
“I asked for everyone’s forgiveness for putting them through this pain as well and [I am] just glad to be here today to share my story and my testimony,” she wrote on Facebook.
Canada’s post comes as at least six people have died across the county from vaping-related illness and more than 450 people have been hospitalized.
via: https://nypost.com/2019/09/15/vaping-mom-left-in-coma-from-mystery-lung-illness/
Photo Credit: facebook.com
5-year-old Texas boy fatally shoots younger brother inside family home
A 5-year-old Texas boy fatally shot his 4-year-old brother in the head when the pair found a gun inside their home, police and relatives said.
The boy, who was shot in Fort Worth just before noon Sunday, was pronounced dead at a hospital, Fort Worth police spokesman Gezim Pollozani told The Post.
Investigators are still trying to determine whether the shooting was accidental or intentional. No charges had been filed as of early Monday, Pollozani said.
The Tarrant County medical examiner’s office later identified the victim as Truth Albright, KXAS reports.
Truth was at home with his older brother and mother at the time of the shooting. Homicide detectives and investigators from a unit dedicated to crimes against children were processing the scene late Sunday, police said.
A neighbor told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram that he didn’t know the family, but regularly saw two boys playing outside the home.
The boy’s mother has five other children, according to an online fundraiser set up to help offset his funeral costs.
Two other children were shot Sunday in separate incidents in nearby Arlington, WFAA reports — including a 6-year-old boy who was in grave condition after being shot in the head by his preteen brother, and an 8-year-old girl shot in the buttocks who is expected to recover in what’s believed to be an accidental shooting.
Photo Credit: Getty Images
Florida couple busted for DUI had sex in back of cop car
A couple busted on DUI charges couldn’t wait to jump each other’s bones — so they had sex in the back of a police car, according to reports.
Ex-cons Aaron Thomas, 31, and Megan Mondanaro, 35, were initially stopped by a deputy after they were spotted riding bikes with no lights and almost being hit by a car in Nassau County, Florida, the Miami Herald reported.
When the deputy with the Nassau County Sheriff’s Office pulled the pair over, he noticed that they reeked of booze and had bloodshot eyes.
Thomas and Mondanaro were placed in the backseat of a patrol car — and that’s when things got hot and heavy.
“While I was outside of my patrol vehicle, Megan and Aaron took their clothes off and started to have sex,” the deputy wrote in an arrest report, according to the Herald.
“When I opened up the door to stop them, Aaron was naked and Megan had her pants down,” the arrest report stated.
Thomas managed to briefly flee, escaping hold of the deputy who tried to remove him from the patrol car.
But he was caught shortly after behind a nearby Cold Stone Creamery.
Authorities hit Thomas with an additional charge of theft because he took the police handcuffs with him when he ran off, according to the news outlet.
Thomas and Mondanaro were ultimately booked at a Nassau County detention facility on a slew of charges including DUI and exposing sex organs.
Mondanaro’s bond was set at $12,508, while Thomas was being held without bail.
According to the Miami Herald, both Thomas and Mondanaro have lengthy rap sheets.
Thomas previously served 46 days behind bars for assaulting a law enforcement officer and Mondanaro recently served 60 days in jail for a parole violation in connection to a prior conviction.
via: https://nypost.com/2019/09/16/florida-couple-busted-for-dui-had-sex-in-back-of-cop-car-report/
Photo Credit: Nassau County Sheriff’s Office
2-year-old boy dies after choking on candy at Bronx library
FORDHAM MANOR, the Bronx — A 2-year-old boy died in the Bronx Sunday after he choked on a piece of candy while at a library, officials said.
The boy was at the Bronx Library Center with his 14-year-old brother when he choked around 3:15 p.m., police said. He was unconscious and unresponsive when emergency responders arrived.
The boy was rushed to a local hospital where he was pronounced deceased.
The boy’s name has not been released.
via: https://pix11.com/2019/09/15/2-year-old-boy-dies-after-choking-on-candy-at-bronx-library-police/
Photo Credit: pix11.com
An Oregon man beat cancer. Twice. Then he won $4.6 million in the state lottery
An Oregon man beat cancer. Then he beat it again. Then he won the lottery.
He seems to be his own lucky charm.
Stu MacDonald of Bend buys Oregon Lottery tickets every week, and every week, his wife Claudia tells him to “get the winning ticket.”
She forgot to tell him on September 7, the Oregon Lottery said. But he ended up buying a winning ticket worth $4.6 million.
“I am a very lucky guy,” he said in a statement. “I survived cancer twice and here I am. This is amazing.”
After taxes, he took home about $1.5 million. A cafe where he purchased the quick pick ticket got a selling bonus of $46,000, the lottery said.
A spokesman for the Oregon Lottery told CNN MacDonald hadn’t agreed to any interviews or to release any images of himself, so you’ll have to imagine the grin on his face when he found out about his winnings.
Winning the lotto is rare. Like 1 in 300 million rare.
MacDonald is lucky, indeed. Winning the lottery is exceedingly rare.
The average person’s odds of winning the Mega Millions jackpot are 1 in 302,575,350. That’s about 292,200 times less likely than being born with extra digits (the odds are about 1 in 500).
Unlucky odds won’t stop people from trying to get lucky anyway. For one Canadian man, it worked: After playing the same numbers for 30 years, he finally won $60 million in October. He waited nearly 10 months to pick up his earnings, which he said he’d put away toward a new home and a family vacation.
Photo Credit: pix11.com
Father helps wife deliver firstborn in bathtub after couple says hospital sent them home
CHESAPEAKE, Va. – A father had to deliver his own son in the bathtub of his family’s Virginia home after the hospital told them to come back when his wife’s labor was further along, he told WTKR.
Leo Bienaime took a picture moments after his son was born.
“Everyone that we showed the picture to was like, ‘Wait … why is there shampoo in the background?’” said Leo. “Don’t try this at home.”
The couple said they went to Naval Medical Center Portsmouth on August 23 around 8:30 p.m. and were told to go home about four hours later.
“I was told that I should come back when my contractions were when you can’t really walk and you can’t really talk through them,” said Leo’s wife, LeeAnn.
She said she has a high pain tolerance, and the couple drove 25 minutes home.
“If I could do it again, I would’ve just sat in the waiting room and not left. We would’ve pitched a tent. We would’ve started a fire. We would’ve just straight-up camped,” Leo jokingly told WTKR.
LeeAnn said she kept walking back and forth to the bathroom. She said she felt her son’s head. She said she wanted to hold the labor back and wait for professionals, but she said she couldn’t.
She got into the bathtub, and her husband called 911.
They said less than four hours after they returned home, little Joachim entered the world.
“I had to let instinct take over and just go with it and kind of release myself to the experience,” said LeeAnn.
The couple praised the firefighters who responded to the house and the person who answered their 911 call from the Chesapeake Safety Operations Center.
“She was the sweetest lady. I wish I could get her name and give her some cookies. She was the sweetest lady.”
LeeAnn said several people asked her if she planned to have the baby at home.
“I’m like, ‘No, because he doesn’t look like a doctor. He doesn’t have any experience,'” said LeeAnn.
Thankfully, mother and son were okay.
“We were able to have a healthy birth, a healthy baby boy – that’s why I’m not completely enraged,” said LeeAnn. “I feel like if it had gone another way, it would’ve been a different story.”
LeeAnn encourages other mothers to follow their instincts and to be an advocate for themselves.
Leo said he will be telling this story for the rest of his life.
WTKR reached out to the Naval Medical Center Portsmouth about the situation, and received the following statement:
Naval Medical Center Portsmouth is committed to ensuring the safety of every patient and providing high quality care. Whenever a patient has a concern about their care and treatment, we welcome the opportunity to discuss this with them and resolve any potential issues. Due to HIPAA, we cannot discuss anything specific on an individual’s medical treatment without their authorization. The patient has been contacted directly about her care while here at NMCP.
Shauna O’Sullivan DO, FACP CDR, MC, USN, Director of Strategy and Operations, Acting, Public Affairs Officer
Photo Credit: pix11.com
New Rochelle mom found slumped over, unconscious on twin babies’ stroller with PCP, K2 cigar in hand
YONKERS, NY — A 30-year-old mom found unconscious slumped over her babies’ double stroller in Yonkers allegedly told police she only took a few pills, officials said Monday.
A concerned witness pointed out Jessica Reyes, a New Rochelle resident, to patrol officers on Friday afternoon, police said. The officers found a burnt cigar in Reyes’ hand.
They took the cigar and tried several times to wake Reyes up.
“Don’t take my children,” she said when she woke up, according to police. “I only took a few pulls.”
Her 6-month-old daughters were taken to a hospital for evaluation. They were both in good health and were turned over to Child Protective Services for case management.
Police later determined Reyes’ cigar had PCP and K2 inside, officials said.
Reyes was charged with endangering the welfare of a child and criminal possession of a controlled substance.
Photo Credit: Yonkers Police Department
Mother arrested after 11-year-old daughter brings THC edibles to school, shares them with classmates
COVINGTON,LA (WGNO) — On Tuesday, a woman was arrested after it was discovered that her 11-year-old daughter brought THC-laced edibles to school and shared them with her classmates.
A St. Tammany Parish Sheriff’s deputy assigned as a resource officer at a Mandeville-area school alerted detectives after a student had a reaction to a gummy candy she was given by a classmate.
The child had to be transported to a local hospital for medical attention.
The resource officer at the school learned that an 11-year-old had brought the gummies to the school and passed them out to other students.
At the child’s residence, detectives located a variety of THC edibles and products, and related paraphernalia.
The child’s mother, 30-year-old Alexandra Price, admitted that she had been making the products.
She was arrested and booked into the St. Tammany Parish Jail for possession of a schedule I CDS, manufacturing of a schedule I CDS, cruelty to juveniles, possession of drug paraphernalia, and sale, distribution or possession of a legend drug without a prescription.
The juvenile, who knew what the gummies contained, was arrested for distribution of schedule I CDS, and she was released into the custody of a family member.
The investigation remains ongoing and additional charges may be forthcoming.
“I applaud our resource officer and the staff at this school who immediately alerted detectives to launch an investigation after a student became sick, preventing the possibility of more children consuming the THC-laced gummies,” Sheriff Randy Smith. “This is an example of how our schools and law enforcement work together every day to keep our children safe.”
Photo Credit: pix11.com
Black Transgender Woman Found ‘Burned Beyond Recognition’ In Florida
The body of black transgender woman was found burned in a car in Florida, and advocates say she is the 18th known transgender person to be killed this year.
Hendry County Sheriff’s authorities told the Palm Beach Post Bee Love Slater, 23, was found “burned beyond recognition” in Clewiston, Florida on Sept. 4. Police are investigating her death as a homicide, according to the Post.
Captain Susan Harrelle of the Hendry County Sheriff’s department told the Miami Herald that Slater’s death will not be classified as a hate crime until they can “clearly prove” a motive.
Friends released pink balloons at a candlelight vigil for Slater last Friday. Dezmond Bass, 26, who attended the vigil called Slater “a bundle of joy.”
“It just hurt me to see that that could happen to her,” Bass told USA TODAY. “I didn’t want this swept under rug. I needed to make sure everyone knew what happened to her.”
Jackson Jacksonn, who met Slater four years ago, said she had been threatened on social media and was planning on leaving the city, but someone “got her before she was able to make her move.”
Although Jackson doesn’t believe her death was a hate crime, he expressed frustration at the slow police response.
“How can a murder of this magnitude in such a small town happen and nobody knows nothing?” he asked. “There’s something wrong with that picture.”
Slater died the same week that Bailey Reeves, a 17-year-old black transgender teen was shot and killed in Baltimore, according to Human Rights Campaign. In June, the American Medical Association called violence against transgender people of color an “epidemic.”
“Our society needs to work to ensure transpeople can live without fear,” the American Civil Liberties Union of Florida said on Facebook in response to Slater’s death.
Photo Credit: start.att.net
Homeless Mom Sentenced To 5 Years In Prison For Using Friend’s Address To Enroll Son In School
Felicity Huffman‘s 14-day sentencing has spotlighted school-related cases of parents who received longer jail time in comparison to the actress’ role in the college admissions scandal.
A homeless woman from Bridgeport, Connecticut, was sentenced to five years in prison for enrolling her son in a school district where he did not reside.
In 2011, Tanya McDowell wanted a better education for her then 5-year-old son Andrew, and enrolled him in an elementary school in the neighboring town of Norwalk — using her son’s babysitter’s address for registration papers. At the time, she and her son were living out of her van and homeless shelters, and spending nights at an apartment in Bridgeport, the Connecticut Post had reported.
The mother was arrested and charged with first-degree larceny and served five years behind bars for the “stolen” education, according to The Hour.
“Who would have thought that wanting a good education for my son would put me in this predicament?” McDowell, who also had prior drug charges, said in court at the time of her sentencing. “I have no regrets seeking a better education for him, I do regret my participation in this drug case.”
On Friday, actress Huffman was sentenced to 14 days behind bars for her role in the college admissions scandal, which included paying $15,000 to admissions consultant William “Rick” Singer and his nonprofit organization, Key Worldwide Foundation (“KWF”), who then facilitated cheating on Huffman’s daughter’s SAT test by having a proctor correct the teen’s answers after the fact.
Critics pointed out the stark contrast in the consequences between these two cases, arguing that it exemplified a disparity that continues to put underprivileged communities at a disadvantage.
Similarly, in 2011, Ohio mom Kelley Williams-Bolar was sentenced to 10 days in county jail and was convicted of lying about her home address to get her daughters into a different school district. Williams-Bolar refused when officials asked her to pay $30,000 in back tuition, and she was convicted of falsifying residency records.
Earlier this year, The Washington Post reported that a new study showed white school districts received $23 billion more in government funding than nonwhite school districts in 2016, regardless of the fact that they had the same number of students.
Photo Credit: start.att.net