Home video shows babysitter beating 5-year-old child to death, Las Vegas police say
LAS VEGAS (FOX5) — A babysitter is accused of beating a 5-year-old to death after he had an accident, according to an arrest report from Las Vegas Metropolitan Police.
Lauren Jeanette Courtney faces a murder charge and multiple counts of child abuse after 5-year-old Ryan James Peralta was hospitalized and later died.
According to an arrest report, police were called to the child’s father’s home on March 11 to reports of a child unresponsive with bruising to the head. Courtney, the child’s babysitter, reportedly called the father saying the child was coughing up blood. The father came home and watched surveillance video that reportedly showed Courtney beating the child.
The arrest report said the home surveillance video showed “a horrendous account of what visually took place with Ryan on how he was severely beaten during a two-minute time frame.” The arrest report described Courtney dragging the child between rooms and repeatedly punching and kicking the child in the head and body.
Peralta was taken to University Medical Center. According to an arrest report, he suffered a brain bleed, skull fracture, fractured spleen and damage to other internal organs.
Officers interviewed the suspect at Metro Headquarters, according to an arrest report. Courtney said she babysits for the family three days a week and described the children as “usually good.” Courtney told police the 5-year-old child had an accident and needed to shower. While he was showering, she said she heard a “thud” and saw a bruise on his forehead when he was done. Courtney assumed he fell during the shower and his sickness later was due to the fall, the report said. Courtney also insinuated that the father may be abusing the kids, the report said.
When police confronted the babysitter about the surveillance footage, she continued to deny anything happened. Eventually, Courtney told police she may have “blacked out” from anger after the accident. Courtney reportedly said the accident by the child was “the final straw that triggered her anger.”
The Clark County Coroner’s Office will release Peralta’s cause and manner of death. According to court records, Courtney was granted bail on the condition she stay away from the family and stay out of trouble. Her next court date was set for May 18.
via: https://www.kmov.com/news/home-video-shows-babysitter-beating-5-year-old-child-to-death-las-vegas-police-say/article_3370d6b2-f2ff-50fb-b14e-1b7e3113b14a.html
Photo Credit: Las Vegas Metro Police Department
Dog kills Illinois 1-year-old who got too close to food bowl
A 1-year-old girl in Illinois was killed by her dog after she got too close to its food bowl, loved ones said.
A’myrikal Hull was attacked by the female pocket bully — a pitbull and Patterdale terrier mix — when she went near it last week as the animal was eating in Springfield, the State Journal-Register reported.
“The baby walked by the dog as she was eating and reached for her food,” family friend Cory Painter told the newspaper.
The pooch bit her on the head, forcing her two uncles to pry the animal off her, WICS reported.
She was brought to Hospital Sisters Health System’s St. John’s Hospital, where she died from her injuries March 18, the outlets reported.
The dog, which had been with the family for about four years, has been taken into custody by animal control, the Journal-Register reported.
Meanwhile, the Sangamon County Coroner’s Office and Springfield Police Department are investigating the girl’s death, the outlets reported.
via: https://nypost.com/2021/03/25/dog-kills-amyrikal-hull-baby-who-got-too-close-to-food-bowl/
Photo Credit: nypost.com
Woman sheds blood tears during her period due to rare medical crisis
After a 25-year-old menstruating woman was rushed to an emergency room with crimson tears oozing from her eyes, medical researchers put their blood, sweat and tears into diagnosing the rare phenomenon.
“Bloody tears or haemolacria is a rare clinical entity,” said the authors of a new study on the condition published in BMJ, a weekly peer-reviewed medical journal.
Haemolacria can be caused by health problems like inflammation, hypertension, anemia or tumors, per the National Center for Biotechnology Information.
But the unnamed patient at the center of this new clinical investigation — a married woman with healthy and uninjured eyes — had experienced bloody tears at the onset of her period twice in as many months, according to the study, out this month.
Regular menstruation can sometimes trigger bleeding outside the uterus, an occurrence known as vicarious menstruation, the doctors confirmed. The rerouted flow of blood will often seep from a woman’s nose, ears, lungs, nipples, skin, intestines and eyes.
Indeed, the woman in question also experienced a nosebleed the first time she cried blood.
Per the findings, certain types of eye tissue can be affected by hormonal changes.
Researchers note that the curve and thickness of a woman’s cornea can vary “during different phases of menstrual period, pregnancy and lactation” — which they say might explain why the woman’s menstruation triggered bleeding from her eyes.
The medical team ultimately determined that their unnamed case study’s dark-red tears were spurred by a highly unusual convergence of vicarious menstruation and haemolacria.
“Extensive physical, ophthalmological and radiological evaluation failed to reveal other potential causes of her complaint,” they said, noting that a full examination of the woman ruled out any other health issues.
Her blood tears weren’t accompanied by headaches, dizziness or other symptoms of a health problem, according to the report. Nor were there any signs of abnormality in her sinuses, tear ducts or in the bloody tears themselves.
“A diagnosis of ocular vicarious menstruation was made,” the scientists recorded.
They treated her with oral contraceptives — which can have a profound effect on a woman’s hormones. After undergoing hormonal therapy for three months, her unconventional period bleeding stopped.
The doctors’ probe into this “rare and unusual clinical case,” is the first of its kind in recent scientific literature, the authors said.
However, they do concede that more research is required in order to understand what exactly caused the woman’s bloody tears, and to determine how such a condition could be effectively managed long-term.
Either way you slice it, it’s all a bloody mess.
via: https://nypost.com/2021/03/24/woman-cries-blood-tears-due-to-rare-condition-during-her-period/
Photo Credit: nypost.com
Pennsylvania woman catfished a man into believing he was the father of her non-existent child, extorting him out of nearly $5,000 in the process
Billie Jo Brenizer, 23, of Duncannon, is facing felony charges of theft by deception, false impression, theft by extortion and harassment in the alleged Facebook scheme, WPMT reported.
An investigation into the woman began in June 2020 when a Newberry Township man contacted cops to say he met Brenizer under the name “Kaylee Nicole” on the social media platform in February 2019.
The man later realized that Kaylee Nicole was actually Brenizer and that she had “catfished” him, according to a criminal complaint obtained by the station.
Despite the deception, the man told police he decided to meet up with Brenizer anyway and the pair had sex, the complaint shows.
Brenizer, also known as “BJ Brenizer,” later contacted the man and claimed he had raped her — while threatening to call cops to report the allegations if he didn’t meet up with her again, according to the complaint.
The man said he agreed to meet Brenizer a second time due to the threat and the pair started a sexual relationship that lasted until December 2019 – during which the ill-fated couple had sex five times, he told police.
During that time, Brenizer called the man and told him she was pregnant with his child – even sending him images of positive pregnancy tests, charging documents show.
Brenizer allegedly led the man to believe she gave birth to a baby boy who had medical issues. The victim kept the news from his family and friends, the York Dispatch reported.
The man, whose identity was withheld by the newspaper, sought repeatedly to see the child and asked for a paternity test, but Brenizer told him she knew the child was his, police said.
The pair allegedly agreed to keep the child secret from the victim’s family and friends if he gave Brenizer money for the child, charging documents show.
In all, the man gave Brenizer $4,960 despite never seeing the purported child or getting proof that his son existed, police said.
Charging documents allege that Brenizer had done the same scheme on “numerous” other victims. She admitted to police that she did not give birth to a baby boy and had used varying phone numbers and social media profiles to reach her purported victims, charging documents show.
A woman who said she was Brenizer’s female guardian declined comment on the accusations when reached by The Post Wednesday. Brenizer was at work at the time, the woman said.
Brenizer, who remains free after posting $2,000 bail, has a preliminary hearing set for March 31, the York Dispatch reported.
via: https://nypost.com/2021/03/24/pennsylvania-woman-used-fake-son-to-catfish-man-out-of-5k-cops/
Photo Credit: Newberry Township Police Department
Florida mom shows up to school wearing boxing glove, fights student
A Florida mom showed up to her daughter’s middle school with a boxing glove — and allegedly attacked a student, authorities said.
Edith Riddle, 34, of Jacksonville, was arrested on a child abuse charge stemming from the alleged beatdown last week at Dupont Middle School, news station KVUE reported.
Police said that school safety officer had heard a “frantic” announcement over the school’s radio system about a fight outside the cafeteria around noon on March 18.
When the officer got there, he found Riddle in a physical altercation with a female student.
Riddle had been on campus for a meeting with the vice-principal and her daughter, cops said.
Rather than exit the building, the daughter made a beeline after for the cafeteria to fight a girl, police said.
Witnesses told police Riddle’s daughter shoved the girl and threw some punches — before the mom also allegedly began walloping the victim.
Bizarrely, a bystander told authorities the mom appeared to have a boxing glove attached to her left hand.
Riddle already had the glove on when she arrived to campus — insisting that it was super glued to her wrist and she couldn’t remove it, according to KVUE.
The girl suffered bruises to her knees and forearms, authorities said. She was later brought to the hospital for a follow-up evaluation.
Her parents told authorities that they wanted criminal charges filed against Riddle.
via: https://nypost.com/2021/03/24/florida-mom-shows-up-to-school-wearing-boxing-glove-fights-student-cops/
Photo Credit: Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office
Minnesota man accused of stealing $1,250 worth of Girl Scout cookies
(WCCO) — A 43-year-old southern Minnesota man is accused of stealing more than 20 cases of Girl Scout cookies from a loading dock in Rochester over the weekend. The value of the cookies, authorities say, is estimated at $1,250.
Joel Whittaker, of Oronoco, is charged with felony counts of burglary and theft, court documents filed in Olmsted County show. If convicted on both counts, he faces up to a decade in prison and/or $20,000 in fines.
According to a criminal complaint, Whittaker was arrested late Saturday night behind the old Fareway Foods building on East Frontage Road in Rochester. Local police responding to an alarm call spotted Whittaker driving away from the building in a small sedan. Officers stopped him and noticed the backseat of the car was full of Girl Scout cookie boxes.
Whittaker told the officers that he was dumpster diving in the GMC dumpster when he saw the loading dock door was partially open. Inside were pallets stacked with Girl Scout cookies. Whittaker pulled his car up to the loading dock and began filling his car with cookie boxes, investigators say. He stuffed the boxes in his car until the backseat and the trunk were full.
Although the cookies were stacked by flavor on the pallets, Whittaker took a mix of flavors. Officers found loose packages of cookies in Whittaker’s car and on the loading dock table. In total, he took 23 cases of cookies, investigators say, removing them from the pallets and putting them on the loading dock floor or in his car.
Officers took Whittaker into custody and searched his vehicle. They found two stolen license plates, a pry bar and bolt cutters, a used meth pipe, and a small amount of heroin.
Twenty-five of the cookies boxes that were removed from the pallets and touched the floor were turned over to police by the property manager for the Girl Scouts, the complaint states. These cookies were delivered to the Salvation Army Day Center for their use.
Whittaker made his first court appearance on Monday morning. He was released on a long list of conditions, including that he remain law-abiding, submit to random testing and searches, and refrain from taking drugs or drinking alcohol.
via: https://www.kmov.com/news/minnesota-man-accused-of-stealing-1-250-worth-of-girl-scout-cookies/article_2cd99bde-8b3e-11eb-a19e-7f93253c0fae.html
Photo Credit: kmov.com
Man claims to discover shrimp tails in Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal
The husband of “Boy Meets World” actress Danielle Fishel Karp, who played Topanga in the 1990s sitcom, made a very unsavory discovery in his breakfast cereal Monday morning.
“Ummmm @CTCSquares – why are there shrimp tails in my cereal? (This is not a bit),” wrote Jensen Karp, tagging Cinnamon Toast Crunch’s official Twitter account and posting an image of what appear to be sugar-coated shrimp tails in a now-viral tweet. In a follow-up message, Jensen looped in General Mills, the producer of the popular breakfast cereal.
“We’re sorry to see what you found! We would like to report this to our quality team and replace the box. Can you please send us a DM to collect more details? Thanks!” Cinnamon Toast Crunch wrote back, to which Jensen responded that he’s “not sure I’m ready for another box!”
Following “further investigation,” Cinnamon Toast Crunch informed Jensen that the image he posted showed not shrimp tails but “an accumulation of the cinnamon sugar that sometimes can occur when ingredients aren’t thoroughly blended. We assure you that there’s no possibility of cross contamination with shrimp.”
“’Accumulation of sugar particles,’” Danielle responded, “I am truly at a loss for words.” She also tweeted emojis of shrimp and heartbreak.
“She’s honestly mad,” Karp told The Post of Danielle’s current feeling regarding the situation. “She is really disappointed in General Mills’ statement and hoped to see more concern, rather than just tell me it was actually sugar, not shrimp tails (which is insane). People are allergic (I am luckily not) and their main focus should be finding out how it happened to help anyone who could also run into this.”
After further investigation himself, however, Jensen alleged that there really were “cinnamon coated shrimp tails” in his cereal, of which he said he had already eaten a bowl. Since then he apparently has covered the cereal box with Post-It notes, which warn, “DO NOT EAT.”
“Before I had the shrimp tail plop in the bowl – I had eaten a bowl. This is a bummer,” Karp told The Post.
“I wasn’t all that mad until you now tried to gaslight me?” he accused the brand.
He went on to say that when he further explored the cereal bag, he supposedly found string, as well as cereal squares containing black marks. Another bag in the family pack — which the couple reportedly purchased at a Woodland Hills, LA, Costco — appeared to be “taped up” and looked to contain dental floss.
“I am going to get the black stuff tested today,” Jensen wrote Tuesday morning for those following his inedible escapade. “Most importantly, nothing new from General Mills since they asked me to send them the shrimp tails that they had tried to convince me was sugar.”
In a statement to The Post, a representative for General Mills said the company is still looking into the incident.
“While we are still investigating this matter, we can say with confidence that this did not occur at our facility,” said spokesperson Mike Siemienas in a statement. “We are waiting for the consumer to send us the package to investigate further. Any consumers who notice their cereal box or bag has been tampered with, such as the clear tape that was found in this case, should contact us.”
In the most recent update to the saga Tuesday afternoon, Jensen shared an apparent direct message conversation with Cinnamon Toast Crunch in which the brand reportedly said they “reached out” by phone and left a voicemail and also wanted to “setup” a FedEx pick-up of the items. In his reply, he said he “won’t be giving you the stuff,” adding that their initial response “calling it sugar was super weird and the fact that you haven’t said anything to the contrary doesn’t allow me to trust you with it at all.”
Jensen went on to say the company was “being super sketchy and odd” and said they should email him “for any further correspondence.”
He also previously responded on Twitter to those who have accused him of faking the foreign object cereal items.
“Something regarding the stupid ‘Did he fake this’ take: there are black items COOKED ONTO the squares and tons of it at the bottom of the bag, in addition to shrimp tails and other SUGAR COATED junk. Also, it’s only ‘viral’ because of their insane response. I would’ve dropped it,” he wrote.
via: https://nypost.com/2021/03/23/man-claims-to-discover-shrimp-tails-and-string-in-cereal-box/
Photo Credit: twitter
Autopsy report: Bobby Brown’s son died from drugs, alcohol
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Bobby Brown Jr., the son of singer Bobby Brown, died from the combined effects of alcohol, cocaine and the opioid fentanyl, an autopsy report released Monday said.
Brown Jr. was found dead in his Los Angeles home at age 28 on Nov. 18. At the time authorities said only that they believed no foul play was involved.
Brown Jr.’s girlfriend, who had last seen him alive that morning, found him unresponsive on his bedroom floor and called paramedics, who declared him dead, the report says.
He had a history of drug and alcohol use and his death was ruled an accident, the report says.
Brown Jr.’s mother was Kim Ward, with whom Brown had been in a long relationship.
The elder Brown sprang to fame with New Edition in the early 1980s, and was one of the biggest solo stars in music during the late 80s and 90s.
In 2012, Bobby Brown’s ex-wife, Whitney Houston, was found dead after drowning in a Beverly Hills hotel room bathtub. Coroner’s officials said heart disease and cocaine were contributing factors. She was 48.
In 2015, their daughter, Bobbi Kristina Brown, was found face-down in a bathtub at her suburban Atlanta home. She was in a coma for six months before dying at age 22 of causes investigators couldn’t pinpoint. An autopsy showed that she had morphine, cocaine, alcohol and prescription drugs in her body.
Her ex-partner, Nick Gordon, was found liable for her death in a lawsuit, but was never criminally charged. Gordon died last year at age 30.
via: https://pix11.com/entertainment/autopsy-report-bobby-browns-son-died-from-drugs-alcohol/
Photo Credit: Photo by Matt Sayles/Invision/AP, File
Multiple killed in Colorado supermarket shooting, including officer
BOULDER, Colo. — Multiple people were killed, including a police officer, in a shooting at a Boulder, Colorado supermarket Monday, according to officials.
Officers were initially called to the King Soopers on Table Mesa Drive for reports of a man shot in his vehicle, PIX11 sister station KDVR-TV reported.
When officers arrived, the suspect began shooting at them, police said.
There is no ongoing threat, Commander Kerry Yamaguchi said, and a person of interest was in custody Monday night.
Law enforcement sources told KDVR and other media outlets that six people had been killed including the officer, but police would not confirm that during a Monday night briefing.
“We don’t know, they’re still processing the scene,” Yamaguchi said when asked how many fatalities there were.
The number of victims is known to police investigators, the district attorney said at the news conference.
The suspect is the only person who suffered significant injuries, Yamaguchi said, aside from those killed.
A shirtless man with blood running down his leg was escorted out of the store in handcuffs by two police officers. Authorities haven’t confirmed an arrest was made.
Witness Daniel Douglas said he was in the store grabbing lunch.
“As we were waiting on the pizza and we started hearing gunshots. It sounded like someone was breaking the glass at first,” Douglas said. “We started screaming and hit the ground.”
Douglas said a lot of people were crying.
“My nerves are so racked right now I’m having a hard time talking,” he said.https://fb.watch/4oXAdQLtKM/
Another witness told KDVR that they had just left the store after checking out and heard what sounded like fireworks.
The witness said a man was wearing tactical gear carrying what appeared to be an “AR-15 style weapon” or what looked to be a weapon of a similar type.
The witness also said they ran back inside and told people about the shooter outside, ran into the back of the store and left through the delivery entrance. The witness told KDVR that the shooter was in the parking lot, and they were unclear if he entered the store.
The Associated Press reported helicopter video showed law enforcement vehicles and officers massing outside, including SWAT teams, and at least three helicopters on the roof of the store in the southern part of the city of Boulder.
Officers had their guns drawn outside, and some windows at the front of the store were broken.
Similar footage showed officers helping two people to safety, according to the AP.
Boulder Police told people to avoid the area.
A man who had just left the store in Boulder, Dean Schiller, told The Associated Press that he heard gunshots and saw three people laying face down, two in the parking lot and one near the doorway. He said he “couldn’t tell if they were breathing.”
One person was taken from the shooting scene to Foothills Hospital in Boulder, said Rich Sheehan, spokesman for Boulder Community Health, which operates the hospital. Sheehan said he could not provide additional details but did say that “we have been notified we will not be receiving any additional patients.”
Some windows at the front of the store were broken. Authorities over a loudspeaker said the building was surrounded and that “you need to surrender.” They said to come out with hands up and unarmed.
Hours later, Boulder police tweeted for people to “shelter in place while they respond to report of armed, dangerous individual” about 3 miles away from the store in what appears to be a residential area near downtown and the University of Colorado. They said they’re investigating if it’s related to the shooting at the supermarket.
Kevin Daly, owner of Under the Sun Eatery and Pizzeria Restaurant a block or so from the supermarket, said he was in his shop when he saw police cars arriving and shoppers running from the grocery store. He said he took in several people to keep them warm, and others boarded a bus provided by Boulder police and were taken away.
Colorado Gov. Jared Polis tweeted a statement that his “heart is breaking as we watch this unspeakable event unfold in our Boulder community.” He called it “very much an active situation” and said the state was “making every public safety resource available to assist the Boulder County Sheriff’s Department as they work to secure the store.”
The president was also briefed on the shooting, White House officials said.
The FBI said it’s helping in the investigation at the request of Boulder police. Several other agencies responded.
via: https://pix11.com/news/national-news/police-responding-to-active-shooter-in-colorado/
Photo Credit: pix11.com
Straphanger urinates on Asian woman inside NYC subway car
A man urinated on an Asian woman aboard a Queens-bound subway train over the weekend, cops said Monday.
The disgusting act unfolded around 1:30 p.m. Saturday when the creep pulled out his penis on an F train and started to relieve himself, according to police.
The horrified woman, who is in her 20s, shifted down the train, but the man then turned and started peeing on the subway seat next to her, splashing her with urine, cops said.
“He started standing really close to me and I began to feel uncomfortable,” the woman told blog AsianFeed. “So I scooted to my right and noticed that his penis was pointed at me and that there was urine on my bag and jacket.”
She said the two made eye contact — but the man remained mum.
“I only said one thing, ‘Are you serious?!’” she recalled. “As I looked around, none of the bystanders said or did anything.”
The man got off at the 75th Avenue stop and walked away, according to police.
The victim managed to snap a photo of the pervert, showing him dressed in all black with a mask pulled up over his nose. She also took photos of the wet train floor and seat.
She told the outlet that another straphanger took video of the incident and sent it to her.
“From the bystander’s angle in the video, you can’t tell what the man was doing,” she said. “He, like, projected his penis at me.”
The incident, which comes amid a surge of anti-Asian violence, is not currently categorized as a hate crime, cops said.
An MTA spokesperson said the agency is working with police to identify and arrest the suspect.
“This is disgusting behavior and we will work closely with law enforcement to identify the perpetrator and being him to justice. Attacks on our Asian and Asian American customers are reprehensible,” spokesperson Andrei Berman said.
via: https://nypost.com/2021/03/22/straphanger-urinates-on-asian-woman-in-nyc-subway/
Photo Credit: nypost.com