DEVELOPING Defence rests without Donald Trump taking the witness stand in his New York hush money trial
Donald Trump's lawyers rested their defence Tuesday without the former president taking the witness stand in his New York hush money trial.
Law enforcement officers with an arrest warrant demanded that a man come out of a house in North Carolina before four were killed by gunfire, the victims unable to survive shots coming from inside the dwelling, a witness and officials said Tuesday.
Still reeling from Monday's attack — the deadliest against U.S. law enforcement officers since 2016 — investigators in Charlotte said they weren't sure whether there was a second shooter and that more work was needed to determine what happened.
“Charlotte isn’t going to be the last place that this happens,” Mayor Vi Lyles said, “but Charlotte will be the place that will heal — that will heal with dignity and respect for everyone.”
A task force made up of officers from different agencies had arrived in the suburban neighborhood to try to capture Terry Clark Hughes Jr., 39, who was wanted for possession of a firearm by an ex-felon and fleeing to elude in Lincoln County, North Carolina.
Those killed were identified as Sam Poloche and William Elliott of the North Carolina Department of Adult Corrections; Charlotte-Mecklenburg Officer Joshua Eyer; and Deputy U.S. Marshal Thomas Weeks. Four other officers were wounded in the shootout, and Hughes was also killed.
An AR-15 semi-automatic rifle, a 40-calibre handgun and ammunition were found at the scene.
An AR-15 is able to penetrate traditional body armor and allowed the shooter to “unload several rounds towards our officers within a matter of seconds,” said Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Chief Johnny Jennings.
He said more than 100 spent rounds were found, though it wasn't clear how many were fired by the suspect. At least 12 officers also fired guns.
“Even though officers were trying to take cover, they were at a disadvantage because the suspect was up at a higher level and they were returning fire from a lower position,” Jennings said, noting that the gunman was “shooting from upstairs.”
It was the deadliest day for U.S. law enforcement in one incident since five officers were killed by a sniper during a protest in Dallas in 2016.
Hughes’ criminal record in North Carolina goes back more than a decade. It includes prison time and convictions for breaking and entering, reckless driving, eluding arrest and illegally possessing a gun as a former felon, according to state records.
Star Pulliam, a cousin of Hughes, said he had just bought the home where the shootout occurred. Pulliam said the pair were close and talked nearly every day. She said Hughes was an electrician for more than 15 years. He posted short videos of complex electrical wiring on his LinkedIn profile.
Despite past struggles with the law, Pulliam said it seemed to her like Hughes “had been straightening his life out,” she said.
Saing Chhoeun, who lives next door, recalled hearing several demands that Hughes leave the home. There was no response, he said, but then a car alarm went off about the same time as gunfire.
He said an armored vehicle was subsequently parked between the house and the wounded officers to serve as protection during a rescue attempt. After a three-hour standoff, the home was torn open by specialty vehicles.
“I don’t know how many rounds were fired. But then it got quiet," Chhoeun told The Associated Press.
Two females who were inside the house, including a minor, were cooperating and have not been charged, the police chief said, adding that investigators weren't pursuing additional suspects.
Jennings said Monday that a second shooter was suspected of firing at police. But by Tuesday, he was backing off and said that possibility was still being checked.
Before taking questions from reporters, officials expressed sorrow and awe for the slain and wounded officers.
Eyer was recently honored as a Charlotte-Mecklenburg officer of the month, partly for working to get guns off the streets. Jennings said he was killed while responding to others who were facing gunfire at the scene.
“We saw ... officers going into the line of fire to save their brothers in blue, who have gone down in the act of trying to keep our community safe,” Jennings said. “To me, that’s truly heroic.”
Residents in the neighborhood of modest brick homes expressed fear a day later.
"We’ve been here such a long time — you raise your children here — and then all the sudden you have this tragedy,” said Yearly Washington, who has lived there for 35 years.
The last marshal killed in the line of duty was in November 2018. Chase White was shot in Tucson, Arizona, by a man wanted for stalking local law enforcement.
The Carolinas Regional Fugitive Task Force, headquartered in Charlotte, is comprised of 70 federal, state and local agencies collaborating to capture crime suspects.
“This is a loss for the entire country," said Marshals Service Director Ronald Davis, who traveled to Charlotte. “Losing a deputy, losing task force officers, is like losing a family member because, quite frankly, they are family members.”
Contributing to this report were John Raby and Leah Willingham in Charleston, West Virginia; Sarah Brumfield in Silver Spring, Maryland; and Ed White in Detroit.
Donald Trump's lawyers rested their defence Tuesday without the former president taking the witness stand in his New York hush money trial.
One passenger was killed and 30 injured after a Singapore Airlines SIAL.SI flight from London hit severe turbulence en route on Tuesday, forcing it to make an emergency landing in Bangkok, officials and the airline said.
Anything is possible this week, as far as Canada's weather is concerned, with forecasts ranging from scorching heat in some parts of the country to rain and snow in others.
Canada's annual inflation rate slowed to a three-year low of 2.7 per cent in April, matching expectations, and core measures continued to ease, data showed on Tuesday, likely boosting chances of a June interest rate cut.
Donald Trump's reelection campaign called 'The Apprentice,' a film about the former U.S. president in the 1980s, 'pure fiction' and vowed legal action following its premiere at the Cannes Film Festival. But director Ali Abbasi is offering to privately screen the film for Trump.
Nestle NESN.S will market a new, US$5 line of frozen pizzas and protein-enriched pastas in the United States which it says it designed specifically for people taking drugs such as Wegovy or Ozempic for weight loss.
If you've been to a party lately and haven't seen someone drinking a BORG, you're likely not partying with college students.
As the month-long boycott of Loblaw-owned stores wears on, small independent food retailers and alternative grocery options say they're seeing a boost in traffic and sales.
Prince Harry can't expand his privacy lawsuit against The Sun tabloid publisher to include allegations that Rupert Murdoch and some other executives were part of an effort to conceal and destroy evidence of unlawful information gathering, a London judge ruled Tuesday.
For those who go to their local libraries often, they know there’s much more to their library than just borrowing books. Local libraries in Atlantic Canada are now renting out a broader range of items for people.
Flashes of purple darting across the sky mixed with the serenading sound of songs will be noticed more with spring in full force in Manitoba.
Catching 'em all with impressive speed, a 7-year-old boy from Windsor, Ont. who only started his competitive Pokémon journey seven months ago has already levelled up to compete at a world championship level.
A sanctuary dedicated to animals with disabilities is celebrating the third birthday of one of its most popular residents.
2b Theatre recently moved into the old Video Difference building, seeking to transform it into an artistic hub, meeting space, and temporary housing unit for visiting performers in Halifax.
A B.C. woman says her service dog pulled her from a lake moments before she had a seizure, saving her life.
A Starbucks fan — whose name is Winter — is visiting Canada on a purposeful journey that began with a random idea at one of the coffee chain's stores in Texas.
Members of Piapot First Nation, students from the University of Winnipeg and various other professionals are learning new techniques that will hopefully be used for ground searches of potential unmarked grave sites in the future.
ALS patient Mathew Brown said he’s hopeful for future ALS patients after news this week of research at Western University of a potential cure for ALS.