Man Killed at Home After Office Mistakes Apartment as her Own

Police intend to seek a manslaughter charge against a Dallas officer who shot and killed a 26-year-old man Thursday night when she entered his apartment near downtown, apparently mistaking it for her own.

"This is a very unique situation," Police Chief U. Renee Hall said at an afternoon news conference. "We have ceased handling it under our normal protocol as an officer-involved shooting."

Hall said that police are obtaining a warrant charging the officer, whom the chief declined to name until she is formally charged.

The chief said the officer's blood was drawn to test for alcohol and drugs, and the Texas Rangers have been called in to conduct an independent investigation.

The unnamed officer wasn't hurt in the 10 p.m. shooting at the South Side Flats at 1210 S. Lamar St., just blocks from Dallas police headquarters in the Cedars.

Police officials say she arrived at the complex after working a full shift and was still in full uniform when she entered the victim's apartment, thinking it was her home.

The victim was identified as Botham Shem Jean, a native of the Caribbean nation of Saint Lucia. A graduate of Harding University in Arkansas, he worked at PricewaterhouseCoopers in Dallas.

"I have spoken to the Jean family," Hall said. "We have reassured them that we are working diligently."

But, Hall added, "Right now there are more questions than we have answers."

Authorities have yet to fully explain how the situation escalated to the shooting, declining to comment on whether the officer mistook Jean for an intruder.

"I won't go into that information right now," said Sgt. Warren Mitchell, a Dallas police spokesman. "We have not interviewed her. ... We still have a lot to do in this investigation."

Mitchell said that after the officer reported Jean was wounded, other police officers who responded administered first aid to him. He was taken to Baylor University Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.

The officer was placed on leave while the shooting is investigated with the Dallas County district attorney's office.

Via: https://www.dallasnews.com/news/crime/2018/09/06/shooting-reported-cedars-near-dallas-police-headquarters

Man Attacks Cyclist With Machete, Killed By Own Machete

In a case that has generated legal and moral debate across China, a cyclist who was attacked by a man with a machete, and who then killed his assailant in the ensuing scuffle, will not face charges.

A widely viewed traffic cam video shows what happened the night of August 27 in the Chinese city of Kunshan, west of Shanghai. Yu Haiming, a 41-year-old electrician, was waiting at a stoplight on his e-bike when 36-year-old Liu Hailong, driving a BMW, approached from behind. Liu swerved toward Yu, who was in a dedicated bike lane, and nearly hit him.

Two passengers then left the BMW to talk to Yu, with one gently moving his bike to the sidewalk. But about 30 seconds later, Liu—who had been driving drunk, according to the Jiangsu provincial prosecutor—stormed out of the car and began punching and kicking Yu, who fought back. Liu then returned to his car, grabbed a machete, and started swinging it at Yu. At some point the knife flew out of his hand; Yu got to it first and turned it on Liu, stabbing him at least five times.

Liu retreated to his car, with Yu in pursuit taking a few more swings with the machete. Liu was brought to a hospital but later died of his wounds, which included ruptured veins and intestines. Yu suffered non-fatal cuts and bruises.

The story went viral on Chinese social media, sparking a debate on how cyclists should respond when confronted with road rage. Many observers came down on Yu’s side, arguing that he acted in self-defense. Others said that by pursuing Liu after gaining control of the weapon, he opened himself up to prosecution.

“There is a legal right to strike back, however, it needs to be within certain limits,” Zhang Di, a criminal lawyer with Weiheng Law Firm in Nanjing, told the South China Morning Post. “If the attacker has already pleaded for mercy or run away, one should stop the counter action and call the police, or get to safety.”

On Saturday, local authorities announced that they would not bring charges against Yu, finding that he did not bear any criminal responsibility for Liu’s death. “Yu acted out of self-defense,” the police statement read. “As such, the police have closed the case against Yu.”

The case was far from China’s first nationwide debate over self-defense. In 2016, courts sentenced a 22-year-old man to life in prison for killing a debt collector who had gotten violent with him and his mother. According to the South China Morning Post, courts have “overwhelmingly” ruled against defendants claiming self-defense in the past. Out of 100 cases the paper looked at online, judges found self-defense was justified in only four.

Qu Xinjiu, a professor at the China University of Political Science and Law, told the paper that he hoped Yu’s case would mean stronger protections for those in similar circumstances in the future.

Via: https://www.bicycling.com/news/a22998171/driver-attacks-cyclist-machete/?utm_campaign=Bicycling&utm_source=bicycling.com&utm_medium=newsletter&smartcode=YN_0010105193_0001680181&sha1hashlower=51517668981d407d945d1a0569cdd8ed3e541b40&md5hash=440219f9fba0682bc4daaf6cd343b220

Cancer survivor killed by stray bullet hours after move to Chicago

A cancer survivor was killed by a stray bullet in Chicago over the weekend — just hours after arriving in the city to pursue his Ph.D., according to a new report.

Shane Colombo got caught in the crossfire during a fight between two people in the Rogers Park neighborhood around 8:25 p.m. Sunday, ABC News reported.

The 25-year-old’s heartbroken mother, Tonya, told the network that he was running an errand to buy clothes hangers when he was killed.

“I was very concerned about him coming out here, and he was killed within four hours of being in the city, four hours of stepping off that plane,” she said, moments after identifying her son’s body at the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office. “I put him on a plane that morning at 10 a.m. [in California] and I kissed him goodbye, and that was the last time I saw him alive.”

Colombo had just moved to the Windy City to live with his fiancé, Vincent Perez, and was set to attend Northwestern University to pursue his Ph.D. in clinical psychology.

“He was so passionate about what he was doing,” Tonya said. “He was going to be a doctor. He wanted to do clinical research. He wanted to give people answers.”

Before Chicago, Colombo lived in New York and worked as a researcher at Columbia University’s Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Lab, the mom said.

Colombo, who graduated from San Francisco State University in 2016 with a bachelor’s degree, was 15 years old when he was diagnosed with lymphoma.

“He beat cancer and he pushed himself through high school after missing a year,” Tonya said. “He pushed himself through college on his own. And came to Chicago to get his Ph.D. He got a full scholarship to Northwestern. He didn’t depend on me to go to school. He depended on himself.”

Colombo was one of six people gunned down in Chicago over Labor Day weekend. He was shot once in the abdomen and taken to Saint Francis Hospital, where he died.

Police are trying to identify the suspects in his shooting. No arrests have been made.

Via: https://nypost.com/2018/09/05/cancer-survivor-killed-by-stray-bullet-hours-after-move-to-chicago/

Woman mauled by pit bull she just adapted

A Maryland woman was mauled to death by a pit bull she’d adopted only two weeks before, according to local reports.

Robin Conway, 64, gave the pup a home and “was in love with [the] dog,” her sister, Susan LeClair, told WMAR-TV.

“She is in love with animals,” LeClair said. “The dog, apparently, went after her.”

Conway had taken the pooch out for a walk Monday evening but her husband began to worry when it started to get dark and she still hadn’t returned.

He went out to the back yard and that’s where he found the pit bull, standing over his wife’s body, police said.

Conway’s husband was able to tie the raging dog to a fence post, and authorities said that when they arrived, he was still “lunging and barking.” The dog was later euthanized.

“My sister was an animal person. My sister was a caring person. When we went to make service arrangements, the person said, ‘Wow, she had hundreds, and hundreds, and hundreds of friends,’” LeClair told FOX 5. “Robin gave her time and gave herself to the animals. She was wonderful.”

Conway had adopted pit bull mixes in the past, and her sister said the actions of one dog shouldn’t determine the outlook on a whole breed.

“They have been lovely, lovely dogs. It was obviously something wrong with this dog, but that’s not to be construed as all pit bulls are bad and I know Robin wouldn’t want that,” LeClair said.

Authorities said they don’t have any information about the dog’s adoption other than it was out of state.

They are still working to determine Conway’s exact cause of death and are looking into whether the dog had rabies.

Via: https://nypost.com/2018/09/05/woman-mauled-to-death-by-pit-bull-she-just-adopted/

Hunter misses squirrel, shoots own brother instead

On Sept. 1, the opening day of Iowa’s squirrel-hunting season, a 50-year-old man accidentally shot his brother, 55, at the Brushy Creek State Recreation Area, the Iowa Department of Natural Resources reported.

Sao Bunpan and his brother Khor were hunting with two others when Khor accidentally shot Sao in the upper body, authorities believe.

Sao was initially rushed to a hospital in Webster City, before being brought to Des Moines for further treatment. His injuries are said to be non-life-threatening.

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) are investigating the incide
nt, though they do not suspect foul play.

Ironically, in late August, the DNR issued a news release ahead of squirrel-hunting season, recommending it for novice hunters, as there isn’t as much competition for squirrels.

“Squirrel hunters can go out knowing they’re not likely to have their hunt interfered with by other hunters,” Jim Coffey, a forest wildlife research biologist with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, was quoted as saying. “We had around 20,000 hunters harvest 100,000 squirrels in 2017.”

“It’s a great introduction to hunting because there is such little competition from other hunters,” he added.

Iowa’s squirrel-hunting season runs through Jan. 31.

Via: https://nypost.com/2018/09/05/hunter-misses-squirrel-shoots-own-brother-instead/