Run by volunteers, it has served the north London community of Golders Green, which has a large Jewish population, since 1979. There are dozens of synagogues throughout the area and according to the London Data Store, 49% of residents in the Golders Green ward identify as Jewish.
Good morning, and welcome to L.A. on the Record — our City Hall newsletter. It’s David Zahniser, with an assist from Libor Jany and Howard Blume, giving you the latest on city and county government.
It was a dramatic moment for City Hall: Council President Marqueece Harris-Dawson, appearing at a meeting about reining in certain traffic stops by police, revealed that he had been pulled over only two days earlier.
Harris-Dawson, who is Black, told his colleagues that police have stopped him four times since he took office in 2015. During the most recent incident, he said, an officer asked him a number of questions, including, “How do you have this vehicle?”
“It was as traumatic on Wednesday as it was when I was 16,” Harris-Dawson said at the March 6 committee meeting.
It wasn’t the Los Angeles Police Department that pulled over Harris-Dawson’s car, a Tesla Model Y with a government license plate. Instead, it was an officer from the L.A. Unified School District police, who began trailing him while he was heading to work on the freeway, Harris-Dawson said recently.
The district has provided minimal details, and its police union has not commented. But the union that represents nearly 8,700 LAPD officers, known for its bare knuckle politics, is now deeply involved.
Ricky Mendoza, president of the Los Angeles Police Protective League, urged Dist. Atty. Nathan Hochman on Thursday to investigate whether Harris-Dawson attempted to resist, delay or obstruct the officer who carried out the traffic stop, in violation of state law.
Mendoza pointed to a California Post story that accused Harris-Dawson of contacting an unnamed school board member during the incident “in an apparent effort to get out of the citation.”
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Tom Saggau, a police union spokesperson, said Harris-Dawson was caught driving “recklessly” in a school zone — and should have disclosed it during his remarks about the incident.
“Mr. Harris-Dawson’s testimony implied LAPD pulled him over because of his race, not his driving behavior,” Saggau said in an email. “That implication painted our minority-majority membership as racist, and we will always stand up for our membership and correct falsehoods and other tall tales.”
Harris-Dawson, for his part, told The Times he received the citation for attempting to enter a left turn lane too early — before it was actually marked as a turn lane. That maneuver did not pose a threat to anyone, he said.
Harris-Dawson said he did contact other people during the traffic stop, to ensure he had real-time witnesses. He would not provide their names.
“I called several people during that encounter so that there was a record of it besides myself,” he said.
The Times reached out to the school board about the police union’s claims. Four of the seven, either in person or through a representative, said they did not talk to Harris-Dawson about the stop.
The dispute comes as the council is weighing new limits on “pretextual stops,” where officers use a minor violation as justification to pull someone over and then investigate whether a more serious crime has occurred. The stops have disproportionately affected Black and Latino drivers, and the LAPD has scaled back their use over the past decade.
At the meeting where Harris-Dawson revealed he had been pulled over, two council committees were discussing next steps on the issue.
On Thursday, a Harris-Dawson aide hit back at the union, accusing the group of trying to divert the public’s attention away from that work.
“Just like pretextual traffic stops, the call for these pointless investigations violates the public trust, is wholly ineffective, and wastes precious resources that could be used to keep us safe,” said Harris-Dawson spokesperson Cerrina Tayag-Rivera in a statement this week.
Asked about his recent experience with the school police, Harris-Dawson said: “It’s not up to the driver to determine if a stop is pretextual, but it felt pretextual.”
School district officials have offered only minimal information about the incident.
“During our morning school drop-off, a Los Angeles School Police Department officer conducted a traffic stop based on an observed moving traffic violation in the vicinity of one of our high schools and issued the driver a citation,” the statement said.
Harris-Dawson told The Times that the encounter began the morning of March 4, during his drive from his South L.A. home to City Hall, when he noticed a white, unmarked car following him on the northbound 110 Freeway.
He took the Adams Boulevard offramp, turned right on Adams and headed toward Main Street, with the unmarked car following him through multiple intersections. When he turned left on Main, the officer turned on his lights and pulled him over, he said.
The officer walked up to the car with his hand on his gun and told him to roll down the windows, Harris-Dawson said.
“Because it was an unmarked car … I thought I was dealing with Immigration and Customs Enforcement,” he said.
Harris-Dawson said the officer told him that he had illegally crossed the double-yellow line in the center of the street, preparing to turn left before his car was actually in the marked left-turn lane.
The intersection is four blocks from Santee High School.
Harris-Dawson said the officer asked him how he came to possess the car. He informed the officer that it was a city vehicle and that he sits on the council. He handed the officer his driver’s license and, at a certain point, demanded it back.
The officer refused twice, Harris-Dawson said.
“He said, ‘Are you accusing me of taking your property?’” Harris-Dawson said. “I said, ‘That’s absolutely what I’m accusing you of.’”
Harris-Dawson said he was cited for violating the state vehicle code that prohibits motorists from driving the double-yellow lines.
“That stop was not about traffic safety,” he said, adding: “It was an investigative stop where the officer decided to give a citation, frankly, because I failed the attitude test.”
Harris-Dawson said through his spokesperson that he has paid the $238 citation. Asked if he is considering any legal action, he responded: “I’m weighing all my options.”
Meanwhile, Mendoza said he wants not just the D.A. but also City Atty. Hydee Feldstein Soto to investigate Harris-Dawson’s behavior during the stop, determining who he called, what he said, and whether the officer was contacted by a school board member.
The police union president said it’s “unethical and potentially illegal for a city leader to use their position of power to attempt to avoid accountability for their reckless driving in a school zone.”
The Police Protective League is well known for its heavy involvement in city politics, especially during election season. On the Westside, the union has already put nearly $500,000 into efforts to reelect Councilmember Traci Park.
The union has endorsed Mayor Karen Bass, a close ally of Harris-Dawson, but hasn’t been spending on her behalf.
Councilmember Hugo Soto-Martínez, who sits on the council’s public safety committee, said he believes the union is trying to “bully” Harris-Dawson, to ensure that others remain silent about pretextual stops.
“I think the council president is very courageously bringing up a reform on one of the most racist practices” in the LAPD, he said.
— DROPPING CHAVEZ: The bombshell New York Times report that found that labor organizer Cesar Chavez sexually abused minors left the state’s elected officials scrambling to rename streets, buildings and of course, the holiday itself. In L.A., Bass and several council members said they would rename the March 31 holiday “Farm Workers Day,” a move also backed at the county level by Supervisor Janice Hahn. Meanwhile, Raul Claros, running for an Eastside council seat, said Cesar Chavez Avenue should be renamed Dolores Huerta Avenue.
— DEMS WEIGH IN: The L.A. County Democratic Party threw its endorsement behind Bass and Councilmembers Eunisses Hernandez, Katy Yaroslavsky, Monica Rodriguez, Hugo Soto-Martínez and Tim McOsker. The group also backed several newcomers: Marissa Roy for city attorney, Zach Sokoloff for city controller and council candidates Barri Worth Girvan and Jose Ugarte.
— PLUS THE COUNTY: The Dems also threw their support behind four countywide candidates: Sheriff Robert Luna, Assessor Jeffrey Prang, Supervisor Lindsey Horvath and State Sen. Maria Elena Durazo, who is running to replace termed-out Supervisor Hilda Solis.
— SPEAKING OF WHICH: It’s been pretty clear from the past year that Horvath is not a fan of Bass, offering bracing critiques of the city’s approach to homelessness and other issues. But her four colleagues — Hahn, Solis, Kathryn Barger and Holly Mitchell — have all lined up behind the mayor’s reelection, according to a campaign announcement issued Friday.
— POLICE PAYOUT: A jury awarded $5.9 million to a former LAPD commander who claimed she was wrongfully fired over an alcohol-fueled incident in 2018. The commander, Nicole Mehringer, said she was held to a different standard than her male colleagues, losing her job after being arrested on a charge of public intoxication.
— MINDING MEASURE ULA: Councilmember Ysabel Jurado was named the chair of a new three-member ad hoc committee formed to take a fresh look at the impacts of Measure ULA, the 2022 tax on high-end property sales. She will be joined by Councilmembers John Lee and Imelda Padilla in examining the measure, which has been criticized by real estate leaders.
— HOLLYWOOD’S HOMELESS: Bass and Soto-Martínez celebrated the opening of a new homeless services hub on Hollywood Boulevard to help unhoused residents shower, find new clothes, obtain meals and receive help finding an apartment or a bed in an interim housing facility.
That’s it for this week! Send your questions, comments and gossip to LAontheRecord@latimes.com. Did a friend forward you this email? Sign up here to get it in your inbox every Saturday morning.
THIS is the moment Justin Timberlake is put in cuffs as the body cam footage of his arrest for drink driving is released.
The pop star, 45, was arrested in Sag Harbor, New York, in June 2024 after he failed to stop at a stop sign and could not stay in his lane.
Shortly after leaving The American Hotel following a night out with friends, the singer was pulled over while traveling southbound on Madison Street, a public highway in the Hamptons village.
Cops, often stationed nearby, noticed Justin swerving on the road and blowing through a stop sign.
They later smelled alcohol on his breath and noted that he was unsteady on his feet and also had slowed speech and glassy eyes.
The body cam footage of his arrest was released on Friday after the star’s legal team reportedly tried to previously prevent its release.
In the video, an officer can be seen shining a flashlight in Timberlake’s face at the roadside before the star performs poorly on sobriety tests.
He is asked to walk in a straight line but has difficulty with the instructions, appearing confused.
Timberlake tells them: “Guys, I’m just following my friends back to my house. I’m not doing anything.”
While attempting the sobriety test, he stumbles before apologising and saying ” I’m a little nervous”.
When asked to do the next test, the officers are forced to explain multiple times before Timberlake says “sorry, my heart is racing” while clutching his chest.
Looking unsteady on his feet, the singer is then heard saying: “By the way, these are like, really hard tests.”
After failing the roadside tests, an officer is then seen asking Timberlake “turn around for me please”.
Saying nothing and looking resigned, he slowly turns before he’s put in handcuffs.
A friend appears and is shocked when police tell her Justin is going with them, saying: “You’re arresting Justin Timberlake? Stop it. What?”
She pleads with the officers to speak with him and give him his phone before she takes his car home.
She begs: “Can you guys please do me a favour because you loved Bye Bye Bye or Sexy Back, do me one favour. This is insane.”
At the end of the footage, the 10-time Grammy winner can be seen in the back of a cop car behind bars.
He was taken into custody that night and arraigned in Sag Harbor Village Justice Court the following morning.
He was released without bail on his recognizance and was also charged with one count of DWI due to his refusal of the breathalyzer, according to Justin’s lawyer.
Timberlake’s lawyers previously sued the Village of Sag Harbor to prevent the release as it showed him “in an accutely vulnerable state”, reports CBS.
It was later agreed it would be released with redactions.
That September, Timberblake reached a plea deal to bring the case to an end.
The judge sentenced Justin to a $500 fine with a $260 surcharge, and 25 hours of community service at the nonprofit of his choosing.
After the sentencing, Justin said: “Even if you’ve had one drink, don’t get behind the wheel of a car.
“There are so many alternatives. You can call a friend [or] take an Uber.”
He added: “This is a mistake that I made, but I’m hoping that whoever is watching and listening right now can learn from this mistake. I know that I certainly have.”
During the proceedings the star remained standing throughout and gave a statement in which he expressed remorse for his actions.
FEARS are mounting that Towie star Jordan Wright was running away from someone before he was found dead in a Thai ditch, cops say.
Local police are now probing whether Wright was being chased as he frantically dashed to his hotel while glancing over his shoulder.
Chilling CCTV captured the beloved TV personality running erratically past a truck before taking a sharp left turn.
The clip was timestamped to 11:25pm on March 12 – about 36 hours before he was found dead on Saturday.
Wright, 33, appeared to be somewhat disoriented and panicked as he rushed through the hotel complex.
He even grabbed onto a white pickup truck to help propel himself forward as he jolted away while turning.
Police now fear he may have been trying to lose someone as he sprinted through the streets of Phuket.
Lieutenant Colonel Sutthirak Chuthong of Choeng Thale district station has refused to rule out foul play.
He said: “The circumstances leading up to the death are quite unclear. It is possible that other people were involved.”
Wright was weaving erratically through the Hotel COCO Phuket Bangtao grounds in the video.
Authorities have also confirmed that they will be reviewing CCTV again throughout Friday in order to get any more details from the haunting clip.
The grainy night-time footage has raised questions over what Wright was doing in the moments leading up to his death.
The CCTV shows him pacing back and forth before suddenly bolting out of the complex again and vanishing into the darkness beyond the hotel perimeter.
From there, his final movements become even more disturbing.
Wright is believed to have sprinted across rough, uneven fields surrounding the hotel before leaping down a 10ft creek.
He is then thought to have splashed through a shallow stream and scrambled towards a nearby construction site.
That site, which is a desolate, half-built area with no CCTV, would become the place where his body was found.
Two days later, a Myanmar worker harvesting morning vegetables made the grim discovery – around 300 metres from his hotel.
A hotel insider revealed he had been staying alone and had no visitors.
They said: “He would go out at night like other guests. There was nothing unusual until we could not find him when he was due to check out.”
Records show Wright checked into the hotel alone and was due to leave on March 13, but never showed up.
Questions are still swirling around his death, with key details about his final hours remaining a mystery.
He had moved to Thailand just weeks before the tragedy seeking a “fresh start”.
Just days ago, the reality TV icon shared a haunting final glimpse into his dream life in Thailand.
Wright had posted a glossy carousel of sun-soaked snaps and videos embracing his fresh start in Phuket before tragedy struck.
Sharing the glitzy new life with his 21.5k Instagram followers, he simply captioned the post “I’m Home” alongside a Thai flag.
He was pictured lounging in a luxury infinity pool, clutching a glass as the sun set into the ocean behind him.
Another showed him grinning on top of a motorbike, soaking up the island lifestyle.
Tributes have since been pouring in for the late star.
Fellow Towie star Chloe Brockett wrote: “Rest in peace Jordan” and heart emoji.
Another wrote: “Oh Jord, gone way too soon. Rest in peace darling.”
A third said: “Oh Jord! This is heartbreaking to hear. You’ll be truly missed.”
From Basildon, Essex, Wright rose to fame on Ex On The Beach in 2017 before joining The Only Way Is Essex in 2018.
Wright also dated reality star Vicky Pattison and was known for his explosive storyline with Courtney Green and Myles Barnett.
JORDAN Wright’s death has been shrouded in mystery as the Towie star was seen pacing erratically before he was found in a drainage canal.
The beloved TV personality, whose new iPhone was found nearby, also checked in to a luxury hotel alone before his tragic passing.
It also remains unclear how long Wright, who used to date Vicky Pattison, had been missing for – or whether he was under the influence of intoxicants.
Here are the most glaring unanswered questions surrounding his death.
Wright, 33, was found dead in a drainage ditch on the holiday island of Phuket on March 14.
He had moved to Thailand just weeks earlier – with his last Instagram post on March 6 showing a snap of him in a swimming pool captioned: “I’m home.”
Wright was due to check out of his room on March 13, according to staff at Hotel COCO Phuket Bangtao where he was believed to have been staying.
But employees told police he never did check out – meaning he could have been missing for days.
It is currently unclear who the last person to see Wright was or how long he had vanished for.
Cops said they were led to Hotel COCO due to the key card inside Wright’s pocket at the time he was found.
He was reportedly seen pacing frantically shortly before his death, but it has not been confirmed whether anyone saw Wright at this time in person.
Despite footage reportedly showing the ITV star looking restless before he was found dead at 12.30pm local time – it is not clear why he was in this alleged frantic state.
Cops said: “CCTV footage showed that he appeared restless and was moving back and forth in front of the hotel before leaving the area.”
An autopsy is currently being carried out to determine his cause of death.
But it will also conclude whether drugs or alcohol were involved.
No signs of physical assault or struggle were found on his body, authorities confirmed.
There were also no signs of forced entry or disturbances at his hotel room.
Police have launched an investigation into the case to probe the full circumstances of Wright’s death.
It is also unclear when exactly Wright entered the canal drain.
He was said to have been wearing a grey shirt and black trousers but no shoes on when he was found.
Authorities said Wright had been in the canal for some time, but didn’t elaborate on how long he was in there.
They only said the Brit star was believed to have been dead for no longer than two days.
Police said: “His movements eventually led to the location where his body was later discovered.
“We are still waiting for the autopsy results from Vachira Phuket Hospital to determine whether drugs were present in his system.”
Police explained that Wright’s new iPhone 17 was found on a nearby bank.
It was not in his trouser pockets, unlike the hotel key card police discovered.
Both Wright and the location of his phone are about a 20-minute walk away from Hotel COCO.
The Towie and Ex On The Beach star had posted photos online of his life in Thailand in the weeks leading up to his tragic death.
His “new life” showed him enjoying beach trips and taking part in martial arts classes.
It is unclear why the popular TV personality, from Basildon, Essex, had left the smartphone behind.
Wright had also checked into a hotel room alone before he was found dead on Saturday.
It is not understood why Wright checked into the luxury hotel alone, and what day he checked in.
He was reportedly seen in security camera footage outside the hotel.
But police have said: “CCTV footage related to the incident is part of the case file and cannot be released at this stage.”
They also confirmed: “Hotel records showed that he had checked in alone and was due to check out on March 13, but staff reported that he never checked out.”
The star’s autopsy will determine whether or not Wright had any drugs or alcohol in his system.
Wright was seen pacing frantically before his death, but it is unclear what caused him to do this.
Pictures showed police scouring the scene in the aftermath of his death.
Heartbreaking tributes have poured in for the late TV icon – with one pal calling him a “really special soul”.
Several reality TV figures have paid their respects to Jordan online, including his The Only Way is Essex co-stars.
Fellow Towie star Chloe Brockett wrote in an emotional tribute “Rest in peace Jordan” followed by a red heart emoji.
While Love Island star Chloe Crowhurst also took to the comments, penning “Rest in peace Jord” with a white heart and cloud emoji.
Before Wright was named, an FCDO spokesperson said: “We are supporting the family of a British man who died in Thailand and are in contact with the local authorities”.
Omar Oswaldo Torres, the leader of the Los Mayos faction of the Sinaloa criminal network, was detained in the raid.
Published On 19 Mar 202619 Mar 2026
Mexican authorities have revealed that 11 people were killed during a raid that resulted in the capture of Omar Oswaldo Torres, the leader of a faction of the Sinaloa Cartel.
In a social media post on Thursday, the Mexican Navy said the raid took place in Culiacan, part of the state of Sinaloa in northern Mexico.
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It alleged that its personnel were attacked at the site of the raid and returned fire, killing 11 “assailants”. Their identities have yet to be released to the public.
“High-powered weapons and tactical equipment were seized at the scene,” the navy said in a statement.
The navy added that a woman identified as Torres’s daughter was also present during the operation, but she was released to her family due to a lack of connection to criminal activities.
Torres, known by the nickname “El Patas”, is the leader of the Los Mayos faction of the Sinaloa Cartel.
In recent years, Los Mayos have been in a fight with another faction, Los Chapitos. Each side is named for a different Sinaloa Cartel leader: Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman and Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada, both of whom have been arrested and imprisoned in the United States.
Thursday’s raid comes as governments across Latin America seek to deliver US President Donald Trump tangible results in the fight against crime and drug trafficking.
Just this week, the Mexican government participated in a law enforcement operation with Ecuador and Colombia to arrest Angel Esteban Aguilar, the leader of the Los Lobos crime group.
A separate Mexican military operation in the state of Jalisco last month led to the death of Nemesio Oseguera, also known as “El Mencho”, the leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel.
Criminal groups responded with a burst of violence, including the erection of roadblocks and attacks on security force outposts across Mexico.
Critics have questioned the efficacy of the more militarised methods Trump has pressured Latin American leaders to use against cartel leaders.
Capturing or killing cartel leaders is sometimes referred to as a “decapitation strategy”, and the method is designed to weaken the structure of criminal networks.
But experts warn that the “decapitation strategy” risks increasing violence over the long term, as new conflicts emerge to fill the leadership vacuum.
Many also point out that such militarised approaches fail to address the root causes of crime, among them corruption and poverty.
Still, Trump has labelled groups like the Sinaloa Cartel “foreign terrorist organisations”, and has indicated he would consider taking military action on Mexican soil against such groups, despite concerns that such actions would violate Mexican sovereignty.
Trump told a summit of Latin American leaders earlier this month that he considered Mexico to be the “epicentre” of cartel violence.
“We have to eradicate them,” Trump said of the cartels. “We have to knock the hell out of them because they’re getting worse. They’re taking over their country. The cartels are running Mexico. We can’t have that.”
Mexican officials, meanwhile, have called on the US to stem the flow of illicit weapons into Mexico, to little avail.
Last year, the Supreme Court struck down a lawsuit from the Mexican government accusing US gun manufacturers of negligence, given that their products end up arming criminal networks in the Latin American country.
KEVIN Spacey has settled with three men who accused him of sexual assault over a 13-year period.
The Oscar-winning actor was due to go on trial at the High Court later this year after the complainants brought a civil case against him.
But Spacey has now reached an out-of-court settlement with the men, which has now frozen the legal proceedings.
It comes after the Usual Suspects star was cleared of nine sexual offence charges at a criminal trial in 2023.
Spacey has always denied any wrongdoing – claiming the accusations against him were motivated by “money, money and then money”.
Two of the men who accused the Hollywood actor during the star-studded trial then filed civil cases at the High Court.
One man, known only as LNP, claimed that Spacey “deliberately assaulted” him on around 12 occasions between 2000 and 2005.
The second – referred to as GHI – alleged he “suffered psychiatric damage and financial loss” as a result of an assault in 2008.
He claimed he met Spacey through a workshop at London’s Old Vic theatre, where the star was artistic director of the Old Vic between 2004 and 2013.
The third man, Ruari Cannon, who has waived his right to anonymity, claimed Spacey groped him in 2013 during a party at the theatre.
Spacey said the allegation was “ridiculous and it never happened”.
The court was told previously Cannon had reached a settlement with the Old Vic.
Spacey – who won Oscars for The Usual Suspects and American Beauty – was one of the most high-profile scalps during the Me Too movement.
The allegations caused his Oscar-winning career to crumble around him as he faced claims from multiple men in the UK and US.
He was stripped of an International Emmy Award in the wake of the claims and was edited out of Sir Ridley Scott film All The Money In The World.
His central character in acclaimed Netflix series House of Cards was also killed off after he was axed from the show.
Speaking in November, Spacey claimed he lost his house due to the financial fallout caused by the expensive lawsuits.
He said he put all his belongings in storage facilities – and has been forced to live in hotels and Airbnbs.
FORMER 19 Kids and Counting star Joseph Duggar has been arrested for alleged child sex crimes against a nine-year-old girl.
The 31-year-old from Arkansas allegedly molested the child six years ago on a vacation in Florida.
On Wednesday, the former TLC star was charged with molestation of a victim under 12 years old and with lewd and lascivious behavior of a person 18 years or older, the Bay County Sheriff’s Office said.
The girl, now 14 years old, told investigators that the incident took place while she was on family vacation in Panama City in 2020.
Duggar, who was booked into the Washing County jail in Arkansas, is awaiting extradition to Bay County.
It is alleged that Duggar asked the victim to sit on his lap, the Bay County Sheriff’s Office said.
“As the vacation continued, he also asked her to sit next to him on a couch and covered them with a blanket,” it has been claimed.
“During this time, Duggar manipulated the victim’s underwear and grazed her genitals.
“Duggar would also continue to rub his hands on her thighs.”
“The victim stated Duggar eventually apologized for his actions and the incidents stopped after the apology,” the authorities said.
The allegations and arrest come after the victim had a forensic interview due to reports of past sexual abuse.
Her father allegedly confronted Duggar about the allegations and the reality star “allegedly admitted his actions to the father and Tontitown detectives,” and the alleged abuse stopped, per officials.
Duggar is married to his wife Kendra, with whom he shares three young children.
The Duggar family has not issued a statement following the arrest.
Meanwhile, Duggar’s brother Josh, is serving a 12 and a half year sentence after being found guilty in December 2021 of receiving and possessing child sexual abuse material.
It was also previously reported that Josh, now 38, confessed to molesting several children, including four of his sisters.
The family’s reality television show aired between 2008 and 2015 documenting the lives of Michelle and Jim Bob Duggar and their 19 children.
It was taken off air after the molestation claims against Josh Duggar.
March 17 (UPI) — Police fatally shot a gunman Tuesday at a Veterans Affairs clinic in rural Georgia where the suspect opened fire and wounded one person, authorities said.
The incident occurred midday at the Pickens County VA Clinic in Jasper, a town of about 5,290 people located 60 miles north of Atlanta.
Multiple officers from the Jasper Police Department were dispatched at 1:30 p.m. EDT to the clinic located in a small plaza on East Church St., where they confronted and shot the suspected gunman, the city of Jasper said in a statement.
VA Secretary Doug Collins said the unidentified suspect was killed.
“The threat is eliminated,” he said in a social media statement.
Officers also located a single victim at the scene, who was airlifted to a hospital. Their condition was unknown.
Little information about the shooting was made public. Jasper Police Chief Matt Dawkins was unable to tell reporters during a press conference if the victim was an employee at the clinic or if the suspect had sought services there.
The suspected gunman was from Jasper, he said.
“We do know [the shooting] happened, but we don’t know what led up to it,” he said.
Dawkins explained that officers confronted the suspect outside the clinic where he was killed.
The shooting will be “eye-opening” for the residents of Jasper, he said.
“Shock, a lot of shock factor.”
UPI has contacted the city’s public information officer and the VA for comment.
Collins said a team from VA headquarters would arrive in Georgia on Wednesday “to ensure clinic employees get the support they need.”
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp said he was monitoring the situation.
“I ask all Georgians to join us in praying for those impacted and for our first responders,” he said online.
The shooting will be investigated by the FBI, Dawkins said.
In this photo taken Wednesday, police stand in front of a promotional video in central Seoul for the upcoming BTS live performance in Gwanghwamun Square. Photo by Yonhap
Police vowed Friday to detain any suspects behind possible terror threats targeting K-pop juggernaut BTS‘ comeback concert set to draw hundreds of thousands to downtown Seoul next week.
The group is scheduled to perform before some 22,000 fans in Gwanghwamun Square on March 21, with police estimating as many as 260,000 people to gather around the area that day.
The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency said it would deploy police commandos to inspect the site, noting it could not rule out the possibility of terror in connection with the current conflict in the Middle East.
“If police resources are wasted or the event is disrupted due to public threats, such as bomb threats, (we) will pursue and apprehend (the suspects) to the end under the principle of investigation under detention,” it said.
Police plan to set up metal detectors at the venue’s entrances as well as barricades to prevent possible accidents or acts of terror, such as a vehicle-ramming attack.
They also asked concertgoers to minimize personal items as security checks will be strengthened.
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1 of 2 | Glass doors were damaged at the site of incident at the U.S. embassy in Oslo, Norway, Sunday, after a loud bang was reported at the site. No injuries were reported and the police have launched an investigation. Photo by Fredrik Varfjell/EPA
March 9 (UPI) — Oslo, Norway, police have released images of a person suspected in the bombing outside the U.S. embassy in the city on Sunday.
Two images from surveillance video were released showing a person wearing all black with their face covered and carrying a backpack.
Police said the explosion, which shattered a glass door, was from an improvised device set at the entrance to the building. It caused minor damage and no injuries. Police said there are no developments on the person’s motive.
Police are also looking at a video posted on Google Maps around the time of the explosion. It showed the former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed by the U.S. and Israeli military action on Feb. 28.
Police are asking for anyone with information about the suspect or who noticed anything unusual between midnight and 2 a.m. CET to contact them. They said they have used dogs, drones and helicopters to investigate the scene.
On Sunday, police weren’t sure if the explosion was an attack.
Frode Larsen, head of the joint investigation and intelligence unit, told a press conference that it’s “natural to view this in the context of the current security situation, and that it is a targeted attack against the American embassy. But we have not locked ourselves into just that one hypothesis.”
Police searched the surrounding area, but didn’t find any other explosive devices.
Arrests were made with both police officers and fans injured during clashes following Celtic’s 4-2 win on penalties.
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A suspect was arrested after the shooting on Sunday afternoon, Los Angeles officers say.
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NEW YORK — A counterprotester demonstrating against a “Stop the Islamic Takeover of New York City” event Saturday lighted and threw a device containing nuts, bolts and screws at the protesting crowd after someone from that group used pepper spray on the counterprotesters, police said.
Police are investigating the incident that started late Saturday morning when someone from the anti-Islam protest associated with far-right activist and pardoned Jan. 6 rioter Jake Lang shot pepper spray into a counterprotesting group near the mayoral residence Gracie Mansion, Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said.
Tensions continued to heighten, she said, when one of the counterprotesters lighted and threw a device she described as smaller than a football into the protesting crowd of about 20 people.
The device struck a barrier and extinguished itself “a few feet from police officers,” she said. The same person then ran, and another person gave a him a second device, which they then dropped. The devices were wrapped in black tape with nuts, bolts and screws, as well as a fuse. She said it was unclear whether the devices were functioning explosives or hoaxes.
Three people were arrested, and an investigation is underway, Tisch said.
Tisch at a news conference didn’t report any injuries and said she believed Mayor Zohran Mamdani was not at Gracie Mansion at the time.
She said about 20 people showed up to Saturday’s protest connected to Lang, and the counterprotest had about 125 people at its peak.
Lang was charged with assaulting a police officer with a baseball bat, civil disorder and other crimes before receiving a pardon as part of President Trump’s sweeping act of clemency for Jan. 6 defendants last year. Lang recently announced that he is running for U.S. Senate in Florida.
Last month, Lang staged an anti-Islam protest in Minneapolis during the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown there.
WASHINGTON — Visitors to the Capitol will now have a visible reminder of the violent attack against the building on Jan. 6, 2021, and the officers who fought and were injured defending it that day.
Steps from the Capitol’s West Front, where the worst of the violence occurred, workers quietly have installed a plaque honoring the officers, three years after it was required by law to be erected. The plaque was placed on the Senate side of the hallway because the Senate voted unanimously in January to install it after House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) had delayed putting it up. Many Republicans had balked at installing the plaque.
“On behalf of a grateful Congress, this plaque honors the extraordinary individuals who bravely protected and defended this symbol of democracy on January 6, 2021,” the plaque says. “Their heroism will never be forgotten.”
The Washington Post first reported the installation of the plaque, which was witnessed by a reporter about 4 a.m. Saturday.
Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) led the effort to install it as he commemorated the fifth anniversary of the attack and insurrection and described his memories of hearing people break into the building. “We owe them eternal gratitude, and this nation is stronger because of them,” he said of the officers who were overwhelmed by thousands of President Trump’s supporters before eventually pushing them out of the building.
The mob of rioters who violently pushed past police and broke in were echoing Trump’s false claims of a stolen election after the Republican was defeated by Democrat Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential election. The crowd stopped the congressional certification of Biden’s victory for several hours, sent lawmakers running for safety and vandalized the building before police regained control.
Five police officers and four protesters died as a consequence of the violence. More than 140 officers from the U.S. Capitol Police, the Metropolitan Police Department and other agencies were injured.
The fight to have the plaque installed came as Trump returned to office last year and the Republican Congress has remained loyal to him. The president, who has called Jan. 6 a “day of love,” on his first day of his new term granted pardons or commutations to nearly 1,600 people convicted or charged in the rioting.
Trump was impeached and criminally indicted for his role in the insurrection. The Senate did not convict him, and the felony charges were dropped after he was reelected in November 2024.
Congress passed a law in 2022 that set out instructions for the honorific plaque listing the names of officers “who responded to the violence that occurred.” It gave a one-year deadline for installation, but the plaque never went up.
After more than a year of silence — and a lawsuit by two of the officers who fought at the Capitol that day — Johnson said at the beginning of the year that there were technical problems with the statute and the plaque could not be erected.
Tillis went to the Senate floor shortly afterward and passed a resolution, with no objections, to place the plaque on the Senate side.
One of the officers who sued, Metropolitan Police Officer Daniel Hodges, said the lawsuit would continue. Hodges, who was crushed by the rioters in the heavy doors steps away from where the plaque is now displayed, said Saturday that the overnight installation was a “fine stopgap” but that it was not in full compliance of the law. The original statute said that all of the officers’ names should be listed, among other technical specifications.
“The weight of a judicial ruling would help secure the memorial against future tampering,” Hodges said. “Our lawsuit persists.”
Jalonick and Mascaro write for the Associated Press. AP writer Allison Robbert contributed to this report.
Pro-Palestinian German activist Yasemin Acar told Al Jazeera about what she says was harassment at a Berlin airport where she recorded a border guard asking about her destination because of concerns over “hostility towards Israel”.
Published On 7 Mar 20267 Mar 2026
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Boston Celtics star Jaylen Brown was in the middle of a brand event at a Beverly Hills mansion on Valentine’s Day when police showed up.
It was 7 p.m., and the music for the event — an invite-only gathering for his 741 Performance brand — had long been silent. Brown came down to talk to an officer, expressing confusion at why police had been called.
“We’re just trying to have an event — a panel talking about culture, talking about future, talking about leadership, and for whatever reason I feel like we’re being targeted,” Brown said in a video of the encounter posted on social media.
He asked the officer why the city was shutting it down. “It’s beyond my pay grade,” the officer replied. “They want it shut down.”
The video immediately went viral, with many questioning why the city shut down what appeared to be a calm event. The debate was framed by a series of incidents in recent years in which the local Police Department was accused of profiling Black people.
Beverly Hills officials issued a statement defending their actions. But it didn’t take long for the city to reverse course, issuing an apology to the NBA star and the owner of the home that hosted the event, Oakley founder James Jannard, for initially putting out inaccurate information.
Brown told ESPN he is considering legal action against the city, saying the episode tarnished his and his brand’s image.
“I feel offended by it,” he said. “It’s hard to say that you were not being targeted.”
Beverly Hills officials insist the city did not unfairly single out Brown and stressed the incident was a code-enforcement matter, not one involving policing issues.
The police’s presence at the event on Trousdale Place was prompted by a resident reporting “excessive vehicles on the street,” Beverly Hills Deputy City Manger Keith Sterling said in an email to The Times. A traffic control officer then found “high vehicular traffic, numerous parking violations (including a vehicle blocking a driveway and several vehicles parked in the wrong direction) and numerous people congregating in the driveway.”
“Code enforcement was on site for several hours and observed what they believed to be well in excess of 50 people congregating for an event, which would require a public assembly permit for the safety of event attendees,” he added.
There was also the sound of a generator, which would require a permit, a check-in table, a metal detector and a temporary wall with branding, Sterling said.
Brown’s function occurred during the NBA’s All-Star Weekend in Los Angeles. Sterling noted there were six other NBA-related events in the city at that time.
“The City was aware that the event was timed to coincide with NBA All-Star Weekend but did not have details on who was sponsoring or participating in the event,” Sterling wrote. “The event was shut down for safety reasons alone without regard to the event sponsor or participants.”
Still, the incident revived questions of policing in Beverly Hills — a majority white city in which Black residents make up about 2% of the population.
Some advocates called on Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta to investigate allegations of racial profiling in Beverly Hills. Bonta’s office declined to comment.
In 2020, the Beverly Hills Police Department launched a special detail — the Rodeo Drive Team — amid complaints over what residents and shop owners said was a “criminal element” along the famed shopping corridor. Officers were tasked with combating what officials said was a rise in thefts, people spending money obtained by defrauding the state’s unemployment system and quality of life issues like loud music and the smell of marijuana drifting into stores, according to a 2021 Times investigation. One document The Times reviewed that year showed about 90% of those arrested by the task force were Black.
The task force was disbanded after just two months.
Attorneys Bradley Gage and Benjamin Crump filed a class-action lawsuit against the city in 2021 that remains ongoing. The lawsuit claims none of the arrests led to convictions and some were never prosecuted because police lacked probable cause to make the initial arrest.
The department has denied allegations that it targeted Black shoppers, saying in a statement in 2021 that officers are “committed to keeping our community safe while enforcing the law with respect and dignity for all.”
Shortly after the task force was disbanded, Salehe Bembury, then the vice president of sneakers and men’s footwear for Versace, was carrying a Versace shopping bag and crossing Rodeo Drive next to the luxury store when police stopped him for jaywalking, told him to put his hands behind his back and searched him for weapons.
Body camera footage showed Bembury repeatedly said he was uncomfortable and thought the pat-down was “excessive,” adding he’d designed the shoes inside the bag he was carrying. He started recording on his cellphone.
“I’m getting f— searched for shopping at the store I work for and just being Black,” Bembury said in the recording, holding up the Versace bag. One of the officers involved in the stop disagreed, saying Bembury was changing “the narrative.”
“It’s a very dangerous, scary situation for people of color, and one that we want to remedy so everyone is treated fairly. I don’t know why that’s such a novel idea, but it seems to be a foreign concept for a lot of folks,” Gage said.
In his clients’ lawsuit against the city, two plaintiffs say they were arrested for riding a scooter on the sidewalk. Another allegedly was jailed for three days after officers pulled him and his friend over on their way to the beach for stopping about three inches over the limit line at an intersection. He never was charged with a crime, according to the complaint.
Mike Asfall, president of Beverly Hills/Hollywood Branch of the NAACP, said he’s been working behind the scenes with city officials and the police chief over issues of race and policing. Asfall was honored in February by the Beverly Hills City Council in recognition of Black History Month.
“I do know that we’ve had obstacles,” he said. “We shouldn’t have to walk on eggshells or tiptoe around things just because of the color of our skin. But what I’m not going to do is create more of a rift to give us a problem that’s going to create drama for us.”
Staff writer Cierra Morgan contributed to this report.
On the five-year anniversary of Everard’s murder, Sir Mark Rowley insists rebuilding trust in the force will take time.
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RAPPER Sean “Diddy” Combs will be getting out of the slam faster than expected amid his battle to appeal his four-year sentence.
The hip-hop mogul, locked up on prostitution-related charges, will now walk free a month and a half earlier than his previous release date of June 4, 2028.
He will now be released on April 25, 2028 according to Federal Bureau of Prisons records obtained by Page Six.
The 56-year-old music legend, currently serving a 50-month sentence at Fort Dix Federal Correctional Institution in New Jersey, earned the early release after being accepted into a drug-abuse rehabilitation program in November.
A rep for Diddy said at the time: “Mr. Combs is an active participant in the Residential Drug Abuse Program (RDAP) and has taken his rehabilitation process seriously from the start.
“He is fully engaged in his work, focused on growth, and committed to positive change.”
This isn’t the first shake-up in Diddy‘s prison saga.
His sentence initially pegged at May 8, 2028, was bumped to June 4, 2028, last November after he allegedly broke prison rules—reportedly sipping homemade alcohol and taking part in a forbidden three-way phone call.
TMZ revealed the DIY booze involved sugar, Fanta, and apples left to ferment for two weeks.
Diddy’s team, however, defended the call, claiming it was protected under attorney-client privilege.
His spokesperson told Page Six: “Mr. Combs is in his first week at FCI Fort Dix and is focused on adjusting, working on himself, and doing better each day.
“As with any high-profile individual in a new environment, there will be many rumors and exaggerated stories throughout his time there—most of them untrue.
“We ask that people give him the benefit of the doubt, the privacy to focus on his personal growth with grace and purpose.”
Photos recently published by TMZ offered the first glimpse of Diddy behind bars.
The Bad Boy Records founder, now sporting a gray pullover, sweatpants, and a scruffy gray goatee, appeared to grin at a fellow inmate while strolling a prison corridor.
Reflecting on his fall from grace, Diddy poured out his heart in a four-page apology letter before the sentencing.
He admitted: “I literally lost my mind. I’m sorry for that and always will be… I lost my way. My downfall was rooted in my selfishness.
“I have been humbled and broken to my core… The old me died in jail and a new version of me was born. Prison will change you or kill you – I choose to live.”
Diddy celebrated his 56th birthday behind bars with a pizza dinner and has already taken a prison job doing laundry duty, according to sources.
Meanwhile, legal wrangling continues.
Diddy filed an appeal in December, seeking either immediate release or a reduced sentence, arguing prosecutors failed to prove their case and claiming his original sentence violated his constitutional rights.
Prosecutors pushed back in February.
Locked up since his September 2024 arrest, Diddy was convicted on two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution and acquitted of racketeering and sex trafficking charges, narrowly avoiding a far longer stay behind bars.
Even the White House reportedly got involved, with Diddy’s team seeking a potential pardon from Donald Trump, who acknowledged the request, saying:
“A lot of people have asked me for pardons. I call him Puff Daddy; he has asked me for a pardon.”
Shia LaBeouf says he isn’t too keen on seeking treatment to manage his sobriety after his two arrests over a drunken brawl in New Orleans.
The “Megalopolis” and “Holes” actor, 39, denied struggling with alcohol abuse and seemingly took accountability for his violent Mardi Gras behavior in a rambling interview. He spoke with Andrew Callaghan, the journalist best known for his Channel 5 News YouTube page.
“My side is this: My behavior, b—. I got to deal with that,” the former Disney Channel child star said in the interview published Saturday. “Does that mean I got to go to rehab again? I’m just not into it, bro. I don’t think my answers are there.”
A New Orleans judge last week ordered LaBeouf to begin substance abuse treatment and undergo weekly drug testing after he was arrested on suspicion of assaulting two men in the city’s French Quarter. The actor was initially charged with two counts of simple battery in the Feb. 17 brawl, but he racked up an additional charge for the same count on Saturday.
LaBeouf was released from jail shortly after his first arrest on Feb. 17 and posted $100,000 in bond. More than a week later, on Friday, New Orleans Police Department issued a warrant for LaBeouf’s second arrest in connection with the incident, a spokesperson confirmed. The actor turned himself in on Saturday and was released after posting bond again.
“No regular person would be required to post over $100,000 in bonds, and be jailed two separate times for one misdemeanor incident,” attorney Sarah Chervinsky said, according to the Associated Press. “Just as he does not deserve preferential treatment, Mr. LaBeouf also does not deserve to be treated more harshly by the police and courts just because he is a public figure.”
At the beginning of his chat with Callaghan, LaBeouf said he “1,000%” takes responsibility for the altercation and that he “had a great time” on Mardi Gras. A legal representative for LaBeouf — who has yet to enter a formal plea to the charges — did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Monday.
The New Orleans Police Department said its officers responded to a report of an assault on the 1400 block of Royal Street early on Feb. 17. The former “Even Stevens” child star was “causing a disturbance” at the business, leading staff to remove him from the premises, police said. The actor allegedly “used his closed fists” on one of the victims “several times.”
Authorities said LaBeouf left the business but returned, “acting even more aggressive.” According to the incident report, an unspecified number of people tried to subdue him and eventually let him go “in hope that he would leave.” Instead, police said, LaBeouf began assaulting the same man as before, hitting his upper body with closed fists. The actor is accused of punching the second man in the nose.
People held down LaBeouf until officials arrived. He was taken to a hospital, treated for unknown injuries and arrested and charged upon his release.
An additional police report identified a local entertainer as one of LaBeouf’s alleged victims. The “Disturbia” actor, whose history of violent behavior has led to previous arrests and other legal troubles, allegedly threatened the man’s life and shouted homophobic slurs.
LaBeouf told Callaghan that he was drunk and that, leading up to the incident, he “felt infringed upon.” Elsewhere in the conversation, he said, “big gay people are scary to me,” and said he was wary that “three gay dudes are next to me, touching my leg.” He subsequently apologized and owned up to his homophobic comment.
“I wasn’t in my right mind so it’s on me,” he said elsewhere in the interview. “I said words not OK. I’m wrong for what I did.”
“I am wrong for touching anyone, ever and that’s the end of my statement on this whole s—,” he also said.
Additionally, LaBeouf confirmed his separation from “Frankenstein” and “Pearl” star Mia Goth (they share a daughter), discussed his on-and-off sobriety over the years and stated plainly: “I don’t think I have a drinking problem.”
Instead, LaBeouf said he has a “small man complex,” something akin to a Napoleon complex but more “to do with anger and ego more so than my drinking.” For reference, he stands 5 feet 9 inches.
Last week, Orleans Parish Criminal Court Judge Simone Levine shared a different take on LaBeouf’s habits. She alleged the actor “does not take his alcohol addiction seriously.”
Chervinsky said during her client’s court appearance that “being drunk on Mardi Gras is not a crime,” a sentiment LaBeouf echoed to Callaghan.
“I was drunk and it was Mardi Gras,” he said.
Air force plane transporting cash veers off runway and into busy road; crowds scramble for scattered banknotes in the wreckage.
Published On 28 Feb 202628 Feb 2026
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At least 20 people have been killed and more than 30 injured after a Bolivian Air Force Hercules transport plane, carrying a cargo of newly printed banknotes, crashed onto a busy highway while attempting to land in bad weather near the capital, La Paz.
The military plane was attempting to land on Friday evening at El Alto International Airport when it skidded off the runway and ploughed into a nearby road, local authorities said.
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“There are about 20, maybe a few more,” Police Colonel Rene Tambo, head of the police homicide division in El Alto, said of the number of people killed.
Defence Minister Marcelo Salinas said the Hercules C-130 “landed and veered off the runway” and came to a stop in a field.
Firefighters responding to the crash successfully extinguished a fire that broke out, the minister said, noting that the cause of the crash remains under investigation.
“A heavy hailstorm” was falling and “there was lightning” when the plane went down, Cristina Choque, a 60-year-old vendor whose car was struck by plane wreckage, told the AFP news agency.
Footage shared on social media showed chaotic scenes as crowds gathered at the crash site.
Some people appeared to collect banknotes scattered among debris from the aircraft, the wrecked vehicles and the bodies of victims.
Authorities used water hoses and tear gas to push back onlookers and looters.
The Ministry of Defence, in a statement, said later that “the money transported in the crashed aircraft has no official serial number… therefore it has no legal or purchasing power”.
The ministry also warned that the “collection, possession, or use” of the money “constitutes a crime”.
Bolivian Air Force General Sergio Lora said that two of the six crew members of the aircraft were still unaccounted for.
The central bank was expected to brief reporters later on Friday regarding the stricken plane’s cargo.
Bolivia’s La Paz, situated at an altitude of 3,650 metres (11,975 feet) and surrounded by Andean mountain peaks, is the highest administrative capital in the world.
Outrage in New York after 56-year-old Rohingya refugee Nurul Amin Shah Alam, nearly-blind and medically vulnerable, was found dead days after US Border Patrol agents released him at a Tim Hortons restaurant miles from home. Officials say it was a “courtesy ride”.
Published On 27 Feb 202627 Feb 2026
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