HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — Two teenagers are dead after a mass shooting broke out at a makeshift nightclub in northeast Houston Saturday night, according to Houston police.
HPD responded to the call around 11:20 p.m. at an empty business on the 10100 block of Jensen Drive, which is near the Eastex Freeway.
“(Officers) saw a very hectic scene, a large crowd of people running out of a makeshift club. It’s kind of like one of these last-minute parties, pop-up parties that have been popping up lately. It’s kind of like a social media deal. Seems like the crowd was a majority of juveniles,” Asst. Chief Luis Menendez-Sierra said.
Officers learned there were five or six people shot. Two of the victims, a 16-year-old boy and a 14-year-old girl, died from their injuries. The four other victims were all females.
According to police, a 13-year-old is in critical condition, an 18-year-old is in serious condition, and a 17-year-old and a 19-year-old are both stable.
Menendez-Sierra said obtaining surveillance video to help with evidence will be difficult since the event happened at an empty building.
“Since it’s non-sanctioned and they’re not under any regulations, which is what causes the problems with these kinds of events. With no regulations, there’s nothing guarding it. Nothing to make sure it’s a legit establishment,” he said.
Witnesses told police that they saw a Black male suspect, who was described as tall and thin, and was seen wearing a black hooded sweatshirt and a black mask covering his face.
At this time, HPD does not have suspect or getaway vehicle information. Anyone who can help with the investigation is asked to call Crime Stoppers at (713) 222-TIPS.
“If you were here tonight, we need your help. If you were a witness to what happened, we need you to call that number. We need you to give us information, so we can bring these people to justice,” Menendez-Sierra said.
In an effort to address the rising crime rates in Houston’s popular nightlife district, Washington Avenue Corridor, Mayor John Whitmire announced a new law enforcement initiative.
“Public safety is our highest priority, and if we don’t make people feel safe and be safe, hold bad actors accountable, probably nothing else matters,” Whitmire said, as KHOU reported.
The initiative will see additional police presence patrolling the area, especially on peak weekend nights, with the goal of enforcing laws and increasing safety for both residents and visitors alike.
Aside from focusing on violent crimes, such as shootings and assaults, the initiative also aims to curb drunk driving and excessive noise, two prevalent issues in the area.
“We’re actually going to enforce the laws there, whether it be sound, DWIs, you name it,” the Mayor stated in the announcement on KHOU. Enhanced cooperation among different law enforcement agencies, including the Houston Police Department, the METRO Police Department, and the Harris County Sheriff’s Office, is key to the strategy’s success, and they plan to be vigilant in addressing these issues over the coming weeks.
Despite the primary focus on crime reduction, some of Mayor Whitmire’s remarks during a recent press conference have sparked controversy.
Whitmire’s comment about wanting club owners to keep their “barely clad young ladies off the street” was met with disapproval from local business staff who believe patrons’ and employees’ attire is not a concern for public safety, ABC13 reported.
This aside, the larger emphasis by city officials and law enforcement remains focused on the broader issues of crime and resident safety.
Addressing the practical measures taken by local establishments, Sean Foskey, a partner at the soon-to-open restaurant Rain HTX, highlighted the efforts to minimize noise pollution.
“We soundproofed the walls. We put foam in the walls. We set our amps at a certain volume, and no matter who comes into DJ or turns the music on, they can’t go past a certain volume,” Foskey told ABC13. While acknowledging the challenges that come with operating in a mixed social and residential zone, he suggested that direct conversations may yield better results than enforcement crackdowns.
“I want, not only the neighborhoods to know that we’re not going away, but I want the bad guys to know, we’re here to stay,” Mayor Whitmire concluded on KHOU with determination in his plan to make enduring changes in the area.
A Florida woman was arrested and charged this week after police say she ended a phone call with her health insurance provider with threats that mimicked wording associated with the suspected UnitedHealthcare CEO shooter.
The incident occurred Tuesday when Briana Boston, a 42-year-old woman from Lakeland, was speaking with a representative from Blue Cross Blue Shield after she had been told that her medical claim was denied.
In an arrest affidavit obtained by ABC News, police said that near the end of the recorded conversation with the insurance provider, Boston can be heard saying, “Delay, deny, depose. You people are next.”
Boston’s apparent threats nearly echo the words that were engraved on the bullet shell casings that authorities recovered from the scene where UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson was fatally shot earlier this month.
Those engraved words were “deny,” “defend” and “depose.”
Boston’s words and the casings both hew closely to the title of a 2010 book: “Delay, Deny, Defend: Why Insurance Companies Don’t Pay Claims and What You Can Do About It.”
The book was written by legal scholar and insurance expert Jay Feinman, a professor emeritus at Rutgers Law School in New Jersey. It explores abuses of auto and homeowners insurance to “avoid paying justified claims,” according to its summary.
Luigi Mangione is a suspect in the killing, which has catapulted the nation’s health care industry into the spotlight. Mangione faces second-degree murder and a slew of other charges in both Pennsylvania and New York.
When Lakeland Police confronted Boston about the perceived threats, she apologized and said that she “used those words because it’s what is in the news right now,” according to the arrest affidavit.
Boston told authorities she does not own any guns and is not a threat, but went on to say that health care companies “deserve karma” and that they are “evil,” according to the document.
“Boston further stated the health care companies played games and deserved karma from the world because they are evil,” police said in the affidavit.
ABC News has reached out to Blue Cross Blue Shield for comment.
Following the investigation, Boston was charged with threats to conduct a mass shooting or act of terrorism and booked at a jail in Polk County, according to police.
Texas lawmakers will have about $20 billion in unspent money going into the 89th legislative session, state Comptroller Glenn Hegar told members of the Austin Chamber on Dec. 12.
“The Legislature will have a lot of tools in the toolbox next session to deal with issues, whether it’s road infrastructure, water infrastructure, electrical grid infrastructure, public education, higher education,” Hegar said. “I do think that those are some of the big pillar issues that they’re going to work on.”
The comptroller is expected to issue an official biennial revenue estimate ahead of the session, which begins Jan. 14.
The context
The only bill Texas lawmakers are constitutionally required to pass each session is the biennial budget, which funds state agencies, public and higher education, health and human services, the criminal justice system, state courts, and more.
During the 88th legislative session, lawmakers passed a $321 billion budget for the 2024-25 biennium, which runs from Sept. 1, 2023, to Aug. 31, 2025. They entered that session with a historic $32.7 billion surplus.
In 2023, lawmakers set aside $4.5 billion for teacher pay raises and other public education expenditures, but that money has not been spent. It was tied to a $500 million private school voucher package, which would give families public money to send their children to private schools.
The teacher pay and voucher proposals both died in late 2023 after four special sessions. Lawmakers are on track to approve vouchers in 2025, Gov. Greg Abbott said Nov. 6, after several pro-voucher Republicans were elected to the Texas House.
Abbott, a champion of vouchers, said he was committed to “fully funding” Texas public schools and raising salaries for teachers.
“Some people … make it sound like you can’t have both school choice and robust public schools,” Abbott said. “That’s completely false. The reality is we can have the best public schools in America and also have school choice at the very same time. It does not have to be one or the other, and it’s wrong to pit one against the other.”
The $4.5 billion is in an account called “dedicated funds,” meaning it can only be used to fund public schools.
What’s happening
If Texas were its own nation, Hegar said Dec. 12, it would be the world’s eighth-largest economy. The state receives money from the federal government, state taxes-such as sales taxes and the business franchise tax-and other sources, according to the comptroller’s office.
“The state economy continues to grow, but it’s not growing on the same pace that it has been in recent years,” Hegar said. “Sales tax … is the biggest revenue source for the state of Texas. Our sales tax revenues are, on average, about 4% increasing from month-to-month right now, with inflation at about 2.7%.”
What they’re saying
State Rep. Caroline Harris Davila, R-Round Rock, said lawmakers need to “be smart” when writing the next budget.
“Part of that is stewarding taxpayer money-when it comes in to us to spend on roads and infrastructure, are we being responsible with it?” Harris Davila said during a Dec. 12 panel hosted by the Austin Chamber. “The numbers Hegar threw around sound very big, but if you look across the state at all of the road projects we have going on right now, I mean, it’s not enough already. And so I’m constantly trying to figure out with my colleagues, what does the increase in funding look like, and how can we allow that to happen?”
Rep. Donna Howard, D-Austin, said the Legislature also needs to prioritize the state’s water infrastructure, which could include creating a dedicated funding source to prevent future water shortages. About 85% of voters are concerned that Texas may face water shortages in the next 50 years, according to a recent poll by Texas 2036, a nonpartisan policy organization.
“This is a unique opportunity that we won’t have again, to set up some kind of, you know, investment fund, like the permanent school fund, like the state highway fund-set something up that would be ongoing in perpetuity to help us fund that infrastructure,” Howard said.
Harris Davila, who represents a portion of Williamson County, said some cities in her area have water pipes that are 100 years old.
“Those cities need all the help they can get, and they’ve never had the tax base to prepare for this type of growth. … A lot of the people that work in Austin are going to live in those areas, and they need that infrastructure just as much as the businesses moving into that part of town,” Harris Davila said.
Increasing funding for public schools will be another major legislative priority in 2025, the two lawmakers said.
“My big concern is that we are not putting the money into public education that we need to,” Howard said. “I realize that there are reasons that people want to look at different education choices. We have some choices, but please understand we have got to fund our schools, and that is much more than what we’re doing right now. If we want to have an educated workforce throughout the state, we have got to fund our public schools.”
Harris Davila, who voted in favor of private school vouchers in 2023, said Texas lawmakers “want all kids to have the best education possible.”
“Ninety percent or more of our kids are in public schools,” Harris Davila said. “I mean, that’s a huge chunk. So when you’re talking to representatives, everyone understands and supports public schools and the work that they do.”
NEW YORK — A task force comprised of FBI agents and New York Police Department detectives spoke to Luigi Mangione’s mother one day before he was arrested in Pennsylvania and named a suspect in the shooting death of United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson, law enforcement sources told ABC News.
The conversation followed a tip that the FBI received from police in San Francisco, where Mangione’s mother had filed a missing persons report about her son on November 18.
The tip from the San Francisco Police Department was based on physical appearance and Mangione’s mother, in her conversation with the Joint Violent Crimes Task Force last Sunday, indicated the person in the surveillance photos circulated by the NYPD could be her son, the sources said.
The task force was still working on the information the mother and SFPD provided when Mangione was spotted Monday at a McDonald’s in Altoona, PA.
HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — A Houston man has a warning for bank customers after he was followed home and beaten with a hammer.
The man, who asked to remain anonymous, told Eyewitness News he had just deposited money at the Wells Fargo at South Gessner and South Braeswood on Nov. 8.
At the time, the 66-year-old said he had no idea he was being watched and later didn’t realize he was being followed home.
It’s a crime police call “jugging.”
The victim soon put the pieces together when a mysterious man appeared in his driveway.
“I said, ‘Oh!’ You know, I was a little bit startled, and I said, ‘Can I help you?’ and he didn’t say a word,” the victim said.
He said the man immediately began peering into his car windows, where he spotted the same bag the victim had used to carry his money to the bank.
“He pulled out a hammer and started hitting the window,” the victim said.
The victim said when he threatened to call police, the man began attacking him with the hammer.
“On the fifth blow, he actually broke the hammer on my head. At that moment, I had to think about my father, who always said that I had a hard head.”
The force brought him to the ground but didn’t bring his attacker closer to getting his hands on any cash.
“When I went down, I dropped my phone and the hammer’s now broken, he doesn’t have a weapon so he decides, I guess in a panic, to just grab my phone and at least get something,” the victim said.
He watches as the thief drives away and later describes the vehicle to the police. This month, they arrested the man.
“He was fully intent to finish me off. That was his full intention, 100%,” the victim said.
HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — The Harris County judge election is two years away, but after what happened this week, experts believe it could very well impact the outcome.
While millions were in the dark following severe windstorms in May, an awkward exchange took place during a news conference between Mayor John Whitmire and Judge Lina Hidalgo.
“I’m glad I made the approval list,” Whitmire told Hidalgo.
“Mayor, this is a disaster. This is not the time,” Hidalgo said back.
The public issues are again front and center. This time, it’s about what Whitmire told our partners at the Houston Chronicle.
During an interview, the mayor said Hidalgo doesn’t plan to seek re-election because of mental health and stress. Last year, Hidalgo took three months off for mental leave.
“Be careful what you wish for,” Rice University political science professor Bob Stein said.
Stein believes Whitmire made the comments because he doesn’t want Hidalgo to run for office.
“I think if he were to, how can I put this delicately, keep his mouth shut, he might be able to ease out Ms. Hidalgo from the primary,” Stein explained.
What was more surprising to Stein was Hidalgo’s response. A spokesperson didn’t deny Whitmire’s statement to the Chronicle, saying no decision has been made.
Stein says that will spark a lot of interest from potential candidates.
“She didn’t say she was running for certain,” Stein said. “She’s left the door open. When you leave the door open like that, you bring in people.”
ABC13 reached out to Hidalgo’s office but didn’t hear back.
We did hear back from Whitmire’s spokesperson, who sent us a statement:
“The Houston Chronicle asked Mayor Whitmire about his relationship with Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo. He said he had no problem working with her, especially when informing city and county residents about weather emergencies.
Mayor Whitmire also shared what he has been told by multiple people: that she did not plan to run again for personal reasons and that he would continue working with her as long as she holds the position. Mayor Whitmire is committed to collaborating for the safety and well-being of our community.”
Experts said it may not be in the community’s best interest to have awkward exchanges during natural disasters and get ahead of someone else’s major announcement.
“It’s not good,” Stein explained. “I don’t think we can show any evidence that it’s had an adverse effect, but I can say this for certain– we are not by any means out of the woods in the near future with natural disasters.”
Even if Hidalgo doesn’t run, she still has two years left in her term.
HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — Months after a middle school student died, HISD said it has more functioning automated external defibrillators (AEDs) and new safety systems in place.
An AED is a portable device that can be used to treat a person whose heart has suddenly stopped working.
In August, a Marshall Middle School student died, and teacher union officials said the nurse tried to use an AED that wouldn’t work.
Since then, Eyewitness News has been trying to get answers about these devices. The district hired attorneys to fight releasing the information and even asked the Texas Attorney General to keep it from ABC13. However, the district was forced to hand over some of the information.
Late Wednesday night, the district finally responded to some of our questions by releasing a report. The report shows that the AED in Marshall Middle School’s gym was inspected in May.
It shows the pads expired months earlier in January. There’s an order for replacement parts in the report, but it’s unclear when the order was made and when the parts were replaced.
HISD Director of Safety and Emergency, Craig Straw, was asked on Thursday if the upgrades were made prior to the student’s death.
“I have not had a chance to actually look at the report that you’re looking at,” Straw said. “I would have to go back and look into the software and see when those new batteries and pads were installed.”
The district says it has panic alarms, tools to track safety compliances, a virtual emergency response platform to share real-time information, and a new platform to track inspections of all life safety equipment.
“What the new service does is it checks the batteries, it checks the pads, and those are inspected every 30 days. That data is updated in real-time to a health connect system,” Straw explained.
While the district is making this announcement, we’re still waiting to learn about why student Landon Payton died.
The Harris County medical examiner’s office has looked into his death over the last four months.
As of Thursday morning, it still shows the cause of death is pending.
Stanley, the massively popular drinkware brand, has voluntarily recalled approximately 2.6 million Switchback and Trigger Action travel mugs due to a potential “burn hazard,” according to a release from the company posted on the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission website on Thursday.
According to the company, the lid threads on the mug “can shrink when exposed to heat and torque, causing the lid to detach during use, posing a burn hazard.”
Stanley
Worldwide, Stanley received 91 reports about the faulty products, with 16 coming from the United States, according to Thursday’s notice. The detaching lids resulted in 38 burn injuries worldwide, two of which came from the U.S., the announcement stated, adding that 11 of those injuries required medical attention.
The two stainless steel mugs affected by the recall are double-walled and were sold in a variety of colors and sizes, according to the announcement. The products were sold in multiple colors including white, black and green in 12-ounce, 16-ounce and 20-ounce sizing and have a polypropylene lid.
The products were sold at a variety of retailers including Amazon.com, Walmart, Dick’s Sporting Goods and Target from June 2016 through December 2024, retailing between $20 and $50, depending on the model.
According to Stanley’s official recall website, the recalled Switchback product sold in the 12-ounce size bears the product identification number 20-01437, while the 16-ounce size bears the numbers 20-01436 or 20-02211.
The recalled Trigger Action mug sold in the 12-ounce variety bears the ID numbers 20-02033, 20-02779 or 20-02825, and the 16-ounce size bears the ID numbers 20-02030, 20-02745or 20-02957. Recalled 20-ounce Trigger Action mugs bear the ID numbers 20-02034 or 20-02746.
ID numbers for the affected products can be located on the bottom of the mugs.
The recall announcement on the CPSC website also notes that the Stanley logo appears on the front and bottom of the impacted mugs.
Customers in possession of the affected products should discontinue use and can contact Stanley for a replacement lid through its recall website, the company states.
“We ask all our customers currently in possession of the Switchback or Trigger Action travel mugs to immediately stop use of these products and complete a registration for a free replacement lid,” the website reads.
In a statement to ABC News on Thursday, a Stanley spokesperson said the recall was being carried out in cooperation with the CPSC.
“We have addressed the issue and are offering a free replacement lid to work with the existing product,” the spokesperson added. “At Stanley 1913, we are committed to constant improvement and are focused on creating quality products that are built for life.”
“Good Morning America” reached out to Target, Walmart, Dick’s Sporting Goods and Amazon for comment on the recall but did not immediately receive responses.
VICTORIA, Texas (KTRK) — Four people are injured after a small plane crashed onto a road and hit several cars in Victoria on Wednesday afternoon, police announced.
According to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), a twin-engine Piper PA-31 crashed onto an intersection of Zac Lentz Parkway and Mockingbird at about 3 p.m.
Investigators are trying to determine what caused the crash.
The incident affected five people, including the pilot, who was the only person on board the plane.
Three people are reportedly facing non-life-threatening injuries, while one person has more serious injuries. The pilot’s condition remains unknown.
