Judge Sets February Trial for Man Who Faces Death Penalty in Memphis Shooting Rampage
Kelly's trial had been set to begin July 14 but was delayed after his lawyers asked for more time to review evidence in the case, including investigating about 400 witnesses and more than 300 videos. Prosecutors have said they plan to seek the death penalty if he's convicted of first-degree murder. He appeared in court Tuesday with his lawyer about five months after he told a judge that he wanted to represent himself in the shootings. Kelly, 22, later reconsidered, and his court-appointed lawyer Michael Scholl resumed serving as his primary representation. Scholl had been helping Kelly in an advisory capacity until Jones re-appointed him in March.
Along with the killings of Dewayne Tunstall, Richard Clark, and Allison Parker, Kelly also was charged with attempted murder, reckless endangerment with a deadly weapon, and commission of an act of terrorism. Kelly has until Sept. 16 to change his plea. Scholl told reporters after Tuesday's hearing that he plans to file a motion to bring in a jury from outside of Memphis to hear the case. Lawyers typically file such change-of-venue motions in cases where there has been extensive pre-trial publicity. At least three witnesses saw Kelly shoot Tunstall during a gathering at a Memphis home at about 1 a.m. on Sept. 7, 2022, according to a police affidavit. Clark and Parker were shot later that day, authorities said. Police said three other people were wounded in the shootings, which took place in different parts of the city. A motive for the shootings was not clear. Some were livestreamed on social media platforms. The shootings led to the shutdown of Memphis' public bus system, the lockdown of two college campuses, and the stoppage of a minor league baseball game. Kelly carjacked at least two vehicles before he was arrested when he crashed a stolen car while fleeing police, authorities said. Parker was a mother of three who worked as a medical assistant at a clinic in nearby West Memphis, Arkansas. Clark worked as a campus safety officer at Christian Brothers University after retiring from a career as a corrections officer.
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Arab News
12 hours ago
- Arab News
Mourners honor the NYPD officer Didarul Islam, who was killed in Manhattan skyscraper attack
NEW YORK: Mourners packed a New York mosque on Thursday to honor a Bangladesh-born police officer who embraced the job of protecting his adopted city and gave his life for it when a gunman opened fire in an office building this week. Officer Didarul Islam 'did believe in the American dream, not as something handed down but as something built with your own hands,' Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch told Islam's family and friends as his fellow officers lined up rows deep outside the Bronx house of worship. Dignitaries and members of the New York's thriving Bangladeshi community also paid tribute to the fallen officer during a memorial that emphasized the importance he placed on his family, background and service to the city. A married father of two with a third child on the way, the 36-year-old was working a New York Police Department-approved private security detail, in uniform, when he and three other people were killed Monday at the Manhattan skyscraper that houses the NFL's headquarters and other corporate offices. 'To our family, he was our world. To the city, he was a proud NYPD officer who served with compassion and integrity. He lived to help others,' Islam's widow said in a statement that a relative read on her behalf at the service at the Parkchester Jame Masjid mosque. With officers stationed on surrounding rooftops for security, fire trucks used their ladders to hold a huge American flag over a nearby street. A flatbed truck carried a digital billboard showing photos of Islam and a commemorative message from his union. White House sends condolences After coming to the United States, Islam began building a career in the nation's largest police force. He described policing as 'a blanket of the community, there to provide comfort and care,' the police commissioner said. Islam served as a school safety agent before becoming a patrol officer less than four years ago, and was promoted posthumously Thursday to detective. 'He could have gone into any other occupation he wanted, but he wanted to put on that uniform, and he wanted to protect fellow New Yorkers. And he wanted to let us know that he believed in what this city and what this country stood for,' Mayor Eric Adams, a Democrat, told the gathering. 'That's the greatest symbol of what we know we are as a country.' In Washington, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt began her daily briefing by expressing President Donald Trump's condolences to Islam's family, saying he 'made the ultimate sacrifice in defense of his fellow New Yorkers.' A 'humble, steady, and reliable' officer Like others who spoke, Imam Zakir Ahmed highlighted the officer's immigrant background and Muslim faith. But said Islam 'lived at a time when people like him are too often feared, vilified and made to feel like outsiders.' 'It's time for New York and America to give back — to see us, to hear us, to protect our dignity, the way Officer Islam protected yours,' Ahmed said. The eldest of several siblings, Islam supported his parents in Bangladesh, as well as his wife and two young sons in the Bronx, the imam said. The police commissioner said Islam worked a long day at a parade Sunday, then picked up private security hours Monday at the office building. Deputy Inspector Muhammad Ashraf, the commander of the busy Bronx precinct where Islam worked, said he was a 'humble, steady and reliable' officer. 'He knew what it meant to protect the place that gave him a new beginning, and in return, he gave everything back,' Ashraf said at Thursday's service. After the service, the streets filled with people, mostly men, kneeling in prayer. Some Muslim officers took part, as colleagues stood in formation behind them and looked on. Later, officers saluted as Islam's casket, draped in US and NYPD flags, was brought to a hearse for burial at a cemetery in Totowa, New Jersey. Another victim, real estate firm worker Julia Hyman, 27, was mourned at an emotional service Wednesday at a Manhattan synagogue. Funeral arrangements for the two others killed, security guard Aland Etienne and investment firm executive Wesley LePatner, have not been made public. Governor praises officer for saving lives Police identified the gunman as Shane Tamura, a 27-year old former high school football player who most recently worked in a Las Vegas casino's surveillance department. Authorities say he believed he had a brain disease linked to contact sports and accused the NFL of hiding the dangers of playing football. On Thursday, police said they found more than 800 rounds of ammunition in Tamura's car and had recovered 47 shell casings in the building's lobby and the office floor where Hyman was killed. Police said Tamura had a history of mental illness, but they haven't elaborated other than to say they found psychiatric medication prescribed to him at his residence in Las Vegas. Officials said he was heading for the NFL's office but took the wrong elevator and went by mistake to another floor. The gunfire seriously injured an NFL employee in the lobby. Islam 'saved lives. He was out front,' Gov. Kathy Hochul, a Democrat, said at Thursday's service. 'Others may be alive today because he was the barrier.'
Arab News
12 hours ago
- Arab News
Mourners honor the NYPD officer killed in the attack at the NFL headquarters building
NEW YORK: Mourners packed a New York mosque on Thursday to honor a Bangladesh-born police officer who embraced the job of protecting his adopted city and gave his life for it when a gunman opened fire in an office building this week. Officer Didarul Islam 'did believe in the American dream, not as something handed down but as something built with your own hands,' Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch told Islam's family and friends as his fellow officers lined up rows deep outside the Bronx house of worship. Dignitaries and members of the New York's thriving Bangladeshi community also paid tribute to the fallen officer during a memorial that emphasized the importance he placed on his family, background and service to the city. A married father of two with a third child on the way, the 36-year-old was working a New York Police Department-approved private security detail, in uniform, when he and three other people were killed Monday at the Manhattan skyscraper that houses the NFL's headquarters and other corporate offices. 'To our family, he was our world. To the city, he was a proud NYPD officer who served with compassion and integrity. He lived to help others,' Islam's widow said in a statement that a relative read on her behalf at the service at the Parkchester Jame Masjid mosque. With officers stationed on surrounding rooftops for security, fire trucks used their ladders to hold a huge American flag over a nearby street. A flatbed truck carried a digital billboard showing photos of Islam and a commemorative message from his union. White House sends condolences After coming to the United States, Islam began building a career in the nation's largest police force. He described policing as 'a blanket of the community, there to provide comfort and care,' the police commissioner said. Islam served as a school safety agent before becoming a patrol officer less than four years ago, and was promoted posthumously Thursday to detective. 'He could have gone into any other occupation he wanted, but he wanted to put on that uniform, and he wanted to protect fellow New Yorkers. And he wanted to let us know that he believed in what this city and what this country stood for,' Mayor Eric Adams, a Democrat, told the gathering. 'That's the greatest symbol of what we know we are as a country.' In Washington, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt began her daily briefing by expressing President Donald Trump's condolences to Islam's family, saying he 'made the ultimate sacrifice in defense of his fellow New Yorkers.' A 'humble, steady, and reliable' officer Like others who spoke, Imam Zakir Ahmed highlighted the officer's immigrant background and Muslim faith. But said Islam 'lived at a time when people like him are too often feared, vilified and made to feel like outsiders.' 'It's time for New York and America to give back — to see us, to hear us, to protect our dignity, the way Officer Islam protected yours,' Ahmed said. The eldest of several siblings, Islam supported his parents in Bangladesh, as well as his wife and two young sons in the Bronx, the imam said. The police commissioner said Islam worked a long day at a parade Sunday, then picked up private security hours Monday at the office building. Deputy Inspector Muhammad Ashraf, the commander of the busy Bronx precinct where Islam worked, said he was a 'humble, steady and reliable' officer. 'He knew what it meant to protect the place that gave him a new beginning, and in return, he gave everything back,' Ashraf said at Thursday's service. After the service, the streets filled with people, mostly men, kneeling in prayer. Some Muslim officers took part, as colleagues stood in formation behind them and looked on. Later, officers saluted as Islam's casket, draped in US and NYPD flags, was brought to a hearse for burial at a cemetery in Totowa, New Jersey. Another victim, real estate firm worker Julia Hyman, 27, was mourned at an emotional service Wednesday at a Manhattan synagogue. Funeral arrangements for the two others killed, security guard Aland Etienne and investment firm executive Wesley LePatner, have not been made public. Governor praises officer for saving lives Police identified the gunman as Shane Tamura, a 27-year old former high school football player who most recently worked in a Las Vegas casino's surveillance department. Authorities say he believed he had a brain disease linked to contact sports and accused the NFL of hiding the dangers of playing football. On Thursday, police said they found more than 800 rounds of ammunition in Tamura's car and had recovered 47 shell casings in the building's lobby and the office floor where Hyman was killed. Police said Tamura had a history of mental illness, but they haven't elaborated other than to say they found psychiatric medication prescribed to him at his residence in Las Vegas. Officials said he was heading for the NFL's office but took the wrong elevator and went by mistake to another floor. The gunfire seriously injured an NFL employee in the lobby. Islam 'saved lives. He was out front,' Gov. Kathy Hochul, a Democrat, said at Thursday's service. 'Others may be alive today because he was the barrier.'
Al Arabiya
14 hours ago
- Al Arabiya
Colorado deputies disciplined for helping federal immigration agents
Two Colorado deputies have been disciplined for violating state law by helping federal agents make immigration arrests and their sheriff says officers from other agencies have done the same. One of the deputies Alexander Zwinck was sued by Colorado's attorney general last week after his cooperation with federal immigration agents on a drug task force was revealed following the June arrest of a college student from Brazil with an expired visa. Following an internal investigation a second Mesa County Sheriff's Office deputy and task force member Erik Olson was also found to have shared information. The two deputies used a Signal chat to relay information to federal agents according to documents released Wednesday by the sheriff's office. Zwinck was placed on three weeks of unpaid leave and Olson was given two weeks of unpaid leave Mesa County Sheriff Todd Rowell said in a statement. Both were removed from the task force. Two supervisors also were disciplined. One was suspended without pay for two days and another received a letter of reprimand. A third supervisor received counseling. State laws push back against Trump crackdown The lawsuit and disciplinary actions come as lawmakers in Colorado and other Democratic-led states have crafted legislation intended to push back against President Donald Trump's immigration crackdown. Since Trump took office pro-immigrant bills have advanced through legislatures in Illinois Vermont California Connecticut and other states. The measures include stronger protections for immigrants in housing employment and police encounters. Trump has enlisted hundreds of state and local law enforcement agencies to help identify immigrants in the US illegally and detain them for potential deportation. The Republican also relaxed longtime rules restricting immigration enforcement near schools churches and hospitals. Zwinck was sued under a new state law signed by Gov. Jared Polis about two weeks before the arrest of the student from Brazil. It bars local government employees including law enforcement from sharing identifying information about people with federal immigration officials. Previously only state agencies were barred from doing that. It's one of a series of laws limiting the state's involvement in immigration enforcement passed over the years that has drawn criticism and a lawsuit from the federal government. The US Department of Justice has also sued Illinois and New York as well as several cities in those states and New Jersey alleging their policies violate the US Constitution or federal immigration laws. Officers say they were following established procedures Zwinck and Olson told officials they thought they were operating according to long-standing procedures. However the internal investigation found they had both received and read two emails prior to the passage of the new law about previous limits on cooperation with immigration officials. The most recent was sent on Jan. 30 2025 after an official for Homeland Security Investigations part of Immigration and Customs Enforcement had asked state and local law enforcement officers at a law enforcement meeting to contact HSI or ICE if they arrested a person for a violent crime who was believed not to be a citizen the investigation documents said. The email said not to contact HSI or ICE. Zwinck said he didn't know about the new law and was not interested in immigration enforcement. 'When I was out there I wanted to find drugs, guns, and bad guys,' Zwinck said at a July 23 disciplinary hearing. 'And sending that information to HSI they provided the ability to give me real time background information on the person I was in contact with,' he said. Olson who said he had been with the sheriff's office 18 years testified at his disciplinary hearing that it was standard practice to send information up to federal agents during traffic stops. 'It was routine for ICE to show up on the back end of a traffic stop to do their thing,' Olson said. 'I truly thought what we were doing was condoned by our supervision and lawful.' A lawyer at a law firm listed as representing both deputies Michael Lowe did not immediately return a telephone call or email seeking comment. Rowell said drug task force members from other law enforcement agencies including the Colorado State Patrol also shared information with immigration agents on the Signal chat. The state patrol denied the claim. The sheriff faulted Attorney General Phil Weiser for filing the lawsuit against Zwinck before a local internal investigation was complete. He called on the Democrat who is running for governor to drop it. As it stands the lawsuit filed by the Attorney General's Office sends a demoralizing message to law enforcement officers across Colorado – that the law may be wielded selectively and publicly for maximum political effect rather than applied fairly and consistently,' he said. Weiser said last week that he was investigating whether other officers in the chat violated the law. Spokesperson Lawrence Pacheco said Weiser was presented with evidence of a blatant violation of state law and had to act. The attorney general has a duty to enforce state laws and protect Coloradans and he'll continue to do so, Pacheco said. Brown reported from Billings Montana.
