Latest news with #SeanTeare
Yahoo
29-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
He Saved Americans' Lives in Afghanistan. Then an American Took His Life in Texas.
ON APRIL 27, 31-YEAR-OLD ADBUD RAHMAN WAZIRI was shot outside his apartment complex in Houston, where he lived with his wife and two young children. According to security camera footage, the shooter became frustrated when Waziri briefly double-parked in front of a mailbox to get his mail. Waziri's family's lawyer, Omar Khawaja, said the two men then engaged in a heated exchange before the shooter went back to his car to grab a weapon. With his hands raised, Waziri pleaded, 'Please don't shoot.' Seconds later, gunfire took his life. The shooter later called 911 on himself. When the police arrived, he surrendered his firearm, and law enforcement took him into custody—but then, after questioning him, the police released the shooter without charges. Houston District Attorney Sean Teare, who initially declined to bring charges, said he may reconsider convening a grand jury. 'Let's not kid ourselves: Had it been me or another American veteran killed over a parking spot, Sean Teare would have charged the shooter outright long ago,' Thomas Kasza, a former Green Beret and founder of the charity 1208 Foundation for Afghan veterans, told The Bulwark. Get the news that matters—independent, unafraid, honest. Become a Bulwark+ member. KASZA WAS REFERRING TO WAZIRI'S service with the American military, in which he saved countless American lives as a member of the elite National Mine Reduction Group (NMRG). American Green Berets trained NMRG members to preemptively detect mines, IEDs, and other explosive ordnance before the Green Berets and American Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) technicians advanced. They went in first to protect not only the lives of Afghan local nationals but also their American brothers-in-arms. 'With a fairly high degree of confidence, I'd call sweeping IEDs during a special forces night raid the most dangerous job in Afghanistan,' said Kasza. NMRG was a 'family business,' whereby members were hired upon the recommendation of another member. Many NMRG members worked for nearly twenty years—almost long enough to qualify for a pension if they were American. However, as Afghan contractors, they received no such compensation. A Green Beret who requested anonymity for fear of retribution told The Bulwark, 'On missions where we drove, they were the lead vehicle, [or] often walking on foot in front of the vehicle and defusing or blowing up IEDs. On missions we flew to, they were the first ones off the helicopter, rushing into dusty uncertainty and leading the way for their American brothers.' Nearly twice as many NMRG members were killed in action as Green Berets between 2015 and 2021, according to Kasza. Consequently, many Green Berets have a deep respect and trust for these men, and NMRG members were the only Afghan service members officially permitted to carry weapons on American bases. According to one special forces soldier, who requested anonymity for fear of retribution, they were 'a group that was recruited, trained, paid by, and fought with the U.S. Army Special Forces—and fought with such bravery' that if they were American, 'there would be a Medal of Honor ceremony once a month.' Waziri spent more than five years with the NMRG. Ben Hoffman, a Green Beret who served alongside him in 2019, told The Bulwark, 'He was a lion of a man but also one of the most gentle warriors I have ever seen.' He was so talented that he was selected to be an instructor—a role he held until NMRG members received their last paychecks in April 2021. Due to his close work with the U.S. military, Waziri had a price on his head when the Taliban retook Afghanistan. Despite the enormous target on his back, he worked tirelessly to create safe houses for fellow Afghans to survive until they could secure a ticket to safety. Due to his extensive service, Waziri's American special forces counterparts were able to initiate the process for him to obtain a Special Immigrant Visa. His flight to America departed just two hours before the ISIS-K attack on Hamid Karzai International Airport. Two months later, his wife and infant daughter joined him in Houston, where they put down roots and had a second child. Join now NOW WAZIRI'S WIDOW AND THEIR CHILDREN, 4 years old and 9 months old, have fled the state out of fear of living near the gunman. The inaction of the Houston Police Department and the prosecutor's office has left the Afghan refugee community feeling rattled with fear and despair. 'We want answers,' Hamid Yousafi, a former special immigrant visa and current green card holder who resides in Houston, told The Bulwark. Why is a cold-blooded murderer running wild? . . . How can we tell our children that following the rules will not get them in trouble?' 'I'm a lawyer. I understand how these cases unfold. . . . There's no reason why we don't even have the assailant's name,' Hajji Omar, an Afghan-American citizen in Houston, told The Bulwark. Frustrated and seeking answers, members of the Afghan community have protested at the Houston Police Department in hopes that the police will give the case the attention it deserves. Share
Daily Mail
08-05-2025
- Daily Mail
Lawyer's chilling new acts after he was freed from jail for spiking pregnant wife with abortion drugs
A lawyer who was jailed last year for spiking his pregnant wife with abortion drugs has been arrested again after violating a protection order. Mason Herring, 40, was sentenced last February to 180 days in jail for putting an abortion drug, Misoprostol, in his ex-wife's water, which led to the premature birth of their child. As a result of Herring's actions, his wife, Catherine, became ill, and their child was born with developmental delays. Herring has since served his sentence, but he was arrested again on Wednesday for twice violating the protection order barring him from coming within 500 feet of his ex-wife, according to the Harris County Sheriff's Office. Herring was accused of calling Catherine twice on February 11 and waiting in the lobby of his apartment on February 22 when she arrived to pick up their children from a supervised visit. Then again, on March 23, police alleged Herring pulled up in his car near where his wife was dropping their children off, knowing that she would be within 500 feet of him. Herring was pictured smiling in his mugshot and was booked into the Harris County Jail on Wednesday. His bond is estimated at $100,000, and his next court date is scheduled for Thursday, according to online court records. The case is prosecuted by the Harris County District Attorney's Office, led by the newly elected Sean Teare. Teare reportedly worked for the same law firm that represented Herring in his criminal case last year, according to local ABC affiliate, KTRK News. Herring had served jail time after making repeated attempts to drug his ex-wife after he cheated on her and asked for a divorce. Catherine told the court that her husband had feared 'looking like a jerk' if she gave birth after the affair. She slammed the court for his low sentence, claiming that 180 days wasn't enough for her husband's attempt to 'kill' his child on 'seven separate' occasions. 'For two years, my husband has overtly denied this assault, and I'm grateful today that he has finally admitted to his guilt,' she said at the time. Herring was initially charged with forcing induction to have an abortion but, admitted guilt to a lesser charge of assaulting a pregnant person. He also admitted guilt to injuring a child under 15. Their child was born prematurely as a result of the abortion medication. Catherine said their daughter had to spend months eating through a feeding tube and attended multiple therapy sessions for her developmental delays. His wife testified that she believed Herring had started drugging her in March 2022 when she noticed a glass he gave her was clouded. The two were on vacation and had separated, but were still in couples therapy. Catherine said it was in a session where she revealed her pregnancy, and he reacted negatively. Catherine became violently ill and went to the hospital after she started to bleed and her urine turned black. She said the attempts to drug her continued, and she repeatedly found unsealed orange juice cartons. Catherine then began to collect evidence against her husband and stopped consuming anything he gave her. Herring was convicted on two charges of assault of a pregnant person and injury to a child under the age of 15. He served 180 days for the crime The samples she collected were sent to a lab, where it was revealed that at least two contained the abortion drug. Catherine also installed cameras in her home and caught Herring taking out a substance in a Ziploc bag and placing it in a cranberry juice drink. She went to the police in April 2022 and said she wanted to pursue charges against her husband for poisoning. A protective order was issued that year. Herring hasn't issued a plea on the new charges filed against him.
Axios
30-01-2025
- Axios
How Harris County DA parses crosswalk fatality laws
New Harris County District Attorney Sean Teare told Axios he doesn't plan on filing charges under a relatively new law aimed at protecting pedestrians in crosswalks, choosing instead to pursue a different statute against drivers. Why it matters: Teare's policy, which he also employed as a prosecutor under his predecessor, has so far resulted in zero drivers facing charges for killing pedestrians in Harris County crosswalks, per an Axios analysis of 21 crash reports and court documents. Catch up quick: Texas lawmakers in 2021 passed the Lisa Torry Smith Act, named after a woman killed in a crosswalk in 2017. It created a criminal offense for drivers in such instances. If the collision causes "serious bodily injury" — which under Texas law includes death — the charge is a state jail felony punishable by up to two years' confinement, with a possible fine up to $10,000. State of play: In an interview with Axios in December, Teare said the 2021 law "does have utility on the serious bodily injury cases." But in cases where the victim dies, Teare prefers to charge drivers with criminally negligent homicide, also a state jail felony with an identical punishment range as the Lisa Torry Smith law. Zoom in: Harris County grand jurors have twice declined to press charges of criminally negligent homicide against drivers accused by police of failing to yield right-of-way and killing someone in a crosswalk since the Lisa Torry Smith Act took effect in September 2021, according to an Axios review. Six more cases are still under review and have yet to be presented to a Harris County grand jury. They include the January 2024 death of 64-year-old Patricia Martin in downtown and the death of 2-year-old Emmanuel Molina, who died while crossing the street with his grandmother in December. Though prosecutors' grand jury presentations are secretive, Teare told Axios his office would seek criminally negligent homicide charges in those remaining cases. What they're saying:"I don't understand why we would ever even envision filing this [charge] when there's a fatality when we have the criminally negligent homicide statute," Teare said. "In the Lisa Torry Smith [law], it just deals with bodily injury and serious bodily injury. It doesn't even have a provision for fatalities." Teare said one reason he's preferential to pursuing criminally negligent homicide charges is that prosecutors don't have to prove that the victim was "violating the law themselves," he said. Charges under the Lisa Torry Smith Act are contingent on the pedestrian having been lawfully in the crosswalk when they were struck. They also can't have suddenly darted out in front of the driver, according to the statute. Reality check: Prosecutors in other Texas counties, including neighboring Fort Bend and Austin's Travis County, have charged and obtained at least one conviction in a half-dozen crosswalk death cases under the Lisa Torry Smith law. Fort Bend County District Attorney Brian Middleton, whose office is currently prosecuting two crosswalk death cases under the new statute, said a the circumstances of a crash can be easily discernible from an immediate but thorough investigation by police. "Each [crash] is judged on a case-by-case basis, and [with] every investigation, the outcome is fact-specific," Middleton tells Axios, adding that instances where a pedestrian in a crosswalk jumps in front of a car are rare. The bottom line: Families of people killed in crosswalks last year are waiting for Teare's next move in their cases.
