Texas middle school cheerleaders suffer burns on hands after coach's 'punishment'



Cheerleaders from Evans Middle School in Lubbock, Texas, suffered first-degree and second-degree hand burns after they said their coach punished them by making them perform "bear crawls" and "crab walks" on a hot outdoor track, KAMC-TV reported.

Bear crawls and crab walks involve moving one's body forward with hands and feet on the ground.

One parent checked the track temperature that afternoon and said it was at least 125 degrees.

The 13 girls — all eighth graders — told KAMC they were punished for performing a cheer that their female coach didn’t want them to do. They added to the station that their coach said performing the cheer against her wishes was “disrespectful.”

Angel Thompson, a mother of one of the cheerleaders, told KAMC her daughter told her the cheerleaders "got a punishment, and shows me her hands."

The cheerleaders were told to do the bear crawls and crab walks for a mile, the station said, adding that most weren’t able to continue after two laps due to pain, and that some became physically sick.

The girls said the punishment happened at 2 p.m. Wednesday, KAMC said, adding that one parent checked the track temperature that afternoon and said it was at least 125 degrees.

“We told her our hands are burning, and she said she didn’t care, and she made us go back down on the track,” one of the cheerleaders, who asked to remain anonymous, told the station.

Parents added that the coach threatened the girls’ cheerleading futures if they didn’t complete the punishment, KAMC said.

Some girls went to the school nurse afterward, but the station said parents didn't get calls from the school about their daughters’ injuries. KAMC said at least one cheerleader was seen at the University Medical Center burn unit.

“It was malicious. It was intentional,” the mother of one of the cheerleaders, who asked to remain anonymous, told the station.

KAMC noted that parents are hoping for criminal charges against the teacher and said an investigation with police is ongoing. The teacher was placed on administrative leave, pending an investigation, the station said.

The Lubbock school district confirmed in a statement that it's aware of the "teacher’s disciplinary method that resulted in several students receiving burns on their hands. The teacher directed a group of students to perform 'bear crawls' on the outdoor track, which was heated by the day’s high temperatures. This action resulted in multiple students being injured."

"We are heartbroken over these events, as the safety and well-being of our students is our top priority. This type of incident does not reflect the standards or values of Lubbock ISD and Evans Middle School. We are addressing this matter with utmost urgency, and are fully committed to investigating the circumstances surrounding the incident. The teacher involved has been placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of this investigation," the statement continued.

You can view a video report here about the incident.

Anything else?

Blaze News reported in 2015 about a Texas high school launching an internal investigation after the palms of two students were blistered due to a "bear crawl" gym class punishment. It was reportedly the third time in the space of two months that such an incident occurred in the state.

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Mom fought with students after being let into school through side door near gym, police say



A mother is accused of fighting students in a gymnasium prior to the start of the school day in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, late last month.

The incident took place around 7 a.m. Aug. 22 at IDEA Bridge, WAFB-TV reported, while students were waiting for classes to start after their morning bus ride to campus.

'I feel like when my child goes to school that her life is in their hands. So this makes me very, very, very worried to know that no one was there all that time that this was going on.'

Jah’n’que Brown, a junior at the school, told the station she was defending herself from another student, that student's sister — and that student's mother.

“She’s threatening her and saying, ‘Oh, let’s go outside and fight, come on, we’re gonna fight,’ stuff like that," Jah’n’que recalled to WAFB, adding that soon after "everything just starts popping off. And I get hit."

Baton Rouge police responded to the incident, but the department has not yet completed its investigation, the station said, adding that charges are pending. Corp. Saundra Watts confirmed to WAFB that a mother was let into the school through a door near the gymnasium and that she participated in the altercation.

Jah’n’que’s mother, Yakisha Brown, told the station she's worried about her children’s safety at school and isn't happy: “There was a whole lot of lives involved in that, and I feel it’s unjust, it’s just not right."

WAFB said it reached out to IDEA Public Schools and asked what security measures are in place and whether any security guards or staff members are responsible in such cases. The station said Director of Communications Rebecca Suarez responded with this statement: “IDEA Bridge is aware of an incident that took place at our campus. We received reports that a physical altercation involving a parent took place. Appropriate staff were on site to respond to the incident. Duty personnel and administrators were able to diffuse [sic] the situation and remove the parent from the campus. All students and staff are safe. The campus partnered with local law enforcement in the investigation.”

Jah’n’que added to WAFB that no one in authority was present at the time the fighting began: “Nobody was in there. No teachers, no administration. We’re in the gym at the time, and they’re supposed to be in the gym. They’re supposed to be watching us, everyone. They’re supposed to be coming in the gym, and they’re supposed to be there before we even get in there. We were there for, like, a good five minutes. I’m not even gonna lie, like, students were trying to stop it, yeah, but ... no administration or anything like that was there.”

The station added that the IDEA Public Schools website indicates says all campuses are closed, meaning visitors can enter only through main doors. WAFB also said it asked if the mother or the students are facing consequences, but the station said it has not yet received a response.

Brown noted to the station that she's hoping for drastic changes in IDEA Bridge's security and safety protocol: “I feel like when my child goes to school that her life is in their hands. So this makes me very, very, very worried to know that no one was there all that time that this was going on."

- YouTube youtu.be

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Green Day literally runs offstage after drone spotted inside stadium; drone operator caught; feds on the case



Cellphone video showed pop-punk band Green Day literally running offstage Wednesday in Detroit after a drone was spotted inside Comerica Park.

"There was an individual that flew a drone into Comerica Park, so Green Day was taken off stage," Detroit police Cpl. Dan Donakowski said, according to the Detroit News. "Shortly after that, they went back on stage to perform. DPD located this individual outside of Comerica Park. He is being detained pending further investigation."

'How you guys doing? Everybody OK?' lead singer Billie Joe Armstrong asked crowd of around 35,000 fans after the drone incident.

The paper said the band members were rushed from the stage at 8:50 p.m. — about 20 minutes into the concert and during the second chorus of the hit single "Longview." The News said after a few minutes, a message showed up on the concert video screens saying, "Show Pause. Please standby for details."

The delay lasted about 10 minutes, then Green Day returned to the stage, the paper said.

"How you guys doing? Everybody OK?" lead singer Billie Joe Armstrong asked crowd of around 35,000 fans after the drone incident, the News said, adding that the band kicked into "Longview" at the spot when the drone interrupted them. The paper said that after the next song, "Welcome to Paradise," Armstrong told the crowd, "There ain't no motherf***er that's gonna stop us, I'll tell you that."

The News said in a follow-up story that federal authorities are investigating the suspect.

Detroit Police Sgt. Daren Zhou said the drone pilot was questioned but not arrested, the paper reported. "We've forwarded the case to the [U.S. Federal Aviation Administration]," Zhou said, according to the News.

The paper said the FAA bans flying drones in and around a radius of three nautical miles from stadiums or venues starting one hour before and ending one hour after the scheduled time of major event.

FAA spokesperson Eva Ngai told the News that although the agency lacks the authority to pursue criminal charges, it can fine "drone operators who endanger other aircraft or people on the ground" to fines "that exceed $30,000. In addition, the FAA can suspend or revoke drone operators’ pilot certificates."

The paper, citing the FAA's website, added that drone operators who conduct unsafe or unauthorized operations face fines up to $75,000 per violation.

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Woman admits her husband was stealing from truck, questions why owner fatally shot him



A woman has admitted that her husband was stealing from a truck in the middle of the night last week — but she's questioning why the owner fatally shot him.

Police in Tulsa, Oklahoma, are investigating what went down around 2:15 a.m. Wednesday in the area of the 9200 block of East 90th Street, the Broken Arrow Sentinel reported. A report from KOTV-DT indicates the fatal shooting happened near 91st and Mingo.

'He was stealing, and he was getting stuff out of the back of the truck, and me and him had gotten into an argument because I don't do that.'

Blane Hambrick, 39, was seen breaking into a truck and trying to steal items from inside it when two residents of the home came outside to confront him, police told KOTV.

Police said an argument ensued after which the owner of the vehicle shot Hambrick, the station reported.

Police responded to the area and found a black sedan which had been driven upon the curb and come to a stop, the Sentinel said, adding that officers found a male with a gunshot wound to the chest and an unknown female doing chest compressions on him.

The male died after emergency personnel took him to a hospital in critical condition, the paper added.

Detectives took all witnesses and those involved in the incident to headquarters for questioning, the Sentinel said. KOTV said detectives released the two aforementioned residents of the home after questioning them.

'I don't understand why he was shot because there were two men and just him. Why not hold him at gunpoint? Or why not beat him up?'

In the meantime, Hambrick's wife, Rosie Lawson, is mourning her loss and asking questions, KJRH-TV reported. You can view the interview with Lawson here.

"He was stealing, and he was getting stuff out of the back of the truck, and me and him had gotten into an argument because I don't do that," Lawson told KJRH, adding that she wanted nothing to do with it and started to walk away.

Lawson added to the station that "Blane was trying to get into the car, and that's when I saw the shot go off, and I saw the spark of the bullet, and Blane was able to start the car and speed down to me, and he was able to stop for me to get in."

She also told KJRH, "I don't understand why he was shot because there were two men and just him. Why not hold him at gunpoint? Or why not beat him up? Why shoot him and take my kid's dad away?"

Police added to KJRH that they're still putting the pieces of the case together.

"It's a tough investigation, I guess, initially for detectives and DAs," Officer Danny Bean told the station. "They've got to work through this, review all of their statements that they get, and they've got to review video that they have [and] put ... together exactly what happened before they make their decision."

Bean added to KJRH that it will be up to the district attorney's office if any charges are filed in this case.

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Pickup truck driver caught on video doing burnout on rainbow Pride crosswalk in West Virginia



A pickup truck driver was caught on cellphone video doing a burnout on a rainbow Pride crosswalk in Huntington, West Virginia, earlier this week, WOWK-TV reported.

The station said Wednesday's incident occurred at the intersection of 4th Avenue and 10th Street; that crosswalk — along with a rainbow gemstone — was painted last weekend.

'It’s not a protest; it's bullcrap. People need to do better.”

You can view video here of the burnout taking place. The driver of the truck revved the engine, left what appears to be a single tire track over at least one of the crosswalk bars, and created a huge exhaust cloud in the process.

Huntington Police Chief Phil Watkins told WOWK that the department knows about the video and is investigating.

“Huntington Pride, a nonprofit organization, raised funds throughout the community to pay for the paint and hire the artist. However, the city will coordinate with Huntington Pride on any needed touch-ups of the art installation in the future," City of Huntington Communications Director Bryan Chambers told the station.

Ally Layman, president of Huntington Pride, told WCHS-TV that she is "not surprised. Typically folks within our community are bullied. I've been bullied since high school, so it’s not shocking.”

Layman also is a city council member and added to WCHS that "the jewel is every facet of every color, of every texture, or every component that combines our entire community, not just the LGBT community, but our community as a whole. Appalachians are resilient just like this jewel."

Resident Justin Murdock added to WCHS that "a lot of these people making these threats and doing these things, they don’t even go here, they’re from out of town. The people that actually live here, it’s a jewel that represents the Jewel City. We’re resilient, and so is this artwork. We’re just going to keep making it better.”

William Cummins noted to WCHS that he doesn't side with any particular community that takes a stand during Pride month: "People shouldn’t put their private lives right in front of everybody for any kind of movement. It’s private for a reason, but doing this was not right. It’s not right to have vandalized [the crosswalk]. It’s not a protest; it's bullcrap. People need to do better.”

In Spokane, Washington, earlier this month one adult and two minors were charged with felonies after riding scooters over a Pride crosswalk.

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This is what a murder investigation looks like in 2024



In today’s woke society, our corrupt system seems to be more concerned with political correctness than serving justice.

Look no farther than the case against Genesse Moreno, who on February 11, fired an AR-15 into a crowd of people attending Lakewood Church in Houston, Texas.

However, instead of focusing solely on the victims and investigating Moreno’s crime, “the Houston Police Department had to run an entire investigation just to figure out what pronouns the shooter used,” sighs Dave Rubin before playing the clip of the commander of Houston PD’s homicide division, Chris Hassig, explaining the investigative efforts needed to prevent misgendering the offender.

“She has utilized both male and female names, but through all of our investigation to this point – talking with individuals, interviews, documents – Houston Police Department reports she has identified this entire time as female (she / her), and so we are identifying her as Genesse Moreno, Hispanic female,” Hassig announced.

“Oh, thank you,” mocks Dave, calling the entire ordeal “psychotic.”

To learn more, watch the clip below.


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School bus driver who misses stop tells apparent elementary students she'll 'shoot' next passenger who asks, 'Where are we going?' Driver now on leave.



A Utah school bus driver is on administrative leave after she apparently told elementary students after missing a stop that she would "shoot" the next passenger who asks, "Where are we going?"

What are the details?

KSTU-TV reported that a parent of a student at Dry Creek Elementary School in Lehi sent the station a video Friday that the student recorded while riding the bus home that afternoon.

"One more person says, 'Where are we going?,' I'm going to shoot them," the driver is heard saying through an intercom. "OK, now listen — I missed the stop; I'm trying to turn around. Do you understand? OK. Sit down and be [quiet]."

Here's the video:

Bus driver tells kids she'll 'shoot them' for asking 'where are we going'youtu.be

An Alpine School District spokesperson offered the station the following statement: "We are aware of a situation on a bus today. The employee is on administrative leave pending an investigation. We strongly condemn any threatening action or language directed toward others. We expect all employees to create safe and nurturing environments free of verbal or physical threats. Appropriate action will be taken to ensure this matter is addressed and not repeated."

Rex Brimhall, the district's director of transportation, addressed a letter to Dry Creek Elementary school parents, saying the district has taken immediate action to make sure students were safe, KSL-FM reported.

The district did not release the driver's identity or say whether the driver is on paid or unpaid leave, USA Today reported.

Saratoga Springs Police Lt. Zach Robinson told NBC News Monday that investigators have spoken to four parents and are looking into whether the bus driver had a weapon. Robinson told the network that the investigation has not determined the driver had a weapon.