(TAMPA, Fla.) --  The remains of one of the two missing University of South Florida doctoral students were discovered by investigators Friday and his roommate was taken into custody, authorities said.

Joseph Maurer, of the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office, told reporters that investigators found the remains of Zamil Limon on the Howard Frankland Bridge in Tampa Friday morning. Investigators have been searching for Limon and fellow USF doctoral student Nahida Bristy since they went missing on April 16.

Maurer said investigators received a 911 call for a domestic violence disturbance around 9 a.m. at a residence where Limon's roommate, Hisham Abugharbieh, had barricaded himself.

Abugharbieh, 26, was previously interviewed by police during their investigation into the disappearances, Mauer said.

Following a brief standoff, the suspect surrendered, Maurer said. He was seen exiting the home with nothing but a towel wrapped around his waist.

Abugharbieh was charged with unlawfully holding or move a dead human body in unapproved conditions, failure to report a death to the medical examiner or law enforcement (Intent to Conceal), tampering with physical evidence, false imprisonment and battery, the sheriff’s office said.

The cause of Limon's death is being determined, Maurer said. He had no further details about Bristy's condition.

Limon and Bristy, both 27, were last seen at separate locations in the Tampa area on April 16, according to the USF Police Department.

On Thursday, officials received new information to warrant upgrading their status from missing to endangered, which indicates they are at risk of physical injury or death, the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office said.

The sheriff did not provide any more details about the investigation or search efforts.

Limon and Bristy are friends, and a mutual acquaintance reported them missing, campus police said.

Limon, who was pursuing a degree in geography, environmental science and policy, was last seen at his Tampa residence at approximately 9 a.m. on April 16, according to police.

Bristy, who is studying chemical engineering, was last seen at the USF Tampa campus at the Natural & Environmental Sciences Building at approximately 10 a.m. that day, police said.

Anyone with information on her whereabouts is urged to call the University of South Florida Police Department at 813-974-2628.

-ABC News' Meredith Deliso contributed to this report.

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(BATON ROUGE, La.) -- A 17-year-old girl, Martha Odom, has been identified as the victim killed in a shooting at the Mall of Louisiana in Baton Rouge, officials said Friday, and a 17-year-old suspect is in custody.

Five others were wounded when gunfire broke out during a fight between two groups in the food court on Thursday afternoon, police said.

One of the injured, a 43-year-old man, remains in the hospital in critical condition, Baton Rouge Police Chief T.J. Morse said.

Lafayette's Ascension Episcopal School described Odom, a senior at the school, as a "joyful presence whose kindness and infectious enthusiasm brought light to all who knew her."

The school said two students were wounded and two others were witnesses.

One suspect in the shooting, 17-year-old Markel Lee, turned himself in on Friday, and faces charges including first-degree murder and multiple counts of attempted murder, Morse said at a news conference.

Morse said police are asking for the public's help to find a second suspect wanted in connection with the shooting.

The five people detained on Thursday have been released pending further investigation, Morse said.

Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry called the shooting a "deeply troubling act of violence" that appears to have been driven by "neighborhood gang disputes that seem to want to spill out in our public places, putting innocent people in danger and taking the life of an innocent young lady."

"This conduct is not going to be tolerated in this state," he said at the news conference.

An employee at the mall at the time of the shooting told ABC Baton Rouge affiliate WBRZ, "I heard a loud 'pop' and then another 'pop.' ... I turn around and I see people dropping to the floor and then I saw the gun. ... And he was turning around, shooting randomly."

"I called security and said, 'Shots fired in the food court, people are down, people are hit.' And then the cops came and it was just total chaos ... blood was everywhere," she said.

"I've never seen anything like this in my life," she said.

The Mall of Louisiana is closed on Friday "out of respect for the victims."

"Our deepest sympathies are with everyone who was impacted by the senseless act of violence that took place here today," the mall said in a statement.

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(RALEIGH, N.C.) -- The special operations soldier who was indicted this week for allegedly using classified information to make more than $400,000 betting on the capture of Nicolas Maduro appeared in a federal courtroom in Raleigh, North Carolina, Friday. 

Master Sgt. Gannon Ken Van Dyke, who made the wager on the prediction market Polymarket, will be released on a $250,000 appearance bond.

He agreed to surrender his passport, limit travel to parts of New York and North Carolina, limit drinking "in excess," and no longer possess a firearm unless it's part of his active military service. 

Van Dyke entered the courtroom shackled at his hands and feet and only spoke briefly to acknowledge he understood the charges and penalties. He is currently being represented by a public defender. 

He is set to appear in federal court in New York City on April 28.

Federal investigators said Van Dyke bet more than $33,000 on Polymarket just days before President Donald Trump announced Maduro's capture. 

The series of bets -- which netted more than $409,000 -- immediately prompted scrutiny within the world of prediction markets and resulted in a monthslong investigation about whether inside information was used to place the bets. 

Van Dyke was indicted on charges that included unlawful use of confidential information for personal gain, theft of nonpublic government information, commodities fraud, and wire fraud.

When, after placing the bets, he saw reports about unusual trading associated with the mission, Van Dyke allegedly tried to hide the evidence of the trades by attempting to delete his Polymarket account and change the email address registered to his cryptocurrency exchange account, according to the indictment. 

"Rather than safeguard that information as he was obligated to do, VAN DYKE decided to use that classified information to place trades on a prediction market platform for his personal profit," the indictment said. "VAN DYKE subsequently tried to conceal his unlawful use of classified U.S. Government information by attempting to obscure the source of his unlawful proceeds and to disguise his connection to the accounts linked to the illicit trades."

While prediction markets are primarily regulated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, suspiciously-timed trades on platforms like Kalshi and Polymarket have sparked concerns about insider trading. In addition to the $400,000 Maduro bet, another Polymarket user made roughly $550,000 through a series of bets related to the U.S. striking Iran and the removal of the Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Asked on Thursday what he thought about about Van Dyke's wagers, Trump told reporters in the Oval Office, "That's like Pete Rose betting on his own team."

"Pete Rose, they kept him out of the Hall of Fame because he bet on his own team. Now, if he bet against his team, that would be no good, but he bet on his own team," Trump said. "I'll look into it."

Regarding concerns about federal employees making insider trading bets on the Iran conflict and other developments, Trump said "the whole world, unfortunately, has become somewhat of a casino."

"You look at what's going on all over the world, in Europe and every place, they're doing these betting things. I was never much in favor of it. I don't like it conceptually, but it is what it is. No, I think that I'm not happy with any of that stuff. But they have all these different sites. They have predictive markets. It's a crazy world. It's a much different world than it was." 

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(WASHINGTON) -- The Department of Justice is dropping its criminal investigation into Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, ending a standoff that threatened to delay the confirmation of Powell's successor at the central bank, District of Columbia U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro said Friday. 

Senior DOJ officials have contacted senators in recent days, including Republican Sen. Thom Tillis, who sits on the Senate Banking Committee, informing them of the plan to drop the probe and refer the matter regarding alleged cost overruns at the Fed's Washington headquarters to the bank's internal watchdog, sources told ABC News. 

The Fed's independent inspector general conducted an audit of the building renovation costs in 2021 and Powell had already asked the watchdog to take a fresh look at the $2.5 billion project last year.

"This morning the Inspector General for the Federal Reserve has been asked to scrutinize the building costs overruns -- in the billions of dollars -- that have been borne by taxpayers," Pirro write on X Friday. "I expect a comprehensive report in short order and am confident the outcome will assist in resolving, once and for all, the questions that led this office to issue subpoenas."

"Accordingly, I have directed my office to close our investigation as the IG undertakes this inquiry," Pirro wrote. "Note well, however, that I will not hesitate to restart a criminal investigation should the facts warrant doing so."

Powell's term ends next month, but he said in March that he would stay in the position until President Donald Trump's pick to lead the Fed, Kevin Warsh, is confirmed. 

White House spokesperson Kush Desai, in a statement to ABC News, said "American taxpayers deserve answers about the Federal Reserve’s fiscal mismanagement, and the Office of the Inspector General’s more powerful authorities best position it to get to the bottom of the matter."

Desai added the administration remains certain that the Senate will "swiftly confirm" Warsh.

A spokesperson for the Federal Reserve declined to comment. Reached by ABC News, a spokesperson for Tillis also declined to comment.

Pirro had been insistent that her investigation of alleged cost overruns at the Fed would continue despite a ruling last month from D.C. District Judge James Boasberg that tossed out subpoenas she had sent to Powell. 

"This investigation continues. I am in the legal lane. There are others who are in the political lane. I don't intersect those two lanes," Pirro said in a news conference on Wednesday.

"I am going forward," Pirro said. "We are appealing the decision of Judge Boasberg -- the idea that a judge can stand at the door of a grand jury and tell a prosecutor you're not allowed to go in when the United States Supreme Court has said you can go into a grand jury based on rumors and suspicion, is an order that we think must be appealed, and we are continuing in this investigation."

At the time of Boasberg's ruling, Tillis urged Pirro not to continue with her investigation.

"We all know how this is going to end and the D.C. U.S. Attorney's Office should save itself further embarrassment and move on," Tillis said in a post on X moments after the decision was made public in March. "Appealing the ruling will only delay the confirmation of Kevin Warsh as the next Fed Chair." 

It is not immediately clear if prosecutors will seek to drop their appeal of Boasberg's order as a result of the directive to close the probe into Powell.  

In a video message in January, Powell revealed the investigation and called it an attempt by the Trump administration to put political pressure on the Fed to lower interest rates.

An end to the DOJ's investigation is expected to pave the path for Kevin Warsh to get confirmed through the Senate. Tillis told ABC News on Tuesday he supports Warsh as the nominee but will not advance his nomination until the DOJ's probe is dropped.

Tillis first announced in January that he would block nominees in opposition to the investigation, which he has branded as "bogus." 

"If there were any remaining doubt whether advisers within the Trump Administration are actively pushing to end the independence of the Federal Reserve, there should now be none. It is now the independence and credibility of the Department of Justice that are in question," Tillis said in a January statement. "I will oppose the confirmation of any nominee for the Fed -- including the upcoming Fed Chair vacancy -- until this legal matter is fully resolved."

Tillis' blockade has proved difficult for Senate Republican leadership to work around because of his position on the narrowly divided Senate Banking Committee. His opposition, paired with that of all Democrats on the panel, has made it impossible for Warsh to advance out of the committee to a vote on the full Senate floor.

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(NEW YORK) -- The New England Patriots head coach, Mike Vrabel, addressed the media Thursday after a series of photos were published allegedly showing him with former Athletic reporter Dianna Russini.

In his remarks, Vrabel said that his “actions don't meet the standard I hold myself to” and his initial response to the pictures was an attempt to protect his family, saying that the photos showed an innocent interaction.

"I just know I'm going to take the necessary steps with the people I care about -- that's my family and this team," said Vrabel.

Vrabel and Russini are both married to other people. Russini resigned from The Athletic on April 14.

"I have no interest in submitting to a public inquiry that has already caused far more damage than I am willing to accept. Rather than allowing this to continue, I have decided to step aside now -- before my current contract expires on June 30," Russini wrote in her resignation letter. "I do so not because I accept the narrative that has been constructed around this episode, but because I refuse to lend it further oxygen or to let it define me or my career."

Vrabel declined to comment on the most recent photos, saying "my priorities are my family and this football team. In that order,” according to ESPN.

Vrabel did confirm at a news conference Tuesday that he has had "difficult conversations with people I care about," including his family, his coaching staff, team officials and players following the initial publication of the photos.

It is not clear if the New England Patriots will discipline Vrabel but NFL commissioner Roger Goodell told ESPN on Thursday that this is a team matter and does not fall under the league's personal conduct policy.

"The New England Patriots fully support Mike Vrabel's decision to prioritize his family first, as well as his own well-being," the team said in a statement. "Mike has been open with us about his commitment to being the best version of himself for his family, this team and our fans, and we respect the steps he is taking to follow through on that commitment.”

Vrabel confirmed that he will start seeking counseling, saying "I can only say that whatever my family needs, that's what I'm going to provide," Vrabel said.

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(NEW YORK) -- Jake Reiner, the eldest son of renowned director Rob Reiner and his wife Michele Reiner, is speaking out in a rare statement, saying, "I still wake up every morning having to convince myself that, no, it’s not a dream."

"This truly is my living nightmare," he said in a post on Substack on Friday.

"One thing I keep coming back to is how frightened they must have been,” Jake Reiner said of his parents. “They were the last people in the world to deserve what happened to them. They deserved to be loved, they deserved to be respected, and above all they deserved to be appreciated for how much they gave to all three of us and to the world."

Jake Reiner's brother, Nick Reiner, has pleaded not guilty to murder charges for the deaths of their parents and is due back in court next week.

Rob Reiner and Michele Reiner were found stabbed to death in their Brentwood home on Dec. 14, 2025. The night before, Nick Reiner -- who had been living on his parents' property -- got into an argument with Rob Reiner at a holiday party and was seen acting strangely, sources told ABC News. Nick Reiner was taken into custody hours after the bodies were discovered.

Rob Reiner, 78, and Michele Reiner, 68, married in 1989 and had three children: sons Jake and Nick and daughter Romy.

Jake Reiner described his parents as his “guiding lights, the foundation of who I am as a human being, and the most giving people I have ever known.”

"The love they have for me, my brother, and my sister is truly unconditional. And the love they have for each other in their marriage is something I always looked up to as the standard of what a successful relationship looks like," he wrote.

Jake Reiner called his mom his “confidant” and said they could talk for hours.

"Anytime I was going through a tough time or had a complicated issue to hash out, I leaned on her brilliant perspective,” he wrote.

“My mom was the one who helped me move in and out of dorms and apartments at Syracuse University and continued to help me move in and out of apartments when I began my broadcasting career," he said. "Her support for me never wavered, and I always felt how much she loved me. I feel her presence everywhere, every single day. I miss her so much."

Jake Reiner said his father -- the famed director, producer and actor known for massive Hollywood hits including "The Princess Bride” and "When Harry Met Sally…” – was the same way at home and in public.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

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(NEW YORK) -- More than a dozen reported tornadoes tore through part of the Central U.S. on Thursday night, including a powerful storm in northwestern Oklahoma that spurred a tornado emergency from the National Weather Service.

A tornado emergency is the highest alert level for tornadoes.

The weather service said a "large and destructive tornado" was confirmed on the ground at 8:21 p.m. local time in the area of Enid, Oklahoma, near Vance Air Force Base, and urged residents to take cover.

"You are in a life-threatening situation," the weather service said. "Flying debris may be deadly to those caught without shelter. Mobile homes will be destroyed. Considerable damage to homes, businesses, and vehicles is likely and complete destruction is possible."

Enid, a city of roughly 50,000 people, is located about 90 miles north of Oklahoma City

Garfield County Sheriff Cory Rink told Oklahoma City ABC station KOCO that search-and-rescue operations were underway in "hard-hit" areas. He said he did not have word yet on any injuries.

A county emergency management official told KOCO there were reports of 10 to 11 people with minor injures and that the search and rescue operations in the Grayridge area was wrapping up.

Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt, in a social media post, asked for prayers for the Enid community, which he said "has been severely impacted" by Thursday's tornado.

"I have spoken with Enid’s local leaders and will continue working with them as they assess the damage and identify needs," he said in the post.

Overall, there were 17 reported tornadoes Thursday night from Oklahoma to Iowa, and there were still several active tornado warnings along a line of dangerous storms stretching from Oklahoma to Missouri to Iowa.

Thursday is the first day of a multiday outbreak of severe weather for the Plains.

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(NEW YORK) -- Paige Shiver, a former executive assistant with the University of Michigan football team, said she felt that former head coach Sherrone Moore manipulated her during their nearly four-year relationship she characterized as an "open secret" within the athletics department.

Speaking out for the first time since Moore was arrested last December for trespassing, Shiver, 32, told ABC News that what started out as a consensual relationship became one in which she felt trapped over time. She said Moore, 40, told her he was in a loveless marriage and would soon divorce his wife, and that every time she tried to end the relationship, he would threaten suicide or plead with her not to leave.

Moore "had complete control over me, over my emotions, over my career, and he knew that, and he used it against me," she said. "Every time I tried to pull away, every time I tried to get out of even Michigan, he always had a way to pull me in and make me feel that I couldn't leave him because he was so miserable without me."

Moore was sentenced to 18 months of probation this month after being fired for the relationship. He had faced a up to six months of jail time after pleading no contest to trespassing and malicious use of a telecommunications device. A felony home invasion charge was dropped as part of a plea deal.

The charges are related to a Dec. 10 incident in which Moore entered Shiver’s apartment the same day he was fired, according to police, who said he blamed Shiver for his firing and threatened to kill himself with butter knives. Shiver said she feared for her life and asked him repeatedly to leave.

"He's six four and he comes in with his hood up, looking down at me, saying I ruined his life and is crying," she said. "He's not listening to me. And it's like he knew he had control over me. He knew he had power over me."

According to text messages Shiver shared with ABC News, Moore texted "I hate you" and "My blood is on your hands" to Shiver after the incident.

When asked for a response to Shiver's account, Ellen Michaels, Moore's attorney, said that "Sherrone Moore has closed this chapter."

In response to a request for comment about Shiver's claims, the university provided a statement, reading: "The University of Michigan terminated Sherrone Moore promptly upon discovering his undisclosed workplace relationship with a direct report. His conduct violated university policy, and we expect more from our leaders. The University of Michigan is committed to ensuring a professional and respectful workplace for all members of its community."

In December, university President Domenico Grasso said the school was investigating the situation involving Moore "to uncover any additional germane and material information and to assess whether there may be related misconduct by others."

Shiver started as an intern in the program in October 2021 and said her romantic relationship started months later in January 2022. She was promoted to be Moore's executive assistant when he was promoted to head coach in 2024.

She described Moore during this time as emotionally dependent on her, a relationship she said the department encouraged.

She said she was often told by senior coaches to console Moore "to calm him down" when he was upset, sometimes during game halftimes. She said she went along with it because she feared for her job security. "No one cared about my feelings. They wanted to use me to help him so that they could get through the season," she said.

"He and other coaches had control over my career, especially him. I mean, he could fire me in a second," she said. "People knew, but no one was doing anything about it."

In May 2022, during her relationship with Moore, Shiver said she discovered she was pregnant. At the time, she said her doctors advised she have an abortion to avoid complications from Pompe Disease, a rare and progressive disorder she was diagnosed with years earlier. Moore, Shiver said, told her she "had to do what's right" for her body. She had the abortion that July.

Last October Shiver says she denied the relationship during an interview with the university human resources department.

She told ABC News that she didn't disclose the relationship because she didn't trust the process that she felt had protected Moore for years.

"They knew the things that he was doing to me and no one did anything about it because they cared more about winning football games, not having another scandal, and trying to protect the head coach," she said.

She waited until December to tell attorneys hired by the university about the relationship.

Shiver is no longer employed by the University of Michigan. She said that, besides her disappointment with the university, she was disappointed that Moore only received probation.

"I don't think it reflects what he did to me," she said. "He took no accountability."

If you are struggling with thoughts of suicide or worried about a friend or loved one, call or text the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988 for free, confidential emotional support 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

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(BALTIMORE, Md.) -- Dwight Rust Jr. this week appeared virtually for his first appearance in a Maryland court, a day after being arrested for the first-degree murder of his wife, Michelle Rust, 24 years ago. 

Baltimore County District Court Judge Krystin Richardson ruled in favor of prosecutors pushing to hold Rust, 48 without bail on Wednesday afternoon. He remains held at the Baltimore County Detention Center.  

Rust first reported his wife missing on July 20, 2002, as the couple was preparing for their 3-year-old son's birthday party. He said that Michelle Rust had left around 9:30 a.m. that morning to pick up some last-minute items from Walmart, but never returned. She was 24 years old at the time, and her body has never been found. 

It is unclear what evidence might have led investigators to arrest Dwight Rust Jr. early Tuesday. The criminal indictment, obtained by ABC News, reveals little about why prosecutors believe Rust was responsible for her murder. In the indictment, Rust is charged with murdering his wife sometime "on or about" July 19 and July 20, 2002. 

State's Attorney Scott Shellenberger declined to comment beyond the indictment. A spokesperson for the Baltimore County Police Department also declined to comment further. 

In the bail review hearing on Wednesday, Assistant Attorney General Jacey Sheckells argued that Rust was attempting to start a new life with another woman when his wife went missing. According to Sheckells, Rust was having an affair with the woman.  

Prosecutors requested that Rust be held without bail due to concerns he might try to intimidate witnesses.  

Rust's attorney, Jeremy Eldridge, denied the state's allegations, maintaining Rust's innocence.  

"Having an affair with somebody doesn't mean you're going to murder," he told ABC News after the hearing on Wednesday afternoon. "The state's own witnesses, a lot of them, knew that he was ending the marriage. If people know that you're breaking up with somebody, you're not going to go and murder them. That doesn't make any sense." 

In the years since, Rust has remarried and has been working for an HVAC company in the area.  

"He has cooperated with law enforcement at every turn," Eldridge said. "He's given multiple statements and anything that the police have ever wanted or asked of him, he's done without reservation."  

In cooperating over the past 24 years, Eldridge said Rust has also agreed to property searches by authorities. 

When Michelle Rust failed to return from the trip to Walmart in 2002, Dwight Rust Jr. called her parents to see if she had stopped by their home. The family all together set out to search for Michelle Rust at nearby Walmart stores, but found no trace of her. 

Her father-in-law, Dwight Rust Sr., found her green 1998 Dodge Caravan abandoned on a road that was just 10 minutes from their home. According to police, the ignition key had been broken off in the door. Investigators were unable to find the rest of that key chain, or any of the clothing and jewelry Michelle Rust was wearing when she went missing.   

As Michelle Rust was diabetic and needed insulin, hundreds of family members, friends and volunteers quickly joined searches through woods, hospitals and pharmacies in the area to locate her.  

Within months, still with no sign of Michelle Rust, police announced that they had concluded foul play was involved in her disappearance. The family also offered a $10,000 reward for any information related to the investigation. 

A year after her disappearance, The Baltimore Sun reported that police had not yet ruled out Dwight Rust Jr. as a suspect.  

"We pray and hope he is not responsible," Ray Lins, Michelle's father, told The Sun at the time.  

In 2023, investigators returned to hunt for new evidence in the case. A group of forensic science students from Towson University assisted by using ground-penetrating radar to search for soil disturbance in the backyards of two properties. These homes formerly belonged to the couple and to Dwight Rust Jr.'s parents just next door.  

"There's no finality. Twenty-four hours a day, it goes through your mind: Where is she?" Michelle Rust's father, Ray Lins, told The Sun in 2003. "People use the word closure. We love her. We miss her. And we don't know what happened." 

When reached by phone on Wednesday afternoon, Ray and Gwen Lins declined to comment. 

Rust faces a maximum penalty of life in prison for first-degree murder if convicted. 

His next court appearance is scheduled for Monday, April 27.  

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(COLUMBUS, Ohio) -- 
 

Prosecutors and defense attorneys delivered opening statements in the re-trial of Jason Meade on Thursday morning as the former Franklin County Sheriff's deputy faces charges of murder and reckless homicide in the fatal 2020 shooting of 23-year-old Casey Goodson Jr.

Opening statements began after a jury panel, made up of nine women and three men, was seated in a Columbus, Ohio, courtroom on Wednesday afternoon, according to ABC Columbus station WSYX.

Meade's second trial comes more than two years after his first trial ended in a mistrial in February 2024, as jurors failed to reach an agreement on the verdict. He has pleaded not guilty.

Special prosecutor Tim Merkle delivered opening statements for the state, telling the panel of 12 jurors about the “six shots in the back” that killed Goodson.

"Six shots in the back," Merkle said. "The evidence will show that on Dec. 4, 2020 the defendant shot Casey Goodson Jr. six times in the back, killing him. At the time Casey was - had entered his house, he was carrying a bag of Subways and was listening to YouTube music on his airpods."

Kaitlyn Stephens, a defense attorney for Meade, delivered opening statements for the defense, arguing that Meade's fatal shooting of Goodson was a "justified tragedy" that occurred because Meade perceived a "threat" after Goodson "pointed a gun" at the sheriff's deputy -- a claim that prosecutors dispute.

"The evidence will show that Jason Meade was justified -- a justified tragedy as such," Stephens said.

Merkle claimed the Meade’s own words to another officer, who arrived on the scene after the fatal shooting, will contradict the claim previously made by Meade and his defense team that he shot Goodson because he pointed a gun at Meade.

"Mr. Meade stated to another officer on that day that Casey was going into the house with a gun as he was pulling up," Merkle said. "Notably absent from that statement was any talk about Casey pointing the gun at Mr. Meade prior to him shooting."

Meade, who testified during his first trial, claimed that he shot Goodson on Dec. 4, 2020, because he said the man waved a gun at him. Goodson's family said that he was shot while returning from a dentist appointment and was walking into his grandmother's home with a Subway sandwich in his hand.’

A gun was found in Goodson's possession with the safety on, according to police. Goodson was a legal gun owner and had a concealed carry permit, which was found in his wallet, police said.

Merkle argued that at the time of the shooting Goodson, who was a legal gun owner, had his "safety" on the weapon and was unlocking the door to his home and was walking in and "that is not a threat."

"He's going into the house with a gun. That is not an imminent threat, that is not an immediate threat, that is not a threat," Merkle said. Stephens told jurors that the law requires them to consider the incident from Meade's perspective "as a reasonable" law enforcement officer.

"Our defense will require you to answer two questions. Question one, did Jason believe he was about to be shot when he saw Mr. Goodson point the gun at him?" Stephens said. "And question two was Jason's decision to use deadly force reasonable through the eyes of a reasonable police officer standing in Jason's shoes without 2020 hindsight.” No body camera video of the incident exists because at the time Franklin County Sheriff's deputies were not issued body-worn camera equipment.

Meade was working with the U.S. Marshals in search for a potential violent fugitive when he fatally shot Goodson.

Goodson was not the target of the search.

The Franklin County Coroner's Office found that Goodson had been shot six times from behind, including five times in his back.

A judge ruled ahead of the trial that Meade will be allowed to argue self-defense during his second trial, according to WSYX.

Prosecutors had argued that Meade should not be able to claim self-defense because he caused the situation that led to Goodson's death, WSYX reported, but the judge ruled that Meade does have the option to argue self-defense because no evidence has been presented yet in this new trial.

Seth Walton, an attorney representing Goodson's family, told ABC News on Wednesday that the family has endured "years of coordinated lies and distortions" as they cope with Goodson's death.

"The only evidence that Casey Goodson, Jr. did anything to contribute to his own death comes from Jason Meade, and Jason Meade alone," Walton said. "No independent witness. No footage. Just the word of the man who shot him in the back. And yet, despite everything Meade has claimed, the facts and evidence were strong enough to indict him and nearly convict him at the end of the last trial."

Brian Steel, president of the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge No. 9 -- the union that represents Meade -- has supported him and claimed that shooting was justified.

"We just want the facts of this case to get out there, and where the jury lands, the jury lands," Steel told WSYX.

"The reality is, he was not just an innocent person with a subway sandwich; he was an individual with a gun, pointed a gun at a cop, and the cop reacted," Steel added.

ABC News reached out to Meade's attorneys for comment.

Meade was charged with two counts of murder and one court of reckless homicide in Dec. 2, 2021, and was indicted by a grand jury.

Franklin County Prosecuting Attorney Gary Tyack appointed two special prosecutors in June 2021 to investigate the case, citing a potential conflict of interest with his office, which has represented the Franklin County Sheriff's Office in legal proceedings.

The charges against Meade were brought by special prosecutors Tim Merkle and Gary Shroyer following an investigation by the Columbus Division of Police and the local branch of the FBI.

Meade was placed on administrative leave amid the investigation before retiring on disability on July 2, 2021.

This case led to widespread outrage and fueled pressure for the Franklin County Sheriff's Office to equip deputies with body-worn cameras -- a new policy that was rolled out in 2022, WSYX reported.

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(DESTIN, Fla.) -- A former police officer who allegedly was traveling to Louisiana to conduct a mass shooting at a large festival was arrested Wednesday night in a Florida hotel where investigators found a gun and nearly 200 rounds of ammunition, authorities said.

Christopher Gillum, of Chapel Hill, North Carolina, was wanted by the Louisiana Department of Public Safety "for terroristic threats" and was arrested at a hotel in Destin, Florida, the Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office said in a statement Thursday.

"Authorities obtained information Gillum planned to travel to a festival in New Orleans to conduct a mass shooting and then commit suicide by cop," the sheriff's office said.

When officers arrested Gillum, they recovered a handgun and approximately 200 rounds of ammunition from his hotel room, the sheriff's office alleged.

Attorney information for the suspect was not immediately available.

Gillum was a Chapel Hill Police officer from 2004 until 2019, when he resigned, a spokesman for the town of Chapel Hill said in a statement.

"He returned as a non-sworn employee in 2024 before leaving for another job by the end of that year," Alex Carrasquillo, the town's spokesman, said in a statement.

Gillum was being held in a Florida jail and awaiting extradition to Louisiana, the sheriff's office said.

The Louisiana State Police did not say which festival the suspect was allegedly targeting, but said in a statement Thursday that "there are no known direct threats to any festivals in Louisiana."

The state police will be conducting the ongoing investigation with the FBI, according to the department.

"Excellent work by Louisiana State Police and the FBI as part of their Joint Terrorism Task Force on this case," Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill said in a statement to ABC News.

The FBI did not immediately return messages for comment.

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(BRANTLEY COUNTY, Ga.) -- At least 1,000 homes are being threatened by two major wildfires in Georgia that have burned more than 34,000 acres combined, according to officials.

Dry conditions from a persistent drought and gusty winds continue to fuel the wildfires in Georgia, Florida and elsewhere across the Southeast.

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp declared a state of emergency for 91 counties in South Georgia.

The two major wildfires burning in Southeast Georgia are the Highway 82 Fire in Brantley County, and the Pinelands Road Fire in nearby Clinch County, officials said.

The Highway 82 fire, which started on Monday, had grown to roughly 5,000 acres and had destroyed at least 54 homes, County Manager Joey Carson said at a news conference on Wednesday. The fire was 15% contained on Thursday morning, according to the Georgia Forestry Commission.

Hundreds of homes are in danger of being burned in the Highway 82 Fire, according to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), which sent assets and personnel to the area on Wednesday to assist in fighting the fire and helping the community recover.

On Thursday morning, Seth Hawkins, spokesperson for the Georgia Forestry Commission, said no additional homes have been lost in the Highway 82 Fire since Tuesday.

Hawkins told reporters that overnight, the fire calmed as the humidity rose. But with shifting winds and falling humidity expected on Thursday, Hawkins said it's likely going to be "a pretty high fire activity day."

"Humidity is going to drop down probably to 26, 27% this afternoon," Hawkins said. "Winds are going to pull a complete 180 shift, which is pretty normal for this part of the world. But when you have those low humidities and this drought, it becomes a problem."

In an update Thursday on the Highway 82 Fire, which is burning northwest of Brunswick, Georgia, the fire incident command said in a statement that "wind conditions remain unpredictable and could cause conditions to change rapidly."

The Pinelands Road Fire started over the weekend on mostly private forest land, officials said. It grew from about 9,000 acres on Wednesday morning to more than 29,600 acres as of Thursday morning and was spreading toward Echols County, according to officials.

The fire was threatening 64 homes and 37 other structures in the area on Wednesday evening, but there were no reports of homes being destroyed, according to the Georgia Forestry Commission, which said that the fire also was 10% contained on Thursday morning.

FEMA said on Wednesday said that the two fires are threatening 1,000 homes. The agency sent assets and personnel to assist in battling fires and helping communities recover after the agency approved a Fire Management Assistance declaration.

"Obviously, this fire became a lot larger than we thought it would be on Monday. We've got resources that have come in from all over South Georgia and now from the state," Carson said Wednesday, adding that he expected more resources from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to arrive later that day.

Heavy smoke from the South Georgia fires was drifting more than 400 miles, to as far north as Atlanta, prompting 911 calls from people concerned that the fires were close by, according to Atlanta Fire and Rescue.

"If you see an active fire, please do call, but keep in mind a lot of the smoke and what you're smelling is coming from South Georgia," Capt. Andrew Anderson of Atlanta Fire and Rescue told ABC Atlanta affiliate station WSB.

Chuck White, director of Emergency Management in neighboring Camden County, said at the news conference on Wednesday that some homeowners in the path of the Highway 82 Fire "have lost everything."

"I'll be very honest with you and say it's a miracle that we have not had any lives lost," Carson said Wednesday afternoon, adding the blaze was among 90 wildfires that have ignited across the state since Saturday.

Schools in Brantley County canceled classes for the second day in a row on Thursday due to the fire threat and smoke, officials said.

"This decision has been made to ensure the safety of our students, families, and employees, and to allow our Brantley County families time and space to navigate the impacts of the fire," the local school system said in a statement on Wednesday.

On Tuesday, students and staff at two schools in the Brantley County town of Waynesville were forced to evacuate during the school day, officials said.

The Georgia Forestry Commission also issued its first mandatory burn ban in state history on Wednesday. The ban on outdoor burning, which will remain in effect for at least 30 days, is for 91 counties in the lower half of the state due to worsening drought conditions and rising wildfire activity, the agency said.

Carson noted that firefighters nearly had the Brantley County fire under control on Tuesday until afternoon wind gusts escalated the fire danger.

"Within 30 minutes, the winds picked up pretty significantly, and it went from being almost in control to a major wildfire," Cason said. "Yesterday morning, we had 700 acres burned. It burned over 4,000 acres in a matter of hours as soon as the wind picked up."

Persistent dry conditions have led to one of the worst droughts on record for parts of Georgia, fueling wildfires in the state.

According to the U.S. Drought Monitor, more than 48% of Brantley County is under what is called an Exceptional Drought – the highest level of drought it has experienced in more than 25 years.

Across Georgia, more than 69% of the state is under an Extreme Drought. At the start of the year, only 1% of the state was under an Extreme Drought or higher.

Georgia needs between 12 and 18 inches of rainfall to end its current drought, according to data from the National Centers for Environmental Information.

In Florida, near the Georgia-Florida line, the Railroad Fire was burning in Clay and Putnam Counties, which are also under drought conditions. As of Wednesday morning, the Railroad Fire had grown to more than 4,000 acres and was more than 50% contained on Wednesday morning, according to the Florida Forest Service.

Across the Southeast – including Florida, Alabama, Georgia, South and North Carolina and Virginia – more than 97% of the region is under a moderate drought or higher.

Florida is experiencing its worst drought in 25 years, with at least 71% of the state under an extreme or exceptional drought, the two highest levels, the Florida Forest Service said.

Fire alerts issued from Texas to Montana and Minnesota

Meanwhile, pockets of fire weather continue to linger in parts of the Rockies and Great Plains on Wednesday.

More than a dozen states across the Rockies and Plains from Texas to Montana and Minnesota were under fire weather alerts on Wednesday due to hot, dry and windy conditions.

Relative humidity in parts of the Rockies and Plains on Wednesday was expected to fall to as low as 5%, and wind gusts up to 30 to 45 mph are also forecast, allowing any wildfires to rapidly start and spread.

The wildfire threat is expected to continue Thursday in the Rockies and Plains as wind gusts are forecast to reach 60 mph and relative humidity is expected to be down to the single digits.

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(WASHINGTON) -- The Justice Department's internal watchdog announced Thursday it is launching an audit into the DOJ's compliance with the Epstein Files Transparency Act, according to a statement from deputy inspector general William Blier.

The announcement of the DOJ inspector general's review follows growing criticism from lawmakers questioning whether the department has openly defied the Act, which mandated that it release all of its internal files related to deceased sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

According to Blier, the IG's office will look at how the Justice Department identified, redacted and released the millions of records and whether its actions adhered to the law.

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche has stated repeatedly that the DOJ has complied with the law, even as he has acknowledged that the department continues to withhold millions of more pages that he says aren't relevant to the law's demands.

The surprise announcement also comes after months of growing pressure from Democrats on Capitol Hill who have demanded DOJ's inspector general launch reviews into numerous DOJ actions taken under the Trump administration, ranging from its handling of Trump's immigration crackdown to the DOJ's pursuit of the president's perceived political enemies.

Until now, those demands had largely been met with silence from the IG, following the departure of longtime inspector general Michael Horowitz last year. 

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(SYOSSET, N.Y.) -- A New York father and son were arrested and charged after investigators discovered chemicals at their residence that had been combined to create explosive materials, according to police. 

Investigators discovered the chemicals while they were looking into a "bias incident" in which a swastika was drawn in a male bathroom at Syosset High School on Wednesday, according to the Nassau County Police Department. 

Investigators alleged the 15-year-old boy drew the swastika, police said. 

Francisco Sanles, 48, has been charged with two counts of criminal possession of a weapon, two counts of criminal facilitation, two counts of endangering the welfare of a child and reckless endangerment.

The unnamed teen has been charged with two counts of criminal possession of a weapon, criminal mischief, aggravated harassment and making graffiti, police said.  

When the chemicals were found, officers evacuated the home and began evacuating the residents of neighboring homes. 

"The Nassau County Fire Marshal, Arson Bomb Squad, Nassau County Police Emergency Service Unit (ESU) were all notified and responded to the scene. The Nassau County Hazardous Material (HAZMAT) Response Team also responded and carefully removed the hazardous material from the home," police said in a statement Thursday. 

Further investigation revealed Sanles paid for the various chemicals on several occasions. He was then arrested, according to police.

Students and staff at Syosset High School were notified of the bias graffiti and ongoing investigation in an email from the school district on Wednesday night, according to a copy obtained by WABC. 

"I am writing to inform you that the District found swastikas and racial epithets above urinals at Syosset High School. The District immediately commenced an investigation and notified the Nassau County Police Department. Our investigation identified the person responsible and this is now a criminal matter with an active police investigation," the school district wrote. 

"We are cooperating fully with our partners in law enforcement and remain in constant contact with them as their investigation continues. This student will also face serious consequences pursuant to the District's Code of Conduct," the district said. 

Sanles will be arraigned Thursday at First District Court in Hempstead, police said. The unnamed teen will be arraigned in Nassau County Family Court, police said.

No attorney information for Sanles and his son is listed in court records. 

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(LOS ANGELES) -- A man is charged with murder for allegedly beating an 84-year-old man with dementia and setting him on fire, Los Angeles prosecutors said.

The victim, Bang Cho, had wandered away from a senior care home when he was attacked just before midnight on Sunday in downtown LA, the Los Angeles County District Attorney's office said.

The incident unfolded when Cho walked behind the suspect, Lavonta Wilder, and grabbed a bag Wilder was carrying, prosecutors said.

Wilder, a 40-year-old experiencing homelessness, allegedly "viciously" punched and kicked Cho, then lifted the elderly man over his shoulder and slammed him to the ground, and then set him on fire, prosecutors said.

Cho was taken to a hospital where he died the next day, prosecutors said.

Wilder is charged with murder and faces a special allegation of having a prior serious felony, prosecutors said. He's due in court for an arraignment next month.

"The level of violence alleged here is brutal, callous and extreme," LA County District Attorney Nathan Hochman said in a statement.

Cho "was disoriented and living with dementia, conditions that made him particularly vulnerable," Hochman said. "Our thoughts are with the victim's family as they endure this unimaginable tragedy."

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(LOS ANGELES) -- The 14-year-old girl whose dismembered remains authorities say were found decomposing in the singer D4vd's towed Tesla last year died by "multiple penetrating injuries," according to the newly unsealed medical examiner's report.

D4vd -- a 21-year-old Los Angeles resident whose legal name is David Burke -- has been charged with first-degree murder in connection with the death of the teen, Celeste Rivas Hernandez, officials said. The "Romantic Homicide" singer was arrested last week following a monthslong investigation.

The Los Angeles County medical examiner found she had two penetrating wounds to her torso, including injury to her liver, and reported evidence of traumatic injury. There were presumptive positives for benzodiazepines and meth/MDMA in her system, the report stated.

There was severe postmortem change to her body based on how long she had been dead.

The report lists the place and date of injury as "unknown," and the manner of death as homicide.

The death investigation report was completed on Dec. 9, 2025, though it had remained under seal until the court ordered its release this week.

D4vd faces a slew of charges and special circumstances alleging he continuously committed "lewd and lascivious sexual acts" with the teen while she was under the age of 14, and that he killed her for financial gain "to maintain his very lucrative musical career that Celeste was threatening" to expose, Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman said during a press briefing on Monday. The charges also allege he unlawfully mutilated human remains, Hochman said.

A not guilty plea was entered on D4vd's behalf during his arraignment on Monday, and he remains held on no bail.

A status conference in the case is scheduled for Thursday.

Rivas Hernandez, a reported runaway from Riverside County, was last known to be alive on April 23, 2025, when she arrived at D4vd's home in the Hollywood Hills, according to Los Angeles Police Chief Jim McDonnell. She was never heard from again, Hochman said.

On Sept. 8, 2025, her badly decomposed, dismembered body was found in the trunk of D4vd's abandoned, impounded Tesla at a Hollywood tow yard, officials said.

Her head and torso were found in one bag, and her arms and legs in another, according to the court documents from Hochman filed in connection with a Los Angeles County grand jury investigation in connection with the teen's death.

The Tesla had been at the impound lot for two days after being found abandoned on a Hollywood street, investigators said. The teen may have been dead for several weeks before her body was discovered, police said. Her remains were found a day after her 15th birthday, according to her death certificate.

D4vd's attorneys have maintained the "Romantic Homicide" singer's innocence since his arrest last Thursday.

"The actual evidence in this case will show that David Burke did not murder Celeste Rivas Hernandez and he was not the cause of her death," his attorneys, Blair Berk, Marilyn Bednarski and Regina Peter, said in a statement on Monday. "We will vigorously defend David's innocence." 

In a statement released through the family's attorney on Tuesday, the teen's parents remembered her as a "beautiful, strong girl who loved to sing and dance."

"We love her very much and she always told us that she loved us. We miss her deeply," her parents, Jesus Rivas and Mercedes Martinez, said. "All we want is justice for Celeste."

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(NEW YORK) -- A 56-year-old Louisiana man is facing federal charges for allegedly supplying an assault-style pistol that Shamar Elkins is suspected of using to allegedly kill eight children, including seven of his own, in a shooting in Shreveport over the weekend, officials said.

Charles Ford, of Shreveport, was arrested and charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm and making false statements about the firearm to federal agents assisting in the investigation of Sunday's massacre, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of Louisiana. He faces a total of up to 20 years in prison if convicted of both charges, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.

"Words fall short in the face of the acts Shamar Elkins perpetrated in Shreveport on April 19 – they are beyond comprehension or description," U.S. Attorney Zachary A. Keller said in the statement announcing the charges.

Elkins, 31, died after leading police on a chase following the mass shooting in Shreveport that also left two women hospitalized with gunshot wounds.

Keller said investigators probing how Elkins obtained the weapon were led to Ford through information they obtained from the original purchaser of the weapon.

"Elkins' death means that our community will never see him face justice," Keller said. "Our hope, as we continue to investigate and prosecute this case alongside our law enforcement partners, is that holding the person whose gun Elkins used to perpetrate the crime accountable will give some small bit of solace to our Shreveport community."

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

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(NEW YORK) -- Two people died and at least 19 others were injured following a chemical leak at a West Virginia refinery plant that was scheduled to be shut down Wednesday morning, officials said.

Kanawha County Commission President Ben Salango told reporters that workers were cleaning and decontaminating the Catalyst Refiners plant in Nitro, West Virginia, which is in the process of shutting down, when the incident took place around 9:30 a.m.

Kanawha County Emergency Manager CW Sigman said that as the workers were decommissioning a tank, nitric acid and M2000A were mixed, creating hydrogen sulfide.

"We could smell it downwind," Sigman told reporters at a news conference.

A total of 21 people were taken to the hospital, two of whom died, according to Salango. Frank Barber, the president of Ames Goldsmith Corp, which owns the plant, said in a statement that the unidentified deceased victims were employees of the company.

One victim was listed in critical condition as of Wednesday afternoon, according to Salango. Barber said that the victim was also an employee of Ames Goldsmith.

Seven of the hospitalized victims were EMS crews who rushed to respond to the scene, Sigman said.

"They put themselves in harm's way to try and save a life," he said.

The plant was used to refine silver, according to Salango.

Sigman said that some of the employees immediately put on respirators and helped to get the people inside the plant out of harm's way.

Sigman said the investigation is ongoing and will involve state and federal agencies as they try to get more answers as to how the incident took place.

He said that according to the plant manager, it was not uncommon for decontamination crews to mix the nitric acid and M2000A.

"But there was something going on that was different. That will [be] for the investigators to determine," Sigman said of the decommission procedures.

A shelter-in-place was ordered for the surrounding area as investigators determine the extent of the leak.

Sigman said that fire officials have visited and toured the plant "in the last few months," and met with plant managers about emergency response.

Barber said Ames Goldsmith is working with investigators in their probe.

"This is an unfathomably difficult time. Our thoughts and prayers are with our colleagues and their families," he said.

West Virginia Gov. Patrick Morrisey said he was monitoring the situation.

"We are working around the clock with local officials to ensure this incident is contained and that all necessary state resources are on the ground to protect the community," he said in a statement.

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(NEW YORK) -- Ghislaine Maxwell, the convicted co-conspirator of the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, is again asking a federal judge in New York to vacate her sex trafficking conviction and release her from prison.

Maxwell submitted her new request, which she wrote herself, to federal prosecutors in New York, who said they received "a FedEx envelope -- marked with a 'ship date' of April 16, 2026 -- that contained a USB drive with the defendant's amended motion and exhibits," according to a letter to the district court that was posted online early Monday morning.

Prosecutors did not disclose details of Maxwell's argument, which has not yet been filed on the public docket, but said it "seems to have some overlap" with her original motion to dismiss that district and appellate courts rejected in 2024. The U.S. Supreme Court subsequently declined to hear her appeal.

Having exhausted all of her direct appeals, Maxwell filed a habeas petition this past December in which she contended that "substantial new evidence has emerged" regarding her case. Maxwell's submission this week comes after the district court judge, in February, allowed Maxwell to submit an amendment to that petition following the Justice Department's release of the Epstein files.

Maxwell previously argued, unsuccessfully, that her conviction and her 20-year sentence should be tossed because she did not receive a fair trial and was covered by the non-prosecution agreement that Epstein's attorneys had negotiated for him as part of the wealthy financier's 2028 plea deal.

She also argued her conviction was based on vague allegations of "grooming" victims that did not amount to a crime.

Maxwell is currently serving her sentence for aiding and participating in Epstein's trafficking of underage girls, which involved a scheme to recruit young women and girls for massages of Epstein that turned sexual. Federal prosecutors in New York said Maxwell helped Epstein recruit, groom and ultimately abuse girls as young as 14.

In an interview with then-Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche last month, Ghislaine Maxwell said nothing during the interview that would be harmful to President Donald Trump, telling Blanche that Trump had never done anything in her presence that would have caused concern, according to sources familiar with what Maxwell said.

Epstein died by suicide in a New York jail in 2019.

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(NEW YORK) -- A baby girl was found abandoned in a stroller in New York City's Times Square, and a search is underway for the child's father, authorities said.

Police responded to a report of an abandoned baby by West 44th Street and Seventh Avenue shortly after 11 p.m. Tuesday night.

The 1-year-old girl was found in a stroller conscious and alert and appeared to be unharmed, authorities said.

She was taken to an area hospital for evaluation and is reported to be in stable condition.

Detectives are searching for the baby's father, who police say may have taken the girl during a dispute with the child's mother and was the last person seen with her.

Police said the father knocked the stroller over onto the sidewalk in Times Square and ran away. He is being sought for child abandonment and custodial interference, authorities said.

The father is believed to be homeless and is known to hang around the Times Square area often, authorities said.

Police are pulling surveillance cameras in the area to try to retrace his steps.

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