Crime
Funeral arrangements for Roger Fortson, a black member of the United States Air Force murdered in his home by a Florida deputy
STONECREST, Ga. (AP) – A funeral will likely be held Friday for a Black U.S. Air Force senior airman who was shot and killed in his Florida home by a sheriff’s deputy, a day after the decorated soldier’s mother married in an emotional news conference to hunt justice for her son.
Roger Fortson’s service will likely be held at New Birth Missionary Baptist Church in the Atlanta suburb of Stonecrest. He grew up in the area before joining the Air Force. The 23-year-old was a senior airman who had served in overseas combat zones and was stationed at Hurlburt Field in the Florida Panhandle when he was shot and killed by a police deputy responding to a domestic violence call.
During Thursday’s news conference, an attorney for Fortson’s family pointed to police radio and body camera footage that he said showed the deputy went to the incorrect apartment.
The airman’s mother, Meka Fortson, spoke enthusiastically about how her son was all the time on target, never in trouble or showing signs of violence.
“Roger was light. There was no stain on his name. He won’t be buried in darkness because he was light,” she said during a press conference.
She also had a message for Okaloosa County Sheriff Eric Aden: “You’re going to give me justice whether you want it or not, Sheriff Aden,” she said.
The deputy, whose name has not been released, shot Fortson six times on May 3 inside moments of Fortson responding to a knock and opening the door to his apartment while holding a gun pointed at the ground.
Sheriff’s officials say a sheriff’s deputy acted in self-defense when responding to a call about a possible domestic disturbance occurring at an apartment complex.
The Fortson family and their attorney, Ben Crump, argue that the shooting was completely unjustified, claiming that Roger Fortson was home alone with his girlfriend at the time via FaceTiming and that the deputy went to the incorrect unit.
Aden denied allegations that the deputy went to the incorrect apartment, claiming at a May 9 news conference that he was aware of comments that “falsely state that our deputy went to the wrong apartment.”
Two weeks after the shooting, the sheriff has yet to release the incident report, any 911 records or the officer’s identity, despite requests for information under Florida’s Open Records Act.
A gradual stream of mourners attended Thursday’s wake at Fortson, including some who didn’t know the family. Among them was Conseulla Childs from nearby Lithuania, who said she hated to see such young people lose their lives.
“I can only imagine getting the call saying you need to bury your child and get him home by the scheduled time,” she said. “It’s just heartbreaking to hear news like this, so I just wanted to come and pay my respects.”
Charles Dorsey, from nearby Decatur, arrived wearing a hat that read “U.S. Air Force Vietnam Veteran.”
“I was looking at the news and saw what happened… and it reminded me of when I was in the Air Force. In fact, he had the same rank as me when I was in the Air Force,” Dorsey said. “I wanted to put on my Air Force hat and show respect to the family.”
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Radio transmissions from police during Thursday’s news conference support the family’s claim that the deputy can have gone to the incorrect apartment. In the recording, the dispatcher said the only thing they knew about the disturbance was “third-party information.”
“Uh, I don’t have anything other than a male and a female,” the dispatcher told officers. “This is all third-party information from the front desk of the rental office.”
Crump also pointed to 2 excerpts from the deputy’s bodycam video in which the deputy asks a woman leading him around the complex, “Which door?” The woman replied, “Hmm… I’m not sure.” Seconds later, she told the deputy that she had heard the static two weeks earlier but “wasn’t sure where it was coming from.”
Bodycam video shows the deputy arriving at a Fort Walton Beach apartment complex and talking to a woman outside who described hearing an argument. The deputy then took the elevator and walked through the outside hallway.
The video shows a police deputy banging on the door and moving to the side, seemingly out of sight of the door. He shouted twice, “Sheriff’s office! Open the door!”
Fortson, who was legally in possession of a firearm, opened the door with his gun pointed toward the floor. The deputy shouted, “Stand back!” after which shot Fortson six times. Only then did he shout: “Drop your weapon! Drop your weapon!” The deputy then radioed for paramedics.
Crump said Fortson was talking to his girlfriend on FaceTime and grabbed his gun because he heard someone leaving his apartment. The deputy then forced his way into the apartment, he said, citing the account of the girl, who has not yet been identified.
The case is one of many across the country in which law enforcement officers have shot and killed black people in their homes.
Crump, a outstanding civil rights activist, said the family wouldn’t allow the case to be forgotten or hidden.
“We must hold them accountable. If we do not do it, they will not do anything,” he said.
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement is investigating and the deputy has been placed on administrative leave.
A form of shrine has emerged in front of Fortson’s apartment, where people have left behind combat boots, bouquets of flowers and an American flag, amongst other things.
Fortson was stationed at Hurlburt Field near Fort Walton Beach, Florida. He was a gunner aboard an AC-130J and won the Air Medal for combat device, which will likely be awarded after completing 20 sorties in a combat zone or for conspicuous valor or achievement in a single mission.
He was assigned to the 4th Special Operations Squadron as a special mission aviator, where one of his roles was loading a gunship’s 30mm and 105mm guns.
Crime
Luigi Mangione, 26, in police custody in connection with the shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO
New York authorities have identified 26-year-old Luigi Mangione as an individual of interest in the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson.
According to police, a McDonald’s worker recognized Mangione in a photograph taken by NYPD Crime Stoppers and called authorities to report that he was eating at the restaurant, which led to his arrest.
Police say Mangione was carrying an anti-corporate manifesto, false identification and a ghost gun.
“It fits the description we were looking for,” Mayor Eric Adams said. An early NYPD report drew criticism online for calling the suspect a “light-skinned male” fairly than simply saying he was white.
The New York Post reports that Mangione previously attended the University of Pennsylvania, was valedictorian of the highschool in 2016 and had ties to Towson, Maryland. His social media posts indicate motivation related to dissatisfaction with the health care industry.
The shooting gained national attention because of the lukewarm response to Thompson’s death from many voters, who criticized the high insurance denial rate and greed that contributed to the American loss of life.
NYPD officers will now travel to Pennsylvania to query Mangione. Watch the entire press conference below:
Crime
OJ Simpson’s audio testimony claims have been proven false
Iroc Avelli, OJ Simpson’s former bodyguard, claimed to have a recording of the late NFL player admitting to killing Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman. According to .evaluation of the audio recording showed the claim to be false.
In June 2024, the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) contacted the Bloomington, Minnesota police department to realize access to thumb drives confiscated during Avelli’s 2022 arrest.
Bloomington Police Department arrested Avelli for alleged assault in 2022; upon arrest, the police seized Avelli’s backpack and obtained an order to gather relevant evidence on the scene. The backpack contained multiple flash drives that the previous security guard said contained Simpson’s confessions.
According to Peasant! News“search warrant filed in Hennepin County requested by Officer George Harms seek for image pendrives in order that “a full forensic examination could possibly be carried out on all of the pendrives to acquire the recording.”
The Bloomington Police Department didn’t return the drives, opting as an alternative to conduct an internal forensic examination. After a digital forensics specialist examined the drives, Bloomington police didn’t disclose any information of “probative value” to the Los Angeles Police Department.
The further investigation into the Simpson and Goldman murders is strange because on October 3, 1995, OJ Simpson was acquitted of all charges. The former San Francisco 49er maintained his innocence until his death from cancer on April 11, 2024.
After his acquittal, OJ Simpson continued to benefit from his fame. In 1996, the Buffalo Bills player published a book titled If I Did It: Confessions of a Killer. Many found the book’s title and content distasteful and criticized it Naked weapon the actor’s constant presence in celebrity culture.
However, many individuals imagine that Simpson’s acquittal ought to be enough to just accept his presence in all spaces. BLACK ENTERPRISES reports on rapper Cam’Ron’s response to criticism after Simpson was invited on his sports show before his death.
The It is what it’s the host and businessman believes that the accusations – proven in court – shouldn’t result in ostracization. Cam’Ron believes that Simpson’s race may have played a job in continuously questioning his innocence throughout his life.
“Look, if he was guilty, we wouldn’t have him on the show,” he said. “You wish to proceed convicting an innocent man. He is innocent. If it was another person, whiter, you’d all say, “Oh, he’s innocent.” TO BE reported.
It appears that the hearings and investigation into Orenthol James Simpson’s role, or lack thereof, in his ex-wife’s murder will proceed even after his death.
Crime
Suspect charged with fatally shooting 3-year-old on Thanksgiving Day
Tatisha Refuge, a 47-year-old New Orleans resident, turned herself in to authorities after the death of 3-year-old Rudy Ratliff. Refuge is charged with “manslaughter by negligence.”
Rudy’s mother, Leshawn Ratliff, lives in Texas but visited Refuge, her foster mother, in the previous few days of Thanksgiving. Nov 8 News.
“I came here on Saturday to pick up my older son. He was here over Thanksgiving break, and I came down on Saturday to pick him up so we could go home on Sunday and they could go back to school on Monday.” Ratliff he said.
While playing UNO, Refuge’s unsecured gun fell from her belt and fired, striking Rudy. Ratliff she recounted how the scene unfolded when she discovered Rudy had been shot.
“I began seeing blood coming out of his chest. That’s once I knew he had been shot. So I called 911.
The mother didn’t wish to wait for 911. Instead, she decided to take Rudy to University Medical Center for treatment. She said that after they arrived at the ability, Rudy seemed to be alive. Unfortunately, 20 minutes later she was informed of his death.
Tatisha Refuge has been charged with negligent homicide within the shooting death of 3-year-old Rudy Ratliff. #Khou11 @AmandaHTV
https://t.co/BFIeGhAHYG— KHOU 11 Houston News (@KHOU) December 4, 2024
Ratliff she nurtured her relationship with Refuge and is torn now that the accusations involve her foster mother.
“It was a random shooting. His grandfather’s gun fell. It wasn’t within the secure. It wasn’t within the gun position. I believe it went into the pocket and fell out and shot my son,” Ratliff said. “I understand it was a mistake. I imagine in my heart that it was a mistake. I just don’t understand. I just don’t understand.
The grieving mother began a GoFundMe and is asking the general public for help with Rudy’s burial. To support the Ratliff family of their time of need, click here.
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