CHICAGO (AP) — Mass shootings and violence killed and wounded people across the United States this weekend, including at least 60 shot in the Chicago area alone. Four people were found shot to death in a small Idaho town, a Pennsylvania state trooper was killed in an ambush, and bullets struck 11 teenagers, killing one, at a party in Missouri.

The shootings happened in cities and rural areas alike, following a surge in homicides and other violence over the past several years that accelerated during the coronavirus pandemic. Officers responded to mass shootings in Washington state, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Southern California, Milwaukee and Baltimore.

“There’s no question there’s been a spike in violence,” said Daniel Nagin, a professor of public policy and statistics at Carnegie Mellon University. “Some of these cases seem to be just disputes, often among adolescents, and those disputes are played out with firearms, not with fists.”

Researchers disagree over the cause. Theories include the possibility that violence is driven by the prevalence of guns in America, or by less aggressive police tactics or a decline in prosecutions for misdemeanor weapon offenses, Nagin said.

Only the Idaho killings fit the definition of a mass killing in which four or more people die, not including the shooter. However, the number of injured in most of the weekend cases matches the widely accepted definition for mass shootings.

Here’s a look at some of the shootings this weekend:

CHICAGO

Five people were shot, two fatally on the city’s South Side on Sunday evening when someone opened fire from a car that pulled up to a gathering, according to police.

Another four men were shot, one fatally, during an altercation in a garage in the West Side neighborhood of Austin around 3 a.m. Sunday, police said. Five others including a teenage girl were shot early Saturday near Lincoln Park Zoo, and two dozen more were shot in other incidents since Friday evening, city data shows.

Meanwhile in the suburbs, at least 23 people were shot, one fatally, early Sunday in a parking lot where hundreds of people had gathered to celebrate Juneteenth, authorities said.

The White House issued a statement calling the violence a tragedy and saying the president was thinking of those killed and injured. Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker said in a statement that he was monitoring the investigation.

KELLOGG, IDAHO

Police in Idaho arrested a suspect in a shooting that killed four people on Sunday at an apartment complex behind a church.

Responding officers found four people, all dead from gunshot wounds, at a residence in Kellogg that’s behind the Mountain View Congregational Church, according to the Shoshone County Sheriff’s Office and news reports. Idaho State Police said a 31-year-old man was detained, KXLY-TV reported.

ST. LOUIS

An early Sunday shooting in a downtown St. Louis office building killed a 17-year-old and wounded 11 other teenagers, the city’s police commissioner said.

St. Louis Metropolitan Police Commissioner Robert Tracy identified the victim who was killed as 17-year-old Makao Moore. A spokesman said a minor who had a handgun was in police custody as a person of interest.

Teenagers were having a party in an office space when the shooting broke out around 1 a.m. Sunday.

The victims ranged from 15 to 19 years old. A 17-year-old girl was trampled as she fled, seriously injuring her spine, Tracy said.

WASHINGTON STATE

Two people were killed and two others were injured when a shooter began firing “randomly” into a crowd at a Washington state campground where many people were staying to attend a nearby music festival on Saturday night, police said.

The suspect was shot in a confrontation with law enforcement officers and taken into custody, several hundred yards from the Beyond Wonderland electronic dance music festival.

CENTRAL PENNSYLVANIA

One state trooper was killed and a second critically wounded just hours apart in central Pennsylvania on Saturday after a gunman attacked a state police barracks.

The suspect drove his truck into the parking lot of the Lewistown barracks about 11 a.m. Saturday and opened fire with a large-caliber rifle on marked patrol cars before fleeing, authorities said Sunday.

Lt. James Wagner, 45, was critically wounded when he was shot after encountering the suspect several miles away in Mifflintown. Later, Trooper Jacques Rougeau Jr., 29, was ambushed and killed by a gunshot through the windshield of his patrol car as he drove down a road in nearby Walker Township, authorities said.

The suspect was shot and killed after a fierce gunbattle, said Lt. Col. George Bivens.

“What I witnessed … was one of the most intense, unbelievable gunfights I have ever witnessed,” Bivens said, lauding troopers for launching an aggressive search despite facing a weapon that “would defeat any of the body armor that they had available to them.”

A motive was not immediately known.

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA

A shooting at a pool party at a Southern California home left eight people wounded, authorities said Saturday.

Authorities were dispatched shortly after midnight in Carson, California, south of Los Angeles, KABC-TV reported.

The victims range in age from 16 to 24, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department said.

BALTIMORE

Six people were injured in a Friday night shooting in Baltimore. All were expected to survive.

Officers heard gunshots in the north of the city just before 9 p.m. and found three men with numerous gunshot wounds. Medics took them to area hospitals for treatment.

Police later learned of three additional victims who walked into area hospitals with non-life-threatening gunshot wounds. The wounded ranged in age from 17 to 26.

SAN FRANCISCO

Six people were injured after a “car-to-car” shooting in the streets of San Francisco on Sunday evening, police said.

Two victims sustained gunshot wounds, one with life-threatening injuries, in the moving shootout beginning shortly before 7 p.m., San Francisco Police Chief Bill Scott said at a news conference Sunday.

Suspects in two cars, a black SUV and a white sedan, “drove very recklessly and chased each other while engaged in gunfire” near the northern waterfront, Scott said. The area includes Fisherman’s Wharf, one of the city’s busiest tourist areas.

Three victims were injured by glass shards caused by “errant gunfire,” Scott said, with none of the injuries considered to be life-threatening.

Two girls, ages 10 and 16, were struck by one of the two vehicles while walking their bicycles across the street. The younger girl was injured and transported to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries while the older girl was not injured.

PHILADELPHIA

A 4-year-old boy was among five victims of a shooting in south Philadelphia Saturday night.

Police responded to the block shortly before 8 p.m. Saturday and found a 58-year-old woman with gunshot wounds to the legs, a 54-year-old woman with gunshot wounds to her wrist and leg, and the boy, who was brought to Presbyterian Hospital with a gunshot wound to the abdomen.

A 30-year-old man also arrived at the hospital with a gunshot wound to the wrist and a 40-year-old man was brought in with a gunshot wound to the abdomen. The last victim was listed in critical condition; all others were said to be in stable condition.

MILWAUKEE

At least six teenagers were shot Monday afternoon around where Milwaukee’s Juneteenth celebration had just wrapped up.

Milwaukee Police Chief Jeffrey Norman said among the wounded was a 17-year-old who may have been a gunman himself and is in custody. Police were still seeking additional suspects who hadn’t yet been identified.

Police said the victims, four girls and two boys, ranged in age from 14-19.

Norman said the shooting may have stemmed from a fight among a number of girls and young women, but he didn’t know what sparked the dispute. The injuries of those wounded varied but did not appear life-threatening, the chief said.

—

Brown contributed from Billings, Mont. Savage is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.

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WASHINGTON (AP) — Warning that democracy itself is in peril, President Joe Biden called on Americans Wednesday night to use their ballots in next week’s midterm elections to stand up against lies, violence and dangerous “ultra MAGA” election disruptors who are trying to “succeed where they failed” in subverting the 2020 elections.

This is no time to stand aside, he declared. “Silence is complicity.”

After weeks of reassuring talk about America’s economy and inflation, Biden turned to a darker, more urgent message, declaring in the final days of midterm election voting that the nation’s system of governance is under threat from former President Donald Trump’s election-denying lies and the violence Biden said they inspire.

The president singled out “ultra MAGA” Republicans — a reference to Trump’s “Make America Great Again” slogan — calling them a minority but “driving force” of the Republican Party.

Pointing in particular to last Friday’s attack on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s husband, Biden said that Trump’s false claims about a stolen election have “fueled the dangerous rise of political violence and voter intimidation over the past two years.”

“There’s an alarming rise in the number of people in this country condoning political violence or simply remaining silent,” Biden added. “In our bones we know democracy is at risk, but we also know this: It’s in our power to preserve our democracy.”

The president’s speech — focused squarely on the rite of voting and the counting of that vote — amounted to a plea for Americans to step back from the inflamed rhetoric that has heightened fears of political violence and challenges to the integrity of the elections. Biden was straddling two roles, speaking as both a president defending the pillars of democracy and a Democrat trying to boost his party’s prospects against Republicans.

He called out the hundreds of candidates who have denied the 2020 election result and now refuse to commit to accepting the results of the upcoming midterms.

“This driving force is trying to succeed where they failed in 2020 to suppress the rights of voters and subvert the electoral system itself,” Biden said.

“That is the path to chaos in America. It’s unprecedented. It’s unlawful. And it is un-American.”

The speech came days after a man seeking to kidnap House Speaker Pelosi severely injured her husband, Paul Pelosi, in their San Francisco home in the worst recent example of the political violence that burst forth with the Jan. 6, 2021 insurrection at the Capitol and has continued with alarming, though less-spectacular incidents.

Election workers nationwide have questioned whether to go back to work following increased intimidation and harassment ahead of Election Day. At least five people have been charged with federal crimes for harassing workers as early voting has gotten underway.

Reports of people watching ballot boxes in Arizona, sometimes armed or wearing ballistic vests, have raised serious concerns about voter intimidation. Election officials nationwide are bracing for confrontations at polling sites. A flood of conspiracy theorists have signed up to work as partisan poll watchers.

Emphasizing that it is the first federal election since the Capitol riot and Trump’s attempts to overturn the 2020 presidential election, Biden called on voters to reject candidates who have denied the results of the vote, which even Trump’s own administration declared to be free of any widespread fraud or interference.

Biden asked voters to “think long and hard about the moment we are in.”

“In a typical year, we are not often faced with the question of whether the vote we cast will preserve democracy or put it at risk,” he said. “But we are this year.”

“I hope you’ll make the future of our democracy an important part of your decision to vote and how you vote,” Biden added, asking Americans to consider whether the candidates they are supporting would respect the will of the people and accept the outcome of their election.

“The answer to that question is vital and in my opinion it should be decisive,” he said.

Biden also aimed to get ahead of conspiracy theories about the ongoing vote, saying Americans were voting early, by mail and by absentee ballot and it would take time to tally them “in a legal and orderly manner.” Major changes in voting in 2020 because of the pandemic prompted more early voting and mail-in voting and saw record turnout. It took five days before the results of the 2020 presidential election were final.

“It is important for citizens to be patient,” Biden said.

Some Republicans sharply criticized Biden’s remarks. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, who stands to be speaker of the House if the GOP retakes control of the chamber, tweeted, “President Biden is trying to divide and deflect at a time when America needs to unite—because he can’t talk about his policies that have driven up the cost of living. The American people aren’t buying it.”

Biden delivered his remarks from Washington’s Union Station, blocks from the U.S. Capitol, just six days before polls close on Nov. 8 and as more than 27 million Americans have already cast their ballots.

Before the speech, U.S. Capitol Police Chief Tom Manger said he’s reviewed the attack on Pelosi’s husband and believes today’s political climate calls for more resources and better security for members of Congress after a massive increase in threats to lawmakers following the Capitol riot. He also made a rare call to stop the rancorous conspiracy talk that has swirled around the attack.

“Our brave men and women are working around the clock to meet this urgent mission during this divisive time,” he said in a statement. “In the meantime, a significant change that will have an immediate impact will be for people across our country to lower the temperature on political rhetoric before it’s too late.”

Biden last delivered a prime-time speech on what he called the “continued battle for the soul of the nation” on Sept. 1 outside Independence Hall in Philadelphia, in which he condemned the “MAGA forces” of Trump and his adherents as a threat to America’s system of government.

The new remarks come as hundreds of candidates who have falsely denied the legitimacy of the 2020 presidential election are on ballots across the country, with many poised to be elected to critical roles overseeing elections.

In contrast to the September remarks, which drew criticism from some corners for being paid for by taxpayers, Biden’s Wednesday night speech was hosted by the Democratic National Committee.

Many Americans remain pessimistic about the state of U.S. democracy. An October poll by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research found that just 9% of adults think democracy is working “extremely” or “very well,” while 52% say it’s not working well.

___

AP writer Seung Min Kim contributed.

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A new Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) presents evidence-based strategies and approaches to preventing and responding to violence against children. Geared for practitioners, policymakers, anyone who cares deeply about this issue, the MOOC shares knowledge about forms of violence against children; how societal, community, and family-level factors affect violence; and evidence-based and strategies to end violence against children.

The course titled “INSPIRE: Seven Strategies for Ending Violence Against Children” was developed by experts at Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health the Care and Protection of Children (CPC) Learning Network at Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health in partnership with the World Health Organization (WHO), End Violence Against Children: The Global Partnership; the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), Together for Girls, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), the World Bank, and multiple national and international civil society organizations.

The INSPIRE MOOC is taught by four faculty and staff at the Columbia Mailman CPC Learning Network: Nicolas Makharashvili, INSPIRE MOOC Content Lead and Learning Facilitator; Cassie Landers, assistant professor of population and family health; Mark Canavera, co-director of the CPC Learning Network; and Gunnar Colleen, MOOC Research Assistant.

Despite its high prevalence, violence against children is often hidden, unseen or under-reported. Its hidden nature is well documented—for example, a meta-analysis of global data finds self-reported child sexual abuse 30 times higher and physical abuse 75 times higher than official reports would suggest. An analysis of nationally representative survey data on the prevalence of violence against children in 96 countries estimates that 1 billion children globally —over half of all children aged 2–17 years—have experienced emotional, physical or sexual violence in the past year.

The immediate and long-term public health consequences and economic costs of violence against children undermine investments in education, health, and child well-being, and erode the productive capacity of future generations. Exposure to violence at an early age can impair brain development and damage other parts of the nervous system, as well as the endocrine, circulatory, musculoskeletal, reproductive, respiratory and immune systems, with lifelong consequences. Strong evidence shows that violence in childhood increases the risks of injury; HIV and other sexually transmitted infections; mental health problems; delayed cognitive development; poor school performance and dropout; early pregnancy; reproductive health problems; and communicable and non-communicable diseases.

The new course is one of a number of MOOCs developed and taught by Columbia Mailman faculty. Others include a MOOC on the global menstrual movement, Protecting Children in Humanitarian Settings and Fighting HIV with Antiretroviral Therapy: Implementing the Treat-All Approach.

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CHILDREN WITH COGNITIVE OR LEARNING DISABILITIES OR MENTAL HEALTH CONDITIONS, AND CHILDREN WITH DISABILITIES FROM LOWER INCOME SETTINGS, ARE ESPECIALLY LIKELY TO EXPERIENCE VIOLENCE

Children and adolescents with disabilities experience physical, sexual, and emotional violence, and neglect at considerably higher rates than those without disability, despite advances in awareness and policy in recent years. This is according to a systematic review of research involving more than 16 million young people from 25 countries conducted between 1990 and 2020. The study provides the most comprehensive picture of the violence experienced by children with disabilities around the world. The findings are published in The Lancet Child & Adolescent Health.

Young people with mental illness and cognitive or learning disabilities (e.g., attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and autism) are especially likely to experience violence, and overall, children with disabilities are more than twice as likely to experience violence compared to those without disabilities, which can have a serious and long-lasting impact on their health and wellbeing. The findings highlight the urgent need for collaborative efforts by governments, health and social workers, and researchers to raise awareness of all forms of violence against children with disabilities and to strengthen prevention.

“Children with disabilities face unacceptably high levels of violence worldwide,” says Ilan Cerna-Turoff in the Department of Environmental Health Sciences at Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, who co-led the study. “Governments face a challenging time in which resources are spread thin in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic and economic and social change. We know that violence prevention leads to better development indicators for our societies. Now, more than ever, violence prevention is a worthy and important investment to secure a better future. Moreover, all people deserve the right to live in a world in which they are safe from violence. Protecting children with disabilities from violence is a fundamental aspect of social justice and equity.”

An estimated 291 million children and adolescents have epilepsy, intellectual disability, vision impairment, or hearing loss—representing about 11 percent of the total child and adolescent population globally. Many more have other physical and mental disabilities. The vast majority of children with disabilities—more than 94 percent—live in low-middle-income countries (LMICs) where multiple risks converge. Inadequate systems of social protection and access to support, stigma, discrimination, and a lack of information about disability contribute to the higher levels of violence experienced by children with disabilities. This situation can be further exacerbated by poverty and social isolation. The unique challenges faced by children with disabilities, such as the inability to verbalize or defend themselves, can also make them a target of violence.

In 2012, a systematic review published in The Lancet estimated that more than a quarter of children with disabilities in high-income countries experienced violence and that their odds of experiencing violence were more than three times higher than their non-disabled peers.

This new analysis includes a larger number of studies from a wider geographical area, more types of violence (e.g. peer bullying, intimate partner violence), and a wider range of disabilities (physical limitations, mental disorders, cognitive or learning disabilities, sensory impairments, chronic diseases), as well as using updated methods. It provides current global estimates of violence against children with disabilities up to September 2020. 

The researchers performed a systematic review and meta-analysis of all observational studies measuring violence against children with disabilities published in 18 English-language databases and three regional Chinese databases between 1990 and 2020. They analyzed data from 98 studies involving over 16.8 million children (aged 0-18 years), including 75 studies from high-income countries and 23 studies from seven low-income and middle-income countries.

Analysis of data from 92 studies looking at prevalence found that the overall rates of violence varied by disability and were slightly higher among children with mental disorders (34 percent) and cognitive or learning disabilities (33 percent) than for children with sensory impairments (27 percent), physical or mobility limitations (26 percent), and chronic diseases (21 percent).

The most commonly reported types of violence were emotional and physical, experienced by about one in three children and adolescents with disabilities. The estimates suggest that one in five children with disabilities experience neglect, and one in ten have experienced sexual violence.

The study also draws attention to high levels of peer bullying, with almost 40 percent of children with disabilities estimated to have experienced bullying by their peers. In-person bullying (physical, verbal, or relational acts, such as hitting and kicking; insults and threats; or social exclusion) is more common (37 percent) than cyberbullying (23 percent).

In general, children with disabilities living in low-income countries experienced higher rates of violence than those in high-income countries—possibly as a result of limited access to prevention and support services, lower levels of legal protection, and attitudes and norms that stigmatize people with disabilities and lead to greater social tolerance for violence. A further challenge is that we continue to face gaps in information on low-income and middle-income countries, especially in Southeast and Central Asia and Eastern Europe.

“Violence against children with disabilities is preventable. These children must be given the right life chances now,” said co-lead author Zuyi Fang from Beijing Normal University in China. “The UN Sustainable Development Goals aim to end all forms of violence against children by 2030. Achieving this will require political leaders, practitioners, and researchers to work together to implement what we already know works to prevent violence such as evidence-based parenting interventions while developing and evaluating effective community, school-based, and online interventions that target specific forms of violence.”

Writing in a linked commentary, Tania King from the University of Melbourne in Australia, who was not involved in the study, notes that it is possible that there has been an escalation in rates of violence against children with disability since the COVID-19 pandemic, adding that, “Article 19 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, endorsed by many countries around the world, enshrines the rights of children to be protected from violence. As the number of children with disability continues to grow worldwide, we must establish the systems and processes to protect them from violence. Better services and support for children with disability will reduce many of the risk factors that underpin their increased experiences of violence. The imperatives to act are many: they are economic, as the damage wrought by violence is costly. The imperatives are social – society has much to gain by improving inclusion of those with disability. But importantly the imperatives are moral—it is unacceptable for current society to tolerate such rates of violence among children with disability.”

Other co-authors of the study are from the University of Oxford, and the University of Leeds, UK

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The two-year initiative focuses on strengthening community partnerships, training for VA staff and community partners, identifying effective clinical interventions and providing outreach to underserved populations.

“Approximately one in three women and one in four men in the general population report experiencing intimate partner violence,” said VA Management and Social Work Executive Director Jill Debord. “Research by VA’s National Center for post-traumatic stress disorder shows Veterans may be disproportionally impacted by IPV.”  

The pilot program stems from the Johnny Isakson and David P. Roe, M.D. Veterans Health Care and Benefits Improvement Act of 2020, Title 5 of the Deborah Sampson Act. This initiative allows opportunity to better understand and address intimate partner violence and sexual assault among the Veteran population.

Veterans who have experienced or are experiencing IPV are encouraged to contact an Intimate Partner Violence Assistance Program Coordinator at the nearest VA medical center or call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 800-799-7233 or 800-787-3224 (TTY).

The following VAMCs are participating:

• VA Finger Lakes Healthcare System in Bath and Canandaigua, N.Y.
• North Florida/South Georgia Veterans Health System in Gainesville and Lake City, Fla.
• Tennessee Valley Healthcare System in Nashville and Murfreesboro, Tenn.
• Jesse Brown VA Medical Center in Chicago, Ill.
• Central Arkansas Veterans Healthcare System in Little Rock, Ark.
• VA Salt Lake City Health Care System in Salt Lake City, Utah.
• Cheyenne VA Medical Center in Cheyenne, Wyo.
• Jonathan M. Wainwright Memorial VA Medical Center in Walla Walla, Wash.
• VA Pacific Islands Health Care System in Honolulu, Hawaii.
• Southern Arizona VA Health Care System in Tucson, Ariz.

For more information about available supportive services, visit VA’s Intimate Partner Violence Assistance Program or VA’s Military Sexual Trauma Program.

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WASHINGTON (AP) — Attorney General Merrick Garland directed U.S. attorneys across the country to swiftly prioritize prosecution of federal crimes that happen on commercial flights as federal officials face a historic number of investigations into passenger behavior.

Garland’s memo, issued Wednesday, emphasizes that the Justice Department is committed to aggressively prosecuting violent passengers who assault crew members or endanger the safety of other passengers. Federal law prohibits interfering with a flight crew, including assaulting, intimidating or threatening crew members.

In a statement, Garland said such passengers do more than harm employees. “They prevent the performance of critical duties that help ensure safe air travel. Similarly, when passengers commit violent acts against other passengers in the close confines of a commercial aircraft, the conduct endangers everyone aboard,” he said.

The memo also notes that dozens of incidents have been reported to the FBI by the Federal Aviation Administration — it investigates some flight disturbances and can issue civil fines to disruptive passengers — as part of an “information-sharing protocol” between the two agencies.

The FAA said earlier this month that it had launched 950 investigations into passenger behavior on flights this year. That is the highest total since the agency started keeping track in 1995. In the five years from 2016 through 2020, the agency averaged 136 investigations a year.

The agency also said that it had referred 37 cases involving unruly airline passengers to the FBI for possible criminal prosecution since the number of disruptions on flights began to spike in January.

“The unacceptable disruptive behavior that we’re seeing is a serious safety threat to flights, and we’re committed to our partnership with the DOJ to combat it,” FAA Administrator Steve Dickson said.

Airlines and their unions have pressed the federal government to push more aggressively for criminal prosecution. Airlines have reported more than 5,000 incidents involving unruly passengers this year, with more than 3,600 of those involving people who refused to wear face masks as required by federal regulation.

“The Department of Justice is committed to using its resources to do its part to prevent violence, intimidation, threats of violence and other criminal behavior that endangers the safety of passengers, flight crews and flight attendants on commercial aircraft,” Garland said in the statement.

The international president of the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA, AFL-CIO, Sara Nelson, also applauded Garland’s announcement.

“Consequences need to be swift and clear to keep travel safe and protect the people on the frontlines who have worked through all the stresses of this pandemic,” Nelson said in a statement. “We want to take people to New Orleans, Seattle, Fort Lauderdale, or to see Grandma. We do not want to take them to jail. But, the DOJ can now make it clear that’s where you’re going if you refuse to cooperate and act out violently on a plane.”

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Riverside County Sheriff’s Special Enforcement Bureau and K-9 Team responded to assist in the apprehension of Morton, who was located at the residence and taken into custody. A search warrant was authored for the residence and items of evidence were collected. Morton was later booked at the Robert Presley Detention Center for spousal abuse, and assault with a deadly weapon.

Anyone with additional information regarding this case is encouraged to call Deputy Grieve at the Jurupa Valley Sheriff’s Station by calling (951) 955-2600.

For media inquiries regarding this incident please contact the Media Information Bureau.

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The altercation happened at a parking lot of a supermarket near Stetson Avenue and State Street Monday, according to a witness.

The footage begins with the officer face-to-face with the young man, who was wearing a backpack. The witness said the man, identified by police as 19-year-old Edmund Franklin, was selling candy and sold her chocolate outside a grocery store. He was then approached by police.

In a press release provided to Eyewitness News early Tuesday morning, the Hemet Police Department said officers first approached Franklin around 3:30 p.m. after he was asked to leave by employees of a nearby business for “becoming aggressive” with them. Franklin was also said to be panhandling in the area.

Police said the man was told to leave and if he returned he would be arrested for trespassing. About 40 minutes later, police were called again and told Franklin had returned to the location and was refusing to leave.

“The first responding officer approached Mr. Franklin and attempted to detain him for a trespass violation when a use of force occurred,” Hemet police said in its press release.

Video shows Franklin tell the officer multiple times he’ll take his backpack off while the police officer is seen grabbing him.

“I’ll take it off,” Franklin said in the video.

The officer then punches him and a scuffle ensues. As the scuffle continues, the officer takes the man to the ground and subdues him for several minutes with multiple people looking on, the video showed.

Several of the witnesses’ shout angrily at the police officer to get off the man.

Multiple police officers then arrive to the scene as the witnesses become irater over the officer’s tactics.

Franklin was arrested on suspicion of trespassing, resisting an officer and attempting to disarm an officer, according to Hemet police. His bail was set at $10,000.

The police department said it’s aware of the video circulating on social media and launched an investigation. “We are reviewing the incident to include the social media posts and the Officer’s body worn camera video,” the police department said. “This incident, like any use of force incident involving a Hemet Police Officer is taken seriously and will be thoroughly investigated.”

Police ask anyone with information about the incident to contact Capt. Glen Brock via email at gbrock@hemetca.gov or by phone at (951) 765-2473.

ABC7 News | Contributed

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WASHINGTON (AP) — A Pentagon police officer died after being stabbed Tuesday during a burst of violence at a transit center outside the building, and a suspect was shot by law enforcement and died at the scene, the Pentagon said Tuesday.

The Pentagon, the headquarters of the U.S. military, was temporarily placed on lockdown after someone attacked the officer on a bus platform shortly after 10:30 a.m. The ensuing violence, which included a volley of gunshots, resulted in “several casualties,” said Woodrow Kusse, the chief of the Pentagon Force Protection Agency, which is responsible for security in the facility.

The deaths of the officer and the suspect were first confirmed by officials who were not authorized to discuss the matter and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity. The Fairfax County Police Department also tweeted condolences about the officer’s death. Officials said they believe two bystanders were injured.

The suspect was identified by multiple law enforcement officials as Austin William Lanz, 27, of Georgia.

The officer was ambushed by Lanz, who ran at him and stabbed him in the neck, according to two of the law enforcement officials. Responding officers then shot and killed Lanz. Investigators were still trying to determine a motive for the attack and were digging into Lanz’s background, including any potential history of mental illness or any reason he might want to target the Pentagon or police officers.

The officials could not discuss the investigation publicly and spoke to AP on condition of anonymity.

Lanz had enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps in October 2012 but was “administratively separated” less than a month later and never earned the title Marine, the Corps said in a statement.

The episode on a busy stretch of the Washington area’s transportation system jangled the nerves of a region already primed to be on high alert for violence and potential intruders outside federal government buildings, particularly following the Jan. 6 riot at the Capitol.

At a Pentagon news conference, Kusse declined to confirm that the officer had been killed or provide even basic information about how the violence had unfolded or how many might be dead. He would only say that an officer had been attacked and that “gunfire was exchanged.”

Kusse and other officials declined to rule out terrorism or provide any other potential motive. But, Kusse said the Pentagon complex was secure and “we are not actively looking for another suspect at this time.” He said the FBI was leading the investigation.

“I can’t compromise the ongoing investigation,” Kusse said.

The FBI confirmed only that it was investigating and there was “no ongoing threat to the public” but declined to offer details or a possible motive.

Later Tuesday, the Pentagon Force Protection Agency issued a statement confirming the loss of the officer, and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin expressed his condolences and said flags at the Pentagon will be flown at half-staff.

“This fallen officer died in the line of duty, helping protect the tens of thousands of people who work in — and who visit — the Pentagon on a daily basis,” Austin said in a statement. “This tragic death today is a stark reminder of the dangers they face and the sacrifices they make. We are forever grateful for that service and the courage with which it is rendered.”

Tuesday’s violence occurred on a Metro bus platform that is part of the Pentagon Transit Center, a hub for subway and bus lines. The station is steps from the Pentagon building, which is in Arlington County, Virginia, just across the Potomac River from Washington.

An Associated Press reporter near the building heard multiple gunshots, then a pause, then at least one additional shot. Another AP journalist heard police yelling “shooter.”

A Pentagon announcement said the facility was on lockdown, but that was lifted after noon, except for the area around the crime scene.

Austin and Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, were at the White House meeting with President Joe Biden at the time of the shooting. Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said Austin returned to the building and went to the Pentagon police operations center to speak to the officers there.

It was not immediately clear whether any additional security measures might be instituted in the area.

In 2010, two officers with the Pentagon Force Protection Agency were wounded when a gunman approached them at a security screening area. The officers, who survived, returned fire, fatally wounding the gunman, identified as John Patrick Bedell.

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HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — During a particularly violent week in Connecticut’s capital city, Andrew Woods was among a small number of anti-violence workers who rushed in to help victims’ families, offering condolences and referrals to services while trying to discourage retaliation.

Three people were killed and about a dozen others injured in shootings in Hartford over the week that began in late May — a large number in a small city of about 120,000 people, which left local anti-violence groups reeling.

The group that Woods leads, Hartford Communities That Care, has eight anti-violence workers. With more funding, he said he would quadruple that number to allow employees to work in shifts instead of being on call around the clock.

“We’re overwhelmed by the sheer number of shootings and then the follow-up that is involved in that,” he said. “We’re on call 24/7, 365 days a year. It’s unsustainable to have people working these kinds of hours.”

A rise in gun violence seen in cities across the U.S. is testing the limits of anti-violence groups that have been calling for more government funding for decades.

President Joe Biden acknowledged earlier this year that community anti-violence programs have been woefully underfunded and proposed $5 billion in new aid for them in his massive infrastructure plan, along with hundreds of millions of dollars for them in other parts of the federal budget. In a statement in April, the White House said such programs have been shown to reduce homicides by up to 60% where they operate.

“Cities across the country are experiencing a historic spike in homicides, violence that is greatest in racially segregated, high-poverty neighborhoods,” the statement said. “Black men make up 6% of the population but over 50% of gun homicide victims. Black women, Latinos, and Native Americans are also disproportionately impacted.”

Historically, the bulk of government funding aimed at reducing gun violence has gone to law enforcement organizations.

“It has to be well-rounded,” said Paul Carrillo, director of the Community Violence Initiative at the Giffords Law Center. “If you’re going to hire more police, OK, it should be something to the effect where … whatever your police budget is, X% should also be toward this violence intervention work.”

In the first three months of 2021, there were 983 homicides in 24 U.S. cities monitored by researchers at the University of Missouri-St. Louis for reports prepared for the National Commission on COVID-19 and Criminal Justice. The number was 193 higher than in the first quarter of last year and 324 higher than in the first quarter of 2019. Last year’s increase in homicides was likely due to the coronavirus pandemic, social unrest and other factors, according to a research report by criminal justice professor Richard Rosenfeld and graduate research assistant Ernesto Lopez Jr.

Researchers said the average homicide rate of the cities rose sharply after the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis in May 2020, which sparked nationwide protests. The rate dropped in the fall and the beginning of this year, but is still higher than it was before the summer of 2020.

Among the groups responding to an uptick of gun violence in Chicago is BUILD, an organization that deploys intervention teams to canvas hot spots, a crisis response unit that supports survivors and families of victims, as well as therapists and case managers who support over 200 families.

“An increase in funding would help us to increase capacity. To do that work it is very consuming, emotionally draining work. You need more people out there engaged,” said Bradly Johnson, a BUILD spokesperson.

In Hartford, 55 people had been shot as of May 15, up from 45 during the same period last year, according to the latest data kept by city police. Eighteen people have died in homicides as of June 17, a number on track to surpass last year’s 25 homicides.

Community leaders in Hartford and other cities have applauded Biden’s proposed new funding for anti-violence programs and are cautiously optimistic as the infrastructure plan is negotiated with Republicans on Capitol Hill.

“We pray that the $5 billion will remain intact and is not diluted,” Woods said. “It would really be a shot in the arm for those of us who do this work across the nation.”

Anti-violence groups around the country are reporting being overwhelmed during the spike in violence.

Iesha Sekou, chief executive of Street Corner Resources in the Harlem section of New York City, has had to adjust the schedules of its eight anti-violence outreach workers, including having staff come in later and work split morning-evening shifts.

“It’s become a little more challenging because we are responding more often to brutal beatings, stabbings and shootings and jumpings that come into the trauma unit of Harlem Hospital,” said Sekou, whose group receives annual funding from the city through reimbursements but has struggled to secure the up-front funds.

In Connecticut, retired police officer Stacy Spell runs Project Longevity’s New Haven program, a partnership between community groups and police aimed at reducing violence. His office only has four paid staff. In 2017 he said he went seven months without being paid because of a monthslong impasse on the state budget.

Like other anti-violence program leaders, Spell said he has had to lay off staff because of funding declines in previous years. Funding from government agencies and philanthropic groups has increased in recent years, but he said more is needed to adequately fight violence.

“If we’re to move past addressing the violence that is happening not only in the city of New Haven, but happening in all the major cities of Connecticut as well as every urban city in the country … we need millions of dollars that go to grassroots organizations so they can play a more effective role,” he said.

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