August 3, 2020 • No Comments • National News

NYCSHERIFF/TwitterBy IVAN PEREIRA, ABC News

(NEW YORK) — Officials say social distancing was not being enforced on the Liberty Bell and the boat did not have a license to serve alcohol.

New York City officials shut down a party boat with more than 170 people aboard, as the city strives to keep the coronavirus at bay.

Ronny Vargas and Alex Suazo, the owners of the Liberty Belle, were arrested Saturday night for violating the state’s ban on large crowds and for running a bar without a license, the New York City’s Sheriff’s Office said. The office also said that the captain of the boat, who was not identified, was issued a summons for not displaying its identification number.

Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer said she alerted the sheriff after receiving complaints from residents who observed the boat out in the waters of Manhattan and were concerned about the large crowd.

Brewer noted on Twitter on Sunday that the city, which was once the epicenter of the pandemic, recorded no COVID-19 deaths that day.

“If we want to see MORE days with zero deaths and if we want a return to a life WITHOUT social distancing, that means we need to avoid reckless behavior like booze cruises that put fellow New Yorkers at risk, no matter how much we miss our friends and meeting new people,” she tweeted.

Empire Cruises, the company that runs the Liberty Belle, didn’t immediately return messages for comment. The boat owners were given a summons to appear in court for their violation.

Empire Cruises touts that the Liberty Belle, which is a classicly styled riverboat, can fit a maximum of 600 guests standing and has “four ample decks including three indoor decks and three outdoor decks,” according to Empire Cruise’s website.

The incident marks the latest in a series of crackdowns of large-scale gatherings and parties instituted by state and city officials in the last few weeks. Under Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s COVID-19 executive order, crowds of non-essential workers are capped at 50 people at indoor events.

On Sunday alone, the State Liquor Authority issued violations for 24 city establishments that violated the social distancing guidelines, according to the New York Governor’s office.

The state is also investigating several large parties and concerts including the July 25 outdoor charity concert in the Hamptons that drew an estimated 2,000 people.

New York City has had 222,330 total coronavirus cases and 18,915 confirmed COVID-19 deaths as of Aug. 2, according to the city’s Health Department.

The seven-day average of newly reported cases in the city was 281 as of Aug. 2 compared to the peak seven-day average of 5,426 on April 15, according to the Health Department.

Copyright © 2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

August 3, 2020 • No Comments • National News

filo/iStockBy JON HAWORTH, ABC News

(ST. LOUIS) — Catch up on the developing stories making headlines.

A 27-day-old elephant with developmental impairments that limited his ability to feed since he was born has died at the St. Louis Zoo.

The male Asian elephant calf named Avi was born to his mother, named Rani, on July 6 but after intensive care efforts and life support measures, including assistance with feedings and continuous intravenous treatments, the zoo’s elephant care team made the decision to humanely euthanize the baby elephant after the calf’s already compromised health deteriorated rapidly over the previous two days.

“Everyone here is just devastated right now,” said Jeffrey P. Bonner, Ph.D. and Dana Brown, the president and CEO of the Saint Louis Zoo in a statement on the zoo’s website. “Our team of professional elephant care experts did everything possible to help improve the calf’s health. Unfortunately, in the end, it just wasn’t enough as his health complications were too severe.”

The Elephant Care Team said they had prepared for his arrival for almost three years and decided to name him Avi — which means “the sun and air” — during that period.

“The animal care team who worked so closely with this calf every day of his short life, and all those who loved him, are understandably grieving,” said vice president of animal collections at the Saint Louis Zoo. Luis Padilla, “Avi will be missed, but never forgotten.”

Padilla continued: “The community followed Rani’s journey from pregnancy to birth and provided support and positive thoughts for the calf and the Elephant Care Team when they learned of the calf’s developmental and health impairments. The outpouring of support that we have received from the community has been incredible. I know everyone joins us in our sense of loss, and that helps our team get through these difficult times.”

According to the St. Louis Zoo, there are fewer than 35,000 Asian elephants left in the wild and they face extinction due to challenges like poaching for ivory and habitat destruction.

The zoo said that Avi was Rani’s third baby and that she has previously given birth to Jade in 2007 and Kenzi in 2011, although Kenzi passed away at the age of seven in 2018. The father, 27-year-old Raja, was the first ever Asian elephant born at the St. Louis Zoo in 1992.

“An elephant pregnancy lasts about 22 months and a newborn weighs about 250-350 pounds,” the zoo’s statement read. “Rani received regular prenatal health checkups by the zoo’s elephant care team throughout her pregnancy.”

The veterinary team at the zoo have confirmed that they will now conduct a full necropsy on Avi and that the results will be available in several weeks.

Copyright © 2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

August 3, 2020 • No Comments • National News

Brett Carlsen/Getty ImagesBy MARK HANRAHAN, ABC News

(NEW YORK) — The U.S. Navy SEALS have announced an investigation into a video showing a man wearing a Colin Kaepernick jersey being attacked by dogs at a demonstration at a Florida museum with links to several former SEALs.

The first video shows a man in protective clothing and a Kaepernick jersey being bitten by SEAL attack dogs as part of a demonstration in front of a crowd of spectators.

Another video of the same event shows men in military clothing performing a mock capture of the man after the dogs have been removed. As he lies on the ground, he says “Oh man, I’ll stand,” eliciting laughter from the watching crowd.

The videos were originally shared on Instagram in January 2020, but went viral in the first weekend of August.

In a statement on their official Twitter account, the U.S. Navy SEALs said: “The inherent message of this video is completely inconsistent with the values and ethos of Naval Special Warfare and the U.S. Navy.”

The statement added that the SEALs are investigating the incident and that “initial indications” were that there were no active duty Navy personnel or equipment involved in the display.

The event depicted in the videos took place at the Navy Seal Museum in Fort Pierce, Florida. The museum is not officially affiliated with the SEALs or the U.S. military, but it lists several retired SEALs on its board of directors and advisory board.

The dog demonstration incident is not the only one associated with the museum and Kaepernick’s protests. Video of the museum’s 33rd Annual Muster event in November 2018, showed a mock military engagement in which an SUV with “Take a knee,” and “Nike” painted in large letters on the side was a target.

Nike hired Kaepernick to appear in a commercial after he had stopped playing in the NFL and also released a Kaepernick-branded shoe.

The clip, embedded below, shows a group enter the display area in the vehicle, before they are subject to a mock assault by men in military fatigues, one of whom is seen carrying an American flag on his back. In the video, the car appears at around the two minute 24 second mark.

The mock soldiers proceed to fire their weapons at the car, and the people who arrived in it lie down, acting as though they had been shot.

Kaepernick played six seasons as a quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers, but has not played in the NFL since 2016, when he began kneeling during the national anthem to protest racial injustice.

Kaepernick and other players who chose to protest during the anthem attracted criticism with many, including President Donald Trump, who said that players who did not stand for the anthem “shouldn’t be in the country.”

The NFL subsequently brought in a rule banning players from kneeling on the field during the anthem.

In the wake of the nationwide racial injustice protests sparked by the death of George Floyd, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell admitted that the league had been wrong not to listen to its players about racism.

“We, the National Football League, admit we were wrong for not listening to NFL players earlier and encourage all players to speak out and peacefully protest. We, the National Football League, believe that black lives matter,” he said in a video statement, reported by ESPN.

Copyright © 2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

August 3, 2020 • No Comments • National News

Esther Salas/YouTubeBy JON HAWORTH, ABC News

(NEW YORK) — Judge Esther Salas has released a nine-minute videotaped statement about last month’s shooting death of her son and the wounding of her husband, and it’s the first time she has spoken publicly since the shooting two weeks ago.

In the remarks, Salas said the gunman had targeted her because of her position as a federal judge.

“Two weeks ago, my life as I knew it changed in an instant, and my family will never be the same,” Salas began. “A madman, who I believe was targeting me because of my position as a federal judge, came to my house.”

She goes on to say that her family had just finished a weekend celebration in honor of her son’s 20th birthday and that he had asked her and her husband about hosting a party for a few of his Catholic University of America friends.

Salas, holding back tears, begins to detail the harrowing incident.

“Daniel and I went downstairs to the basement and we were chatting, as we always do. And Daniel said ‘Mom, let’s keep talking, I love talking to you, Mom.’ It was at that exact moment that the doorbell rang, and Daniel looked at me and said, ‘Who is that?’ And before I could say a word, he sprinted upstairs. Within seconds, I heard the sound of bullets and someone screaming, ‘No!’” she recalled.

Salas said that her son Daniel protected his father and he took the shooter’s first bullet directly to the chest before the man, later identified as Roy Den Hollander, turned his attention to her husband and shot him three times: one bullet entering his right chest, the other his left abdomen, and the last one in the right forearm.

“We are living every parent’s worst nightmare — making preparations to bury our only child, Daniel,” Salas continued. “My family has experienced a pain that no one should ever have to endure.”

The judge then pivots, saying that federal judges’ addresses and other information is readily available on the internet and that there are companies selling personal data that can be “leveraged for nefarious purposes,” she says.

“In my case, this monster knew where I lived and what church we attended and had a complete dossier on me and my family,” said Salas. “At the moment there is nothing we can do to stop it, and that is unacceptable.”

The gunman, Roy Den Hollander, died by suicide. When he was found in Sullivan County, New York, about two hours north of the judge’s home, authorities discovered the names of several other people they believe he wanted to target, including at least one other judge.

She continues: “My son’s death cannot be in vain, which is why I am begging those in power to do something to help my brothers and sisters on the bench. Now, more than ever, we need to identify a solution that keeps the lives of federal judges private. I know this is a complicated issue, and I don’t pretend to know or have all answers, but together we can find a way. Let’s commence a national dialogue, let’s work collaboratively to find a solution that will safeguard the privacy of federal judges.”

Salas concludes the video by thanking everybody who has supported her and her family in the weeks after the tragedy.

“To everyone who reached out, and to everyone who said a prayer, and to everyone who is keeping my family in your thoughts — thank you. The outpouring of love has been overwhelming and I can tell you it has lifted us during our darkest hours. I just want to say thank you to you all and I love you,” she says.

Copyright © 2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

August 3, 2020 • No Comments • National News

deepblue4you/iStockBy MEREDITH DELISO, ABC News

(NEW YORK) — After more than two days, firefighters are starting to contain the enormous Apple Fire burning in Southern California.

As of Sunday night, the blaze had burned more than 20,500 acres in Riverside County, officials said.

The fire was 5% contained as of Sunday night, according to officials with the San Bernardino National Forest Service.

Thousands of people have been ordered to evacuate as the massive wildfire continues to rage.

More than 2,200 firefighters, along with several air tankers and helicopters, have been deployed to battle the blaze from the ground and air, the Riverside County Fire Department said. The northern and eastern edges of the fire are in steep, rugged hillsides not accessible to firefighting vehicles, officials said.

About 7,800 people in 2,586 homes in Riverside and San Bernardino Counties were under evacuation orders as of Saturday evening, authorities said.

At least one home and two outbuildings in Cherry Valley were destroyed by the fire, officials said. No injuries have been reported.

The wildfire has been burning since Friday afternoon. Fire officials reported at least two separate fires — one about 3 acres, the second about 20 acres — burning near each other shortly before 5 p.m. on Friday. Three hours later, the fire was 700 acres, officials said, prompting evacuation orders.

By Saturday morning, the blaze had more than doubled in size, to 1,900 acres. More evacuation warnings and orders were issued throughout the day, with several remaining in place Sunday.

The San Bernardino National Forest Service is in unified command with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, among other agencies.

As of Friday, 38 large fires had burned more than 196,000 acres across the country so far this year, according to the National Interagency Fire Center.

Copyright © 2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.