A Taliban sniper nor an IED could kill my husband... but lies, betrayal and a dark secret at home almost did
It was from a friend saying there had been an accident. My heart shattered into a million pieces, and my stomach dropped. They were the words every military wife dreads but prays will never come.
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Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
Teen learns his fate after accidentally shooting 10-year-old cousin while playing with a gun
A Wisconsin teenager has been sentenced to a decade behind bars after recklessly firing a gun that killed his 10-year-old cousin while she slept. Javier Rodriguez, now 19, was handed a 10-year prison stretch on Thursday, with credit for just under 14 months already served in custody, after admitting to killing his cousin last year. He pleaded guilty in June to second-degree reckless homicide in the May 2024 death of Isdennyeliz Ortiz, a 'bright and bubbly' fourth-grader who had just celebrated her 10th birthday weeks earlier. Following his release, Rodriguez will spend an additional eight years under supervised release, a Milwaukee County judge ruled. The tragedy unfolded shortly after 12:40am on May 31, 2024, inside a three-story home in Milwaukee where several generations of the same family lived. Isdennyeliz, affectionately known as 'Issey' to family and friends, was asleep in her mother's bed with her baby brother by her side when the bullet struck her in the chest. The round had pierced through the floor and ceiling above, where police say Rodriguez had been recklessly handling a firearm on the upper level. According to a criminal complaint, Rodriguez ran down the stairs in a panic telling the girl's mother, 'It's my fault. I'm sorry. Please forgive me.' Her 14-year-old sister later told investigators that Rodriguez repeated the same words in a panic, 'I'm sorry. It's my fault. I did it.' Her mother turned on the light, only to see her daughter bleeding and unresponsive, and a fresh bullet hole in the ceiling above her. The child died before paramedics could arrive on the scene. Rodriguez, who was 18 at the time, fled the home before police arrived but was identified on home surveillance footage and arrested days later. Security footage showed him carrying what police described as a 'tan firearm' while wearing a blue rubber glove, just before a loud bang was captured by the camera's audio. Court documents also revealed Rodriguez had fired a gun in the home once before, a month prior, although no one was injured on that occasion. Investigators recovered a small arsenal of firearms from a closet, including three loaded pistols, a drum magazine, and several boxes of ammunition. 'Now we have a family whose 10-year-old daughter is not here,' said Marty Calderon to TMJ4. Calderon is a local activist with Milwaukee's Promise Keepers, a group that responded to the family after the shooting. 'How much more do we have to keep telling people - leave guns alone,' Calderon added. The emotional weight of the sentencing was felt throughout the courtroom. Although prosecutors did not allege Rodriguez intended to kill his cousin, they argued that his reckless behavior proved fatal. Isdennyeliz Ortiz was described by loved ones as a joyful girl who loved making YouTube videos and playing volleyball. She was looking forward to an upcoming family trip to Wisconsin Dells, her mother said. 'There is no other way to describe this horrific incident other than to say it is utterly unacceptable,' said Milwaukee Alderwoman JoCasta Zamarripa in a statement. 'Far too many young people continue to be impacted by gun violence across our city. These gun-related incidents are wholly preventable, and we must do better to stop them.' According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel's Homicide Database, youth homicide victims are tragically common in the city: 12% of homicide victims in 2024 were between between 10 and 17 years old. 'We have to give people the knowledge of how to safely handle a gun, how to safely protect yourself,' said Teneen Rucker with the nonprofit Safe and Sound, which plans to host a gun violence awareness event later this summer. 'This can't keep happening.' Rodriguez had faced a potential 25-year sentence before agreeing to a plea deal in June. In court, he showed remorse and accepted responsibility for his actions but the sentence, family members say can never bring back the child they lost. As part of the judge's ruling, Rodriguez is prohibited from owning or possessing firearms for the rest of his life.
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
Shock images capture aftermath after roof collapses on unsuspecting dollar store shoppers - leaving one dead and multiple injured
Shocking images have captured the aftermath of a horror roof collapse collapsed roof at a dollar store which left one dead and another with debilitating lifelong injuries. Tammy Martin filed a lawsuit against Family Dollar in Missouri after she was crushed by the caving roof at the Kansas City store on July 27. Horrific pictures of the aftermath revealed an enormous hole in the corner of the dollar store, with debris strewn across the road and parking lot. Martin has accused the store owners of negligence leading to the accident, which tragically left a 68-year-old man dead. 'The heavy debris which fell onto Plaintiff caused severe and permanent injuries to Plaintiff's entire body, including but not limited to her head, face, neck, back, spine, pelvis, arms, hands, and legs,' the lawsuit stated. She is seeking more than $25,000 in damages. Officers descended on the scene soon after the collapse and taped off the area as bricks and wooden beams piled up on the footpath. The lawsuit claims the main cause of the roof collapse was a 2016 car crash which knocked down one of the main support pillars in front of the building. The pillar was never repaired, the lawsuit states. According to the lawsuit, store operators had been repeatedly told that the roof 'looked as it it was going to fall.' 'Defendants knew or should have known The Store, including the roof, was not reasonably safe,' the lawsuit stated. Martin was in the store and shopping at the time of the tragedy, and was caught off guard when the roof collapsed on top of her. 'As a direct and proximate result of Defendants' failures, Plaintiff suffered the above referenced injuries which resulted in substantial healthcare expense, loss of enjoyment of life, permanent disability, pain and suffering, future healthcare treatment and expense,' the lawsuit stated. According to the lawsuit, store operators had been repeatedly told that the roof 'looked as it it was going to fall.' It also noted a 'loss of earning capacity and lost wages, all in the past and is reasonably likely to incur same in the future.' She is seeking a jury trial. According to KCTV, a property violation report had been filed by code enforcement officers just two days before the tragedy. The report said the building appeared to be slowly 'tilting.' Kansas City police and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration are investigating the incident.
BBC News
an hour ago
- BBC News
Welshpool mother issues plea to parents after teen's river death
Michelle Guest knew something was seriously wrong when she heard sirens and saw a helicopter flying over her hometown of Welshpool, in her worst nightmares did she expect the emergency crews to be searching for her 15-year-old daughter, Holli receiving a phone call from a friend, Michelle ran across town to the River Severn and stood by the weir, praying that Holli had been carried downstream and was safely on the river bank, waiting to be a few hours later Holli was found 65ft (20m) from where she had entered the water. She was pronounced dead at the scene and her body was taken to the Princess Royal Hospital in Telford, Shropshire. Holli's family and friends should have celebrated her 16th birthday in June, but instead they are having to gather on 9 August to mark the first anniversary of her death. "Nearly 12 months later and I still can't get my head around it," said Michelle, a mother of seven."I wish she'd never gone down there and I wish somebody would wake me up from this nightmare, but it's not going to happen."She was always happy and very much loved by her friends."Michelle said she had had conversations with Holli about water safety in the past and asked her the day before her death to play safely by the river.A full inquest is yet to be heard, but Michelle said Holli died after getting caught in the backwash of a weir. A friend tried to help her out but could not manage against the force of the water, she said."I don't want any other family to go through what we're going through based on poor choices, just because the water looks inviting."Michelle is now trying to raise awareness about water safety by sharing her own experience on social media and organising fundraising events for charities that educate children about the dangers. Holli's death was one of 193 accidental water-related fatalities in the UK last year, according to the National Water Safety figures suggest that inland waterways, such as rivers, canals and reservoirs, continue to be the leading locations for drownings, accounting for 61% of accidental fatalities in 2024.A dedicated water safety and drowning prevention strategy was brought in by the Welsh government in Safety Wales, a group which brings together organisations including the Welsh government, also aims to cut the number of drowning casualties by promoting "a consistent and common approach to water safety".Its figures show there were 54 water-related fatalities in Wales in 2024, with the figure remaining between 48 and 55 between 2020 and 2023."I plead with all parents to speak with their children so they understand the dangers of water," said Michelle. "It can take a life. It took my Holli and I really don't want another family to suffer."
