Wisconsin
Governor calls for transparency after officer fatally shoots man with knife
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — The police shooting death of a man who injured an officer with a knife while resisting arrest has roiled the city of Madison, Wisconsin, with Gov. Tony Evers calling for “transparency and accountability” in any investigation and community members gathering Thursday at a growing memorial for the man.
Protesters marched Wednesday after the shooting and held a candlelight vigil for the man who died. Some even stayed at the growing memorial of candles, flowers and signs overnight, like Ben Weger.
“I don’t plan to leave anytime soon because it’s important to hold this space,” said Weger, pastor of Stoughton United Methodist Church about 20 miles (32 kilometers) away.
Evers posted online saying, “We will continue to keep the loved ones and family of the individual who was killed in our hearts and prayers.”
“His life mattered,” the governor said.
Cellphone video of the confrontation, where three gunshots could be heard, circulated on social media.
Madison Police Chief John Patterson stressed at a news conference that the online footage was just one perspective of what happened.
“I want to take a moment to honestly and sincerely offer my heartfelt sympathies to his family for this loss,” Patterson said. The man killed was in his 30s, Patterson said, but police did not release his name.
Patterson said police were responding to calls that someone was attempting to enter parked vehicles in the neighborhood. The suspect fled on a bike in an attempt to get away before officers contacted him in the street.
The suspect either fell off his bike or was taken off his bike by officers, Patterson said. During the struggle, the suspect pulled out a knife and injured an officer. An officer deployed a taser but it was unsuccessful. The same officer who was injured by the knife fired his weapon and the man who was shot died later at the hospital. The chief described the officer who fired his weapon as a veteran officer, but did not reveal any other details.
Another officer was injured, but it is not clear how, Patterson said. Two other officers who were involved were uninjured.
The Wisconsin Department of Criminal Investigation will investigate the shooting, and the four officers will be placed on administrative leave.
“There are questions that must be answered,” Madison Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway posted online. “It’s understandable that people want answers now.”
The shooting happened on a city street in a popular neighborhood lined with restaurants, bars, shops and residential homes less than 2 miles (3.2 kilometers) from the state Capitol. Footage shows numerous cars stopped in the intersection with people watching as it unfolded.
A white police officer shot and killed Tony Robinson, who was biracial, on the same street in 2015. Large protests followed, but the district attorney did not file charges against police, determining the officer was justified.
The race of the officer who fired his gun on Wednesday and that of the man killed were not released by police.
But Black advocacy groups in Madison quickly spoke out against the crime and said they believed the man was Black.
“Another Black man is dead on a Madison street, and our community watched him die before we even knew his name,” said Brandi Grayson, the head of the Madison-based Black community advocacy group Urban Triage. “That is the cruelty of state violence.”
The shooting quickly infused itself into the Democratic race for governor, with one candidate addressing mourners at the site of the vigil Wednesday night and others calling for swift investigations.
A crowd had formed near where the shooting occurred on Wednesday with people chanting, “Arrest the cops!” They placed flowers and candles where the man was shot.
Protesters also marched to the state Capitol and took the stage at a summer concert series, demanding the name of the officer and that he be held accountable. The
Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra announced on social media the show was canceled.
Texas
Nun who was detained by ICE while walking to Mass says many are in her situation
McALLEN, Texas (AP) — A nun who was taken into immigration custody after being arrested while walking to Mass in her habit last month in Texas pleaded Thursday for people to have the chance to be heard before being taken into custody, saying she was speaking out to help others.
“There are many others in this same situation, people who have been given some form of protection under our laws, who have followed every rule asked of them, and who still live with uncertainty,” Sister Leticia Ugboaja, who is from Nigeria, said at a news conference.
Ugboaja was released several hours after being detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers on June 28 while walking to Our Lady of Sorrows Church in McAllen, a few miles from the U.S.-Mexico border.
Parish officials posting on social media brought attention to Ugboaja’s arrest, and Congress members ultimately intervened on the nun’s behalf.
Her attorney, Carlos Garcia, said Thursday that in 2019 an immigration judge denied her application for asylum but also granted her protection from removal because she was likely to face torture in Nigeria. Garcia said Ugboaja has complied with everything required of her and had permission to work in the U.S.
When ICE detained Ugboaja in June, she wasn’t given much explanation as to why she was taken into custody but that the U.S. planned to remove her to a third country, Garcia said.
Lawyers and human rights groups have criticized the Trump administration’s third-country removal policy, which has faced legal challenges.
The Department of Homeland Security and ICE did not immediately respond to a request to comment on Ugboaja’s case on Thursday and did not respond to requests for comment after her detention in June.
Ugboaja has a check-in with ICE set for next week, her lawyer noted.
Ugboaja is part of the Daughters of Mary Mother of Mercy and volunteered as an Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion at Our Lady of Sorrows Church, a spokesperson for the Diocese of Brownsville has said. Ugboaja is also a registered nurse at South Texas Health System and worked previously for 10 years as a certified nursing assistant in Edinburg, the spokesperson said.
President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown — including at sensitive sites such as houses of worship — has prompted faith leaders to adjust their response to church members who have become too afraid to attend. Some have encouraged online attendance, while others have offered help doing errands such as grocery shopping for people too fearful to leave their homes.
Governor calls for transparency after officer fatally shoots man with knife
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — The police shooting death of a man who injured an officer with a knife while resisting arrest has roiled the city of Madison, Wisconsin, with Gov. Tony Evers calling for “transparency and accountability” in any investigation and community members gathering Thursday at a growing memorial for the man.
Protesters marched Wednesday after the shooting and held a candlelight vigil for the man who died. Some even stayed at the growing memorial of candles, flowers and signs overnight, like Ben Weger.
“I don’t plan to leave anytime soon because it’s important to hold this space,” said Weger, pastor of Stoughton United Methodist Church about 20 miles (32 kilometers) away.
Evers posted online saying, “We will continue to keep the loved ones and family of the individual who was killed in our hearts and prayers.”
“His life mattered,” the governor said.
Cellphone video of the confrontation, where three gunshots could be heard, circulated on social media.
Madison Police Chief John Patterson stressed at a news conference that the online footage was just one perspective of what happened.
“I want to take a moment to honestly and sincerely offer my heartfelt sympathies to his family for this loss,” Patterson said. The man killed was in his 30s, Patterson said, but police did not release his name.
Patterson said police were responding to calls that someone was attempting to enter parked vehicles in the neighborhood. The suspect fled on a bike in an attempt to get away before officers contacted him in the street.
The suspect either fell off his bike or was taken off his bike by officers, Patterson said. During the struggle, the suspect pulled out a knife and injured an officer. An officer deployed a taser but it was unsuccessful. The same officer who was injured by the knife fired his weapon and the man who was shot died later at the hospital. The chief described the officer who fired his weapon as a veteran officer, but did not reveal any other details.
Another officer was injured, but it is not clear how, Patterson said. Two other officers who were involved were uninjured.
The Wisconsin Department of Criminal Investigation will investigate the shooting, and the four officers will be placed on administrative leave.
“There are questions that must be answered,” Madison Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway posted online. “It’s understandable that people want answers now.”
The shooting happened on a city street in a popular neighborhood lined with restaurants, bars, shops and residential homes less than 2 miles (3.2 kilometers) from the state Capitol. Footage shows numerous cars stopped in the intersection with people watching as it unfolded.
A white police officer shot and killed Tony Robinson, who was biracial, on the same street in 2015. Large protests followed, but the district attorney did not file charges against police, determining the officer was justified.
The race of the officer who fired his gun on Wednesday and that of the man killed were not released by police.
But Black advocacy groups in Madison quickly spoke out against the crime and said they believed the man was Black.
“Another Black man is dead on a Madison street, and our community watched him die before we even knew his name,” said Brandi Grayson, the head of the Madison-based Black community advocacy group Urban Triage. “That is the cruelty of state violence.”
The shooting quickly infused itself into the Democratic race for governor, with one candidate addressing mourners at the site of the vigil Wednesday night and others calling for swift investigations.
A crowd had formed near where the shooting occurred on Wednesday with people chanting, “Arrest the cops!” They placed flowers and candles where the man was shot.
Protesters also marched to the state Capitol and took the stage at a summer concert series, demanding the name of the officer and that he be held accountable. The
Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra announced on social media the show was canceled.
Texas
Nun who was detained by ICE while walking to Mass says many are in her situation
McALLEN, Texas (AP) — A nun who was taken into immigration custody after being arrested while walking to Mass in her habit last month in Texas pleaded Thursday for people to have the chance to be heard before being taken into custody, saying she was speaking out to help others.
“There are many others in this same situation, people who have been given some form of protection under our laws, who have followed every rule asked of them, and who still live with uncertainty,” Sister Leticia Ugboaja, who is from Nigeria, said at a news conference.
Ugboaja was released several hours after being detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers on June 28 while walking to Our Lady of Sorrows Church in McAllen, a few miles from the U.S.-Mexico border.
Parish officials posting on social media brought attention to Ugboaja’s arrest, and Congress members ultimately intervened on the nun’s behalf.
Her attorney, Carlos Garcia, said Thursday that in 2019 an immigration judge denied her application for asylum but also granted her protection from removal because she was likely to face torture in Nigeria. Garcia said Ugboaja has complied with everything required of her and had permission to work in the U.S.
When ICE detained Ugboaja in June, she wasn’t given much explanation as to why she was taken into custody but that the U.S. planned to remove her to a third country, Garcia said.
Lawyers and human rights groups have criticized the Trump administration’s third-country removal policy, which has faced legal challenges.
The Department of Homeland Security and ICE did not immediately respond to a request to comment on Ugboaja’s case on Thursday and did not respond to requests for comment after her detention in June.
Ugboaja has a check-in with ICE set for next week, her lawyer noted.
Ugboaja is part of the Daughters of Mary Mother of Mercy and volunteered as an Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion at Our Lady of Sorrows Church, a spokesperson for the Diocese of Brownsville has said. Ugboaja is also a registered nurse at South Texas Health System and worked previously for 10 years as a certified nursing assistant in Edinburg, the spokesperson said.
President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown — including at sensitive sites such as houses of worship — has prompted faith leaders to adjust their response to church members who have become too afraid to attend. Some have encouraged online attendance, while others have offered help doing errands such as grocery shopping for people too fearful to leave their homes.
