Man honored for stopping mass shooting

Mass shooting outside Indianapolis mall leaves 7 injured, all children and teens, police say

Seven minors were hospitalized with injuries late Saturday night after a mass shooting broke out in downtown Indianapolis, police said.

The children and teenagers, who were between the ages of 12 and 17 years old, each sustained gunshot wounds in the shooting, which happened just after 11 p.m. local time outside of the city’s Circle Centre Mall. CBS affiliate WTTV shared images from the scene.

No suspects have been arrested, but investigators believe more than one weapon was used to carry out the shooting, according to the Indianapolis Metro Police Department. A police report filed after the incident identified four boys and three girls as victims, all of whom were stable when Indianapolis Deputy Police Chief Tanya Terry gave preliminary details about the incident at a briefing early Sunday morning.

Police said they initially responded after patrol officers in the downtown area heard several shots being fired nearby. They found six minors, among a larger group of kids, suffering from injuries consistent with gunshot wounds. An emergency medical services crew transported all of them to a hospital for treatment. One of the victims’ conditions was critical at the time of transport, but the classification was updated and that person is now stable. The other five victims were stable when they were transported.

A seventh victim, who police determined had been shot during the same downtown incident, was treated as a walk-in at a different hospital. That person’s condition was listed as stable too, according to Indianapolis police.

The shooting came as Indianapolis continues to grapple with a steady rise in gun violence. A report by the Indianapolis Star last year found that homicides in the city, which were largely committed using firearms, had increased by 85% over the previous decade and a half.

Terry touched on that during Sunday’s briefing.

“Once again, we have a situation in which young people are resolving conflict with firearms, and it has to stop,” said the deputy police chief. Terry noted that the department has already put resources toward efforts “to address these juvenile crowds before they get started” and will continue to do that with the hopes of “preventing this kind of crime.”

The deputy chief also called on parents for help.

“We would ask for our parents to get involved in what their children are out doing, especially at these hours of the evening,” said Terry. “This was 11:30 at night, the evening right before Sunday, Easter. So if you don’t know where your 12-year-old is, I think that should be a priority for you.”

An investigation into the shooting is ongoing. Police requested that anyone with information contact Detective Albert Teaters at the department’s homicide office.

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At least 7 shot, all under the age of 17, in mass shooting near Indianapolis mall

Seven kids were injured in a shooting outside of a mall in downtown Indianapolis on Saturday night, police said.

Indianapolis Metropolitan Police officers were on patrol when they heard gunshots just after 11:30 p.m. and arrived on a block outside of the Circle Center Mall. According to police, officers saw six people injured with gunshot wounds.

All of the victims were between the ages of 12 and 17, police said.

Emergency medical services arrived to transport the children to hospitals, and a seventh person, also under the age of 18, arrived at a hospital on their own. One victim is in critical condition and the other six are stable.

Tanya Terry, deputy chief of operations for Indianapolis Metropolitan Police, described the shooting as “deeply concerning.”

“Once again, we have a situation where young people are resolving conflict with firearms, and it has to stop,” Terry said.

Terry told reporters that officers have noticed a pattern of young people leaving the mall after it closes at 7 p.m. and circulate downtown area nearby for hours. She noted that if parents don’t know where their 12-year-old is at 11:30 p.m. before Easter, that should “be a priority.”

“I think everybody sees the messages in the evening at 10 o’clock, ‘parents do you know where your children are?'” Terry said, referencing an old public service announcement. “And we would ask for our parents to get involved in what their children are out doing, especially at these hours of the evening.”

Police have not made an arrest in the case and have not provided information about a potential suspect. Detectives with the department have begun an aggravated assault investigation, police said.

This is the third shooting in three weekends in Indianapolis, according to NBC News affiliate WTHR.

Last Sunday, five people including an officer were killed in a shooting in the east side of the city, the station reported. An officer shot and killed the suspect in that case.

And one person was killed in a shooting at a bar on March 16, leaving five others injured, according to the Indianapolis Star. The newspaper reported that a suspect was arrested and charged in the shooting after police were able to identify a shooter using surveillance footage inside the bar.

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Pope Francis says “peace is never made with weapons” at Easter Sunday mass in St. Peter’s Square

Rallying from a winter-long bout of respiratory problems, Pope Francis led some 30,000 people in Easter celebrations Sunday and made a strong appeal for a cease-fire in Gaza and a prisoner swap between Russia and Ukraine.

Francis presided over Easter Sunday Mass in a flower-decked St. Peter’s Square and then delivered a heartfelt prayer for peace in his annual roundup of global crises. In between, he made several loops around the piazza in his popemobile, greeting well-wishers.

“Peace is never made with weapons, but with outstretched hands and open hearts,” Francis said from the loggia overlooking the square, to applause from the wind-swept crowd below.

Francis appeared in good form, despite having celebrated the 2½-hour nighttime Easter Vigil just hours before. The pontiff, who had part of one lung removed as a young man, has been battling respiratory problems all winter.

The co-author of a new memoir of the pontiff told CBS News earlier this month that Francis only thinks about resignation because journalists ask him about it.

“In the book, we talk about the resignation,” Fabio Marchese Ragona said. “He said, ‘I am good right now, I don’t think resignation.'”

The Vatican said some 30,000 people attended the Mass, with more packing the Via della Conciliazione boulevard leading to the piazza. At the start of the service, a gust of wind knocked over a large religious icon on the altar just a few feet from the pope; ushers quickly righted it.

Pope Francis delivers his "Urbi et Orbi" message at St. Peter's Square — Pope Francis gestures from a balcony at St. Peter’s Square, on Easter Sunday, at the Vatican March 31, 2024.

Remo Casilli / REUTERS

Easter Mass is one of the most important dates on the liturgical calendar, celebrating what the faithful believe was Jesus’ resurrection after his crucifixion. The Mass precedes the pope’s “Urbi et Orbi” (to the city and the world) blessing, in which the pope traditionally offers a laundry list of the threats afflicting humanity.

This year, Francis said his thoughts went particularly to people in Ukraine and Gaza and all those facing war, particularly the children who he said had “forgotten how to smile.”

“In calling for respect for the principles of international law, I express my hope for a general exchange of all prisoners between Russia and Ukraine: all for the sake of all!” he said.

He called for the “prompt” release of prisoners taken from Israel on Oct. 7, an immediate cease-fire in Gaza and for humanitarian access to reach Palestinians.

“Let us not allow the current hostilities to continue to have grave repercussions on the civil population, by now at the limit of its endurance, and above all on the children,” he said in a speech that also touched on the plight of Haitians, the Rohingya and victims of human trafficking.

For the past few weeks, Francis has generally avoided delivering long speeches to avoid the strain on his breathing. He ditched his Palm Sunday homily last week and decided at the last minute to stay home from the Good Friday procession at the Colosseum.

The Vatican said in a brief explanation that the decision was made to “conserve his health.”

The decision clearly paid off, as Francis was able to recite the prayers of the lengthy Saturday night Easter Vigil service, including administering the sacraments of baptism and First Communion to eight new Catholics, and preside over Easter Sunday Mass and deliver his speech.

Easter Mass at St. Peter's Square, at the Vatican — A general view of St. Peter’s Square during the Easter Mass attended by Pope Francis, at the Vatican, March 31, 2024.

Remo Casilli / REUTERS

Francis wasn’t the only leader whose mere presence at Easter offered a reassuring sign of stability and normalcy.

In Britain, King Charles III joined the queen and other members of the royal family for an Easter service at Windsor Castle in his most significant public outing since he was diagnosed with cancer last month.

The monarch offered a cheery wave to spectators as he walked into St. George’s Chapel. A member of the public shouted “Happy Easter,” and Charles responded “And to you.”

But things were hardly normal in Jerusalem, where Easter Mass came and went at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Only a few dozen faithful attended the service as the Israel-Hamas war rages on in Gaza.

The medieval church in the Old City is the holy site where Christians believe Jesus was crucified, buried and resurrected.

In years past, the church has been packed with worshippers and tourists. But the bloody conflict in Gaza, now into its sixth month, has seen a huge downturn in tourism and pilgrimages across Israel and the Palestinian territories.

The streets of the old city were also absent of Palestinian Christians from the West Bank, who normally flock to the Holy City for Easter. Since the conflict erupted, Palestinian worshippers from the Israeli-occupied territory have needed special permission to cross checkpoints into Jerusalem.

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Pope overcomes health concerns to preside over a blustery Easter Sunday Mass in St. Peter’s Square

ROME (AP) — Rallying from a winter-long bout of respiratory problems, Pope Francis led some 30,000 people in Easter celebrations Sunday, making a strong appeal for a cease-fire in Gaza and a prisoner swap between Russia and Ukraine.

Francis presided over Easter Sunday Mass in a flower-decked St. Peter’s Square and then delivered a heartfelt prayer for peace in his annual roundup of global crises delivered from the loggia overlooking the piazza. In between, he made several loops around the piazza in his popemobile, greeting well-wishers.

“Peace is never made with weapons, but with outstretched hands and open hearts,” Francis said, to applause from the wind-swept crowd below.

This year, Francis said his thoughts went particularly to people in Ukraine and Gaza and all those facing war, particularly the children who he said had “forgotten how to smile.”

“In calling for respect for the principles of international law, I express my hope for a general exchange of all prisoners between Russia and Ukraine: all for the sake of all!” he said.

He called for the “prompt” release of prisoners taken from Israel on Oct. 7, an immediate cease-fire in Gaza and for humanitarian access to reach Palestinians.

The Vatican said in a brief explanation that the decision was made to “conserve his health.”

After a busy Holy Week, Francis should have some time to recover as there are no major foreign trips scheduled for several months.

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Pope, looking strong, issues lengthy marching orders to priests during Holy Thursday Mass

Pope Francis urged his priests Thursday to avoid “clerical hypocrisy” and treat their flocks with mercy as he delivered a lengthy set of marching orders to Rome-based priests at the start of a busy few days leading to Easter.

A strong-looking Francis presided over a Holy Thursday Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica during which the oils for church services are blessed. Later in the afternoon, he travels to Rome’s main women’s prison for the annual Holy Week ritual in which he washes the feet of inmates in a symbol of humility and service.

The 87-year-old Francis, who has been hobbled by a long bout of respiratory problems this winter, appeared in good form for the morning Mass. He read aloud a long homily, after skipping his text at the last minute during Palm Sunday Mass last weekend.

In his remarks, Francis warned priests against “sliding into clerical hypocrisy,” or preaching one thing to their flocks but doing differently in their own spiritual lives. Rather, he urged them to always show mercy to the faithful and not judge them, and weep instead for their own sins.

Pope Francis urged his priests Thursday to avoid “clerical hypocrisy” and treat their flocks with mercy as he delivered a lengthy set of marching orders to Rome-based priests at the start of a busy few days leading to Easter. — Pope Francis arrives to preside the Maundy Thursday mass at St Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican.Alberto Pizzoli / AFP – Getty Images

Doing so, he said, “means looking within and repenting of our ingratitude and inconstancy, and acknowledging with sorrow our duplicity, dishonesty and hypocrisy,” he said.

The Mass was the first major papal liturgy in St. Peter’s since Bernini’s great columned canopy over the altar, known as a baldacchino, was covered in scaffolding for a months-long renovation and cleaning.

Francis has a busy few days coming up that will test his stamina.

On Friday, he is due to travel at night to the Colosseum for the Way of the Cross procession re-enacting Christ’s crucifixion. On Saturday, he presides over an evening Easter Vigil in St. Peter’s Basilica followed a few hours later by Easter Sunday Mass in the piazza and his big noontime Urbi et Orbi (to the city and the world) speech highlighting global conflicts and disasters afflicting humanity.

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Mass. State Police robot dog shot during Cape Cod standoff

A Massachusetts State Police robot dog was shot during a standoff on Cape Cod this month, officials said, calling it an example of how the technology can make police work safer in dangerous situations.

It’s both the first time a Massachusetts State Police robot dog was shot while working and the first time that one of Boston Dynamics’ well-known Spot robots was shot while working, representatives told NBC10 Boston Wednesday.

The dog, known as Roscoe, was shot as a SWAT team dealt with a man barricaded in a home in the Hyannis section of Barnstable on March 6, police said. That standoff prompted local schools to be evacuated and took hours to resolve; it led to the arrest of 30-year-old Justin Moreira.

Moreira was barricaded inside a home on St. Francis Circle after a 911 call about a person holding someone else at knifepoint, police said at the time. The person escaped, but when officers arrived, at the home, Moreira allegedly opened fire on a SWAT vehicle and periodically shot near the officers who’d circled the home.

State police eventually decided to send in three robots, including Roscoe, to find where in the building Moreira was holed up. Roscoe cleared the top two floors of the building, then discovered him, holding a rifle, in the basement, police said.

He knocked the robot dog down, then started to walk up the stairs, but, when Roscoe righted itself and started following him up the stairs, he knocked the dog over again, then shot it three times. Its pilot lost communication with the dog.

Images shared by police showed the dog shot in its side and “neck.”

Moreira went on to take aim at another of the robots outside, though he missed, officials said. Police eventually took him into custody after they sent tear gas through the house.

“The incident provided a stark example of the benefits of mobile platforms capable of opening doors and ascending stairs in tactical missions involving armed suspects,” state police said in a statement. “In addition to providing critically important room clearance and situational awareness capabilities, the insertion of Roscoe into the suspect residence prevented the need, at that stage of response, from inserting human operators, and may have prevented a police officer from being involved in an exchange of gunfire.”

Moreira later appeared in court, where authorities said he fired more than 30 rounds during the course of the standoff. His attorney spoke briefly outside of court, calling this “a very serious case.”

The day after Roscoe was shot, police brought it to its manufacturer, Waltham-based Boston Dynamics, to have the bullets removed and assess the damage, police said. The company is hoping to keep the dog for research, and state police are getting a replacement.

A Boston Dynamics representative confirmed in an email that the state police dog “was the first Spot robot to be shot while ‘on duty.’

“More than that though, Spot keeps people out of harm’s way and aids first responders in assessing dangerous situations. We are proud that Spot safely supported the Massachusetts State Police Bomb Squad during the recent Barnstable incident involving an armed and barricaded suspect, and we are relieved that the only casualty that day was our robot. It’s a great example of how mobile robots like Spot can be used to save lives,” the email continued.

The company notes that its robots are not allowed to be weaponized.

The company also noted the incident in a blog post released this week about its Spot robots, noting that they have “proven extremely valuable in hostage situations, which are, of course, inherently volatile and present a real risk of imminent danger.”

The company said it’s a way to get officials a close look at such situations without putting humans at risk. Referring to Roscoe, they said simply that the “suspect fired at both responding officers and at Spot, partially disabling the robot. Officers were ultimately able to safely arrest the suspect.”

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Man honored for stopping mass shooting

Man honored for stopping mass shooting – CBS News

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Brandon Tsay was given a Citizen Honors award for wrestling a gun away from a mass shooter at his family’s dance studio last year. Recipients of the award are chosen by the living Medal of Honor recipients.

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Pope Francis skips homily during Palm Sunday mass

Pope Francis skips homily during Palm Sunday mass – CBS News

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Pope Francis skipped the homily on Palm Sunday at last minute, but did participate in blessing the palm fronds and olive branches. Candida Moss, an Edward Cadbury professor of theology at the University of Birmingham, joined CBS News to discuss the pontiff.

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Pope skips homily at start of busy Holy Week during Palm Sunday Mass in St. Peter’s Square

ROME — Pope Francis decided at the last minute to skip his homily during Palm Sunday Mass in St. Peter’s Square, avoiding a strenuous speech at the start of a busy Holy Week that will test his increasingly frail health.

Hobbled by bad knees and persistent respiratory problems, Francis also didn’t participate in the procession of cardinals around the obelisk in the piazza at the start of the Mass. Instead, the 87-year-old pontiff blessed the palm fronds and olive branches carried by the faithful from the altar.

Francis had been expected to deliver a homily halfway through the service and had pronounced the prayers during the Mass. But after several seconds of silence, announcers said Francis had decided not to deliver the homily itself.

Vatican officials estimated some 25,000 people attended the Mass, held under a sunny, breezy spring sky.

Palm Sunday kicks off a busy week for Francis leading up to Easter Sunday when the faithful commemorate the resurrection of Christ. On Thursday, Francis is due to travel to a Rome women’s prison for the traditional washing of the feet ritual. On Friday he is scheduled to preside over the nighttime Way of the Cross procession at Rome’s Colosseum re-enacting Christ’s crucifixion.

The following day marks the Easter Vigil, during which Francis presides over a solemn nighttime service in the basilica, followed by Easter Sunday Mass in St. Peter’s Square and his noontime blessing from the loggia above.

Off and on this winter, Francis has been battling what he and the Vatican have described as a case of the flu, bronchitis or a cold. For the last several weeks he has occasionally asked an aide to read aloud his speeches and catechism lessons to spare him the effort.

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Authorities in northwest Mexico rescue 42 people after mass kidnappings by criminal groups

MEXICO CITY — Mexican authorities said they rescued 42 hostages, including 18 children, from criminal groups Saturday after a wave of kidnappings in Sinaloa state, where more than 600 special force troops were sent to beef up security.

Sinaloa Gov. Rubén Rocha said an intensive operation by police and military forces was still trying to find 24 more people who were kidnapped.

Kidnappings en masse took place Friday in different areas of the La Noria region, outside Sinaloa’s capital city of Culiacan. Members of criminal groups made hostages of at least three families, local public security chief Gerardo Mérida said.

Federal authorities sent special forces troops to Sinaloa to search for the missing people. An additional 300 soldiers and a National Guard battalion are also operating in the area.

Local authorities have not said who was behind the mass kidnappings, which took place one day after three people were killed in the state’s Badiraguato region.

Culiacan and other cities in the state have been the scenes of violent incidents in recent years, with killings by members of the powerful Sinaloa cartel.

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