Police officers in Los Angeles have made an arrest in connection with a prank call that resulted in the shooting death of a young man in Kansas by a SWAT team member.
The suspect has been identified as Tyler Barris, a 25-year old man who got into an online quarrel while playing the popular video game Call of Duty; according to initial news reports, Barris is suspected of having called 911 to report a kidnapping in progress at an address where he believed a rival gamer lived. When Andrew Finch opened the front door of his Wichita home, a police officer fired a single shot, killing him on the spot. The argument that prompted the false report was over a $2 bet.
California Family Chastised for Skipping Christmas Decorations
A family grieving the loss of a relative during the holidays received an anonymous letter admonishing them for their lack of Christmas decorations. Lyndia Zarra received a note in the mail chastising her for not putting up holiday displays; the Zarra family skipped the decorations this year because Lyndia's mother recently passed away due to liver cancer. Before getting the letter, which was ostensibly signed by everyone in the neighborhood, no one bothered to ask the Zarras why their home was undecorated; it so happens that Lyndia's mom had been working on new holiday lawn ornaments that she did not get to complete before she died.
Icy Conditions Expected During New Year's Eve Celebrations in Times Square
Revelers who plan on watching the ball drop as they bring in the New Year in Manhattan are being advised to dress very warm for the occasion. The forecast for New York City on New Year's Eve calls for temperatures as low as 11 degrees; however, the wind chill could make the night feel like zero degrees. This will be one of the coldest ball drop ceremonies on record; the last time such low temperatures were felt was in 1962.
Russian President Sends Warm Holiday Greeting to Trump
In 2018, Vladimir Putin would like to engage in more constructive dialog with United States President Donald Trump for the purpose of finding common ground when handling global threats and security risks. Such was the gist of a holiday message the Russian leader sent on December 30, and it brings hope at a time when diplomatic relations between these two global powers are strained.
Multiple Lawsuits Filed Against Apple Over Slow iPhones
Tech giant Apple has been served with eight class-action lawsuits after the company revealed that it deliberately slowed down older iPhones to compensate for their aging batteries. The software update affected the iPhone 6, 6S, SE and 7; over the last year, owners of these smartphones noticed the diminished performance over the last year, and they were unable to pinpoint the issue. The class-action lawsuits could bring about major losses for Apple since millions of iPhone would be able to seek compensation.