Actor Gary Busey has been charged with sexual offenses at a New Jersey fan convention this month.Busey, 78, was charged Friday with two counts of fourth-degree criminal sexual contact, one count of attempted criminal sexual contact and one count of harassment, Cherry Hill police said Saturday.The charges stem from offenses at the annual Monster Mania Convention at the Doubletree Hotel on Aug. 12-14 in Cherry Hill, a Philadelphia suburb, police said.Busey, who lives in Malibu, California, was scheduled as a featured guest for all three days of the event.Police did not immediately respond to a message seeking details. It also wasn't clear whether Busey has an attorney to comment on the charges, and a representative didn't immediately return a message seeking comment Saturday.Busey is widely known as a character actor, largely in supporting roles, though he came to attention and was nominated for an Oscar for best actor for playing the title role in the 1978 film “The Buddy Holly Story.”

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A Kansas City, Missouri, police detective who shot and killed a Black man in December 2019 has been found guilty.

Jackson County Circuit Court Judge Dale Youngs announced the verdict Friday, a week after Det. Eric DeValkenaere’s four-day trial wrapped up on Nov. 12.

It was a bench trial, so no jury was seated, and Youngs ruled on the case alone.

A Jackson County grand jury indicted DeValkenaere in June 2020, and he was charged with first-degree involuntary manslaughter and armed criminal action, which are both felonies.

Friday, the judge announced the court found DeValkenaere guilty of both the lesser charge of second-degree involuntary manslaughter and armed criminal action.

Youngs' ruling focused primarily on whether or not DeValkenaere and his partner had a right to be on the property.

Determining they did not, the judge said the pair were the initial aggressors and escalated a situation that had previously been deescalated.

As police officers, Youngs said, the detectives had a duty to retreat from the interaction.

The judge will set a sentencing hearing after meeting with counsel for both parties. DeValkenaere will remain free on bond until that time.

DeValkenaere, who started with KCPD in 1999 and was assigned to the investigations division, has been reassigned to an "administrative assignment" within the Executive Services Bureau since being charged, according to the department.

KSHB has reached out to KCPD about DeValkenaere's employment status following his felony convictions Friday.

The trial, initially scheduled to begin in July, was delayed four months and reassigned to Youngs last summer.

There was never a dispute about whether DeValkenaere killed Lamb. Still, the issue was whether he acted reasonably or recklessly, flouted the constitution, and possibly planted evidence to ensure he’d be acquitted as the prosecution contended.

DeValkenaere’s trial is believed to be the first for a KCPD officer to kill someone in the line of duty since 1942.

According to archived articles from The Kansas City Star, two officers were acquitted of second-degree murder after shooting and killing Harrison J. Ware on July 26, 1941, during a raid at the Autumn Leaf club.

DeValkenaere trial recap

DeValkenaere and his partner in KCPD’s Violent Offenders Unit, Det. Troy Schwalm, were guided to Lamb’s house by a police helicopter after another member of the unit, Det. Adam Hill reported seeing a red truck chasing a purple Ford Mustang at high speeds in the area.

Hill lost sight of the vehicles, but a KCPD surveillance helicopter found a car matching the description driving erratically in the area and followed it as Lamb returned home and started to park the vehicle behind the house.

There were no 911 calls placed about the chase and no calls indicating that the red truck had been involved in a crime beyond traffic violations.

KCPD’s policy regarding vehicle pursuits doesn’t allow patrol officers to chase vehicles except in the case of a serious felony, and officers with the Violent Offenders Unit aren’t permitted to participate in chases because their covert cars aren’t equipped with emergency lights or sirens.

Despite that, DeValkenaere and Schwalm responded to Lamb’s house to “investigate” whether a violent crime had occurred or was occurring despite no evidence that one had taken place, no indication Lamb had a weapon, and no complaining witness.

Schwalm arrived first in an unmarked Chevrolet Impala at the house on College Avenue, parked in a shared driveway on the south side of the property, and exited his vehicle with his service weapon drawn before heading into the backyard.

DeValkenaere arrived moments later in an unmarked GMC Sierra. He also drew his weapon before heading to the backyard of the property on the north side.

Neither Schwalm nor DeValkenaere asked Lamb’s roommate, Roberta Merritt, who was sitting on the porch when the detectives arrived, for permission to enter the property.

Schwalm testified that he contacted Lamb, who attempted to back the red truck into a narrow underground garage behind the house, but he refused commands to turn off the vehicle and step out of it.

It’s unclear if Lamb heard or understood Schwalm’s commands because he never responded. According to testimony from both officers, he also never looked at DeValkenaere after he approached the vehicle from the other side.

Schwalm, who was standing a few feet off the front driver’s side of the truck, said he remembered seeing Lamb’s hand with his fingers “splayed” out on the steering wheel at some point during the seconds-long encounter.

DeValkenaere, who kicked over a barbecue grill that served as a makeshift fence to enter the backyard, said from his vantage point looking through the truck’s passenger window, he saw Lamb begin to raise “a full-size polymer pistol” between the door and steering wheel aimed in Schwalm’s direction.

During the 9-second encounter from when DeValkenaere started toward the backyard to when he opened fire, the KCPD detective testified that he saw Lamb reach for the pistol but didn’t immediately fire because Lamb “posed no threat” and he thought he was attempting to hide the gun.

Schwalm said he never saw a weapon.

After seeing Lamb allegedly lift the gun toward his partner, DeValkenaere fired four rounds, shooting Lamb in the left upper chest — the fatal shot — as well as the right leg.

Neither Lamb nor Schwalm fired a weapon.

After he was shot, Lamb’s truck rolled backward down the sloped entrance to the garage and came to rest at an angle against the back of the garage.

It would be more than 20 minutes before emergency medical personnel, who declared Lamb dead, were allowed into the garage to assess his injuries.

During that time, arriving KCPD tactical personnel entered and cleared the garage of danger. Some officers testified to seeing a gun, but others said they never saw the weapon that police investigators reported finding on the garage floor below Lamb’s left hand, which came to rest hanging out of the open driver’s side window.

Merritt testified that she knew Lamb, who ran a mechanic business from the house, owned a gun and often kept it in the truck, but she said she saw it on the garage steps that morning — not far from where it was eventually found — when Lamb wasn’t home.

Pool/Jill Toyoshiba, The Kansas City Star

The prosecution insinuated that evidence detailed in police reports might have been staged or manufactured, including the location of the gun and items found on Lamb’s body that weren’t initially discovered at the scene but showed up during the autopsy on Dec. 4, 2019, at the Jackson County Medical Examiner’s Officer.

Prosecutors — including trial attorney Tim Dollar, who assisted the Jackson County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office on the case — questioned why DeValkenaere could be heard on a voicemail captured after Lamb placed a call shortly before the shooting yelled “keep your hands up” unless his hands had been up at the time of the shooting.

They also questioned why DeValkenaere relayed information about other parties possibly having been at the house earlier in the day with weapons when he had no evidence of any such activity.

DeValkenaere said he overheard Merritt tell other officers who arrived on the scene after the shooting about a fight between Lamb and his ex-girlfriend. He radioed out after KCPD dispatch asked if there were any suspects at-large connected to the fatal incident.

What led police to Lamb’s house?

Lamb and his live-in girlfriend, Shanice Reed, have been in a fight that turned physical that morning, and she had moved out.

Both Lamb and Reed left the house on College Avenue in separate vehicles after the fight to go to her relative’s house. Police were not called about the altercation.

Reed returned later that day with friends and family to gather her belongings, which Lamb had moved to the curb, and another verbal altercation took place. Again, police were never called.

Lamb threw lugnuts at Reed as she left before she stopped her Mustang near Lamb’s truck as she pulled away. He ran down the block after her before she drove off when he got into his truck — which the defense said was stolen — and gave chase.

That chase went past Hill near the Blue Valley Market, and DeValkenaere said he later saw Lamb’s truck run a red light, but he testified that he never saw a purple Mustang. The police helicopter, which started to canvass the area after Hill radioed in the chase, also never spotted the Mustang.

The prosecution contended that DeValkenaere — and Schwalm, who is not charged in connection with Lamb’s death — illegally entered the property before shooting Lamb, making his conduct reckless and criminal.

With no evidence of a violent crime, no evidence of weapons, no calls for service from the public, no active police pursuit, no exigent circumstances to believe someone at the College Avenue residence was in danger, no search warrant, and no permission to enter the property, DeValkenaere acted unconstitutionally in manufacturing the encounter with Lamb, prosecutors said.

DeValkenaere admitted that he had no “probable cause” that a violent crime had taken place but that he had “reasonable suspicion,” which is a different legal standard that doesn’t include direct evidence of a crime.

Pool/Jill Toyoshiba, The Kansas City Star

According to prosecutors, that Schwalm and DeValkenaere were in plainclothes and driving unmarked vehicles made the civil-rights violation especially egregious.

A legal expert for the defense argued that guidance from the KCPD helicopter, Hill’s eye-witness account of the vehicle chase, and DeValkenaere’s intuition as a law enforcement officer honed over two decades created a legal justification for entering the property to investigate.

The defense also said that DeValkenaere had an obligation to follow Schwalm into the backyard rather than leave him alone after leaving behind the house.

DeValkenaere also testified under oath that he saw Lamb with a gun and never asked any fellow officers to plant evidence or alter reports related to the case.

Involuntary manslaughter is a Class C felony, which carries a maximum 10-year sentence under Missouri law.

According to Missouri law, armed criminal action carries a minimum three-year sentence and maximum 15-year sentence, which must be served consecutively — or in addition to — any underlying conviction.

In civil court, Lamb’s family has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against DeValkenaere and the KCPD Board of Police Commissioners.

Lamb’s mother, Laurie Bey, acknowledged that her son was “imperfect” but said he was a good person and father to three young boys in the days after the shooting.

Dale Messing

When protests erupted in Kansas City and across the country in the wake of George Floyd’s murder at the hands of former Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin, Lamb’s name was among those invoked by protesters seeking local reform.

Tod Palmer at KSHB first reported this story.

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Three Los Angeles police officers have been charged with falsifying records reporting that people they stopped were gang members or associates.

Prosecutors say the members of the Police Department's Metropolitan Division were charged with conspiracy in a 59-count complaint with obstructing justice and multiple counts of filing a false police report and preparing false evidence.

In a news release, the LA County DA's office said Braxton Shaw, Michael Coblentz, and Nicholas Martinez are the officers being charged.

Prosecutors said in the statement that the officers are accused of falsifying field interview cards they use to conduct interviews while out on duty.

The cards, prosecutors say, contained false information and misidentified dozens of people as a gang member.

The officers' union said Friday it expects the department to ensure the officers are accorded their due process rights and that any proven mischaracterizations are corrected.

The Police Department says 21 additional officers are under investigation.

The department also says it's no longer using the state's gang database other than to remove individuals from it.

KENOSHA — A Kenosha police officer will not be charged in the August shooting of Jacob Blake, the Kenosha County District Attorney announced Tuesday.

The District Attorney made the announcement at a press conference Tuesday afternoon. D.A. Michael Graveley said his office would not recommend charges against Kenosha Police Officer Rusten Sheskey.

Sheskey shot Blake multiple times in the back on Aug. 23. Officers had responded to the scene near 40th and 28th Street on a "domestic incident" call.

The Wisconsin Department of Justice, which is the investigating agency, said Sheskey and several other Kenosha officers were attempting to arrest Blake at the time. Blake walked away from officers and was attempting to get into an SUV at the scene when he was shot.

According to officials, Blake admitted there was a weapon in the vehicle, but it was unclear if he was reaching for it or not during the incident. Prior to the shooting, Blake was tased twice by Sheskey and another officer.

An investigation launched by the DOJ's Division of Criminal Investigation following the shooting has since found that Blake admitted to having a knife in his possession during the incident. DCI agents later found a knife in the driver’s side floorboard of Blake's vehicle. No other weapons were found.

Sheskey, Officer Vincent Arenas, and Officer Brittany Meronek were placed on administrative leave pending the investigation.

Gov. Tony Evers on Monday mobilized 500 members of the Wisconsin National Guard to Kenosha.

In a statement, the governor said that local authorities requested the deployment. The city's Common Council also authorized an emergency declaration, which allows Mayor John Antaramian emergency authority, set to kick in once a charging decision is made.

The Aug. 23 shooting sparked nationwide protests, some turning violent.

Graveley said none of the officers involved in the shooting will face charges. He also added that Blake wouldn't be charged.

“We are immensely disappointed in Kenosha District Attorney Michael Graveley’s decision not to charge the officers involved in this horrific shooting," said Blake's attorneys in a statement. "We feel this decision failed not only Jacob and his family, but the community that protested and demanded justice."

Attorneys Ben Crump, Patrick A. Salvi and B'Ivory LaMarr said Graveley's decision "further destroys trust in our justice system."

“Officer Sheskey’s actions sparked outrage and advocacy throughout the country, but the District Attorney’s decision not to charge the officer who shot Jacob in the back multiple times, leaving him paralyzed, further destroys trust in our justice system," said the attorneys. "This sends the wrong message to police officers throughout the country. It says it is OK for police to abuse their power and recklessly shoot their weapon, destroying the life of someone who was trying to protect his children."

This story originally reported on TMJ4.com.

NEW MIAMI, Ohio — A Hamilton man has been arrested and charged in connection with a crash that badly hurt a New Miami firefighter.

The New Miami Fire Department said firefighter Dustin "Dusty" Cook was involved in a head-on crash in August 2020. As a result of the crash, Cook underwent surgery to remove his spleen and fix his broken legs, and he was briefly placed on a ventilator.

Cook was released from Fort Hamilton Hospital in September.

Brian D. Cast, 27, was arrested and charged Thursday night with two counts of aggravated vehicular assault and two counts of improper handling of a firearm in a vehicle, according to Butler County Sgt. Kim Peters.

Judge Keith Spaeth set Cast's bond at $50,000 Friday, and Cast is due again in Butler County court on March 25.

ROCHESTER, N.Y. — A grand jury will not seek charges against officers shown on body camera video holding Daniel Prude down naked and handcuffed on a city street last winter until he stopped breathing.

New York Attorney General Letitia James announced the decision Tuesday. She added that many will be “rightfully” disappointed, but said they must respect the decision.

“Daniel Prude was in the throes of a mental health crisis and what he needed was compassion, care, and help from trained professionals. Tragically, he received none of those things,” said James. “We concluded that there was sufficient evidence surrounding Mr. Prude’s death to warrant presenting the case to a grand jury, and we presented the most comprehensive case possible. While I know that the Prude family, the Rochester community, and communities across the country will rightfully be devastated and disappointed, we have to respect this decision.”

The 41-year-old Black man’s death last March sparked nightly protests in Rochester, New York, after the video was released nearly six months later.

The video made public on Sept. 4 shows Prude handcuffed and naked with a spit hood over his head as an officer pushes his face against the ground. Lawyers for the seven police officers suspended over Prude’s death have said they were strictly following their training.

The county medical examiner listed the manner of death as a homicide.

While the grand jury voted not to indict any officers, James says “serious concerns” remain regarding the actions of the Rochester Police Department.

“The current laws on deadly force have created a system that utterly and abjectly failed Mr. Prude and so many others before him. Serious reform is needed, not only at the Rochester Police Department, but to our criminal justice system as a whole,” said James. “I will be pursuing a multifaceted approach to address the very issues that have prevented us from holding officers accountable when they improperly use deadly force.”

The AG has issued a number of recommendations to address said concerns, specifically when handling mental health crises:

1. James says officers, dispatchers and EMS personnel must be trained to recognize the symptoms of excited delirium syndrome and to respond to it as a serious medical emergency.
2. She says all communities should assess models for responding to crisis situations that minimize or eliminate police responses to mental health calls whenever possible.
3. The AG believe New York should mandate de-escalation training for all officers, and police agencies should reflect a commitment to de-escalation in their use of force policies.
4. She says the City of Rochester should adopt a body worn camera release policy regarding critical incidents.
5. And lastly, James says law enforcement agencies should explore the use of spit sock alternatives.

CINCINNATI —

A former Cincinnati mayoral candidate is facing federal charges in a pandemic relief fraud scheme.

Investigators said Kelli Prather received nearly $20,000 of the more than $600,000 in relief she applied for.

Federal investigators are warning people who are tempted to defraud the system that they are watching it closely.

They said Prather is part of their fourth round of fraud cases in our region.

"I'm not the career politician. I'm not the party favorite. I'm the person who represents the people," Kelli Prather said during a 2020 interview.

She was in the spotlight running for Hamilton County Commission in 2020.

Prather was more recently running for mayor of Cincinnati, a city plagued with federal corruption cases.

"The reason I decided to jump into the mayoral's race is because all of the problems that I have discussed in the past," Prather said during a 2021 interview about the race.

Now, she is accused by federal investigators of taking part in pandemic relief fraud.

"The program benefits were designed to provide a lifeline, to cover payroll. Instead, the funds are being used for something else entirely," Acting U.S. Attorney Vipal Patel said.

According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, Prather applied for six paycheck protection program loans claiming to own six businesses.

The feds started digging in September 2020, according to documents WLWT reviewed, and they found the businesses did not appear operational.

They said Prather wanted more than $600,000 in relief funds and fraudulently received nearly $20,000.

Officials said Fifth Third Bank found discrepancies and declined to fund more.

Documents show one of Prather's loan applications listed one employee who made $19,862 a month, but supporting documentation showed only $1,500 a year in income.

"The charged defendants used these funds in various ways, but there was a lot of personal use going on," Patel said.

Investigators allege Prather pocketed money and used it at salons and restaurants.

Some of the purchases outlined in the federal complaint documents include stops at Dollar General, City Gear, Kroger and Juicy Crab.

The documents show Prather claimed her businesses were legitimate, but that she admitted some expenses were personal.

Federal officials warn that they are watching these programs closely.

"If they don't stop, they continue on, we're going to come knocking," Patel said.

Prather faces charges including bank fraud, aggravated identity theft and making false statements.

She declined to comment.

Three other people from our area were also charged in separate pandemic relief fraud schemes.

Federal officials said Toni Wright, 34, from Cincinnati, allegedly received $349,000 in fraudulent PPP relief loans.

They said she made false statements at the purported sole owner of Poshedbar, a hair and nail salon, Beautiful Beginnings Doula Service and Jerry's Electronics.

Investigators said Wright used the money for restaurants, purchases at Michael Kors, Louis Vuitton, Kay Jewelers and for vacations.

They also said Wright spent more than $10,000 at Sono Bello, a facility that advertises laser liposuction and body contouring.

Wright faces charges including bank fraud, wire fraud, making false statements and false representation of a social security number.

Officials said Melissa McGhee, 37, from Cincinnati, allegedly received $186,000 in fraudulent relief funds, which she used, in part, to purchase real estate.

Investigators said she allegedly lied about an FHA loan for a new home.

They said she applied for seven different pandemic relief loans and received three.

According to investigators, McGhee used the business names M&MM Realty Group and M&M Realty Group to submit fraudulent applications.

She faces charges including bank fraud, committing fraud in connection with a major disaster or emergency benefits and wire fraud.

Federal officials said Jon Alan Bader, 50, from Dayton, allegedly received more than $120,000 in fraudulent pandemic relief funds by lying on applications.

They said he registered the business, JB Auto Wholesale, LLC, with the state of Ohio in June 2020, after the cutoff eligibility date for the loans.

Investigators said he spent the relief money on Door Dash, Uber, apparel at Puma, Lacoste and Saks, and travel.

He faces charges including bank fraud, wire fraud and making false statements.

DETROIT — Former Michigan State University basketball star, Keith Appling, has been charged with first-degree murder in the deadly shooting of a 66-year-old man in Detroit on May 22.

The Wayne County Prosecutor's Office announced Monday that Appling had been charged with murder, one count of felon in possession of a firearm, and two counts of felony firearm.

Appling's girlfriend, Natalie Banister, 28, is also being charged in connection to the case.

Police say the shooting happened around 7 p.m. in the 13240 block of Whitcomb Street.

Officers arrived at the home and found the victim, 66-year-old Clyde Edmonds, on the front lawn with multiple gunshot wounds.

Edmonds is related to Appling through marriage.

An investigation found that an argument over a handgun led to a deadly shooting.

Appling then fled the scene and was later arrested. Appling's girlfriend allegedly drove the getaway car.

She's now charged with one count of accessory after the fact and one count of lying to a peace officer.

Arraignments for Appling and Banister will be announced soon.

Appling played for Michigan State from 2010 to 2014. He also played briefly for the Orlando Magic.

MERCER COUNTY, N.J. – Authorities broke up a 47-person “corona party” at a small New Jersey apartment and the person who lived there is now being charged for violating the state’s stay-at-home order.

The Ewing Township Police Department says it was called to the apartment at about 11:44 p.m. Friday after receiving an anonymous call about a party.

Officers say they dispersed over 40 guests that were attending the gathering, which the renter of that apartment called a “corona party.”

The renter, 47-year-old Wade E. Jackson, was advised that he was in violation of Gov. Phil Murphy’s executive order that has banned “gatherings of individuals, such as parties, celebrations or other social events” to help slow the spread of the coronavirus.

Police say Jackson was issued summonses for obstructing administration of law or other governmental function, and violation of emergency and temporary acts.

“Last night, Ewing Township Police broke up a party with 47 people – including a DJ – crammed into a 550-square foot apartment. The organizer was charged, as they should have been and deserved to be,” wrote Gov. Murphy on Twitter. “This is not a game. Stay home. Be smart.”

During a

press conference

on Saturday, Gov. Murphy encouraged people to only go out if they need to go to a supermarket or a pharmacy and to remain six feet apart from others.

Can’t believe I have to say this at all, let alone for the second time. But here we are.

NO CORONA PARTIES. They’re illegal, dangerous, and stupid.

We will crash your party. You will pay a big fine. And we will name & shame you until EVERYONE gets this message into their heads.

— Governor Phil Murphy (@GovMurphy)

March 28, 2020

New Jersey has confirmed more cases of COVID-19 than any other state in the country, besides its neighbor, New York. More than 13,300 people have been diagnosed with the respiratory illness in the Garden State as of Monday afternoon, according to Johns Hopkins University.