Tag Archives: mourn

World

Shireen Abu Akleh: Thousands mourn slain journalist as Palestinians call for accountability

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Journalists, diplomats, religious leaders, and officials including Arab members of Israel’s parliament, the Knesset, attended the memorial procession at the Palestinian Authority President’s residence, which saw Abu Akleh’s Palestinian-flag-draped coffin carried in as honor guards played musical instruments. Crowds that had gathered on the streets outside the residence were heard chanting “the honest voice never dies” and “we sacrifice our blood and spirit for you, Shireen.”

The memorial was attended by Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, who in a speech at the event rejected Israel’s offer for a joint investigation into Abu Akleh’s killing and vowed to take the case to the ICC.

“We rejected, and continue to reject, the joint investigation with the Israeli occupation authorities because they committed the crime and we do not trust them,” said Abbas, standing before Abu Akleh’s coffin. “We will go immediately to the International Criminal Court to track down the killers.”

Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Mohamed Shtayyeh said the government will share findings of the investigation with the United States, Qatar and the ICC, adding that it will be concluded “soon” and will include an autopsy report.

The Palestinian-American was shot dead on Wednesday while reporting on Israeli military raids in the West Bank city of Jenin. Akleh’s producer, Ali Al-Samudi, was also shot and is in stable condition, the Palestinian health ministry said.

Following the procession, Abu Akleh’s body was brought to St. Joseph hospital in East Jerusalem, where journalists and friends stood outside, crying as they embraced one another. A crowd of supporters gathered outside the hospital, holding roses and chanting “God rest your soul, Shireen.”

As the ambulance carrying Abu Akleh drove in, dozens gathered to help carry her coffin into the hospital, draped in roses and the Palestinian flag.

Mourners also laid flowers at the doorstep of Abu Akleh’s house in the Jerusalem neighborhood of Beit Hanina.

“Shireen is my daughter, her parents died but we are all her parents,” said 63-year-old Nafisa Khwais, who sat by Abu Akleh’s home, “we are all her family.”

“Silencing her will never stop us from resisting and telling our story,” added Khwais.

Al Jazeera has accused Israeli security forces of deliberately targeting and killing Abu Akleh, 51 — one of the Arab world’s most prominent journalists. Her death was met with regional and international outrage and calls for accountability.

The circumstances surrounding her death are unclear. Three eyewitnesses told CNN that the journalists were shot by Israeli troops and that there were no Palestinian militants next to the journalists at the time.

Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid proposed a joint Israeli-Palestinian investigation into the death on Wednesday.

The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) said its forces came under heavy fire during the counterterrorism operation, and that they returned fire.

IDF International Spokesperson Amnon Shefler told CNN late on Wednesday that the Israelis “just don’t know yet” who killed Abu Akhleh, in what appeared to be a softening of previous statements by Israeli officials that said she was “likely” shot by crossfire from Palestinian militants.

Her employer, Al Jazeera, called her death “a blatant murder” by Israeli forces.

Abu Akleh’s funeral will take place on Friday in the Roman Catholic Church in Bab Al-Khalil, before she is buried in Jerusalem’s Mount Zion Cemetery next to her parents.

CNN’s Celine Alkhaldi, Nadeen Ebrahim and Mostafa Salem in Abu Dhabi contributed to this report.

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US

Amir Locke funeral: Family and friends mourn Amir Locke at Minneapolis funeral after he was killed by police executing a no-knock warrant

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Amir Locke’s aunt, Linda Kay Tyler, had strong words for the Minneapolis Police Department and political figures during the eulogy she delivered at Locke’s funeral.

She asked lawmakers to pass legislation to change laws to avoid the death of another black man.

“Woe to those who refuse to pass legislation to ensure that we are not gathering at funerals like these, hash tagging our loved ones name and rallying behind my sister and my brother for the murder of their child,” Tyler said.

Police shot and killed Locke February 2 in a Minneapolis apartment while they executed a warrant in which he wasn’t named, and that didn’t require police to knock and give any occupant a chance to open the door.

“All I have is the memories … and pictures,” Locke’s mother Karen Wells said last week. “I should not have to bury a 22-year-old child.”

A brief body camera video of Locke’s shooting shows an officer quietly sliding a key into the apartment’s door. After the door opens, a group of officers barge in, yelling commands. Locke, who appeared to be sleeping, gets up holding a gun his family said he legally owned. Police then opened fire.
Locke’s parents are pushing for the abolition of no-knock warrants, describing them as a failure of law enforcement. They’ve asked President Joe Biden to advocate for a national ban on such warrants in the name of their son.

“The no-knock warrant is what caused Amir’s death,” Locke’s father, Andre Locke, told CNN earlier this month.

This week, a division of Minneapolis’ Civil Rights Department announced it is leading a “special review” of the police department’s no-knock warrant policy.

The Office of Police Conduct Review will “focus on identifying and recommending specific changes and improvements to departmental policy and procedures,” the city said in a news release.

“This important review will complement our engagement with external experts to provide needed clarity around the impacts of these policies for both community and officers,” Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said.

Meanwhile, the officer who shot Locke, Mark Hanneman, has been placed on routine administrative leave pending an ongoing state investigation.

What the video shows

During the raid that killed Locke, Minneapolis police were looking for suspects — including Locke’s teenage cousin — and evidence connected to a homicide in neighboring St. Paul, according to warrant applications.
Locke was not named in the no-knock warrant, and his family says he acquired his firearm legally.

The video of Locke’s shooting released by the city was 14 seconds long.

In it, officers are heard yelling, “Police! Search warrant!” during their morning entry into the apartment.

“Hands! Hands! Hands!” one officer yells while others yell “Get on the fu**ing ground!” as they make their way toward the back of a couch where a man is seen wrapped in blankets at 6:48 a.m., according to the footage. One officer kicks the back of the couch, appearing to wake up the man, who looks up to see the officers all around him.

He begins to try and stand up, still wrapped in blankets, and is seen holding a gun, according to the footage. And then three gunshots are heard from officers.

“We’ve seen this time and time again, watching the situation with Ahmaud Arbery, Daunte Wright, George Floyd, and our hearts go out to those families,” Andre Locke said, naming three Black men killed in controversial circumstances, including two by police officers.

Minneapolis policy under scrutiny

The shooting death of Breonna Taylor during a no-knock warrant service in Louisville, Kentucky, in March 2020 and the murder of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer two months later were catalysts for a nationwide reckoning over police policies.
In November 2020, Frey, the Minneapolis mayor, and then-Police Chief Medaria Arradondo announced they were instituting a policy that required officers to announce their presence and purpose before entering a building — except in special circumstances.

Days after Locke’s shooting, Frey imposed an immediate moratorium on the request and execution of no-knock warrants. But his announcement highlighted such warrants can still be implemented if there is “an imminent threat of harm to an individual or the public and then the warrant must be approved by the Chief.”

Examples of those circumstances include hostage situations and extreme domestic violence situations in which an officer may have to protect someone from the threat of severe bodily harm, he said.

But Locke’s family says the moratorium doesn’t go far enough.

“We have to challenge them not to put a Band-Aid over no-knock warrants,” Locke family attorney Jeff Storms told CNN. “They need to take this step and completely ban no-knock warrants. It’s not safe for either side of the door.”

CNN’s Omar Jimenez, Ray Sanchez, Brad Parks, Peter Nickeas, Steve Almasy, Eliott C. McLaughlin, Claudia Dominguez, Raja Razek and Travis Caldwell contributed to this report.

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Technology

Halo 3 Fans Mourn Game Server Death W/ Cease Fire, Achievements

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It’s the end of an era. On Thursday, Microsoft and 343 Industries turned off all the matchmaking servers for classic games Halo 3, Halo 3: ODST, Halo Reach, and Halo 4. And while you can still play versions of these games online via the fantastic Master Chief Collection, many players took time in the final days before January 13 to log on and mourn the end of the original games’ online multiplayer. Some helped other players get last-minute achievements, while others orchestrated cease-fires, and some just played one last match before it all ended.

The shutdown of Xbox 360-era Halo servers, while sad for many, wasn’t a surprise. 343 and Microsoft first announced the news all the way back in December 2020, but the date ended up shifting to January 13, 2022. Now that the date is here, over the last week or so, many players have dusted off their Xbox 360s and hopped back onto Halo 3 and Halo Reach, to join others in saying goodbye to some of the best multiplayer games ever made.

A popular activity in the final days involved players helping others unlock multiplayer-only achievements. A lot of players helped others earn the “Two For One” achievement in Halo 3, considered one of the hardest in the game. To get it you have to kill two players in one shot using the Spartan Laser. Other players helped folks unlock the “Maybe Next Time, Buddy” award which is unlocked after you steal a vehicle back from someone in less than 10 seconds, which can be tricky to get normally. But in the final days of Halo 3, people were open to helping each other grab these last-minute awards and communicated their plans via the game’s voice chat.

Another common occurrence in the final hours for the old-school Halo games was players stopping matches to hang out and chat. Some fired their guns into the air, simulating 21-gun salutes. Others just sat around and chatted about Halo 3, their favorite memories, and what made the game so special to them. It reminded me of the Christmas Day Truce that happened in the early days of WW1, where soldiers from both sides left their trenches to stop fighting in the name of the holidays.

I also saw another player who, during a CTF match, took a moment to eulogize Halo 3 right before capping the flag for the last time.

“Everyone, it has been some of the greatest moments of my life,” said Halo 3 player Xxminiman15xX. “I’m very, very sad to see this end. But, it’s not an end, because we will always have our memories. We’ll always have our moments. And… we can still play on the Master Chief Collection.”

After that they capped the flag, the match ended and shortly after that, the servers began shutting down. Players across Reddit and YouTube shared videos of the moments right as the servers gave up the ghost. Other players took screenshots of the matchmaking screen from Halo 3. Normally the globe seen in the bottom left-hand corner of the map would be lit up representing the various players around the world. But with the servers officially dead, for the first time since Halo 3 was released in 2007, all the lights were gone. The world was covered in darkness. It was over.

Watching players come together to celebrate the end of Halo 3’s servers has been oddly touching. It might have just been a multiplayer shooter, but it was also a game that brought people together. Folks shared stories of meeting friends and even husbands and wives through Halo 3 and Reach.

For me, Halo 3 was probably the last Halo game that I truly, completely loved. I spent so much time in Halo Reach and older games, but none of them (not even the recent and very good Infinite) ever captured the same feeling of Halo 3. Part of that was because I was younger, of course, but also because it was one of the first online video games I really sank weeks of my life into.

Booting up Halo 3 was special, as if I was connecting to a wild and beautiful community. Servers were full of community-created modes and maps—like the wild and crazy “Speed Halo” in Reach or custom parkour and race map in Halo 3. Partaking in that creativity made the games feel like a thing that was actually alive and evolving. I celebrated birthdays in this game. Escaped to its online action when high school got too shitty. It was a place of refuge and a place where I met cool people. (And some racist and assholes.) It also helped that Halo 3 was a damn fine shooter, too.

And while it is true that you can still play Halo 3 online via the excellent Master Chief Collection, it isn’t the same. That era is now gone. The fight is finished. And like a good Spartan, Halo 3 didn’t go quietly.

    



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Entertainment

Ryan Reynolds, Ellen DeGeneres, Henry Winkler Mourn – The Hollywood Reporter

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Hollywood, along with the world at large, is mourning the loss of Betty White, the legendary performer and comedian who delighted generations of fans.

White, known for memorable performances on The Mary Tyler Moore Show, The Golden Girls and Hot in Cleveland, in addition to witty stand-up comedy routines and charming talk show appearances, died early Friday at the age of 99, her agent and close friend Jeff Witjas told The Hollywood Reporter.

“Even though Betty was about to be 100, I thought she would live forever,” Witjas shared with People magazine in a statement. “I will miss her terribly and so will the animal world that she loved so much. I don’t think Betty ever feared passing because she always wanted to be with her most beloved husband Allen Ludden. She believed she would be with him again.”

GLAAD remembered the star with a statement from head of talent Anthony Allen Ramos, who praised her as a “true ‘friend’ to the LGBTQ community.” He added, “Her character Rose on The Golden Girls was instrumental in drawing mainstream attention to LGBTQ issues on television, namely an episode that raised awareness about HIV in 1990. Throughout the rest of her career, White used her platform to advocate for many issues affecting the LGBTQ community, including marriage equality and supporting at-risk queer youth.”

The National Comedy Center praised White in a statement for her “comedy gold” and called her a “true master of the art form. She was one of the first women to host a TV show solo, and was a powerful advocate for diversity and inclusion in the early days of television.”

Fathom Events shared that it will celebrate her life by continuing with its plan to screen the film Betty White: 100 Years Young – a Birthday Celebration in theaters on Jan. 17, when she would have turned 100. The project includes inside stories from White, along with messages from her high-profile friends and clips from her various on-screen appearances.

During CNN’s New Year’s Eve Live telecast that aired Friday evening, co-hosts Andy Cohen and Anderson Cooper aired clips of White and dedicated their first on-air tequila shot of the night to her. “This is in honor of Betty White, a life well-lived,” Cohen said.

Hollywood stars took to social media to offer condolences and memories of the late legend.

Ryan Reynolds, her co-star in the 2009 comedy The Proposal, wrote on Instagram, “The world looks different now. She was great at defying expectation. She managed to grow very old and somehow, not old enough. We’ll miss you, Betty. Now you know the secret.”

“What an exceptional life,” Ellen DeGeneres tweeted. “I’m grateful for every second I got to spend with Betty White. Sending love to her family, friends and all of us.”

Bob Newhart, who appeared with White on the series Bob and the finale of Hot in Cleveland, recalled early career memories of her. “Betty was a regular on Jack Paar’s late night show, and in 1960, she was there when I did my first stand-up on national television,” he shared. “Betty practically invented television and was a total pro. We lost a giant one today.”

Debra Messing wrote that she had grown up “watching and being delighted” by the star. “She was playful and daring and smart,” Messing continued. “We all knew this day would come but it doesn’t take away the feeling of loss. A national treasure, indeed. Fly with the Angels.”

Praising White as “a spirit of goodness and hope,” in addition to heralding her comedic talent and human decency, Dan Rather posted, “Our world would be better if more followed her example. It is diminished with her passing.”

Bob Iger, former CEO of The Walt Disney Company, referred to White as “our Golden Girl, our friend, and our neighbor.” He added, “Your wit, your charm, your warmth and your smile will always be with us.” 

Reflecting what many were no doubt thinking, Viola Davis posted, “Man did I think you would live forever.” The Oscar winner added, “You blew a huge hole in this world that will inspire generations.”

Marlee Matlin tweeted that White “will go down in the history books as ageless..99 or 100, the numbers belie the fact that she lived the best life EVER!”

Henry Winkler, who appeared on an episode of The Mary Tyler Moore Show early in his career, shared that it “is very hard to absorb you are not here anymore.. But the memories of your deLIGHT are ..Thank you for [your] humor , your warmth and your activism.”

More tributes are below.

This story originally published on Friday, Dec. 31, at 1:06 p.m.



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Technology

Final Fantasy XIV Endwalker Players Mourn The Blocky Grapes

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Pour some pixelated wine out for Final Fantasy XIV Endwalker’s purple grapes. The latest update—Patch 6.01—has smoothed out their angular edges and made them far less blocky.

In the Patch 6.01 notes, Square Enix noted the following under “Resolved Issues.”

An issue wherein the polygon count of grapes in Labyrinthos were reduced in excess to alleviate system memory usage in the area.

* They have been adjusted to be comparable to those found at the Crystarium.

Meaning? Endwalker’s block purple grapes are no more, apparently.

Oh no.

In the video below, you can see the new, slightly-less-sharp purple grapes and compare with their former iteration at around the 47-second mark.

Fans, of course, were saddened to hear that the purple grapes had been changed because they have been one of the best moments in Final Fantasy XIV’s Endwalker launch. So, they did what anyone would do: They paid their to respects for the low-poly loss.

YouTube’s resident musical genius Alex Moukala created this lovely tribute.

Others on Twitter and Reddit have been honoring the blocky purple grapes with fan art. Heck, even the official Final Fantasy XIV Twitter account paid its respects to the sharp-edge fruit.

But good news! It seems Square Enix forgot the green, blocky grapes in Wineport in eastern La Noscea. This has been confirmed by multiple Twitter users. They’re green, but the blocky grapes live! These grapes have apparently been like this since way before Endwalker even launched. Funny that people have just recently been noticing FFXIV’s blocky grapes!

Maybe Square Enix won’t fix these particular diamond-shaped fruits. I mean, who knows, they could be a special type of grape that’s grown this way. Japan produces square and pyramid-shaped watermelons, so why can’t the world of FFXIV grow blocky grapes? This is a realm reborn, after all, and not a nature documentary. Denying this possibility is a little too much reality in Final Fantasy for me. Embrace the blocky fruit, Square Enix. Do it.



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US

Native Americans mourn on Thanksgiving: ‘No reason to celebrate’

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Outnumbered – Thanksgiving Special

The ‘Outnumbered’ couch tackle news of the day as well as some special Holiday stories this Thanksgiving. The ‘Outnumbered’ panel talks the rising cost in consumer goods as inflation soars. Plus, The President’s polling problem opens door for possible red wave in 2022 midterm elections.

Members of Native American tribes from around New England are gathering in the seaside town where the Pilgrims settled — not to give thanks, but to mourn Indigenous people worldwide who’ve suffered centuries of racism and mistreatment.

Thursday’s solemn National Day of Mourning observance in downtown Plymouth, Massachusetts, will recall the disease and oppression they say European settlers brought to North America.

“We Native people have no reason to celebrate the arrival of the Pilgrims,” said Kisha James, a member of the Aquinnah Wampanoag and Oglala Lakota tribes and the granddaughter of Wamsutta Frank James, the event’s founder.

Supporters of Native Americans pause following a prayer during the 38th National Day of Mourning at Coles Hill in Plymouth, Mass., on Nov. 22, 2007. Denouncing centuries of racism and mistreatment of Indigenous people, members of Native American tribes from around New England will gather on Thanksgiving 2021 for a solemn National Day of Mourning observance.
((AP Photo/Lisa Poole, File))

THANKSGIVING TURKEY: WHAT THE CDC SAYS NOT TO DO BEFORE COOKING A BIRD

“We want to educate people so that they understand the stories we all learned in school about the first Thanksgiving are nothing but lies. Wampanoag and other Indigenous people have certainly not lived happily ever after since the arrival of the Pilgrims,” James said.

“To us, Thanksgiving is a day of mourning, because we remember the millions of our ancestors who were murdered by uninvited European colonists such as the Pilgrims. Today, we and many Indigenous people around the country say, ‘No Thanks, No Giving.’”

It’s the 52nd year that the United American Indians of New England have organized the event on Thanksgiving Day. The tradition began in 1970.

The story comes as multiple colleges’ student and alumni groups across the country encouraged students to treat Thanksgiving as a day of remembrance for Native Americans, with the George Washington University Student Association sending an email to students Monday stating that “Thanksgiving day is a reminder of the genocide of millions of Native people.”

“Although we recognize the importance of giving thanks and spending time with family and friends, we must also recognize that Thanksgiving for many in our community is a day of mourning,” the email stated.

Joining the students from George Washington University were the alumni associations of the University of Maryland, Florida Gulf Coast University, Washington State University, Hiram College in Ohio and California State University, Long Beach, who participated in an events asking whether Americans should “reconsider” the Thanksgiving holiday.

“Starting in 1970, many Americans, led by Indigenous protesters, believed that Thanksgiving should be rededicated as a National Day of Mourning to reflect the centuries-long displacement and persecution of Native Americans. The recent shift from Columbus Day to Indigenous Peoples Day reflects a changing national mood,” the event description states. “Should Americans reconsider Thanksgiving when wrestling with our country’s complicated past?”

Indigenous people and their supporters gathered at noon in person on Cole’s Hill, a windswept mound overlooking Plymouth Rock, a memorial to the colonists’ arrival. They will also livestream the event.

Participants beat drums, offered prayers and condemned what organizers described as “the unjust system based on racism, settler colonialism, sexism, homophobia and the profit-driven destruction of the Earth” before marching through downtown Plymouth’s historical district.

 Marchers carry a large painting of jailed American Indian Leonard Peltier during a march for the National Day of Mourning in Plymouth, Mass., on Nov. 22, 2001. Denouncing centuries of racism and mistreatment of Indigenous people, members of Native American tribes from around New England will gather on Thanksgiving 2021 for a solemn National Day of Mourning observance.
((AP Photo/Steven Senne, File))

This year, they highlighted the troubled legacy of federal boarding schools that sought to assimilate Indigenous youth into White society in the U.S. as well as in Canada, where hundreds of bodies were reportedly discovered on the grounds of former residential schools for Indigenous children.

Brian Moskwetah Weeden, chairman of the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribal Council, said on Boston Public Radio earlier this week that Americans owe his tribe a debt of gratitude for helping the Pilgrims survive their first brutal winter.

“People need to understand that you need to be thankful each and every day — that was how our ancestors thought and navigated this world,” Weeden said. “Because we were thankful, we were willing to share … and we had good intentions and a good heart.”

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That wasn’t reciprocated over the long term, Weeden added.

Command Sgt. Maj. Veronica Harvey, the senior enlisted advisor of the 3rd Division Sustainment Brigade Support Operations, place a few pieces of turkey on an U.S. Army Soldier plate at a dining facility on Camp Arifjan, Kuwait, Nov. 25. Command teams across Camp Arifijan serve Soldiers on Thanksgiving to show appreciation during the holidays. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Marquis Hopkins) 
(US Army)

“That’s why, 400 years later, we’re still sitting here fighting for what little bit of land that we still have, and trying to hold the commonwealth and the federal government accountable,” he said.

“Because 400 years later, we don’t really have much to show for, or to be thankful for. So I think it’s important for everyone to be thankful for our ancestors who helped the Pilgrims survive, and kind of played an intricate role in the birth of this nation.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Entertainment

Hundreds mourn cinematographer Halyna Hutchins as investigation into film set shooting continues

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“I would’ve been lucky to do another movie with a person like that,” said Lane Looper, a crew member on the “Rust” film set where the shooting happened. “She was a wonderful mom and wife and was just a wonderful soul, and I really hope more people like her exist.”

The shooting occurred as the film crew was rehearsing a scene at the Bonanza Creek Ranch in New Mexico. The film’s assistant director, David Halls, handed a prop gun to Baldwin and yelled “cold gun,” a remark meant to indicate the weapon didn’t have live rounds, according to an affidavit for a search warrant for the movie set filed by the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office and obtained by CNN affiliate KOAT.

According to the affidavit, Baldwin was handed one of three prop guns that were set up in a cart by an armorer for the movie.

Halls did not know there were live rounds in the gun, the affidavit said.

When Baldwin fired the gun, a live round hit Hutchins, 42, in the chest and wounded director Joel Souza, 48, who was nearby, according to the affidavit. Hutchins was pronounced dead at the hospital after being airlifted.

“There’s no reason to have had a firearm that was capable of discharging live ammo on the set,” Steve Wolf, a firearms safety expert, told CNN Saturday. “A prop gun is a gun that’s been specifically manufactured for shooting blanks, not bullets. In fact, the bullets won’t fit into a gun that’s been modified properly, only blanks will fit into it.

“And that’s a safeguard to ensure that live ammo is not loaded into guns that are used on set. So if you don’t use the right type of gun, you’re not going to get the safety benefit that’s been engineered into it,” Wolf said.

Saturday’s vigil at Albuquerque Civic Plaza was organized by IATSE Local 600 and IATSE Local 480, chapters of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees union — which represents workers in various roles in the entertainment industry.

“Our entire alliance mourns this unspeakable loss with Halyna’s family, friends, and the Rust crew,” the union said in a statement. “Creating a culture of safety requires relentless vigilance from every one of us, day in and day out.”

Local 600 created a verified GoFundMe page for Hutchins’ family, and more than $160,000 had been raised as of early Sunday. Hutchins is survived by her husband and 9-year-old son, according to the page.

The investigation into how the shooting happened is ongoing.

Before the shooting, some crew members quit over safety concerns on set — including gun inspections and Covid-19 protocols not being followed, according to the Los Angeles Times and other media reports.

There were previous accidental prop gun discharges on set, report says

Three crew members who were on the set last weekend told the Los Angeles Times there were two accidental prop gun discharges before Thursday’s fatal shooting.

On October 16, Baldwin’s stunt double unintentionally fired rounds after he was told the gun was “cold,” two of the crew members, who witnessed the discharges, told the newspaper.

The film’s production company told Deadline in a statement that it was not notified of official complaints regarding weapon or prop safety on set.

“We will be conducting an internal review of our procedures while production is shut down,” Rust Movie Productions, LLC said in a statement. “The safety of our cast and crew is the top priority of Rust Productions and everyone associated with the company.”

CNN has made multiple attempts to reach Rust Movie Productions for comment but has not received a response.

The armorer who prepared the prop gun used by Baldwin was identified as Hannah Gutierrez in the search warrant issued following the shooting.

Gutierrez had recently finished work on her first project as head armorer, she said in a September podcast interview.

“I was really nervous about it at first,” Gutierrez said of working as head armorer on the set of the movie “The Old Way,” starring Nicolas Cage.

“I almost didn’t take the job because I wasn’t sure if I was ready, but doing it, like it went really smoothly,” she said in an interview on the Voices of the West podcast, which is dedicated to the Old West.

Her work as armorer ranges from teaching actors how to wear a gun belt to aiming and shooting, she said.

“I think when someone is new and not sure, that’s fine. We all start somewhere,” Wolf, the firearms safety expert said. “But you work under somebody’s tutelage and you’ll practice until you have mastery,” he added.

Film production community deeply impacted by Hutchins’ death

Many of the mourners at the vigil for Hutchins were members of the television and film industry.

During the vigil, Rebecca Stair, a location manager and a member of IATSE Local 480, told CNN she wasn’t a crew member on “Rust,” but knew everyone on set.

“My heart’s been shaking for days, my phone has been going off with all kinds of friends who are going through something similar,” Stair told CNN. “My friend who was the transport coordinator had to stay until 11 o’clock at night arranging shuttle rides home because nobody could functionally drive.”

Stair became emotional discussing safety concerns in the industry and burst into tears, saying “a child should have a mother,” referring to Hutchins’ 9-year-old son.

Jolynne Nieto, another IATSE Local 480 member, told CNN she was hired to work as a hairstylist for “Rust,” but she turned down the job over safety concerns. One of her main concerns involved housing for crew members, which was in Albuquerque — 50 miles from the film set in Santa Fe, which would add a long commute to an already long workday.

“They told me the terms were non-negotiable on housing which was in Albuquerque while it was being shot at a ranch in Santa Fe, and I felt at this point like we needed to think about safety,” Nieto told CNN. “There was just a few other little glitches that just felt very funny to me.”

Nieto said Hutchins’ death is “unbearable.”

“You don’t expect to leave work and not come home — it’s unthinkable, it’s unbearable,” Nieto told CNN. “We need to take gun safety on film sets more seriously.”

CNN’s Ray Sanchez, Melissa Alonso, Kaylene Chassie, Leslie Perrot, Sandra Gonzalez and Andy Rose contributed to this report.

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US

City leaders, colleagues mourn sudden loss of UF Health Jacksonville CEO

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JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – As news began to spread Saturday of the unexpected death of UF Health Jacksonville CEO Dr. Leon Haley Jr., messages poured in on social media from those who knew Haley and were shocked by the sudden loss.

According to an internal UF Health email obtained by News4Jax, Haley died after an accident Saturday in South Florida.

After learning the news, president and CEO of Edward Waters University A. Zachary Faison Jr. wrote:

He told News4Jax when he heard the news, he was shocked.

“Back in 2018, Dr. Haley was one of the first persons that reached out to me and welcomed me to the city. As matter of fact, he made an appointment and came over to introduce himself and really was just a great friend and resource for me,” Faison said. “Just devastated to hear this most recent news.”

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Faison said he and Haley both served on the JEA board together as well as the Civic Council. He received an uplifting email from Haley just last week.

“It said exactly, ‘I know the last few days have been a whirlwind for you. But I wanted to send you my congratulations on becoming a university and leading Edward Waters to even greater heights. Take a deep breath and enjoy the moment, Leon,’” Faison said.

He said Haley was an uplifting, caring person who will be missed by many.

“He had a very calming spirit. I know over the last, of course, about 18 months, as we’ve all been grappling through the throes of the pandemic, to hear his updates and his insights on how we’re navigating this space was always, I know, a calming voice for me,” Haley said. “To know that we had someone of his caliber at our city, at the forefront helping us to fight this pandemic.”

Haley was the first in Jacksonville to receive a COVID-19 vaccine and got his first dose live on television to make sure to spread the word about the safety of the vaccine and its necessity in fighting the virus.

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UF Health CEO gets 1st COVID-19 vaccine in Florida

From the mayor to his colleagues at UF Health to fellow community leaders who worked with Haley to spread important information about the fight against COVID-19, all expressed sorrow Saturday and said Haley will be deeply missed.

Dr. Sunil Joshi, president of the Duval County Medical Society Foundation, shared his shock and disbelief, calling Haley as a “wonderful, wonderful human being.”

“I think the thing that made him different than the other deans and CEOs that we have had at UF here in Jacksonville is he became a part of our community. He wasn’t just fighting for what was important for UF Health Jacksonville. He was fighting for what was important for Jacksonville,” Joshi said. “He did more than just lead our teaching hospital, he made an impact in Jacksonville. That’s why so many people were shocked and devastated by this news. You know, that’s probably what hurts me more than the fact that I love him as a person. We had a guy here who people looked up to who was actually making an impact and, being born and raised in Jacksonville, I know that’s few and far between. And so it’s, it’s sad on so many levels.”

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US

City leaders, colleagues mourn sudden loss of UF Health Jacksonville CEO

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JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – As news began to spread Saturday of the unexpected death of UF Health Jacksonville CEO Dr. Leon Haley Jr., messages poured in on social media from those who knew Haley and were shocked by the sudden loss.

According to an internal UF Health email obtained by News4Jax, Haley died after an accident Saturday in South Florida.

After learning the news, president and CEO of Edward Waters University A. Zachary Faison Jr. wrote:

He told News4Jax when he heard the news, he was shocked.

“Back in 2018, Dr. Haley was one of the first persons that reached out to me and welcomed me to the city. As matter of fact, he made an appointment and came over to introduce himself and really was just a great friend and resource for me,” Faison said. “Just devastated to hear this most recent news.”

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Faison said he and Haley both served on the JEA board together as well as the Civic Council. He received an uplifting email from Haley just last week.

“It said exactly, ‘I know the last few days have been a whirlwind for you. But I wanted to send you my congratulations on becoming a university and leading Edward Waters to even greater heights. Take a deep breath and enjoy the moment, Leon,’” Faison said.

He said Haley was an uplifting, caring person who will be missed by many.

“He had a very calming spirit. I know over the last, of course, about 18 months, as we’ve all been grappling through the throes of the pandemic, to hear his updates and his insights on how we’re navigating this space was always, I know, a calming voice for me,” Haley said. “To know that we had someone of his caliber at our city, at the forefront helping us to fight this pandemic.”

Haley was the first in Jacksonville to receive a COVID-19 vaccine and got his first dose live on television to make sure to spread the word about the safety of the vaccine and its necessity in fighting the virus.

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UF Health CEO gets 1st COVID-19 vaccine in Florida

From the mayor to his colleagues at UF Health to fellow community leaders who worked with Haley to spread important information about the fight against COVID-19, all expressed sorrow Saturday and said Haley will be deeply missed.

Dr. Sunil Joshi, president of the Duval County Medical Society Foundation, shared his shock and disbelief, calling Haley as a “wonderful, wonderful human being.”

“I think the thing that made him different than the other deans and CEOs that we have had at UF here in Jacksonville is he became a part of our community. He wasn’t just fighting for what was important for UF Health Jacksonville. He was fighting for what was important for Jacksonville,” Joshi said. “He did more than just lead our teaching hospital, he made an impact in Jacksonville. That’s why so many people were shocked and devastated by this news. You know, that’s probably what hurts me more than the fact that I love him as a person. We had a guy here who people looked up to who was actually making an impact and, being born and raised in Jacksonville, I know that’s few and far between. And so it’s, it’s sad on so many levels.”

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Copyright 2021 by WJXT News4Jax – All rights reserved.



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Entertainment

Daniel Mickelson Dead at 23: Paris Hilton, Kaia Gerber, Amelia Hamlin and More Mourn Late Actor – Entertainment Tonight

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