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The nation’s oldest Latino civil rights organization accused the city of Houston in a federal lawsuit of denying Latinos fair representation by allowing voters citywide to elect five council members. Elections in the city are deeply, racially polarized and Latinos' voting strength is diluted through the at-large election process, the lawsuit states. "Houston's the only major city in Texas where five council members are elected at large and in essence, disenfranchising the Latino community," Domingo Garcia, LULAC president, said in a phone interview. Houston only has one Latino on City Council." Since then, only 11 Latinos have been elected or appointed to a single member district and only two have been elected to an at-large district, according to the LULAC lawsuit.

☆ Flu brought nearly twice as many people to the hospital last week as the week before, updated CDC data show
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-02 | by ( Deidre Mcphillips | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

There have been nearly 17 flu hospitalizations for every 100,000 people, rates typically seen in December or January. The cumulative hospitalization rate hasn’t been this high at this point in the season in more than a decade. Less than two months in, the RSV hospitalization rate this season is already nearing the total RSV hospitalization rate from the entire 2018-19 season. With the holiday season – and flu season – underway, Dr. Anthony Fauci warned this week of the potential for an emergency situation. “When you have very little wiggle room of intensive care beds, when you have like almost all the intensive care beds that are occupied, it’s bad for the children who have RSV and need intensive care.

☆ Walmart's active-shooter training is so old and 'inadequate' that it has become a meme, some workers say
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-02 | by ( Ben Tobin | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Walmart's active-shooter training has been around in some form for at least a decade, employees say. Some workers say Walmart needs to do more on top of the training to address workers' mental health. Three current and former employees of the retail giant told Insider the active-shooter training wasn't enough to keep them safe. Walmart employees told Insider they're worried about whether the quarterly active-shooter training had prepared them for violence in stores. The lawsuit also said the shooter "repeatedly asked coworkers if they had received their active shooter training."

☆ Uber, Aurora to expand self-driving truck ops in Texas to meet holiday rush
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Dec 2 (Reuters) - Uber Technologies Inc (UBER.N) and self-driving technology company Aurora Innovation Inc (AUR.O) will expand their driverless pilot program in Texas to meet increased delivery demand during the holidays. Uber Freight is a platform which connects shippers who need goods moved with available truck drivers. The companies launched their pilot program about a year ago to autonomously transport goods between Dallas and Houston. "We're crafting Aurora Horizon to help carriers of all sizes alleviate some of the supply-chain pressures that typically accompany (holiday season)," Aurora co-founder Sterling Anderson said. Aurora Innovation, which also counts FedEx Corp (FDX.N) and Toyota Motor Corp (7203.T) as partners, looks to launch the Aurora Driver self-driving platform at the end of 2024.

☆ Colorado Springs shooting suspect's mother accused of disorderly conduct hours after Club Q attack
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-30 | by ( Marlene Lenthang | Marlene Lenthang Is A Breaking News Reporter For Nbc News Digital. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +2 min

The mother of the suspect in the deadly rampage at a Colorado Springs, Colorado, LGBTQ club was issued a summons for disorderly conduct and resisting arrest hours after the attack, police said. Officers showed up at Laura Voepel’s home after authorities say Anderson Lee Aldrich opened fire inside Club Q, killing five people. No lawyer information was listed for Voepel, whose arraignment is set for Jan. 25, 2023, court records show. In addition to the five deaths, 17 people were wounded in the Club Q shooting, according to police. Weeks before turning 16, Aldrich petitioned a Texas court for a name change, court records show.

The number of people injured in a shooting attack at an LGBTQ nightclub in Colorado Springs, Colorado, has been increased by four, police said Monday. The number of those killed and shot — five dead and 17 shot and injured — in the Nov. 19 shooting at Club Q remained unchanged in the latest update. But police said the number of identified victims who were injured but who were not shot has increased from one to five. More people were at Club Q when the gunman, identified as Anderson Lee Aldrich, 22, opened fire minutes before midnight, police said in a statement. Autopsies have been conducted, and the El Paso County Coroner’s Office will determine the cause and manner of death, the statement said.

☆ Is this the last Christmas for Sears?
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-29 | by ( Chris Isidore | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +13 min

Easterling was at the Sears in her hometown of Jersey City, New Jersey, one of only 15 full-line Sears stores still open. The two started a catalog business selling watches and jewelry in 1888, incorporating under the Sears Roebuck name in 1893. The Sears catalog was the way many Americans first started to buy mass-produced goods. File photo/AP People shop inside a Sears store in Morton Grove, Illinois, in 1961. AP Soldiers guard a Sears store in Baltimore after riots broke out following the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. in 1968.

☆ Fact Check-Altered screenshot of California politician Randy Voepel sending ‘thoughts and prayers’ attributed to Colorado shooting on Nov. 19
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-28 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

But social media users are sharing a screenshot of a tweet by Voepel and misleadingly linking it to a shooting in Colorado on Nov. 19. Users online are sharing an image that purports to show Voepel tweeting, “Sending my thoughts and prayers” following the Colorado Springs shooting. Reuters reports on the Nov. 19 Colorado Springs shooting at Club Q and the suspect, Anderson Lee Aldrich, can be seen (here) and (here). Representatives for Voepel, El Paso County Sheriff’s Office, Colorado Springs PD, FBI Denver Field Office and the Department of Justice did not immediately respond to requests for comment. There is no record of Voepel tweeting “Sending my thoughts and prayers” after the shooting in Colorado Springs.

☆ Embattled El Paso District Attorney Yvonne Rosales Resigns
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-28 | by ( Adolfo Flores | Elizabeth Findell | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Yvonne Rosales, the district attorney in charge of the 2019 Walmart mass shooting case in El Paso County, Texas, has resigned. Yvonne Rosales, the El Paso County, Texas, district attorney, resigned Monday amid allegations of mishandling cases and growing efforts to remove her from office. Ms. Rosales was accused of incompetence and misconduct in the 2019 Walmart mass shooting as well as inaction on cases, according to an amended petition for her removal filed by El Paso County Attorney Jo Anne Bernal.

☆ Sen. Murphy proposes not funding police departments that don't enforce gun safety laws, such as the red flag laws
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-27 | by ( Katie Balevic | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Sen. Chris Murphy proposed defunding law enforcement agencies that don't enforce gun laws. Many counties that have red flag gun laws have said they will refuse to enforce them, Murphy said. Colorado officials said the 22-year-old suspected gunman should have triggered the state's red flag law, but officers at the El Paso County Sheriff's Office refused to utilize the red flag law. "The majority of counties in this country have declared that they are not going to enforce state and federal gun laws. The laws that we're talking about passing, red flag laws, assault weapons bans, they're wildly popular.

☆ Colorado Gov. Jared Polis says lawmakers need to 'walk and chew gum at the same time' to address mass shootings after Club Q shooting
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-27 | by ( Katie Balevic | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Jared Polis said lawmakers need to consider a variety of measures to prevent mass shootings. The suspected Club Q shooter should have triggered Colorado's red flag law, Polis said. Jared Polis said government leaders need to figure out how to "walk and chew gum at the same time" on gun policies to prevent more mass shootings. "We need to, as a society, as political leaders, walk and chew gum at the same time. It could have instigated our Red Flag Law to remove him from having custody over his weapons while he's experiencing that mental health crisis.

☆ Photos this week: November 17-24, 2022
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-24 | by ( ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

Leia-jhene Seals hugs R.J. Lewis during a vigil Sunday, November 20, at the All Souls Unitarian Church in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Seals was performing the night before when a shooter opened fire in the Club Q nightclub. Five people were killed and at least 19 others were injured during a mass shooting at an LGBTQ nightclub in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Authorities say the suspect, identified as Anderson Lee Aldrich, received medical treatment and is now in the custody of the El Paso County Sheriff's Office. Here are some of the stories that made headlines over the past week, as well as some photos that caught our eye.

A Colorado judge ordered the suspect accused of gunning down five people at a gay nightclub held without bond Wednesday, during the defendant's first court appearance. The public got its first glimpse of Anderson Lee Aldrich, 22, who made a virtual appearance from jail before 4th Judicial District Court Judge Charlotte Ankeny. The suspect is accused of walking into the Colorado Springs LGBTQ club late Saturday night with a high-powered rifle and opening fire. Investigators work outside Club Q in Colorado Springs, Colo., on Tuesday. Chet Strange / Getty ImagesDefense attorneys for Aldrich filed routine court documents for their client this week, referring to the suspect as "Mx.

☆ Colorado Springs suspect identifies as nonbinary and uses they/them pronounces, defense lawyer says
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-23 | by ( The Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +5 min

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — The alleged shooter facing possible hate crime charges in the fatal shooting of five people at a Colorado Springs gay nightclub is nonbinary, the suspect’s defense team says in court filings. The motive in the shooting was still under investigation, but authorities said Aldrich faces possible murder and hate crime charges. Hate crime charges would require proving that the shooter was motivated by bias, such as against the victims’ actual or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity. Club Q remains cordoned off by police tape on Nov. 22, 2022 in Colorado Springs. Local and federal authorities have declined to answer questions about why hate crime charges were being considered.

☆ Kevin McCarthy calls for Homeland Security Secretary Mayorkas to resign or face impeachment inquiry over 'the collapse of our border'
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-23 | by ( Katherine Tangalakis-Lippert | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Citing conditions at the border, McCarthy said he'd investigate Mayorkas if he doesn't step down. Investigations could lead to Mayorkas' impeachment. McCarthy specifically took aim at the coming end of title Title 42 as cause for concern at the border. As a Biden-appointed cabinet member to the Department of Homeland Security, Mayorkas oversees the country's border policy and counter-terrorism measures. "If Secretary Mayorkas does not resign," McCarthy said in a press conference, "House Republicans will investigate every order, every action and every failure.

Law enforcement work the scene of a mass shooting at a Walmart, Wednesday, Nov. 23, 2022, in Chesapeake, Va. A Walmart night crew supervisor killed six people Tuesday night before taking his own life at the Walmart Supercenter in Chesapeake, Virginia, police said Wednesday. The gunman – identified as Andre Bing, 31, of Chesapeake – was a disgruntled employee, a senior law enforcement official told NBC News. The Chesapeake store will remain closed as authorities investigate the shooting. Other Walmart stores have been the scenes of deadly shootings.

Aldrich, 22, had been in a hospital from early Sunday morning until Tuesday, before being transferred to El Paso County Jail in Colorado Springs. [1/7] Anderson Lee Aldrich, 22, the suspect in the mass shooting that killed five people and wounded 17 at an LGBTQ nightclub appears showing facial injuries in police booking photographs released in Colorado Springs, Colorado, U.S. November 23, 2022. Colorado Springs Police Department /Handout via REUTERS 1 2 3 4 5Defense lawyers declined to comment after the hearing. Police initially held Aldrich on arrest charges of five counts of first-degree murder and bias crimes stemming from the Saturday night killings. El Paso County District Attorney Michael Allen said after the hearing he expected to file formal criminal charges at the defendant's next court hearing, tentatively scheduled for Dec. 6.

The gunman, identified as Andre Bing, 31, of Chesapeake, Virginia, said nothing as he began firing on workers gathered late on Tuesday ahead of their overnight shift, according to two employees who were in the break room. Another Walmart employee, Briana Tyler, told ABC's "Good Morning America": "I looked up and my manager just opened the door and he just opened fire." [1/6] FBI agents stand in the parking lot after a mass shooting at a Walmart in Chesapeake, Virginia, U.S. November 23, 2022. He told her that during the nightly meeting his manager was acting "strange" and "then started shooting," she told the news station. This was not the first mass shooting at a Walmart, which has thousands of stores across the country.

☆ Factbox: Walmart shootings: Episodes of gun violence at retail chain
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Nov 23 (Reuters) - Tuesday's massacre at a Virginia Walmart was the latest in a series of gun violence episodes at the retail giant's stores in recent years. Here is a partial list:Nov. 22, 2022: A Walmart employee killed six people and wounded several others before fatally shooting himself at a store in Chesapeake, Virginia, authorities said. U.S. President Joe Biden called it another horrific and senseless act of violence, adding: "We must take greater action." Aug. 3, 2019: A far-right gunman killed 23 people in a Walmart in El Paso, Texas, in what federal authorities said was a hate crime. July 30, 2019: Days before the El Paso massacre, a suspended Walmart employee killed two co-workers and wounded a police officer at a store in Southaven, Mississippi.

Appearing with Republicans in El Paso, Texas, House GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy on Tuesday called on Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas to resign for failing to secure the southern border. If Mayorkas does not resign, McCarthy warned, House Republicans will investigate him and his department to determine whether to launch impeachment proceedings. Our country may never recover from Secretary Mayorkas’s dereliction of duty,” said McCarthy, flanked by fellow House Republicans. Many conservatives who are withholding support are insisting that House Republicans impeach Mayorkas when they take power next year. In April," White House spokesman Ian Sams said in a tweet.

The suspect in the Club Q mass shooting changed his name just before he turned 16, court documents show. The 21-year-old man was booked on suspicion of two counts of felony menacing and three counts of first degree kidnapping. Police would also not officially link the shooting suspect to the case involving an Anderson Lee Aldrich, then 21. The suspect, identified by authorities as Aldrich, was arrested on suspicion of five counts of first-degree murder and five counts of bias-motivated or hate crimes. CORRECTION (Nov. 22, 2022, 2:12 p.m.): An earlier version of this article misstated the number of people injured at Club Q. It’s 19, not more than two dozen.

Military veteran Richard Fierro's selfless response when a gunman opened fire in a Colorado gay club is being lauded by the nation's oldest Latino civil rights organization. He said he did what he was trained to do as a 15-year Army veteran who did tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. Fierro and Jessica, who live in Colorado Springs, own a brewery called Atrevida, which in Spanish means brazen. 'Leaped into the breach'The nation's string of mass shootings in recent years have claimed the lives of many Latino victims. He said LULAC invited Fierro and his family to Washington, D.C., to receive the award or it would give it to him in a ceremony in Colorado Springs.

☆ Kevin McCarthy Calls on Alejandro Mayorkas to Resign or Face Possible Impeachment Over Border Policy
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-22 | by ( Michelle Hackman | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Alejandro Mayorkas has run the Department of Homeland Security since the beginning of the Biden administration. WASHINGTON—House Republican leader Kevin McCarthy called on Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas to resign over his handling of the southern border or else face a possible impeachment inquiry. Mr. McCarthy, the California congressman who is the presumptive next Speaker of the House once Republicans take control of the chamber in January, made the remarks Tuesday alongside several other GOP lawmakers at a press conference in El Paso, Texas.

Nov 22 (Reuters) - The suspect in the mass shooting that killed five people and wounded 17 at a Colorado Springs LGBTQ nightclub has been transferred to jail from the hospital where he was in police custody, police said on Tuesday. "CSPD has turned over custody of the Club Q suspect to the El Paso County Sheriff's Office at the jail," the Colorado Springs Police Department said on Twitter. Prosecutors said that once he was out of the hospital, they expected to file formal criminal charges that may differ. James, a Navy information systems technician second class, was injured in the Colorado Springs shooting and was hospitalized in stable condition Tuesday, the Navy said in a statement. James is an 11-year-Navy veteran stationed in Colorado Springs, the Navy said, asking that his privacy be respected.

[1/2] U.S. House of Representatives Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) arrives as House Republicans gather for leadership elections at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, U.S., November 15, 2022. REUTERS/Leah Millis/File PhotoWASHINGTON, Nov 22 (Reuters) - The top Republican in the U.S. House of Representatives, Kevin McCarthy, on Tuesday called on Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas to step down, warning that the House may try to impeach him when Republicans take the majority next year. "Our country may never recover from Secretary Mayorkas' dereliction of duty," McCarthy told reporters in El Paso, Texas, on Tuesday after speaking with border officials. "If Secretary Mayorkas does not resign, House Republicans will investigate every order, every action and every failure (to) determine whether we can begin (an) impeachment inquiry," he said. He became the first Latino and foreign-born Homeland Security chief when he was confirmed to the role in February 2021.

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