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A28 u.s. news
Diamars 5 Juli 2022

6 dead, 24 wounded in shooting at Chicago-area July 4 parade

(AP) — A gunman on a pital and died there. whom the gun was last sold.
rooftop opened fire on an The shooter opened fire
Independence Day parade around 10:15 a.m., when the Biden signed the widest-
in suburban Chicago on parade was about three-quar- ranging gun violence bill
Monday, killing at least ters through, authorities said. passed by Congress in de-
six people, wounding 24 cades, a compromise that
and sending hundreds of Covelli said the gunman ap- showed at once both progress
marchers, parents with parently used a “high-pow- on a long-intractable issue
strollers and children on ered rifle” to fire from a spot and the deep-seated partisan
bicycles fleeing in terror, atop a commercial building divide that persists.
police said. The suspect where he was “very difficult
remained on the loose to see.” He said the rifle was Police believe there was only
hours later as authorities recovered at the scene. Police one shooter but warned that
scoured the area. also found a ladder attached he should still be considered
to the building. armed and dangerous. Sev-
Highland Park Police Com- eral nearby cities canceled
mander Chris O’Neill, the a day that we came togeth- “There’s no safe place,” said “Very random, very inten- events including parades and
incident commander on er to celebrate community Highland Park resident Bar- tional and a very sad day,” fireworks, some of them not-
scene, urged people to shel- and freedom, we are instead bara Harte, 73, who had Covelli said. ing that the Highland Park
ter in place as authorities mourning the tragic loss of stayed away from the pa- shooter was still at large.
search for the suspect. He life and struggling with the rade fearing a mass shooting, President Joe Biden on Mon- Evanston, Deerfield, Skokie,
said Monday afternoon that a terror that was brought upon but later ventured from her day said he and first lady Jill Waukegan and Glencoe can-
“very active apprehension ef- us.” home. Biden were “shocked by the celed events. The Chicago
fort” was underway. senseless gun violence that White Sox also announced
The shooting occurred at Lake County Major Crime has yet again brought grief on Twitter that a planned
The July 4 shooting was just a spot on the parade route Task Force spokesman Chris- to an American community post-game fireworks show is
the latest to shatter the ritu- where many residents had topher Covelli said at a news on this Independence Day.” canceled due to the shooting.
als of American life. Schools, staked out prime viewing conference “several of the He said he had “surged Fed-
churches, grocery stores points early in the day for the deceased victims” died at the eral law enforcement to assist “You have a tragic mass act
and now community pa- annual celebration. Dozens scene and one was taken to a in the urgent search for the of violence that was random
rades have all become killing of fired bullets sent hundreds hospital and died there. Po- shooter, who remains at large here today at a community
grounds in recent months. of parade-goers — some visi- lice have not released details at this time.” event where people were
This time, the bloodshed bly bloodied — fleeing. They about the victims or wound- gathered to celebrate, and the
came as the nation tried to left a trail of abandoned items ed. Agents from the Bureau of offender has not been appre-
find cause to celebrate its that showed everyday life Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms hended thus far,” Covelli, the
founding and the bonds that suddenly, violently disrupt- Lake County Coroner Jen- and Explosives were con- crime task force spokesman,
still hold it together. ed: A half-eaten bag of po- nifer Banek said the five peo- ducting an urgent trace of the said. “So, could this hap-
tato chips; a box of chocolate ple killed at the parade were rifle, agency spokesperson pen again? We don’t know
Mayor Nancy Rotering said cookies spilled onto the grass; adults and she doesn’t have April Langwell said. Federal what his intentions are at this
the violence “has shaken us a child’s Chicago Cubs cap. information on the sixth vic- agents conduct such traces to point, so certainly we’re not
to our core,” adding, “On tim who was taken to a hos- identify when, where and to sure of that.”

Immigration detention facility near empty in California

(AP) — A sprawling, pri- under a federal judge’s 2020 At a facility in Tacoma, Wash- to use 85% to 90% of deten- the SmartLink app, the gov-
vately run detention cen- pandemic-related ruling. ington, the guaranteed mini- tion space generally, and pays ernment’s data shows.
ter in the wind-swept Cal- mum is 1,181 beds and the to have guaranteed mini-
ifornia desert town of Ad- The U.S. government pays average daily population so mum beds ready to go in “The federal government,
elanto could house nearly to guarantee 30,000 immigra- far this fiscal year is 369, ac- case they’re needed. Officials probably like all of us, didn’t
2,000 migrants facing the tion detention beds are avail- cording to official data. A wrote that they need flexibil- think COVID would go
prospect of deportation. able in four dozen facilities detention center in Jena, ity to deal with emergencies on this long,” said Michael
These days, though, it’s across the country, but so far Louisiana, has a minimum of or sudden big increases in Kaufman, senior staff attor-
nearly empty. this fiscal year about half, on 1,170 beds, with an average border crossings. They said ney at the American Civil
average, have been occupied, daily population of 452. safety and security are the Liberties Union of South-
The Adelanto facility is an according to Immigration and top priority at the detention ern California, which sued
extreme example of how the Customs Enforcement data. ICE currently reports 23,390 centers, while acknowledg- for the release of detainees
U.S. government’s use of Over the past two years, im- detainees in custody, official ing the pandemic “greatly de- in Adelanto. “This has been
guaranteed minimum pay- migration detention facilities data shows. The agency has creased bed utilization.” an accidental test case that
ments in contracts with pri- across the United States have long spent money on unused shows they don’t need a de-
vate companies to house im- been underutilized as author- detention space by including The average cost of a deten- tention capacity anywhere
migrant detainees might have ities were forced to space out guaranteed minimum pay- tion bed was $144 each day near what they’re saying.”
a potential financial down- detainees — in some cases, ments in its contracts, ac- during the last fiscal year, the
side. In these contracts, the such as at Adelanto, by court cording to a Government Ac- documents show. The Adelanto facility —
government commits to pay order — to limit the spread of countability Office report fo- which is run by Boca Ra-
for a certain number of beds, COVID-19. cused on the years before the Immigrant advocates say the ton, Florida-based The Geo
whether they’re used or not. pandemic. The minimum pandemic is proof that the Group — is one of the big-
“The government is still pay- number of beds the govern- U.S. doesn’t need to detain gest in the country and often
The government pays for at ing them to keep the facility ment paid to guarantee rose immigrants as much as au- houses immigrants arrested
least 1,455 beds a day at Ad- open,” said Lizbeth Abeln, 45% from the 2017 fiscal year thorities have claimed. De- in the greater Los Angeles
elanto, but so far this fiscal deportation defense director to May 2020, the report said. portation agents have ramped area. It has long been subject
year reports an average daily at the Inland Coalition for up use of a monitoring app to complaints by detainees
population of 49 detainees. Immigrant Justice in South- Officials at ICE headquarters to keep tabs on immigrants of shoddy medical care, and
Immigrant advocates say the ern California. “It’s really didn’t respond to requests for heading for deportation hear- on a 2018 visit to the facility
number of detainees at Adel- concerning they’re still get- comment. ings instead of locking people inspectors also found nooses
anto is currently closer to two ting paid for all the beds ev- up, they said. As of June, the in detainees cells and overly
dozen because authorities ery single day. It’s empty.” In annual budget documents, agency was tracking more restrictive segregation.
can’t bring in more migrants officials said the agency aims than 200,000 people using