Families of Navy SEALs killed in 2011 attack say government is to blame

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  File: A US Army CH-47D Chinook helicopter in flight.AP

WASHINGTON –  The families of Navy SEAL Team 6 members killed in a disastrous August 2011 helicopter crash in Afghanistan blamed the government for the tragedy, during an emotional press conference in Washington Thursday. 

The family members, speaking at the National Press Club, tried to reopen the book on the crash, in which 30 Americans were killed, most of them belonging to the same unit as those who carried out the raid on Usama bin Laden earlier that year. The helicopter was shot down by insurgents. 

During the event organized by a group called Freedom Watch, family members and former military personnel claimed President Obama turned the SEALs group into a Taliban target after the administration revealed they had conducted the bin Laden raid. 

Doug Hamburger, whose son Patrick was killed, called the incident an “ambush” that could have been prevented. 

“We’re very concerned that the administration had disclosed that the Navy SEALs had carried out a successful attack on bin Laden’s compound resulting in his death. And you know, never before in the history of our county (had) a sitting president released that type of information to the public, especially when he was talking about special forces. Their names and their missions had never been revealed before. And we really feel that this put our guys in an unnecessary risk,” Hamburger said.

Many military experts at the time, including some of Obama’s top military advisers, had questioned the White House’s public praise of SEAL Team 6 and said it put members in danger. 

Three months after bin Laden’s death, members of the SEAL Team 6 force -- though apparently not the same ones who carried out the bin Laden raid -- were on board the CH-47 Chinook transport helicopter, along with its Army National Guard aircrew, several support personnel and seven Afghan commandos. In all, 38 people died that night after the chopper was shot down by a Taliban-owned rocket-propelled grenade –or RPG – over the Wardak Province on Aug. 6, 2011. 

Charles Strange, whose son Michael, 25, died in the attack said Obama personally promised him a thorough investigation of what happened but has failed to deliver.

Strange also blamed top military brass for sending the troops into a situation they were allegedly ill-equipped and unprepared to handle. The team was responding to an Army Ranger unit that was engaged in a firefight with the Taliban and needed backup. 

Asked for comment, Pentagon spokesman Lt. Col. James Gregory said: "We share in the grief of all of the families who lost their loved ones." 

While not commenting directly on the allegations, he called those who were lost "warriors" who represented "the diversity and talent of America and its military." 

An official report was released in October 2011 but family members say it did little to fill in the details and left more questions than answers.

Karen Vaughn says she wants to know why her son Aaron and his team were not using special operations aircraft which have defenses in place to help allow helicopters to go deep behind enemy lines. The night her son Aaron died, he was in a helicopter that was built in the 1960s and last retrofitted in 1985.

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Second victim killed at Boston Marathon identified, at race to cheer friend

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  April 15, 2013: This undated photo provided by the family shows Krystle Campbell. Campbell, 29, a restaurant manager from Medford, Mass., was among the people killed in the explosions at the finish line of the Boston Marathon, in Boston.AP

A 29-year-old restaurant manager has been identified as one of three people killed in the bombing at the Boston Marathon.

Her father says Krystle Campbell, of Medford, Mass., had gone with her best friend to take a picture of the friend's boyfriend crossing the finish line on Monday afternoon.

William Campbell says his daughter, who worked at Jimmy's Steakhouse in nearby Arlington, was "very caring, very loving person, and was daddy's little girl." He says the loss has devastated the family.

"Mr. Campbell said that she certainly was a dream daughter, the daughter that every dream to have and friends of hers said that she was eager about life," Medford Mayor Michael McGlynn said. 

Campbell's friend was seriously injured in the explosion.

Campbell's family told the New York Post that they were initially informed that she had survived the blast. It wasn't until family members arrived at the hospital that they realized the friend who survived the blast had been mistakenly identified as her. 

"They’re just viewing the body now. And we're just devastated,” Liese Reilly, a relative told The Post. “I can’t even begin to understand what just happened.”

An 8-year-old, Martin Richard of Boston, also died. He was at the finish line watching the race with his family. 

The Chinese Consulate in New York says a Chinese national is the third person killed in the blasts.

An official at the consulate's press section, who was not authorized to give his name, said that one Chinese student was injured and another died in the blast.

The official said a work group from the consulate was in Boston to investigate the situation and assist relatives of the victims.

The official Chinese news agency Xinhua reported that relatives have requested that the deceased not be identified.

The twin blasts killed at least three people and injured 176 -- including 17 in critical condition, authorities said today.

Click for more from The New York Post.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Home invasion suspects killed in gunfight with NC homeowner

Published April 14, 2013

FoxNews.com

Two men suspected of attempting to invade a home in North Carolina Friday died after a gunfight with the homeowner.

Fayetteville Police tell WTVD both robbery suspects fled the home after the exchange of gunfire. One of the suspects, 25-year-old Dominik Council, was found dead on the side of the road nearly two hours after the incident.

The other suspect, 20-year-old Xavier White, was found wounded and transported to an area hospital, where he later died, according to the station.

Police said the homeowner, who was not identified, was injured during the gunfight. Details on the individual's condition were not immediately available. 

Police on Saturday identified 24-year-old Lamyer Campbell and 24-year-old Derek Hair as suspects in the attempted home invasion.

Click here for more from WTVD.

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Family mourns 25-year-old US diplomat killed in Afghanistan

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KABUL, Afghanistan –  Anne Smedinghoff had a quiet ambition and displayed a love of global affairs from an early age, joining the U.S. Foreign Service straight out of college and volunteering for missions in perilous locations worldwide.

So when the 25-year-old suburban Chicago woman was killed Saturday in southern Afghanistan — the first American diplomat to die on the job since last year's attack in Benghazi, Libya — her family took solace in the fact that she died doing something she loved.

"It was a great adventure for her ... She loved it," her father, Tom Smedinghoff, told The Associated Press on Sunday. "She was tailor-made for this job."

Anne Smedinghoff grew up in River Forest, Ill. — an upscale suburb about 10 miles west of Chicago — the daughter of an attorney and the second of four children. She attended the highly selective Fenwick High School, followed by Johns Hopkins University, where she studied international relations and became a key organizer of the university's annual Foreign Affairs Symposium in 2008. The event draws high-profile speakers from around the world.

Those who knew Smedinghoff described her as a positive, hard-working and dependable young woman.

While a student in Baltimore, she worked part time for Sam Hopkins, an attorney near campus. He described her as ambitious "but in a wonderfully quiet, modest way."

Her first assignment for the foreign service was in Caracas, Venezuela, and she volunteered for the Afghanistan assignment after that. Her father said family members would tease her about signing up for a less dangerous location, maybe London or Paris.

"She said, 'What would I do in London or Paris? It would be so boring,'" her father recalled. In her free time, she would travel as much as possible, her father said.

Smedinghoff was an up-and-coming employee of the State Department who garnered praise from the highest ranks. She was to finish her Afghanistan assignment as a press officer in July. Already fluent in Spanish, she was gearing up to learn Arabic, first for a year in the U.S. and then in Cairo, before a two-year assignment in Algeria.

Secretary of State John Kerry said Sunday at a news conference in Turkey that Smedinghoff was "vivacious, smart" and "capable." Smedinghoff had assisted Kerry during a visit to Afghanistan two weeks ago.

He also described Smedinghoff as "a selfless, idealistic woman who woke up yesterday morning and set out to bring textbooks to school children, to bring them knowledge."

Her father said they knew the assignments were dangerous, though she spent most of her time at the U.S. Embassy compound. Trips outside were in heavily armored convoys — as was Saturday's trip that killed five Americans, including Smedinghoff.

"It's like a nightmare, you think will go away and it's not," he said. "We keep saying to ourselves, we're just so proud of her, we take consolation in the fact that she was doing what she loved."

Friends remembered her Sunday for her charity work too.

Smedinghoff participated in a 2009 cross-country bike ride for The 4K for Cancer — part of the Ulman Cancer Fund for Young Adults — according to the group. She served on the group's board of directors after the ride from Baltimore to San Francisco.

"She was an incredible young woman. She was always optimistic," said Ryan Hanley, a founder of the group. "She always had a smile on her face and incredible devotion to serving others."

Funeral arrangements for Smedinghoff are pending.

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Sheriff says Ga. toddler killed by 7 dogs in yard as mother, other adults were inside house

ELLABELL, Ga. –  A toddler who slipped outside through a doggie door was mauled to death by her family's seven dogs in the backyard while the attack went unnoticed by child's mother and other relatives inside their home, a southeast Georgia sheriff said Thursday.

Bryan County Sheriff Clyde Smith said the child's grandmother told investigators she was lying in bed when she heard the pit bulls and pit bull mixes barking, and she looked outside her window to see them dragging the girl. Smith said she began yelling, "They're killing Monica!"

It was too late. Monica Renee Laminack, who would have turned 2 years old June 1, was dead by the time an ambulance arrived Wednesday evening. Animal control officers used drugs to euthanize the dogs at the home on a rural road in tiny Ellabell, about 30 miles west of Savannah. Deputies found the girl's shoes, diaper and shredded clothing scattered across the fenced-in yard, Smith said.

"They had dragged the child all over the yard and chewed her and chewed her," Smith said. "They tore her clothes all up."

The toddler lived in a modest, two-story house tucked away from the main road. The sheriff said four generations of the same family shared the home, including the child's 18-year-old mother, grandparents and two uncles who are still young boys.

The girl's grandmother, Michelle McIntyre, sat weeping on the tailgate of a pickup outside the home Thursday. Summer Laminack, the child's mother, sat next to her staring silently at the ground.

"She's in shock," Barbara Brauda, a friend who was visiting the family, told The Associated Press before a man approached and asked a reporter to leave the property. "She hasn't been doing a whole lot of crying because she's still numb."

The sheriff said at least three adult relatives were inside the home when the dogs killed the girl outside. No criminal charges had been filed Thursday. Smith said he expects charges will be brought after he's had a chance to discuss the case with the district attorney and the girl's family has been given time to hold her funeral.

"I can see child neglect at the very minimum," Smith said.

Relatives told investigators the dogs that mauled the child were essentially family pets — a mother dog and six offspring from a litter she had about 16 months ago, the sheriff said.

The dogs had their own doggie doors that let them come in and out of the house as they pleased. The family told deputies the dogs had never attacked a person, though one of them might have killed a cat, Smith said. He said relatives insisted the toddler would play with the dogs and even "use them as pillows while watching TV."

Smith said the dogs looked healthy and well-fed, and investigators found no signs they were being used as fighting dogs by their owners.

"They said they have never been aggressive to other people," he said. "Why they got started I have no idea."

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Mom of boy killed by Alabama airport sign unconscious

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  March 22: People hold up a message board sign that fell on a family killing a child and injuring the mother and two other children in the terminal at the Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport in Birmingham, Ala.AP

While airport officials try to figure out how a 300-pound arrival-departure panel fell off the wall and onto a family, the young mother struck by the sign remains unconscious in an Alabama hospital -- still unaware that one of her sons is dead.

Heather Bresette and three of her sons were hit when the panel fell Friday at the Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport. Bresette and two of her sons were seriously hurt in the incident.  Luke Bresette, the middle of the woman's five children, was killed.

Bresette had surgeries for broken ankles and a crushed pelvis over the weekend, but she was still in intensive care and unconscious as of Monday morning, according to local reports. 

"She does not know that her baby is dead," the family's priest, the Rev. Don Farnan, said.

The Bresettes, a family of seven, took a weeklong spring break vacation to Destin, Fla., and were about to fly home to Overland Park, Kan., when the flight information panel fell.

Bresette's 5-year-old son Tyler suffered a concussion. His 8-year-old brother, Sam, had a broken leg and nose.

Tyler was released from a children's hospital Sunday; Sam was still there.

The boys' father, Ryan Bresette, and an older son and daughter, were at the airport when the sign fell, but not hurt.

Heather Bresette's condition improved to serious on Sunday, University Hospital spokeswoman Nicole Wyatt said.

During their vacation, the family swam in the Gulf of Mexico and Luke went parasailing for the first time.

"His dad said he was thrilled. He was an adventurous kid. He loved sports," said Farnan, a priest at St. Thomas More in Kansas City, Mo.

After the sign fell, it took six people to lift the large board and a dozen people to hold it up while first responders administered aid. Officials were investigating how the sign fell at the newly renovated airport and took down an identical billboard on Saturday.

The renovated concourse opened March 13. It was part of an ongoing $200 million upgrade of Birmingham's airport. The construction began in June 2011 and is being overseen by Brasfield & Gorrie Global Services Group.

The Birmingham-based company said in a statement it was working with airport authorities to determine why the sign fell.

"This is a terrible tragedy that none of us fully understand, and we hope that the family who lost their loved one will find strength through prayer and the support of all of us," the statement said.

At St. Thomas More, hundreds of worshippers showed up for a Saturday morning Mass that usually has about 75 people. Luke's uncle, Alex Bresette, placed a Rockhurst High School jersey on the altar.

"He would have been in the Class of 2020," he told the Kansas City Star.

Ryan Bresette said in a message on Facebook that words cannot describe the pain the family feels.

In a note to his son, he wrote, "I miss and love Luke so very much. I love you Luke!"

"Ryan is especially grateful for the amazing support of the people in Birmingham. They even started a fund for the family at a bank there," Farnan said. "There are long, loving arms that stretch between Birmingham and Kansas City."

The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

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Gun evidence links parolee killed in Texas shootout to Colorado prisons chief's murder

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COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. –  Gun evidence links a Colorado parolee fatally shot in Texas with the death of Colorado's corrections' chief, investigators said Monday.

The El Paso County sheriff's office said that "unique and often microscopic markings" found on shell casings in Texas and Colorado leads investigators to conclude that the gun Evan Ebel used to shoot at authorities in Texas was the same gun used to kill Tom Clements at his home on Tuesday.

It had been known that the casings found at both scenes were of the same caliber and brand but Monday's announcement was the first time Colorado investigators made a direct link between Ebel and Clements' death.

What remained unknown though was why Clements was killed when he answered his front door Tuesday night and whether Ebel acted alone.

"There are no answers at this time surrounding motive and gaining these answers could be a lengthy process for investigators," sheriff's spokesman Lt. Jeff Kramer said in statement.

The announcement came just hours after hundreds of people, including corrections officials and guards from as far away as Morocco, gathered for a memorial service to honor Clements.

The crowd at New Life Church included 39 current and former corrections' chiefs as well as guards from 14 states. A delegation of corrections officials from Morocco also attended along with dignitaries including Gov. John Hickenlooper and U.S. Attorney John Walsh.

Hickenlooper and his widow both spoke about Clements' strong belief in redemption. His family said he decided as a teenage to work in corrections after visiting his uncle in prison, and he worked to reduce the use of solitary confinement in Colorado prisons.

Standing with her two daughters, Lisa Clements said her husband of 28 years would want justice as well as forgiveness.

"We want everyone who hears Tom's story to know that he lived his life believing in redemption, in the ability of the human heart to be changed. He would want justice certainly but moreover he'd want forgiveness. Our family prays for the family of the man who took Tom's life and we will pray for forgiveness in our own hearts and our own peace," said Lisa Clements, a psychologist who oversees Colorado's state mental health institutes.

Hickenlooper, who hired Clements about two years ago, told mourners that Clements was both pragmatic and principled.

"He had common sense and he had courage," Hickenlooper said.

Authorities say the car Ebel had in Texas is also similar to one seen not far from Clements' home the night he was killed.

A federal law enforcement official said Ebel had been a member of the 211s, a white supremacist prison gang in Colorado. El Paso County sheriff's spokesman Lt. Jeff Kramer said Monday that investigators are trying to determine whether there was any gang involvement in the killing, but he stressed that's only one aspect of a broad investigation.

Denver police say Ebel is also a suspect in the March 17 slaying of pizza delivery man Nathan Leon.

Hickenlooper is a longtime friend of the suspect's father, attorney Jack Ebel, who testified two years ago before state lawmakers that solitary confinement was destroying his son's psyche.

Hickenlooper confirmed he mentioned the case to Clements as an example of why the prison system needed reform before the job was offered, but the governor said he did not mention Evan Ebel by name.

There was no indication that Hickenlooper's relationship with Jack Ebel played a role in the shooting. Hickenlooper said he did not having any role in Evan Ebel's parole in January.

Jack Ebel issued a statement offering condolences to all those who have suffered from his son's actions.

Clements, born in St. Louis, worked for 31 years in the Missouri Department of Corrections, both in prison and as a parole officer, before taking the top corrections' job in Colorado just over two years ago. He began a review of the state's solitary confinement system and eventually reduced the number of prisoners being held in solitary. He closed a new prison built specifically to hold such prisoners -- Colorado State Penitentiary II.

His work won praise from groups including the American Civil Liberties Union and the union representing prison workers, which called him a "leader who looked out for those he led."

Officials took additional security measures after Clements' death and placed the state prisons on lockdown Friday.

Following Clements' killing, corrections professionals said their jobs have grown more dangerous for themselves and their families because of the growing influence of prison gangs, their ability to communicate with affiliates on the outside through smuggled cellphones and the ease with which people can be found and tracked online.

Clements is at least the second head of a state prison system to be killed. The top administrator of the Oregon Department of Corrections, Michael Francke, was stabbed to death outside his office in 1989 in what prosecutors described as a bungled car burglary. A former state prison inmate was found guilty of aggravated murder in 1991 and sentenced to life in prison.

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Skydive instructor, student killed in Florida jump

Published March 24, 2013

Associated Press

ZEPHYRHILLS, Fla. –  Authorities say a skydive instructor and a student who jumped separately have died in Florida.

The skydivers, both men, were part of a jump Saturday in Zephyrhills, about 30 miles northeast of Tampa. Authorities say the plane took off about 10:30 a.m. and 22 people jumped. When only 20 returned, authorities started searching for the missing men.

The bodies were located about 7:30 p.m. in a wooded area south of the Zephyrhills Municipal Airport. They were found near each other.

Pasco County sheriff's spokeswoman Melanie Snow would not comment on whether their parachutes had opened, saying that was part of the investigation.

The skydivers were part of a jump through Skydive City in Zephyrhills.

Snow says authorities will release the names after next of kin are notified.

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Manhunt after head of Colorado Department of Corrections killed answering doorbell

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The head of the Colorado Department of Corrections was fatally shot when he answered the doorbell at his home Tuesday night, authorities say.

Sheriff's Lt. Jeff Kramer says Tom Clements, 58, was shot in the chest around 8:30 p.m. in the town of Monument, which is north of Colorado Springs. It is unclear if his wife and two daughters were home at the time of the shooting and police are searching for the gunman.

Authorities are also looking for a dark-colored "boxy" car seen near the house of Tom Clements, 58, when he was shot around 8:30 p.m. Tuesday in Monument, north of Colorado Springs. The vehicle's engine was running and a witness reported seeing one person driving away in the car.

Kramer, of the El Paso County Sheriff's Office, said investigators have not ruled anything out, but the shooting could have been related to Clements' job as executive director of the Colorado Department of Corrections.

"As the director of the Department of Corrections or any similar type position, it could in fact open someone up to be a target of a crime such as this. Although we remain sensitive to that, we also want to make sure that we remain open-minded to other possibilities as well," Kramer said.

Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper appointed Clements to the post in 2011 after he served for more than three decades in the Missouri Department of Corrections. He replaced Ari Zavaras, a former Denver police chief who led the department under two governors. The department operates 20 adult prisons and a juvenile detainment system.

Hickenlooper was red-eyed and somber and spoke haltingly Wednesday morning at a news conference in which he said he doesn't think the killing was part of any larger attack against his cabinet, members of which stood behind him, several of them crying. Others dabbed their eyes.

"Corrections is a very different job. You make difficult decisions every time that affect different people," Hickenlooper said, calling Clements dedicated, funny, caring and an expert on the latest and best methods in his field who chose the Colorado job over retirement.

"Tom Clements dedicated his life to being a public servant, to making our state a better place and he is going to be deeply, deeply missed."

Hickenlooper planned to go to Monument to meet with Clements' family after signing gun-control bills.

A family member called 911 to report the shooting. Search dogs were called in to comb through a wooded area around Clements' home, and authorities were going house to house trying to find out what neighbors heard and saw.

Clements lived in a wooded neighborhood of large, two-story houses on expansive 2-acre lots dotted with evergreen trees in an area known as the Black Forest. Long driveways connect the homes to narrow, winding roads that thread the hills. Clements' home was out of view, behind a barricaded of crime-scene tape in the road.

It would have been simple to find where Clements lived. It took two clicks to get his correct street address through a publicly available internet locator service Wednesday morning. The listing also included his previous home address in Missouri.

After Clements was appointed, Hickenlooper praised Clements for his approach to incarceration, saying he relied on proven methods to improve prison safety inside and programs that have been shown to improve successful outcomes after offenders are released from prison.

While Clements generally kept a low profile, his killing comes a week after he denied a request by a Saudi national, Homaidan al-Turki, to serve out the remainder of a Colorado prison sentence in Saudi Arabia. He cited al-Turki's refusal to undergo sex offender treatment in his denial.

Al-Turki, a well-known member of Denver's Muslim community, was convicted in state court in 2006 of unlawful sexual contact by use of force, theft and extortion and sentenced to 28 years to life in prison. Prosecutors said al-Turki kept a housekeeper a virtual slave for four years in his home and sexually assaulted her. A judge reduced the sentence to eight years to life. Al-Turki insisted the case was politically motivated. He owned a company that some years ago sold CDs of sermons recorded by Anwar al-Awlaki, killed in a drone strike in Yemen in 2011.

Al-Turki's conviction angered Saudi officials and prompted the U.S. State Department to send Colorado Attorney General John Suthers to Saudi Arabia to meet with King Abdullah, Crown Prince Sultan and al-Turki's family.

After Clements' shooting, someone with the State Department called the Colorado Corrections Department.

Prisons spokeswoman Alison Morgan said she had no details on the call other than to say it wasn't connected to the shooting investigation and may have been a simple courtesy.

"They called us because we have a cooperative international program with them," she said.

Hickenlooper ordered flags lowered to half-staff at public buildings until the day after Clements' funeral. Arrangements are pending.

Clements is survived by his wife, Lisa, and two daughters, Rachel and Sara.

Clements received a bachelor's degree in sociology and a master's degree in public administration from the University of Missouri. He started with the Missouri Department of Corrections in 1979 and over his 31 years there worked in prisons as well as probation and parole services. He was director of adult institutions when he left.

Missouri leaders also mourned his death.

George Lombardi, director of Missouri's Department of Corrections, said Clements was "just a very good, decent person."

Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon said in an emailed statement that Clements "dedicated his professional life and his considerable skills to public service and protection, and the citizens of Missouri join the people of Colorado in mourning this tremendous loss."

Clements is at least the second state prisons chief killed in office. Michael Francke, director of the Oregon Department of Corrections, was stabbed to death outside his office in 1989 in what prosecutors described as a bungled car burglary. A convicted drug dealer, Frank Gable, was found guilty of aggravated murder in 1991 and sentenced to life in prison. He and supporters contend he was wrongly convicted.

Clements' slaying was reminiscent of the 2008 killing of Adams County prosecutor Sean May. His wife was six months pregnant when he was shot and killed as he returned from work to his home in northwest Denver. His killer was never found.

Click for more from KDVR.com

The Associated Press contributed to this report

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Sniper takes out bus gunman who killed woman, as child hostage saved

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  March 20, 2013: Armed officers surround a house in Fort Wayne, Ind., where police say a man suspected of killing a bus passenger earlier in the day is holding a 3-year-old child hostage.AP/The Journal Gazette

FORT WAYNE, Ind. –  A man pulled a woman off a city bus in northern Indiana on Wednesday, fatally shot her and then took a 3-year-old boy hostage before a sniper killed him during a police standoff.

A police officer carried the child out of a house in Fort Wayne about 4:30 p.m., and police announced soon after that the suspect, 45-year-old Kenneth Knight, was dead.

Police said from the outset that they did not believe the shooting was random, but the relationship, if any, between Knight, the woman and the child was not immediately clear.

Police spokeswoman Raquel Foster said a protective order had been filed against Knight in the past few days, but she did not say who had requested the order.

Police said Knight and the woman, 49-year-old Jacqueline Bouvier Hardy, had both been riding a city bus when Knight pulled her off and shot her about 25 feet away in front of several people. The shooting took place about 8 a.m. along a busy street. Children waiting at school bus stops were among the witnesses, a school official said.

A backpack lay at the feet of the victim, whose body was covered by a sheet.

Knight fled after the shooting into the surrounding neighborhood. Several hours later, police said a standoff had ensued and the child was being held hostage. A few hours later, Police Chief Rusty York told reporters Knight was dead, killed by a single shot from a sniper.

Darnell Glaspie, who has lived in a nearby house for about four months, said he watched from his window as the standoff reached its climax.

"They're going in right now. They were all in the front yard, I heard a big boom and then I saw a bunch of them run up there in the house. I just saw about eight of them go up there in the house," Glaspie told The Associated Press by telephone.

Citilink General Manager Kenneth Housden said police will be reviewing video and audio equipment from the bus for their investigation.

Housden said the incident, though tragic, was an isolated one and people should continue to feel safe on Citilink buses.

"We do take safety and security very seriously and respond very quickly to any incident," he said.

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Ohio police say 6 teens killed in SUV crash

WARREN, Ohio –  A sport utility vehicle carrying eight teenagers crashed into a guardrail Sunday morning and flipped over into a swampy pond in northeast Ohio, killing five boys and a girl, while two other boys escaped, the state highway patrol said.

Highway Patrol officials say speed was a factor in the violent early morning crash of a sports utility vehicle that killed six teenagers in the northeast Ohio.

The Honda Passport veered off the left side of a road, hit a guardrail and overturned just south of the city of Warren, about 60 miles east of Cleveland, Lt. Anne Ralston said. Investigators say it came to rest upside down in the swamp and sank with five of the victims trapped inside. A sixth who was thrown from the SUV during the crash was found under it when the vehicle was taken out of the water.

The two survivors escaped and ran to a nearby home to call 911, the highway patrol said.

Ralston didn't know where the teens were headed when the crash happened at about 7 a.m. She didn't have any information to release on possible causes or factors in the crash, but the highway patrol planned a news conference for Sunday night.

"All I know is my baby is gone," said Derrick Ray, who came to the crash site after viewing his 15-year-old son Daylan's body at the county morgue. He said he knew that his son, a talented football player who was looking forward to playing in high school, was out with friends, but didn't know their plans.

A pile of blue, green and copper-red stuffed bears grew at a makeshift memorial at the crash site along a two-lane road tightly bordered with guardrails on either side in an industrial area. The sport utility vehicle had sheared off tall cattails along the guardrail.

There were also notes at the memorial, including a letter from Daylan Ray's 12-year-old half-sister, Mariah Bryant, who said she had learned they were related only in the past year.

"It hurts, it really does, because they are so young and, like, they could have had so much more to life," she said. "We just really started getting close, and it's hard to believe he's gone."

Two of the teens, both 15, were brought to a hospital in full cardiac arrest, St. Joseph Health Center nursing supervisor Julie Gill said, and were pronounced dead there. She said they were treated for hypothermic drowning trauma, indicating they had been submerged in cold water.

The two who survived, 18-year-old Brian Henry and 15-year-old Asher Lewis, both of Warren, were treated for bruising and other injuries and released, she said.

All those killed were ages 14 to 19, authorities said. State police identified them as 19-year-old Alexis Cayson; Andrique Bennett, 14; Brandon Murray, 17; and Kirklan Behner, Ramone White and Ray, all 15. The Highway Patrol said Alexis was the only female in the vehicle. It wasn't clear who was driving.

Rickie Bowling, 18, a friend of Behner, sobbed at the crash scene as she recalled his playfulness and reputation as a cut-up.

"He was one of a kind," she said. "Everyone knew him in the neighborhood. In school, he always made everyone laugh."

Bowling said the tragedy highlighted the importance of savoring life. "Basically, enjoy every second in life," she said. "Enjoy life while you've got it and while you're here and enjoy people that you love."

She said she would rely on her faith in the difficult days ahead. "The only way to look at it is on the bright side: he's in a better place," she said.

Jasmine McClintock, 22, a friend of a victim, visited the crash scene and said it should serve as a warning for parents to be aware of their children's activities.

"I hope it's an eye-opener for parents," she said while watching the slow ripple of the pond water littered with debris, some apparently from the crash.

McClintock said she was troubled by the question of what the victims were doing out at that hour, not knowing if they had been out all night or left home early.

"That's the part that boggles my mind. It's like on a Sunday if you're not going to church, what are you doing at 7 a.m. out driving," she asked.

All eight were from Warren. It's not believed that any of them were closely related, the highway patrol said.

Near the Pennsylvania state line, Warren is a mostly blue-collar city that was hit by the decline of U.S. steel mills; it has more than 41,000 residents in the industrial Mahoning Valley region.

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