It's June 16, 2024, 07:05:40 AM
NEW PORT RICHEY, Florida (AP) -- A 9-year-old girl accused of stealing a rabbit and $10 from a neighbor's home was arrested, handcuffed and questioned at a police station.A Pasco County sheriff's deputy found the black-and-white rabbit, named Oreo, hopping around in the girl's living room, according to the arrest report. She was read her rights and taken away in the back of a patrol car.The girl began to cry during questioning Tuesday. She admitted taking the rabbit belonging to another child, but denied taking two $5 bills and some change, according to reports.Sheriff's spokesman Kevin Doll defended the arrest, and said if the victim of a crime wants an arrest, deputies are required to act if there is enough evidence.Lori Ventura, the mother of the child who owns the rabbit, said the girl has been involved in other incidents and needs help.The deputy could have taken a report and referred the charges to the state attorney, said Pasco-Pinellas Public Defender Bob Dillinger.The girl was released to her mother from a juvenile assessment center about an hour after her arrest, which she said was scary. She also didn't like the deputy."He put one handcuff on me really tight," she said Thursday. In the patrol car, "He just stared at me in the mirror."
SAN ANTONIO, Texas (AP) -- A teenager was dragged under a car, run over twice and killed in an altercation between six rival gang members outside a high school, authorities and witnesses said.Police said Thursday's fight might have started because one gang entered another gang's territory looking for girls.Parent Audrey Gover was dropping off her daughter and witnessed the fight.She said some of the men then climbed into a red Chevrolet Monte Carlo to leave when 18-year-old Michael Hinojosa, jumped in front of the car. The vehicle lurched forward, trapping him under the front bumper, Gover told the San Antonio Express-News. Hinojosa's friends got into a second car and chased the Monte Carlo.Hinojosa was dragged screaming the length of three football fields.He fell from the bumper, and the driver sped away, rolling over him. The pursuing car also ran over Hinojosa. The young man was pronounced dead at a hospital.Police said Hinojosa's friends lost control of their car and flipped the vehicle about a mile away.Police had made no arrests late Thursday. However, a murder warrant was issued for Jesse James Leal, 17.The Monte Carlo was found abandoned.