Judge shot, wounded near Ohio courthouse; suspect killed

STEUBENVILLE, Ohio (AP) — A judge was shot and wounded Monday morning as he walked toward his county’s courthouse, and a suspect was killed after a probation officer returned fire

Jefferson County Judge Joseph Bruzzese Jr. was shot near the courthouse in Steubenville, just across the Ohio River from West Virginia’s northern panhandle, roughly 30 miles (48 kilometers) west of Pittsburgh.

Steubenville City Manager James Mavromatis tells WTOV-TV that Bruzzese was talking after being wounded. He was flown to a Pittsburgh-area hospital.

Investigators didn’t immediately release further information about the judge’s condition or the suspect.

Local media reported that the suspect’s body could be seen lying next to a car at the drive-thru of a neighboring bank. Police said a man who was in the car with the suspected shooter was taken into custody.

The courthouse was closed for the day as local and state authorities helped to secure the scene. Jefferson County Commissioner Thomas Graham told WTOV that some courthouse workers witnessed the “tragic situation” and that people would need time to process what had happened.

The 65-year-old Bruzzese hears general and domestic relations cases as one of two judges serving in Jefferson County Common Pleas Court.

Bruzzese has served on that court since 1997, according to Ohio Supreme Court records. He was most recently re-elected in 2014 for another six-year term.

Source: Judge shot, wounded near Ohio courthouse; suspect killed

ISIS expert is blown up along with 3 of his apprentices while booby-trapping a car in Iraq

An ISIS booby-trapping expert died alongside three helpers after a car he was rigging with bombs exploded in his workshop.

Abu Yusuf al-Halab, a Syrian in his forties, was killed in the blast near the town of Tal Afar, reports an Iraq-based news agency.

The man was known as ‘al-mohandis’, Arabic for engineer, according to a source who asked to remain anonymous.

The source told AlSumaria News: ‘Abu Yusuf al-Halabi, a prominent expert of vehicles booby-trapping in Tal Afar, was killed along with three of his aides.

‘This was due to an explosion of a car while booby-trapping it inside a workshop.’

The incident follows the death of an ISIS commander by sniper fire around the same location.

Tal Afar remains an important ISIS stronghold, and is being targeted by the Iraqi state-backed Hashed al-Shaabi militia.

The force recently took Hatra, 80 miles southwest of Mosul, and recapturing Tal Afar is seen as the next step in their campaign.

The ancient city is one of the heritage jewels of Iraq and was damaged by IS after they took over large parts of the country three years ago.

Meanwhile, fighting continues to retake Mosul, Iraq’s second city and ISIS’ last major urban stronghold in Iraq.

According to the UN, more than half a million civilians have been forced to flee their homes since the offensive was launched more than six months ago.

Iraqi forces have made steady progress in west Mosul but the jihadists are expected to make a bloody last stand in the narrow streets of the Old City.

An estimated 400,000 civilians remain trapped in the Old City, making it difficult for Iraqi or US-led coalition aircraft to provide ground troops with air support.

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Source: ISIS explosive expert is blown up while booby-trapping car | Daily Mail Online

Stone carvings confirm comet hit Earth 13,000 years ago – triggered mini ice age

Tornado? Texas storms leave 40,000 homes without power, train off its tracks and shuts down Houston airport.

Over 40,000 people are currently without power and at least 150 homes have been damaged in San Antonio, where winds reaching 80mph blew in on Sunday night, and a train went over in Austin.

Source: San Antonio storms leave 40,000 homes without power | Daily Mail Online