Radio Free 102.3 KJLH

Usha Vance unveils 2nd annual summer reading challenge for children grades K-8

Radio Free 102.3 KJLH — Mon, 01 Jun 2026 13:55:00 +0000

(NEW YORK) — Usha Vance, the second lady of the United States, is rolling out her annual summer reading challenge for its second year in an effort to enhance childhood literacy and curb some of the summer reading loss that comes during the summer months, she told ABC’s Linsey Davis in an exclusive interview.

“It is the second one. Last year it was an idea that we had really at the last minute as we were thinking about ways to enhance childhood literacy and get kids reading over the summer and sort of stave off some of the summer learning loss that traditionally happens every year,” Mrs. Vance said. “So we did a little pilot program and it was a success beyond what we had hoped.”

“This year we’re having a big rollout all over the country,” she added, highlighting partnerships with schools, libraries and other institutions across the country.

The program’s aim is for children from kindergarten to eighth grade to read 12 books of their choice this summer.

“Our summer reading challenge is really simple. All kids have to do is pick up 12 books, anything that they like,” Mrs. Vance said. “If a kid likes reading about squirrels, as one did last year, read 12 books about squirrels. If a kid loves history, read books about history.”

“So you read those books, write them down on a log and send them to whitehouse.gov/read and we’ll receive them, send a certificate,” Mrs. Vance said.

Participants will receive a special prize, as well as a chance to visit the White House, according to Mrs. Vance, which she said she hoped would motivate kids to participate.

“We’ll also enter all of the kids into a raffle to come visit the White House, come spend some time in D.C., and sort of enjoy all that D.C. has to offer,” Mrs. Vance said.

Linsey Davis’ full exclusive interview with second lady Usha Vance will stream Monday at 7 p.m. ET on ABC News Live Prime.

Multiple victims dead, officer shot in ‘traumatic’ domestic violence incident: Police

Radio Free 102.3 KJLH — Mon, 01 Jun 2026 13:49:00 +0000

(SANDY, Ore) — Multiple people were killed and an officer was shot and wounded in a domestic violence situation in Oregon, officials said.

When officers responded to a shooting and domestic disturbance shortly before 4 p.m. Sunday, the officers came under gunfire and returned fire, Sandy Police Chief Patrick Huskey said at a news conference.

One officer was shot multiple times, Huskey said. The officer has been hospitalized in stable condition and expected to survive, he said.

Multiple victims are dead, the chief said, but he did not say how many victims or their identities.

While the suspect was barricaded in the home, police urged residents to lock their doors and stay inside.

The suspect surrendered around 8 p.m., police said, and the shelter in place order has been lifted.

The chief called the shooting a “traumatic event for our community.”

Sandy Mayor Kathleen Walker said in a statement, “Our Sandy community grieves the unimaginable loss of lives from a domestic violence incident. … Please keep our officer, the victims and their loved ones, and everyone in our community in your thoughts.”

Karmelo Anthony’s murder trial to get underway over a Texas track meet stabbing

Radio Free 102.3 KJLH — Mon, 01 Jun 2026 13:45:00 +0000

(FRISCO, Texas) — The murder trial of a Texas teenager accused of fatally stabbing another student at a high school track meet is set to get underway.

Karmelo Anthony was indicted on first-degree murder in the fatal stabbing of 17-year-old Austin Metcalf at a track meet in Frisco, Texas, in April 2025.

Jury selection is scheduled for Monday and Wednesday at the Collin County Courthouse in McKinney, Texas, according to a court spokesperson. Opening arguments will begin on Thursday if a jury is seated, the spokesperson said.

Judge John Roach has imposed a gag order in the case, restricting what those involved can say, due to the attention the case has garnered.

He has also barred any electronics, including cellphones, from the courtroom during the trial, and no photography, video recording, audio recording or livestreaming are allowed.

“Due to the significant public and media interest in this case, the Court finds that specific procedures are necessary to ensure the Defendant’s right to a fair and impartial trial, the orderly administration of justice, the safety and security of all participants, and reasonable public access consistent with constitutional requirements,” he wrote in an order on the trial proceedings.

The deadly stabbing occurred at a Frisco Independent School District stadium on April 2, 2025, during a track and field championship involving multiple schools in the district.

Police said Austin Metcalf, an 11th grader at Frisco Memorial High School, was stabbed during an altercation under his school’s tent in the stadium bleachers. Anthony, a then-17-year-old student at Frisco Centennial High School, was taken into custody.

Responding officers said they spoke to multiple witnesses, including one who reported the altercation began after Metcalf told Anthony to move out from under their team’s tent, according to the arrest report.

The witness reported that Anthony allegedly reached inside his bag and said, “Touch me and see what happens,” according to the arrest report.

Metcalf grabbed Anthony to move him, according to a witness in the arrest report, and Anthony allegedly pulled out what the witness described as a black knife and “stabbed Austin once in the chest and then ran away,” the arrest report stated.

Anthony allegedly confessed to the killing and officers say he told them he was protecting himself, according to the arrest report.

Anthony was initially held on $1 million bond, which a Collin County judge reduced to $250,000.

As part of his bond conditions, he has been ordered to be on house arrest, be supervised by a parent or designated adult at all times and have no contact with Metcalf’s family, according to court records. He also needs prior court approval to leave the house, the court records show.

Prior to the gag order being issued, Anthony’s mother spoke out in the wake of the shooting, saying her family “has been under attack.”

“Whatever you think what happened … my three younger children, my husband and I didn’t do anything to deserve to be threatened, harassed and lied about,” his mother, Kala Hayes, said.

“I don’t know why we are being targeted and discriminated against before a fair trial. Our son deserves the same rights under the law that everyone is afforded to,” she said.

On the day of the stabbing, Metcalf’s family said they were heartbroken over what they called the “senseless” act of violence.

“It was really senseless. I don’t know why a person would do that to someone, just over that little argument,” Metcalf’s twin brother, Hunter Metcalf, who was at the track meet, told ABC Dallas affiliate WFAA.

“Just doesn’t make any sense,” their mother, Meghan Metcalf, told WFAA. “Just because the kid was mad, my son is not here anymore, and I don’t understand it.”

Hunter accepted a posthumous diploma on his brother’s behalf at his high school graduation on May 22. The emotional moment led to a 30-second standing ovation, WFAA reported.

Following the deadly stabbing, the Frisco Independent School District called it an “unprecedented situation” in an email sent to the high schools that attended the track meet.

“Frisco ISD shares in the grief of everyone impacted by this heartbreaking loss, and we extend our deepest sympathies to the victim’s family, students, staff, and our community during this difficult time,” the district said.

Meteor above New England created loud boom that rocked parts of region: NASA

Radio Free 102.3 KJLH — Mon, 01 Jun 2026 13:34:00 +0000

(NEW YORK) — New England residents were rocked Saturday after a fast-moving meteor in the Earth’s atmosphere sent a loud boom that was heard in parts of the state.

NASA told ABC News in a statement that the meteor, also known as a “fireball,” was detected around 2:06 p.m. and was traveling at a speed of 75,000 mph.

“The meteor appears to have fragmented at an altitude of 40 miles over northeast Massachusetts and southeast New Hampshire. The energy released at breakup is estimated to be equivalent to about 300 tons of TNT, which accounts for the loud noise,” NASA said.

A NASA spokesperson said the fireball was not associated with any currently active meteor shower but said it was a natural object and not space debris or a satellite re-entering the atmosphere.

NASA later said it “was a daytime bolide that produced” meteorite fragments that fell “in the middle of Cape Cod Bay.”

Several people took to social media in the afternoon to post videos of the sound heard throughout the eastern part of the state.

“We are getting numerous reports from residents of hearing a loud boom sound. It was heard over the eastern part of the state. Unknown origin no reports of hazards at this time,” the Watertown Police Department said in a statement.

The Massachusetts Executive Office of Public Safety and Security said in a statement they also received similar reports of “an audible boom and ground tremors.”

At the time the agency issued its statement, it said there were no known emergency, police or fire requests connected to the boom and there was not believed to be any public safety threat.

The United States Geological Survey said Saturday evening that the boom was from a suspected bolide, which is the scientific term for a meteor that explodes in the atmosphere.

“Unlike earthquakes which occur at discrete location in the earth, sonic boom events occur along a linear path in the atmosphere,” the USGS said.

ABC News’ Matthew Glasser contributed to this report.

Young M.A says ‘Kween,’ her first album in five years, is not a comeback but a reset

Radio Free 102.3 KJLH — Mon, 01 Jun 2026 10:00:00 +0000

“OOOUUU,” Young M.A is back with her first project in five years, Kween. It’s also the first album she’s recorded fully sober, following past struggles with alcohol that led to her 2023 hospitalization for health issues tied to excessive drinking.

“I had a time in my life where I consumed a little bit too much alcohol and it put me in a bad physical state. I was on the edge, like real close,” she tells Billboard.

Noting that she able to “fight through it,” she explained how the experience of recording music sober changed the album-making process.

“[I]t’s definitely a difference,” she said. “You drink to get the edge off and … [y]ou become more confident in what you doing.”

“When you’re sober, you kinda overthink and hesitate a little more,” she continued. “I think I was a little more aggressive before. I feel [like I’m in] a more mature, grown-up and disciplined stage.”

While some people may call the new album a comeback, M.A calls it a reset. “I don’t want people to think this is a comeback,” she explained. “We had a little bump in the road and we got over that and we’re driving again.”

She added that her goal is to remind listeners of her musical talent and “bring the music back to music.”

“I ain’t looking for no type of accomplishment,” she said. “I just want them to understand that the music never left.”

She added, “I just need the music to feel like music again. Let’s have fun again. … Bring more of that energy everybody.”

It’s what she did with her breakout single, “OOOUUU,” which remains an important part of her career.

“I’m always gonna appreciate that record. I’ll never get tired of that record. That record makes me a lot of money to this day,” she said. “It’s timeless.”

“People probably get one summer or two summers, but I still hear my record like it just dropped,” M.A added. “It will be here with the kid’s kids.”

Kween is now available on streaming services.

Family visitations to resume at New Jersey immigration detention center following violent protests

Radio Free 102.3 KJLH — Sun, 31 May 2026 17:31:24 +0000

(NEWARK, N.J.) — Family visitation hours are set to resume on Sunday at the Delaney Hall Immigration detention facility in Newark, New Jersey, following violent clashes between protesters and police that prompted arrests and a mandatory curfew around the facility, according to the state’s governor.

“DHS has met our demand to restore family visitation,” New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill announced in a statement on Sunday morning. Visits had been interrupted by the ongoing protest over the alleged poor treatment of detainees at the hall.

“Starting today, limited visitation will resume at noon, and regular visitation hours will be restored beginning tomorrow,” Sherrill said on X, in part.

The governor advised families to contact the Delaney Hall facility for additional details, adding that law enforcement on the scene will help escort families into the facility.

“It is critical that outside actors allow this to happen safely,” Sherrill said at a news conference on Sunday.

“We did not cave to the governor’s demands,” a Department of Homeland Security official told ABC News on Sunday, adding that “visitation was suspended because the violent riots outside the facility made it unsafe for our officers, detainees’ families and lawyers to visit the facility.”

“With Delaney Hall secure, ICE operations continue as normal,” the official said.

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., said in a statement on Sunday that he conducted an oversight visit to Delaney Hall that morning with New Jersey Reps. Rob Menendez, Josh Gottheimer, and LaMonica McIver.

“The conditions of confinement we witnessed firsthand and discussed with approximately two dozen detainees at the Delaney Hall detention center shock the conscience,” Jeffries said in his statement, in part. “Immigration enforcement in this country should be fair, just and humane. The Trump administration is doing the exact opposite.”

Jeffries further said that during the oversight visit he and the others in other House members “learned of unsanitary living conditions, lack of adequate medical care and unhealthy food. This is not America.”

“Delaney Hall must be shut down immediately,” Jeffries’ statement said.

The Department of Homeland Security has previously denied the allegations, along with reports that detainees are staging a hunger strike in protest.

In a separate post Sunday morning, Sherrill said that overnight, masked individuals at Delaney Hall, attacked the barrier in the protected protest area outside of the facility and began “aggressive and dangerous actions” against Newark and New Jersey State Police, including “throwing projectiles, utilizing the barriers as weapons, and setting tires on fire in the street.”

“These actions put both peaceful protestors and law enforcement in danger,” Sherrill said. “The police were not in protective gear; they had been on location since early in the morning, ensuring protestors and counter protestors had areas to exercise their rights safely.”

“As these dangerous actions took place, additional support was needed to protect civilians and law enforcement,” Sherrill added.

At a press conference later Sunday morning at a State Police facility in Newark, Sherrill said three people were arrested as a result of Saturday night’s clashes with police, including one individual who was charged with illegal possession of a weapon.

The developments came after protests began outside the facility last week and some demonstrators clashed with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents.

In separate statements released on Friday, Mullin and Acting U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche said nine protesters had been arrested. Mullin alleged that some of those who were arrested “bit, kicked, and punched officers.”

In a statement on Saturday, Newark Mayor Ras Baraka cited the “escalating situation” and “the increasing need for police intervention” in ordering the curfew for the half-mile around Delaney Hall, which began at 12 a.m. on Sunday and will remain in effect nightly from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m.

A state police official said during Sunday’s press conference with Sherrill that law enforcement was working to secure the area around the facility and will reevaluate whether to allow protesters and the new media to get closer than a half-mile of the facility.

“Multiple individuals have already been arrested and found in possession of weapons, underscoring the seriousness of the threat,” Baraka said in the statement.

Following days of protests, Sherrill ordered state police to establish a perimeter outside of the ICE detainment center.

At a press briefing on Saturday, Sherrill told reporters that six people were arrested on Friday night outside the facility, where tear gas was deployed and some officers on horses helped disperse the crowd.

The governor defended her decision to bring in state law enforcement to the scene.

She called on protesters, who have been challenging the allegedly poor conditions at the Newark detainment center, to “turn the temperature down,” and not give ICE a reason to “exacerbate the situation,” citing incidents in other cities such as Minneapolis.

“I refuse to let that happen in New Jersey. I will not give ICE a pretext to expand operations at Delaney Hall or across our state. I will not put lives at risk,” she said at a news conference.

During Saturday morning’s demonstrations, a handful of pro-ICE demonstrators gathered at the facility.

The pro-ICE crowd, which was dwarfed by the Delaney Hall protesters, arrived with signs, American flags and other paraphernalia supporting the federal agency and its immigration enforcement crackdown.

Activists and Democratic leaders have alleged that the 300 inmates inside the ICE facility are not being properly fed, not receiving medical care and are living in poorly maintained quarters.

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin has repeatedly condemned the protests.

“Anyone who assaults law enforcement will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. Law and order will prevail,” he said in an X post Friday.

As police erected protest barriers on Friday night, ICE agents moved inside the building’s perimeter fence.

New Jersey State Police Lt. Col. David Sierotowicz told New York City ABC station WABC that ICE officers agreed to stand down with state police assuming responsibility.

However, tensions escalated between the protesters and state officers, some of whom were wearing riot gear and shields. Tear gas was deployed and protesters were pushed back.

Sherrill said some of the people arrested Friday night were from outside New Jersey and she alleged that outside agitators were in the crowds.

During Saturday’s demonstrations, men wearing clothing with the Proud Boys logo were seen in the pro-ICE protest group.

New Jersey Attorney General Jennifer Davenport said in a statement Saturday that most demonstrators complied with an order Friday night to let vehicles through, though she alleged a “limited number did not comply with repeated requests to clear a safe passage for the vehicles.”

Davenport further alleged that some protesters “took dangerous actions, including deploying fireworks and throwing gas canisters at law enforcement, that put everyone in harm’s way.”

The attorney general added that state police did not fire any rubber bullets or use batons during the Friday incident.

Some protesters decried the actions by the officers.

Rachel Cohen, one of the protesters who was at the site Friday, told WABC that she was worried that demonstrators were being silenced.

“It is not helpful to quell protest for the sake of a false peace,” she said. “There is no peace while we are torturing our neighbors on government dime inside this facility.”

The incident was the latest heated clash between Delaney Hall protesters and law enforcement.

Sen. Andy Kim of New Jersey was tear-gassed on Monday as he tried to de-escalate the situation. DHS Secretary Mullin told reporters Wednesday that Kim “probably shouldn’t have been there.”

Robert Frazer, the U.S. attorney for the district of New Jersey, said Saturday that Brendan John Geier, 26, of Madison, New Jersey, was charged with kicking a federal officer and biting two others during a confrontation at Delaney Hall Thursday.

Geier was released and prohibited from returning to Delaney Hall, according to Frazer. Attorney information for Geier was not immediately available.

While Kim and other Democratic leaders have visited the facility and said they saw the poor conditions firsthand, Sherrill said she has been denied access inside.

Sherrill urged protesters to remain peaceful and continue to speak out against the alleged conditions in the detention center.

She also continued her calls on the federal government to allow detainees’ families to have visitation rights and have state health inspectors conduct a full report.

“I’m going to work with federal delegation to get answers,” she said.

ABC News’ Jack Moore and Luke Barr contributed to this report.

Music Notes: Megan Thee Stallion, Kehlani and more

Radio Free 102.3 KJLH — Fri, 29 May 2026 22:16:15 +0000

Megan Thee Stallion debuted the latest drop from her Hot Girl Summer swimwear line Thursday during the 2026 Paraiso Miami Swim Week. She closed the show in a brown-and-white swirl-patterned one-piece, which she wore with a sleek high ponytail.

Days after celebrating his Sept. 14 birthday, Nas will perform at Riot Fest 2026. Slick Rick and Afroman are also on the lineup for the show, which is scheduled to take place Sept. 18-20 at Douglass Park in Chicago. Tickets are currently on sale.

Kehlani isn’t only touring North America: She’s also performing in Europe and the U.K. She’s added seven shows to her schedule, with dates now set in Berlin, Brussels, Paris, Dusseldorf, Amsterdam, London and Manchester. An artist presale starts Monday, with general ticket sales beginning Wednesday at kehlaniworldtour.com.

Ye has an upcoming show at Istanbul’s Atatürk Olympic Stadium which organizers believe could set records. According to Variety, ILS Vision is organizing the event along with TemaCC. ILS Vision founder Erdem Karahan told Turkish media that 75,000 have been sold so far. “If we reach 99,000 [people in the audience], Istanbul will have broken the world record for the largest single concert,” Karahan said, according to Variety. Ye is also set to perform in the Netherlands, Italy and the Czech Republic.

A Different World has received a Netflix release date. The series debuts to the streamer on Sept. 24. It stars Maleah Joi Moon as Deborah Wayne, the youngest daughter of Whitley and Dwayne. A new generation joins her at Hillman College for this show that’s “set against the rituals, humor, and nuances of an HBCU,” according to its official description.

Judge rules detained pregnant woman and son cannot spend another night at Dulles Airport

Radio Free 102.3 KJLH — Fri, 29 May 2026 22:08:09 +0000

(WASHINGTON) — A federal judge ordered on Friday that a pregnant woman and her 4-year-old son from Ghana cannot spend another night at a Washington, D.C.-area airport where they have been detained for more than a week.

Anabella Gyasi arrived at Dulles International Airport on May 19 with a valid tourist visa to bring her son to the United States for medical treatment, and she had been detained in a holding room by Customs and Border Protection since then, according to the American Civil Liberties Union.

ACLU-VA Executive Director Mary Bauer hailed the ruling, saying, “Today the court ordered in no uncertain terms that Ms. Gyasi and her son are not to spend another night in Dulles Airport.”

“Ms. Gyasi’s health and the viability of her pregnancy have both been endangered for more than a week as a result of the Trump administration’s dangerous and unlawful detention practices,” Bauer said, referring to the administration’s ongoing immigration crackdown.

“While we’re relieved that Ms. Gyasi and her son will soon be free from this nightmare, no one should be subjected to the inhumane conditions they endured,” Bauer added.

Gyasi and her son were heading back to Ghana on Friday, a person familiar with the case told ABC News.

The ACLU filed a habeas petition for Gyasi and her son on Tuesday, alleging they are being detained “despite long-standing regulations and policies requiring that certain at-risk individuals, such as pregnant women and children, be released.” The petition also pointed to a court settlement that requires children to be transferred out of detention within 72 hours.

The 38-year-old mother first brought her son to the U.S. in 2024, when he was 2 years old, to see a specialist for physical abnormalities affecting both of his hands, according to the habeas petition. At that appointment, Gyasi was told her son was too young for corrective surgery.

Earlier this month, Gyasi scheduled a pre-operation appointment at a children’s hospital in Ohio and planned on traveling with the same tourist visa she had previously used, according to her lawyers.

A Department of Homeland Security official confirmed to ABC News on Thursday that Gyasi was in CBP custody at Dulles and said she “will remain in custody pending her immigration hearing.”

The DHS spokesperson called the allegations about the conditions of her detention as “false.”

“Everyone in CBP custody, including this individual, has access to appropriate care, including medical evaluation by a doctor, medication, and food,” DHS said.

13-year-old, 7-year-old among 5 killed in massive crash on I-95 in Virginia: Police

Radio Free 102.3 KJLH — Fri, 29 May 2026 21:48:00 +0000

(STAFFORD COUNTY, Va.) — Five people were killed and 44 were injured in a massive crash between a bus and multiple vehicles on Interstate 95 in Virginia early Friday morning, according to state authorities.

The accident unfolded at about 2:35 a.m. on I-95 south in Stafford County, about 45 miles south of Washington, D.C., the Virginia State Police said.

As traffic slowed for a work zone, a bus did not slow down and struck a Chevrolet Suburban, police said.

The bus then hit other cars, while the Suburban was forced into an Acura SUV and other cars, police said.

The Acura caught fire, police said. Four of the five people killed were in the Acura: a 45-year-old man, a 44-year-old woman, a 13-year-old girl and a 7-year-old boy, all from Greenfield, Massachusetts, police said.

The fifth victim killed, a 25-year-old woman, was in the Suburban, police said.

Forty-four people were taken to hospitals, including three with critical injuries, police said.

The bus — which was en route from New York City to Charlotte, North Carolina –was carrying about 34 people, police said, noting that the bus driver, Jing S. Dong, 48, suffered injuries.

Charges are pending, police said.

The crash initially closed all lanes of I-95, Virginia’s Department of Transportation said, causing massive delays for the Friday commute. All lanes have since reopened.

1 of 4 fallen climbers rescued from Mount McKinley

Radio Free 102.3 KJLH — Fri, 29 May 2026 21:47:11 +0000

(DENALI NATIONAL PARK AND PRESERVE, Ala.) — One of the four climbers who fell while ascending Mount McKinley in Alaska has been rescued from the 17,200-foot basin, according to the National Park Service.

The search for the remaining three climbers, who also fell while climbing Mount McKinley at 18,200 feet, is now a recovery mission, the NPS said.

The NPS said it does not know the status of the rescued survivor.

“Due to terrain and conditions at the site, a high-altitude helicopter was unable to land and instead conducted the evacuation using a long-line extraction. The climber was transported to the Kahiltna Base Camp and then transferred to a LifeMed air ambulance for transport to a hospital,” the NPS said Friday.

Mount McKinley — located in Alaska’s Denali National Park and Preserve — is the tallest peak in North America, according to the NPS.

The climbers, part of a seven-member climbing team, fell in the vicinity of Denali Pass, according to the NPS.

The NPS received a report of the incident at around midnight Thursday after two other climbers were evacuated by helicopter from the mountain at around 11 p.m. Wednesday, as part of a separate incident, the NPS said.

Three members of the climbing team returned to High Camp at 17,000 feet after attending to their fallen partners, the NPS said.

The NPS said it is actively responding to the incident. Weather conditions on the mountain are improving and will soon enable helicopter operations, the NPS said.

The extent of the climbers’ injuries and their condition remains unknown, the NPS said.