News Roundup: Temple University Student Fatally Shot in Broad Daylight as Philadelphia Breaks Homicide Record

BY JACK CROWE

November 29, 2021

Good morning and welcome to the News Editor's Roundup, a weekly newsletter that will ensure you're up to date on the developments in politics, business, and culture that will shape the week's news cycle — as well as those that might escape mainstream attention.

Temple University Student Fatally Shot in Broad Daylight as Philadelphia Breaks Homicide Record

A 21-year-old Temple University student was shot and killed in broad daylight just three to four blocks away from campus on Sunday afternoon amid an uptick in homicides that have driven the deadliest year on record in Philadelphia.

Samuel Sean Collington was shot twice in the chest when a gunman opened fire on the 2200 block of North Park Avenue at 1:32 p.m., NBC10 Philadelphia reported. He was transported to Temple University Hospital where he was pronounced dead at 1:57 p.m., according to the outlet, which adds that no weapons have been recovered and no arrests have been made.

Collington was a fellow in the office of the City Commissioner and a political science student at Temple who was set to graduate in the spring, the school confirmed to NBC10.

Jury Selection Begins in Jussie Smollett Case More Than Two Years after Hate Crime Hoax

Jury selection begins Monday in the trial of Jussie Smollett, the actor who allegedly falsely claimed he was the victim of a racist and homophobic hate crime.

Smollett was indicted on 16 felony counts of disorderly conduct in February of 2019 for allegedly making a false report to Chicago police in January 2019, when he claimed he had been attacked by two men who shouted racial and homophobic slurs at him and wrapped a rope around his neck. He told police the assault occurred in the middle of a frigid Chicago night while he was out picking up a Subway sandwich.

Police investigated the alleged incident, which Smollett claimed happened in the upscale neighborhood of Streeterville, but ultimately shifted focus to probing whether Smollett paid brothers Ola and Abel Osundairo to stage an attack after first investigating the brothers as persons of interest.

Salvation Army Peddles Critical Race Theory, Urges Members to Confront Their Racism

The Salvation Army, the Christian charity famous for its festive collection boxes and volunteers around the holiday season, has adopted the teachings of critical race theory, urging members to actively confront their faith's historic racism.

In a guidebook titled "Let's Talk About Racism," the organization calls Christians to reflect on and rectify their contributions to the social inequities and prejudicial systems that have harmed minorities.

Citing its "International Position Statement on Racism," the organization writes that it "acknowledges with regret, that Salvationists have sometimes shared in the sins of racism and conformed to economic, organisational and social pressures that perpetuate racism."

Biden Administration Imposes Travel Ban on Eight African Nations amid 'Omicron' Variant

In response to the discovery of the new highly infectious "Omicron" variant of the coronavirus, the Biden administration has imposed a travel ban on eight African countries.

The restrictions apply to South Africa, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Lesotho, Eswatini, Mozambique, and Malawi, a senior administrative official told Politico. While the order excludes American citizens or lawful permanent residents, they will need to present proof of a negative COVID test before re-entering the United States.

Looters Hit LA Home Depot, Bottega Veneta on Black Friday

Two Los Angeles County stores became the latest victims of California's "smash and grab" looting wave on Black Friday.

A group of 15-to-20-year-old suspects targeted a Home Depot store in Lakewood around 8:30 p.m., making off with crowbars, mallets and sledgehammers, according to Fox 11 Los Angeles. The group, which arrived in as many as ten vehicles and ran into the store wearing ski masks, reportedly emptied out an entire section of hammers before taking off, KCBS-TV reported.

The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department told the station the stolen tools could be used in more robberies at other LA-area stores.

Appeals Court Temporarily Blocks COVID-19 Vaccine Mandate for California Prisons

A federal appeals court temporarily blocked a COVID-19 vaccine mandate for California prison workers on Friday.

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals granted a request for a stay of a lower court order from September pending an appeal, delaying the January 12 deadline to have thousands of prison workers submit proof of vaccination or a religious or medical exemption. The deadline will be pushed back until at least March, when the appeal hearing will be scheduled, according to the Associated Press.

The appeals court also moved the deadline for opening briefs up to December 13.

New York Declares State of Emergency to Prep for Omicron COVID Variant

New York governor Kathy Hochul (D.) on Friday declared a state of emergency to prepare for the COVID-19 Omicron variant.

The emergency order, which will be in place until at least January 15, is intended to increase hospital capacity in the state in the event that the winter season and the new variant bring a surge in cases.

The order will allow the state to use a "surge and flex system," enabling the Department of Health to limit non-essential and non-urgent hospital procedures in situations where a hospital has less than 10 percent staffed bed capacity. The new policy takes effect on December 3.

Fauci: Travel Bans Can Only 'Delay' COVID Variant Spread

White House chief medical adviser Anthony Fauci acknowledged on Sunday that travel restrictions cannot completely stop the spread of a new coronavirus variant, dubbed "Omicron," into the U.S.

"Travel bans, when you have a highly transmissible virus, never completely would…prevent it from coming into the country. No way that's going to happen," Fauci told host George Stephanopoulos on ABC's This Week. "What you can do is, you can delay it enough to get us better prepared."

Fauci called for "utiliz[ing] the time" afforded by a travel ban to research the new variant and get more people vaccinated. The Biden administration imposed bans on travel from eight southern African nations, exempting American citizens and legal permanent residents, after the Omicron variant was detected in those countries.

Taiwan Scrambles Jets after Chinese Air Force Breaches Buffer Zone

Taiwan scrambled combat aircraft after Chinese jets flew through Taiwan's air defense zone on Sunday, days after several U.S. lawmakers concluded a surprise visit to the island nation.

Taiwan's Defense Ministry said 18 fighter jets from mainland China's air force, along with five H-6 bombers and a refueling aircraft, flew through the defense zone near the southern part of the island. Taiwan scrambled its own air force to respond and deployed missile systems to track the Chinese breach.

The incursion came at the close of a three-day military conference attended by Chinese premier Xi Jinping, where he called for the cultivation of military talent, according to state-run news agency Xinhua.