During a discussion on CBS’ “Face the Nation,” White House border czar Tom Homan stood by the use of unmarked vehicles by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Homan sparred with host Margaret Brennan on whether officers employed emergency lights during the pursuit of a Houston man who was subsequently fatally shot.

Homan contended that unmarked vehicles are essential for officers to locate suspects effectively. He asserted that compliance in certain situations could prevent tragic outcomes.

“Ultimately, the investigation will provide clarity, but these individuals would still be with us if they had just complied during a vehicle stop orchestrated by federal law enforcement. Adherence is key,” Homan commented.

Brennan expressed concerns about the implications of using an unmarked vehicle in the incident leading to the fatal shooting of 52-year-old Lorenzo Salgado Araujo by an ICE officer.

According to Salgado’s family, he mistook the ICE officers for robbers rather than recognizing them as federal agents.

“Well, the family of the man in Houston said that he thought he was being robbed because it was an unmarked vehicle,” Brennan said.

“Not that it was law enforcement at all.”

Homan maintained that ICE vehicles contain equipment allowing officers to identify themselves during stops.

“They had emergency lights. They activate emergency lights. Blue lights,” Homan said.

“You know, in my vehicle I drive, where I’m with my security detail, we have emergency lights.”

Brennan challenged Homan to substantiate that claim, noting that publicly available videos did not appear to show emergency lights and the officers involved were not wearing body cameras.

“That there were lights, because the videos that we’ve seen there aren’t, and because there weren’t body cameras,” Brennan said.

“It is hard to substantiate some of what you are saying.”

Homan acknowledged that he had not reviewed the videos of the Houston incident. 

“OK, well, I have not seen the videos,” Homan said.

The border czar qualified his earlier claim, saying the vehicles should have contained lights and sirens but acknowledging that he could not confirm whether officers used them.

“Now, if they didn’t activate the lights, again, I haven’t seen that video,” Homan said.

“If they didn’t activate the lights, then there’s an issue there, right?”

“A lot of police departments, I’m in New York City right now, a lot of NYPD officers are driving unmarked vehicles, and that helps them find people that don’t want to be found, right?”

He backed the nationwide deployment of body cameras, arguing that the footage would allow the public to see encounters from an officer’s perspective.

“I think body cameras are the way to go,” Homan said.

“I think body cameras let the American people know what that officer sees when he takes that action.”

Homan said ICE had purchased cameras and was training personnel to deploy nationwide.

The agency will require officers to record vehicle stops with at least one body camera.

Salgado was not the intended target of the Houston operation, federal officials acknowledged.

ICE initially said he rammed a federal vehicle and attempted to run over an officer, prompting the officer to fire in self-defense.

Witnesses in Salgado’s van disputed the agency’s account.

Six days later, an ICE officer fatally shot a Colombian driver in Biddeford, Maine, who also was not the operation’s intended target.

DHS said the officer opened fire while “fearing for public safety” as the driver attempted to flee.

Investigations into both shootings remained underway.

A third man, a 28-year-old Mexican national, was struck and killed by a tractor-trailer after fleeing federal immigration agents in St. Augustine, Florida.

New findings have revealed that harmful chemicals from Florida’s notorious blue-green algae blooms are becoming airborne, meaning even those residing miles away from contaminated sources could be at risk.

A recent study highlights that toxins, released by cyanobacteria or blue-green algae, are becoming airborne in Southwest Florida. This situation brings about significant concerns about respiratory hazards linked to these dangerous substances.

In a collaborative effort, scientists from Wyoming’s Brain Chemistry Labs teamed up with the nonprofit Calusa Waterkeeper, deploying air sampling devices throughout Southwest Florida to track these toxins.

Alarmingly, each air sample contained the neurotoxin 2,4-DAB, a cyanobacteria byproduct. This toxin was previously identified in the brain tissue of stranded dolphins in Florida’s Indian River Lagoon. These dolphins exhibited symptoms akin to Alzheimer’s disease.

Cyanobacteria are ancient organisms credited with contributing to the development of Earth’s oxygen-rich atmosphere billions of years ago.

However, when waterways become overloaded with nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorus, often from agricultural runoff or poorly treated sewage, these bacteria can multiply rapidly, forming dense blooms that release toxins into the environment.

Scientists have long focused on contaminated food and drinking water as the primary routes of exposure to the toxins, but the new findings suggest that breathing contaminated air may be an equally important pathway.

Harmful algae toxins are linked to a range of health issues, from immediate respiratory and gastrointestinal problems to long-term neurological conditions including Alzheimer’s disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and Parkinson’s disease.

To find out if algae toxins can become airborne, researchers developed a special device called ADAM, short for Airborne Detection for Algae Monitoring.

This portable air sampler was designed to collect air at ‘breathing height,’ about five to six feet off the ground, which is the level where people would actually inhale it.

The device uses two collection methods: a glass fiber filter that captures particles, and a liquid ‘impinger’ that traps any toxins dissolved in the air.

Between July and December 2021, the team placed these samplers at multiple locations across Southwest Florida, specifically along the lower Caloosahatchee River, within the Matlacha Preserve areas and at sites like the Cape Coral Yacht Club, running each one for 24 hours at a time. 

At each site, they also collected water samples to compare the toxins found in the air with those found in the water. 

The air samples were then analyzed for a range of toxins. Because Florida’s Gulf Coast also experiences red tide blooms from Karenia brevis, they also tested for brevetoxins — respiratory irritants linked to red tide.

The study, published in the journal Toxins, found that even when there were no visible algae blooms in the water, toxins were still present in the air.

Of the 21 water samples collected, 62 percent showed no signs of cyanobacteria or algae at the surface.

Yet despite the lack of blooms, air samples regularly contained detectable levels of toxins. 

The device collected both particles and dissolved compounds, leading researchers to conclude that people may be chronically exposed to low concentrations of these toxins through inhalation.

‘Even though we can avoid contaminated food and water, preventing exposure through breathing is far more difficult,’ lead scientist Dr James Metcalf said.

The air filters detected a red tide toxin in just five percent of samples. But other toxins were far more common. One appeared in a third of samples, and after more sensitive testing, detection rates hit 100 percent. 

That suggests people are breathing in low levels of these compounds even when no blooms are visible.

Water samples contained an even broader mix of toxins linked to health issues. Liver toxins were found in 29 percent of samples, nerve toxins in 43 percent and respiratory irritants in 38 percent. 

Only one sample, which contained an actual bloom of Microcystis aeruginosa, a type of blue-green algae, showed high levels of microcystin-LR — the most common and well-studied cyanotoxin. For the most part, toxin concentrations were low, consistent with the absence of significant blooms.

There was no clear link between what was in the air and what was in the water at the same location. Airborne toxins were detected even when the water showed little to no algae.

This suggests that aerosols can travel from distant sources or that even small amounts of algae can release toxins into the air.

The frequent detection in air samples raises concerns about chronic, low-level exposure.

‘These data suggest that you don’t need to be close to toxic blooms to be exposed through breathing,’ Metcalf said.

‘We continue to find cyanobacterial toxins in the air, as in our study of dust blown from the exposed lakebed of the Great Salt Lake in Utah.’

One of the most concerning long-term health risks is the potential link between the neurotoxin BMAA and neurodegenerative diseases such as ALS or Parkinsonism dementia complex (PDC), which is a rare neurodegenerative condition that combines symptoms of ALS, Parkinson’s disease and dementia.

This connection has been observed in primate models and cell cultures, where BMAA exposure can trigger harmful effects such as excitotoxicity and protein aggregation in the brain.

Microcystins are also being investigated for their ability to cross the blood-brain barrier and potentially contribute to Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases by causing neuroinflammation and other cellular damage.

However, more research is needed to fully understand these links, and a 2017 EPA review concluded that current data does not definitively prove BMAA causes brain disease in humans.

Toxins like brevetoxin from red tides are well-known respiratory irritants. Inhaling them can cause coughing, sneezing, a runny nose, wheezing and chest tightness.

People with pre-existing conditions like asthma are particularly vulnerable. Research has shown that breathing in aerosolized brevetoxins can cause measurable decreases in lung function for asthmatics, making their symptoms noticeably worse.

Recent studies show that inhaling microcystins, which have also been found in lake and sea spray aerosols, can cause harmful airway inflammation. This inflammation is similar to a specific type of asthma and may even worsen existing inflammatory lung conditions.

SPRINGVILLE, Ala. (TRIBUNE) — In a commendable team effort, Springville Police Chief Jason Mize acknowledged the collective dedication of his officers, community vigilance, and the support of fellow law enforcement agencies for the swift capture of a suspect linked to the July 13 PNC Bank heist in Springville.

Chief Mize emphasized the unwavering commitment of every member of the Springville Police Department in safeguarding local businesses and residents. He assured that their resolve to track down lawbreakers remains resolute as they confront criminal activities within the city.

“Our resources might be limited at times, but we compensate for that with an unyielding pursuit and undaunted dedication,” Mize stated, highlighting the department’s diligent efforts.

Kristopher Michael Tribble, aged 50, found himself behind bars at the St. Clair County Jail with no option for bail. His arrest, on first-degree robbery charges, followed a thorough search of his residence conducted on Friday.

Currently held without bond, Tribble could face further charges from Jefferson County, as indicated by Chief Mize. The bank robbery occurred on Monday, July 13, at the PNC Bank located on 6384 U.S. 11 in Springville.

Mize said officers initially responded to a panic alarm at the bank at around 12:41 p.m. Officer D. Weal was first to arrive, where he met with bank employees.

According to employee reports, the suspect arrived on a motorcycle covered in a metallic material, which is now believed to be aluminum foil or some form of heat shielding, according to Mize. The suspect entered the bank wearing a motorcycle helmet, ski mask, sunglasses, a riding jacket, riding pants, and motorcycle boots.

Mize said the suspect unzipped his jacket, pulled a gun from his chest, laid it on the counter, and pointed the firearm toward the teller. After receiving the money, the suspect returned the handgun to his riding jacket and left the scene.

Investigators used Flock Safety cameras in Springville to help track possible exit routes Tribble took after leaving the bank to help identify the type of motorcycle used in the robbery.

Mize said investigators from the Springville PD, FBI agents from the Birmingham field office, and a physical security coordinator from PNC also reviewed bank surveillance footage.

“Numerous hours were spent by SPD officers reviewing video and Flock camera playback revealing the motorcycle and riding gear the offender used at the time of the robbery,” Mize said.

On July 16, Crime Stoppers of Alabama received an anonymous tip about the robbery. According to Mize, the tip said “the tin foil motorcycle guy” had been seen heading down Clay-Palmerdale Road toward Alabama 75 before turning onto Brookwood Road toward Miles Springs Road.

Mize said he and Springville Police Sgt. K Snider traveled to the area after receiving the tip where Snider checked dumpsters at nearby businesses and schools for possible material used to cover the bike but did not discover anything.

Later that evening, Mize said he saw a BMW GS1200 traveling down Miles Springs Road matching the evidence from PNC Bank and Flock cameras. The driver at the time was described as a slender white man and the passenger as a slender white female.

The motorcycle then turned north on Alabama 75, heading toward Blount County. The driver turned onto Mitchell Farm Road and accelerated quickly before Mize lost sight of the vehicle. The vehicle was described as red and not displaying a license plate.

Mize said he relayed that information to law enforcement agencies in Blount County, later contacting Pinson public safety administrator Chris Sharit.

On Friday, July 17, Mize said Sharit helped obtain pictures and video footage of the motorcycle in the Miles Springs Road area. Investigators further obtained footage of Mize following the bike the prior evening on Alabama 75.

“At this point, we were confident that our suspect was a white male driving a red and white BMW 1200 motorcycle,” Mize said.

The information was confirmed Friday morning when Springville police received another anonymous phone call. The tip led to a home on Miles Springs Road. Research into the address showed Tribble lived there and owned a red and white BMW 1200.

Springville police acquired a search warrant and executed a search at 3:15 p.m. the same day.

Tribble attempted to flee out the backdoor of the property but was stopped by an officer, according to Mize.

FBI agents arrived shortly after and assisted with gathering evidence from the property.

Springville Mayor Austin Phillips praised the department’s work Friday after Tribble was taken into custody.

“I’m just really proud of our officers and the investigative work they’ve done,” Phillips said. “They’re still processing the scene of the search, but the suspect is in custody.”

“This case, like most I’ve worked, can only be successful with devoted police officers and the assistance from the public along with assistance and resources from other law enforcement agencies,” Chief Mize said.