The Weekly Briefing 🇺🇸
Outnumbered Four-to-One
Bodycam and dashcam footage released by Indianapolis police shows Officer Renteria being shot four times during a July 29 encounter with suspects in a stolen vehicle. According to Fox 59, 19-year-old Tyson Reach opened fire while the officer was outnumbered four-to-one in an attempted carjacking arrest. Despite serious injuries, Renteria returned fire, fatally wounding Reach, and then applied a tourniquet to his own leg before backup arrived. 🔗 More here
Sniper Threat on the Rise
The fatal shooting at a Dallas ICE facility this week is the latest in a growing wave of sniper-style attacks across the U.S., a trend experts warn is becoming the “new chapter” in active-shooter violence. Since the July 2024 assassination attempt on Donald Trump, at least seven such incidents have targeted police, politicians, and public figures, including the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk earlier this month. Law enforcement leaders told ABC News that the long-range, ambush tactics—planned from rooftops, overpasses, and other elevated positions—pose a uniquely difficult challenge to prevent and signal a dangerous shift in the nation’s threat landscape. 🔗 More here
Sharp Rise in Left-Wing Terrorism
A new study from the Center for Strategic and International Studies, highlighted by The Atlantic, finds that for the first time in more than 30 years, left-wing terrorist attacks in the U.S. outnumber those from the far right. Researchers analyzed 750 incidents from 1994 to mid-2025, noting a sharp rise in left-wing violence since Donald Trump’s political ascent in 2016. While today’s numbers remain far below the 1960s and ’70s, when groups like the Weather Underground carried out bombings and kidnappings, the shift marks a notable change from the past three decades dominated by jihadist and right-wing extremist violence. 📈 More here
Denver Chief Blasts ICE Recruiting
Denver Police Chief Ron Thomas dismissed a new Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) recruitment push as “a terrible job for terrible pay,” telling Axios Denver he isn’t worried about losing officers as the department looks to hire 168 more next year. ICE is seeking 10,000 new deportation officers, offering $50,000 bonuses and student loan repayment, but its salaries lag behind Denver police pay scales. Thomas emphasized the agencies aren’t competing for the same personnel, though at least one Boulder officer has recently left to join ICE. 👮🏼♂️ More here
Social Media Surpasses Cable
The Department of Homeland Security is drawing a bigger online audience than traditional cable news, with internal metrics showing its social media accounts averaged more than 6.3 million daily impressions in July—outpacing MSNBC and CNN’s combined viewership, according to Fox News. DHS has leaned on memes, GIFs, and patriotic-style recruiting posters to boost engagement, especially as it works to hire 10,000 new ICE agents. Despite criticism from some outlets, DHS officials say they’ll maintain the strategy, pointing to a 34-fold increase in reach compared to the Biden administration. 🛜 More here
Episode 17 of Boldly Go is Live
Rick Smith and I take a deep dive into artificial intelligence 🧠 and the exponential tech wave 🚀 transforming our world. From Ray Kurzweil’s bold predictions to the real-world power of ChatGPT, MidJourney, and Grok 🤖, we explore how AI is already reshaping:
👮♂️ Public safety
💪 Personal health
❤️ Human relationships
With a mix of humor 😂, candor 🎙️, and a few unforgettable stories, we tackle the promise of this rapidly accelerating digital age.
Driverless Car Pulled Over
Police in San Bruno pulled over a Waymo driverless car during a DUI enforcement operation after the vehicle made an illegal U-turn, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. Officers discovered the car had no driver and contacted Waymo’s parent company, Alphabet, but no citation was issued because California law currently doesn’t allow moving violations against autonomous vehicles. A new state law, effective July 2026, will let officers issue violations directly to companies when their cars break traffic rules. The stop highlights ongoing challenges for law enforcement as driverless fleets grow—San Francisco has already seen Waymo cars rack up more than $65,000 in parking fines and face federal scrutiny for traffic violations. For now, San Bruno police said their focus remains the same: “keeping roads safe, regardless of who – or what – is driving.” 🚙 More here
Blight Strike Team Shows Results
A new Dallas City Action Strike Team is tackling blight as a crime-prevention strategy, targeting vacant lots, poor lighting, graffiti, and neglected properties. In the first half of 2025, the team treated 150 sites, leading to a 48% drop in violent crime at those locations—79 fewer incidents compared to the same period in 2024, according to The Lab Report Dallas. Modeled after research from cities like Philadelphia, the approach emphasizes fixing environmental conditions linked to crime rather than relying solely on arrests. “You don’t have to be a police officer to fight crime,” said team leader Andrew Rollo. More here
Troops to Portland & ICE Facilities
President Trump announced he will deploy U.S. troops to Portland, Oregon, and to immigration detention facilities nationwide, authorizing “Full Force, if necessary.” In a post on Truth Social, Trump said the move was aimed at countering Antifa and “domestic terrorists” he claims have attacked ICE sites, The Washington Post reported. The Pentagon said it stands ready to mobilize forces, though officials noted uncertainty about whether active-duty troops or National Guard would be used. Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek and Portland Mayor Keith Wilson rejected the plan, arguing the city is not “war-ravaged” as Trump described, and vowed to explore legal options to block the deployment. Critics warn the move risks politicizing the military, while the Justice Department has already ordered federal agents to guard ICE facilities after recent attacks. 🔗 More here
Mental Health System Gaps
The fatal stabbing of 23-year-old Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska on a Charlotte light rail train has sparked outrage over how the suspect, 34-year-old Decarlos Brown Jr., remained free despite years of arrests, delusions, and a schizophrenia diagnosis. Records reviewed by The New York Times show Brown cycled between jail, hospitals, and the streets nearly 20 times since 2007, yet state law never deemed him dangerous enough for long-term involuntary treatment. North Carolina, which ranks 36th in psychiatric beds per capita, illustrates what experts call a “bipartisan catastrophe” of too few resources and too high a legal bar for forced care. Brown’s family repeatedly sought help as his paranoia worsened, but he often fell into the cracks between police and health providers until the August attack that cost Zarutska her life. 🔗 More here
Episode 7 of The Briefing Room 📺 🎧
Police Halt Attack in Minutes
Grand Blanc Township officers rushed to a Latter-day Saints church Sunday morning, arriving within 30 seconds of the first 911 call and fatally shooting the gunman, 40-year-old Iraq War veteran Thomas Sanford, just eight minutes later. Authorities said Sanford rammed his flag-covered truck into the building, opened fire with an assault rifle, and set the church ablaze, killing four people and wounding eight more, including children. The New York Post reports improvised explosive devices were also found at the scene, as investigators examine possible ties to the death of LDS Church president Russell M. Nelson, who died a day earlier at 101. 🔗 More here
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