This Week In The News (02/24-02/28)

Dow Plunges Another 1,200 Points on Coronavirus Fears

Thursday, February 27 (CBS News) – The stock market is allergic to uncertainty, and nothing breeds uncertainty than a potential global pandemic. Stocks plummeted more than a 1,000 points for the second time this week following more reported cases of the coronavirus. The pervasive virus has now spread to multiple countries, leaving factories, schools and businesses shutting their doors in its wake. Naturally, this leaves investors jittery as the Dow tumbles and puts the blue-chip stock index into correction territory. According to Deutsche Bank, the selling off of stocks lobbed a whopping $3.4 trillion off the value of U.S. equities. “The coronavirus has been a body blow to the Chinese economy, which now threatens to take out the entire global economy,” wrote Moody’s Analytics’ Mark Zandi in a research note. “A global recession is likely if COVID-19 becomes a pandemic, and the odds of that are uncomfortably high and rising with infections surging in Italy and Korea.” While the World Health Organization has yet to label the virus as a pandemic, it is quickly rising to reach those guidelines. World economies are being largely affected due to slumping supply chains reliant on production in China. Many investors also projecting the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates if the markets keep sweating off their weight, all in an effort to shore up growth and slow the bleed. Only time will tell what comes of this, but it screams trouble for the President, whose once healthy economy was a huge talking point ahead of the upcoming election cycle. Controls are being put in place to contain the coronavirus. Citizens are being asked to wash their hands for at least 20 seconds and cover their mouths with the inside of their arms when they cough.

Woman Struck, Killed by Hit-and-Run Driver in Sylmar, Police Say

Thursday, February 27 (KABC) – Authorities are searching for a suspect that allegedly was responsible for killing a woman in a hit-and-run crash in Sylmar on Wednesday. The incident is said to have occurred at about 7 in the evening near the intersection of Hubbard Street and Dronfield Avenue. LAPD described the vehicle as a white Ford Mustang, which witnesses said struck the victim as she walked across the street outside of a crosswalk. The victim was pronounced dead at the scene of the accident and her identity has not yet been released by investigators. 

Family Pleads to Find Hit-and-Run Driver Who Dragged Couple Then Left Them to Die in Echo Park

Thursday, February 27 (NBC Los Angeles) – Investigators are asking the public to contact the LAPD if they spot a red or burgundy four-door sedan with front or side damage in the Echo Park area. At about 12:50 AM, Morena Del Carmen Alvarado-Lopez, 58, and her husband were just finishing a date night when they were struck by a car and dragged more than 50 feet before breaking free. According to surveillance footage, the vehicle did briefly stop, indicating they acknowledged they had hit someone, but did provide aid and ultimately drove off. The victims were taken to a hospital, where Alvarado-Lopez later died of her injuries. The male victim suffered serious injuries. 

Police Track Down Driver Accused of Hit-and-Run That Hospitalized 12-Year-Old

Thursday, February 27 (Fox 5 San Diego) – Hit-and-runs are all too common in Southern California, but this time an arrest has been made. A suspect was arrested in the case of a hit-and-run, just two days after a 12-year-old boy was struck. A tipster contacted authorities in Oceanside around 5 o’clock on Wednesday alerting deputies of the whereabouts of their suspect. Upon sweeping the area, officers found the 2016 white Toyota sedan that had front-end damage. The young boy is said to have sustained injuries to his right leg and abrasions to his face and is in good condition. His name has not yet been released.  

Weinstein Accusers in LA Hail Rape Conviction as Victory, Hope for More Prison Time in SoCal

Thursday, February 27 (ABC 7) – Disgraced movie mogul Harvey Weinstein is potentially facing more prison time in a Southern California court, but the fight isn’t over yet. Victims gathered in LA on Tuesday to speak their praises of the convictions thus far. Among them were Sarah Ann Masse, Melissa Sagemiller, Louisette Geiss, Lauren O’Connor, and Rosanna Arquette. “Today is truly a landmark moment for survivors of rape and sexual assault in that the public is seeing that men, even a man as powerful and famous as Weinstein, will be held accountable for their abuse of women,” said Arquette. But Weinstein once again dodged prison by complaining of chest pains as he was being transferred to Rikers Island. If convicted, Weinstein faces up to 28 years in state prison for the charges he faces in Los Angeles county. 

California Pushes for More Coronavirus Testing After First Case of Community Transmission

Thursday, February 27 (CapRadio) – California’s Governor Gavin Newsom held a press conference to ease worries surrounding the first community transmission of the coronavirus in the United States. “We’re meeting this moment with the kind of urgency that is necessary,” Newsom said at a press conference in Sacramento Thursday. “People should go about their day to day lives with some common sense. I don’t want to instill any sense of new anxiety.” The patient is being treated at UC Davis Medical Center in Sacramento.

California Reports First Case of Community-Acquired Coronavirus, Schools Work to Educate Families

Wednesday, February 26 (CBSLA) – Californians are keeping a close eye on Twitter to get real-time updates regarding the coronavirus and the first confirmed community-acquired case in the US. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention stated that the patient, that is being hospitalized in Sacramento, had not traveled recently, nor did they believe they were even exposed to the virus. “We only have this one confirmed case of community transmission, but it suggests we don’t know where it came from so the person who exposed them probably exposed others,” Dr. Dean Blumberg, of UC Davis Health, said. “So there are probably other cases out there in the community that we do not know about.” Doctors are suggesting that if you feel ill, stay home. Don’t go to work, do not try to go about your daily activities. When asked about proper testing kits for the coronavirus, a spokesperson from the CDC said, “The CDC distributed test kits to all the local health departments. There was a problem with that kit, and so we are still waiting for new kits to be distributed.”

Boy Scouts File for Bankruptcy Amidst Wave of Sexual Abuse Charges 

Thursday, February 27 (The National Law Review) – The hits just keep on coming for the now disgraced and defamed Boy Scouts of America. Lawsuits and allegations continue to pour in accusing leaders and volunteers of sexual abuse stretching back years. This is prompting the 110-year-old institution to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy to fund a trust that is set up to compensate victims. 350 predatory scoutmasters have been named in the ever-growing lawsuit, with some 800 victims claiming to have been sexually abused or harassed throughout the decades. One victim alleges that a former scoutmaster drugged him before repeatedly sexually abusing him. Thanks to the recent loosening on the statute of limitations, sexual abuse victims who were once prevented from coming forth now have the ability to speak out and have their voices heard. Back in May, a Washington D.C. court eliminated time restrictions that prevented sexual abuse survivors from pursuing civil litigation cases against their abusers. The courts opened a three-year window in which survivors under the age of 40 can file civil suits regardless of when the offense took place. This opened the floodgates to bring more charges against the Boy Scouts of America.