By Miriam Raftery
Photo, left: surveillance footage from New Orleans terror attack
January 3, 2025 (San Diego) – A U.S. military veteran drove a rented electric pickup truck into a crowd of New Year’s Day revelers in New Orleans shortly after 3 a.m. on New Year’s morning, killing 14 people before he was fatally shot by police officers. Authorities found improvised explosive devices (IEDs) planted in the area; ABC news reports that an explosion to a hotel has been tied to the driver, The FBI reports that he posted videos declaring support for the terror group ISIS shortly before the attack, which the FBI confirms was an act of terrorism.
Later in the day, a U.S. Army Green Beret on leave detonated a rented Tesla filled with explosives and fireworks in front of Trump Tower in Las Vegas; his motive is not yet clear. The medical examiner confirmed that the driver shot himself before his body was burned in the explosion. Both attackers were U.S. citizens.
Tonight, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in San Diego is asking locals to be vigilant and report any threats, though the FBI and Sheriff’s department assure that there are no known threats in our region.
Local law enforcement responses
“Protecting the American people from acts of terrorism remains the FBI’s number one priority,” the FBI states in a joint press release released by multiple local law enforcement agencies. “Attacks such as the tragic event in New Orleans have a lasting impact not only on the immediate community but all Americans. The terrorism threats we face are complex and ever evolving, demanding we all work together to keep our communities safe.”
THE FBI is working with law enforcement partners to share information and disrupt any threats to our community.
The public is asked to report suspicious activities or threats to FBI San Diego at (858) 320-1800 or submit a tip to https://tips.fbi.gov/ or 1-800-CALL-FBI (225-5324).
San Diego County Sheriff Kelly Martinez states, The recent tragic events in New Orleans and Las Vegas weigh heavily on our hearts. We extend our deepest sympathies to the families, loved ones and communities affected by these horrific incidents. We are grateful for the courage and heroism of the dedicated law enforcement officers and emergency personnel who responded swiftly and courageously. These acts of terror remind us of the vital role community partnerships play in keeping us all safe.”
The Sheriff is the regional coordinator for mutual aid response, working with local, state, federal and tribal partners to collaborate on training, share intelligence and harden infrastructure to keep our region safe. A new asset is a team of explosives detection K-9 dogs; others include the Sheriff’s Bomb/Arson unit working with FBI bomb technicians and other agencies. The Sheriff’s office also participates in the Joint Terrorism Task Force to proactively address emerging threats.
District Attorney Summer Stephan emphasizes, “Keeping San Diego County safe from international or domestic terrorism and other threats of violence is a daily priority working collaboratively with all our law enforcement partners in a coordinated and effective manner. We also rely on the community to be the eyes and ears to any potential threat. Several destructive threats have been neutralized due to the prompt reporting by a student, parent or community member of suspicious activity including words that threaten harm.”
The aftermath of the 9/11 attacks by terrorists resulted in creation of the National Fusion Center Network to strengthen national security by effectively sharing information between various law enforcement organizations. The San Diego Law Enforcement Coordination Center (SD-LECC) is an all crimes, all hazards fusion that also serves as the Regional Threat Assessment Center (RTAC) for San Diego and Imperial Counties and is part of the California State Threat Assessment System (STAS).
Details on the New Orleans and Las Vegas attacks
The driver who plowed into a crowd of revelers on Bourbon Street in New Orleans has been identified as Shamsud-Din Jabbar, 42, an army veteran who served in Afghanistan before his discharge in 2015. He most recently has worked in real estate in Houston. A recent convert to Islam, he carried an ISIS flag in the rental truck and posted five pro-ISIS videos while driving from Houston to New Orleans, citing a “war between the believers and the disbelievers,” according to the FBI.
He swerved around barriers before ramming the crowd, then got out of the car, wearing body armor, and began shooting at police officers before he was shot and killed by law enforcement officers, according to the New Orleans Police department.
The FBI has reviewed his phone and computer. “"At this point, currently, and this is another fact I want to be clear on, we do not assess at this point that anyone else is involved in this attack except Shamsud-Din Jabbar," deputy assistant director of the FBI's counterintelligence division Christopher Raia said in a news conference on Thursday, CBS news reports.
Surveillance video showed Jabbar placing IEDs at the scene and in the French Quarter. Authorities found two active devices described as pipe bombs containing nails, screws and tacks in coolers. President Joe Biden says the FBI advised him that a remote detonator was found in the vehicle.
An FBI poster seeks information about the deadly attack on Bourbon Street in New Orleans on New Year's Day.
Raia has said there is currently “no definitive link between the attack here in New Orleans and the one in Las Vegas," despite some similarities. Both attackers rented electric vehicles through Turo. Both attackers were U.S.-born citizens with military experience, including service in Afghanistan and at Fort Bragg (now Fort Liberty), North Carolina, though no direct connection between the two men has been found, CBS News reports.
Photo, left: Tesla truck explodes outside Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas; source: CCTV
The Las Vegas attacker has been identified as Matthew Livelsberger, 37, an Army Green Beret, trained in special forces to work in counter-terrorism. He was awarded five Bronze Stars including one for courage under fire, as well as an Army Commendation Medal.
He rented the electric Tesla truck in Colorado; charging station photos en route show he was alone in the vehicle. According to the Associated Press, he likely intended a more damaging explosion, but the steel-sided vehicle absorbed much of the force of explosion from firework mortars and camp fuel cannisters packed into the truck. The explosion injured several bystanders but did no damage to the Trump International Hotel just a few feet away. Livelsberger’s charred body has been positively identified via tattoos and he had several forms of ID in the truck.
His motive is not yet known, though tipsters have reportedly told law enforcement that he had a fight with his wife over their relationship shortly before renting the truck and loading it up with explosive materials as well as guns.
Authorities have thus far not found a direct connection between the Las Vegas and New Orleans attackers, but have also not ruled out a link.
“It’s not lost on us that it’s in front of the Trump building, that it’s a Tesla vehicle, but we don’t have information at this point that definitively tells us or suggests it was because of this particular ideology,” said Spencer Evans, the Las Vegas FBI’s special agent in charge. Tesla CEO Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, is a major Trump campaign donor and has been recruited by Trump to head up a commission aimed at cutting government inefficiencies. Neither Trump nor Musk were in Las Vegas on the date of the explosion.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk said Wednesday afternoon on X that “we have now confirmed that the explosion was caused by very large fireworks and/or a bomb carried in the bed of the rented Cybertruck and is unrelated to the vehicle itself.”
East County News Service
County News Service contributed to this report
January 2, 2025 (San Diego) -- The County of San Diego’s Behavioral Health Services has spent the last year organizing extensive planning and training to prepare for the biggest update to California’s civil detention and conservatorship laws in more than 50 years. Advocates argue that the measure is needed to assure that severely mentally ill people including some homeless individuals will receive treatment, though opponents voice concerns over forced institutionalization.
The updates are required by State Senate Bill 43 (SB-43) which took effect Jan. 1, 2025. Now, more people in San Diego needing help with behavioral health conditions may be involuntarily transported for evaluation, treatment and potential conservatorship, according to a County News Center press release.
The law significantly modifies the legal definition of “grave disability” which can be used to evaluate the condition of a person with a behavioral health illness. It was signed by California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Oct. 10, 2023.
Previous state law allowed civil detainment, in cases of suspected mental health condition, when people are determined to be:
- a danger to self,
- a danger to others, or
- gravely disabled because they cannot secure food, shelter or clothing.
Under the new law, grave disability is redefined to not only include those unable to secure food, shelter and clothing, but also those who cannot keep themselves safe or secure necessary medical care. Additionally, grave disability may be determined to be a result of mental illness or substance use disorder as a standalone condition.
The new law has been opposed by some human rights advocates, but supported by some other groups helping disadvantaged individuals.
San Francisco and San Luis Obispo were the first in January 2024 to agree to follow SB-43. The County of San Diego chose to defer for one year to allow for a major training effort with regional partners. Most counties in California decided to start applying SB-43 in January 2026.
San Diego County’s Behavioral Health Services over the past year organized an extensive planning and training effort to prepare locally, involving community members, hospital emergency department staff, regional law enforcement leadership, members of the harm reduction community, legal advocates and others.
Officers from law enforcement agencies representing all 18 cities and the County Sheriff’s Office have gone through SB-43 trainings. The trainings have been led by the Jewish Family Service Patient Advocacy program.
“I can’t say enough about how all the stakeholders have come together to ensure we are properly, and compassionately applying this new law to help some of our most vulnerable residents,” said Luke Bergmann, director of County Behavioral Health Services. “From the County’s side, we stand ready with our Crisis Stabilization Units and substance use treatment providers to help. It is going to require a community-wide effort and it will be a learning process. I’m confident that the many stakeholders are ready to help those affected and work our way through the challenges that come with being one of the first to comply with the law, just as we have managed this last year with the CARE Act.”
But some human rights groups and advocates for the disabled have voiced concerns over the new law.
According to a letter sent to legislators by Human Rights Watch in opposition to the measure, the bill did not address structural causes of homelessness but instead “expands the circumstances[3] under which the State can deprive people of their autonomy and liberty, making it easier to remove both housed and unhoused people from society.[4] Given the racial demographics of California’s unhoused population,[5] and the barriers to adequate mental health care faced by Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) communities regardless of housing status [6] this plan is likely to disproportionately place many BIPOC Californians under state control.”
This new definition of “gravely disabled” applies to the three primary processes established in previous law:
- Assessment, evaluation and crisis intervention or placement for those on a 5150 hold, an involuntary psychiatric hold that can last up to 72 hours
- If necessary and appropriately authorized, the intensive treatment period for grave disability may be extended for up to two periods of 30 days each
- Conservatorship of up to one year, and renewable, for ongoing behavioral health treatment and support, subject to a court’s determination.
County Behavioral Health Services estimates an increase of about 1,500 72-hour detentions for involuntary treatment over years past with the changes of SB-43. The actual number will depend on actions taken by law enforcement, medical and behavioral health clinicians.
Individuals detained under a 5150 hold for involuntary treatment are transported by peace officers or mobile crisis response teams to emergency departments or crisis stabilization units. Upon arrival, they undergo assessment and receive care tailored to their situation. A person may be released at any time if they no longer meet the criteria for involuntary treatment or agree to voluntary care, which ends the hold.
Detailed information about SB-43 and its roll out in San Diego County is available to the public online at a website updated regularly by San Diego County Behavioral Health Services.
The Alliance’s Intricate Float Honored Historic Arrival of Giant Pandas
Source: San Diego Zoo Wildflfe Alliance
Photo by Emily Senninger, courtesy of San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance
January 2, 2025 (San Diego) – The San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance won top honors at the 136th annual Rose Parade® Presented by Honda with a float commemorating the historic arrival of giant pandas. For the second consecutive year, the Alliance received the Sweepstakes Trophy given for most beautiful entry, encompassing float design, floral presentation and entertainment.
The San Diego Zoo’s float, “Friendship Across the Earth,” transported viewers across Asia’s magnificent ecosystems and honored Yun Chuan (“yoon chu-an”) and Xin Bao (“sing bao”), the first giant pandas to enter the United States in 21 years. Five-year-old male Yun Chuan and four-year-old female Xin Bao made their public debut at the San Diego Zoo on August 8, 2024—designated “California Panda Day” by Governor Gavin Newsom. The 2025 Pasadena Tournament of Roses theme, Best Day Ever, celebrated life’s best moments.
“To receive the Sweepstakes Award is in itself such an honor, but to do so this year feels especially momentous,” said Paul Baribault, president and chief executive officer, San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance. “In 2024, we had the once-in-a-lifetime experience of watching as Yun Chuan and Xin Bao brought the world together. They represent what is truly possible when we come together with a shared purpose, commitment, and trust in one another.”
Intricated designs of Xin Bao and Yun Chuan traversed the dramatic ridgeline at the center of the float. Surrounded by a bounty of bamboo, Xin Bao, whose name means “precious treasure of prosperity and abundance,” gently turned her head as she listened to the lyrics of “Best Day Ever,” and looked ahead to the new year. Next to her, Yun Chuan savored bamboo shoots. Named in honor of his grandmother, one of the first pandas at the San Diego Zoo, Yun Chuan celebrates a generational legacy between San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance and its conservation partners.
The striking orange stripes and regal reverence of Connor the Malayan tiger also featured on the float. Swinging high above cascading waterfalls, red pandas Lucas and Adira were seen frolicking among treetops. Riding below were San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance team members Dr. Megan Owen, Jana Biedenweg, and Dr. Xiaoxing Bian: a global conservation leader, a wildlife expert, and a scientist.
Atop the 55-foot float, viewers got a glimpse of the vivacious landscapes and more than 700,000 individual plants that are cared for by horticulturists at the San Diego Zoo. More than 3,100 diverse plant species are part of this accredited botanical garden and arboretum and are vital to San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance’s ongoing conservation efforts worldwide. Individual plants grown and propagated at the San Diego Zoo—including yellow groove, golden, and black bamboo—were transported to Pasadena and added to the float.
San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance has a reputation for awe-inspiring floats. Its 2024 float, “It Began With a Roar,” celebrated the San Diego Zoo’s 107-year history and also received top honors with the Sweepstakes Trophy. Its float in 2023, “Celebrating 50 Years of Conservation” in celebration of the San Diego Zoo Safari Park’s 50th anniversary, received the Animation Award for most outstanding use of animation.
East County News Service
January 2, 2025 (Lemon Grove) – A 20-year-old man and a 19-year old woman are dead as a result of a collision in Lemon Grove yesterday.
According to the Sheriff’s department, two vehicles collided at the intersection of Buena Vista and Broadway shortly after 11 am. The impact sent one of the cars into the path of victims, who were walking across the street.
Paramedics and deputies immediately began life-saving efforts on the two pedestrians, but both were pronounced dead at the scene.
The drivers of the two vehicles involved in the collision were taken to a hospital with injuries that are non-life threatening, according to Sergeant William Price with the Lemon Grove Sheriff’s substation. Results of blood tests for blood or alcohol are pending.
Identities of the pedestrians killed have not yet been released by law enforcement, however commumnity members have gathered to mourn those lost.
However former Councilmember Liana LeBaron, calling the deaths “tragic,” posted on Facebook, “There are many members of the Haitian community standing by the scene of the accident in support of one another and their loved ones who were struck and killed.”
Realtor Stephanie Klein stated, “Many members of the Lemon Grove community in general were standing by the scene in support of one another. We ALL feel this loss as a community.
Newly elected Councilmember Jessyka Heredia poste “Devastating,” offering “prayers to the families and loved ones.”
An earlier version of this story stated that the accident occurred after 11 p.m.; the correct time was shortly after 11 a.m.