News
Illinois shooting survivor defies the odds after taking bullet to the brain
Leslie Reeves and Chris Smith were shot during their first date. Only Smith survived. A look at how he defied the odds to make a remarkable recovery.
The scene of the crime
On the night before Thanksgiving 2021, Smith went on a first date with a woman named Leslie Reeves. The morning after, first responders found Smith in his Farmersville, Illinois, home with a bullet lodged in his brain. Reeves was dead.
Shooting victim in a coma
EMTs rushed Smith to a hospital where he underwent brain surgery and was placed in a medically induced coma.
A bullet lodged in his brain
Fragments of the bullet remained in Smith’s brain. His doctors say that to retrieve the bullet could risk causing further damage.
Family support
Smith’s mother, Sharon Costanza, and sister, Ashli Holcomb, sat by his side during his recovery. Doctors told them chances were very low that Smith would return to his previous level of functioning.
No memory
In January 2022, Smith woke from his coma and asked where he was and what had happened. He remembered nothing from the night of the shooting. He had no memory of his date with Reeves, even though he’d been talking on the phone and messaging with her two weeks before the shooting.
A poor prognosis
Due to Smith’s injuries, his neurosurgeon, Dr. Victor Williams, told Smith he likely would not be able to walk again. Williams and his team were dedicated to doing everything they could to aid Chris’ recovery.
A life forever changed
Smith’s left leg is partially paralyzed from his hip to his knee. From his knee to his toes, he is completely paralyzed.After he left the hospital, he had to move back in with his mother.
Regaining his strength
Most days, Smith goes to the gym and works on regaining his strength so that someday he’ll be able to walk without assistance.
A survivor
Smith says he is determined to hold on tight to his new lease on life. He is back singing with his rock band. And he proposed to his fianceé, Michelle Albrecht.
New aspirations
‘Smith hopes to become a motivational speaker and has his own website.
A miracle recovery
Smith’s mother says his recovery is nothing short of a miracle.
News
Inside Trump’s Touring Exhibition of American Heroes
The museums, designed by conservative nonprofits and Trump appointees, tell the story of early America, from colonization to revolution. The one exhibition looking beyond the early years is the “Wall of American Heroes.” It is a list of 51 people, chosen to illustrate 250 years of American history.
A White House spokesman said they were “individuals who shaped this nation’s history, culture and spirit across generations.”
The people pictured on this national honor roll — and the people left out — help illustrate what this administration sees as the highlights of American history.
Amid the administration’s efforts to reshape the nation’s relationship with its past, Trump appointees heavily weighted the list toward a single era of American history — and a few specific kinds of hero.
The other exhibitions in the Freedom Trucks were crafted by a pair of conservative nonprofits, PragerU and Hillsdale College. But the “Wall of American Heroes” was created by Freedom 250, a nonprofit effort whose leaders were chosen by President Trump and that was created to lead the planning of celebrations of the nation’s 250th birthday, overshadowing a bipartisan congressional commission.
A spokeswoman for Freedom 250 said Mr. Trump was not directly involved in the selection of those featured.
But the list clearly tracks Mr. Trump’s own lifetime and the heroes of the conservative political movement.
The wall’s tilt toward heroes of the baby boomer generation, for instance, extends beyond Hollywood stars and musicians. Of the four religious leaders on the list, two — Archbishop Fulton Sheen and the Rev. Billy Graham — also appeared on TV regularly in the 1950s and 1960s. The only painter on the list is Norman Rockwell, known for his idealized depictions of American life in that period.
By contrast, there is only a handful of figures from the first decades of American independence.
“That’s a disservice, if your intention is to present the last 250 years,” said Sarah Weicksel, the executive director of the American Historical Association. “Because all of the people on this list are building on the work and struggles and progress that was made by the people in the 150 years prior.”
The “Wall of American Heroes” was inspired by a similar display in a traveling museum created by the State of Virginia. But Virginia’s display celebrates little-known historical figures.
Mr. Trump’s, by and large, celebrates people who are already well-known — and, often, people who were famous in their own time. For example, it praises P.T. Barnum, a circus impresario who used hoaxes and freak shows to draw crowds. The wall calls him an “icon of American sensationalism.”
The spokeswoman for Freedom 250 said that many of the names on the wall were drawn from a list of 250 people that Mr. Trump wants to include in a “Garden of American Heroes” in Washington.
The spokeswoman declined to say what criteria were used to narrow down the list.
The only president whose name appears on the wall — not on the list of heroes, but alongside his quotation — is Mr. Trump himself.
Explore the Wall of Heroes
Navigate the display by dragging from side to side.
News
GOP Rep. Tom Kean, missing from Congress for months, set to return on June 30
Washington — Republican Rep. Tom Kean Jr. of New Jersey will return to Congress on June 30, his spokesperson said, after being away since March in an unexplained absence that has confounded Capitol Hill.
“Congressman Kean is eager to return to in person work on June 30 and resume a full schedule,” Kean’s spokesperson, Harrison Neely, told CBS News on Thursday. The New Jersey Globe first reported on his return date.
Kean’s whereabouts since he last voted on March 5 have not been disclosed. When he first made a statement about the absence in late April, the New Jersey Republican said he was addressing a “personal medical issue.”
Kean said earlier this month that he would return to Washington within a matter of weeks, at which point he would provide more details about his health.
“Right now I am focused on my recovery and under the advice of healthcare professionals, I will transition from virtual work to in person work within a matter of weeks. At that time I will be completely transparent as to the nature of my medical condition,” Kean said in a June 2 statement released by his campaign.
The statement came hours before polls closed in New Jersey’s GOP primary for his seat, in which he ran unopposed.
He has missed more than 130 votes during his absence.
House Speaker Mike Johnson told reporters earlier this month that he had recently spoken with Kean. Johnson said he was aware of the health issue, but would not disclose the details.
“What he’s dealing with is not very common and not a big thing,” Johnson said.
News
Video: Obama Presidential Center Opens in Chicago
new video loaded: Obama Presidential Center Opens in Chicago
By Shawn Paik
June 18, 2026
-
New York37 minutes agoVideo: Knicks Fans Celebrate With Ticker-Tape Parade
-
Los Angeles, Ca44 minutes agoArmed, dangerous CHP pursuit suspect tied to double homicide in Pomona
-
Detroit, MI1 hour agoFirst responders honored after rescuing 12 people from capsized sailboats near Belle Isle
-
San Francisco, CA1 hour agoOakland man faces hate crime charges for Castro District attack
-
Dallas, TX1 hour agoAt least 4 injured after vehicle drives into Dallas crowd, driver arrested
-
Miami, FL1 hour agoMiami Central students prepare for life changing trip to Zimbabwe amid funding challenges
-
Boston, MA1 hour agoGiannis to Boston is a possibility. Should the Knicks be worried?
-
Denver, CO2 hours agoDenver Public Schools’ decline in enrollment continues to reshape district









