Southwest
Kamala Harris to attend Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee's funeral in Texas
Vice President Kamala Harris is slated to attend the funeral service for her “dear friend,” the late U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Texas, in Houston later this week.
The “Celebration of Life” is scheduled for Thursday at Fallbrook Church, according to Jackson Lee’s office.
Other elected officials in the U.S. and abroad are also expected to attend the service, according to Fox 26.
Jackson Lee died on July 19 at the age of 74 following a battle with pancreatic cancer. She is survived by her husband, Elwyn Lee, and her two children, Jason and Erica.
REP. SHEILA JACKSON LEE HAS PASSED AWAY AFTER BATTLE WITH PANCREATIC CANCER
Sheila Jackson Lee attends the UNCF A Mind Is…Gala at Hilton Americas-Houston on November 18, 2023, in Houston, Texas. (Marcus Ingram/Getty Images)
She also previously battled breast cancer, having been diagnosed in 2011, before announcing the following year she was cancer free.
The congresswoman had represented Texas’ 18th congressional district for 30 years. Prior to her time in Congress, Jackson Lee served as a judge before she was elected to an at-large Houston City Council seat in 1989.
Last year, she ran an unsuccessful campaign for Houston mayor, losing by a wide margin to then-state Sen. John Whitmire, also a Democrat, before announcing she would seek re-election to Congress.
Harris said after Jackson Lee’s death that the congresswoman was a “tenacious advocate for justice and a tireless fighter for the people of Houston and the people of America.” The vice president also remembered her as a “dear friend for many years, and a fellow member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated.”
REP. SHEILA JACKSON LEE SAYS SHE HAS BEEN DIAGNOSED WITH PANCREATIC CANCER
Vice President Kamala Harris was tasked early on in the Biden administration with addressing the root causes of mass migration from Central and South America. (REUTERS/Kevin Mohatt/Pool)
“As a member of the Congressional Black Caucus, I had the opportunity to work closely with her on many issues and to observe her leadership firsthand. She was relentless — one of our nation’s fiercest, smartest, and most strategic leaders in the way she thought about how to make progress happen,” Harris said in a July 20 statement. “There was never a trite or trivial conversation with the Congresswoman. She was always fighting for the people of Houston and the people of America.”
Jackson Lee, Harris’ statement said, was “first and foremost, a leader dedicated to serving the people of her beloved city.”
“Congresswoman Jackson Lee was also a national leader,” Harris’ statement added. “As a champion for women’s rights, she played a vital role in reauthorizing the Violence Against Women Act, landmark legislation that improved the lives of millions of women and girls across the country. She also authored the law that made Juneteenth a national holiday, a law I was proud to co-sponsor as a United States Senator. She saw what could be — a nation that is more equal, more fair, and more free — and she dedicated her life to realizing that vision.”
Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee attends “The Big Payback” Premiere during the 2022 Tribeca Festival at Village East Cinema on June 11, 2022, in New York City. (John Lamparski/Getty Images for Tribeca Festival)
This is the vice president’s third visit to Texas in the last month and second since she became the Democratic Party’s presumptive presidential nominee, including a trip to Houston last week.
Harris visited Houston’s Emergency Operations Center on Wednesday to receive a briefing on the recovery efforts following Hurricane Beryl. The next day, she delivered remarks at the American Federation of Teachers’ 88th national convention.
Earlier this month, she was in Dallas to give a speech at an Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc. convention.
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Los Angeles, Ca
About 20 detained after armed suspect call sparks LAPD response in Koreatown
About 20 people were detained Saturday during a large police response in Los Angeles’ Koreatown after authorities received reports of an armed man threatening people, officials said. Officers responded to the 3400 block of West 8th Street near Kingsley Drive on reports of an assault with a deadly weapon, according to the Los Angeles Police […]
Los Angeles, Ca
Man found guilty of sex trafficking victim along L.A.’s Figueroa Corridor
A former Riverside County man was found guilty of sex trafficking a female victim and forcing her to engage in commercial sex acts along L.A.’s notorious Figueroa Corridor.
Elias Abdul Shabazz, 34, formerly of Perris, was found guilty by a jury following a five-day trial, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.
Prosecutors said Shabazz had led the victim to believe they were in a romantic relationship before he turned physically and sexually violent. He began demanding that the victim engage in commercial sex acts from May to October of 2021, court documents said.
He carried a handgun with him and, on occasion, was accused of using it to pistol-whip the victim. He also fired the gun at her feet while threatening to kill her, prosecutors said.
At trial, the victim said Shabazz demanded that she meet a daily quota of commercial sex proceeds and that she was terrified of the consequences of not meeting that quota.
She testified that Shabazz compelled her to work in the notorious Figueroa Corridor in South L.A., a dangerous area known for human trafficking and prostitution.
Shabazz had confiscated her identification card, Social Security card and birth certificate. He constantly monitored her cell phone to stop her from communicating with any friends or family.
“He also introduced her to addictive narcotics and controlled every aspect of her life, including when she ate, slept and showered,” prosecutors said.
In May 2025, Shabazz was arrested and has remained in federal custody. His last known address at the time was in Washington, D.C.
On June 26, 2026, Shabazz was found guilty of one count of coercing or enticing interstate transportation for purposes of prostitution.
A sentencing hearing is scheduled for Oct. 6, where he faces 15 years to life in prison.
“Sex trafficking matters rank among the most tragic cases our office prosecutes,” said First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli. “This defendant will now face many years in a federal prison cell for his sick, disgusting, and disturbing behavior.”
“Elias Shabazz preyed on a vulnerable victim using physical and sexual violence and cruel psychological coercion to compel commercial sex acts for his own profit,” said Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “There is no place for this type of conduct in civilized society. We deeply respect the victim’s courage to face her trafficker in court. The Criminal Division will continue to bring these cases and try them.”
Anyone with information about human trafficking can report tips to the National Human Trafficking Hotline at 888-373-7888
Los Angeles, Ca
Watch Project Angel Food's 'Lead with Love' telethon on KTLA
The star-studded feel-good giveback event of the summer has returned. KTLA 5 is teaming up once again with Project Angel Food for the annual “Lead with Love: Going the Distance” telethon to raise critical funds for medically tailored meals delivered to people living with serious illnesses throughout Los Angeles County. The seventh annual telethon airs […]
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