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New York
CNN
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Normally, prices at the gas pump drift lower during the dead of winter as lousy weather keeps Americans off the roads. But something unusual is happening this year: Gas prices are rocketing higher.

The national average for regular gas jumped to $3.51 a gallon on Friday, according to AAA. Although that’s a far cry from the record of $5.02 a gallon last June, gas prices have increased by 12 cents in the past week and 41 cents in the past month.

All told, the national average has climbed by more than 9% since the end of last year – the biggest increase to start a year since 2009, according to Bespoke Investment Group.

AAA says some states have experienced much bigger gains over the past month, including Colorado (98 cents), Georgia (70 cents), Delaware (62 cents), Ohio (60 cents) and Florida (59 cents).

The unusual wintertime jump in gas price is drawing eye rolls from American drivers already grappling with high prices at the supermarket. It also threatens to undermine improvements in the inflation crisis that gripped the economy much of last year.

So, why are gas prices jumping?

It’s not because of demand, which remains weak, even for this time of the year.

Instead, the problem is supply.

The extreme weather in much of the United States near the end of last year caused a series of outages at the refineries that produce the gasoline, jet fuel and diesel that keep the economy humming.

For example, Colorado’s sole refinery, the Suncor refinery outside of Denver, was disrupted by freezing temperatures. When the refinery tried to restart, it suffered a fire and equipment got damaged.

Suncor has indicated that refinery – which Lipow Oil Associates says represents 17% of the Rocky Mountain region’s refinery capacity – could be offline for at least weeks.

That helps explain why gas prices in Colorado have surged by nearly $1 a gallon over the past month.

Refineries elsewhere have been sidelined by extreme weather as well. US refineries are operating at just 86% of capacity, down from the mid-90% range at the start of December, according to Bespoke.

Beyond the refinery problems, oil prices have crept higher, helping to drive prices at the pump northward.

Since tumbling to $71.02 a barrel on December 9, US oil prices have jumped about 16%, to around $82.30 on Friday. That increase has been driven in part by expectations of higher worldwide demand as China relaxes its Covid-19 policies.

At the same time, the oil markets are no longer receiving massive injections of emergency oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. The Biden administration has shifted from releasing unprecedented amounts of oil from that stockpile to beginning the process of refilling it.

The good news is that some of the refinery problems may prove to be temporary, meaning supply should catch up with demand.

The bad news is some experts are warning gas prices may keep going higher anyway.

Andy Lipow, president of Lipow Oil Associates, expects the national average will hit $3.65 a gallon heading into the spring.

Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, worries the typical springtime jump in prices will be pulled forward.

“Instead of $4 a gallon happening in May, it could happen as early as March,” De Haan told CNN. “There is more upside risk than downside risk.”

A return of $4 gas would be painful to drivers and could dent consumer confidence. Moreover, pain at the pump would complicate the inflation picture as the Federal Reserve debates whether to slow its interest rate hiking campaign.

The Cleveland Fed’s Inflation Nowcasting model is now pointing to a 0.6% month-over-month increase for the Consumer Price Index for January. If that holds true, it would represent a significant acceleration compared with the 0.1% drop in prices between November and December.

CNN
 — 

Video and audio recorded last year during the attack on Paul Pelosi will be released Friday, after a California court ruled the district attorney’s office must make the materials public.

Audio from police interviews with alleged attacker David DePape, as well as 911 calls, police body camera footage and home surveillance video, among other investigative material, is set for release at noon ET, according to the San Francisco Superior Court.

CNN previously reported that police body cam footage from the incident is expected to show what officers saw when Pelosi, husband of former Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, opened the door to the couple’s San Francisco home and his assailant attacked him with a hammer, fracturing his skull.

The court’s decision mandating the public release of the materials came following a motion by a coalition of news organizations, including CNN, arguing that the circumstances involving the residence of the then-speaker of the House demanded transparency.

Lawyers for DePape argued against the public release of the audio and footage, writing it would “irreparably damage” his right to a fair trial. DePape has pleaded not guilty to a litany of state and federal crimes related to the attack, including assault and attempted murder.

Pelosi was violently attacked in October with a hammer at the couple’s home by a male assailant who was searching for the then-House speaker, according to court documents – a development that ultimately drove Nancy Pelosi’s decision to step back from House Democratic leadership.

Court documents revealed DePape allegedly woke Paul Pelosi shortly after 2 a.m., carrying a large hammer and several white zip ties, and demanded: “Where’s Nancy? Where’s Nancy?” He then threatened to tie up Paul Pelosi and prevented him from escaping via elevator, according to the documents. DePape later allegedly told him, “I can take you out.”

Paul Pelosi placed a 911 call after convincing the assailant to let him go to the bathroom, where his phone was charging, and he spoke cryptically to police.

Following the attack, Paul Pelosi underwent surgery “to repair a skull fracture and serious injuries to his right arm and hands,” a spokesman for Nancy Pelosi said in a statement.

On Thursday, the Democratic congresswoman told reporters that her husband’s recovery is “one day at a time.”

“He’s made some progress but it’ll be about at least three more months, I think, until he’ll be back to normal, but the prayers are very helpful,” Pelosi said.

She told reporters Thursday that she had not seen video from the incident and does not know if she will.

“It would be a very hard thing to see an assault on my husband’s life. But I don’t know.”

CNN
 — 

Nearly three weeks after a traffic stop in Memphis, Tennessee, resulted in a violent arrest and subsequent death of a driver, police are expected to release footage of the incident to the public.

Tyre Nichols, a 29-year-old Black man, was hospitalized after the arrest on January 7 and died three days later from injuries sustained, according to police. Five officers from the Memphis Police Department, who are also Black, were fired and face criminal charges.

The family of Nichols and attorneys have met with police and city officials to view the traffic stop’s video recordings, which have been described as a vicious, prolonged beating that lasted for minutes after officers chased down a fleeing Nichols.

Memphis Police Chief Cerelyn “CJ” Davis decried the officers’ conduct, adding additional officers continue to be investigated.

“This is not just a professional failing,” Davis said. “This is a failing of basic humanity toward another individual. This incident was heinous, reckless and inhumane. And in the vein of transparency, when the video is released in the coming days, you will see this for yourselves.”

After charges were announced Thursday, Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland said of the accelerated investigation, “We have worked to get a resolution to these matters in record time because we take them extremely seriously.”

Here’s what we know about the timeline of the incident, investigations from authorities and reaction from Nichols’ family:

On January 7 at approximately 8:30 p.m., officers pulled over a vehicle for suspected reckless driving, according to a statement from Memphis police.

“A confrontation occurred” between officers and the vehicle’s driver – later identified as Nichols – who then fled on foot, according to Memphis police. Officers apprehended him and “another confrontation occurred,” resulting in Nichols’ arrest, police said.

An ambulance was called to the scene of the arrest after Nichols complained of shortness of breath, police said, and he was transported to a nearby hospital in critical condition.

On January 10, three days after the stop, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation announced Nichols had died due to injuries sustained in the “use-of-force incident with officers,” according to a statement.

Following the traffic stop, the officers involved were relieved of duty – a standard departmental procedure while an investigation into their use of force began, Memphis police said. The TBI and the Shelby County District Attorney’s Office were also enlisted to investigate.

Preliminary findings indicated the serious nature of the officers’ conduct during the stop, police said.

“After reviewing various sources of information involving this incident, I have found that it is necessary to take immediate and appropriate action,” Chief Davis said in a statement released January 15. “Today, the department is serving notice to the officers involved of the impending administrative actions.”

The department needed to follow a required procedural process before disciplining or terminating government civil servant employees, the statement added.

In the days after Nichols’ death, his family’s attorney Ben Crump repeatedly voiced their desire for the release of body camera and surveillance footage of the traffic stop.

“This kind of in-custody death destroys community trust if agencies are not swiftly transparent,” Crump said in a statement.

On January 18, the Department of Justice said a civil rights investigation has been opened into the death of Nichols.

“Last week, Tyre Nichols tragically died, a few days after he was involved in an incident where Memphis Police Department officers used force during his arrest,” Kevin G. Ritz, US Attorney for the Western District of Tennessee, said in a statement.

Acknowledging the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation’s ongoing efforts, the US Attorney’s office “in coordination with the FBI Memphis Field Office and the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice, has opened a civil rights investigation,” Ritz said, declining to provide further details.

After its internal investigation, Memphis police identified and fired five officers involved in the traffic stop due to their violation of multiple department policies.

Officers Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, Emmitt Martin III, Desmond Mills, Jr., and Justin Smith were terminated for failing in their “excessive use of force, duty to intervene, and duty to render aid,” the department said in a statement.

“The egregious nature of this incident is not a reflection of the good work our officers perform, with integrity every day,” Davis said.

A statement from the Memphis Police Association, the union representing the officers, declined to comment on the terminations beyond saying that the city of Memphis and Nichols’ family “deserve to know the complete account of the events leading up to his death and what may have contributed to it.”

Nichols family attorneys Crump and Antonio Romanucci called the firing of the five officers “the first step towards achieving justice for Tyre and his family.”

Two Memphis Fire Department employees who were part of Nichols’ “initial patient care” were also fired, department Public Information Officer Qwanesha Ward told CNN’s Nadia Romero.

After meeting with officials to watch the unreleased police video of the arrest, Nichols’ family and their attorneys described their horror at what they saw.

“He was defenseless the entire time. He was a human piñata for those police officers. It was an unadulterated, unabashed, nonstop beating of this young boy for three minutes. That is what we saw in that video,” Romanucci said. “Not only was it violent, it was savage.”

“What I saw on the video today was horrific,” Rodney Wells, Nichols’ stepfather, said Monday. “No father, mother should have to witness what I saw today.”

Crump described the video as “appalling,” “deplorable” and “heinous.” He said RowVaughn Wells, Nichols’ mother, was unable to get through viewing the first minute of the footage after hearing Nichols ask, “What did I do?” At the end of the footage, Nichols can be heard calling for his mother three times, the attorney said.

According to preliminary results of an autopsy commissioned by attorneys for his family, Nichols suffered “extensive bleeding caused by a severe beating.” CNN has requested a copy of the autopsy, which Crump said will be available when the full report is ready.

Shelby County District Attorney Steve Mulroy told CNN on Tuesday his office was ensuring all necessary interviews with those involved had been conducted before the footage’s release.

“A lot of the people’s questions about what exactly happened will, of course, be answered once people see the video,” Mulroy said, noting he believes the city will release enough footage to show the “entirety of the incident, from the very beginning to the very end.”

Tyre Nichols’ family speaks out after seeing police footage of police beating

A grand jury indicted the five officers fired by Memphis police on several charges, according to the county’s district attorney.

Martin III, Smith, Bean, Haley and Mills, Jr. were each charged with second-degree murder, aggravated assault, two charges of aggravated kidnapping, two charges of official misconduct and one charge of official oppression, according to both Shelby County criminal court and Shelby County jail records.

“While each of the five individuals played a different role in the incident in question, the actions of all of them resulted in the death of Tyre Nichols, and they are all responsible,” Mulroy said during a news conference.

All five former officers reported to Shelby County Jail on Thursday, with four bonding out by early Friday morning, jail records showed.

Crump: Nichols video will ‘remind you of Rodney King’

Correction: A previous version of this story misspelled RowVaughn Wells’ first name.

CNN
 — 

“Appalling.” “Savage.” “Inhumane.”

While video of an arrest in Memphis that resulted in a 29-year-old Black man’s hospitalization and death has yet to be publicly released, some family members as well as police officials have previewed the footage, sharing their disgust and horror at what they describe as a vicious beating by law enforcement officers.

Tyre Nichols died on January 10 from injuries sustained while fleeing an initial traffic stop three days earlier, authorities say. Five Memphis Police Department officers at the scene of the arrest – all of whom are also Black – have since been fired and charged with crimes related to Nichols’ injuries and detainment, including second-degree murder.

“It was an unadulterated, unabashed, non-stop beating of this young boy for three minutes,” Nichols family attorney Antonio Romanucci said, likening Nichols to “a human pinata.”

Footage of the arrest is expected to be made available to the public Friday evening, according to Shelby County District Attorney Steve Mulroy.

Family attorney Ben Crump said the video will “evoke strong emotions, very strong emotions,” and reiterated repeated calls from both Nichols’ family and police that any demonstrations or protests over Nichols’ death be done so in a peaceful manner.

Here is what authorities and those close to Nichols have said about the video recordings ahead of its release.

On January 7, Nichols was pulled over for suspected reckless driving, police said. While many details of the stop have yet to be revealed, authorities say pepper spray was deployed after an altercation and Nichols then fled on foot before being caught again by officers.

The serious injuries sustained by Nichols during the arrest were during a second altercation, according to Mulroy, who told CNN’s Erin Burnett on Thursday that officers were already “highly charged up” from the initial interaction with Nichols. The footage does not show the beginning of the encounter, he said.

Rodney Wells, Nichols’ stepfather who saw the footage Monday with family, attorneys and police officials, said it was clear Nichols “was scared for his life” and ran.

“He did not run because he was trying to get rid of no drugs, no guns, no any of that. He ran because he was scared for his life. And when you see the video, you will see why he was scared for his life.”

RowVaughn Wells, Nichols’ mother, said at a vigil Thursday she wants supporters to demonstrate peacefully after they see the video.

“When that tape comes out tomorrow, it’s going to be horrific,” Wells said. “I didn’t see it, but from what I hear, it’s going to be horrific.”

Crump said Monday that Wells was unable to get through viewing the first minute of the footage after hearing Nichols ask, “What did I do?” Nichols can be heard calling for his mother three times in the video, Crump said.

Romanucci told CNN’s John Berman Thursday viewers are “going to have to be prepared” for disturbing scenes in the video.

“It was an MMA fight, except there was only one side that was MMA,” Romanucci said. “Tyre was helpless, he was defenseless. He was restrained.”

“It is appalling. It is deplorable. It is heinous,” Crump said of the video. “It is violent. It is troublesome on every level.”

Nichols suffered “extensive bleeding caused by a severe beating,” according to preliminary results of an autopsy commissioned by family attorneys. CNN has requested a copy of the autopsy’s full report.

Tyre Nichols’ family speaks out after seeing police footage of police beating

After the second altercation with responding officers, there was “some period of time of waiting around afterward” before Nichols was transported for medical care via ambulance, Mulroy said at a Thursday news conference announcing criminal charges.

When asked by CNN about a delay in treatment by authorities, Mulroy said, “There was an elapsed period of time, but I believe if you watch the video you’ll be able to make that judgment for yourself.”

Two members of the city’s fire department who were part of Nichols’ “initial patient care” have also been relieved of duty, according to a department spokesperson.

Mulroy also noted the most jarring part of the video to him “is how many different incidents of unwarranted force occurred sporadically by different individuals over a long period of time.”

On Wednesday, Memphis Police Chief Cerelyn Davis said of the arrest, “This incident was heinous, reckless, and inhumane, and in the vein of transparency, when the video is released in the coming days, you will see this for yourselves.

“I expect you to feel what the Nichols family feels. I expect you to feel outrage in the disregard of basic human rights, as our police officers have taken an oath to do the opposite of what transpired on the video,” she said

“I expect our citizens to exercise their First Amendment right to protest, to demand action and results,” she added. “But we need to ensure our community is safe in this process.”

Crump: Nichols video will ‘remind you of Rodney King’

The head of the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation called the death of Tyre Nichols “absolutely appalling” and “criminal” at a news conference Thursday.

“Simply put, this shouldn’t have happened. I have been policing for more than 30 years. I have devoted my life to this profession, and I’m grieved. Frankly, I’m shocked. I’m sickened by what I saw and what we’ve learned through our extensive and thorough investigation,” said David Rausch, the director of the TBI.

Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland said he was “sad and angry for the family of Tyre Nichols,” adding that before the video footage could be released, proper legal procedures were needed to be followed as well as for the family to have the opportunity to see it first.

“I am also angry for the many good men and women of the Memphis Police Department who devote their lives to serving our citizens,” Strickland said of the arrest. “We must all work to regain the public’s trust and work together to heal the wounds these events have caused.”