Oxford School Officials Could Face Charges In Deadly Shooting

Good morning! It’s Tuesday, Dec. 7, the 80th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor that launched the United States into World War II. A Navy seaman who survived the attack by Japan on Dec. 7, 1941, plans to return to Pearl Harbor for a remembrance ceremony honoring the 2,400 Americans who perished in the attack. And speaking of World War II veterans, here’s GOP Stalwart Bob Dole’s obituary, in case you missed it.

Here are some of the other stories we’re following:

• Oxford High School in Michigan is coming under increasing criticism for not searching the backpack of the student accused of gunning down 11 people, killing four of them.
• A Maryland man’s attempt to rid his house of a snake infestation went horribly wrong.
• The Department of Justice is suing Texas over its redistricting maps.

When Japanese bombs began falling on Pearl Harbor, U.S. Navy Seaman 1st Class David Russell first sought refuge below deck on the USS Oklahoma. But a split-second decision on that December morning 80 years ago changed his mind, and likely saved his life.

"They started closing that hatch. And I decided to get out of there," Russell, now 101, told The Associated Press in a recent interview.

Within 12 minutes, his battleship would capsize under a barrage of torpedoes. Altogether, 429 sailors and Marines from the Oklahoma would perish — the greatest death toll from any ship that day other than the USS Arizona, which lost 1,177.

Russell plans to return to Pearl Harbor on Tuesday for a ceremony in remembrance of the more than 2,400 Americans killed in the Dec. 7, 1941, attack that launched the U.S. into World War II. » Pearl Harbor Revisited: 101-Year-Old Vet Remembers Those Lost, via Across America Patch

Why Wasn't Backpack Searched?

Officials at Oxford High School in Michigan could have done more to prevent last week’s deadly school shooting that killed four teens and injured seven other people, experts say.

Karen McDonald, the prosecutor who brought first-degree murder, terrorism and other charges against Ethan Crumbley, 15 — and also took the rare step of charging his parents with involuntary manslaughter — is considering whether to charge school officials.

Three hours before the teen allegedly opened fire, killing four students and wounding six others and a teacher, he was sent back to class after a meeting between school counselors and his parents that was prompted by a drawing found on his desk that included a bullet and the words “blood everywhere.”

“In this case, a lot could have been done different. I mean at that meeting he was allowed to go back to school," McDonald said during an interview on ABC's “Good Morning America.”

“We should all be looking at the events that led up to that horrific event,” she said. “And as a community, as a school, as a nation talk about what we could have done different so that didn’t happen. And in this case a lot could have been done different.” » Oxford HS Staff Should Have Searched Teen, Experts Say, via Rochester-Rochester Hills, Michigan, Patch

• Oxford School Shooting Victim Released From Hospital
• Verified GoFundMe Accounts For Victims

Snake Smoke-Out Gone Horribly Wrong

A Maryland homeowner came up with what seemed to be the perfect solution to a nettlesome infestation of snakes: Because snakes have a keen sense of smell, he decided to smoke them out.

It didn’t work out well. The $1.8 million house burned down.

A spokesman for the fire and rescue squad in Montgomery County said it appeared hot coals used in the smoke-out were too close to flammable materials. It’s unclear if the snakes survived the fire. » $1.8M House Burns As Owner Tries to Evict Snakes, via Germantown, Maryland, Patch

DOJ Sues Texas Over Redistricting

The state of Texas is “refusing to recognize the State’s growing minority electorate,” the Department of Justice wrote in a lawsuit filed Monday in federal court to block the state’s updated redistricting maps. Attorney General Merrick Garland on Monday asked the court to stop the state from holding elections until maps are redrawn for its congressional and state House districts. » Department of Justice Sues Texas Over New Redistricting Maps, via Austin, Texas, Patch

Around ‘The Patch’

Local Boy Scout councils across the country are selling off property to cover their part of a $1.9 billion settlement to pay the financial claims of thousands of victims of sexual abuse dating back to the 1940s. Sales of such properties are giving cities and other buyers a chance to pick up green space. » Boy Scouts Sell Land To Settle Sex Abuse Claims, via Toms River, New Jersey, Patch

• Santa Monica High School Social Media Post Prompts Police Response, via Santa Monica, California, Patch
• NC Election Filings Halted Minutes Before Scheduled Start, via Charlotte, North Carolina, Patch
• Coronavirus Hospitalizations Soar To Over 500 Over The Weekend, via Ridgefield, Connecticut, Patch
• All New York City Private Sector Workers Face COVID Vax Mandate, via New York City Patch
• Hospitality Night Vendor Makes Holiday Event Political, via Laguna Beach, California, Patch
• Perdue To Challenge Kemp In Georgia's 2022 GOP Governor Primary, via Atlanta Patch

Contributor Spotlight

You can back up without giving up. You may have to persevere, and find out through your continuing efforts what your true values are. » By Hal Green, Patch contributor, Guidelines To Living Well: Do Not Give Up, via Across America Patch

National Headlines

Remembering the life of Bob Dole, a decorated World War II veteran and Republican Party stalwart, in this photo essay. » Bob Dole: 15 Photos Depicting WWII Vet, GOP Stalwart’s Life, via Across America Patch

• Haitian Gang Releases 3 Hostages: 'Seem To Be In Good Spirits', via Cleveland, Ohio, Patch
• Emmett Till Investigation Closed By Feds; No New Charges, via Chicago Illinois, Patch
• Treasury Wants More Oversight On All-Cash Real Estate Deals, via Across America Patch
• Gen Z Is Stressed Out By The Pandemic: AP-NORC-MTV Poll, via Across America Patch
• Turning Outrage Into Power: How The Far Right Is Changing GOP, via Across America Patch
• California GOP Congressman Nunes Leaves Congress For Trump Social Media Firm, via San Francisco Patch

Today In History

On Dec. 7, 1972, American astronaut Eugene Andrew Cernan commanded the last crewed flight to the moon, effectively concluding the Apollo program, via Britannica

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