Thank you.
Geoff: Welcome to the newshour.
An intense manhunt is widening
tonight for a Texas gunman who
killed five of his neighbors --
including a 9-year-old boy -- in
a rural town north of Houston.
Amna: The shooting happened late
Friday night --
yet the FBI says they still have
"Zero leads",
leaving the small community --
and an entire nation -- on edge.
Stephanie sy has our report.
>> Wilson Garcia's head hung low
as he wept.
The gunman who killed his wife
and son over the weekend remains
at largepotentially still
armed and dangerous.
>> I'm trying to be strong for
my kids. My daughter.. She kind
of knows what's going on. But
it's difficult when she comes
and she starts to ask for mommy
and her brother.
>> Other children in the home
were shielded from the hail of
bullets by two women who were
killed.
Five victims in all, including
9-year old Daniel Enrique Laso.
Garcia says he had asked his
neighbor to fire rounds in a
part of his yard that wouldn't
wake his sleeping baby..
Instead, minutes later, the
gunman walked up to the family's
home in a rural area northeast
of Houston, loading up an ar-15
style rifle.
Garcia's wife -- Sofia Argentina
Guzman -- was killed at the
front door.
>> He came and shot, without
saying anything.
Boom.
And my wife fell.
Then, he went inside the house
to look for everyone.
>> The suspect - 38 year old
Francisco Oropesa - is still on
the loose.
The newshour confirmed that he
has been deported multiple times
and entered the U.S. Illegally.
He has a previous DUI
conviction.
The Texas governor offered a
$50,000 reward for the fugitive,
and the FBI has put up an
additional $30,000.
>> We do not know where he is.
We don't have any tips right now
to where he may be.
And that's why we've come up
with this reward so that
hopefully somebody out there can
call us.
>> Authorities identify him
through an identity card issued
by Mexican authorities to
citizens outside the country and
through doorbell camera footage.
They've also recovered the ar-15
used in the shootings.
The county sheriff dismissed
questions about the victim's
immigration status.
>> I don't care if he was here
legally, I don't care if he was
here illegally. He was in my
county. Five people died in my
county, and that is where my
heart is, in my county,
protecting my people to the best
of our ability.
>> The victims were all
originally from Honduras.
>> It is my number one priority
-- police are going door-to-door
as the search for the shooter
stretches into the third day.
Geoff: In the day's other
headlines:
Federal regulators seized first
republic bank and sold its
deposits to JP Morgan chase.
It's the third mid-size U.S.
Lender to fail in two months.
Its market share plunged last
week following a mass *exodus of
panicked depositers.
Today, a treasury department
spokeperson *insisted that -
quote - the "Banking system
remains sound and resilient,"
and that "Americans should feel
confident in the safety of their
deposits."
Meantime, treasury secretary
Janet Yellen is warning the U.S.
Could now default on its debt as
early as June 1st.
That's if congress doesn't raise
or suspend the debt limit before
then.
This afternoon, president Biden
called all four top
congressional leaders to invite
them to meet at the white house
to discuss the budget on may 9th
-- according to two sources
-- across Ukraine, Russia
unleash a morning volley of
missiles which wounded dozens it
second major air assault in
three days.
Ukraine's military said it shot
most of the missiles down.
But in the eastern city of
pavlohrad, strikes turned
residential areas into
wastelands -- and left
Ukrainians running for their
lives.
>> "When I saw another flash, I
told my husband to get outside.
We were in the corridor when an
explosion smashed off both
doors.
I ran outside and saw the garage
was destroyed.
Everything was on fire.
Glass shards were everywhere.
Had we been outside, we would
have been killed.
Geoff: Ukrainian officials said
today's attacks targeted the
country's power network -- and
left nearly 20,000 people
without electricity.
Back in this country:
A surge of snowmelt has brought
the Mississippi river to peak
water levels in the quad-cities
area of the midwest.
Davenport -- in eastern Iowa --
saw the river crest today at
more than 21 feet -- a few
inches lower than expected.
Officials are optimistic that
flood defenses there -- and in
neighboring towns -- will hold
up.
Montana state representative
zooey zephyr is suing to be
allowed to return to her state's
house floor.
Zephyr -- a transgender Democrat
-- was barred last month after
protesting a ban on
gender-affirming health care for
minors.
Rebublicans say she violated
decorum.
In a statement, zephyr said she
was targeted because quote: "I
dared to give voice to the
values and needs of transgender
people like myself."
A judge in Missouri has
temporarily blocked
unprecedented restrictions on
transgender health care from
taking effect.
If enacted, anyone seeking
gender-affirming treatments --
such as hormones and
puberty-blocking drugs -- would
be required to undergo 18 months
of therapy.
The rule was proposed by the
state's Republican attorney
general, who faces an ongoing
lawsuit over its provisions.
President Biden welcomed his
Philippine counterpart Ferdinand
Marcos junior to the white house
today -- amid growing concerns
about China's harassment of
Philippine ships.
It's the first time a Philippine
president has visited Washington
in more than 10 years.
The pair agreed to deepen their
countries' cooperation on trade,
investment and security.
Pres. Biden: The us also remains
ironclad in our commitment to
the defense of the Philippines,
including the south China sea,
and we're gonna continue to
support the Philippines military
modernization course.
Geoff: The us also remains
-- the visit comes two days
after the two countries held
their largest joint military
drills ever, in Philippine
waters.
A Florida oversight board --
appointed by governor Ron
Desantis -- voted to countersue
the "Walt Disney company" today.
Last week, Disney filed a
lawsuit to stop the governor's
takeover of its theme park
district -- which the
entertainment giant controlled
for decades.
The feud began last year after
Disney opposed a Florida law
banning the teaching of sexual
orientation and gender identity
in schools.
Workers across the globe marked
this "May day" with rallies and
marches.
In Asia, thousands took to the
streets demanding better pay.
Nurses in the uk protested their
wages and working conditions.
But the biggest flashpoint was
in France.
Demonstrators in southern France
torched cars and buildings,
while police in Paris used water
cannons and tear gas to disperse
crowds.
They were protesting against
president macron's new pension
reforms.
>> Anger has never been so
strong in the country.
This day of mobilization is a
stinging denial of the strategy
of Emmanuel macron.
Our determination is intact.
Protests are at a historic level
for a may 1st in France.
Geoff: Meantime, the Canadian
government reached a deal with
federal workers after two weeks
of deadlock.
It will raise pay by nearly
13-percent over four years,
ending the largest public sector
strike in that nation's history.
And, stocks edged lower on wall
Street today.
The Dow Jones industrial average
lost 46 points
to close at
34,052.
The NASDAQ fell 14 points.
And the S&P 500 slipped more
than a point.
Still to come on the "Newshour",
author E Jean Carroll returns to
the witness stand in the rape
trial against former president
trump.
A sociologist and trauma expert
discusses the culture
surrounding guns in America.
And Hollywood prepares for a
strike that could halt film and
TV production
announcer: This is the pbs
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