Proud Mom Moment Turns Tragic + Hot Panda Summer + Cosby Freed

ACROSS AMERICA — A proud moment turned tragic this week when a 57-year-old Texas mother was mistakenly gunned down while visiting Annapolis, where she planned to attend her son's induction into the U.S. Naval Academy.

Michelle Jordan Cummings of Houston was sitting on a hotel patio with the parents of another incoming midshipman when she was killed. Cummings was not the intended target but was struck by multiple stray bullets, authorities said.

During a news conference, Annapolis Chief of Police Edward Jackson vowed to find the person who shot Cummings.

"Turn yourself in," Jackson told the shooter. "We're coming after you." Read the story on Annapolis Patch

Changing The Game

Leah & Louise, a recently opened restaurant in North Carolina, is making good on a pledge to support better benefits and higher salaries for its employees. In a recent job ad, the restaurant said newly hired servers will be paid between $21 and $35 an hour and receive competitive benefits such as a 401(k) plan, bonuses and paid vacations. How are they doing it? By adding a 23 percent service fee to tabs. Read the story on Charlotte Patch

Animal Tales

Hot Panda Summer: Xiao Qi Ji, a 10-month-old giant panda cub at the National Zoo, was recently introduced to his own small fruitsicle on a hot summer day, via Washington, D.C. Patch

Bobcatbnb: An Arizona woman spent the last month with some unusual house guests: a group of young bobcats that claimed her front courtyard as theirs, via Phoenix Path

Cute Capture: A Tampa police officer’s body camera recently caught a touching moment of compassion after the officer was called to a rescue a kitten trapped in a storm drain, via Tampa Patch

Alligator Robb In The Wild: Patch columnist Mark Konkol catches up with the famed capturer of Chance the Snapper, who reflected on his escape from death and his love for Chicagoans who helped him, via Tampa Patch

More Reads

Death Toll Climbs: Four more bodies were pulled from the rubble of the partially collapsed Champlain Towers South condominium Wednesday, bringing the number of confirmed dead from last week’s collapse to 16, via Miami Patch

Cosby Freed: The Pennsylvania Supreme Court overturned Bill Cosby's sexual assault sentence Wednesday, citing an immunity deal reached with a prosecutor in 2005, via Norristown Patch

Shark Attack: A kayaker was attacked by a shark near Parson's Landing at Catalina Island on Wednesday and had to be airlifted to a trauma center, via Los Angeles Patch

Pricey Tree Removal: A couple who illegally bulldozed 36 Joshua trees — a desert tree that’s a candidate for protection under the Endangered Species Act — are now facing $18,000 in fines, via Los Angeles Patch

House Porn: If you’re ready for a true staycation, check out this Santa Cruz home that, with its tiki bar, simply screams summer. Also, at $46 million, this newly built San Francisco home is the most expensive on the city’s market.

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