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Erik Ortiz

Staff Writer

Erik Ortiz is a senior reporter for NBC News Digital focusing on racial injustice and social inequality.

Erik Ortiz is a senior reporter for NBC News Digital focusing on racial injustice and social inequality.

Latest from Erik Ortiz

3d ago

A nuclear plant that leaked 400,000 gallons of radioactive water shuts down for repairs after second incident

Xcel Energy, the owner, said it will temporarily power down the Monticello facility Friday to repair a recurring leak of radioactive water discovered this week.
3d ago

Pilot from another airline helps land Southwest flight after captain falls ill

A pilot from another airline helped land a Southwest Airlines flight that left early Wednesday from Las Vegas after its captain became "incapacitated" and required medical attention, according to the airline and radio traffic data, in an episode that surprised some passengers who had no clue a pilot had fallen ill.
4d ago

Hit-and-run death examined amid Murdaugh probe is being investigated as a homicide

The death of a South Carolina found on a rural road around 15 miles from the home of now-convicted killer Alex Murdaugh has been investigated as a homicide.

After getting shot by 6-year-old, Virginia teacher Abigail Zwerner sprang into action: 'I just wanted to get my babies out'

The Jan. 6 school day seemed normal to Abigail Zwerner, a first grade teacher in Newport News, Virginia, until she heard rumblings that one of her students had a gun.

Abigail Zwerner, Virginia teacher shot by a student, describes grueling recovery: 'Some days I can't get out of bed'

Abigail Zwerner, the Virginia teacher who was seriously wounded when police say a 6-year-old student intentionally shot her during class, says her recovery remains grueling.

Buster Murdaugh says he had nothing to do with teen's hit-and-run death

Buster Murdaugh, son of convicted murderer Alex Murdaugh, is pleading to have his name omitted from news coverage of the death of a young man in 2015.
7d ago

Body of teenager in hit-and-run death near Murdaugh estate to be exhumed

The mother of a South Carolina teenager found dead on a rural road in 2015 said she plans to have his body exhumed for an independent autopsy as his case finds renewed interest in the wake of Alex Murdaugh's arrest and murder conviction.
9d ago

Body of Stephen Smith, teen in hit-and-run death near Murdaugh estate, to be exhumed

The mother of a South Carolina teenager found dead on a rural road in 2015 said she plans to have his body exhumed for an independent autopsy as his case finds renewed interest in the wake of Alex Murdaugh’s arrest and murder conviction.
13d ago

Idaho college student killings: A summary and timeline

The killings of four University of Idaho students in mid-November at an off-campus residence stunned the small community of Moscow, where investigators grappled with what the town's police chief would later describe as a "very complex" case.

Alex Murdaugh found guilty of murder: A summary and timeline

A South Carolina jury convicted Murdaugh, 54, on double murder charges in connection with the deaths of wife Margaret and son Paul.
13d ago

6 bodies and 154 sets of cremated remains recovered from California warehouse

The discovery this month of six human bodies and dozens of sets of cremated remains stored illegally in a San Francisco Bay Area warehouse has led to a daunting task: to reunite them with their next of kin.