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https://www.wymt.com/2022/03/31/10-years-later-morgan-county-continues-blossom-after-devastating-tornado/
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10 years later: Morgan County continues to blossom after devastating tornado
MORGAN COUNTY, Ky. (WYMT) - On the night of March 2, 2012, debris filled the streets, buildings were damaged and homes were ripped apart after a tornado tore through Morgan County.
The West Liberty United Methodist Church was one of the most well known buildings hit by the storm.
”The church is not the building, the church is really is the people, and it’s God people,” said church member Lori Keeton. “We just use the building, and not only for worship, but for other programs as well.”
Keeton remembers March 2, 2012 so vividly.
”The only thing I knew at the time, was I knew my house was still standing, I knew my mother’s house was still standing, but the church was gone,” said Keeton. “It was so many feelings of sadness, of shock, of unknown.”
”We are church that it’s known, we’re open, we do not close for weather we never close for weather,” said Keeton. “That Sunday morning we woke up with 4 inches of snow and no church.”
Shortly after, the congregation begam picking up debris, picking up what was left of a beloved building as they tried to preserve what they could.
“Once the empty lot was cleared out, we had an empty lot for a long time,” she said. “As you know, as I said, all over town there was a giant empty lot right on the corner.”
Members moved back into a familiar spot April 2017, a new church overlooking the city, symbolizing a new beginning for the community.
”[It] made us stronger, and really forced us to take a look at ourselves to know that we were not defined by a building,” she said. “blessed to have one for sure, but not defined by the structure.”
Next door the church is All Occasion Flowers, one of the spots it moved to after the storm. A hole in downtown West Liberty showing where the shop once stood.
”I was off that day, but I had been watching all the weather information all day long on the TV and kind of keeping close watch,” said owner Linda Oakley.
Oakley went to the shop that night, to make sure the former owner of nearly 20 years, Cheryl McKenzie, was not inside. Luckily she was not.
”I went in the next morning when there was some light, and it was just a mess, it was just stuff had been blown around,” she said. “There was some things that were sitting just where they were.”
They began working out of a three car garage just two weeks after, but when Cheryl died in 2013, Linda stepped in to keep her legacy alive.
”She was not in the best of health, but she told me at one point, she said, I would hate to see everything I worked for over the years go by the wayside,” she said.
10 years has gone by and Linda kept her promise.
”I think she would be very proud,” she said. “That what she started still lives on.”
Not too far from downtown is 644 Liberty Road, where a house full of memories once stood.
”I walked from there, the door back to here, I could see our windows in our basement just breaking out,” said tornado survivor Doris Shuck.
Shuck still lives in West Liberty, but moved across town after the storm. She was home alone when the tornado hit her house. It left nothing behind but the foundation.
She walked out unharmed.
”I just remember standing up, and I could see the sky and that was just a very odd thing to experience,” she said.
When the anniversary comes around, it is almost like she is taking shelter again.
”You know, we learned to live with it, we’ve accepted the changes to our community,” she added. “We’ve moved on, but it still has a lot of emotion attached to it.”
Copyright 2022 WYMT. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/03/31/brandon-robinson-jim-caldwell-reflect-forecasting-march-2nd-2012-tornadoes/
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Brandon Robinson and Jim Caldwell reflect on forecasting the March 2nd, 2012 tornadoes
Published: Mar. 31, 2022 at 7:35 PM EDT|Updated: 57 minutes ago
HAZARD, Ky. (WYMT) - The WYMT Weather Team worked long hours during the day and night of March 2, 2012 to try and keep everyone safe and informed.
We sat down with former WYMT Chief Meteorologist Jim Caldwell and WYMT Morning Forecaster Brandon Robinson about tracking the series of tornadoes.
In the video above, you can watch them reflect on the night and the events that followed.
Copyright 2022 WYMT. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/03/31/im-scared-death-storms-people-east-bernstadt-remember-march-2nd-2012-tornadoes/
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‘I’m scared to death of storms’: People from East Bernstadt remember March 2nd, 2012 tornadoes
LAUREL COUNTY, Ky. (WYMT) - One of the many areas in our region affected by the March 2nd tornadoes was Laurel County.
The East Bernstadt area had a tornado that reached speeds of 125 miles per hour and killed six people.
The Bowling family, though they lost memories and possessions in the tornado, said they felt saved by God on that night in March.
“His wife, um, the bathtub came through their trailer hit her in the head,” said Jamie Bowling, who lives in East Bernstadt. “She had to get staples. Um, her, their little girl though, she held onto her mommy’s belt loop. It slung them out in the yard. She didn’t have a scratch nowhere.”
Luckily, long before the EF-2 tornado ripped though homes and fields in Laurel County, Bowling said she had a plan.
”He said that it ripped the door open like you would take a can opener,” she said. “It just rolled it up. And he said that whenever it done that it just started throwing them out in the yard. Like, and it threw him, it was about 30 feet I think they said where he landed.”
Jamie’s mother said she watched the family farm get torn apart.
”I’m scared to death of storms so I was always prepared,” said Jamie. “If it something happened, I was gone.”
When the warnings came and schools dismissed on March second, Jamie and her family laid low at a nearby hospital because she said that is where the strongest windows are.
Her brother, however, stayed home with their family.
”Right through there. Right, you see that green field? See, that’s coming right from 25 right there,” said Lois Mcwhorter, who lives along Arthur Ridge. “It come right across there and it cut trenches in the yard.”
The tornado tore Lois’s home apart and smashed the barns.
”The barn was right in here,” she said. “Like where that rubbish is right. And and it come up to that pole cause it had electric to it too.”
It only took eight minutes for the tornado to destroy the home Jamie lived in since she was a child.
”It was like you felt homeless,” said Jamie. “You felt empty. Or you don’t know what you’re going to do with the kids.”
It was three months before the family could live on the property.
However, Jamie said her family and she saw the rare beauty that can follow tragedy.
”There was so many people that came from everywhere. All around the world,” she said. “People donating, out here picking up stuff, trying to help people find their areas.”
Copyright 2022 WYMT. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/03/31/police-13-year-old-runaway-girl-dies-hospital-after-found-unresponsive-motel/
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Police: 13-year-old runaway girl dies at hospital after found unresponsive at motel
D’IBERVILLE, Miss. (WALA/Gray News) - A 13-year-old girl has died in a Mississippi-area hospital after being reported as a runaway from Alabama earlier this month.
WALA reports the Mobile Police Department first reported Keyanna Sylvester as a runaway on March 21. She was then found unresponsive in a motel room in D’Iberville, Mississippi, on March 24, according to D’Iberville Police Capt. Jason King.
Sylvester was taken to the hospital but later died, according to police.
The 13-year-old spent time in Ocean Springs and Moss Point, Mississippi, according to reports.
King said it was too early in the investigation to decide whether foul play was involved in the girl’s death.
“We’re making sure we’re careful about not saying whether it’s criminal or not criminal,” he said.
King also said police are waiting for a report by the medical examiner.
“This hurts me real bad because Keyanna was my baby,” said neighbor Alexie Thames. “You all need to help find whoever did this to my baby. "
Anyone with further information on this case was urged to contact the D’Iberville Police Department at 228-396-4252.
Copyright 2022 WALA via Gray Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/03/31/rhyne-howard-earns-wbca-all-american-honors/
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Rhyne Howard earns WBCA All-American honors
Published: Mar. 31, 2022 at 6:57 PM EDT|Updated: 1 hours ago
LEXINGTON, Ky. (WYMT) - The postseason honors continue for Kentucky guard Rhyne Howard.
Howard has been named a first team All-American by the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association. This marks the fourth organization that has named Howard an All-American.
The WBCA also named South Carolina’s Aliyah Boston the winner of this year’s Wade Trophy, given annually to the best NCAA Division I women’s basketball player.
Copyright 2022 WYMT. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/03/31/salyersville-church-members-remember-march-2nd-2012-tornado-outbreak/
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Salyersville church members remember the March 2nd, 2012 tornado outbreak
Published: Mar. 31, 2022 at 7:24 PM EDT|Updated: 1 hour ago
MAGOFFIN COUNTY, Ky. (WYMT) - This story contains interviews and soundbites from people in Magoffin County that witnessed or were affected by the March 2nd tornadoes in 2012.
“If you are in the city of Salyersville right now, or just right close, get to a safe place as quickly as you possibly can,” said Jim Caldwell, WYMT’s former chief meteorologist.
In the attached video, we hear from people at a church in Salyersville on their March 2nd experience.
Copyright 2022 WYMT. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/oscars-producer-says-police-offered-arrest-will-smith/
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Oscars producer says police offered to arrest Will Smith
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Oscars producer Will Packer said Los Angeles police were ready to arrest Will Smith after Smith slapped Chris Rock on the Academy Awards stage.
“They were saying, you know, this is battery, was a word they used in that moment,” Packer said in a clip released by ABC News Thursday night of an interview he gave to “Good Morning America.” “They said we will go get him. We are prepared. We’re prepared to get him right now. You can press charges, we can arrest him. They were laying out the options.”
But Packer said Rock was “very dismissive” of the idea.
“He was like, ‘No, no, no, I’m fine,” Packer said. “And even to the point where I said, ‘Rock, let them finish.’ The LAPD officers finished laying out what his options were and they said, ‘Would you like us to take any action?’ And he said no.”
The LAPD said in a statement after Sunday night’s ceremony that they were aware of the incident, and that Rock had declined to file a police report. The department declined comment Thursday on Packer’s interview, a longer version of which will air on Friday morning.
The Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences met Wednesday to initiate disciplinary proceedings against Smith for violations against the group’s standards of conduct. Smith could be suspended, expelled or otherwise sanctioned.
The academy said in a statement that “Mr. Smith’s actions at the 94th Oscars were a deeply shocking, traumatic event to witness in-person and on television.”
Without giving specifics, the academy said Smith was asked to leave the ceremony at the Dolby Theatre, but refused to do so.
Smith strode from his front row seat on to the stage and slapped Rock after a joke Rock made about Smith’s wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, when he was on stage to present the Oscar for best documentary.
On Monday, Smith issued an apology to Rock, the academy and to viewers, saying “I was out of line and I was wrong.”
The academy said Smith has the opportunity to defend himself in a written response before the board meets again on April 18.
Rock publicly addressed the incident for the first time, but only briefly, at the beginning of a standup show Wednesday night in Boston, where he was greeted by a thunderous standing ovation. He said “I’m still kind of processing what happened.”
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Follow AP Entertainment Writer Andrew Dalton on Twitter: https://twitter.com/andyjamesdalton
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/usda-forecasting-higher-food-grocery-costs-2022/
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USDA forecasting higher food, grocery costs in 2022
(Gray News) - It looks like elevated food prices are going to continue this year, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
The USDA released its Food Price Outlook for 2022 and predicted the cost of groceries would continue to increase to as much as 4%.
According to the Consumer Price Index, grocery and supermarket food prices were already 8.6% higher in February than last year and up nearly 1.5% from January to February in 2022.
As reported by the Associated Press, prices for U.S. consumers have continued to jump recently, leaving families facing the highest inflation rate since 1990.
“We’re getting into this situation where we have spiraling inflation,” said Jay Hatfield, CEO of Infrastructure Capital Advisors. “Inflation in one area drives inflation in another.”
Currently, the CPI reports all food categories are increasing in price other than fresh vegetables. Last year, the beef and veal categories had the most significant price increase of 9.3%, and the fresh vegetable category had the smallest at 1.1%. However, no food categories decreased in price in 2021.
Poultry prices are also expected to increase up to 7%, with egg prices predicted to increase up to 3.5% in 2022.
Overall, grocery store and supermarket food purchases are expected to increase up to 4%, with restaurant purchases or food away from home forecasted to increase up to 6.5%, according to the USDA.
Copyright 2022 Gray Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/5-fetuses-found-inside-dc-home-anti-abortion-activist/
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5 fetuses found inside DC home of anti-abortion activist
WASHINGTON (AP) — Police found five fetuses in the home of a self-proclaimed “anti-abortion activist” who was indicted this week on federal charges alleging that she was part of a group of people who blocked access to a Washington, D.C. reproductive health center.
The Metropolitan Police Department says officers were responding to a tip about “potential bio-hazard material” at a home in Southeast Washington on Wednesday when they located the five fetuses inside.
A local television station, WUSA9, captured video of police searching the home and reported that the home belonged to Lauren Handy. The 28-year-old was one of nine people charged in an indictment that was made public on Wednesday that accused the group of traveling to Washington, blocking access to the reproductive health center and streaming it on Facebook.
The station, which first reported the discovery, said Handy told a reporter that “people will freak out when they hear” what detectives found inside her house. Handy did not respond to a message sent to her Facebook profile seeking comment.
Police said the five fetuses were collected by Washington’s medical examiner and the investigation is ongoing.
In the indictment, prosecutors said Handy had called the clinic pretending to be a prospective patient and scheduling an appointment. Once there, on Oct. 22, 2020, eight of the suspects pushed their way inside and began blocking the doors, according to the indictment. Five of them chained themselves together on chairs to block the treatment area as others blocked the employee entrance to stop other patients from coming inside, the indictment alleges. Another suspect blocked people from coming into the waiting room, prosecutors charge.
Handy and the eight others were charged with conspiracy against rights and violating the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act. The federal law, more commonly known as the FACE Act, prohibits physically obstructing or using the threat of force to intimidate or interfere with a person seeking reproductive health services.
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/because-elsie-family-saves-home-fire-during-journey-mourn-daughters-death/
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‘Because of Elsie’: Family saves home from fire during journey to mourn daughter’s death
PAINTSVILLE, Ky. (WYMT) -The Swaney family made their way to Paintsville from Missouri, thinking the week would start with an early Easter celebration.
However, when Joe and Christena Swaney- and their children Nila and Rylan- were on the way down Whippoorwill Rd., ready for a day with the grandparents, fire pouring from a neighbor’s porch caught their eye.
“So we could see underneath the porch and it was just flames, just going,” said Christena.
The couple worked to put the flames out with what was on hand and what water was available, as they contacted W.R. Castle Fire Department. Thanks to their quick action, the fire was extinguished and the homeowner- who was inside, unaware of the danger- was safe.
But the true fire in the Swaneys’ story- and the reason they were on the road Wednesday- came a month earlier. And that factor, they said, is what truly put them in the right place at the right time to “do what anybody would have done.”
“It might have been three months from now. We would have came down in the summer so she could meet grandma and grandpa,” said Christena. “But it was yesterday. It was that day, at that time, because of what happened to us and what we’re trying to do now.”
The Swaneys lost their youngest daughter, Eloise Anne Swaney, February 25, when she died of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome(SIDS).
“She died at 2.5 months old,” said Christena. “I put her down for bed at 8 p.m. and she never woke up. We followed all of the safe sleep recommendations, and it still happened to us.”
Eloise, also called “Elsie,” was born Dec. 15, 2021, and served as the “watcher” of the family. She spent her days with her eyes glued to her big brother and sister.
Though her life was short, her parents believe her story is still being told. So, they made a decision to take a journey in her honor, bringing her ashes along for the ride.
“We decided life was too short and we need to do something different,” said Christena. “So we sold everything and we rented this travel trailer and decided we’re going to travel the country, make memories, be closer with our family.”
“Let the kids get the most out of life, ‘cause it’s so short,” said Joe.
Selling anything that didn’t fit in their RV, the family packed up and hit the road more than a week ago, which is why they were in Kentucky visiting family this week.
The journey, navigating their grief with an RV in tow, is their way of sharing Elsie’s story. They hope, through the process, to connect with other families who have lost children to SIDS.
“We hope to let other people know they’re not alone in this journey. And this isn’t a journey you want to take alone. We realized that, that night,” said Christena.
“I thought it was at first. But the more people we talked to,” said Joe. “We want to be there for people. If someone loses their child to SIDS, we want to be the people they reach out to. Because we don’t have all the answers right now. But through trial and error on this trip, I think we’re gonna get a lot of the answers. We’ve spoken with so many people that have told us their story and it’s kind of filling in the missing pieces for us, and we want to be able to do that for other people.”
Now, as they head to Texas, they have a rough idea of their plan. Joe, a veteran who also has a painting business, will book jobs to paint houses as they travel- deciding which places to go based on the demand for the craft. And as they hit those places, they will spend more time together as a family, truly appreciating the days they are given.
Joe said any misconception that it is just a fun way for the family to go off the grid is silly, saying it is all about the mission.
“She’s the purpose of this whole thing. It’s not fun, going from a 2,800 square-foot house to an RV. We have two dogs, two cats, and two kids, and they’re all just on top of us all the time,” he laughed. “But we have a ledge by one of the windows that’s her ledge. So, we’ve got everything set up. It’s kind of made for her.”
“So, she’s there with us,” said Christena.
“Everyday,” said Joe.
He said they have been working closely with grief counselors at the VA, but sharing the story of their “doll baby” is another therapeutic way they can honor the life she brought to them. Now, with Elsie still watching from her window seat, Joe said the kids cheer them up by reminding their parents she’s with Jesus now.
They are using social media sites like Facebook and TikTok to chronicle the journey and accepting donations to the cause as they aim to raise awareness and hopefully fund SIDS research as their platforms grow.
Until then, they encourage anyone who needs a house painted to reach out and anyone who needs a shoulder to lean on through infant death grief to do the same.
Most importantly, they want to keep talking and teaching, and Traveling with Eloise.
Copyright 2022 WYMT. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/friends-family-get-closure-suspects-plead-guilty-seven-years-after-uk-students-murder/
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Friends, family get closure as suspects plead guilty seven years after UK student’s murder
LEXINGTON, Ky. (WKYT) - It’s the closure the family of a UK student has waited nearly seven years for as three suspects were charged in Jonathan Krueger’s murder all pleaded guilty.
Roman Gonzalez, Justin Smith and Efrain Diaz Jr. were all charged in the April 2015 attack when Krueger was shot and killed during a robbery.
Krueger was 22 years old when he was killed. The journalism student always had a camera in his hand capturing some iconic moments in UK history. He especially loved following the football and men’s basketball team. And if a picture is worth a thousand words, those who knew him best will tell you they’d need more to describe how much he meant to them.
David Stephenson knows the emotion a simple photo can bring.
“I love photography for that reason. It’s a moment in time that was captured forever, and you can come back to it as many times as you want,” Stephenson said.
Photos of Krueger remind him of a shining student.
“He was one of the hardest working people around. But he loved what he did, and I think that was contagious, and it was a really great thing,” Stephenson said.
He was a standout photographer that could tell a story with just one snapshot.
“The world is missing somebody who was fun, and smart, and talented, and friendly,” Stephenson said.
On April 17, 2015, Krueger and a friend were walking near campus when police say they were approached by three men who tried to rob them. His friend was able to get away, but Krueger was shot.
“At the same time, it was really difficult for the Kentucky Kernel to lose a member of their own staff. So not only were they having to cope with losing a friend and a colleague, they had to cover it,” Stephenson said.
It’s been nearly seven years since that night. A huge step toward justice was taken on Thursday, as the men charged in connection to his murder all plead guilty and will be sentenced next month.
“I think today honestly is a bigger day than maybe sentencing. Today we know it’s over, and it’s done,” Stephenson said.
While it’s a moment Krueger’s family and friends have longed to put behind them, his memory and his photos, will still live on to tell his story.
“It’s really difficult to think about where he would be right now and what he would be doing. I know he would be successful at it, I have no doubt of that,” Stephenson said.
A friend of Krueger’s said he influenced countless people in his 22 years through his passion and drive to live life to the fullest.
A scholarship in his memory continues to benefit journalism students and help them buy equipment and begin their journey telling stories. If you’d like to donate to it, you can click here, and be sure to include “Jonathan Krueger Memorial Scholarship” in the “additional instructions” area.
Copyright 2022 WKYT. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/where-your-donations-western-kentucky-went-what-families-still-need/
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Where your donations for western Kentucky went, and what families still need
LEXINGTON, Ky. (WKYT) - December tornadoes devastated parts of western Kentucky, wiping out some communities. It’s a long road to rebuild for areas like Mayfield, Dawson Springs and Bowling Green.
We’ve seen Kentuckians step up to help one another, and so have state and federal officials. FEMA approved more than $15 million total, in assistance for Kentuckians. About $11 million of that went toward housing assistance. Relief money went to 16 different counties, and more than 16,000 Kentuckians received those dollars.
Now, three months later, the specific needs of the region and its people are changing.
Kristin King works for the Graves County fairgrounds, which has spent those months helping thousands with relief efforts in the aftermath of the tornadoes. Their warehouse has been filled with clothes, toys and toiletries. But King said as living situations change, they are switching their focus because many of those items are no longer needed.
“We’re over 100 days out now but we’re still cleaning up debris. People think like, ‘oh you’re in the rebuild,’ well not so much. We still got people moving from shelters into temporary trailers and things like that. There’s still no space for them to go in the homes,” King said.
As the people of western Kentucky move into those spaces, they need to fill them with household items.
“If you were going from a hotel room where you had nothing and there was no house waiting for you, and you were going into an empty place, what would you need?” King said.
So they’re now asking for kitchen appliances, flatware, bed sheets, and more.
And as the rebuild does begin for some, western Kentuckians will also need construction supplies. But Beth Davisson with the Kentucky Chamber of Commerce asks those who want to help, to coordinate their support.
“Work with organizations that are really behind the rebuilding and reorganization of western Kentucky. Habitat for Humanity, Kentucky charities,” Davisson said.
She said monetary donations are especially helpful at this point because they can go toward a variety of those unmet needs. Davisson added that it will take years to rebuild, so every bit of assistance is still crucial.
“Living in central Kentucky like we do, it’s easy to feel removed from it, but we need to keep our eyes on Western Kentucky and keep supporting them in all the ways possible,” Davisson said.
There are a variety of ways you can still donate, like the Team Western Kentucky Relief Fund, or the KSR and Kentucky Chamber Foundation Relief Fund.
Copyright 2022 WKYT. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/doctor-convicted-prescribing-over-1m-opioid-pills-las-vegas-cocktail-drugs/
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Doctor convicted for prescribing over $1M in opioid pills, ‘Las Vegas cocktail’ of drugs
(Gray News) - A physician in Texas was recently convicted for wrongly prescribing more than $1 million worth of opioid hydrocodone pills.
According to the U.S. Department of Justice, 52-year-old James Pierre, a Houston doctor, unlawfully prescribed controlled substances from June 2015 through July 2016 to individuals posing as patients at a West Parker Medical Clinic, a pill-mill clinic located in Houston.
Trial evidence showed Pierre and his physician assistant issued hundreds of unlawful prescriptions for hydrocodone and carisoprodol, a combination of controlled substances known as the “Las Vegas Cocktail,” to hundreds of individuals posing as patients each week.
According to the Justice Department, “runners” brought numerous people to pose as patients at the clinic and paid about $220 to $500 per visit in exchange for the prescriptions.
Throughout the scheme, West Parker made about $1.75 million from prescriptions, and over $300,000 went to Pierre, according to investigators.
The Department of Justice reports Pierre was convicted of one count of conspiracy to unlawfully distribute and dispense controlled substances and seven counts of unlawfully distributing and dispensing controlled substances.
The 52-year-old is currently scheduled to be sentenced on June 27 and faces up to 20 years in prison for each count.
Officials said that one co-conspirator has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute controlled substances unlawfully.
DEA Houston investigated the case, according to the Department of Justice.
Copyright 2022 Gray Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/thousands-baby-teether-rattles-recalled-due-choking-hazard/
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Thousands of baby teether rattles recalled due to choking hazard
(Gray News) - A recall has been issued for nearly 9,000 motion-activated baby rattles sold in the U.S. and Canada.
PlayMonster has recalled the Kid O Hudson glow rattles due to their legs possibly breaking off and posing a choking hazard to young children, according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission.
The agency describes the product as a motion-activated rattle shaped like a puppy that makes a soft rattling sound when shaken. The plastic puppy is white with spots that can glow in red or green. The puppy’s legs are textured soft plastic for teething children.
Currently, there have been three reports of the rattle legs breaking off, according to the recall. No injuries have been reported.
Consumers are advised to immediately take the recalled walkers away from young children and contact PlayMonster by calling 1-800-469-7506 to discuss refund options.
The rattles were sold at specialty stores nationwide and online at Target.com, Amazon.com, Walmart.com and other sites from February 2018 through February 2022.
Copyright 2022 Gray Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/closing-arguments-next-michigan-gov-whitmer-kidnap-plot/
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Closing arguments next in Michigan Gov. Whitmer kidnap plot
(AP) - Jurors will hear closing arguments Friday in the trial of four men accused of a brazen conspiracy to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, a case built with informants, undercover agents, secret recordings and two people who pleaded guilty and cooperated.
Only one defendant, Daniel Harris, chose to testify in his own defense. But his denial of any crime Thursday was met by an aggressive cross-examination in which prosecutors used his own words to show his contempt for Whitmer and even suggestions about how to kill her.
Adam Fox, Barry Croft Jr. and Brandon Caserta declined to testify, and defense attorneys called only a few witnesses. The four deny any scheme to get Whitmer at her vacation home in fall 2020, though they were livid with government as well as restrictions imposed during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The men were arrested in October 2020 amid talk of raising $4,000 for an explosive that could blow up a bridge and stymie police after a kidnapping, according to trial evidence. Fox twice traveled to northern Michigan to scout the area.
Defense attorneys, however, insist they were under the spell of informants and agents who got them to say and do violent, provocative things.
Harris repeatedly answered “absolutely not” when asked by his lawyer if he was part of a plot. His testimony was perilous because he exposed himself to numerous challenges by prosecutors who had been offering evidence against the group for days.
Harris and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Roth sometimes talked over each other. At one point, Harris snapped, “Next question.”
“Everyone can take it down a notch,” U.S. District Judge Robert Jonker said later.
Roth confronted Harris with his own chat messages about posing as a pizza deliveryman and killing Whitmer at her door. He reminded Harris, a former Marine, that he worked with explosives while training with the group, especially in Luther, Michigan, in September 2020, about a month before their arrest.
Roth played a conversation of Croft talking about militias overthrowing governments in various states and “breaking a few eggs” if necessary.
“When this man talks to you at a diner about killing people, you don’t stand up and walk out, do you sir?” Roth asked. “You don’t say, ‘This group is not for me,’ do you sir?”
“No,” Harris answered.
A “shoot house” that was intended to resemble Whitmer’s second home was a key part of the Luther training weekend, according to the government. Harris admitted that he brought materials but said he didn’t build it with her house in mind.
He didn’t participate in an evening ride to Elk Rapids, Michigan, to scout Whitmer’s home and a bridge during that same weekend. Harris said he had purchased $200 of cheap beer and cigarettes so he could return to the camp and “get wasted” with others.
Two more men, Ty Garbin and Kaleb Franks, pleaded guilty and cooperated with investigators. Garbin last week said the group acted willingly and hoped to strike before the election, cause national chaos and prevent Joe Biden from winning the presidency.
Whitmer, a Democrat, rarely talks publicly about the kidnapping plot, though she referred to “surprises” during her term that seemed like “something out of fiction” when she filed for reelection on March 17.
She has blamed former President Donald Trump for fomenting anger over coronavirus restrictions and refusing to condemn right-wing extremists like those charged in the case. Whitmer has said Trump was complicit in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.
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Find AP’s full coverage of the Whitmer kidnap plot trial at: https://apnews.com/hub/whitmer-kidnap-plot-trial
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White reported from Detroit.
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/russians-leave-chernobyl-ukraine-braces-renewed-attacks/
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Russians leave Chernobyl; Ukraine braces for renewed attacks
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russian troops left the heavily contaminated Chernobyl nuclear site early Friday after returning control to the Ukrainians, authorities said, as eastern parts of the country braced for renewed attacks and Russians blocked another aid mission to the besieged port city of Mariupol.
Ukraine’s state power company, Energoatom, said the pullout at Chernobyl came after soldiers received “significant doses” of radiation from digging trenches in the forest in the exclusion zone around the closed plant. But there was no independent confirmation of that.
The exchange of control happened amid growing indications the Kremlin is using talk of de-escalation in Ukraine as cover to regroup, resupply its forces and redeploy them for a stepped-up offensive in the eastern part of the country.
GRAPHIC WARNING: Videos in this story may contain disturbing content.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned that Russian withdrawals from the north and center of the country were just a military tactic to build up forces for new powerful attacks in the southeast. A new round of talks between the countries was scheduled Friday, five weeks into a conflict that has left thousands dead and driven 4 million Ukrainians from the country.
“We know their intentions,” Zelenskyy said in his nightly video address to the nation. “We know that they are moving away from those areas where we hit them in order to focus on other, very important ones where it may be difficult for us.”
“There will be battles ahead,” he added.
Meanwhile in Mariupol, Russian forces blocked a convoy of 45 buses attempting to evacuate people after the Russian military agreed to a limited cease-fire in the area. Only 631 people were able to get out of the city in private cars, according to the Ukrainian government.
Russian forces also seized 14 tons of food and medical supplies in a dozen buses that were trying to make it to Mariupol, Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk said.
The city has been the scene of some of the worst suffering of the war. Tens of thousands have managed to get out in the past few weeks by way of humanitarian corridors, reducing the population from a prewar 430,000 to an estimated 100,000 by last week, but other relief efforts have been thwarted by continued Russian attacks.
The International Atomic Energy Agency said it had been informed by Ukraine that the Russian forces at the site of the world’s worst nuclear disaster had transferred control of it in writing to the Ukrainians. The last Russian troops left early Friday, the Ukrainian government agency responsible for the exclusion zone said.
Energoatom gave no details on the condition of the soldiers it said were exposed to radiation and did not say how many were affected. There was no immediate comment from the Kremlin, and the IAEA said it had not been able to confirm the reports of Russian troops receiving high doses. It said it was seeking more information.
Russian forces seized the Chernobyl site in the opening stages of the Feb. 24 invasion, raising fears that they would cause damage or disruption that could spread radiation. The workforce at the site oversees the safe storage of spent fuel rods and the concrete-entombed ruins of the reactor that exploded in 1986.
Edwin Lyman, a nuclear expert with the U.S.-based Union of Concerned Scientists, said it “seems unlikely” a large number of troops would develop severe radiation illness, but it was impossible to know for sure without more details.
He said contaminated material was probably buried or covered with new topsoil during the cleanup of Chernobyl, and some soldiers may have been exposed to a “hot spot” of radiation while digging. Others may have assumed they were at risk too, he said.
Early this week, the Russians said they would significantly scale back military operations in areas around Kyiv and the northern city of Chernihiv to increase trust between the two sides and help negotiations along.
But in the Kyiv suburbs, regional governor Oleksandr Palviuk said on social media Thursday that Russian forces shelled Irpin and Makariv and that there were battles around Hostomel. Ukrainian forces counterattacked and some Russian withdrawals around the suburb of Brovary to the east, Pavliuk said.
At a Ukrainian military checkpoint outside Kyiv, soldiers and officers said they don’t believe Russian forces have given up on the capital.
“What does it mean, significantly scaling down combat actions in the Kyiv and Chernihiv areas?” asked Brig. Gen. Valeriy Embakov. “Does it mean there will be 100 missiles instead of 200 missiles launched on Kyiv or something else?”
Chernihiv came under attack as well. At least one person was killed and four were wounded in the Russian shelling of a humanitarian convoy of buses sent to Chernihiv to evacuate residents cut off from food, water and other supplies, said Ukrainian Human Rights Commissioner Lyudmyla Denisova.
Elsewhere, Ukraine reported Russian artillery barrages in and around the northeastern city of Kharkiv.
Ukraine’s emergency services also said the death toll had risen to 20 in a Russian missile strike Tuesday on a government administration building in the southern city of Mykolaiv.
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said intelligence indicates Russia is not scaling back its military operations in Ukraine but is instead trying to regroup, resupply its forces and reinforce its offensive in the Donbas.
“Russia has repeatedly lied about its intentions,” Stoltenberg said. At the same time, he said, pressure is being kept up on Kyiv and other cities, and “we can expect additional offensive actions bringing even more suffering.”
The Donbas is the predominantly Russian-speaking industrial region where Moscow-backed separatists have been battling Ukrainian forces since 2014. In the past few days, the Kremlin, in a seeming shift in its war aims, said that its “main goal” now is gaining control of the Donbas, which consists of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, including Mariupol.
The top rebel leader in Donetsk, Denis Pushilin, issued an order to set up a rival city government for Mariupol, according to Russian state news agencies, in a sign of Russian intent to hold and administer the city.
With talks set to resume between Ukraine and Russia via video, there seemed little faith that the two sides would resolve the conflict any time soon.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said that conditions weren’t yet “ripe” for a cease-fire and that he wasn’t ready for a meeting with Zelenskyy until negotiators do more work, Italian Premier Mario Draghi said after a telephone conversation with the Russian leader.
As Western officials search for clues about what Russia’s next move might be, a top British intelligence official said demoralized Russian soldiers in Ukraine are refusing to carry out orders and sabotaging their equipment and had accidentally shot down their own aircraft.
U.S. intelligence officials have concluded that Putin is being misinformed by his advisers about how badly the war is going because they are afraid to tell him the truth.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that the U.S. is wrong and that “neither the State Department nor the Pentagon possesses the real information about what is happening in the Kremlin.”
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Karmanau reported from Lviv, Ukraine. Associated Press journalists around the world contributed to this report.
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Follow the AP’s coverage of the war at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/14m-jury-award-protesters-could-resonate-around-us/
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$14M jury award for protesters could resonate around US
DENVER (AP) — A federal jury’s $14 million award to Denver protesters hit with pepper balls and a bag filled with lead during 2020 demonstrations over the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis could resonate nationwide as courts weigh more than two dozen similar lawsuits.
The jury found police used excessive force against protesters, violating their constitutional rights, and ordered the city of Denver to pay 12 who sued.
Nationwide, there are at least 29 pending lawsuits challenging law enforcement use of force during the 2020 protests, according to a search of the University of Michigan’s Civil Rights Litigation Clearinghouse.
The verdict in Denver could give cities an incentive to settle similar cases rather than risk going to trial and losing, said Michael J. Steinberg, a professor at the University of Michigan Law School and director of the Civil Rights Litigation Initiative. It could also prompt more protesters to sue over their treatment at the hands of police.
“There’s no doubt that the large jury verdict in Denver will influence the outcome of pending police misconduct cases brought by Black Lives Matter protesters across the country,” said Steinberg, whose law students have been working on a similar lawsuit brought by protesters in Detroit.
Lawyers for the claimants argued that police used indiscriminate force against the nonviolent protesters, including some who were filming the demonstrations, because officers did not like their message critical of law enforcement.
“To the protest of police violence they responded with brutality,” one of their attorneys, Timothy Macdonald, told jurors.
People who took part in the protests have already made similar allegations in lawsuits filed across the country.
In Washington, DC, activists and civil liberties groups sued over the forcible removal of protesters before then-President Donald Trump walked to a church near the White House for a photo op. The claims against federal officials were dismissed last year but a judge allowed the case against local police to continue.
Several lawsuits alleging protesters were wrongfully arrested or that police used excessive force have been filed against New York City and its police department, including one brought by New York Attorney General Letitia James that claims police used excessive force and wrongfully arrested protesters. In Rochester, New York, people who protested the death of Daniel Prude, a Black man who lost consciousness after being pinned to the street by officers during a mental health call in 2020, claim police used extreme force against them in a lawsuit that also alleges city officials have allowed a culture of police brutality against racial minorities to fester.
One of their attorneys, Donald Thompson, said he plans to raise the Denver award in settlement talks with the city and note that unlike most of the Denver protesters, some of his clients suffered lasting injuries including the loss of an eye and scarring from being hit in the face with a tear gas canister. Thompson also thinks the Denver verdict shows that the public, in the age of cellphone and body camera videos, is not as willing to give police the benefit of the doubt anymore.
“Now people see how this policing really works. You can’t be naïve,” he said.
A spokesperson for Rochester did not return a call and an email seeking comment. When the case was filed, the city said it had already revised the way police responds to protests.
Over the last two months, the city of Austin, Texas has agreed to pay a total of $13 million to four people who were hit in the head with bean bag rounds fired by police.
Even before the Denver ruling last week, the police department made some changes in response to criticism that arose from the protests, including eliminating the use of 40mm foam rounds for crowd control and changing the way officers are permitted to use pepper balls.
Denver’s Department of Public Safety, which includes the police department, said in a statement that the city was not prepared for the level of sustained violence and destruction. During the trial, lawyers and witnesses said over 80 officers were injured as some in the crowds hurled rocks, water bottles and canned food at them.
The department said it continues to evaluate its policies to “better protect peaceful protestors while addressing those who are only there to engage in violence.”
Still, the large award is not expected to lead to an overhaul of how officers respond to what experts say are inherently chaotic situations that are difficult to prepare for.
Ed Obayashi, a use-of-force consultant to law enforcement agencies and a deputy sheriff and legal adviser in Plumas County, California, said society may have to bear the cost of such settlements because innocent people can be injured during protests as outnumbered police try to react on the fly, including to people intent on violence.
“It really goes south in an instant because there are individuals out there who want to cause chaos,” he said.
Obayashi said there is not much police training for protests, which have been relatively rare. He said it would be prohibitively expensive to have officers practice deploying equipment such as tear gas canisters. Because projectiles used in crowds and considered “less lethal” by police, such as rubber bullets and pepper balls, have less velocity and less power to hurt people, it is harder to ensure they hit their intended target, he said.
Lawyers representing people who have also alleged police misconduct and violation of their constitutional right to protest can now use the Denver damage award as part of their own settlement negotiations, said Mark Silverstein, legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union, which represented some of the winning Denver protesters.
The decision came nearly two years after thousands of people angry about Floyd’s death took the streets nationwide, a relatively quick result for the legal system and soon enough for others who allege misconduct by police to file a claim. In Colorado and many other states, there is a two-year statute of limitations for such lawsuits Silverstein said, leaving only a few months for others to sue.
The city attorney’s office said it has not decided whether to appeal the verdict, but appeals in such big cases are common, said Gloria Browne-Marshall, a professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice. Outside lawyers will also scrutinize the case to try to determine if there are unique circumstances that may have led to a “lightning in a bottle” verdict that is less likely to be repeated.
However, she thinks the verdict sends a significant message that regular people respect the right of protest and demand change from the government, which she believes police and prosecutors have been undermining.
“It should send a message to both, but whether or not they listen is a different issue,” Browne-Marshall said.
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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Clearing skies later today, no fooling!
HAZARD, Ky. (WYMT) - Welcome to April! While it might be April Fools Day, this forecast for later is no joke! The skies really will clear!
Today and Tonight
It will stay cloudy with a stray shower or two this morning, but as I said above, we will end the day with some sunshine. Morning temperatures start in the upper 30s for most before heading into the low 50s this afternoon. After seeing highs in the 70s and 80s the last two days, today’s temperatures may be Mother Nature’s way of pranking us. :)
Look for clear skies tonight with lows dropping to around freezing.
Weekend Forecast
Sunny skies will start the first weekend of April, but unfortunately, it will not last. Clouds will move in by the afternoon hours and some scattered rain chances are possible Saturday night. Highs will be a little warmer, topping out in the low 60s before dropping to around 40 overnight.
Sunday looks a little better. There may be a few clouds early, but those will quickly give way to sunshine and highs near 60.
Extended Forecast
The new work and school week will start off on a nice note, but just like Saturday, the deeper into the day you get, the more clouds you see and the better the rain chances. Highs should climb back to around 70 though, so that’s an improvement. We will get back into the 70s for Tuesday and Wednesday, but we will pay for it with some rain chances.
You know what they say though: “April showers bring May flowers.” Let’s hope that’s the case!
Have a good weekend!
Copyright 2022 WYMT. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/house-passes-35-a-month-insulin-cap-dems-seek-wider-bill/
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House passes $35-a-month insulin cap as Dems seek wider bill
WASHINGTON (AP) — The House has passed a bill capping the monthly cost of insulin at $35 for insured patients, part of an election-year push by Democrats for price curbs on prescription drugs at a time of rising inflation.
Experts say the legislation, which passed 232-193 Thursday, would provide significant relief for privately insured patients with skimpier plans and for Medicare enrollees facing rising out-of-pocket costs for their insulin. Some could save hundreds of dollars annually, and all insured patients would get the benefit of predictable monthly costs for insulin. The bill would not help the uninsured.
But the Affordable Insulin Now Act will serve as a political vehicle to rally Democrats and force Republicans who oppose it into uncomfortable votes ahead of the midterms. For the legislation to pass Congress, 10 Republican senators would have to vote in favor. Democrats acknowledge they don’t have an answer for how that’s going to happen.
“If 10 Republicans stand between the American people being able to get access to affordable insulin, that’s a good question for 10 Republicans to answer,” said Rep. Dan Kildee, D-Mich., a cosponsor of the House bill. “Republicans get diabetes, too. Republicans die from diabetes.”
Public opinion polls have consistently shown support across party lines for congressional action to limit drug costs.
But Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash., complained the legislation is only “a small piece of a larger package around government price controls for prescription drugs.” Critics say the bill would raise premiums and fails to target pharmaceutical middlemen seen as contributing to high list prices for insulin.
Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said Democrats could have a deal on prescription drugs if they drop their bid to authorize Medicare to negotiate prices. “Do Democrats really want to help seniors, or would they rather have the campaign issue?” Grassley said.
The insulin bill, which would take effect in 2023, represents just one provision of a much broader prescription drug package in President Joe Biden’s social and climate legislation.
In addition to a similar $35 cap on insulin, the Biden bill would authorize Medicare to negotiate prices for a range of drugs, including insulin. It would penalize drugmakers who raise prices faster than inflation and overhaul the Medicare prescription drug benefit to limit out-of-pocket costs for enrollees.
Biden’s agenda passed the House only to stall in the Senate because Democrats could not reach consensus. Party leaders haven’t abandoned hope of getting the legislation moving again, and preserving its drug pricing curbs largely intact.
The idea of a $35 monthly cost cap for insulin actually has a bipartisan pedigree. The Trump administration had created a voluntary option for Medicare enrollees to get insulin for $35, and the Biden administration continued it.
In the Senate, Republican Susan Collins of Maine and Democrat Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire are working on a bipartisan insulin bill. Georgia Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock has introduced legislation similar to the House bill, with the support of Sen. Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York.
Stung by criticism that Biden’s economic policies spur inflation, Democrats are redoubling efforts to show how they’d help people cope with costs. On Thursday, the Commerce Department reported a key inflation gauge jumped 6.4% in February compared with a year ago, the largest year-over-year rise since January 1982.
But experts say the House bill would not help uninsured people, who face the highest out-of-pocket costs for insulin. Also, people with diabetes often take other medications as well as insulin. That’s done to treat the diabetes itself, along with other serious health conditions often associated with the disease. The House legislation would not help with those costs, either. Collins says she’s looking for a way to help uninsured people through her bill.
About 37 million Americans have diabetes, and an estimated 6 million to 7 million use insulin to keep their blood sugars under control. It’s an old drug, refined and improved over the years, that has seen relentless price increases.
Steep list prices don’t reflect the rates insurance plans negotiate with manufacturers. But those list prices are used to calculate cost-sharing amounts that patients owe. Patients who can’t afford their insulin reduce or skip doses, a strategy born of desperation, which can lead to serious complications and even death.
Economist Sherry Glied of New York University said the market for insulin is a “total disaster” for many patients, particularly those with skimpy insurance plans or no insurance.
“This will make private insurance for people with diabetes a much more attractive proposition,” said Glied.
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/knoxville-man-arrested-international-fbi-investigation/
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Knoxville man arrested in international FBI investigation
Hunter Hobson was arrested in Knoxville on Thursday on charges of money laundering and violating the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act through an alleged scheme to pay bribes to Egyptian officials.
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WVLT) - A Knoxville man was arrested Thursday as part of an international FBI investigation involving a scheme where government officials in Egypt were bribed, according to court documents obtained by WVLT News.
The indictment alleged Knoxville resident Hunter Hobson, 46, was acting as a coal company executive when he became involved in a bribery and money laundering scheme between 2016 and 2020. The seven-count indictment alleged Hobson paid bribes to Egyptian officials for $143 million in coal contracts with Al Nasr Company, a state owned and state-controlled Egyptian coal company.
Hobson was also accused of conspiring to secretly receive part of the commissions paid to a sales intermediary as kickbacks.
Hobson was charged with one count of conspiracy to violate the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, which makes it illegal to bribe a foreign official. He was also charged with two counts of violating the FCPA, one count of conspiracy to launder money, two counts of money laundering, and one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud.
“He faces up to five years in prison for each of the bribery conspiracy and bribery charges, and up to 20 years in prison for each of the money laundering conspiracy, money laundering, and wire fraud charges,” according to a release from the United States Department of Justice.
The conditions of Hobson’s release from jail included reporting to a probation officer, surrendering his passport, and getting permission before leaving the East Tennessee district. The only exception to travel restriction is traveling to the Western District of Pennsylvania for a court date in Pittsburgh on April 19. 2022 at 9:30 a.m.
Hobson is the CEO of INMET Mining which owns the D-29 Darby Fork Mine in Harlan County, Kentucky where a coal miner named James Brown died in March.
“It is with our deepest sorrow that we must now confirm the passing of James Brown,” INMET CEO Hunter Hobson said at the time. “Our thoughts and prayers continue to be with James’ family and also his coworkers at INMET. We were praying for a different outcome. At this time, we have no further comment as we transition from the recovery efforts and continue working with both State and Federal agencies to determine what happened.”
On his LinkedIn page, Hobson indicated he graduated from the University of Tennessee and previously worked for Knoxville based Smoky Mountain Coal Corporation.
Hobson Indictment by WVLT News on Scribd
Copyright 2022 WVLT. All rights reserved.
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Overnight winds cause damage to homes across East Tennessee
The City of Jellico’s safety director said they’re still assessing the damage, but no injuries were reported.
JELLICO, Tenn. (WVLT) - Downed trees, power outages and property damage were reported in parts of East Tennessee. According to Jellico Safety Director, Jake Bennet, there were no reported inquires as of Thursday afternoon.
Vikki Ivey told WVLT News that her front porch was gone. Portions of her roof was torn off and tossed several feet away.
“I couldn’t even open the door. My son-in-law he came out here with my husband and noticed that all of this was gone. The wind was so hard it bought knocked both of them over,” Vikki Ivey, a resident, said.
It was too early to say for sure how much the clean up was going to cost, but repairs were already on the way.
“Trees topple all over the town, so it’s really been a problem for the city,” Bennet said. “We’re still right in the process of taking care of things that we can batten down the hatches in case we’ve got some more coming through.”
A cycle that changes as the wind blows.
Copyright 2022 WVLT. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/72-year-old-sevier-co-woman-loses-home-memories-life-savings-fire/
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72-year-old Sevier Co. woman loses home, memories, and life savings in fire
Sue Barker was told Thursday afternoon her house on Hatcher Mountain Road, at the center of the evacuation zone, was a total loss.
SEVIER CO., Tenn. (WVLT) - Wednesday morning started as usual for Sue Barker. She left her home on Hatcher Mountain Road, and went to work in her career as a realtor.
Shortly after, she got word that mandatory evacuations were taking place near where she lived but by the time she tried to go back home, law enforcement told her it wasn’t safe and turned her away. For a day and a half, Barker was left only with the clothes on her back and wondering if her home was safe, until she got a text Thursday afternoon.
A simple text message of “is this your house,” quickly turned into a grim reality when Barker took a close look at the picture.
“I wouldn’t have thought it was my house but I have three rod iron chairs with baskets of flowers in them and I recognized the chairs. I never would have thought it was my house,” said Barker.
Inside the home there were precious memories like pictures of her children and grandchildren, along with jewelry and memories from her parents who have since passed away.
Along with her life savings in cash, Barker lost those moments in time that she said was more valuable than money.
“I just thought, I have tubs of handwritten greeting cards from my grandchildren and children. They don’t even know I save that, I was saving it for when I’m gone then they can open it up and see, ‘oh mom loved us enough to save the silly little drawings we did and stuff’. I had a whole tub of those and I know they’re not there,” said Barker.
As many continued to seek shelter from the fire that continued to burn, Barker stood strong in the face of adversity.
“I’m trying so hard to keep it together and stay calm because I’m alive and thank god nobody has passed away in this and we made it through 2016 and we’ll make it through this,” said Barker.
For the next few days, Barker has a hotel room paid for her by friends and family.
She will continue to figure out what the next steps are as she contemplates where she will live.
Copyright 2022 WVLT. All rights reserved.
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Another solid month of US hiring expected despite obstacles
(AP) - Defying a pandemic and supply chain disruptions, the U.S. economy has cranked out more than 400,000 jobs every month for nearly a year — a blazing winning streak in wildly uncertain times.
And despite surging inflation, the hiring wave likely continued last month in the face of yet another jolt: Russia’s war in Ukraine, which has unsettled the economic outlook and catapulted gasoline prices to painful levels.
Economists surveyed by the data firm FactSet expect the Labor Department’s jobs report for March to show that employers added 478,000 jobs and that the unemployment rate dipped from 3.8% to 3.7%. That would mark the lowest unemployment rate since just before the pandemic struck two years ago, when joblessness reached a 50-year low of 3.5%.
The government will issue the March jobs report at 8:30 a.m. Eastern time Friday.
“With the war in Ukraine, economic uncertainty rising and surging energy prices, we may see a modest slowdown in hiring in March,’’ said Daniel Zhao, senior economist at the jobs website Glassdoor. “However, employer demand remains strong, which should sustain a healthy level of hiring.’’
The booming U.S. job market reflects a robust rebound from the brief but devastating coronavirus recession, which wiped out 22 million jobs in March and April 2020 as businesses shut down or cut hours and Americans stayed home to avoid infection.
But the recovery has been swift. Fueled by generous federal aid, savings amassed during the pandemic and ultra-low borrowing rates engineered by the Federal Reserve, U.S. consumers have spent so fast that many factories, warehouses, shipping companies and ports have failed to keep pace with their customer demand. Supply chains have snarled, forcing up prices.
As the pandemic has eased, consumers have been broadening their spending beyond goods to services, such as health care, travel and entertainment, which they had long avoided during the worst of the pandemic. The result: Inflation is running at 40-year highs, causing hardships for many lower-income households that face sharp increases for such necessities as food, gasoline and rent.
It’s unclear whether the economy can maintain its momentum of the past year. The government relief checks are gone. The Fed raised its benchmark short-term interest rate two weeks ago and will likely keep raising it well into next year. Those rate hikes will result in more expensive loans for many consumers and businesses.
Inflation has also eroded consumers’ spending power: Hourly pay, adjusted for higher consumer prices, fell 2.6% in February from a year earlier — the 11th straight month in which inflation has outpaced year-over-year wage growth. According to AAA, average gasoline prices, at $4.23 a gallon, are up a dizzying 47% from a year ago.
Squeezed by inflation, some consumers are paring their spending. The Commerce Department reported Thursday that consumer spending rose just 0.2%% in February — and fell 0.4% when adjusted for inflation — down from a 2.7% increase in January.
Still, the job market has kept hurtling ahead. Employers posted a near-record 11.3 million positions in February. Nearly 4.4 million Americans quit their jobs, a sign of confidence that they could find something better.
“We’re still seeing a very tight labor market,’’ said Karen Fichuk, CEO of the staffing company Randstad North America, who noted that the United States now has a record 1.7 job openings for every unemployed person.
Even so, so many jobs were lost in 2020 that the economy still remains more than 2 million shy of the number it had just before the pandemic struck. Over the past year, employers have added an average of 556,000 jobs a month. At that pace — no guarantee to continue — the nation would recover all the jobs lost to the pandemic by June. (That still wouldn’t include all the additional hiring that would have been done over the past two years under normal circumstances.)
Brighter job prospects are beginning to draw back into the labor force people who had remained on the sidelines because of health concerns, difficulty finding or affording daycare, generous unemployment benefits that have now expired or other reasons.
Over the past year, 3.6 million people have joined the U.S. labor force, meaning they now either have a job or are looking for one. But their ranks are still nearly 600,000 short of where they stood in February 2020, just before the pandemic slammed into the economy.
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/pope-begs-forgiveness-indigenous-canada-school-abuses/
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Pope begs forgiveness of Indigenous for Canada school abuses
VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Francis apologized and begged forgiveness Friday for the “deplorable” abuses suffered by Indigenous Peoples in Canada’s residential schools, saying he was ashamed and indignant at all they had endured at the hands of Catholic educators.
Francis made the apology and vowed to visit Canada during an audience with dozens of members of the Metis, Inuit and First Nations communities who came to Rome seeking a papal apology and a commitment for the Catholic Church to repair the damage.
More than 150,000 native children in Canada were forced to attend state-funded Christian schools from the 19th century until the 1970s in an effort to isolate them from the influence of their homes and culture. The aim was to Christianize and assimilate them into mainstream society, which previous Canadian governments considered superior.
“For the deplorable conduct of those members of the Catholic Church, I ask forgiveness of the Lord,” Francis said. “And I want to tell you from my heart, that I am greatly pained. And I unite myself with the Canadian bishops in apologizing.”
The trip to Rome by the Indigenous was years in the making but gained momentum last year after the discovery of hundreds of unmarked graves outside some of the residential schools. The three groups of Indigenous met separately with Francis over several hours this week, culminating with Friday’s audience.
Francis spoke in Italian, and it wasn’t immediately clear if the audience understood what he had said, though they stood and applauded after he finished.
And the audience continued on with joyous performances of Indigenous prayers, drum, dance and fiddlers that Francis watched, applauded and at one point gave a thumbs up to. The Indigenous then presented him with gifts, including snow shoes.
The head of the Metis, Cassidy Caron, presented Francis with a bound book of their people’s stories: Much of what the Indigenous sought to accomplish during their meetings this week was to tell Francis the individual stories of loss and abuse that they suffered.
The Canadian government has admitted that physical and sexual abuse was rampant at the schools, with students beaten for speaking their native languages. That legacy of that abuse and isolation from family has been cited by Indigenous leaders as a root cause of the epidemic rates of alcohol and drug addiction on Canadian reservations.
Nearly three-quarters of the 130 residential schools were run by Catholic missionary congregations.
Last May, the Tk’emlups te Secwepemc Nation announced the discovery of 215 gravesites near Kamloops, British Columbia, that were found using ground-penetrating radar. It was Canada’s largest Indigenous residential school and the discovery of the graves was the first of numerous, similar grim sites across the country.
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/texas-caseworkers-after-abbotts-order-investigations-into-transgender-kids-parents-given-priority/
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Texas caseworkers: After Abbott’s order, investigations into transgender kids’ parents given priority
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — When Texas Gov. Greg Abbott put in motion abuse investigations into the parents of some transgender kids, child welfare supervisor Randa Mulanax said what happened next strayed from normal protocols.
There was unusual secrecy, with texts and emails discouraged. Allegations about trans kids received elevated status. In Texas, fewer than three in 10 child welfare investigations end with findings that harm likely occurred — classified as “reason to believe” — but the changes looked to Mulanax like these cases would be predetermined from the start.
“It was my understanding that they wanted to be found ‘reason to believe,’” Mulanax told The Associated Press in her first interview since leaving the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services, where she worked for six years until quitting last month. “That’s why we were having to figure out a way to staff it up and see how we go about it, since it doesn’t match our policy right now.”
As early as Friday, the Texas Supreme Court could decide whether the state can resume at least nine investigations into the parents of transgender children. They are the first to fall on the radar of child welfare authorities since Texas’ Republican governor in February directed the state to begin handling reports of gender-confirming care for kids as child abuse — the first such order issued in the U.S.
The court fight in Texas comes as Republicans across the country are leaning into policies aimed at transgender Americans, most prominently through bans on transgender athletes on girls sports teams. But Texas is the only state where a GOP governor has greenlighted abuse cases against the parents of transgender children, which several current and departing Texas child welfare workers say was rushed into action and has sunk already low morale at their troubled state agency even deeper.
It is unclear how many Texas child welfare investigators — who are tasked with carrying out Abbott’s directive — have quit in protest. Mulanax is one of at least two state Child Protective Services workers who are leaving and added their names this week to a court brief that urged Texas’ justices to keep the investigations sidelined. Five other investigators who remain at the agency also signed on.
Abbott’s instructions to Texas child welfare officials takes aim at treatments for children that include puberty blockers and hormone therapy.
Patrick Crimmins, spokesman for the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services, declined comment Thursday, citing the ongoing lawsuit.
“We’re being so closely monitored on those type of cases that you wouldn’t be able to just say, ‘Oh, nothing to see,’” said Shelby McCowen, a child welfare investigator who called the directive the ‘last straw’ and is quitting after less than a year at the agency.
Texas completed more than 157,000 child welfare investigations in the last fiscal year, according to state data. McCowen said the cases involving parents of transgender families were drawing the same attention as child death investigations, and like Mulanax, said instructions were given not to discuss the cases through state emails or phones — only on personal devices, or face-to-face.
The cases were to be referred to as “special assignments” rather than using a case name or number, according to McCowen. She said upper managers told investigators a survey would be sent out internally to address questions about the directive, but none ever arrived.
“I don’t know how many times they go into the cases, but we’re told that if we get one of these cases, the documentation has to be almost instant because it’s being monitored,” she said.
Abbott’s directive goes against the nation’s largest medical groups, including the American Medical Association, which have opposed Republican-backed restrictions filed in statehouses nationwide. On Thursday, President Joe Biden marked Transgender Day of Visibility by denouncing such legislation, saying “the onslaught of anti-transgender state laws attacking you and your families is simply wrong.”
In pressing that the investigations in Texas be allowed to continue, Republican Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s office wrote that “if DFPS cannot investigate possible child abuse, children may be harmed — perhaps irreversibly — in the interim.”
Mulanax said if the investigations were to resume, she considers it unlikely that any children would be removed from their homes around Texas’ biggest cities, which are controlled by Democrats and where some county officials have already said they would reject such cases.
But in the event of a finding of harm, Mulanax said, putting in place what are usually other safety plans don’t make sense to her either. She said those options typically include required parental supervision or services such as therapy, which Mulanax said some of the families might already be doing.
“It was just a complete betrayal of the department,” she said.
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/delta-pilots-land-jet-safely-after-cockpit-windshield-cracks/
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Delta pilots land jet safely after cockpit windshield cracks
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah (AP) — The pilots on a Delta Air Lines flight from Salt Lake City to Washington, D.C. decided to bring their jet down in Denver after the cockpit windshield shattered above 30,000 feet. The crew repeatedly told passengers to remain calm until they landed.
“They came on the loudspeaker saying that the windshield had shattered, and we were diverting to Denver in about 10 minutes,” Rachel Wright, one of the 198 passengers on the plane, told KUTV.
A photo of the windshield taken by a passenger shows the glass, though lined with cracks, didn’t fall from its frame. Commercial airline pilots said jetliner windshields can be two inches thick, with several layered panes of glass, the station reported.
The crew announced the diversion about 90 minutes into the flight, after the plane reached cruising altitude, which is above 30,000 feet, passengers said.
“They kept coming on saying for everyone to stay calm, to be calm, and we were calm so being told to stay calm while we were calm made us feel a little panicky,” Wright said.
Passengers were able to see the shattered glass once they landed in Denver.
“I’m really good at playing whatif? And so, my mind goes to kind of what could have happened, worst case scenario and I’m grateful,” Wright said. “It could have been really bad, it could have gone very differently.”
Another passenger, Kirk Knowlton, snapped a picture and tweeted that the crew had announced that the windscreen appeared to crack spontaneously.
Delta gave a statement to KUTV calling it “a maintenance issue mid-flight.”
“Out of an abundance of caution, the flight crew diverted into Denver and the plane landed routinely. Our team worked quickly to accommodate customers on a new plane, and we sincerely apologize for the delay and inconvenience to their travel plans,” the airline statement said.
Passengers boarded a new plane in Denver and continued on to Washington. Wright praised Delta for bringing the jet down safely, and said the airline was very accommodating.
“I’ve never been more grateful to spend an extra three hours in an airport,” Wright said.
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/ford-recalls-737k-vehicles-fix-oil-leaks-trailer-brakes/
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Ford recalls 737K vehicles to fix oil leaks, trailer brakes
Published: Apr. 1, 2022 at 8:39 AM EDT|Updated: 7 minutes ago
DETROIT (AP) — Ford is issuing two recalls covering over 737,000 vehicles to fix oil leaks and trailer braking systems that won’t work.
The oil leak recall includes the 2020 through 2022 Ford Escape SUV and the 2021 and 2022 Bronco Sport SUV with 1.5-Liter engines.
A housing can crack and oil can leak onto engine parts, possibly causing fires.
The trailer brake recall includes F-150 pickups from 2021 and 2022, as well as the 2022 F-250, 350, 450 and 550.
Also covered are the 2022 Maverick pickup, Ford Expedition and Lincoln Navigator SUVs.
A software error can stop trailers from braking.
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/gm-recalls-nearly-682000-suvs-windshield-wipers-can-fail/
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GM recalls nearly 682,000 SUVs; windshield wipers can fail
Published: Apr. 1, 2022 at 8:04 AM EDT|Updated: 42 minutes ago
DETROIT (AP) — General Motors is recalling nearly 682,000 small SUVs because the windshield wipers can fail.
The recall covers the Chevrolet Equinox and GMC Terrain from the 2014 and 2015 model years.
Ball joints in the wiper module can rust, causing one or both wipers to fail, increasing the risk of a crash.
Dealers will inspect the module and repair or replace it. Owners will be notified by letter starting May 2.
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/parents-ashes-personal-belongings-sold-auction-after-movers-fail-deliver-mans-things/
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Parents’ ashes, personal belongings sold at auction after movers fail to deliver man’s things
WILMINGTON, N.C. (WECT/Gray News) – A man who had been living in Oregon for 25 years decided to move across the country to be closer to family during the pandemic.
Dan Zimmerman landed a physician’s assistant position in Wilmington, packed up everything he owned and started looking for a company to help him with his move in October.
Dismayed by the initial estimates he received, Zimmerman started selling everything he could, deciding only to keep sentimental and high-value items with which he couldn’t part.
By that point, he only had a week before he was supposed to be in Wilmington to start his new job.
He ended up choosing what he thought was Mayflower Transit, one of the most trusted names in the business. Eventually, he learned that was not the case, and he had actually hired another company with a copycat name – Mayflower Relocation Services.
“They scheduled it, I paid them $1,300 with instructions that I’d pay them three payments: $1,300 at the signing of the contract, $1,300 when they come up and pick up my stuff, and another $1,300 when they finally delivered my belongings,” Zimmerman told WECT.
Zimmerman arranged for the company to store his belongings at a storage facility in North Carolina while he tried to find a house.
By December, Zimmerman had purchased a home and called the moving company to schedule delivery, but that’s when he says the excuses started.
First, he was told the mover was having trouble with his truck. Then, the mover had come down with COVID-19 and would be out for two weeks.
Zimmerman said the company stopped talking to him altogether and wouldn’t answer his calls.
Eventually, he received a text saying his things were in a storage unit in Charlotte, but they wouldn’t disclose the address.
Upon further research, he learned Mayflower Relocation Services was not a full-service moving company, but a broker that has an “F” rating with the Better Business Bureau.
They have more than a dozen complaints against them on file, including some from consumers like Zimmerman who said they never received their belongings.
After countless phone calls, Zimmerman learned his move was contracted out to Efficient Moving and Storage, who informed him his things had been in a storage unit in Idaho but were sold in an auction.
“I called and sure enough, somebody had told them that I would be calling them looking for my belongings. And she said, ‘I’m so sorry, but your belongings have been auctioned.’ And sent me pictures. And it just ended my life. I mean, literally, it was unreal,” Zimmerman said of realizing everything he owned had been sold to a stranger without his knowledge.
Not only did his belongings include expensive sporting equipment, antique clocks his father made and a guitar worth over $30,000, but also his deceased parents’ ashes, jewelry and all his family photo albums.
With the help of a warrant obtained by the Eugene, Oregon, Police Department, authorities were able to make contact with the people who’d purchased Zimmerman’s belongings on StorageTreasures.com in mid-February for just under $5,000.
Central Self Storage in Idaho put the contents of the unit up for sale when the person who’d rented it failed to pay the storage bill.
The buyers had already thrown away many of Zimmerman’s pictures and personal effects by the time authorities contacted them.
They offered to mail Zimmerman the remaining photo albums they found, but they had not found his parents’ ashes.
The new owners declined to return any other valuables, saying they were trying to recover the money spent purchasing the contents of the storage unit.
Zimmerman said he remains devastated over the loss and disappointed that there is not a better system in place to police unscrupulous movers.
“I thought I was safe. I already had all my belongings packed. … All they had to do is come pick it up and then deliver it. I never ever, ever perceived that I would lose my entire family history, gone, everything,” Zimmerman said.
In addition to the complaints on file against Mayflower Relocation Services with the Better Business Bureau, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration lists dozens of complaints filed against the company.
Copyright 2022 WECT via Gray Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/more-than-7000-complaints-moving-scams-reported-2021-here-are-red-flags-look/
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More than 7,000 complaints of moving scams reported in 2021; here are red flags to look for
WILMINGTON, N.C. (WECT/Gray News) – More than 7,000 complaints about moving scams were reported to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration in the past year.
That number has significantly increased since the start of the pandemic, WECT reports.
The FMCSA is a civil agency that administers commercial regulations governing the interstate transportation of household goods.
Because moving is often a stressful experience, and something people might not do very often, consumers can be vulnerable to making mistakes hiring a mover that can have significant consequences.
The FMCSA provides resources to help people planning a move find a reputable moving company.
It is important to have everything in writing and to understand if you are in contact with a broker or a moving company. Oftentimes moving scams start with an unscrupulous broker.
“It underscores the need to do research. What scammers do is they will use a name very similar to another company that is familiar to you and me, and they try to prey on our sense of trust,” said N.C. Attorney General Josh Stein. “We urge people to do research and make sure that the company is legit, make sure that there aren’t a lot of complaints about them. Because you don’t want to hand over your life’s possessions to some scam artist.”
Tips When Choosing a Moving Company:
- Contact various reputable, long-standing moving companies to compare estimates and get a foundation of what the legitimate cost of your move will be.
- Ask the moving company if they will be conducting the move or if it is being brokered for fulfillment by another company.
- Keep all records of contracts, proof of payments, and communication with the moving company.
- Carefully examine the reviews on various online business rating websites to ensure they contain more than just recent glowing reviews.
- Use online street-view and satellite maps to research the moving company’s address to verify that the address is a business and not a residence.
If there are an extraordinary number of complaints about an individual company they are referred to the Department of Transportation’s Office of Inspector General (OIG) for possible federal prosecution.
Report Fraud
Contact FMCSA’s National Consumer Complaint Database online or toll-free at: 1-888-368-7238 to file a complaint against a household goods moving company, broker or other carrier.
You can also report an allegation of household goods fraud to the OIG’s Fraud Hotline using any of the following methods:
- Online OIG Hotline Complaint Form
- Call 1-800-424-9071 (toll free).
- E-mail to hotline@oig.dot.gov
- Mail to: DOT Inspector General, 1200 New Jersey Ave SE, West Bldg 7th Floor, Washington, DC 20590
Copyright 2022 WECT via Gray Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/new-vehicles-must-average-40-mpg-by-2026-under-us-standards/
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New vehicles must average 40 mpg by 2026 under US standards
DETROIT (AP) — New vehicles sold in the United States will have to travel an average of at least 40 miles per gallon of gasoline in 2026 under new rules unveiled Friday by the government.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said its fuel economy requirements will undo a rollback of standards enacted under President Donald Trump. The new requirements increase gas mileage by 8% per year for model years 2024 and 2025 and 10% in the 2026 model year.
For the current model year, standards enacted under Trump require the fleet of new vehicles to get just over 24 miles per gallon in real-world driving.
Agency officials say the requirements are the maximum that the industry can achieve over the time period and will reduce gasoline consumption by more than 220 billion gallons over the life of vehicles, compared with the Trump standards.
Trump’s administration rolled back fuel economy requirements so they rose 1.5% per year, which environmental groups said was inadequate to limit planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions that fuel climate change.
But the new standards won’t immediately match those adopted through 2025 under President Barack Obama. NHTSA officials said they will equal the Obama standards by 2025 and slightly exceed them for the 2026 model year.
The Obama-era standards automatically adjusted for changes in the type of vehicles people are buying. When they were enacted in 2012, 51% of new vehicle sales were cars and 49% SUVs and trucks. Last year, 77% of new vehicle sales were SUVs and trucks, which generally are less efficient than cars.
Some environmental groups said the new requirements from NHTSA under President Joe Biden don’t go far enough to fight global warming.
“Climate change has gotten much worse, but these rules only require automakers to reduce gas-guzzling slightly more than they agreed to cut nine years ago,” said Dan Becker, director of the Safe Climate Transport Center at the Center for Biological Diversity.
He said the final rule is about 2 mpg short of the strongest alternative that NHTSA considered.
Officials said that under the new standards, owners would save about $1,400 in gasoline costs during the lifetime of a 2029 model year vehicle. Carbon dioxide emissions would drop by 2.5 billion metric tons by 2050 under the standards, the NHTSA said.
The agency did not give figures for how much the standards would increase the cost of vehicles. Auto dealers say more stringent requirements drive up prices and push people out of an already expensive new-car market.
The NHTSA sets fuel economy requirements, while the Environmental Protection Agency develops limits on greenhouse gas emissions. NHTSA officials said their requirements nearly match rules adopted in December by the EPA, so automakers don’t have to comply with two rules.
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/woman-says-naked-intruder-got-bed-with-her/
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Woman says naked intruder got in bed with her
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WJAR) - A woman is speaking out after a terrifying home invasion caught on camera.
Surveillance video shows a naked man opening Krista Brown’s front door Monday afternoon and walking in. She said the man then got into her bed while she was sleeping and tried to cuddle with her.
“This is one of the craziest things I have ever experienced,” she said.
After working the overnight shift, Krista Brown said she was taking a nap Monday afternoon when it happened.
Home surveillance footage captured the man going into her bedroom where she was sleeping.
“As soon as I saw it was not my boyfriend, I screamed and jumped and ran out of the house,” Krista Brown said.
She said her family was doing chores at the time and that the man opened the front door when her son was taking out the trash.
The police report identifies the naked man as Jason Kendrick and said upon leaving the first-floor home, he went up to the building’s third floor where her brother Justin lives.
“I kind of heard a couple big thuds, so I went to my door to answer it, and well, there was a naked man standing in front of my door. He seemed lost. He seemed scared,” Justin Brown said.
Krista Brown said Kendrick re-entered her home four or five more times before she and her family eventually got him to leave.
Providence police said they arrested Kendrick at the house next door, where they said he lives. He faces a breaking and entering charge.
“That doesn’t go away. It’s something I now have to be fearful for,” Krista Brown said.
Court records show the suspect is no stranger to the law, having been arrested more than 20 times on charges, including vandalism, assault and battery and disorderly conduct.
“It’s actually very scary,” Justin Brown said.
Krista Brown said the incident has her second-guessing leaving the house.
“I don’t want it to affect my work. I don’t want it to affect how my kids go outside and play, but yeah, I am …” she said.
Brown said she is looking to install an alarm system inside of her home.
She said her family has been keeping a closer eye on things since the incident, and she says she does not plan to move out of her family home.
Copyright 2022 WJAR via CNN Newsource. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/bridge-east-manchester-clay-county-be-closed-starting-april-11/
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Bridge to East Manchester in Clay County to be closed starting April 11
Published: Apr. 1, 2022 at 11:23 AM EDT|Updated: 26 minutes ago
CLAY COUNTY, Ky. (WYMT) - The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) said KY 2438 (Bridge to East Manchester) will be closed starting April 11 for repairs.
The closing will be from mile point 0 to 0.063. KYTC officials said they expect the bridge to reopen on May 2.
A release from KYTC said traffic will be rerouted temporarily on U.S. 421, KY 3473 and KY 2432, and there will be signs in place to show the detour.
KYTC officials said drivers should be aware of the work zone and to expect delays.
Copyright 2022 WYMT. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/gov-andy-beshear-orders-flags-half-staff-honor-ky-marine/
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Gov. Andy Beshear orders flags to half-staff in honor of KY Marine.
Published: Apr. 1, 2022 at 11:21 AM EDT|Updated: 29 minutes ago
FRANKFORT, Ky. (WYMT) - On Friday, Governor Andy Beshear ordered all flags at state buildings to be lowered to half-staff to honor a Kentucky Marine who died in a NATO exercise.
The flags will be lowered in memory of Cpl. Jacob M. Moore, 24, of Catlettsburg, who died in an aircraft crash in March, according to the Department of Defense.
Services for Cpl. Moore will be held at Boyd County High School in Ashland on Monday. Interment will be at the Kentucky Veterans Cemetery North East in nearby Greenup County.
Copyright 2022 WYMT. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/oldest-us-active-park-ranger-retires-100/
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Oldest U.S. active park ranger retires at 100
RICHMOND, Calif. (AP) — The nation’s oldest active park ranger is hanging up her Smokey hat at the age of 100.
Betty Reid Soskin retired Thursday after more than 15 years at the Rosie the Riveter/WWII Home Front National Historical Park in Richmond, California, the National Park Service announced.
Soskin “spent her last day providing an interpretive program to the public and visiting with coworkers,” a Park Service statement said.
She led tours at the park and museum honoring the women who worked in factories during wartime and shared her own experience as a Black woman during the conflict. She worked for the U.S. Air Force in 1942 but quit after learning that “she was employed only because her superiors believed she was white,” according to a Park Service biography.
“Being a primary source in the sharing of that history – my history – and giving shape to a new national park has been exciting and fulfilling,” Soskin said in the Park Service statement. “It has proven to bring meaning to my final years.”
Soskin won a temporary Park Service position at the age of 84 and became a permanent Park Service employee in 2011. She celebrated her 100th birthday last September.
“Betty has made a profound impact on the National Park Service and the way we carry out our mission,” Director Chuck Sams said. “Her efforts remind us that we must seek out and give space for all perspectives so that we can tell a more full and inclusive history of our nation.”
Soskin was born Betty Charbonnet in Detroit in 1921 but recalled surviving the devastating Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 while living with her Creole family in New Orleans, according to the Park Service biography.
Her family then moved to Oakland, California, and Soskin remained in the San Francisco Bay Area, where in 1945 she and her first husband founded one of the first Black-owned record stores in the area, the biography said.
She also was a civil rights activist and took part in meetings to develop a general management plan for the Home Front park. She has received several honors.
She was named California Woman of the Year in 1995.
In 2015, Soskin received a presidential coin from President Barack Obama after she lit the National Christmas tree at the White House.
In June 2016, she was awakened in her home by a robber who punched her repeatedly in the face, dragged her out of her bedroom and beat her before making off with the coin and other items. Soskin, then 94, recovered and returned to work just weeks after the attack. The coin was replaced.
Soskin also was honored with entry into the Congressional Record. Glamour Magazine named her woman of the year in 2018.
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/us-sanctions-north-korea-firms-over-recent-missile-tests/
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US sanctions North Korea firms over recent missile tests
WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. imposed sanctions on five North Korean entities Friday in response to two ballistic missile tests the reclusive Asian country conducted in February and March.
The March launch was North Korea’s most provocative weapons test since President Joe Biden took office.
Authorized under an existing executive order targeting producers and supporters of weapons of mass destruction, the sanctions come after Japan issued its own penalties this week on four groups and nine individuals tied to missile development.
The U.S. government determined that the launches involved a new intercontinental ballistic missile which could be used in the future, potentially disguised as a space launch.
The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control said Friday’s sanctions target the firms for providing support to North Korea’s “development of weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile programs, in violation of multiple United Nations Security Council resolutions.”
Sanctioned entities include the Ministry of Rocket Industry, the Hapjanggang Trading Corporation, Korea Rounsan Trading Corp., Sungnisan Trading Corp., and Unchon Trading Corp.
“The DPRK’s provocative ballistic missile tests represent a clear threat to regional and global security and are in blatant violation of UN Security Council resolutions,” Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said in a statement.
DPRK is an acronym for the country’s formal name, the Democratic People’s Republic of North Korea
“The United States is committed to using our sanctions authorities to respond to the DPRK’s continued development of weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missiles,” she said.
“I also commend Japan for their actions today against the DPRK, and stand ready to continue to work together to counter the DPRK’s continued threatening behavior.”
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/amazon-workers-nyc-vote-unionize-first-company/
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Amazon workers in NYC vote to unionize, a first for company
NEW YORK (AP) — Amazon workers in Staten Island, New York, voted to unionize on Friday, marking the first successful U.S. organizing effort in the retail giant’s history and handing an unexpected win to a nascent group that fueled the union drive.
Warehouse workers cast 2,654 votes in favor of a union, giving the fledgling Amazon Labor Union enough support to pull off a victory. According to the National Labor Relations Board, which is overseeing the process, 2,131 workers rejected the union bid.
The 67 ballots that were challenged by either Amazon or the ALU were not enough to sway the outcome. About 57% of the more than 8,300 workers on the voter list cast their ballots.
Federal labor officials said the results of the count won’t be verified until they process any objections that both parties may file. Any objections are due by April 8.
The victory was an uphill battle for the independent group, made up of former and current workers who lacked official backing from an established union and were out-gunned by the deep-pocketed retail giant. Despite obstacles, organizers believed their grassroots approach was more relatable to workers and could help them overcome where established unions have failed in the past.
Tristan Dutchin, who began working for the online retailer about a year ago, is hopeful that the new union will improve working conditions at his workplace.
“I’m excited that we’re making history,” Dutchin said. “We’re about to unionize a multibillion, trillion-dollar company. This will be a fantastic time for workers to be surrounded in a better, safer working environment.”
Chris Smalls, a fired Amazon employee who has been leading the ALU in its fight on Staten Island, bounded out the NLRB building in Brooklyn on Friday with other union organizers, pumping their fists and jumping, chanting “ALU.” They uncorked a bottle of Champagne.
Meanwhile, Amazon workers in Bessemer, Alabama, appear to have rejected a union bid but outstanding challenged ballots could change the outcome. The votes were 993-to-875 against the union. A hearing to review 416 challenged ballots is expected to begin in the next few days.
The union campaigns come at a time of widespread labor unrest at many corporations. Workers at more than 140 Starbucks locations around the country, for instance, have requested union elections and several of them have already been successful.
John Logan, director of labor and employment studies at San Francisco State University, said the early vote counts in New York have been “shocking.” The nascent Amazon Labor Union, which is leading the charge on Staten Island, has no backing from an established union and is powered by former and current warehouse workers.
“I don’t think that many people thought that the Amazon Labor Union had much of a chance of winning at all,” Logan said. “And I think we’re likely to see more of those (approaches) going forward.”
After a crushing defeat last year in Bessemer, when a majority of workers voted against forming a union, the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union got a second chance to organize another campaign when the NLRB ordered a do-over after determining that Amazon tainted the first election.
Though RWDSU is currently lagging in the latest election, Logan said the early results were still remarkable because the union has made a good effort narrowing its margin from last year.
Amazon has pushed back hard in the lead-up to both elections. The retail giant held mandatory meetings, where workers were told unions are a bad idea. The company also launched an anti-union website targeting workers and placed English and Spanish posters across the Staten Island facility urging them to reject the union. In Bessemer, Amazon has made some changes to but still kept a controversial U.S. Postal Service mailbox that was key in the NLRB’s decision to invalidate last year’s vote.
In a filing released on Thursday, Amazon disclosed it spent about $4.2 million last year on labor consultants, which organizers say the retailer routinely solicits to persuade workers not to unionize. It’s unclear how much it spent on such services in 2022.
Both labor fights faced unique challenges. Alabama, for instance, is a right-to-work state that prohibits a company and a union from signing a contract that requires workers to pay dues to the union that represents them.
The union landscape in Alabama is also starkly different from New York. Last year, union members accounted for 22.2% of wage and salary workers in New York, ranked only behind Hawaii, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. That’s more than double the national average of 10.3%. In Alabama, it’s 5.9%.
The mostly Black workforce at the Amazon facility, which opened in 2020, mirrors the Bessemer population of more than 70% Black residents, according to the latest U.S. Census data.
Pro-union workers say they want better working conditions, longer breaks and higher wages. Regular full-time employees at the Bessemer facility earn at least $15.80 an hour, higher than the estimated $14.55 per hour on average in the city. That figure is based on an analysis of the U.S. Census Bureau’s annual median household income for Bessemer of $30,284, which could include more than one worker.
The ALU said they don’t have a demographic breakdown of the warehouse workers on Staten Island and Amazon declined to provide the information to The Associated Press, citing the union vote. Internal records leaked to The New York Times from 2019 showed more than 60% of the hourly associates at the facility were Black or Latino, while most of managers were white or Asian.
Amazon workers there are seeking longer breaks, paid time off for injured employees and an hourly wage of $30, up from a minimum of just over $18 per hour offered by the company. The estimated average wage for the borough is $41 per hour, according to a similar U.S. Census Bureau analysis of Staten Island’s $85,381 median household income.
A spokesperson for Amazon said the company invests in wages and benefits, such as health care, 401(k) plans and a prepaid college tuition program to help grow workers’ careers.
“As a company, we don’t think unions are the best answer for our employees,” the spokesperson said in an emailed statement. “Our focus remains on working directly with our team to continue making Amazon a great place to work.”
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Associated Press staff writers Tali Arbel and Bobby Caina Calvan in New York contributed to this report.
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/covid-19-asylum-limits-us-mexico-border-end-may-23/
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COVID-19 asylum limits at US-Mexico border to end May 23
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced Friday that it is ending a policy that limited asylum at the U.S.-Mexico border to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
The use of public health powers had been widely criticized by Democrats and immigration advocates as an excuse for the United States to shirk its obligations to provide haven to people fleeing persecution. The policy went into effect under President Donald Trump in March 2020. Since then, migrants trying to enter the U.S. have been expelled more than 1.7 million times.
The policy, known as the Title 42 authority, named for a 1944 public health law to prevent communicable disease, will end on paper, but it will not take effect until May 23, to allow border officials time to prepare. The Associated Press first reported the change earlier this week.
The policy was increasingly hard to justify scientifically as restrictions ended across the U.S.
The federal order says efforts by the Department of Homeland Security to provide vaccines to migrants at the border will step up in the next two months.
“After considering current public health conditions and an increased availability of tools to fight COVID-19 (such as highly effective vaccines and therapeutics), the CDC director has determined that an order suspending the right to introduce migrants into the United States is no longer necessary,” the CDC said in a statement.
The decision is expected to draw more migrants to the U.S.-Mexico border. Even before it was officially announced, more than a dozen migrants excitedly ran out of their dormitory at the Good Samaritan shelter in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, asking about it.
DHS said this week that about 7,100 migrants were coming daily, compared with an average of about 5,900 a day in February — on pace to match or exceed highs from last year, 2019 and other peak periods. But border officials said they are planning for as many as 18,000 arrivals daily, and that seems certain to cause challenges for border-region Democrats in tight reelection races — with some warning that the Biden administration is unprepared to handle the situation.
Homeland Security said it created a Southwest Border Coordinating Center to respond to any sharp increases, with MaryAnn Tierney, a regional director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, as interim leader and a Border Patrol official as deputy.
Officials also are working on additional ground and air transportation options and tents to house the expected influx, and the Border Patrol has already hired on civilians.
Instead of conducting patrols and uncovering smuggling activity, its agents spend about 40% of their time caring for people already in custody and administrative tasks that are unrelated to border security.
The agency hoped to free up agents to go back into the field by hiring civilians for jobs such as making sure that microwaved burritos are served properly, checking holding cells and the time-consuming work of collecting information for immigration court papers.
Still, administration officials acknowledged the fixes are only temporary measures.
“The Biden-Harris administration is committed to pursuing every avenue within our authority to secure our borders, enforce our laws, and stay true to our values,” said Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. “Yet a long-term solution can only come from comprehensive legislation that brings lasting reform to a fundamentally broken system.”
The limits went into place in March 2020 under the Trump administration as coronavirus cases soared. While officials said at the time that it was a way to keep COVID-19 out of the United States, there always has been criticism that the restrictions were used as an excuse to seal the border to migrants unwanted by then-President Donald Trump. It was perhaps the broadest of Trump’s actions to restrict crossings and crack down on migrants.
CDC officials lifted part of the order last month, ending the limits for children traveling to the border alone. In August, U.S. border authorities began testing children traveling alone in their busiest areas: Positives fell to 6% in the first week of March from a high of nearly 20% in early February.
Asylum limits have been applied unevenly by nationality, depending largely on costs and diplomatic relations with home countries. Many migrants have been spared from Cuba, Venezuela, Nicaragua and, more recently, Ukraine. Homeland Security officials wrote border authorities this month that Ukrainians may be exempt, saying Russia’s invasion “created a humanitarian crisis.”
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/explainer-will-trump-or-associates-be-charged-jan-6-house-committee-suggests-crimes/
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EXPLAINER: Will Trump or associates be charged for Jan. 6? House committee suggests crimes
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate acquitted former President Donald Trump last year of inciting the Capitol insurrection. But neither Trump nor any of his top advisers have faced charges over the attack in a court of law, and it’s uncertain if they ever will.
But increasingly, lawmakers on the House committee investigating the Jan. 6 assault are pressing Attorney General Merrick Garland to investigate Trump and his associates. They’ve been laying out possible crimes in at least one court filing and openly discussing others, all related to that day’s violent attack by Trump supporters looking to disrupt Congress’ formal certification of his reelection defeat.
Here’s a look at some of the suggested crimes floated by the House panel:
CRIMINAL CONSPIRACY TO DEFRAUD THE UNITED STATES
After floating possible crimes for several months, lawmakers on the panel put it on paper for the first time in a March court filing. The filing was in response to a lawsuit from John Eastman, a lawyer and law professor who was consulting with Trump while attempting to overturn the election and who tried to withhold documents from the committee.
The committee argued that it has evidence supporting the idea that Trump, Eastman and other allies of the former president “entered into an agreement to defraud the United States.” The panel says Trump and his allies interfered with the election certification process, disseminated misinformation about election fraud and pressured state and federal officials to assist in that effort.
OBSTRUCTION OF AN OFFICIAL PROCEEDING
Late last month, U.S. District Court Judge David Carter appeared somewhat swayed by the panel’s arguments. In ordering Eastman to turn over the materials, Carter wrote that the court “finds it more likely than not that President Trump corruptly attempted to obstruct the Joint Session of Congress on January 6, 2021.”
In the filing, the committee argued that Trump either attempted or succeeded at obstructing, influencing, or impeding the ceremonial process on Jan. 6 and “did so corruptly” by pressuring Vice President Mike Pence to overturn the results as he presided over the session. Pence declined to do so.
“President Trump and members of his campaign knew he had not won enough legitimate state electoral votes to be declared the winner of the 2020 Presidential election during the January 6 Joint Session of Congress, but the President nevertheless sought to use the Vice President to manipulate the results in his favor,” the committee wrote.
COMMON LAW FRAUD
The committee has also floated a charge of “common law fraud,” or falsely representing facts with the knowledge that they are false. Trump embarked on a wide-scale campaign to convince the public and federal judges that the 2020 election was fraudulent and that he, not Biden, won the Electoral College tally. Election officials and courts across the country, along with Trump’s attorney general, rejected those claims.
As an example of such fraud, the committee noted in the Eastman filing that a Justice Department official told Trump directly that a Facebook video posted by his campaign “purporting to show Georgia officials pulling suitcases of ballots from under a table” was false, yet the campaign continued to run it. Georgia officials also repeatedly denied the claim.
“The president continued to rely on this allegation in his efforts to overturn the results of the election,” the committee said.
DERELICTION OF DUTY
Though they didn’t lay it out in the Eastman filing, leaders of the House panel suggested earlier this year that they believe Trump could also be liable for “dereliction of duty,” or inaction as his supporters violently broke the windows and doors of the U.S. Capitol.
Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., the committee chairman, said in January that “the harm that I see is the president of the United States seeing the Capitol of the United States under siege by people he sent to the Capitol and did nothing during that time.”
The committee’s vice chairwoman, Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyoming, noted that same month that the panel knows from “firsthand testimony” that Trump watched the attack happen on television. “We know that he did not walk the very few steps to the White House briefing room, get on camera immediately, and tell the people to stop and go home,” she said.
Cheney said it was hard “imagine a more significant and more serious dereliction of duty” than Trump’s failure to quell the insurrection.
FINANCIAL CRIMES
While the committee hasn’t floated specifics, it has created an internal task force to investigate financing for the massive rally on the National Mall the morning of Jan. 6 and any donors who might have backed transportation or other costs that could have helped foster the violence.
Asked earlier this year on CNN if they have any evidence of financial fraud, Thompson said members of the committee “have some concerns, but we have not made those concerns public at this point.”
“We do think it’s highly concerning on our part that people raised monies for one activity, and we can’t find the money being spent for that particular activity,” Thompson said. “So, we will continue to look at it. And the financing is one of those things that we will continue to look at very closely.”
UNCERTAINTY AHEAD
More than 775 rioters have been arrested for crimes related to the insurrection. Yet legal consequences have been elusive for Trump and the other top officials who told lies about election fraud and laid the groundwork for their actions.
Congress has no authority to prosecute, but can send so-called criminal referrals to the Justice Department. Garland can then decide whether to act.
Justice Department action would be far from guaranteed. And it’s uncertain whether any charges against the oft-investigated president would hold up in court. It could be difficult for prosecutors to craft a winning case against Trump.
The president urged on his massive crowd of supporters that morning and returned to the White House and watched them break into the Capitol on television. The rioters beat police, sent lawmakers running and interrupted the certification of President Joe Biden’s victory.
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/fbi-joins-search-florida-mom-missing-since-sunday/
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FBI joins search for Florida mom missing since Sunday
PENSACOLA, Fla. (Gray News) – The FBI has now joined the search for a mom in Florida who has been missing since Sunday night.
Santa Rosa County Sheriff Bob Johnson said in a press conference Thursday afternoon that Cassie Carli, 37, was last seen on Navarre Beach in Pensacola on Sunday evening near a restaurant called Juana’s Pagodas.
Johnson said that Carli was at the restaurant to meet with Marcus Spanevelo, the father of her 4-year-old daughter, Saylor, to “do a child exchange.”
Carli’s father reported her missing the following day.
On Tuesday, police located Carli’s vehicle behind the restaurant with her purse still inside the car. Her purse being left behind is a cause for concern, Johnson said.
Spanevelo was located in Birmingham, Alabama, on Wednesday with Saylor. He was interviewed by investigators, and Saylor was taken into the custody of Alabama Protective Services, Johnson said.
“The way she has gone missing concerns us greatly,” Johnson said.
Johnson said detectives plan to speak more with Spanevelo, as he was the last known person to see Carli.
Carli is 5′5″ and approximately 150 pounds with blonde hair.
Anyone with information is asked to contact the Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office at 850-983-1190.
Copyright 2022 Gray Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/ksp-investigating-fatal-crash-pulaski-county/
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KSP investigating fatal crash in Pulaski County
SOMERSET, Ky. (WYMT) - Kentucky State Police, Post 11 in London got a call from Pulaski County 911 about a fatal crash on Thursday night.
In a release Friday morning, troopers said a car crashed during a chase on Garner School Road.
Troopers said when they arrived on scene, they determined a car driven by Timothy S. McCulley, 36, from London, was trying to get away from the Wayne County Sheriff’s Office after a theft in Monticello.
They said the initial investigation found that McCulley had gone through the intersection of KY 914 and KY 80 at high speed and lost control, leading to him running into a rock embankment.
The release said McCulley was not wearing a seatbelt when he hit the wall and was pronounced dead on the scene by the Pulaski County Coroner.
KSP officials also said there were two passengers in the car with McCulley who were taken to medical centers to treat their injuries.
McCulley’s body was taken to the State Medical Examiner’s Office for an autopsy.
The investigation is still ongoing.
Copyright 2022 WYMT. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/man-who-parked-weapons-near-capitol-16-gets-nearly-4-years-prison/
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Man who parked weapons near Capitol on 1/6 gets nearly 4 years in prison
(AP) - An Alabama man who parked a pickup truck filled with weapons and Molotov cocktail components near the U.S. Capitol on the day of last year’s riot was sentenced Friday to nearly four years in prison.
U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly said she still hasn’t heard an explanation for why Lonnie Leroy Coffman had “almost a small armory in his truck, ready to do battle.” She sentenced Coffman to three years and 10 months in prison, giving him credit for the more than one year he already has served since his arrest.
Coffman, 72, of Falkville, Alabama, said he never intended to hurt anybody or destroy any property. He said he drove to Washington alone “to try to discover just how true and secure was the (2020 presidential) election.”
“If I had any idea that things would turn out like they did, I would have stayed home,” he wrote in a handwritten letter to the judge.
More than 770 people have been charged with federal crimes related to the Capitol riot, when supporters of outgoing President Donald Trump stormed the building in an effort to disrupt lawmakers’ formal certification of his reelection defeat. Five people died and scores of Capitol Police officers were seriously injured.
Over 240 participants in the attack have pleaded guilty, mostly to misdemeanors punishable by a maximum of six months imprisonment. More than 130 have been sentenced. Coffman is one of nine defendants whose prison sentence exceeds one year.
Coffman, a Vietnam War veteran who served in the U.S. Army, pleaded guilty in November to possession of an unregistered firearm and carrying a pistol without a license. He was carrying a loaded handgun and revolver without a license as he walked in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 6, 2021, according to prosecutors. He isn’t accused of entering the Capitol or joining the mob during the riot that day.
When Coffman parked his truck a few blocks from the Capitol on the morning of Jan. 6, it contained a handgun, a rifle, a shotgun, hundreds of rounds of ammunition, a crossbow, machetes, a stun gun and a cooler containing eleven mason jars with holes punched in the lids, according to prosecutors. Each jar contained a mixture of gasoline and Styrofoam, which are components of the homemade incendiary devices called Molotov cocktails, prosecutors said.
Law enforcement officers found the cache of weapons and ammunition when they searched Coffman’s truck. They had been sweeping the area after pipe bombs were found near the headquarters of the Republican National Committee and Democratic National Committee. Later, investigators also found Molotov cocktail components at Coffman’s home in Alabama.
“Possession of so much dangerous weapons in our nation’s capital is uniquely offensive to our cherished, democratic political traditions,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Friedman said.
Handwritten notes found inside the vehicle included a quote attributed to Abraham Lincoln that said, “We The People Are The Rightful Masters Of Both The Congress And The Courts, Not To Overthrow The Constitution But To Overthrow The Men Who Pervert The Constitution.”
The notes included a list of “good guys” and “bad guys,” with a federal judge named in the latter category, and contact information for a member of a Texas militia group known as the “American Patriots,” prosecutors said.
“The handwritten notes also included an address for a reported gathering place in Texas called ‘Camp Lonestar,’ where militia groups had reportedly sought to patrol the border looking for illegal aliens,” prosecutors wrote.
Investigators had previously identified Coffman as an armed participant at Camp Lonestar, according to prosecutors.
Coffman, a retired machine operator, had traveled to Washington in December 2020 and tried to drive to the home of a U.S. senator who isn’t named in a court filing by prosecutors. He also called the senator’s office in an effort to “help with the election fraud he saw.”
“A staff member at the Senator’s office recorded that the defendant seemed ‘unbalanced’ or ‘not 100% there’ during the call, but did not seem threatening,” prosecutors wrote.
Prosecutors recommended a prison sentence of approximately three years and six months. Defense attorney Manuel Retureta said a prison term wouldn’t be appropriate given Coffman’s age and medical condition.
Coffman didn’t have a criminal record before this case.
“At my age, one of the most precious (things) we possess is time, and I have wasted almost a whole precious year,” he wrote in his letter to the judge.
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/mother-calls-end-tiktok-challenge-after-son-was-injured/
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Mother calls for end of TikTok challenge after son was injured
HARRIMAN, Tenn. (WVLT/Gray News) - A mother says her youngest son was riding home with a friend after playing in a high school baseball game when he became a victim of a challenge seen on TikTok.
Mary Cathers of Tennessee told WVLT a car pulled up beside the vehicle her son was in, and people shot at him with a pellet gun, in what many call the Orbeez Challenge, named after the water gel beads popular with children. Those beads are used as ammunition in the social media trend.
The mother said her son’s window was rolled down when he was hit several times on his shoulder and back, and the shots also left several dents on the friend’s vehicle.
“They were pretty shaken up. At that point in time, their adrenaline was high, but then they were so concerned about what if that was a real gun? How this could have ended a lot worse than what it was. As a parent, I wanted to make sure this wasn’t swept under the rug,” Cathers said.
The Harriman Police Department was working on the investigation. Detective Sgt. Kent Warren said they have had a few leads while working the case.
“I think that this is part of three separate incidents, but we haven’t been able to link them together yet,” Warren said. “We had three different reports within the same timeframe that night, so there’s a possibility that they’re connected.”
Cathers said she hadn’t heard of the TikTok Orbeez Challenge until this incident. She felt the challenge was to blame, and she wanted it to stop before it took someone’s life.
“This TikTok Challenge that’s going on everywhere in the United States, which kids think it’s funny, it’s not funny,” Cathers said. “This is a real deal. Someone is really going to get hurt. Someone is really going to get killed over it because someone is going to pull out a real gun thinking that they have a real gun.”
Knox County, Tennessee District Attorney General Charme Allen said people participating in the challenge could be charged with several crimes, from simple assault to felony assault, potentially facing years in prison.
Copyright 2022 WVLT via Gray Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/oscar-meyer-wienermobile-makes-pitstop-save-lot-good-cause/
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Oscar Mayer Wienermobile makes pitstop at Save a Lot for good cause
HAZARD, Ky. (WYMT) - The famous Oscar Mayer Weinermobile is in Hazard and made a stop at a Save a Lot location.
Save a Lot is hosting its 27th Annual Race Day event. The Hazard locations are having a special Race Day sale.
The stores are raising money for Pam Henson and Janet Noble who are battling health issues.
On Saturday, people can head out to Perry County Central High School for an auction and a car show. The proceeds will go to both Pam and Janet.
“They’re (Weinermobile) going to be part of the auction, so the highest bidder gets to take a ride around Hazard in the Oscar Mayer Weinermobile,” said Save a Lot Division Manager Steve Stollings. “Or if you don’t want to do it tomorrow afternoon, within a year you can set it up.”
The Weinermobile will be at the Grand Vue Plaza Saturday morning. The Race Against Hunger Food Drive going on during the event benefits Bluegrass Care Navigators in Hazard.
Copyright 2022 WYMT. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/police-5-year-old-dies-high-speed-pursuit-kidnapping-suspect/
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Police: 5-year-old dies in high-speed pursuit of kidnapping suspect
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (Gray News) - A 5-year-old girl is dead following a high-speed chase in Florida.
The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office received calls of a kidnapping in progress Thursday night. They reported that the suspect was armed at the time of the kidnapping.
The sheriff’s office reported that when an officer attempted to stop the suspect’s vehicle, the driver fled with the 5-year-old victim in the car.
The sheriff’s office said the suspect then led police on a 30-mile chase on Interstate 95 that reached about 90 mph.
The suspect then drove off a ramp and into a pond while attempting to exit the interstate, according to the sheriff’s office.
Officers went into the water and apprehended the suspect, but the child was not immediately found.
The fire department later found the child at the bottom of the pond.
The sheriff’s office reported the suspect is facing several charges, including traffic homicide. The child’s identity has not been released at this time.
Copyright 2022 Gray Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved. CNN Newsource contributed to this report.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/psaki-leave-white-house-msnbc-job-reports-say/
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Psaki to leave White House for MSNBC job, reports say
Published: Apr. 1, 2022 at 11:49 AM EDT|Updated: 1 hour ago
(Gray News) - White House press secretary Jen Psaki is finalizing plans to leave the Biden administration for a hosting job with MSNBC, according to multiple reports.
Axios reported she plans to leave in May and begin appearing on MSNBC programming as well as hosting a show on NBC’s streaming service, Peacock. She has not officially signed a contract with the network, but talks are in the advanced stages, sources told CNN.
No official announcement has been made by Psaki or the White House.
Psaki also served as the spokesperson for the State Department and the White House communications director during the Obama administration.
Copyright 2022 Gray Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/rising-center-hosts-open-house-sexual-assault-awareness-prevention-month/
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Rising Center hosts open house for Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month
HAZARD, Ky. (WYMT) - To kick off Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month officials at the Rising Center in Hazard hosted an open house on Friday.
The staff at the Rising Center are working to bring awareness to what they said is an important issue.
The open house helped kicked off the unique events the center has planned for the month of April.
Each week, an event related to Sexual Assault Awareness & Prevention will be held. Some examples include Green Dot Week, Volunteer Appreciation Week and many more.
Officials said anyone can come participate and see what the center has to offer. Director Jasmine Wilson said they had a great turnout.
Wilson said she hopes hosting these types of events will encourage more people in the region to take advantage of their services.
Copyright 2022 WYMT. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/sheriff-eky-man-wanted-involvement-stabbing/
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Sheriff: EKY man wanted for involvement in stabbing
Published: Apr. 1, 2022 at 12:47 PM EDT|Updated: 34 minutes ago
MARTIN COUNTY, Ky. (WYMT) - The Martin County Sheriff posted on Facebook Friday afternoon asking the public for help locating a suspect involved in a stabbing.
James William Crabtree is wanted for assault and burglary.
The Sheriff said the stabbing took place early Friday morning on Riverfront Road near the Martin and Pike County line.
If you see him or have any information, you can call 606-298-2828 or 911. The post also said not to approach him, because he is considered to be dangerous.
Copyright 2022 WYMT. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/us-man-abducted-afghanistan-appears-newly-posted-video/
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US man abducted in Afghanistan appears in newly posted video
WASHINGTON (AP) — An American man kidnapped in Afghanistan two years ago is seen in a video pleading for his release so that he can be reunited with his family, according to a recording posted Friday by The New Yorker magazine.
The video of Mark Frerichs marks the first time that the Navy veteran and civilian contractor has been seen by the public since his abduction in Kabul on Jan. 31, 2020. Frerichs, of Lombard, Illinois, is believed to be held by the Taliban-affiliated Haqqani network, and U.S. officials across two presidential administrations have tried unsuccessfully to get him home.
Frerichs appears by himself in the video, sitting upright before a dark curtain and wearing what appears to be traditional Afghan clothing. In the video, which he says was recorded last Nov. 28, he says he has patiently awaited his release and adds: “I’d like to ask the leadership of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan: please release me. Release me so that I may be re-united with my family. Thank you.”
Videos of hostages are sometimes released to show proof that they are alive and to facilitate negotiations for a release, though it was not immediately clear if that was the case here.
The video was posted Friday by The New Yorker, which says it obtained it from an unidentified individual in Afghanistan.
An FBI spokeswoman in Washington declined to comment on the video’s authenticity, but a sister of Frerichs, Charlene Cakora, said in a statement Friday that she was grateful to the Taliban for releasing the video and described it as “public confirmation of our family’s long-held belief that he is alive after more than two years in captivity.”
She appealed to President Joe Biden and Secretary of State Antony Blinken to step up efforts to get Frerichs released.
“We consider this to be an important indicator of the Taliban’s interest in seeking to arrange for Mark’s immediate release. President Biden and Secretary Blinken, we urge you to take bold and decisive action to bring Mark home,” she added.
The Taliban has made clear to U.S. officials that it seeks the release of a convicted drug lord named Bashir Noorzai, but the U.S. government has not moved forward on any sort of prisoner trade or exchange that could get Frerichs home.
The video of Frerichs surfaced on the same day that the State Department announced the release from Afghanistan of U.S. citizen Safiullah Rauf and Anees Khalil, a lawful permanent resident. The State Department said that they were now in Qatar before traveling home but offered no additional details about their activities in Afghanistan.
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Follow Eric Tucker on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/etuckerAP
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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3 Army soldiers, 9 others accused in gun trafficking ring
WASHINGTON (AP) — Twelve people, including three U.S. Army soldiers, are accused in a large-scale gun trafficking ring that prosecutors allege supplied nearly 100 guns to gang members in Chicago and led to at least two killings, the Justice Department said Friday.
The soldiers — Demarcus Adams, 21; Jarius Brunson, 22; and Brandon Miller, 22 — were enlisted in the Army and stationed at Fort Campbell in Tennessee, where they would legally purchase guns from local dealers in Tennessee and Kentucky, prosecutors charged. The soldiers are accused of selling them to members of the Gangster Disciples street gang in the Pocket Town neighborhood on Chicago’s south side, according to the 21-count indictment.
The indictment charges the group with conspiring to violate federal firearms laws, among other crimes. If convicted, the defendants face up to 20 years in prison.
The case is part of the Justice Department’s push to investigate and prosecute gun trafficking amid rising crime across the U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland has vowed to prioritize prosecutions of firearms traffickers and so-called “straw purchasers,” who legally purchase firearms to sell them to people who can’t legally poses guns, often in states with more restrictive gun laws.
“The Justice Department will spare no resources to hold accountable criminal gun traffickers,” Garland said at a news conference Friday. “There is no hiding place for those who flood our communities with illegal guns. It does not matter where you are, or how far away you are. If you illegally traffic guns, we and our law enforcement partners nationwide will find you.”
Prosecutors allege Miller would receive orders from members of the Gangster Disciples in Chicago for specific guns to purchase and he, Brunson and Adams would then buy them from dealers in Clarksville, Tennessee and Oak Grove, Kentucky, and give them to gang members, who paid through money transfer apps, including Zelle and CashApp. Miller also advertised that he had 1,000 rounds of ammunition available for sale, prosecutors say.
Authorities believe the trio provided over 90 illegally obtained firearms to the gang “to facilitate the on-going violent disputes between the Pocket Town Gangster Disciples and their rival gangs,” the Justice Department said.
Investigators believe one of the guns was used in a shooting at a party in Chicago last March that left one man dead, and seven others wounded. Another was used in a killing at a Chicago barbershop in January 2021, according to officials.
The nine others charged in the indictment are: Blaise Smith, 29; Rahaeem Johnson, 24; Bryant Larkin, 33; Corey Curtis, 26; Elijah Tillman, 24; Lazarus Greenwood, 23; Dwight Lowry, 41; and Dreshion Parks, 25, all of Chicago; along with Terrell Mitchell, 27, of Davenport, Iowa. Two people who were alleged to be part of the conspiracy were killed “as a result of gang violence, which was facilitated by the firearms illegally transferred to individuals in the Chicago,” prosecutors say.
The indictment spells out how Miller would exchange messages with his associates in Chicago to negotiate the prices of the guns.
“The silver one a 380 u still want it it’s a steal,” Miller wrote to Lowry in December 2020, the indictment says. Lowry wrote back, “Yup can’t beat it,” according to court papers.
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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Alaska Airlines cancels dozens of flights as pilots picket
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Dozens of flights along the West Coast were canceled Friday as Alaska Airlines pilots picketed during ongoing contract negotiations with the airline.
More than 100 Alaska Airlines flights were canceled by the airline, including 66 in Seattle, 20 in Portland, Oregon, 10 in Los Angeles and seven in San Francisco, according to the flight tracking website flightaware.com. Flights were also expected to be affected in Anchorage, Alaska. Pilots planned to hold a rally and picket in all those cities on Friday, according to a union website.
Pilots with the Air Lines Pilots Association also protested last week in New York City outside the airline’s Investor Relations Day in a precursor of Friday’s picket.
The bargaining actions come as air travel rebounds to pre-pandemic levels and demand is surging as many Americans head off on spring break for long-delayed vacations. Frustrated travelers vented on social media about botched vacation plans and reported that there was a five-hour wait to speak with an airline representative about rescheduling flights.
Pilots have been in contract negotiations with the airline for nearly three years, and the two sides are at an impasse.
The union says Alaska Airlines did not adequately prepare for a return to air travel after the pandemic and didn’t take the necessary steps to retain or attract pilots as demand bounced back. Issues that still need to be resolved include job security, work rules and quality-of-life provisions that provide flexibility and reasonable schedules, it said in a statement, and the current pilot contract falls well behind those at comparable airlines in several key sections.
Alaska Airlines said Friday that it values its pilots and respects their right to picket, but it also needs to negotiate a deal that allows the airline to maintain growth and profitability. Alaska Airlines is working to recover $2.3 billion in losses from the COVID-19 pandemic, it said in a statement.
The airline said it currently offers competitive salaries for its pilots. For example, an Alaska Airlines captain’s average salary is currently $341,000 per year, the airline said.
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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Families facing higher prices for vacations
LOS ANGELES (CNN) - As the pandemic subsides, many American families feel they are in dire need of a vacation.
But just as coronavirus restrictions are lifting, travel prices are increasing.
Some families who haven’t traveled much in the last two to three years said they are determined to take a trip despite the sticker shock.
In California, tourists are paying some of the highest gas prices in the nation. Tourists are also paying higher airfares driven by unprecedented demand and higher hotel rates, like in Miami Beach, with an average price of more than $500 a night.
On the travel website Kayak, recent searches show the average domestic flight to Panama City, Florida, for example, costs $494. In March 2019, that would have averaged just over $300.
The Cabara family flew from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, to Los Angeles.
“Once we got out here we realized that things are very expensive right now,” one family member said.
They decided against a rental car, the average rental car in the U.S. averages $76 a day, more than $20 higher than two years ago, according to Kayak.
But even without a rental car, the family said they’re actually spending more money in Uber than they did flying out West.
That’s likely because regular gas is on average more than $4 a gallon this month, the highest of any month in history and up from $2.51 in March 2019.
That’s affecting Kami Farhadi, the chairman of Starline Tours, who said the company typically spends $100 a day on fuel for the buses and now they’re spending $200 every day.
“We’ve still maintained our prices at the moment, but we’re going to have to look at going to full summer pricing right now rather than waiting until the summer,” Farhadi said.
Kayak shows hotel rates averaging about $300 per night, up nearly $70 since March of 2019.
Even theme parks will cost you more, from paid express lines to pricier food.
“People are accepting it, and they’re going. Now maybe they’re making adjustments along the way,” travel agent Elaine Edwards said.
While the cheapest single-day Disney tickets stayed the same price since 2019, there are now fewer days priced at “value season.”
Meanwhile, a discount tracking website, Mousesavers, shows the most expensive types of tickets at Disneyland and Disney World during the busiest season jumped 11 or 12% from two years ago.
“Wherever they go, however much it costs, some families say they just need to get out of the house now. And they’ll scale back later,” Edwards said.
Copyright 2022 CNN Newsource. All rights reserved.
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House votes to decriminalize marijuana, but Senate fate dim
WASHINGTON (AP) — Marijuana would be decriminalized at the federal level under legislation the House approved Friday as Democrats made the case for allowing states to set their own policies on pot.
The bill is unlikely to become law since it is expected to die in the Senate. That would mirror what happened when a similar House-passed measure removing marijuana from the list of federally-controlled substances went nowhere in the Senate two years ago.
Still, Friday’s vote gave lawmakers the chance to state their view on a decriminalization push that appears to have broad support with voters across the country.
The 2020 election showed how broadly accepted marijuana has become, with measures to legalize recreational pot breezing to victory in progressive New Jersey, moderate Arizona and conservative Montana and South Dakota.
The House approved the bill Friday with a mostly party-line vote of 220-204. All but two voting Democrats backed the measure, while only three Republicans did.
The measure would require federal courts to expunge prior marijuana convictions and conduct resentencing hearings for those completing their sentences. It also authorizes a 5% sales tax on marijuana and marijuana products that would be used for grant programs focused on job training, substance abuse treatment and loans to help disadvantaged small businesses get into the marijuana industry.
Democrats said the nation’s federal prohibition on marijuana has had particularly devastating consequences for minority communities. House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md., cited statistics that showed Black Americans were four times more likely than white Americans to be arrested for marijuana possession, even though they use it at similar rates.
“Those criminal records can haunt people of color and impact the trajectory of their lives indefinitely,” Hoyer said. “I regret that there are some members of our Congress who apparently think that’s not worthy of attention.”
“Make no mistake, yes, it is a racial justice bill,” said Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Calif.
Republicans who opposed the measure said marijuana is a gateway drug that would lead to greater use of opioids and other dangerous substances. They also said the pot sold today is far more potent than what was sold decades ago, leading to greater impairment for those who use it. They said decriminalization is not the priority that lawmakers should be focused on now, with the war in Ukraine and inflation driving up the cost of gas, food and other essential items.
“Yet the priority of this Congress now turns to expanding access to addictive, behavior-altering recreational drugs at a time when our country is also experiencing increased addiction, depression and suicide,” said Rep. Bob Good, R-Va.
Thirty-seven states and District of Columbia allow the medical use of cannabis products while 18 states and the District of Columbia have legalized recreational marijuana, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.
“If states are the laboratories of democracy, it is long past time for the federal government to recognize that legalization has been a resounding success and that the conflict with federal law has become untenable,” said the bill’s sponsor, Rep. Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., chairman of the House Judiciary Committee.
In the Senate, Democrats including Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York asked colleagues in early February for their input on a marijuana decriminalization bill that they would be introducing later this year.
“This is an issue of individual freedom and basic fairness that clearly transcends party lines,” the Democrats said in their letter to colleagues.
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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London getting a ‘Little Taste’ of Jamaican cuisine, other new businesses
Published: Apr. 1, 2022 at 2:22 PM EDT|Updated: 33 minutes ago
LONDON, Ky. (WYMT) - London city officials recently announced a new development off I-75 that will be bringing several businesses to the area.
One of the new businesses is Little Taste of Jamaica, which held its ribbon-cutting ceremony on Friday.
The new location is at 112 N Main Street in downtown London.
We will have more information on WYMT News this evening.
Copyright 2022 WYMT. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/ag-daniel-cameron-joins-doj-other-states-16-million-drug-testing-settlement/
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AG Daniel Cameron joins DOJ, other states for $16 million drug testing settlement
FRANKFORT, Ky. (WYMT) - Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron announced that he joined the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and a multi-state coalition in a settlement with MD Spine Solutions LLC (MD Labs).
The settlement is with MD Labs and its principle owners for billing Medicaid for unnecessary drug tests.
The settlement claims that the labs improperly billed Medicaid for unnecessary urine drug testing from January 2015 to December 2019.
According to a release from the AG’s Office, MD Labs agreed to pay a minimum of $11.6 million, up to $16 million, to resolve the allegations.
Kentucky could get as much as $2,170,350.87.
“Fraudulently billing Medicaid for unnecessary medical services harms Kentucky Medicaid beneficiaries and taxpayers,” said Attorney General Cameron. “We joined the DOJ and a coalition of attorneys general in this settlement to halt these unscrupulous business practices and to ensure that funds are returned to Kentucky’s Medicaid program.”
Copyright 2022 WYMT. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/american-idol-contestant-performing-london-laurel-county-farmers-market/
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American Idol contestant performing at London - Laurel County Farmer’s Market
Published: Apr. 1, 2022 at 3:15 PM EDT|Updated: 1 hour ago
LONDON, Ky. (WYMT) - Brooks Kidd is performing at the London - Laurel County Farmer’s Market Friday evening.
The American Idol contestant from Laurel County announced the event on Facebook. Presented by London Downton, he said it begins at 5:30 p.m. and he will sing at 6:00 p.m.
According to the post, there will be food trucks, a question & answer session and a meet and greet.
Copyright 2022 WYMT. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/attorneys-kim-davis-appeal-judges-latest-ruling/
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Attorneys for Kim Davis appeal judge’s latest ruling
LEXINGTON, Ky. (WKYT) - Attorneys for Kim Davis, the embattled former Rowan County clerk, are officially appealing the judge’s latest ruling.
The actions are another step in the nearly 7-year-old case.
A trial date was expected to be set during a status conference held Friday morning by phone. But the appeal now puts that process on hold.
Davis’s legal team is appealing U.S. District Judge David Bunning’s order from two weeks ago. Judge Bunning found that Davis did indeed violate the constitutional rights of two couples who were denied marriage licenses.
The judge’s order decided that the question of damages would go to trial. That means a jury would figure out how much Davis might owe the couples and their attorneys.
But first, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit will now review the case.
In a statement last month when the order was first handed down, Davis’s attorney said they thought the case could end up in front of the U.S. Supreme Court. Even if this case is not overturned, these actions will still push back on a final decision.
We’re told a trial likely wouldn’t happen now until next year.
In 2020, the U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear Davis’s appeal on a previous issue in the case.
Copyright 2022 WKYT. All rights reserved.
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Blood drive held at Hazard church
Published: Apr. 1, 2022 at 3:14 PM EDT|Updated: 1 hour ago
HAZARD, Ky. (WYMT) - The Summit Community Church hosted a blood drive Friday.
In partnership with the Kentucky Blood Center (KBC), the event was held from 11:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
All donors who participated received a free KBC t-shirt.
One of the donors, Aster Sizemore, said he has been donating blood for many years.
“I officiated college football for a longtime, many years. The doctor told us, if we could do it, it would be better for our health too if we could donate blood,” he said. “So, anybody that’s capable in donating blood it would be to their advantage.”
Sizemore said he hopes to see more people come out and donate blood.
Copyright 2022 WYMT. All rights reserved.
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Vanna White announces death of her father
Published: Apr. 1, 2022 at 3:46 PM EDT|Updated: 43 minutes ago
NORTH MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (Gray News) – “Wheel of Fortune” hostess Vanna White announced the death of her father on Twitter Friday.
She didn’t name her dad in the Tweet but described him as being “one of the kindest and most wonderful human beings of North Myrtle Beach.”
The South Carolina native said her 96-year-old father passed away peacefully Friday morning.
White and her co-host Pat Sajak have worked side by side for more than 7,000 episodes of “Wheel of Fortune and are nightly staples in millions of homes across America.
Copyright 2022 Gray Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/alex-jones-loses-bid-avoid-fines-sandy-hook-case/
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Alex Jones loses bid to avoid fines in Sandy Hook case
WATERBURY, Conn. (AP) — A Connecticut judge on Friday rejected Infowars host Alex Jones’ bid to avoid escalating daily fines for missing a deposition in a lawsuit by relatives of some victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, who sued the conspiracy theorist for saying the massacre was a hoax.
Judge Barbara Bellis in Waterbury kept in place her ruling that fines Jones $25,000 per weekday, beginning Friday, and increasing by $25,000 each weekday until he appears at a deposition.
Jones had asked Bellis to put her ruling on hold while he appeals the fines to the state Supreme Court. His lawyers said he plans to attend a deposition in Connecticut on April 11. If he does not appear until then, his fines would total $525,000.
Jones said he did not attend a deposition scheduled last week in Austin, Texas, where he lives, because he was too ill to attend. Bellis said there was not enough evidence Jones was too ill to appear at the deposition.
Twenty first graders and six educators were killed in the 2012 shooting in Newtown, Connecticut.
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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American hero returns home to be laid to rest
BOYD COUNTY, Ky. (WSAZ) – The remains of a U.S. Marine killed during a NATO military training exercise returned home Friday afternoon.
U.S. Marine Cpl. Jacob Moore’s family stood on the tarmac as the plane carrying their loved one’s body landed at Tri-State Airport.
Moore, 24, of Catlettsburg, Kentucky, was among four marines whose remains were returned to U.S. soil last Friday after their deaths in a helicopter crash in Norway on March 18.
Moore’s remains are being taken to Neal Funeral Home on Center Street.
Along the procession route Friday students who attend Ponderosa Elementary in Catlettsburg, Ky held handmade signs in honor of Cpl. Moore. Moore attended Ponderosa Elementary and Moore’s mother worked at the school for 19 years.
A proclamation to declare Friday as “Jacob M. Moore Day” was presented by Catlettsburg Mayor Faith Day to the family.
Visitation services will be from noon to 6 p.m. Sunday at Boyd County High School, Moore’s alma mater.
The funeral is set for 11 a.m. Monday at the school, with the burial to follow at Kentucky Veterans Cemetery Northeast.
The public is welcome to attend.
Gov. Andy Beshear has ordered flags at all state buildings to be lowered to half-staff from sunrise to sunset Monday, April 4, in honor of Moore.
Gov. Beshear encourages all individuals, businesses, organizations and government agencies to join in this tribute.
Corporal Moore’s decorations include the Good Conduct Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, and the Global War on Terrorism Medal.
WSAZ’s Kelsey Souto sat down to talk with Moore’s family. For more on that story click here >>>>
Funeral services set for marine killed in NATO training exercise
Keep checking the WSAZ app for the latest information.
Copyright 2022 WSAZ. All rights reserved.
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Hope Solo arrested on DWI, child abuse charges
Published: Apr. 1, 2022 at 5:04 PM EDT|Updated: 58 minutes ago
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (AP) — Former U.S. women’s national team goalkeeper Hope Solo has been arrested in North Carolina after police say she was found passed out behind the wheel of a vehicle with her two children inside.
A police report says Solo was arrested in a shopping center parking lot in Winston-Salem and charged with driving while impaired, resisting a public officer and misdemeanor child abuse.
She has been released from jail and has a court date of June 28.
Arrest reports say a passerby noticed Solo passed out behind the steering wheel for more than an hour with the vehicle’s engine running and two children in the backseat.
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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Kansas father charged with murder in infant daughter’s death after child struck with object, police say
TOPEKA, Kan. (WIBW/Gray News) - A Kansas man was charged with first-degree murder in the death of his 6-month-old daughter.
WIBW reports Shawnee County District Attorney Mike Kagay filed criminal charges against Tray’vonne Da’Mont Jones-McNeal, 21, after the death of the child on Wednesday.
Medics responded to a home in Topeka and found 6-month-old Brielle Jones not breathing. Police said the child was taken to the hospital after suffering blunt-force trauma, but she later died.
Police records note Brielle had been hit by a blunt force object.
Kagay said Jones-McNeal was identified as the child’s father and arrested at the scene.
Jones-McNeal is facing multiple charges including murder, child abuse and battery.
Records indicate Jones-McNeal is being held in the Shawnee County Jail on a $1 million bond.
Copyright 2022 WIBW via Gray Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/ky-baptist-disaster-relief-deploying-teams-poland-soon/
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Ky. Baptist Disaster Relief deploying teams to Poland soon
LEXINGTON, Ky. (WKYT) - Kentucky Baptist Disaster Relief will be deploying teams to Poland for the next several months to help with the Ukrainian refugee crisis.
Roughly 10 million Ukrainians have left their homes in the past month. The vast majority of people who have fled Ukraine have gone to Poland.
Kentucky Disaster Relief Director Ron Crow said that volunteers have been inquiring about boots being on the ground for several weeks.
“Each of us will rotate weeks for the next six months,” said Crow. “They will be small teams because housing is limited.”
Crow said volunteers need to be flexible and willing to adjust on the fly depending on the need. “It may be that we run some errands,” he said. “Whatever the church needs us to do.”
Sharing the gospel will be a premium need and the refugees are hungry to learn more about Jesus, Crow said. “Opportunities to share the gospel are in abundance.”
Volunteers from Kentucky will be boots on the ground and partnering with personnel from Ohio, Mississippi and Louisiana.
They say that volunteers will be flexible, and their jobs will adjust on the fly according to need.
Copyright 2022 WKYT. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/man-found-guilty-raping-impregnating-11-year-old-girl/
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Man found guilty of raping, impregnating 11-year-old girl
MEMPHIS, Tenn. (Gray News) - A Tennessee man was convicted Thursday of raping and impregnating an 11-year-old girl in 2016.
According to the Shelby County District Attorney’s office, it took the jury less than 20 minutes to find Gregory Hickman, 29, guilty of raping a child.
According to testimony this week, the child’s mother said that in October 2016, she noticed her daughter’s stomach felt hard in a way that appeared to be a pregnancy. The girl then told her mom that Hickman had raped her earlier that year.
The girl said that Hickman, who was a family friend, was walking her home from a store and suggested they take a shortcut. When they got to a bushy area, Hickman then raped her, the girl said. She also said Hickman said he would kill her if she told anybody about the rape.
In December 2016, the young girl gave birth. DNA testing confirmed Hickman was the father.
Hickman will be sentenced on May 12. He remains in police custody and has another rape case pending involving a 13-year-old victim who was the daughter of his girlfriend.
Copyright 2022 Gray Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/man-gofundme-scam-gets-27-month-federal-prison-sentence/
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Man in GoFundMe scam gets 27-month federal prison sentence
CAMDEN, N.J. (AP) — A New Jersey man who conspired with his then-girlfriend to cook up a feel-good story about a helpful homeless man and then used the lie to raise hundreds of thousands of dollars in donations online was sentenced in federal court Friday to more than two years in prison.
Mark D’Amico will also have to serve three years probation once he completes his 27-month term. He also must pay restitution and undergo gambling, drug and mental health counseling.
Before being sentenced, D’Amico told U.S. District Judge Noel Hillman that he was a changed man, devoted to his family.
“The person that did the things that led us here no longer exists,” D’Amico said.
He had pleaded guilty before Hillman in Camden in November to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. An indictment unsealed in January 2020 charged D’Amico with a total of 16 counts of conspiracy, wire fraud and money laundering.
He had already pleaded guilty to charges in state court last year. His former girlfriend, Katelyn McClure, and homeless veteran Johnny Bobbitt Jr. previously pleaded guilty to state and federal charges. Bobbitt was sentenced to five years’ probation on state charges in 2019. Both are scheduled to be sentenced on the federal charges this year.
The trio made up a story in late 2017 about Bobbitt giving $20 to help McClure when her car ran out of gas in Philadelphia, according to prosecutors. D’Amico and McClure solicited donations through GoFundMe, purportedly to help Bobbitt, and conducted newspaper and television interviews. Investigators said D’Amico was the plot’s ringleader.
They eventually raised more than $400,000 in donations over about a month, according to investigators, who said almost no part of the tale was true. The group had met near a Philadelphia casino in October 2017 shortly before they told their story, prosecutors said.
Authorities began investigating after Bobbitt sued the couple, accusing them of not giving him the money. The federal criminal complaint alleged all of the money raised in the campaign was spent by March 2018, with large chunks spent by McClure and D’Amico on a recreational vehicle, a BMW and trips to casinos in Las Vegas and New Jersey.
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wymt.com/2022/04/01/man-sentenced-37-months-prison-role-multi-state-dog-fighting-ring/
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Man sentenced to 37 months in prison for role in multi-state dog fighting ring
(Gray News) - A Virginia man was sentenced to more than three years in prison for his role in a multi-state dog fighting conspiracy.
The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) said Raymond L. Johnson, 41, was sentenced Thursday to 37 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release.
According to court documents, Johnson pleaded guilty to conspiracy to participate in an animal fighting venture and illegal possession of a firearm and ammunition.
Johnson’s arrest was the result of a lengthy investigation, starting in November 2019 when police investigated a criminal organization involved in dog fighting based out of Richmond, Virginia, and extending into Baltimore, Maryland. In late 2020, police executed multiple search warrants and rescued numerous dogs that were being used for dog fighting.
The DOJ said Johnson hosted at least two dog fights at his residence, videos of which were found by police. Nine dogs were rescued from Johnson’s home, all with scarring consistent with dog fighting.
The DOJ said investigators also found Johnson communicating with his co-conspirators about breeding and fighting dogs, past dog fights, and upcoming dog fights.
Agents also found firearms and ammunition at Johnson’s home. As a convicted felon, it was illegal for Johnson to possess those items.
“Raymond Johnson actively participated in a multi-state criminal enterprise that caused the needless suffering of innocent animals,” said Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “Johnson’s sentence demonstrates that dog fighting is a serious crime, which deserves a substantial penalty.”
Copyright 2022 Gray Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
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Number of COVID patients in US hospitals reaches record low
NORFOLK, Va. (AP) — COVID-19 hospitalization numbers have plunged to their lowest levels since the early days of the pandemic, offering a much needed break to health care workers and patients alike following the omicron surge.
The number of patients hospitalized with the coronavirus has fallen more than 90% in more than two months, and some hospitals are going days without a single COVID-19 patient in the ICU for the first time since early 2020.
The freed up beds are expected to help U.S. hospitals retain exhausted staff, treat non-COVID-19 patients more quickly and cut down on inflated costs. More family members can visit loved ones. And doctors hope to see a correction to the slide in pediatric visits, yearly checkups and cancer screenings.
“We should all be smiling that the number of people sitting in the hospital right now with COVID, and people in intensive care units with COVID, are at this low point,” said University of South Florida epidemiologist Jason Salemi.
But, he said, the nation “paid a steep price to get to this stage. ... A lot of people got sick and a lot of people died.”
Hospitalizations are now at their lowest point since summer 2020, when comprehensive national data first became available. The average number of people hospitalized with COVID-19 in the last week nationwide dropped to 11,860, the lowest since 2020 and a steep decline from the peak of more than 145,000 set in mid-January. The previous low was 12,041 last June, before the delta variant took hold.
The optimistic trend is also clear in ICU patient numbers, which have dipped to fewer than 2,000, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
“We’re beginning to be able to take a breath,” said Dr. Jeffrey Weinstein, the patient safety officer for the Kettering Health hospital system in western Ohio.
COVID-19 patients had filled 30% of Kettering Health’s nearly 1,600 hospital beds back in January, Weinstein said. Kettering’s eight hospitals now average two to three COVID-19 admissions a day — and sometimes zero.
And while Salemi agreed this is a good time for an exhausted health care system to take a breath, he warned that the public health community needs to keep an eye on the BA.2 subvariant of omicron. It’s driving increases in hospitalizations in Britain, and is now estimated to make up more than half of U.S. infections.
“We’re probably under-detecting true infections now more than at any other time during the pandemic,” Salemi said.
For now at least, many hospitals are noting the low numbers.
In California on Thursday, UC Davis Health tweeted that its intensive care unit had no COVID-19 patients for two consecutive days for the first time in two years.
“The first COVID-19 patient to arrive in our ICU did so in February 2020, and the unit treated at least one positive individual every day since, for at least 761 consecutive days,” the hospital system said.
Toby Marsh, the chief nursing and patient care services officer, said in a statement that they hope the numbers “are indicative of a sustained change.”
In Philadelphia, patients are spending less time in the Temple University Health System because there are no longer backlogs for MRIs, CT scans and lab tests, said Dr. Tony Reed, the chief medical officer.
Temple Health’s three hospitals had six adult COVID-19 patients on Thursday, likely its lowest patient count since March 2020, Reed said.
During the omicron surge, patients waited as long as 22 hours for a routine MRI, which is normally done within 12 hours. Longer waits affected those who came in with trouble walking — and in a lot of pain — for example, because of a herniated disc pinching their sciatic nerve.
“Nobody wants to stay in the hospital a day longer than they have to,” Reed said.
The emptying of beds is also helping patients in rural areas, said Jay Anderson, the chief operating officer for Ohio State’s Wexner Medical Center in Columbus. During the surges, the hospital faced challenges accepting people from community hospitals who needed elevated care for brain tumors, advanced cancer and stroke. That burden is now being lifted.
Visitors also will return in higher numbers, starting Tuesday. Ohio State will no longer restrict patients to two designated guests, who could only stop by separately.
“Patients heal better when they have access to their family and loved ones,” Anderson said.
Doctors, nurses and respiratory therapists are also getting a much needed break in some areas.
In Colorado, Dr. Michelle Barron said the consistently low COVID-19 hospitalizations prompted smiles among staff, even as she double-checks the numbers to make sure they’re actually correct.
“I had one of these moments like, oh this is amazing,” said Barron, medical director of infection prevention and control at UCHealth University of Colorado Hospital. “It feels unreal.”
UCHealth loosened some restrictions, including dropping testing requirements for anyone who entered a facility. And while that produced some anxiety among staffers, Barron says the numbers haven’t spiked.
“I think some people have started to take vacations and not feel guilty,” she said. “I had spring break with my kids and it was a level of happiness where I went, oh my god, this is actually normal.”
The omicron surge had stretched staff at work — but also at home, said Dr. Mike Hooper, chief medical officer for Sentara Norfolk General Hospital in southeastern Virginia.
“It was stressful to be at the store ... to visit your family,” Hooper said. “We’re all hoping that some ‘return to normalcy’ will help people deal with the inherent stresses of being part of the health care team.”
But just because hospitalizations are down does not mean hospitals are empty, said Dr. Frank Johnson, chief medical officer for St. Luke’s Health System in Idaho.
Some measures — like wearing masks in certain settings — will remain in place.
“I don’t know when we may go back to old practices regarding mask wearing in our clinical areas,” Johnson said. “We’ve seen some benefits of that in terms of reduction in the number of other viral infections.”
In the meantime, the public health community is keeping an eye on the BA.2 subvariant of omicron.
Salemi, the University of South Florida epidemiologist, said the increase in at-home testing means that more results are not being included in official coronavirus case counts. Therefore, wastewater surveillance will be the early warning signal to watch, he said.
“BA.2 is here,” he said. “We don’t have to look that far in the rear-view mirror to know things can change very rapidly. We saw what happened with delta. We saw what happened with omicron.... We don’t want to wait until we see a lot of people hospitalized before we take action.”
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Kruesi reported from Nashville, Tennessee. AP Medical writer Carla K. Johnson in Washington state contributed to this report.
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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From One Oscar to Another: Tshiebwe Wins USBWA POY
LEXINGTON, Ky. (WYMT) - The first winner of the United States Basketball Writers Association’s most outstanding men’s college basketball player was awarded to Oscar Robertson in 1959. Sixty-three years later its most recent recipient is Kentucky’s Oscar Tshiebwe.
Tshiebwe is the 2022 Oscar Robertson Trophy winner which is the longest consistently presented award in college basketball history. The award is chosen by a vote from USBWA members and was presented to Tshiebwe on Friday at the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans.
The Lubumbashi, Democratic Republic of the Congo native, is the second recipient of the honor in program history. He joins Anthony Davis (2012) as winners of the award. Tshiebwe, Davis and Pete Maravich (LSU – 1969, 70) are the winners from member institutions of the Southeastern Conference. He is the third player coached by John Calipari to claim the award joining Davis and UMass’ Marcus Camby (1996).
This marks the fourth NCAA-recognized electors for national player of the year honor that Tshiebwe has been awarded. He was also picked as the nation’s top performer by The Sporting News, the National Association of Basketball Coaches and earlier today from the Associated Press.
Tshiebwe not only averaged a double-double but did so with a considerable margin -- averaging a team-best 17.4 points and a nation-leading 15.1 rebounds per game. He is the first Division I player who averaged at least 15.0 points and at least 15.0 rebounds per game since Drake’s Lewis Lloyd and Alcorn State’s Larry Smith each did during the 1979-80 season, and the first major-conference player who averaged at least 16.0 points and at least 15.0 rebounds for a season since Bill Walton at UCLA in 1972-73. He became the first Wildcat to do it since Bob Burrow tallied 19.1 points and 17.7 rebounds per game in 1954-55.
He is just the fourth player to earn the USBWA’s National Player of the Year honor while leading the nation in rebounding, joining Ohio State’s Jerry Lucas – twice the national leader and a two-time winner – along with Wake Forest’s Tim Duncan (1996-97) and Oklahoma’s Blake Griffin (2008-09).
The Oscar Robertson Trophy is voted on by the entire membership of the association, which consists of more than 900 journalists. It is the nation’s oldest award. The original “Big O” won the USBWA’s first two national player of the year awards in 1959 and 1960 and was the consensus national player of the year as a sophomore at Cincinnati in 1958, the year before USBWA began presenting its player of the year award. The USBWA renamed the award the Oscar Robertson Trophy in 1998.
In addition to his offensive and rebounding prowess, on the defensive end Tshiebwe was the only major conference player who averaged at least 1.6 blocked shots and 1.6 steals per game during the regular season. He also became only the third player in program history to amass at least 500 rebounds in a season. Tshiebwe finished the year with 515 boards.
A consensus All-American, Tshiebwe corralled at least 10 boards in all but two games this season and finished the season with 21 straight games with double-digit rebounds. That’s a record for the Wildcats dating back to the 1967-68 season with complete game-by-game rebounding records. Dan Issel had two stretches of 12 such games. It’s also the longest stretch by any SEC player since at least 1996- 97. It’s also the longest streak in one season by any Division I player since Rokas Gustys of Hofstra had 23 straight in 2016.
Tshiebwe was elite on the glass from the very beginning of the season. He set new records for the Champions Classic and UK debut with 20 boards vs. Duke in the season opener, nearly tied the Rupp Arena record with 20 rebounds in his first home game, and then shattered that Rupp record with 28 boards vs. Western Kentucky. That easily surpassed Shaquille O’Neal’s previous mark of 21. It’s worth noting Tshiebwe did that primarily against the tallest player in college basketball, Jamarion Sharp, who stands at 7-foot-5. With 20 boards the following game against Missouri, his 48 boards tied for the most over a two-game span by any Division I player over the last 25 seasons (according to ESPN Stats & Info).
He concluded the season with 16 straight double-doubles, the longest streak since complete game-by-game rebounding records were kept dating back to 1969 for the Wildcats. He totaled 28 double-doubles this season which is a new UK single-season record.
Tshiebwe ended the season becoming only the second Wildcat since 1978-79 to finish the season leading the team in points per game (17.4), rebounds per game (15.1), steals per game (1.8), blocks per game (1.6) and field-goal percentage with a minimum of 100 attempts (60.6%). Davis was the other to achieve the feat.
At the conclusion of the season, Tshiebwe was responsible for 37.8% of all of UK’s rebounds. Taking away team rebounds, that number jumped to 41.2%.
Tshiebwe is racking up postseason honors by the day. The major honors he’s won so far include:
- USBWA Oscar Robertson Trophy
- Associated Press Player of the Year
- NABC National Player of the Year
- NABC Pete Newell Big Man of the Year
- NCAA Consensus All-America First Team
- Wooden Award All-America Team
- USBWA First-Team All-America
- NABC First-Team All-America
- Associated Press First-Team All-America
- Sporting News First-Team All-America
- Wooden Award All-America Team
- NABC All-District 20 First Team
- Southeastern Conference Player of the Year (coaches/media)
- All-SEC First Team (coaches/media)
- All-SEC Defensive Team (coaches)
- USBWA District IV Player of the Year
- USBWA All-District IV team
- CBS Sports National Player of the Year
- USA Today National Player of the Year
- USA Today First-Team All-American
- The Athletic’s National Player of the Year
- Sports Illustrated First-Team All-American
- The Field of 68 National Player of the Year
- The Field of 68 First-Team All-America
- College Hoops Today National Player of the Year
- USA Today SEC Player of the Year
- USA Today First-Team All-SEC unanimous selection
For the latest on the Kentucky men’s basketball team, follow @KentuckyMBB on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and TikTok, and on the web at UKathletics.com.
Copyright 2022 WYMT. All rights reserved.
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Oscar Tshiebwe named AP Player of the Year
HAZARD, Ky. (WYMT/AP) - Kentucky’s Oscar Tshiebwe spent an entire season relentlessly chasing and pulling down seemingly every rebound that came his way — and plenty that didn’t, too.
“I want to be the greatest rebounder I can be,” Tshiebwe said.
The 6-foot-9, 255-pound junior put up better rebounding numbers than anybody in Division I in decades. And it’s a big reason why he is The Associated Press men’s college basketball national player of the year.
Tshiebwe was the clear choice for the award announced Friday, receiving 46 of 60 votes from AP Top 25 voters. Johnny Davis, a 6-5 sophomore who averaged 19.7 points and led Wisconsin to a share of the Big Ten regular-season title, was second with 10 votes. Iowa sophomore Keegan Murray (three) and Illinois big man Kofi Cockburn (one) also earned votes.
“It is amazing to be join somebody like Anthony Davis,” Tshiebwe said. “And that gives me confidence and gives me more help for my future, too, for what I’m trying to do and what I’m trying to accomplish. I’m just putting God first because God knows what I need, and he has great plans for me.”
Tshiebwe thrived all season while averaging 15.1 rebounds, the highest per-game output in Division I since 1980. He had five games of at least 20 rebounds this season and three games with at least 10 boards on the offensive glass alone.
The highlight came when he had a Division I high of 28 rebounds in a December win against Western Kentucky.
He also worked to expand his offensive game, adding range on a developing jumpshot to go with his relentless board work. Tshiebwe averaged 17.4 points and shot 60.6% from the floor, a big step forward from his freshman season when he averaged 11.2 points and 9.3 rebounds with the Mountaineers before transferring after 10 games.
Tshiebwe said the rebounding success is a product of studying his opponents closely, playing the odds on where the ball is headed and the determination not to “let anybody move you.”
Now Tshiebwe — who had 30 points and 16 rebounds in the final loss — is mulling whether to return to Kentucky or jump for his goal of playing in the NBA. If he returns, at least the Wildcats will know they’re set on the glass.
“I knew I was going to help this team because my dad always used to tell me if you don’t have a vision about what you’re trying to do as this year is coming, then you’re in the wrong business,” he said.
“You’ve got to know a year from today, what are you trying to do? What are you trying to accomplish? You’ve got to write (it) down, you’ve got to have a good vision. You’ve got to know what I’m here for.”
Copyright 2022 WYMT. All rights reserved.
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Perhaps a stray shower, but quiet weekend ahead
HAZARD, Ky. (WYMT) - We do have the potential for a few stray showers around the mountains early this weekend, but most of us are dry and much calmer as we head into the weekend.
Tonight through Tomorrow Night
It’s turned out to be a rather nice day around the mountains today, and we’ll continue the calm weather into the nighttime hours. Mostly clear skies and a colder airmass in place will keep us on the cold side as we head into tonight. Winds will calm down but we’ll be chilly with lows in the lower 30s.
We start off Saturday with mostly sunny skies, but we will see skies slowly increase as you go throughout the day. After a chilly start, however, we’ll warm nicely. We’re back near average, around 60° for daytime highs. We drop into the lower 40s overnight as a few showers work into the region during the nighttime hours.
Sunday and Beyond
Any clouds and showers sticking around for the early hours on Sunday should head out during the morning hours as a mix of sun and clouds works in during the afternoon. Average highs continue, with highs in the lower 60s. We’re even warmer as sunshine continues on Monday and we’re ahead of our next weathermaker for midweek. Highs end up near 70° once again.
However, April showers are April showers and they’ll be with us starting on Tuesday, it looks like. In fact, another potent storm system seems to be heading in our direction that could bring some thunderstorms in our direction. Models are still iffy on timing and details, but a boundary looks to get hung up around the area with more showers possible Tuesday and Wednesday as highs stick in the 70s.
Copyright 2022 WYMT. All rights reserved.
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Pinwheels mark start of National Child Abuse Prevention Month
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WAVE) - April is National Child Abuse Prevention Month.
On Friday, Norton Children’s Hospital placed hundreds of pinwheels around the building.
As eye-catching as the pinwheels may be, child abuse can be equally as unnoticeable, but there are ways to change that.
There are ways to keep an eye out for it and ultimately keep it from happening.
Dr. Nick Miles, a pediatrician at Norton Children’s, said the abuse is 100 percent preventable.
“A lot of the times, it’s not the doctors that are catching this problem,” Miles said. “It’s teachers, neighbors, friends, aunts, uncles, neighbors. It’s people these children know that are the ones that are going to be able to recognize the problem and get the kids the help they need. But the nature of child abuse is that it is hidden. A lot of people don’t realize it’s going on even though it is happening that often.”
For information on how to spot child abuse or how to report it, click or tap here.
Copyright 2022 WAVE. All rights reserved.
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Racially insensitive photo causes uproar at Corbin High School
CORBIN, Ky. (WKYT) - A racially insensitive photo has caused an uproar at Corbin High School. It shows a white student holding a noose over a Black student.
Taytan McCauley said the incident happened Thursday morning in a chemistry class. He was in the classroom.
“I wasn’t really sure what was going on. I didn’t know if it was a joke or what,” McCauley said.
McCauley said the students in the photo are a part of JROTC. He believes the JROTC rope belonged to the Black student.
“He brought the rope, but I don’t think he was intending for anybody to act like they were hanging him with it,” McCauley said.
McCauley said he heard other students in the class laughing.
“Even if it was a joke, it wasn’t the right thing to do,” Corbin student Nathaniel Jackson said.
School officials say they are aware of the photo involving the two students. Superintendent David Cox noted the district does not condone the behavior depicted in the photo. It brings up a dark history of racism in America.
“Corbin has had a vast history of racism. I think it’s died over the years, but there’s still racism,” McCauley said.
McCauley and Jackson think school officials should apologize to the Black student and take action against racism in the school.
“It doesn’t matter if you’re white, Black, or Asian, everybody should be treated like they’re equal, even if it’s in a public place like a schoolhouse,” Jackson said.
School officials say appropriate action will be taken once the investigation is completed.
Copyright 2022 WKYT. All rights reserved.
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