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COPPERAS COVE, Texas — The Copperas Cove Police Department identified the woman who was found dead under a tree Tuesday night.
Police say they found 46-year-old Ginger Diane Brown unresponsive at 1878 Post Office Rd. around 8 p.m. June 7.
Authorities determined that Brown was actually dead, police said.
At this time, her cause of death isn't known. Her body was transported to the Southwest Institute of Forensic Science to perform an autopsy, police said.
No other information was released.
Other crime stories on KCENTV.com: | https://www.kcentv.com/article/news/local/police-identify-woman-found-dead-under-tree-copperas-cove/500-99b00645-413d-44ea-99ad-a71f39e36c0d | 2022-06-09T20:50:05 | 1 | https://www.kcentv.com/article/news/local/police-identify-woman-found-dead-under-tree-copperas-cove/500-99b00645-413d-44ea-99ad-a71f39e36c0d |
A baby girl who went missing four decades ago after her parents were found slain in Texas has finally been found and is "alive and well," investigators say.
Tina and Harold Clouse Jr., were found dead in a wooded area in Houston in 1981 but their names were unknown until genetic research revealed their identities last year, according to a news release from Texas prosecutors. The Florida couple had died from an apparent homicide but their baby, Holly Marie, was never found.
Relatives have been searching for answers since the disappearance but finally got a break in the case after four decades.
"Baby Holly has been located alive and well and is now 42 years of age," prosecutors said in a news release. "Holly has been notified of the identities of her biological parents and has been in contact with her extended biological family and they hope to meet in person soon.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said he was "extremely proud of the exceptional work done" to unite the family.
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Prosecutors did not say where Holly was located and the circumstances of her upbringing.
"Thank you to all of the investigators for working so hard to find Holly. I prayed for them day after day and that they would find Holly and she would be alright," said Donna Casasanta, Holly's grandmother."
The investigation into the murders of Holly's biological parents is ongoing. Anyone with information about their deaths is asked to contact the Texas Attorney General's Cold Case and Missing Persons Unit at coldcaseunit@oag.texas.gov. | https://www.nbcdfw.com/news/local/texas-news/missing-baby-holly-found-alive-and-well-40-years-after-parents-remains-found-in-texas/2988726/ | 2022-06-09T20:51:45 | 1 | https://www.nbcdfw.com/news/local/texas-news/missing-baby-holly-found-alive-and-well-40-years-after-parents-remains-found-in-texas/2988726/ |
If you've always wanted to be a police officer, now is your chance. The Dallas Police Department is looking for a few new officers.
The department is hosting a four-day hiring event from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Jack Evans Police Headquarters at 1400 Botham Jean Boulevard. The event runs through Sunday, June 12.
The starting pay is a little more than $64,000.
Minimum qualifications include 45 semester hours of college credit or a valid Texas Commission on Law Enforcement (TCOLE) license or 36 months of full-time certified law enforcement experience or a minimum of 36 months of active service in the U.S. Armed Forces - with an honorable discharge.
Anyone interested in becoming a police officer trainee can email a recruiter for details DPDrecruiting@dallascityhall.com | https://www.nbcdfw.com/news/local/the-dallas-police-department-is-hiring-heres-how-to-apply/2988820/ | 2022-06-09T20:51:51 | 0 | https://www.nbcdfw.com/news/local/the-dallas-police-department-is-hiring-heres-how-to-apply/2988820/ |
KINGSPORT, Tenn. (WJHL) — The Kingsport Aquatic Center will participate in the “World’s Largest Swim Lesson” by hosting a free swim lesson for people of all ages later this month.
It will take place on June 23 at 2 p.m.
The World’s Largest Swim Lesson is an event created by the World Waterpark Association to promote swim safety worldwide.
“Water safety is very important to the KAC,” Program Coordinator Madison Gump said in a release, “so we’re excited to participate in this global event again this year.”
Those interested in participating can register online.
The Aquatic Center offers American Red Cross-certified swim lessons year-round. | https://www.wjhl.com/news/local/kingsport-aquatic-center-to-participate-in-worlds-largest-swim-lesson/ | 2022-06-09T21:05:10 | 1 | https://www.wjhl.com/news/local/kingsport-aquatic-center-to-participate-in-worlds-largest-swim-lesson/ |
CHARLOTTE COUNTY, Fla. – Earlier today, an alligator broke into the Charlotte County Sheriff’s impound lot at district 3.
The crafty croc – which measured in at 6 feet 4 inches – climbed its way over a ten-foot fence to enter the parking lot. The intruder went unnoticed until an evidence tech saw its foot sticking out from under a door.
Oftentimes during mating season, alligators find themselves in odd places as they move to various bodies of water. It’s important to keep a safe distance and to never feed them.
Officials with FWC said serious injuries caused by alligators are rare in Florida.
Wildlife officers administer a Statewide Nuisance Alligator Program (SNAP) to be proactive with complaints concerning specific alligators believed to pose a threat to people, pets or property.
People with concerns about an alligator should call FWC’s toll-free Nuisance Alligator Hotline at 866-FWC-GATOR (866-392-4286). When someone concerned about an alligator calls the Nuisance Alligator Hotline, officers will dispatch one of their contracted nuisance alligator trappers to resolve the situation. | https://nbc-2.com/news/local/2022/06/09/alligator-breaks-into-charlotte-county-sheriffs-impound-lot/ | 2022-06-09T21:10:25 | 0 | https://nbc-2.com/news/local/2022/06/09/alligator-breaks-into-charlotte-county-sheriffs-impound-lot/ |
BONITA SPRINGS, Fla. – A death investigation is underway off Imperial Parkway just north of Cordera Way near Bonita Springs High School Thursday afternoon.
The Bonita Springs Fire Department confirmed around 2:30 p.m. rescue crews responded to a possible drowning call at a lake in the area and said a skid steer fell into the water with someone on the machine.
The Lee County Sheriff’s Office confirmed they are investigating a death in the area but said it’s too soon to determine the cause of death.
Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is also responding to the scene.
NBC2 crews on the scene said crime scene tape is surrounding a pond that appears to be under construction about 250 yards off the road. Witnesses also said an excavator was seen in the water.
This story is breaking and will be updated.
Count on NBC2 to bring you the latest details as they are released. | https://nbc-2.com/news/local/2022/06/09/death-investigation-unfolds-in-bonita-springs-2/ | 2022-06-09T21:10:31 | 1 | https://nbc-2.com/news/local/2022/06/09/death-investigation-unfolds-in-bonita-springs-2/ |
FORT MYERS, Fla. – Police are warning Fort Myers residents of a direct mail scam circulating the area that claims to be backed by the “Fort Myers Area Police Department.”
Officials said the fraudulent mail is an attempt to solicit donations for “Citizens Behind the Badge” on behalf of the “Fort Myers Area Police Department.”
FMPD said they do not solicit donations and encourage residents to research before making donations.
Non-profits affiliated with FMPD include the Fort Myers Police Department Fallen Officer Memorial Foundation and the Fort Myers Police Athletic League.
Click here for tips on what to do before donating to a charity. | https://nbc-2.com/news/local/2022/06/09/police-warn-of-mail-scam-circulating-fort-myers/ | 2022-06-09T21:10:37 | 0 | https://nbc-2.com/news/local/2022/06/09/police-warn-of-mail-scam-circulating-fort-myers/ |
Get ready to see a mob dressed in white, carrying tables and picnic baskets all while getting ready to settle at an unknown location. Why, you ask?
Diner en Blanc is coming back to Philadelphia for a 10th year this summer, according to organizers. Meanwhile, the event that happens in cities across the country is also spreading to Atlantic City, New Jersey.
Le Diner en Blanc Philadelphia is returning with it's Parisian-inspired outdoor dinner party Thursday, August 18.
This week, organizers and guests celebrated it's 10th anniversary with a preview party held at Macy's Center City.
Guest were able to preview tastings from Feast Your Eyes, the event's catering partner, as well as see the work of the florists, designers, and event planners taking part in this year's event.
Tickets for this years event will be available in three phases:
Phase 1 (July 6): Registered and Absent Members
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Phase 2 (July 12): Guests Sponsored in Phase One
Phase 3 (July 14): Waitlist
Thousands are expected to attend the all-white party. An estimated 3,000 people descended on Rittenhouse Square for last year's dinner.
Le Diner en Blanc has previously been held all across the city including Logan Square, South Broad Street and The Philadelphia Museum of Art.
Organizers of the Philadelphia event are also in charge of New Jersey's first ever Diner en Blanc happening in Atlantic City on June 25. | https://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/local/diner-en-blanc-returning-to-philly-while-a-c-will-also-get-to-wear-white/3265864/ | 2022-06-09T21:12:31 | 1 | https://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/local/diner-en-blanc-returning-to-philly-while-a-c-will-also-get-to-wear-white/3265864/ |
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Breaking news and the stories that matter to your neighborhood. | https://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/local/motive-sought-for-teens-randomly-shooting-in-south-street-mass-shooting/3266335/ | 2022-06-09T21:12:37 | 1 | https://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/local/motive-sought-for-teens-randomly-shooting-in-south-street-mass-shooting/3266335/ |
Megan O'Keefe, Edgewater councilwoman since 2018, resigns; city seeks replacement
EDGEWATER — Megan O’Keefe resigned from her seat on the Edgewater City Council, the city announced on its Facebook page late Tuesday. She will be relocating to a nearby city.
O’Keefe was elected in August 2018 via special election to serve the remainder of an unexpired term vacated by councilman Dan Blazi, who also resigned due to relocation. O’Keefe qualified for the District 3 seat for the November 2018 election and ran unopposed.
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“Councilwoman O’Keefe was an ardent supporter of the city’s EDGEfest special event series, particularly those events raising money for the Local School Scholarship Fund,” the city wrote. “She and her family participated in the Wreaths Across America event each winter that recognizes veterans in local cemeteries.”
The city also thanked O’Keefe for her work during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“While her term as a public servant has come to a close, she will remain a steadfast supporter of and an ambassador for the City of Edgewater,” the city wrote. “We thank her for her service and wish her well in her future endeavors.”
O’Keefe could not be reached for comment on Wednesday.
O'Keefe's term was due to end on Dec. 5, 2022. To complete the remainder of O’Keefe’s term, the City Council is seeking applicants from her district (District 3). Applications are available on the City Council’s website cityofedgewater.org/citycouncil.
To qualify, applicants must meet two criteria:
- You must be a registered voter in Volusia County.
- You must be a qualified elector of the city and shall have resided within the city for not less than one year and shall be a resident of District 3 on the date that person qualifies for appointment.
Applications must be submitted to the city clerk no later than 4 p.m. on June 22, 2022, along with a copy of a driver’s license and voter registration card. The City Council will review the applications and make the appointment at its July 11 meeting, according to the city. | https://www.news-journalonline.com/story/news/local/volusia/2022/06/09/edgewater-city-councilwoman-megan-okeefe-resigns/7553851001/ | 2022-06-09T21:16:09 | 1 | https://www.news-journalonline.com/story/news/local/volusia/2022/06/09/edgewater-city-councilwoman-megan-okeefe-resigns/7553851001/ |
COVID-19 weekly update: Cases rise by 14,677, weekly test positivity up to 23%
Arizona is seeing a sustained increase in COVID-19 cases as well as the percentage of tests that are positive for the virus, according to the latest weekly update from the state Health Department.
On Wednesday, health officials reported a high 14,677 new COVID-19 cases and 40 new known deaths over the weeklong period ending June 4. That's the highest case report since Arizona switched to weekly updates at the start of March.
Cases reported from tests done during the past week were the highest they've been in nearly four months, state data shows, but still far lower than the winter. Case numbers in recent months likely are not showing the full picture of infections as many more people have used at-home test kits and may not report positive results to county health departments.
Reported cases since the pandemic began are at more than 2 million. Known deaths in Arizona are at nearly 30,400.
Wednesday marked the 15th of the weekly updates to the state's data dashboard, instead of daily updates that Arizonans became accustomed to following for the latest data on infections, illnesses and deaths.
The previous week's update added 13,042 cases and 33 deaths, compared with 11,498 cases and 40 deaths, 7,204 cases and 29 deaths, 5,490 cases and 41 deaths, 3,911 cases and 238 deaths, 2,350 cases and 99 deaths, 2,377 cases and 29 deaths (low because of a processing error), 2,777 cases and 142 deaths, 6,840 cases and 413 deaths, 10,143 cases (high because of a reporting catch-up) and 385 deaths, 4,566 cases and 336 deaths, 5,153 cases and 457 deaths, 6,549 cases and 382 deaths, and 9,647 cases and 449 deaths the 13 weeks prior.
This week's update shows the differences between data reported for the week of May 29-June 4 and the week of May 22-28.
Health officials say weekly updates match how public health monitors trends and other disease reporting.
Case numbers generally were relatively lower in the past couple of months, and public health experts estimate cases of the highly contagious omicron variant peaked in Arizona around mid-January.
The state data dashboard no longer shows key hospitalization information since Gov. Doug Ducey ended the COVID-19 emergency declaration on March 30. State health officials said hospitals are no longer required to report some COVID-19 surveillance data to the state, meaning certain graphs showing weekly hospitalization levels for the disease and bed usage by COVID-19 patients are no longer updated.
At the time that data reporting stopped, hospitalizations for the disease had dropped steadily since late January.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention still reports state hospitalization data for Arizona and showed a 23.4% increase in the seven-day average of COVID-19 hospital admissions during May 30-June 5 compared with May 23-29. Hospital admissions last week were down 86.6% from the peak seven-day average in early January 2021.
The number of known deaths in the state was at 30,372 as of Wednesday, after passing 30,000 known deaths in the May 4 update, 29,000 deaths in the March 30 update, 28,000 deaths in the March 9 update, 27,000 deaths on Feb. 10 and 26,000 deaths on Jan. 28. The state surpassed 25,000 deaths on Jan. 13. Deaths are now reported with a four-week lag.
Arizona's overall pandemic death rate since early 2020 is the third-highest nationwide.
Public health: COVID-19 cases are rising again in Arizona. Here's what to know
State data on breakthrough infections
The state in December began publicly disclosing data on breakthrough COVID-19 infections, and state officials say the data underscores the effectiveness of the vaccine — especially for people with booster doses.
Data from April show that 26.7% of cases, 26% of hospitalizations and 23.2% of COVID-19 deaths were among fully vaccinated people without a booster, with much of the rest among unvaccinated people. Fully vaccinated people with a booster made up 35% of reported cases, 29.4% of hospitalizations and 28.6% of deaths in April.
The COVID-19 virus' disproportionate impact on older adults, who are also more likely to have a booster dose, could help explain why a higher percentage of people who were fully vaccinated and boosted died of COVID-19 in April than those who were fully vaccinated and not boosted. The effectiveness of boosters also appears to wane after several months. But the precise explanation for those percentages of deaths is unclear.
Looking at the proportions of deaths by vaccination status does not tell the risk, though. State health officials recommend considering the rates of death among boosted individuals versus unvaccinated individuals, which show significantly lower death rates in vaccinated and boosted individuals compared with unvaccinated individuals.
Health officials emphasize the best protection against severe illness from COVID-19 is to remain up to date with recommended vaccinations, including second booster doses for those 50 and older and people who are immunocompromised.
Unvaccinated people 12 and older in Arizona had a 2 times greater risk of testing positive for COVID-19, 9 times greater risk of hospitalization from COVID-19 and 11.9 times greater risk of dying from COVID-19 in April compared with fully vaccinated people with a booster, according to a state analysis.
Unvaccinated people had a 3.4 times greater risk of testing positive, 7.1 times greater risk of hospitalization and 8.7 times greater risk of dying from COVID-19 compared with individuals who were fully vaccinated without a booster.
As of June 1, there had been 1,948 breakthrough deaths in fully vaccinated individuals, according to state health officials’ preliminary data, which works out to a breakthrough death rate of 0.04% among fully vaccinated people.
Education: Why Arizona schoolkids won't be required to get COVID-19 vaccines
Case rates and death reports
The omicron variant and other versions of omicron are still contributing to many of the cases in Arizona, according to results from sequencing labs.
Percent positivity, which refers to the percentage of COVID-19 diagnostic tests that are positive, varies somewhat based on how it's measured. It was high in winter months, a sign of more community spread. Then it was much lower, but has been climbing upward since April.
For most of December, Arizona's percent positivity for COVID-19 testing was at 11%-13%, before rising to 22% for the week of Dec. 26, 29% for the week of Jan. 2, 32% for the week of Jan. 9, 34% for the week of Jan. 16, 29% for the week of Jan. 23, 22% for the week of Jan. 30, 16% for the week of Feb. 6, 11% for the week of Feb. 13, 7% for the week of Feb. 20, 4% for the week of Feb. 27, 3% for the week of March 6, 3% for the week of March 13, 3% for the week of March 20, 3% for the week of March 27, 3% for the week of April 3, 4% for the week of April 10, 5% for the week of April 17, 6% for the week of April 24, 9% for the week of May 1, 11% for the week of May 8, 16% for the week of May 15, 18% for the week of May 22 and 23% for the week of May 29. The percentages are now for all diagnostic tests conducted, rather than for unique individuals tested, following a change to the state dashboard.
A positivity rate of 5% or less is considered a good benchmark that the disease's spread is under control.
The state's overall COVID-19 death and case rates since Jan. 21, 2020, still remain among the worst in the country.
The COVID-19 death rate in Arizona since the pandemic began is 416 deaths per 100,000 people as of Tuesday, according to the CDC, putting it third in the country in a state ranking that separates New York City from New York state. The U.S. average is 302 deaths per 100,000 people as of Tuesday, according to the CDC.
New York City has the highest death rate, at 482 deaths per 100,000 people, followed by Mississippi at 419.
Arizona's first known death from the disease occurred in mid-March 2020.
Many of the reported deaths occurred days or weeks before because of reporting delays and death certificate matching.
A total of 2,077,346 COVID-19 cases were identified across the state through June 4.
Vaccination update
Arizonans ages 5 and older are eligible for the Pfizer vaccine, while the Moderna vaccine is approved for those 18 and older. The FDA has approved the Johnson & Johnson vaccine on a more limited basis for people 18 and older. Many individuals are eligible for booster doses, too.
The state reported about 5.1 million people in Arizona — about 71.4% of the total state population — had received at least one vaccine dose through June 3, with about 4.4 million residents fully vaccinated against COVID-19. The state’s data dashboard now separates out doses administered to Arizona residents versus all doses administered in the state.
Arizona's rate of fully vaccinated people out of the total population is 62.1%, which is behind the national rate of 66.7%, according to the CDC as of Tuesday.
Out of the vaccine-eligible population, people ages 5 and older, 66% of those in Arizona are fully vaccinated, compared with 70.9% at the national level, CDC data shows.
Health experts strongly recommend booster shots for those eligible, especially with the omicron variant spreading. About 46.3% of fully vaccinated Arizonans over the age of 18 had received a first booster shot as of Tuesday, below the national rate of 50.4% for that same age group.
What to know about latest numbers
Reported cases in Arizona: 2,077,346, as of June 4.
Cases by county: 1,314,887 in Maricopa; 262,655 in Pima; 135,280 in Pinal; 63,003 in Yuma; 58,505 in Mohave; 49,404 in Yavapai; 45,095 in Coconino; 39,055 in Navajo; 32,307 in Cochise; 22,943 in Apache; 17,655 in Gila; 16,837 in Santa Cruz; 12,186 in Graham; 5,280 in La Paz; and 2,254 in Greenlee, according to state numbers.
The rate of cases per 100,000 people since the pandemic began is highest in Navajo County, followed by Gila, Apache, Santa Cruz, Graham and Coconino counties, according to state data. The rate in Navajo County is 34,616 cases per 100,000 people. By comparison, the U.S. average rate since the pandemic began is 25,286 cases per 100,000 people as of Tuesday, according to the CDC.
The Navajo Nation reported 54,622 cases and 1,795 confirmed deaths as of Tuesday. The Navajo Nation includes parts of Arizona, New Mexico and Utah.
The Arizona Department of Corrections reported 15,033 inmates had tested positive for COVID-19 as of Tuesday, including 2,469 in Tucson, 2,277 in Eyman, 2,236 in Yuma, 1,762 in Lewis and 1,307 in Phoenix; 56,208 inmates statewide have been tested. A total of 5,080 prison staff members have self-reported testing positive, the department said. Sixty-two incarcerated people in Arizona are confirmed to have died of COVID-19, with 15 additional deaths under investigation.
The race/ethnicity breakdown of cases since the start of the pandemic in 2020 is 40% white, 29% Hispanic or Latino, 5% American Indian, 4% Black and 2% Asian/Pacific Islander. Race/ethnicity of positive cases since the onset of the pandemic is unknown in 14% of cases, and listed as other race in 6% of cases.
Of those who have tested positive in Arizona since the start of the pandemic, about 21% were younger than 20, 42% were 20-44, 13% were 45-54, 11% were 55-64 and 12% were age 65 or older.
Laboratories had completed 19,712,761 total diagnostic tests for COVID-19 as of June 4, 12.1% of which have come back positive. That number includes both PCR and antigen testing.
Percent positivity was at 23% for the week of May 29, the highest it's been since January. The state numbers leave out data from labs that do not report electronically.
The state Health Department includes probable cases as anyone with a positive antigen test, another type of test to determine infection. Antigen tests (not related to antibody tests) use a nasal swab or another fluid sample to test for current infection. Results are typically produced within 15 minutes.
A positive antigen test result is considered very accurate, but there's an increased chance of false-negative results, Mayo Clinic officials said. They say a doctor may recommend a PCR (polymerase chain reaction) test to confirm a negative antigen test result.
Arizona as of Tuesday had the 14th highest overall case rate in the country since Jan. 21, 2020. Ahead of Arizona in cases per 100,000 people since the pandemic began are Rhode Island, Alaska, North Dakota, Kentucky, Tennessee, New York City, Utah, Guam, South Carolina, Florida, West Virginia, Wisconsin and Delaware, according to the CDC.
Arizona's infection rate is 28,338 cases per 100,000 people, according to the CDC. The national average is 25,531 cases per 100,000 people, although the rates in states hard hit early in the pandemic may be an undercount because of a lack of available testing in March and April 2020.
Reported deaths in Arizona: 30,372
Deaths by county: 17,414 in Maricopa; 3,866 in Pima; 1,670 in Pinal; 1,465 in Mohave; 1,218 in Yavapai; 1,183 in Yuma; 911 in Navajo; 616 in Apache; 576 in Cochise; 479 in Coconino; 386 in Gila; 232 in Santa Cruz; 178 in Graham; 144 in La Paz; and 34 in Greenlee.
People age 65 and older make up 21,528 of the 30,372 deaths, or 71%. About 16% of deaths were among people 55-64 years old, 8% were 45-54 and 6% were 20-44 years old.
While race/ethnicity was unknown for 4% of deaths, 56% of those who died were white, 26% were Hispanic or Latino, 7% were Native American, 3% were Black and 1% were Asian/Pacific Islander, the state data shows.
The global death toll as of Wednesday was 6,303,050. The U.S. had the highest death count of any country in the world, at 1,009,557, followed by Brazil at 667,348 and India at 524,715, according to Johns Hopkins University.
Arizona's 30,372 deaths represent about 3% of COVID-19 deaths in the United States.
Republic reporter Stephanie Innes contributed to this article.
Reach the reporter at Alison.Steinbach@arizonarepublic.com or at 602-444-4282. Follow her on Twitter @alisteinbach.
Support local journalism. Subscribe to azcentral.com today. | https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/arizona-health/2022/06/09/arizona-weekly-covid-19-update-adds-cases-deaths/7554429001/ | 2022-06-09T21:24:15 | 0 | https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/arizona-health/2022/06/09/arizona-weekly-covid-19-update-adds-cases-deaths/7554429001/ |
14-year-old killed in weekend mass shooting identified as Emily Morgan
The teen killed in a mass shooting at a strip mall on Saturday has been identified by Phoenix police as 14-year-old Emily Morgan.
Police said the shooting was the result of a fight at a "party promoted on social media" at 10th Avenue and Hatcher Road in north Phoenix. Officers responded to calls about multiple shootings at about 1 a.m. Saturday and when they arrived, people were fleeing the area. Morgan was pronounced dead after arriving at the hospital. Eight others were injured, two with life-threatening injuries.
Police have not released information about any suspects.
Police said the party's promotion on social media represents a dangerous trend. These types of events have led to drug use, property damage, and shootings.
Reach the reporter at GRGomez@gannett.com
Support local journalism. Subscribe to azcentral.com today. | https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/phoenix-breaking/2022/06/09/emily-morgan-victim-killed-north-phoenix-mass-shooting/7569926001/ | 2022-06-09T21:24:21 | 0 | https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/phoenix-breaking/2022/06/09/emily-morgan-victim-killed-north-phoenix-mass-shooting/7569926001/ |
Phoenix police seek help identifying woman whose body was found near 9th Street, Jones Avenue
The Phoenix Police Department is seeking help from the community in order to identify a deceased woman whose body was found on April 5 near Ninth Street and Jones Avenue.
The woman, estimated to be between 17 and 25 years old, was found wearing blue-striped athletic pants, wedge shoes and a T-shirt of an unknown color. Police posted an artist’s interpretation of the woman to its Facebook account to assist in identifying her.
Police have not provided any further details about where or how the woman was found and whether there is any update in the case since publishing the sketch to Facebook Thursday morning.
To report information about the woman, Phoenix police can be reached at 602-534-2121.
Reach breaking news reporter Samantha Burdette at sburdette@gannett.com. | https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/phoenix-breaking/2022/06/09/phoenix-police-seek-help-identifying-deceased-woman/7570535001/ | 2022-06-09T21:24:27 | 1 | https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/phoenix-breaking/2022/06/09/phoenix-police-seek-help-identifying-deceased-woman/7570535001/ |
PENNSYLVANIA, USA — Editor's note: The above video is from Dec. 2021.
Pennsylvania state lawmakers are advancing proposed new limits on fireworks in response to growing complaints after a 5-year-old state law greatly liberalized their sales and use.
The House of Representatives voted 160-38 on Wednesday for legislation that would restrict their use to 10 a.m.-10 p.m. except during July 2-4 and Dec. 31, when they could be used until 1 a.m. There would be greater penalties for improper sales or illegal use.
“It sounds like a war zone the week of July 4th,” said the sponsor, state Rep. Frank Farry, R-Bucks. “We get a lot of complaints from pet owners, veterans and parents of young kids.”
There is wide belief among firefighters that the 2017 law has resulted in more fires and fire deaths. Farry, a firefighter, said the proposed changes are designed to let people “still shoot fireworks with responsible controls.”
Under the bill, people would have to give livestock owners or managers three days' notice before fireworks could be used near an animal housing facility. Local municipalities would get more explicit authority to ban their use if their city or town does not have a place where they can be used safely.
The bill also changes the use of a 12% levy put on fireworks above the sales tax. Current law directs 2% to emergency services and 10% to the state's general fund. Farry's bill would divert all 12% to various emergency services uses, or some $10 million-$12 million annually.
Until the 2017 law change, fireworks in Pennsylvania were largely limited to sparklers and similar novelties. The changes permitted the sale of the full array of fireworks that meet federal consumer standards.
Increased use of fireworks across the country have been drawing complaints in recent years.
The bill was sent to the Senate for its consideration. | https://www.fox43.com/article/news/local/fireworks-law-pennsylvania-restrictions/521-5f9d5864-e12d-4eea-8d94-49df8a5dd8cf | 2022-06-09T21:24:44 | 1 | https://www.fox43.com/article/news/local/fireworks-law-pennsylvania-restrictions/521-5f9d5864-e12d-4eea-8d94-49df8a5dd8cf |
HARRISBURG, Pa. — Members of Veterans Outreach of Pennsylvania gathered in Lancaster to present their plan to help homeless veterans in Central PA — by providing them with temporary housing in tiny homes.
“It’s going to be their place to stay, keep, and maintain while they’re in our community, but it’s also one that they’re going to graduate from and moving back into society," said Thomas Zimmerman, co-founder of Veterans Outreach of Pennsylvania.
Zimmerman says there are about 1,000 veterans struggling with homelessness in Pennsylvania, with about 30 of them in Dauphin County. He says Veterans Outreach will be building a tiny home community for veterans in Harrisburg, on a five-acre plot of land next to PennDOT Headquarters.
The 220 square-feet homes will come fully furnished.
“They will have a full bed, they will have a full shower and bathroom, they will have a little desk and kitchenet area," explained Zimmerman, "They will not have a full kitchen because that will be done in the community center with all of the veterans.”
“It is a tiny home village, with 15 homes built in a heart-shaped formation because we all have a heart for vets," said Joann Tresco. "And the heart of it will be a community center that will provide transitional services for service members because our goal is to take them off the streets and back into society.”
Zimmerman is hoping to get all permits approved in to complete the project by the Fall of 2023. For now, he’s working on fundraising efforts to cover the construction costs.
“We need to raise money, we need to raise awareness, we need help, and we want the community to support us.”
Those who are interested in contributing can donate here. | https://www.fox43.com/article/news/local/local-nonprofit-promoting-tiny-home-community-for-veterans/521-d63dc731-43c0-432f-a00b-58ad7476c81d | 2022-06-09T21:24:50 | 1 | https://www.fox43.com/article/news/local/local-nonprofit-promoting-tiny-home-community-for-veterans/521-d63dc731-43c0-432f-a00b-58ad7476c81d |
Originally published June 8 on KTVB.COM.
BOISE — The Boise Police Department is investigating after responding to reports of Pride flags missing from Harrison Boulevard, less than one week after volunteers with the Boise Pride Festival put them up.
On Thursday, BPD said there are roughly 35 missing or damaged flags. Police said the flags may have been taken overnight Monday into Tuesday, or Tuesday night into Wednesday.
Officers are asking for information or video of the incident from the public. BPD also contacted each home on Harrison Boulevard - between West Ada Street and West Bella Street - about the incident. Neighbors are reviewing footage from their surveillance cameras.
"The Boise Police Department is directing a number of resources to investigate this crime and detectives are working to identify those responsible and hold them accountable," Boise Police Deputy Chief Tammany Brooks said. "Our officers will not tolerate any crime that targets or makes someone feel targeted because of who they are or who they choose to love."
The Boise Pride Festival has been putting up flags and banners around Boise during Pride month for the past six years. The festival's volunteers put up this year's flags Saturday, June 4.
This year's Boise Pride Festival is scheduled for Sept. 9-11 at Cecil D. Andrus Park.
In June of 2021, 25 of the 29 Pride flags on Harrison Boulevard were also stolen or destroyed. Officers were immediately able to find the suspect following last year's incident; they were ultimately charged with misdemeanor petit theft.
"The theft of the pride flags along Harrison Boulevard over the last several days is unacceptable and has no place in our city," Boise City Council Pro Tem Holli Woodings posted on Twitter. "Our LGBTQA+ neighbors are valuable community members, and because their community has historically been marginalized, now we work to ensure that our neighbors are celebrated. We work to build a city that's inclusive and open to all people no matter their gender, race, religion, sexual orientation and gender identity, and we support the efforts of our neighborhood associations and nonprofits as they celebrate that diversity.
"To our LQBTQA+ employees, residents, families and friends we support you, we are here for you and we join with you not just during Pride Month but every day."
For questions on reporting crimes involving the LGBTQ+ community, email BPD's LGBTQ+ Liaison Officer, Dan Lister, at dlister@cityofboise.org. For immediate assistance, call 911.
The incident is still under investigation by the Boise Police Department.
More from KTVB.COM: | https://www.idahopress.com/news/local/boise-police-dozens-of-pride-flags-missing-from-harrison-boulevard/article_755e56f9-05b7-5459-9528-4438e77a2522.html | 2022-06-09T21:30:16 | 0 | https://www.idahopress.com/news/local/boise-police-dozens-of-pride-flags-missing-from-harrison-boulevard/article_755e56f9-05b7-5459-9528-4438e77a2522.html |
Originally published June 7 by Idaho Reports.
The Idaho School Safety and Security Advisory Board met Tuesday, two weeks after a mass shooting killed 19 students and two teachers at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas.
The advisory board discussed plans for school safety moving forward, including a new reunification plan outlined by Guy Bliesner, an analyst with the Idaho School Safety and Security Program. “Reunification” means the process of reuniting children with their guardians during a crisis situation.
“This has been the giant disaster of what takes place,” when looking at other school shootings, Bliesner told the advisory board.
Though the agenda included an open forum, no parents spoke.
Many of the points Bliesner outlined stemmed from lessons learned at the last school shooting in Idaho. On May, 6, 2021, a 12-year-old female student shot and injured three people at Rigby Middle School.
Under the proposed reunification plan, there would be a two-gate process – the “request gate” and “release gate.” At the request gate, a parent identifies that they are authorized to take a student and then is physically moved to the release gate. At the release gate, staff escorts the student to their guardian for release. Staff would document when the student left and who they left with.
Another issue some schools face is that in larger crisis events, as many as 25% of students will self-evacuate, Bliesner said. That makes finding the students difficult.
Bliesner suggested that district staff could take over this role, as school staff are sometimes traumatized after an event.
“The real challenge is to create something that is functional at Swan Valley with 60 kids and functional at Rocky Mountain High with 1,500 kids,” he said. “And I think we’re probably 90 percent of the way there.”
Bliesner said they hope to test the plan this fall semester at several schools. The School Safety and Security Program will send the plan to schools in the next 10 days to let the schools edit it as they need for their schools.
The advisory board also reviewed the use of See Tell Now, a program implemented by the state to gather tips about people or students who could be a threat. Tips can be reported online or through a smartphone app. The state allocates $120,000 for the program and has one employee dedicated to the program, a staff member who was converted over from an expiring federal grant.
Idaho has 129 schools enrolled in See Tell Now. Of those, 41 schools enrolled this 2021-2022 school year, according to board members. See Tell Now serves more than 55,000 Idaho students and allows them to report suspicious activity or concerns and observations, allowing authorities to intervene before a crisis occurs.
Program manager Mike Munger told the advisory board they have seen an increase in tips, but most are not emergency-level. Some are anonymous, while others leave contact information.
Munger says he is supportive of the program, as intervention at the lowest possible level of threat is ideal.
“Idaho is ahead of the curve, in terms of our sophistication of our assessments,” said Rep. Wendy Horman, R-Idaho Falls, who chairs the advisory board. “We’ve moved now onto details on reunification and so many other things that this staff has done.”
“We are doing the best practices in Idaho,” Horman said during the meeting. “We can improve. We can always do more and we’re always learning after each incident and we have the right people in place to make sure that that does happen.” | https://www.idahopress.com/news/local/school-safety-board-reviews-policy-on-reuniting-kids-parents-in-crisis/article_b3e9241e-ee91-5b6e-b3d7-2fc68e6319c2.html | 2022-06-09T21:30:18 | 1 | https://www.idahopress.com/news/local/school-safety-board-reviews-policy-on-reuniting-kids-parents-in-crisis/article_b3e9241e-ee91-5b6e-b3d7-2fc68e6319c2.html |
Monroe County will change the speed limits of several roads. Find out if one is close to you.
Monroe County visitors and commuters should be on the look out for new roads signs within the next month. The county's highway department plans to complete a standard "clean up" process to better fit current traffic patterns and design plans.
A sign recommendation can be made two ways, according to highway director Lisa Ridge. The county's highway engineer, after surveying an area, can put in a proposal. Oftentimes, members of the public propose changes. All changes must pass through the Monroe County Traffic Commission and the Board of Commissioners.
On Wednesday, the commissioners unanimously approved the changes. The alterations will be advertised for two weeks for public comment before highway personnel begin implementation.
What's changing: speed limits, yield signs
A segment of Rockport Road, between Ind. 37 and the Bloomington city limits, is set to have a speed limit of 30 miles per hour, a 5-mile decrease from its current speed. Ridge said this change was made to match the speed limit of that road as it enters Bloomington jurisdiction.
A few roads within the Highland Park Estates subdivision — Centennial Drive, Cheryl Drive, Denise Drive, Emma Drive — will have a speed limit of 25 miles per hour. This alteration is due to adjoining subdivisions set to be built in the surrounding area, which will also have the same speed limit.
For subscribers:400+ new apartments, townhomes, houses coming just south of Bloomington
Hunter's Creek Road, located between Ind. 446 and Tower Ridge Road, will have its speed limit increased, from 30 to 35 miles per hour. This was a move toward uniformity in the area as well, Ridge noted.
To better fix these intersections' traffic patterns, a yield sign at Ison Road West and Tower Road will move to the southbound corner. Chapel Hill Road and Guthrie Road will soon have a yield sign on the westbound corner.
Originating as a proposal from a property owner, there will be no parking on a segment of Production Drive. This move was spurred by the expected increase in traffic once Rumpke's new facility begins operation.
More:Construction to begin soon on new Rumpke waste and recycling facility south of Bloomington
According to Ridge, highway personnel have kept traffic signs up to date, so they don't often have to submit changes like these. While any member of the public can request a sign or rubble strips, highway officials want to keep the roads as uncluttered as possible.
"We get requests for all kinds of signs all the time. But we try and stay clear of putting anything in the right of way that makes people start ignoring signage," Ridge said.
Contact Rachel Smith at rksmith@heraldt.com or @RachelSmithNews on Twitter. | https://www.heraldtimesonline.com/story/news/local/2022/06/09/monroe-county-highway-signage-changes-take-effect-within-month/7552362001/ | 2022-06-09T21:30:30 | 1 | https://www.heraldtimesonline.com/story/news/local/2022/06/09/monroe-county-highway-signage-changes-take-effect-within-month/7552362001/ |
WASHINGTON COUNTY, Md. — Deputies say multiple people are injured following a shooting in Washington County, Maryland Thursday afternoon.
The shooting happened in the 12900 block of Bickle Road in Smithsburg, according to the Washington County Sheriff's Office.
There is no word on the exact number of people who were injured in the shooting with law enforcement citing "multiple victims." However, during a press conference discussing COVID vaccines for young kids, Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan said he had been briefed and called the incident an "ongoing situation," where officials are still working to gather all of the facts.
“My understanding is potentially three people killed," the governor said. "State police responded, pursued the suspect, suspect fired and shot the state trooper in the shoulder who then returned fire and shot him back.”
Hogan said he did not know what condition the suspect may be in at this time, and that he believes officials are waiting to release information until the families of the victims can be notified.
"It's an ongoing and developing situation," Hogan said.
A spokesperson for the sheriff's office says there is no threat to the public at this time. No suspect information has been released.
Congressman David Trone took to Twitter following the shooting asking people in the area to stay away while officials investigate.
Smithsburg is a community of nearly 3,000 people, located about 75 miles northwest of Baltimore not far from the state line with Pennsylvania.
This is a developing story. More details will be added as they become available.
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Among parents and victims, one Texas girl who covered herself in blood to survive is set to speak at the House Oversight and Reform Committee's hearing on gun violence today. | https://www.abc10.com/article/news/local/multiple-people-shot-washington-county-maryland-deputies/65-82a9ac27-9430-44bb-9ef6-f1d0d10e3fe2 | 2022-06-09T21:32:25 | 1 | https://www.abc10.com/article/news/local/multiple-people-shot-washington-county-maryland-deputies/65-82a9ac27-9430-44bb-9ef6-f1d0d10e3fe2 |
ELIZABETHTOWN, Pa. — Update, 3:45 p.m.: According to dispatch, both people have been rescued and transported to local hospitals for treatment.
Previously
Fire crews in Lancaster County have been dispatched to the Mars M&M Chocolates facility to rescue two people trapped inside a chocolate tank, according to emergency dispatch.
The incident was reported around 1:51 p.m., dispatch said.
The factory is located on the 200 block S. Brown Street in Elizabethtown, according to dispatch.
Dispatch did not provide further details of the incident or information on how the people got trapped inside the tank.
A spokesperson said the current plan was to cut into the tank to get the people out.
FOX43 will have additional details as they become available. | https://www.abc10.com/article/news/local/rescue-two-people-trapped-mars-wrigley-confectionary-elizabethtown/521-b67b52ec-6f4b-4f13-9164-e62dc4a68753 | 2022-06-09T21:32:31 | 0 | https://www.abc10.com/article/news/local/rescue-two-people-trapped-mars-wrigley-confectionary-elizabethtown/521-b67b52ec-6f4b-4f13-9164-e62dc4a68753 |
SHASTA, Calif. — A man and woman from Sacramento were among the six climbers injured in separate accidents while trying to summit the peak of Mount Shasta in treacherous conditions.
Starting on Monday at 8:35 a.m., the Siskiyou County Sheriff’s Office responded to four separate rescue operations involving six injured Mount Shasta climbers within less than 24 hours.
32-year-old Jillian Webster from Redmond Oregon was involved in the first incident. She was leading a man and a woman from Seattle, Washington on Monday morning when one of the climbers slipped. All three, who were roped together, then fell 1,500 to 2,500 feet, the Siskiyou County Sheriff's Office said.
Webster was pronounced dead at a hospital while a rescue team found the man in critical condition with a head injury and a broken leg. The woman suffered a broken ankle. The couple is now recovering in the hospital.
According to deputies, shortly after, a Sacramento man was injured after falling about 1,000 feet (300 meters) at 12:30 p.m. At 4 p.m., a Sacramento woman who was part of the same trio of climbers also fell 1,000 feet and was airlifted to a hospital.
Deputies say the man has been released from the hospital and the woman is out of the ICU, but is still recovering in the hospital.
Following the second and third incidents, a man from Long Beach was rescued. He is still recovering in the hospital.
At about 14,180 feet (4,322 meters), Shasta is California's fifth-tallest mountain and is located 275 miles (443 kilometers) north of San Francisco. It draws about 6,000 climbers to the summit each season.
Deputies say a late-season storm over the weekend created icy climbing conditions as Mount Shasta was doused with rain, snow, fog and freezing temperatures.
Following this weekend's injuries and one fatality, the sheriff's office has advised climbers to stay off the mountain until they can better evaluate the conditions.
ABC10: Watch, Download, Read
Watch more from ABC10: Sacramento treatment center opens to address pandemic-induced mental health crisis | https://www.abc10.com/article/news/local/sacramento/two-from-sacramento-airlifted-off-mount-shasta/103-24b4d747-a496-499b-8197-992f5ef9d15f | 2022-06-09T21:32:37 | 1 | https://www.abc10.com/article/news/local/sacramento/two-from-sacramento-airlifted-off-mount-shasta/103-24b4d747-a496-499b-8197-992f5ef9d15f |
MODESTO, Calif. — California Highway Patrol says a 42-year-old Turlock woman was hit and killed by a vehicle early Thursday morning.
CHP says the incident happened just before 7 a.m., and the woman was found on the side of the road at West Main Street just east of Morgan Road.
"Investigating officers at the scene determined the pedestrian had been struck by a passing vehicle," CHP wrote. "The exact circumstances of how the collision took place as well as the time the collision occurred are still under investigation."
CHP says medical assistance arrived at the scene and immediately began life-saving measures but the woman died at the scene.
Anyone with information regarding this incident is asked to contact the Modesto CHP Office at 209-545-7440. | https://www.abc10.com/article/news/local/turlock/turlock-woman-hit-killed-by-vehicle/103-e015913d-4aab-4f3c-b1e1-aa60667e9a8b | 2022-06-09T21:32:43 | 0 | https://www.abc10.com/article/news/local/turlock/turlock-woman-hit-killed-by-vehicle/103-e015913d-4aab-4f3c-b1e1-aa60667e9a8b |
WINTERS, Calif. — Winters Fire Department firefighters are battling a grass fire north of Winters.
On Thursday morning, Winters Fire Department crews were dispatched to investigate a large amount of smoke seen near Niemann Street and Scotty Way.
At 11:30 a.m., the Winters Police Department said the fire, now near the intersection of Moody Slough Road and Country Road 88, had burned approximately three acres.
Police are asking people to avoid the area of the fire due to emergency equipment.
STAY INFORMED:
WILDFIRE PREPS
According to Cal Fire, the 2021 fire season started earlier than previous years, but also ended earlier, as well. January 2021 saw just under 1,200 acres burned from nearly 300 wildfires. Fires picked up in the summer when the Dixie Fire burned in five Northern California counties — Butte, Plumas, Shasta, Lassen and Tehama. The Dixie Fire started on July 13 and wasn't contained until Oct. 25, burning nearly 1 million acres. It has since become the second-largest wildfire in state history and the largest non-complex fire.
Overall, 2.5 million acres were burned in 2021 from 8,835 wildfires. Over 3,600 structures were destroyed and 3 people killed.
If you live in a wildfire-prone zone, Cal Fire suggests creating a defensible space around your home. Defensible space is an area around a building in which vegetation and other debris are completely cleared. At least 100 feet is recommended.
The Department of Homeland Security suggests assembling an emergency kit that has important documents, N95 respirator masks, supplies to grab with you if you’re forced to leave at a moment’s notice. The agency also suggests signing up for local warning system notifications and know your community’s evacuation plans best to prepare yourself and your family in cases of wildfires.
Some counties use Nixle alerts to update residents on severe weather, wildfires, and other news. To sign up, visit www.nixle.com or text your zip code to 888777 to start receiving alerts.
PG&E customers can also subscribe to alerts via text, email, or phone call. If you're a PG&E customer, visit the Profile & Alerts section of your account to register.
What questions do you have about the latest wildfires? If you're impacted by the wildfires, what would you like to know? Text the ABC10 team at (916) 321-3310.
ABC10: Watch, Download, Read
Watch more from ABC10: PG&E faces prosecution for 2020 Zogg Fire | https://www.abc10.com/article/news/local/wildfire/crews-battling-grass-fire-near-winters/103-2c4a7aa5-be46-4fbd-8b8b-664a6d104d84 | 2022-06-09T21:32:49 | 0 | https://www.abc10.com/article/news/local/wildfire/crews-battling-grass-fire-near-winters/103-2c4a7aa5-be46-4fbd-8b8b-664a6d104d84 |
ELIZABETHTON, Tenn. (WJHL) — Citing an inability to recruit and retain employees due to low pay, outgoing Carter County Sheriff Dexter Lunceford is ending a contract to house federal prisoners that netted the county about a million dollars in each of the past two reported fiscal audits.
Lunceford told News Channel 11 a couple dozen of the 60 or so inmates had already been picked up and relocated. He warned that after several years of attempts to get higher pay approved — corrections officers start at about $26,000 a year — conditions have become unsafe to house extra inmates.
“I would have had to have been funded over the last couple of years, three years, to the point where I could retain, hire and retain employees,” Lunceford said. “We can’t do that anymore. We don’t even have people applying.”
Lunceford, who narrowly lost to Mike Fraley in the Republican primary for sheriff, will complete his second term in September. He said since implementing the federal contract several years ago, its revenues have helped pay the bond note on the jail and allowed for important one-time expenses that have allowed modernization of the department.
The county has been bringing in about $2 million annually through housing federal and state inmates, Lunceford said. After the jail payment, “what’s left over they allow us to use to make one-time purchases for equipment, things of that sort so we don’t have to go back to the citizens for tax money, local tax money.”
Lunceford said the federal contract pays well above the $37 the state pays to house its inmates and has other financial advantages as well. He said the proceeds that haven’t gone to the jail note have helped buy new vehicles, implement what he said is one of the most advanced IT systems in the area and send staff to important trainings, among other things.
“Losing that money, all of that extras … that’s made this sheriff’s department successful to where the crime’s down 41% — ‘we’re very successful — that’s going to go away, and the commission is going to have to come up with a million dollars a year to make the payment on the jail,” Lunceford said.
Carter County’s audits show the “prisoner board” program for federal inmates brought in just over $1 million in fiscal 2019 and $981,071 in fiscal 2020. State inmate revenues were $663,092 in fiscal 2019, $588,548 in fiscal 2020.
The department’s entire expense budget in fiscal 2020 was $5.6 million.
Even if the county commission were to implement major pay raises for the department, Lunceford said it would take at least a year to get staffing back close to where it needs to be. He said jail corrections officers are typically the stable of employees from whom road officers are selected. Those with the ability and inclination get sent on to the academy and eventually become road officers and/or investigators.
As far as the federal contract, which wasn’t in place when he took office, “then you have to approach the federal authorities with renegotiations, and this is gonna put a sour taste in their mouth and maybe they sign another contract, maybe they don’t,” Lunceford said.
“That won’t be my call. But this is not a quick fix. We didn’t get here overnight, we can’t fix it overnight.”
That said, Lunceford called the use of the federal inmate contract to augment the department’s budget “imperative.”
“Either that or you go back 20 years to where you have no technology, your cars have 200,000 miles on them, you’re putting your officers at risk, their uniforms are torn and tattered, they have no training. Yeah, you can. You can cut all those things. We can (also) go back to gravel roads.” | https://www.wjhl.com/news/local/carter-county-sheriff-pulls-plug-on-housing-federal-inmates-revenue-that-goes-with-it/ | 2022-06-09T21:36:27 | 0 | https://www.wjhl.com/news/local/carter-county-sheriff-pulls-plug-on-housing-federal-inmates-revenue-that-goes-with-it/ |
MERIDIAN, Idaho — To officially begin its free meals program, West Ada School Nutrition Services hosted a "Summer Feeding Kick Off Event" in Meridian Thursday.
The event at Tully Park featured raffles and activities, while celebrating healthy, free meals for the local community.
In late April, the West Ada School District announced it would be providing free breakfasts and lunches for children between the ages of 1 and 18. The program began Tuesday and runs through July 29.
West Ada School Nutrition Services will provide the free meals at seven different locations in the Treasure Valley. Two locations will serve both breakfast and lunch this summer.
More information on each event's location, hours and meal service is listed below:
Meridian High School:
- June 13 - July 21, Monday - Thursday
- Breakfast: 8:15 a.m. - 9:45 a.m.
- Lunch: Noon - 12:45 a.m.
- 1900 West Pine Avenue, Meridian
Desert Sage Elementary School:
- June 7 - July 29, Monday - Friday
- Breakfast: 8 a.m. - 8:45 a.m.
- Lunch: Noon - 12:45 a.m.
- 9325 West Mossywood Drive, Boise
Frontier Elementary School:
- June 27 - July 21, Monday - Thursday
- Breakfast: 10 a.m. - 10:45 a.m.
- 11851 West Musket Drive, Boise
McMillan Elementary School:
- June 13 - June 17, Monday - Friday
- Lunch: Noon - 12:45 p.m.
- 10901 West McMillan Road, Boise
Tully Park:
- June 7 - July 29, Monday - Friday
- Lunch: Noon - 12:45 p.m.
- 2500 North Linder Road, Meridian
Chateau Park:
- June 7 - July 29, Monday - Friday
- Lunch: Noon - 12:45 p.m.
- 2640 West Chateau Drive, Meridian
Ross Elementary School:
- June 13 - July 29, Monday - Friday
- Lunch: 11 a.m. - 1 p.m.
- 610 North School Avenue, Kuna
For more information on menus for the summer and provided meals, visit the West Ada School District website or contact West Ada School Nutrition Services by calling (208) 855-4575.
Watch more Local News:
See the latest news from around the Treasure Valley and the Gem State in our YouTube playlist: | https://www.ktvb.com/article/news/local/west-ada-summer-meals-program-community-event/277-4578e0fa-7434-436b-b837-6a9dd39a8dc6 | 2022-06-09T21:37:09 | 1 | https://www.ktvb.com/article/news/local/west-ada-summer-meals-program-community-event/277-4578e0fa-7434-436b-b837-6a9dd39a8dc6 |
AUSTIN, Texas — The Austin Police Department responded to a suspicious death on the afternoon of June 9.
APD received a call reporting a possible deceased person around 2:10 p.m. Officers responded to the scene in the 12400 block of North Lamar in North Austin.
Upon arriving, officers found a deceased man at the bus stop in the area, officials said. EMS soon arrived and gave a time of death for the man. The person's identity was not released.
Officials said homicide detectives are on the scene working the case. The man's death is still listed as suspicious at this time.
No other details regarding the incident were immediately available.
Officials ask that drivers avoid the area at this time.
PEOPLE ARE ALSO READING: | https://www.kvue.com/article/news/local/apd-responding-suspicious-death-north-austin/269-14f5c9ce-7432-438b-9abb-fd29319e2e17 | 2022-06-09T21:44:23 | 1 | https://www.kvue.com/article/news/local/apd-responding-suspicious-death-north-austin/269-14f5c9ce-7432-438b-9abb-fd29319e2e17 |
AUSTIN, Texas — Austin City Council passed the Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair Act Thursday as a step toward ending hair discrimination.
The CROWN Act, which was created in 2019 and passed by the U.S. House in March, adds "protective hairstyles" such as afros, cornrows and bantu knots to the definition of "Discriminatory Employment Practice." Austin is the first Texas city to pass the act.
"Too often minorities are judged not only by the color of their skin, but also by the texture of their hair,” civil rights officer Carol Johnson said in a statement. “Across the country we continue to see the harmful effects of racial discrimination due to natural hair and many states and cities are finding ways to address this through CROWN Act legislation.”
Prior to passing the act, the city manager held community forums and met with civil rights organizations and businesses to discuss the issue of hair discrimination. The forums allowed people to share what kind of safeguards would make them comfortable with presenting their protective hairstyles and natural hair textures in settings such as schools, housing and the workplace.
“The impact of race-based hair discrimination can last a lifetime,” Johnson said. “We know that discrimination hurts and this is particularly harrowing when it impacts our children, scarring their self-esteem.”
PEOPLE ARE ALSO READING: | https://www.kvue.com/article/news/local/austin-city-council-crown-act/269-9f35f570-8cb6-420c-9ad6-3c44aeb61c24 | 2022-06-09T21:44:29 | 1 | https://www.kvue.com/article/news/local/austin-city-council-crown-act/269-9f35f570-8cb6-420c-9ad6-3c44aeb61c24 |
A Bismarck man accused of stabbing his brother has been sentenced to 1 ½ years in prison.
Derek Carda, 38, on Wednesday pleaded guilty to aggravated assault, court documents show. South Central District Judge Cynthia Feland also ordered Carda to spend 1 ½ years on probation following his prison term.
Carda was charged following an April incident in which police said his 33-year-old brother suffered three stab wounds. Carda was treated for injuries that were not life-threatening.
Carda told police his brother came to his North Washington Street residence about 2 p.m. and the two started drinking, and his brother later attacked him for an unknown reason, according to an affidavit. Carda first told police his brother pulled the knife and Carda turned it on him. In another interview, Carda said he pulled the knife when his brother attacked him, the affidavit states.
Reach Travis Svihovec at 701-250-8260 or Travis.Svihovec@bismarcktribune.com | https://bismarcktribune.com/news/local/accident-and-incident/bismarck-man-sentenced-in-stabbing/article_3fb2d5ec-e829-11ec-815c-e3fba41ca2ba.html | 2022-06-09T21:53:50 | 1 | https://bismarcktribune.com/news/local/accident-and-incident/bismarck-man-sentenced-in-stabbing/article_3fb2d5ec-e829-11ec-815c-e3fba41ca2ba.html |
Beginning June 9th, the New York Public Library is giving away over 500,000 free books for everyone 18 and under at various branches for the summer.
Head to any library location in the Bronx, Manhattan or Staten Island to choose one of the many assorted books they are handing out, free of charge.
Kids and teens can also personalize their new book with a specially designed New York Public Library bookplate to stick inside the cover.
Select locations will have titles in Spanish and Chinese, in addition to English. Large print titles will also be available at certain locations as well.
The books were selected by New York Public Library's expert librarians with authors and characters that reflect the richly diverse city that is New York.
Learn more about the free book giveaway here. | https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/celebrating-summer-at-the-nypl-free-book-giveaway-for-kids/3727586/ | 2022-06-09T21:56:02 | 0 | https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/celebrating-summer-at-the-nypl-free-book-giveaway-for-kids/3727586/ |
New York this week became the second state to enact a law intended to force firearms manufacturers to adopt microstamping, a technology in which guns imprint tiny codes on ammunition cartridges as they are fired — creating a unique signature police could use to help solve crimes.
Big questions remain, though, about whether the new law will actually result in such guns being offered for sale.
California passed a similar law 15 years ago, and since then no handgun capable of microstamping has been introduced for sale in that state.
Instead, gunmakers have pulled new handgun models from the California market rather than equip them with the technology, which critics say is costly, unworkable and of questionable valuable as a crimefighting tool.
Both states are now trying new tactics to pressure manufacturers. Backers of New York’s new law say it has a chance to succeed where California initially failed.
“The New York legislature has set up a more robust system that will produce a set of conditions and evaluations that doesn’t rely on the gun industry to give them a thumbs up or thumbs down,” said David Pucino, of the Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence.
A pair of engineers in New Hampshire are credited with inventing microstamping as a potential law enforcement tool three decades ago. The process involves engraving a serial number inside the firearm, on the tip of the firing pin or breech face.
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When the gun fires, that unique number or code is stamped on the shell casing. Law enforcement investigators could then pick up casings at crime scenes and turn to a database that could indicate which gun fired the round and where that weapon was last sold by a licensed firearms dealer.
“The issue here is providing a forensic tool to identify a firearm when a firearm is not recovered,” said microstamping co-inventor Todd Lizotte.
Peter Diaczuk, a firearms expert with John Jay College of Criminal Justice, said there are unanswered issues that still need to be resolved before microstamping becomes a valuable law enforcement tool. It’s unclear, for example, who would maintain any database capable of linking serial numbers on recovered shell casings to firearms.
Diaczuk said he’s also worried about a lack of research on microstamping and how long the engraving technology lasts before it wears out. He said worried supporters are exaggerating how well microstamping is proven to work.
“This is absolutely not a panacea, not a magic bullet that’s going to make gun crime go down dramatically,” Diazczuk said.
But gun control groups say the technology could still be a valuable law enforcement tool.
“The firearm, gun industry has set up an idea that it has to work 100% all of the time, and that’s not a reality for any technology we have,” said Ari Davis of the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence.
California’s law, passed in 2007, was intended to phase in the technology by requiring it in all new handgun models. The law was stalled by legal challenges, but even after a court upheld it in 2018 — ruling microstamping was technologically possible and reasonably affordable, at a cost of $3.00 to $10.00 per gun — manufacturers balked.
Rather than introduce new models, they have continued to sell older designs previously approved for sale.
“What the gun industry has done is said: ‘We’re not going to sell any new models of guns that fall under the statute,’” said Dru Stevenson, a firearms policy expert and professor at South Texas College of Law Houston. “The problem with the statute is that it grandfathered in too many existing models.”
California lawmakers are now trying tweaks. New weapons used by law enforcement agencies in the state must utilize microstamping starting in 2023. Another law would gradually whittle down the list of noncompliant handguns approved for sale in California by removing three older models for every new, microstamp-equipped model put into the market, starting July 1.
New York’s law takes a different approach. Its microstamping law covers all newly manufactured handguns, not just new models, meaning gunmakers would only be able to bypass the rule until they depleted existing stock.
The gun lobby has continued to argue that the costs and challenges of adopting microstamping are much steeper than supporters portray.
The National Shooting Sports Foundation says the technology actually costs $200 per gun. Ruger CEO Michael O. Fifer told investors in October 2014 that the gun manufacturer couldn’t make microstamping work.
Gun advocacy groups have argued that criminals could switch out handgun parts to avoid microstamping.
“It is too easy to modify, too easy to make changes so the numbers wouldn’t be visible,” New York State Rifle and Pistol Association Executive Director Tom King said. “The reason the state is doing this is because firearm manufacturers said they wouldn’t make microstamping pistols for one state. This is a backdoor method for banning firearms in New York.”
The industry has argued that the market for semiautomatic pistols in California is so lucrative, no rational business would sacrifice it unless it really couldn’t find a way to implement the technology.
Half a dozen gun manufacturers, including Ruger and Smith & Wesson, didn’t respond to emailed requests for comment about whether they’ll adopt the technology for guns sold in New York.
The law’s supporters hope the market pressure created by two big states will be enough to get gunmakers to adopt the technology. New York alone sees monthly sales of nearly 10,000 firearms that could eventually fall under the law, according to Christian Heyne, vice president of the gun control group Brady.
“The ripple effect of being able to force the industry to use this technology could have dramatic impacts across the country,” Heyne said.
Whatever changes happen won’t come quickly. New York envisions a slow roll-out for its new law.
State officials will spend six months investigating whether microstamping is as technologically viable as its supporters claim. If the answer is “yes,” the state has given itself four years to set up regulations. After that, dealers who sell firearms that violate the law could face fines or the loss of their license.
___
Maysoon Khan is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues. Follow Maysoon Khan on Twitter. | https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/gun-control/new-push-in-ny-to-force-gunmakers-to-adopt-microstamping/3727591/ | 2022-06-09T21:56:09 | 1 | https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/gun-control/new-push-in-ny-to-force-gunmakers-to-adopt-microstamping/3727591/ |
Commodity prices for recycling materials are good these days, so the city is hoping to take advantage with a new contract with the Papillion-based Firstar Fiber.
The city rebid its contract, and Firstar, which had the previous contract, won the bid again, but under different terms.
Currently, the city pays a base rate of $60 per ton of recycling for Firstar to process and sell it, and the city budgets $420,000 a year, said Donna Garden, assistant director of Lincoln Transportation and Utilities.
With the new contract, the city’s cost will be based on market rate, which means right now it would pay $35 a ton.
The old contract, Garden said, meant the city didn’t assume any risk based on the commodity prices of recyclables, but it also didn’t benefit from the prices. Glass remains a flat rate.
“We’re looking at a pretty healthy market right now,” Garden said.
The four-year contract is not to exceed $1.68 million in four years, or $420,000 a year.
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Last year, the city recycled 5,844 tons of mixed paper, newspaper, cardboard, plastic, steel and aluminum. Of that, 71% was cardboard.
7 ways you can reduce your use of plastic, foil and other kitchen disposables
Paper towels
"Keeping paper towel use to a minimum is one of the things Martha Stewart is really serious about," Tyrell says. Each workspace in the magazine's test kitchen features cloth tea towels, bar towels (similar to rags) and a roll of select-a-size paper towels, she says. The latter is used sparingly.
Tea towels are great for drying hands or dishes, or folding up to use as a hot mitt. Bar towels can be used for most messes. Paper towels are reserved for messes like juice from meat or raw egg.
"It helps to have all your towel options in one place, so I'd recommend keeping rags or bar towels near where you keep the paper towels," Tyrell says. If cloth towels aren't handy, you probably won't use them, she advises.
And if you can't wean yourself off paper towels, there are now several types of reusable ones made of bamboo and other sustainable materials that can be used numerous times before tossing them out, says Brandi Broxson, articles editor at Real Simple magazine. Cleaner paper towels can be recycled.
Plastic shopping bags
Carry your own canvas or string tote bags for groceries and other purchases. The key, as with bar towels, is to keep them handy.
"There are so many types of reusable bags out there that there's really no excuse for bringing home single-use plastic shopping bags anymore," Tyrell says.
Americans throw away around 100 billion plastic bags a year, she says.
Plastic produce bags
Avoid plastic produce bags by keeping a few lightweight mesh bags — often sold as "multi-use straining bags" — in your purse when you head to the grocery store, Tyrell says.
"They're also great for making nut milks or straining yogurt," she adds.
If your grocery store doesn't use compostable produce bags, you can always bring some of your own.
To avoid plastic wrapping on meat or fish, try asking the butcher at the grocery store to wrap it instead in paper, which is biodegradable. Or bring a reusable container to put it in.
Plastic baggies
There are a variety of new products that can be used as an alternative to baggies. Broxson, at Real Simple, recommends one called Stashers. They're like zip-top plastic bags but are made of Silicon, and can be washed in the dishwasher and reused. They are watertight, and can go from freezer to microwave
Plastic wrap
Both Broxson and Tyrell recommend Bee's Wrap as an alternative to typical plastic cling wrap. It's made of fabric coated in a mixture of wax, oil and tree resin, and sticks to the top of bowls and jars. Like plastic wrap, it conforms to all sorts of shapes. Unlike plastic wrap, it can be washed and reused, and remains sticky for months, Bronson says.
"It's not great for wrapping something drippy like a tuna sandwich, where maybe parchment paper or aluminum foil might be preferable. But as a container covering, or to wrap drier types of foods or sandwiches, it's great," she says.
Aluminum foil
"Luckily, unbleached parchment paper works great for baking and roasting, and also for wrapping sandwiches and snacks," and is biodegradable, Broxson says.
"If you must use aluminum foil, you can wad it up into a ball and reuse it as a scouring sponge for baking dishes to get one more use out of it before throwing it away," she suggests. Clean aluminum foil can be recycled if it's free from food residue. And many stores now sell recycled aluminum foil.
Plastic straws and utensils
The test kitchens at Martha Stewart Living have switched from plastic to stainless steel straws, says Tyrell.
"I carry my own titanium fork and spoon, with a nylon connector so they can even be used as tongs. They're super-lightweight, and kind of cool," she says. "Way nicer than plastic."
Reach the writer at 402-473-7226 or mreist@journalstar.com.
On Twitter @LJSreist | https://journalstar.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/lincoln-re-ups-its-recycling-contract-with-firstar-but-under-different-terms/article_45754dfc-4de3-5430-9eed-ca78951a9a48.html | 2022-06-09T22:05:28 | 0 | https://journalstar.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/lincoln-re-ups-its-recycling-contract-with-firstar-but-under-different-terms/article_45754dfc-4de3-5430-9eed-ca78951a9a48.html |
The Lincoln City Council on Monday will consider a motion to rescind the so-called Fairness Ordinance — a broad update that extends protections to include sexual orientation and gender expression.
City Councilman Richard Meginnis said he plans to introduce the motion to rescind the hotly debated ordinance that updates Title 11, the city's code that deals with equal opportunity in housing, employment and public accommodations. He will also move to rescind a more narrowly worded Fairness Ordinance that has been in limbo for a decade.
Meginnis said he introduced the motions because he thinks it’s important to start with a clean slate and it’s important to make the process more community-oriented and ensure everyone is involved in the discussion.
“I’m doing it because I think it’s divisive,” he said. “I really believe our community is not ready to go to war on this at this point ... I just know there’s a fear and people have been able to use this to drive a wedge between people in Lincoln.”
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Meginnis is supported by at least two of his colleagues: James Michael Bowers and Tom Beckius. Both support expanding protections, but say they listened to concerns of the transgender and nonbinary community.
“The majority of attacks on Title 11 or the ‘fairness ordinance’ are based on lies and scare tactics against our transgender nonbinary community members,” Bowers said, and those voices must be at the center of the next steps for Title 11 because they’ll be targeted by opponents.
“After hard conversations and some devastating losses in our community the message is clear, we must rescind the ordinance, continue to strengthen our relationships with honest conversations, support, and acceptance, and move forward as a united community for all, for our LGBTQ+ students/parents/peer and for our allies,” Bowers said.
Beckius said the decision to vote to rescind is "heart-wrenching" but the right one for now.
"Opponents have already used false and misleading information with no regard for the well-being of our transgender community," he said. "So the lack of an organized campaign to win at the ballot box is rash. It just isn't wise to proceed at this time."
The ordinance — introduced by Councilwoman Sändra Washington — has been the subject of heated debate not only by opponents but by supporters who disagree on how best to proceed.
It passed on a 5-0 vote Feb. 14. Meginnis and Beckius were absent. Opponents, led by the Nebraska Family Alliance, mounted a successful referendum petition, which required the council either to put the issue to a vote of the people or rescind it.
Initially, it appeared there were enough council votes to take the ordinance to a public vote, but the death by suicide of a transgender activist brought the momentum to a halt.
Washington, who has led the effort to update Title 11 -- could not be reached for comment. But both she, Jane Raybould and Tammy Ward have said previously they support taking the issue to a vote.
Ward, who has supported the ordinance since Washington introduced it, said for her, that hasn’t changed.
“I’ve not wavered, so I won’t be voting to rescind,” she said.
She said she’s sensitive to the concerns raised, but believes it should go before voters, though she’s unsure what the right timing for a vote would be.
“We don’t know if we don’t try,” she said. “A lot of people have waited a long time for this moment ... I’m disappointed and frustrated. But it’s not mine to lead.”
Ward said she would vote to rescind the 10-year-old ordinance, to get it off the books and move forward with a new ordinance.
Council members Bennie Shobe and Raybould did not return calls on Thursday for comment.
Meginnis said he thinks protections should be expanded, but he signed the referendum petition because, at the time, he felt like a vote was the only way to settle the issue with the community.
Now, he said, he thinks it’s time to step back and start fresh.
The issue of extending protections to include sexual orientation and gender expression in housing, employment and public accommodation has been in the shadows for a decade.
Ten years ago, a different City Council passed a more narrowly worded ordinance to extend equal opportunity protections to include sexual orientation and gender expression and, after a successful referendum, the council took no action either to rescind the ordinance or let voters decide.
When Washington introduced the ordinance updating Title 11 earlier this year, the landscape had changed significantly since 2012.
The U.S. Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage in 2015 and in 2020 the high court ruled that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 includes protection based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
The 2020 decision related to employment, but the Biden administration applied the language to the federal Housing and Urban Development and Equal Opportunity Commission, which is being challenged by 20 state attorneys general including Nebraska.
The ordinance introduced by Washington aligned Title 11 with federal law and included public accommodation.
The ordinance also updates language and reorganizes Title 11 to clarify the process of the city's Human Rights Commission, adds military and veterans as a protected class and strengthens disability protections.
But early on, advocates in the transgender and nonbinary community expressed concerns about the timing of introducing the ordinance, predicted they’d be targeted and didn’t think supporters were adequately prepared to defend against the messaging of well-organized opponents.
And opponents did focus much of their campaign on the transgender community, dubbing it the “transgender bathroom ordinance.” They also blanketed the city with “Let Us Vote” signs, a reference to the 2012 ordinance that was never taken to the ballot box.
Milo Winslow, the transgender activist who had been vocal about his concerns that opponents would target the transgender community, died by suicide just two days after the Nebraska Family Alliance announced they’d collected more than four times the number of signatures needed. Before his death, he sent council members a message asking them to rescind the ordinance.
Since then, the issue has been on hold, though both the Lancaster County Democrats and the Stonewall Democrats passed resolutions urging the council to rescind. Others have sent messages to the council urging them to move forward.
Abbi Swatsworth, executive director of OutNebraska -- an advocacy organization that supported the ordinance -- said they've heard from people who both support rescinding the ordinance and those who want to see it move forward and she hopes the council listens to all those perspectives moving forward.
“The council should recognize that our diverse community has a variety of perspectives on how to move forward with full freedom from discrimination for the whole Lincoln community,” she said.
Reach the writer at 402-473-7226 or mreist@journalstar.com.
On Twitter @LJSreist | https://journalstar.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/not-ready-to-go-to-war-councilman-will-move-to-rescind-so-called-fairness-ordinance/article_b5208143-e4f3-51ce-88e1-697d8f49bb0c.html | 2022-06-09T22:05:34 | 1 | https://journalstar.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/not-ready-to-go-to-war-councilman-will-move-to-rescind-so-called-fairness-ordinance/article_b5208143-e4f3-51ce-88e1-697d8f49bb0c.html |
Joel D. Valdez, who dedicated his life to public service in Tucson, died at the age of 87 Wednesday afternoon.
He died from unknown causes in his Tucson home, said his son, David Valdez.
“He was so important to Tucson. Unselfishly, he did a lot of things behind the scenes that he never really cared about receiving credit for, usually giving credit to other individuals,” David said. “The contributions that he made to the city and the university will live on forever.”
Valdez served 16 years as Tucson’s city manager and 20 years in business administration at the University of Arizona.
“I want to offer my condolences to the Valdez family on behalf of my family and the city of Tucson family,” Mayor Regina Romero said in a written statement. “In addition to Joel’s distinguished service to the city of Tucson and the University of Arizona, he was a hardworking man, devoted to his family and to public service. His contributions to our community and the many people he mentored will be felt for a long time.”
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A public servant
Valdez was born in Tucson on July 2, 1934. His first job was delivering newspapers at age 9, where he used his earnings to help his parents pay bills and to save up to attend the UA after graduating from Tucson High School.
After graduating from the UA in 1957, Valdez worked as a probation officer at Pima County Juvenile Court and was later named superintendent of detention services. He went on to become an administrative assistant to the library director.
The main public library downtown was named in his honor in 2002.
Valdez was appointed to city manager in 1974. He renewed the city’s budgeting process and oversaw hundreds of millions of dollars worth of capital improvement projects.
Richard Miranda, former Tucson police chief who served as city manager from 2011 to 2014, said Valdez “was a true visionary.”
“We went out for a drive one day, and he said, ‘Whatever decision you make as city manager, the community always has to come first.’ That that always stayed with me,” Miranda said. “Tucson was first in his heart and every decision he made was for the best interest of our community.”
Valdez was the first Hispanic manager of a large city, according to the Local Government Hispanic Network, and the group established the Joel D. Valdez Legacy Award in his name to honor local government managers.
After he was set to retire from the city in 1990, Valdez was tapped by UA administration to become a top business administrator. He served as the university’s senior vice president for business affairs until retiring in 2010.
At the UA, Valdez introduced new budget and internal audit processes and was instrumental in several buildings and renovation projects, including the Student Union and the Manuel Pacheco Integrated Learning Center. A bust of Valdez was unveiled on campus in 2014.
Joel Valdez is survived by his two children, David Valdez and Lisa Maish, and five grandchildren: Ryan Maish, Kevin Maish, Joel A. Valdez, Katrina Valdez and Andrew Maish.
“There are five of us that have had the honor of being able to call Joel Valdez, ‘Tata.’ My proudest moments in my life are being asked if I am his granddaughter. I’m so incredibly blessed to be one of those five. He was truly loved by everyone,” said Valdez’s granddaughter, Katrina. “One of the kindest, most selfless human beings this world will ever know. How lucky are we to have had his incredible influence in all of our lives? I find peace knowing he is with my Nana. They are now both watching over all of us."
Contact reporter Nicole Ludden at nludden@tucson.com | https://tucson.com/news/local/joel-d-valdez-former-tucson-city-manager-dies-at-87/article_94ecca36-e810-11ec-80ef-5793f7c7c40f.html | 2022-06-09T22:07:19 | 1 | https://tucson.com/news/local/joel-d-valdez-former-tucson-city-manager-dies-at-87/article_94ecca36-e810-11ec-80ef-5793f7c7c40f.html |
A video shows U.S. Senate candidate Blake Masters pushing down a man who refused to leave a campaign event in Green Valley.
Masters, a Republican who grew up in Tucson, was holding a campaign event at a space in a shopping plaza when the man, Democrat Peter Jackson, showed up apparently aiming to provoke. He wore a T-shirt that said, "Black Lives Matter more than White Feelings / Check your privilege," as well as a hat that said "Jail Trump" and a button that said "Fully vaxxed."
Event organizers asked Jackson to leave, but he offered to pay and stayed, recording with a Go Pro camera and his phone as some attendees grew increasingly angry with him. Dan Shearer of the Green Valley News first reported the story and posted the video to YouTube.
In the video, a small crowd bunches around Jackson, telling him to put down his phone and to leave. One woman grabs at Jackson's cellphone, and when he pulls it back, she punches him in the face. After that, the video is hard to distinguish, but Masters appears to say "enough," put his hands around Jackson's shoulders or neck and pushes him back.
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Masters, by the way, is 35, and Jackson is 73.
Other attendees then threw Jackson out the door.
When Pima County Sheriff's Department deputies responded, they cited Jackson for two misdemeanors, trespassing and assault.
Sheriff Chris Nanos said responding deputies saw the video at the scene and thought that Jackson provoked the crowd by pushing one of the women on the shoulder.
"It got way out of hand and it shouldn’t have," Nanos said. "The deputies did the best they could."
Masters, who was recently endorsed by Donald Trump, said via Twitter that he witnessed Jackson hit the woman, something that does not appear to be the case from the video.
He tweeted, "This guy hit a woman in the jaw. I saw it, clear as day. He should not have done that!"
Nanos said he would not instruct deputies or detectives to dig further into the case.
"We have bigger and better things to do than to investigate adults acting like kids," he said. "I’ve got to trust my deputies to do their job."
Masters appears to be relishing the opportunity to burnish his tough-guy credentials. The Stanford Law School grad tweeted the night of the event, "A masked-up guy with a BLM shirt crashed this GOP event tonight. Started causing trouble, then he hit a woman. So me and some guys put him on the ground, then the police came for him."
Hernandez, Engel find dividing line
Democrats Daniel Hernandez and Kirsten Engel, who are running for the party's nomination in Congressional District 6, are pretty well aligned on the issues.
But Hernandez recently found a line to divide them — the border. Specifically, in a late May forum Engel would not describe the situation at the Arizona-Mexico border as a "crisis," Hernandez did.
Asked by host Ted Simons if Arizona has an "immigration crisis," Engel took a deep breath and said "No." She went on to explain "We do need help at our border. We do need to secure our border. We have issues of drug trafficking and human smuggling that need to be addressed, but certainly not (with) walls. Walls are a 13th Century solution to a 21st Century problem."
Hernandez said he disagreed with Engel, perhaps because he's represented border residents in Santa Cruz County at the Legislature the last six years.
Asked to elaborate in separate interviews this week, Hernandez and Engel largely coincided on their view of border issues. They both said that the federal government has failed, that the issues are multifaceted, that we need to increase security, in part through applying technological solutions.
Hernandez emphasized the need to help economically struggling border communities; Engel emphasized the need to strengthen asylum processing so that people present themselves at ports of entry instead of crossing between them.
And they both said the Biden adminstration needs a plan for replacing Title 42, the Trump-era pandemic policy that allows agents to return illegal crossers immediately due to public-health concerns. Neither knew that the Biden administration presented just such a plan in late April, before a court ordered the administration to keep Title 42 in place.
So, again, they largely coincide, except on the use of that word "crisis."
By the way, a third Democrat will also be on the ballot in the Democratic primary Aug. 2 — Avery Anderson. He did not attend the late May debate.
Another forum, hosted by the Pima County Democratic Party, takes places at 1 p.m. Saturday in Room N210 at the University of Arizona's Steward Observatory, 933 N. Cherry Ave.
Hotel Congress protest sign
You may have noticed the sign for Hotel Congress has been out at night lately. That's not by accident.
The management of the iconic downtown hotel explained on social media this week that the sign will be out for a total of 21 nights — in memory of those killed in the Uvalde, Texas, massacre and in support of stricter gun laws.
"We've never purposely darkened our sign, but the recent tragedy in Texas compelled us to do something," the statement read.
It goes on to call for "common sense gun legislation — universal background checks, raising the purchase age to 21, red flag laws, mandatory training and licensing, a federal assault weapons ban and a minimum three-day waiting period."
Contact columnist Tim Steller at tsteller@tucson.com or 520-807-7789. On Twitter: @senyorreporter | https://tucson.com/news/local/subscriber/political-notebook-blake-masters-pushes-man-to-ground-at-green-valley-event/article_846ee4d4-e782-11ec-911d-57f3d85118fd.html | 2022-06-09T22:07:25 | 1 | https://tucson.com/news/local/subscriber/political-notebook-blake-masters-pushes-man-to-ground-at-green-valley-event/article_846ee4d4-e782-11ec-911d-57f3d85118fd.html |
DALLAS (KDAF) — Father’s Day is coming up and North Texas has plenty of opportunities for you to have a great day with your dad.
Here are just a few suggestions:
Al Biernat’s
- Dry-Aged Local Yocal Wagyu Ribeye – $99. Served with garlic mashed potatoes and green beans.
- Wet-Aged New York Strip – $89. Served with garlic mashed potatoes and topped with panko-crusted, pan-seared, soft-shell crab and a Dijon mustard beurre blanc.
- 12 Oz. Filet Mignon – $79. Served with sauteed asparagus, garlic mashed potatoes and marsala sauce.
- Weller Bourbon Flight- $49. Includes three, half-ounce pours of Weller Antique 107, Weller 12 year, and Weller Single Barrel.
- Al Biernat’s is gifting custom Al Biernat’s golf hats to all the fathers that will be dining.
Bulla Gastrobar
On Sunday, June 19, celebrate Father’s Day with a taste of Spain at Bulla Gastrobar! The tapas-style restaurant located in Legacy West will open its doors early at 10 a.m., where dad will receive a $20 bounce-back credit to use during his next visit and will also be gifted Bulla’s special box of chocolate clusters during dinner.
Terry Black’s Barbecue
The Black family has been cooking BBQ for generations out of Lockhart, Texas. When it came to learning the tricks of the trade Terry Black passed down his expertise to his twin sons Mike and Mark Black. Pretty soon, the twins were ready to carry on the legacy serving Central Texas barbecue to the Austin, Dallas and soon the Lockhart communities.
Mi Dia From Scratch Grapevine
This Father’s Day, take the dad in your life on a culinary fiesta at Mi Dia From Scratch in the heart of downtown Grapevine.
Chef DeLeon has crafted up an exquisite dish that is guaranteed to impress dad. On June 19, taste the glory of Chef DeLeon’s Norteno Tacos, made with chefs’ cut 28-day-aged skirt wood-grilled on house-made flour tortillas, topped with fried queso panela, frijoles, avocado puree, micro cilantro and served with baja red sauce, Oaxacan black beans, and poblano rice.
Only available at their Grapevine location, the Norteno Tacos will tell you its momentous story with each bite. | https://cw33.com/news/local/fathers-day-ideas-in-dfw/ | 2022-06-09T22:11:00 | 0 | https://cw33.com/news/local/fathers-day-ideas-in-dfw/ |
DALLAS (KDAF) — Is it acceptable to drink Diet Coke in the morning? That is what the internet is arguing about now.
A TikTok video from @wishbonekitchen has been shared to Twitter. The video details a day in the life of a private chef in The Hamptons. In the video, the chef points out that she drinks a Diet Coke sometime before 7 a.m., prompting internet discussion over that behavior.
Dallas Museum of Art has weighed in and officials said, “We at the #DMA [love] a nice crisp Diet Coke in all forms at all times.”
They also used this moment to point out they have a Diet Coke sculpture perfect for the occasion.
“[Did you know] we even have a sculpture of one from artist Nobutaka Aozaki?” officials said in a tweet.
You can view that sculpture labeled Street Can: Diet Coke in person at the museum or online by clicking here. | https://cw33.com/news/local/is-diet-coke-a-morning-drink-ponder-that-question-at-dallas-museum-of-arts-diet-coke-installment/ | 2022-06-09T22:11:06 | 1 | https://cw33.com/news/local/is-diet-coke-a-morning-drink-ponder-that-question-at-dallas-museum-of-arts-diet-coke-installment/ |
IRVING, Texas — The baby formula crisis continues, with some moms having to drive from store to store looking for formula to feed their baby.
On Thursday, there was finally some relief: around 110,000 pounds of baby formula just arrived from Germany.
But the formula will not be sold in stores. It will be sold online.
It's a moment of relief for parents around the country.
A FedEx plane was carrying 110,000 pounds of Nestle baby formula, which arrived at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport late Thursday afternoon.
“This formula will be distributed online to be distributed and into parents hands as quickly as possible,” said Xavier Becerra, the secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
He spoke from DFW Airport’s tarmac, assuring millions of parents around the country that they’re doing everything they can to get more baby formula here.
“In the coming weeks, we are going to continue to make baby formula available online, through retailers, grocery store chains,” said Becerra.
This shipment is part of President Joe Biden’s "Operation Fly Formula" initiative.
And, in the coming weeks, 10 more shipments are expected arrive.
“FDA is working with manufacturers domestically, and abroad so we can make sure we have the constant supply,” said Becerra.
Throughout the weeks, WFAA has been talking to mothers in low income areas who are in desperate need of baby formula.
On Thursday officials made it clear that moms living in those areas will be the first ones to get access to the baby formula.
“Secretary Tom Vilsack of the Department of Agriculture has made it a priority to make sure WIC centers are stocked,” said Becerra.
“Remember that baby formula is the most regulated food in America. We don’t let our babies have just anything,” he added.
For more information about how to find the baby formula from other countries, you can visit the HHS website. | https://www.wfaa.com/article/news/local/110000-pounds-baby-formula-arrive-dfw-airport/287-52fe33d2-b953-4b73-aa5b-33663b0a6e23 | 2022-06-09T22:14:23 | 1 | https://www.wfaa.com/article/news/local/110000-pounds-baby-formula-arrive-dfw-airport/287-52fe33d2-b953-4b73-aa5b-33663b0a6e23 |
WASHINGTON COUNTY, Md. — Deputies say three people are dead and three people are injured, including the suspect, following a shooting at a manufacturing facility in Washington County, Maryland, on Thursday afternoon.
The shooting happened around 2:30 p.m. at the Columbia Machine Inc. on Bikle Road in Smithsburg, according to the Washington County Sheriff's Office.
Three people were killed in the shooting and a fourth person was critically injured, according to a news release from the sheriff's office.
After the shooting, the suspect fled the area but was quickly found by Maryland State Police near Maplesville Road and Mount Aetna Road. A state trooper and the suspect shot at each other, both were injured and taken to a hospital for treatment.
A spokesperson for the sheriff's office says there is no threat to the public at this time.
The FBI and ATF are on scene investigating.
Congressman David Trone tweeted following the shooting asking people in the area to stay away while officials investigate.
Smithsburg is a community of nearly 3,000 people, located about 75 miles northwest of Baltimore not far from the state line with Pennsylvania.
This is a developing story. More details will be added as they become available.
READ NEXT:
- Police: 3 men injured in shooting in Prince George's County
- Person in custody after deadly Alexandria apartment shooting
- Suspect dead, Maryland officer hurt in exchange of gunfire
- Activists protest gun violence outside SCOTUS as ghost gun ban in MD goes into effect June 1
- School leaders emphasize security in wake of Uvalde school shooting
Among parents and victims, one Texas girl who covered herself in blood to survive is set to speak at the House Oversight and Reform Committee's hearing on gun violence today. | https://www.wfaa.com/article/news/local/multiple-people-shot-washington-county-maryland-deputies/65-82a9ac27-9430-44bb-9ef6-f1d0d10e3fe2 | 2022-06-09T22:14:29 | 0 | https://www.wfaa.com/article/news/local/multiple-people-shot-washington-county-maryland-deputies/65-82a9ac27-9430-44bb-9ef6-f1d0d10e3fe2 |
DALLAS — The Dallas Police Department has a new way to track down child sex abuse suspects.
K-9 Remi was introduced as the newest member of Dallas Police’s Crimes Against Children’s Unit last week.
She is trained to sniff out electronic devices.
“She is already working, and we are already running her on search warrants and found stuff that is hidden way in the back of dresses, behind books. She’s found stuff buried in clothing that we would have to dig through and have the potential of missing,” said Dallas Police Department Detective Michael Fontenot.
Remi is one of only two Electronic Detection Dogs in Texas.
“An electronic detection dog is a dog that’s trained to hit on a scent that is basically a fancy glue that is in all devices that can store content in an electronic format,” said Fontenot.
WFAA went along with her handler, Fontenot, on a training exercise to see what she would find.
Amazingly, she detected a small SD card hidden in a cabinet, which is an example of what detectives are looking for -- anything where suspects can store child abuse and pornography images and videos.
Remi can go through an entire house in half the time it would take detectives.
”We are confident we are not missing anything, and it expedites the amount of time we spend in an offenders home,” said Fontenot.
Remi is also cross-trained as a therapy and support animal for victims who are being interviewed about what’s happened to them, and for officers who have to investigate heinous crimes against children.
"”It’s really helped with morale in the unit and really helped us with what we are dealing with,” said Fontenot.
Remi can also find things submerged in water, and recently helped homicide detectives find a phone that had been tossed in a field with tall grass.
Todd Jordan, who owns Jordan Detection K9, trains dogs like Remi to do things humans can’t do. Jordan has a dog named Bear that became famous after locating key evidence in the home of Jared Fogle, the former spokesman for Subway.
Jordan has teamed up with a non-profit group called Operation Underground Railroad. The organization fights to end sex trafficking and sexual exploitation. He and Operation Underground Railroad are working to try and get as many of these types of canines to departments across the country. | https://www.wfaa.com/article/news/local/new-dallas-police-k-9-to-help-track-down-child-porn-suspects/287-5bedccb1-2992-414e-a52b-90620a1a822e | 2022-06-09T22:14:35 | 1 | https://www.wfaa.com/article/news/local/new-dallas-police-k-9-to-help-track-down-child-porn-suspects/287-5bedccb1-2992-414e-a52b-90620a1a822e |
CREEDE, Colo. — The couple from Arkansas who was thought to be missing in Colorado was found safe in Creede, the Alamosa County Sheriff said.
The family of Robert and Mary Jane Bowman was extremely concerned after the two stopped communicating with others while on a camping trip in Colorado.
They set off from Arkansas to Colorado in late May. They told their family they were at Great Sand Dunes National Park and were planning to head up a mountain in the area -- but they didn't specify which mountain.
The Sheriff's Office posted to Facebook stating the couple was "safe and sound."
A tip led authorities in the "right direction," the Sheriff's Office said.
The Bowmans are from Garfield, Arkansas.
"They do these trips quite frequently, every year. This is just what they do. They're very experienced campers. They love, love, love just being in the outdoors by themselves," daughter-in-law Beth Bowman told KRDO on Tuesday.
KRDO contributed to the reporting of this story.
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For both Apple TV and Fire TV, search for "9NEWS" to find the free app to add to your account. Another option for Fire TV is to have the app delivered directly to your Fire TV through Amazon. | https://www.thv11.com/article/news/local/arkansas-couple-found-safe-creede/73-a7607c59-4b41-4231-9387-48b26d2b426d | 2022-06-09T22:17:22 | 1 | https://www.thv11.com/article/news/local/arkansas-couple-found-safe-creede/73-a7607c59-4b41-4231-9387-48b26d2b426d |
LULING, Texas — Buc-ee's has been busy as a beaver expanding its empire with dozens of stores throughout Texas and beyond.
But everything is bigger in Texas, so when the Lone Star State heard that the world's largest Buc-ee's would soon be built in Colorado, it said "Hold my beer and pass me some beaver nuggets."
Now, a new location going up in Luling will help Texas reclaim the biggest beaver title. The 75,000 square-foot Buc-ee's will be built next to the current Luling store on I-10, east of San Antonio. It opened back in 2003.
"Twenty years ago, Beaver and Don had the gumption to change the industry by building the first Buc-ee's Family Travel Center in Luling," said Stan Beard of Buc-ee's. "Since that time, Buc-ee's has grown into an iconic Texas brand that now shares our Texas pride with new stores throughout the Southeast and West. We are humbled to have this opportunity to strengthen our roots in Texas and will continue to exceed our customers' expectations every chance we get."
Buc-ee's said the new Luling location will feature 120 fueling positions, plenty of clean bathrooms, along with barbecue, beef jerky, homemade fudge and more. A lot more.
Construction is tentatively scheduled to begin sometime in the fall.
For now, New Braunfels will still own bragging rights to the world's largest Buc-ee's with its 66,335 square-foot store.
Buc-ee's also lays claim to the world's longest car wash -- 225 feet -- at its Katy travel center off I-10. | https://www.thv11.com/article/news/local/largest-buc-ees-luling-texas/285-32660352-742c-4d6a-aedc-3ddfc1aad007 | 2022-06-09T22:17:28 | 1 | https://www.thv11.com/article/news/local/largest-buc-ees-luling-texas/285-32660352-742c-4d6a-aedc-3ddfc1aad007 |
WASHINGTON COUNTY, Md. — Deputies say three people are dead and three people are injured, including the suspect, following a shooting at a manufacturing facility in Washington County, Maryland, on Thursday afternoon.
The shooting happened around 2:30 p.m. at the Columbia Machine Inc. on Bikle Road in Smithsburg, according to the Washington County Sheriff's Office.
Three people were killed in the shooting and a fourth person was critically injured, according to a news release from the sheriff's office.
After the shooting, the suspect fled the area but was quickly found by Maryland State Police near Maplesville Road and Mount Aetna Road. A state trooper and the suspect shot at each other, both were injured and taken to a hospital for treatment.
A spokesperson for the sheriff's office says there is no threat to the public at this time.
The FBI and ATF are on scene investigating.
Congressman David Trone tweeted following the shooting asking people in the area to stay away while officials investigate.
Smithsburg is a community of nearly 3,000 people, located about 75 miles northwest of Baltimore not far from the state line with Pennsylvania.
This is a developing story. More details will be added as they become available.
READ NEXT:
- Police: 3 men injured in shooting in Prince George's County
- Person in custody after deadly Alexandria apartment shooting
- Suspect dead, Maryland officer hurt in exchange of gunfire
- Activists protest gun violence outside SCOTUS as ghost gun ban in MD goes into effect June 1
- School leaders emphasize security in wake of Uvalde school shooting
Among parents and victims, one Texas girl who covered herself in blood to survive is set to speak at the House Oversight and Reform Committee's hearing on gun violence today. | https://www.thv11.com/article/news/local/multiple-people-shot-washington-county-maryland-deputies/65-82a9ac27-9430-44bb-9ef6-f1d0d10e3fe2 | 2022-06-09T22:17:34 | 0 | https://www.thv11.com/article/news/local/multiple-people-shot-washington-county-maryland-deputies/65-82a9ac27-9430-44bb-9ef6-f1d0d10e3fe2 |
Researchers at ArcelorMittal Global R&D in East Chicago won American Iron and Steel Institute's top technical honors.
Gang Huang with ArcelorMittal Global R&D and fellow researchers Adam D. Hodges, Lindsay Brown and Sarah Tedesco of General Motors won the 2022 Institute Medal, the AISI's highest technical award. They were honored for the paper "Strain Amount and Strain Path Effects on Instrumented Charpy Toughness of Baked Third Generation Advanced High Strength Steels.”
“I would like to congratulate this year’s Institute Medal winners and finalists on their remarkable achievements,” said Leon Topalian, AISI Chairman and president and CEO of Nucor. “We thank them for their efforts to promote and further steel industry innovation that will expand our industry’s capabilities to meet the needs of our customers for advanced steel solutions.”
The American Iron and Steel Institute established the Institute Medal and Finalist Medals in 1927 for technical papers of special merit. The research is judged on technical excellence, originality, breadth of interest and potential value to the steel industry.
Lead research engineer Dongwei Fan with ArcelorMittal Global R&D and Ankit Srivastava, Yu Liu and Raymundo Arróyave of Texas A&M University won one of the two Finalist Awards. Their paper was entitled "Microstructure-Based Modeling of the Effect of Inclusion on the Bendability of Advanced High Strength Dual-Phase Steels.”
NWI Business Ins and Outs: Crown Point Burger King reopens this month; Buffalo Wild Wings closes, SerenDIPity Ice Cream Parlor; Lucky Hatchet and Sunset Grille opening
Reopening soon
You will soon again be able to have a flame-grilled Whopper your way.
The Burger King in Crown Point will at long last reopen its doors this month. The fast-food restaurant at 1137 N. Main St. just north of downtown closed nearly two years ago after a fire. It's now hiring as it ramps up to reopen.
Manager Denise Marie said it should finally come back in a few weeks.
Joseph S. Pete
'Middle of June'
"We are optimistic middle of June," she said. "Possibly sooner."
A fire broke out in the early morning hours in October 2020. The Burger King has been shuttered since then and has been one of the most inquired about businesses in the history of this retail column. Construction work was long-delayed but Burger King has done extensive renovation work to the restaurant building, including a new exterior and signage that's both more modern and a throwback.
Joseph S. Pete
Closed since fire in Oct. 2020
A grand opening ceremony is planned, Marie said.
Burger King, the perennial Pepsi to McDonald's Coke, the Avis to its Hertz, has burgers, fries... you already know this.
Joseph S. Pete
Closed
Buffalo Wilds Wings closed in Michigan City.
The chain sit-down restaurant at 5000 Franklin St. by the Meijer superstore served chicken wings with a wide variety of sauces and seasonings in a sports bar environment.
Joseph S. Pete
Multiple locations remain
The chain has multiple other Region locations, including Merrillville, Portage, Hammond, Schererville, LaPorte, Crown Point, Valparaiso, Lansing and Calumet City.
Joseph S. Pete
Coming soon
After a long delay, SerenDIPity is going to bring something sweet to downtown Griffith.
Shari Nowatzke and Andres Hernandez have been working to open the ice cream parlor and doughnut shop at 120 N. Griffith Boulevard since signing a lease to take over a former hair salon last July. Nowatzke, a former Baskin Robbins employee whose friends own Bubbles Ice Cream Parlor in Michigan City, has always wanted to have an ice cream shop of her own.
"It's always been a dream of mine to own an ice cream store," she said. "Ice cream makes everything better. I don't even eat it that much. It's just a fun environment to work at."
SerenDIPity will serve Hershey's ice cream, both soft-serve and hard dip. It will have chocolate, vanilla and swirl soft serves and 24 varieties of hard dip like Blue Moon, Superman, Cookies and Cream, Rainbow Sherbet and Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough.
SeredDIPity also will have Dole Pineapple Whip.
"My friends in Michigan City sell a ton of it," she said. "It's nostalgic because Disney has it. The state fair has it."
Joseph S. Pete
Customizable doughnuts
Customers also can order cake doughnuts, which are customizable. They can pick the frosting, topping and drizzling. Eventually, SerenDIPity plans to offer concessions like burgers, dogs, Polish sausages and walking tacos. It also will have paninis, Pepsi products and ice cream floats.
The 1,400-square-foot store seats 25 people and will have an icre cream-themed bench and picnic table out back. It also has a life-sized camel statute as its mascot.
"The co-owner Andre works the Hollywood Casino Amphitheater where someone left a camel backstage," she said. "It was there for a few years and then they asked him if he wanted it. He took it as kind of a joke, driving a life-sized camel on a trailer. We knew we had to make it part of the store. We came up with a whimsical name. I've always loved the word serendipity. So we named the camel Mr. Dipity. We have a few items named after him, including a sundae that uses a cut-in-half donut instead of a banana. We call our little pup cup the Snoop Dipity Dog."
They decided to open in Griffith because they liked the town and all the growth downtown.
"We saw an empty corner spot," she said. "We love Griffith. I live three miles from Griffith. It's such a great community, one that patronizes locally owned places. That's not even mentioning all the festivals and markets."
Joseph S. Pete
'Who doesn't like ice cream?'
It's a family-run business where several family members work. It will employ around 20 overall.
The owners plan to focus on a single location but plan to eventually roll out a food truck.
"Who doesn't like ice cream, right?" she said. "We designed it to have a very whimsical feel. It's a fun place to bring kids they can take pictures with Mr. Dipity."
SerenDIPity will be open from 6:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. seven days a week.
For more information, call 219-237-2372 or find SerenDIPity on Facebook.
Joseph S. Pete
Coming soon
The Lucky Hatchet in Michigan City has added a retro arcade section and expanded to a second location in Granger.
The ax-throwing and entertainment venue opened a few years ago at 2050 E. U.S. 20 in Michigan City. It recently added vintage arcade consoles like Ms. Pac Man, Donkey Kong and X-Men Vs. Street Fighter. It also added a large gaming section with board games like Settlers of Catan.
"These are our loves. We're big nerds," said Brandon Rector, one of the owners.
The business has boomed since opening about a half year before the coronavirus pandemic struck.
"It's an evening of super cheap fun and good times," he said.
Joseph S. Pete
Retro arcade games
The Lucky Hatchet is now opening a second location in a 4,600-square-foot space in a shopping center where TopGolf was located. It will offer hatchet, throwing, old-school video games and classic board games.
“We wanted to bring something for everyone to Granger Our gaming section will have arcade games like Pac-Man and The Simpsons as well as some of the old school Nintendo, Sega and GameCube games," said Jonah Stromer, one of the owners.
The second location will also include a full restaurant and a bar serving craft burgers, appetizers and beer. It's bigger and more immersive.
“We will have 13 total hatchet-throwing lanes that people can come and rent where everything is provided to them and throwing instructions are given in detail. We will have leagues running throughout the year as well as tournaments and our glow throw night is a can't-miss event that we do once a month," said Michael Domkowski, one of the owners.
It's now hiring for the Granger location. A grand opening is slated for June 10.
For more information, visit TheLuckyHatchet.com or TheLuckyHatchet@Gmail.com .
Joseph S. Pete
Open for the season
The Sunset Grille reopened for the season on the Washington Park beach in Michigan City.
It has a concession stand for beachgoers on the first floor and a rooftop bar overlooking Lake Michigan on the second floor. The menu includes burgers, hot dogs, Italian beef and ham and cheese sandwiches.
"It’s going to be the hottest place to be this summer," Manager Peter Djuvik said. "The sunsets are incredible."
Joseph S. Pete
Open through Labor Day
The Sunset Grill invested in improvements over the summer, including decorative wind sails and more lighting. It has a full bar with local craft beers like Zorn and Burn 'Em. It has live music on Tuesdays and Saturdays.
"It's one of the few places to eat on the beach," he said. "People just come to chill and relax and enjoy the sunsets. The view is beautiful. It's stunning. It's the best in the Region."
It's open 4-11 p.m. daily through Labor Day.
If you would like your business to be included in a future column, email joseph.pete@nwi.com .
Joseph S. Pete
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Get the latest local business news delivered FREE to your inbox weekly. | https://www.nwitimes.com/business/local/arcelormittal-global-r-d-researchers-win-national-honors/article_89709591-ea66-58b7-ab3b-9ed2e7b0d595.html | 2022-06-09T22:22:17 | 1 | https://www.nwitimes.com/business/local/arcelormittal-global-r-d-researchers-win-national-honors/article_89709591-ea66-58b7-ab3b-9ed2e7b0d595.html |
Gov. Eric Holcomb is proposing Hoosiers receive another payment from the state to help cover their rising costs for gasoline, food and myriad other products.
The Republican chief executive outlined a plan Thursday for Indiana to pay $225 to all adult Hoosiers in July or August, on top of the $125 automatic taxpayer refund payments already going out.
According to the governor’s office, individuals who received a direct deposit of $125 would get a second deposit of $225, for a total of $350.
Hoosiers still waiting for a paper check with their original taxpayer refund instead would be sent a single check in August for $350, or $700 for married couples.
However, the proposal to send Hoosiers an additional $225 requires legislative approval to take effect.
Holcomb said he's recently held discussions with the Republican leaders of the Indiana House and Senate about convening a special session of the General Assembly before the end of June to make it happen.
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"I've met with Speaker (Todd) Huston and Senator (Rod) Bray and have asked them to discuss getting a billion dollars back into Hoosier hands with their colleagues," Holcomb said.
"Hoosiers have real needs right now during this period of high inflation, from the gas pump to buying groceries, and everyone should benefit from the state's success," he said.
That success is Indiana's bulging budget reserve that grew by an additional $209.2 million in May as the amount of taxes paid by Hoosiers — primarily sales and personal income taxes — once again significantly exceeded the state's forecast revenue for last month.
Altogether, through 11 months of Indiana's 2022 budget year, state tax revenue is running $1.07 billion, or 6.1%, ahead of the revenue forecast most recently revised in December 2021.
Compared to the two-year state budget plan enacted in April 2021, Indiana revenue has topped expectations by $2.75 billion, or 17.3%, according to the State Budget Agency.
In December, Indiana already was projected to end its fiscal year on June 30 with a record-setting $5.1 billion budget reserve, or 26.7% of 2023 budget year expenses.
The ongoing monthly surpluses since that time, including a whopping $496.9 million in April, make it likely the state will have almost $7 billion in the bank when it closes the books on the current budget year.
Sending a total of $1 billion back to Hoosiers through a $225 per person distribution still would leave the state with its biggest budget reserve ever, records show.
The governor’s plan was enthusiastic applauded by Huston, R-Fishers, and Bray, R-Martinsville, who both immediately signaled their openness to holding a special legislative session to enact the proposal into law.
"Inflation is having real and negative effects on everyday Hoosiers, whether it's record gas prices or rising grocery and energy bills. That's why I fully support the governor's call for a special session to put more money directly back into taxpayers' pockets," Huston said.
"By issuing another round of automatic taxpayer refunds, we can provide quick and substantial relief while maintaining the state's prudent reserves and providing budget flexibility moving forward."
Bray, meanwhile, blamed Democratic President Joe Biden and the Democratic-controlled Congress for the nation’s inflation woes. He said he's glad Indiana Republicans are in a position to help alleviate the pain Hoosiers are feeling.
"Thanks to Indiana's continued fiscal prudence, we can consider providing some relief to Hoosiers who are trying to adapt to today's challenges by returning some of their hard-earned money back to them," Bray said.
Huston and Bray did not say when, or how long, the special legislative session would be. Under the Indiana Constitution, while only the governor can convene a special session, the Legislature determines how long the session lasts and what issues are addressed.
For example, earlier this year, 100 Republican state lawmakers urged Holcomb to convene the General Assembly if the U.S. Supreme Court this month authorizes states to further restrict or outright prohibit abortion access.
Bray pledged in May that any abortion action by the General Assembly would get a "full vetting," with public hearings, giving "people the opportunity to come and weigh in and talk about their perspective on it."
That suggests the special session could last a week or longer if abortion or other hot-button issues are on the table, in addition to the $225 payment.
State Rep. Julie Olthoff, R-Crown Point, is among the Northwest Indiana lawmakers eager to return to the Statehouse to enact the governor's proposal.
"Rising inflation is hurting Hoosiers and causing them to see rising price increases at the grocery store, gas station, on their energy bills and many other necessities," Olthoff said. "Our revenues and surplus continue to outpace projections, which give us the opportunity to put more money back in Hoosiers' pockets."
Meanwhile, other Region Republicans insisted there is a big difference between the state sending checks to its citizens and the federal government doing the same through COVID-19 relief programs, which many congressional Republicans say is to blame for high inflation.
"Failed Democrat policies on the national level are out-of-touch with everyday Americans who are being forced to tighten budgets as their spending power goes down and costs go up," said state Rep. Ed Soliday, R-Valparaiso.
"Unlike Washington, Indiana isn’t printing new money to provide relief to Hoosiers, instead we're returning tax dollars they already paid into the system."
Statehouse Democrats, on the other hand, said the governor's plan is a good start. But they said there's lots more Indiana could be doing to help Hoosiers during tough times.
"Though an additional $225 refund is a good first step, it is only a temporary relief — with costs of everything still on the rise, Hoosiers will burn through it in a matter of weeks. Hoosiers' financial struggles are still ongoing, so any relief must be sustained and significant," said state Sen. Michael Griffin, D-Highland.
"This refund would only buy about 3 1/2 tanks of gas at Lake County’s current highest price," Griffin said. "It’s not enough. During special session, I'll be working tirelessly to create long-term financial solutions for Hoosier families and ensure your taxpayer dollars are reinvested in you."
In March, Democrats in the House and Senate proposed using the state's surplus revenue to maintain road funding while temporarily suspending the state’s gasoline tax, which is due to rise 1 cent to 33 cents per gallon on July 1, and the state’s sales tax on gasoline, already 24 cents per gallon and certain to increase July 1 due to the higher average statewide price of fuel this month compared to last month.
State Rep. Greg Porter, D-Indianapolis, the top Democrat on the budget-writing House Ways and Means Committee, said Hoosiers could have been paying 66 cents less per gallon of gasoline for months if the Republican supermajorities had only listened and acted back then.
"While I'm happy Governor Holcomb and legislative Republicans have finally heeded our calls to give Hoosiers their money back, I can only hope it’s not too little, too late," Porter said.
"There's still no reason why we can't additionally provide Hoosiers and small businesses relief at the pump by suspending the gas tax while prices are still high," he said.
Likewise, Indiana Democratic Party Executive Director Lauren Ganapini said she's glad Holcomb and Indiana Republicans finally acknowledge there are ways for state government help Hoosiers during a period of global inflation.
"That said, it shouldn’t have taken this long to get the Republicans to actually act and produce what looks like another bare-minimum Band-Aid for Indiana's long-term problems," Ganapini said. | https://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/holcomb-asks-indiana-lawmakers-to-ok-additional-225-payment-to-hoosiers-to-combat-inflation/article_392413a9-1c67-5adc-8d4b-b90d6a101a9f.html | 2022-06-09T22:22:32 | 0 | https://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/holcomb-asks-indiana-lawmakers-to-ok-additional-225-payment-to-hoosiers-to-combat-inflation/article_392413a9-1c67-5adc-8d4b-b90d6a101a9f.html |
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The latest news from around North Texas. | https://www.nbcdfw.com/news/local/missing-girl-found-alive-40-years-after-parents-found-dead/2989085/ | 2022-06-09T22:23:09 | 0 | https://www.nbcdfw.com/news/local/missing-girl-found-alive-40-years-after-parents-found-dead/2989085/ |
The city of Richmond has chosen three local organizations addressing health equity to share $230,000, the beginning of a two-year effort to fund organizations that address health disparities.
The city chose Crossover Healthcare Ministry, Nolef Turns and Richmond Behavioral Health Authority to increase access to health care, support people released from prison and address substance abuse recovery.
Last fall, Richmond City Council voted to take $5 million worth of federal COVID relief funds and allocate them toward health equity. The Richmond and Henrico Health Districts announced the recipients Thursday.
"I applaud RHHD for recognizing the positive impact grassroots work can have on community resilience to public health crises like COVID-19 or the opioid epidemic, which disproportionately impact our low-income residents and communities of color," Stoney said in a statement.
Crossover Healthcare Ministry, a local nonprofit, will receive $50,000 to provide additional bilingual medical assistance and increase the organization's capacity.
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Nolef Turns, another local nonprofit, gets $90,000 to provide crisis and transitional shelter assistance to Richmond residents returning from incarceration who have an increased chance of using drugs again.
Richmond Behavioral Health Authority will receive $90,000 to provide mental health services in clinics located in public housing and lower-income communities. RBHA is a public entity the city council established to provide mental health services in Richmond.
The city will begin accepting nominations for future funds on June 16. Nominations will be accepted for about a month, and applicants should have plans to take on new projects or expand existing work to better promote health equity in Richmond.
Projects will be funded for the next two years. | https://richmond.com/news/local/3-local-organizations-receive-230-000-to-address-health-equity-in-richmond/article_3378fe89-8c93-5237-a459-7683689b079c.html | 2022-06-09T22:26:42 | 1 | https://richmond.com/news/local/3-local-organizations-receive-230-000-to-address-health-equity-in-richmond/article_3378fe89-8c93-5237-a459-7683689b079c.html |
Virginia State Police announced Thursday that a man from Chesterfield County was arrested in connection with selling forged vehicle safety inspection stickers.
Police said in a statement that Ben. C Goode, 28, of Chesterfield, posted on Craigslist claiming to be a "mobile inspector."
Early in their investigation, a state trooper encountered Goode during a routine traffic stop in Richmond, police said.
Goode was operating a vehicle with a fake inspection sticker, and during the traffic stop, Goode drove off, according to police. The trooper didn't pursuit the vehicle, as he was in possession of the driver's license and vehicle registration.
Police arrested Goode on Wednesday. He faces multiple felonies, including unauthorized forging of a state seal, forging a public/government document and obtaining money by false pretenses.
He also faces several misdemeanor charges, including eluding police and two traffic violations.
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Goode is currently being held at the Chesterfield County Jail.
Anyone with information about this is encouraged to contact the Virginia State Police Safety Division at (804) 278-5302 or email safety@vsp.virginia.gov. | https://richmond.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/chesterfield-man-arrested-for-selling-fake-vehicle-inspection-stickers/article_8db2adbb-d18e-5072-9216-09fa8f61e397.html | 2022-06-09T22:26:48 | 0 | https://richmond.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/chesterfield-man-arrested-for-selling-fake-vehicle-inspection-stickers/article_8db2adbb-d18e-5072-9216-09fa8f61e397.html |
Multiple lanes of Interstate 95 in Hanover were closed following a tractor-trailer crash, according to the Virginia Department of Transportation.
VDOT officials say the crash happened at about 1 p.m. Thursday on northbound I-95 near mile marker 98, a half-mile north of Route 30.
I-95 north (#Hanover) - The northbound left and center lanes are closed near mile marker 98 (.6 miles north of Route 30) due to a crash. There is currently a four mile backup. Use alternate routes and expect delays until further notice. @HanoverVa@HanoverSheriff@VaDOTpic.twitter.com/G9nAKSnqgC
As of about 1:30 p.m., there was a 4-mile backup as the north left shoulder, left lane and center lane were closed. As of 2 p.m., the backup was more than 7 miles.
The lanes have since reopened, according to VDOT spokesperson Sara Owens. VDOT asks motorists to continue to expect residual delays in the area.
Top five weekend events: ¿Qué Pasa? Festival, Ashland Strawberry Festival, Fred Armisen and Bon Iver
An investigation from school administrators and Chesterfield officers concluded that the student "made the statement as a joke," said county police spokeswoman Liz Caroon. | https://richmond.com/news/local/update-lanes-reopen-after-tractor-trailer-crash-causes-7-mile-backup-on-i-95/article_26ad7fc9-0f4b-5169-978b-9df2d2f365a6.html | 2022-06-09T22:26:54 | 0 | https://richmond.com/news/local/update-lanes-reopen-after-tractor-trailer-crash-causes-7-mile-backup-on-i-95/article_26ad7fc9-0f4b-5169-978b-9df2d2f365a6.html |
PIERCE COUNTY, Wash. — A trio of Black women working in the Pierce County Jail won a settlement of over $1 million for their lawsuit accusing the Pierce County Sheriff's Department of pervasive sexism and racism.
Lt. Charla James-Hutchison and Sergeants Dione Alexander and Sabrina Braswell-Bouyer filed the lawsuit to Pierce County Superior Court in 2021, claiming the Pierce County Sheriff's Department “have both participated in and ignored racial harassment and discrimination, as well as gender-based discrimination, and allowed the culture of animosity towards African Americans and women to grow and fester.”
The women accepted the county's offers of judgment awarding the officers $1,052,978.78, according to a March 18 court filing.
The officers’ attorney, Meaghan M. Driscoll, said examples of the toxic environment were easy to find.
According to statistics provided by Pierce County in Nov. 2021, only 12 Black women work for the sheriff’s department, which has a workforce of 689 people.
“Uses of the N-word in jail settings, uses of comments like Black protesters should be shot or run over," Driscoll said. "It’s really the top-down culture that’s being perpetuated and allowed to perpetuate within the sheriff's department."
Driscoll said the three women tried to notify their superiors of their treatment at the Pierce County Jail, but their complaints were ignored. The officers' lawyer said this was a common occurrence for the sheriff department’s Black employees.
“When an African American employee files a complaint, it might sit there for a year before it’s even addressed or investigated," Driscoll said. "When a Caucasian employee files a complaint, it’s addressed immediately."
Driscoll recommended the Pierce County Sheriff's Department implement additional training, add more supervision and investigate complaints to cultivate a better working environment for its employees.
Another woman working with the Pierce County Sheriff's Department filed a lawsuit in late March, accusing leadership of sexism.
Detective Sergeant Jessica Whitehead, a 15-year veteran of the department, said in the lawsuit she was having problems with Lt. Kevin Roberts, one of her male leaders.
In the lawsuit, Whitehead said Roberts assigned a male detective sergeant to lead the Sexual Assault Unit (SAU) because he “did not want two female officers to lead SAU back-to-back.”
Whitehead's lawsuit is ongoing. | https://www.king5.com/article/news/local/3-black-women-win-1-million-racism-sexism-lawsuit-pierce-county-jail/281-0644a6e0-7d9a-425c-b7ac-fe1e40f4d8ef | 2022-06-09T22:28:38 | 0 | https://www.king5.com/article/news/local/3-black-women-win-1-million-racism-sexism-lawsuit-pierce-county-jail/281-0644a6e0-7d9a-425c-b7ac-fe1e40f4d8ef |
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WIAT) — Jay Barker, former Alabama quarterback who currently has his own sports radio program in Birmingham, has pleaded guilty to reckless endangerment following an incident where he allegedly almost hit his estranged wife, Sara Evans, with his car following a party in Nashville.
On Thursday, Barker pleaded to reckless endangerment, according to records from the Criminal Clerk’s Office of Davidson County, Tennessee. Barker was initially charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon–a Class C felony in Tennessee– when he was first arrested back in January. Reckless endangerment is a Class A misdemeanor in Tennessee.
According to an affidavit, Evans was in a car while leaving a party at a house on Norwood Drive in Nashville when she allegedly saw Barker “backing up his vehicle at a high rate of speed attempting to hit them but missed.”
Police report that Barker had driven away before Evans could call the police, but later returned and spoke with officers. Evans and Barker were first married in 2008, but had been estranged leading to that night with Evans filing for divorce the previous August.
Barker played at the University of Alabama from 1990 to 1994, leading the Tide to a national championship win over the Miami Hurricanes in 1993. After some time in professional football, including time in the NFL, Canadian Football League and the XFL, Barker retired in 2001. Since 2018, he has been co-host of “The Jay Barker Show” on 100.9 FM in Homewood.
As part of his plea deal, Barker will be required to take a 26-week Batterer’s Intervention Program, as well as the disposition of any and all firearms he may have.
Barker is scheduled for a probation hearing next May.
Attempts to reach Barker’s attorney for comment was not successful Thursday. | https://www.cbs42.com/news/local/jay-barker-pleads-guilty-to-reckless-endangerment-after-nearly-hitting-estranged-wife-with-car/ | 2022-06-09T22:39:31 | 0 | https://www.cbs42.com/news/local/jay-barker-pleads-guilty-to-reckless-endangerment-after-nearly-hitting-estranged-wife-with-car/ |
NORMAL — As waves of Corvettes and car enthusiasts drive into the Twin Cities this weekend for the Bloomington Gold Corvette USA car show, organizers have compiled a special collection of some of the rarest, most sought-after Corvette models from 1953 through the 2000s.
“We picked some notable low-production cars, like several cars are one of one or one of two that were made,” said Guy Larsen, president of Bloomington Gold Corvettes USA. “A lot of them are also picked for performance reasons, whether they have special performance motors or setups.”
Celebrating its 50th anniversary, the Bloomington Gold Corvettes USA car show will be in town this Friday and Saturday at Illinois State University, along with the show's special Gold Collection.
The 2022 Gold Collection comprises 30 special cars for attendees to see at the Bone Student Center during the show this weekend. They were also celebrated at a gala Thursday night.
Some of the cars have never been seen before and others have not been seen in years, but each Corvette has its own story to tell, from the engineering to the original owners who may still be in possession of their car.
Included in the collection is a 1963 Corvette Grand Sport “Lightweight” engineered and built by Zora Arkus-Duntov, a Belgian-born American engineer whose work on the vehicle model netted him the title “Father of the Corvette.”
The ‘63 model is also one of five Corvette Grand Sports built under the guidance of Arkus-Duntov and is owned by Revs Institute, a nonprofit automotive museums and historical preservation site based out of Naples, Florida.
Another model featured is an Aztec Copper 1957 Corvette Convertible that is one of the best-documented first-generation examples known to exist in the world.
Owned by the Mecum family, of Walworth, Wisconsin, its origin is supported by extensive original documentation, including nearly every piece of dealership paperwork when the car was first bought and full ownership documentation.
Attendees can also witness Briggs Cunningham’s #3 1960 Corvette Le Mans Racer. Used in the 24 Hours of Le Mans endurance race in France, the car won its class in 1960 — the first time a Corvette claimed that spot.
Cunningham was an American entrepreneur and professional racing driver known for his many appearances at Le Mans and other races throughout the world from 1930 to 1963.
This first-generation model was the subject of an intense search that is now the subject of a documentary, "The Quest." Chip Miller, co-founder of the Corvettes at Carlisle event held annually in Pennsylvania, had sought the historically significant vehicle for years.
His friend, restorer Kevin Mackay, was tasked with finding the car for Miller.
“I gave him my word that if we found the car and we can get it, he gets the car,” said MacKay, who owns Corvette Repair Inc. in Long Island and Valley Stream, New York. “You got to remember one thing here, when you bring this kind of car to Le Mans, it’s like going to the Olympics. You’re representing the United States and there were only four cars that went there.”
Miller died in 2004 from amyloidosis, a rare disease caused by a buildup of abnormal amyloid deposits in the body, but lived to witness the car being restored.
The search started with hunting down the vehicle identification numbers (VIN) of all first-generation Corvettes that rode on the Le Mans track and tracking that VIN number down to an airline pilot who had painted the car red and converted it for street use without knowing its history, MacKay said.
Once they restored the car to its previous glory in 2002, the next challenge was to take it back to Le Mans to drive the track with John Fitch, one of the original drivers of the car, said Lance Miller, Chip’s son.
“This is what he aspired to get and he did it. He achieved his dream but unfortunately, in 2004 he passed away, and that’s where I came in,” Lance Miller said. “I was able to live out his dream of taking the car back to the mall with John Fitch in 2010 and at the time John was at the age of 92.”
The car is now owned by Irwin Kroiz, of Ambler, Pennsylvania, who was friends with the Miller family and knew the car's significance. When Kroiz heard that Lance Miller was considering selling it, he had to make an offer.
“My love is Corvettes and I have other Corvettes, also, but this will fit perfectly with the collection and I'll take care of it for the rest of my life,” Kroiz said. “It’s not going to be sold by me.”
"The Quest," which chronicles the backstory and search for the historic racing car, will be shown at 7 p.m. Friday at The Normal Theater, 209 W. North St.
The film features Chip and Lance Miller, MacKay and Kroiz, along with others associated with the story of the coveted Corvette. They will also be in attendance as special guests for the film showing.
“I think a lot of our attendees are like me where they’re just Corvette-a-holics, I’ll say,” Larsen said. “They might have modern cars or they may have some older cars, but most of the guys and gals who attend don’t have cars like these.
“Some may have never seen some of these cars in person and won’t get to see them anywhere else.” | https://pantagraph.com/news/local/history/bloomington-gold-collection-shows-off-some-of-the-rarest-corvettes-known-in-the-world/article_b271c23a-e82b-11ec-8823-335474c3ad84.html | 2022-06-09T22:40:47 | 0 | https://pantagraph.com/news/local/history/bloomington-gold-collection-shows-off-some-of-the-rarest-corvettes-known-in-the-world/article_b271c23a-e82b-11ec-8823-335474c3ad84.html |
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Breaking news and the stories that matter to your neighborhood. | https://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/local/3-children-left-in-hot-suv-outside-nj-walmart/3266611/ | 2022-06-09T22:43:58 | 1 | https://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/local/3-children-left-in-hot-suv-outside-nj-walmart/3266611/ |
A list of the nation's best boardwalks, compiled by Trending Travel, has named three New Jersey boardwalks to the top 15. Those that made the cut are Atlantic City, Seaside Heights and Wildwood. Here's why those three stand out.
Atlantic City
Atlantic City sits at the top of the (alphabetized) list, for what Trending Travel says is due to it being one of the most popular along the East Coast, as well as America's first and longest boardwalk.
Stretching four miles along the shore, the AC boardwalk dates back to 1870. The list of restaurants, casinos, and shops goes on and on.
Seaside Heights
Seaside Heights is up next, receiving its acclaim thanks to its two mile stretch that is attached to numerous shops, restaurants, bars, plus Casino Pier, an amusement park with numerous attractions and a waterpark.
The list also mentions one of Seaside's claims to fame - it being the setting for MTV's Jersey Shore reality show.
Wildwood
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Breaking news and the stories that matter to your neighborhood.
Wildwood is last but not least, highlighted at the bottom of the - alphabetical - list. The 38-block walkway incorporates what an average boardwalk might have, like souvenir stores and places to grab food, but also has some unique features.
Morey's Pier connects to the boards for all beach-goers that double as thrill-chasers. You'll also find Wildwood's Sightseer Tramcars which have been serving the people with views and a ride since 1949.
The boardwalks of Rehoboth Beach, DE and Ocean City, MD also make appearances in the rankings.
What do you think? Are these boardwalks the best of the best in the Garden State? Tweet at us @nbcphiladelphia or message us on Instagram @nbcphiladelphia with your thoughts. | https://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/local/3-nj-boardwalks-make-the-cut-among-top-15-in-u-s/3265822/ | 2022-06-09T22:44:05 | 1 | https://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/local/3-nj-boardwalks-make-the-cut-among-top-15-in-u-s/3265822/ |
Sorrow and fury poured out Maureen Long as she stood, fighting back tears, near the site of a mass shooting in Philadelphia.
Long, speaking the day after the shooting that claimed the lives of three people and left 11 others wounded, said she was in bed when she heard the gunshots firing off in quick succession Saturday night.
She was incredulous that another mass shooting, following a succession of others across the country, had happened right by where she lives on South Street. And she was angry.
"Furious. I am furious, not just for my neighborhood, for the whole country. If I hear one more time ‘thoughts and prayers’ – bull----," Long said through tears. "We cannot disagree about this. We have to do something. I don't care what your political leanings are. We can't continue to let people kill people."
Despite sustained anger following years of mass shootings in places like Philadelphia, Uvalde, Buffalo and Tulsa and Smithsburg, legislation to tighten gun laws in Pennsylvania continues to hit roadblocks. The most recent occurred at the state's highest appeals court, when 11 residents, mostly from Philadelphia, lost a lawsuit seeking to allow the city to impose stricter gun restrictions than what’s allowed by the state.
The City of Philadelphia and CeaseFirePA group joined the suit as plaintiffs.
The suit, filed in October 2020, challenged Pennsylvania’s preemption law, which prevents municipalities from enacting gun control measures that would impose stronger restrictions or penalties on residents than what state law enforces.
Stanley Crawford was one of the plaintiffs. The 69-year-old North Philadelphia resident lost his 35-year-old son, William, to gun violence one Saturday morning in 2018.
William Crawford was waiting for his sister to answer the door when he was ambushed and shot multiple times, the elder Crawford said. That sister and her son heard the gunshots and found William, a father of five, dead at the door.
“That’s a tragedy within itself because my grandbabies will not get to experience a loving and caring father,” Stanley Crawford said Thursday in an interview with NBC10.
After his son’s death, Crawford said he had two options: remain paralyzed by the pain of losing the son he loved so much – or take action. He chose the latter. Crawford currently is president and CEO of the Black Male Community Council of Philadelphia, a group that provides resources for communities impacted by high levels of gun violence.
He joined the 2020 lawsuit in an effort to stem the bloodshed that changed his life and that of so many others.
The plaintiffs argued that inaction by the Republican-controlled Legislature has increased the likelihood of gun violence and failed to protect citizens, thereby violating the state Constitution’s guarantee of “defending life and liberty.”
But their pleas failed to convince a majority of the five-judge panel, which ruled two weeks ago in favor of the state. The court's majority opinion cited previous Pennsylvania Supreme Court decisions stating that the General Assembly, not municipalities, is the body in charge of enacting gun regulations in the state.
“We obviously wish the Commonwealth Court had decided in our favor and allowed lifesaving policies to go into effect,” CeaseFirePA Executive Director Adam Garber said. Preemption, he said, “ties the hands of local officials” and forces them to “go to funeral after funeral and crime scene after crime scene” while preventing them from passing laws to solve the problem.
The court’s ruling also targeted what the plaintiffs described as a public health crisis brought on by gun violence. The opinion said, “It is difficult to discern how Petitioners’ alleged incidents of gun violence equates into a ‘public health’ matter that gives rise to an express ‘delegated duty’ to implement gun regulation at the local level.”
But despite the loss, Philadelphia officials still plan more lawsuits.
“We’re gonna continue to sue the Commonwealth so that we can get some control over our own destiny when it comes to guns,” Mayor Jim Kenney said this week.
Speaking during the city’s regular briefing on gun violence, Philadelphia Solicitor Diana Cortes noted the most recent loss in Commonwealth Court, as well as another loss that invalidated a city ordinance mandating gun owners tell law enforcement when a firearm has been lost or stolen.
Cortes argued Pennsylvania’s preemption law is overly broad and case law interpreting the law's statutes “expanded upon that unjustly.” However, she expressed optimism despite Philadelphia’s losses in court.
She also cited the dissenting opinion in the latest preemption case as another reason for optimism.
“Pennsylvania’s municipalities have an important duty to protect the health, welfare, and safety of their citizens,” Judge Ellen Ceisler wrote in dissent to the court's majority ruling. “In my view, protecting citizens against the threat of gun violence lies at the heart of this duty.”
Cortes said Philadelphia will appeal the case to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court and will request permission to appeal the lost or stolen firearms case.
“The decision against the city was not surprising,” Cortes said. “However, what was surprising and encouraging is that in both opinions, for the first time we saw judges stand up against this overbroad interpretation of the case law and stating that enough was enough in that the circumstances in Philadelphia and across the Commonwealth required a reexamination of Ortiz,” she continued, citing the 1996 Ortiz v. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania case that prevented Philadelphia from regulating the ownership of assault weapons.
Garber, of Ceasefire, was similarly encouraged by judges whom he said are growingly finding merit in challenges to the preemption law.
“I think that the fact that a set of Commonwealth judges have said there is a clear right to life and safety is really critical and makes us hopeful that they will move the protect people’s life and liberty and not just the guns,” he said.
Crawford, the Philadelphia activist, said he is holding out hope that the appeals are successful.
He would like cities to have the freedom to impose penalties on gun owners who don’t report their firearms lost or stolen and whose guns are then used in crimes. He also wants to see a ban on extended magazines, the likes of which authorities have said were used in at least one of the guns involved in the mass shooting on South Street in Philadelphia.
There’s nothing that can bring back Crawford’s son, whom he acknowledged wasn’t perfect and had his problems with the law. But, Crawford said, his progeny didn’t deserve to die on the other side of a gun barrel.
Crawford has a favorite picture of his son that always brightens his spirit. In it, he and his son are hugging each other at a cookout.
“My son’s life and death has to have some meaning, and the only way I know how to give his life and death some meaning is by working so that other families don’t have to experience the loss of their loved ones,” Crawford said.
There are additional resources for people or communities that have endured gun violence in Philadelphia. Further information can be found here. | https://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/local/philly-exhausting-options-to-fight-gun-crimes-in-court/3265139/ | 2022-06-09T22:44:12 | 0 | https://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/local/philly-exhausting-options-to-fight-gun-crimes-in-court/3265139/ |
The Bonneville County Assessor’s Office mailed out property assessments Monday and many homeowners may see their new assessments and think the assessor’s office made a mistake.
For most affordable homes in the county, property assessments are up from last year by about 45% to 55%, said Bonneville County Assessor Dustin Barron.
“A lot of people’s assumption is going to be that there was a mistake because the values have increased so significantly and they’re seeing $100,000, $150,000 to $200,000 increases,” Barron said.
The median for home prices in Bonneville County has nearly doubled in the last few years, according to the Snake River Regional Multiple Listing Service. In January 2019, the median sales price was $200,000 and a house was expected to be on the market for 53 days on average. The service’s most recent data from September 2021 lists the median sales price at $405,000 with the average days on the market at 15 days.
Barron said it’s difficult to pinpoint a singular cause for why property assessments have gone up as much as they have, but he believes the increased population growth of the area and a lack of existing home inventory as well as a scarcity of land on which to build new housing developments have been contributing factors. He said the market is currently an advantage for sellers who likely will sell their home for more than their asking price to a buyer who wants to ensure they find a house in the area.
“There’s just seemingly not enough homes for the people coming into this area,” Barron said.
Higher property assessments are not exclusive in Bonneville County. KTVB reported on June 3 that some properties in Canyon County have gone up by 60% since last year.
Barron said there was also a substantial increase of about 20% in Bonneville County property assessments from 2020 to 2021. One benefit of the current market is there are many sales and it gives the assessor’s office a better indication of the market value of homes that haven’t sold, but Barron said he doesn’t believe the current market is sustainable.
“I don’t think we’re ever going to get back to a point where the values in this area were as low as they were three or four years ago,” Barron said. “I don’t even know if they’ll get back to where they were even a year or two ago.”
Patrick Malone, a Realtor at High Desert Century 21 and the president of the Idaho Association of Realtors, said he had a different number than Barron for property value increases over the last year of 30%, which is still unprecedented. Malone said the county has a different, more “macro-style” type of process for assessing property than a real estate agent typically will have, which he said examines homes on a more individual and recent level.
“Our market has never seen appreciation at this hyper-inflated level,” Malone said. “And so, of course, that just creates all kinds of problems for affordability.”
Affordability will be a major issue for first-time seeking homeowners who have not built the equity of owning a home and wages have not gone up to catch up to the market value of homes.
Property taxes are dependent upon the budget and levy rates of local governments. Malone said in theory, higher assessments would lead to a lower tax value if a local government entity has a budget similar to its previous budget, but that almost never happens in practice as local governments are dealing with higher operational costs. | https://www.postregister.com/news/local/average-property-assessment-in-bonneville-county-increases-by-about-50/article_9898c9dc-9e5d-5794-b5dd-178897365037.html | 2022-06-09T22:51:48 | 1 | https://www.postregister.com/news/local/average-property-assessment-in-bonneville-county-increases-by-about-50/article_9898c9dc-9e5d-5794-b5dd-178897365037.html |
As children many of us had dreams to be an astronaut, a fireman or maybe even a dinosaur hunter.
Growing up in Blackfoot, L.J. Krumenacker dreamed of the latter and he's dedicated his life in pursuit of it.
Now an Idaho State University paleontologist and affiliate curator at the Idaho Museum of Natural History in Pocatello, Krumenacker has been hunting dinosaurs for 20 years — with great success. His reputation in the field is well documented, and growing. He's documented and named several new species of prehistoric Idaho creatures.
But his latest discovery is perhaps his most exciting. Krumenacker has discovered a Tyrannosaurus-like dinosaur bone practically in his own backyard.
"I have fulfilled the dreams I had as a kid," said Krumenacker "I never really grew up."
Krumenacker and his co-authors shared the details of the discovery in a new paper published Wednesday in the Journal of Paleontology.
The fossil was unearthed in Bonneville County and located on land managed by the U.S. Forest Service.
"I went to a rock formation where I knew bones had been found before," Krumenacker said. "It turns out that a formation they were going to be using for road gravel turned out to be the best spot in the state for unknown animals and fossils."
"Located in the Caribou Mountains, the rocks are part of the Wayan Formation and consist primarily of mudstone and sandstone formed from ancient rivers," an Idaho State University news release said.
Krumenacker said it's the oldest Cretaceous-age Tyrannosaur fossil ever found in North America and the very first Tyrannosaurus bone ever found in Idaho.
Though the fragment of bone found was a descendant of or of close relation to the Tyrannosaurus rex, it is noted that the fragment belonged to a much smaller variety of the dinosaur.
"A lot of people in the paleontology world like to joke and refer to T. rex by their weight in grand pianos," Krumenacker said "The bone I found would have come instead from a T. rex ancestor that was about the size of 2-3 tubas."
Krumenacker shares that paleontology has helped him and could help others to look outside themselves and truly understand the enormity of the world and those creatures that have lived within it. It helps him in some way connect to an Earth that is 4.5 billion years older than him and understand it in ways that he otherwise could not.
The final home of this fossil will be the Idaho Museum of Natural History and will be part of a brand new exhibit coming to the museum next year called "Idaho Dinosaurs." | https://www.postregister.com/news/local/paleontologist-discovers-t-rex-ancestor-fossil-in-bonneville-county/article_8c5f796c-3eec-54ce-9a2d-9cee59327a0e.html | 2022-06-09T22:51:54 | 0 | https://www.postregister.com/news/local/paleontologist-discovers-t-rex-ancestor-fossil-in-bonneville-county/article_8c5f796c-3eec-54ce-9a2d-9cee59327a0e.html |
Idaho Falls Regional Airport Director Rick Cloutier speaks during a May 2022 press conference. On Thursday, Cloutier announced round-trip fights between Idaho Falls and Reno offered by aha! will begin this August.
Idaho Falls Regional Airport will offer a new route to and from Reno starting this August.
Airport Director Rick Cloutier announced the route during a Thursday press conference. The route is a nonstop flight that begins Aug. 11 provided by aha!, a Reno-Tahoe based airline powered by ExpressJet Airlines.
The airlinewill fly to and from Idaho Falls two days a week on Thursday and Sunday using a 50-seat regional jet, according to an aha! news release. Flights will be approximately 95 minutes and will depart Idaho Falls at 10:55 a.m. and arrive in Reno at 11:30 a.m. Pacific Time. Flights will depart from Reno at 7:40 a.m. Pacific Time and return to Idaho Falls at 10:15 a.m.
“With this new flight, travel between the two areas can take away that lengthy nine-hour (layover) flight to just a little over an hour,” Cloutier said. "It’ll really add a lot of connectivity from both the regions to be able to explore different opportunities."
Aha! is celebrating the launch of the Idaho Falls flight with a limited one-way sales fare of $29. The fares must be booked by using promo code RENOSUMMER29 by June 13 through flyaha.com or by 775-439-0888.
“We are thrilled to offer eastern Idaho residents with the opportunity to explore the incredible gaming, dining, shows, and indoor/outdoor fun of Reno and Lake Tahoe without lengthy drives or layovers,” said Tim Sieber, head of ExpressJet’s aha! business unit in the news release. “The easy access to Yellowstone, the Greenbelt, museums and other treasures will surely attract a lot of Reno residents to Idaho Falls.”
The new route adds a sixth airline that operates out of Idaho Falls Regional Airport. Idaho Falls Mayor Rebecca Casper said she credited Cloutier with the airport’s annual $270 million in economic impact it brings to the region and the new flight offerings over the last few years.
“Airports our size aren’t supposed to be this successful but we are,” Casper said. “Eastern Idaho has certainly been discovered by the outside world and that has certainly been a big driver of this but that’s happening everywhere (in the western U.S.).”
Idaho Falls Regional Airport had its busiest year yet in 2021, breaking its previous passenger record total by more than 100,000. Additionally, Alaska Airlines daily round-trip flights between Idaho Falls and Boise will start on June 16. | https://www.postregister.com/news/local/round-trip-flights-between-idaho-falls-and-reno-coming-this-august/article_84af0260-1271-58a9-a7d4-cb74427cfcc7.html | 2022-06-09T22:52:00 | 1 | https://www.postregister.com/news/local/round-trip-flights-between-idaho-falls-and-reno-coming-this-august/article_84af0260-1271-58a9-a7d4-cb74427cfcc7.html |
EAST BERLIN, Pa. — Police in Adams County are investigating the theft of a piece of construction equipment in Reading Township earlier this month.
The suspected theft occurred in the area of Holly Court and Jessica Drive in East Berlin at around 8:05 a.m. on June 1, police say.
According to Reading Township Police, a suspect in a tractor trailer stole a 2001 Kobelco excavator, model SK160LC, bearing a serial number YM02U0120.
The excavator is valued at $32,000, according to police.
The suspect's tractor trailer is a blue Kenworth, with light blue or silver fenders. The cab appears to have a yellow light, chrome accessories, and an unidentified company name on the door, police say.
Anyone with information should contact Reading Township Police at (717) 624-2270 or police@readingtownship.net. | https://www.fox43.com/article/news/local/adams-county/construction-equipment-theft-adams-county/521-8b61fa02-1d48-4b14-b763-a1c001ca2c19 | 2022-06-09T22:59:30 | 0 | https://www.fox43.com/article/news/local/adams-county/construction-equipment-theft-adams-county/521-8b61fa02-1d48-4b14-b763-a1c001ca2c19 |
LANCASTER COUNTY, Pa. — Police and other law enforcement agents are searching for a Lehigh County man accused of fleeing from officers there to arrest him for arranging a sexual encounter with what he believed to be a 13-year-old girl.
Michael Robert Bascom, of Slatington, is charged with statutory sexual assault, unlawful contact with a minor, corruption of minors, criminal use of a communication facility, aggravated assault on a officer, recklessly endangering another person, fleeing from police, accidents involving property damage, and patronizing a victim of sexual servitude, according to a criminal complaint affidavit filed against him on June 3.
According to police, Bascom was charged during an investigation focused on people soliciting minors for sex. He allegedly responded to an online ad, contacting an undercover officer posing as a 13-year-old girl.
In a series of text exchanges, Bascom allegedly arranged to have sex with the minor, agreeing to pay $400 per hour. He then sent the undercover officer a photo from a convenience store in Lancaster, where he agreed to travel to meet her.
Bascom showed up at the arranged meeting place, a hotel on the 2300 block of Lincoln Highway in East Lampeter Township, according to the complaint. But after circling the parking lot of the hotel in his vehicle, he quickly accelerated and attempted to leave, police say.
Officers stationed at the parking lot attempted to stop Bascom's vehicle, activating their emergency lights, but Bascom allegedly fled at a high rate of speed, going through multiple nearby parking lots in an attempt to elude the vehicles chasing him.
At one point, police say, Bascom's vehicle struck a law enforcement officer's vehicle before turning onto Lincoln Highway, traveling west at a high rate of speed despite the roadway's crowded traffic conditions.
Bascom is still at large, according to police. The U.S. Marshals Fugitive Task Force is searching for him.
As of Thursday morning, Bascom's location was believed to be near Frederick, Maryland, headed northwest towards Hagerstown, Maryland, according to police. | https://www.fox43.com/article/news/local/lancaster-county/michael-bascom-search-us-marshals-fugitive-task-force/521-26905c1b-4303-43fd-b6c9-a1fcdf785440 | 2022-06-09T22:59:36 | 1 | https://www.fox43.com/article/news/local/lancaster-county/michael-bascom-search-us-marshals-fugitive-task-force/521-26905c1b-4303-43fd-b6c9-a1fcdf785440 |
WEST YORK, Pa. — Four suspects from Lancaster were arrested Wednesday night after robbing a Turkey Hill store in West York, police said on Thursday.
West York Police have charged the following suspects with robbery, criminal conspiracy and firearms violations:
- Nazir Coste-Alcantara, 19
- Luis De La Rosa-Ozoria, 21
- Leonel Del Rosario, 22
- Lerwan Vazques-Suarez, 16 (charged as an adult)
Police say the suspects were all armed. They entered a Turkey Hill store on the 1500 block of W. Market St., wearing ski masks and latex gloves.
After pushing one employee to the ground and brandishing a handgun at another employee, the suspects demanded cash and, upon receiving it, fled the store, police say.
West York Police immediately responded to the store, assisted by officers from West Manchester Township and York City. After a description of the suspects were obtained, police were able to almost immediately locate the suspects in a vehicle on Dewey Street at W. Princess St.
The individuals in this vehicle were detained. A firearm, cash from the robbery, latex exam gloves, and clothing worn during the robbery (including ski masks) were recovered.
The suspects were taken to York County Central Booking for preliminary arraignment.
None of the Turkey Hill employees were seriously injured and all are safe, police say. | https://www.fox43.com/article/news/local/lancaster-county/west-york-turkey-hill-robbery-four-suspects-arrested/521-8909decb-5e81-470f-86e4-f7e1f61bf551 | 2022-06-09T22:59:42 | 0 | https://www.fox43.com/article/news/local/lancaster-county/west-york-turkey-hill-robbery-four-suspects-arrested/521-8909decb-5e81-470f-86e4-f7e1f61bf551 |
ATLANTA — With paint bullets representing rifle and pistol fire, and officers acting as students, victims and the shooter – Atlanta Police officers spent Thursday training for the worst. The active-shooter training took place at Venetian Hills Elementary School in southwest Atlanta.
"We just want our officers to be ready, we want to protect our citizens,” Atlanta Police Sgt. Stephen Krieger said.
In three different scenarios, they tested what should happen when a shooter walks in firing right away, a scenario when a shooter barricades themselves in a room with students, and how to react when a shooter is holding hostages.
Krieger said school shootings are unpredictable, but these scenarios are the most likely, and muscle memory is crucial.
“The better trained our officers are the better decisions they make under stress,” he said.
Each scenario was a single officer response so that they will be trained to immediately enter a school and eliminate a threat without having to wait for any backup.
Since most officers ride alone, waiting for backup could be the difference between life and death.
Thursday’s training was specifically for Tactical Field Operators. There are 100 TFOs in the department currently, who have 80 extra hours of training and 16 hours a month of additional training. But other officers can sign up for the training throughout the year.
Atlanta Police told 11Alive that the training was already scheduled for Thursday before the Texas school shooting, but after the tragedy in Uvalde, they made sure this training would include an active shooter inside a school. | https://www.11alive.com/article/news/local/atlanta-police-active-shooter-training/85-5e7eab08-a62e-4848-9d88-d1bc842a3801 | 2022-06-09T23:04:19 | 0 | https://www.11alive.com/article/news/local/atlanta-police-active-shooter-training/85-5e7eab08-a62e-4848-9d88-d1bc842a3801 |
BROOKHAVEN, Ga. — Brookhaven will have a new home for its City Hall -- a train station.
The MARTA board made the agreement in a resolution approved during its Thursday meeting. Brookhaven's City Hall could be housed at the Brookhaven-Oglethorpe station.
According to MARTA's resolution, "the Board has determined that MARTA should enter a ground lease with the City of Brookhaven." Both entities have negotiated a 50-year fair market value ground lease with a purchase option for real property in the southwestern surface parking lot of the station, records show. The area is bordered by Peachtree Street NE and North Druid Hills Road.
Though MARTA has passed a resolution regarding the agreement, Brookhaven's City Council has yet to pass any similar motions.
Councilmembers are expected to meet next Tuesday, June 14, for a work session meeting and regularly scheduled council meeting later that evening.
News happens fast. Download our 11Alive News app for all the latest breaking updates, and sign up for our Speed Feed newsletter to get a rundown of the latest headlines across north Georgia. | https://www.11alive.com/article/news/local/brookhaven/brookhaven-new-city-hall-at-marta-train-station/85-f95cd595-f2f9-40f1-aeb1-6e0588165f05 | 2022-06-09T23:04:25 | 1 | https://www.11alive.com/article/news/local/brookhaven/brookhaven-new-city-hall-at-marta-train-station/85-f95cd595-f2f9-40f1-aeb1-6e0588165f05 |
DECATUR, Ga. — Emory University, a leader in health and science research, is participating in a new HIV vaccine trial.
Researchers are approaching Phase I of the clinical trial, which will evaluate the use of messenger RNA technology in HIV vaccines for the first time in humans, according to the university.
As of 2018, Atlanta remained No. 2 in the nation for new HIV diagnoses. The research university could change that with its participation in the new trial.
The trial, IAVI G002, was launched earlier this year by IAVI, a nonprofit scientific research organization. Biotechnology company Moderna manufactured the vaccine candidate. Other sponsors of the vaccine involve the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative, The University of Texas at San Antonio, George Washington University and Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center.
The Hope Clinic of Emory Vaccine Center is currently recruiting trial participants.
Researchers will determine whether HIV immunogens delivered through Moderna’s mRNA technology can induce specific B-cell responses that have the potential to lead to broadly neutralizing antibody development, which is a primary goal of HIV vaccination. A previous clinical trial showed promising B-cell response in a majority of recipients, according to Emory. This new clinical trial hopes to build upon these results
“As a scientific community, we have had tremendous success with the mRNA SARS-CoV-2 vaccines for prevention of COVID-19,” Dr. Srilatha Edupuganti said in a news release. “The logical next step is to ask the question: will mRNA HIV vaccines work for prevention of HIV? We are really excited to be taking part in this study and embark on this journey to answer this highly important scientific question.”
Researchers will enroll a total of 56 healthy, HIV-negative adult volunteers across all sites. According to Emory, 48 participants will receive one or two doses of the mRNA vaccine, with 32 receiving an additional boosting immunogen. Eight participants will receive the boosting immunogen alone. Researchers will evaluate the resulting immune responses and monitor the participants for safety for six months following vaccination.
Those interested in volunteering for the trial at Emory may fill out a volunteer form on the Hope Clinic website. | https://www.11alive.com/article/news/local/emory-mrna-hiv-vaccine-in-humans-new-trial/85-87f31e3e-2c16-46f7-bb61-0e76c7d1e320 | 2022-06-09T23:04:31 | 1 | https://www.11alive.com/article/news/local/emory-mrna-hiv-vaccine-in-humans-new-trial/85-87f31e3e-2c16-46f7-bb61-0e76c7d1e320 |
ATLANTA — Editors note: The video above is from 2018's March For Our Lives event, where an 11-year-old activist spoke.
Activists with March For Our Lives are taking their mission back to the streets to demand change in the fight against gun violence. Several rallies are planned nationwide on June 11, including several protests in Georgia.
Atlanta's rally takes place Saturday at the historic Ebenezer Baptist Church at 1 p.m. Over 100 rallies are planned for June 11, including 8 in the Peach State. The group's main rally will be held in Washington, D.C.
March For Our Lives started in 2018 following the school shooting in Parkland, Florida, that left 17 people dead, including 14 children. Since then, the organization has continued to work to stop gun violence in America, highlighting its impact on children and young adults.
This weekend they join hands again after the Uvalde, Texas, school shooting on May 24, killing 21 people, including 19 children.
Mark Ruffalo, who plays the Incredible Hulk for MARVEL, said he's speaking at their event in Washington D.C. on his Twitter, and other speakers are expected to join.
Here's a list of all the March For Our Lives Rallies in Georgia:
June 11, 2022, 1 p.m. to 2:30 p.m.
Ebenezer Baptist Church, 101 Jackson St NE, Atlanta, GA 30312
June 11, 2022, 1p.m. to 4 p.m.
Marietta Square, 99 S Park Sq NE, Marietta, GA 30060
June 11, 2022, 11 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Snellville Towne Green, 2437 MAIN St E, Snellville, GA 30078
June 11, 2022, 12 p.m. to 2 p.m.
March For Our Children's Lives, Gainesville Square: 112 Bradford St Ne, Gainesville, GA 30501
June 11, 2022, 11a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
The Mall on Broadway Broadway from 10-12th Street, Columbus, GA 31901
June 11, 2022 8 a.m. to 9 a.m. Evans, GA, GA
More info: Facebook.com/mfol.csra
June 11, 2022 1 p.m. - 6 p.m.
Marietta, GA SCLC
June 11, 2022, 12 p.m. - 1 p.m.
Jefferson Hospital, 1067 Peachtree St, Louisville, GA 30434
More info: https://fb.me/e/2rJJsBzmq | https://www.11alive.com/article/news/local/protests/march-our-lives-plans-rally-atlanta-saturday-ebenezer-baptist-church/85-7bb32574-943d-4e0c-a4eb-d0b7bfb8b4d2 | 2022-06-09T23:04:37 | 1 | https://www.11alive.com/article/news/local/protests/march-our-lives-plans-rally-atlanta-saturday-ebenezer-baptist-church/85-7bb32574-943d-4e0c-a4eb-d0b7bfb8b4d2 |
ROSWELL, Ga. — A Georgia property development company has started construction on multiple apartment units despite the City of Roswell’s restrictions on building such standalone housing.
According to the Atlanta Business Chronicle, the ECI Group began demolition on the abandoned SuperTarget off Holcomb Road. This will become the new site of what will be known as the Averly East Village in East Roswell. A press release from the development company outlines the building will hold 355 apartments and 74 townhouse units with an estimated completion date of 2024.
"The development of Averly East Village comes at a particularly opportune time, with North Atlanta experiencing explosive growth in jobs and residents. We are excited to play our part in helping to address the shortage of new housing by building luxury residential units on what was a mostly vacant strip center in the middle of the affluent Roswell area," Jimmy Baugnon, Chief Investment Officer at ECI Group said in a press release.
The build, however, does not come without scrutiny. Earlier this year, the city of Roswell put restrictions on the development of standalone apartments to decrease population density and provide more mixed-use housing and retail space.
“We have pretty specific goals and dreams for Roswell, and it's not to increase the population by leaps and bounds, which is what standalone apartments tend to do. It adds high density very quickly and we're not in the business of growing our city to that kind of level of population.”
Lee Hills is a Roswell City Councilmember and said that the current Roswell administration did not approve the building of Averly East Village. The development plan was approved by Roswell's previous city council and was inherited by the administration of the current Roswell mayor, Kurt Wilson.
According to Hills, more than 33% of Roswell residents live in apartments which she said is an “overwhelming” number. However, when the city voted on restricting standalone apartment units, several developers, real estate agents and Roswell residents spoke out against the amendment’s passing.
Their concerns aligned with the idea that these restrictions would allow for current residents to be priced out by contributing to rising rent costs within the city. Many have argued that with more mixed-use developments and retail space, population growth is inevitable and with not enough housing units built - amidst apartment limits and Atlanta’s housing shortage - the city will see a scarce number of resident housing.
CEO of Redmond Realty Group with the Village Premier Collection, Johunna Redmond knows this issue well.
"Roswell was one of the fastest-growing cities on the census in 2020, so if you're looking to stop your growth, then you don't build those properties - you build something that's going to bring in more businesses," he said. "On the other side of that coin is, once you've brought in all these businesses, where do your business owners live?"
Hills expressed that the solution to this issue lies in diversifying development opportunities. She outlined eight other options that developers could potentially pursue instead of standalone apartments, which include neighborhood mixed-use, commercial mixed-use, commercial corridor, parkway village, commercial heavy, downtown residential, downtown mixed-use and office residential.
"A lot of our sister cities have a lot more single home residents, so we would like to be very responsible and deliberate when we develop with apartments. Again, not against apartments, but we want to be sure that we're thinking about the whole picture," Hills said.
Hills said ultimately, the goal is to slowly evolve Roswell's landscape with the times without sacrificing its identity.
"We just want to keep the uniqueness and the charm where it is, and then where we've got vacancies, improve it well so that our residents are happy and can continue a good lifestyle, quality of life," she added. | https://www.11alive.com/article/news/local/roswell/construction-begins-on-roswell-apartments/85-9b04d141-3526-4a28-982a-02b5d5b1fc88 | 2022-06-09T23:04:43 | 1 | https://www.11alive.com/article/news/local/roswell/construction-begins-on-roswell-apartments/85-9b04d141-3526-4a28-982a-02b5d5b1fc88 |
FULTON COUNTY, Ga. — Several Fulton County agencies are banding together in the name of the county's children -- they're giving out some free items to help with wellbeing.
The county's Board of Health, Safe Kids Fulton County, South Fulton Fire Department and Union City Fire Department are launching a new initiative, Safety Town Georgia.
The coalition will celebrate Juneteenth at the City of South Fulton's Freedom Festival. Organizers with Safety Town Georgia will offer demonstrations and free bicycle helmets and other child safety equipment during the festival.
“We will use Safety Town Georgia to conduct demonstrations at daycare centers, elementary schools, and other locations, making it accessible to the community," Dr. Lynn Paxton, the Fulton County Health Director, said in a news release.
Paxton added that Safety Town would be an interactive small-scale town with buildings, traffic signs, railroad crossings and vehicles to teach and promote pedestrian safety.
Organizers said the initiative works to teach young children how to safely use sidewalks, bike, scoot, skate and cross the street.
Coalition members will also have DUI simulator goggles for teens to experience the impact of driving under the influence. Technicians on-site will also demonstrate how to properly install infant car seats/boosters and offer caregivers an opportunity to register for Child Passenger Safety Classes at local inspection stations, according to Safety Town Georgia.
Families can head to Wolf Creek Amphitheatre along Merk Road in southwest Atlanta on June 18. Juneteenth festivities are scheduled between 1 p.m. and 6 p.m.
News happens fast. Download our 11Alive News app for all the latest breaking updates, and sign up for our Speed Feed newsletter to get a rundown of the latest headlines across north Georgia. | https://www.11alive.com/article/news/local/safety-town-georgia-south-fulton/85-d33c7302-a58a-4342-b810-dbf6432d20fd | 2022-06-09T23:04:49 | 1 | https://www.11alive.com/article/news/local/safety-town-georgia-south-fulton/85-d33c7302-a58a-4342-b810-dbf6432d20fd |
A music equipment company is opening a distribution center in metro Phoenix, adding 165 jobs
An Indiana-based company specializing in selling audio gear and musical instruments online will join the lineup of distribution centers along Loop 303 in metro Phoenix.
Sweetwater expects to employ 165 people at the facility in Glendale, according to a company announcement on Thursday.
Glendale continues to see industrial development on the western edge of the city near Luke Air Force Base. And Loop 303, which runs through Goodyear, Surprise and other cities, has a roster of warehouses from REI to Sub-Zero.
A section of Loop 303 further north in Phoenix is where Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. is building a plant that is expected to employ more than 2,000 people.
A guide to growth in metro Phoenix:New employment, housing and amenities
Sweetwater said the 350,000 square-foot facility on Glendale Avenue, just west of the 303, will help the company ship customer orders more quickly. This is the company's first distribution center outside of its headquarters in Fort Wayne.
Glendale Mayor Jerry Weiers, in the company's announcement on Thursday, praised the latest company calling his city home. Glendale, situated just west of Phoenix, is home to about 250,000 residents.
Phil Rich, who oversees Sweetwater's supply chain, said the move means that packages will reach west coast customers within a day or two.
“We are integrating state-of-the-art technology into this facility to ensure that items are shipped quickly, efficiently, and accurately," he said.
State employers continue to seek workers:McDonald's alone seeks 4,500 workers in Arizona
Hiring begins in August
Sweetwater will begin hiring in August for positions that include:
- shift supervisors.
- pickers, packers.
- machine operators.
The center should be operational by October.
The company has been around since 1979 and sells music products such as microphones, speakers, drums, guitars and orchestra instruments.
Reach the reporter at endia.fontanez@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter at @EndiaRain.
Support local journalism. Subscribe to azcentral.com today. | https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/glendale/2022/06/09/sweetwater-music-equipment-company-opening-arizona-distribution-site/7573259001/ | 2022-06-09T23:08:22 | 0 | https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/glendale/2022/06/09/sweetwater-music-equipment-company-opening-arizona-distribution-site/7573259001/ |
BANDON – The Southern Coos Health District Board of Directors at its May 26 meeting approved a new strategic plan for Southern Coos Hospital & Health Center, setting the course for the next five years of health care services for Bandon and the South Coast community.
“The strategic plan is very aggressive,” said SCHHC CEO Raymond Hino. “We plan to get a lot accomplished in a very short amount of time.”
Hino came on board as the district’s new CEO on Feb. 28. One of his immediate goals was to put together a strategic plan in his first 90 days, with help from hospital’s executive team.
The strategic plan is based on five pillars – including people, service, quality, growth and finance – with specific goals under each category.
The strategic plan includes ideas and actions to continue to move the hospital forward in terms of quality, services and profitability, and to ensure Southern Coos Hospital & Health Center is the hospital and employer of choice in the Southern Coos Health District and beyond.
Working with a professional facilitator, the executive team is using an interactive program that helps guide the process, including identifying strengths and weaknesses and addressing those with specific goals. Each action plan has a resource team, percentage-of-completion sub-goals and end dates.
“This is a very action-oriented plan that treads carefully each of the steps,” Hino said. “We intend to create a model of excellence for our hospital to make Southern Coos Hospital & Health Center the hospital of choice for residents, guests, health professionals and health care workers in Bandon and southern Coos County.”
The SCHD Board unanimously approved the plan.
“There’s a tremendous amount of work to do,” said Board Chairman Brent Bischoff. “But it’s a living, working document and I move we accept.”
Hino said he and the executive team will give monthly updates to the SCHD Board on the strategic plan, which will also be made available to the public. The May 26 board meeting, which included a detailed synopsis of the plan, was recorded and is available to watch on the hospital’s website at https://www.southerncoos.org or on the hospital’s Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/SouthernCoosHospital
The SCHD Board meets on the fourth Thursday of each month at 6:30 p.m. in the hospital’s conference room. All meetings are livestreamed on the hospital’s website and Facebook page. Meeting agendas, packets and minutes are also available on the website.
In other business, the board:
• Heard a presentation from Critical Insight, a cybersecurity firm operating out of the Seattle area. Critical Insight is the American Hospital Association’s preferred cybersecurity vendor. SCHHC is working with Critical Insight on a long-term plan to improve SCHHC’s cybersecurity defenses against external threats such as hacks and ransomware attacks.
• Heard a budget report from CFO Jeremiah Dodrill that showed the hospital’s finances are trending better than budgeted for the fiscal year. Losses were less than expected and net patient revenues and operating expenses were both favorable. Dodrill was appointed as SCHHC budget officer for the fiscal year 2022-23 budgeting process.
• Renewed leases and changed vendors for the hospital’s Medical Imaging Department, including leasing updated ultrasound equipment, updated portable X-ray equipment with better resolution, and upgraded to a new Picture Archive & Communication (PAC) system with better interoperability that allows the hospital to better communicate health records with outside agencies. | https://theworldlink.com/news/local/southern-coos-health-district-board-approves-strategic-plan/article_6ade99ca-e506-11ec-9901-bff21253cea8.html | 2022-06-09T23:08:22 | 1 | https://theworldlink.com/news/local/southern-coos-health-district-board-approves-strategic-plan/article_6ade99ca-e506-11ec-9901-bff21253cea8.html |
U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden held a virtual town hall for Lincoln County on Saturday, May 28. Wyden discussed concerns of offshore wind energy in relation to commercial and recreational fishing, the Equality Act and being available for the public.
Wyden said people are concerned about climate change measures in regard to the ocean. Local communities and fishing communities need to be at the center of discussions on offshore wind projects, Wyden added.
Fishing families are concerned that building any type of infrastructure is going to impact their ability to fish.
“We’ve already indicated that BOEM – the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management – has got to be involved in every step of the way,” Wyden said. “We’ve got to follow the science, get the answer done right.”
Wyden said there are two important interests with this issue – the environment and fishing families.
“I’m not representing BOEM here,” Wyden said. “I’m representing you and four million people that expect people like me not to buy into a bunch of high-powered lobbying and rhetoric that sounds good and doesn’t necessarily do the job.”
A question was asked about the Equality Act not being passed yet. The bill would prohibit discrimination based on sex, sexual orientation and gender identity in areas including public accommodations and facilities, education, federal funding, employment and more.
“To me, nobody should be fearful of discrimination because of who they are,” Wyden said. “I’ve said that repeatedly on the floor.”
Wyden said he was the first member of the senate in support of marriage equality. Wyden and his colleagues are urging Google and Apple to prohibit apps from using data mining practices that could target individuals seeking abortion services.
“I’m trying to lead right now,” Wyden said. “Many of my colleagues have picked up the letter signed by over 40 senators that we initiated a couple days ago asking Google to stop making this kind of information available.”
When Wyden became Oregon’s U.S. senator, he committed to having open town hall meetings in every county every year. During the first year of the Trump administration, he had 81 town hall meetings across the state.
“The pandemic arrived and suddenly everyone was told to go home and mask,” Wyden said. “Many elected officials just sort of vanished. What I’ve done is try to figure out a way to get the maximum contact I could, given the public health situation.”
Wyden hopes to start having hybrid meetings soon, where the public can discuss their concerns in person or over the phone.
“Every single day, I’m looking for ways to throw open the doors of government,” Wyden said. | https://theworldlink.com/news/local/wyden-discusses-offshore-wind-energy-other-topics-in-town-hall/article_fdef6634-e503-11ec-adeb-f38a0c6dd0ed.html | 2022-06-09T23:08:28 | 1 | https://theworldlink.com/news/local/wyden-discusses-offshore-wind-energy-other-topics-in-town-hall/article_fdef6634-e503-11ec-adeb-f38a0c6dd0ed.html |
SPRINGDALE, Ark. — Officials and supporters celebrated the grand opening of the El Salvador Consulate on Monday in Springdale.
The consulate provides administrative services to Salvadoran nationals, important for ID documents.
Jessica Aguilar-Hiett, the director of Salvadorenos Unidos Para Arkansas, said that the work to bring a consulate to Northwest Arkansas started with her mother. SUPA founder Paz Aguilar noticed that the closest consulate was in Dallas which presented more issues for NWA Salvadorans.
“Like any typical Latino mother, she said, 'hey write a letter to the president. I want you to tell him that we need this here to help our people, it’ll help everybody all around,'" said Hiett. "I was like, 'Mom, the president isn’t going to read our letter.' Who are we, right?”
The Consulate becomes the state's consulate in Northwest Arkansas, according to Aguilar-Hiett. She explained that Consulates usually are placed in state capital cities, but the larger Salvadoran population brought theirs to Springdale.
Aguilar-Hiett explained how bringing the consulate to NWA was a great achievement for Salvadorans. According to Aguilar-Hiett, anyone looking to update their passport or documents would have to travel to Dallas prior to Monday's opening. This would present issues as Aguilar-Hiett said many would pay for a ride to the closest consulate.
“A lot of time these people are paying two times what they make in a semimonthly period," said Aguilar-Hiett. "Sometimes they were paying what they make in an entire month for somebody to take them to do the service and they couldn’t get it done.”
Aguilar-Hiett explained that some without prior knowledge would be turned down when an appointment wasn't already scheduled. She also explained some would request off at work to make the trip. Now, with the opening of the consulate, she said they could simply stop by on their lunch break.
The consulate will be open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., located at 3875 W. Sunset Ave. in Springdale. Aguilar-Hiett said the consulate would be all-inclusive but would have some services only provided to El Salvador nationals.
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To report a typo or grammatical error, please email KFSMDigitalTeam@tegna.com. | https://www.5newsonline.com/article/news/local/el-salvador-consulate-opens-arkansas/527-60e0b36a-899b-4d80-a5b1-c1c9953dba5b | 2022-06-09T23:08:56 | 0 | https://www.5newsonline.com/article/news/local/el-salvador-consulate-opens-arkansas/527-60e0b36a-899b-4d80-a5b1-c1c9953dba5b |
HOUSTON — Missing for more than 40 years, the daughter of a couple found murdered in Houston has been found alive and well, according to investigators. The new Cold Case and Missing Persons Unit with the Texas Attorney General’s Office made the announcement Thursday morning.
It's a story that KHOU 11's Xavier Walton reported on in January and one he's following today. It's a decades-old murder mystery possibly linked to a religious group, according to investigators.
Their daughter, now 40-year-old Holly Marie Clouse, was found in Oklahoma where she is the mother of five children. Holly vanished after her parents, Dean and Tina Linn Clouse, were found murdered in a rural part of Houston on January 12, 1981.
The couple’s identification was determined earlier this year using advanced DNA techniques underwritten by podcast producer audiochuck.
With the help of counterparts in three states, an exhaustive search for records of the missing child finally led them to Oklahoma and Holly Marie, now a mother of five.
OAG Senior Counsel Mindy Montford and Det. Craig Holloman with Lewisville Police Department, where the young couple was last seen by family members, arrived at Holly’s place of employment Tuesday, June 7, on what would have been her father Dean’s 63rd birthday.
At a news conference Thursday afternoon, shocking new information about where Holly's been all these years was released.
"Baby Holly was left at a church in Arizona and raised by a family who had nothing to do with her disappearance," First Assistant Attorney General Brent Webster said. "Two women who identified themselves as members of a nomadic religious group brought Holly to the church. They were wearing white robes and were barefoot."
A member of the group who called herself "Sister Susan" later called the victims' families and said she had their car and wanted to return it in exchange for money.
Three women traveled to Daytona with the car and were questioned by police but apparently not charged.
Webster said members of the group traveled around the Southwest and believes in the separation of male and female church members. They said they'd previously dumped another baby at a laundromat.
The investigation into the deaths of Dean and Tina Linn Clouse remains open.
"We still are looking for suspects in this case," said with the Texas Attorney General's Office.
Reunited with new found families
Hours after getting the startling news, Holly was reunited online with her family members on both sides. The Center for Missing and Exploited Children will pay for Holly to fly to Florida to visit them.
Those relatives expressed gratitude to all involved.
“The whole family slept well last night. The Hope For Holly Project was a success thanks to the Texas Cold Case Unit,” Cheryl Clouse, Holly’s aunt, said.
“I believe Tina is finally resting in peace knowing Holly is reuniting with her family,” Sherry Green, another aunt, said.
Green dreamed of her sister Tina after meeting her long-lost niece in the video meeting hosted by Montford and her team.\
How the mystery was solved
In an effort to help locate Holly after her parents were identified, FHD Forensics launched the Hope For Holly DNA Project in her honor and became the custodian of the genetic profiles of several of Holly's family members.
Founder of FHD Forensics and one of the genealogists involved in identifying Holly’s parents, Allison Peacock praised her family for never giving up.
“They’ve spent the past six months with me digging through records, gathering photos for the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children’s age progression portrait, and documenting memories of Holly and her parents in an effort to help law enforcement,” Peacock said.
“Allison is forever our angel in helping us through this whole heartbreaking experience,” Donna Casasanta, Dean’s mother, said.
“What matters is that Holly was found happy and alive and now knows that she has a huge extended family that has loved her for decades,” Peacock said.
Due to the sensitive nature of the ongoing criminal investigation, additional information about Holly’s childhood and separation from her parents is not available at this time.
Anyone with information about the disappearance and murder of Dean “Junior” Clouse and his wife, Tina Linn Clouse is asked to contact Sgt. Rachel Kading at the Texas Office of the Attorney General’s Cold Case and Missing Persons Unit at coldcaseunit@oag.texas.gov or 512-936-0742.
“I am extremely proud of the exceptional work done by my office’s newly formed Cold Case and Missing Persons Unit. My office diligently worked across state lines to uncover the mystery surrounding Holly’s disappearance. We were successful in our efforts to locate her and reunite her with her biological family.” Texas Attorney General Paxton said. | https://www.abc10.com/article/news/local/holly-marie-clouse-found-alive-after-parents-murdered-more-than-40-years-ago/285-f14cb891-43d8-4703-bd62-397b62f22cf4 | 2022-06-09T23:10:39 | 0 | https://www.abc10.com/article/news/local/holly-marie-clouse-found-alive-after-parents-murdered-more-than-40-years-ago/285-f14cb891-43d8-4703-bd62-397b62f22cf4 |
SAN DIEGO — This story was originally published by CalMatters.
When the pandemic closed schools in March 2020 – abruptly ending classes and stranding children and working parents – leaders in Washington and Sacramento scrambled to provide relief.
The result was a series of stimulus measures that allocated $33.5 billion in state and federal funds to California’s K-12 schools to address the devastation of the pandemic. It was a staggering amount of one-time funding for the state’s cash-strapped schools, equal to a third of all the money they got the year before the pandemic.
WATCH RELATED: San Diego Unified uses COVID-relief money
Imagine your boss giving you a check equal to four months of your salary and telling you to spend it quickly or risk giving it back. For schools, this was money for things like laptops, air filters and mental health counselors – money to help kids.
But much of the funding has come with limited oversight and little transparency, according to a CalMatters investigation. No centralized state or federal database exists to show how schools have spent this money. And data from the districts’ quarterly spending reports provided to the state are so broad as to be virtually useless in tracking this COVID relief money.
Of the $5.9 billion local education agencies have spent so far from the largest of the stimulus funds, more than a quarter went to a category for “other” expenses, according to the state.
“I’m just not sure anyone has a good handle on how this money was spent,” said John Affeldt, managing attorney at Public Advocates who works on educational equity issues. “There’s a lot of money that went into the system this year, and we continue to have a concern knowing how … effective it was.”
CalMatters spent three months examining school COVID relief spending across the state, reviewing thousands of pages of records obtained through more than 45 public records requests. That includes state spending reviews as well as accounting ledgers from two dozen school districts, including many of California’s biggest.
The records offer a unique glimpse at how school leaders grappled with the generational challenge of COVID in dollars and cents. Capistrano Unified, for instance, spent nearly $10 million on Chromebooks to make sure students could go virtual. Castro Valley Unified spent most of its stimulus money on payroll. El Centro Elementary School District spent $3.8 million to install shade structures for outdoor eating, school assemblies and teaching space.
The records reveal pandemic winners – companies that reaped millions as overwhelmed districts, suddenly flush with cash, started writing checks. Some are established firms well-positioned to fill massive orders for goods.
And some are new ventures launched by savvy entrepreneurs to capture some of the windfall. That includes a limited liability company formed in April 2020 and headquartered out of a UPS drop box in Los Alamitos that got a $52 million no-bid COVID testing contract in San Diego. And it includes a company – whose founder is described on its website as a former CIA counterterrorism officer – that morphed into a COVID-related school consultant and got a $12.7 million gig in San Bernardino, helping with COVID testing and contact tracing.
One chain of virtual charter schools gave $11 million – nearly two-thirds of its stimulus spending last year – to the publicly traded, for-profit company affiliated with the schools. A Southern California public school district spent $440,000 to hire an evangelical group for a program to help at-risk kids.
Other records reveal clear mistakes or misspending. The state told West Contra Costa Unified School District to shift nearly $800,000 in unrestricted funds to reimburse its stimulus money because the district failed to prove certain payroll costs were tied to the pandemic. Oakland Unified had to reimburse nearly $1 million in stimulus money for expenditures the state flagged as questionable.
Some districts refused to provide CalMatters records showing where their money is going. That includes San Francisco Unified, which got more than $186 million in federal stimulus funds.
Taken together, the reporting shows the differing decisions local leaders made trying to keep teachers, kids and their communities safe from a deadly disease while also addressing the learning loss and mental health impacts of prolonged social isolation. Some of those spending decisions were made behind closed doors and with little scrutiny, making it difficult for the public to determine whether districts used the money as effectively as possible or as lawmakers intended.
Put bluntly: Every dollar spent on buses during the lockdowns was a dollar not spent on counselors or tutors or teachers.
The stakes of such decisions could not be higher. The pandemic hurt California’s kids. More than half the students who took the statewide standardized test last year scored below grade level for English Language Arts. Nearly two-thirds of those students tested below grade level for math. Attendance is down. And federal data shows the number of students considering suicide is up.
Local educational agencies still have billions of dollars of COVID relief left to spend. If they don’t spend it by various deadlines, they may have to return it.
In a written statement to CalMatters, the state Department of Education said it is “encouraged by the impact that stimulus funding is having on the students and schools of California,” and that overseeing the funds is a top priority.
“The department has a robust monitoring system to ensure that (agencies’) expenditures are in accordance with all applicable federal and state requirements,” according to the statement.
Still, it might not be enough.
The state auditor’s office criticized oversight in an October report, saying the state is not using the limited data it receives to identify abnormal spending patterns and scrutinize local educational agencies.
“The state Department of Education has not taken a very active role in managing how the money is being spent,” said Kris Patel, supervising auditor who led the team behind the October report.
Patel said lack of oversight is particularly concerning as spending deadlines approach.
“If you’re trying to spend money at the very last minute, there’s always the high risk that you might misspend the money,” Patel said.
Money, money, money
After the pandemic shut down the world, lawmakers in Washington, D.C, passed six major pieces of stimulus legislation worth more than $5 trillion. The money was spread across myriad programs including business loans, funds to government agencies and checks directly to citizens.
California got yet another infusion of cash when higher-than-expected tax revenue created a massive budget surplus – more relief for beleaguered local governments.
The cash might have been a blessing for many state and local government agencies, but it was also an enormous challenge. Officials had massive amounts of money to address the urgent need – as the disease ravaged communities and the economy teetered – while also ensuring the funds weren’t wasted or even stolen.
Some deals blew up, resulting in recriminations and investigations.
While much has been written about emergency spending at the state level, including fraud targeting the state’s Employment Development Department, less is known about the money that poured into the nation’s schools.
The federal stimulus measures created the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund and the Governor’s Emergency Education Relief Fund – two large pots of money allocated to schools and state education departments in multiple rounds.
Ultimately, California public schools and charters got almost $29 billion in federal stimulus money. Billions more came from state programs lawmakers in Sacramento created.
WATCH RELATED: What's in the new $900-billion COVID-19 bill
Each program has its own spending requirements and categories – steering money toward things like instructional materials, school breakfast programs, purchasing educational technology and implementing public health protocols.
But some of the spending categories are broad. There’s money for principals “to address local needs,” and a catchall category described in state records as “other activities to continue school operations and employment of existing staff.”
California has about a thousand public school districts and hundreds of public charter schools that received COVID relief funds.
To get a cross-section of the stimulus spending, CalMatters asked more than 30 school districts for their accounting ledgers. Those districts included the 20 biggest and 10 random agencies across a geographically and demographically diverse swath of the state.
The records are a chronicle of the pandemic.
Take Garden Grove Unified. In August 2020, with the school year about to start virtually, the district spent $895,000 on Apple Computer equipment. In May 2021, planning to reopen school buildings to in-person learning, the district spent $275,000 with Air Filter Supply. This school year, with students and teachers back, the district has paid Maxim Healthcare Staffing Services more than $500,000 for temporary classroom staff to help special education students with learning recovery.
The ledgers also reveal unique local approaches to the pandemic. Castro Valley Unified, in the Bay Area, spent $263,000 in stimulus funds on Freedom Soul Media Education Initiatives, an equity consultant, and $93,000 on restorative justice consultants, records show.
Santa Ana Unified gave $393,000 to Angels Baseball LP to rent out the major league baseball stadium for last year’s high school graduation festivities.
In Riverside County, Corona-Norco Unified gave $440,000 to an evangelical group called Rescue a Generation run by a charismatic young pastor. The group runs a program for at-risk students in various schools.
“We are in a great season at Rescue a Generation,” according to the group’s website. “God has opened up many doors for us to be in schools providing life coaching for students with behavioral issues.”
In a phone interview, executive officer Jose Rodriguez acknowledged the nonprofit’s religious mission.
“We are a faith-based nonprofit organization that provides coaching, empowerment and the gospel to this generation,” Rodriguez said.
He said while the program is faith-based in morals and values, “we’re not trying to push an agenda.” He said the school program is secular and his team doesn’t discuss religion with students.
A Corona-Norco spokesperson said school staff oversee the program – which has helped reduce chronic absenteeism – to verify it follows school guidelines, and administrators reviewed content to ensure it doesn’t cross religious boundaries.
Local needs drive COVID relief spending
Michael Fine said he didn’t expect to see a one-size-fits-all approach to using the money. Fine is chief executive officer of the Fiscal Crisis and Management Assistance Team, a state-created organization that helps fiscally troubled school districts get their finances in order.
Some districts burned through the money quickly, in part to stave off budget cuts, Fine said. Others have been able to use some money for immediate needs while also planning long term.
“There’s a district in the Central Coast area that bought an ice cream truck with their money,” Fine said. “When I was told that I kind of went off.”
Fine declined to name the district. He said he talked to district leaders and learned they used the truck to drive around and give away ice cream to kids stuck at home during the early days of the pandemic.
He said he still has questions about the truck – like why they couldn’t just lease one, or whether they’ll eventually sell it and repurpose the funds. But he said he came to realize it was “a way to make a nontraditional connection with kids.”
“You can’t just look at the accounts payable ledger,” Fine said.
San Juan Unified in the Sacramento region used funds to hire an instructional aide for every classroom in its early grades and a new teacher at every school. Such hiring has been difficult because of a widespread teacher shortage, but the stimulus has also allowed the district to pay hiring bonuses, said Melissa Bassanelli, the district’s deputy superintendent of schools and student support.
In terms of creative spending, one school in the district, Northridge Elementary, spent $11,000 in discretionary relief money to build a Harry Potter-inspired house system in which students from different grades were grouped together in a friendly competition. They earned team points throughout the school year for things like demonstrating good sportsmanship and winning games during recess. The school bought pens, bracelets, masks and other branded supplies. The program featured games on Fridays and the reading of team scores on Mondays – the days students are most likely to be absent.
“We’re really strategic. You don’t know who the winning house is until you show up to class on Monday,” principal Petra Luhrsen said.
National School District in San Diego County used stimulus money to avoid planned cuts.
“Right before the pandemic hit, we proposed a budget reduction plan with some severe layoffs that were going to hit in March 2020,” Superintendent Leighangela Brady said. “Instead of hiring staff, we used the money to not lay off.”
Tech companies at the trough
One common area of spending was technology. Some districts spent heavily on laptops, hot spots and other hardware, as well as computer programs and support in order to make the switch to virtual schooling when buildings shut down.
Some educators and advocates question the amount of high-tech spending.
“Consulting companies and education service providers have been really aggressive in reaching out to districts to use these funds for new programs that they’re now creating to serve students,” said Amir Whitaker, senior policy counsel for the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California – calling it an “education industrial complex.”
Districts threw COVID relief money at a menu of technology firms offering services like remote tutoring, online assessments, cybersecurity and virtual lessons.
One popular ed tech company is Edgenuity, an Arizona-based firm that rebranded itself late last year as Imagine Edgenuity. The company offers online curriculum and coursework.
Sulphur Springs Union School District used Edgenuity last school year as a supplement to live instruction during distance learning.
“The program itself had some glitches. It was not very user friendly, unfortunately, so we used it for only one year,” said Jezelle Fullwood, assistant superintendent of educational services.
Clovis Unified is still using the company.
“We’ve used our Edgenuity for years,” said Susan Rutledge, Clovis’ assistant superintendent of business services. “Our Clovis Unified kids who are still online are using it. I know teachers have been happy with it.”
A spokesperson for Edgenuity’s parent corporation said the company served thousands of schools and districts during the pandemic and is currently operating in several hundred California districts.
“Education technology solutions not only helped millions of students through a tumultuous time but continues to assist teachers today with insights from real-time data to meet each student where they are and anticipate future learning needs to drive better learning outcomes,” wrote Tim DeClaire, Imagine Learning’s communications director, in an email to CalMatters.
Some advocates, like Nicole Gon Ochi, deputy managing attorney at Public Advocates, question whether there are better uses.
“How much are the districts using toward staffing – which is actually what the kids need – as opposed to more software programs and these digital things?” Ochi asked.
Pandemic winners
It wasn’t just technology companies that reaped massive paydays from districts flush with stimulus cash. Personal protective equipment vendors and businesses selling indoor air quality products got lots of deals. Firms touting COVID testing-related services also were in high demand.
In September 2021, San Diego Unified’s board ratified a no-bid contract with a firm called Responsive Partners LLC to run a COVID testing program. The district amended the contract a few months later and the agreement – which runs through July 30 – is now worth up to $52 million.
Responsive Partners formed during the pandemic in April 2020, records show. Its manager-members in the most recent filing with the Secretary of State’s Office are three other companies. Its address listed in regulatory filings and on the company’s website is a UPS drop box in Orange County.
The board ratified the initial agreement at a September board meeting with no discussion, a video of the meeting shows. The board approved the amended agreement in January, again, with no public discussion.
That a company with no history, no apparent physical location and murky ownership could get a massive no-bid testing contract with the second largest district in the state – all without any kind of public hearing – is emblematic of the large amounts of money flying out the door with limited oversight and little transparency.
School officials say the contract was worth it for a district that’s had a particularly aggressive testing strategy to keep schools open – offering far more tests and testing sites than many other districts.
“I can’t say enough good things about this company. We’ve had such great care from them,” said Susan Barndollar, San Diego Unified’s head of nursing.
CalMatters spoke to a number of people within the district who said the testing program has worked well. Multiple sources also talked about the staffing crunch at the time and how difficult it was finding health care workers.
“Responsive labs really looked at the staffing, and they had a very creative solution for it,” Barndollar said. “They had a huge pool of EMTs they could use in San Diego to do the testing. They had ambulances and vans to get their equipment around. Their prices were very competitive.”
The man who signed the contract for Responsive Partners was Ryan Merchant. According to his LinkedIn profile, he previously managed a Southern California ambulance company.
The managing member of Responsive Partners who filled out the most recent business filing with the Secretary of State’s Office is Brandon Hudler.
CalMatters attempted to speak with someone at the company. A man who answered the phone listed on Responsive Partners’ website identified himself as Merchant’s business partner but declined to provide his name. He said the company’s attorney – whom he declined to name – would call a CalMatters reporter to answer questions. No attorney called.
CalMatters also emailed a list of questions to Merchant at his Responsive Partners email listed in the San Diego Unified contract. He did not respond.
From fighting ISIS to fighting COVID
San Bernardino City Unified put its testing contract out to bid. They ultimately selected Applied Memetics, a Virginia-based firm founded by Daniel Gabriel, a former CIA counter-terrorism officer, according to his bio on the company’s website.
As recently as 2018, the company was described in Intelligence Online as “a key player in the Pentagon’s offensive to counter the influence of (the) Islamic State … on social and other media platforms.”
While the company’s website until recently still touted its national security work, the homepage described Applied Memetics as “America’s Leading Provider of K-12 & Community Health Solutions.”
The former Centers for Disease Control and Prevention director, Dr. Robert Redfield, is listed on the site as being a senior medical adviser.
San Bernardino City Unified paid the company $8.4 million in stimulus money through the first eight months of this fiscal year, records show. The entire agreement is worth up to $12.7 million, according to board documents.
Jens Dakin, a company vice president, said Applied Memetics’ core skills – strategic communications, research, data analysis – translate well to public health.
“It’s problem solving,” he said.
School and teachers union officials praised the company, which helped cover a shortage of nurses in the district.
Curious spending but little oversight
The California Virtual Academies, a chain of nine charter schools across the state, were probably better positioned than most to weather the pandemic. They didn’t need to worry about masking issues or social distancing requirements and didn’t need to suddenly figure out how to teach remotely. That’s because they were already teaching students exclusively online, even before the pandemic.
So how did the virtual academies use the $18 million in COVID relief money they spent last year? Nearly two-thirds of it – $11 million – went to K12 Management Inc., a subsidiary of the publicly traded corporation that helps run the schools, according to records the schools provided to CalMatters in response to a records request. And while some of that money is listed as going to pay for computers and peripheral equipment for students, $8.6 million went to “student course materials” or “online curriculum” from the corporation, the records show.
The charters and their relationship to the parent corporation – Stride Inc., which was formerly known as K12 Inc. – has been the source of past legal problems. In 2016, the state attorney general’s office announced a $168.5 million settlement with K12 Inc. over allegations the company and schools misled parents to boost enrollment and inflated attendance numbers.
The attorney general’s complaint also alleged that while the academies were purportedly independent, the company effectively ran the schools and pushed them into contracts that benefitted the corporation.
As part of the settlement, K-12 Inc. didn’t admit to wrongdoing. Then and now, the company has maintained the schools are independent from the corporation.
CalMatters spoke to several current or former staff at the virtual academies who worked during the pandemic. They said teachers and counselors were overwhelmed as enrollment grew and questioned why so much money went to the corporation.
CalMatters reached out to academy officials, including the head of schools and a local board member. A Stride Inc. spokesman, Mike Kraft, responded saying the company had been asked to answer questions on behalf of the schools. In an email, the company told CalMatters that the state didn’t provide additional funding to cover the increased enrollment and that the corporation provides online curriculum, education materials, a learning management system and “a wealth of other items” for students and teachers.
“The (California Virtual Academy) schools used stimulus funds in compliance with the law,” according to the Stride Inc. response.
Most districts and schools will face little scrutiny for their pandemic spending decisions, outside local administrative offices and boardrooms.
Yes, some funds do require a public spending plan. The state also required a special report on how districts are using their one-time funds.
“But it was a very, very general document,” said Victor Leung, director of education equity for the ACLU of Southern California. “It was extremely unclear how those districts spent the money.”
Such documents also aren’t always easy for parents to find on district websites.
The state Education Department does review a selection of districts annually as part of the Federal Program Monitoring process. During such reviews, state evaluators look to make sure district policies are up to date and scrutinize a sampling of expenditures to make sure they’re appropriate.
Last fiscal year, the department reviewed stimulus spending at 15 local educational agencies – less than a percent of the roughly 1,700 agencies that got stimulus funds. This year the department is reviewing 50.
Those reviews turned up numerous red flags. Six of the 15 reviews from last year had so-called “findings” while 19 of the 37 so far this year flagged potential problems. The issues range from poor recordkeeping, to outdated conflict-of-interest policies, to outright misspending.
The state auditor mentioned the issue in its October report on school stimulus spending.
“The small number of (local educational agencies) that Education monitored is concerning given that it identified significant issues related to unsupported or unallowable expenditures at some of the 15 … that it selected,” according to the auditor’s report.
Oakland Unified had to shift nearly $1 million in funds to reimburse stimulus money it apparently misspent on things like commercial trucks and a communication system, records show.
Parlier Unified, in Fresno County, was ordered to return $733,000 in relief funds to the state, according to a copy of the notification of findings from November. A state spokeswoman, Maria Clayton, told CalMatters that the Education Department is working with the district to see if there’s a way the schools can keep the funds and use them for something else that is allowed.
Some districts were able to resolve findings simply by providing more information to the state.
The state Education Department, for example, last year ordered the Sacramento-based charter school St. HOPE Public School 7 to justify much of its stimulus spending. Among the questioned costs was $11,000 the school spent on attorneys fees, records show.
In response to the findings, St. HOPE provided the state with accounting ledgers, invoices, written descriptions of spending, and other records. The material showed, for example, that the attorneys' fees were for negotiations with the teachers’ union regarding the return to school and therefore justified.
CalMatters visited St. HOPE on a recent school day. In a first grade classroom, a group of students sat at a semi-circle table reading the time as a teacher moved the hands of a Frisbee-sized clock. Other students were busy at work on Chromebooks, which the school purchased using federal relief funds.
The school – whose students are mostly Black and Latino, and low-income – reopened for optional in-person instruction in November 2020, well before most public schools. Charter school officials say it was the stimulus money that enabled them to afford the face masks and cleaning supplies to keep serving students.
“We had a huge amount of students return to the physical learning environment because distance learning is challenging,” said Kari Wehrly, superintendent of St. HOPE Public Schools. “They were missing out on a lot of the structures and supports.”
Another district – Hayward Unified, dinged by state monitors over stimulus spending in a review last year — has been able to resolve most of its findings without losing money. State reviewers identified six issues at the school in fiscal year 2020-21.
Still, it’s taken a long time for the district to prove to the state it didn’t mishandle money. Districts are supposed to resolve findings within 45 days. As of this month, it’s been more than a year, and one finding remains outstanding.
Hayward’s Assistant Superintendent of Business Services, Allan Garde, wrote in an email to CalMatters that the district has been busy trying to keep schools open and running, and expected to resolve the last of the outstanding issues by the end of this month.
The slow pace of resolution hints at the limits of state authority.
In emails to her boss from January, the state monitor handling the Hayward review asked about sending a threatening-sounding letter to the district and complained about her inability to close the case.
“I have no teeth when it comes to resolving outstanding items,” she wrote, according to emails provided to CalMatters in response to a public records request.
Her boss wrote back: “I worry about making any empty threats as it could undermine things.” | https://www.abc10.com/article/news/local/oversight-scarce-as-billions-in-covid-aid-poured-into-california-schools/509-48672e81-dfa3-4dad-8a16-8a6fb01805ec | 2022-06-09T23:10:45 | 1 | https://www.abc10.com/article/news/local/oversight-scarce-as-billions-in-covid-aid-poured-into-california-schools/509-48672e81-dfa3-4dad-8a16-8a6fb01805ec |
CONTRA COSTA, Calif. — Cal Fire crews are battling a grass fire in Eastern Contra Costa County near Discovery Bay.
On Thursday at 2:15 p.m., East Contra Costa Fire Protection District, Contra Costa County Fire Protection District and Cal Fire crews responded to a grass fire near Vasco Road and Walnut Boulevard.
At 3:12 p.m., Cal Fire said the fire was at 75 acres and burning in the area of Marsh Creek Road and Boulevard.
Cal Fire advises drivers to use extreme caution if traveling in the area as many fire vehicles are responding to the incident.
STAY INFORMED:
- Contra Costa County Fire Protection District (Twitter)
- Cal Fire (Twitter)
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FIRE MAP:
WILDFIRE PREPS
According to Cal Fire, the 2021 fire season started earlier than previous years, but also ended earlier, as well. January 2021 saw just under 1,200 acres burned from nearly 300 wildfires. Fires picked up in the summer when the Dixie Fire burned in five Northern California counties — Butte, Plumas, Shasta, Lassen and Tehama. The Dixie Fire started on July 13 and wasn't contained until Oct. 25, burning nearly 1 million acres. It has since become the second-largest wildfire in state history and the largest non-complex fire.
Overall, 2.5 million acres were burned in 2021 from 8,835 wildfires. Over 3,600 structures were destroyed and 3 people killed.
If you live in a wildfire-prone zone, Cal Fire suggests creating a defensible space around your home. Defensible space is an area around a building in which vegetation and other debris are completely cleared. At least 100 feet is recommended.
The Department of Homeland Security suggests assembling an emergency kit that has important documents, N95 respirator masks, supplies to grab with you if you’re forced to leave at a moment’s notice. The agency also suggests signing up for local warning system notifications and know your community’s evacuation plans best to prepare yourself and your family in cases of wildfires.
Some counties use Nixle alerts to update residents on severe weather, wildfires, and other news. To sign up, visit www.nixle.com or text your zip code to 888777 to start receiving alerts.
Yuba County residents can sign up for CodeRed Emergency Alerts HERE.
PG&E customers can also subscribe to alerts via text, email, or phone call. If you're a PG&E customer, visit the Profile & Alerts section of your account to register.
What questions do you have about the latest wildfires? If you're impacted by the wildfires, what would you like to know? Text the ABC10 team at (916) 321-3310.
Watch more from ABC10: 'Safe and Sane' Fireworks encouraged as illegal fireworks spark Sacramento fires | https://www.abc10.com/article/news/local/wildfire/contra-costa-county-fire/103-db8cf076-5f3a-4748-9d3c-966c3976e65c | 2022-06-09T23:10:51 | 0 | https://www.abc10.com/article/news/local/wildfire/contra-costa-county-fire/103-db8cf076-5f3a-4748-9d3c-966c3976e65c |
REDDING, Calif. — PG&E admits it sparked the deadly Zogg Fire in 2020, but pleaded not guilty Thursday to all 31 criminal charges it faces in Shasta County.
The charges include four felony counts of involuntary manslaughter for the people who died in the small communities of Igo and Ono.
Eight-year-old Feyla McLeod died with her mother Alaina as they tried to escape in a pickup. The fire also killed Kenneth Vossen and Karin King, who lived nearby.
“Our lives have been changed forever,” said Suzie Bewley, Feyla McLeod’s grandmother. “Our family lives in a nightmare every day that we want to wake up from.”
The McLeod family attended Thursday’s hearing, along with a handful of other people whose homes were destroyed in the flames.
PG&E wanted to make the Zogg Fire part of a civil settlement reached earlier this year to avoid criminal prosecution for causing the 2019 Kincade and 2021 Dixie fires, but Shasta County prosecutors refused.
“We do have four people who tragically lost their life,” said Shasta County District Attorney Stephanie Bridgett, who won re-election on Tuesday. “We’re going to make sure PG&E is held responsible criminally and potentially as well civilly.”
PG&E’s legal team declined to speak at the courthouse.
The Zogg Fire started three months after PG&E pleaded guilty to 84 felony counts of involuntary manslaughter for people who died in the 2018 Camp Fire. Company executives promised it wouldn’t happen again.
Like in the Camp Fire, prosecutors say PG&E sparked the Zogg Fire by neglecting to fix a known safety issue.
Arson investigators found PG&E negligent because the company failed to remove a damaged pine tree that it had previously identified as a hazard.
“It certainly goes to their reckless conduct,” Bridgett said. “Knowing about the tree, knowing about the danger.”
An arrest of a PG&E decision-maker could still be possible depending on the ongoing investigation.
As it stands now, all 31 felonies and misdemeanors in the case are filed against the company itself. If convicted, punishment for the manslaughters would be limited to a $10,000 fine per person killed.
The company faces additional charges that include reckless arson and reckless emission of smoke.
The preliminary hearing in the Zogg Fire case is scheduled January 18, 2023, when a judge would consider whether there is enough evidence to warrant a criminal trial.
WATCH ALSO: | https://www.abc10.com/article/news/local/wildfire/pge-pleads-not-guilty-zogg-fire-manslaughter-charges/103-9451b689-2c96-46cc-b43a-24cb24bf605b | 2022-06-09T23:10:57 | 0 | https://www.abc10.com/article/news/local/wildfire/pge-pleads-not-guilty-zogg-fire-manslaughter-charges/103-9451b689-2c96-46cc-b43a-24cb24bf605b |
JONESBOROUGH, Tenn. (WJHL) — A proposed lawsuit settlement would end in the closure of a controversial Bitcoin mine in rural Washington County, with a new location proposed in the county’s industrial park.
Washington County commissioners entered a closed session after County Attorney Allyson Wilkinson read the proposal’s details before returning to discuss it in front of a dozen or so people who live near the mine.
The county sued BrightRidge, the local electric utility, in November over the presence of the mine operated by Red Dog Technologies. The suit alleges the mine violates zoning regulations and that it began operating without a permit and seeks shutdown of the mine, which has a lease with BrightRidge through 2025.
BrightRidge supplies the power for the mine from an adjacent substation on Bailey Bridge Road and Red Dog is the utility’s biggest customer, with 25 megawatts of demand.
Loud noise from fans at the site first triggered residents’ complaints in the late spring of 2022. Those fans cool high-powered computer equipment that verifies Bitcoin transactions and “mines” for new Bitcoin, a digital cryptocurrency.
As they have for months, several residents expressed their insistence that the only acceptable outcome is the mine’s closure.
“The only thing we’ll accept is for it to be gone,” New Salem Baptist Church pastor Craig Ponder told commissioners. He said the pastoral community “has had next to zero benefits from the Bitcoin mining place. The only thing we’ve reaped is noise and pollution and decreased property values.”
They learned closure was part of the proposal, which Red Dog parent company GRIID has already approved. GRIID announced in late 2021 its plans to go public and its agreement with Intel for a supply of new-generation chips specifically designed for high-efficiency crypto mining.
Other details shared by Wilkinson included that:
- The old site would have to be shut down within nine months of the new one going live;
- Decibel level outside the five-acre new site’s property line wouldn’t exceed 60 decibels;
- Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) would have to approve transference of the existing power contract to the new site, or else Red Dog could continue operating at New Salem until its initial lease expires in spring 2026;
- BrightRidge would extend high-speed internet to 51 homes within a half-mile radius of the existing mine and cover the cost for as long as the mine is there but no less than a year;
- Once the agreement is approved, Red Dog would pay the county a $500 daily penalty until shutdown, with the first year prepaid in a lump sum;
- Red Dog would buy 5 acres in the industrial park from the county for $20,000 per acre, closing in this calendar year.
The 10 commissioners present (out of 15 total) remained in executive session at 6:45 p.m.
This is a developing story. Look for updates on WJHL.com. | https://www.wjhl.com/news/local/bitcoin-mine-would-close-move-in-proposed-lawsuit-settlement/ | 2022-06-09T23:12:05 | 0 | https://www.wjhl.com/news/local/bitcoin-mine-would-close-move-in-proposed-lawsuit-settlement/ |
KINGSPORT, Tenn. (WJHL) — Holston Army Ammunition Plant celebrated 80 years of producing military explosives by holding a special ceremony Monday.
The outdoor ceremony included the burial of a time capsule that contained items reflecting the facility’s mission over the past eight decades.
“This time capsule contains historical reports, engineering designing tools, an old wooden water line, a hydrometer used to check the density of the solvent in the manufacturing process of RDX, a complete list of both the government staff members and BAE employees, information on the COVID-19 pandemic and the effects it had on the day-to-day operations of Holston, along with various other items that represents each department,” Deputy Commander Jeff Worley said in a release. “It also contains letters to the future leaders of Holston from the current commander, Lt. Col. Carpenter, JMC Command Sgt. Maj. Petra Casarez and Mr. Jeff Russell, general manager, BAE Systems, Inc.”
The time capsule will be opened in 2042 in celebration of the plant’s 100th anniversary.
The plant was built in 1942 and was operational in less than two years. Over the past eight decades, Holston has gone from making one product to 80, according to plant officials.
BAE Systems has been operating the facility since 1999. | https://www.wjhl.com/news/local/holston-army-ammunition-plant-celebrates-80-years/ | 2022-06-09T23:12:11 | 1 | https://www.wjhl.com/news/local/holston-army-ammunition-plant-celebrates-80-years/ |
KINGSPORT, Tenn. (WJHL) — Work to replace traffic signals at a busy Kingsport intersection will soon begin.
The city awarded a bid for a signal reconstruction project at the intersection of Stone Drive and Clinchfield Street.
Work is scheduled to begin later this summer.
The current traffic signals are more than 30 years old and the city says they are at the end of their lifecycle. Unlike the current signals, which hang from cables, the new ones will be attached to mast arms.
“The mast arms will go diagonally across the intersection, the wires will be removed and everything going out to the signals will be going underground,” Traffic Manager Jim Hensley said. “It’ll be a much cleaner intersection and should look really good.”
The city says the intersection will look similar to the recently-upgraded Memorial Boulevard-Fort Henry Drive intersection.
Other improvements will include the installation of a camera detection system to replace the loops in the roadway and pedestrian push buttons and crosswalks across Bloomingdale Pike on the north and Stone Drive on the west.
The city-funded $288,000 project was awarded to Stansell Electric.
Work is expected to take about 120 days to complete. | https://www.wjhl.com/news/local/traffic-signals-to-be-replaced-at-stone-drive-clinchfield-street-intersection/ | 2022-06-09T23:12:18 | 1 | https://www.wjhl.com/news/local/traffic-signals-to-be-replaced-at-stone-drive-clinchfield-street-intersection/ |
Crews rescued two workers who fell into a tank full of chocolate at a Mars Wrigley facility in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.
On Thursday, around 2 p.m., first responders were called to the Mars Wrigley Confectionery on 295 Brown Street in Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania.
They found two workers who were trapped inside a tank full of chocolate. The workers were rescued and taken to the hospital. Officials have not yet revealed their conditions.
Mars Wrigley manufactures several popular chocolates and candies, including M&Ms, Mars bars, Milky Way bars, Skittles, Snickers and Twix.
This story is developing. Check back for updates. | https://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/local/2-workers-rescued-after-falling-into-chocolate-tank-at-mars-wrigley-facility/3266661/ | 2022-06-09T23:18:42 | 0 | https://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/local/2-workers-rescued-after-falling-into-chocolate-tank-at-mars-wrigley-facility/3266661/ |
Carlton Fletcher‘s recent column on the Albany-to-Sasser Trail is a long-overdue examination of the trail. The trail project is a complicated and expensive undertaking that has endured many twists and turns, most recently with the city praying that a federal RAISE grant will get everyone off the hook. But even if the city of Albany were to be awarded the RAISE grant, it would only resolve short-term problems.
There is no guarantee that the trail will bring investment to Albany if the grant were to be awarded to complete the project. But even the national Rails to Trails organization does not know what makes a successful trail project. As for the local project, it seems that its sponsors also can’t decide if the trail is a local amenity or designed to be a regional attraction.
However, there was a competing idea for the RAISE grant application. That proposal was intended to address an issue that is certain to occur; the electrification of transportation and the transportation industry in Albany. Regardless of the rationale for the rapid migration to electrified vehicles, it looks like electrification is inevitable. But it seems that Albany and the surrounding communities are unprepared for this eventuality despite the certainty that the eventual adoption of Electric Vehicles (EVs) will impact a significant percentage of the local economy.
Some participants will adapt, others will not. But electrification is certainly coming, and Albany needs to be prepared. The alternative RAISE grant proposal was to use the funds to systematically plan for the migration to electrification with the hope of getting Albany ahead of the trend rather than playing catch-up.
It often seems that the government of Albany is all over the map when it comes to priorities. In candor, there are many local issues that urgently need attention. However, nothing suggests that the trail as currently conceived should be one of them. And there are less expensive alternatives, if only the sides to the dispute were willing to compromise.
But preparation for electrification of our transportation system is essential and should be a priority. A well-considered electrification plan might help address some of the economic dislocations that seem to be inevitable and also provide new opportunities. It is about time for the local governments to work together on an EV plan that has a good chance of positively impacting the local economy than does the Sasser Trail.
The temperatures says summer's here, although it's still a few days away on the calendar, and there's plenty to do in the Albany area this weekend. Click for more.
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accounts, the history behind an article. | https://www.albanyherald.com/local/bruce-capps-vehicle-electrification-plan-trumps-need-for-trail-system/article_d638937a-e7f3-11ec-a1f6-0352aaa54fda.html | 2022-06-09T23:19:06 | 0 | https://www.albanyherald.com/local/bruce-capps-vehicle-electrification-plan-trumps-need-for-trail-system/article_d638937a-e7f3-11ec-a1f6-0352aaa54fda.html |
The Northern Arizona men gave impressive performances Wednesday at the NCAA Outdoor Championships in Eugene, Oregon, as Abdihamid Nur added a 10,000-meter bronze medal to his collection, David Dunlap earned All-American Second Team honors in the 200m and George Kusche qualified for 1500m finals.
Nur made it to the podium with a season-best time of 28:14.51 to earn first-team All-American status and score six points for the Lumberjacks.
With approximately two laps remaining in his race, Nur positioned himself near the front with Alex Maier of Oklahoma State and Dylan Jacobs of Notre Dame. At the bell lap, Nur started to switch gears, with Jacobs staying hot on his trail, running almost shoulder to shoulder. The two continued to turn up the heat until Jacobs eventually pulled away and crossed the line first to finish with a time of 28:12.32.
Earlier, Dunlap, the first Northern Arizona men's sprinter to compete at the outdoor championship meet since 2016, gave his all to place 15th overall in the 200m semifinal with a time of 20.51.
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Meanwhile, the men's 1500m was a fight from the gun, as Kusche battled for positioning out of the gate. With a 700-meter split of 1:43.85, Kusche found his groove near the front of the pack and prepared for the bell lap. He split the last 400 meters of the race in 55.50, just missing the fifth automatic advancing slot, but was just fast enough to grab the last qualifying time slot with 3:39.67.
Kusche will compete in the Friday final at 6:12 p.m. | https://azdailysun.com/sports/local/nau-roundup-nur-races-to-bronze-finish-in-10-000m-title-race-to-end-track/article_76987a1a-e817-11ec-b889-a39e849fee52.html | 2022-06-09T23:19:07 | 1 | https://azdailysun.com/sports/local/nau-roundup-nur-races-to-bronze-finish-in-10-000m-title-race-to-end-track/article_76987a1a-e817-11ec-b889-a39e849fee52.html |
Reports of teens behaving aggressively at Bush's Pasture Park spark concern
Salem parks crews reported that for the past few months, on a daily basis, several teens have been creating "unsafe conditions" inside Bush's Pasture Park during school hours.
Some of their actions include vandalism, aggressive and unwelcomed verbal conduct, threats of assault, behavior that has the potential to severely impact the natural wildlife and amenities inside the park and, in one instance, harassment of a park's employee, according to city officials.
On May 27, about five teens were seen climbing a large tree in the park, with one of the teens reaching more than 20 feet off the ground near the top of the tree canopy. When a member of the city's Parks Department noticed them climbing, they asked them to climb down.
The teens complied but some became verbally combative, spit at the employee and followed the employee back to their vehicle while taunting them, according to city staff.
The ongoing issues have escalated to the point that parks staff and a park ranger met with the nearby South Salem High School assistant principal and behavioral specialist.
Sylvia McDaniel, spokeswoman for Salem-Keizer Public Schools, said not all the students involved are enrolled in the district.
According to South Salem High School's handbook, students are allowed to leave campus for lunch.
“To encourage the continuation of this open-lunch policy, students must not litter in the community, on private property, or in the student parking lot; collect in groups on streets, sidewalks, or alleys; smoke or in any way behave in such a way that is offensive to our neighbors," the handbook reads.
McDaniel said the school does not monitor the park. Salem police have jurisdiction over the area. A police report was not filed following the incident with the park employee.
"When the school is notified of the behavior, we work collaboratively with the parks department," she said. "In cases where we have identified students involved, they are returned to school and provided the appropriate school discipline."
However, Salem Public Works Department spokesman Trevor Smith said there has been no change in the behavior witnessed at the park.
"We have posted signs to help better enforce park rules and altered our staffing inside Bush’s Pasture Park to help address this issue," he said.
For questions, comments and news tips, email reporter Whitney Woodworth atwmwoodworth@statesmanjournal.com, call 503-910-6616 or follow on Twitter @wmwoodworth | https://www.statesmanjournal.com/story/news/local/2022/06/09/salem-reports-of-teens-behaving-aggressively-at-bushs-pasture-park-spark-concern/65359818007/ | 2022-06-09T23:21:37 | 1 | https://www.statesmanjournal.com/story/news/local/2022/06/09/salem-reports-of-teens-behaving-aggressively-at-bushs-pasture-park-spark-concern/65359818007/ |
SPOKANE, Wash. — The benefits provided by four giant hydroelectric dams on the lower Snake River in Washington state can be replaced if the dams are breached to save endangered salmon runs, according to a new report released Thursday.
But it would be expensive.
Finding other ways to provide electricity, irrigation and enabling commerce would cost between $10.3 billion and $27.2 billion, said the report commissioned by Washington Gov. Jay Inslee, a Democrat, and U.S. Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash.
The draft report does not make any recommendations on whether the four dams should be breached. A decision on that divisive issue is expected later. Instead, the report allows the public, tribes, river users and other stakeholders to provide input over the next month that will inform that decision.
“We continue to approach the question of breaching with open minds and without a predetermined decision,” Inslee and Murray said in a press release.
“Every community in the Pacific Northwest knows the value and importance of our iconic salmon runs—and every community recognizes the importance of salmon to our economy and cultural heritage,” they said. “We each remain firmly committed to saving our salmon.”
Breaching the dams would significantly improve the ability of salmon and steelhead to swim from their inland spawning grounds to the Pacific Ocean, where they spend most of their lives, and then back to their original spawning grounds to procreate and die, the report said.
Major benefits of the dams include making the Snake River navigable up to Lewiston, Idaho, allowing barges to carry wheat and other crops to ocean ports. Eliminating the dams would require truck and rail transportation improvements to move crops, the report said.
The dams also generate electricity, provide irrigation water for farmers and recreation opportunities for people, the report said.
The dams have many supporters, including two GOP members of Congress representing eastern Washington state. The dams are also supported by barge companies, farmers and other business interests. Breaching them would require an act of Congress.
Republican U.S. Reps. Dan Newhouse and Cathy McMorris Rodgers of eastern Washington introduced a bill on Thursday to protect the dams, which are located in their districts. “Breaching the four lower Snake River dams would be harmful to our communities, our environment, and our economy,” Newhouse said.
“What’s alarming is trying to breach them at a time when families in Eastern Washington are paying record-high energy costs just to keep the lights on this summer,” McMorris Rodgers said.
But the chairman of the Yakama Nation said the dams must be breached.
“Our people are salmon people,” said tribal council chairman Delano Saluskin. “When the salmon thrive, we thrive; but when they suffer, our people suffer too.”
Exploring the Columbia River Basin in 1805, Lewis and Clark wrote of waterways so full with salmon that you could all but walk across on their backs.
In the late 1800s, up to 16 million salmon and steelhead returned to the Columbia River Basin every year to spawn. Over the next century and a half, overfishing whittled that number down. By the early 1950s, just under 130,000 Chinook were returning to the Snake River.
Construction of the first dam on the lower river, Ice Harbor, began in 1955. Lower Monumental followed in 1969, Little Goose in 1970, and Lower Granite in 1975. The dams stretch from Pasco, Washington, to near Pullman, Washington, and stand between migrating salmon and 5,500 miles (8,850 kilometers) of spawning habitat in central Idaho.
The dams have fish ladders, but too many of the salmon die as they swim through the dams and across slackwater reservoirs on their migrations.
In 1991, Snake River salmon and steelhead were listed as endangered species, requiring production of a federal recovery plan. Over the next three decades, environmental organizations sued the federal government six times, arguing that the recovery plan was inadequate.
The most recent lawsuit, in 2016, resulted in a four-year study of the environmental impact of the dams. Although it found that breaching the dams would be the most effective salmon recovery action, federal agencies ultimately decided against it.
The U.S. government has spent more than $17 billion trying to recover Snake River salmon, through improvements to fish ladders and other measures, with little to show for it. In 2017, the number of Chinook salmon returning to the Snake River dropped below 10,000.
The reduction in the salmon population is also a blow to the endangered Southern Resident killer whale population. More than 90% of the whales' diet is salmon, which come from a variety of places including the Snake River system.
Dam supporters blame declining salmon runs on other factors, such as changing ocean conditions.
Last year, U.S. Rep. Mike Simpson, R-Idaho, unveiled a competing $33.5 billion plan to bring back Snake River salmon. It has bogged down, failing to win support from other Republicans, Democrats and some environmental groups.
The centerpiece of Simpson’s plan is breaching the four dams, at a cost of up to $1.4 billion. The rest of the money would go toward replacing the renewable electricity the dams generate, improving salmon habitat, and helping farmers who rely on the dams for irrigation and barge transport of their crops. | https://www.idahopress.com/news/local/replacing-benefits-of-snake-river-dams-would-cost-billions/article_8d96b0d1-7b65-5799-8939-beb8682bf3bc.html | 2022-06-09T23:23:35 | 1 | https://www.idahopress.com/news/local/replacing-benefits-of-snake-river-dams-would-cost-billions/article_8d96b0d1-7b65-5799-8939-beb8682bf3bc.html |
Originally published June 9 on KTVB.COM.
When Meridian Police Detective Eric Stoffle took the stand on Thursday, he told the courtroom the most significant impact the abuse and murder of 9-year-old Emrik Osuna had on him was that the boy began talking to God in the middle of his torture.
Monique Osuna, 29, was sentenced to life in prison without parole for the murder of her stepson, who faced months of emotional, verbal and physical abuse at the hands of his stepmother until he died at St. Luke’s Children’s Hospital on Sept. 2, 2020.
“A small child was sent to Idaho to be cared for by the defendants. Instead he was sent to a living hell,” Ada County Prosecutor John Dinger told the judge in his closing statement.
Monique Osuna and her husband, Erik Osuna, Emrik Osuna’s biological father, both pleaded guilty to the boy’s murder as part of an agreement that took the death penalty off the table.
Ada County prosecutors showed autopsy photos of Emrik in the courtroom Thursday, which depicted dark purple bruising covering his body, surrounding his buttocks, genital area, thighs and arms.
He weighed 41 pounds at the time of his death, testified St. Luke’s pediatrician Dr. Matthew Cox, and starvation was present.
“He was wasted, skin and bones in appearance,” Cox said.
Home videos shown in the courtroom on Thursday from nanny cameras throughout Erik and Monique Osuna's home depicted the couple relentlessly abusing Emrik Osuna in the week before his murder, around late August 2020.
Throughout the footage, Emrik Osuna becomes visibly thinner, his ribs and spine protruding out of the grainy black and white video.
In the videos, Monique Osuna can be heard yelling profanity at the boy while he does hours upon hours of exercises.
Stoffle testified that one morning Emrik was forced to exercise, around 3 or 4 a.m., he suddenly stopped what he was doing and began to speak to God — and asked why the abuse was happening to him.
“He starts crying. That was one of the most significant instances that affected me,” Stoffle said. “As he's talking to God you can see Monique in the background and sneak up to where she's hiding behind the counter, listening to him. That affected me the most.”
The stepmother is seen in the footage spanking Emrik with a frying pan, where he reacts by crying and pleading for her to stop. She also withholds food from the boy, taunting him as he exercises by letting his siblings eat in front of him while she screams in his face.
“You are on my (expletive) list for the rest of your life,” Monique Osuna said in the video.
She is also seen telling him to eat something off the floor, and teasing him by asking if he is hungry.
“You better (expletive) in your hand and eat it,” Monique Osuna told the nine-year-old.
Emrik is transcribed on video telling his mother, “But mom, I don’t want to starve to death.”
In the courtroom as the video played, Monique Osuna wiped tears from her eyes. The gallery could hear her quiet sobs.
Melanie Yamada-Anderson, an Ada County investigator, said that throughout the nanny camera videos she reviewed, Emrik Osuna was seen exercising for up to 20 hours. The animals were treated better than he was, she said.
“He ate out of the garbage can or dog food,” Yamada-Anderson said, but when he was caught, he was beaten and punished.
He always slept on the floor without pillows or blankets, Yamada-Anderson said, or in the hall closet, where he was often woken up in the early hours of the morning by his stepmother beating him again.
In another video shown by the prosecution, the boy was told by Monique Osuna to scrub the floors with a toothbrush and hot water.
When his stepmother filled the pot with water, she could be heard saying, “Hot water to burn the skin off Emrik.”
Prosecutors brought up how they believe the Osunas gave Emrik dirty water out of a cleaning bowl to drink, which detectives agreed occurred due to more hours of video footage.
”
Erik Osuna was rarely seen in the videos, but when Emrik Osuna was being berated by his stepmother, the father often sat on his phone, watched TV, encouraged the abuse, or participated in it.
Sacil Lucero, Emrik Osuna’s biological mother, gave the prosecutors her remarks for a victim impact statement. She said she will never recover from the loss of her son, that he was loved by her and her family, and the defendants did not care about his well-being.
Julia Yackel, a mitigation specialist, obtained records of Monique Osuna’s life history as part of her work for bio-psycho-social analysis on the woman.
Yackel said that Monique Osuna was removed from her home in California at age 2 along with her brother and placed in an emergency home, Orangewood, for abused children.
She also testified that there were many abuse allegations in the home around the time that Monique Osuna was placed there, and placing her there at such a young age would have created significant lifelong harm.
Yackel said her investigation found several referrals indicated sexual and physical abuse throughout Monique Osuna’s life, as well as witnessing domestic violence incidents between her parents. Monique Osuna was left untreated as a child for witnessing the abuse, Yackel said, and that she ended up failing school.
When Monique Osuna was 17, she became pregnant, Yackel said. She wanted to break the cycle of her family, so she graduated and attended college.
Monique Osuna worked with Blue Cross, had no criminal history and a long work history.
“Her family viewed her as a success story,” Yackel said.
Monique Osuna met Erik Osuna and the two moved to Boise, where they were homeless and residing at Interfaith Sanctuary with their blended families. They eventually got married and had another child, endured part of the pandemic, and then were sent to jail for their son’s murder.
“This is the most serious crime a person can commit,” Dinger said. “Imprisonment will provide an appropriate punishment.”
Dinger said that Monique Osuna should be locked up, and should never be around a child again.
“I don’t know how you can rehabilitate this,” he said. “She just simply deserves punishment.”
Monique Osuna stood before the court to give a statement, where she said she was sorry, and cannot undo any of her actions.
“He didn't deserve any of that. He deserves so much more, and I hope for the rest of my life I'll be sorry for my wrongful actions,” Monique Osuna said.
When presiding Judge Steven Hippler handed down his sentence, he said that he hopes those in the courtroom go home and hug a child, and show them they love them. Hippler said in the end, Emrik’s body was wasted away.
“Emrik was completely abandoned and he turned to God. He tried to speak to God. Why? Why?” asked Hippler. “She co-opted God. His last refuge.”
Erik Osuna’s sentencing for his son's murder will begin at 9 a.m on Friday.
More from KTVB.COM: | https://www.idahopress.com/news/local/stepmom-sentenced-to-life-in-prison-for-murder-abuse-of-9-year-old/article_2b2e1995-2ba4-5feb-8f8a-16a6de9bb34c.html | 2022-06-09T23:23:41 | 0 | https://www.idahopress.com/news/local/stepmom-sentenced-to-life-in-prison-for-murder-abuse-of-9-year-old/article_2b2e1995-2ba4-5feb-8f8a-16a6de9bb34c.html |
Suspect hospitalized after officer-involved shooting in Merdian By IDAHO PRESS STAFF newsroom@idahopress.com Jun 9, 2022 2 hrs ago Comments Facebook Twitter WhatsApp SMS Email A Meridian Police patrol car in action Monday, April 14, 2019. Brian Myrick / Idaho Press Support Local Journalism If you value these stories, please consider subscribing. Subscribe Facebook Twitter WhatsApp SMS Email Print Save Facebook Twitter WhatsApp SMS Email Print Save There was an officer-involved shooting Thursday in downtown Meridian, the Meridian Police Department tweeted.No officers were injured and the suspect has been transported to a local hospital, MPD tweeted. The incident occurred on Meridian Road between Pine Avenue and nearby railroad tracks, MPD tweeted.This story will be updated. Facebook Twitter WhatsApp SMS Email Print Save Tags Meridian Police Department Shooting Police Tweet Railroad Track Officer Incident Avenue Recommended for you Load comments Enter our Current Contests! Newsletter Signup Sign up today for one of our great newsletters and get headlines right in your inbox every morning. Sign up now! Trending Now Idaho Humane Society near capacity, seeking homes for dogs, 'long-termers' 'People should be able to read the books that they want': Nampa coffee shop holds Banned Books Giveaway Boise police lieutenant charged with DUI The pandemic isn’t over, Idaho. This is what COVID looks like here, today. Idaho and firearms laws: What's legal and what's not in state Latest e-Edition Idaho Press-Tribune Idaho Press Manage subscription E-Edition E-Editions Homepage Report Trouble Print Edition Subscribe Archive Search the complete digital archives for all papers in the Pioneer News Group. Visit the Archives
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Idaho Press-Tribune Idaho Press Manage subscription E-Edition E-Editions Homepage Report Trouble Print Edition Subscribe | https://www.idahopress.com/news/local/suspect-hospitalized-after-officer-involved-shooting-in-merdian/article_d49ae28f-b81d-50ac-9ba2-5a245842eff4.html | 2022-06-09T23:23:47 | 1 | https://www.idahopress.com/news/local/suspect-hospitalized-after-officer-involved-shooting-in-merdian/article_d49ae28f-b81d-50ac-9ba2-5a245842eff4.html |
WASHINGTON COUNTY, Md. — Deputies say three people are dead and three people are injured, including the suspect, following a shooting at a manufacturing facility in Washington County, Maryland, on Thursday afternoon.
The shooting happened around 2:30 p.m. at the Columbia Machine Inc. on Bikle Road in Smithsburg, according to the Washington County Sheriff's Office.
Three people were killed in the shooting and a fourth person was critically injured, according to a news release from the sheriff's office.
After the shooting, the suspect fled the area but was quickly found by Maryland State Police near Maplesville Road and Mount Aetna Road. A state trooper and the suspect shot at each other, both were injured and taken to a hospital for treatment.
A spokesperson for the sheriff's office says there is no threat to the public at this time.
"I would like to offer my thoughts and prayers to the victims and their families at this time," Smithsburg Mayor Donnie Souders said. "Also wishing a full and speedy recovery of the State Trooper who was injured while performing his duties as a sworn officer to protect and to serve our community."
Congressman David Trone tweeted following the shooting asking people in the area to stay away while officials investigate. The FBI and ATF were on scene investigating alongside Maryland State Police.
Smithsburg is a community of nearly 3,000 people, located about 75 miles northwest of Baltimore not far from the state line with Pennsylvania.
This is a developing story. More details will be added as they become available.
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Among parents and victims, one Texas girl who covered herself in blood to survive is set to speak at the House Oversight and Reform Committee's hearing on gun violence today. | https://www.kvue.com/article/news/local/multiple-people-shot-washington-county-maryland-deputies/65-82a9ac27-9430-44bb-9ef6-f1d0d10e3fe2 | 2022-06-09T23:24:23 | 1 | https://www.kvue.com/article/news/local/multiple-people-shot-washington-county-maryland-deputies/65-82a9ac27-9430-44bb-9ef6-f1d0d10e3fe2 |
It is full steam ahead for the multi-billion plan to revamp New York Penn Station.
On Thursday, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul and New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy gave the green light to the first phase of the transit hub's makeover, which includes building new tracks to ease the current overload.
The commuters who use Penn Station have been asking for improvements for decades. Hochul announced on Thursday that her plan for the revamp includes a lot of natural light. While the overall plan seems to be moving forward, a lot of neighbors in the community say they are not sure they are getting a fair deal.
The dark labyrinth inside Penn Station is famous for commuter complaints, including those from Dorothea Simmons, who calls the transit hub "chaotic and dirty."
Meanwhile, the sunlight inside the new Moynihan Train Hall across the street is a glimpse of the future.
That same glass-ceilinged look a key part of the new Penn Station plan, with Hochul describing the plan with a unique word choice.
“A skylight that reminds you 'yes, the heavens are out there still -- despite the feeling you may be living in hell," she said.
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Hochul's plan calls for revamping Penn Station and changing it into a modern, light-filled facility easy to navigate, while also revitalizing the surrounding neighborhood to prioritize the public realm, invest in affordable housing, increase transit access, and create a pedestrian-friendly streetscape, among other points.
Hochul said she’s got key partners on board for a $6 to $7 billon dollar project opening by 2028 if construction starts next year. The surrounding neighborhood would be rebuilt by 2044.
"Today I'm very proud to announce a significant milestone in our progress," Hochul said. "We are officially moving into the design phase of the new Penn Station we're going to continue working in partnership with our friends from New Jersey and Amtrak to design a beautiful, majestic transit hub worthy of being the epicenter of this vibrant - the most - vibrant city on the planet."
New York City Mayor Eric Adams said the transformation will be a positive change for the Big Apple.
“We are going to turn an embarrassment into a symbol of what’s great about our city," Adams said.
However, critics — including the local community board -- are not happy with the plan that allows real estate giant Vornado to build up to 10 new skyscrapers around penn station without paying property taxes.
"It would destroy six city blocks and cause displacement of hundreds of residents and thousands of businesses," Maki Livesay, of Community Board 5, said.
"The simple math of this plan, does not add up," Sam Turvey, another protestor, said.
When News 4 New York asked Hochul if she could demand that Vornado and other private entities pay property taxes, the governor said the state has listened to concerns and have made changes.
"They've already had to deal with major adjustments that I put in place after hearing the public about their dissatisfaction. We brought down the height. We cut off 1.4 million square feet. We require more public space," Hochul said.
There is also political pressure from New Jersey as the long awaited Gateway Tunnel across the Hudson creeps forward.
“Having a brand new Penn Station doesn’t mean much if we can’t ensure that the trains heading here can get here on time," Murphy said.
Hochul says she wants designs from architects or builders to be submitted by the end of next month. However, there is still the issue of final state approval -- which is expected to come to a vote some time this summer. | https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/hochul-announces-major-step-toward-modernization-of-ny-penn-station/3727614/ | 2022-06-09T23:24:28 | 0 | https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/hochul-announces-major-step-toward-modernization-of-ny-penn-station/3727614/ |
The second annual L.E.A.F. Flower Festival begins Friday, June 10th, in the Meatpacking District.
A floral wave will wash over the streets of the Manhattan neighborhood until June 12th, including massive flower installations and displays, retail and hospitality activations and experiences around the neighborhood.
The three day exhibit will include large scale floral displays by some of New York's leading Floral Designers, floral plinths throughout the district, a European-style flower market presented by TF Cornerstone, in-store activations, retail pop-ups, and numerous brand experiences.
The festival includes exhibits stretching from West 15th Street down to Gansevoort Street, between Ninth Avenue and Washington Street.
For more information, visit their website here. | https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/in-full-bloom-meatpacking-districts-l-e-a-f-flower-festival-begins-june-10/3727915/ | 2022-06-09T23:24:34 | 1 | https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/in-full-bloom-meatpacking-districts-l-e-a-f-flower-festival-begins-june-10/3727915/ |
The Museum Mile Festival is back in-person in 2022, after being pushed into a virtual space the last two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The mile-long festival that celebrates art and culture is set to take place on Tuesday June 14th, from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art will kick-off the festival with city officials and museum partners at David H. Koch Plaza, with a slew of free events.
Participating museums include The Africa Center; the Museum of the City of New York; The Jewish Museum; Cooper-Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum; El Museo del Barrio; Neue Galerie New York, and The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum.
Museum Mile received its name because of the cultural diversity and vast richness of the museums located on the stretch of the Upper East Side.
Registration is not required. Visitors can see any of the museums along the 23-block stretch of 5th Avenue with free admission for all.
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The museums will cater to people of all ages with live performances, teaching artists, food vendors, and exhibitions on display.
Prerecorded Museum Mile Festival activities are also available online for virtual attendees. | https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/museum-mile-festival-returns-in-person-for-2022-kicking-off-at-the-met/3727656/ | 2022-06-09T23:24:41 | 1 | https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/museum-mile-festival-returns-in-person-for-2022-kicking-off-at-the-met/3727656/ |
SAN ANTONIO — Bexar County deputies halted the would-be escape of a 22-year-old inmate who was found wearing a spare deputy’s uniform Thursday afternoon, officials say.
According to Sheriff Javier Salazar, deputies at the county jail stumbled upon Aaron Allen Voyce while responding to an area where a fire alarm was pulled, likely an accident on Voyce’s part. A search was already underway for the suspect after he didn’t show up for a court hearing scheduled to be conducted at the jail over Zoom; around that point is when the alarm began going off.
Authorities eventually found a pair of sandals typically worn by inmates in an empty office, and they soon discovered him in a closet.
“Voyce was taken into custody right then and there, without further incident,” Salazar said, adding that he is “pretty clearly a mentally ill inmate.”
Voyce is behind bars on animal cruelty charges after allegedly killing his family’s dog with a bat.
While Salazar said it isn’t believed at this point that any personnel assisted Voyce, the sheriff called it “a cause of concern” that he was able to so easily find a spare uniform – albeit one without a badge or name tag – in the drawer of a vacant office.
Voyce was re-detained two floors away from where the hearing was meant to take place. Salazar said there are different security levels for inmates when it comes to their being escorted throughout the building, adding the agency will review security video to observe how he got where he ended up.
Soon after the escape was thwarted, BCSO performed two head counts of the inmate population. Salazar said it's possible Voyce could face extra charges after the escape attempt.
An internal investigation is underway.
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Since going on the air in 1950, KENS 5 has strived to be the best, most trusted news and entertainment source for generations of San Antonians.
KENS 5 has brought numerous firsts to South Texas television, including being the first local station with a helicopter, the first with its own Doppler radar and the first to air a local morning news program.
Over the years, KENS 5 has worked to transform local news. Our cameras have been the lens bringing history into local viewers' homes. We're proud of our legacy as we serve San Antonians today.
Today, KENS 5 continues to set the standard in local broadcasting and is recognized by its peers for excellence and innovation. The KENS 5 News team focuses on stories that really matter to our community.
You can find KENS 5 in more places than ever before, including KENS5.com, the KENS 5 app, the KENS 5 YouTube channel, KENS 5's Roku and Fire TV apps, and across social media on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and more!
Want to get in touch with someone at KENS 5? You can send a message using our Contacts page or email one of our team members. | https://www.kens5.com/article/news/local/law-enforcement/san-antonio-foiled-jail-inmate-escape-bexar-county-bcso-salazar/273-eeee176d-acc8-4755-89b0-9b6d54b7eaf1 | 2022-06-09T23:28:56 | 1 | https://www.kens5.com/article/news/local/law-enforcement/san-antonio-foiled-jail-inmate-escape-bexar-county-bcso-salazar/273-eeee176d-acc8-4755-89b0-9b6d54b7eaf1 |
SAN ANTONIO — In a four year span, sales of Melatonin, the sleep aid supplement skyrocketed from 285 to 821 million dollars.
But today there are new warnings to parents about melatonin poisonings in children leading to more calls to Poison Control Centers across the country, in some cases the children are hospitalized.
“This has really made us rethink actually the use of melatonin supplement in our population," Dr. Mandie Tibball Svatek, Pediatric Hospitalist at University Health System.
The new CDC study revealed Pediatric ingestions of Melatonin increased 530% over the last decade.
Svatek says the supplement’s widespread use as a sleep aid became more prevalent during the Pandemic.
“Why they increased was during the time of COVID where parents and children were staying more at home. And with that kind of led to sleep disturbances.”
According to the study from 2012-2021, more than 260 thousand cases of Melatonin ingestions were reported to poison control centers.
83 percent of children showed no symptoms. But nearly 28,000 received care at a healthcare facility and 4,000 kids were hospitalized, some with more serious outcomes. Five required mechanical ventilation, and two children died.
“That 80% of the ingestions that occurred were in children that were less than the age of six. And so if it's sitting out on the counter and it's something that's to the taste sweet, those are actually more of the associated ingestions with the chewable tablets or actually with the gummy forms, and those are easily grabbed by a child. And because this is not a drug that is regulated by the FDA, it's actually a supplement, then we don't know what that actual dosing that they're getting and we don't know what other features are in that actual supplement, such as serotonin, which can lead to toxicity as well.”
While Melatonin has been considered safe in smaller dosages, Dr. Svatek says it’s best to avoid using the supplement.
For older children or teens, she suggests behavioral changes adding what we need is to look at the root of why children aren’t sleeping well and how to resolve that issue without using a supplement.
“If there's electronics, TV in the rooms, removing those, you know as well as what the sleep times are. So going to bed at a set sleep hour that's actually reasonable or not late can all assist,” Dr. Svatek says.
So what is considered a safe dose if the parent chooses to use Melatonin?
“It is based upon age. And you would have to really consult with a pediatrician to get that appropriate dosing,” Dr. Svatek says.
The study also suggested health care providers should warn parents about potential toxic consequences of melatonin exposure.
The CDC study goes on to say Child-resistant packaging for this supplement should be considered. | https://www.kens5.com/article/news/local/local-doctor-explains-safe-dosage-for-children-using-melatonin/273-bd53d1d8-d2ff-4f4d-a7b0-e6a2f776f4c4 | 2022-06-09T23:29:02 | 0 | https://www.kens5.com/article/news/local/local-doctor-explains-safe-dosage-for-children-using-melatonin/273-bd53d1d8-d2ff-4f4d-a7b0-e6a2f776f4c4 |
BEXAR COUNTY, Texas — Over 1,500 cases pending at Bexar County Court at Law No.2 are being redistributed elsewhere due to concerns about how Judge Grace Uzomba is handling her criminal court docket.
Bexar County Administrative Judge John A. Longoria cited "the serious and egregious lack of attention to pretrial violation reports, probation matters, family violence cases, and other misdemeanor cases, including over 1,700 cases without current settings," in a letter he sent to other county court judges.
Nearly 200 family violence cases will be distributed among Courts 7, 8, 11 and 13, and about 1,656 cases without current settings will be distributed equally among Courts 1, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 11, 12, 14, and 15, amounting to about 166 cases per court.
"As judges, we have an obligation to this community to ensure that justice is served not only for the victims, but also for the defendants who have a right to have their cases heard and to get their day in court," Longoria's memo reads.
Read the full letter below:
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Since going on the air in 1950, KENS 5 has strived to be the best, most trusted news and entertainment source for generations of San Antonians.
KENS 5 has brought numerous firsts to South Texas television, including being the first local station with a helicopter, the first with its own Doppler radar and the first to air a local morning news program.
Over the years, KENS 5 has worked to transform local news. Our cameras have been the lens bringing history into local viewers' homes. We're proud of our legacy as we serve San Antonians today.
Today, KENS 5 continues to set the standard in local broadcasting and is recognized by its peers for excellence and innovation. The KENS 5 News team focuses on stories that really matter to our community.
You can find KENS 5 in more places than ever before, including KENS5.com, the KENS 5 app, the KENS 5 YouTube channel, KENS 5's Roku and Fire TV apps, and across social media on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and more!
Want to get in touch with someone at KENS 5? You can send a message using our Contacts page or email one of our team members. | https://www.kens5.com/article/news/local/serious-and-egregious-bexar-county-court-at-law-judge-stripped-of-over-1500-cases-docket-management-concerns/273-612fa702-3b6c-42c3-8849-e8c476900610 | 2022-06-09T23:29:08 | 1 | https://www.kens5.com/article/news/local/serious-and-egregious-bexar-county-court-at-law-judge-stripped-of-over-1500-cases-docket-management-concerns/273-612fa702-3b6c-42c3-8849-e8c476900610 |
ST. ALBANS, WV (WOWK) — High gas prices are affecting local volunteer fire departments. Most volunteer departments say they are already over budget for the year.
“It used to take roughly $50. Now, we’re up to $120 filling them up,” says Chris Schiling, a firefighter with West Side Volunteer Fire Department.
Schiling says they fill up trucks when they get down to half a tank. So far this year, they have gone from about $400 a month in gas to $700.
“It’s hurtful because it cuts the budget back,” Schiling says. “You can’t buy other things.”
The same thing is happening at the Jefferson Volunteer Fire department. Their budget in 2021 was $4,000, but they spent less than $3,000 that year. Now in 2022, their budget is $3,500.
“So far this year, just in five months we are over our budget at $569,” says Chad Smarr, a firefighter with Jefferson VFD.
Gas prices also have a direct impact on the volunteers.
“Not just one of our trucks but our firefighters that volunteer just running the calls from their house to get to the station, they’re using their gas and everything too so it’s taking a pretty big impact on us,” Smarr says.
Smarr says now is time for the community to donate to their local volunteer fire department.
“We’re going to have to move money around and reallocate where it’s going to be needed,” Smarr says.
Some of the departments are considering having firemen sleep overnight at the stations during weekends so they can save their own gas. | https://www.wowktv.com/news/local/high-gas-prices-affecting-local-volunteer-fire-departments/ | 2022-06-09T23:41:02 | 1 | https://www.wowktv.com/news/local/high-gas-prices-affecting-local-volunteer-fire-departments/ |
CHARLESTON, WV (WOWK) — According to U.S. Attorney Will Thompson, a Mingo County woman pleaded guilty in court for falsely claiming to be her dead sister and illegally collecting her social security benefits.
Court documents and statements reveal that Diana Cisco, 69, of Delbarton, said she received Social Security Administration (SSA) benefits on behalf on her deceased sister. U.S. Attorney Thompson said Cisco admitted she knew this action was illegal and that she knew she was not entitled to the federal benefits.
From June 2016 to April 2020, Cisco allegedly received $46,356 in federal benefits that were not hers and converted the funds for personal use, according to U.S. Attorney Thompson.
Cisco also reportedly admitted to giving false information to SSA special agents in March 2022. U.S. Attorney Thompson reports that Cisco initially denied who she was, pretended to be her sister, and then told agents that “Diane Cisco would be in Columbus, Ohio, for at least one month.”
The agents discovered Cisco’s alleged lies by checking vehicle registration records and photos of Cisco and getting statements from people who had reportedly seen her recently. When Cisco was confronted again by law enforcement, she allegedly admitted she was lying.
Cisco faces a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a $750,000 fine. She is scheduled for sentencing on Sept. 1, 2022.
Agencies involved in this investigation include the SAA and the SAA Office of Inspector General. | https://www.wowktv.com/news/local/woman-admits-to-collecting-her-dead-sisters-social-security-benefits/ | 2022-06-09T23:41:08 | 0 | https://www.wowktv.com/news/local/woman-admits-to-collecting-her-dead-sisters-social-security-benefits/ |
HOUSTON — KHOU 11 has obtained the cause of death report for four boys and their grandfather, who investigators say were killed by escapee Gonzalo Lopez at their family ranch in Leon County earlier this month.
KHOU 11's Grace White obtained the preliminary report after filing an open records request. The report by the Dallas County Medical Examiner's Office was released Thursday by Leon County Justice of the Peace Judge Jack Keeling's office.
According to the report, Mark Collins, the grandfather, and 18-year-old Waylon Collins died from gunshot wounds and sharp force injuries. Mark Collins was shot in the abdomen and Waylon Collins was shot in the back.
The report also says 18-year-old Carson Collins, 11-year-old Bryson Collins and 11-year-old Hudson Collins all died of gunshot and stab wounds.
This is a preliminary report. A full autopsy won't be available for another 60 to 90 days.
Lopez escaped from a prison transport bus on May 12. He was killed in a shootout with officers on June 2 after investigators say he killed the family members.
RELATED: TDCJ: DNA evidence linking Gonzalo Lopez to area where family was killed came back after killings
A GoFundMe has been set up for the family. If you want to help the family, you can donate here.
Gonzalo escape timeline
- May 12 – Investigators say Lopez escaped his shackles, attacked a corrections officer and hijacked a prison bus in Leon County while being transported between prisons
- May 13 – The search turned into a massive manhunt with resources from around the state coming to the Centerville area
- May 18 – New photos were released of Lopez from before the hijacking They showed him cuffed while being led to the prison bus
- May 25 – More new pictures were released by U.S. Marshals, showing Lopez’s tattoos as they continued to ask for help
- June 2 – Authorities say Lopez killed a family of five, stole their truck and made his way to a rural area near San Antonio where he was killed in a shootout
Collins family funeral
A public visitation will take place from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. on Friday, June 10 at Houston Northwest Church, located at 19911 State Hwy. 249 in Houston.
The public funeral service will take place at 10 a.m. on Saturday, June 11 at Champion Forest Baptist Church, which is located at 15555 Stuebner Airline Rd in Houston.
The funeral service will be live-streamed on Houston Northwest Church's Facebook page and the church's website.
The family burial will be private. | https://www.kcentv.com/article/news/local/collins-family-cause-of-death/285-bd888585-c6a3-432a-ab55-d725ee5990b3 | 2022-06-09T23:42:21 | 0 | https://www.kcentv.com/article/news/local/collins-family-cause-of-death/285-bd888585-c6a3-432a-ab55-d725ee5990b3 |
DALLAS — On Thursday, the third flight of Operation Fly Formula will touch down in Texas.
The FedEx Express MD-11 charter flight is coming from Cologne, Germany and is packed with Nestle baby formula.
The plane is expected to land during the lunch hour at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport. The precious cargo includes 110,000 pounds of Nestle NAN SupremePro Stage 1 infant formula.
According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the 63,504 cans will be available across the country through Nestle/Gerber distribution channels.
KHOU 11’s Tiffany Craig will be at DFW when the flight arrives and will get an opportunity to ask HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra about the operation and specifically where this shipment will be distributed. | https://www.kcentv.com/article/news/local/texas/baby-formula-plane-lands-texas/285-905ba7ae-fc8b-4b89-88a4-338547a44292 | 2022-06-09T23:42:27 | 1 | https://www.kcentv.com/article/news/local/texas/baby-formula-plane-lands-texas/285-905ba7ae-fc8b-4b89-88a4-338547a44292 |
LULING, Texas — Buc-ee's has been busy as a beaver expanding its empire with dozens of stores throughout Texas and beyond.
But everything is bigger in Texas, so when the Lone Star State heard that the world's largest Buc-ee's would soon be built in Colorado, it said "Hold my beer and pass me some beaver nuggets."
Now, a new location going up in Luling will help Texas reclaim the biggest beaver title. The 75,000 square-foot Buc-ee's will be built next to the current Luling store on I-10, east of San Antonio. It opened back in 2003.
"Twenty years ago, Beaver and Don had the gumption to change the industry by building the first Buc-ee's Family Travel Center in Luling," said Stan Beard of Buc-ee's. "Since that time, Buc-ee's has grown into an iconic Texas brand that now shares our Texas pride with new stores throughout the Southeast and West. We are humbled to have this opportunity to strengthen our roots in Texas and will continue to exceed our customers' expectations every chance we get."
Buc-ee's said the new Luling location will feature 120 fueling positions, plenty of clean bathrooms, along with barbecue, beef jerky, homemade fudge and more. A lot more.
Construction is tentatively scheduled to begin sometime in the fall.
For now, New Braunfels will still own bragging rights to the world's largest Buc-ee's with its 66,335 square-foot store.
Buc-ee's also lays claim to the world's longest car wash -- 225 feet -- at its Katy travel center off I-10. | https://www.kcentv.com/article/news/local/texas/largest-buc-ees-luling-texas/285-32660352-742c-4d6a-aedc-3ddfc1aad007 | 2022-06-09T23:42:34 | 1 | https://www.kcentv.com/article/news/local/texas/largest-buc-ees-luling-texas/285-32660352-742c-4d6a-aedc-3ddfc1aad007 |
The Lincoln City Council on Monday will consider a motion to rescind the so-called Fairness Ordinance — a broad update that extends protections to include sexual orientation and gender expression.
City Councilman Richard Meginnis said he plans to introduce the motion to rescind the hotly debated ordinance that updates Title 11, the city's code that deals with equal opportunity in housing, employment and public accommodations. He will also move to rescind a more narrowly worded Fairness Ordinance that has been in limbo for a decade.
Meginnis said he introduced the motions because he thinks it’s important to start with a clean slate and make the process more community-oriented and ensure everyone is involved in the discussion.
“I’m doing it because I think it’s divisive,” he said. “I really believe our community is not ready to go to war on this at this point ... I just know there’s a fear and people have been able to use this to drive a wedge between people in Lincoln.”
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Meginnis is supported by at least two of his colleagues: James Michael Bowers and Tom Beckius, two of three openly gay members of the Council. Both support expanding protections, but say they listened to concerns of the transgender and nonbinary community.
“The majority of attacks on Title 11 or the ‘fairness ordinance’ are based on lies and scare tactics against our transgender nonbinary community members,” Bowers said, and those voices must be at the center of the next steps.
“After hard conversations and some devastating losses in our community, the message is clear, we must rescind the ordinance, continue to strengthen our relationships with honest conversations, support, and acceptance, and move forward as a united community for all,” Bowers said.
Beckius said the decision to vote to rescind is "heart-wrenching" but the right one for now.
"Opponents have already used false and misleading information with no regard for the well-being of our transgender community," he said. "So the lack of an organized campaign to win at the ballot box is rash. It just isn't wise to proceed at this time."
The ordinance — introduced by Councilwoman Sändra Washington, the third openly gay member of the Council — has been the subject of heated debate not only with opponents but with supporters who disagree on how best to proceed.
It passed on a 5-0 vote Feb. 14. Meginnis and Beckius were absent. Opponents, led by the Nebraska Family Alliance, mounted a successful referendum petition, which required the council either to put the issue to a vote of the people or rescind it.
Initially, it appeared there were enough council votes to take the ordinance to a public vote, but the death by suicide of a transgender activist brought the momentum to a halt.
Now, it appears the fate of the ordinance rests with Bennie Shobe, who has not responded to phone calls for comment.
While Meginnis, Bowers and Beckius support rescinding it, Washington, Jane Raybould and Tammy Ward oppose the move.
Lincoln For All, the organization created to support the ordinance that includes Washington and Raybould, issued a statement saying the ordinance was a result of a two-year process involving many stakeholders.
"The timing of this motion — during Pride Month, and at the start of Lincoln's Pride Week — is especially disappointing, and shows a lack of respect for the LGBTQIA+ community," Washington said. "A repeal of Title 11 slows our progress on non-discrimination for veterans, people with disabilities, and based on race."
Raybould added, "We remain committed to ensuring our city is inclusive and welcoming."
Ward said she’s sensitive to the concerns raised, but believes it should go before voters, though she’s unsure what the right timing for a vote would be.
“We don’t know if we don’t try,” she said. “A lot of people have waited a long time for this moment ... I’m disappointed and frustrated. But it’s not mine to lead.”
Ward said she does intend to vote to rescind the 10-year-old ordinance, to get it off the books and move forward with a new ordinance.
Nate Grasz, policy director for the Nebraska Family Alliance, said rescinding the ordinance is the right decision.
"The City Council, we hope, will listen to concerns of citizens on both sides of the issue asking them to rescind the ordinance."
As written, he said, the ordinance's overbroad definition of public accommodation applied to private schools, churches and businesses but not public buildings, and the religious exemption was too narrow. He called the ordinance coercive, and said it would punish people because they had different ideologies.
Meginnis said he thinks protections should be expanded, but he signed the referendum petition because, at the time, he felt like a vote was the only way to settle the issue with the community.
Now, he said, he thinks it’s time to step back and start fresh.
Natalie Weiss, a transgender activist, is happy to see the motion introduced.
"I support this," Weiss said. "This what I, personally, have been working on since it was introduced in February, along with a lot of other people. I think it's the most important thing for the community to be doing in this moment and I'm glad they're doing it."
The issue of extending protections to include sexual orientation and gender expression in housing, employment and public accommodation has been in the shadows for a decade.
Ten years ago, a different City Council passed a more narrowly worded ordinance to extend such protections and, after a successful referendum, the council took no action either to rescind the ordinance or let voters decide.
When Washington introduced the ordinance updating Title 11 earlier this year, the landscape had changed significantly since 2012.
The U.S. Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage in 2015 and in 2020 the high court ruled that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 includes protection based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
The 2020 decision related to employment, but the Biden administration applied the language to the federal Housing and Urban Development and Equal Opportunity Commission, which is being challenged by 20 state attorneys general including Nebraska.
The ordinance introduced by Washington aligned Title 11 with federal law and included public accommodation. It also updates language and reorganizes the city code to clarify the process of the city's Human Rights Commission, adds military and veterans as a protected class and strengthens disability protections.
But early on, advocates in the transgender and nonbinary community expressed concerns about the timing of introducing the ordinance, predicted they’d be targeted and didn’t think supporters were adequately prepared to defend against the messaging of well-organized opponents.
And opponents did focus much of their campaign on the transgender community, dubbing it the “transgender bathroom ordinance.” They also blanketed the city with “Let Us Vote” signs, a reference to the 2012 ordinance that was never taken to the ballot box.
Milo Winslow, a transgender activist who had been vocal about concerns of transgender people being targeted, died by suicide just two days after the Nebraska Family Alliance announced they’d collected more than four times the number of signatures needed. Before his death, he sent council members a message asking them to rescind the ordinance.
Since then, the issue has been on hold, though both the Lancaster County Democrats and the Stonewall Democrats passed resolutions urging the council to rescind. Others have sent messages to the council urging them to move forward.
Abbi Swatsworth, executive director of OutNebraska — an advocacy organization that supported the ordinance — said they've heard from people on both sides of the debate by supporters and she hopes the council listens to all those perspectives moving forward.
“The council should recognize that our diverse community has a variety of perspectives on how to move forward with full freedom from discrimination for the whole Lincoln community,” she said.
Reach the writer at 402-473-7226 or mreist@journalstar.com.
On Twitter @LJSreist | https://journalstar.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/not-ready-to-go-to-war-lincoln-councilman-will-move-to-rescind-so-called-fairness/article_b5208143-e4f3-51ce-88e1-697d8f49bb0c.html | 2022-06-09T23:47:45 | 0 | https://journalstar.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/not-ready-to-go-to-war-lincoln-councilman-will-move-to-rescind-so-called-fairness/article_b5208143-e4f3-51ce-88e1-697d8f49bb0c.html |
Lincoln Fire and Rescue recruits fight a fire at a training structure Thursday morning.
GWYNETH ROBERTS, Journal Star
Lincoln Fire and Rescue used a concrete house designated for practice for Thursday's training session. The structure, which has been around since the 1960s, was filled with plywood and straw.
GWYNETH ROBERTS, Journal Star
Lincoln Fire and Rescue recruits work to put out a simulated house fire Thursday morning.
GWYNETH ROBERTS, Journal Star
A Lincoln Fire and Rescue recruit prepares to enter a training structure during a simulated house fire Thursday.
GWYNETH ROBERTS, Journal Star
Lincoln Fire and Rescue recruits work to clean up the scene after a live training session Thursday.
GWYNETH ROBERTS, Journal Star
Lincoln Fire and Rescue recruits fight a fire at a training structure Thursday morning.
Lincoln Fire and Rescue’s latest recruitment class stepped into the fire for the first time Thursday.
The 13 soon-to-be firefighters — eight men and five women — put their skills to the test, preparing for a real emergency through a coordinated burn scenario. LFR set a practice structure ablaze to give the recruits a chance to put it out.
LFR spokesperson Nancy Crist said Lincolnites should feel safe knowing these recruits have received proper training and practice. The group is hardworking, team-oriented and positive, she said.
“It's a nice, diverse class,” Crist said. “They come from all different backgrounds. Some have fire backgrounds. … Some are starting from the ground up and learning everything they've ever known about fire here, in our academy.”
LFR used a concrete house designated for practice to create the scenario. The structure, which has been around since the 1960s, was filled with plywood and straw.
They took a match to the inside, waited for the flames to grow, and then let the newbies work.
The team practiced 15 times, switching roles each round so everyone felt proficient in each position.
Recruit Daniel Moore said he felt more confident after battling the blaze.
“We've been out here for weeks really practicing hard,” Moore said. “It's nice to really get those reps in with a live fire and really see what we got.”
Moore’s class is finishing 13 weeks of fire training before moving onto EMS training for another six weeks. The crew will then move onto additional training on their rigs.
Moore said his experience with LFR has been positive so far, and he believes the instructors have given the recruits a chance to be successful. His fellow recruits are highly motivated, he said.
“It's been a family atmosphere,” Moore said. “Everyone comes down here with a smile on their face, and they really want to show you what they have to offer.”
Jenna Thompson is a news intern who has previous writing and editing experience with her college paper and several literary journals. She is a senior at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln pursuing degrees in English and journalism.
Residents along the O Street corridor said the constant noise of racing and burnouts is not just the soundtrack to Memorial Day but persists year-round. And despite decades of police enforcement efforts, that hasn't changed.
Lancaster County's Tactical Response Unit found Jesse Salamanca hiding in the basement of a Lincoln residence around 5:40 p.m. Thursday, more than three hours after he had barricaded himself in the home, authorities said.
The man's first accuser told Bryan West staff that Delbert Taylor had sexually abused her as a child, and later told Lincoln Police the abuse began when she was around 6 years old, the investigator said in the arrest affidavit.
The so-called black box inside the Ford Taurus — more accurately known as an airbag control module — could tell investigators exactly what happened in the lead-up to a crash that killed two and injured 20.
Landon Ludwig initially faced a first-degree sexual assault charge, but he ultimately pleaded no contest to two counts of child abuse and criminal trespassing, all misdemeanors, as part of a plea deal.
Adventure Golf Center co-owner Dylan Bohlke will appear on the fourth season of the extreme putt-putt show "Holey Moley." The program will air on ABC Tuesday at 7 p.m. and play for the public on the Railyard's big screens.
Kyvell Stark turned himself into police Tuesday morning, and Police Chief Teresa Ewins said he would be charged with two counts of manslaughter and two counts of driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol.
Lincoln Fire and Rescue used a concrete house designated for practice for Thursday's training session. The structure, which has been around since the 1960s, was filled with plywood and straw. | https://journalstar.com/news/local/watch-now-lfr-recruits-suit-up-for-live-fire-simulation/article_7912aea5-7f0f-5002-aa24-bc5a9115ca3e.html | 2022-06-09T23:47:51 | 1 | https://journalstar.com/news/local/watch-now-lfr-recruits-suit-up-for-live-fire-simulation/article_7912aea5-7f0f-5002-aa24-bc5a9115ca3e.html |
Shreveport fire department rescues 5 dogs outside Thursday morning house fire
Five dogs were rescued outside a Shreveport home that burned down Thursday morning.
Shreveport Fire Department received a call at 10:30 a.m. to the 2000 block of Wool Street for a home on fire.
Upon arrival, firefighters located a fully involved home. The blaze spread to the yard catching several vehicles on fire from the intense heat.
The homeowner was able to safely escape unharmed prior to the arrival of firefighters, but five dogs had to be rescued from the yard.
Due to the condition of the home and the magnitude, a defensive attack was used to extinguish the fire. The blaze was brought under control at 11:06 a.m.
No injuries were reported and the fire is currently under investigation.
More:3 arrested in connection with May killing of 13-year-old Shreveport girl shot through house
Makenzie Boucher is a reporter with the Shreveport Times. Contact her at mboucher@gannett.com. | https://www.shreveporttimes.com/story/news/local/2022/06/09/5-dogs-were-rescued-thursday-morning-fire/7570556001/ | 2022-06-09T23:51:47 | 0 | https://www.shreveporttimes.com/story/news/local/2022/06/09/5-dogs-were-rescued-thursday-morning-fire/7570556001/ |
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