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PORTLAND, Maine — A fresh catch could help battle the rash that browntail moth caterpillars can spread this time of year. Two scientists in Maine have developed a lotion that they say eases dermatitis, and its main ingredient comes from one of Maine's most popular things to eat: lobster.
Amber Boutiette and Patrick Breeding founded Marin Skincare, as Boutiette struggled with her own eczema battle.
"While in graduate school at UMaine for biomedical engineering, we met Dr. Bob Bayer, a lobster scientist researching a glycoprotein found in lobster that allows [a] lobster to fight off disease, heal wounds, and even regenerate limbs," the two share in their story on their webpage. "He discovered in the same way the glycoprotein helps lobster regenerate limbs, it could actually help repair the skin barrier."
The website write-up goes on to read, "After trying everything and seeing some in vitro data from the lab, we said 'what the heck' and decided to try a glycoprotein-rich formula on Amber's skin. After patch-testing to make sure it was safe and non-irritating, she began using the prototype cream on her entire body, face, and eyelids."
Boutiette says the results set them on a new life course to create Marin Skincare because the dry and flaky patches of her skin were starting to clear up. Within two weeks of using the protein, Boutiette says the patches on her skin were gone.
Boutiette and Breeding continue to study the healing effects of this lobster glycoprotein, partnering with a lobster processor in Saco to extract it for their face/body cream.
"We partnered with Luke's [Lobster] because he has multiple times been supplier of the year with Whole Foods, so he makes sure to handle the lobster in the most sustainable and ethical way possible," Breeding said. "He knows all the fishermen catching the lobster."
The lobster is already being processed to ship all over the country as food, but the protein was just excess going down the drain. This partnership helps both parties and cuts back on waste, Breeding said.
"The lobstermen will put it on, we've seen it multiple times, they'll put it on and be like, 'Ha! This stuff's pretty good,'" Breeding joked. Marin's first employee is also a fan of the cream, which she says cleared up her eczema and changed her life.
"I took a shower, put it on my entire body face hands whole body, and I immediately was like wow. It's not stinging anywhere, it's not itchy, it just feels amazing," Allie Alfonso said. "I told my mom immediately we're going to need more."
Alfonso reached out to Marin Skincare and shared her story, and also shared her story on her Instagram showing her real, unfiltered face of eczema. Breeding and Boutiette talked with Alfonso for a few hours, then asked if she wanted a job with them helping them create a community for those suffering from eczema.
"I graduated college and moved to Maine within a week. I had never been here before, I found an apartment, hadn’t even looked at it in person and it was like, this just feels right like it’s what I'm meant to do," Alfonso said.
Breeding and Boutiette say their cream can be used on any part of the body, including the face, and helps repair the skin barrier affected by many different things: psoriasis, shingles, sunburns, and even the rash caused by the browntail moth caterpillar.
"Turns out the browntail moth rash is actually a form of dermatitis. It's contact dermatitis, which is eczema," Boutiette said.
"Last year it was crazy, it was the worst browntail moth caterpillar season ever and everything was sold out from the steroids to the ingredients to DIY remedies, there were no more solutions," Breeding said. "I think people just grabbed our product as a last resort and it turned out to help better than the other things that we were using. And it's better for you because steroids often caused more harm to the skin than good."
Marin Skincare can be found online and in retail stores such as Nathan's Pharmacy in Boothbay Harbor and Toad and Co. in Freeport. | https://www.newscentermaine.com/article/news/local/using-lobster-to-ease-the-itch-of-the-browntail-moth-health-environment/97-072329af-a9dc-4b05-aedd-9ab277d0196c | 2022-07-06T00:15:18 | 1 | https://www.newscentermaine.com/article/news/local/using-lobster-to-ease-the-itch-of-the-browntail-moth-health-environment/97-072329af-a9dc-4b05-aedd-9ab277d0196c |
SANFORD, Maine — The family of Jill Sidebotham is speaking out Tuesday, five days after the disappearance of Jill, her two-year-old daughter, and who her family described as her ex-boyfriend, Nicholas Hansen.
"I'm not sure if maybe we misunderstood something ... But I don't think she would pull this," Reta Lyman said.
Lyman, Jill's oldest sister, said the last time Jill contacted her family was Tuesday.
"I'm the oldest, I'm supposed to be the one that looks after them but I can't ... I don't know what to do," Lyman said. "She's a good mom ... we need her back."
The Sanford Police Department says the trio was camping in the Phillips area in Franklin County. Jill's family said they were supposed to return home Thursday.
The family was last seen driving a 2005 Volkswagen Jetta with the Maine license plate 1563VJ, according to a Facebook post by Sanford police.
Jill's father, Ron Sidebotham, said leaving for such a long period of time is not common behavior for his daughter.
"I was worried the second my wife told me what they were doing ... I hate to say it but I don't trust the guy, there have been past issues with him," the father said.
Sanford police told NEWS CENTER Maine they don't consider the disappearance suspicious at this time, though they contacted every county agency to be on the lookout for the trio.
"We're really scared right now," Ron Sidebotham said. "Not knowing is almost as bad as if something bad did happen, not knowing is just eating away and eating away."
Sanford police are requesting tips from the public. If you have any information about these individuals, please call Sanford police at 207-324-9170.
More NEWS CENTER Maine stories | https://www.newscentermaine.com/article/news/local/were-really-scared-right-now-family-pleading-for-publics-help-finding-missing-mom-maine/97-d04766b5-f6eb-45f9-b26c-77f54424694c | 2022-07-06T00:15:24 | 1 | https://www.newscentermaine.com/article/news/local/were-really-scared-right-now-family-pleading-for-publics-help-finding-missing-mom-maine/97-d04766b5-f6eb-45f9-b26c-77f54424694c |
DALLAS — Around 11,000 calls will funnel through Envision Dallas's call center every month through the city's 311 line.
David Stupay, the managing director of Envision Dallas, said a three-year contract was signed with the City of Dallas. Seven people with blindness or visual impairment will be taking 70 percent of the city's municipal court calls. Three of those individuals are bilingual.
Stupay said, "The city manager and the director of the 311 Call Center came to us and said we have this amazing problem. We're dropping hundreds of thousands of calls a year. We're having backup for all of our numbers and our wait times are incredible. And so we started talking about this opportunity."
The program went through a successful trial period, and now a contract is officially signed between the city and Envision Dallas.
"There's 150,000 people in North Texas who are blind or visually impaired. 70 percent of them are unemployed," said Stupay.
The call center is located at Envision Dallas's office, where resources are available. Zoomtext is used to help the visually impaired magnify text on the computer. And JAWS, Job Access With Speech, is a program for people who are blind. It recites what's on the screen in a person's left ear, while he or she can hear the customer's call in the right ear.
Esmeralda Paugh is one of the customer service representatives who will be taking the 311 calls. She is visually impaired, diagnosed with congenital glaucoma as a baby.
Paugh said a career can be hard to find for someone with her condition. "The thing that I don't think people understand is they slap "equal opportunity", but it's really not." She said her skills are often overlooked because of her vision. Envision gave her the career opportunity that many other employers wouldn't. She said, "They've allowed me to essentially create my own career here."
She's looking forward to taking the 311 line calls for the City of Dallas. Most of the calls will be regarding municipal court and letting customers know what their options are. She knows her work will make a difference in the community.
Envision Dallas is a nonprofit and the largest employer in Texas for people who are blind or visually impaired. | https://www.wfaa.com/article/news/local/dallas-311-contracts-jobs-to-envision-dallas/287-ad9429b4-bd0c-43de-b31a-d63475e0da45 | 2022-07-06T00:16:16 | 1 | https://www.wfaa.com/article/news/local/dallas-311-contracts-jobs-to-envision-dallas/287-ad9429b4-bd0c-43de-b31a-d63475e0da45 |
DALLAS — The legality behind a 10-year-long program that allows undocumented youth to have temporary permission to stay in the U.S. is being questioned in court.
Wednesday at 9 a.m., the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals will hear oral arguments about the legality of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, program.
Under the Barrack Obama administration, DACA was created in June of 2012 to provide temporary relief from deportation and work authorization to young undocumented immigrants who pass certain qualifications.
Naomi Rios lives and works in North Texas. She has been a DACA recipient, also known as a “Dreamer," for nine out of the last 10 years. Rios was 15 when she first applied and was accepted by the program. She and her family came to the U.S. from Mexico when she was two years old.
"I wish more people were more open to understanding our story and why we deserve to be here," Rios said.
Rios is currently employed as the crime victim's program case manager at the Human Rights Initiative of North Texas, which is a 21-year-old organization that provides free social services for immigrant survivors of human rights abuses. This includes:
- Asylum-seekers fleeing persecution based on religion, race, ethnicity, political opinion, or membership in a particular social group
- Those protected under the Violence Against Women Act, the Victims of Trafficking and the Violence Protection Act
- Immigrants abused by a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident (Green Card holder) spouse
- Immigrant children who are victims of violent crimes, neglect, abuse or abandonment
To qualify for DACA, individuals must meet the following criteria:
- Are under 31 years of age as of June 15, 2012
- Came to the U.S. while under the age of 16
- Have continuously resided in the U.S. from June 15, 2007, to the present
- Entered the U.S. without inspection or fell out of lawful visa status before June 15, 2012
- Were physically present in the United States on June 15, 2012, and at the time of making the request for consideration of deferred action with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
- Are currently in school, have graduated from high school, have obtained a GED, or have been honorably discharged from the Coast Guard or armed forces
- Have not been convicted of a felony offense, a significant misdemeanor, or more than three misdemeanors of any kind
- Do not pose a threat to national security or public safety
Rios said one of the main misconceptions people have about Dreamers is that they don't pay taxes. DACA recipients pay about $6.2 billion in federal taxes and $3.3 billion in state and local taxes each year, according to the nonpartisan policy institute The Center for American Progress.
"I don't really feel angry," Rios said. "I just feel disappointed that people follow that kind of rhetoric."
Working in the crime victim's program for the Human Rights Initiative, Rios said she meets with clients one-on-one and deals with a lot of women who are victims of domestic violence. Many of the people Rios works with are from Mexico, El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala.
"All of our clients have a lot of different types of needs," Rios said. "We have unfortunate stories. A lot of my clients come from their home countries with trauma and crime to the U.S. to seek a safe life."
Rios is one of the 101,000 DACA recipients currently living in Texas, according to the nonprofit immigration advocacy group FWD.us. This is the second-most in the country behind California.
The average age of these recipients in Texas is 29 while the average amount of time spent in the U.S. is 23 years.
In July 2021, a federal judge in Texas ruled that the program is illegal because its creation "violated, and its continued existence violates, the procedural and substantive aspects of the Administration Procedure Act (APA)."
President Joe Biden and his team appealed this ruling, which is why oral arguments are happening Wednesday morning.
Bill Holston is the executive director at the Human Rights Initiative of North Texas. He said he expects this case to end up in the Supreme Court.
"I don't know that lawyers ever say 100% as to anything, but it's really close to 100%," Holston said.
Both Holston and Rios said DACA is only a temporary fix to the much larger immigration issue that is in need of reform.
"We shouldn't be having to rely on DACA for individuals who have been here since the age of two and are working and teaching school and practicing the law and practicing medicine," Holston said. "We shouldn't be relying on this sort of bandaid of DACA for them to have status in the United States."
"We want a permanent solution," Rios said. "A pathway to citizenship. We deserve it for several reasons, including us being a part of the community. I think there needs to be comprehensive immigration reform. I think that's the better answer for the long run. It really needs to expand. It's long overdue."
RELATED: 'Looking for the American dream' | San Antonio community remembers 53 human smuggling victims
Rios said she went to school for social work and loves the people she gets to work with for her job. She also said she's been stressed about Thursday's hearing and what that could mean for her livelihood.
"Our clients are humble," Rios said. "Our clients are very resilient. They're strong. Even though they've suffered or they've experienced several traumatic experiences, they do their best to keep moving forward. If DACA were to be removed or ended, it's possible that I could lose my employment here at HRI."
If the legality of DACA changes, Holston said his organization's lawyers and social workers would be tasked with explaining that to their clients.
"DACA exists because of the extraordinary efforts of immigrant communities to advocate for this," Holston said."This is an extremely sympathetic group of people. I barely ever meet anybody who is not sympathetic to dreamers and DACA recipients."
Holston said his team often times comes into contact with immigrants who are wary of giving their personal information to the government.
"Administrations don't last forever, and we've had to have really, really candid conversations with clients," Holston said. "There's no way we could guarantee this information is not going to be used by the government to identify you. We wouldn't be doing our job if we didn't explain that risk." | https://www.wfaa.com/article/news/local/federal-appeals-court-oral-arguments-texas-ruling-daca-is-unlawful/287-cc966e9d-4dc1-4a30-aec2-db309b1ab3ef | 2022-07-06T00:16:22 | 1 | https://www.wfaa.com/article/news/local/federal-appeals-court-oral-arguments-texas-ruling-daca-is-unlawful/287-cc966e9d-4dc1-4a30-aec2-db309b1ab3ef |
DALLAS — A local activist is suing more than a dozen law enforcement agencies two years after she, among others, was injured by police during a peaceful protest at Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge in Dallas.
The civil suit, filed in May, is being put forth by Pamela Grayson, the director of the Collective Activism Social Justice Coordination Center, who is representing herself in the case without a lawyer. There are 20 defendants in the suit, including municipal, state and federal law enforcement agencies such as the Dallas Police Department, as well as departments with Garland, Allen, University Park, and Highland Park. Other defendants listed include the FBI, ATF, the U.S. National Guard, the Dallas County Sheriff’s Office and the City of Dallas.
Dallas protestors gathered on the bridge June 1, 2020, following the death of George Floyd in custody of Minneapolis police officers. Grayson was one of the protestors in attendance, she states in the suit. While there, she states Dallas police officers repeatedly used extreme, lethal force against the crowds, which she described as peaceful and non-threatening. This force included smoke bombs, tear gas, flash-bangs, pepper balls, mace and “kinetic impact projectiles.”
“And without regard to the ongoing global pandemic involving respiratory disease COVID-19, police have teargassed and smoke-bombed protesters, many of whom may have already been infected with COVID-19, making them more likely to suffer simply because they exercised their First Amendment rights,” Grayson writes in the civil suit filing.
Grayson is asking for monetary relief for the injuries she sustained from the actions of law enforcement during the protest, and stating the excessive force violated her First, Fourth and Fourteenth Amendment rights. Dallas police officers included as defendants in the suit, Ryan Mabry and Melvin Williams, as well as Garland police officer Joe Previtt have all been indicted previously for exhibiting excessive force to peaceful protestors during the event.
The scene is described by Grayson as officers waiting at the east end of the bridge during the protest.
“The protestors were met on the east end of the bridge by a line of police officers that were grinning from ear to ear as if they knew they were getting ready to inflict pain on this group of innocent protestors in their angst to disrespect their First Amendment rights to protest,” the suit states.
Grayson states she was preparing to get on the ground as instructed when she was struck by a non-lethal rocket shot in the head, causing her to fall to the ground and giving her a large bloody knot on her forehead. The smoke and tear gas in the air also impeded her ability to breathe, she writes.
After gathering her daughter and walking off the bridge, Grayson states she went to former Dallas Police Chief Renee Hall, who was at a 7-Eleven across the street, who she said blatantly admitted to Grayson that she should never have been shot.
“Chief Hall pretended to not know what members of law enforcement were on the bridge,” the suit states. “Chief Hall pretended to not know that her officers purposely blocked the protestor’s exit off the bridge with the intent of kettling to harm the protestors.”
Grayson is asking for compensatory and punitive damages in the suit to deter this type of conduct in the future, the suit reads.
Since the suit has been filed, seven of the defendants have filed motions to dismiss the suit on various grounds including qualified immunity and failure to specify acts by individual entities being sued.
“In her Petition, Grayson does not specifically allege that the Highland Park PD committed any actions which caused her to suffer an injury or that were substantially motivated against her exercise of constitutionally protected conduct,” Highland Park Police Department’s motion for dismissal reads. “Instead, Grayson just lobs a number of allegations against “Defendants,” collectively.”
A motion for dismissal by the Allen Police Department was filed by Gerald Bright, who also represents the Highland Park Police Department in this case and states similar reasoning.
The City of Garland and the Garland Police Department collectively filed a motion for dismissal against the suit, stating the claim is inadequately pleaded and cannot survive the motion.
“[Grayson] does not identify any specific actions taken by Garland, the Garland PD or any Garland officers that resulted in her alleged injuries,” the motion for dismissal reads. “The lack of allegations regarding any Garland police officers is explained quite simply. The Plaintiff cannot allege that any on-duty Garland police officer violated her Constitutional rights on June 1, 2020 because the Garland police department did not lend any aid or assistance to the City of Dallas or have an on-duty officer on or near the Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge on June 1, 2020. There was no Garland police officer there to allegedly violate the Plaintiff’s Constitutional rights.”
A motion for dismissal filed by the DPS states the Eleventh Amendment bars lawsuits in federal court against a state, or one of its departments or agencies, by anyone other than another state or the federal government, regardless of what relief is requested. | https://www.wfaa.com/article/news/local/local-activist-suing-dallas-pd-local-federal-law-enforcement-agencies/287-24a40480-64d0-4a7e-a468-b8c1270991f0 | 2022-07-06T00:16:28 | 1 | https://www.wfaa.com/article/news/local/local-activist-suing-dallas-pd-local-federal-law-enforcement-agencies/287-24a40480-64d0-4a7e-a468-b8c1270991f0 |
DALLAS — Traditionally, 4th of July weekend is the most violent weekend of the year in Dallas. Last year there were 10 people shot and 4 others died from gun violence.
But this weekend was different.
”We had no lives lost to gunfire this weekend. We had 25 less shootings this weekend than we had last year,” said Chief Eddie Garcia, Dallas Police Department.
Chief Eddie Garcia says they brought in more officers on overtime, cancelled some vacations and put officers in areas where violence tends to erupt.
”What happened over the weekend was not an accident. It was not luck. It was because hard-working men and women sacrificed their family time, sacrificed their 4th of July to do the best for this city,” said Garcia.
Garcia says he wishes he had that kind of man power every weekend but the department needs more resources. There are currently 3,081 sworn officers but he says he needs 3,500. He says his department is stretched thin.
”No question that with more resources we can move the needle even further than we have done here,” said Garcia.
He says, as the Chief, his greatest concern is gun violence with more than 400 million firearms in circulation across the U.S.
”As a police chief you know legislation is great but it’s not going to miraculously dissolve every fire arm that’s in circulation,” said Garcia.
So they focus on taking illegal firearms and violent criminals off the street but that is also where the community comes in.
Mar Butler is a violence interrupter with Dallas Cred, an extension of Youth Advocate Programs, and he agrees.
His organization is teaming up with other groups to get the message out that the community has to be part of the solution.
”We need to come together to get involved. We know exactly where the violent crime is going to begin before it even happens but yet we still stay silent, and silence is condoning violence. We have to speak up,” said Butler.
He says he knows there can be distrust of law enforcement and that’s why he and others go into the most violent areas to get people to talk to them.
”This is our city and our problem and we have to get involved some kind of way. We can’t keep giving permission to criminals to commit violence,” said Butler.
Both Garcia and Butler agree the first step is crime reduction but the next step is strengthening neighborhoods by working with schools and groups that help with redevelopment. You also have to give people hope. | https://www.wfaa.com/article/news/local/we-had-no-one-die-gun-violence-dallas-police-chief-less-violence-this-year-than-last-4th-july-bringing-more-officers/287-161013f4-88d7-4b06-84ba-902bea252ea4 | 2022-07-06T00:16:34 | 1 | https://www.wfaa.com/article/news/local/we-had-no-one-die-gun-violence-dallas-police-chief-less-violence-this-year-than-last-4th-july-bringing-more-officers/287-161013f4-88d7-4b06-84ba-902bea252ea4 |
A 36-year-old California man was arrested in Lincoln on Thursday after a traffic stop led investigators to 119 individual 1-pound bags of marijuana, deputies said in court records.
Lancaster County Sheriff's Deputy Jason Mayo stopped Fong Vang, of Fresno, for following too close on Interstate 80 near the Northwest 48th Street exit, according to the affidavit for Vang's arrest.
Mayo encountered an "overwhelming odor of raw marijuana" when he contacted Vang. Mayo found the vacuum-sealed bags of marijuana in the trunk of Vang's rental car.
Deputies arrested Vang on suspicion of possession of marijuana with intent to deliver, a Class 2 felony because of the quantity of the drug.
Vang posted bond and was released from the Lancaster County Jail on Tuesday.
A Kansas City, Missouri, native, Andrew Wegley joined the Journal Star as breaking news reporter after graduating from Northwest Missouri State University in May 2021.
The 21-year-old initially told police he was confident everyone at the rural Fillmore County party was of legal age to drink. But investigators later found at least 50 attendees were under 21, according to court filings.
Steven A. Alexander was arrested Tuesday morning on suspicion of first-degree assault, manslaughter and use of a deadly weapon to commit a felony in connection with the fatal stabbing of 26-year-old Austin Gress on Friday.
19-year-old Alexandor Eskra was driving a Subaru east in the inside lane of O Street near 37th Street around 9:30 p.m. Saturday when a westbound Ford Focus crossed the raised median and collided with Eskra's vehicle, according to police.
Christopher Gardner had been traveling north on 27th Street near Arbor Road around 7:30 p.m. Tuesday when he ran the stop sign at the T-intersection and entered the bean field, Sheriff Terry Wagner said.
The investigation into the 20-year-old man started in May, when he began sending emails to district employees mentioning a specific administrator, according to police.
Fire investigators determined the fire started in a garbage can and crept up the side of the house, entering the attic and causing damage to the siding of a neighboring residence, according to a city housing complaint.
The woman had been driving near 12th and A streets around 3:30 p.m. Sunday when she noticed a white sedan following her, the police said. An occupant of the sedan fired a gun at the woman's car, leaving six bullet holes.
No one was injured in the incident, which occurred around 5 p.m. Thursday near 190th Street along Bennet Road, spilling coal along the rail line and closing access to adjacent roads for several hours. | https://journalstar.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/california-man-caught-in-lincoln-traffic-stop-with-119-pounds-of-marijuana-deputies-say/article_46b6dc2a-979d-5133-afef-2ebcae4651a8.html | 2022-07-06T00:18:02 | 1 | https://journalstar.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/california-man-caught-in-lincoln-traffic-stop-with-119-pounds-of-marijuana-deputies-say/article_46b6dc2a-979d-5133-afef-2ebcae4651a8.html |
Maroon 5 has canceled its North American tour, including an Aug. 10 date at Pinnacle Bank Arena.
The pop rock band, which includes guitarist James Valentine, a Lincoln native, announced on Tuesday the cancellation of the tour on its Facebook page.
“Very regrettably, we have decided to cancel our upcoming North American tour,” the band wrote. “A combination of unexpected issues and exponentially increased costs have impeded our ability to confidently present the first class show that you deserve.
“This is an incredibly difficult decision for us. We never want to disappoint our fans and we know some of you have waited patiently throughout the pandemic for rescheduled shows. Although current events and the ups and downs of the global economy are outside of our control, we sincerely and genuinely apologize for the situation and we thank you for your continued support.”
Maroon 5 had been slated for a Pinnacle Bank Arena show in 2020, but it was postponed, then canceled because of the COVID-19. The Aug. 10 date was announced in April as part of a short North American tour of about 20 dates.
Tickets for that tour had to be resold as the 2020 shows were refunded. The announcement implies that ticket sales were not strong enough to pay for this year’s tour.
In Lincoln, arena officials were given no reason for the cancellation, according to manager Tom Lorenz.
Credit card purchases made online at ticketmaster.com or in person will be automatically refunded and no action is necessary. All other tickets will be refunded at the point of purchase.
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Elton John concert, 3.27
Elton John points to the crowd after he finishes the opener, "Bennie And The Jets," Sunday at Pinnacle Bank Arena.
The Lincoln Police Department said Kevin Clements, 59, died when the chimney fell through his house in the Country Club Neighborhood after being struck by a tree branch.
The 21-year-old initially told police he was confident everyone at the rural Fillmore County party was of legal age to drink. But investigators later found at least 50 attendees were under 21, according to court filings.
History Nebraska gave Lincoln a $40,000 grant to develop a management plan for Robber’s Cave, digitize material, make more information available on the website and to hold lectures.
A public open house is scheduled for 5:30-7:30 Thursday night in the Lincoln Southwest High School gym to discuss a proposal to redesign the intersection of 14th Street, Old Cheney Road and Warlick Boulevard.
Steven A. Alexander was arrested Tuesday morning on suspicion of first-degree assault, manslaughter and use of a deadly weapon to commit a felony in connection with the fatal stabbing of 26-year-old Austin Gress on Friday. | https://journalstar.com/news/local/maroon-5-cancels-its-north-american-tour-including-aug-10-lincoln-concert/article_399e38b9-1370-5ff2-90a8-204bc4f0b0f0.html | 2022-07-06T00:18:08 | 1 | https://journalstar.com/news/local/maroon-5-cancels-its-north-american-tour-including-aug-10-lincoln-concert/article_399e38b9-1370-5ff2-90a8-204bc4f0b0f0.html |
CHARLESTON, WV (WOWK) — These last few days, everyone’s fans and air conditioning systems have been working overtime.
“It’s hard to do without these days,” said Charleston HVAC specialist Jerry Hilbert.
At a time when prices are going up on just about everything, keeping the AC running can also mean your bank account is running low.
“It’s getting more expensive all the time,” continued Hilbert.
Today, 13 news spoke with a few HVAC specialists to learn how you can keep the cool air in and money in your pocket.
“Close your curtains, and try to keep the sun from baking through a window. It’s like a magnifying glass. Use a fan. Try to use a fan,” said Charleston HVAC specialist Jay Marino. “Another thing we tell people is change your filters. Change them every thirty days during these heat waves and these crises.”
Now, something HVAC specialists said you shouldn’t do to save money is turn your AC off.
“You don’t want the house to just heat up and then try to pull all of that heat out because it’s hard for the system to do that in any normal time,” Hilbert said.
If you’re going on vacation, just turn it up a few degrees, and when you’re home, specialists say set your thermometer 15 degrees cooler than outside temperatures.
“If it gets really up into the 90s and 100s, if it’s keeping 75, 78, then it’s probably doing it all can really do,” Hilbert said.
If you do have to call someone like Hilbert or Marino, they said do it sooner, rather than later.
“If something is rattling and it doesn’t sound quite right, don’t put it off,” Marino said. “Call the first time you hear it and that will give us the opportunity to come and check it and if something needs to be ordered we have more time.” | https://www.wowktv.com/news/local/how-to-stay-cool-without-breaking-your-bank/ | 2022-07-06T00:23:57 | 1 | https://www.wowktv.com/news/local/how-to-stay-cool-without-breaking-your-bank/ |
SHERIDAN, Ore. — Prison officials at the Federal Correctional Institution in Sheridan, Oregon, denied showers last month to those held in a unit where people were engaged in a hunger strike, according to a court filing.
A court filing last week by a federal public defender says about 80 people housed in the detention center's "J2 Unit" were protesting conditions inside the facility's detention center. According to the Bureau of Prisons, on June 23 some of the men in custody at the prison southwest of Portland "did not accept their meals."
The following day, documents say prison warden DeWayne Hendrix issued a memo to people in that unit saying showers were postponed, Oregon Public Broadcasting reported.
"The purpose of this memorandum is to inform each of you that showers are postponed due to continued threats of assault to staff," Hendrix wrote. "Enhanced security procedures due to ongoing disruptive behavior will continue through the weekend and will be reevaluated on Monday. All issues brought to our attention are being reviewed."
Oregon Public Defender Lisa Hay noted in the court filing that temperatures in Sheridan reached 90 degrees (32 degrees Celsius) when showers were withheld.
The Bureau of Prisons didn't answer questions from OPB about the memo or whether the water was cut off in an effort to end the hunger strike.
U.S. Department of Justice attorneys, who represent the federal prison, said in a court filing of their own last week "that no inmates are currently on a hunger strike."
Conditions inside the federal prison have been the subject of concern since the pandemic took hold in 2020. Hay has in court filings detailed lockdowns that have lasted for days. In other filings, her office has documented poor medical and dental care that has left many suffering.
Since the pandemic began, seven people have died at the facility. | https://www.kgw.com/article/news/local/eastern-oregon/federal-prison-oregon-denied-showers-hunger-strike/283-26ebab0f-6dbb-4e6b-89e4-6ee459d7cbd9 | 2022-07-06T00:24:27 | 1 | https://www.kgw.com/article/news/local/eastern-oregon/federal-prison-oregon-denied-showers-hunger-strike/283-26ebab0f-6dbb-4e6b-89e4-6ee459d7cbd9 |
WASHINGTON, USA — Following the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, several celebrities and prominent female public figures shared their personal abortion experiences on social media in support of abortion rights.
Other prominent women, including Washington lawmakers, also revealed their abortion experiences.
Some shared their stories at abortion rights rallies.
Thousands of people rallied for abortion rights outside the U.S. Supreme Court following the ruling. Among those in the crowd was Washington Sen. Mona Das (D-47th Legislative District).
Das stepped up, grabbed a megaphone and told the crowd she, too, had an abortion when she was in her early 20s.
“I had to. It was important,” Das said. “It was the moment.”
Das said hearing other Washington women leaders share their abortion stories inspired her to do the same.
“I was tired of the shame,” Das said. “Twenty-seven years of carrying this secret. I knew it was my turn to share.”
Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal openly shared that she had an abortion in the past, and recently state representative Beth Doglio shared her story at a rally.
“I made a choice to have an abortion. My first son was an infant. My husband’s job required him to work around the clock, so I was managing mostly on my own, and I did not feel that I was emotionally, mentally or physically able to handle another child at that time,” Doglio said. “Parenting is by far the hardest job I have ever had.”
Doglio, who is running as the democratic candidate for the House of Representatives in the 22nd Legislative District and a former Washington state legislator, said she had her second child five years later.
“I know that by making that choice, I was a better mother and a better partner to the three people I love and cherish most in this world, my two sons and my husband,” Doglio said.
To watch KING 5’s Farah Jadran’s full interview with Das and Doglio about their abortion experiences and their views on the future of abortion rights, see the video player above.
Republican Washington state senator for ‘pro choices’
Washington State Rep. Jenny Graham (R-6th Legislative District) said she is an abortion survivor after her mother chose to carry her to term despite a family member’s urging her to have an abortion. Her mother is a survivor of domestic violence.
Graham told KING 5 that she understands both sides of pro-life and pro-choice stances.
“There is such a divide,” Graham said. “You’re either pro-choice or pro-life, but people like me are ‘pro choices.’"
Graham said wants to see funding focused on supporting women during pregnancy and after the birth of their children - “giving women choices,” including putting their child up for adoption. She said the nation’s adoption process needs to be “easier,” so people hoping to become parents do not have to seek international adoptions.
As a child and teen sexual assault survivor, Graham said she considers herself lucky because she did not get pregnant at the time.
“I’m lucky I wasn’t put in that position to make that choice,” Graham said. “It’s a tough situation.” | https://www.kgw.com/article/news/local/washington-state-senator-legislator-abortion-storiest-pro-rights-rally/281-0e0b82f8-1fdd-40f4-980c-fc02e02a4a1e | 2022-07-06T00:24:33 | 0 | https://www.kgw.com/article/news/local/washington-state-senator-legislator-abortion-storiest-pro-rights-rally/281-0e0b82f8-1fdd-40f4-980c-fc02e02a4a1e |
Atlantic City is hosting the annual NAACP Convention in July for the second time ever. The resort City joins a long list of cities that have had the opportunity to host the convention. The event runs from July 14 through 21.
Here's a few highlights from other cities that hosted the convention.
- The first two NAACP Convention's took place in 1909 and 1910 respectively at the Cooper Union in New York City. Immediately following the second annual convention, the NAACP established their national office in the city.
- In 1929, Cleveland, OH hosted the convention and as of right now, this was the only time that the convention was held in the state of Ohio.
- Texas has hosted the convention several times over the years and in 1954, the state hosted it for the first time in Dallas.
- Washington D.C. first hosted the event in 1988 and since then, the convention has taken place at the U.S. capitol only one more time which was 2006.
- Houston, TX hosted the convention for the first of three times in 1991 at the George Brown Convention Center. No other city aside from New York has played host to the convention more times than Houston.
- In 2000, the 91st NAACP Convention took place in Baltimore, MD and this was the second time that the city played host to the convention. Texas Gov. turned President George W. Bush was one of the keynote speakers and in his speech, he promised that if he was elected he would put civil rights enforcement at the forefront of his administration.
- The 92nd convention in 2001 was held at the Earnest N. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans, LA. This is the only time that the convention was held in Louisiana.
- In 2005, Milwaukee, WI hosted the event for the first time and it came as a surprise to some people as the city was selected by the NAACP national planning committee over Los Angeles, CA.
- The centennial convention in 2009 took place at the Hilton in N.Y.C where Barack Obama attended and spoke at the event for the first time since becoming president.
- In 2010, Kansas City, KS was the host city and First Lady Michelle Obama and Rev’s Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton were some of the keynote speakers.
- For the third time, Houston, TX hosted the convention in 2012 with Vice President Joe Biden, presidential candidate Mitt Romney and then Attorney General Eric Holder being some of the notable speakers.
- Philadelphia, PA played host to the event in 2015 and President Barack Obama and former President Bill Clinton highlighted the speakers at the convention.
- Cincinnati hosted for the second time in ten years in 2016 and presidential candidate Hillary Clinton was a notable speaker.
- The last in person convention before this year took place in Detroit in 2019. Biden spoke once again as well as Kamala Harris, Elizabeth Warren, and Nancy Pelosi. | https://pressofatlanticcity.com/news/local/atlantic-city-joins-long-list-of-cities-to-have-hosted-the-naacp-national-convention/article_57e6debe-f969-11ec-8d3d-6fa04761da29.html | 2022-07-06T00:25:48 | 0 | https://pressofatlanticcity.com/news/local/atlantic-city-joins-long-list-of-cities-to-have-hosted-the-naacp-national-convention/article_57e6debe-f969-11ec-8d3d-6fa04761da29.html |
NORTHFIELD — Atlantic County workers in two unions will receive 4% to 5% annual raises in recently settled contracts approved Tuesday by the Board of Commissioners.
The contracts with CWA Local 1040 Facilities Management and Supported Employment and CWA Local 1040 Intergenerational Services will run from Jan. 1, 2021 through Dec. 31, 2024.
The increases for both groups will be 4% for 2021, 5% for 2022 and 4% for both 2023 and 2024, according to memorandums of agreement passed by the board.
“We are making an investment in our employees with these contracts,” said Commissioner Amy Gatto, of Hamilton Township. “There are some nice increases for the employees there.”
Union members have been working under a contract that expired in December 2020. Once the new increases take effect, they will be paid retroactively.
Base salary ranges in Facilities Management and Supported Employment now go from $33,330 for Grade A jobs such as office services manager and assistant program analyst to $43,800 for Grade E positions such as building superintendent and principal accountant.
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In 2016, Atlantic City’s local government was broke. It could not pay its employees or fund …
Base salary ranges in Intergenerational Services will now start at $34,330 for positions such as office services manager and increase to $43,330 for jobs such as director of family counseling.
For both unions, starting in 2023, NJ Direct 2030 will be the base health insurance plan for all current and future employees, which is expected to result in a savings to the county; and Juneteenth was added as a holiday.
Commissioner Richard Dase, of Galloway Township, asked whether unions are asking for extra sick days to handle required quarantines for COVID-19.
“We haven’t been having those discussions at all,” said County Administrator Jerry DelRosso. “They are not asking for additional sick time.”
“I commend the county and those involved negotiating these agreements,” said Commissioner John Risley. “They are very fair.”
Meanwhile, Democratic Commissioner Caren Fitzpatrick, of Linwood, withdrew her resolution, co-sponsored by Democratic Commissioner Ernest Coursey, of Atlantic City, in support of a gas tax holiday. Other commissioners pointed out the board had passed a similar resolution in March.
NORTHFIELD — A four-year contract to give about 16 superior officers in the Atlantic County …
“It seems to have gotten out of the headlines,” Fitzpatrick said in explanation. “We have this opportunity not only in the state but federally. Here in New Jersey, the two taxes are 60 cents a gallon, easily $100 a month per driver.”
Republican Commissioner Frank Balles, of Egg Harbor Township, sponsored the resolution that passed unanimously March 29.
“I’m perplexed. I don’t know how this differs from the resolution I sponsored and we all voted yes on,” Balles said. “We would be passing a resolution we already passed.”
“I agree it’s redundant, but if you don’t mind humoring me, to have it come from both sides of the aisle of our Board of Commissioners, maybe it will spur it on a little more,” Fitzpatrick said.
After discussion, the board agreed instead to resend the resolution passed earlier with a letter to the governor.
“Maybe our Democratic friends can make phone calls and lobby the governor to respond to our letter and resolution,” said Republican Commissioner Andrew Parker, who participated in the meeting virtually from a National Education Association meeting near Chicago. Parker said the entire convention was locked down for hours Monday as a result of a mass shooting in nearby Illinois.
The Hard Rock casino has reached agreement with Atlantic City’s main casino workers union, removing the last threat of a strike during the busy holiday weekend. Local 54 of the Unite Here union said it reached a tentative agreement with Hard Rock, avoiding a strike that had been threatened for 12:01 a.m. Sunday. Combined with agreements reached Thursday with the Borgata, Caesars, Harrah’s and the Tropicana, Hard Rock’s deal leaves only two smaller casinos, Resorts and the Golden Nugget, without a contract. But the union says it expects both of them to agree to one in the coming days.
The board took a moment of silence to remember the seven people killed and many others injured in the attack on a July 4 parade route in Highland Park.
The commissioners also recognized June Sheridan, of Egg Harbor Township, for her 20 years serving on the Atlantic County Cultural and Heritage Advisory Board.
Sheridan, 86, is retiring from her work for the county, she said, but is continuing as Egg Harbor Township historian.
“You’re going to have to take that away from me,” she joked. | https://pressofatlanticcity.com/news/local/atlantic-county-settles-contracts-with-2-unions-for-4-to-5-annual-increases/article_f7a5a352-fca9-11ec-8d77-6f9d64ee12e3.html | 2022-07-06T00:25:54 | 1 | https://pressofatlanticcity.com/news/local/atlantic-county-settles-contracts-with-2-unions-for-4-to-5-annual-increases/article_f7a5a352-fca9-11ec-8d77-6f9d64ee12e3.html |
CAPE MAY COURT HOUSE — As the spent skyrocket shells were still being collected after a packed Independence Day weekend, a county report released Tuesday indicates Cape May County’s tourism economy is no longer just a summertime proposition.
Relying on data from the occupancy taxes collected each year, the county’s Department of Tourism says more visitors are coming earlier in the spring and staying later into the fall.
The numbers don’t show the county has exactly become a year-round resort, but do make the case that it is now a destination seven months a year, rather than just three months in the summer.
June, July and August remain the main attraction, by far, but county officials say there are steady visits from April through October.
“Data from the pre- and post-summer season months over the past decade shows the steady growth and expansion of the tourism season from three to seven months,” said Diane Wieland, Cape May County’s director of tourism.
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Numbers from the New Jersey Treasury on occupancy taxes also show increases in the dead of winter.
Summer travel is underway across the globe, but a full recovery from two years of coronavirus could last as long as the pandemic itself. Interviews by The Associated Press in 11 countries this month show that the most passionate travelers are thronging to locales like the French Riviera, Amsterdam and the American Midwest. But even as safety restrictions fall, places like Israel, India and Rome are reporting only fractions of the record-setting tourism of 2019. For them, a full recovery isn't forecast until at least 2024. China, once the world's biggest source of tourists, remains closed per its “zero-COVID” policy. That's holding down the rebound in many countries.
“Growth during the winter months of January, February, and March has steadily grown compared to prior years,” Wieland said. “The five winter months, November through March can't compare to the revenue generated during the summer but does indicate a healthy and a promising expansion that can lean toward a nine-month to year-round tourism economy.”
Visitors pay a tax, averaging 5%, on hotels, motels and bed-and-breakfast inns. The amount raised from that tax offers an insight into the county’s economy, broken down by month and year.
Overnight visitors to the county spend an average of $374 a day. In 2021, the occupancy tax was well above previous years, and 2022 seems on track to beat that total according to recent numbers.
Wieland cited year-round attractions, such as ecotourism and the county’s breweries and wineries, as well as the efforts by resort towns to offer activities through the year.
“Cape May has moved closer to a year-round destination with the other resorts expanding the season through year-round special events. The Wildwoods Convention Center continues to generate shoulder season events that greatly impact winter visitors, and Ocean City has a high number of second homeowners who return year-round and support local businesses and events,” Wieland said.
Last year, the occupancy tax in Cape May County brought in more than $16 million, well up from $13 million in 2019, and this year, the numbers are also up for each month reported so far. The most recent report was from April, which also saw an increase over last year, at $641,567 compared with $430,513 in 2021.
CAPE MAY COURT HOUSE — After 31 years with the Cape May County Chamber of Commerce, includin…
These numbers come against the backdrop of 2020, when COVID-19 and the associated restrictions meant a terrible year for the tourist economy. The same occupancy tax numbers show the county brought in about one one-hundredth the money in April 2020 as it did the same month in 2019.
The county reported a steep recovery. After a decline of tourism expenditures of more than 21% over the course of 2020, the county economy mostly returned in 2021, officials reported.
Over the course of one year, the countywide tourism industry regained $1.2 billion, nearly all the $1.5 billion lost from the shutdowns and restrictions imposed during the pandemic, according to data from county officials. The county also saw an increase in visitors of more than 100,000 over 2019, and more than 2 million more visitors over 2020, with a record 10.3 million.
"The recovery was not solely a result of the substantial growth during July and August, but also included the fall and early winter as well as early spring growth, per the latest occupancy tax data reported,” said Wieland. “Cape May County saw considerable shoulder season growth which played a part in the overall recovery.”
Data from the pre- and post-summer season months over the past decade shows a steady growth and expansion of the tourism season, she said.
“Continued expansion of the tourism season is possible; but dependent on the ability of local businesses to open longer, open earlier or stay open year-round, and we can't control with marketing" Wieland said.
New Jersey lawmakers have passed a record $50.6 billion budget, sending the plan with billions in more spending compared with last year to Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy’s desk. The budget is 9% bigger than last year’s and comes courtesy of flush state coffers and rosier-than-expected tax returns. It also comes as Democrats who control the Legislature and governorship aim at making the state more affordable. The state treasury’s tax receipts might be bountiful now but economic unease is on legislators’ minds as they socked away $6 billion in surplus. The budget committee chairman called it a record amount that shows the state’s preparation to “protect taxpayers from potential downturns.”
There are other factors. Expanding the year will require businesses to stay open year-round. Wieland pointed to labor concerns, when finding enough workers is already a problem in the summer, and some existing businesses are not equipped to operate in the winter.
According to county officials, the post-COVID traveler is looking for experiences that include ecotourism and agritourism that are part of the culture tourism trend they say is changing the vacation needs and wants of travelers globally. Sustainable and nature-based attractions such as birding, hiking and trails bring visitors back to the county all year.
Gerald Thornton, who leads the Cape May County Board of Commissioners, said the occupancy tax collection rates show record numbers of county visits so far in 2022.
“Tracking this data clearly demonstrates the fact that the tourism season is expanding on both sides of the summer months,” Thornton said. “This is also an indication of the success of the Tourism Department's expanded marketing efforts to extend and accelerate the traditional summer season beyond the growth experienced during the pre-COVID years."
Thornton cited small business owners. Although Cape May County tourism is a multibillion-dollar concern, most of the county’s jobs are in small businesses rather than large chains.
“Year after year they defy the odds, work hard, and reinvent themselves to meet the challenges of the fragile tourism industry,” Thornton said. “Our county’s economy rests on their shoulders and our success is due to their tenacity and business acumen.” | https://pressofatlanticcity.com/news/local/cape-sees-tourism-expanding-beyond-the-summer/article_b0589b08-fca9-11ec-8780-a348f21e6326.html | 2022-07-06T00:26:00 | 0 | https://pressofatlanticcity.com/news/local/cape-sees-tourism-expanding-beyond-the-summer/article_b0589b08-fca9-11ec-8780-a348f21e6326.html |
MARLIN, Texas — Investigators are trying to figure out what caused the fires that burned a building in Downtown Marlin last week.
Authorities say firefighters from Marlin and surrounding fire crews responded to the sight of smoke coming from a building at 125 Commerce St. at 4:47 p.m. on July 1.
After seeing fallen embers igniting spot fires on the roofs of several downtown buildings, officials began evacuating people from nearby homes and businesses.
Officials were able to put out the fires on all but one building that had flame, smoke and water damage.
No injuries were reported.
No other information is available at this time.
Other stories on KCENTV.com: | https://www.kcentv.com/article/news/local/fire-in-downtown-marlin-last-week/500-be164bb9-cf1a-48bb-b037-d239e23aea72 | 2022-07-06T00:26:11 | 1 | https://www.kcentv.com/article/news/local/fire-in-downtown-marlin-last-week/500-be164bb9-cf1a-48bb-b037-d239e23aea72 |
TEMPLE, Texas — The families of two girls, 8 and 9, are filing wrongful death lawsuits against the social media giant "TikTok" after they both died from trying to participate in a challenge, according to the lawsuit.
One of the girls, Lalani Erika Walton, 8, was from Temple and the other girl, Arriani Jaileen Arroyo, 9, was from Milwaukee.
The lawsuits, which were filed in the Superior Court of California in Los Angeles, both allege that both girls died from self-strangulation after they tried to partake in the TikTok challenge, "Blackout Challenge," which reportedly encourages its users to choke themselves with items like belts, ropes and purse strings until they pass out.
The lawsuit highlights TikTok's algorithm saying it "intentionally and repeatedly" displayed the "Blackout Challenge" onto both girls' "For You Page... incentivizing them to participate in the challenge that ultimately took their lives."
“TikTok needs to be held accountable for pushing deadly content to these two young girls,” said attorney Matthew P. Bergman in a news release. “TikTok has invested billions of dollars to intentionally design products that push dangerous content that it knows are dangerous and can result in the deaths of its users.”
Walton died on July 15, 2021, according to the lawsuit. Prior to her death, Walton returned home from a roadtrip with her stepmother and was told to clean her room before they went to the pool. Her stepmother woke up from an hour nap and found Walton's door closed. When she opened it, she found Walton's body, got help from a neighbor to get her down and called police.
Authorities determined she died from self-asphyxiation "as a direct result of attempting TikTok's 'Blackout Challenge,' the lawsuit states.
The lawsuit also says her death wasn't intentional because the girl "had laid out her bathing suit in anticipation of going swimming."
Arroyo died in a similar fashion on Feb. 26, just a few months before Walton, the lawsuit says.
Also on KCENTV.com: | https://www.kcentv.com/article/news/local/lawsuit-temple-family-sues-tiktok-after-8-year-old-girl-dies-blackout-challenge/500-4cd684f5-fea6-4a30-8cd2-9d9b9f2eb28b | 2022-07-06T00:26:17 | 1 | https://www.kcentv.com/article/news/local/lawsuit-temple-family-sues-tiktok-after-8-year-old-girl-dies-blackout-challenge/500-4cd684f5-fea6-4a30-8cd2-9d9b9f2eb28b |
The sculling rowers of the Holy Spirit High School boys crew team had an outstanding season this spring.
Unlike the more well-known eight-boats and four-boats of the sport of crew, sculling features rowers with two oars instead of one, and there are no coxswains. The boats are smaller, and the categories are quad (four rowers), double (two rowers) and single (one).
Sculling, the specialty of the Holy Spirit boys team, usually gets less attention than the eights and fours, but this year the Spartans were the area’s most successful boys team.
Holy Spirit is The Press Boys Crew Team of the Year.
“The season went well. We’re still a small, high-performance team,” said Mike Giegerich, the Spartans boys crew coach. “We have 12 on the team and everybody contributes. We had our banquet and we found that everybody had a win this year during the season.”
The Spartans were led by varsity single rower Aidan Driscoll, the junior double crew of Mike Ricciardi and Andrew Krewmaker, and the lightweight double team of Nick Sarno and Mike Rodriguez.
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Driscoll, now a graduate, finished a close second in the boys varsity single final at the Scholastic Rowing Association of America Regatta on May 28 on the Cooper River in Camden County. Driscoll was the only area boy or girl who finished in the top three at the regatta, which is commonly called Nationals.
He rallied from fourth place and finished the 1,500-meter final in 5 minutes, 32.348 seconds. Winner Alden Weaver, of Haverford, Pennsylvania, won it in 5:32.418. The category had 17 rowers.
“Aidan was an amazing captain. A highly disciplined student and athlete,” Giegerich said. “He has the drive to win. Every day in practice he pushed himself. A lot of rowers have better erg scores than him, but he has the drive. He never quits.”
Driscoll won in a field of six rowers at the Garden State Championships (commonly called States) and was a winner at the Atlantic County Championships. He finished second to Weaver at the Philadelphia City Championships.
“Our team is small and we have about six or seven coaches, so you get a lot of one-on-one time with the coaches and that helps,” said Driscoll, an 18-year-old Brigantine resident. “Getting second at Nationals felt really good because my hard work paid off. We had three boats at Nationals but the whole team was there supporting us, and I really felt that.
“I liked rowing single the most. You just give it your all. The boat is hard to balance, and that’s a challenge.”
Ricciardi, now a rising junior, and Krewmaker, a rising senior, had the only area boys boat that made a Stotesbury Cup final. They were only area boys crew to make top-six in all five of the season’s major regattas.
They won the double race at the Atlantic County Championships in 5:52.20. They were fifth at Stotesbury in a field of 31 in 5:24.06., and fifth at Nationals in 5:29.974.
“Andrew and I are both big guys, so it was a logical choice for us to row together,” said the 6-foot-5, 210-pound Ricciardi, a 16-year-old Margate resident. “Coach and the other coaches kept us training, consistent and in shape. It was amazing what we accomplished.
“I think we’ll have a great year next year.”
Sarno and Rodriguez won the lightweight double title at the Garden State regatta, and they were fifth in the Philadelphia City Championships.
“Me and Mike worked hard every day and gave it our all,” said Sarno, a 15-year-old Brigantine resident.
At the Atlantic County regatta, Rodriguez and Sarno combined with Alex Lecklikner and Phil Cappuccio to win the boys junior quad race. Spartans Christopher Kai Hurt, Franklin Hudak, Eric Martino and Ryan Bender won the boys varsity quad race. The Holy Spirit boys team had four wins on the day and combined with the Spartans girls team to win the overall school points championship.
Spartans senior basketball player Sean Kane was a first-year rower and finished sixth in a field of eight with freshman Lecklikner in the State boys varsity double final.
“We entered six boats at States and they all made finals,” Giegerich said
Coach of the Year
Giegerich gets the nod for leading a small group of rowers to several victories and top-six finishes.
“The whole team worked hard to get that, and I have an unbelievable coaching staff,” Giegerich said. “Any Division I college would be happy to have them. The athletes have great respect for them and everything they say.”
The assistants include Stan Bergman, a former longtime Holy Spirit boys and University of Pennsylvania men’s coach, Frank Previti, Allen Staller, Ernie Huggard, Chuck Patterson and Dan Bryz-Gornia.
Contact Guy Gargan: 609-272-7210 | https://pressofatlanticcity.com/sports/local/highschool/holy-spirit-scullers-are-the-press-boys-team-of-the-year/article_87e0f35a-fb1e-11ec-acd9-ab95e0f982c3.html | 2022-07-06T00:26:18 | 0 | https://pressofatlanticcity.com/sports/local/highschool/holy-spirit-scullers-are-the-press-boys-team-of-the-year/article_87e0f35a-fb1e-11ec-acd9-ab95e0f982c3.html |
HARKER HEIGHTS, Texas — The video above is from an unrelated story on KCENTV.com.
No injuries or damaged buildings were reported after a fire burned about three acres of land in Harker Heights on July 4.
Harker Heights officials arrived at the fire near the Long Bridge on Still House Lake Road around 10 p.m.
Fire crews from Salado, Killeen and Bell County helped put out the fire.
Harker Heights authorities didn't say what caused the fire, but Killeen officials said Tuesday they heard fireworks were set off there. It's still not clear if the fire was started by fireworks, however.
If you have any questions, please contact the Bell County Fire Marshal's Office at 254-933-5589.
Other stories on KCENTV.com: | https://www.kcentv.com/article/news/local/no-injuries-damages-after-fire-burns-3-acres-in-harker-heights-on-july-4th/500-e9e8ebd3-87d8-4906-ac19-12bcbc8b2b71 | 2022-07-06T00:26:23 | 0 | https://www.kcentv.com/article/news/local/no-injuries-damages-after-fire-burns-3-acres-in-harker-heights-on-july-4th/500-e9e8ebd3-87d8-4906-ac19-12bcbc8b2b71 |
THE PRESS BOYS CREW ALL-STARS
VARSITY SINGLE
HOLY SPIRIT
Aidan Driscoll
The senior led Holy Spirit with wins at the Garden State Championships and the Atlantic County Championships. He was second at the Philadelphia City Championships and topped the area with a close second-place finish at the Scholastic Rowing Association of America Regatta.
NOVICE EIGHT
EGG HARBOR TOWNSHIP
Chase Brown, Matthew Garland, Andrew Celano, Ryan Jones, Alex Smilevski, Shaun Corcoran, Jacob Garrow, Max Smilevski, coxswain Chris Alberico
The Eagles crew was first at the Garden State and Atlantic County regattas. EHT was second in a field of 15 at the Philadelphia City Championships.
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LIGHTWEIGHT FOUR
ATLANTIC CITY
Omar Dewair, Joe Aluise, Casey Nguyen, Aaron Simpson, coxswain James Rico
The Vikings won at the Garden State event, which is commonly called States. The A.C. crew placed third at the Philadelphia City Championships.
JUNIOR EIGHT
OCEAN CITY
Jake Tracy, James Nilsen, Drew Young, Ben Wilson, Wesley Dice, Thorne Swift, Colin Abbott, Joey Pepe, coxswain Jake Thurlow
The Red Raiders were the only area boys crew to win at the Philadelphia City Championships. The O.C. crew topped a field of five at the event. Also took fourth at States and won at the Atlantic County event.
NOVICE FOUR
ABSEGAMI
Brayden Wright, David Bekete, Michael Rynkiewicz, Connor Cuviello, coxswain Richard Bodeil
This crew won at States by more than 17 seconds. Also won the Atlantic County race. Placed second out of 11 crews at the Philadelphia City Championships.
VARSITY EIGHT
ST. AUGUSTINE
Angelo Vasti, Ryan Sullivan, Ryan Passetti, Drew Hetzer, Zach Marks, Austin Johnson, Oscar Catanese, Matteo Barberio, coxswain Brendan Profico
Finished second to Montclair at State Championships, and won by more than five seconds in the Atlantic County race. No area varsity eights made finals at the Stotesbury Cup or the SRAA, which is commonly called Nationals.
LIGHTWEIGHT DOUBLE
HOLY SPIRIT
Nick Sarno, Mike Rodriguez
The Spartans won by 14 seconds In a three-boat field at States, and they placed fifth at the Philadelphia City Championships.
JUNIOR DOUBLE
HOLY SPIRIT
Mike Ricciardi, Andrew Krewmaker
Finished fifth out of 31 crews at the Stotesbury Cup Regatta, the only area boys crew to make a final at Stotesbury. Finished third at States, and won the boys double race in the Atlantic County regatta. Placed fourth at the City Championships and was fifth at Nationals. The only area boat to make a final at all five of the season’s main regattas.
VARSITY FOUR
ABSEGAMI
Liam Deibert, Anthony Del Pezzo, Brody Wright, Kyle Razukas, coxswain Keionce Joga
Won a six-boat final at the Atlantic County event., and was sixth at the City Championships.
JUNIOR QUAD
HOLY SPIRIT
Franklin Hudak, Eric Martino, Ryan Bender, Christopher Kai Hurt
Finished sixth out of 10 crews at States and won the varsity quad race at the Atlantic County Championships.
JUNIOR FOUR
EGG HARBOR TOWNSHIP
Aidan Schwartz, Michael Wojciechowicz, Tom Routt, Artie Jonuzi, coxswain Yancy Lopez
Placed third at States and won a six-boat final at the Atlantic County event.
FRESHMAN EIGHT
ST. AUGUSTINE
Sean Dugan, Dean DePalma, Evan Brown, Andrew Cockerham, Rutger Grady, Joden Marchelle, Drew Terista, Logan Wilson, coxswain Holden MacNatt
Finished fifth at the State regatta and won the Atlantic County race.
Contact Guy Gargan: 609-272-7210 | https://pressofatlanticcity.com/sports/local/highschool/see-who-are-the-press-boys-crew-all-star-boats/article_5380198a-fb49-11ec-86d7-6ba03f28f5aa.html | 2022-07-06T00:26:25 | 0 | https://pressofatlanticcity.com/sports/local/highschool/see-who-are-the-press-boys-crew-all-star-boats/article_5380198a-fb49-11ec-86d7-6ba03f28f5aa.html |
Egg Harbor Township High School graduates Darren Wan and Mike Carfagno were among the 124 Stockton University student-athletes named to the 2021-22 New Jersey Athletic Conference All-Academic Team.
Wan was named to the first team, while Carfagno was named to the second team. Wan recently graduated with a degree in business studies. Carfagno is a rising junior who majors in health science.
Also making the first team was women's volleyball player Sophia Marziello. Women's soccer player Susan Porambo was named to the second team. Students have to be either a sophomore, junior or senior and have a grade-point average of 3.20 or higher to be eligible for the NJAC All-Academic team.
Wan earned All-American status after he finished sixth in the hammer throw at the NCAA Division III Track and Field Championships. He was also named to the College Sports Information Directors of America Academic All-America second team. Carfagno earned an NJAC honorable mention in the shot put for both the indoor and outdoor track and field seasons.
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There were 120 Ospreys earned NJAC All-Academic honorable mention spots. Here are the Press-area athletes to earn the honor.
Kelsey Andrus (Oakcrest, field hockey), Brynn Bowman (Ocean City, women's tennis), Emma Capriglione (Pinelands Regional, women's volleyball), Matthew Carter (Oakcrest, track and field), Madeline Corbett (Mainland Regional, cross country/track and field), Madison Dancisin (Pinelands, field hockey), Sarb Devi (Absegami, women's tennis), Grady Edwards (Barnegat, men's soccer), Rhian Freire (Cedar Creek, field hockey).
Rylee Getter (Absegami, women's soccer), Chris Johnson (Wildwood Catholic, track and field), Matthew Keidat (Holy Spirit, track and field), Andrew Luongo (Southern Regional, baseball), Lauren Maldonado (EHT, track and field), Antonio Matos (St. Augustine Prep, Hammonton), Luke McBrearty (Hammonton, track and field), Mary McLaughlin (Mainland Regional, women's lacrosse).
Angelo Moynihan (Atlantic City, track and field), Calvin Nguyen (Cape May Tech, cross country), Meghan Pellegrino (Mainland, women's lacrosse/soccer), Daniel Rodriguez (EHT, track and field), Mike Schiattarella (Southern, baseball), Khristina Washington (Hammonton, track and field), Sydney Williams (Millville, women's soccer) and Holly Yannacone (Southern, women's lacrosse).
Men's lacrosse: Ocean City High graduates Noam Levy-Smith and Hayden Smallwood and players were named to the Spring 2022 Colonial States Athletic Conference All-Academic Team.
Levy-Smith majors in business accounting, while Smallwood major in exercise science. Both are sophomores.
Student-athletes who achieved a 3.20 grade-point average in the spring 2022 semester or higher made the team. There were 624 athletes from the 10 CSAC institutions and nine associate members. Stockton is an associate member as the Ospreys' primary conference in the New Jersey Athletic Conference. The NJAC does not sponsor men's lacrosse.
Stockton men's lacrosse featured 45 players on its roster this season. So, almost half its players earned the honor. This was the fourth straight spring at least 20 Ospreys earned CSAC All-Academic honors.
This season, the Ospreys went 17-3 (6-0 CSAC) and won the conference title. Stockton advanced to the second round of the Division III NCAA Tournament.
Also being named to the all-academic team are: Ryan Anderson, Colin Bernstein, Reegan Capozzoli, Eric D’Arminio, Evan Deans, Patrick Dunleavy, Anthony Ferreira, Nick Grande, Evan Hilla, Logan Holleritter, Maximillian Matthies, Grant Pargas, Dante Poli, Brendan Scanlon, Aidan Shandley, Luc Swedlund, Matt Thermann, Jackson Tilves, Brendan Wahlers, Liam Wharton, George White and Colin Wood. | https://pressofatlanticcity.com/sports/local/highschool/stocktons-darren-wan-mike-carfagno-among-124-stockton-athlete-to-earn-njac-all-academic-honors/article_7db322ea-fc8b-11ec-a41b-0347fc59d837.html | 2022-07-06T00:26:31 | 1 | https://pressofatlanticcity.com/sports/local/highschool/stocktons-darren-wan-mike-carfagno-among-124-stockton-athlete-to-earn-njac-all-academic-honors/article_7db322ea-fc8b-11ec-a41b-0347fc59d837.html |
ATLANTA — Travelers are returning to airports nationwide in pre-pandemic records this Fourth of July weekend, but many continue to face thousands of flight delays and cancellations -- and that likely won't change through the summer.
From damaged luggage to being stuck on tarmacs, travelers said the holiday weekend has been challenging especially when traveling through Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport.
“Things get broken and that sucks, but when you lose someone’s day chair and race chair – you’re taking away their entire life in a second," said wheelchair athlete, Julia Beckley.
The Colorado native was just one of several wheelchair athletes that traveled to Atlanta to participate in the AJC Peachtree Road Race this year.
"It’s not a small thing when someone is negligent with our chairs," added Beckley.
Beckley said she considers herself lucky that her wheelchair only suffered minor damage during travel and wasn't lost like others including Paralympian Hannah Babalola, whose chair was never placed on her flight causing her to bow out of the race.
Book author Arnold Thompson said he has to fly a lot for work and got stuck on the tarmac delaying his flight by more than 12 hours.
"When you sit on a plane for hours with a group of people and some have babies crying non-stop – it’s tough," Thompson said.
Mom to two young children, Judith Lesser said all of the delays and cancellations have her family planning ahead which includes showing up at the airport several hours in advance as they try to get back home to New York City.
“A lot of people are just more stressed and worried," she said. "Our flight coming out here was just an hour delayed and I think everyone was just bracing for it to be canceled."
TSA has screened more than two million passengers nationwide each day over the holiday weekend.
Staffing and pilot shortages have led some airlines to cut flights for the summer season including Atlanta-based Delta who announced they will be cutting 100 flights a day until August. | https://www.thv11.com/article/news/local/fourth-of-july-travel-struggles-atlanta-airport/85-bceb640f-2a0f-4f97-b436-5deb1e0e0883 | 2022-07-06T00:31:39 | 1 | https://www.thv11.com/article/news/local/fourth-of-july-travel-struggles-atlanta-airport/85-bceb640f-2a0f-4f97-b436-5deb1e0e0883 |
A Chesterfield County mother pleaded guilty Tuesday to killing her 2-year-old son by intentionally providing him liquid methadone to make him sleep that resulted in an unintentional fatal overdose.
Prior to her son receiving the methadone, Sherrell M. Rivera, 32, conducted multiple Google searches on her cellphone about the liquid uses of the drug and its side effects, including a search of whether the addictive substance would “slow breathing,” according to the prosecution’s summary of evidence.
An Alexandria man is facing charges after a customer at City Dogs restaurant on West Main Street was shot to death on Sunday night.
Rivera had a prescription for methadone to treat an opioid addiction, and Chesterfield Deputy Commonwealth Attorney Ken Chitty said evidence indicated that Rivera mixed an undetermined amount of the drug into Kruz Rivera’s sippy cup that contained baby formula and chocolate syrup. The boy, who was addicted from birth from his mother’s drug dependency, died Nov. 14, 2020 of methadone toxicity.
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Chesterfield Circuit Judge David E. Johnson reluctantly accepted a plea agreement that allowed Rivera to plead guilty to voluntary manslaughter instead of felony murder, as she was originally charged, in addition to a separate count of felony child neglect. He convicted her of both counts and set sentencing for Nov. 7.
“What I’m up here struggling with is the apparent agreement between the parties that it was not the intent to kill this child,” Johnson said in remarks from the bench. “A 2-year-old was already born an addict, spent two years of his life continually exposed to this vile conduct by the mother and then he is ultimately killed by that.”
“It shows a willful ignorance and selfishness so reckless, as to amount to proper criminal intent,” the judge added. “So, that part of the argument I will not be accepting.”
But Johnson said he understood the practical difficulties of prosecuting the case had it gone to trial, which could have cast doubt on the events that led to the boy’s death. When the boy died, both Rivera and her husband were staying at the Martha Kay Motel in the 8800 block of Jefferson Davis Highway.
Defense attorney Greg Sheldon noted both parents had prescriptions for methadone, both had access to the cellphone used for the Google searches and neither made any admissions of wrongdoing to detectives. The boy’s father was not charged in the incident.
According to Chitty’s presentation of facts, when Chesterfield officers responded to the motel at about 8:30 a.m., they found a 2-year-old boy on the floor, with Rivera standing over him while talking on the phone with emergency communications. She told officers that she found her son unresponsive in his Pack ‘n Play.
Rivera told police she had given her son a sippy cup filled with powdered milk and chocolate syrup before placing him in the Pack ‘n Play at 3:45 a.m.
The toddler was taken to Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center by ambulance, but he never responded to medical treatment and was pronounced dead at 9:13 a.m.
Rivera and her husband gave police their consent to search the motel room. The room was dark but not in disarray, and detectives found brown stains on a blanket, bedspread and pillow in the Pack ‘n Play that were not consistent with dried blood or spilled chocolate milk.
Near a second bed where Rivera had slept with her other child, who was 4, detectives observed a box containing various bottles of methadone prescribed to Rivera. They all contained child-tampering tops. Some bottles were empty due to them being daily doses. Detectives collected and photographed one of the empty bottles.
The medical examiner’s preliminary autopsy did not yield any results that could have caused the child’s death. The examiner then ordered a toxicology screening, which revealed that Kruz died of a lethal adult dose of methadone. The boy also had Benadryl in his system.
The boy’s sippy cup, which still contained a substance three-quarters full, was sent to a separate lab to be tested. The results showed a mixture of methadone and Benadryl, which led the medical examiner to rule the boy’s manner of death as a homicide.
On June 2, 2021, Rivera and her husband voluntarily responded to police headquarters to be given the results of their son’s autopsy. They were interviewed a second time, and Rivera reaffirmed her previous statement that her husband was asleep when she prepared her son’s sippy cup before he died.
Rivera “was given the results and subsequently became uncooperative and would not provide an explanation of how this occurred,” Chitty told the court. Her husband “was highly upset over the results but was cooperative throughout the process,” the prosecutor said.
Police executed a search warrant on the cellphone belonging to Rivera at the time of the incident. Detectives discovered that around 1:40 a.m. — before Rivera said she put her boy to sleep — the device had multiple Google searches about methadone uses and side effects. The Google account was identified as belonging to “Relle Rivera” and had a provided date of birth consistent with Rivera’s.
“The device itself contained numerous photos of the decedent and messages from Rivera to other people, revealing the user would be Sherrell Rivera,” Chitty said.
(804) 649-6450 | https://richmond.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/chesterfield-mom-pleads-guilty-to-accidentally-killing-son-with-methadone-in-sippy-cup/article_a5e418c2-71f0-5338-b3c6-67b83fbd15d5.html | 2022-07-06T00:32:41 | 0 | https://richmond.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/chesterfield-mom-pleads-guilty-to-accidentally-killing-son-with-methadone-in-sippy-cup/article_a5e418c2-71f0-5338-b3c6-67b83fbd15d5.html |
Fearing that the Virginia General Assembly could soon adopt new abortion restrictions, the Richmond City Council voted unanimously Tuesday evening to pass a resolution in support of abortion providers and legal protections under state law.
The council vote comes two weeks after the U.S. Supreme Court struck constitutional protections for abortion in a 5-4 ruling. Though abortion remains legal in Virginia, Gov. Glenn Youngkin and Republican lawmakers have expressed interest in legislation to ban most abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy.
Abortions in the first and second trimester are currently allowed in Virginia. They are also permitted in the third trimester if doctors believe there is a health risk to the patient.
"It's critical that we work to make sure that those rights remain and there is no loss of any of them," said City Council President Cynthia Newbille.
A copy of the resolution was not immediately available. According to a city news release, the resolution calls on the General Assembly to introduce and pass a constitutional amendment defining abortion as a "right protected by the Virginia Constitution" and repealing criminal statutes in the state code.
An Alexandria man is facing charges after a customer at City Dogs restaurant on West Main Street was shot to death on Sunday night.
The June 24 Supreme Court ruling is expected to lead to abortion bans in roughly half of states.
Several council members and city officials noted that they expect Virginia clinics that perform abortion procedures will be flooded by patients in the coming months as neighboring states are poised to adopt bans or have tight restrictions already in place.
Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney in a statement noted that three of the 15 clinics in the state are in the city.
“I appreciate the support of City Council in this effort as nearly half of all patients seeking an abortion live below the federal poverty level and state they are unable to care for a child," Stoney said. "It is imperative that we do everything we can to advocate and protect the right to an abortion in our city."
While Youngkin has expressed interest in a 15-week ban, he recently told The Washington Post that he might pursue a 20-week cutoff instead as a compromise in the state's closely divided legislature. He's also said he would support exceptions in cases of rape, incest or when the life of the mother is in danger.
Democrats in the state legislature in recent years succeeded in rolling back restrictions and defeating anti-abortion legislation.
Richmond Councilwoman Katherine Jordan said that city officials will continue to advocate in support of abortion rights and access, but added that state lawmakers hold significant power.
"You've got to be following what is happening at the General Assembly with your legislators and with those [legislatures] in your friends' communities," she said. "Please get active in that regard. We will do what we can here."
A change in state law could still lead to legal challenges and discourse.
Last week, commonwealth’s attorneys in Richmond and Henrico County said they would not prosecute anyone who receives an abortion or provides a woman with the procedure. They signed a pledge that promises not “to use our offices’ resources to criminalize reproductive health decisions.”
1 of 32
Forest Hill Ave.
In October 1951, workers constructed a section of Forest Hill Avenue in South Richmond. The segment sits between Westover Hills Boulevard and Prince Arthur Road.
In February 1953, Richmond Department of Utilities workers used a 65-foot hook-and-ladder firetruck to install new lights on Broad Street after attempts to secure other ladder equipment from private companies had failed.
In May 1954, Scoop sniffed around the pet food aisle at a grocery store in Richmond’s West End. The store offered a large selection of pet foods, a relatively new concept for the era. The accompanying article said: “Gone, apparently, are the days that Fido took the scraps from the table and liked them.”
In September 1942, members of Richmond Hotels Inc. donated typewriters to the War Production Board and the Office of War Information in response to an appeal for businesses to let the government have any machines they could spare.
In August 1981, children enjoyed outdoor recreation at Camp Happyland in the Richardsville area of Culpeper County, not far from Fredericksburg. The Salvation Army started the camp in the late 1950s to improve children’s health through exercise and proper nutrition.
In March 1971, a crowd estimated at several hundred waited outside City Council chambers at City Hall in downtown Richmond. Residents of the recently annexed Broad Rock area were protesting the Richmond Redevelopment and Housing Authority’s proposal for low-rent public housing in the area.
In March 1969, a sign went up to mark the site of Henrico County’s first permanent designated library, on Laburnum Avenue near New Market Road. On hand were (from left) Varina District Supervisor Edwin Ragsdale, library board trustee Mrs. F.M. Vaughan, library assistant Virginia Liles and county libraries director David Rowland. The library opened in December 1970.
In June 1969, a Trappist monk at the Holy Cross Abbey near Berryville in Clarke County began his daily meditation. The monks spent their days balancing quiet prayer, spiritual reading and manual labor.
In June 1956, the Rev. Lawrence V. Bradley Jr. of Grove Avenue Baptist Church in Richmond and his secretary, Jean Bolton, got out the summertime heat beater: a simple cardboard fan. The pews were liberally stocked during the warm months because the church had no air conditioning.
In July 1959, the normally bustling downtown Richmond business district, including this stretch along Eighth and Main streets, was much quieter as motorists stayed home because of triple-digit heat.
In April 1966, Union Bag-Camp Paper Corp. officials oversaw manufacturing at a new plant in Chesterfield County. The facility produced millions of bags for supermarket chains and other clients on the East Coast. At the time, about 265 employees worked in two local company plants; the old factory at 13th and Canal streets in Richmond was open for limited operation until it was sold.
In March 1969, a sign went up to mark the site of Henrico County’s first permanent designated library, on Laburnum Avenue near New Market Road. The branch opened in December 1970. Posing with the sign were (from left) Varina District Supervisor Edwin Ragsdale, library board trustee Mrs. F.M. Vaughan, library assistant Virginia Liles and county libraries director David Rowland.
In August 1982, David Tidwell of Croaker posed with his girlfriend’s dog, Blazing Amber of Cinder, at the humorous “Norge Dog Station” at Norge Grocery on U.S. Route 60 west of Williamsburg. The sign had been put up seven years earlier, and the spot became a popular photo opportunity for visitors.
In March 1987, in preparation for new carpeting, the Dumbarton branch library in Henrico County had to remove about 80,000 books from shelves. About 50 people handled the first phase overnight — but restocking the shelves awaited.
This 1957 photo shows Collegiate School in the 1600 block of Monument Avenue in Richmond. The Town School elementary building was on the left and the high school on the right. In 1960, the Town School and the Country Day School merged, operating on the campus off River and Mooreland roads in Henrico County. It remains the location today.
In November 1970, a Richmond officer rode his horse by the police bureau’s new stables, which were under construction. The facility near Brook Road and Chamberlayne Avenue included eight stalls, a scrub area, a horseshoeing area and a tack room. The bureau had been looking for an established home for its horses since the mid-1960s, when the Virginia National Guard moved from the Richmond Howitzers downtown armory, where the horses had been stabled for two decades.
In March 1971, a crowd estimated at several hundred waited outside City Council chambers at City Hall in downtown Richmond. Residents of the recently annexed Broad Rock area were protesting the Richmond Redevelopment and Housing Authority’s proposal for low-rent public housing in the area.
In November 1948, Army Lt. Charles D. Smith Jr. administered the oath to the first set of postwar draftees processed at the Richmond induction station at First and Broad streets. Several of the men were immediately sent to Camp Pickett in Blackstone.
In December 1938, Richmond Glass Shop had a new home at 814 W. Broad St., site of the old Ashland Railway Station. The shop, run by brothers Frank R. and A.G. Bialkowski, had glass of many types, and offered bath and kitchen installation, storefront construction and paint products.
In March 1979, corrections officer Howard Alexander held the homemade rope used by convicted murderer Michael Irwin Cross to escape from the State Penitentiary, then located along Spring Street in downtown Richmond. Cross was captured two months later after attempting to free a fellow convict who was being treated at Medical College of Virginia Hospital.
In June 1986, “Mr. Newspaper” greeted a young girl and her mother at a Richmond-area mall. The RTD mascot often traveled around town promoting the newspaper.
In July 1951, Alonzo Moore, 74, walked down a street in Cape Charles on Virginia’s Eastern Shore and blew his horn, alerting locals to his sale of the fresh catch of the day.
In July 1960, the Schellenberg family of Highland Springs prepared to have a bomb shelter installed in their yard, one of Virginia’s first privately owned radiation fallout shelters. The enclosure was designed to accommodate up to six people during a nuclear attack. The horizontal steel tank (rear) was 7 feet in diameter and 16 feet long. Once installed, the only elements aboveground would be a domed entrance and air filter and exhaust pipes.
In June 1979, Terry Woo set bricks for a walkway as construction of Kanawha Plaza in downtown Richmond continued. The $4 million dollar city-financed plaza linked the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond building and the Virginia Electric and Power Co. building.
In June 1968, workers welded boilers at Old Dominion Iron and Steel Corp., located on Belle Isle under the Lee Bridge in Richmond. At the time, Old Dominion’s owner was interested in expanding operations, and the city was interested in using the island as part of a James River park. The company’s history on Belle Isle spanned from before the Civil War to the 1970s.
In November 1972, after the remnants of Hurricane Agnes had washed out a bridge, a barge carried vehicles and workers across the James River from Tredegar Street toward Belle Isle in Richmond. A day earlier, a welder for Old Dominion Iron and Steel Corp. drowned after a boat carrying him and others capsized on the same route.
This December 1973 photo shows the front counter in Roaring Twenties, a new restaurant and nightclub on state Route 10 in the Hopewell area. It was designed to resemble a 1920s speakeasy, with features including an antique cash register, a diving girl and even a dining table from Al Capone’s Florida home.
In October 1969, cadets at John Marshall High School in Richmond posed with their ribbon-bedecked sponsors after an awards ceremony. The school’s Corps of Cadets was established in 1915 — it was the first military training program in a public school in Virginia — and disbanded in 1971.
In May 1989, a transformer exploded under the sidewalk on the Fourth Street side of the Richmond Newspapers Inc. building downtown. The ensuing fireball charred two cars parked on the street and sent flames up the side of the building. No one was hurt in the nighttime explosion, and delivery of the next morning’s Richmond Times-Dispatch (which was printed in the building) was only slightly delayed.
In August 1972, motorists approaching construction on Interstate 64 south of Bryan Park in Richmond were greeted by a robot signalman waving a bright red flag. “Silent Sam,” as the decoy was nicknamed, was used by the state Department of Highways to slow drivers as they neared workmen building an I-195 interchange and bridge near the Acca rail yards.
A look back at photos from the Richmond Times-Dispatch archives.
1 of 32
Forest Hill Ave.
In October 1951, workers constructed a section of Forest Hill Avenue in South Richmond. The segment sits between Westover Hills Boulevard and Prince Arthur Road.
times-dispatch
Ballet
In December 1990, a Richmond Ballet dancer stretched before rehearsal of “The Nutcracker.”
times-dispatch
street lights
In February 1953, Richmond Department of Utilities workers used a 65-foot hook-and-ladder firetruck to install new lights on Broad Street after attempts to secure other ladder equipment from private companies had failed.
Staff photo
Dog
In May 1954, Scoop sniffed around the pet food aisle at a grocery store in Richmond’s West End. The store offered a large selection of pet foods, a relatively new concept for the era. The accompanying article said: “Gone, apparently, are the days that Fido took the scraps from the table and liked them.”
Staff photo
typewriters
In September 1942, members of Richmond Hotels Inc. donated typewriters to the War Production Board and the Office of War Information in response to an appeal for businesses to let the government have any machines they could spare.
times-dispatch
Camp Happyland
In August 1981, children enjoyed outdoor recreation at Camp Happyland in the Richardsville area of Culpeper County, not far from Fredericksburg. The Salvation Army started the camp in the late 1950s to improve children’s health through exercise and proper nutrition.
times-dispatch
20160813_FEA_POD_p ++
In March 1971, a crowd estimated at several hundred waited outside City Council chambers at City Hall in downtown Richmond. Residents of the recently annexed Broad Rock area were protesting the Richmond Redevelopment and Housing Authority’s proposal for low-rent public housing in the area.
TIMES-DISPATCH
Henrico County Library
In March 1969, a sign went up to mark the site of Henrico County’s first permanent designated library, on Laburnum Avenue near New Market Road. On hand were (from left) Varina District Supervisor Edwin Ragsdale, library board trustee Mrs. F.M. Vaughan, library assistant Virginia Liles and county libraries director David Rowland. The library opened in December 1970.
times-dispatch
Monk
In June 1969, a Trappist monk at the Holy Cross Abbey near Berryville in Clarke County began his daily meditation. The monks spent their days balancing quiet prayer, spiritual reading and manual labor.
TIMES-DISPATCH
Grove Avenue Church
In June 1956, the Rev. Lawrence V. Bradley Jr. of Grove Avenue Baptist Church in Richmond and his secretary, Jean Bolton, got out the summertime heat beater: a simple cardboard fan. The pews were liberally stocked during the warm months because the church had no air conditioning.
TIMES-DISPATCH
Richmond Streets
In July 1959, the normally bustling downtown Richmond business district, including this stretch along Eighth and Main streets, was much quieter as motorists stayed home because of triple-digit heat.
TIMES-DISPATCH
Union Bag Camp
In April 1966, Union Bag-Camp Paper Corp. officials oversaw manufacturing at a new plant in Chesterfield County. The facility produced millions of bags for supermarket chains and other clients on the East Coast. At the time, about 265 employees worked in two local company plants; the old factory at 13th and Canal streets in Richmond was open for limited operation until it was sold.
TIMES-DISPATCH
Henrico County Library
In March 1969, a sign went up to mark the site of Henrico County’s first permanent designated library, on Laburnum Avenue near New Market Road. The branch opened in December 1970. Posing with the sign were (from left) Varina District Supervisor Edwin Ragsdale, library board trustee Mrs. F.M. Vaughan, library assistant Virginia Liles and county libraries director David Rowland.
Staff photo
Dogs
In August 1982, David Tidwell of Croaker posed with his girlfriend’s dog, Blazing Amber of Cinder, at the humorous “Norge Dog Station” at Norge Grocery on U.S. Route 60 west of Williamsburg. The sign had been put up seven years earlier, and the spot became a popular photo opportunity for visitors.
times-dispatch
Henrico County Library
In March 1987, in preparation for new carpeting, the Dumbarton branch library in Henrico County had to remove about 80,000 books from shelves. About 50 people handled the first phase overnight — but restocking the shelves awaited.
times-dispatch
Collegiate
This 1957 photo shows Collegiate School in the 1600 block of Monument Avenue in Richmond. The Town School elementary building was on the left and the high school on the right. In 1960, the Town School and the Country Day School merged, operating on the campus off River and Mooreland roads in Henrico County. It remains the location today.
times-dispatch
police stables
In November 1970, a Richmond officer rode his horse by the police bureau’s new stables, which were under construction. The facility near Brook Road and Chamberlayne Avenue included eight stalls, a scrub area, a horseshoeing area and a tack room. The bureau had been looking for an established home for its horses since the mid-1960s, when the Virginia National Guard moved from the Richmond Howitzers downtown armory, where the horses had been stabled for two decades.
TIMES-DISPATCH
City Council
In March 1971, a crowd estimated at several hundred waited outside City Council chambers at City Hall in downtown Richmond. Residents of the recently annexed Broad Rock area were protesting the Richmond Redevelopment and Housing Authority’s proposal for low-rent public housing in the area.
Staff photo
draft
In November 1948, Army Lt. Charles D. Smith Jr. administered the oath to the first set of postwar draftees processed at the Richmond induction station at First and Broad streets. Several of the men were immediately sent to Camp Pickett in Blackstone.
times-dispatch
Richmond Glass Shop
In December 1938, Richmond Glass Shop had a new home at 814 W. Broad St., site of the old Ashland Railway Station. The shop, run by brothers Frank R. and A.G. Bialkowski, had glass of many types, and offered bath and kitchen installation, storefront construction and paint products.
times-dispatch
State Pen
In March 1979, corrections officer Howard Alexander held the homemade rope used by convicted murderer Michael Irwin Cross to escape from the State Penitentiary, then located along Spring Street in downtown Richmond. Cross was captured two months later after attempting to free a fellow convict who was being treated at Medical College of Virginia Hospital.
times-dispatch
Mr. Newspaper
In June 1986, “Mr. Newspaper” greeted a young girl and her mother at a Richmond-area mall. The RTD mascot often traveled around town promoting the newspaper.
times-dispatch
Cape Charles
In July 1951, Alonzo Moore, 74, walked down a street in Cape Charles on Virginia’s Eastern Shore and blew his horn, alerting locals to his sale of the fresh catch of the day.
TIMES-DISPATCH
Bomb Shelter
In July 1960, the Schellenberg family of Highland Springs prepared to have a bomb shelter installed in their yard, one of Virginia’s first privately owned radiation fallout shelters. The enclosure was designed to accommodate up to six people during a nuclear attack. The horizontal steel tank (rear) was 7 feet in diameter and 16 feet long. Once installed, the only elements aboveground would be a domed entrance and air filter and exhaust pipes.
times-dispatch
Kanawha Plaza
In June 1979, Terry Woo set bricks for a walkway as construction of Kanawha Plaza in downtown Richmond continued. The $4 million dollar city-financed plaza linked the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond building and the Virginia Electric and Power Co. building.
times-dispatch
Cape Charles
In July 1951, two women enjoyed the white sand beach of Cape Charles on Virginia’s Eastern Shore.
times-dispatch
boilers
In June 1968, workers welded boilers at Old Dominion Iron and Steel Corp., located on Belle Isle under the Lee Bridge in Richmond. At the time, Old Dominion’s owner was interested in expanding operations, and the city was interested in using the island as part of a James River park. The company’s history on Belle Isle spanned from before the Civil War to the 1970s.
times-dispatch/
Belle Isle
In November 1972, after the remnants of Hurricane Agnes had washed out a bridge, a barge carried vehicles and workers across the James River from Tredegar Street toward Belle Isle in Richmond. A day earlier, a welder for Old Dominion Iron and Steel Corp. drowned after a boat carrying him and others capsized on the same route.
Times-Dispatch
Roaring Twenties Roadhouse
This December 1973 photo shows the front counter in Roaring Twenties, a new restaurant and nightclub on state Route 10 in the Hopewell area. It was designed to resemble a 1920s speakeasy, with features including an antique cash register, a diving girl and even a dining table from Al Capone’s Florida home.
TIMES-DISPATCH
John Marshall Cadet Corps
In October 1969, cadets at John Marshall High School in Richmond posed with their ribbon-bedecked sponsors after an awards ceremony. The school’s Corps of Cadets was established in 1915 — it was the first military training program in a public school in Virginia — and disbanded in 1971.
TIMES-DISPATCH
Newspaper fire
In May 1989, a transformer exploded under the sidewalk on the Fourth Street side of the Richmond Newspapers Inc. building downtown. The ensuing fireball charred two cars parked on the street and sent flames up the side of the building. No one was hurt in the nighttime explosion, and delivery of the next morning’s Richmond Times-Dispatch (which was printed in the building) was only slightly delayed.
Times-Dispatch
Silent Sam
In August 1972, motorists approaching construction on Interstate 64 south of Bryan Park in Richmond were greeted by a robot signalman waving a bright red flag. “Silent Sam,” as the decoy was nicknamed, was used by the state Department of Highways to slow drivers as they neared workmen building an I-195 interchange and bridge near the Acca rail yards.
For the 12th consecutive season, the Flying Squirrels enjoyed a sold out ballpark to celebrate the holiday. With nearly 10,000 fans in attendance Monday night, Parnell described the evening as an all-hands-on-deck occasion.
Demonstrators protest about abortion outside the Capitol Square in Richmond, Va., after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade on Friday, June 24, 2022. | https://richmond.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/richmond-city-council-passes-resolution-in-support-of-abortion-rights-following-supreme-court-ruling/article_523ca11b-aa49-52a9-9cae-063123ad2245.html | 2022-07-06T00:32:47 | 1 | https://richmond.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/richmond-city-council-passes-resolution-in-support-of-abortion-rights-following-supreme-court-ruling/article_523ca11b-aa49-52a9-9cae-063123ad2245.html |
For GRTC’s CEO Julie Timm, the unveiling of the transit company’s LGBTQ+ pride bus Tuesday, was more than a symbolic gesture, it’s a statement about the company's vision of equity and inclusivity.
Timm spoke outside Richmond City Hall about how proud she was of the collaborative effort between GRTC, Virginia Pride — an LGBTQ advocacy group in Richmond — and city officials to make this day happen.
“This bus for me, the simplicity and elegance of it...really represents where we need to be as a community and as a society,” said Timm. “It is who we are inclusively, understated and standing tall and proud.”
The ‘Love Connects’ bus wrap is a project which connects riders to the LGBTQ community. The design includes the colors of the Pride flag, incorporated with GRTC’s trademark look.
The design also incorporates interactive QR codes to connect riders to Richmond-based LGBTQ advocacy groups, events, activities and more.
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Timm said she’s proud that GRTC could represent the community in this way and recalled that same overwhelming feeling of accomplishment when her then 13-year-old son came out to her a few years ago.
Just knowing that her son felt safe and loved enough to share his identity with her family made Timm all the more proud, she said.
“There were some moments where it was a little bit awkward where my mom wants to know ‘What do you call his boyfriend?’” said Timm. “That was a little bit new and unusual for her, but she learned, she grew and she accepted my son.”
But between those feelings of love are moments of frustration, said Timm, as she realized that her son will have to continue to overcome injustices to express himself.
That’s why GRTC’s pride bus, adorned with the colors of the pride flag, is all the more important.
“It’s an open symbol of who we represent our people, that your story is our story at GRTC, that we protect our brothers and sisters, we love our neighbors and because love truly connects us all,” said Timm.
For Virginia Pride’s Director James Millner, this bus is also a connector for what’s possible when the community rallies for inclusivity and visibility.
“This bus and what it represents is a shining example of what is possible when we work together not just within our own communities, but with our city leaders, our municipal agencies and city governments,” said Millner.
Tuesday’s unveiling is an extension of Virginia Pride’s Endless Summer of Pride campaign, Timm said. An initiative that started in Pride Month, June 1 and ends with Pride Fest on Brown's Island on Sept. 24
So far, Virginia Pride and its partners from—Black Pride RVA, Diversity Richmond, OutRVA, etc.—have hosted or supported more than two dozen events leading up to the grand finale in September, Millner said.
But just because Virginia Pride’s celebration ends in September, their advocacy is a year-round effort, Millner said, as communities continue to revoke the rights the LGBTQ community have fought hard to protect.
“I am hopeful that members of our LGBTQ community will see themselves intentionally reflected in the imagery of the bus and know that they are seen and embraced as bright, vibrant threads and the fabric of the Greater Richmond community,” said Millner.
Like Millner, Black Pride RVA’s Co-Founder Lacette Cross said Richmond must embrace the connections the LGBTQ community are weaving.
“We are here to put love out in the world,” said Cross. “What we must remember is, in the words of Bayard Rustin, ‘We need in every community, a group of angelic troublemakers.’”
Cross said that members of the community must understand that whether they are riders on GRTC, passerby's, neighbors, friends or strangers they are all representative of the city’s framework; they are all “angelic troublemakers.”
“I don't know about you, but there is something holy, righteous and good about making representation a part of what it means to make this community more connected, more enduring and more loving,” said Cross.
As Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney said in his remarks, symbols matter especially in the face of the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.
As the community faces more uncertainty for LGBTQ rights in the future, Stoney said he and city leaders have to do more.
“We have to do more than just symbolism like this,” Stoney said. “We have to get back to work, make sure we elect the right people and we also have to continue to connect with people because we're becoming a more polarized society." | https://richmond.com/news/local/pride-bus-grtc-unveils-new-lgbtq-pride-inspired-design/article_d58fc9ce-953c-54dc-890d-bdd23c111988.html | 2022-07-06T00:32:53 | 0 | https://richmond.com/news/local/pride-bus-grtc-unveils-new-lgbtq-pride-inspired-design/article_d58fc9ce-953c-54dc-890d-bdd23c111988.html |
AURORA, Ill. — The following students were named to Aurora University’s dean’s list for receiving a grade point average of 3.6 or higher during the spring 2022 semester:
KENOSHA: Jack Seefeldt.
PLEASANT PRAIRIE: Michaela Yngve.
TWIN LAKES: Carly Atkinson, Sunnie Johnson.
Cedarville University
CEDARVILLE, Ohio — Kayla Maurer and Erica Saunders of Union Grove were named to Cedarville University’s dean’s list for receiving a grade point average of 3.5 or higher during the spring 2022 semester.
The following students were named to Cedarville University’s dean’s honor list for receiving a grade point average of 3.75 or higher during the spring 2022 semester:
ELMHURST, Ill. — Katelyn Matrise of Kenosha has been named to Elmhurst University’s dean’s list for receiving a grade point average of 3.75 or higher during the spring 2022 semester.
Marquette University
MILWAUKEE — The following students have been named to Marquette University’s dean’s list for receiving a grade point average of at least 3.5 or higher during the spring 2022 semester:
KENOSHA: Spencer Acker, Sam Adams, Matthew Christman, Chris Doan, Rachel Fisher, Renata Felicia Lim, Karlie Miceli, Kayla Nickerson, Natalie Ouimet, Christian Pelt, Madison Raith, Janaki Rawal, Leo Ruffolo, Alexis Torchia, Bradley Townsend, Jordan Vangarde, Amanda Zapp.
PLEASANT PRAIRIE: Elizabeth Alia, Zoee Arreguin, Vinny Infusino, Anna Jankovic, Emma Johnson, Gavin Rose, Tim Broderick, Jamal Hanson, Solei Maj, Dominic Stancato.
TWIN LAKES: Grace Yakes.
The following students graduated with degrees from Marquette University:
BRISTOL: Danielle Damask, master of science in nursing; Grant Fischer, juris doctor in law.
KENOSHA: Ricki Brunette Anderson, master of science in nursing; Celeste Calderwood, master of science in speech language pathology; Jack Grosz, bachelor of science in biomedical engineering in bioelectronics; Kindra Kim, master of science in nursing; Kevin Landgraf, juris doctor in law; Christopher Liebich, bachelor of arts in corporate communication; Renata Felicia Lim, bachelor of science in nursing; Deziray Moore, bachelor of arts in psychology; Arnold Nsoumbi, master of science in nursing; Natalie Ouimet, bachelor of science in nursing; Christian Pelt, bachelor of science in marketing; Aaliyah Prescott, bachelor of arts in psychology; Diana Rhyne, master of science in clinical mental health counseling; Colton Scarmardo, master’s in business administration; Taylor Stephen, master of science in nursing; Kaytee Torchia, master’s in business administration; Michele Fojas, master of science in nursing.
PLEASANT PRAIRIE: Jennifer Adams, master of science in nursing; Tim Broderick, bachelor of arts in public relations; Stephanie Drake, doctorate in dentistry; Emily Halvorsen, master of science in nursing; Morgan Makar, juris doctor in law; Samuel Nelson, juris doctor in law; Bradley Smith, master of science in supply chain management; Lauren Watters, master of science in speech language pathology; Jen Wendling, master of arts in political science.
SALEM: Corey Cedergren, master of science in nursing.
TREVOR: Rebecca Alter, master of science in nursing.
How college admissions have changed over the past 75 years
How college admissions have changed over the past 75 years
1944: GI Bill supports higher education access for veterans
1950s: Colleges begin using early admission
1958: National Defense Education Act creates federal scholarships to increase STEM research
1959: The American College Testing Program is created
1964: Civil Rights Act bans racial and gender-based discrimination against college applicants
1965: Higher Education Act provides additional financial aid opportunities
1972: Title IX is implemented to stem gender-based discrimination
1975: The Common App is created
1992: The FAFSA is created
Present: Schools begin to eliminate SAT/ACT as entry requirements
The City of Burlington's July 4 fireworks have been "postponed to a later date," the city said Monday afternoon, due to safety concerns related to expected storms.
The state of Wisconsin has revoked the wholesale dealer license for Elkhorn car dealer, Car Rangers LLC, after the dealership was found rolling back odometers and altering titles to reflect lower mileage, according to the Wisconsin Department of Transportation. | https://www.kenoshanews.com/news/local/kenosha-county-area-students-earn-academic-honors-graduate/article_b556d722-f18d-11ec-bcf1-ef5ae21e2352.html | 2022-07-06T00:34:41 | 0 | https://www.kenoshanews.com/news/local/kenosha-county-area-students-earn-academic-honors-graduate/article_b556d722-f18d-11ec-bcf1-ef5ae21e2352.html |
ALBANY, Indiana — One person is dead and three others, including a child, were taken to the hospital after a single vehicle rollover crash in Delaware County on Tuesday.
Delaware County Sheriff Tony Skinner said the crash happened at around 3:15 p.m. near the intersection of State Road 167 and CR 900 North, which is just north of Albany in northeast Delaware County.
Alyssa Stephens, 31, of Hartford City, was pronounced dead at the scene. An autopsy is scheduled for Wednesday at IU Ball Memorial Hospital.
Skinner said a child was flown to Riley Hospital for Children with non-life-threatening injuries and two other people were taken to IU Health Ball Memorial Hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
Authorities have not identified those injured in the crash.
The cause of the crash is still under investigation. | https://www.wthr.com/article/news/local/1-dead-3-injured-including-child-in-delaware-county-crash-near-albany-indiana/531-52ee4864-4f28-486c-a13f-45b37caa4a23 | 2022-07-06T00:36:26 | 0 | https://www.wthr.com/article/news/local/1-dead-3-injured-including-child-in-delaware-county-crash-near-albany-indiana/531-52ee4864-4f28-486c-a13f-45b37caa4a23 |
INDIANAPOLIS — Consumers are facing the highest inflation rates in more than 40 years.
It can be easy to take on debt just to make ends meet.
Experts say you can chip away at your debt in this current climate and work toward financial freedom.
Here's how to start:
- Create an open dialogue with your spouse or partner about finances. Tackle that debt together.
- Use budgeting apps to help you see the broad picture.
- Work with a financial advisor to determine ways to prioritize spending.
Financial advisors say it's better to pay down bad debt. For example, pay credit card debt over car loans.
The decision on what to pay off first is all dependent on interest rates. Experts say those tackling debt should approach it like a diet.
"Going from being wildly excessive to complete deprivation is really not a great strategy," said financial advisor Kristin Merrick. "You have to organize your debt. The focus needs to be on the bad debt, which you know already is the credit card debt."
Another piece of advice is to set up specific accounts for specific needs, so funds in one account go strictly to emergency expenses, like medical bills or home repairs, and other accounts are set up to save for travel or other fun activities.
What other people are reading: | https://www.wthr.com/article/news/local/chipping-away-at-household-debt-amid-highest-inflation-on-record-money-consumer-tips/531-826a3b66-eda0-478f-a522-876471771a81 | 2022-07-06T00:36:32 | 1 | https://www.wthr.com/article/news/local/chipping-away-at-household-debt-amid-highest-inflation-on-record-money-consumer-tips/531-826a3b66-eda0-478f-a522-876471771a81 |
LAGRANGE COUNTY, Ind. — A toddler died after being pulled from a northeast Indiana lake on Saturday, according to the Indiana Department of Natural Resources.
Indiana conservation officers said an apparent drowning involving a 22-month-old boy happened just before 8:30 p.m. in the 5900 block of South CR 1000 East on Big Long Lake.
First responders were called to a lakefront home in the area and when they arrived, the child had been pulled from the lake.
He was unresponsive and medics began working to revive him at the scene. Indiana DNR said the boy was flown to Parkview Regional Medical Center.
He died the next day, on Sunday, July 3, at around 11 p.m. Indiana DNR has not identified the child.
Conservation officers are investigating this as a possible drowning. An autopsy was performed Tuesday at the Northeast Indiana Forensic Center, and the results are pending. | https://www.wthr.com/article/news/local/toddler-dies-in-drowning-on-big-long-lake-northeast-indiana/531-f15e4973-17ff-4686-aaa2-18e7fc4392b1 | 2022-07-06T00:36:39 | 0 | https://www.wthr.com/article/news/local/toddler-dies-in-drowning-on-big-long-lake-northeast-indiana/531-f15e4973-17ff-4686-aaa2-18e7fc4392b1 |
WASHINGTON, D.C., USA — Brittney Griner's appeal to President Joe Biden in a handwritten letter continued to garner reaction Tuesday after the WNBA All-Star acknowledged she feared never returning home and asked Biden not “ forget about me and the other American Detainees.”
Griner's letter was delivered through her representatives to the White House on Monday and officials say the president has read it. However Griner's wife, Cherelle, said Tuesday on a morning talk show that she hadn't heard from Biden.
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre was asked repeatedly about Griner on Tuesday during the regular briefing. She said Biden read the letter, but she did not detail his reaction.
“This is very personal to him.”
Jean-Pierre did not say whether there were plans for Biden to speak with Griner’s family, but did say that National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken both spoke to Griner’s wife recently.
Jean-Pierre said Biden wanted to get Griner and other Americans home.
“We are going to use every tool we possibly can to make that happen,” Jean-Pierre said.
Griner is in the midst of a trial in Russia that began last week after she was arrested on Feb. 17 on charges of possessing cannabis oil while returning to play for her Russian team. The trial will resume Thursday.
Fewer than 1% of defendants in Russian criminal cases are acquitted, and unlike in U.S. courts, acquittals can be overturned.
Griner’s representatives Monday shared a few excerpts from her letter to the president.
″…As I sit here in a Russian prison, alone with my thoughts and without the protection of my wife, family, friends, Olympic jersey, or any accomplishments, I’m terrified I might be here forever,” Griner wrote.
“On the 4th of July, our family normally honors the service of those who fought for our freedom, including my father who is a Vietnam War Veteran,” the Phoenix Mercury center added. “It hurts thinking about how I usually celebrate this day because freedom means something completely different to me this year.”
Cherelle Griner was disappointed not to have any direct communication with the White House since the letter was delivered.
“I still have not heard from him and honestly, it’s very disheartening,” Cherelle Griner said on CBS Mornings.
Cherelle Griner said for Brittney to reach out directly to Biden is an indication of just how afraid her wife is about what's next.
“BG is probably the strongest person that I know. So she doesn’t say words like that lightly," Cherelle said. “That means she truly is terrified that she may never see us again. And you know I share those same sentiments. ... I’m sure she was like, ‘I’m gonna write him now because ... my family has tried and to no avail. So I’m going do it myself.'"
Griner pleaded with Biden in the letter to use his powers to ensure her return.
“Please do all you can to bring us home. I voted for the first time in 2020 and I voted for you. I believe in you. I still have so much good to do with my freedom that you can help restore,” Griner said "I miss my wife! I miss my family! I miss my teammates! It kills me to know they are suffering so much right now. I am grateful for whatever you can do at this moment to get me home.”
Griner has been able to have sporadic communications with family, friends and WNBA players through an email account her agent set up. The emails are printed out and delivered in bunches to Griner by her lawyer after they are vetted by Russian officials. Once the lawyers get back to their office, they’ll scan any responses from Griner and pass them back to the U.S. to send along.
She was supposed to have a phone call with her wife on their anniversary but it failed because of an “unfortunate mistake,” Biden administration officials.
Griner’s supporters have encouraged a prisoner swap like the one in April that brought home Marine veteran Trevor Reed in exchange for a Russian pilot convicted of drug trafficking conspiracy. The State Department in May designated her as wrongfully detained, moving her case under the supervision of its special presidential envoy for hostage affairs, effectively the government’s chief hostage negotiator.
Griner isn't the only American being wrongfully detained in Russia. Paul Whelan, a former Marine and security director is serving a 16-year sentence on an espionage conviction. | https://www.kvue.com/article/news/local/white-house-biden-has-read-brittney-griners-letter/75-527fe1cc-a1a6-4765-b85b-c9d77ccf7b59 | 2022-07-06T00:37:51 | 0 | https://www.kvue.com/article/news/local/white-house-biden-has-read-brittney-griners-letter/75-527fe1cc-a1a6-4765-b85b-c9d77ccf7b59 |
Shootout kills one, injures 3 in Shreveport on Fourth of July. What you need to know.
Here's what you need to know about the shootout that left one dead and three wounded on the Fourth of July.
Around 2:45 p.m., the Shreveport Police Department responded to Jewella Avenue and Meriwether Road.
Upon arrival, officers found an individual in critical condition after sustaining a gunshot wound to the head. He was taken to a local hospital by the Shreveport Fire Department and was later pronounced dead.
More:Man faces new charges in Bossier Parish kidnapping that led to officer-involved shooting
No other victims were located at the scene, police said.
Police believe that three vehicles were involved in this incident. A red Chevy Camaro, white Dodge Charger and a black Dodge Challenger.
Two victims in the shooting were dropped off at Ochsner LSU Health, police said. Another victim was dropped off at Willis-Knighton South shortly after the incident.
At this time, no suspect is in custody.
Makenzie Boucher is a reporter with the Shreveport Times. Contact her at mboucher@gannett.com. | https://www.shreveporttimes.com/story/news/local/2022/07/05/fourth-july-shootout-shreveport-leaves-1-dead-3-injured/7816374001/ | 2022-07-06T00:38:08 | 1 | https://www.shreveporttimes.com/story/news/local/2022/07/05/fourth-july-shootout-shreveport-leaves-1-dead-3-injured/7816374001/ |
Man faces new charges in Bossier Parish kidnapping that led to officer-involved shooting
A man arrested in connection with a kidnapping about a week ago now faces additional charges, authorities said Tuesday.
A man told deputies June 26 that he was kidnapped at gunpoint by Marcus Thomas, 47, of Elm Grove, and released shortly afterward, according to the Bossier Parish Sheriff's Office. Deputies began a search for Thomas, which led to a foot chase around the victim's home.
Thomas then procured a gun and deputies shot him once in the hand and once in the leg, the Sheriff's Office said in a news release. He was treated for injuries authorities described as not life-threatening.
Related:Kidnapping call leads to officer-involved shooting in Bossier Parish
Previous coverage:Shooting at Shreveport Brookshires grocery store leaves a man in serious condition
The Sheriff's Office said Tuesday that Thomas faces additional charges stemming from the incident, including five counts of aggravated assault and one count of aggravated flight from an officer.
He had been charged earlier with one count of second-degree kidnapping, one count of illegal carrying of a weapon during a crime of violence and two counts of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, according to the Sheriff's Office. Thomas’ bail is set at $1 million.
Makenzie Boucher is a reporter with the Shreveport Times. Contact her at mboucher@gannett.com. | https://www.shreveporttimes.com/story/news/local/2022/07/05/man-charged-bossier-kidnapping-faces-new-charges-police-say/7814642001/ | 2022-07-06T00:38:14 | 0 | https://www.shreveporttimes.com/story/news/local/2022/07/05/man-charged-bossier-kidnapping-faces-new-charges-police-say/7814642001/ |
Midland County reported that a total of 18 fire calls because of fireworks between the hours of 9:30 p.m. and 12:30 a.m. on Monday night/Tuesday morning.
Fifteen of those 18 were grass fires, and three of those were trash fires, according to the county. All fire units, including city and volunteer departments, were dispatched out.
“We want to thank all of the agencies that worked hard last night fighting fires to keep the lives and property of Midland County safe,” the county reported. | https://www.mrt.com/news/local/article/County-18-fries-reported-in-three-hours-17285788.php | 2022-07-06T00:38:18 | 0 | https://www.mrt.com/news/local/article/County-18-fries-reported-in-three-hours-17285788.php |
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A new lounge is planned for downtown Midland, a development city staff said would be in keeping with the Tall City Tomorrow plan of offering entertainment choices downtown.
Members of the Planning and Zoning Commission Monday unanimously approved a request by Sonny Aguilar for a Specific Use Designation with Term for the sale of all Alcoholic Beverages for on-premises consumption in a lounge. Aguilar is planning to open the Brass Munky at 319 N. Colorado St. A Specific Use Designation had been in effect for the property but expired in 2014.
Brass Munky will have a total square footage of 2,800 feet, of which 2,200 square feet will be dedicated to the alcohol serviceable area. Hours will be Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 a.m. the following day and on Sunday from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Commissioners also approved, for a second time, a request by James Griffis for a zone change from SF1, Single Family Dwelling District in part and SF2, Single Family Dwelling District in part to PD Planned Development for an Office Center at 1606 N. “A” St. Griffis plans to develop a ministorage facility. Commissioners had approved the request in February but because of an error in the public notice, it was decided to hear the request a second time.
If changed, the property would be considered spot-zoned in the middle of a residential neighborhood and no other use other than ministorage would be allowed.
A proposed preliminary plat of a 1.37-acre tract of land at North F Street and West Illinois Avenue received unanimous approval. The site, to be developed as the corporate headquarters of Maverick Engineering, had its zone changed from O1, Office District in part and SF2, Single Family Dwelling District, to O1, Office District in April at the request of Mellen Family Investments.
In other action, commissioners
- Approved, with staff’s recommended conditions, a proposed preliminary plat of a 10.81-acre tract at Mockingbird Lane and north Midland Drive for construction purposes.
- Approved, with staff’s recommended conditions, a proposed preliminary plat of tracts at east Broadway Street and Bedford Drive. | https://www.mrt.com/news/local/article/P-Z-approves-designation-for-new-downtown-lounge-17286164.php | 2022-07-06T00:38:24 | 1 | https://www.mrt.com/news/local/article/P-Z-approves-designation-for-new-downtown-lounge-17286164.php |
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Want to adopt?
The Midland Animal Shelter is exceeding capacity with owners surrendering their animals, according to a May 26 Reporter-Telegram report. There are plenty of dogs and cats waiting for their furever home.
Every week, volunteer photographer, Tasha Sport, photographs some of the animals available for adoption. The adoption fee is $62 and includes microchip, rabies vac, license, tag and alter.
On a monthly basis, the shelter takes care of approximately 350 – 400 pets.
Here's more information on how you can adopt:
To adopt one of these pets, please call the Shelter to set an appointment at (432) 685-7420.
Hours of operation Monday -- Thursday 9:30-5:30, Friday 9:30-4:30
1200 N. Fairgrounds Road | https://www.mrt.com/news/local/article/Want-to-adopt-Check-out-these-adoptable-animals-17285174.php | 2022-07-06T00:38:31 | 1 | https://www.mrt.com/news/local/article/Want-to-adopt-Check-out-these-adoptable-animals-17285174.php |
The Internal Revenue Service announced today that more forms can now be amended electronically. These include people filing corrections to the Form 1040-NR, U.S. Nonresident Alien Income Tax Return and Forms 1040-SS, U.S. Self-Employment Tax Return (Including the Additional Child Tax Credit for Bona Fide Residents of Puerto Rico) and Forms 1040-PR, Self-Employment Tax Return – Puerto Rico.
“This initiative has come a long way from 2020 when we first launched the ability to file amended returns, which was an important milestone to help taxpayers and the tax community," said IRS Commissioner Chuck Rettig. "This new feature will further help people needing to make corrections. This development will also assist the IRS with its inventory work on the current backlog of amended returns. This is another tool we’re using to help get us back on track.”
Additionally, a new, electronic checkbox has been added for Forms 1040/1040-SR, 1040-NR and 1040-SS/1040-PR to indicate that a superseding return is being filed electronically. A superseded return is one that is filed after the originally filed return but submitted before the due date, including extensions.
Taxpayers can also amend their return electronically if there is change to their filing status or to add a dependent who was previously claimed on another return.
About 3 million Forms 1040-X are filed by taxpayers each year. Taxpayers can still use the "Where's My Amended Return?" online tool to check the status of their electronically-filed Form 1040-X.
Forms 1040, 1040-NR and 1040-SR can still be amended electronically for tax years 2019, 2020 and 2021 along with corrected Forms 1040-SS and Form 1040-PR for tax year 2021.
In general, taxpayers still have the option to submit a paper version of the Form 1040-X and should follow the instructions for preparing and submitting the paper form.
The IRS continues to look at this important area, and more enhancements are planned for the future. | https://theworldlink.com/news/local/irs-taxpayers-now-have-more-options-to-correct-amend-returns-electronically/article_d007f27e-fbef-11ec-b18c-9bbe6fe585cb.html | 2022-07-06T00:38:51 | 0 | https://theworldlink.com/news/local/irs-taxpayers-now-have-more-options-to-correct-amend-returns-electronically/article_d007f27e-fbef-11ec-b18c-9bbe6fe585cb.html |
Salisbury man sentenced to 28 years in child sex abuse case
Shannon Marvel McNaught
Salisbury Daily Times
A Salisbury man has been sentenced to 28 years in prison after being charged with sexual abuse of a minor and other offenses last year.
Gardener Green, 53, "sexually exploited a family member under the age of ten years old" in the summer of 2020, according to Wicomico County state's attorney's office. He was arrested in November 2020 and pleaded not guilty to two counts of sexual abuse of a minor and one count of indecent exposure, court records show.
Green was found guilty in April of this year following a two-day jury trial. On June 30, he was sentenced to 28 years in prison, receiving the maximum sentence for sexual abuse of a minor, 25 years, and three years for indecent exposure. | https://www.delmarvanow.com/story/news/local/maryland/2022/07/05/gardener-green-sexual-abuse-minor-wicomico-county/65367308007/ | 2022-07-06T00:41:09 | 0 | https://www.delmarvanow.com/story/news/local/maryland/2022/07/05/gardener-green-sexual-abuse-minor-wicomico-county/65367308007/ |
Hogan directs police to suspend Maryland's gun carry standard after Supreme Court ruling
Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan directed the state police Tuesday to suspend the state's “good and substantial reason” standard for permits to carry handguns after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down a similar New York law last month.
Hogan said the New York law pertaining to handguns “is virtually indistinguishable from Maryland law.” As a result, Hogan said he was directing the Maryland State Police to immediately suspend use of the standard when reviewing applications for wear and carry permits.
“It would be unconstitutional to continue enforcing this provision in state law,” said Hogan, a Republican. “There is no impact on other permitting requirements and protocols.”
More:Maryland and the 2nd Amendment: What's next as high court strikes down gun law?
Under Maryland law, a gun owner has had to show a “good or substantial reason” to carry a concealed gun. That could include showing a person’s life is in danger from threats or that they work in a job that could put them in contact with people who are dangerous.
Maryland Attorney General Brian Frosh, a Democrat, has said the Maryland law is similar to New York’s but they take different approaches. He has said the Supreme Court's ruling last month is being examined to determine its impact on the state.
Opponents to the law in Maryland already have sued in a case that was on hold in the U.S. 4th Circuit Court of Appeals, pending the ruling in the New York case.
After the Supreme Court's ruling, about a half a dozen other states with similar laws have been weighing next steps.
As with New York, California, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey and Rhode Island all have legislatures controlled by Democrats who could propose measures to ensure that guns will not be allowed in certain places.
More:As 'ghost gun' law goes into effect, Maryland’s policies, already among strongest, tighten
More:Gov. Larry Hogan commits $15 million to Route 90 expansion project
Last week, New York lawmakers approved a sweeping overhaul of the state’s handgun licensing rules in hopes of preserving some limits on firearms after the Supreme Court ruled that most people have a right to carry a handgun for personal protection.
That measure, signed by New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, is almost sure to draw more legal challenges from gun rights advocates who say the state is still putting too many restrictions on who can get guns and where they can carry them. | https://www.delmarvanow.com/story/news/local/maryland/2022/07/05/hogan-suspends-maryland-md-gun-carry-standard-after-scotus-decision-for-new-york/65367400007/ | 2022-07-06T00:41:15 | 1 | https://www.delmarvanow.com/story/news/local/maryland/2022/07/05/hogan-suspends-maryland-md-gun-carry-standard-after-scotus-decision-for-new-york/65367400007/ |
Wicomico County Executive: Meet the candidates primary election 2022
What do those running for election for the Wicomico County Executive have to say about the county's top issues?
What about their pitches for why they are the best person for the position?
Delmarva Now/The Daily Times sent questionnaires to each Republican and Democratic candidate seeking election to Wicomico County Executive.
Included were basic biographical questions, as well as opportunities to list websites and social media accounts so voters can learn beyond just answers to the questions we asked. Responses were limited to 500 characters — the equivalent of more than two tweets. Their answers are published unedited.
The questionnaire were emailed in mid-June, with additional attempts to reach those who did not list an email address on their filing paperwork. Those who didn't answer by June 29 are listed below as "Did not respond."
In the primary race for Wicomico County Executive, Republican voters will decide between two candidates. Candidates' answers to our Q&A appear below biographical information:
WHO IS RUNNING
Republican
Julie Giordano
Age: 40
Twitter: @giordano4CE
Online: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100076140556402
Occupation: Teacher
Primary residence: Hebron
John Psota
Age: 59
Online: https://www.countyexecutivepsota.com/ facebook.com/John-Psota-for-County-Executive-103927275442644/
Occupation: Acting County Executive & Director of Administration
Primary residence: I reside in the county, and do not live within the corporate limits of a municipality
Democrat
Ernest Davis
(unopposed in Primary)
Age: 58
Occupation: Self Employed-Transportation
Primary residence: Salisbury
Libertarian
Muir Boda
(Nominated by party to appear in the general election only)
Q&A
What makes you the best candidate for this office?
Giordano: I am the best candidate for this position because I bring forth a unique set of skills that no other candidate possesses. I have experience in the private sector as a human resources manager and events coordinator, but most importantly in the public sector as a 17-year veteran teacher. I have also formed a great rapport with our state and local leaders. I have a vision for our county and want us to thrive and prosper.
Psota: As Acting County Executive and Director of Administration with seven years prior experience as City Manager of the county's 2nd largest municipality, and as a 25-year veteran of the Maryland State Police, I have an understanding of how to efficiently and effectively provide government services to our citizens. I am proud of my record of leading the county government people expect and deserve by managing public resources, addressing concerns, investing in our future and keeping Wicomico County safe.
Davis: Lifelong resident of Wicomico County. Created and maintained two businesses in Wicomico. Democratic Central Comm. 2010-2014. County Council 2014-2022, VP 2022. School board building committee 2018-2022, LMB, 2014-2022. I have been able to work with all parties on council. I have a good vision on how the county government works. I have been around long enough to see what it will take to move forward on the issues facing our county.
What is the top issue facing this office, and what are your plans to address it?
Giordano: The top issue is the lack of leadership. We have had a stagnant administration for 18 months. This has led the executive office to a major disconnect with not only the state leaders, but also the town municipalities, first responders and county citizens. We have over 80 vacancies, underpaid employees, and a lack a vision for growth and development. My plans to address this issue are to be actively involved in our county and improve relationships with local and state officials.
Psota: Recruitment and retention is a major issue. An organization is propelled by the quality and dedication of its people. This is true for all county departments, particularly with regard to our public safety personnel. A negotiated three-year agreement with our deputies increased salaries and benefits by $1 million annually. We also implemented retention and signing bonuses for correctional officers and 911 communication specialists. A salary study was implemented across all other county positions.
Davis: Broadband, water, sewer, attract, compensate and retain government employees and educators, Promote economic development. Advertise to fill all the vacate government vacancies, which would include a grant writer. Create a Sanitation Deparment with a director so they can head the development of the water and sewer plan. With the new grant writer, go and obtain any and all federal funding for broadband and water and sewer. Work close with the school system to retain teachers
What steps would you take to increase transparency in your office?
Giordano: One major step would be an an increase in communication. The Executive Office should be in consistent communication with state and local officials. We will also be an active administration, keeping the media and county citizens informed through improved social media presence and press releases. Lastly, I would like to travel the county with my department heads, hosting town halls. Citizens could attend and ask questions directly. We want to improve civic engagement.
Psota: Transparency is a priority. Under my leadership, we have refreshed the county website to make it easier to find information, and we are currently updating an accounting transparency portal to ensure the most current data is available. I also increased cooperation with the county’s internal auditor and fully support the anonymous hotline reporting system established for employees to report potential fraud, compliance and ethics issues.
Davis: Keep the County Council updated on projects that my office is working on, so they don't get broadsided with anything that is brought before them. | https://www.delmarvanow.com/story/news/local/maryland/2022/07/05/wicomico-county-executive-meet-the-candidates-primary-election-2022/65365974007/ | 2022-07-06T00:41:21 | 0 | https://www.delmarvanow.com/story/news/local/maryland/2022/07/05/wicomico-county-executive-meet-the-candidates-primary-election-2022/65365974007/ |
Wicomico County State's Attorney: Meet the candidates for 2022 primary election
What do candidates for the Wicomico County state's attorney say the top issue facing this office is? How will they address transparency and more?
Delmarva Now/The Daily Times sent questionnaires to each candidate seeking election to Wicomico County state's attorney; both are Republicans.
Included were basic biographical questions, as well as opportunities to list websites and social media accounts so voters can learn beyond just answers to the questions we asked. Responses were limited to 500 characters — the equivalent of more than two tweets. Their answers are published unedited.
The questionnaire were emailed in mid-June, with additional attempts to reach those who did not list an email address on their filing paperwork. Those who didn't answer by June 29 are listed below as "Did not respond."
Candidates' answers to our Q&A appear below biographical information:
Who are the candidates
James L. "Lee" Britt
Age: 46
@LeeBrittforSA
https://www.facebook.com/LeeBrittforSA
Occupation: Attorney
Jamie Dykes
Age: 43
https://www.facebook.com/jamie.dykes.16/
Occupation: State's Attorney
What makes you the best candidate for this office?
Britt: I spent 10 years as a prosecutor with the Wicomico County State's Attorney's Office ("SAO"). The vast majority of that time was spent as the liaison to the Maryland State Police Gang Enforcement Unit, prosecuting gun and drug offenses and gang members and associates. I was also the liaison to the Governor's Safe Streets program, which concentrated on the most violent and dangerous offenders. The priority of my administration would be the prosecution of violent offenders and repeat offenders.
Dykes: As your State's Attorney, my experience and track record are significant and measurable. I have tried more than a hundred cases to juries, including dozens of homicides. I’ve successfully built a team that has achieved a 15-point gain. I appointed leaders who focus on developing their teams while holding them to the highest standards.
I have met unprecedented challenges while elevating the service we provide. The safety of our community hinges on its confidence in the system.
What is the top issue facing this office, and what are your plans to address it?
Britt: Trust and communication with law enforcement have been broken. The SAO has suffered unprecedented turnover which has exceeded 125% among the attorney over the last four years. That turnover is debilitating to the agency's ability to fulfill its mission and demoralizing to the staff who remain. It is indicative of a problem with the leadership. I will restore the trust and confidence of law enforcement and reduce attorney stress and caseload by stopping the mass exodus of great attorneys.
Dykes: Violence at the hands of young people, often driven by the illegal distribution of drugs, who lack respect for the life and safety of others. With our partners, we will continue to implement innovative strategies to ensure accountability and integrity at every stage of prosecution in every case.
Long-term success will require instilling the value of life in our young people. Making strides will require that each of us take on more responsibility for our future.
What steps would you take to increase transparency in your office?
Britt: Transparency is key to an informed public. A press release about a trial win certainly does assist in a creating a self-serving narrative. However, it does not paint a true picture. For example, the SAO does not put out press releases when it loses murder cases, as my opponent has with the last two murder cases which she has tried. I will make public all of our wins and losses. And I will end the non-disclosure agreement that the current administration forced staff and employees to sign.
Dykes: Transparency is fundamental to ensuring confidence.
While pending, the integrity of prosecutions must be our first priority.
Full transparency can be achieved when prosecutions are concluded.
Our office regularly engages with the community in Law School Summer Camp, Prosecution for the Public, National Night Out, teaching at the Eastern Shore Criminal Justice Academy and in our schools. I remain committed to opportunities to inform citizens about the criminal justice process. | https://www.delmarvanow.com/story/news/local/maryland/2022/07/05/wicomico-county-states-attorney-candidates-for-2022-primary-election/65366189007/ | 2022-07-06T00:41:27 | 1 | https://www.delmarvanow.com/story/news/local/maryland/2022/07/05/wicomico-county-states-attorney-candidates-for-2022-primary-election/65366189007/ |
Man indicted on 18 charges in Wicomico deputy's death
AP - The 21-year-old Maryland man accused of killing a Wicomico County sheriff's deputy in June has been indicted on a total of 18 charges.
Austin Jacob Allen Davidson was indicted last week on charges including first- and second-degree murder, using a firearm in the commission of a violent crime and multiple counts relating to illegal firearm possession, The Star Democrat reported.
The charges stem from the June 12 shooting that left Wicomico County Corp. Glenn Hilliard dead.
Authorities have said Hilliard was trying to arrest Davidson on multiple felony warrants, saw him coming out of an apartment complex and began a foot pursuit. Davidson, of Delmar, shot at Hilliard multiple times, fatally injuring him, according to authorities.
Davidson, who was taken into custody after a lengthy manhunt, is being held without bond. He is scheduled for a court appearance July 15, the newspaper reported.
Davidson was prohibited from owning firearms after a 2019 felony armed robbery conviction for which he served no jail time, according to the newspaper. Officials have since criticized that sentence as too lenient.
More:PHOTOS: Scenes from the funeral service for Deputy Glenn Hilliard
More:'He was our protector': Wicomico Deputy Glenn Hilliard memorialized at funeral
Hilliard was posthumously promoted to the rank of corporal at his June 21 funeral service at Emmanuel Wesleyan Church in Salisbury. | https://www.delmarvanow.com/story/news/local/maryland/2022/07/05/wicomico-deputy-death-man-indicted-on-murder-other-charges/65366821007/ | 2022-07-06T00:41:33 | 1 | https://www.delmarvanow.com/story/news/local/maryland/2022/07/05/wicomico-deputy-death-man-indicted-on-murder-other-charges/65366821007/ |
WEST LINN, Ore. (KOIN) — If you’re travelling near the Abernethy Bridge piers in West Linn, you’ll see the first phase of construction of a major improvements project.
According to the Oregon Department of Transportation, crews have begun staging equipment for the I-205 improvements project. Drivers can expect to see “pile driving” at and around the Abernethy Bridge piers from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. weekdays through October.
The department says crews are mobilizing a “casing oscillator” at the construction site, which is used to drill large diameter shafts more than 200 feet, or comparable to a 20-story building.
“Once completed, the new shafts will support the foundations of the Abernethy Bridge to help it withstand a major earthquake,” said the Oregon Department of Transportation on its website.
Within 200 feet of pile driving, the sound level will be comparable to a noisy restaurant, added the announcement. At 500 feet and further from pile driving, the sound will be no louder than city traffic.
While noise from this activity will be disruptive in the immediate area, said ODOT, it is a safe and reliable method to ensure construction is structurally sound and seismically resilient.
Those concerned with the nighttime construction noise can call the 24-hour noise hotline at 503-294-2125.
“Community members should anticipate impacts to vehicular travel and to bike and pedestrian paths along OR 99E, OR 43, and Clackamette Drive. There may also be river impacts, such as no wake zones, around Abernethy Bridge during construction,” the department noted.
As construction on I-205 gets underway, ODOT cautions for everyone to slow down, stay alert and remember that crews want to stay safe each day.
“Working in construction zones is dangerous. You can help us by following all work zone signs and directions as we make Abernethy Bridge earthquake ready,” said the announcement. | https://www.koin.com/local/clackamas-county/new-bridge-construction-underway-near-west-linn/ | 2022-07-06T00:41:43 | 0 | https://www.koin.com/local/clackamas-county/new-bridge-construction-underway-near-west-linn/ |
LEXINGTON, Ky. (FOX 56) – An emotional week for people in Floyd County, with funerals and memorial services each day for the three officers and a police dog killed by a gunman last week. Tuesday, Deputy William Petry was laid to rest.
Leaders say the community is grieving and looking for ways to pay respect to the fallen officers.
Floyd County businesses and foundations say they have received help from people all across the United States. At a Sunday news conference, leaders announced more than $40,000 has already been collected to help the victims and their families. But more is needed.
In the midst of devastation, the Floyd County Community Foundation and local businesses are responding to a tragedy.
“Supporting the community in a time of need, sometimes we feel a little bit helpless when things like this happen and this is a way people can help”, the foundation’s community engagement officer Kathy King-Allen said.
Three officers were killed and several others injured when deputies served a warrant on Lance Storz, 49. This week, the officers will be laid to rest. The Floyd County community foundation is lending a hand by creating the Allen Crisis Fund.
“They are local board of advisors, and they respond to the need of the community and this need is enormous,” said King-Allen.
Along with the three officers killed in last Thursday night’s shooting, a police dog from the Floyd county sheriff’s office was also shot and killed.
“When I heard of Drago passing, I knew that was kind of my place to step in and help,” Sheena Maynard, owner of Lou’s Place for Pets said. “I mean he was ferocious and fearless and so strong and quick but he was a fluffy puppy when you have seen him.”
Donations are being accepted by the Kent Rose Foundation and Lou’s place for pets in honor of Drago, the K-9 officer.
“They will need to purchase a new K-9, the K-9 will need training, there will need to be a handler, equipment, a new vehicle, a new vest and the cost are going to be overwhelming so,” Maynard said.
Lou’s Place for Pets said they’ve already sold nearly 1,000 shirts to support the efforts to replace Drago. With 100% of the profits from shirt sales going toward helping the sheriff’s office.
“In the first 72 hours I have answered almost 800 people,” said Maynard.
The donation link is below if you’d like to share that in your story. Donate to the Floyd County (Allen) Crisis Fund here. Checks can also be mailed to Floyd County Community Foundation, PO Box 1734, Prestonsburg KY 41653. | https://www.wowktv.com/news/local/ways-people-are-helping-floyd-county-after-devastating-shooting/ | 2022-07-06T00:41:59 | 1 | https://www.wowktv.com/news/local/ways-people-are-helping-floyd-county-after-devastating-shooting/ |
SAN ANTONIO — Fourth of July celebrations could be the reason why two homes burned overnight on the city's northwest side.
Around 11:30pm, the San Antonio Fire Department responded to two homes engulfed in heavy flames on Wildstone Place. SAFD Chief Charles Hood said fireworks were popping off in the area, and continuing to do so, as fire crews arrived.
Initially, firefighters feared up to four houses on fire but were able to contain the flames to two. Hood said both homes suffered heavy damage from water and flames. No injuries were reported.
Hood said fireworks may be to blame but said the cause remains under investigation.
"We do have ring doorbell [video] from some of the residents with fireworks going off in the street prior to the call coming in," he said.
KENS 5 was able to obtain cell phone video from a neighbor.
On Tuesday, firefighters returned periodically to check for hot spots. As they walked the properties, neighbors drove by to see the damage.
Amarachi Ogwu-Chinuwa stopped by to lend her neighbors a hand.
"A good neighbor that's what we do. We come together and help each other," said Ogwu-Chinuwa.
A family member did stop by later to survey the destruction. Off camera he told KENS 5 the fire sparked by fireworks from the red brick house next door.
He said the flames quickly spread to the left burning his uncle's house from the attic down. He says five people were inside but made it out.
The family now has a Go Fund Me.
As firefighters work to determine a cause, popping fireworks in San Antonio city limits is illegal and violators could face a fine up to $2,000.
Homeowners insurance cover house fires, but with fireworks, there could be some issues depending on the state and the legality of fireworks. | https://www.kens5.com/article/news/local/fireworks-possibly-to-blame-for-two-house-fires-on-northwest-side/273-6ee03808-3a11-4eea-a771-0d8b5ce2cce7 | 2022-07-06T00:44:50 | 1 | https://www.kens5.com/article/news/local/fireworks-possibly-to-blame-for-two-house-fires-on-northwest-side/273-6ee03808-3a11-4eea-a771-0d8b5ce2cce7 |
SAN ANTONIO — Three people are dead after two separate shootings happening late Monday night into Tuesday morning.
One of those killed, a 16-year-old girl, was shot at an apartment complex off Ingram Road. Police say she was taken to the hospital where she later died from her injuries.
San Antonio Police Chief William McManus expressed frustration Tuesday morning after he said detectives are working to investigate the recent rash of shootings across the city. But many of those arrested in the past few years, have been arrested before, he said, and subsequently released from jail.
“Sixty percent of the people that we have arrested in the past few years – three (years), I believe it is – we've arrested before. We've got people that we're arresting and re-arresting and re-arresting again,” said McManus. “So, to say that SAPD is not doing their job, that's not true.”
McManus said the bonds for violent crimes should be set higher, but instead criminals are back on the streets and representing a danger to the public.
Released just hours later
The city’s top officer also shared his frustration about a recent case where a 19-year-old man was arrested after threatening a mass shooting.
Thanks to a witness, police arrested the Rodolfo Valdivia Aceves before he could act. But just a few hours after the arrest, Aceves posted bond and was released from jail.
“I just don't understand why it's OK for this guy to be on the street,” McManus said in an exclusive interview with KENS 5 on Tuesday. “Especially in the wake of Uvalde, this individual being out on the street, regardless of what bond conditions he may have, is dangerous to the public.”
According to an arrest affidavit, Aceves was working as a sub-contractor at an Amazon warehouse in southeast San Antonio, when he told a coworker he was planning on carrying out a mass shooting.
The first incident happened on June 24, when Aceves was outside during a fire drill at the facility with a coworker who told police what happened.
Th affidavit reads, “The witness was standing next to the defendant (Aceves) when the defendant stated to the witness that it would be a good idea to pull the fire alarm and have all employees exit the building and commit a mass shooting.”
The document goes on to explain that Aceves told the witness “he will be doing it an he would commit a mass shooting.”
The coworker “feared retaliation” and didn’t tell her managers at work what happened, but then she changed her mind, saying she felt Aceves was capable of committing a mass shooting.
The affidavit outlines another incident when the witness gave Aceves a ride home from work. She told police that before she dropped him off, they stopped to pickup her children from school.
Aceves told the witness that he would now know what school to go to and shoot up the school. He also told the witness that the 18-year-old gunman in the Uvalde school shooting was his "idol."
“With all the of the mass shootings, the active shooter events that have happened just recently, and we've got a guy who's threatening to do it and he's back out on the street,” said McManus. “I hate to keep using the word, but it's frustrating to see that happen.”
Aceves was arrested on June 27, the very next day after witness reported the incidents to police. Officers received a search warrant and found guns at Aceves’ Universal City home.
On the same day he was arrested, Aceves was out of jail, again, after he posted bail set at $50,000.
Who sets bond amounts?
KENS 5 reached out to Bexar County District Attorney Joe Gonzales to ask how the bail amount was determined.
“It's important for the public to understand that tat the district attorney's office does not have the ultimate control as to where a bond is set or the amount that is set. We make bond recommendations,” Gonzales said.
He said after his prosecutors recommend a bond, it’s up to the magistrate judge to make the final call.
Gonzales said, in this case, his prosecutors recommended a higher bond of $65,000.
“Especially with everything that's happened with Uvalde, we're a lot more aware of the potential for harm. That's why the recommendation was higher than normal,” said Gonzales. “But even at the amount that we recommended, it didn't stay there. It was reduced.”
Gonzales said every person arrested for a crime has the ability to bail out, with the exception of those charged with capital murder.
“But the key is: What bond is the correct amount?” said McManus. “When you have someone who is a danger to the public, that bond should be high, in my opinion.”
Those dangers extend not only to the public, McManus said, but to those close to Aveces, including the witness who reported him.
“They have every right to be afraid, because it's a reality that retaliation is a very likely possibility,” he said.
'There doesn't need to be another word said'
Gonzales said he depends on law enforcement to alert prosecutors about the severity of cases before a recommendation for bond is handed over to the magistrate judge.
In this case, however, the district attorney says that did not happen.
“If law enforcement is not telling us, ‘This is a guy that knows where these people live, we believe he's got every ability to carry out his threat, we think that the bond should be a lot higher than the normal'... apparently, that didn't happen here,” said Gonzales. “All she had was the affidavit that she was reviewing to make the recommendation.”
But McManus contends that communication did happen, via the reports made by officers.
“The clear communication is right there in the affidavit, right there in the affidavit. There doesn't need to be another word said,” the chief said.
In the affidavit, the witness tells police multiple times that she’s afraid of Aceves and potential retaliation, adding the man accused of planning a school shooting knows where her daughter goes to school.
More details revealed in the affidavit come from Aceves’ father, who told police his son had a history of mental illness, and twice had been placed in a mental health facility.
The father also shared with police that his family was scared after his son had purchased an AR platform rifle, according to the affidavit.
“I think it's unconscionable that he's on the street right now after making those kinds of threats in the aftermath of Uvalde and other mass shootings that have happened most recently,” said McManus.
“What can be done? High enough bond to keep people in jail. Yeah, for starters,” the chief added.
Gonzales said he supports the bail amount his prosecutors recommended.
“I'm comfortable that the recommendation that this prosecutor set the bond where she set it was based on the information that she had," he said. "And she wasn't alerted that there was any need to set it any higher." | https://www.kens5.com/article/news/local/law-enforcement/san-antonios-police-chief-bonds-william-mcmanus-criminals-law/273-e2c37748-32bd-4964-9b38-2fcd26f4b083 | 2022-07-06T00:44:56 | 0 | https://www.kens5.com/article/news/local/law-enforcement/san-antonios-police-chief-bonds-william-mcmanus-criminals-law/273-e2c37748-32bd-4964-9b38-2fcd26f4b083 |
SPICEWOOD, Texas — The Spicewood community is looking for answers after a golden retriever named Indy who had been missing from a pet boarding facility was found buried on the pet resort property.
The Burnet County Sheriff's Office said Indy went missing on June 29 while staying at Lucki Dogs Resort in Spicewood.
Indy's owners then started working with a nonprofit out of Austin called Trapping, Rescue and Pet Recovery Services (TRAPRS). They found Indy buried on the pet resort property, where he was said to have been missing from.
The sheriff's office and animal control then reported to the scene. The cause of Indy's death is unknown at this time, and an investigation is underway.
The Burnet County Sheriff's Office asks anyone with information on Indy's death or "direct information about Lucki Dogs Resort" to contact them.
KVUE has been in contact with the resort and is still waiting on a statement from them.
PEOPLE ARE ALSO READING: | https://www.kens5.com/article/news/local/missing-dog-found-buried-property-dog-resort/269-3d2e3077-fbd6-41b9-a283-baa93c86f209 | 2022-07-06T00:45:02 | 1 | https://www.kens5.com/article/news/local/missing-dog-found-buried-property-dog-resort/269-3d2e3077-fbd6-41b9-a283-baa93c86f209 |
TEXAS, USA — Texans are seeing skyrocketing home electric bills this spring and summer, with many customers paying at least 50% more than they did for electric bills at this time last year.
And nobody seems to know when costs will go down.
“I am worried people are going to be shocked,” said John Ballenger, vice president at Texas retail electric provider Champion Energy. “Realizing this is 50 or 60 or 70% higher than what they had paid before, I’m just not sure it’s real to people yet. If it’s not, it will be very, very soon when the bills hit this summer.”
Here’s what Texans need to know about why utility bills are getting more expensive:
What’s driving electricity and gas bills higher?
The elevated utility bills have primarily been driven by the price of natural gas, which has shot up more than 200% since late February when Russia, a top gas-producing country, invaded Ukraine and upended the world’s energy market.
Since then, Texas, the leading natural gas-producing state in the U.S., has not been able to keep offering its own residents cheap energy.
Since the war in Ukraine began, Texas has been exporting more natural gas than ever before, sending much of it to Europe as many countries try to wean themselves off Russian gas. Congress lifted a longtime ban on exporting U.S. oil and gas in 2015, which opened world markets to Texas oil and gas producers.
“People are lining up around the world to get our product,” said Todd Staples, president of the Texas Oil and Gas Association.
RELATED: Sweating that next electric bill? Here are some tips to save money as electricity prices climb
But demand for natural gas has also been growing at home as more people and businesses continue to flock to Texas. A hotter-than-normal spring and early summer also have driven demand for power to record-high levels. Most Texas power plants run on natural gas.
“We’ve seen Texas gas go over to Europe, which has then created a supply issue locally in the state of Texas,” said Cory Kuchinsky, chief financial officer and treasurer for CPS Energy, San Antonio’s municipal utility that provides energy to more than 1 million customers. “Our customers feel the real-time impact of changing fuel costs.”
The hike in utility bills comes during difficult financial times for many Texans, who have also been facing high prices at grocery stores and the fuel pump due to growing inflation.
How long will Texans see higher utility bills?
With the war in Ukraine dragging on and upending the world energy market, Texas electricity providers are cautioning customers that the high rates could linger for months or longer.
The higher prices will, however, benefit some Texans. As a major gas producer, the state typically benefits from high oil and gas prices in the form of jobs and state taxes on oil and gas production. Cities located in the state’s oil fields usually benefit even more.
“I grew up in Odessa in the middle of oil and gas, and there’s always been this inverse relationship,” said Carrie Collier-Brown, lawyer for the Alliance for Retail Markets, a trade group for Texas electric providers. “For folks out there, it’s better for their economy when gas prices are high.”
But despite the spike in demand, the oil and gas industry isn’t seeing major production growth because of a backlog of orders for vital equipment due to supply chain issues stemming from the pandemic, said Garrett Golding, energy economist with the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas.
“There’s also a shortage of labor across most of the oilfield services,” Golding said, noting that companies are trying to hire aggressively. “But we’ve seen it for several quarters now: It is a struggle to get qualified people into the positions (companies) want right now.”
Is the price of natural gas the only cause?
While they agree the price of natural gas is the primary driver behind Texas utility bills, energy experts say there are other factors at play.
The state’s main power grid operator, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, has been managing the grid more cautiously since last February, when millions of people were without power for days in subfreezing temperatures after a combination of cold weather across the state and skyrocketing demand for energy shut down power plants as well as the natural gas facilities that supply them with fuel. Hundreds of people died.
Public Utility Commission chair Peter Lake, appointed by Gov. Greg Abbott after the winter storm to lead the agency in charge of ERCOT, has said the grid operator is no longer prioritizing providing Texans cheap power. Instead, Lake said, its main focus is the grid’s reliability, especially during extreme hot or cold weather. But that has a price.
“Conservative operations add costs,” said Cathy Webking, a longtime Texas energy lawyer.
ERCOT’s new approach to operating the grid means asking power plants to be online and available in case they’re needed, and that means paying generators a prescribed price to operate no matter what happens. Before the 2021 winter storm, power plants ramped up or went offline based on market demand.
Golding, with the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, said Texans are paying for last year’s grid disaster — and will for years. Texas lawmakers last year approved roughly $7 billion in ratepayer-backed bonds to deal with the financial fallout from the storm. Some electricity utilities were strapped with billions in new debt after paying exorbitant prices for electricity set by ERCOT during the storm — the high prices were an incentive for power plants to provide more electricity — and the debt drove some utilities into bankruptcy.
“On everybody’s bill, there are also these surcharges for paying for what happened in 2021,” Golding said.
Disclosure: CPS Energy has been a financial supporter of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in the Tribune's journalism. Find a complete list of them here.
This story comes from our KHOU 11 News partners at The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan media organization that informs Texans - and engages with them - about public policy, politics, government, and statewide issues. | https://www.kens5.com/article/news/local/texas/texans-facing-high-energy-bills/285-97fce6e3-beac-40a0-b2ed-7c01938753d8 | 2022-07-06T00:45:08 | 0 | https://www.kens5.com/article/news/local/texas/texans-facing-high-energy-bills/285-97fce6e3-beac-40a0-b2ed-7c01938753d8 |
The United States imported 2.736 million tons of steel in May, up 0.2% versus April.
That included 2.334 million tons of finished steel that would not need to be further processed by American workers, such as those at steel companies at the Port of Indiana-Burns Harbor. Finished steel imports were up 3.1% from April, according to preliminary U.S. Census Bureau data.
So far this year, total steel imports are up 47.5% as compared to the same period in 2021. Finished steel imports are up 55% through the end of May as compared to the first five months of last year, according to the American Iron and Steel Institute.
Finished steel imports grabbed 25% of the market share in May and 24% so far this year.
In May, imports of key steel products rose by 120%, standard pipe by 46%, mechanical tubing by 23%, hot rolled bars by 20% and hot rolled sheets by 11%, according to the American Iron and Steel Institute. So far in 2022, imports of oil country goods grew by 135%, wire rods by 120%, cold rolled sheets by 79%, plates in coils by 74% and hot rolled sheets by 68%.
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Last month, the largest suppliers of foreign-made steel were Canada, Mexico, South Korea and Brazil. Imports rose by 3% from Canada, 23% from Mexico, and 70% from Turkey and fell by 7% from South Korea and 47% from Brazil.
Over the last 12 months, imports are up 19% to 6.98 million tons from Canada, up 63% to 5.51 million tons from Mexico, down 6% to 3.48 million tons from Brazil, up 35% to 2.782 million tons from South Korea and up 149% to 1.429 million tons from Russia. | https://www.nwitimes.com/business/local/steel-imports-up-0-2-in-may/article_f921c05b-0dcc-5566-a21a-9469989cfa78.html | 2022-07-06T00:46:29 | 0 | https://www.nwitimes.com/business/local/steel-imports-up-0-2-in-may/article_f921c05b-0dcc-5566-a21a-9469989cfa78.html |
HAMMOND — Hammond firefighters were racing from blaze to blaze through Fourth of July weekend as houses, garages and cars went up in flames. Preliminary investigations have revealed many of them were due to improper use and disposal of fireworks, officials said.
Hammond Fire Department Chief Fire Inspector Dan Misiak called the last three days "chaotic" as crews rushed from scene to scene.
Between 9:30 p.m. and 10:30 p.m. Sunday, several structures caught fire in Hammond, Misiak said.
First, a fire spread through garages in the 1600 block of Roberts Street. Two garages were destroyed and another was partially damaged. The heat from the fire also melted the siding of a nearby house.
Shortly after, a fire erupted in the 6700 block of Alexander Avenue. A house, a car port and two vehicles were destroyed, as well as a neighbor's truck.
On Monday night, fireworks were found at the base of a garage fire in the 1400 block of Roberts Street, Misiak said. Luckily a Whiting officer quickly extinguished the flames before it could spread.
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During the span of the holiday weekend, crews were called to eight garbage can fires, two dumpster fires and two brush fires.
Neither civilians or first responders were injured in any of the instances, Misiak said.
He said that while investigations continue, in most of the instances fireworks were found to be the likely cause.
"Everything has been so dry, and it's been so hot," Misiak said. "If people are throwing away fireworks without dowsing them in water and have them piled up in a garbage can or in the streets, if the conditions are right, it can ignite very fast."
Misiak said residents should soak fireworks in a bucket of water before disposing of them. He also said aerial bombs being lit near garage roofs can cause major fires.
"The guys would unpack the hose, hook it up to the hydrant and then hurry to the next fire," Misiak said. "It was go, go, go. Our crews did great in the last three days. That house fire could have burned down the entire neighborhood if it wasn't stopped. The crews also put out a lot of garbage can fires before they could spread and cause more damage." | https://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/fireworks-cause-several-blazes-hammond-firefighters-battle-through-holiday-weekend/article_e31973a7-1f7a-58f8-b61d-c68f4b5a0e17.html | 2022-07-06T00:46:35 | 1 | https://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/fireworks-cause-several-blazes-hammond-firefighters-battle-through-holiday-weekend/article_e31973a7-1f7a-58f8-b61d-c68f4b5a0e17.html |
More sought in connection to fatal shooting Sunday in downtown Detroit
Detroit police are seeking two more people in connection to a fatal shooting downtown last weekend.
A 19-year-old man was shot around 3:30 a.m. Sunday near Bates and Cadillac Square, authorities reported. He was among one of two groups that had been walking in the area, police Chief James White told reporters Tuesday.
"One group was rather loud and jostling around with each other. The other group thought that they were somehow aiming their comments at them," he said. "An argument ensued. And inexplicably, guns were pulled, and one person fired shots into the crowd striking and fatally wounding our victim."
A second person was struck in the ankle, White told reporters.
The chief said one man he described as a person of interest was in custody, "but there's still much work to do."
Police on Sunday released images of a second man they described as a suspect in the incident. He and the other man had been in a gray 2020 Jeep Grand Cherokee with Michigan license plate number EMK8273, investigators said.
On Tuesday, the Police Department released pictures of two women described as persons of interest. Descriptions were not released.
Anyone with information is asked to called the Detroit Police Department at (313) 596-2260. Crime Stoppers of Michigan accepts anonymous tips at 1-800-SPEAK-UP. | https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/detroit-city/2022/07/05/more-sought-connection-fatal-shooting-sunday-downtown-detroit/7816627001/ | 2022-07-06T00:49:18 | 1 | https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/detroit-city/2022/07/05/more-sought-connection-fatal-shooting-sunday-downtown-detroit/7816627001/ |
Michigan agency seeks to track mercury contamination through database
The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy is creating a program to track mercury vapor by requesting that businesses and other property owners submit data on mercury samples.
The state tracked 8,212 open leaking underground storage tank releases in 2020, but there are another 16,000 contaminated sites in Michigan that might contain samples of mercury or other contaminants, according to an EGLE report filed with the Legislature.
State environmental officials charged with overseeing remediation of those sites have told lawmakers that they don't have the money to deal with the sites or understand the risk they pose to people's health. State environmental officials during the Snyder administration similarly worried five years ago that there were thousands of potential sites where toxic vapors from contaminated soil could intrude into businesses and residential properties across Michigan and posed a “significant public health threat.”
"We have a lot of gaps in our information," said Aaron Keatley, Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy deputy director, during a March 1 House appropriations subcommittee meeting March 1. "I don't say that casually. I worry routinely that of those 24,000 sites; we have a large percentage that the state does not have enough information on to guarantee that there are not people being exposed to risks that need to be controlled."
The new database could help to fill some of gaps, according to the department's press release.
"EGLE’s intent for this web application is to compile a database of real-world mercury results and to use this database to identify concentrations of mercury that may form vapors in soil and groundwater," an EGLE press release said.
Soil, groundwater and soil vapor samples will be accepted on the database, which the EGLE contracted Geosyntec Consultants of Michigan, Inc. to develop and host.
“EGLE encourages people with high-quality mercury data to submit their results to build a robust database,” according to the release.
The web program will go live beginning on July 11, and will become accessible through this link on that day.
The department also announced a user training session set for July 14 from 1 to 2 p.m. Registration for the session is available now. The session will be recorded for those who are unable to attend it live. | https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/michigan/2022/07/05/michigan-agency-seeks-track-mercury-contamination-through-database/7812897001/ | 2022-07-06T00:49:24 | 1 | https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/michigan/2022/07/05/michigan-agency-seeks-track-mercury-contamination-through-database/7812897001/ |
San Antonio households saw their CPS Energy bills increase 25 percent in May from a year earlier — and that was before searing temperatures in June pushed usage even higher.
CPS customers paid an average $150 for electric and gas service in May, up $30 from the same month last year.
As bills jump, the city-owned utility is delivering millions more in revenue to the city of San Antonio, a windfall City Hall is apparently not immediately willing to touch to reduce the impact on ratepayers.
More than half of the increase in May — the most recent month for which data was available — was caused by customers using more electricity to power air conditioners amid recent record-breaking temperatures. But other factors are also driving the jump.
Chief among them is the rising price of natural gas, which a CPS financial report said “resulted in an unavoidable impact on customers’ bills.”
Higher costs for gas — the main fuel CPS uses at its power plants — accounted for nearly $9 of the average increase in May bills. Gas prices have swung wildly over the past year, rising from about $3.50 per unit last summer to more than $9 in early June before falling back below $7 late last month.
Meanwhile, CPS began charging higher rates in March after City Council approved a rate increase. That added an average $3.24 to electric bills in May.
On top of that, CPS ratepayers are paying about $1 extra each month for the next 25 years to cover the cost of natural gas CPS bought at exorbitant prices during Winter Storm Uri.
CPS customers aren’t alone. Monthly bills are rising sharply for customers of utilities across the state as gas prices have jumped, according to data from the Public Utility Commission of Texas.
The gas price increases are largely a result of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine early this year, an event that shocked global energy markets and pushed European nations to wean themselves off of Russian natural gas. In its place, more have been buying liquefied natural gas delivered by ship from the U.S., cutting into domestic supply and making natural gas more expensive stateside.
High gas prices and elevated electric consumption from customers have increased CPS’ expenses this year. Even so, it generated $197 million more in revenue through May than it was expecting. And because the city of San Antonio receives about 13 percent of the utility’s revenue, its take so far this year has been millions of dollars more than the city anticipated.
Entering the fiscal year, which begins for CPS in February, the utility was expecting to show a $32 million loss through May. But higher electric sales pushed it to a $1 million profit at the end of May — a $33 million difference. In last week’s financial report, CPS said it expects “headwinds in the remainder of the year that may offset” the additional revenue.
For its part, the city has received $97 million in payments from CPS through May, or $7 million more than expected. For the entire fiscal year, CPS now is budgeting to pay the city $443 million — $55 million more than expected.
It’s not clear whether the city could use the windfall this year to help cover households’ escalating utility bills. When CPS sought a rate increase from council earlier this year, the city’s top finance officials were unwilling to discuss reducing the portion of CPS revenues the city collects to offset the higher rates.
Instead, the city directed $20 million from the federal American Rescue Plan Act to help CPS pay off some delinquent customer accounts. And while the city takes a chunk of every dollar CPS brings in, it is not taking any part of the Uri-related charges customers are paying every month.
City staffers are updating projections related to CPS payments and “evaluating options for potential assistance for CPS Energy customers,” a city spokeswoman said Tuesday by e-mail.
But assistance, if there is any, would not come until later this year, the spokeswoman said. “Any recommendations would be included as part of the Proposed Budget to be presented to City Council by the City Manager” on Aug. 11.”
Rising utility costs have caused more customers to fall behind on their bills. CPS Interim CEO Rudy Garza said last week that thousands of customers who fell in arrears during the pandemic are catching up each month, but thousands more customers are falling past-due.
Amid the affordability crunch for customers, CPS is in the process of crafting its long-term power generation plans. Natural gas figures to play a big role for the utility in the years to come.
Before the end of this year, CPS plans to sign a five-year agreement with a natural gas plant in Texas to provide gas to the facility and take back the electricity it generates. The so-called tolling agreement would have an option for an additional five year period.
Even as natural gas prices have risen in recent months, Garza has said the utility must have more gas-fired generation it can turn on and off to go alongside wind and solar arrays. Contracting with another gas plant would allow CPS to close its aging Braunig gas-fired units that were built in Southeast Bexar County in the 1960s.
diego.mendoza-moyers@express-news.net | https://www.expressnews.com/business/local/article/CPS-bills-jump-May-17286277.php | 2022-07-06T00:52:32 | 0 | https://www.expressnews.com/business/local/article/CPS-bills-jump-May-17286277.php |
A man is accused of making threats Tuesday to use a weapon at a hotel in Uvalde.
Jason Guerra, 21, was arrested in another state and charged with terrorist threat, Uvalde police said.
Officers learned that Guerra had been making threatening comments about using a weapon on the premises about noon when a person called police from the Hampton Inn, 2714 East Main St.
Police and other agencies negotiated with Guerra by phone while attempting to learn his whereabouts. The Texas Rangers were able to confirm that he was calling from out of state, but did not say exactly where.
Guerra was arrested by authorities near his location. In addition to the shooting threat, he was booked on outstanding warrants that had been issued for his arrest out of Uvalde, police said.
The city of Uvalde still is recovering from a mass shooting May 24 that killed 19 children and two teachers at Robb Elementary School.
jbeltran@express-news.net | https://www.expressnews.com/news/local/article/Police-Man-made-threats-to-use-weapon-at-hotel-17286257.php | 2022-07-06T00:52:39 | 0 | https://www.expressnews.com/news/local/article/Police-Man-made-threats-to-use-weapon-at-hotel-17286257.php |
The mayor of Uvalde and a state senator who represents the area have called on Gov. Greg Abbott to strip Uvalde DA Christina Mitchell Busbee of responsibility for a state-funded support center for people affected by the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School.
In a letter to Abbott made public on Tuesday, state Sen. Roland Gutierrez, D-San Antonio, and Uvalde Mayor Don McLaughlin Jr. said Busbee has failed to deliver vital resources to grieving families, survivors and others affected by the May 24 massacre, in which a gunman killed 19 children and two teachers.
The letter described “troubling reports” from residents about the shortcomings of the Uvalde Together Resilience Center.
One family nearly had their power cut off at the same time they were caring for their daughter in a hospital, and other families were offered just two weeks of bereavement benefits, according to the letter.
“This, simply, is insufficient,” Gutierrez and McLaughlin wrote. “These families cannot begin to heal unless they are given time to grieve free from financial worry.”
Busbee did not return a message seeking comment.
The center was established to connect family members and survivors of the shooting with mental health services, financial support and other assistance. Abbott’s Public Safety Office has invested $5 million in the center.
The governor empowered Busbee to oversee victim’s compensation and other services, at least initially. Busbee is chief prosecutor for both Uvalde and Real counties.
The DA’s office is “not equipped or staffed to provide these services,” Gutierrez and McLaughlin wrote.
They requested that Abbott instead place the Texas Department of Emergency Management in charge of the center.
“There is no worse pain imaginable than losing a child,” the letter said. “This pain is made all the more severe because of the way these children were killed and injured. In short, the State of Texas ought to use every available resource in law to make these families whole.”
Abbott has described the center “as a single location to meet the needs of the community and provide easily accessible resources and support.”
Among other things, the center was supposed to help residents access mental health services, including medication, tele-psychiatry and grief counseling for students. It was also supposed to help people secure worker’s compensation, unemployment benefits, health insurance and financial assistance with extended childcare.
bchasnoff@express-news.net | https://www.expressnews.com/news/local/article/Uvalde-mayor-says-aid-insufficient-17286266.php | 2022-07-06T00:52:45 | 0 | https://www.expressnews.com/news/local/article/Uvalde-mayor-says-aid-insufficient-17286266.php |
NIPOMO, Calif. — Authorities in California are asking people for help to find a teenage girl from Arizona who disappeared last week.
Alilianna Trujillo, 15, is from Arizona but was living with family members in Nipomo for the summer. That town is in San Luis Obispo County, located near the state’s central coast.
Authorities didn't specify where in Arizona she's from.
>> Download the 12 News app for the latest local breaking news straight to your phone.
Alilianna left a family member’s home in the town on Friday around 1 a.m. and hasn’t been seen since, according to the sheriff’s office.
Authorities have asked residents for any surveillance video that may explain what happened to Alilianna.
It’s unclear if anything suspicious happened to her, but authorities haven’t ruled it out.
She’s described as a 5-foot-4 teen weighing 105 pounds and has red hair and brown eyes. She was last seen wearing a tie-dye shirt and black leggings.
Photo of Alilianna:
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Stay connected by downloading the 12 News app, available on Google Play and the Apple Store, and by signing up for our daily newsletter. Catch up on any stories you missed on the show on the 12 News Youtube channel. Read content curated for our Spanish-speaking audience on the Español page. | https://www.12news.com/article/news/local/arizona/arizona-girl-goes-missing-near-california-coast/75-1269ef46-8787-4cc4-9640-ff210ea0cc9c | 2022-07-06T01:03:53 | 1 | https://www.12news.com/article/news/local/arizona/arizona-girl-goes-missing-near-california-coast/75-1269ef46-8787-4cc4-9640-ff210ea0cc9c |
WASHINGTON, D.C., USA — Brittney Griner's appeal to President Joe Biden in a handwritten letter continued to garner reaction Tuesday after the WNBA All-Star acknowledged she feared never returning home and asked Biden not “ forget about me and the other American Detainees.”
Griner's letter was delivered through her representatives to the White House on Monday and officials say the president has read it. However Griner's wife, Cherelle, said Tuesday on a morning talk show that she hadn't heard from Biden.
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre was asked repeatedly about Griner on Tuesday during the regular briefing. She said Biden read the letter, but she did not detail his reaction.
“This is very personal to him.”
Jean-Pierre did not say whether there were plans for Biden to speak with Griner’s family, but did say that National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken both spoke to Griner’s wife recently.
Jean-Pierre said Biden wanted to get Griner and other Americans home.
“We are going to use every tool we possibly can to make that happen,” Jean-Pierre said.
Griner is in the midst of a trial in Russia that began last week after she was arrested on Feb. 17 on charges of possessing cannabis oil while returning to play for her Russian team. The trial will resume Thursday.
Fewer than 1% of defendants in Russian criminal cases are acquitted, and unlike in U.S. courts, acquittals can be overturned.
Griner’s representatives Monday shared a few excerpts from her letter to the president.
″…As I sit here in a Russian prison, alone with my thoughts and without the protection of my wife, family, friends, Olympic jersey, or any accomplishments, I’m terrified I might be here forever,” Griner wrote.
“On the 4th of July, our family normally honors the service of those who fought for our freedom, including my father who is a Vietnam War Veteran,” the Phoenix Mercury center added. “It hurts thinking about how I usually celebrate this day because freedom means something completely different to me this year.”
Cherelle Griner was disappointed not to have any direct communication with the White House since the letter was delivered.
“I still have not heard from him and honestly, it’s very disheartening,” Cherelle Griner said on CBS Mornings.
Cherelle Griner said for Brittney to reach out directly to Biden is an indication of just how afraid her wife is about what's next.
“BG is probably the strongest person that I know. So she doesn’t say words like that lightly," Cherelle said. “That means she truly is terrified that she may never see us again. And you know I share those same sentiments. ... I’m sure she was like, ‘I’m gonna write him now because ... my family has tried and to no avail. So I’m going do it myself.'"
Griner pleaded with Biden in the letter to use his powers to ensure her return.
“Please do all you can to bring us home. I voted for the first time in 2020 and I voted for you. I believe in you. I still have so much good to do with my freedom that you can help restore,” Griner said "I miss my wife! I miss my family! I miss my teammates! It kills me to know they are suffering so much right now. I am grateful for whatever you can do at this moment to get me home.”
Griner has been able to have sporadic communications with family, friends and WNBA players through an email account her agent set up. The emails are printed out and delivered in bunches to Griner by her lawyer after they are vetted by Russian officials. Once the lawyers get back to their office, they’ll scan any responses from Griner and pass them back to the U.S. to send along.
She was supposed to have a phone call with her wife on their anniversary but it failed because of an “unfortunate mistake,” Biden administration officials.
Griner’s supporters have encouraged a prisoner swap like the one in April that brought home Marine veteran Trevor Reed in exchange for a Russian pilot convicted of drug trafficking conspiracy. The State Department in May designated her as wrongfully detained, moving her case under the supervision of its special presidential envoy for hostage affairs, effectively the government’s chief hostage negotiator.
Griner isn't the only American being wrongfully detained in Russia. Paul Whelan, a former Marine and security director is serving a 16-year sentence on an espionage conviction. | https://www.12news.com/article/news/local/arizona/white-house-biden-has-read-brittney-griners-letter/75-527fe1cc-a1a6-4765-b85b-c9d77ccf7b59 | 2022-07-06T01:03:59 | 1 | https://www.12news.com/article/news/local/arizona/white-house-biden-has-read-brittney-griners-letter/75-527fe1cc-a1a6-4765-b85b-c9d77ccf7b59 |
EDWARDSVILLE, Pa. — Police are investigating after shots were fired in Luzerne County.
It happened around noon in the parking lot of Eagle Ridge Apartments in Edwardsville.
Officers say two men were involved and at least one shot was fired.
So far no arrests or charges filed.
See news happening? Text our Newstip Hotline. | https://www.wnep.com/article/news/local/luzerne-county/shots-fired-in-edwardsville-eagle-ridge-apartments-luzerne-county/523-587480fd-168f-4275-bc47-1d86418d57bc | 2022-07-06T01:06:25 | 1 | https://www.wnep.com/article/news/local/luzerne-county/shots-fired-in-edwardsville-eagle-ridge-apartments-luzerne-county/523-587480fd-168f-4275-bc47-1d86418d57bc |
As the spread of coronavirus continues, here are the latest updates from Southern Arizona.
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Tuesday, March 1 | https://tucson.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/updates-tucson-area-coronavirus-developments-july-6-what-we-know/article_dc8e92ea-6561-11ea-9e87-17207f678ee6.html | 2022-07-06T01:24:12 | 0 | https://tucson.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/updates-tucson-area-coronavirus-developments-july-6-what-we-know/article_dc8e92ea-6561-11ea-9e87-17207f678ee6.html |
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Breaking news and the stories that matter to your neighborhood. | https://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/local/how-to-regulate-emotions-after-shooting/3291144/ | 2022-07-06T01:28:33 | 0 | https://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/local/how-to-regulate-emotions-after-shooting/3291144/ |
CONCONULLY, Wash. — A Fourth of July flash flood flowed through the streets of the tiny town of Conconully in remote Okanogan County, sending a foot of water and mud into 30 to 40 homes and businesses.
"The creek was coming over the bridge," said resident Angie Eberhart. "The whole thing was clogged up with trees and debris and water was just gushing all the way through."
Eberhart owns Kozy Kabins, a cabin rental and RV site. Several of her cabins were damaged.
"Well, I've never been through a natural disaster before," she said. "I was literally just like, oh my God, what the heck is happening?"
Emergency managers say 1.7 inches of rain fell in the 36 hours leading up to Monday's flood. Most of the rain fell in just two hours.
There are no reports of serious injuries. Some campers were stranded for a time, but are all reported as being OK.
At least one home that was about 90% complete was destroyed.
"I talked to the owners yesterday," said Okanogan County Director of Emergency Management Maurice Goodall. "Their kitchen cabinets were actually sitting out of the box on the floor ready to be installed when the flood came."
At least one other resident is said to have "lost everything."
The north fork of Salmon Creek spilled over its banks, running right down Main Street and into Conconully State Park, which was full of people celebrating the Fourth of July. The park was evacuated without incident.
By Tuesday, the tiny town of just 210 people was in full clean-up mode. Neighbors pulled out backhoes and other heavy equipment to move debris. Piles of mud stood more than 5-feet high in people's yards.
Teenagers went door-to-door asking if anyone needed help.
"This is this town," said Eberhart. "This is Conconully for ya."
Despite their circumstances, most wore friendly smiles as they shoveled pound after pound of muck from their properties. They each seemed to be brimming with pride at how their community was dealing with the small-scale disaster -- their independence on full display this Fourth of July.
"I can tell you this, no one is out there complaining," said Goodall.
"Conconully, when something happens here we really pull together and help one another," said Eberhart. | https://www.king5.com/article/news/local/disaster/flash-flood-hits-conconully/281-41683441-981f-4d17-8710-72a381e9089c | 2022-07-06T01:30:57 | 1 | https://www.king5.com/article/news/local/disaster/flash-flood-hits-conconully/281-41683441-981f-4d17-8710-72a381e9089c |
Following an ongoing energy crisis that has seen fuel prices soar both in Florida and across the country, the American Petroleum Institute sent a letter to the President Biden’s office with ten “immediate steps” the organization recommends to help increase energy supply.
The API is a trade association for oil and natural gas industries, claiming to represent nearly 600 corporations involved in either production, refinement, distribution and other fields in the petroleum industry.
According to its June letter — titled the “10 in 2022 Plan″ — the API asked government officials to implement specific policy changes that it said will increase supply and help lower prices for fuel.
[TRENDING: Shooting scare causes panic at Lake Eola fireworks show in Orlando | Fla. teen to have leg amputated after attack by 9-foot shark | Become a News 6 Insider (it’s free!)]
One such step the letter suggests is to lift development restrictions on federal lands and water, which would provide companies with more opportunities to drill.
API Gulf Coast Region Director Gifford Briggs told News 6 that current government energy policies have prevented companies from producing more fuel.
“Once the administration came in, they made a number of decisions regarding energy policy — the most well known being the cancelation of the Keystone Pipeline,” Briggs said. “Since then, we’ve seen consistent regulatory delays, specifically as it applies to other pipeline projects, (liquefied natural gas) projects, that are necessary to support the energy industry.”
With government policies targeting these industries, Briggs explained, companies lose confidence and turn away from building up infrastructure, leading to less energy production. Briggs pointed to construction of the Keystone XL Pipeline as an example, which was canceled by the president in 2021 following his inauguration.
“As companies are planning additional pipelines or (liquefied natural gas) projects or even exploration of production in the Gulf of Mexico or in Alaska, they’re going to be very wary of making those decisions,” he said. “Because they’re not going to be sure the administration is going to take the same action towards their projects.”
While there are approximately 9,000 permits that have been approved, Briggs said that not all of the land granted under those permits has been found suitable for drilling.
Briggs added that the administration has been canceling lease sales without creating new ones.
“We’re without a lease sale for the first time in the history of the program under this administration,” he said. “We will go all of 2022 without a lease sale in the Gulf of Mexico or Alaska or offshore in federal waters. Those are simple policies that we can just continue what was being done before.”
By lifting restrictions on land-use, streamlining the permitting and approval process, and rescinding steel tariffs, the letter argues that companies will be in a better position to deliver on energy production.
According to Briggs, both permitting and construction need to happen before energy companies can even begin to produce fuel, so lifting barriers to those two steps would be a boon for ramping up energy supply.
“When we get a lease the first time, we have to go out and determine whether there’s even oil or natural gas there,” he said. “Then we have to get a permit from the federal government, then we’ve got to make sure we’ve got the equipment in place, so these projects are often five-to-ten years before they can actually come to fruition.”
In one of the letter’s suggestions, the API calls for Congress to support tax credits for carbon capture, utilization and storage development — technologies that Briggs said would help address environmental concerns by taking carbon dioxide emissions from the atmosphere and storing them underground.
“Right now, the administration’s approach is that, instead of producing here in the United States where some of the most rigorous environmental restrictions on the planet are, (Biden) is going to Saudi Arabia and OPEC and these other countries that don’t have the environmental restrictions and asking them to produce more energy,” he said.
To read the “10 in 2022 Plan,” examine News 6′s attachment below.
Get today’s headlines in minutes with Your Florida Daily: | https://www.clickorlando.com/news/local/2022/07/06/api-sends-president-policy-suggestions-to-address-energy-crisis/ | 2022-07-06T01:33:25 | 1 | https://www.clickorlando.com/news/local/2022/07/06/api-sends-president-policy-suggestions-to-address-energy-crisis/ |
CALIFORNIA, USA — This story was originally published by CalMatters.
California is significantly overhauling its cannabis tax structure, including entirely eliminating a tax on growers, in an effort to boost a struggling legal industry begging for relief.
The changes, which were adopted last week as part of a broader state budget agreement, will also create tax credits for some cannabis businesses, expand labor rights within the industry and switch collection of a state excise tax from distributors to retailers. That tax will pause at 15% for three years, after which regulators could raise the rate to recoup lost revenue from discontinuing the cultivation tax.
Prominent cannabis industry groups praised the plan for its potential to lower costs and help make legal sales more competitive with an illicit market that remains robust six years after California voters legalized recreational marijuana. Yet even as the measure won overwhelming approval in the Legislature, it was met with vocal discontent from retailers who say they will not benefit and several lawmakers who complained that it did not do enough to address ongoing racial disparities in the industry.
While efforts to secure further assistance from the state may continue, they seem unlikely to gain favor any time soon with Gov. Gavin Newsom, who signed the tax revision on Thursday.
“I’m incredibly proud of this bill. It accomplishes an incredible amount of things for the betterment of all Californians,” Nicole Elliott, director of the Department of Cannabis Control and Newsom’s top cannabis adviser, told CalMatters. “So I think we need to take a moment to reflect on the fact that something great got done.”
Eliminating cultivation tax was a priority
Amy Jenkins, a lobbyist for the California Cannabis Industry Association who was heavily involved in the negotiations, said zeroing out the cultivation tax was a priority for the legal industry — something it has sought for three years.
Growers complained that the tax, a flat $10.08 per ounce for flowers, was making it difficult to keep operating as prices tumbled from a glut of weed and not enough dispensaries to sell it. Wholesale prices have dropped by as much as 50% over the past year, particularly squeezing farmers whose outdoor crops sell for less and forcing many smaller operations to close down.
“Any delays in that happening was something that we were not able to accept,” Jenkins said.
Supporters hope that eliminating the cultivation tax could have a beneficial ripple effect through the legal market, lowering costs that compound for consumers through the wholesale price, the excise tax and sales taxes.
It could also turn plant trimmings, which were taxed at $3 per ounce for leaves, into another viable commodity for farmers, said Genine Coleman, founder of the Origins Council, an advocacy group representing cannabis businesses in the historic Northern California growing region known as the Emerald Triangle. The leaves can be useful for manufactured products such as creams.
“It’s incredible to have the cultivation tax eliminated,” she said. “It had become so untenable.”
Coleman said the tax restructuring package was about as good as she could have hoped for, given the constraints of Proposition 64, the 2016 legalization measure that earmarked cannabis tax revenue for child care slots, environmental cleanup and impaired driving prevention efforts.
Newsom pushed for a revenue-neutral approach to protect funding levels for those programs. The budget includes $150 million to backfill any shortfalls in the next three years, before the state can begin raising the excise tax.
Debate over excise tax continues
But that looming tax increase is a major disappointment for many in the industry, who say taxes must be cut even further for legal cannabis to ever compete on price with the illicit market.
Coleman pointed to other major regulatory expenses for growers, including licensing fees and environmental compliance requirements. She also wants the state to play a larger role in opening up retail opportunities that remain prohibited in most jurisdictions in California.
“It’s not enough at all. And it’s just simple math,” she said. “Our position has always been: We need tax reform and.”
Jenkins, the industry lobbyist, said the three-year pause on the excise tax rate buys advocates more time to press their case.
Moving collection from distributors to the point of sale, where products can be taxed on the actual purchase price rather than an assumed 80% retail markup, will improve accuracy. Jenkins believes that tax revenues could actually rise as a result, giving the industry an argument against raising the excise tax and potentially even to lower it.
“We have three more years to fight that fight,” she said.
‘Crumbs’ for social equity licensees
Cannabis retailers, who did not receive a direct tax cut like growers, have expressed far more dissatisfaction with the deal. And advocates for social equity operators — who received their licenses through local programs intended to diversify the industry with more people of color, formerly incarcerated people and residents of neighborhoods with historically disproportionate cannabis arrest rates — have been particularly blistering in their criticism.
“What we’ve gotten are essentially crumbs from this bill,” said Amber Senter, executive director of the advocacy group Supernova Women, who organized several rallies at the state Capitol this year. “The cultivators will see relief, they will see a little bit more money in their pockets, and none of that is going to trickle down.”
The deal will allow equity licensees to get a $10,000 tax credit and keep a fifth of the excise tax revenue they collect for the next few years. But advocates had lobbied for more sweeping aid, such as a suspension of the excise tax altogether, to give their businesses a greater opportunity to establish a foothold.
Senter dismissed the tax credit as token assistance that would not even cover the cost of licensing fees. She also expressed concern about another provision that could have far greater significance in the long run: Starting in 2024, the plan lowers the threshold to 10 employees for businesses that must enter into labor peace agreements, thereby providing unions access to communicate with and attempt to organize their workers.
“Small businesses cannot be unionized,” Senter said. “This is going to crush small businesses.”
Some legislators want more action
As the bill came before the Legislature last week, several lawmakers spoke out on the floor against what they said was insufficient aid for cannabis retailers and equity operators, including state Sen. Steven Bradford, a Gardena Democrat who introduced legislation this session to reduce the excise tax. He called the provisions for equity operators “minimal and insulting” and was one of only a handful of legislators not to vote for the measure.
In an interview, Bradford expressed frustration that the cultivation tax was completely eliminated for growers, who are overwhelmingly white, while equity licensees received far less. He said he worried that plan would only deepen racial disparities in the industry, where Black and brown communities targeted during the war on drugs have struggled to thrive.
“That’s a hard pill to swallow,” he said. “At some point, when are we going to put the real weight and work behind what we all say exists?”
Bradford said he would continue to push to lower the excise tax for equity operators and other steps to move minority-owned businesses to the top of state efforts to bolster the legal cannabis market.
“Without a doubt, there needs to be more work,” he said. “If we fall short of that, we’ll come back next session.”
Elliott, the director of the Department of Cannabis Control, defended the tax restructuring deal as a collaboration between Newsom and legislative leaders to “simplify, simplify, simplify” the law for businesses across the industry.
“That reflects a willingness to be critical of the systems that are in place and trying to modify them,” she said.
No one can get everything they want in a compromise, Elliott said, but everyone is coming away from the deal with financial relief and regulatory improvements.
“They didn’t have any of this yesterday. So today is a better day,” she said.
WATCH RELATED: California lawmakers push to reduce taxes on legal cannabis shops, say the illegal industry is booming (April 20, 2022) | https://www.abc10.com/article/news/local/california/calmatters/california-cuts-cannabis-taxes/509-3e46dbc1-afde-445f-8181-44ceaff73f80 | 2022-07-06T01:38:02 | 1 | https://www.abc10.com/article/news/local/california/calmatters/california-cuts-cannabis-taxes/509-3e46dbc1-afde-445f-8181-44ceaff73f80 |
YOLO COUNTY, Calif. — Last year, Yolo County tried an experiment: No one arrested for simple drug possession would be prosecuted or sent to drug court. Instead, those arrested with drugs were directed to the county health department.
The county was responding to a trend across California: Significantly fewer people are choosing to go to drug court, in part because the penalties for drug possession were reduced by the passage of Proposition 47 in 2014.
Without the threat of potential jail time, people just weren’t showing up – participation in Yolo County’s drug court is down 86% since 2014.
“What I was trying to do was test the hypothesis that this was solely a health issue,” said the plan’s architect, Yolo County District Attorney Jeff Reisig. “It was a total failure.”
The rise and fall of drug courts in California has been a 30-year saga, with California’s first contemporary drug court opening in Alameda County in 1991 — the nation’s second.
The vision – to offer offenders a chance to avoid criminal conviction by entering a treatment program overseen by this special court – took off in California. By 1998, the state was pouring $4 million each year into the program to fund drug courts in 34 counties.
Then along came Proposition 47 in 2014, slashing sentences for drug possession in California.
And the popularity of drug courts began their downward slide.
A 2020 paper from the New York-based Center for Court Innovation surveyed California drug courts after the passage of Prop. 47 and found participation was down statewide by 67% between 2014 and 2018.
After its so-called failed experiment last year, Yolo County is attempting to combat sinking drug court participation.
Data provided by the county show that fewer than 12% of people referred to the county’s Health and Human Services Agency even answered an initial phone call to establish a treatment plan in the first six months of 2021.
Now, Reisig is rolling out what he calls Drug Court 2.0, which expands the kinds of drug crimes eligible for drug court diversion programs. And the new program compels participants to meet with a representative from the county health department while still in the courtroom.
“It’s having a lot more success than the phone calls did,” Reisig said.
Drug courts are part of a larger group of “collaborative justice courts” in California that includes mental health courts, homeless courts, DUI courts and veterans courts.
In drug court, participants usually attend after pleading guilty to a drug-related crime. If participants graduate – which usually means completing job training in addition to staying sober – the original criminal charges are reduced or dismissed.
Unlike most of the recent criminal justice debates in California, this one isn’t a question of conservative versus liberal, or evidence-based reforms versus tough-on-crime initiatives.
Instead, the benefits of both Prop. 47 and drug court are supported by evidence. Prop 47 has reduced recidivism rates and saved the state money. Drug courts have shown that, when implemented correctly, they can reduce recidivism rates (and also save the state money.)
But when these two darlings of the criminal justice reform movement collide, drug courts have lost out.
Now, as in Yolo County, drug courts across California are expanding eligibility requirements to draw in more participants or resigning themselves to a far smaller caseload post-Prop. 47.
A look at drug court participation in the counties that provided partial or complete drug court records to CalMatters shows declining participation statewide.
In San Diego County, more than 650 people participated in drug court in the 2013 fiscal year, two years before Prop. 47 was enacted. That was down to 255 people last year.
In Alameda County, more than 640 people attended drug courts between January 2014 and September 2015, an average of 30 people per month. After the passage of Prop. 47, that dropped to 14 people per month in the 2015 fiscal year, and it has stayed at that rate since.
San Mateo County officials saw fewer than five people per month in drug court after the passage of Prop. 47. The court is now considering expanding its eligibility requirements to include felony crimes.
There is no statewide repository for drug court data, nor much consistency in data collection among counties.
Some counties provided CalMatters every drug case since 2010; some said they didn’t have the data or didn’t know where to find it. Several asked for weeks to review their records. A few warned the search would be expensive.
“It’s the Wild West when it comes to drug courts,” said one court executive who was not authorized to speak to a reporter, noting that there is little control at the state level over eligibility requirements or data collection.
That’s partly due to the Legislature, which rejected a request from the state Judicial Council for five new administrative positions and $30 million each year to continue to run collaborative justice courts.
Prop 47. isn’t the only cause for declining rates of participation in drug courts, said Francine Byrne, the Judicial Council’s statewide adult drug court coordinator.
Prison realignment, passed in 2011 as AB 109, took away state funding for drug courts. Instead, money was given straight to county behavioral health departments, which didn’t use it all for collaborative courts.
The result, Byrne said, was that funding for collaborative courts dropped significantly. Some counties have kept their drug court operations afloat through federal grants, others just muddled through.
“There’s not really stable funding, so many of the courts know they can’t support a big program,” Byrne said.
Realignment and Prop. 47 both seemed to dramatically affect drug court participation in San Francisco County. In 2010, one year before passage of the realignment bill, 500 people attended drug court in the county. By 2012, it was down to 335.
By 2021, the total number of participants was 176.
Longtime opponents of Prop. 47, like California District Attorneys Association CEO Greg Totten, say the law hasn’t lived up to its promise on drug treatment.
“The promise of the law was, more treatment, less jail,” Totten said. “But there’s actually less treatment when people don’t go to drug courts.
“From a common sense standpoint, why go into a treatment program rather than just walk out of the courthouse free.”
WATCH RELATED: San Diego works to level playing field in marijuana industry | https://www.abc10.com/article/news/local/drug-courts-face-choice-after-prop-47-fallout/509-0724cc3f-e3c7-4626-aef0-b46e81f68067 | 2022-07-06T01:38:08 | 0 | https://www.abc10.com/article/news/local/drug-courts-face-choice-after-prop-47-fallout/509-0724cc3f-e3c7-4626-aef0-b46e81f68067 |
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The latest news from around North Texas. | https://www.nbcdfw.com/news/local/fireworks-and-fires-the-connection/3007647/ | 2022-07-06T01:38:14 | 0 | https://www.nbcdfw.com/news/local/fireworks-and-fires-the-connection/3007647/ |
Local scientists develop a new tool that is helping health leaders track COVID-19 spread.
UT Southwestern scientists have developed a test that can identify which variant of the Sars-COV-2 virus has infected a COVID-19 positive patient.
The test, called CoVarScan, is being used in collaboration with Dallas County Public Health to track several variants at five different hospitals across Dallas County.
Knowing whether the Delta, Omicron, or any other variants have infected a patient can help doctors choose which monoclonal antibodies would be more effective in helping critically ill COVID-19 patients.
It can also help public health leaders track spread of current and emerging variants.
"For public health tracking variants, it is important to have both speed and accuracy. Our current methods of whole genome sequencing are very accurate, but they can be pretty expensive and can take one to four weeks to return results back, just sort of outside the timeframe in which you'd want to track down any contacts of someone who tested positive. This test is much faster, cheaper and doesn't have to be adapted when new variants come out. It's very helpful in public health for those reasons," said UTSW Assistant Professor of Pathology Dr. Jeff SoRelle.
Dr. SoRelle plans to continue developing CoVarScan as a commercial test and has a pending patent application based on this work.
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The latest news from around North Texas. | https://www.nbcdfw.com/news/local/rapid-covid-19-test-can-identify-which-variant-is-making-you-sick/3007653/ | 2022-07-06T01:38:20 | 0 | https://www.nbcdfw.com/news/local/rapid-covid-19-test-can-identify-which-variant-is-making-you-sick/3007653/ |
Rather than a colorful sky filled with fireworks, this year's Fourth of July celebration in Fort Worth and Panther Island will be remembered by images of burning grass. Organizers had to cancel the event after the grass along the river caught on fire within the first seven minutes of the show, posing a threat to the remaining fireworks.
Tuesday afternoon during a news conference at the Bob Bolen Public Safety Complex, Fort Worth Fire Chief Jim Davis outlined what took place on Monday night and said they followed the emergency plans.
"I understand there's a lot of frustration in the community. I understand that there's a lot of sadness that the show wasn't completed last night, but there's been overwhelming support with the city leadership and the fact that this was the right decision at the right time, considering the situation that was developing," said Davis.
He said it was a joint decision between the Fire Marshal and the operator of the firework display to end the show.
Magic in the Sky, a San Antonio-based company, was permitted to put on the event and had been planning with the city for months.
He said the Tarrant Regional Water District had been prepping the grass by making sure it was cut low and watering but says the change in wind pattern dried it out.
As to why the event even happened given the dry conditions, Davis said they followed the National Fire Protection Association guidelines, which he said say nothing about the heat. He said it does mention wind, and gusts between 20-to-25 miles per hour may be a reason to cancel a fireworks display, but that was not the case on Monday.
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Davis said they followed the NFPA standards, which included making sure there's good communication, weather monitoring, surveying the site, crowd control and emergency plans in place for any issues.
The chief said Magic in the Sky was responsible to have a water cannon and put out small grass fires that occur, and are expected to happen during a show. He said it became obvious that the grass fires continued to burn, and they were worried about the 1,000 remaining shells of fireworks. Some of the mortars and cakes, the plastic tubing used to shoot up fireworks, were damaged.
Davis said the show stopped to assess the situation. They had to let the remaining embers fall before firefighters, stationed in brush trucks at the site, could get close enough on four-wheel-drive vehicles to access the issue.
"Our first priority was not the grass fires along the river. The first priority was to put people at the site where the remaining shells were to try to protect that. Once that was taken care of, then they went about extinguishing the rest of the grass fires along the river. That's the way we pre-planned things like that and we stand by that decision," said Davis.
The concern is that if the fire reached the remaining fireworks, the could explode in different directions and become a major hazard to those watching on the other side of the river.
Davis said around midnight there was a second round of fireworks shot off as a way to dispose of some of the mortars. In the morning the company began tearing down and removing the reminder off-site.
He said they plan on reviewing what took place to help assess for the following year. There's currently no discussion, that he's aware of, about changing location.
Besides Panther Island, Fort Worth Fire Fighters were extremely busy, dealing with about
Responded to about 1,155 calls in a 24-hour period. About 250 of them were grass fires of some form that were caused by the illegal use of fireworks. Davis said they had to triage the calls, meaning dispatchers asked more questions to assess if a grass fire was threatening building, life or other hazards.
The chief said there were several structure fires too. One included an apartment building in which Davis said was a direct result of a sparkler that set the grass and side of the building on fire.
In comparison to the freeze last year in February and the number of calls they received, Davis said the 4th of July was similar, not quite as busy, but they used lessons learned from 2021.
"The experiences that we learned and gained from the cold weather in having multiple requests for services and limited resources, we put a lot of those into play. And what did that include?" Davis said. "Things like deferring people off the 911 system, except for the most time-critical emergencies, putting in additional assets on the street, putting additional dispatchers in and began utilizing some of the things that we learned from the cold weather in order to try and get to all of the different requests and make sure that they were prioritized they were handled and mitigated without causing further problems to the community." | https://www.nbcdfw.com/news/local/why-fort-worths-fireworks-show-ended-early/3007587/ | 2022-07-06T01:38:27 | 1 | https://www.nbcdfw.com/news/local/why-fort-worths-fireworks-show-ended-early/3007587/ |
CALEDONIA, Miss. — Bradford Freeman, the last survivor of the famed Army unit featured in the World War II oral history book and miniseries “Band of Brothers” has died at the age of 97.
Freeman was born in Artesia, Mississippi, and a graveside funeral service will be held Friday in Caledonia, Mississippi, where he lived, according to the obituary.
Freeman was an 18-year-old student at Mississippi State when he enlisted to fight in World War II. He volunteered to become a paratrooper and became a mortarman in Company E, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division.
He parachuted into Normandy on D-Day, fought in Operation Market-Garden, and was wounded in the Battle of the Bulge, later participating in the occupations of Berchtesgaden, Germany, and Austria.
“After the war, he returned to Caledonia and married Willie Louise Gurley on June 29, 1947, and worked as a mail carrier for 32 years,” the obituary said.
University of New Orleans historian Stephen E. Ambrose’s “Band of Brothers,” about “Easy Company” and its members, was a best-seller and inspired the 2001 HBO miniseries with the same title.
The unit’s last surviving officer died last year.
Freeman is survived by a sister, two daughters, four grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren.
“Our dad was always astounded that a country boy from Mississippi was able to see so many places and meet so many interesting people,” the obituary said. | https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/obituaries/bradford-freeman-last-band-of-brothers-survivor-has-died/2022/07/05/b688139c-fcc6-11ec-b39d-71309168014b_story.html | 2022-07-06T01:45:43 | 0 | https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/obituaries/bradford-freeman-last-band-of-brothers-survivor-has-died/2022/07/05/b688139c-fcc6-11ec-b39d-71309168014b_story.html |
GARDEN CITY, Idaho — Tucked away in an old industrial building sits Acme Bakeshop and its 15 employees, who work through the hours many spend sleeping.
"Our schedule is based on a restaurant’s lunch time," Acme Founder Michael Runsvold said. "If they don't have bread before lunch, they get stressed."
There's no logo to draw attention. There are no advertisements on billboards. Just a red notecard-sized sticker on the front door.
"Acme," it reads.
Inside that door is a world Runsvold built for himself starting back in 2012.
"I don't know if I could describe it to you," Runsvold said. "You start with a bag of flour and a bucket of water and you end the day with a stack of beautiful bread. You're transforming stuff. It's incredible."
To pay the bills, Runsvold sells bread to more than 50 local restaurants and businesses. Acme sells bread at Farmers Markets just to have fun, according to Runsvold.
However, the cost of the fun now comes at a higher price. Runsvold increased the cost of his bread to keep up with the rising cost of ingredients.
"It's just a matter of inputs. Everything we use to make bread costs more - down to employees," Runsvold said. "Everything has gone through a phase of being harder to find. It's just more work to do this work."
Acme's prices are increasing between 50 cents to $1 more per product, Runsvold said. It's a decision he didn't want to make, but it's a decision he had to make to stay in business.
Runsvold buys his flour from a co-op located on the Palouse. The business is called Shepherd's Grain.
Flour costs $17 per bag, according to Runsvold. This isn't the cheapest price Runsvold can find, but it's the most stable price.
That's because the co-op buys directly from farmers and sells directly to the customer. The whole point is to avoid the commodity market where prices are set on a macro-level.
“Wheat growers are price takers, not price makers. They do not set their price of sale. It's what they're offered," Idaho Wheat Commission Executive Director, Casey Chumrau said.
The global economy - and world events - significantly impact the cost of wheat on the commodity market, including the war in Ukraine. Russia and Ukraine export 30% of the world's wheat, according to Chumrau.
This is creating severe uncertainty in the market. However, prices have been unstable for years.
"In the last 10 to 20 years, we've seen a lot more volatility in the grain markets," Chumrau said. "If you talk to people whose grandparents grew wheat, it was a lot if it changed 20 cents in one year. Now, we can change 20 to 40 cents in a day."
Most farmers gamble on whether the commodity market price will cover the cost of production with money left over for a profit. It's an increasingly dangerous bet as diesel fuel, fertilizer and other overhead costs increase.
"Anywhere from 60-300% increases depending on the input," Chumrau said "The cost of production for producers has increased significant this year."
The local co-op Acme buys from, Shepherd's Grain, avoids all of this. The co-op sets their prices based on the cost of production. This ensures the farmers make a profit and the customer has a stable, dependable price.
"I don't think anybody has had an easy ride. Everyone is trying to find their feet," Runsvold said.
As the cost of production continuously climbs, so do the co-op prices. It's a cost Runsvold has to pass on to his customers.
While Runsvold loves what he does for a living, he's navigating unfamiliar territory amid a time of rapid inflation.
"Everything has been changing so much recently. It's hard to know if you're making the right choice for what's possible in the future," Runsvold said.
The United States Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) tracks inflation through a variety of numbers and figures. The consumer price index (CPI) has increased by 8.6% over the past 12 months.
This is the largest CPI increase over a 12-month period since the end of 1981, according to the BLS.
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- Still reading this list? We're on YouTube, too: | https://www.ktvb.com/article/news/local/208/inflation-forces-bakeshop-to-bump-up-prices/277-76f6ded6-7d81-4e80-8e97-6a5771a85e69 | 2022-07-06T01:46:42 | 0 | https://www.ktvb.com/article/news/local/208/inflation-forces-bakeshop-to-bump-up-prices/277-76f6ded6-7d81-4e80-8e97-6a5771a85e69 |
BOISE, Idaho — This article originally appeared in the Idaho Press.
Following a three-year hiatus, Boise's Fourth of July parade has momentum to return in 2023.
Treasure Valley-based CapEd Credit Union announced in a Tuesday press release its plans to "provide the base of financial support and help organize volunteers, supportive community members, organizations and businesses" to bring an Independence Day parade back to the City of Trees.
The event was canceled because of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, and didn't happen in 2021 or 2022 after its organizers announced they would no longer stage the parade.
The parade is not an official city of Boise event and must gain city approval, CapEd's press release said.
"CapEd Credit Union embraces this opportunity to support an important community – and national – celebration. We look forward to drawing on our 86-year legacy of supporting and enhancing our community. I invite individuals and businesses to join us in organizing our community’s Fourth of July Independence Day Parade," CapEd CEO Todd Erickson said in the release. “Our organization wants to ensure that succeeding generations celebrate the memorable epoch in the history of America.”
The final monetary amount CapEd will contribute is yet to be determined, a company spokesperson said.
CapEd has and will continue to work with the parade's former organizers, David Barrett and family, as the event's plans develop, the spokesperson said.
The Barrett family organized the We The People 4th of July Liberty Day Parade for nearly two decades before stepping away from the duty last summer.
"When Todd Christensen of CapEd Credit Union contacted me to see how they could help, I knew we had found the answer to how the parade could continue in Boise in a quality fashion," David Barrett said in the release. "We are excited to be able to transition the Boise Fourth of July parade into the hands of CapEd Credit Union.”
Anyone interested in learning more, participating as a volunteer or registering an organization or business for a 2023 parade entry can visit boise4th.com.
This article originally appeared in the Idaho Press, read more on IdahoPress.com.
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/idaho-press/local-company-plans-to-bring-4th-of-july-parade-back/277-48de1527-ac1d-487b-ba7d-cbfc7be4346e | 2022-07-06T01:46:48 | 0 | https://www.ktvb.com/article/news/local/idaho-press/local-company-plans-to-bring-4th-of-july-parade-back/277-48de1527-ac1d-487b-ba7d-cbfc7be4346e |
MIDDLETON, Idaho — The Middleton City Council is about to take up action to possibly remove the city's police chief per the mayor's request.
In addition, another police officer has resigned ahead of the decision about the chief.
In an agenda packet set for July 6, the city council is planning to consider police chief Alan Takeuchi's removal, pursuant to Idaho Code 50-206.
In a letter from Middleton Mayor Steve Rule to employees dated July 1, 2022, Takeuchi is on paid administrative leave and Middleton officer Greg Langley resigned from his position on June 29.
Sergeant Nathan Hilkey agreed to take over on an interim basis, the letter said.
The letter was circulated on Facebook from people within the Middleton community that some have said was posted on the Middleton website. The letter does not exist on the website, but its validity was confirmed by Rule.
In addition, the Middleton Police Department Facebook page can no longer be found and the department does not have a live website.
According to city council member Tim O’Meara, this issue came to light around two weeks ago. The council had a private executive session on June 27 to discuss the removal of a public official.
Rule told KTVB that this is a personnel matter, so the city will not be commenting.
Takeuchi has not yet responded to KTVB's request for comment.
According to the Idaho Press, he was made interim chief in 2017 after the former chief, Bryan Zimmerman, resigned.
The Middleton Police Department was created in 2014 after years of contracting with the Canyon County Sheriff's Office for law enforcement services.
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/middleton-police-chief-may-be-removed-by-mayor-officer-has-already-resigned/277-10785d2d-0d24-4bc2-b917-acc9fac35bef | 2022-07-06T01:46:55 | 0 | https://www.ktvb.com/article/news/local/middleton-police-chief-may-be-removed-by-mayor-officer-has-already-resigned/277-10785d2d-0d24-4bc2-b917-acc9fac35bef |
BOISE, Idaho — A call went out Monday night for a wildfire near the World Center for Birds of Prey south of Boise.
Firefighters from Boise Fire Department and Bureau of Land Management (BLM) responded to the Talon Fire that was ultimately contained at 114 acres around 11:30 p.m.
According to the BLM, the wildfire was caused by a shooting.
Jared Jablonski, fire mitigation and education specialist, said he thinks they know who is responsible. However, the Ada County Sheriff’s Office did not confirm.
Jablonski said shootings are often within the top three causes of wildfires during the season.
“Anytime you’re shooting, you can easily cause a fire just from hitting rocks or metal objects that can cause sparks,” he said. “The bullets themselves can turn molten and drop down and ignite flashy, dry vegetation.”
To prevent these types of fires, BLM implemented a fire prevention order from May to late October. This order prohibits using fireworks, exploding targets and explosive material on protected BLM land.
"We also want the public to be aware that even if following the Prevention Order when shooting, starting a wildfire is still possible. Please think twice about shooting on hot, dry and windy days, and always bring water, a fire extinguisher, and a shovel with you," Jablonski said.
A wildfire, he said, can start at any moment. If people decide to go shooting, then preparation is key. Having the right tools, can make a big difference if something happens.
“Folks really need to be aware that if they're gonna go out and shoot on a hot and dry day, they might want to think twice about doing that and wait for a different day,” Jablonski said.
Watch more on wildfires in the West:
See all of our latest coverage in our YouTube playlist: | https://www.ktvb.com/article/news/local/wildfire/114-acre-talon-fire-shooting-related-blm/277-1e6ea931-c9a1-4755-9a7e-ef1289007481 | 2022-07-06T01:47:01 | 0 | https://www.ktvb.com/article/news/local/wildfire/114-acre-talon-fire-shooting-related-blm/277-1e6ea931-c9a1-4755-9a7e-ef1289007481 |
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Chief investigative reporter Jonathan Dienst on crime, corruption and terrorism. | https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/fire-outside-long-island-mosque-investigated-as-a-hate-crime/3762377/ | 2022-07-06T01:49:04 | 1 | https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/fire-outside-long-island-mosque-investigated-as-a-hate-crime/3762377/ |
TAMPA, Fla. — A man was found dead in a parked car surrounded by flies at 8:25 a.m. Tuesday, the Tampa Police Department said in a news release.
The car was parked in the area of North Elmore Avenue and East Adalee Street. Initially, police said there didn't appear to be any kind of foul play involved when the man was first found dead.
Law enforcement says the medical examiner's office took the body and later told authorities the man had a possible gunshot wound to his neck.
The investigation is reportedly being treated as a possible homicide and police are working to identify the man and have not been in contact with any relatives.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates. | https://www.wtsp.com/article/news/local/hillsboroughcounty/tampa-man-found-dead-parked-car-police/67-a4532634-5d28-4fdf-8255-26a56aa8240b | 2022-07-06T01:49:43 | 0 | https://www.wtsp.com/article/news/local/hillsboroughcounty/tampa-man-found-dead-parked-car-police/67-a4532634-5d28-4fdf-8255-26a56aa8240b |
FORT MYERS, Fla. – Big crowds means law enforcement agencies need a large staff to monitor public events. Fort Myers Police say it takes careful planning to make sure you’re as safe as possible.
“We want people to come out into the public,” FMPD Capt. Shawn Yates said. “We want them to enjoy themselves. We want them to relax and enjoy festivities knowing that we are there for their protection and we are looking over them.”
Capt. Yates said he knows there are a lot of bad things happening in the world right now like shootings at parades and celebrations. That’s why he’s sharing just a sliver of what FMPD does to keep you safe at public gatherings.
“Monitoring, we have cameras. We have officers on the ground. There might be undercover officers in the crowds looking for things,” he said. “We look at social media. We look at intelligence bulletins. Using drone activity to monitor rooftops and things like that.”
Those are just a few of the things agencies like FMPD put into play. Many of their practices are private. During times when people populate the streets, FMPD not only brings extra boots on the ground but also plans meticulously with their partners for anything to occur.
“There’s a lot of bad things happening in the world but our job is to prepare and potentially, if one of those things happen, properly react and minimize any kind of significant incident out there.” | https://nbc-2.com/news/local/2022/07/05/fmpd-careful-planning-ensures-safety-at-public-events/ | 2022-07-06T01:50:04 | 0 | https://nbc-2.com/news/local/2022/07/05/fmpd-careful-planning-ensures-safety-at-public-events/ |
LEE COUNTY, Fla. – Lost and found pets are making their way to safety after a busy holiday weekend.
Lee County Domestic Animal Services spent most of Tuesday reuniting pets with owners.
Officials are expecting to take in more lost pets this week.
“Just because the holiday is over does not mean the fireworks are,” said Karen Fordiani of LCDAS.
Fordiani says microchipping your pet could save a lot of time and even your pet’s life.
On Saturday officers found a microchipped dog that was lost for eight years. The overdue reunion was made Tuesday morning.
“Microchips are vital to reunite your pet. Make sure the information is up to date,” said Fordiani.
LCDAS offers a program to microchip your pet for the low cost of $10. Appointments can be made Monday through Friday.
All lost and stray pets are required by ordinance to be reported and turned into LCDAS within 24 hours.
People with lost or found pets are asked to call LCDAS at 239-533-7387. | https://nbc-2.com/news/local/2022/07/05/officials-stress-importance-of-microchipping-pets-after-holiday-weekend/ | 2022-07-06T01:50:11 | 0 | https://nbc-2.com/news/local/2022/07/05/officials-stress-importance-of-microchipping-pets-after-holiday-weekend/ |
WASHINGTON -- National parks in Arizona welcomed 10.7 million visitors who pumped $1.12 billion into local economies in 2021, both sharp increases from the pandemic-induced lows of the year before, according to the National Park Service.
While the numbers were still shy of their pre-pandemic levels, in the state and nationally, Arizona tourism officials were not complaining about the report for 2021.
“National Parks’ a huge part of our city,” Flagstaff Mayor Paul Deasy said. “Small business is the backbone to most economies. And tourism is the way that our small businesses are able to survive and thrive.”
In Arizona, the number of visitors in 2021 was down from 12.5 million in 2019, when the amount spent by tourists was $1.3 billion. But both of the 2021 numbers were a vast improvement over the intervening year, when COVID-19 pushed visitors down to 7.6 million and spending on gas, lodging, food and more to $711 million.
That pattern was repeated at Grand Canyon National Park, which remained the state’s most popular national park. It saw visitors go from 5.9 million in 2019 to 2.9 million in 2020 before bouncing back to 4.5 million visitors last year.
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But some parks in the region actually bested their pre-pandemic numbers in 2021. Visitors to Saguaro National Park spent $10 million more than they did in 2019, and Zion National Park in southern Utah saw spending rise by $409 million, a 158% increase over the same period. The number of visitors to Lake Mead in 2021 was 104,425 higher than in 2019.
That Grand Canyon did not match the surges posted by other parks in the region is “not concerning, at all,” said Brian Drapeaux, deputy superintendent for the Grand Canyon National Park.
“We don’t really look at how we compare visitations to other national parks,” he said. “Unlike many of the other large parks in the country, we’re a year-round park. A lot of the parks are seasonal parks, and so they’ll get crushed when they’re open.”
Drapeaux expects the number of visitors to rise this year as international travel returns to pre-pandemic norms. Financial services giant VISA said Grand Canyon was the most popular of the national parks for foreign tourists before the pandemic. But international tourism to the state fell by 76% in 2020, according to the Arizona Office of Tourism.
Considering the tight travel restrictions and health safety concerns, the 4.5 million Grand Canyon National Park visitors in 2021 are “still really amazing numbers,” Drapeaux said.
The NPS report said visitors to Grand Canyon National Park spent $710 million last year in local “gateway economies,” or communities near the park, up from $433 million in 2020.
Nationally, the number of visitors to national parks went from 327 million in 2019 to 237 million in 2020 before climbing back to 297 million last year. Spending over the same period went from $21 billion to $14.5 billion and then back to $20.5 billion.
The park service report ranked Arizona sixth among states for visitor spending and fifth for the total economic output from its national parks. It said Arizona’s 22 national park sites generated $1.8 billion in economic output and supported 16,074 jobs that paid $627.6 million in salaries.
Park visitors “support their nearby communities because they bring visitors there,” said Josh Coddington, director of communications at Arizona Office of Tourism.
“Visitors typically will stop and eat and buy gas and stay the night in different places in our communities across the state,” he said.
The diverse landscape and natural wonders Arizona offers will continuously bring tourism dollars to the state, Coddington said.
“Certainly, the pandemic had a major impact on tourism everywhere, including in Arizona,” Coddington said. “As people started going out again, one of the places that was top on a lot of people’s minds to visit was outdoor places -- state and national parks.”
With more tourists expected in coming years, Coddington said the focus will need to shift to managing what he called an anticipated national park tourism boom.
“These places and experiences, these amazing natural places that people have enjoyed for many, many years, how do we do it in a way that reduces the impact on that place?” Coddington asked. “It needs to be here for future generations to enjoy.”
It’s a sentiment Deasy also holds. His city is currently reeling from the Pipeline Fire, a wildfire that covered more than 26,000 acres.
“We welcome visitors. We want you to enjoy our natural environment,” Deasy said. “Let’s just make sure we’re being responsible and ensuring that we continue to protect that environment that we all love.” | https://azdailysun.com/news/local/national-park-tourism-spending-recovers-from-pandemic-but-still-lags/article_3e6422c8-fcb9-11ec-90e4-43808ca35066.html | 2022-07-06T01:51:18 | 0 | https://azdailysun.com/news/local/national-park-tourism-spending-recovers-from-pandemic-but-still-lags/article_3e6422c8-fcb9-11ec-90e4-43808ca35066.html |
For the second straight year, Aleksandra Chekalina and Elle Kocourkova represented the Northern Arizona golf team on the Women's Golf Coaches Association's All-American Scholar list, the organization announced Tuesday.
One of the toughest scholar teams to qualify for in all of college athletics, golfers must hold a minimum of a 3.50 cumulative GPA to earn a spot on the list.
With her fourth career WGCA All-American Scholar honor, Kocourkova joined Ali Carter and Stephanie Kim as the only Lumberjacks golfers in program history to earn four such awards.
Meanwhile, Chekalina's honor is the second of her career.
Kocourkova, the 2021-22 Golden Eagle Co-Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year, completed her degree in May in hotel and restaurant management with a 3.84 GPA. She concluded her career on the course by landing on the Big Sky All-Conference First Team, posting her finest season. She ranked second on the team with a career-low scoring average of 74.76 and earned medalist honors at Northern Arizona's Red Rocks tournament.
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Chekalina, also a hotel and restaurant management major, carries a 3.52 cumulative GPA. Chekalina was voted to the All-Conference Third Team after averaging 76.50 per round while playing in all 11 season tournaments. Her best finish came at the Bobcat Desert Classic, where she tied for 10th individually before tying for 18th at the Big Sky championship tourney the following week.
In total, 1,485 women's collegiate golfers were recognized with the prestigious academic honor this year by the WGCA. | https://azdailysun.com/news/local/nau-roundup-kocourkova-chekalina-repeat-as-wgca-all-american-scholars/article_8c51a620-fca7-11ec-8a59-63d86b9664b1.html | 2022-07-06T01:51:24 | 0 | https://azdailysun.com/news/local/nau-roundup-kocourkova-chekalina-repeat-as-wgca-all-american-scholars/article_8c51a620-fca7-11ec-8a59-63d86b9664b1.html |
GREENSBORO — MayCay Beeler and her son are in select company. Possibly the most select.
Maybe 12 to 24 people worldwide are considered “wing walkers” — those who climb from a plane’s cockpit during flight and move about on the aircraft.
Just a little over two weeks ago, after a year of training and two days after her 67th birthday, Beeler climbed onto the wing of a World War II biplane in flight. Her son, RJ Gritter, was piloting the 1943 Stearman PT-17 as his mother made the attempt.
But as she stood up in the strong winds, Beeler quickly realized that she did not feel secure. She didn’t learn until later that her left foot was not properly in a hold, or indentation, on the trailing edge of the wing.
She crouched on the wing for about five minutes without being tethered or her belt being attached to a stanchion.
Nonetheless, as far as she knows — and she has checked a variety of official sources — they are the only mother-son team to have performed such a maneuver.
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“It was a really cool bonding experience for us,” Beeler said.
You might remember Beeler from her work as a TV personality, co-hosting WFMY’s “PM Magazine” back in the day. She learned to fly for a story in 1983. She maintains licenses as a professional pilot and flight instructor.
Her son’s father is a former chief test pilot for HondaJet.
And Gritter has been flying since Beeler was pregnant with him 31 years ago. He took his first solo flight at age 16.
He’s now an aerospace engineer as well as a commercial and airshow pilot. Weekends find him performing aerobatics for the Flying Circus Airshow in Bealeton, Va.
Looking for a new challenge, Beeler decided that she wanted to try wing walking. But she knew of only two locations that train the public — in the Pacific Northwest and England.
However, the president of the Flying Circus Airshow approved her to train at its facility hours away.
If she passed, she could try wing walking in private, out of the public’s eye.
So for a year, she drove on weekends five hours each way to train at the Flying Circus Airshow.
Wing walker Beth Sommer trained her on a parked plane most of the time.
“If I don’t feel safe for any reason, I’m not going to do it,” Beeler said from the start. “Beth said that you will never be 100% sure when you’re up there.”
For Beeler’s final exam, her son would taxi on the runway and prepare for takeoff with the propeller going. Beeler had to get up on the wing, strap herself in, unstrap herself and climb back into the cockpit. She passed.
On Father’s Day a few weeks ago, Beeler was ready to try the real thing.
Beeler remembers the five- to 10-minute flight from the Flying Circus Airshow to their destination in the sky.
“I’m enjoying the view, and it was gorgeous,” she recalled. “We are in a 1943 airplane, open cockpit. You are one with the Earth and with the sky.”
Her son flew from the back seat.
When they reached about 3,000 feet, he slowed the plane to reduce the wind resistance, she said.
But the air flow was still much stronger than she anticipated, Beeler recalled.
Still, she wasn’t frightened.
“I could have been sitting on the couch in my living room. I could have been in a swimming pool,” she said. “I wasn’t aware of anything else other than the wind and where my hands and feet are supposed to be.”
Beeler said she has never seen wing walkers traversing the top wing. Some walk a little on the lower wing, but she didn’t try that. She planned to belt herself to the stanchion on the top wing.
She pulled her 120-pound frame from the cockpit using wires and grips. But as Beeler stood, she didn’t feel secure enough to belt herself to the stanchion to stand up fully.
The entire flight and maneuver lasted about 20 minutes, with maybe 5 to 10 minutes on the wing.
“In the moment, as she climbed out of the cockpit and onto the wing, it was mostly business as usual,” Gritter said via email. “I focused on flying the airplane, keeping things steady to ease the wingwalk, and she went through the walk just as practiced.
“Once she was safely back in the cockpit, I was proud of her attempt and wise decision to stop when things didn’t feel right.”
When she returned to the ground, Beeler recalled her instructor saying: “You were out of the seat. You were on top of the wing. You wing-walked. You did it.”
The stunt was enough to intrigue the Guinness Book of World Records. Although there is no known record, officials decided that the maneuver is “not competitive enough on a worldwide scale therefore unlikely to ever be broken,” Beeler said. The people behind the Guinness Book like records that can be broken, she added.
As for future wing walks, Beeler said she plans to do it with her son piloting one more time.
“I’m going to stand up and strap myself and ride for awhile,” she said.
Contact Dawn DeCwikiel-Kane at 336-373-5204 and follow @dawndkaneNR on Twitter. | https://greensboro.com/news/local/greensboro-mom-flies-on-a-planes-wing---with-her-son-as-the-pilot/article_87482f98-f96c-11ec-85e3-4bf5a3e8d018.html | 2022-07-06T01:55:44 | 0 | https://greensboro.com/news/local/greensboro-mom-flies-on-a-planes-wing---with-her-son-as-the-pilot/article_87482f98-f96c-11ec-85e3-4bf5a3e8d018.html |
FORT WORTH, Texas — Fort Worth officials made the tough call to end the fireworks show with thousands of people packed at Panther Island to watch the Independence Day sky display as crews worked to battle hundreds of grass fires across the area.
The flames broke out during the Magic in the Sky show July 4, right across the river Daniel Demaline set up to sell food. He and his staff had a front-row seat to what went wrong.
RELATED: Fort Worth fireworks show canceled after grass fire; crews battle hundreds more over 4th of July
"The whole thing was on fire. I mean, it was just, you know, one- or two-feet blazes of fire just across the whole levee," said Demaline.
According to the Fort Worth Fire Department, about seven minutes into the fireworks show, embers fell onto the grass where technicians sent them into the sky.
Due to dry conditions, the Fort Worth Fire Department and Magic in the Sky had already pre-planned for it so firefighters in Brush trucks were on site.
In fact, Fort Worth Fire Chief Jim Davis attended pre-holiday event meetings to strategize a game plan in case something went wrong. Davis also shared that even before the event is given the green light it must meet certain criteria including safety plans, dry conditions, minimum wind gust factors and more.
Davis said, "What we experienced last night was the concern that myself, as the fire chief in Fort Worth and every other fire chief throughout Tarrant County was worried about."
Davis explained his staff delayed the fireworks and eventually made the call that it was just too dangerous for the show to go on.
Jacob Dell is the owner of Magic in the Sky, which is a new provider for the fireworks display after a bidding process.
This is the first year for Magic in the Sky doing Fort Worth's fireworks. Dell was in another part of Texas when he got the call about the grass fires surrounding his employees as they launched synchronized fireworks from the grass riverbank area at Panther Island.
"Our technicians felt it was not safe to continue, and that's why the decision was made to cancel," said Dell. "We do anywhere from 400 to 500 fireworks displays."
Dell agreed with Davis during a late Tuesday afternoon news conference that continuing the fireworks Monday night, even after a delay, would have put everyone nearby at risk.
After onlookers and many of the vendors cleared Panther Island near the launch pads. FWFD and the technicians from Magic in the Sky had assistance from bomb squad personnel detonating the remaining fireworks.
Demaline told WFAA that there was an announcement that the fireworks show would be delayed. But as he watched the grass fire continue to spread down the riverbanks, eventually an announcement came that no one wanted to hear.
"Yeah, it was actually a recording. I don't know if it's happened in the past," said Demaline. "But there was a recording that came on and said initially it was that the fireworks would be temporarily paused or something like that. Then a man came on and said, 'Yes, that the fireworks show has been canceled, please make your way to your cars.' You could just hear the 'oohs' through the whole crowd and 'boo.'"
During the fast-moving grass fire, Demaline grew concerned about the fireworks on the launch pads accidentally catching on fire. He shared what he thought would be the biggest threat.
"The complete fireworks themselves, like igniting and maybe going off like a bomb," said Demaline.
During the delay, people still lined up to buy food from Demaline at the Arcadia Parish Crawfish vendor booth. Some people waited in line even after the official cancellation.
Davis plans to use what they've learned from this year's incident as a planning tool for next year.
He explained their biggest concern was the fireworks near the grass fire being accidentally set ablaze with people nearby and not necessarily the grass fires themselves.
Davis works closely with the fire marshal and other city leaders to determine what steps to take and respond to during public events like the July 4 fireworks display that draws thousands of people each year. | https://www.wfaa.com/article/news/local/fort-worth-officials-discuss-decision-to-cancel-fourth-of-july-fireworks-display/287-9043c7bf-dd06-4ea4-8565-038938d01f61 | 2022-07-06T01:55:57 | 0 | https://www.wfaa.com/article/news/local/fort-worth-officials-discuss-decision-to-cancel-fourth-of-july-fireworks-display/287-9043c7bf-dd06-4ea4-8565-038938d01f61 |
FORT WORTH, Texas — Investigators with the Fort Worth Police Department are searching for answers after a man drove into a home on July 4 — and was found hunched over the steering wheel with a gunshot wound.
Per police, the driver was transported to a local hospital and was critical the last time they checked.
The crash happened after 11 p.m. near 3400 Wedgeworth Dr.
According to the homeowners, they found the driver unresponsive and hunched over the steering wheel. The car was also still in drive.
A man who only wanted to be identified as 'Ivan' told WFAA his father owns the home and that he lives next door.
His young daughter was watching television in the room where the car crashed.
Security video shows Ivan rushing into the house--yelling for people to call 911 after the crash. Thankfully, his daughter wasn't harmed.
"It just stunned me out of nowhere," Ivan told WFAA. "Like I couldn't believe it was happening."
Ivan saw the crash happen. He was on his front lawn talking to his neighbor when he saw the car up the road begin to roll towards the house slowly.
"I saw the car, and its lights were flashing," Ivan said. "It starts coming up, and it thumps on the curb--and I'm screaming 'Hey!' Next thing you know, it just drives into the house."
"He was passed out, completely hunched over in the car," Ivan said. "We were trying to put the car in park at least, so it didn't keep going into the house."
It wasn't until authorities arrived that Ivan was told the driver had a gunshot wound.
Ivan told police that he saw two people running away from the car before it started rolling down the hill towards his father's home.
Ivan said he didn't hear a gunshot--but also that fireworks were going off around the neighborhood.
He also said there was a GPS active on the dash--making him wonder if the man wounded was a rideshare driver and if he was shot by the people running away.
A spokesperson with Fort Worth PD couldn't say if the victim was a rideshare driver but did say witnesses saw at least two people running away.
The department said its homicide unit would be investigating.
Ivan and his family have some repairs to make but are thankful their loved ones weren't hurt.
"No injuries. Nothing," Ivan said. "Everybody is just still in shock." | https://www.wfaa.com/article/news/local/fort-worth-pd-investigating-after-driver-with-gunshot-wound-crashes-into-home/287-559b294a-77a3-4c5b-8caa-a78c0cd04922 | 2022-07-06T01:56:03 | 0 | https://www.wfaa.com/article/news/local/fort-worth-pd-investigating-after-driver-with-gunshot-wound-crashes-into-home/287-559b294a-77a3-4c5b-8caa-a78c0cd04922 |
COBB COUNTY, Ga. — Cobb County Superior Court Chief Judge Robert Leonard has reinstated the mask mandate in the Cobb County courthouse Tuesday amid "high" COVID community transmission levels.
According to a release from the county, masks will soon be required again in all public areas of the courthouse and social distancing will be enforced.
The chief judge urged court administrators to look at upcoming jury trials and make sure they comply with the local judicial order on conducting trials during the pandemic. You can view Judge Leonard's order issued on March 1, 2022 here.
"No operational changes have been made at other county governmental facilities at this time," the release stated.
Cobb and Douglas Public Health is also urging the public to take COVID preventative efforts amid the high community transmission. This includes the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s recommended actions including wearing a mask indoors in public, staying up to date with COVID vaccines, getting tested if you have symptoms and additional precautions needed for those at high risk for severe illness. | https://www.11alive.com/article/news/local/mask-mandate-returns-cobb-county-court-covid-high/85-72543582-91ff-4dbc-b78d-c42d286cc868 | 2022-07-06T02:10:18 | 0 | https://www.11alive.com/article/news/local/mask-mandate-returns-cobb-county-court-covid-high/85-72543582-91ff-4dbc-b78d-c42d286cc868 |
EAST POINT, Ga. — Authorities are investigating after a 24-year-old woman was shot dead in East Point, according to the medical examiner's office.
The shooting happened Tuesday at 3000 Fox Hunt Lane, which is near The Park at Galaway Apartments. The location is not far from Brookview Elementary School.
The Fulton County Medical Examiner labeled the shooting a homicide, saying it resulted from a domestic dispute.
The medical examiner identified the victim as Destiny Fitzpatrick Tuesday. She died as a result of a gunshot wound.
11Alive has reached out to the East Point Police Department for more information but they have not returned the request for comment yet.
This is a developing story. Check back often for new information.
Also download the 11Alive News app and sign up to receive alerts for the latest on this story and other breaking news in Atlanta and north Georgia. | https://www.11alive.com/article/news/local/mynews/east-point/east-point-fox-lane-deadly-shooting/85-d439d230-374c-4985-a059-a3cfcdb61784 | 2022-07-06T02:10:24 | 1 | https://www.11alive.com/article/news/local/mynews/east-point/east-point-fox-lane-deadly-shooting/85-d439d230-374c-4985-a059-a3cfcdb61784 |
A crash between an SUV and a motorcycle closed O Street in both directions for 3½ hours Tuesday afternoon.
Police responded to the collision near 84th and O streets early Tuesday afternoon. The motorcyclist, a 24-year-old Lincoln man, was taken to a hospital with life-threatening injuries, but was in stable condition Tuesday evening, according to LPD Capt. Ryan Dale.
The motorcycle was hit while headed west on O street when an SUV traveling east tried to turn onto Russwood Parkway. The 58-year old Lincoln woman driving the SUV was not injured. | https://journalstar.com/news/local/crash-closes-o-street-for-more-than-3-hours/article_9b341a4e-b7a6-5b21-b4be-6beeed0cf0e0.html | 2022-07-06T02:16:03 | 0 | https://journalstar.com/news/local/crash-closes-o-street-for-more-than-3-hours/article_9b341a4e-b7a6-5b21-b4be-6beeed0cf0e0.html |
Maybe Lynn Johnson couldn’t play favorites when he was in charge of all the city parks, but now that he’s retired the truth comes out: Pioneers Park was at the top of his list.
That made it seem like the perfect place to name a building after the man who — for the past 22 years — led a department that oversees parks, swimming pools, trees, plants and the city’s recreational activities.
After Johnson announced his retirement, members of the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board and the Lincoln Parks Foundation discussed how best to honor him. The nature education building in his favorite park seemed appropriate.
The building on the west end of the park opened in 2020 — three years after a blaze destroyed its predecessor.
The building checked all the boxes: It’s designed for summer camp students and sits on 2 acres of buffalo grass lawn and prairies. It has exterior shower heads to clean off dirty campers, a covered patio, two glass garage-style doors, a kitchenette and a small office.
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And a cupola on top — one of the design elements that Johnson envisioned.
Johnson’s fingerprints are all over the city — capital projects, native landscape design, preserved greenspace, protected prairie, all manner of youth development programs.
“They agreed this would be a wonderful way to recognize Lynn and the legacy he’s left for us,” said Denise Pearce, Lincoln Parks and Recreation social projects administrator. “This nature center building represents so many facets of his work — education, recreation and community outreach.”
The City Council will hold a public hearing and vote on the proposal to rename the Lynn Johnson Nature Education Building on Monday.
Fire inspectors ruled arsonists started the blaze that destroyed the old building and insurance proceeds paid for much of the $400,000 cost of the new one, along with donations and funds appropriated in the city's capital improvement program.
Mostly, it's home base for summer nature camp programs, but it also is a starting point for school hikes, Girl Scout badge classes and soon — Johnson's supporters hope — a way to honor a man who spent much of his career making sure places like it exist.
Old project and new sidewalks
Sidewalks and curbs along a stretch of 14th Street in downtown Lincoln are getting a face-lift, improvements that will be paid for with tax-increment financing from a 14-year-old project.
The City Council recently approved a resolution to expand TIF — a financing tool that allows the future property taxes a redevelopment generates to pay for certain costs — on a project first approved in 2008.
Then, the city authorized $764,000 in TIF for the Lincoln Flats/Bank of the West project to renovate a commercial building at 1314 O St. into a first-floor commercial space and 24 condominiums. Lincoln Flats opened in 2013.
At the time, the city was more conservative in its use of TIF, in part because the city often held the notes on the loans, said Hallie Salem, redevelopment manager for the city’s Urban Development Department.
Changes in the way financing is set up and the way future redevelopments are calculated now allow the developer to take more risk, so urban development directors asked — and the City Council approved — authorizing up to $500,000 in additional TIF.
Council members Richard Meginnis and James Michael Bowers voted against the proposal. Meginnis said he saw the move as a “money grab” by the city for something it didn’t need earlier. He said it didn’t pass the “but for” test — but for the money, the project wouldn’t happen.
Salem said she understood Meginnis’ concerns but said the streetscapes had been identified early on in the Lincoln Flats project, but because the city was trying to be conservative, it cut those improvements from the list of priorities.
Now, the money will be used to upgrade the sidewalk and curbs on the west side of 14th Street along the University Square parking garage. The main floor of the garage was once a drive-thru for Bank of the West, but is now used for parking.
A developer plans to turn that first-floor parking into commercial space, and the city’s sidewalk improvements would go along with that, Salem said.
Other streetscape improvements could be made outside the condominiums along the north side of O Street between 13th and 14th streets, and an alley north of Lincoln Flats.
In broader terms, the improvements play into the city’s downtown “principal corridors project,” an ambitious project to revitalize key entryways and streetscapes in the downtown area. Part of that is creating a music district, which is likely to involve that stretch of 14th Street.
Waverly aquatic center gets a boost
Lancaster County Commissioners decided last week to give $250,000 in federal American Rescue Plan Act funds to Waverly to help pay for a new aquatic center.
Waverly has wanted to replace its aging swimming pool for years — and in 2020 voters approved a $3.5 million bond issue and a half-cent sales tax increase to pay for an updated aquatic center.
Like most everything else, the pandemic brought the project to a screeching halt, but city officials are now determined to move forward.
“We literally do have duct tape holding parts of our pool together this year,” City Administrator Stephanie Fisher told the Lancaster County Board last week. “So we are at mission critical now.”
Initially, city officials estimated the aquatic center — which would meet ADA requirements, have zero-entry features, a current channel, slides, a diving board and twice the capacity of the existing pool — would cost about $4.5 million.
Enter supply chain issues and inflation, and the lowest bid city officials received was $6.4 million, Fisher said.
Counting the bond issue, fundraising efforts and grants, Waverly has about $4.6 million in hand.
The city and the Greater Waverly Area Foundation Fund are still fundraising, Fisher told the county board. And supporters told the city council at a meeting in May they want to get the project going, because fundraising will get harder the longer they wait and at least one grant for the project has an expiration date.
“This is a project the city needs,” Fisher told the county board. “We’re just trying to figure out how to get it in the ground.”
To that end, county commissioners — who said such an aquatic center would benefit tourism and the entire county — allocated the money from the $62 million in federal stimulus funds it received.
Construction could begin in August or September.
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Reach the writer at 402-473-7226 or mreist@journalstar.com.
On Twitter @LJSreist | https://journalstar.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/city-hall-city-parks-enthusiasts-settle-on-project-to-carry-lynn-johnsons-name/article_9face2cf-e361-59bf-a731-1c57b0b17981.html | 2022-07-06T02:16:09 | 0 | https://journalstar.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/city-hall-city-parks-enthusiasts-settle-on-project-to-carry-lynn-johnsons-name/article_9face2cf-e361-59bf-a731-1c57b0b17981.html |
DALLAS — The legality behind a 10-year-long program that allows undocumented youth to have temporary permission to stay in the U.S. is being questioned in court.
Wednesday at 9 a.m., the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals will hear oral arguments about the legality of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, program.
Under the Barack Obama administration, DACA was created in June of 2012 to provide temporary relief from deportation and work authorization to young undocumented immigrants who pass certain qualifications.
Naomi Rios lives and works in North Texas. She has been a DACA recipient, also known as a “Dreamer," for nine out of the last 10 years. Rios was 15 when she first applied and was accepted by the program. She and her family came to the U.S. from Mexico when she was two years old.
"I wish more people were more open to understanding our story and why we deserve to be here," Rios said.
Rios is currently employed as the crime victim's program case manager at the Human Rights Initiative of North Texas, which is a 21-year-old organization that provides free social services for immigrant survivors of human rights abuses. This includes:
- Asylum-seekers fleeing persecution based on religion, race, ethnicity, political opinion, or membership in a particular social group
- Those protected under the Violence Against Women Act, the Victims of Trafficking and the Violence Protection Act
- Immigrants abused by a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident (Green Card holder) spouse
- Immigrant children who are victims of violent crimes, neglect, abuse or abandonment
To qualify for DACA, individuals must meet the following criteria:
- Are under 31 years of age as of June 15, 2012
- Came to the U.S. while under the age of 16
- Have continuously resided in the U.S. from June 15, 2007, to the present
- Entered the U.S. without inspection or fell out of lawful visa status before June 15, 2012
- Were physically present in the United States on June 15, 2012, and at the time of making the request for consideration of deferred action with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
- Are currently in school, have graduated from high school, have obtained a GED, or have been honorably discharged from the Coast Guard or armed forces
- Have not been convicted of a felony offense, a significant misdemeanor, or more than three misdemeanors of any kind
- Do not pose a threat to national security or public safety
Rios said one of the main misconceptions people have about Dreamers is that they don't pay taxes. DACA recipients pay about $6.2 billion in federal taxes and $3.3 billion in state and local taxes each year, according to the nonpartisan policy institute The Center for American Progress.
"I don't really feel angry," Rios said. "I just feel disappointed that people follow that kind of rhetoric."
Working in the crime victim's program for the Human Rights Initiative, Rios said she meets with clients one-on-one and deals with a lot of women who are victims of domestic violence. Many of the people Rios works with are from Mexico, El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala.
"All of our clients have a lot of different types of needs," Rios said. "We have unfortunate stories. A lot of my clients come from their home countries with trauma and crime to the U.S. to seek a safe life."
Rios is one of the 101,000 DACA recipients currently living in Texas, according to the nonprofit immigration advocacy group FWD.us. This is the second-most in the country behind California.
The average age of these recipients in Texas is 29 while the average amount of time spent in the U.S. is 23 years.
In July 2021, a federal judge in Texas ruled that the program is illegal because its creation "violated, and its continued existence violates, the procedural and substantive aspects of the Administration Procedure Act (APA)."
President Joe Biden and his team appealed this ruling, which is why oral arguments are happening Wednesday morning.
Bill Holston is the executive director at the Human Rights Initiative of North Texas. He said he expects this case to end up in the Supreme Court.
"I don't know that lawyers ever say 100% as to anything, but it's really close to 100%," Holston said.
Both Holston and Rios said DACA is only a temporary fix to the much larger immigration issue that is in need of reform.
"We shouldn't be having to rely on DACA for individuals who have been here since the age of two and are working and teaching school and practicing the law and practicing medicine," Holston said. "We shouldn't be relying on this sort of bandaid of DACA for them to have status in the United States."
"We want a permanent solution," Rios said. "A pathway to citizenship. We deserve it for several reasons, including us being a part of the community. I think there needs to be comprehensive immigration reform. I think that's the better answer for the long run. It really needs to expand. It's long overdue."
RELATED: 'Looking for the American dream' | San Antonio community remembers 53 human smuggling victims
Rios said she went to school for social work and loves the people she gets to work with for her job. She also said she's been stressed about Thursday's hearing and what that could mean for her livelihood.
"Our clients are humble," Rios said. "Our clients are very resilient. They're strong. Even though they've suffered or they've experienced several traumatic experiences, they do their best to keep moving forward. If DACA were to be removed or ended, it's possible that I could lose my employment here at HRI."
If the legality of DACA changes, Holston said his organization's lawyers and social workers would be tasked with explaining that to their clients.
"DACA exists because of the extraordinary efforts of immigrant communities to advocate for this," Holston said."This is an extremely sympathetic group of people. I barely ever meet anybody who is not sympathetic to dreamers and DACA recipients."
Holston said his team often times comes into contact with immigrants who are wary of giving their personal information to the government.
"Administrations don't last forever, and we've had to have really, really candid conversations with clients," Holston said. "There's no way we could guarantee this information is not going to be used by the government to identify you. We wouldn't be doing our job if we didn't explain that risk." | https://www.kcentv.com/article/news/local/federal-appeals-court-oral-arguments-texas-ruling-daca-is-unlawful/287-cc966e9d-4dc1-4a30-aec2-db309b1ab3ef | 2022-07-06T02:20:18 | 1 | https://www.kcentv.com/article/news/local/federal-appeals-court-oral-arguments-texas-ruling-daca-is-unlawful/287-cc966e9d-4dc1-4a30-aec2-db309b1ab3ef |
SURGOINSVILLE, Tenn. (WJHL) — No injuries were reported after trees fell on a camper and a mobile home in Surgoinsville.
It happened in the Main Street area near Phipps Bend, according to the Hawkins County Emergency Management Agency.
Storm Damage Photos:
In a Facebook post, the Surgoinsville Fire Department asked drivers to use caution on Main Street and Highway 346 due to tree limbs and debris along the side of the road. Holston Electric was also working to replace two power poles.
As of 9:16 pm., Holston Electric was still reporting several outages in the area. | https://www.wjhl.com/news/local/trees-fall-on-camper-home-in-surgoinsville/ | 2022-07-06T02:20:22 | 0 | https://www.wjhl.com/news/local/trees-fall-on-camper-home-in-surgoinsville/ |
Nine people, including three motorcyclists, were killed in crashes over the Fourth of July weekend across Virginia.
As of Tuesday, Virginia has recorded 423 traffic deaths statewide in 2022, according to State Police Superintendent Col. Gary Settle.
“As encouraging as it is to see fewer traffic deaths this July 4 holiday weekend compared to last year, Virginians still cannot let their guard down when it comes to traffic safety,” Settle said in a statement.
In 2021, VSP recorded 12 fatalities over Independence Day weekend. This year, police said the nine fatal crashes occurred in the cities of Danville, Franklin, Norfolk and Portsmouth and the counties of Botetourt, Chesterfield, King William, Loudoun and Warren.
The motorcycle fatalities occurred in the cities of Franklin and Portsmouth and Chesterfield County, and an ATV crash occurred in King William County, police said.
Two of the three motorcycle fatalities were single-vehicle incidents. The Danville and Warren County crashes involved pedestrians, police said.
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“I cannot stress enough the need for drivers to slow their speed, wear a seat belt, drive distraction free and never drive under the influence of alcohol or drugs,” Settle said. “Simply drive to save lives.”
Over the weekend, state police commenced a four-day operation dubbed the Operation Crash Awareness Reduction Effort, also known as the CARE initiative. The operation and data gathering period ran from 12:01 a.m. July 1 to midnight Monday.
Over that time, troopers cited 4,262 speeding and 1,585 reckless drivers and arrested 69 individuals for operating under the influence, police said.
Troopers also issued 429 seat belt citations and 131 citations for children not being properly secured in the vehicle while 165 drivers were cited in violation of Virginia’s “hands free” law, which was passed by the Virginia General Assembly in 2020.
State police also helped 977 disabled or stranded motorists.
Funds generated from summonses issued by Virginia State Police go directly to court fees and the state’s Literary Fund — a fund amended by the state legislature in 2007 to benefit public school construction, technology funding and teacher retirement. | https://richmond.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/state-police-confirm-9-fatal-crashes-over-fourth-of-july-weekend/article_ae95ab75-aed8-5c41-b2e3-3630fe0ec3fb.html | 2022-07-06T02:34:12 | 1 | https://richmond.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/state-police-confirm-9-fatal-crashes-over-fourth-of-july-weekend/article_ae95ab75-aed8-5c41-b2e3-3630fe0ec3fb.html |
HARPER COUNTY, Kan. (KSNW) — A head-on collision between a Nissan pickup and semi-truck resulted in one person being killed on Tuesday.
The Kansas Highway Patrol crash log says the crash happened at 11:10 a.m. A 2017 Nissan Frontier, driven by 58-year-old Jimmy Anderson of Wichita was heading northeast on Highway K2, while a Kenworth semi was driving southwest.
For an unknown reason, the pickup moved left of center and crashed into the semi head-on. Anderson was pronounced dead at the scene of the crash. The other driver was not injured.
The highway was closed for several hours while emergency services and first responders worked the scene. | https://www.ksn.com/news/local/one-dead-in-head-on-collision-in-harper-county/ | 2022-07-06T02:35:08 | 1 | https://www.ksn.com/news/local/one-dead-in-head-on-collision-in-harper-county/ |
Arizona lottery numbers, July 4
Associated Press
These Arizona lotteries were drawn Monday:
Pick 3
7-3-9
Fantasy 5
15-21-24-38-41
Estimated jackpot: $156,000
The Pick
01-03-14-28-36-37
Estimated jackpot: $1.3 million
Triple Twist
16-18-25-29-30-36
Estimated jackpot: $651,000
Mega Millions
Estimated jackpot: $370 million
Powerball
15-16-24-31-56, Powerball: 4, Power Play: 2
Estimated jackpot: $35 million | https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/arizona/2022/07/05/arizona-lottery-numbers-july-4/7817126001/ | 2022-07-06T02:36:25 | 1 | https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/arizona/2022/07/05/arizona-lottery-numbers-july-4/7817126001/ |
Phoenix police seek public's help to find vehicle connected to fatal shooting
Phoenix police were asking for the public's help on Tuesday to find a vehicle believed to be driven by the suspects of a shooting that left one person dead and two others injured Saturday.
Two men and a woman were leaving a party around 6 a.m. near 35th and Campbell avenues when two suspects exited a vehicle and shot at one of them, according to police.
The vehicle driven by the suspects was a blue Nissan Maxima and it had the rear window and passenger side rear window shot out, according to police.
Officers found the victim, later identified as Jeret Perez-Garcia, 20, with a gunshot wound on the ground. He died at the scene.
The other man and the woman were taken to the hospital with injuries that were not life-threatening.
There were no suspects in custody as of Tuesday.
Anyone with information is asked to call the Phoenix Police Department at 602-262-6151. Those who wish to report anonymously can call Silent Witness at 480-WITNESS or 480-TESTIGO for Spanish speakers.
Reach breaking news reporter Angela Cordoba Perez at Angela.CordobaPerez@Gannett.com or on Twitter @AngelaCordobaP.
Support local journalism. Subscribe to azcentral.com today. | https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/phoenix-breaking/2022/07/05/phoenix-police-seek-vehicle-connected-fatal-shooting/7816574001/ | 2022-07-06T02:36:31 | 1 | https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/phoenix-breaking/2022/07/05/phoenix-police-seek-vehicle-connected-fatal-shooting/7816574001/ |
Indiana man found guilty of attempting to kill, sexually assaulting estranged wife in Phoenix
Indiana resident Shawn Terry Spink was found guilty after following his estranged wife to Phoenix, stalking her, sexually assaulting her and attempting to kill her, a Maricopa County jury found on Thursday.
According to court records, Spink was found guilty on all seven counts which included attempted first-degree murder, kidnapping, sexual assault, aggravated assault and unlawful use of means for transportation.
Spink was arrested on Sept. 15, 2018, after he tracked down his estranged wife to Phoenix and attacked her that same day. According to court records, Spink surveilled his wife for several days.
On Sept. 15, as she was leaving her north Phoenix apartment, he sprayed her with Raid bug spray and forced her back into the apartment, records state.
Spink then force a sock in her mouth, used zip ties to restrain her and stabbed her just below her eye before sexually assaulting her, court records state.
He then left the apartment with her. The woman convinced Spink that they should get food at a McDonald's. Once he arrived to the location, the victim jumped out of the car and ran into the crowded McDonald's away from Spink, according to court records.
Spink fled the scene and was found in Black Canyon City hours later. In his possession was the knife he stabbed her with, court records state.
Spink will be sentenced on Aug. 1, according to Maricopa County court records. | https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/phoenix/2022/07/05/indiana-man-found-guilty-attempted-murder-wife-phoenix/7815305001/ | 2022-07-06T02:36:37 | 1 | https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/phoenix/2022/07/05/indiana-man-found-guilty-attempted-murder-wife-phoenix/7815305001/ |
Police identify the first shooter in 'clash' that left 3 dead in Surprise
Police identified one of the people who died during a Sunday shooting in Surprise as the man who fired the first shot.
The shooting at a residence near 144th Avenue and Carline Drive left three dead.
According to a Tuesday update from Surprise police, Jason Hunt, 46, had been invited to a large gathering by the homeowner. At some point in the night, several attendees became involved in a “clash” and around 10:30 p.m. Hunt pulled out a handgun and began to fire, police said.
Surprise police said they have determined several other people at the residence subsequently fired handguns. Hunt and two other men — Carl Dinora, 38, and Conrradito Ochoa Navarro, 41 — were killed in the shooting. Additionally, four were hospitalized and several others sustained minor injuries.
Police are not referring to Hunt as the suspect, as they are still conducting interviews to determine how Sunday night’s event unfolded, Surprise police spokesperson Barry Bre’dell said during a Tuesday news conference.
Bre’dell said Hunt’s relationship with those involved in the altercation as well as his motive for firing is still unknown.
Police said Hunt motive is now the focus of the investigation, which remains ongoing.
“Our hearts go out to the families of the individuals who were shot and/or were injured,” Bre’dell said.
Reach breaking news reporter Sam Burdette at sburdette@gannett.com or on Twitter @SuperSafetySam
Support local journalism. Subscribe to azcentral.com today. | https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/surprise-breaking/2022/07/05/police-identify-first-shooter-shooting-left-3-dead-surprise/7817143001/ | 2022-07-06T02:36:43 | 0 | https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/surprise-breaking/2022/07/05/police-identify-first-shooter-shooting-left-3-dead-surprise/7817143001/ |
POTTSVILLE, Pa. — While he wasn't born in the coal region or even in Pennsylvania, Henry Clay, a Virginia-born politician, was influential in the 1800s.
He was so cherished by the people of Pottsville for his support of anthracite coal, that less than a month after his death in 1852, work began on a monument in his honor.
"No matter which way you come to Pottsville on 61, whether you're north or southbound, at some point you see old Henry up there on the mountain," said Mayor Dave Clews.
The Henry Clay statue has overlooked the city of Pottsville for 167 years.
The monument was completed on July 4th, 1855, honoring a man who advocated for what was once Pottsville's biggest industry.
Jerry Enders owns Jerry's Classic Cars and Collectibles across the street.
"Henry Clay, being a debater and organizer of stuff, he really did a great job to promote the coal region, the coal industry [and] the iron industry," Enders said. "He was a great ambassador for Pennsylvania, for the Pottsville area."
The statue and base were refurbished in the 1980s, but tall trees began to block Henry's view.
"For years it was growing up. You couldn't even see it," Enders recalled. "Then, Lasting Legacy got involved and said, 'hey, we're going to put some lights up.' So we invested in the lights. They did have to cut some of the trees, which through the period of time now, the last couple of years it's starting to erode."
The steep rocky bank beneath the monument is washing away with each passing storm, creating a hazard for visitors. Clews said vandalism has been an issue too.
"We have people that will throw trash out on it, that will throw bottles down at the base of it," he said. "Just no respect for property."
Clews said city officials do their best to maintain and monitor the site year-round.
Enders suggested adding low-lying vegetation to the hillside to cut down on erosion and improve appearances.
"This end of Pottsville now is the southern gateway," Enders said. "You've got the Chopping Block that's coming here, you have Jerry's Museum, Black Rock Brewing Company, so you have a lot of stuff going on down here."
Clews said he appreciates Enders' suggestion but admits the project isn't high on the city's list of priorities.
When asked about improving access to the monument, Clews acknowledged there's a lot to consider.
"Access to it would be a huge deterrent to that kind of project," he said. "You'd be weighing it outgoing, the investment versus how many people are going to take advantage of it and by location, pretty challenging to do."
Mayor Clews tells Newswatch 16 that the lights now illuminating the Henry Clay statue at night have helped cut back on vandalism and keep squatters away.
He said the statue is an important piece of the city's history and its future.
Check out WNEP’s YouTube channel. | https://www.wnep.com/article/news/local/schuylkill-county/erosion-vandalism-at-pottsville-landmark-henry-clay-wnep/523-be525ed2-b5fd-47a7-88a0-873d61a1de53 | 2022-07-06T02:59:39 | 0 | https://www.wnep.com/article/news/local/schuylkill-county/erosion-vandalism-at-pottsville-landmark-henry-clay-wnep/523-be525ed2-b5fd-47a7-88a0-873d61a1de53 |
POTTSVILLE, Pa. — Two years in business for a popular restaurant in Schuylkill County and it has been two very eventful years.
Back in 2020, Wheel in Tamaqua was just getting ready to open.
The gourmet grilled cheese restaurant already had a location in Pottsville.
But the owner wanted to open a second eatery on the other side of Schuylkill County.
Then the pandemic hit.
"The restaurant industry is not an easy one to begin with, so opening during the pandemic posed a multitude of challenges. We would not have been able to get through it if it wasn't for the support of our community," said Savis Logothides, President of Wheel Restaurant Group.
Wheel is marking its anniversary by holding an eating competition featuring a 24-inch grilled cheese sandwich.
If you can finish the sandwich and a bowl of tomato soup in 30 minutes you don't have to pay.
Check out WNEP’s YouTube channel. | https://www.wnep.com/article/news/local/schuylkill-county/schuylkill-county-restaurant-marks-anniversary-wheel-wnep-pottsville-grilled-cheese/523-89cc9347-e4fd-4ce0-9e85-9b35a004e192 | 2022-07-06T02:59:45 | 1 | https://www.wnep.com/article/news/local/schuylkill-county/schuylkill-county-restaurant-marks-anniversary-wheel-wnep-pottsville-grilled-cheese/523-89cc9347-e4fd-4ce0-9e85-9b35a004e192 |
ORLANDO, Fla. – Mental health professionals say feeling anxious or even traumatized after Monday night’s fireworks scare in downtown Orlando is completely warranted.
Shantala Boss, a licensed counselor, said with all of the violence happening around the country, it makes sense that people are feeling a heightened sense of fear. She said sometimes people do not realize their mindset has been impacted after experiencing something disturbing.
[TRENDING: Shooting scare causes panic at Lake Eola fireworks show in Orlando | Fla. teen to have leg amputated after attack by 9-foot shark | Become a News 6 Insider (it’s free!)]
“Nobody is crazy because they are scared or anxious. Everyone has a right to those feelings, and it’s okay to feel that way,” Boss said.
Jenifer Garrido, a licensed clinical social worker and owner of Anxiety Treatment Center of Orlando, said anxiety is a normal human emotion — especially now.
“We live in a world where we could be in a church, we could be in a mall, we could be anywhere, and suddenly our life is in jeopardy,” Garrido said.
She said the constant reminder of violence in our communities can be triggering and cause people to become hypervigilant.
“We almost expect something bad to happen,” Garrido said.
In these situations, Garrido said it is often inevitable that people’s mindsets will be affected. She stated one of the keys to coping after a scary experience is communicating.
Garrido recommended seeking therapy, opening up to family and friends, and practicing mindfulness.
Both Garrido and Boss said people should not live in a state of fear.
Boss said people should not avoid gatherings. Instead, learn your triggers and prepare ahead of any event. | https://www.clickorlando.com/news/local/2022/07/06/nobody-is-crazy-because-they-are-scared-mental-health-experts-validate-trauma-post-fireworks-frenzy/ | 2022-07-06T03:05:45 | 0 | https://www.clickorlando.com/news/local/2022/07/06/nobody-is-crazy-because-they-are-scared-mental-health-experts-validate-trauma-post-fireworks-frenzy/ |
Redistricting — the redrawing of political maps every 10 years — has had a drastic consequence for the most experienced commissioner in Rockingham County government: a two-year banishment from county politics.
Thomas Tombarello, the current chairman of the Rockingham County board of commissioners, will lose his seat on Dec. 31. And because of redistricting and a quirk in county elections, he cannot run for reelection.
“I’m not mad at anybody. I’m disappointed with the system,” Tombarello, a Republican, said Tuesday.
The quirk means that Tombarello will have to wait until 2024 if he wants to return to county government.
“That whole redistricting turned everything upside down,” said state Rep. Norm Major, R-Plaistow, chairman of the Rockingham delegation to the New Hampshire House, a position that gives him a leadership role in county government.
Rockingham County is going to feel the loss of Tombarello, Major said. For example, Tombarello put together the $68 million financing package for a new county building, for which ground will soon be broken.
And Tombarello has 10 years on the board; his two fellow commissioners have only two years apiece.
So what happened?
“God only knows,” Major said.
Redistricting amounts to a political earthquake of sorts, with fault lines reshaping the districts of congressmen, state lawmakers and county commissioners.
At times, a politician can find himself in a vastly different district.
For example, the Republican-controlled Legislature redrew the district of state Sen. Kevin Cavanaugh, D-Manchester, this year, making it much more Republican and prompting Cavanaugh to abandon reelection hopes and mount a run for the Executive Council instead.
But Tombarello actually can’t run, no matter the partisan leanings of his new district.
He currently represents District 2 in Rockingham County. With redistricting, his town of Sandown was moved into District 3.
But the District 3 seat is not on the ballot this year and won’t go before voters until 2024. That’s because some New Hampshire counties, including Rockingham, elect commissioners on cycles that include four-year terms.
To make matters even odder, the current District 3 commissioner, Brian Chirichiello, R-Derry, was redistricted into District 2.
So the District 3 commissioner who now lives in District 2 will be able to remain in office, without election, for two more years, according to Michael Garrity, a spokesman for the Attorney General’s Office, which handles election-law issues.
Meanwhile, the District 2 commissioner who now lives in District 3 can’t run for election to represent either district.
Redistricting for county seats sailed through the Legislature without opposition, unlike redistricting for New Hampshire’s two congressional seats and the state Senate and Executive Council.
Gov. Chris Sununu, a Republican, signed it into law on Feb. 24. Tombarello said he didn’t realize his predicament until sometime in May.
Legislative leaders learned about it in the closing days of the session, said state Rep. Barbara Griffin, R-Goffstown, the chairman of the House Election Law Committee. They tried to fix it, but in the end the effort died.
“We couldn’t work anything out. It really was the very end,” she said. Griffin noted that her committee was able to make an accommodation for Rockingham County District 1 Commissioner Kate Coyle because her husband had addressed the committee when it was working on the bill.
Tombarello, 63, has been a selectman in Sandown for 14 years. He said he ran for county commissioner in 2012 to try something different, and he fell in love with county government, especially working with elderly, Meals and Wheels and the sheriff’s department.
And it is bigger: the Sandown budget was $4 million, compared to $78 million for the county, which is the second largest in the state.
He hoped to be a county commissioner until he was 80. He said he will certainly run again in 2024. It will be an open seat then.
Theoretically, Tombarello could have moved into a District 2 town and run. He said some offered him an apartment.
“My wife said just tell them we’re having marital problems and you moved out,” he said. But he wouldn’t.
“I said I’ll use that when we really do.” | https://www.unionleader.com/news/politics/local/redistricting-squeezes-chairman-of-rockingham-county-commission-out-of-a-job/article_a042c131-9fda-5322-808f-850d3faf9ebc.html | 2022-07-06T03:06:08 | 1 | https://www.unionleader.com/news/politics/local/redistricting-squeezes-chairman-of-rockingham-county-commission-out-of-a-job/article_a042c131-9fda-5322-808f-850d3faf9ebc.html |
People watching a fireworks show at the Jersey Shore got more than they bargained for when an accident caused an explosive mishap.
As crowds watched from the beach and on boats Monday, the Fourth of July fireworks going off from a barge off Sea Isle City’s 50th Street Beach began popping off left and right.
“There were sporadic fireworks going up and then all of a sudden there was huge explosions on the barge,” said John Sullivan, who was watching the show.
Dave Ralph said people on the beach around him were worried, and the boats near the barge “hightailed it out of there” when it was clear something was amiss.
Officials said the explosion appears to have been caused by a 6-inch shell that blew up inside its gun tube before it could launch.
A spokeswoman for Sea Isle City said the company tasked with putting on the show reported no injuries from the blast.
The mishap ultimately resulted in a shortened show. Officials said the city shelled out $49,000 for the fireworks and will receive a credit for the part that did not go off as planned. | https://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/local/fireworks-accident-causes-explosive-mishap-down-the-shore/3291178/ | 2022-07-06T03:08:21 | 0 | https://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/local/fireworks-accident-causes-explosive-mishap-down-the-shore/3291178/ |
New Mexico and Texas feud over Rio Grande on cusp of 'historic settlement'
ALBUQUERQUE – The fight between Texas and New Mexico over the management of one of the longest rivers in North America could be nearing an end as a date to resume the trial has been put off pending negotiations aimed at settling the years-long case before the U.S. Supreme Court.
New Mexico Attorney General Hector Balderas announced Tuesday that a special master appointed by the court cleared the way for ongoing negotiations and set a date in July for a status update.
The Supreme Court would have to approve any agreement reached by the states. In the case of an impasse, the trial would continue later this year.
“We assembled the best legal and scientific team in the nation to disprove that our farmers and our communities owed billions in damages to Texas, and we are now on the cusp of an exciting historic settlement agreement that will protect New Mexico water for generations to come,” Balderas said in a statement.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s office did not immediately respond to questions about the negotiations or a possible settlement.
Others are reading:Intrastate travel at Las Cruces airport delayed. Here's what we know.
The battle over the Rio Grande has become a multimillion-dollar case in a region where water supplies are dwindling due to increased demand along with drought and warmer temperatures brought on by climate change.
The river through stretches of New Mexico marked record low flows again this year, resulting in some farmers voluntarily fallowing fields to help the state meet downstream obligations mandated by water-sharing compacts that date back decades.
Texas has argued that groundwater pumping in southern New Mexico is reducing the river’s flow and cutting into how much water makes it across the border. New Mexico argues that it has been shorted on its share of the river.
The first phase of trial was completed last fall, with testimony from farmers, hydrologists, irrigation managers and others. More technical testimony was expected to be part of the next phase.
A robust start to the monsoon season has given the Rio Grande somewhat of a reprieve after state and federal water managers had warned that stretches of the river closer to Albuquerque would likely go dry this summer as New Mexico’s mega-drought continues.
Tricia Snyder, the interim wild rivers program director for the group WildEarth Guardians, said policymakers need to fundamentally rethink how to manage and value river systems.
“Like many river basins throughout the American West, we are approaching a crisis point,” she said. “Climate change is throwing into sharp relief the cracks in western water management and policy and the unsustainable water allocation included in that.”
Others are reading:Warning signs installed along banks of Rio Grande
Snyder and others have said that status quo has resulted in water resources being tapped out in the West and that all users — from cities and industry to farmers and Native American tribes — will need a seat at the table during future discussions on how to live within a river’s means.
The latest federal map shows about three-quarters of the western U.S. are dealing with some level of drought. That is less than three months ago. But federal agriculture officials reported Tuesday that weekly rainfall accumulations for several locations were still well below average.
In New Mexico, the driest areas were on the eastern side of the state, where precipitation has totaled 25% of normal or less. That has affected cotton and hay crops as well as cattle and sheep herds. | https://www.lcsun-news.com/story/news/local/new-mexico/2022/07/05/new-mexico-and-texas-feud-over-rio-grande-on-cusp-of-settlement/65367673007/ | 2022-07-06T03:09:54 | 1 | https://www.lcsun-news.com/story/news/local/new-mexico/2022/07/05/new-mexico-and-texas-feud-over-rio-grande-on-cusp-of-settlement/65367673007/ |
SEATTLE — The Shoreline Fire Department (SFD) said crews are working on a plan to recover the bodies of two men killed when a trench collapsed on them on Monday.
Shoreline Fire told KING 5 that the plan involves two metal boxes and lowering a worker down into it to ensure everyone’s safety. Depending on the rain, the fire department believes the bodies could be recovered as early as Tuesday night or Wednesday.
The now massive plot of dirt in the Shorewood Hills neighborhood started out as a trench.
“It's more of a large hole at this point rather than an actual trench,” said Michelle Pidduck with SFD.
The excavation site is now 25 feet long and 20 feet deep.
“As far as equipment is concerned, you know, this becomes beyond our scope,” said Pidduck
Once it was apparent that the two workers, one in his 30s and the other in his 60’s, did not survive, Shoreline Fire had to take a new approach on the recovery.
“It's definitely a dangerous situation, more life threatening, and we want to make sure that we don't create more victims with that scenario,” said Pidduck.
Many surrounding agencies are lending their equipment and expertise. According to the Washington State Department of Labor and Industries, the two men that died were workers with Peacefield Construction. SFD said they were assigned with fixing a fractured sewer line while the homeowners were on vacation. The project was permitted.
The Washington Department of Labor and Industries (L&I) has launched an investigation into the collapse with Peacefield Construction, a company that has been cited twice by L&I for similar issues.
In 2014, the company had to pay $2,400 for two serious violations that employees were not safeguarded from an excavation and that there was no shoring, benching or a trenchbox at a site in Burien. In 2019, the company paid $3,600 for two more serious violations. That inspection said the employer was working in a trench without a safe way to come and go and was not protected from cave-ins at a site in Federal Way. Each citation said that these conditions could result in permanent disability and/or death. Shoring is putting up a steel wall in a trench to prevent collapse.
KING 5 asked if that equipment was used here.
“They had some equipment on site. I'm not sure where they were added within that process with actually putting it in,” said Pidduck.
KING 5 called Peacefield Construction for comment but has not heard back.
The Shoreline Fire Department said the Occupational Safety and Health Administration has strict regulations in place for trenches to prevent them from collapsing.
“This would be three in about, you know, a little over twenty years. So it is still incredibly rare, luckily,” said Pidduck.
L&I said their investigation could take up to six months. | https://www.king5.com/article/news/local/crews-working-recover-bodies-weekends-shoreline-trench-collapse/281-68f8241c-d504-4236-99de-ec3260928632 | 2022-07-06T03:11:52 | 1 | https://www.king5.com/article/news/local/crews-working-recover-bodies-weekends-shoreline-trench-collapse/281-68f8241c-d504-4236-99de-ec3260928632 |
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