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Proposed legislation going before a committee Wednesday would allow children with contagious diseases to attend any school, regardless of which contagious disease.
There would be no exceptions except for children with head lice.
Republican Kevin West authored House Bill 3159 and if it makes it through the legislature, the bill would go into effect on Nov. 1st. | 2022-03-02T18:34:37Z | www.news9.com | Proposed Bill Would Allow Kids With Contagious Diseases To Attend Schools News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/621f8983241e310727dbdacb/proposed-bill-would-allow-kids-with-contagious-diseases-to-attend-schools | https://www.news9.com/story/621f8983241e310727dbdacb/proposed-bill-would-allow-kids-with-contagious-diseases-to-attend-schools |
Oklahoma native and country music superstar Garth Brooks is coming back to the state next week, but it won't be for the public.
Brooks will be doing a Q&A session with Oklahoma State students next Friday as a part of a mentorship series called "Industry Insights."
There will be three sessions total. Each session will focus on key points of being an artist and how to succeed.
Brooks graduated from OSU in 1984. | 2022-03-03T01:55:18Z | www.news9.com | Garth Brooks To Start Mentorship Program For OSU Students News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/621fb490f4cbe3071f528c7d/garth-brooks-to-start-mentorship-program-for-osu-students | https://www.news9.com/story/621fb490f4cbe3071f528c7d/garth-brooks-to-start-mentorship-program-for-osu-students |
The Norman City Council echoed residents' unhappiness with the state's plan to expand the Kickapoo Turnpike through their neighborhoods.
The councilors said the expansion will not only destroy homes that have been there for years but also impact Lake Thunderbird.
Lake Thunderbird is the city's primary water supply.
State officials said the extension will give drivers better access to the southeast metro.
Residents can make their voices heard about the turnpike extension Thursday night.
Representatives from the Oklahoma Turnpike Authority will answer questions at the Ward 5 town hall meeting. The meeting will take place at 7 p.m. Thursday at CrossPointe Church in Norman. | 2022-03-03T01:57:00Z | www.news9.com | Norman City Councilmembers Voice Concerns Over Proposed Turnpike Expansion News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/621ff106b63831072ba390aa/norman-city-councilmembers-voice-concerns-over-proposed-turnpike-expansion | https://www.news9.com/story/621ff106b63831072ba390aa/norman-city-councilmembers-voice-concerns-over-proposed-turnpike-expansion |
A witness called on behalf of Oklahoma’s death row inmates said the most recent inmates executed in Oklahoma experienced “severe pain and suffering.”
Dr. Gail Van Norman is a specialist in anesthesiology and works at the University of Washington.
She took a look at materials and accounts from the four most recent executions.
She also witnessed Biggler Stouffer’s execution.
She pointed out moments where she thought there was “conscious movement”.
Dr. Van Norman testified that the inmates were feeling suffocation and paralysis from the second drug.
The state tried to poke holes in her statements and also questioned her on relying on some media accounts.
The plaintiffs have now tested their case, and the state has started calling their witnesses.
It can be expected that their experts will share very different opinions about the state’s protocol.
The first witness has already said that he believes midazolam can be used induce general anesthesia.
A large amount of medical studies have been discussed and Judge Stephen Friot has been asking questions.
The judge will ultimately make the decision in this case | 2022-03-03T01:57:13Z | www.news9.com | Anesthesiologist Takes Stand As State Execution Trial Continues News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/621ff4f070f0e10728b42369/anesthesiologist-takes-stand-as-state-execution-trial-continues- | https://www.news9.com/story/621ff4f070f0e10728b42369/anesthesiologist-takes-stand-as-state-execution-trial-continues- |
State representative John Pfeiffer authored House Bill 3903, which proposes the pardon and parole board's role should not determine guilt or innocence.
Pastor and advocate Derrick Scobey was one of many who appeared visibly discouraged after the house committee passed House Bill 3903 Wednesday.
“Bills like that -- they make me want to be like Jed Clampett and load up my family and move to California away from this God-awful state where the leadership is atrocious,” Scobey said.
Pfeiffer said the bill clarifies the responsibilities of the pardon and parole board as well as the court system.
“The court system is the proper place to determine guilt or innocence,” Pfeiffer said.
In his bill, Pfeiffer said the board should not be able to recommend a pardon or parole to anyone sentenced to death or life without parole solely because they claim their innocence or have new evidence.
The board can only recommend clemency for mercy or lenience.
The bill sparked several questions from lawmakers.
“What is the problem? Is it because Julius Jones was not executed? What's the issue here,” state Rep. Jason Lowe said.
Lowe said the only relief some inmates have is to plead their case in front of the pardon and parole board.
“The court of criminal appeals -- they don't look at exculpatory evidence, so they can't present new evidence,” Lowe said. “So if they are before the court and a witness recants, or we found new evidence or new DNA, they cannot present that to the court of criminal appeals.”
“Dual process belongs in in the court system,” Pfeiffer said. “Pardon and parole board interviews in a short amount of time. Oftentimes, their witnesses aren't even under oath, so this is something that has to go through the courts.”
The bill will now head to the House floor. | 2022-03-03T08:08:21Z | www.news9.com | State House Committee Passes Bill Limiting Inmates’ Chances To Prove Innocence News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/6220036bf483940723840a4a/state-house-committee-passes-bill-limiting-inmates-chances-to-prove-innocence- | https://www.news9.com/story/6220036bf483940723840a4a/state-house-committee-passes-bill-limiting-inmates-chances-to-prove-innocence- |
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Oklahoma City police responded to a domestic disturbance call just after 6 p.m. Wednesday in the 2300 block of S Kate Ave.
Police confirm that while responding, one officer was shot. The officer was released from the hospital Wednesday night.
The officer will be placed on paid administrative leave.
The suspect in the shooting is in custody. The suspect was shot by the responding officer. They died of their injuries. | 2022-03-03T08:08:27Z | www.news9.com | Police Officer Shot In SE Oklahoma City, Suspect Killed News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/622007bfeeaa61070ee2cf0a/police-officer-shot-in-se-oklahoma-city-suspect-killed | https://www.news9.com/story/622007bfeeaa61070ee2cf0a/police-officer-shot-in-se-oklahoma-city-suspect-killed |
RED ROCK, Oklahoma -
After a two-year investigation, the person found dead inside a burning home in Red Rock has now been identified, along with a second victim.
The OSBI tells News 9 Bobby and Ruby "Fey" Ratliff were married and had lived in that home for more than 30-years. Investigators say the two were shot before someone set the home on fire.
"Heartbeat stops," said Devin Ratliff, the couple's son. "Never in your life would you figure that was going to happen."
Ratcliff says he had just spoke to his father over the phone when that same night he got another call.
"Your parents' house is on fire, we don't know what else is going in," said Ratliff. "We drove up there and the house is totally engulfed in flames and burnt to the ground."
Found in the rubble were the remains of Bobby. Later, a second person, Ruby, was also identified. Investigators determined both victims had been shot to death.
"They were outstanding individuals," said Ashley Ratliff, the couple's daughter-in-law. "His dad could walk into a room and make friends with anybody. Fey was the best community member, went above and beyond for the school."
Family members tell me they've been waiting for answers. It's been two years and still no evidence of who committed this crime.
"We are asking for your help in this investigation," said Matt McGuire, Noble County Sheriff. "We're asking for your help as law enforcement, and the family, and the community."
The OSBI also says they’re now offering a $10,000 reward for any other information to help them with this case.
"Whatever information you have, we know that someone does have information," said Lynda Stephens, with the OSBI. "That's all we need to wrap this up and move forward."
If you have any details on this case, you’re asked to call OSBI at 800-522-8017 or tips@osbi.gov. | 2022-03-03T08:08:39Z | www.news9.com | OSBI Offer Reward Following Double Homicide In Red Rock News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/62201819eeaa61070ee4e881/osbi-offer-reward-following-double-homicide-in-red-rock | https://www.news9.com/story/62201819eeaa61070ee4e881/osbi-offer-reward-following-double-homicide-in-red-rock |
Artery and vein blockage can lead to all sorts of health problems, even amputation.
At The CardioVascular Health Clinic, doctors are working to put an end to amputations in patients with cardiovascular problems due to conditions from diabetes or smoking.
“So unfortunately, here in Oklahoma amputation is on the rise unlike every other state in the United States,” said Dr. Blake Parsons a vascular and interventional radiologist with The CardioVascular Health Clinic.
Three years ago, Jorge Ortega had his right leg amputated due to severe blood and oxygen blockage because of diabetes.
A year after that, Mr. Ortega developed a wound on his left leg, and doctors recommended amputation of his left leg.
“Finally, I told the doctor up in Hennessy you got to send me to a specialist,” said Ortega.
The specialist was at the CardioVascular Health Clinic in Oklahoma City.
“Even when it seems all hope may be lost which was like what happened with Mr. Ortega, he was in a dire situation where he had multiple levels of vascular disease literally from the belly button to the toe,” said Dr. Sherisa Warren, vascular surgeon with The CardioVascular Health Clinic
Mr. Ortega’s condition was so severe that he had reached the place of gangrene in his toes.
“His toes had already died, so we couldn’t bring those back, but we prevented him from getting a major amputation below the knee,” said Dr. Warren
“You know were trying to bring the latest and the greatest in cutting edge technology to be able to save limbs and ultimately save lives,” said Dr. Parsons.
Mr. Ortega has been through a lot but is grateful for the work the doctors have done.
“She made my blood flow, twice, they did it twice,” said Ortega.
Mr. Ortega is excited about the signs of life in his leg because it feels warm.
“All these hairs, they were gone, and I noticed then there was blood flow through there,” said Ortega.
He has almost completed his treatment and is looking forward to the rest of his life with his leg
Doctors stress for the best results, early detection is key. People with diabetes, smokers or experiencing pain in their feet or legs should be checked out. Most procedures can be done in the office. | 2022-03-03T08:08:51Z | www.news9.com | Man With Diabetes Avoids Having Both Legs Amputated News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/62201974f48394072386e546/man-with-diabetes-avoids-having-both-legs-amputated- | https://www.news9.com/story/62201974f48394072386e546/man-with-diabetes-avoids-having-both-legs-amputated- |
A small community is mourning the loss of another one of their officers.
The Union City Police Department lost their chief of police and one of their lieutenants within a month of each other.
Community members told News 9 now more than ever they are leaning on one another for support.
“Officer Stevens, the Chief of Police, was also well respected in the community. We lost two influential people in our town, and it was a heavy hit. We were just getting over losing officer Stevens and officer Owens passed away Tuesday,” said Dale Clayton, the Pastor at First Baptist Church in Union City.
The Union City Police Chief Richard Stephens lost his battle with COVID-19 in February. Just one month later Lt. Brandon Owens passed away from the same virus.
“He was very personable and friendly. It was funny people would tell me even when he would pull them over for something he was very courteous and polite,” said Clayton, who was also a close friend of Owens.
Clayton said Lt. Owens spoke to his congregation when the pandemic first hit. He remembers him as a man of faith who loved to help others.
“Officer Owens was well respected and liked by a lot of the students here and the community,” he said.
Community members came together to rally around his family.
“We had people from the community come in and open an account to support Lt.. Owens. You can come to any BancFirst to make a deposit, any BancFirst in the state of the Oklahoma, to help the family during this tragedy,” said Gary Chester who works at the BancFirst in Union City.
He said several Oklahomans have already contributed to the Lt. Owens fund.
“We’re a small community and when something happens that is what the community does, they support the family,” said Chester.
Lt. Owens was a United States Army Veteran before working with the Canadian County Sheriff’s Office and Union City PD. There is no word yet on funeral or memorial plans. | 2022-03-03T08:09:10Z | www.news9.com | Union City Police Department Loses Second Officer To COVID-19 News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/622042a2263c44072cc54b56/union-city-police-department-loses-second-officer-to-covid19 | https://www.news9.com/story/622042a2263c44072cc54b56/union-city-police-department-loses-second-officer-to-covid19 |
‘It Hasn’t Really Sunk In’: Downtown OKC Chef Nominated For Prestigious Cooking Award
Chef Andrew Black opened his restaurant Grey Sweater in downtown Oklahoma City about three years ago, but his love for cooking started long before that.
“Most people would think I started cooking Jamaican food. Well, not so,” Black said. “I started cooking Indian food.”
That mix of cultures would take the chef all over the world for his culinary skills.
“I’ve been very blessed and fortunate to work all over. Paris, the Ritz there. Just all over,” Black said. “(I’ve) just been grateful, but now I’m in Oklahoma and this is home for me.”
When he arrived in Oklahoma, Black had no intentions to stay for very long.
“I told myself I’d only stay a year, and here I am 15 years,” Black said. “I went on to open Vast, Flynt, and now we just have our own concept here because it was just time to do it.”
Grey Sweater has become a major attraction in the Deep Deuce area.
“It’s always going to change. It’s always going to move to a different level, how we’re cooking now,” Black said. “I guarantee we won’t be cooking the same way next year and in a few months.”
The name Grey Sweater represents “Grey,” a mindset, long-lasting, sleek, and refined. It sits between the extremes of black and white and has no allegiance. “Sweater” represents warmth.
Black and his company also own and operate Black Walnut, a bar next door to Grey Sweater.
He now been nominated for the James Beard Award, one the biggest recognitions a chef can receive.
“It’s such a great honor and as some people say it’s like the Oscar of cooking,” Black said.
Black is the only Oklahoma chef on this year’s list.
“You know, if you look at the alignment of the James Beard, it’s not just about your cooking,” Black said. “It’s how you help your communities. It’s what you’ve done for others. It’s your core belief and other things. And to be honest, it hasn’t really sunk in for me just yet.”
Black admits the road hasn’t always been easy.
“The guest ran past me and said, ‘Chef Black, if you think this is going to work in Oklahoma, good luck to you,” Black said.
From a small village in Jamaica, Black has become one of the top chefs in the world.
“Don’t be regular,” Black said. “You know, if you want to be regular, then hang out with regular folks. If you want to be great, put your head down and work and continue believing in the dream.”
Black is excited about the James Beard Award. Without the support of the Oklahoma City community, he said it never would have happened.
Mike Glover Oklahoma City chef Andrew Black has been nominated for the James Beard Award, one the biggest recognitions a chef can receive. | 2022-03-04T17:48:07Z | www.news9.com | ‘It Hasn’t Really Sunk In’: Downtown OKC Chef Nominated For Prestigious Cooking Award News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/622179071b6275072606924d/it-hasnt-really-sunk-in:-downtown-okc-chef-nominated-for-prestigious-cooking-award- | https://www.news9.com/story/622179071b6275072606924d/it-hasnt-really-sunk-in:-downtown-okc-chef-nominated-for-prestigious-cooking-award- |
A resident at a senior apartment complex said he needs some of the Oklahoma Standard to come his way after losing most of his possessions in a flood.
Around 60 residents were evacuated from the Residence at Yukon Hills when the building flooded. They said they haven't been back since.
Residents were told by the complex’s managers told them they may not be able to come back for months.
Rockey Holt said he's currently staying in a free hotel room, but after Saturday, he has no idea where he is going to live.
“These units were nice,” Holt said. “I loved living here, and I'm sorry, it tears me up. I've lived here since it was brand new.”
Holt said it has been about a week since he's been home following the flooding. A lot of his belongings are water damaged, and he doesn't have renter's insurance.
“A lift chair that I depend on because I’m handicap, at this point, was not working the last time I checked,” Holt said.
Residents said they were told their stuff must be out by March 21.
“On behalf of Seldin, LLC and Overland Property Group, LLC, we express our sincerest thoughts to our wonderful residents of Residence at Yukon Hills during this challenging time. We have been working diligently with the regulatory agencies, insurance company, management, and ownership to determine next steps and begin the process of restoring the property.
Holt said the only person he has to help him right now is his friend Don Prince.
“It's devastating, but I just feel like the management company could do more,” Prince said. “They took care of them for a week and put them in a hotel, but there on their own after that.”
Prince has set up a GoFundMe to help Holt and other residents.
You can find the link to it by clicking here. | 2022-03-04T17:48:38Z | www.news9.com | Flood Forces Residents From Yukon Senior Living Center Out Of Their Homes News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/62218df51b62750726089172/flood-forces-residents-from-yukon-senior-living-center-out-of-their-homes- | https://www.news9.com/story/62218df51b62750726089172/flood-forces-residents-from-yukon-senior-living-center-out-of-their-homes- |
'Open Design Collective' To Host Visioning Sessions For New Community Project
A historically Black neighborhood in northeast Oklahoma City is working to re-design itself for the future.
This weekend, organizers are looking for feedback and ideas for the South of 8th project.
On Saturday, they're hosting the first of two visioning sessions.
Their goal is to have the community members from this area come out and discuss the best ways to improve the neighborhood for the future.
"We are so excited about what it could be, and we are inviting the northeast Oklahoma City community to dream with us," said organizer Julie Coffee.
The area that the Open Design Collective wants to focus on is south of 8th Street, just between Lincoln and Lottie Avenue.
Once a very popular area and historically Black neighborhood in the past, many of its historical buildings are now just empty lots.
The Open Design Collective, alongside the Oklahoma City Urban Renewal Alliance, wants to change that.
The first visioning session starts at 9:30 a.m. Saturday morning at the Page Woodson Apartments.
Registration is required, people interested can register here. | 2022-03-05T00:46:32Z | www.news9.com | 'Open Design Collective' To Host Visioning Sessions For Historical Neighborhood News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/62220d2c023ad4071d2598ed/open-design-collective-to-host-visioning-sessions-for-historical-neighborhood | https://www.news9.com/story/62220d2c023ad4071d2598ed/open-design-collective-to-host-visioning-sessions-for-historical-neighborhood |
Oklahoma lawmakers are considering a bill that would make it easier for landlords to evict tenants who fall behind on their rent.
This proposed bill, HB 3238, is sending a message to tenants telling them to pay their rent on time or there could be immediate consequences.
This bill was written by Republican Representative Tom Gann.
According to new data from Open Justice Oklahoma, more than 60,000 evictions have been filed since March of 2020, the start of the pandemic.
Of those, more than 22,000 evictions have been granted.
This bill would make it so judges couldn't use their own discretion on eviction case rulings.
They would have to focus only on the terms of the contract between the tenant and the landlord.
Finally, the measure states that landlords get immediate possession if rent is unpaid and the landlord files an action for forcible entry or detainer.
The bill barely made it out of the Business and Commerce committee in a 6 to 5 vote.
Next, it will be heard by the entire House. | 2022-03-05T00:46:50Z | www.news9.com | Proposed Bill Would Make Evictions Easier For Landlords News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/62221a2cd616310734a113d4/proposed-bill-would-make-evictions-easier-for-landlords | https://www.news9.com/story/62221a2cd616310734a113d4/proposed-bill-would-make-evictions-easier-for-landlords |
The owners of Purdue Pharma could pay up to $6 billion for its role in the opioid epidemic.
Under the settlement, the company is not protected from future liabilities.
The agreement would still needs approval from a federal bankruptcy judge.
If approved, it will secure more than $1 billion which would be more money than the previous deal. | 2022-03-05T00:47:22Z | www.news9.com | Purdue Pharma Could Pay Billions For Role In Opioid Epidemic News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/6222321bcb35d9072b5d6142/purdue-pharma-could-pay-billions-for-role-in-opioid-epidemic | https://www.news9.com/story/6222321bcb35d9072b5d6142/purdue-pharma-could-pay-billions-for-role-in-opioid-epidemic |
Rhea Lana’s is holding their upscale children’s consignment event that takes place in Edmond every spring and fall.
Around 2,000 families attend the sale and it is a way for local families to make money by consigning and saving money for their families.
Baby gear, toys, furniture, shoes, clothes and more children necessities can be found at the event.
Their pre-sale shopping event is held on Thursday, March 3rd, Friday, March 4th or Saturday, March 5th.
The spring event fully opens shortly after and will be held from March 6th-10th in Edmond.
Click here for more information on the events. | 2022-03-05T00:47:53Z | www.news9.com | 'Rhea Lana's' Holds Children's Consignment Event For Families News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/622239c850e2210727784350/rhea-lanas-holds-childrens-consignment-event-for-families | https://www.news9.com/story/622239c850e2210727784350/rhea-lanas-holds-childrens-consignment-event-for-families |
Oklahoma City police said a man died after he was rushed to a hospital following a "medical episode."
Officers said they were called to a motel around 6 p.m. Thursday on South Rockwell Avenue, just south of Interstate 40. They said a man called 911, claiming that people were after him.
When an officer arrived to meet the man, authorities said he demanded to be taken to jail. According to the officer's judgment, the man appeared to be under the influence of intoxicants, so the officer took the man to the Oklahoma County Detention Center.
While the man was being booked, police said he suffered a medical episode and was then transported to St. Anthony Hospital. He was pronounced dead at the hospital.
The man's identity is currently being withheld by authorities as the man's next-of-kin is notified. The state medical examiner will ultimately determine how the man died. | 2022-03-05T00:47:59Z | www.news9.com | OCPD Says Man Dies At Hospital After Suffering 'Medical Episode' News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/62223a3b4e31db0726ab05bb/ocpd-says-man-dies-at-hospital-after-suffering-medical-episode | https://www.news9.com/story/62223a3b4e31db0726ab05bb/ocpd-says-man-dies-at-hospital-after-suffering-medical-episode |
“Over the past two years, our primary goal has been to return volunteers to the more than 60 countries that are enthusiastically awaiting their return.
And, we have weathered the waves and variants of the COVID-19 situation at each post and reengineered Peace Corps systems, policies, and procedures to align with today’s reality,” Peace Corps CEO Carol Spahn said.
In Zambia, volunteers will coordinate with local leaders and partner ministries to provide COVID-19 education and promote access to vaccinations for communities, officials said.
In the Dominican Republic, the focus will on helping communities overcome issues exacerbated by the pandemic, such as increased school dropout rates, literary skills and preparing young adults for work.
The Peace Corps marks its 61th anniversary this week.
Two years ago, it had 7,000 volunteers in 62 countries, when they were evacuated and sent back to the United States.
Since those evacuations, the Peace Corps has used volunteers to help with the COVID-19 response domestically and developed a virtual service pilot program.
Not before March 2020 had the organization founded by President John F. Kennedy needed to evacuate all its volunteers at the same time.
More than 240,000 Americans have served as Peace Corps volunteers in scores of countries since the program was created in 1961.
The aim is to help the countries meet their development needs through a variety of programs — from education to health and agriculture programs — while helping promote a better understanding of Americans.
Typical service lasts two years after a training period.
Associated Press The Peace Corps will start sending volunteers overseas again in mid-March after it evacuated them from posts around the world two years ago due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.S. government program announced Thursday. | 2022-03-05T06:42:07Z | www.news9.com | Peace Corps Plans To Start Sending Volunteers Overseas Again News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/62227a42bd2a7e0729195955/peace-corps-plans-to-start-sending-volunteers-overseas-again | https://www.news9.com/story/62227a42bd2a7e0729195955/peace-corps-plans-to-start-sending-volunteers-overseas-again |
The S&P 500 fell 0.8%. That followed even sharper losses in Europe after Russian troops seized a nuclear power plant in Ukraine that is the biggest in Europe. Markets have swung wildly on worries about how much higher the war will push prices for oil, grains and other sources of inflation. Treasury yields sank again, and a measure of nervousness on Wall Street climbed.
The S&P 500 was 1.2% lower in afternoon trading, following up on sharper losses in Europe after a fire at the continent’s largest nuclear plant caused by shelling raised worries about what’s next. Markets worldwide have swung wildly over the last week on worries about how high prices for oil, wheat and other commodities produced in the region will go because of Russia’s invasion, inflaming the world’s already high inflation
“The tricky part is the future, not the past,” he said, as U.S. crude oil prices climbed above $115 per barrel amid worries about pressure on supplies because of the Ukrainian war. “Higher fuel and food costs can eat into consumers’ budgets. Those high costs Such concerns helped drag the Dow Jones Industrial Average down more than 500 points in the early going. The blue chip index clawed back some of those losses by afternoon. It was down 321 points, or 1%, to 33,470, as of 3:35 p.m. Eastern time. The Nasdaq composite was 2% lower.
Associated Press Stocks around the world tumbled Friday, after even a gangbusters report on the U.S. jobs market wasn’t enough to pull Wall Street’s focus off its worries about the war in Ukraine. | 2022-03-05T06:42:19Z | www.news9.com | Stocks Tumble As War Overshadows ‘Fantastic’ US Jobs Data News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/6222839bbd2a7e07291a1eff/stocks-tumble-as-war-overshadows-fantastic-us-jobs-data | https://www.news9.com/story/6222839bbd2a7e07291a1eff/stocks-tumble-as-war-overshadows-fantastic-us-jobs-data |
Amtrak had earlier settled civil litigation over the crash for $265 million.
Bostian’s lawyer described him as a lifelong train buff who had a perfect work record until he was distracted by reports of people throwing rocks in the area just before the crash.
“It’s been seven years for him wondering if he’ll ever get his life back. Today the jury gave him his life back,” defense lawyer Brian McMonagle said after the verdict.
“We’ve been saying from the beginning there was never a crime committed here by Brandon.”
Federal safety investigators concluded that Bostian lost what they call “situational awareness” on the track, thinking he was past an S-curve and on a straightaway when he accelerated from about 65 mph to 106 mph.
In fact, he was in the middle of the S-curve. Investigators found no evidence he was impaired, fatigued or using his cellphone at the time.
The case has a long legal history, with judges debating whether Bostian’s actions constituted a crime.
The train had stopped at Philadelphia’s 30th Street station about 10 minutes earlier and was heading north.
Robert Gildersleeve had been heading to New York for a work conference after attending his son’s lacrosse practice that evening.
Another witness, Blair Berman, described running into Bostian amid the wreckage and asking to borrow his phone. He did not tell her he had been driving the train.
Lawyer Tom Kline, who represents both witnesses, along with other Amtrak 188 families, said the verdict does not negate the “public accountability” that the trial brought.
The victims finally heard Bostian’s lawyer acknowledge that the engineer made mistakes, he said.
Associated Press A jury cleared an Amtrak engineer Friday of all charges stemming from a derailment that left eight people dead and hundreds injured in Philadelphia in 2015, concluding that his operation of the train at more than twice the speed limit on a curve didn’t constitute criminal negligence. | 2022-03-05T06:42:56Z | www.news9.com | Amtrak Engineer Acquitted In 2015 Derailment That Killed 8 News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/6222910f939d000729f4afcf/amtrak-engineer-acquitted-in-2015-derailment-that-killed-8 | https://www.news9.com/story/6222910f939d000729f4afcf/amtrak-engineer-acquitted-in-2015-derailment-that-killed-8 |
A system-wide update at the Oklahoma Department of Public Safety is causing issues with the agency’s ability to verify commercial driver licensees, causing some drivers to be unable to verify their license to employers.
Multiple CDL holders have told News 9 they have been unable to start or resume work because their employer has been unable to verify their license through a federal agency.
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), which regulates commercial vehicles, posted the following on its drug and alcohol clearinghouse website:
“Due to the Oklahoma Department of Public Safety Driver License Services’ system modernization, Oklahoma commercial driver’s licenses (CDL) may not be verified in the Clearinghouse at this time.”
Truck Driver Kris Mitchell has had a CDL for more than 20-years and said he has not been able to work for about a month because his employer has not been able to verify his license status.
“It’s just a holding pattern until somebody verifies that I have a CDL, and it doesn’t matter if I pull my CDL out of my pocket and show it to them. It’s not good enough,” Mitchell said.
Sarah Stewart, a spokesperson for OK DPS said the systems update occurred on President’s Day weekend in February.
The agency became aware of the issue earlier this week and is “working around the clock” to fix it.
“If someone is trying to get a new job or has a different employer, they might be running into this right now.
Obviously, we know this affects people’s livelihood,” Stewart said.
Stewart said there is a process by which employers can allow CDL-holding employees to work without immediate FMCSA clearance.
“That basically allows employers to put these people to work without this check until that technical issue is resolved. When that is resolved, the employer is responsible for going in and making that check,” she said. “This shouldn’t be preventing anybody from working.”
For more information from the FMCSA, click here. | 2022-03-05T06:43:33Z | www.news9.com | Oklahoma Unable To Verify Commercial Licenses Following DPS System Update News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/62229f33b0bc6a07283214e5/oklahoma-unable-to-verify-commercial-licenses-following-dps-system-update | https://www.news9.com/story/62229f33b0bc6a07283214e5/oklahoma-unable-to-verify-commercial-licenses-following-dps-system-update |
At Least 1 Person Rushed To Hospital In NW OKC
A woman was rushed to the hospital after she walked in front of a school bus Friday evening.
The incident happened just after 5 p.m. near Northwest 99th Street and North Western Avenue.
Bob Mills SkyNews 9 was on scene as a person was taken on a stretcher and loaded into an EMSA ambulance.
Authorities said the woman was transported to a local hospital with non-life threatening injuries.
No children on the bus were injured. | 2022-03-05T06:43:51Z | www.news9.com | Police Say Woman Walks In Front Of School Bus, Rushed To Hospital News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/6222a25468d1f77fd765c1c4/police-say-woman-walks-in-front-of-school-bus-rushed-to-hospital | https://www.news9.com/story/6222a25468d1f77fd765c1c4/police-say-woman-walks-in-front-of-school-bus-rushed-to-hospital |
State officials said there's a childcare crisis in Oklahoma and they're looking for ways to fix it.
“This is a crisis. It's something that's dying, and we need to revive it. Several years ago, there were 6,000 childcare facilities, or homes, providers across the state. Now we're just over 2,000,” Janell Wheat said.
Wheat said the pandemic has brought several issues - an increase in behavioral challenges, over regulations and staffing shortages statewide.
She said over the past two years she has seen her staff slowly start to dwindle to businesses with which she can't compete.
“We've had our teachers being recruited to public schools because they're losing their staff. We have professional degreed teachers as well in our facility and we can't compete with summers off, state retirement, health benefits or things like that,” she said.
With fewer staff, Wheat says more kids on a waiting list.
Senator Adam Pugh said he's looking into what can be done to support families and businesses with funding through the American Rescue Plan.
“That could be families that maybe stepped away from the workforce. My fear was a lot of those mom or dads didn't come back,” Senator Adam Pugh said.
Pugh and other lawmakers are accepting proposals but the deadline closes at midnight.
You can weigh in on how the funding should be used by clicking the link down below.
https://oklahoma.gov/arpa.html | 2022-03-05T19:10:57Z | www.news9.com | Lawmakers Work To Relieve Childcare Crisis Across Oklahoma News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/6222e6678d8131019457ab17/lawmakers-work-to-relieve-childcare-crisis-across-oklahoma | https://www.news9.com/story/6222e6678d8131019457ab17/lawmakers-work-to-relieve-childcare-crisis-across-oklahoma |
Gas prices are rising at a rate not seen since Hurricane Katrina in 2005.
The national average is now almost $3.84 per gallon.
Meanwhile, inflation is forecasted to be at 8 percent soon.
Next week, the Federal Reserve is expected to raise a key interest rate to help address it.
It will make borrowing more expensive on everything from credit cards to car loans. | 2022-03-06T01:28:56Z | www.news9.com | Gas Prices Raise To Highest Levels Since 2005 News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/6223c9fc991915072baebaac/gas-prices-raise-to-highest-levels-since-2005 | https://www.news9.com/story/6223c9fc991915072baebaac/gas-prices-raise-to-highest-levels-since-2005 |
An Oklahoma City woman was sentenced to 10 years in prison on first-degree manslaughter, with one condition. She would re-appear for a review one year later.
Grace Huff was found guilty last March of fatally shooting 20-year-old Montana Sullivan in the head.
This week, a judge reduced Huff's sentence to two years of house arrest. She will also have to pay restitution to the Sullivan family $6,000 each year over the next eight years. | 2022-03-06T14:48:32Z | www.news9.com | Judge Reduces Huff's Sentence To 2 Years Of House Arrest News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/6224432d5dfc1a0720412ed7/judge-reduces-huffs-sentence-to-2-years-of-house-arrest | https://www.news9.com/story/6224432d5dfc1a0720412ed7/judge-reduces-huffs-sentence-to-2-years-of-house-arrest |
Our first full week of March won’t feel anything like the warmth from the final week of February.
According to News 9 Meteorologist Andrew Adams, a mix of rain and snow is developing near the Texas panhandle and will likely move into the state around 11 a.m.
Spotty storms are expected to fall across western parts of the metro around 1 p.m. By 3 or 4 p.m., that rain coverage will cover the rest of central Oklahoma.
An even stronger line of storms could develop for eastern Oklahoma around 10 p.m., but Oklahoma City will not be a factor for those storms.
The low-pressure system will bring afternoon highs in the mid 40s for Oklahoma City and the lower 30s in western Oklahoma. | 2022-03-06T21:26:17Z | www.news9.com | Colder Temperatures, Storm Potential Headline Sunday's Weather News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/6224e84b58015807231219b3/colder-temperatures-storm-potential-headline-sundays-weather | https://www.news9.com/story/6224e84b58015807231219b3/colder-temperatures-storm-potential-headline-sundays-weather |
1 Killed, 1 Injured In Late Night OKC Shooting
Oklahoma City Police are on the lookout for a suspect after a man was shot dead early Sunday morning. Investigators found the victim in a car, parked outside a Casey's gas station in northwest OKC.
Officers got the call just after 3 a.m. when the person on the other end said he and another man had been shot. They then pulled into the parking lot of this gas station, as police rushed over to the scene. Officers found one of the victims unresponsive.
"Once officers and fire and EMSA arrived," said Jon Lapuzza, with the Oklahoma City Police Department. "He was pulled from the vehicle while they were attempting life-saving measures and at that point, they had determined he was beyond saving, he was deceased."
The victim who called 911 suffered minor injuries and did not need to be transported to a hospital. He was taken to police headquarters for questioning.
"Detectives and officers are trying to determine what happened, what led up to that," said Lapuzza.
Investigators say it's also unclear where the shooting happened and who else was involved. No arrests have been made yet.
"I don't know where they were driving at," said Lapuzza. "We do know that they were in the vehicle when they were shot at, and the deceased victim was shot."
Detectives were on the scene for several hours. They're now working to track down any witnesses and try to figure out if there's any motive behind this shooting. Neither victim has been identified.
If you may have seen what happened or have any other information on this case, you're asked to call the Homicide Tip-Line at 405-297-1200. | 2022-03-07T11:33:44Z | www.news9.com | 1 Man Dead, Another Person Wounded In NW OKC Shooting News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/6224bc6157e163073239f49f/1-man-dead-another-person-wounded-in-nw-okc-shooting | https://www.news9.com/story/6224bc6157e163073239f49f/1-man-dead-another-person-wounded-in-nw-okc-shooting |
Garland Has 27 Points, 18 Assists To Help Cavs Beat Thunder
Associated Press Darius Garland had 27 points and a career-high 18 assists and the Cleveland Cavaliers overcame an 18-point deficit to beat the Oklahoma City Thunder 106-102 on Saturday night for their fourth straight victory.
Mavs Win; Thunder’s Giddey Youngest To Post Triple-Double
Associated Press Luka Doncic had 14 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds in his return from a 10-game absence and Marquese Criss came off the bench to score a season-high 15 points, leading the Dallas Mavericks to a 95-86 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Sunday night. | 2022-03-07T11:34:51Z | www.news9.com | Bogdanovic Hits 11 3-pointers As Jazz Defeat Thunder 116-103 News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/622567488daf970724aa2e72/bogdanovic-hits-11-3pointers-as-jazz-defeat-thunder-116103 | https://www.news9.com/story/622567488daf970724aa2e72/bogdanovic-hits-11-3pointers-as-jazz-defeat-thunder-116103 |
Oklahoma City firefighters battled an overnight fire at an abandoned and condemned apartment building on the northwest side of the city on Sunday.
Crews were called to the scene near Northwest 16th and Rockwell around 10:40 p.m.
Firefighters responded and found the blaze was contained to two apartments.
One person was treated for smoke inhalation at the scene but did not want to go to the hospital.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation and damages are expected to be around 32,000 dollars, according to officials. | 2022-03-07T11:36:18Z | www.news9.com | Firefighters Battle Fire At Abandoned Apartment Building In NW OKC News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/6225e35482104807290bff97/firefighters-battle-fire-at-abandoned-apartment-building-in-nw-okc | https://www.news9.com/story/6225e35482104807290bff97/firefighters-battle-fire-at-abandoned-apartment-building-in-nw-okc |
New Update Released In Convenience Store Shooting
Oklahoma City police have released new information regarding a Saturday night homicide at a convenience store.
Officers responded to a call of a shooting at a 7-11 convenience store in the 1200 block of Southwest 29th Street.
A store employee and the victim got engaged in an altercation, which resulted in the victim dying from gunshot.
At this time, the victim’s name has not been identified.
A woman was struck by a stray round in the incident and was treated for an injury deemed non-life-threatening.
Authorities report this is an open investigation.
Anyone with information on this case can contact the Homicide Tip Line at 405-297-1200. | 2022-03-08T09:27:13Z | www.news9.com | New Information Released In SW OKC Homicide News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/6226362be596660729a5b56c/new-information-released-in-sw-okc-homicide | https://www.news9.com/story/6226362be596660729a5b56c/new-information-released-in-sw-okc-homicide |
Associated Press Over 170 million U.S.-born people who were adults in 2015 were exposed to harmful levels of lead as children, a new study estimates. And the researchers found the impact on cognitive development was significant: on average, early childhood exposure to lead resulted in a 2.6-point drop in IQ. | 2022-03-08T09:28:33Z | www.news9.com | Half Of US Adults Exposed To Harmful Lead Levels As Kids News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/62267edfe596660729ae2706/half-of-us-adults-exposed-to-harmful-lead-levels-as-kids | https://www.news9.com/story/62267edfe596660729ae2706/half-of-us-adults-exposed-to-harmful-lead-levels-as-kids |
A metro family wants to know who killed their mother in a hit and run and left her on the side of a road.
Cuesta Molina told News 9 she was on the phone with her mom minutes before the incident. She gets more anxious as days pass with no answers about who is to blame.
“It is not a phone call I wish on anybody,” said Molina as she recounted the call from the Oklahoma City Police Department that her mom was dead.
“It was very tragic I broke down immediately,” said her brother Michael Estep.
Both told News 9 they are heartbroken. Their mother, 46-year-old- Heidi Smidt, was killed in a hit and run crash on NW 140 and Penn.
“My mom was stubborn but very loving. She would give anybody anything she had, it doesn’t matter what it is. She would give somebody her last penny if she thought it would really benefit them. She loved her grandkids,” said Molina.
On March 2, around 7 p.m. Smidt was hit by a white dodge-ram truck near the Quail Springs Mall.
“Just the fact that my mother was so young and healthy and tragically getting taken away from us has been the hardest thing to comprehend,” said Estep.
The suspect then drove off, leaving Smidt on the side of the road.
“Accidents happen but whenever you kill somebody and run away it’s not okay. I’m going to miss her phone calls and her stubbornness. I am just going to miss talking to her about whatever is going on in my life,” said Molina.
Police said the truck should have front end damage.
“We’re not going to turn any tip away the public is great at helping us out and sending in tips that we can follow leads on. No lead is too small,” said Dillon Quirk with the Oklahoma City Police Department.
Both have a message for the suspect as police continue their investigation.
“It’s only a matter of time. We aren’t going to give up,” said Molina.
“You took my mother and one day you are going to have to answer to God for that,” said Estep.
The family has a GoFundMe to help with funeral expenses for those that want to donate. | 2022-03-08T09:28:39Z | www.news9.com | Family Seeks Answers After Fatal-Hit & Run Takes Their Mother, Suspect At Large News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/6226836b06cea907293f2b1c/family-seeks-answers-after-fatalhit--run-takes-their-mother-suspect-at-large | https://www.news9.com/story/6226836b06cea907293f2b1c/family-seeks-answers-after-fatalhit--run-takes-their-mother-suspect-at-large |
We're learning more details about a man shot to death outside a 7-11 over the weekend.
Police say it started when an employee of the store got into some type of an argument with another man.
"As it turns out, the victim in this case and employee of the store became engaged in an altercation which resulted in the victim being shot, and sadly died there at the scene," said Sgt. Dillon Quirk, with Oklahoma City Police.
Officers say it happened just after 10 Saturday night near SW 29th and Blackwelder.
The employee was questioned and released, but not formally charged with anything at this point. Police say that'll be up to the District Attorney.
"Not sure what the policy is on whether that person can carry a firearm at the time or not, but they were armed," said Quirk.
During the shooting, another woman, 22-year-old Alexis Stevens was also struck in the hip. She was taken to a local hospital but is expected to be okay.
Investigators say it's unclear if the employee and victim knew each other but they're still trying to piece together how this all started. At this time, the man shot and killed has not been identified yet and no one else was hurt during the incident.
If you have any other information on this case, you're asked to call the Homicide Tip-Line at 405-297-1200. | 2022-03-08T09:28:52Z | www.news9.com | Police Release More Information About Shooting In Front Of Metro Convenience Store News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/6226950c6677df7fca3ba107/police-release-more-information-about-shooting-in-front-of-metro-convenience-store-- | https://www.news9.com/story/6226950c6677df7fca3ba107/police-release-more-information-about-shooting-in-front-of-metro-convenience-store-- |
The federal trial over whether Oklahoma’s execution protocol is cruel and unusual punishment came to a close Monday.
After 40 hours of testimony over 6 days, the case now rests in the hands of U.S. District Judge Stephen Friot.
Ultimately, the case is a battle over science and whether the first of three drugs used in Oklahoma executions actually make the process painless.
Monday. an attorney for more than two dozen death row inmates to the court said, “If this is allowed to continue, this is a 21st century burning at the stake.”
The Oklahoma Solicitor General Mithun Mansinghani told the court, it’s time to once and for all put an end to the delay of justice that’s “gone on for too many -- for too long.”
The state’s attorney argued the “The four recent executions are definite proof the execution protocol in Oklahoma works.”
Ultimately, it’ll be up to Friot to decide whose side the science is on. He told attorneys Monday; he took 103 pages of handwritten notes over the past 6 days of testimony.
While Friot has denied a handful of motions to stop recent executions from moving forward, he said in court Monday. “I could not look myself in the mirror as a U.S. District Judge if I had sat down a week ago with anything other than an open mind.”
There are no executions currently scheduled in Oklahoma, however, it is expected Attorney General John O’Connor will request more execution dates immediately, should the case go the state’s way.
There are currently 42 inmates on Oklahoma's death row and countless victims and families awaiting this verdict. It’s expected it will be at least a month before the ruling is handed down | 2022-03-08T09:29:35Z | www.news9.com | Federal Execution Protocol Trial Now In The Hands Of Judge News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/6226b2d72b2d780193bcf345/federal-execution-protocol-trial-now-in-the-hands-of-judge | https://www.news9.com/story/6226b2d72b2d780193bcf345/federal-execution-protocol-trial-now-in-the-hands-of-judge |
Energy giant Shell just announced this morning they are no longer going to purchase oil from Russia and other companies may soon follow suite.
Average gas prices here in Oklahoma have shot up around 40 cents in just the last week.
According to Oklahoma City University professor Dr. Steve Agee, the US only gets a small portion of oil from Russia, but other countries get a lot more.
According to World Oil, a majority of the U.S.'s imports from Russia are not crude oil itself but oil products.
If Russian oil gets cut off, he says there will be less oil to go around, and prices will go up even more.
There is talk about how Oklahoma and other states could play a role in producing more oil right here at home.
Gov. Kevin Stitt says Oklahoma can help pump up the oil supply in the US.
He wrote a letter to the President about it, but to do that is a bit complicated.
First, it is a very high capital investment.
The wells are millions of dollars and market instability is another cause for caution.
"Let's suppose this war ends in a month, or six weeks or whatever, then suddenly price will stabilize because there is more stability. Then as those prices come down, those oil producers might be out there drilling a bunch of wells and they might think, well you know, this worked at $120 oil but it's not going to work at $80 oil," says Agee.
Analysts estimate the surge in gas prices could cost the average family an extra $2,000 this year. | 2022-03-08T16:51:36Z | www.news9.com | Oklahoma Gas Prices Continue To Climb Following Russian Invasion News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/62275518bc08b17fc7c79703/oklahoma-gas-prices-continue-to-climb-following-russian-invasion | https://www.news9.com/story/62275518bc08b17fc7c79703/oklahoma-gas-prices-continue-to-climb-following-russian-invasion |
Federal, state and local law enforcement agencies are holding a recruitment event Tuesday to bring in more female officers.
The FBI is made up of about 80% males and only 20% females.
If you are a woman interested in law enforcement, they need you and your perspective.
For example, working with kids who may be victims of violent crimes, and they also can be a good fit for working with female informants and so much more.
Overall, the FBI is looking to diversify.
FBI Assistant Special Agent in Charge, Rebecca Day, says that she loves her job and wants other women to have access to her experience.
"Even though this is a male dominated field... Law enforcement has aa strong sense of family and comradery and I have to say, just as a woman, I have never felt excluded or passed over for a promotion because I am a woman. I love this job; I would join the FBI all over again," says Day.
On Tuesday, a massive virtual career fair could be your ticket into law enforcement.
FBI’s Oklahoma City Field Office is hosting a virtual recruitment event for women in conjunction with the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics, Oklahoma City Police Department, Oklahoma Highway Patrol, Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation and the Tulsa Police Department.
The virtual recruiting event begins at 6 p.m. on Microsoft Teams and will conclude at 8 p.m.
Potential applicants can register for the event by clicking here.
Applicants interested in the FBI can click here to learn more about the special agent position. | 2022-03-08T23:03:24Z | www.news9.com | Oklahoma FBI Office Holds Virtual Law Enforcement Recruitment Event For Women News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/622779f0cba29a051ad5db8e/oklahoma-fbi-office-holds-virtual-law-enforcement-recruitment-event-for-women | https://www.news9.com/story/622779f0cba29a051ad5db8e/oklahoma-fbi-office-holds-virtual-law-enforcement-recruitment-event-for-women |
Leaders at Le Monde Charter School in Norman say they're concerned about plans to move the city's warming shelter close by.
The Norman city manager says he has been working to find a building to move the city's warming shelter to and believes the best place would be a vacant building owned by the state.
"Children come here to learn Spanish or French. With English as their second language in school," said Kendra Wesson, a Le Monde International School board member.
Le Monde International school has nearly 400 students, and they are celebrating their fourth year of being open.
After a meeting with the Norman city council, the school is concerned about how close this warming shelter would be to its students.
"The last thing we want is for parents to start withdrawing from this school and our school to fail because we have no control over the location or what is being put here," said Wesson.
This warming shelter is a low barrier, so there's not much screening for people who come in and it would be open from 7 p.m. until 7 a.m.
"With the $4,000 we would save on this building, we would suggest hiring a new security officer," said Norman City Manager Darrel Pyle.
"A low barrier shelter wouldn't be checking the sex offender status. We have sex offenders walking around with children ages 4-14," said Wesson.
Even though they want to add additional security, school leaders say they're still concerned.
For Ward 4 councilor Lee Hall, she says she needs more information about why before making her final decision.
"They have expressed no concern about the expansion of Food and Shelter, and they have expressed no concern about the housing village that already lives there. I want to make sure I get the context of where the concern is now," said Norman Councilperson Lee Hall.
"As a society, I think we need to put our children first. The ones who do not have a voice," said Wesson.
The city manager says this will not be a permanent solution.
News 9 reached out to the city for further comment on this potential move but have yet to hear back. | 2022-03-08T23:03:43Z | www.news9.com | Norman Charter School Raises Concern Over Nearby Warming Shelter Plan News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/622782674c80c00723bf03a8/norman-charter-school-raises-concern-over-nearby-warming-shelter-plan | https://www.news9.com/story/622782674c80c00723bf03a8/norman-charter-school-raises-concern-over-nearby-warming-shelter-plan |
Ukranian Refugees Receive Flowers For International Women's Day
Tuesday is International Women's Day, and it was not forgotten as Ukrainian refugees arrived in Poland to find shelter from Russian attacks.
A monk was seen handing out flowers to women and girls at a train station.
One of the refugees said she was thankful that Poland was taking care of them.
More than 2 million people have left Ukraine, marking this as the fastest exodus Europe has seen since World War II. | 2022-03-09T12:16:22Z | www.news9.com | Ukrainian Refugees Receive Flowers For International Women's Day News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/6227a4953dee37752c728946/ukrainian-refugees-receive-flowers-for-international-womens-day | https://www.news9.com/story/6227a4953dee37752c728946/ukrainian-refugees-receive-flowers-for-international-womens-day |
When Edmond fifth grader, Ford Wilde, heard about the Russia-Ukraine conflict, he was heartbroken.
He wanted to do something that would show his support for those in the war zone.
Before long, his entire neighborhood would be involved.
"He wanted to get this huge Ukraine flag," Ford's mother Kathryn Wilde said. "But, I said we didn't have a place for it, so we thought of something else."
Together, they decided to decorate their neighborhood with blue and yellow ribbons, the colors of the Ukranian flag.
"We came up with getting these blue and yellow tablecloths and cutting them and turning them into ribbons," Ford said. "We put them on our house and thought, why not everybody?"
He wrote letters to his neighbors, saying, "If I were an 11-year-old boy living in Ukraine, I would be terrified."
He wrote to the Homeowners' Assocation asking for permission to cover the neighborhood with these ribbons.
Not only did he ask residents to consider using them, but he also even volunteered to tie them on every single home.
His neighbors and teachers were completely moved.
"He is an empathetic young man and I think we need more empathy in today's world," Craig Boyer, a neighbor, said. "I'm proud to know him."
Ford's teacher Hillary Love, who home schools him through EPIC Charter Schools, says he went above and beyond.
"A lot of youth is given a hard time and we are so critical of everybody, but there is good coming," Hillary Love said. "Change is coming." | 2022-03-09T12:16:40Z | www.news9.com | Edmond Fifth Grader Shows Support For Ukraine News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/6227ab9270350a072935e209/edmond-fifth-grader-shows-support-for-ukraine- | https://www.news9.com/story/6227ab9270350a072935e209/edmond-fifth-grader-shows-support-for-ukraine- |
A brazen break-in has a Northwest OKC couple stunned and fearing for their safety. One victim told News 9 her biggest fear became her reality.
Days later she still struggles to fall asleep out of fear it will happen again. One of the victims, who did not want to be identified, said she was asleep in the bedroom when her boyfriend opened the door.
“They tried to bust in, and they did and because he was wearing socks on tile they didn’t have enough, and they were able to just come in and push in and everything got started. Him and a guy in a mask got into it and that is when the table flipped over and that is when I woke up,” she said.
Two suspects forced their way inside the apartment claiming they were maintenance.
“That’s my biggest fear someone saying ‘maintenance!’ and then something like that happening. They had duct tape, a taser that looked like a flashlight and a clipboard to make it look official,” she said.
Her boyfriend tried to fight the suspects off so she wouldn’t get hurt.
“He was holding a gun and pointing it at me and then it all clicked together I was like ‘okay something terrible is happening right now’,” she said.
One of the suspects barged into their bedroom asking her where the money was.
“I said, ‘I don’t know what you’re talking about, I don’t know’ and then his friend was calling for him, so he ran off,” said the victim.
The boyfriend offered them the money in his wallet before the suspects left, taking his car keys and phone.
“They fled on foot they got into a white pick-up truck with a camper shell and left the apartment area,” said Dillon Quirk, with the Oklahoma City Police Department.
“My boyfriend has a license to carry and everything like that but that was the first time he wasn’t prepared. The one time you aren’t prepared of course it happens,” she said.
Anyone with information about the suspects should call Crimestoppers, that number is 405-235-7300. | 2022-03-09T12:17:30Z | www.news9.com | OCPD Searching For Suspects After Posing As Maintenance Workers, Robbing Victims At Gunpoint News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/6227e03570350a07293c4cd9/ocpd-searching-for-suspects-after-posing-as-maintenance-workers-robbing-victims-at-gunpoint- | https://www.news9.com/story/6227e03570350a07293c4cd9/ocpd-searching-for-suspects-after-posing-as-maintenance-workers-robbing-victims-at-gunpoint- |
Rural communities could soon see repairs to roads damaged by the oil and gas industry following a bill with bi-partisan support making it’s way through the state capitol.
“For some of the smaller communities, it’s kind of a love-hate relationship,” Rep. Brad Boles, R Marlow, said.
“We are pro oil and gas in Oklahoma,” Mike Fina with the Oklahoma Municipal League said. “We’re not upset with the companies. It’s just when that large of equipment, heavy equipment, comes over municipal roads it’s going to damage them.”
The Oklahoma House of Representatives unanimously passed a bill to put communities of less than 15 thousand population in the drivers’ seat when it comes to road repairs , setting aside $5 million for damages caused by the oil and gas industry.
“They would have to apply for this grant program and ODOT would be managing the program, but the community to also have to be willing to put 25% of matching funds,” Boles said.
The Oklahoma Municipal league said the collaboration between communities, the energy industry and state couldn't come at a better time.
“The situation with Ukraine and Russia it’s actually going to increase production here locally because when the price of barrel of oil gets over $100 you see a lot more activity,” Fina said.
Boles said the energy industry’s gross production taxes are paid to the state, counties, and schools -- but not cities. He said this pot of money from the state's general revenue fund would add them to the mix.
“This industry gives over $1 billion to our state budget, so giving $5 million back to this program to help some of the smaller communities, I think is a definitely reasonable approach,” Boles said.
The bill will now head across the building, eligible to be heard in a senate committee. | 2022-03-09T12:18:01Z | www.news9.com | Bill Repairing Rural Roads Damaged By Energy Industry Garners Unanimous House Support News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/6227f2fe2672ed072f2abba1/bill-repairing-rural-roads-damaged-by-energy-industry-garners-unanimous-house-support | https://www.news9.com/story/6227f2fe2672ed072f2abba1/bill-repairing-rural-roads-damaged-by-energy-industry-garners-unanimous-house-support |
A hearing for an Edmond man accused of killing his parents took place Tuesday morning.
Elijah Walker is found competent to stand trial, but family and friends tell News 9 he's mentally ill and needs to be treated at a facility, rather than stay in prison.
"Wondering what's going to happen to Eli?" said Ashten West, Walker's sister. "We all know what my parents would want for him. They knew he was mentally ill; I know he was mentally ill."
It's been a little over three years since Michael and Rachael Walker were shot to death inside their Edmond home. Their son, Elijah Walker, who was 19 at the time is charged with killing them.
Walker's sister first heard the news when an officer arrived at her door.
"The first thing I said was oh my God, was it Eli?" said West. "He said, 'yes ma'am one of your brothers has been detained' and turned around and saw my brother's face on the TV and I just started crying."
Walker's younger brother reported hearing gunshots inside the house and called 911. West knew her brother suffered from mental health problems before, and it always worried her.
"He didn't randomly lose his mind one night, he had been losing his mind for years and he was medicated for about a year and then he turned 18, 'I don't have to take my medicine anymore' type of thought process," said West.
In previous testimony, his younger brother said Walker confessed to killing their parents because they were sending him telepathic messages and worshiping Satan.
News 9 spoke to Walker's attorney after the hearing, who says his client was previously declared incompetent to stand trial. However, after medication and treatment, it was determined he now could. Something his family disagrees with.
"Where's the argument?" said West. "It's like putting the family through turmoil, everyone's healing process has not been there."
For now, Walker's trial is set for December 5th. | 2022-03-09T12:18:07Z | www.news9.com | Edmond Man Accused Of Killing Parents Has Trial Set For December News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/6227f45990f46b2c90a4a37f/edmond-man-accused-of-killing-parents-has-trial-set-for-december | https://www.news9.com/story/6227f45990f46b2c90a4a37f/edmond-man-accused-of-killing-parents-has-trial-set-for-december |
Kids with down syndrome are just like any other kid, they all want to be accepted, respected and included.
“Give them the opportunity to try something because you just never know what they are capable of doing,” said Cindy Gould, Trafford Gould’s mother.
Like most kids with down syndrome, 18-year-old Trafford is up to almost any challenge.
“He’s just an amazing individual, he comes to our microwave cooking classes we do on Friday nights,” said Sarah Soell, executive director with DASCO, Down Syndrome Association of Central Oklahoma.
“He’s just funny, he’s artistic, he likes to draw, he loves animals, he loves to go to the zoo,” said Cindy Gould.
Trafford recently started working out, and really likes it.
“He actually has really gotten into it and will keep us in check, and say like, it’s time to work out, right now,” said Tamra Gould, Trafford’s sister.
He even has a job at Not Your Average Joe coffee shop, and his latest challenge came as a runway model, but for Trafford it was just business as usual.
“He is pretty laid back, so he doesn’t get riled up about much of anything and he likes to do the modeling,” said Cindy Gould.
Trafford and the other models got the gold star treatment as they prepared for the big night. Trafford warmed up with some Michael Jackson Thriller moves.
“He loves Michael Jackson, all things Michael Jackson,” said Tamra Gould.
All the models took full advantage of their time on the stage but there’s one more thing that has the interest this 18-year-old young man.
“The lovely ladies, he does love lovely ladies, he as a few crushes and they are actually here tonight,” said Tamra Gould.
Those actions have also been noticed by Soell.
“Trafford loves the ladies,” said Soell
Trafford is enjoying life and making the most of every minute, just like every other kid with down syndrome.
“They still are capable and can do lots of different things, the just have to be given a chance,” said Cindy Gould.
It’s a big month for DASCO, they will host a kite party at Stars and Stripes Park, on March 20th from 2 to 4, everyone is invited to come out and fly a kite and meet the down syndrome families. March 21st is World Down Syndrome Day; everyone is encouraged to wear crazy socks on that day. | 2022-03-09T12:18:13Z | www.news9.com | Kids With Down Syndrome Show Off Skills At DASCO Fashion Show News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/6227f68f7293ce072e0c625f/kids-with-down-syndrome-show-off-skills-at-dasco-fashion-show- | https://www.news9.com/story/6227f68f7293ce072e0c625f/kids-with-down-syndrome-show-off-skills-at-dasco-fashion-show- |
Attorney Files To Block State Election Board From Accepting Candidate Filings For Senate Seat
An Oklahoma attorney filed a legal challenge against the Oklahoma State Election Board on Monday, asking for the special election to finish Sen. Jim Inhofe’s term to be stopped.
Enid attorney Stephen Jones claims Inhofe’s plan to resign in January violates the 17th amendment of the U.S. Constitution, so a special election is unlawful.
He said a true vacancy in the office is required for such an election.
Last month, Inhofe announced his plan to step down four years before the end of his term ends in 2027.
Inhofe called his resignation “irrevocable” in a letter to the Oklahoma Secretary of State. The terminology is in accordance with a state law passed last year that allows for a special election instead of a gubernatorial appointment in the event of a U.S. Senate resignation.
Jones said Inhofe could reverse his plan to resign, despite the language in the letter.
“There’s no binding irrevocable letter of resignation. You can resign at any time, or you can withdraw your resignation,” Jones said. He added that if his lawsuit is successful, Inhofe would be able to retire immediately, prompting Gov. Kevin Stitt to appoint a temporary replacement. If Inhofe were to keep his plan to step down in January, a special election would be possible in 2024, Jones said.
Stitt’s office did not comment on the legal filing, and neither did the Oklahoma State Election Board.
Oklahoma has been through a similar selection process for a U.S. Senator in the last decade.
In 2014, then-Gov. Mary Fallin called for a special election to replace Sen. Tom Coburn after he announced plans to retire. Jones said Inhofe’s case is different.
“I was not in a position to challenge that then, and I think Sen. Coburn was a special case because he was seriously ill,” Jones said. “We’ve done it one time and it went unchallenged. To do it two times would make it a habit.”
The Oklahoma Supreme Court scheduled oral arguments in the case for March 23 at 1:30 p.m.
The Oklahoma State Election Board must respond to Jones’ filing by March 18, according to court records. | 2022-03-09T18:55:36Z | www.news9.com | Attorney Asks Oklahoma Supreme Court to Cancel Election To Replace Inhofe News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/62283247e70be8073173a8b9/attorney-asks-oklahoma-supreme-court-to-cancel-election-to-replace-inhofe- | https://www.news9.com/story/62283247e70be8073173a8b9/attorney-asks-oklahoma-supreme-court-to-cancel-election-to-replace-inhofe- |
Firefighters were called to the scene of a house fire near northwest 37th Street and Barnes Avenue on Wednesday morning.
According to officials, the house was vacant and the fire was likely started by transients who may have been looking to stay warm.
Officials say there were no injuries and no one was at the house when firefighters arrived.
Crews say they have responded to fires at the home multiple times and say it is a total loss. | 2022-03-09T18:55:54Z | www.news9.com | Firefighters Battle Early Morning Fire In NW OKC News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/622873b3131990072da12dcc/firefighters-battle-early-morning-fire-in-nw-okc | https://www.news9.com/story/622873b3131990072da12dcc/firefighters-battle-early-morning-fire-in-nw-okc |
Oklahoma City Firefighters responded to a house fire near southeast 59th and Bryant on Wednesday morning.
Crews say a garage, that had been converted to a room, in the front of the house, was in flames when they arrived on scene.
According to officials, three adults and three children were inside of the home at the time the blaze broke out.
A young girl told firefighters that she was sleeping in the room where the fire started when she woke up because she was having a hard time breathing due to the smoke. The little girl then woke up everyone in the house and they were able to escape, according to crews.
Firefighters say the girl told them that the home did not have smoke detectors.
According to officials, a cat inside the home did not survive.
Crews say all 6 people inside were displaced by the blaze. | 2022-03-09T18:56:19Z | www.news9.com | 6 People Displaced After House Fire In SE OKC News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/62288b1dcab8b6019f3d777b/6-people-displaced-after-house-fire-in-se-okc | https://www.news9.com/story/62288b1dcab8b6019f3d777b/6-people-displaced-after-house-fire-in-se-okc |
Across the metro Tuesday morning, some drivers will pay north of $4 a gallon if they want it without ethanol.
According to Gas Buddy, the average prices in OKC and other metro cities are sitting right now at around $3.78 per gallon.
Oklahoma's congressional delegation says the Russian oil ban needs to be followed by an increase in American energy production and they blame the president for cutting it off earlier in his term.
President Biden is pushing back on that claim.
"Even amid the pandemic, companies in the United States pumped more oil during my first year in office than they did in my predecessor's first year," said the president. "In the United States, 90 percent of onshore oil production takes place on land that isn't owned by the federal government. And of the remaining 10% that occurs on federal land, the oil and gas industry has millions of acres leased. They have 9000 permits to drill now. They could be drilling right now."
In a recent letter to the President, Gov. Kevin Stitt said the state is ready to meet an increased demand for oil and gas.
Smaller oil and gas companies in the state say while banning Russian oil is the right decision, they also believe it only highlights the need for more energy independence.
While people in the metro are paying higher prices at the pump, it doesn't compare to other cities like Los Angeles, where they are paying almost $2 more than Oklahomans. | 2022-03-10T08:53:37Z | www.news9.com | Metro Gas Prices Continue To Soar Amidst Conflict In Ukraine News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/6228b58ff21907071eefc22b/metro-gas-prices-continue-to-soar-amidst-conflict-in-ukraine | https://www.news9.com/story/6228b58ff21907071eefc22b/metro-gas-prices-continue-to-soar-amidst-conflict-in-ukraine |
The Oklahoma City Fire Department is responding to a house fire Wednesday morning.
The fire is located east of Interstate 44 near Northwest 10th Street.
Fire officials said a passerby on Interstate 44 noticed the blaze and called authorities.
They said the home was under construction. No one was inside the home at the time of the fire.
OKCFD said the cause of the fire is under investigation. | 2022-03-10T08:53:47Z | www.news9.com | Oklahoma City Firefighters Respond To House Fire News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/6228ccde913ec60725097132/oklahoma-city-firefighters-respond-to-house-fire | https://www.news9.com/story/6228ccde913ec60725097132/oklahoma-city-firefighters-respond-to-house-fire |
A Texas man accused of allegedly bringing a semiautomatic pistol to the January 6 attack on the Capitol, interfering with police, and then telling his children that "traitors get shot" when they wanted to turn him into authorities, was found guilty Tuesday on all charges. The jury took less than four hours to deliberate in the first January 6 case to go to trial.
As the verdict was read, a Reffitt family member who sat through most of the trial with his wife wiped her eyes repeatedly alone in a back bench. Reffitt's wife, Nicole, joined her in the back row of the court after the verdict, and held eye contact for a long spell with the defendant.
Steven M. D'Antuono, the assistant director in charge of the FBI's Washington field office, said in a statement Tuesday that the verdict "should serve as a reminder for others who committed crimes at the Capitol that day that these are serious charges and that the FBI and our law enforcement partners will do what it takes to hold them accountable."
Emotions ran high in the courtroom when Jackson described the threat his dad had made against him and his sister, Peyton, when they told him they had to turn him in to authorities. "If you turn me in you're a traitor, and traitors get shot," Jackson recalled his father saying. He said he was "pretty sure" his father had uttered those exact words.
William Welch, Guy Reffitt's attorney, called no witnesses, and Reffitt did not testify in his own defense. U.S. District Judge Dabney Friedrich cautioned the jury, "You must not assume the defendant is guilty because he chose not to testify."
In his closing statement, Welch rebutted all but one of the government's claims, saying, "Guy Reffitt did not go into the Capitol. He did not break anything. He was not armed. He did not threaten harm." Welch told the jury the government had only proven a misdemeanor charge that Reffitt was illegally on Capitol grounds, but "nothing more."
"Guy does brag a lot. He embellishes," Welch said of his client, telling the jury that Reffitt's descriptions of what he did on January 6 should not be viewed as fact, but hyperbole. | 2022-03-10T08:54:22Z | www.news9.com | Guy Reffitt, First January 6 Defendant To Stand Trial, Found Guilty On All Charges News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/6228f68a51227c070f680c50/guy-reffitt-first-january-6-defendant-to-stand-trial-found-guilty-on-all-charges | https://www.news9.com/story/6228f68a51227c070f680c50/guy-reffitt-first-january-6-defendant-to-stand-trial-found-guilty-on-all-charges |
A fourth candidate is expected to enter the race for a soon-to-be open U.S. Senate seat.
T.W. Shannon, who served as the first Black speaker in the Oklahoma House of Representatives, will announce his candidacy, a source told News 9 and News On 6 Wednesday. The Senate seat will be open when Jim Inhofe retires from his position early next year.
In addition to his duties as house speaker, Shannon represented Oklahoma’s 62nd district from 2007-2015. After leaving public office, he became Chickasaw Community Bank’s chief executive officer.
This isn’t Shannon’s first foray into running for the U.S. Senate. He ran for Tom Coburn’s open seat back in 2014. Shannon lost in that Republican primary to current Senator James Lankford.
Shannon joins a growing pool of candidates that includes U.S. Representative Markwayne Mullin, State Senator Nathan Dahm and the Inhofe-endorsed Luke Holland.
Holland is Inhofe’s chief of staff. | 2022-03-10T08:56:13Z | www.news9.com | Former Oklahoma House Speaker TW Shannon Expected To Announce US Senate Run News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/6229351df940487ec9e8cc42/former-oklahoma-house-speaker-tw-shannon-expected-to-announce-us-senate-run | https://www.news9.com/story/6229351df940487ec9e8cc42/former-oklahoma-house-speaker-tw-shannon-expected-to-announce-us-senate-run |
In Ukraine, humanitarian ceasefires have collapsed amidst the war.
One Ukrainian couple here in Oklahoma says their loved ones are trying to get out, but evacuating is extremely high risk.
Wednesday, another ceasefire was attempted, the couple tells me women and children were given priority.
"This is a human catastrophe happening now and it should be stopped as soon as possible," said Olena Nesin.
Olena and her husband Vasyl see the shells fall and bombs drop from here in Oklahoma.
"My grandparents' village, where I would spend summertime when I was a kid, was destroyed," said Vasyl.
"I’ve been seeing daily people from Bucha trying to get messages to the world to save them because they are dying," said Olena. "Some of them are just desperate and they try to leave on their own, but many people get shot dead on the way."
Her own brother is trapped on the outskirts of the capitol city Kyiv.
Olena says his supplies are dwindling. Her only way of connecting with her brother is through her dad, who is also in Ukraine.
"The mayor of the Bucha, they said it if you attempt on your own, you're at your own risk, so the chance of survival is very limited," said Olena.
So, she started a petition begging the Red Cross to help those trapped in Ukraine.
"Why we are appealing to the Red Cross is because evacuation with the Red Cross is considered safer than just volunteers," said Olena.
The International Committee of the Red Cross has posted on social media that they are trying in cities like Mariupol but cease fires haven't been holding. The ICRC says they are ramping up efforts to deliver aid.
Olena wants people to sign the petition and broadcast the urgent need.
"If I do it only for myself it's going to be a lost voice, so we need more and more people to see this and hear this," said Olena.
The couple and their church are gathering donations and supplies to send to Ukraine.
For more information follow the Sooner Hope Facebook page. | 2022-03-10T08:57:03Z | www.news9.com | Ukrainian Natives Living In Oklahoma Look To Help Family Still In The Country News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/62294b36f940487ec9eb9687/ukrainian-natives-living-in-oklahoma-look-to-help-family-still-in-the-country | https://www.news9.com/story/62294b36f940487ec9eb9687/ukrainian-natives-living-in-oklahoma-look-to-help-family-still-in-the-country |
Police are searching for a motorcycle driver who fired a shot at police during a chase in Pottawatomie County.
The incident started as a chase on I-40 in western Pottawatomie County.
At some point during the chase, the driver fired a shot at officers.
Units lost the motorcycle around I-40 and Air Depot Blvd.
Police are still searching for the suspect. It is unclear whether the shot hit the patrol car or not. | 2022-03-10T08:57:15Z | www.news9.com | Police Searching For Suspect Who Shot From Motorcycle At Troopers News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/62296ac45787f507241f6f40/police-searching-for-suspect-who-shot-from-motorcycle-at-troopers | https://www.news9.com/story/62296ac45787f507241f6f40/police-searching-for-suspect-who-shot-from-motorcycle-at-troopers |
Up To 6,000 Russians May Have Been Killed In Ukraine So far, US Official Estimates
Thousands of Ukrainian civilians and soldiers are also believed to have been killed over the past two weeks. The U.S. official said 2,000-4,000 Ukrainian troops have been killed. In the city of Mariupol — where an airstrike hit a maternity hospital on Wednesday — some 1,200 people have died over the course of Russia's nine-day siege of the city, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's office said, according to The Associated Press.
The AP reported that the city council said Thursday the attack killed three people, including a child, and wounded 17.
Russia on Thursday denied that it attacked the maternity hospital, calling the assertion "fake news," according to the Reuters news service. Russia's first deputy permanent representative to the United Nations, Dmitry Polyanskiy, tweeted that Moscow said Monday that the building had been taken over by Ukrainian troops, who were firing from it. "That's how fake news is born," Polyanskiy tweeted.
CBS News Between 5,000 and 6,000 Russian troops may have been killed in just the first two weeks of the invasion of Ukraine, a U.S. official estimated Wednesday. | 2022-03-10T15:55:43Z | www.news9.com | Up To 6,000 Russians May Have Been Killed In Ukraine So far, US Official Estimates News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/6229df7e57cc780723da09be/up-to-6000-russians-may-have-been-killed-in-ukraine-so-far-us-official-estimates | https://www.news9.com/story/6229df7e57cc780723da09be/up-to-6000-russians-may-have-been-killed-in-ukraine-so-far-us-official-estimates |
Norman residents angry over plans to expand Oklahoma's turnpike system through the city have a new ally.
Norman Mayor Breea Clark says turnpike officials should have talked to the community long before going public with the plan.
Adding if people knew what was coming 10 or 20 years ago, they might not have built or bought in the area.
But the turnpike authority says it is a long-range plan.
In total, the $5 billion Access Oklahoma project is expected to take 15 years.
The Oklahoma Turnpike Authority says it plans to find a way least impactful to homeowners, businesses and the environment.
The reason for the expansion is because the OTA expects this area of the metro to double in size over the next 30 years.
Still, the mayor says city leadership is united in its opposition and recognizes construction is far in the future.
“This is still several years out, which gives us hope that we will be successful in either changing or stopping this route for our community.” said Mayor Clark.
In the meantime, Clark encourages residents to hold off on selling, saying it could create a natural path for the project to move forward.
At this point, the proposed route is not finalized.
The mayor expects to bring a resolution opposing the project before the city council on March 22nd. | 2022-03-10T15:56:14Z | www.news9.com | Norman Mayor Responds To Turnpike Expansion Plans News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/6229f4b525c3cd072bd1673c/norman-mayor-responds-to-turnpike-expansion-plans | https://www.news9.com/story/6229f4b525c3cd072bd1673c/norman-mayor-responds-to-turnpike-expansion-plans |
List Of Candidates To Replace Senator Inhofe Grows, TW Shannon Expected To Announce Candidacy
Another well-known Oklahoman, T.W. Shannon, is joining the race for Jim Inhofe's U.S. senate seat.
Shannon is expected to make his announcement around 1 p.m. Thursday afternoon, making him the fourth in a growing list of candidates running to replace Senator Jim Inhofe.
Shannon was the first black speaker of the state House, he represented Oklahoma's 62nd congressional district from 2007 to 2015.
Most recently, he has worked as the CEO of Chickasaw Community Bank.
He also previously ran for Senate in 2014, but lost in the Republican Primary to current Senator James Lankford.
In the Senate race, Shannon now joins other Republicans including state Senator Nathan Dahm, US Congressman Markwayne Mullin and Luke Holland, who is Inhofe's former chief of staff.
Because Inhofe is resigning four years before the end of his term, this will be considered a special election.
However, just this week Enid attorney Stephen Jones filed a lawsuit against the state election board, claiming the election is unconstitutional because it doesn't meet true vacancy requirements.
The special election for Inhofe's seat will be held during the general election on November 8th.
The primary and the voter registration deadline are both in June. | 2022-03-10T15:56:32Z | www.news9.com | List Of Candidates To Replace Senator Inhofe Grows, TW Shannon Expected To Run News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/6229ff0c25c3cd072bd2a1b4/list-of-candidates-to-replace-senator-inhofe-grows-tw-shannon-expected-to-run | https://www.news9.com/story/6229ff0c25c3cd072bd2a1b4/list-of-candidates-to-replace-senator-inhofe-grows-tw-shannon-expected-to-run |
Narwhal Exhibit Arrives At Sam Noble Museum
You can now visit the Unicorn of the Sea at the Sam Noble Museum in Norman.
You can go see their newest Narwhal exhibit from now until June 19th for this traveling Smithsonian exhibit.
Also happening this weekend, visit the Narwhal Carnival.
Saturday from 10:30 a.m. until 5 p.m. you can be a part of the fun, free activities.
Hosty will be performing at 2 p.m. for an hour! Live music and even a narwhal carnival themed song will be played this weekend.
All these events will be offered in both English and Spanish. | 2022-03-11T06:39:17Z | www.news9.com | Traveling Smithsonian Narwhal Exhibit Arrives At Sam Noble Museum News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/622a19cdeb2e490725916a12/traveling-smithsonian-narwhal-exhibit-arrives-at-sam-noble-museum | https://www.news9.com/story/622a19cdeb2e490725916a12/traveling-smithsonian-narwhal-exhibit-arrives-at-sam-noble-museum |
A bill that would exempt military retirees from paying state income tax is heading to the house.
Senate Bill 401's author, Republican Adam Pugh of Edmond, said he wants veterans looking for a second career to fill in gaps in critical industries such as engineering and aviation.
Right now, retired servicemembers can deduct either 75 percent or $10,000 of their retirement income from state income tax. | 2022-03-11T06:39:35Z | www.news9.com | Bill Outlining Military Tax Exemption Moves To State House News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/622a2087eb2e490725923e57/bill-outlining-military-tax-exemption-moves-to-state-house- | https://www.news9.com/story/622a2087eb2e490725923e57/bill-outlining-military-tax-exemption-moves-to-state-house- |
Gas prices are heading toward $4 for a gallon of regular unleaded across Oklahoma City.
At Casey's, it will cost you $3.59 per gallon.
Costco and Sam's Club are priced about the same at $3.57.
The cheapest we could find was Stop N Shop near I-240 and Western at $3.50. | 2022-03-11T06:39:47Z | www.news9.com | A Look At Gas Prices Across The Oklahoma City Metro News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/622a242e5be8a4070d15f514/a-look-at-gas-prices-across-the-oklahoma-city-metro- | https://www.news9.com/story/622a242e5be8a4070d15f514/a-look-at-gas-prices-across-the-oklahoma-city-metro- |
The race for retiring Senator Jim Inhofe’s coveted seat is getting more crowded -- at least on the Republican side -- as former Speaker of the Oklahoma House T.W. Shannon formally launched his campaign Thursday afternoon at the First Americans Museum in Oklahoma City.
The 87-year-old Inhofe, first elected to the Senate in a special election in 1994 and recently re-elected to a fifth full term in 2020, announced two weeks ago he would not finish out his current term and instead call it quits at the conclusion of the current Congress on January 3, 2023.
The announcement, coming before March 1, set in motion another special election for the seat, with the primaries and general election taking place on dates already set for what is a normal election year in Oklahoma.
This week, however, Enid attorney Stephen Jones sought to keep the election from going forward, filing a lawsuit against the Oklahoma Election Board and arguing that the state's action violates the 17th Amendment.
Jones, who ran unsuccessfully for U.S. Senate in 1990, said there can't be a special election to fill a vacancy until the seat is officially vacant.
As the legal challenge plays out, the seat continues to attract serious and significant interest, especially from Republicans, in the decidedly red state. The last time a Democrat won a U.S. Senate election was, in fact, 1990, when David Boren beat Jones.
First to announce his candidacy — at the same news conference that Inhofe announced his retirement— was longtime Inhofe aide and Bartlesville native Luke Holland.
The 35-year-old Holland resigned as Inhofe’s chief of staff so that he could launch his candidacy. Inhofe gave Holland his endorsement.
Five-term Congressman Markwayne Mullin, whose 2nd District encompasses much of eastern Oklahoma, was also quick to throw his hat in the ring.
“I’ve never been one to chase a title,” Rep. Mullin in an interview last week. “I’ve never backed away from a fight in my life, but sometimes when you’re in a fight, you’ve got to reposition, too, [and] we felt like we were best served at this point in time and our service to the state to reposition ourselves in the Senate. We feel like that’s where we can best serve the state of Oklahoma, serve this country.”
Mullin said he’s “all in.” His House colleague Rep. Kevin Hern (R-OK1), also from eastern Oklahoma, has been frequently mentioned as a possible candidate but has yet to make a decision one way or the other.
“It’s been overwhelming the amount of people that have called us from across the state and asked us to consider running,” Hern said in an interview. “And I have to weigh that with what we’ve already accomplished so far in the House, being on [the House] Ways and Means [Committee]. My wife and I are praying about it every single day.”
Republican State Senator Nathan Dahm has also announced he's running for the seat, as is former Trump administration official Alex Gray.
Other members of the state's congressional delegation are saying “no thanks.”
"I was a freshman in high school, I was a freshman in college, I was a freshman state legislator, I was a freshman in Congress," said Rep. Frank Lucas (R-OK3), "I don’t wanna be a freshman again." | 2022-03-11T06:40:43Z | www.news9.com | Former Oklahoma House Speaker TW Shannon Announces Candidacy For Open Senate Seat News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/622a4771bd39b3072674af71/former-oklahoma-house-speaker-tw-shannon-announces-candidacy-for-open-senate-seat | https://www.news9.com/story/622a4771bd39b3072674af71/former-oklahoma-house-speaker-tw-shannon-announces-candidacy-for-open-senate-seat |
Associated Press Military investigations have found poor leadership, inadequate training and a “culture of complacency” among U.S. forces undermined efforts to fend off a 2020 attack by militants in Kenya that killed three Americans, U.S. officials familiar with the probes told The Associated Press ahead of the release of the findings, expected Thursday. | 2022-03-11T06:41:08Z | www.news9.com | Scathing Reports Find Military Failures In 2020 Kenya Attack News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/622a5d57bd39b30726779fe0/scathing-reports-find-military-failures-in-2020-kenya-attack | https://www.news9.com/story/622a5d57bd39b30726779fe0/scathing-reports-find-military-failures-in-2020-kenya-attack |
Doctors treating COVID-19 patients will now have additional support from the American Red Cross.
To help those with a weak immune system, the American Red Cross is once again testing all blood donations for COVID-19 antibodies.
“At this point in the pandemic what we see is another increase in cases. While that may be going down, we still see a lot of people hospitalized and there is still a need for convalescent plasma to help treat immunocompromised people who are fighting COVID,” said Matt Trotter, a Spokesperson for the American Red Cross in Oklahoma.
He said while many healthy people can fight the virus that is not the case with immunocompromised patients.
“Convalescent plasma is a blood product that we collect from people with high levels of COVID-19 antibodies. That plasma is being collected form patients who have recovered from a COVID-19 infection and their body has produced antibodies to help them fight it off,” said Trotter.
As more variants have emerged, the organization needs donors who have had more recent strains of the virus.
Trotter said this time around they are focusing on patients getting an organ transplant, chemotherapy, or any other immune compromising treatment.
“They just don’t have the ability to make those antibodies and so they need to get them from somewhere else,” he said.
People who want to donate blood can download the American Red Cross blood donor app or call any location to make an appointment.
“Right now, we can fill hospital requests in 2-4 days for convalescent plasma which we know hospitals would prefer to get it much sooner,” he said.
If you've had COVID-19 recently wait the full 14 days before making an appointment. Donors will get the results automatically through the online portal or app. | 2022-03-11T06:41:51Z | www.news9.com | American Red Cross Resumes Testing Blood Donations For COVID-19 Antibodies News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/622a8024ebbc5b071d599446/american-red-cross-resumes-testing-blood-donations-for-covid19-antibodies | https://www.news9.com/story/622a8024ebbc5b071d599446/american-red-cross-resumes-testing-blood-donations-for-covid19-antibodies |
The interim principal of Mount St. Mary Catholic High School announced last week the resignations of two staff members.
In a letter to parents and students, Diane Floyd said she accepted the resignations of Vice Principal Whitney Faires and Counselor Mallory Tecmire.
“We expect all school administrators, faculty, and staff at The Mount to follow the Safe Environment protocol and school policy to appropriately report suspected abuse or harassment of minors,” Floyd wrote in the message on March 3.
Last year, administrators began an internal investigation after 12 current and formers students wrote to the school saying it did not respond adequately after they reported incidents including sexual assault.
Related: Mount St. Mary’s Catholic High School Looks Into Sexual Assault Allegations
Floyd wrote in the letter last week that the interview investigation has concluded. Jessica Stiles, the director of communications for the school said in a statement that the school has formed the Voices for Human Dignity: A Mount St. Mary Task Force for Change.
The task force has met four times since it was formed in January, Stiles said, and is reviewing updated policies and procedures that resulted from the internal investigation.
“Since this is now a legal situation, there is only so much we can say,” Stiles said. “We are committed to strengthening our school and moving forward.
Meanwhile an Oklahoma City attorney is preparing to file a civil lawsuit against the school for allegedly failing to protect students and report sexual assaults.
Attorney Rachel Bussett said she is representing a group of about 15 current and former students and families.
“Instead of taking action, those individuals were told such things as ‘boys will be boys’ or that what they said happened didn’t happen,” Bussett said. “These young ladies were made to apologize to the people that they allege assaulted them.”
Bussett said she plans to file the lawsuit in the next month. | 2022-03-11T06:42:28Z | www.news9.com | Vice Principal, Counselor Resign From Mount St. Mary As School Concludes Independent Investigation News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/622a973e2725230728a006ed/vice-principal-counselor-resign-from-mount-st-mary-as-school-concludes-independent-investigation- | https://www.news9.com/story/622a973e2725230728a006ed/vice-principal-counselor-resign-from-mount-st-mary-as-school-concludes-independent-investigation- |
Even before the lawsuits were filed in March 2021, Watson had asked to be traded. The trade request and the lawsuits kept Watson out all last season. The Texans were expected to try and trade Watson this offseason.
Associated Press A grand jury on Friday declined to indict Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson following a police investigation sparked by lawsuits filed by 22 women who have accused him of harassment and sexual assault. | 2022-03-12T09:20:51Z | www.news9.com | No Indictment For Texans QB Watson Over Sex Assault Claims News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/622bc3805471bc0723cae840/no-indictment-for-texans-qb-watson-over-sex-assault-claims | https://www.news9.com/story/622bc3805471bc0723cae840/no-indictment-for-texans-qb-watson-over-sex-assault-claims |
It's been two years since a canceled Thunder game changed the landscape of sports.
The Utah Jazz were in Oklahoma City for a game when the league learned center Rudy Gobert testing positive for COVID-19.
The game was delayed before it was canceled.
The NBA later suspended the season, following other leagues, including the 2020 NCAA Tournament. | 2022-03-12T09:20:59Z | www.news9.com | Friday Marks 2 Years Since COVID Case At Thunder Game Began Sports Shutdown News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/622bc563e324e9072f29af92/friday-marks-2-years-since-covid-case-at-thunder-game-began-sports-shutdown | https://www.news9.com/story/622bc563e324e9072f29af92/friday-marks-2-years-since-covid-case-at-thunder-game-began-sports-shutdown |
Many people have dreams of buying a big house, or a nice car, but for Johnita Turner it was a big wagon.
Her fascination started years ago while on a trip to California
“That was a movie prop in California. It was just adorable,” said Turner.
So adorable she had to have it, but first she had to convince her husband that he wanted it as well. At the time, the couple owned a Bed and Breakfast and Johnita felt it would be the perfect addition.
“He was kind of giving in. Took him a while to give in, and we began to check and see what it was going to cost to move it from California to Oklahoma,” said Turner.
That cost to move the wagon was more than to cost of the wagon.
“He said no. We are not doing that. Put his foot down, right on top of mine, we are not doing that,” said Turner.
Sadly, she lost the love of her life to cancer after 45 years of marriage. She really had not thought about the wagon until one day at lunch with a friend.
“Kenton said Johnita I can do that,” said Turner.
“I’ve always liked a challenge and I’ve always liked creating new things and that one sounded amazing,” said Kenton Peters.
Kenton took on the challenge to build the wagon but soon realized the how big of a project he had committed to.
“It’s bigger that I thought for sure. I’ve learned so much there’s so many different aspects to it,” said Peters.
He works on the wagon in his front yard when he’s not working his full-time job. He anticipated the project would take only a few months.
“This was three years ago or maybe four, I can’t even remember it’s been so long,” said Turner.
Peters has put a lot of time into the detail of the wagon while Turner has already started buying decorations.
“We've bought lamps, and we’ve bought pillows for the bed,” said Turner.
Turner plans to proudly display the wagon on her property.
What does her family think about all of this?
“Not all my family knows I’m doing this, well they will now,” said Turner.
They both expect the wagon will be completed this summer. Turner is excited to have her 12 grandchildren and 10 greatgrandchildren enjoying the wagon. | 2022-03-12T09:22:02Z | www.news9.com | Oklahoma City Woman Gets Some Help To Build Her Dream Wagon News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/622be7f2ad3adf07300b390e/oklahoma-city-woman-gets-some-help-to-build-her-dream-wagon- | https://www.news9.com/story/622be7f2ad3adf07300b390e/oklahoma-city-woman-gets-some-help-to-build-her-dream-wagon- |
We're still about a week away from St. Patrick's Day but some leprechauns up to no good have already struck at a local elementary school.
The students in Mrs. Morgan's class rescued their teacher after a leprechaun came and tied her up in green ribbons.
Her students' parents say they'll remember this moment for years to come. | 2022-03-12T15:55:08Z | www.news9.com | Amazing Oklahomans: Mrs. Morgan News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/622c20bd84514c072a3e677f/amazing-oklahomans:-mrs-morgan | https://www.news9.com/story/622c20bd84514c072a3e677f/amazing-oklahomans:-mrs-morgan |
CHEROKEE, Oklahoma -
A woman in Cherokee says she's lucky to be alive, after she was kidnapped at gun point. She says the person behind the trigger was her former boss, Clinton Green.
Eden Penoyer said Saturday morning started off like any other until Green walked into her dispensary. After she realized he had a gun, her first thoughts were do anything necessary to get home to her kids.
Security footage shows Green enter the dispensary and ask Eden if she is alone. He then asked her repeatedly to go for a ride with him. When she said no, he got louder and told her to put the "Be back later" sign up and lock the doors.
"He wanted me. I don't know what he wanted to do with me exactly. Whatever it was it wasn't going to be good," Eden said.
Eden went with him but not before she grabbed her phone and her taser. She was able to send one text a friend for help before Green noticed and took the phone.
"We are driving, and I am scared for my life at this point. I ask him what is going on, you're scaring me, please stop let me out."
According to court documents, she said she tried to jump from Green's vehicle, but he pointed the gun at her.
"He had only planned on one person dying that day but if I didn't say anything other than 'okay' it would be two," said Eden.
After they arrived at Green's home, Eden told investigators Green began to undress and she was able to grab his phone.
"I was able to sneak calling 911 tucking it underneath my arm I keep repeating his name, why did you take me to your house at gunpoint," she explained.
She told police, they then got into a struggle, and dropped the phone. She said he then lunged at her, but she tased him and ran away.
"I was told by my mom that if you're ever running from a gun point situation you never run in a straight line. All I could remember is zigzag, zigzag, zigzag, zigzag." Eden continued, “I don't even remember my feet hitting the ground."
She then waited for her friend who picked her up.
"She told me she had never heard someone screaming like that before. I instantly hit the floorboards." Eden added, "she is more than a friend. She is a soulmate."
Green is charged with kidnapping, sexual battery, and gun crimes. | 2022-03-12T15:55:14Z | www.news9.com | Woman In Cherokee Escapes Kidnapper With Help Of Friend & A Taser News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/622c20e0c61104072682e093/woman-in-cherokee-escapes-kidnapper-with-help-of-friend--a-taser | https://www.news9.com/story/622c20e0c61104072682e093/woman-in-cherokee-escapes-kidnapper-with-help-of-friend--a-taser |
Oklahoma City Police said a man is behind bars after a long standoff with officers. It happened after the suspect allegedly broke into a gas station.
Police tell News 9 it started when the businesses alarms went off around 5 a.m. Saturday morning. Officers quickly got to the scene.
"They did observe at least one subject rummaging around in the building," said Sgt. Amanda Heppler, with Oklahoma City Police.
Officers tried calling the suspect out but after several hours without an answer, they called a tac team to the scene.
"After a certain point, they decided to deploy tear gas and have the subject respond that way, which the subject did," Heppler said.
The man was arrested at the scene and is expected to be booked into the Oklahoma County Detention Center. No one else was found inside the building with him and police are still investigating how exactly he got inside.
Investigators say they're glad no one was hurt.
"We're always trying to take things as slowly as we can, without escalating it unnecessarily," said Heppler. "De-escalation tactics are obviously a huge part of that, just trying to avoid injury or any type of incident."
The suspect has not been identified by police yet. It's not clear what he was trying to steal, but officers don't believe anyone else was involved in this incident.
Investigators expect to have more on this case Monday morning. They say if you have any other information, you're asked to call crime stoppers at 405-235-7300. | 2022-03-13T05:48:19Z | www.news9.com | OCPD Ends Standoff With Burglary Suspect In Custody News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/622cdfc57516320727eaeaa3/ocpd-ends-standoff-with-burglary-suspect-in-custody | https://www.news9.com/story/622cdfc57516320727eaeaa3/ocpd-ends-standoff-with-burglary-suspect-in-custody |
Millwood is no stranger to winning state titles in basketball and the Cinderella of the 2022 state tournament, Community Christian, was not going down without a fight.
Searching for the schools' first state title in 9 years, Millwood had the ball with only seconds to spare when freshman Chance Davis got the ball in the corner and put up a 3-pointer that secured the 16th title for the Millwood boys basketball program. | 2022-03-13T12:48:57Z | www.news9.com | Freshman Hits Game Winner, Millwood Wins State Title 53-50 News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/622d7cee88fd7307250f1f64/freshman-hits-game-winner-millwood-wins-state-title-5350- | https://www.news9.com/story/622d7cee88fd7307250f1f64/freshman-hits-game-winner-millwood-wins-state-title-5350- |
Troopers say one man died in a Payne County crash on Saturday.
The OHP said it happened near Highway 33 around 9:30 p.m.
Troopers say the driver swerved off a roadway, which caused him to overcorrect and hit a tree.
Troopers said the impact was enough to cause the truck to catch on fire.
Firefighters pronounced the driver dead on the scene and they have not released his name yet.
They are still investigating the cause of the crash. | 2022-03-14T10:48:32Z | www.news9.com | OHP: 1 Man Dead In Payne County Crash News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/622ea873ccfc94072a6516f1/ohp:-1-man-dead-in-payne-county-crash | https://www.news9.com/story/622ea873ccfc94072a6516f1/ohp:-1-man-dead-in-payne-county-crash |
By: John Holcomb
The late-season run for the Sooners men's basketball team got them close to the NCAA Tournament, but not close enough.
The Sooners found themselves as one of the "First Four Out" once the bracket was released on Selection Sunday.
They were so close to qualifying that, if Umoja Gibson's drive at the end of Friday's Big 12 semifinal against Texas Tech went through the hoop, they'd be in. But, the Red Raider defense stuffed Gibson and he couldn't get the shot up. Now the Sooners will shift their focus to the National Invitational Tournament (NIT) where they'll host Missouri State as the 1. seed.
The day and time for tip-off have not yet been revealed. | 2022-03-14T10:48:39Z | www.news9.com | Sooners Narrowly Miss NCAA Tournament, Land As No. 1 Seed In NIT News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/622eadfd5c4428072d052fab/sooners-narrowly-miss-ncaa-tournament-land-as-no-1-seed-in-nit | https://www.news9.com/story/622eadfd5c4428072d052fab/sooners-narrowly-miss-ncaa-tournament-land-as-no-1-seed-in-nit |
A local Native American Owned Aerospace company is making an impact all over the globe.
Delaware Resource Group (DRG) is a local family-owned business that has 130 locations in 12 countries that provide training and logistics services for military programs.
Owner Phil Busey said he is working to show the world what Oklahoma has to offer. And he is also building relationships with tribes to continue to develop our local economy.
"We're competing on a global stage. We need the tribal economic engines to supplement the Oklahoma economy so we can offer a wider range of opportunities for students from rural Oklahoma who are Native American in the metropolitan area and for Oklahoma and our image," Delaware Resource Group founder and CEO Phil Busey said.
Last summer, DRG offered an internship program in partnership with Native American tribes.
"We had students from across the United States that were here for four days. We introduced them to Oklahoma City, we introduced them to other businesses in Oklahoma City," said Busey
Their goal is also to develop more talent right here in Oklahoma.
"Aerospace is now the 2nd largest industry in Oklahoma, it's the fastest growing industry in Oklahoma, we see it as a benchmark industry for the next decades," said Busey
To do that, Busey says they need even more partnerships between, tribes, businesses, and universities. Right now, his company has a strong relationship with the Cherokee Nation.
"We see the tribes as the foundation of talent development in rural Oklahoma because they cover so many different public institutions, I think there are 170 public schools in the Cherokee areas that are putting money into training teachers and robotics," said Busey.
Busey says aerospace companies are starting more conversations about how to get students interested in aerospace.
DRG plans to hold another aerospace internship program for Native American students this summer and they want to expand it to reach more tribes.
To learn more about Delaware Resource Group visit, https://drgok.com/ | 2022-03-14T10:48:57Z | www.news9.com | Native-Owned Aerospace Group Shows The World What Oklahoma Has To Offer News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/622ebdbdccfc94072a67a1b7/nativeowned-aerospace-group-shows-the-world-what-oklahoma-has-to-offer | https://www.news9.com/story/622ebdbdccfc94072a67a1b7/nativeowned-aerospace-group-shows-the-world-what-oklahoma-has-to-offer |
OCPD Responds To Crash In NE OKC
(3/14/2022 - Editor's Note: The Oklahoma City Police tell News 9 the person in this vehicle has not died. We reported Friday, based on information from police, that the person in the vehicle had died.)
Oklahoma City police said it is investigating an crash on the city's northeast side.
Kelley Avenue was closed at the intersection at the time of the incident.
News 9 Oklahoma City police said it is investigating a crash on the city's northeast side. | 2022-03-15T06:02:47Z | www.news9.com | OCPD Responds To Crash In NE OKC News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/622bdab15471bc0723cd28dd/ocpd-responds-to-crash-in-ne-okc | https://www.news9.com/story/622bdab15471bc0723cd28dd/ocpd-responds-to-crash-in-ne-okc |
New Oklahoma Minor League Basketball Team Prepares For First Year
One of Oklahoma's newest professional basketball teams, Potawatomi Fire, are giving the community some good entertainment along with allowing players to work their way into bigger opportunities.
"Great basketball, great family fun entertainment," said Head Coach of Potawatomi Fire Derrick Rowland.
Derrick Rowland has been playing and coaching for years now on the sidelines of this TBL minor League and all the expertise is benefiting Oklahoma.
"I've been recruiting for this team since October, traveling the country looking for players, and I had a good book of guys I knew in the past, and we just kept putting players together," said Rowland.
So, the league was put together of guys aged from 25 to 36, who all are getting the chance to get paid to play.
"This is a chance for me to keep it going. Age is just a number," said David Godbold, a player for Potawatomi Fire.
He has played professionally for 13 years and you might even remember him from his time at OU.
Godbold says hearing about this league starting up was a chance to continue.
"I've been gone for a while now and just getting to play in front of my family and keep the dream alive is everything," said Godbold.
He says he hopes to be a leader for the team, showing the younger guys how to handle this big chance to make their dreams a reality.
The team is focused this season on showing how well they can perform their first year.
"We're here to play basketball and win championships," said Rowland.
The team's next game is this Friday and they're based out of Shawnee.
For a full list of their schedule, click here. | 2022-03-15T06:03:18Z | www.news9.com | New Oklahoma Minor League Basketball Team Set For First Season News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/622f6cab5490cd072aa4d833/new-oklahoma-minor-league-basketball-team-set-for-first-season | https://www.news9.com/story/622f6cab5490cd072aa4d833/new-oklahoma-minor-league-basketball-team-set-for-first-season |
Now that the warmer weather seems to be here to stay, spring allergy season is upon us.
Cedar pollen peaks in the winter, tree pollen shows up in the spring and by the time we're almost done with that, grass pollen comes in the summer with ragweed peaks in the fall.
Because we don't have those very cold winters, Oklahoma is consistently rated as one of the worst places to live with allergies.
And unfortunately, allergies can cause all sorts of disruptions in your life, from trouble sleeping to decreased productivity.
Dr. Gregory Metz, with the Oklahoma Allergy and Asthma Clinic, has tips on how to make this allergy season more comfortable.
"The first thing is having an idea of what you're allergic to," he says, "Paying attention to the seasons, so if you know what's about to happen you can plan ahead. Particularly with some of the allergy medicines, getting on top of it before you're completely flared up works better than treating it after it's already here."
He says over-the-counter antihistamines and nasal washes can work well if you use them early.
And if your allergy very bad, you should limit your time outdoors.
If none of these tips work to alleviate your symptoms, he suggests seeing a board-certified allergist so they can pinpoint what's bothering you and how to help. | 2022-03-15T06:03:25Z | www.news9.com | Spring Allergies Season Is On The Way News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/622f6f025490cd072aa52395/spring-allergies-season-is-on-the-way | https://www.news9.com/story/622f6f025490cd072aa52395/spring-allergies-season-is-on-the-way |
Trump Endorses Stitt In Oklahoma Gubernatorial Race
Former President Donald Trump has endorsed incumbent Governor Kevin Stitt in this year's election.
Trump sent out an email to his base on Monday:
Kevin Stitt has done a fantastic job as Governor of Oklahoma. He is a champion for our America First agenda, a fearless defender of the Second Amendment, and a supporter of our great Military and Vets. He is strong on the Border and believes in American Energy Independence. Governor Stitt worked with me on cutting burdensome regulations and reforming occupational licensing. Kevin was a very successful businessman in 2018 when I first endorsed him. Now, he is a fighter for the incredible people of Oklahoma. Kevin Stitt has my Complete and Total Endorsement!
The Oklahoma gubernatorial primary will take place on June 28.
The gubernatorial election will happen on November 8.
News 9 Former President Donald Trump has endorsed incumbent Governor Kevin Stitt in this years election. | 2022-03-15T06:04:39Z | www.news9.com | Trump Endorses Stitt In Oklahoma Gubernatorial Race News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/622faf02a3751f07289448f1/trump-endorses-stitt-in-oklahoma-gubernatorial-race | https://www.news9.com/story/622faf02a3751f07289448f1/trump-endorses-stitt-in-oklahoma-gubernatorial-race |
DURANT, Oklahoma -
Oklahoma City police identify the man accused of stabbing a woman, then leading troopers on a chase. It ended nearly two hours away from where it all started.
Police got the call Sunday around 9 a.m. that a woman had been stabbed at an apartment complex near Rockwell and Memorial.
"When they arrived, they found a female there with numerous stab wounds," said Msgt. Gary Knight, with Oklahoma City Police. "She was very seriously injured."
According to police reports, it appeared that the woman was stabbed in her eye and had injuries to her right cheek, arms, and hands.
Reports go on to say the woman's daughter told officers her mom was still married to 41-year-old Gabriel Sanchez but was going through a divorce and the two of them had been arguing all night.
The victim told police she dropped her daughter off at work the next morning and when she got back to the apartment, Sanchez approached and started stabbing her. Investigators say Sanchez took off in a black GMC truck, but they were able to track his phone.
"Oklahoma Highway Patrol spotted him a short time later in the southern part of the state," said Knight.
"They got behind him, tried to make a traffic stop on them and then they fled," said Trooper Eric Foster with the Oklahoma Highway Patrol.
OHP says the pursuit started in Atoka and went on for close to 20 miles along Highway 75 and ended just before they reached Durant. Troopers used a Tactical Vehicle Intervention to stop the vehicle.
"It was very serious to us," said Foster. "We had to get them stopped before they got into the town of Durant, a big city."
Gabriel was arrested and booked into the Bryant County Jail before he was transported to the Oklahoma County Detention Center.
Oklahoma City police have not named the victim stabbed but tell News 9 she's expected to survive. | 2022-03-15T06:05:28Z | www.news9.com | OKC Man Arrested After Stabbing, Pursuit News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/622fbed6dcf0880742574a95/okc-man-arrested-after-stabbing-pursuit | https://www.news9.com/story/622fbed6dcf0880742574a95/okc-man-arrested-after-stabbing-pursuit |
EMSA rushed a woman to the hospital after being hit by a driver while riding a bike.
One witness sprang into action and immediately called 911. Tayvion Chatman told News 9 if it were him, he would want a good Samaritan to do the same.
The woman was rushed to the hospital after a driver hit her while out riding her bike on SW 149th between Santa Fe and Western.
“We were the first out the car as soon as it happened my gf told me to call 911...I called as I got out the car. I was the first by her side to see what was going on,” said Chatman.
Chatman was giving his brother a driving lesson at the time of the accident. He said he never expected to witness an accident and jump into action.
“When I first saw her, I thought she had passed. It was a whole situation and then we saw she was breathing, and we turned her on her side,” he said.
The Oklahoma City Police Department said the victim was transported in critical condition. The driver was on scene for questioning.
“My mom is a nurse, so I have background knowledge but, in that situation, it was just instinct hop out and go. Someone is hurt I must help it was bad too, if I don’t do something this person could lose their life potentially,” he said.
On the other side of the street, Carla Hernandez went outside when she saw all of the cop cars.
“We absolutely do have a lot of kids in the neighborhood. A lot of kids go to the school to play basketball, go to practice, whatever they have to do and they ride their bikes in the neighborhood,” said Hernandez.
The mother said the situation hits close to home. “My daughter was hit at 4-years old by a car. She survived, but she did get hit by a car at 4-year-old, so she suffers from PTSD and anxiety,” she said.
Both live nearby and said people in the area need to slow down.
“I watch people fly through this school zone,” said Hernandez.
“There are like 4-5 accidents here every year,” said Chatman. | 2022-03-15T06:05:48Z | www.news9.com | OCPD Investigating After Person Hit By Jeep In SW OKC News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/622fc378dcf088074257c574/ocpd-investigating-after-person-hit-by-jeep-in-sw-okc | https://www.news9.com/story/622fc378dcf088074257c574/ocpd-investigating-after-person-hit-by-jeep-in-sw-okc |
At Santa Fe place it’s Aktion Club week, a week of service to the community.
“It’s really quite amazing how these members have gone into the community, and they have worked so hard,” said Jessicia Smith Director of Santa Fe Place.
The residents at Santa Fe place do service projects almost every day, totaling about 500 hours every week.
“Different parking lots, the parks, the canal in Moore, and we clean the trash there,” said Smith
They even clean and sanitize The Moore free clinic twice a week, volunteer at the Regional Food Bank, clean a couple of churches but their signature program is with Jordan’s Crossings
“All year we focus on trying to do things for the children who are living in a drug and alcohol rehab center while their mothers go through recovery,” said Smith.
Presenting the residents in a different light.
“The community learns that just because a person has a disability, that doesn’t make them unable, it just makes them differently abled,” said Smith.
Monday they once again took food and some essentials to the homeless.
“It was very emotional, I don’t want to cry, but when we got there, there was like maybe 150 tents down there, there were people everywhere,” said Ashlee Walker, coordinator with Santa Fe Place.
It’s a very emotional time for the staff and the residents
“I did not know that it would have the impact that it had, there was not a single person that did not cry that day,” said Smith.
“It was kind of sad, but at the same time it was kind of cool because they were so grateful when we gave them the food,” said Olivia Santa Fe Place member.
The reasoning behind the projects is to get residents to think past their own needs and focus on the needs of others
“It’s kind of sad but, I can do it,” said Megan, Santa Fe Place member.
“They didn’t know that they could do something so little that meant so much to other people,” said Smith. | 2022-03-15T06:06:00Z | www.news9.com | Santa Fe Place Helps Feed Those Experiencing Homelessness In Moore News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/622fcee6ba7740070c8b8728/santa-fe-place-helps-feed-those-experiencing-homelessness-in-moore- | https://www.news9.com/story/622fcee6ba7740070c8b8728/santa-fe-place-helps-feed-those-experiencing-homelessness-in-moore- |
One metro family is fighting for answers as their daughters deal with long haul COVID-19.
The two girls, Emerson and Adley Barnes, are just four and eight.
Their parents told News 9 all their issues started about a month after they were diagnosed with COVID. Now the family is having to go out of state to find help.
"We've got to fight for them," said the girls' mom Susan. "We’ve got to fight for answers."
She and her husband Chris have been trying for months to help their two daughters.
Their kids tested positive for COVID back in August.
"Within about a month Adley, our 8-year-old, started experiencing blurred vision kind of muscle spasms, back pain," said Susan.
Emerson, the youngest, started complaining of leg and back pain. The four-year-old was waking up in the middle of the night crying in pain, and then eventually Adley developed severe stomach pain.
"I told Chris I’m calling the doctor, and I’m not leaving until we get some answers," said Susan.
After constant doctors' appointments and blood work, they narrowed the girls' issues down to long haul COVID.
"We really found out there’s not a lot of help for kids the closest pediatric post COVID program is actually in Houston, Texas," said Susan.
News 9 was able to talk with Tomika Harris, a Nurse Practitioner with UT Physicians COVID Center of Excellence where the Barnes family will be going.
Harris said they've seen patients that aren't from their area. Many have been struggling with the same symptoms and issues for a long period of time. The team at UT works to develop a game plan and follow-up visits if needed.
"We'll have them go back to their PCP or a specialist where they live with that plan," said Harris.
Back here in Oklahoma OU's Chief COVID officer, Dr. Dale Bratzler, said the good news is most patients do improve over time even if it takes months or even a year.
"Sometimes it's just getting past this acute phase and getting past this initial chronic phase of the illness," said Dr. Bratzler.
He said if you are struggling with lingering COVID to make sure you do your research before entering into a treatment program. | 2022-03-15T06:06:06Z | www.news9.com | Oklahoma Children Fight To Recover From Long Haul COVID News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/622fd879a72046072b9381ea/oklahoma-children-fight-to-recover-from-long-haul-covid | https://www.news9.com/story/622fd879a72046072b9381ea/oklahoma-children-fight-to-recover-from-long-haul-covid |
Oklahoma City police are investigating after a person was found dead inside of a car on Monday night.
According to police, officers responded to a call that someone was unresponsive in a car near Northwest 63rd and Lyrewood around 10 p.m.
When officers arrived on scene, they found that the person inside the vehicle was dead.
Police have not yet identified the victim. | 2022-03-15T12:38:29Z | www.news9.com | Police Investigate After Body Found In Car In NW OKC News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/6230565377f285072763ed3c/police-investigate-after-body-found-in-car-in-nw-okc | https://www.news9.com/story/6230565377f285072763ed3c/police-investigate-after-body-found-in-car-in-nw-okc |
“I think we’re going to look back on this moment and just think, ‘Wow, what an incredible turning point in the history of U.S. Soccer that changed the game and c
Associated Press The White House is marking Equal Pay Day by taking new steps aimed at ending the gender pay gap for federal workers and contractors. | 2022-03-15T12:38:41Z | www.news9.com | Biden Moving To Narrow Gender Pay Gap For Federal Workers News 9 | https://www.news9.com/story/62305e9055dac57fc84406ef/biden-moving-to-narrow-gender-pay-gap-for-federal-workers | https://www.news9.com/story/62305e9055dac57fc84406ef/biden-moving-to-narrow-gender-pay-gap-for-federal-workers |
New books encourage deeper understanding of the ocean
Authors suggest ways for kids to get involved and help undo the damage.
(The Washington Post illustration/Kids Can Press, Millbrook Press)
Life on Earth started in the ocean more than 4 billion years ago, and the ocean has sustained all living things since then. But now Earth’s water needs relief from various threats so that our planet can again become a healthy place to live. These new books present three clear messages: that we are all connected by Earth’s oceans, that we must understand the damage that’s being done to them, and that we must act now, before the problems become too big to fix.
The Global Ocean
Written by Rochelle Strauss; illustrated by Natasha Donovan
Author Rochelle Strauss says that the Earth’s five oceans are not separate from one another. They flow together, holding 97 percent of Earth’s water. After explaining ocean currents and the central role of “the global ocean” in the water cycle, Strauss compares these processes to the human heart: “All life relies on this constant circulation of water, just as you need your beating heart to keep the blood pumping through your body.”
But just because it’s huge and powerful doesn’t mean that the ocean can protect itself from all that humans have thrown into it and taken out of it. Along with releasing excessive carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, people have damaged coastal habitats, taken too much marine life out of the ocean and let too many man-made products (such as plastics, fishing equipment, and chemicals) into it.
Throughout the book, Strauss offers solutions. Some are easy, such as using cold water for laundry so that fewer tiny plastic fibers from your clothes go down the drain and end up in the ocean. (Warmer water causes the fibers to break down.) Other solutions are part of the challenging but fascinating realm of scientific innovation. For example, a British university student recently addressed two problems at once by creating a biodegradable plastic from fish products that would otherwise be thrown away.
Whales to the Rescue: How Whales Help Engineer the Planet
Written by Adrienne Mason; illustrated by Kim Smith
For more than a century, humans hunted whales with ships and harpoons and sold their blubber, baleen and meat for substantial profits. Whales of various species were pursued with such intensity that they nearly became extinct.
Adrienne Mason’s book (to be published September 6) explains why we need to help whales live and multiply. “As they swim and dive and eat and poop,” she writes, “whales are working as ecosystem engineers.” Traveling between different depths and over thousands of miles, they help maintain the chemical balance of the ocean.
And when they die naturally, and their bodies descend to the bottom of the sea, the significant amount of carbon contained within their bodies is kept out of the Earth’s atmosphere. By working toward an ocean that whales can live and die in, we make a healthier world for future generations of whales, other animals and humans.
By Kelly Crull
From the fierce shark on its cover to the swirling ocean at its end, “Washed Ashore” shows us that what we throw away can be made into art that surprises and educates us.
About 15 years ago, Angela Haseltine Pozzi started noticing a lot of plastic trash on the beach near her home in Oregon. With the help of hundreds of volunteers, she began making large sculptures of animals out of the plastic junk (ranging in size from bottle caps to tires) that had been collected.
In this book, author-photographer Kelly Crull features 14 of Pozzi’s sculptures, describing each animal and the threats they face, including jagged-edged plastics, abandoned fishing nets and microplastics that get passed along the food chain.
Krull mentions many ways to keep plastics out of the ocean, such as avoiding single-use water bottles and participating in beach cleanups. He also encourages readers to follow Pozzi’s example and get creative in protecting the ocean. | 2022-08-16T13:59:58Z | www.washingtonpost.com | New kids books about the ocean encourage deeper understanding - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/kidspost/2022/08/16/kids-book-about-the-ocean/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/kidspost/2022/08/16/kids-book-about-the-ocean/ |
De Vos was a marine biology pioneer in her native Sri Lanka. She’s helping kids use their voices for ocean conservation.
Asha de Vos, a marine biologist from Sri Lanka, has done groundbreaking research on blue whales in the northern Indian Ocean. As a kid, she had no role models in her country in marine biology. Now she's encouraging kids to get involved in ocean conservation. (Photo by Asha de Vos)
Asha de Vos’s first attempt to save the whales was at age 6. She created a poster featuring the huge marine mammals with details that were more artistic than scientific.
The episode wasn’t an “aha” moment but part of a long journey for de Vos to become a marine biologist in Sri Lanka. At the time, the island nation had no school or training program for marine biology, she said. The ocean was a considered a place to earn a living by catching fish, not studying them.
By age 18, de Vos was a good swimmer and loved water. She also loved science.
“I realized being a marine biologist was everything I ever wanted,” she said.
Pursuing that dream meant traveling halfway around the world to St. Andrew’s University in Scotland followed by biology field work in New Zealand. It was the start of her life’s work: studying whales and sharing that knowledge. She continued to study and research far from home, with the aim of going back to Sri Lanka. | 2022-08-16T14:00:05Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Marine biologist Asha de Vos says kids can help save the ocean now - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/kidspost/2022/08/16/marine-biologist-asha-de-vos/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/kidspost/2022/08/16/marine-biologist-asha-de-vos/ |
New technologies and research are helping solve problems such as plastic pollution, bycatch and ocean acidification.
(Illustrations by Feng Chen For The Washington Post)
It’s easy to take the ocean for granted. The deep blue is crucial to things we do every day without thinking. We breathe. We eat and drink. We buy something that’s made far from where we live. The ocean contributes to all those things. Not thinking about what the ocean does for us would be okay if its gifts were limitless. But they are not. And the actions of humans — nearly 8 billion of us — are threatening resources we can’t do without.
Thankfully, a growing number of people are focused on safeguarding the ocean. Scientists, lawmakers, businesses and nonprofit groups are among those raising awareness of problems such as plastic pollution, bycatch and ocean acidification. They aren’t only highlighting problems, however. They are developing solutions. Small success stories are building hope and encouraging more people to get involved.
We created a special collection of KidsPost stories because we know that when you think about the ocean, you realize how valuable it is. We have proof. Readers recently answered our request for short ocean appreciations, several of which we feature below. Reflecting is a good first step. We hope the additional stories and photos deepen your understanding of the ocean’s problems and inspire you to be part of the solutions.
Reflections by young writers
What I appreciate most about the ocean is the diversity of life it supports, from enormous blue whales to tiny, but ever so important, corals. I love the beauty, architecture and liveliness of all the animals, plants and others who dwell under the sea.
— Brice Claypoole, 14, Longboat Key, Florida
Treasure, transportation and food. All of these good things come from the ocean. The ocean lets us explore and express ourselves. It gives us food and all of these amazing things that come from the ocean. It allows us to show the world what we can do together!
— Owen Bairley, 9, Fredericksburg, Virginia
I appreciate ocean animals. They’re fun to watch! I’ve seen a movie called “Soul Surfer,” and in it, somebody’s attacked by a shark. That made me realize ocean life is hard. They struggle to survive. That made me appreciate them even more because, like me, ocean animals face many struggles.
— Hailey Somsel, 10, New York, New York
An Ode to the Ocean
The ocean is always changing
Creatures evolve
Octopus carrying shells, the horseshoe crab
Coral reefs, puffer fish, sharks, eels
Medicine and food
To the past, to the present, to the future
It will always be there tomorrow, if you take care of it today.
— Thomas Gallagher, 9, Potomac, Maryland
I appreciate the beauty and the diversity of marine animals, the waves that make the most amazing sound as they crash ashore, the fish that give us food when we don’t give anything in return, but most of all the memories and fun that we have at the beach.
— Layli Ziraknejad, 12, Reston, Virginia
The ocean is vital for us human beings. Without the ocean we couldn’t survive. Not only do 12 percent of people need the ocean for food, but a whopping 50 percent of the world’s oxygen comes from phytoplankton in the ocean. The ocean’s my MVP for being the human race’s life support.
— Colin Sellers, 10, Sarasota, Florida
The ocean is a happy place for all. Anyone can go at anytime. In the summer you can cool down and relax in the sun. In the winter you can watch the waves crash fiercely on the sand. The ocean never closes its doors. It gives us so much.
— Madelyn Legeer, 10, Silver Spring, Maryland
What I appreciate most about the ocean is that it gives a home to one of my favorite animals, manta rays. They are very calm and peaceful, but they are endangered. When I grow up, I want to be a scientist so I can help them not be endangered anymore.
— Lily Guder, 7, Alexandria, Virginia
Whether it is dolphins jumping out of the water, droplets like diamonds as they hit the sun, or it is evening sunsets that fade from burning yellow to brilliant purple, I love the ocean’s beauty.
— Sara Husain, 13, Ruskin, Florida
A Mysterious World
Underneath the ocean waves, there is a whole world of mysteries waiting to be explored. Some kinds of marine life like the giant squid are very rare, and we barely have any photos or evidence. Scientists are still working hard to learn things we don’t know about.
— Juno Wu, 11, Falls Church, Virginia
I love the ocean because it’s the perfect place for me to think when I’m mad. I just love the clear blue water and the ocean sounds. It really calms me, and I just think the ocean animals are lovely.
— Charlie Miller, 9, Odenton, Maryland
The ocean is a beautiful place that should be protected. The different colors of the water, the size of the waves, no two beaches are the same. All of these put together make me eager to go to the beach — to swim, to see the water, to enjoy.
— Eric Toop, 12, Westerville, Ohio
I like that the mama whales protect baby whales from predators. I like the clownfish’s home. I like how the scuba divers save the fish.
— Doreen Wills, 6, Duluth, Minnesota
I appreciate the ocean because I like to see the sea turtles and dolphins. I like to listen to the waves that are on the beach. It sounds peaceful and helps me relax. The ocean also brings shells up to the beach that I can find.
— Maxton McCarthy, 6, Tampa, Florida | 2022-08-16T14:00:11Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Learning more about the ocean's problems can inspire solutions - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/kidspost/2022/08/16/ocean-reflections-inspire-solutions/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/kidspost/2022/08/16/ocean-reflections-inspire-solutions/ |
What a flight test engineer does in a workday
Perspective by Emma Davis
Welcome to The Work Day, a series that charts a single day in various women’s working lives — from gallery owners to stay-at-home parents to chief executives. In this installment, we hear from Emma Davis, a flight test engineer who recorded a workday in August.
Name: Emma Davis
Location: Burlington, Vt.
Job title: Flight test engineer at Beta Technologies
Previous jobs: Senior ground test engineer (September 2020-September 2021); flight test engineer (January 2018-September 2020); graduate teaching assistant and math tutor (September 2016-May 2017); mechanical engineering intern (May 2015-August 2016)
What led me to my current role: I work at Beta Technologies, an electric aerospace company based in Burlington. I have lived all over the country and moved from out of state for this job — but I’ve since come to love the area and call it home. I have been passionate about aviation since I was a little girl, and spent five years as a test engineer at an aerospace company after school. When I found that Beta — a company that’s on the forefront of aviation technology — would teach me how to fly helicopters and would allow me to continue my career in flight test engineering, it was clear this was the right next choice for me.
How I spend the majority of my workday: At Beta, we’re developing the first all-electric aircraft for commercial use, and as a flight test engineer (FTE), I’m part of the team responsible for building and executing a program to evaluate the performance and safety of our aircraft, the ALIA-250. We’re driving toward the ultimate goals of certifying the plane with the Federal Aviation Administration and delivering it to our customers, so it’s crucial that we test every system on the aircraft to make sure it meets the absolute highest safety and reliability standards. Flight testing is the foundation of any aerospace program, because it provides that road map to measure and track the development of an experimental aircraft against those standards. My submission below focuses on a typical flight test day.
On non-test days, I spend most of my time writing test plans to prepare for future flight tests. These plans are the basis for safely executing ground and flight test events on ALIA, so creating them requires the team to determine how we’re actually going to execute the test, as well as how we define success. A key component of this equation is understanding what the test requirements are — for example, what data do the engineers need to help validate that our aircraft is safe and exceeds FAA standards? It can take up to a day to work up a flight test brief and coordinate the schedule for a test event, depending on the complexity of the test, so this keeps me pretty busy.
4:40 a.m.: I usually wake up before 5 a.m. and head to the gym for an hour or two before going to work. I’m a CrossFit fanatic and like to start my day off with a good sweat. I love to dance as well and can often be seen working some dance moves into my workout — regardless of whether they’re a part of the outlined exercise!
8 a.m.: What I do when I arrive at work varies depending on whether we are conducting a flight test, which we do a few times per week, and often daily. To make a test run as seamlessly as possible, there is a lot of prep work that an FTE is responsible for, including writing a test plan, test cards, coordinating with all the aircraft subsystem SMEs (subject matter experts), preparing for briefs and conducting safety assessments. When I’m acting as the test conductor (TC), I spend my morning ensuring all the materials are finalized and ready before pre-brief and takeoff.
12 p.m.: Lunch at Beta is always a highlight of my day. We have an awesome team on staff that always makes the best meals — and it’s also a time for everyone to step away from the computer, plane, 3D printer or wherever else the team is usually stationed during the day, to refuel and recharge together. I’m not from Vermont, but I’ve found a real community of friends at Beta and beyond.
2 p.m.: Game time! During the flight test event, I’m directing the control room and giving point-to-point test clearance to execute the mission at hand. In other words, I’m the one running the details of the test flight and communicating directly with the test pilot, who sits at the controls of ALIA. While communicating closely with the pilot, I’m also looking at a subset of data that provides a high-level overview of the health of the aircraft and relying on insights from SMEs who are monitoring their specific subsystem, such as the motor, in detail. If an SME sees something abnormal in their data, I jump in to facilitate the communication between the engineer in the room and the pilot in the seat to make a sound judgment on whether testing can be safely continued or not. We collect a wide variety of data to identify overall trends and performance of the aircraft, including things like battery usage, motor temps, structural load data and more.
5 p.m.: There’s often a small crew of us who go for a little walk before parting ways after work — it’s a nice time to catch up about life outside of Beta and enjoy some time outside during the day.
6 p.m.: Afterward, I head home and hit the books. I’m working hard to study for my helicopter private pilot certificate. Beta offers all team members the chance to receive flight training for free. It’s a way for us to get a firsthand understanding of aviation and aviation systems, all of which will inform our design of and work on ALIA. It’s also really, really fun. After I finish my studies, I spend the evening hanging out with my two amazing cats. | 2022-08-16T14:00:17Z | www.washingtonpost.com | What a flight test engineer does in a workday - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/2022/08/16/workday-flight-test-engineer/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/2022/08/16/workday-flight-test-engineer/ |
Their city, not to mention their lives, were imperiled. Still, they had work to do, deadlines they doggedly planned to meet. They needed to finish sorting through hundreds of hours of digitized video, then stitch pieces of it together. In the midst of tragedy, they were refusing to give up on their plan to make a comedy. A television show about politics — and porn.
The furtive ministrations of Greenchuk, a film editor, and Volkov, a producer, on those perilous days this spring have stretched into the summer. They’ve sprawled into an international saga of persistence and audacity spanning half-a-dozen countries and two continents in the shadow of war. Even now, after months of stops and starts, they and other members of a 20-person crew pore over about 3 trillion bytes of digital data, a quantity too vast to efficiently transfer out of the country via the internet to the show’s executive producer, who lives in Miami.
“It’s a mess,” Den Tolmor, the Oscar-nominated filmmaker who is producing the comedy series, told me as we gazed out at the ocean from the balcony of his luxury apartment in Miami’s chic Brickell neighborhood. “But we’re going to get it done.”
Tolmor, a rakishly handsome 51-year-old with thick silver hair, needs this project for reasons that go beyond the desire for a hit production. Born in Moldova, he fled armed conflict in his native land as a 20-something in the 1990s and entered the United States as a refugee. In the decades since, he has been immersed in human darkness, garnering an Oscar nomination in 2016 for producing “Winter on Fire: Ukraine’s Fight for Freedom,” a Netflix documentary now free on YouTube about the violent 2014 uprising to oust that country’s corrupt president, Viktor Yanukovych. From there, Tolmor moved on to producing a documentary about human rights abuses, “Cries From Syria.”
“My mind asked me to switch to something else,” Tolmor says, “to put some fun in the world.” He started reading through pitches for comedy programs, ultimately settling on a wild story by Ukrainian writer-director Anton Skrypets about a philandering mayor whose wife gets revenge by becoming an adult-film actress. Political intrigue, spin-doctoring and gunplay ensue. Think “House of Cards” meets “Boogie Nights” — with subtitles.
He felt optimistic as he returned to Miami, where he has lived for five years, its pleasure-centric vibe an escape from the war zones where he’s made his name in the film business. In tightfitting linen shirts and accompanied by his wife, Lara, an entrepreneur and philanthropist, they look at home among the so-called Brazillionaires, well-heeled Russian expats and Cuban American elite in that most international of American cities.
A few days after he landed in Miami in February, Russia invaded Ukraine. Russian troops eventually pushed toward Kyiv. Operating from his home office, Tolmor spent days trying to no avail to reach Serhii Baranov, one of his lead producers in Kyiv. When Tolmor finally got through to him, the depth of the nation’s — and his production’s — crisis became even clearer. All was chaos. Countless Ukrainians were fleeing cities they feared would be leveled by Russian missiles. Baranov had escaped to an outlying town and sent his family to a different city to look in on his parents. One of his producers joined Baranov’s family.
Their director, Skrypets, could not be found, Baranov told me in a WhatsApp call from Kyiv. Same for their lead actress, Liliya Tsvelikova. They’d heard their lead actor, Artur Ignatenko, was somewhere in Europe. France, they thought. Or maybe it was Poland? Their music composer was in Budapest.
“Everybody went where they could,” Baranov says. “Everybody was scared.” In addition to those who fled the city, there were also two crew members who had gone off to fight, he told me. No one knew if they were alive or dead.
“Forgive me,” Tolmor said to Baranov after inquiring about his cast and crew. “What about the materials?” There was a sense of urgency to find the reams of footage they’d amassed because Tolmor and a partner had already invested more than $1 million in the project and it was many months behind. They hadn’t even been able to put together a standard preview reel to use in pitching the show.
Baranov assured Tolmor the hours and hours of digitized scenes were safe. He’d made a copy and was shuttling it and the original around Kyiv and the city’s outskirts, hoping to guess correctly which areas were less vulnerable to possible missile attacks while hiding the backup copy in separate locations in case the original was destroyed.
While trying to salvage his comedy series, Tolmor also rounded up buses and drivers to ferry supplies into Ukraine from Poland, and then take back hundreds of refugees. He called it the “Kyiv Convoy.” The informal effort has morphed into a nonprofit, KindDeeds, dedicated to humanitarian aid and legal assistance to Ukrainian refugees.
Slowly the production crew began reconstituting their team. But just when they would find someone, they’d often lose track of that person again. Cellphone systems crashed. Some of the crew were seeking refugee status. Others were pinballing between hideouts in the countryside and around Kyiv.
All the while, they were making things even more complicated by tinkering with the storyline. They needed Ignatenko, who plays an agent representing porn actors, to revise a line during a police interrogation to subtly shift the narrative. They needed Tsvelikova, who plays the mayor’s wife, to dub in a line during a scene in a dance club that would fundamentally alter the story arc. These are the sorts of typical postproduction activities that might take only minutes or hours under normal circumstances. They took Tolmor weeks to complete as his crew scrambled to find their stars.
Tolmor initially thought he’d sell his racy eight-part series — which has about 30 percent English dialogue with the rest in Russian — to TV networks and streaming services in three markets: Russia, Ukraine and the United States. Now, with Ukraine’s economy devastated and Russia belligerently isolated, he’s left with the United States as his only option. He’d originally titled the series “Porn, I Love You,” and set it in an unnamed country. But the world has changed and he’s rewritten the title. It’s now called “From Ukraine, With Love.” | 2022-08-16T14:00:23Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Den Tolmer is trying to finish a series about politics and porn in Ukraine - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/magazine/2022/08/16/ukrainian-comedy-war/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/magazine/2022/08/16/ukrainian-comedy-war/ |
Actress Anne Heche poses for a portrait Saturday, Jan. 21, 2012, in Park City, Utah. (Carlo Allegri/AP)
Anne Heche died Friday, according to her hometown paper, the Los Angeles Times. Or she died Sunday, per the New York Times and others.
Between those dates, the 53-year-old actress was in a state of mortal ambiguity that challenged the media to parse a legal, even philosophical question: When is someone actually dead?
Heche’s family disclosed that she was brain dead late last week following an Aug. 5 car crash. That prompted some news organizations to report her death, based on a reading of a California law. “An individual who has sustained … irreversible cessation of all functions of the entire brain, including the brain stem, is dead,” reads the statute.
But Heche remained on life support for another two days so her organs could be harvested for donation. When Heche’s publicist confirmed that she had been taken off life support late Sunday night, news organizations published a new round of news stories reporting her death.
It’s not the first time that a celebrity’s passing was accompanied by public confusion. But Heche’s case was particularly unusual, with the date of death dependent on competing definitions of what it means to be dead.
Heche was, by all accounts, in grave condition on Friday morning, a week after crashing a Mini Cooper into a Los Angeles house, causing both to catch fire. With no apparent brain activity, she was kept on life support pending an assessment of her organs.
Nevertheless, TMZ, the entertainment-news website that is often first to report celebrity deaths, posted a news story at 11:19 a.m. Los Angeles time on Friday under the headline, “Anne Heche Dead at 53.” The story noted, “Her rep tells TMZ Anne is ‘brain dead’ and under California law that is the definition of death.”
People magazine soon followed with a similar report, as did the L.A. Times. Both noted within the body of their stories that Heche was legally dead, though her body still functioned. (The Daily Mail, in an alert carried by Reuters, inaccurately reported that Heche had died Friday after being removed from life support; a Daily Mail spokesman said editors updated its story, but did not issue a correction).
Other news sources made the distinction clear up front. The Hollywood Reporter headlined its story on Friday: “Anne Heche Declared Brain Dead, Still on Life Support Following Car Crash, Rep Says.” The Washington Post did much the same.
Some of the early reporting was helped along by statements from Heche’s family members that declared her dead. News organizations typically rely on family members to confirm a relative’s death.
“My brother Atlas and I lost our Mom,” Heche’s son, Homer Laffoon, said in a widely reported statement on Friday. “After six days of almost unbelievable emotional swings, I am left with a deep, wordless sadness..... Rest in peace Mom, I love you.”
Variety, which noted that Heche was still technically alive, published a statement it attributed to Heche’s “family and friends” on Friday: “Today we lost a bright light, a kind and most joyful soul, a loving mother, and a loyal friend,” it read in part. The publication published a follow-up story Sunday night reporting that she had been taken off life support, ending all signs of life.
The California law and the family’s statements prompted the L.A. Times to go with the news of Heche’s death on Friday, said Hillary Manning, a Times spokesperson. She said the newspaper’s reporters “confirmed” with family members that she had died.
But that wasn’t good enough for others. The New York Times said it held off publishing Heche’s obituary until Sunday when her death was “officially confirmed” and “out of respect for the family,” according to a spokesperson, Naseem Amini.
That left Heche’s fans and the general public in confusion over the weekend.
Heche’s Wikipedia page underwent a flurry of revisions as users debated her status, changing her death date before deleting it altogether at one point. As of Monday night, her entry listed the date of her death only as “August 2022,” with a footnote explaining, “there is some confusion as to what her date of death really is until her official death certificate is made public.”
The Post’s obituaries editor, Adam Bernstein, said the newspaper doesn’t recognize brain death as a clear marker of death. He cited the case of Terri Schiavo, who lingered in a vegetative state for seven years as her family engaged in a long legal battle over whether to remove her from a feeding tube. Schiavo’s feeding tube was eventually removed under a court order; she died in 2005.
“It’s black and white. There’s no gray area here. If you’re on life support, you’re still alive,” Bernstein said. “Other publications can make their own judgment about when they’re comfortable publishing. I’m comfortable when someone is actually dead.”
Others saw it that way, too, despite the family’s statements and California law. “We chose to wait until she was taken off life support,” said Mike Barnes, senior editor of the Hollywood Reporter, who has written hundreds of obits for the publication, including Heche’s.
A person close to the Heche family, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe sensitive conversations, was sympathetic to the reporters. “I don’t think anyone did anything journalistically or ethically wrong. The family isn’t angry at anyone,” said this person. “It was a complicated situation when you’re keeping a body alive to harvest the organs. But that was Anne’s wish. It’s part of her legacy.”
The rush to publish the news may tell a larger story about the value of being first to report a celebrity’s death in the internet age, noted Bernstein.
Obituaries were once a sleepy corner of daily journalism, but nowadays the death of a prominent figure can generate huge flows of readers. As a result, some news organizations stockpile hundreds of “advancers”— pre-written obits on well-known people that can be published within minutes of a confirmed death.
But some deaths aren’t deaths at all. There’s a long history of premature reporting about the demise of famous people, stretching back decades. The causes range from hoaxes, accidental publication of advance obits and inaccurate information, typically from family members, business associates and government officials.
News organizations, for example, prematurely reported the death of rock star Tom Petty in 2017 based on a source in the Los Angeles Police Department. Actress Tanya Roberts was reported dead a day before she died last year due to misinformation from her publicist, who relied on Robert’s partner. Managers for “Leave It to Beaver” co-star Tony Dow had to withdraw a premature Facebook post announcing his death last month after his wife mistakenly told them the gravely ill actor had been declared dead. He died a day later.
“You have to be on guard about being first but being wrong,” said Bernstein. “If you play it conservatively, you might sacrifice a few clicks, but readers will trust you more in the long run.” | 2022-08-16T14:00:29Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Why the media declared Anne Heche dead twice - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/media/2022/08/16/anne-heche-death-confusion/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/media/2022/08/16/anne-heche-death-confusion/ |
Ukraine Live Briefing: Russia claims ‘act of sabotage’ in Crimea depot expl...
Smoke rises above the area following an alleged explosion in the village of Mayskoye in the Dzhankoi district of Crimea on Aug. 16, 2022. (Stringer/Reuters)
A senior Ukrainian government official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss a sensitive matter, said the explosions were the work of Ukrainian special forces operating deep behind enemy lines — the same forces believed responsible for a powerful attack against a Russian air base in western Crimea last week that signaled a shift in Ukraine’s strategic capabilities.
“A military depot was damaged in an act of sabotage in the vicinity of Dzhankoi in the morning of August 16,” Russia’s Defense Ministry said.
The powerful blasts damaged nearby buildings, power lines and train tracks, and prompted the evacuation of thousands of residents, the ministry said, adding that no one was seriously injured. Sergei Aksyonov, the Moscow-backed head of Crimea, reported two injuries as a result of the blast, and declared a regional state of emergency. Work was underway Tuesday to repair local infrastructure.
Details of how the attack was carried out were not known, and Kyiv did not officially claim responsibility for the blast. But if confirmed, it would be the second successful attack in a week against Russian military targets in Crimea by Ukrainian special forces operating in Russian-occupied territory. A Ukrainian official said they were behind powerful explosions that rocked Saki air base in Crimea last week.
Timsit reported from France and Khurshudyan from Georgia. Liz Sly and Adela Suliman contributed to this report. | 2022-08-16T14:12:50Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Explosions rock Crimea ammunition depot; Ukraine says special forces involved - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2022/08/16/crimea-depot-explosion-ukraine-russia-dzhankoi/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2022/08/16/crimea-depot-explosion-ukraine-russia-dzhankoi/ |
Edie Sedgwick and Andy Warhol’s bond was fleeting. The movies live on.
Alice Sedgwick Wohl looks back on her sister’s fast rise alongside Pop Artist Andy Warhol.
Review by Paul Alexander
Andy Warhol and Edie Sedgwick. (John Springer Collection/Corbis/Getty Images)
From March 1965 until January 1966, New York City was beguiled by an unexpected “it” couple. Andy Warhol — effete, strange-looking with his pallid skin and silver wig — was emerging as the principal practitioner of Pop Art. Edie Sedgwick — waiflike, modern with her pixie haircut and hoop earrings — was described as a debutante, heiress and member of the Boston Brahmins (none of which was actually true).
During their time together in the spotlight, which started in earnest when they appeared at a preview of “Three Centuries of American Painting” at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and received more press attention than fellow attendee first lady Lady Bird Johnson, they dominated the Manhattan social scene. As Merv Griffin said of them when they appeared on his television show, “No party in New York is considered a success unless they are there.”
Although the pair made for glamorous pictures, their fame was based on more than media coverage. During those 10 months, Edie was an integral part of the experimental films Warhol was making. His films were often little more than unedited reproductions of everyday life, such as a person sleeping or people kissing, but those featuring Edie, particularly “Poor Little Rich Girl,” were real-life portraits of a beautiful and engaging subject. As Warhol later wrote, “The fascination I experienced was probably very close to a certain kind of love.”
Their collaboration is the core of “As It Turns Out: Thinking About Edie and Andy,” by Alice Sedgwick Wohl, Edie’s older sister. The book is a family memoir with Edie as a primary focus. Unflinching in its honesty, Wohl’s memoir provides a disquieting glimpse into one family in America’s privileged class, a family made worthy of examination because one of its members — whose presence lives on luminously in her films — remains a source of fascination more than 50 years after her death.
Review: 'Warhol' by Blake Gopnik
Edie’s parents, Alice de Forest and Francis (“Fuzzy”) Sedgwick, were warned by a psychiatrist not to have children. They had eight. Edie was the penultimate. By the time she was born, the family had left a mansion in Cold Spring Harbor on Long Island for a ranch near Santa Barbara. When oil was discovered there, Fuzzy moved his brood to a larger ranch, Rancho La Laguna de San Francisco, where Edie spent her formative years. Her main activity was horseback riding.
As for Edie’s mother, Wohl declares, “I never saw my mother lift a finger except to saddle her horse.” She eschewed both housework and child-rearing. The father, a member of no fewer than seven private clubs, was an unapologetic racist who made sexual advances toward his daughters. “When Edie got to New York,” Wohl writes, “she told everybody she had been subjected to Fuzzy’s sexual advances from the age of seven.”
One day when Edie walked in on her father having sex with “a beautiful young wife we all knew,” he assaulted her and “called the doctor and said she was crazy.” Edie told her mother what happened, but, according to Wohl, “Mummy wouldn’t believe her … and after that she was kept in a darkened room half-drugged all the time.”
It’s not surprising that during her teenage years and early 20s, Edie suffered from bulimia, aborted an unwanted pregnancy (then illegal), and served stints at Silver Hill, a psychiatric hospital in New Canaan, Conn., and “the modern incarnation of the old Bloomingdale Insane Asylum” in White Plains, N.Y., where she received electroshock therapy treatments.
So, Edie was anything but an uncomplicated young woman when she was introduced to Warhol on March 26, 1965, at a party hosted by movie producer Lester Persky at his Central Park South penthouse. Warhol was smitten — “Ooooh, she’s so bee-you-ti-ful,” he cooed — and invited her to the Factory, his studio. Unfazed by his celebrity — Edie was dating Bob Dylan — she went the next day, and the pair began a collaboration that produced some of Warhol’s most memorable films, among them “Vinyl,” “Poor Little Rich Girl,” “Restaurant,” “Kitchen” and “Afternoon.”
One fact about “Afternoon” “makes me sad,” Wohl writes, explaining that “the third reel would have been the opening segment of ‘Chelsea Girls,’ the most successful of all Warhol’s movies, only Edie had it taken out.” Under contract with Dylan’s agent, Edie believed that she was headed for Hollywood, so she wanted to reduce her participation in Warhol films. That explains why, going forward, she was willing to be a character in Warhol’s “a: a novel” — a book gleaned from events in the lives of various Warholites as recorded on 12 cassette tapes — but appeared in few films. The best was “Outer and Inner Space,” which, Wohl observes, “is a very great work of art, and it kills me that Edie had no idea what it meant to be its subject.”
The zenith of the Warhol-Sedgwick alliance came on Oct. 8, 1965, the night they attended the opening of curator Sam Green’s Warhol retrospective in Philadelphia. A room that held 400 was descended upon by 4,000 excited fans eager to catch a glimpse of the couple. Unbeknown to Edie and others present, Wohl writes "— not even Andy could have sensed it — this was … the absolute high point of her life and the apotheosis of Edie Sedgwick.”
The collaboration ended in late January 1966 after a dinner at the Ginger Man in Manhattan. As Wohl describes the scene, Edie complained to Warhol, with everyone at the table watching, that he “wouldn’t let her get close to him, and suddenly she said she didn’t want him showing his films of her anymore because they made her look ridiculous.” Soon Dylan arrived, Edie left with him, and Warhol had little to do with her again.
Edie’s dream of a Hollywood career never materialized, and on Nov. 16, 1971, she died of a barbiturates overdose in California. What remains, Wohl observes in her sensitive, elegantly written memoir, is the work, the films themselves, which represent “the era of the image, which was just coming into being.”
She adds, “Andy anticipated it.” As, perhaps, in her own way, did Edie.
Paul Alexander has published eight books, including “Death and Disaster: The Rise of the Warhol Empire and the Race for Andy’s Millions.” He teaches at Hunter College.
Thinking About Edie and Andy | 2022-08-16T14:30:15Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Edie Sedgwick book As It Turns Out book review - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/books/2022/08/16/edie-sedgwick-andy-warhol-book-review/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/books/2022/08/16/edie-sedgwick-andy-warhol-book-review/ |
The measure promises lower health-care and energy costs for American families. Here’s what that could mean for you.
A work crew from Solar Solutions installs solar panels on a home in Southeast Washington, D.C., on Feb. 23. (Robb Hill/for The Washington Post)
The Inflation Reduction Act is Congress’s latest effort to usher in a new era of greener climate change policy. But for millions of Americans, the bill could mean big savings when making big-ticket green purchases, as well as lower energy and health-care costs and even faster tax filings.
Although President Biden is set to sign the Inflation Reduction Act on Tuesday, most Americans won’t see any money saved — including on inflation, despite the bill’s name — anytime soon.
Champions of the sprawling law say it will improve Americans’ finances while reducing the federal deficit by $300 billion. Critics say it will lead to higher taxes, particularly for corporations, and will be ineffective in bringing down decades-high inflation.
“Broadly speaking, this is a bill with a lot of elements,” said Marc Goldwein, senior policy director for the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, a group that advocates for lower deficits. “Most households will not see much change right away, but some will see real reductions in what they’re paying for things like health care and energy.”
Here’s a look at how the Inflation Reduction Act could affect your family’s finances, both now and in the future.
1. Lower energy costs
Lawmakers’ top goal was to create a new framework paving the way for more clean and sustainable energy sources. To that end, it includes $80 billion in rebates, including up to $14,000 in money back, helping households pay for green-energy upgrades. Subsidies cover a range of improvements, including efficient heat pumps ($8,000 back per household), electric water heaters ($1,750) and electric cooktops ($840).
Homeowners can also receive a 30 percent credit for installing solar panels.
“There will be substantial tax credits to help transition to clean energy: Rebates for people who buy electric vehicles, who put solar panels on their house, who make other kinds of energy efficiency-enhancing improvements to their home,” said Heidi Shierholz, president of the Economic Policy Institute, a left-leaning think tank. “It will make it easier for families to actually make these clean-energy changes.”
Families who use funding from the bill to switch to greener technology could save as much as $1,840 a year on energy costs, according to estimates from the nonprofit Rewiring America.
The new round of green-energy incentives includes a much-hyped $7,500 credit for people who buy new electric vehicles beginning next year.
“The direct benefits won’t be immediate but there is a lot here, starting with savings if you’re purchasing an electric vehicle,” said William Hoagland, senior vice president at the Bipartisan Policy Center.
Critically, the legislation also offers a $4,000 credit for people who buy used electric cars, which could be an important step in nudging more Americans away from gas-guzzling vehicles, Joe Britton, executive director of the Zero Emission Transportation Association, told The Washington Post.
“That will be one of the really kind of unseen catalysts,” he said. “Because once you get behind the wheel of an EV, you’re 95 percent likely to never go back … exposing Americans of all income levels to electrification will have a really positive impact on our ability to transition.”
3. Faster tax refunds
The most immediate benefit for American families, according to experts: faster tax refunds and more responsive IRS agents, thanks to $80 billion in additional funding to the Internal Revenue Service over 10 years.
“Folks will get their phone calls returned a lot quicker,” Hoagland said. “And for individuals still waiting for their 2021 or 2022 tax returns to be processed — that’s likely to happen a lot faster, too.”
The legislation also includes the framework for a program that would make it possible for Americans to file their annual taxes directly with the IRS free of charge. That could save Americans 2 billion hours and $30 billion in tax-filing fees every year, according to Emily DiVito, a senior program manager at the Roosevelt Institute.
“A direct free file option could transform the experience millions of people have filing their taxes—and therefore improve their experience interfacing with their government,” DiVito wrote in a recent blog post, noting that this would be most beneficial to low-income families.
4. Cheaper prescription medications for seniors
It’ll take a few years, but Medicare recipients will eventually see lower costs on some prescriptions.
The new legislation allows Medicare to negotiate prices with pharmaceutical companies, beginning with 10 prescription drugs in 2026 and 20 by 2029.
“The [cost reductions] are very piecemeal,” said Jeffrey Singer, a general surgeon and senior fellow at the Cato Institute, a libertarian think tank. “They take place a little bit at a time, but it’s going to make the Medicare recipient happier.”
More immediately, pharmaceutical companies will have to pay rebates starting next year if they raise medication prices faster than inflation. There are also other perks in store for Medicare recipients: Out-of-pocket costs will be capped at $2,000 a year starting in 2025; and insulin costs for people with diabetes will max out at $35 a month.
“If you’re on Medicare, your premiums and drug prices will start going down — not all at once and not immediately, but you’ll see these costs rising more slowly than they otherwise would,” said Goldwein of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget.
5. Lower prices on other items — maybe, eventually
Economists say it’s unlikely the Inflation Reduction Act will actually reduce inflation, at least any time soon.
There’s a chance the legislation could eventually tamp down prices by about 0.1 percentage points in about five years, according to an analysis by the University of Pennsylvania’s Penn Wharton Budget Model. But even then, analysts note they have “a low level of confidence that the legislation would have any measurable impact on inflation.”
There’s also a possibility that some of the legislation’s increased funding for farmers and rural development programs could help bring down prices for crops like corn and soybeans within a year or two, according to Hoagland of the Bipartisan Policy Center.
Households across the country have been dealing with fast-rising prices — which are up about 8.5 percent from a year ago — on a range of essentials, including groceries, gas and housing. Inflation eased slightly in July but is still hovering near 40-year highs. The Federal Reserve has been rapidly raising interest rates in hopes of slowing the economy enough to bring down prices.
Allyson Chiu contributed to this report. | 2022-08-16T14:30:21Z | www.washingtonpost.com | 5 ways the Inflation Reduction Act could save you money - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2022/08/16/inflation-reduction-act-save-money/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2022/08/16/inflation-reduction-act-save-money/ |
Claymation pioneer is celebrated in documentary ‘Claydream’
Will Vinton, the creator of the California Raisins and other stop-motion characters, is the subject of a rags-to-riches-to-rags tale
In the lively and compelling documentary “Claydream,” filmmaker Marq Evans tells Vinton’s rags-to-riches-to-rags story, beginning with his 1975 Oscar (shared with co-director Bob Gardiner) for the film “Closed Mondays.” The animation technique used in both that short film and the ads, like most of Vinton’s work, was stop-motion, using Plasticine clay, ushering in what might be called the golden age of clay animation.
Vinton, who coined the term Claymation to describe the style, now widely recognizable — think “Wallace and Gromit” — also executive-produced the short-lived TV series “The PJs” (1999-2001), set in an inner-city housing project and featuring the voice of Eddie Murphy. But in 2003, Vinton’s Portland, Ore.-based studio, struggling because of mismanagement and such misfires as the critically panned 1985 feature “The Adventures of Mark Twain,” was acquired by Nike co-founder Phil Knight, an investor in Vinton’s company since 1998. Knight eventually forced Vinton out and renamed the company Laika, which went on to make such acclaimed features as “Coraline,” “ParaNorman,” “The Boxtrolls,” “Kubo and the Two Strings” and “Missing Link,” all Oscar nominees. As for Vinton, he died in 2018, after walking away from the company he founded with a paltry $50,000 severance.
Will Vinton, filmmaker and animator who created the California Raisins, dies at 70
Unrated. At Landmark’s E Street Cinema. Contains brief female toplessness and erotic Claymation. 96 minutes. | 2022-08-16T14:30:52Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Claymation pioneer is celebrated in documentary ‘Claydream’ - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/movies/2022/08/16/claydream-movie-review/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/movies/2022/08/16/claydream-movie-review/ |
The small Apple tracking device brought police to the home of an airline subcontractor in Florida
Apple AirTags recently helped Florida police locate more than $16,000 of items stolen from luggage from the Destin-Fort Walton Beach Airport.
The suspect, 19-year-old Giovanni De Luca, was an airline subcontractor, according to the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office.
In July, a traveler reported that her luggage never arrived at her destination, and it was later listed as lost or stolen. The bag contained items worth more than $1,600, according to police. The Apple AirTag in her suitcase, however, showed that it was last active in the area of Kathy Court in Mary Esther, Fla. Another traveler also reported that more than $15,000 in jewelry and other belongings were taken from his luggage on Aug. 9.
While investigating, deputies cross-referenced employees who lived in the vicinity of Kathy Court, and De Luca came up. Investigators went to his home in the area on Aug. 10, and the items that were reported missing were recovered.
De Luca admitted to rummaging through the first victim’s suitcase and removing an Apple AirTag, but her belongings still have not been recovered. He is currently facing two counts of grand theft.
A woman put an AirTag in one of her boxes and caught her mover lying
The small Apple tracking devices have become part of a travelers toolbox during a chaotic summer that’s been filled with canceled flights and lost luggage. Passengers have used them to locate bags when airlines said they were unable to be located.
“Traveling friends: consider getting an AirTag for your luggage. Saved my life today. And possibly the life of a dozen bagels,” Simon Doubleday, a historian at Hofstra University tweeted.
Traveling friends: consider getting an AirTag for your luggage. Saved my life today. And possibly the life of a dozen bagels.
— Simon Doubleday (@SimonDoubleday) August 13, 2022
Aviation analyst Alex Macheras said he was able to help friends with missing bags “by showing airport staff exactly where the bags were.” He said that he was only able to do this “because they had AirTags inside.”
So far this year in the United States, luggage has been mishandled at higher rates. In May 2022, more than 237,000 piece of baggage were mishandled, up from more than 132,000 from May 2021, according to the Transportation Department’s monthly Air Travel Consumer Report.
Lost or backed-up luggage has plagued international travelers, too — maybe even worse than in the United States. Earlier this summer, bags piled up at Heathrow Airport in London, thanks to a shortage of handlers. Last month, Delta sent an extra plane to London to pick up 1,000 pieces of stranded luggage. | 2022-08-16T14:33:07Z | www.washingtonpost.com | AirTag in luggage led police to more than $16,000 in stolen items - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/travel/2022/08/16/airtag-stolen-luggage/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/travel/2022/08/16/airtag-stolen-luggage/ |
Security fencing outside the FBI's headquarters in D.C. on Aug. 15. (Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images)
“The men and women of the FBI and the Justice Department are dedicated, patriotic public servants,” Attorney General Merrick Garland declared last week. This should go without saying — but now, amid rhetorical and physical attacks on federal law enforcement agents around the country, it can’t be said enough.
Former president Donald Trump and his allies have veered from one wild claim to another after last week’s FBI search of his Mar-a-Lago Club in Florida. His team insisted at first that it had handed over all the relevant documents — an assertion that proved untrue when the FBI recovered boxes of material marked as classified. Then his team said without evidence that Mr. Trump had instituted a “standing order” under which documents brought from the Oval Office to his residence were “deemed to be declassified the moment he removed them,” which is implausible under declassification procedures. Perhaps the most harmful claim was the suggestion that FBI agents planted evidence during their time on the property.
Republican allies of the former president have called the Mar-a-Lago search an act of tyranny, involving “third-world tactics” by a “rotten to the core” government no better than a dictatorship. Calls to “defund the FBI” are bizarre given that the GOP has made support for law enforcement an electoral strategy; opposition to an investigation that appears to have been conducted by the book is especially hypocritical coming from the same people who cried out for imprisoning Hillary Clinton. These smears are not only damaging to democracy; they’re also dangerous to the individual people working for agencies and institutions that have now become targets.
Those people include the federal judge who authorized the Mar-a-Lago search warrant. He and his family face threats on online message boards. (“I see a rope around his neck,” reads one post.) They include the FBI employees at a Cincinnati facility who were terrorized Thursday when an armed man tried to breach their building, and those in Phoenix, where armed protesters marched across the street from FBI offices over the weekend. The FBI and the Department of Homeland Security issued a memo on Friday noting a surge in menacing rhetoric, including a threat to place a dirty bomb outside FBI headquarters.
The New York Times reported that ever since the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection, this type of behavior has been mounting, with election workers, school board officials, librarians and more facing threats and intimidation — just for doing their jobs. Bellicose language contributes to the likelihood that violence will break out, because it makes everyday people feel as though they’re at war. Too many elected officials are fostering those feelings, casting men and women who are doing their duty as aggressors and enemies of the nation. They should instead say what Mr. Garland said, which is the truth: “Every day, they protect the American people from violent crime, terrorism and other threats to their safety. ... They do so at great personal sacrifice and risk to themselves.” Unfortunately, now that risk is even higher. | 2022-08-16T15:31:12Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Opinion | Republicans’ anti-FBI rhetoric puts agents at risk - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2022/08/16/fbi-trump-rhetoric-violence-threats/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2022/08/16/fbi-trump-rhetoric-violence-threats/ |
Former Princeton men's basketball coach Pete Carril, shown in 2015, died at 92. (Charles Fox/The Philadelphia Inquirer via AP)
The first time I appeared on ESPN’s “The Sports Reporters” was on March 19, 1989 — two days after Georgetown and Princeton met in a historic NCAA men’s basketball tournament game.
Georgetown was the No. 1 seed in the East and — informally in those days — the No. 1 seed in the tournament. Princeton was the No. 16 seed in the East and — just as informally — the No. 64 seed in the 64-team bracket.
Georgetown won, 50-49, surviving when Alonzo Mourning got his hand on a last-second 15-foot jump shot taken by Princeton center Kit Mueller. It appeared that Mourning got a piece of Mueller’s wrist, but there was no call, and the Hoyas escaped.
That Sunday morning, host Dick Schaap turned to me to open the show and said, “Did John Thompson get out-coached by Pete Carril on Friday night?”
“Yes, he did,” I answered. “But everyone gets out-coached by Pete Carril.”
Four days later, when I showed on the practice day for the East Region semifinals in the Meadowlands, I ran smack into Thompson as he walking onto the court with his players. When he stopped directly in front of me, I knew I was in trouble.
“I heard what you said on that TV show about Pete out-coaching me,” he said. “It’s about damn time you said something that was true.” He was laughing now. “You’re right. Everyone gets out-coached by that little SOB.”
Princeton and Carril — who died Monday at 92 — lost that night, but the game is seen as one of the most important in NCAA tournament history. Then — as now — the powers-that-be in the sport were talking about eliminating automatic bids for one-bid conferences to give more spots to power conference schools.
Princeton’s oh-so-close loss was later dubbed “The game that saved March Madness” by Sports Illustrated. All the stunning little-guy upsets that have come since then — including the Saint Peter’s run this past season — grew from Carril out-coaching Thompson that night in Providence, R.I.
Thompson’s respect for Carril was already well known: He’d sent his son, John III, to play for him. He liked the idea of a Princeton degree for his son. He loved the idea of him playing for college basketball’s Yoda.
At 5-foot-7, constantly rumpled on and off court, Carril actually looked a lot like Yoda, and he trained his young Tigers to play as if the Force was with them — even when the opponents came loaded with Darth Vaders in the form of future NBA players.
They ran his Princeton Offense, which made defenses dizzy because one misstep would result in a backdoor cut to the basket for an open layup, often with the shot clock under five seconds. When the three-point shot arrived in 1986, Carril adjusted to include pop-out jumpers from the wing, and the offense became even more dangerous. Cut off the backdoor pass and you might find very good shooters killing you with threes. Take away those threes and you were back to getting repeatedly beaten for layups.
Carril finished with 525 wins and 273 losses in 30 seasons in an era in which teams played far fewer games than they do now. He coached for one season at Lehigh, where he had the only losing record of his career, going 11-12. During the next 29 years at Princeton, he won 13 Ivy League titles and finished lower than third once. In 1975, when the NIT was still a big deal, Princeton won the tournament after finishing second to Pennsylvania in the Ivy League.
In 1996, his final season, Princeton had to play archrival Penn in a playoff game to decide the league title and automatic NCAA bid. Princeton, which had lost to Penn eight times in a row, won in overtime after Carril, with his team in foul trouble, switched to a zone defense — which he loathed.
Afterward, he went to the whiteboard in the locker room and wrote: “I am retiring. I am very happy.”
He wanted his players to know first.
Five days later, they faced 1995 national champion UCLA in the first round of the NCAA tournament in Indianapolis. As with the Georgetown game, the opponent was bigger, quicker and more athletic. But Princeton controlled the tempo all night. Even so, the Tigers trailed, 41-34, with five minutes left. UCLA didn’t score again.
In a timeout with the score tied at 41, Carril told freshman Gabe Lewullis to expect to be stopped the first time he cut to the basket. Sure enough, UCLA’s Charles O’Bannon was waiting for him. Lewullis returned to the wing, then, as his coach had instructed, made the cut again in the final seconds. This time, O’Bannon wasn’t ready and Lewullis caught a perfect pass from Steve Goodrich and laid the ball in for the winning basket. Princeton won, 43-41.
O’Bannon was one of four players on that UCLA team to play in the NBA. Lewullis is now an orthopedic surgeon. That evening, he was a Jedi Knight following Yoda’s instructions.
That was Carril’s last victory — in the second round the Tigers lost to Mississippi State, which ended up in the Final Four. Carril went on to work as an NBA assistant coach for 10 more years, installing the Princeton offense in Sacramento during the most successful era in that franchise’s history.
When he finally retired for good, Carril frequently made trips to Washington, D.C. to watch two of his former players, Thompson III and Mike Brennan, coach at Georgetown and American.
“He loved taking guys aside in practice and talking to them about their game,” Brennan said. “He worked with our stars, but he also worked with anyone he thought he could help play the game better.”
There was no better example than an AU player named Gabe Brown, a 7-foot-1 kid from Long Island. Brown came to American in 2014, so thin he looked like a middling breeze could blow him away.
Carril took one look at him and made him his project. He labeled Brown “the impossible dream,” and “never stopped trying to make him better,” Brennan said.
College coaches often have trouble getting into the Basketball Hall of Fame because it is so NBA-centric. Carril was voted in the year after he retired from Princeton.
His peers — like Thompson — didn’t mind getting out-coached by Carril. It was just what he did. And his players didn’t mind getting yelled at by him — which they did, quite frequently — because they knew he was right.
Reporters didn’t even mind being lectured by him — which also happened often — because they understood that they were learning, and that it was an honor to have him take the time to lecture you.
“It meant he thought you had the potential to learn,” Brennan said. “That was a big deal.”
Carril loved nothing more than talking to coaches young and old about basketball. But anyone who was around him learned something: from John Thompson to Gabe Brown and everyone in between. And while there were coaches who won games from him, no one ever out-coached Pete Carril. | 2022-08-16T15:52:59Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Pete Carril and Princeton helped create the college basketball Cinderella - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2022/08/16/pete-carril-princeton-coach/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2022/08/16/pete-carril-princeton-coach/ |
“End of an era”: The company that helped give rise to a generation of cars with powerful engines and muscular styling is moving to cleaner-powered vehicles.
A Charger sits at a Dodge dealership in Littleton, Colo., in 2020. Dodge will discontinue its gas-powered Charger and Challenger models at the end of 2023 as it transitions to cleaner-running vehicles. (David Zalubowski/AP)
Stellantis, the automotive conglomerate that owns Dodge, announced Monday that it will transition the vehicles outs of its production lineup in 2023 through a unique sale of seven “heritage” models, each of which will bear the words “last call” on a plaque underneath its hood.
“We are celebrating the end of an era ― and the start of a bright new electrified future ― by staying true to our brand,” Dodge chief executive Tim Kuniskis said in the company’s announcement.
The Charger and Challenger are part of a generation of cars with powerful engines and muscular styling — alongside the Ford Mustang, Chevrolet Camero, Pontiac GTO and the like — made popular more than five decades ago. Reintroduced in the 2000s, their retro feel and high-performance held sway with auto enthusiasts even as many car buyers gravitated to more fuel-efficient sedans, SUVs and hatchbacks. Newer models start near $30,000 but can run as much as $200,000, while a vintage 1969 Charger recently sold at auction for a record $1.32 million, according to MotorTrend magazine.
The 2023 final year editions will be allocated to dealerships “at once,” according to the company announcement, which is a shift from its normal practice of staggering sales throughout the year. The seven “heritage-influenced” 2023 models will share some connection to past models, details of which are to be released later this year.
The seventh and final model, which Dodge describes as “the very last of its kind,” will be revealed at the 2022 Specialty Equipment Market Association show in Las Vegas in early November. The announcement did not say whether it would be a Charger, Challenger or something else.
The Monday announcement did not detail the company’s muscle-car plans for 2024 and beyond, but it left open the possibility that the either brand could return.. | 2022-08-16T16:01:41Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Dodge will discontinue Charger and Challenger muscle cars - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2022/08/16/dodge-charger-challenger-muscle-cars/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2022/08/16/dodge-charger-challenger-muscle-cars/ |
Buffett Made Occidental the Kind of Company He Can Love
One of the benefits of being Warren Buffett is that you make things happen just by showing up. If he so much as gestures at a stock, it is liable to pop immediately, providing a nice self-fulfilling gain. When it comes to Occidental Petroleum Corp., the Buffett effect runs far deeper than that, and yet it is less pronounced — which says a lot about the US oil sector in 2022.
Berkshire Hathaway Inc.’s latest quarterly holdings filing, which dropped late Monday, showed a 17% stake in Oxy, as it is known, as of June. In reality, other filings put the stake above 20% now. In any case, Buffett’s company is Oxy’s largest shareholder by far. As recently as last December, Berkshire owned none of the company’s common stock. That doesn’t mean Buffett wasn’t a presence though. Far from it.
Some history. In 2019, Oxy got into a bidding war with Chevron Corp. for Anadarko Petroleum Corp., an exploration and production firm. In order to beat Chevron, a much larger oil major, Oxy went all in, eventually paying a 54% premium to Anadarko’s undisturbed share price, with four-fifths paid in cash. To fund that, Vicki Hollub, Oxy’s chief executive, made a Gulfstream pilgrimage to Omaha to secure a $10 billion check. In selling preference shares and warrants in Oxy to Buffett, Hollub also avoided having to put the deal to her own shareholders, who were, judging from the slide in Oxy’s share price, somewhat aghast.
They were right to be. They’d been sidelined, and the timing was awful. Oxy swapped an appealing equity story of decent growth and solid dividends for debt-laden empire building — just as the oil price began dropping and a year before the pandemic took hold. No one could foresee a pandemic, of course. But oil crashes? They happen.
Oil’s subsequent rebound, as Covid-19 eased and Russia invaded Ukraine, has helped enormously. Net debt and preferred equity dropped from more than $54 billion when the Anadarko deal closed to around $32 billion today. The eviscerated dividend has been partly revived, and buybacks have resumed. Oxy’s stock has more than doubled this year, trouncing the sector and the market.
Factor in dividends and buybacks, and the annualized return on Oxy’s stock since then has been all of 3.2%. That’s less than half the yield on that preferred stock to Buffett. And it’s a fraction of the 15.1% and 16.3% made on the energy sector and the S&P 500, respectively. The biggest winners? Those Anadarko shareholders, with a 130.9% annualized return.(1)
When Buffett provided that $10 billion at a cost of 8%, it was viewed by some as a bet on oil prices. I saw it as merely a function of having enough money lying around to lend to a desperate borrower at a cost of 8% — good job, too, given what happened to oil the following year. But the really remarkable thing is that, by showing up with $10 billion when he did, Buffett ended up turning Oxy into the kind of company he would like to bet on.
Those high-cost preference shares mark Oxy out from the rest of the sector, weighing on its valuation. The company can’t begin redeeming them until 2029 — unless it has paid out $4 per share on its common stock, via dividends or buybacks, in the prior 12 months. So here we have a trifecta for Buffett: A discounted stock in a company forced to be disciplined by its balance sheet and also incentivized to pay out cash rather than reinvest it. The kicker? Buffett’s own $10 billion check is the underlying cause.
Based on payouts to date, and assuming flat dividends, Oxy would hit that $4 per share mark by the end of 2022 if it buys back roughly another $2 billion between now and New Year’s Eve. Forecast free cash flow is more than triple that, so it looks easily done.
While Buffett’s relationship with Oxy is unique, taking a fifth of the company — and more than a quarter if you factor in his warrants — means he is bullish on oil and gas prices. He clearly expects them to remain healthy enough for the foreseeable future to support Oxy’s continuing buybacks and preference share dividends. This has fueled speculation that Berkshire might acquire Oxy outright. That’s possible, though it must be asked why Buffett would pay a takeover premium. His lock on the capital structure already gets him what he wants in terms of spending discipline and oil-price exposure.
The more intriguing aspect was pointed out to me by Dan Pickering, founder of Pickering Energy Partners Inc., a Houston-based investment firm. He is struck by how, in contrast to the usual hoopla when Buffett takes a stake in something, his big bet on Oxy this year (as well as Chevron) hasn’t sparked a widespread reappraisal of oil stocks. “It tells you how far out of favor the sector is,” he says.
That’s correct: Despite the jump in commodity prices and earnings, energy remains just 4.1% of the S&P 500. The same day Berkshire filed its disclosures, oil slumped by 3% on renewed fears of a slowdown in China. On the other hand, the war in Ukraine is ongoing and Brent crude remains above $95 a barrel. Buffett mustn’t see that changing anytime soon, and he is instinctively drawn to unloved sectors. In Oxy’s case, he also gets to create the reality he prefers.
• Big Oil’s Enormous Windfall Creates a Quandary: Liam Denning
• Buffett Has Advice for Barbarians at Japan’s Gate: Gearoid Reidy
(1) These are all internal rates of return factoring in dividends and buybacks. Calculated since April 11, 2019, the day before Chevron’s offer for Anadarko was announced and Oxy was reported to be a potential rival bidder. If the Anadarko return were calculated beginning April 23, 2019 — the day before Oxy’s formal offer was announced — it would be 29.1%, still nine times the annualized return for Oxy. | 2022-08-16T16:01:43Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Buffett Made Occidental the Kind of Company He Can Love - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/energy/buffett-made-occidental-the-kind-of-company-he-can-love/2022/08/16/842b9c0c-1d73-11ed-9ce6-68253bd31864_story.html | https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/energy/buffett-made-occidental-the-kind-of-company-he-can-love/2022/08/16/842b9c0c-1d73-11ed-9ce6-68253bd31864_story.html |
Ready to shop. (Photographer: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images North America)
The worst may be over for the big-box bloodbath.
On Tuesday, Walmart Inc. forecast that its earnings this year wouldn’t decline as much as it expected three weeks ago when it issued a profit warning. The Home Depot Inc. also reported record quarterly sales and profit, and maintained its guidance for the rest of its fiscal year.
After two profit warnings from Walmart in just over two months, the latest results offer some relief that things haven’t gotten any worse — at least for the world’s biggest retailer. Target Corp., which also warned on profit twice within the last few months, will report its second-quarter earnings on Wednesday.
Given that Walmart’s customer base looks a lot like the US population, this marks more good news for the broader economy on top of last week’s data showing a slowdown in inflation.
Walmart’s US same-store sales growth was better than forecast, rising by 6.5% in the second quarter. Although this was likely boosted by inflation, it does show that the company’s focus on value is still attracting customers, including higher- and middle-income families. It now expects adjusted earnings per share in the year to the end of next January to decline by up to 11% — a slight improvement on the 13% fall it predicted in late July.
The retailer, which on Monday agreed to a streaming deal for its membership program with Paramount Global, is also getting a grip on its mountain of unsold stock. Although product inventories rose 26% to $59.9 billion at the end of the second quarter compared with the year earlier, that’s down from the end of the first quarter. The shares rose 5% in early trading.
And yet, its too soon to crack open the Walmart private-label wine.
The retailer must not only work through its inventory overhang but get a handle on its escalating costs. It has made progress reducing the glut of excess products, for example in clothing, where its shelves were most full, and it has canceled billions of dollars of orders. But there is more streamlining to do in apparel, as well as in home furnishings and electronics.
The company’s fortunes — as well as those of other muscular retailers — will also depend on how consumers behave for the rest of the year.
Signs that US inflation is slowing are helpful, but price increases, for example in food, continue to be a reality for shoppers. Americans must also contend with higher borrowing costs and any weakening in the labor market.
Walmart Chief Executive Officer Doug McMillon said he expected a strong finish to the crucial back-to-school shopping season, often an indicator of how buying during the winter holidays will go.
Home Depot, meanwhile, must watch out for other factors. Refurbishing the family bathroom is a much bigger outlay than buying a new dress or even a couch. When budgets are squeezed, such sizable purchases are often deferred. It’s notable that while the average amount that Home Depot’s customers spent rose to $90.02 in the second quarter, from $82.48 in the year-earlier period, the number of customer transactions fell by 3%. Inventories also rose 38% to $26.1 billion from the same period in 2021.
DIY projects are also linked to housing market transactions. Americans are more likely to undertake a makeover project when they buy a new home, and this is slowing.
Home Depot does generate 45% of its sales from professional customers, ahead of 25% at rival Lowe’s Cos. Inc., according to Bloomberg Intelligence. So even as some consumers reined in their DIY spending, contractors continued to be busy and could pass price increases onto their own clients — indeed, this was one of the factors that contributed to the company’s strong performance. If the economy weakens later this year, however, this positive effect could be diluted.
For now, battered big-box retailers have reason to look on the bright side. Customers haven’t ratcheted down their buying behavior again, and that’s encouraging not just for companies but for the rest of the US economy.
• Democrats Are Pulling Ahead of Republicans, Just in Time for Midterms: Matthew Yglesias
• Will Housing Prices Flatten — or Collapse?: Jonathan Levin | 2022-08-16T16:01:55Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Walmart Just Signaled the End of the Big-Box Bloodbath - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/walmart-just-signaled-theend-of-the-big-box-bloodbath/2022/08/16/819ff1ac-1d7a-11ed-9ce6-68253bd31864_story.html | https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/walmart-just-signaled-theend-of-the-big-box-bloodbath/2022/08/16/819ff1ac-1d7a-11ed-9ce6-68253bd31864_story.html |
In Yosemite National Park, a fight over how to protect the world’s largest trees in a warming world
In front of El Capitan, a patch of forest in Yosemite National Park recently underwent a prescribed burn and logging, intended to restore a historic view. Dr. Chad Hanson and other environmentalists recently sued Yosemite National Park for logging trees within a national park. (Ryan Christopher Jones for The Washington Post)
Two prescribed burns set by the U.S. Forest Service that grew out of control earlier this year caused “unfathomable” destruction in New Mexico, as Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham (D) put it, destroying hundreds of homes, displacing thousands, and threatening water supplies in a burn area larger than Los Angeles.
On a recent day, Hanson hiked through the Freeman Creek Grove, which burned in the 2020 Castle fire. A study last year by Stephenson, of the USGS, and Christy Brigham, chief of resources at Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks, found that the fire killed as many as 10,000 large sequoias — wiping out up to 14 percent of all large sequoias across its natural range in the Sierra Nevada. | 2022-08-16T16:02:01Z | www.washingtonpost.com | California’s giant sequoias are burning up. Will logging save them? - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2022/08/16/giant-sequoias-fire-mariposa-grove/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2022/08/16/giant-sequoias-fire-mariposa-grove/ |
The authors tied the earlier start to climate change.
Tropical Storm Bertha seen off the coast of South Carolina on May 27, 2020, with the bright-red colors indicative of the highest, coldest cloud tops. White dots are lightning strikes. (Weathernerds.org)
For years, meteorologists have advertised June 1 as the historical start to Atlantic hurricane season — but a new paper finds tropical storms are more frequently forming before that date as the ocean warms.
The study published in Nature Communications found there’s both an earlier start date and earlier first U.S. landfall each year. It comes as the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is considering moving the official start date of the season from June 1 to May 15, which would reflect the observations of early storms and would also match the start of the eastern Pacific hurricane season.
The start date is one of several attributes of hurricanes that appear to be changing in the face of warming oceans and human-caused climate change. Strong hurricanes are also wandering father north, and there’s been an uptick in instances of rapid intensification — leading to stronger, wetter and more destructive storms.
“This was a timely topic,” said the paper’s lead author, Ryan Truchelut, a meteorologist who founded the consulting firm WeatherTiger. “There had not been a peer-reviewed paper on the onset of hurricane season for about eight years now.”
Since 2012, Truchelut said there have been at least seven instances of the National Hurricane Center issuing tropical storm watches and warnings before the official start date of the season. Atlantic hurricane season has historically peaked around mid-September on average, and activity ordinarily simmers down by the end of November. An average season contains about 14 named storms, with seven hurricanes and three major hurricanes.
Especially since the 2010s, Truchelut said the “the preponderance of unusual and preseason activity that the Atlantic saw … stands out to me.”
Since 1979, the first named Atlantic storm has been occurring about five days earlier on average per decade.
The average first U.S. landfall of a named storm has been trending earlier by about two days per decade since 1900. That equates to roughly three weeks since the turn of the 20th century.
What scientists looked at
The study focused on observational data — not forward simulations or model outputs. Using statistical methods, the group sifted through noise in the data to draw conclusions about when storms were forming — and striking land.
It’s important to note that the satellite era — when a complete view of every nook and cranny of the Atlantic has been available — only dawned in 1970. Before that, knowledge about the position and intensity of tropical cyclones largely came from ship reports and buoy observations. In earlier years in particular, that often made for possible limitations, gaps or inconsistencies in the historical record.
It’s improbable that any landfalling U.S. storms were missed, however, given the dense population of the U.S. and Gulf coastlines. That makes the “two day per decade” figure pertaining to the shifting first landfall date more reliable.
The authors point to warming sea surface temperatures, which can be closely linked to human activity, as playing a role in the expanded season. In particular, they found ocean temperatures during the spring months contribute to jump-starting a season, ruling out other factors that affect storm formation.
“The developing environment is more favorable for [storm] genesis mainly because of sea surface temperature,” Truchelut said. “We’re not seeing big changes in shear, relative humidity or upper-level temperatures.”
Truchelut said the ocean warming may be tied to both human-caused warming and natural variability.
“We do not attempt to attribute what portion of the observed 0.75 degree Celsius warming we’ve seen in May since the late 70s could be climate change versus what’s driven by natural cycles or longer-term oscillations,” he noted. “But certainly there’s some in the mix, both with climate change and natural cycles.”
Study finds Atlantic hurricanes becoming more frequent, destructive
This trend is likely to continue, he said, something that’s reflected in modeling by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
While 2022′s first named storm in the Atlantic (Alex) didn’t form until June 5, after the season’s official start date, the previous seven years featured early-season storms:
Ana (2021) — a subtropical storm that formed on May 22 and briefly swirled northeast of Bermuda.
Arthur (2020) — a 60 mph tropical storm that formed north of the northwest Bahamas on May 16 and traced a loop in the western Atlantic while avoiding land.
Bertha (2020) — a 50 mph tropical storm that formed northeast of Florida on May 27 before drifting into South Carolina and bringing flash flooding and a tornado.
Andrea (2019) — a subtropical storm that formed several hundred miles east of Florida on May 20. A broad, diffuse strip of low pressure congealed into an upper-level low, beneath which thunderstorms evolved into a subtropical storm.
Alberto (2018) — Alberto was a 65 mph tropical storm that formed east of the Yucatán Peninsula on May 25. It moved north, dropping 14.41 inches of rain in Heriberto Duquezne, Cuba before making landfall near Laguna Beach, Fla., on the evening of May 28. A gust of 59 mph was recorded at the St. George Island Bridge.
Arlene (2017) — a nontropical storm was swirling through the open ocean east of Bermuda on April 16. By the 19th, its fronts dissipated as it pinched off from the surrounding environment, with enough thunderstorms forming around its center to classify it as a subtropical storm. It yielded estimated winds of 50 mph but never tracked close to land.
Bonnie (2016) — Bonnie developed north of Great Abaco, the Bahamas, on May 28, but gradually weakened into a tropical depression before making landfall near Isle of Palms, S.C. Rainfall of 6 to 10 inches occurred, and rip currents resulted in the drowning of a 20-year-old male on the beaches of Brevard County, Fla.
Ana (2015) — the earliest landfalling U.S. named storm on record, Ana formed on May 8 east of Florida before making landfall in South Carolina two days later. Roads were washed out near Myrtle Beach, and Kinson, N.C., saw 6.7 inches of rain.
The study concluded that warming oceans in the future could continue to advance the start date of Atlantic storms by about half a day to one day per year.
James Kossin, a hurricane researcher at the Climate Service, who was not involved in the study, wrote in an email that this study builds on previous work connecting Atlantic tropical-storm season length to ocean temperatures. But he also wrote that there is not strong evidence to support additional lengthening in the future.
“[T]here is no clear reason to expect the trend to continue,” he wrote. In a blog post at RealClimate last year, he and co-authors argued that even as the oceans warms, the atmosphere may respond in ways to counter early season storm formation in the decades ahead. | 2022-08-16T16:02:07Z | www.washingtonpost.com | As oceans warm, study finds Atlantic hurricane seasons are starting sooner - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2022/08/16/hurricane-season-atlantic-earlier-climate/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2022/08/16/hurricane-season-atlantic-earlier-climate/ |
Kim M. Smith, leader of the Utah Deaf Hospital Rights movement and president of the Utah Association of the Deaf, brushes her hair away from her hearing aid as she poses for a portrait, Jan. 20, 2020, at Alta View Hospital in Sandy, Utah. (Isaac Hale/AP)
The Food and Drug Administration on Tuesday moved to make hearing aids available to consumers to buy over the counter without a prescription or medical exam, a long-awaited goal for nearly 30 million consumers.
“As early as mid-October, Americans will be able to purchase more affordable hearing aids over the counter at pharmacies and stores across the country,” President Biden said in a statement Tuesday. “This action makes good on my commitment to lower costs for American families, delivering nearly $3,000 in savings to American families for a pair of hearing aids and giving people more choices to improve their health and wellbeing.”
The president called on the FDA to make hearing aids available over the counter last year in his Promoting Competition in the American Economy executive order to help lower costs and increase competition in certain industries.
The devices will be available for individuals 18 and older with mild to moderate hearing loss. They could be purchased at pharmacies, stores and online.
The move comes more than four years after Congress ordered the FDA to craft regulations for over-the-counter devices. The new regulations will create a new category of hearing aids that will supersede state-level regulations requiring patients to visit physicians or audiologists to get prescriptions and fittings.
Hearing aids without a prescription or an exam? The FDA takes big step toward making that happen.
Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra said Tuesday that this decision is the fulfillment of a long-term goal.
“Reducing health care costs in America has been a priority of mine since Day One and this rule is expected to help us achieve quality, affordable health care access for millions of Americans in need,” he said. “Today’s action by the FDA represents a significant milestone in making hearing aids more cost-effective and accessible.”
The current price of hearing aids averages more than $5,000 per pair and they are not typically covered by traditional Medicare or other insurers. Vice President Harris said the new proposal will reduce the costs of hearing aids by hundreds and even thousands of dollars.
This change is expected to significantly benefit older adults — individuals who are most likely to experience hearing loss and to be on a fixed income — as well as those in poor and rural communities that have fewer audiologists.
The FDA’s move follows years of federal efforts to remove obstacles between patients and over-the-counter hearing aids. In 2015, the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology under Barack Obama recommended that the FDA create a new category of “basic” hearing aids that could be purchased without a prescription or a doctor’s visit. Two years later, President Donald Trump signed the Over-the-Counter Hearing Aid Act of 2017, which gave the FDA three years to enact the new rules. | 2022-08-16T16:02:13Z | www.washingtonpost.com | FDA moves to make hearing aids available over the counter - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2022/08/16/fda-hearing-aids-biden/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2022/08/16/fda-hearing-aids-biden/ |
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