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In Montana, young people put state’s response to climate change on trial

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:11 GMT

HELENA, Mont. (AP) — Rikki Held joined other young plaintiffs in a lawsuit to force Montana officials to do something about climate change after watching wildfires blacken the sky over her family’s ranch, drought stress the cattle and violent floods erode the banks of a nearby river. Held, now 22, and 15 other young people finally got their day in court Monday after suing state officials three years ago for failing to take action to curb global warming.They are trying to persuade state District Judge Kathy Seeley over a two-week trial that the state’s allegiance to fossil fuel development endangers their health and livelihoods and threatens future generations.“I know that climate change is a global issue, but Montana needs to take responsibility for our part. You can’t just blow it off and do nothing about it,” Held testified.The state court case centers on a government’s obligations to protect people against worsening climate change and is the first of dozens of similar lawsu...

Police: Maryland fatal shooting of 3 happened after parking dispute

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:11 GMT

ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) — A man was charged in a shooting that killed three men — including a father and son — and wounded three others in a neighborhood dispute over parking during a party, police said Monday.Charles Robert Smith, 43, of Annapolis, was charged with three counts of second-degree murder, three counts of attempted murder, assault and other offenses in the shooting that happened Sunday evening, Annapolis Police Chief Edward Jackson told reporters at a media briefing. Smith surrendered to authorities Sunday night without incident, the police chief said, and he was ordered held without bond Monday. Police recovered both a semi-automatic handgun and a long gun at the scene.Jackson identified the victims as Nicholas Mireles, 55, of Odenton, Maryland; Mario Antonio Mireles Ruiz, 27, of Annapolis; and Christian Marlon Segovia, 25, of Annapolis.Police responded to call for help at a home around 7:50 p.m. Sunday and found six people had been shot. The three wounded were in stable ...

Navy admiral with Pacific experience tapped as next top naval leader

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:11 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — A Navy admiral with extensive experience in the Indo-Pacific has been recommended to be the service’s next top leader, officials said Monday.Adm. Samuel Paparo, current commander of the Navy’s Pacific Fleet, was recommended by Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and is on tap to be nominated as the next chief of naval operations, although President Joe Biden has not yet formally signed off on it, the officials said. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because no public announcement has been made.The selection of Paparo comes as a bit of a surprise, since he had long been expected to move up to take over U.S. Indo-Pacific Command. Adm. Lisa Franchetti, the current vice chief of naval operations, had been widely mentioned as a leading candidate for the top Navy job.If Franchetti were selected she would have become the first woman to be a military service chief and the first woman to serve on the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Women have served as military se...

Students wounded in Michigan State shooting take steps toward lawsuit

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:11 GMT

EAST LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Two students who were among eight killed or wounded in a winter shooting at Michigan State University are taking steps toward suing the school.Attorneys for Nate Statly and Troy Forbush, who survived the shooting, have filed notices of injury and allegations of building defects at Berkey Hall, where they were shot on Feb. 13. The notices are required under Michigan law and would give Michigan State time to investigate before a lawsuit could be filed.Three students were killed and five more were wounded when a gunman opened fire at Berkey Hall and the MSU Union. Statly has suffered permanent injuries and cannot speak, walk or eat whole foods, according to the notice dated Friday. He has received care so far at four health centers.The document says easy access to buildings and a failure to improve security created a dangerous risk for injury.Forbush “pleaded for his life” with gunman Anthony McRae and shouted, “I don’t want to die,” the notice states. ...

New York City police commissioner, first woman to lead department, resigns after 18 months

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:11 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — New York City Police Commissioner Keechant Sewell, the first woman to hold the position, is stepping down after 18 months on the job.Sewell, who was appointed by Mayor Eric Adams, announced the resignation in an email to department staff Monday afternoon. “While my time here will come to a close, I will never step away from advocacy and support for the NYPD, and I will always be a champion for the people of New York City,” she wrote.Adams, a Democrat, confirmed the move in a statement, thanking Sewell for her “steadfast leadership.”Sewell took over as commissioner when Adams became mayor in January 2022, having pledged beforehand to name a woman to the post.Adams, a former police captain, took an outsized interest in the department’s operations compared with other mayors. Since Sewell’s appointment, Adams has faced questions about whether she has been granted the autonomy of past commissioners.Almost immediately after taking office, Adams hired former NYPD Chie...

O’Toole warns of ‘performance politics,’ social media perils in final Commons address

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:11 GMT

OTTAWA — Erin O’Toole is warning members of Parliament about the dangers of “performance politics” and says social media is robbing the chamber of real debate, in his final address in the House of Commons.The former Conservative leader and Ontario MP rose for the last time to address the Commons before he is set to retire from federal politics at the end of the month. O’Toole was first elected in a byelection in 2012 and served as parliamentary secretary to the trade minister at the time under the former Conservative government of Stephen Harper, before being appointed as minister for veterans affairs. After the Conservatives lost government, O’Toole placed third in the party’s 2017 leadership race to replace Harper, but ultimately won its 2020 leadership contest. He led the party through the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic and was eventually voted out by his own caucus in early 2022 after losing the 2021 federal election and considerable internal ...

Chicago police respond to weekend violence, video posted after shooting

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:11 GMT

CHICAGO — More than 30 people were shot, four fatally, this past weekend in Chicago, according to data from police.On Monday afternoon, police held a press conference regarding their efforts over the past weekend. CPD Search: Man in connection to homicide in Greater Grand Crossing "In addition to our residential neighborhoods and business corridors, our officers worked to safeguard our beaches and lakefronts," CPD Interim Superintendent Fred Waller said.Waller said there was a large presence of officers at the 45th Annual Puerto Rican Parade and Festival to respond to any possible unruly crowds or conflicts. The department recognized organizers and officers for a successful event. "The success was just team and collaboration on everyone's part," CPD Deputy Chief Roberto Nieves said. "The commander from the 14th District, Commander Collazo, did a fabulous job with her team and worked with the organizers and the entire community." READ MORE | Latest Chicago crime news Jose Lopez, ...

15-year-old boy missing from Oak Forest area, police say

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:11 GMT

OAK FOREST, Ill. — The Oak Forest Police Department is looking for the public's help in finding a 15-year-old boy who left his residence early Monday morning.15-year-old David Bellinger and his bicycle. (Courtesy: Oak Forest Police)According to police, David Bellinger left his Oak Forest residence around 5:45 a.m. and was last seen wearing all black clothing with a light, multi-colored backpack on his bicycle. Bellinger is 5-foot-8-inches tall and weighs around 150 pounds.Police said Bellinger recently moved from Hanover Park to Oak Forest and that he may be headed to see friends in Carol Stream, Bartlett, or Hanover Park. If you have any information that could help police find Bellinger, Oak Forest PD encourages you to reach out to Sgt. Burnett or Sgt. Hanlon at 708-687-1376.

Skilling: Cloudy, cooler start to the week with chances of rain Tuesday

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:11 GMT

We head into a week which opens unseasonably cool—but it's to warm to seasonal levels by this weekend. Until then each day this week is to produce below normal full day average tempsMoisture levels here remain anemic, to say the least—a continuation of the multi-month pattern which started just past a week into April and has the area in an officially declared state of moderate drought.The weekend rain system produced a paltry 0.05" of rain at both Chicago's airports—and only a trace of rain had occurred in the 21 days which had come before at Midway Airport.The area has seen just 37% of its "normal" rain since April 1----only 3.66" has fallen compared to the 9.79" we expect to see during that period. That means rainfall in Chicago is running more than a half foot (6.13" to be precise) below normal in what amounts to nearly the past 2.5 months.There is some rain in our future—perhaps a quarter inch to as much at 0.60" in the coming 36 hours—more than occurred over the weekend.The sam...

Gov. Pritzker signs Illinois anti-book banning bill into law

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:11 GMT

CHICAGO (AP) — Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker on Monday signed into law a bill that he says will make Illinois the first state in the nation to outlaw book bans.Illinois public libraries that restrict or ban materials because of “partisan or doctrinal” disapproval will be ineligible for state funding as of Jan. 1, 2024, when the new law goes into effect. The bill closing the Illinois property tax loophole may help residents buy abandoned homes “We are not saying that every book should be in every single library,” said Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias, who is also the state librarian and was the driving force behind the legislation. “What this law does is it says, let’s trust our experience and education of our librarians to decide what books should be in circulation.”The new law comes into play as states across the U.S. push to remove certain books in schools and libraries, especially those about LGBTQ+ themes and by people of color. The American...