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Enforcing minor crimes will return ‘accountability’ to Baltimore, new top prosecutor says

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:12:35 GMT

BALTIMORE (AP) — Baltimore’s top prosecutor announced Thursday a new program that allows police to issue citations for minor crimes such as loitering, drug possession and public urination — a significant shift from the more progressive policies of his predecessor, who declined to prosecute such cases.The contrasting approaches exemplify an ongoing nationwide debate between supporters of criminal justice reform and those calling for a return to the country’s more traditional “law and order” approach.Baltimore State’s Attorney Ivan Bates, who took office in January, held a news conference Thursday afternoon to announce the change, repeating a campaign promise to address so-called “quality of life” offenses. Bates said the program is a response to repeated complaints from residents who are “sick and tired” of seeing drug dealers on their blocks, among other problems. He said it will deliver a “return to accountability” in Baltimore and improve public safety. However, it’s not clear whe...

‘Nothing but a scumbag’: Ontario Premier Doug Ford comments on Bernardo move

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:12:35 GMT

Ontario Premier Doug Ford didn’t hold back on Tuesday morning when critiquing the Correctional Service of Canada’s decision to move killer Paul Bernardo to a medium-security prison.“He’s nothing but a scumbag. This SOB needs to be in jail 23 hours a day, in a maximum security [prison]”, said Ford during the question period at Queen’s Park.“The crime was the most heinous crime in Canadian history — he tortured, he raped, and he murdered these two young girls, and the pain the family is going through again should never be seen.”Officials with the Union of Canadian Correctional Officers confirmed to CityNews last week that Bernardo had been transferred from Millhaven Institution just outside of Kingston to La Macaza Institution northwest of Montreal.Commissioner of the Correctional Service Anne Kelly ordered a review to ensure the move was appropriate and evidence-based, but Ford said, “No Canadians have confidence in your dec...

Belarus’ Sabalenka waits for a handshake from Ukraine’s Elina Svitolina at French Open, meets media

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:12:35 GMT

PARIS (AP) — Aryna Sabalenka smacked a forehand winner to reach the French Open semifinals for the first time, then strode forward. Placing both hands atop the net tape, she leaned forward and stared directly at Elina Svitolina, her Ukrainian opponent.Sabalenka, the Australian Open champion whose nation, Belarus, helped Russia invade Ukraine to begin a war that now is in its 17th month, knew that Svitolina would not participate Tuesday in the usual postmatch handshake. Like other players from Ukraine, including Sabalenka’s first-round opponent at Roland Garros last week, Svitolina has avoided that traditional greeting after any match against someone from Russia or Belarus, for obvious reasons.Although not, apparently, obvious to the second-seeded Sabalenka in that moment; she explained — while speaking with the media after avoiding news conferences after the preceding two contests — that she went to the net out of “instinct.” Nor, apparently, obvious to some members of the crowd at ...

Ukrainian dam breach: What is happening and what’s at stake

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:12:35 GMT

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — The dramatic rupture of the dam that upheld Ukraine’s largest reservoir released a torrent of water Tuesday, raising fears of widespread damage and flooding in areas where tens of thousands of people live.It’s not clear what caused the breach in the Kakhovka dam, which was already damaged. Ukraine accused Russian forces of blowing up the facility, while Russian officials blamed Ukrainian military strikes.WHY IS THE DAM IMPORTANT?The 30-meter-high (98-foot-high) dam and associated hydroelectric power station sit in Russian-controlled territory along the Dnieper River about 70 kilometers (44 miles) east of the city of Kherson — a flashpoint of Russia’s war in Ukraine. Together with the power station, the dam helps provide electricity, irrigation and drinking water to a wide swath of southern Ukraine, including the illegally annexed Crimean Peninsula.Ukraine’s vast agricultural heartland, which is partially fed by the Dnieper river, is cruci...

El Salvador prosecutors said ex-president approved 1989 massacre of Jesuits

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:12:35 GMT

SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador (AP) — Prosecutors in El Salvador say they have evidence that former President Alfredo Cristiani was present at a meeting that approved the 1989 massacre of six Jesuit priests and two others by soldiers. Prosecutors who announced the case against Cristiani last year presented formal charges against the former president at an arraignment hearing late Monday, saying the plot to kill the Jesuits during the country’s 1980-1992 civil war went all the way to the top. Cristiani, who left El Salvador in 2021 and whose whereabouts are unknown, has always denied knowledge of or involvement in the killings, which shocked the world. Prosecutors said that not only did Cristiani know about and approve the 1989 killings, he also held a phone call to reassure one of the priests before he was murdered. “The investigations reveal that former President Alfredo Cristiani was present at the meeting where the crime was coordinated and authorized,” the prosecutors wrote in a stat...

Sex harassment case involving Trudeau Foundation should be heard in N.L., lawyer says

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:12:35 GMT

ST. JOHN’S, N.L. — The lawyer representing a woman who alleges she was sexually harassed by a former Northwest Territories premier says her client would likely have to end her lawsuit if a judge determines the trial should be moved to Quebec.Kathryn Marshall, with the Toronto-based law firm Levitt Sheikh, argued in Newfoundland and Labrador Supreme Court today that the case should be heard in that province, because that is where the alleged misconduct took place.She says her client, Cherry Smiley, would have to bear the cost and emotional strife of starting over with a search for a new lawyer who can speak both French and English in a case that has already been difficult and slow.Smiley’s statement of claim alleges she was sexually harassed in June 2018 in St. John’s, N.L., by Stephen Kakfwi, who was her appointed mentor through a scholarship program offered through the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation.The statement of claim was filed with the Supreme Court of New...

Canadian company pleads guilty to shipping banned seal oil to US

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:12:35 GMT

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — A Canadian company has pleaded guilty to violating federal law by illegally selling seal oil capsules to American customers.The oil is made from the blubber of seals and sold as a nutritional supplement with a promise of containing healthy fats. The company, FeelGood Natural Health Stores of Whitby, Ontario, sold and transported capsules made from harp seals, the U.S. Department of Justice said Monday.The company’s actions are illegal under the Marine Mammal Protection Act, which makes it unlawful to transport or sell any marine mammal or byproducts for most commercial purposes. The act protects the harp seal throughout its range, including the North Atlantic and Artic oceans and the waters off New England.FeelGood shipped more than 900 bottles of the capsules worth more than $10,000 to the U.S. from 2019 to 2021, the Justice Department said.“The illegal importation of marine mammal products not only violates the Marine Mammal Protection Act but al...

Vehicle theft soared in 2022, led by Quebec and Ontario: report

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:12:35 GMT

TORONTO — Insurance industry group Équité Association says vehicle theft in multiple provinces surged last year.The non-profit association, which focuses on the prevention of insurance fraud and crime, says in a report that the Canadian insurance industry lost more than a billion dollars for the first time on vehicle theft claims in 2022. Vehicle theft was up by 50 per cent in Quebec year over year, by 48.3 per cent in Ontario, by 34.5 per cent in Atlantic Canada and by 18.3 per cent in Alberta.Équité Association president and CEO Terri O’Brien says vehicle theft has become a national crisis. The report says that the national vehicle recovery rate was 57 per cent, with higher rates in Atlantic Canada and Alberta. The organization says most of the stolen vehicles in Quebec and Ontario are newer, because organized crime rings are focusing on new and luxury vehicles for maximum profit overseas.  This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 6, 2023.The Canadian Press

Cause of death for Chicago native, former UNLV football player Ryan Keeler revealed

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:12:35 GMT

LAS VEGAS — A cause of death has been given for a former Chicago area prep football standout who was continuing his college career in Las Vegas.Ryan Keeler, who attended Nazareth High School and was getting ready for his second season at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, died of a heart ailment according to the Clark County, Nevada coroners office. Per their autopsy, it was found that he had hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, which causes the thickening of the heart muscle. On February 20, Keeler died of a fatal irregular heartbeat at the age of 20 in his apartment in Las Vegas. UNLV, Nazareth High School react to Ryan Keeler's death A native of Chicago, the defensive lineman had just completed his first season at UNLV after transferring from Rutgers, where he spent his freshman season. He didn't see any playing time during his one season with the Scarlet Knights. During the 2022 campaign with the Rebels, Keeler played in seven games, registering eight tackles and a sack against Air ...

Meet the new star of MJ The Musical!

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:12:35 GMT

New star of MJ The Musical, Roman Banks, makes his debut Chicago television appearance on WGN Morning News. MJ will launch its North American tour at Broadway In Chicago’s James M. Nederlander Theatre (24 W. Randolph) from August 1 – September 2, 2023.For tickets, visit BroadwayInChicago.com.ROMAN BANKS (MJ) is an actor and musician best known for his historic run as the first BIPOC actor to portray Evan in Dear Evan Hansen on Broadway. Following the end of his stint in the title role, Banks went on to guest star as Howie in High School Musical: The Musical: The Series, closely followed by his role in TikTok's first-ever commissioned livestream musical, For You, Paige.