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Atmospheric river floods California towns, brings rain, snow

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:10:45 GMT

SANTA CRUZ, Calif. (AP) — More than 9,000 California residents were under evacuation orders Friday as a new atmospheric river brought heavy rain, thunderstorms and strong winds, swelling rivers and creeks and flooding several major highways and small rural communities.In Santa Cruz County, a creek bloated by rain destroyed a portion of Main Street in Soquel, a town of 10,000 people, isolating several neighborhoods. Crews were working to remove trees and other debris and find a way for people to cross the creek, county officials said. County authorities asked the town’s residents to stay indoors. Heather Wingfield, a teacher who runs a small urban farm with her husband in Soquel, said she and her neighbors were, for the time being, trapped in their homes as Bates Creek rushed through what was once Main Street.“It’s horrible,” she said. “Hopefully no one has a medical emergency.”Wingfield said her neighbors’ water infrastructure was also washed out, but that her family’s well wo...

Texas women sued for wrongful death after aiding in abortion

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:10:45 GMT

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Three women in Texas are being sued for wrongful death by a man who claims they helped his now-ex-wife obtain medication for an abortion. It’s another test of state-enforced bans since the U.S. Supreme court overturned the Roe v. Wade decision. In a lawsuit filed late Thursday in Galveston County, Marcus Silva alleges assisting in a self-administered abortion is tantamount to aiding a murder. Silva is seeking $1 million in damages.The woman who took the medication in July — weeks after the Supreme Court struck down the constitutional right to abortion that had been in place since 1973 — is not named in the lawsuit. Texas law protects women who get an abortion from being held liable.Abortion rights groups condemned the lawsuit, calling it an intimidation tactic.“This is an outrageous attempt to scare people from getting abortion care and intimidate those who support their friends, family, and community in their time of need,” Autumn Katz, a lawyer wit...

Michael Cohen to testify Monday in Trump hush-money probe

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:10:45 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Donald Trump’s former lawyer and fixer Michael Cohen is scheduled to testify Monday before a Manhattan grand jury investigating hush-money payments made on the former president’s behalf, two people familiar with the matter told The Associated Press. They were not authorized to speak publicly about grand jury proceedings and did so on condition of anonymity.Cohen is a key witness in Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s investigation and his testimony is coming at a critical time, as prosecutors close in on a decision on whether to seek charges against Trump. Prosecutors sometimes save their most important witnesses until the end stages of a grand jury investigation.Cohen has been meeting regularly with Manhattan prosecutors in recent weeks, including a day-long session Friday to prepare for his appearance before the grand jury, which has been hearing evidence in the matter since January.Cohen declined to comment to reporters as he left the meeting, saying h...

New Heritage Minutes are coming with stories of diverse communities

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:10:45 GMT

Much loved and often parodied, Heritage Minutes could themselves be called a Canadian classic. But since their revival in 2012, the makers of the 60-second sagas have been working to make them more reflective of all communities that call this country home.“For a very long time, Canadian history was really only told through the eyes of specific groups of people — the people who are running the country,” says Anthony Wilson-Smith, President and CEO of Historica Canada, the charitable organization behind the videos.“The people at kind of ground level are the ones who are just as interesting and often shape [history] — a Black civil rights pioneer, Indigenous people who were here before anybody else … our goal is that every Canadian should be able to see themselves reflected in a [Heritage Minute].”He adds that they’re making efforts to ensure representation both in concept and execution.“The company that is producing for us has to h...

MPP Vincent Ke resigns from Ontario PC caucus

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:10:45 GMT

Vincent Ke, an MPP representing Don Valley North, has resigned from Ontario’s Progressive Conservative Party.This follows a report by Global News that Ke was allegedly involved with Chinese interference in at least two instances. Ke is alleged to have served as a financial intermediary for the Chinese communist party.In a statement, Ke refuted the allegations, calling them false and defamatory, but acknowledged he didn’t want to be a distraction.“I will be stepping away from the PC Caucus in order to dedicate my time to clearing my name and representing my constituents,” Ke said.pic.twitter.com/g75IvKqsAP— Vincent Ke – MPP (@vincentkempp) March 11, 2023Premier Doug Ford says that while the allegations against Ke are not proven, “they are serious and deserve his full and undivided attention.”“As a result, and out of an abundance of caution, Mr. Ke offered to step away from the Ontario PC caucus to sit as an independent. The Premie...

3 women missing in Mexico after crossing from Texas on trip

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:10:45 GMT

PEÑITAS, Texas (AP) — Two sisters from Texas and a friend are missing in Mexico after they crossed the border last month to sell clothes at a flea market, U.S. authorities said Friday.The abduction of four Americans in Mexico that was caught on video last week received an avalanche of attention and was resolved in a matter of days. But the fate of the three women, who haven’t been heard from in about two weeks, remains a mystery and has garnered relatively little publicity.The FBI said Friday it is aware that two sisters from Peñitas, a small border city in Texas near McAllen, and their friend have gone missing. Peñitas Police Chief Roel Bermea said their families have been in touch with Mexican authorities, who are investigating their disappearance.Beyond that, officials in the U.S. and Mexico haven’t said much about their pursuit of Maritza Trinidad Perez Rios, 47; Marina Perez Rios, 48; and their friend, Dora Alicia Cervantes Saenz, 53.The episode stands in stark contrast t...

Evanston home bombarded with packages due to shipping error

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:10:45 GMT

EVANSTON, Ill. — Evanston resident Samantha Schwimmer says she has had her share of Amazon packages not addressed to her showing up at her doorstep. For at least a year now, Schwimmer says hundreds of Amazon packages for Trulee Evanston, a senior living community a few blocks from her home, keep showing up at her house. Trulee Evanston’s address is 1815 Norwood Court. Schwimmer’s address has the same numbers but is not on the same street. MORE EVANSTON NEWS | Fraternity at Northwestern University to shut down over repeat violations"At first it was just an annoyance and then it just got the point like, 'what a minute, these are senior citizens who probably really need those medications and don’t have other ways of getting it,"' Schwimmer said.  According to Schwimmer, someone from Amazon called her Friday and told her about a possible glitch in their system. “If a number of an address is near another number that is similar, the system can confuse the locations,” Schwim...

U.S. Secretary of Education visits Austin school

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:10:45 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — On Friday, U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona visited Webb Middle School in Austin.Cardona toured the school, spoke to parents and laid out his priorities to promote academic excellence. He also discussed the importance of providing every student with a pathway to multilingualism."We believe firmly that to get our students to be able to succeed anywhere in the world. We need to promote multilingualism,” Cardona said. “We have $1.2 billion in the budget for multilingualism, our Title 3, which is the grant that oversees that, the proposal calls for another $300 million to make sure we have more access to programs like the one we saw here.”Secretary Cardona was also scheduled to moderate a discussion panel at South by Southwest Friday, which would focus on ways to develop and implement career pathway programs.

Class A state boys hockey semifinal: Warroad’s double overtime winner spoils Orono’s comeback

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:10:45 GMT

With everything falling apart around the unbeaten Warriors in the third period of the Class A state semifinals, Warriors senior defender Erick Comstock kept repeating three words: “Want to win.”Will would determine who would advance from a wild thriller between Warroad and Orono. After opening up a 3-0 lead, frankly, fourth-seeded Orono put the favorites on their heels with three straight goals.Heading into the second overtime period with the contest tied 3-3, Warroad coach Jay Hardwick told his team it simply had to find a way.“We had to dig deep and find it in our hearts somehow to win a hockey game,” Hardwick said. “We just had to go out and find a way, and I couldn’t have thought of a better way there. Short and sweet.”Orono was the aggressor in the first overtime, as well, generating more Grade-A opportunities. Warroad relies heavily on its top line. There is no real break between the third period and the first overtime. Warriors star forward Jayson Shaugabay admitted he was ga...

In Minnesota Opera’s sold-out premiere of ‘The Song Poet,’ Hmong American story is told

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:10:45 GMT

For the Minnesota Opera’s 50th world premiere in 60 years, the company presents the first opera in its history where the composer and librettist have been women. The production is made in collaboration with Theater Mu with stage direction by Rick Shiomi.St. Paul writer Kao Kalia Yang wrote the book “The Song Poet” about her father, Bee Yang. Its title comes from the Hmong Song Poet tradition. Bee Yang would wander from village to village, collecting stories and turning them into song.Bee Yang’s story, which Kao Kalia Yang has adapted into a libretto for the Minnesota Opera’s production, follows Bee Yang (played by Huiyin Tan as the young Bee and Museop Kim as the adult Bee) throughout his life. He falls in love with Yang’s mother, Chue Moua (Corissa Bussian), experiences America’s Secret War in Laos during the Vietnam War, lives in a refugee camp, moves to the United States and, finally, returns to visit Laos.Two singers playing Bee Yang at different ages. Huiyin Tan, who was seen e...