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2 employees of town near planned Ford truck plant indicted

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:08:08 GMT

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — Two employees of a rural Tennessee town that resisted a takeover attempt by the state after Ford Motor Co. announced plans to build an electric truck plant nearby have been charged with the theft of town funds and official misconduct, officials said Wednesday.Reva Marshall, the former finance officer for the town of Mason, and Michele Scott, Mason’s human resources manager, have been indicted by grand juries in two counties, the Tennessee Comptroller’s Office said in a news release and an investigative report.Both Marshall and Scott were charged with receiving tens of thousands of dollars in improper wages, benefits and reimbursements from Mason by submitting timesheets for many more hours than they actually worked, officials said. They also worked full-time for the Memphis-Shelby County Schools system while also employed by Mason, receiving compensation from both entities for the same hours of work, officials said.In a report released Wednesday, in...

Ex-women’s prison warden gets 6 years for inmate sex abuse

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:08:08 GMT

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — The former warden of an abuse-plagued federal women’s prison in the San Francisco Bay Area was sentenced Wednesday to nearly six years in prison for sexually abusing incarcerated women.A judge sentenced Ray J. Garcia to 70 months in prison for sexually abusing three female inmates and forcing them to pose naked for photos in their cells at the Federal Correctional Institute in Dublin, about 21 miles (34 kilometers) east of Oakland. He must also register as a sex offender with the state of California. A jury in December found Garcia guilty of eight counts of sexual abuse and one count of lying to the FBI. He was among five workers charged with abusing inmates at the federal correctional institution and the first to go to trial.Garcia, 55, retired from his post in 2021 after the FBI found nude photos of inmates on his government-issued phone. Garcia was charged with abusing three inmates between December 2019 and July 2021. Two of the three women Garcia was conv...

Oil exec held for 5 years in Venezuela sues Citgo for $100M

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:08:08 GMT

HOUSTON (AP) — One of the Citgo oil executives who was held for nearly five years in Venezuela has sued his company for $100 million, alleging it conspired in his detention and then abandoned him and his family as he wasted away in horrific prison conditions for a crime he didn’t commit.Tomeu Vadell was one of six executives who worked for Houston-based Citgo when they were lured to Venezuela right before Thanksgiving in 2017 to attend a meeting at the headquarters of the company’s parent, the Venezuelan-run-oil giant known as PDVSA. Once there, they were hauled from a Caracas conference room by masked security agents.A Venezuelan judge later convicted the six executives of embezzlement and sentenced them to between eight years and 13 years in prison in a trial marred by delays and irregularities. In his lawsuit, Vadell’s lawyers allege Citgo lured him and the other executives, who became known as the Citgo 6, as part of a scheme to be used as “political pawns.” The lawsuit alleges ...

Police-reported hate crimes rise again, as pandemic worsens discrimination: StatCan

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:08:08 GMT

OTTAWA — New figures released by Statistics Canada show hate crimes reported to police continued to spike across the country in the second year of the pandemic as people were targeted by race, religion and sexual orientation.The agency says in a news release that all provinces and territories experienced increases in hate crime reports in 2021 except Yukon, where they were unchanged.Incidents motivated by religion were up 67 per cent across Canada, while reports to police involving sexual orientation rose by 63 per cent, and race-related incidents were up six per cent.The statistics agency says the pandemic “exacerbated experiences of discrimination,” including hate crimes, and “underscored an increase in discourse” about the issue.Overall, there were 3,360 hate crimes of all motivations reported to police in 2021, up by 27 per cent, after a 35 per cent increase in 2020.Reports of hate crime targeting East or Southeast Asians rose 16 per cent to 305 incidents...

Alberta information commissioner to investigate Kearl tailings leak notifications

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:08:08 GMT

EDMONTON — Alberta’s information commissioner has started an investigation into how the province’s energy regulator notified the public about tailings pond releases at Imperial Oil’s Kearl mine.“Information and Privacy Commissioner Diane McLeod has launched an investigation into the Alberta Energy Regulator concerning AER’s consideration of the public interest override,” said a news release Wednesday from the commissioner.In the release, McLeod said the probe is to examine whether the regulator had a duty to release information about risks to the environment, public health or a group of people.“Did AER have a duty … to disclose information that is clearly in the public interest?” the release asks. The investigation could also be expanded to include “any other implicated public body,” it says. The probe stems from two releases of toxic oilsands tailings water from the Kearl mine north of Fort McMurray, Alta.The first release was s...

Johnson, Vallas return to campaign trail after WGN debate

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:08:08 GMT

CHICAGO, Ill. --- No break for the Chicago mayoral candidates after Tuesday's debate. Following the WGN debate, they left early last night and got right back to work.Fresh off the WGN-TV debate, the candidates for mayor returned to the campaign trail with Election Day only 13 days away.  Full recap on the WGN-TV Chicago Mayoral Debate In Pilsen, Paul Vallas scored an endorsement from former Governor Pat Quinn."It’s important that we have a good mayor, a mayor who stands up for everyday people, and that’s Paul Vallas," Quinn said. "We need a mayor who’s going to put that office back into city hall to fight for people paying unfair property taxes. We’ve gotta have a fighter."Vallas ran as Quinn’s Lieutenant Governor candidate in 2014."The older you get, the circle reconnects again," Vallas said. "I’m so pleased and so proud to have this endorsement, from my friend."Vallas also addressed transportation with leaders in Chicago’s Polish National Alliance."When you talk about to improve...

Bad Bunny's ex-girlfriend files $40M lawsuit

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:08:08 GMT

Three words may cost Bad Bunny millions of dollars."Bad Bunny, baby" is the phrase at the center of a lawsuit filed by Carliz de la Cruz Hernández, the ex-girlfriend of the global superstar. She claims she sent the singer a voice memo with that recording back in 2015, before he became a global sensation and before they broke up. Lollapalooza 2023 official lineup revealed The recording was included in two of the artist’s songs, according to a lawsuit filed this month in a Puerto Rico court. Hernández said that her voice and the phrase she came up with are being used without her permission.The lawsuit, which was first reported by online Puerto Rico news site Noticel, notes that the phrase was used in the “Pa Ti,” song, which has more than 355 million views on YouTube and more than 235 million plays on Spotify. It also was used in the “Dos Mil 16” song, which has more than 60 million views on YouTube and 280 million plays on Spotify.Hernández says the clip follows her around everywhe...

Possible tornado damages buildings near Los Angeles

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:08:08 GMT

(KTLA) - A possible tornado has damaged multiple buildings in the Los Angeles suburb of Montebello, and video of the incident shows a trail of destruction.The Verdugo Fire Communications Center said the "weather incident" was reported a few minutes before 11:30 a.m. when they responded to an area along South Vail Street. Photos: Possible tornado touches down near Los Angeles, leaves damage in its wake Images from the scene show ripped-off parts of roofing on what appear to be commercial buildings and debris strewn about the area. Damage spread over more than one city block but the extent of the perimeter was still being determined.A reported tornado damaged buildings in Montebello on March 22, 2023. (Anthony Ortiz)A video shared with Nexstar's KTLA shows what appears to be a funnel cloud descending from the clouds above: The owner of a recycling company in the area told KTLA he was driving when the weather event occurred and he later saw the activity...

Los Angeles man leads authorities on 78-mile pursuit

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:08:08 GMT

(KTLA) -- A 22-year-old from Los Angeles was arrested after allegedly almost hit a deputy during a traffic stop and then led authorities on a 78-mile pursuit. Richard Whitfield was observed by a deputy failing to stop at a stop sign at La Mesa Road and Berrydale Street in Victorville around 8:40 p.m. Monday night, according to San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Deputies at the Victorville station.Upon being pulled over, Whitfield allegedly provided false information to the deputy and drove away, nearly striking the deputy with his vehicle. Whitfield led the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department and California Highway Patrol units on a 78-mile pursuit that started in Victorville and ended in Pomona when his 2023 Mercedes became disabled. During the pursuit, Whitfield drove over 100 mph “with a disregard for safety,” authorities said. When his vehicle became disabled, he attempted to flee on foot but was quickly apprehended. Whitfield was booked into the West Valley D...

Proposed law would let Illinois convicts earn parole regardless of crime

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:08:08 GMT

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WTVO) — One of the architects of the controversial SAFE-T Act has proposed legislation that would allow prisoners serving a life sentence to become eligible for parole.Rep. Justin Slaughter (D-Chicago) introduced House Bill 2045 this month.The bill, if adopted as law, would allow any offender over the age of 55 who has been sentenced to serve life in prison, to become eligible for parole.“We believe it is going to increase public safety,” Slaughter said, according to The Center Square. “The efforts will indeed help citizens become more productive, positive citizens.” Slaughter is a member of the Legislative Black Caucus, which introduced the original Safety, Accountability, Fairness, and Equity-Today Act (SAFE-T Act) as a response to the murder of George Floyd, and was passed by the Illinois Senate and House of Representatives in the early hours of Jan. 13, 2021.Many Illinois law enforcement agencies have warned the act, which abolishes cash bail in the state, wil...