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Ethics agency says Delaware officials improperly paid employees to care for seized farm animals

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 14:45:24 GMT

DOVER, Del. (AP) — Delaware’s government ethics agency has determined that the state agriculture secretary and one of his top deputies violated state law by entering into no-bid agreements with Department of Agriculture employees to care for farm animals seized by animal welfare officials.The Public Integrity Commission ruled Monday that Agriculture Secretary Michael Scuse improperly agreed to pay one of his employees more than $90,000 as part of a no-bid agreement to take care of a flock of poultry after almost 500 birds were seized in May.The commission said the arrangement violated a law that prohibits any state employee from assisting a private enterprise in any matter involving that employee’s state agency. The commission said Scuse also violated a law requiring state employees to conduct themselves in a way that does not raise suspicion that they are violating the public trust or engaging in conduct that reflects unfavorably on state government.The commission also found that J...

Colorado forensic scientist under investigation for DNA test 'anomalies'

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 14:45:24 GMT

DENVER (KDVR) — A forensic scientist is no longer working with the Colorado Bureau of Investigation after "anomalies" were discovered in her DNA testing work.According to CBI, the former CBI employee is subject to internal affairs and criminal investigations because of the anomalies in her work, which were discovered while reviewing a sampling of cases as part of an internal process. Aurora officer Nathan Woodyard acquitted in Elijah McClain’s death Yvonne "Missy" Woods worked in CBI's Forensic Services division for 29 years, according to CBI.CBI is conducting the internal investigation in conjunction with experts from the Kansas Bureau of Investigation. CBI said it is also working to identify an outside state investigative agency to conduct the criminal investigation.Woods' work is being "meticulously" reviewed, according to CBI.CBI said it is also beginning an "exhaustive review" of testing procedures and processes used in the forensic lab, ensuring the lab's integrity and worki...

7 charities stand to benefit from Denver giving machines

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 14:45:24 GMT

DENVER (KDVR) -- If giving to charity was as straightforward as using a vending machine, how likely would you be to donate that way?In Denver, the machines have been popular ways to easily give back since they were "unwrapped" in December 2019. Last year, the machines garnered over $267,000 in donations. Giving machines globally have collected over $22 million since their introduction in 2017. Why are buildings lit green in Denver this week? This year, four machines are going to be located at the entrance of the Cherry Creek North Winter Wanderland Holiday Market, near 2nd Avenue and Fillmore Street. The machines will be ready for donors on Nov. 16-Dec. 24.Participants get to "choose an item, change a life," and can also donate online if it's too difficult to make it to an in-person machine. Donors can receive text or email receipts for workplace matching programs or tax deductions.This year's charities include five new Colorado-based groups and two global groups. The charities ar...

Nice in November

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 14:45:24 GMT

A fine weather pattern is in progress, south Florida. At the heart of this is a sprawling area of high pressure. The high expands across the Gulf of Mexico, Florida Peninsula, and western Atlantic. That’s about 1,500 miles from west to east! It’s creating stable weather (including favorable, sinking air) which means quiet conditions across the region. On Monday, the high prompted winds from the north with lots of sunshine. Mostly dry times will continue, although there’s a tiny rain chance (around 10%). The reason is simple, as winds become onshore, they could carry a stray shower from the ocean. Beach locations, mainly, could encounter a brief sprinkle or two. You’ve probably noticed how comfortable it is. Humidity readings have fallen recently, around the high pressure dome. As we get deeper into the week, more muggy air will return (so enjoy it now). Warmer temperatures will also make a comeback. Nights will warm into the middle 70’s by We...

Italy announces deal to build migrant centers in Albania

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 14:45:24 GMT

Italy will build two migrant centers in northwest Albania to house migrants rescued at sea by Italian boats but not those who have made it to shore, the prime ministers of the two countries announced on Monday. “Mass illegal immigration is a phenomenon no EU member state can handle alone,” said Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni at a joint news conference in Rome with her Albanian counterpart, Edi Rama. Meloni, who heads the right-wing, nationalist Brothers of Italy party, came to power in 2022 promising to curb immigration but year-on-year, arrivals have nearly doubled. Brothers of Italy has long promised to crack down on undocumented migrants, including by building processing facilities outside the EU. Despite Meloni’s election promise to stop boat crossings from North Africa, more than 145,000 people have arrived in Italy by sea so far in 2023, compared to around 88,000 in the same period in 2022. Prior to becoming prime minister, Meloni said Italy should “repatriate migrants ...

CDC to expand disease surveillance at four major US airports, including Logan

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 14:45:24 GMT

(CNN) — The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is expanding its infectious disease surveillance program at four major US airports to more than 30 pathogens, including flu, RSV and other respiratory viruses.The Traveler-based Genomic Surveillance program, led by CDC’s Travelers’ Health Branch, was introduced during the Covid-19 pandemic to detect new SARS-CoV-2 variants and other pathogens through nasal swab and wastewater sample collection from arriving international travelers at US airports.“We have known that travelers are a very important population to consider for tracking new and emerging infections,” Dr. Cindy Friedman, who leads the CDC’s traveler genomic surveillance program and is the chief of the agency’s Travelers’ Health Branch, told CNN.The program currently operates Covid-19 surveillance at seven major international airports in the United States. For a pilot program, it’s now expanding to test for more than 30 bacteria, antimicrobial resistanc...

Harvard professor finishes cross-country run from San Francisco to New York City in record time

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 14:45:24 GMT

A Harvard University professor recently went the distance, running from San Francisco to New York City in record time.Jennifer Hoffman documented the entire run online. After finishing on Friday of last week, she spoke to 7NEWS about the experience. “This time, the luck was with me and I made it,” she said.“It’s what fit in my life and I feel like I had the opportunity to do this great run across the US and seize the day,” she continued.In addition to being a professor, Hoffman is also a marathon runner. Hoffman started her nearly 3,000-mile run in September with a plan to average 60 miles per day. She said her goal was not just to get to New York. Rather, she aimed to achieve the fastest time for a transcontinental run by a woman. “We have a beautiful country and I’m really grateful for the chance to see it at the pace of a foot on foot,” she said. “I really saw a lot of beautiful sights and have a great appreciation for the geographical diversity of our country...

East Boston boys stun Excel in OT

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 14:45:24 GMT

Senior midfielder Adriano Garcia Gomez finished with a pair of goals and netted an assist, while eighth-grader Ronaldo Palma Martinez buried the game-clinching tally in overtime as No. 27 East Boston overcame a three-goal deficit to stun No. 6 Excel, 4-3, in the Div. 4 Round of 32.“It even goes back to when we played (Excel) earlier in the season,” said East Boston coach Jayson Smith. “They beat us 5-0… then, just the continuous work that the kids have put in. Those guys show up everyday, and they make the decision that they’re going to work hard, that they’re going to get better everyday. That’s really our goal, is to just keep on getting better than we were the day before. They answered the call every day. I couldn’t be more proud of them. They’re fantastic kids, they really are.”For the majority of the game, East Boston (8-9-2) found itself chasing. The Jets got off to a rocky start, as Excel standout Mohamed Mehaya buried two consecutive goals in a three-minute span. Just moment...

Ticker: A processing glitch has held up a ‘small percentage’ of bank deposits since Thursday, overseer says; Nearly 1M chickens will be killed on a Minnesota farm because of bird flu

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 14:45:24 GMT

A processing glitch in the network that processes electronic transfers between nearly all U.S. bank accounts led to delays in settling deposits, some of which remain stalled, according to the private company that operates the system.The Clearing House Payments Co. said Monday that a technical error on Thursday resulted in some payment information sent to banks with account numbers and customer names masked, preventing them from being processed immediately. TCH, as the company is known, is owned by a group of 22 major banks, including Citibank, Wells Fargo, Bank of America and J.P. Morgan Chase.Many customers have complained about the problem on social media, noting that delayed paycheck deposits have imperiled important automatic payments such as mortgage payments, rent and credit-card bills.Nearly 1M chickens will be killed on a Minnesota farm because of bird fluNearly 1 million chickens on a Minnesota egg farm will be slaughtered to help limit the spread of the highly contagious b...

Robbins: Left’s Hamas lobby holds Biden support hostage

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 14:45:24 GMT

In the stiff competition to produce the least credible members of Congress,  the Republican Party’s leading entrants are George Santos and Marjorie Taylor Greene, and the Democrats’ top contender has to be Rashida Tlaib. The Michigan Congresswoman has worked tirelessly to burnish her reputation for mendacity, doing so on a nearly 24/7 basis since Oct. 7, when several thousand Hamas terrorists invaded Israeli communities and slaughtered 1,400 civilians in their homes and while they were at a music festival, blowing some to pieces and burning others alive.When Palestinian Islamic Jihad fired a rocket from Gaza hoping to murder Israeli civilians and instead hit a Gazan hospital, Tlaib dutifully and angrily repeated Hamas’ falsehood that Israel was to blame, and continued to repeat the false claim even after international intelligence agencies and a battery of independent experts confirmed that what Hamas and Tlaib were claiming was actually a lie. Tlaib doesn’t merely defend Hamas’ “Ki...