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Federal grand jury charges ex-GOP candidate with shootings on lawmakers’ homes

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:28:34 GMT

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — A failed political candidate has been indicted on federal charges including interference with the electoral process in connection with a series of drive-by shootings at the homes of state and local lawmakers in Albuquerque, according to a grand jury indictment that was unsealed Wednesday.The indictment filed in U.S. District Court in Albuquerque takes aim at failed Republican candidate Solomon Peña and two named accomplices with felony charges of interfering with federally protected activities, as well as weapons-related counts, in connection with the shootings in December 2022 and January of this year on the homes of four Democratic officials, including the current state House speaker.The attacks came amid a surge of threats and acts of intimidation against election workers and public officials across the country after former President Donald Trump and his allies spread false claims about the outcome of the 2020 presidential election.U.S. Attorney Alexander Ub...

What led to Danny Masterson’s rape retrial and what happens next

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:28:34 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A Los Angeles jury on Wednesday convicted actor Danny Masterson of two counts of rape in a retrial that focused on allegations the “That ‘70s Show’ star raped three women between 2001 and 2003. The verdict sided with two of Masterson’s accusers, but the panel was unable to reach a verdict on similar allegations by a longtime girlfriend of Masterson. The actor, who was led from court in handcuffs after being a free man throughout the proceedings, faces 30 years to life in prison when he is sentenced. The second trial made the Church of Scientology, which Masterson is a member of, a prominent element. Here are some of the key elements that emerged during the three-week retrial and what’s next for the actor.WHAT’S NEXT FOR MASTERSONThe actor will remain in custody while he awaits sentencing, which hasn’t been scheduled yet.The women Masterson is convicted of raping could give victim impact statements during the sentencing hearing, and th...

14-year-old girl charged for setting off firework on TTC bus in Scarborough

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:28:34 GMT

A 14-year-old girl was arrested and charged for deliberately setting off a firework on a packed TTC bus in Scarborough.Toronto police said the female suspect was travelling northbound on a TTC bus in the Kingston Road and Guildwood Parkway area on Tuesday.It’s alleged that the girl set off the firework while the bus was at full capacity. No injuries were reported to the police.The 14-year-old was arrested on Wednesday and charged with mischief endangering life. She will appear in court on July 14, 2023.The female youth was not identified due to the province’s Youth Criminal Justice Act.The incident was captured on video and shared on social media, prompting an investigation by the TTC.A TTC spokesperson said on Wednesday that they were made aware of two additional incidents of people being reckless with fireworks, marking seven confirmed incidents of the exact nature in nine days.“We have downloaded the video, and our investigation is ongoing,” the TTC spokes...

California judge dismisses criminal charges against PG&E in 2020 fatal fire

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:28:34 GMT

REDDING, Calif. (AP) — A California judge on Wednesday dismissed all charges against Pacific Gas & Electric in connection to a 2020 fatal wildfire sparked by its equipment that destroyed hundreds of homes and killed four people, including an 8-year-old child.The utility also reached a $50 million settlement agreement with the Shasta County District Attorney’s Office, officials from both announced in separate statements. The wind-whipped blaze began on Sept. 27, 2020, and raged through rugged terrain and small communities west of Redding, killing four people, burning about 200 homes and blackening about 87 square miles (225 square kilometers) of land in Shasta and Tehama counties.In 2021, state fire investigators concluded the fire was sparked by a gray pine tree that fell onto a PG&E distribution line. Shasta and Tehama counties sued the utility, alleging negligence. They said PG&E failed to remove the tree even though it had been marked for removal two years earli...

3 activists arrested after their fund bailed out protestors of Atlanta’s ‘Cop City’

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:28:34 GMT

ATLANTA (AP) — Police on Wednesday arrested three Atlanta organizers who have been aiding protesters against the city’s proposed police and fire training center, striking at the structure that supports the fight against what opponents derisively call “Cop City.”The Georgia Bureau of Investigation announced its agents and Atlanta police had arrested three leaders of the Atlanta Solidarity Fund, which has bailed out protesters and helped them find lawyers.Charged with money laundering and charity fraud are Marlon Scott Kautz, 39, of Atlanta; Savannah D. Patterson, 30, of Savannah; and Adele MacLean, 42, of Atlanta.State investigators said they found evidence linking all three to financial crimes. Police executed warrants Wednesday morning at a house owned by Kautz and MacLean that is emblazoned with anti-police graffiti in an otherwise gentrified neighborhood east of downtown Atlanta.Attorney Don Samuel, who is representing the three activists, said Wednesday afternoon that he h...

‘Ted Lasso’ finale proved its whole point – that those who are stuck can overcome (SPOILERS)

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:28:34 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Roy Kent cries. Nate Shelley apologizes. Rebecca Welton lets her anger go. Trent Crimm finishes his book. Keeley Jones embraces her strength. And the kind-to-a-fault but often lost Ted Lasso finally — after three seasons, but arguably after nearly a lifetime — figures out exactly where he needs to be.Criticized by some for losing its way in its third season, “Ted Lasso” ended up exactly on brand — by taking a sharply drawn crew of characters who had lost their ways and gotten stuck, and freeing them from shackles that were often of their own making. “Can people change?” Roy Kent (Brett Goldstein) wonders. The answer, after Wednesday, is a resounding “probably.” “Perfect is boring,” Coach Beard (Brendan Hunt) says at one point in the season ( and likely series ) finale. And if there had been a travel guide to the three seasons of the Apple TV+ show, that quote might well have sat opposite the title page. “Ted Lasso” has been a Whitman’s Sampler of pa...

Woman assaulted while jogging in Scarborough, man wanted

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:28:34 GMT

Toronto police are attempting to identify a man wanted for assaulting a woman while she was jogging in the Port Union neighbourhood of Scarborough.Officers were called to the Port Union Road and Lawrence Avenue East area around 4 p.m. on Monday for reports of an assault.It’s alleged that a woman was out for a run in the area when a man approached her from behind and assaulted her. He then fled to the Rouge Hill Go Station and boarded a westbound train.Around the same time, police were notified that the man approached other women in the Starspray Boulevard and Lawrence Avenue East area.It’s alleged that the male suspect would run up to women and try and start up a conversation with them.Police said the man is described as in his late 20s, with dreadlocks and a large lower lip.He was last seen wearing a black and red hooded sweatshirt with “Friday the 13th” and the “Jason Voorhees” character, black pants, Ewing runners, and black sunglasses.Suspect ...

Bolivia: Trustee probing bankrupt bank died by suicide, no foul play found in fall from building

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:28:34 GMT

LA PAZ, Bolivia (AP) — The trustee of a bankrupt bank in Bolivia who died after falling from the 15th floor of an office building killed himself, a forensic investigation concluded Wednesday, casting new doubts on a case that has gripped Bolivia amid accusations of a cover up and as the country faces an economic downturn and President Luis Arce grapples with corruption accusations.“We have investigated all hypotheses and have scientifically and technically demonstrated that the death of Carlos Alberto Colodro was a suicide,” Government Minister Carlos Eduardo del Castillo said Wednesday in a news conference. “The cameras show Mr. Colodro entering the 15th floor completely alone.”But the family of Colodro, who was found dead Saturday, disputed the findings, insisting he was the victim of foul play, as former presidents from differing political leanings — including Arce himself — demand an impartial investigation.The investigation into Colodro’s death was “hasty and not corrobor...

Escaped Ohio inmate caught after attempting to order $1 burger from McDonald's

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:28:34 GMT

AKRON, Ohio (WJW) — An escaped inmate was taken back into custody Wednesday morning after he was recognized attempting to order a hamburger. Jason Lyle Conrad — who'd been on the run since Tuesday morning after escaping from a transport vehicle transfer — was captured by authorities Wednesday morning following a short foot chase in Akron, Ohio, the U.S. Marshal for the Northern District of Ohio reported. Suspect arrested in I-76 road rage shooting The 39-year-old is now back at Summit County Jail, but it was a tip from McDonald's employees that led to his capture. Jason Lyle Conrad (Summit County Sheriff's Office)According to 911 recordings released by the Akron Police Department, employees identified the man, who'd pulled up in street clothes riding a bike around 8:30 a.m., from his tattoos and his limp. He reportedly tried to order a burger for $1 but was told the restaurant did not offer those. He then rode off. Summit County Sheriff's photoAnother 911 call revealed he was spo...

Man left blinded by ball thrown at Angels Stadium sues MLB team

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:28:34 GMT

LOS ANGELES (KTLA) - A man is suing the Los Angeles Angels nearly a year after he said he was hit in the face and eye by a souvenir ball during a game in Anaheim.David Mermelstein, 55, attended a June game at Angels Stadium with his friends in an effort to take his mind off recent personal tragedies: his father, a Holocaust survivor, had just died and he was diagnosed with brain cancer, according to the civil complaint.“Things went horribly wrong,” the complaint reads. MLB pitcher has skull fracture, concussion after taking line drive to the head After Juan Lagares — then an Angels outfielder — caught the third out of the top of the 6th inning, the Gold Glove winner “randomly hurled the ball into the stands at high velocity,” striking the unsuspecting Mermelstein on the left side of his face and eye, the complaint read.David Mermelstein damaged eye is seen in a photo provided by his attorney on May 31, 2023. The plaintiff, who was sitting in the outfield bleachers, had looked down...