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California jailbreak mastermind sentenced for daring escape

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:05 GMT

SANTA ANA, Calif. (AP) — A man serving a life sentence for kidnapping and mutilating a marijuana dispensary owner was given an additional sentence Friday for masterminding a daring, elaborate escape from a Southern California jail.Hossein Nayeri, 44, was sentenced to the maximum of two years and eight months in state prison for the Jan. 22, 2016, escape from the Orange County Men’s Central Jail in Santa Ana and for stealing a van while on the run.Nayeri and two other men used smuggled tools to cut through the half-inch bars on a metal grate in their maximum-security dorm cell, then climbed through plumbing shafts within the walls to reach the roof, where they rappelled down five stories using a rope made of bed linens, according to authorities and a cellphone video shot by Nayeri.The men then kidnapped a 72-year-old unlicensed tax driver at gunpoint and forced him to drive them away at gunpoint, prosecutors said.Over five days, the man drove the fugitives around as they fled, ...

Ice cream and chocolate: U.S. President Joe Biden’s food adventure in Ottawa

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:05 GMT

OTTAWA — When former president Barack Obama first visited Ottawa in 2009 he went home with souvenir cookies for his daughters bought during his unannounced visit to the famed ByWard Market, which local residents have been talking about ever since.When President Joe Biden departs after about 27 hours in the Canadian capital Friday night, he will carry with him a Canadian bar of chocolate.“I love chocolate,” Biden said, after being handed a yellow-wrapped bar with the word “Peace” written on it by Green Leader Elizabeth May.Biden’s visit was surrounded by heavy levels of security — much of downtown Ottawa was shut down for the day, civil servants who just recently returned to work in person were urged to stay home, and sniper teams, drones and helicopters dotted the sky around the parliamentary precinct.But it did not draw the same fanfare as Obama did in 2009, when a couple of thousand people crowded onto Parliament Hill to await his arrival, hoping to g...

Woman accused of homicide, dismemberment ruled fit for trial

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:05 GMT

GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) — A woman accused of killing and dismembering a man in Wisconsin is competent to stand trial, a court ruled Friday.Judge Thomas Walsh issued the ruling and set a July 21 start date for Taylor Schabusiness’ trial in Brown County Circuit Court, WLUK-TV reported.Schabusiness, 25, is charged with first-degree intentional homicide, mutilating a corpse and third-degree sexual assault in the killing of Shad Thyrion, 25, in February 2022. Authorities say she strangled Thyrion at a home in Green Bay, sexually abused him and dismembered his body, leaving parts of him throughout the house and in a vehicle. Schabusiness has pleaded not guilty and not guilty by reason of mental disease or defect. She is being held on a $2 million cash bond.A competency report commissioned by prosecutors that was completed last fall deemed Schabusiness fit for trial.In February, she attacked her attorney during a hearing moments after Walsh agreed to her lawyer’s request for an ad...

Minnesota nuclear plant shuts down for leak; residents worry

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:05 GMT

MONTICELLO, Minn. (AP) — A Minnesota utility began shutting down a nuclear power plant near Minneapolis on Friday after discovering water containing a low level of radioactive material was leaking from a pipe for the second time. While the utility and health officials say it is not dangerous, the issue has prompted concerns among nearby residents and raised questions about aging pipelines.Xcel Energy discovered in November that about 400,000 gallons (1.5 million liters) of water containing tritium had leaked. The utility made a temporary fix but learned this week that hundreds more gallons of tritium-laced water leaked, leading to the shutdown decision.After the plant cools over the next few days, workers will cut out the leaking pipe, which is over 50 years old, said Chris Clark, Xcel Energy’s president. The utility will then have the pipe analyzed in hopes of preventing future leaks, he said.“We could have continued to safely operate the plant and simply repair the catchment...

California eases water restrictions, but drought isn’t over

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:05 GMT

DUNNIGAN, Calif. (AP) — California Gov. Gavin Newsom ended some of the state’s water restrictions on Friday because a winter of relentless rain and snow has replenished the state’s reservoirs and eased fears of a shortage after three years of severe drought. Newsom was careful not to declare the drought to be over, noting water shortages remain in the Klamath River basin along the California-Oregon line and in densely populated Southern California, which relies heavily on the struggling Colorado River system to supply millions of people.But Newsom did say he would stop asking people to voluntarily cut their water use by 15%, a request he first made nearly two years ago while standing at the edge of a nearly dry Lopez Lake in the state’s Central Coast region — a lake that today is so full from recent storms it is almost spilling over.“None of us could have imagined … a few months ago that we’d be where we are today,” Newsom said Friday from a farm northw...

Federal government, B.C. and Indigenous nation sign care co-ordination deal

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:05 GMT

The delivery of child and family services grounded in Indigenous culture and community was celebrated Friday in British Columbia’s north Okanagan with the signing of the province’s first care co-ordination services agreement. Indigenous children thrive when they can stay with their families and communities and are surrounded by their culture and language, federal Indigenous Services Minister Patty Hajdu said in an interview after the ceremony.The agreement between the federal, B.C. and Secwepemc Nation governments provides the legal framework and funding for the co-ordinated care services, she said.“This is an exciting time in the history of our country and the history of the First Nations that are doing this work,” said Hajdu.The minister said governments over the next 10 years will transfer $136.2 million to the Enderby-area Splatsin First Nation to support and continue their long-standing dedication and work on family and child services.“This communi...

Movie filming outside Trump grand jury court buildings

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:05 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — If the drama happening inside the court buildings in lower Manhattan where a grand jury is pondering possible charges against former President Donald Trump isn’t enough, there’s going to be some outside as well this weekend — the filming of some movie scenes.Notices went up around the buildings on Centre Street this week, saying parking was forbidden and certain streets would be closed off on Saturday and Sunday for filming connected to a Warner Bros. feature film called “Juliet.”On Friday, tents went up and cranes for movie equipment were put in place along the street.The area had already become somewhat of a media circus as the outcome of a grand jury investigation into hush money paid on Trump’s behalf in 2016 is awaited.Neither Warner Bros. nor the city office that oversees filming would comment on details of what was planned for the movie shoot. The Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment said it was working with the New York Police Department on p...

A look at the US military mission in Syria and its dangers

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:05 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — When an Iranian drone struck a U.S. base in northeastern Syria, killing a contractor and wounding several U.S. troops, it was just the latest in a growing number of attacks on American forces in Syria. But its lethality was rare. In most recent cases, no U.S. forces have been hurt in such attacks.The strike on Thursday — by a small, suicide drone — set off a series of retaliatory bombings, and the top U.S. commander for the Middle East, Gen. Erik Kurilla, quickly warned that the U.S. was prepared to launch more attacks if needed.American troops have been in Syria since 2015, but the latest casualties highlight what has been a consistent, but often quiet, U.S. counterterrorism mission, aimed at countering Iranian-backed militias and preventing the resurgence of the Islamic State group.A look at the U.S. troop presence in Syria.IT ALL BEGAN WITH THE ISLAMIC STATE GROUPOn any given day there are at least 900 U.S. forces in Syria, along with an undisclosed number of co...

Alek Manoah named Opening Day starter for Blue Jays, rotation finalized

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:05 GMT

It’s funny how quickly things can change in the world of sports. That couldn’t be more true for the Toronto Blue Jays and starter Alek Manoah, named the Opening Day starter against the St. Louis Cardinals.The 25-year-old will get the assignment only in his third full season in the majors after Manoah impressed in the spring of 2021, eventually leading to a promotion and big-league debut on May 27, 2021.Fast forward to now, Manoah has established himself as Toronto’s ace and as one of baseball’s best young starting pitchers.“I was super-excited to hear that,” Manoah told Sportsnet’s Ben Nicholson-Smith after being named Opening Day starter.“It’s pretty amazing. A couple of years ago, I was coming (into) camp, just doing everything I can to make it hard on them not to send me down to the minor leagues, you know? And a couple of years later, they named me the Opening Day starter. I’m super-blessed for the opportunity.”Th...

Chicago mayoral candidates' push for voters intensifies

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:05 GMT

CHICAGO — Chicago's mayoral candidates were busy hitting the campaign trails as they work to gain voters and endorsements ahead of the April 4 run-off election. Recent polling suggests the race between Paul Vallas and Brandon Johnson remains close.Johnson expressed confidence Friday as he traveled across the city meeting with Jewish community leaders, veterans and seniors. The Cook County commissioner has promised safety, jobs and more funding for schools.  Vallas, Johnson face off in WGN’s Chicago Mayoral Debate "As mayor of the city of Chicago, I am going to double the amount of young people we hire, not just for summer jobs, but for year-round jobs, because that's violence prevention," Johnson said. "Funding our schools, funding our parks and recreation, making sure that we have good paying jobs and making sure that our seniors can walk the block without fear." As Johnson bumped shoulders with voters, opponent Vallas gained another city councilmember endorsement:...