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Ex-USC dean sentenced to home confinement for bribery of Los Angeles County supervisor

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:42:22 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A former dean at the University of Southern California was sentenced to 1 1/2 years of home confinement on Monday for bribing a Los Angeles County supervisor in exchange for renewal of a lucrative contract.Marilyn Flynn also was ordered to pay $150,000. U.S. District Judge Dale S. Fischer said she considered sending Flynn to prison but decided instead on home confinement, noting that the former academic had quickly taken responsibility for her actions.Flynn, 84, was dean of USC’s School of Social Work from 1997 to 2018. She pleaded guilty last year to a federal bribery charge. Prosecutors said that in 2018, she concocted a scheme to funnel $100,000 that Mark Ridley-Thomas provided from campaign funds through the university to a nonprofit run by his son.Ridley-Thomas offered to support county contracts for USC’s School of Social Work that could potentially bring the institution millions of dollars in new revenue in return for helping his son, prosecutors said. Seba...

A maternity ward in Oregon is the scene of fatal gunfire

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:42:22 GMT

SALEM, Ore. (AP) — Gunfire erupted in a maternity unit of an Oregon hospital over the weekend, fatally wounding an unarmed security guard and leading to renewed calls Monday to protect health care workers from increasing violence.Gun violence in America has hit supermarkets, churches, a synagogue, schools — and now a birthing center.Police were summoned Saturday morning to Legacy Good Samaritan Medical Center in Portland, with callers reporting that a man with a gun was threatening hospital workers, Portland Police Sgt. Kevin Allen said. By the time the officers arrived, shots had been fired and security guard Bobby Smallwood lay mortally wounded. Another hospital staffer was hit by fragments.Police feared the worst.“Officers believed this had the possibility of being an active shooter incident, so they converged on the hospital from all corners of Portland in a full-city response to address the shooter, assist with a possible mass casualty event, and evacuate those in harm’s way,” ...

Officer who put woman in police car hit by train didn’t know it was on the tracks, defense says

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:42:22 GMT

DENVER (AP) — A Colorado police officer accused of putting a handcuffed woman in a parked police car that was hit by a freight train did not know the car was parked on the tracks, the officer’s lawyer said in court Monday.While evidence will show Officer Jordan Steinke stood on the railroad tracks during a night traffic stop on Sept. 16, 2022, she did not know that an officer she was assisting had parked his patrol car on the tracks, defense lawyer Mallory Revel said in opening statements in state court in Greeley. The woman inside, Yareni Rios-Gonzalez, suffered extensive injuries, including a traumatic brain injury. The tracks were completely flush with the road, nothing to trip over, and there were no illuminated crossing signs or gates at the railroad crossing in the rural area, just two reflective signs on either side of the tracks, Revel said. Prosecutors will not be able to prove that she acted recklessly by leaving the woman in the patrol car, Revel said. “You cannot d...

Florida Supreme Court reprimands judge for conduct during Parkland school shooting trial

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:42:22 GMT

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — The Florida Supreme Court publicly reprimanded the judge who oversaw the penalty trial of Parkland school shooter Nikolas Cruz on Monday for showing bias toward the prosecution.The unanimous decision followed a June recommendation from the Judicial Qualifications Commission. That panel had found that Circuit Judge Elizabeth Scherer violated several rules governing judicial conduct during last year’s trial in her actions toward Cruz’s public defenders. The six-month trial ended with Cruz receiving a receiving a life sentence for the 2018 murder of 14 students and three staff members at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School after the jury could not unanimously agree that he deserved a death sentence. The 15-member commission found that Scherer “unduly chastised” lead public defender Melisa McNeill and her team, wrongly accused one Cruz attorney of threatening her child, and improperly embraced members of the prosecution in the courtroom after th...

‘Young, very sweet’: Residents react to woman’s death after body found in Port Credit high rise

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:42:22 GMT

A 21-year-old woman whose body was located inside her Mississauga apartment building was identified as community members and fellow tenants describe the aftermath of the shocking discovery.Peel Regional Police were called to an apartment building at 28 Helene Street North in Port Credit around noon on Thursday, July 20, for a wellness check of a female resident.Investigators identified the victim as 21-year-old Pitch Phaunpa.Following an investigation, Phaunpa’s death has been deemed a homicide, and police believe she was killed sometime between July 17 and July 18.Tenants from the building say police were present for several days, combing through evidence as investigators attempt to decipher what led to Phaunpa’s death.“She was walking into the elevator, and that’s when she ran into this person,” one tenant, who wished to remain anonymous, told CityNews. “[She was with] a couple of guys.”Police have not confirmed that family members called ...

Singer Tori Kelly hospitalized after passing out at LA restaurant: reports

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:42:22 GMT

(KTLA) - Grammy award-winning singer Tori Kelly is being treated for blood clots after passing out at a restaurant in downtown Los Angeles on Sunday night, multiple media outlets have reported.First reported by TMZ, a source close to Kelly said the 30-year-old singer is receiving treatment for blood clots found around her lungs and legs. Doctors are also trying to determine if she has blood clots around her heart.The singer reportedly noticed that her heart was beating very fast before passing out. A source close to the singer told TMZ she was “out for a while” before being transported to a hospital.Kelly's friends opted not to call an ambulance for the singer to make sure she wasn’t taken to a hospital in the downtown area, and instead received care from Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, one of L.A.’s topped-rated facilities. ARC Music Festival announces After Dark lineup The unidentified source also told TMZ that Kelly is currently in the ICU and has been in and out of consciousness ...

Large amount of marijuana washes up on Florida beach

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:42:22 GMT

NEPTUNE BEACH, Fla. (WFLA) — That's not seaweed. A large amount of marijuana washed up on Neptune Beach in Florida over the weekend.Neptune Beach police officers said the marijuana washed ashore near Florida Boulevard Saturday. ‘Cocaine Sharks’ may be biting into bales dumped off Florida’s coast, scientists say Officers said a large quantity likely broke open at sea and separated before coming ashore."Before anyone starts thinking about coming out and turning this discovery into your own treasure hunt, we would advise against it," the police department said on Facebook.(Neptune Beach Police Department)(Neptune Beach Police Department)Police said the marijuana quickly began to degrade and rot after it floated in the ocean for some time.Officers and members of the public works team worked to clean the marijuana off the beach.

'Treatment, Not Trauma': Chicago leaders discuss how to address the city's mental health

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:42:22 GMT

CHICAGO -- Health officials and city leaders discussed Monday what's needed to get Chicago on the right track in terms of mental health.The discussed on Monday at city hall centered on what is the future for the city when it comes to mental health and how do we make it more accessible, more diverse and more effective for all.City officials and health professionals marked a first step toward making mental health a focus in the next budget.The first committee meeting on health and human relations was led by Alderwoman Rossana Rodriguez Sanchez.She has been working with the Collaborative for Community Wellness, a movement of 70 organizations around Chicago. Their goal is treatment, not trauma.By hoping to create a multi-pronged mission which seeks to create a 24-hour hotline for mental health emergencies, the establishment of community-based healthcare teams and the elimination of sending police officers to respond to clear-cut mental health crises.It follows a commitment by Mayor Bran...

'Pile of tires and trash' burn Monday in southeast Travis County

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:42:22 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — A fire produced a column of black smoke as it burned Monday afternoon in an area of southeast Travis County. The fire is in the 4500 block of Brandt Road, just north of East Slaughter Lane and west of Bluff Springs Road. The Austin Fire Department said while it's in Travis County ESD No. 11's jurisdiction, AFD is sending units to assist in knocking the fire down.AFD and Travis County ESD No. 11 responded to a fire that produced extremely black smoke Monday on Brandt Road in southeast Travis County. AFD said the fire burned tires and trash. (KXAN photo/Chelsea Moreno)AFD said the fire burned "a pile of tires and trash" in an open field. By 7:30 p.m., AFD said the fire was out and it was clearing the scene while ESD No. 11 firefighters were staying to mop up.Firefighters responded to the blaze around 6:40 p.m., AFD said.

Traffic stops we saw in Austin during a ride-along with Texas DPS

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:42:22 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- "We continue to operate the same way we were operating as if there was a partnership," said Major Gabriel Ortiz with the Texas Department of Public Safety.KXAN spent six hours on the road with him this month observing traffic stops, learning about Criminal Investigation Division (CID) operations and addressing concerns from community members. Texas Department of Public Safety says it will keep patrolling despite Austin suspending partnership Brianna Hollis, Reporter: There’s been some criticism and concern about DPS unfairly targeting communities of color, what’s your response to that?Major Ortiz: I understand that perception exists, but I would say this. One, I’m Hispanic. I’m a minority, I’ve experienced racism, I understand how important it is for those members of the community to understand they’re being treated fairly. I can tell you right now, if citizens of the community of Austin were being treated unfairly, not only would I raise the issue, but I think ...