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Prosecutors want to dismiss some charges for former Atlanta official in corruption case

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 12:00:43 GMT

ATLANTA (AP) — Federal prosecutors plan to ask a judge to dismiss convictions for wire fraud and to resentence a former high-ranking Atlanta city official who is currently serving a 14-year prison sentence stemming from an investigation into corruption at City Hall, according to a court filing.Mitzi Bickers, who served as director of human services under former Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed and who also worked as a pastor and political operative, was convicted on multiple charges last year. At her sentencing in September, U.S. District Steve Jones said the evidence in the case showed that she was involved in “a deliberate, calculated plan to cheat” Atlanta taxpayers.Bickers has asked the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to reverse her conviction and send the case back to the lower court for a new trial. In a filing with the appeals court Friday, prosecutors rejected most of Bickers’ arguments, but they did ask that the case be sent back to Jones for dismissal of four wire fraud c...

Billions are being spent to turn the tide on the US West’s wildfires. It won’t be enough

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 12:00:43 GMT

DOWNIEVILLE, Calif. (AP) — Using chainsaws, heavy machinery and controlled burns, the Biden administration is trying to turn the tide on worsening wildfires in the U.S. West through a multi-billion dollar cleanup of forests choked with dead trees and undergrowth.Yet one year into what’s envisioned as a decade-long effort, federal land managers are scrambling to catch up after falling behind on several of their priority forests for thinning even as they exceeded goals elsewhere. And they’ve skipped over some highly at-risk communities to work in less threatened areas, according to data obtained by The Associated Press, public records and Congressional testimony.With climate change making the situation increasingly dire, mixed early results from the administration’s initiative underscore the challenge of reversing decades of lax forest management and aggressive fire suppression that allowed many woodlands to become tinderboxes. The ambitious effort comes amid pushback from...

Maine Senate joins House in supporting greater access to abortions

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 12:00:43 GMT

AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) — The Maine Senate voted to expand abortion access Tuesday following an emotional debate, advancing a proposal that would give the state one of the least restrictive abortion laws in the country.The 21-13 vote lacked the 11th-hour hustle to ensure support that happened before the bill was narrowly approved late last week in the House. Two more votes were needed, one in the House and one in the Senate, to enact the bill.Demonstrators opposed to the bill later sang hymns, held signs and chanted “kill the bill!” in the hallways.Current state law bans abortions after a fetus becomes viable outside the womb, at roughly 24 weeks, unless a mother’s life is at risk. The bill would allow abortions any time before birth if deemed medically necessary by a doctor. Supporters said the change was necessary in heartbreakingly rare circumstances when fatal anomalies are discovered later in a pregnancy.“How do we legislate the unimaginable?” said Sen. Jill Dusan, D-Portland. “We ...

Bluegrass musician who helped popularize song ‘Rocky Top’ dies at 91

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 12:00:43 GMT

HAZARD, Ky. (AP) — Bluegrass musician Bobby Osborne, who helped popularize the song “Rocky Top,” died early Tuesday, according to a statement from the college where he worked. He was 91.Osborne and his brother Sonny made up “The Osborne Brothers,” and their version of the song “Rocky Top” in 1967 became an official state song of Tennessee, his website said. Osborne was a member of the Grand Ole Opry and the International Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame. A native of Hyden, Kentucky, Osborne taught at the Hazard Community and Technical College’s Kentucky School of Bluegrass and Traditional Music in Leslie County for several years. In January, he received the Governor’s Awards in the Arts for his dedication to sharing Kentucky’s rich history in the arts around the world.Osborne was still performing and teaching last year when he told WYMT-TV that “as long as I can open my mouth and sing, I ain’t going to quit.”Hazard Community and Technical College President Jennifer Lin...

Surveillance video captures man setting SUV on fire in Richmond Hill arson

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 12:00:43 GMT

York Regional Police are searching for a man after home video surveillance footage captured a suspect dousing an SUV with gasoline and setting it on fire.Investigators were called to a home on Estoril Street in the Berwick Crescent and 16th Avenue area in Richmond Hill around 1:15 a.m. on June 10 for reports of a fire.York Regional Police said three women were asleep in the home when one of them heard noises coming from outside. When she opened the garage door, she saw her silver Subaru Crosstrek engulfed in flames in the driveway.Fire crews arrived at the home to extinguish the vehicle car, and no injuries were reported. Video surveillance showed a lone male suspect pouring liquid over the vehicle before setting it alight and running northbound on Estoril Street.The suspect is described as having a medium build and was last seen wearing a hooded jacket or vest with different-coloured long sleeves, dark-coloured pants and white running shoes.York Regional Police no...

US sanctions gold firms connected to Russian Wagner mercenary group

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 12:00:43 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. on Tuesday imposed sanctions on four firms and one individual connected to the Wagner Group, the Russian mercenaries that led a brief revolt against the Kremlin last week. The sanctions from Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control targeted entities in the Central African Republic, the United Arab Emirates and Russia that were connected to the Wagner Group and its founder Yevgeny Prigozhin.The sanctions are not directly related to last week’s uprising. The U.S. has previously issued sanctions against Prigozhin and the Wagner Group multiple times, including alleging that he tried to interfere with the 2016 U.S. election.Diamville SAU and Midas Ressources SARLU, two mining firms based in the Central African Republic and connected to Prigozhin, were targeted for sanctions, along with Russia-based Limited Liability Company DM, which conducted gold sales, and Dubai-based Industrial Resources General Trading, which provided support to Diamville. The U.S...

Missouri attorney general seeks reversal of former detective’s conviction in Black man’s death

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 12:00:43 GMT

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — In an unusual legal move, Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey is asking a state appeals court to reverse the conviction of a white former Kansas City police detective who shot and killed a Black man three years ago.In a brief filed Monday, Bailey said the evidence presented at a trial in 2021 did not support Eric DeValkenaere’s conviction for second-degree involuntary manslaughter and armed criminal action in the death of 26-year-old Cameron Lamb on Dec. 3, 2019. Bailey asked the court to reverse DeValkenaere’s conviction or order a new trial. Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker, whose office secured DeValkenaere’s conviction, said the motion by the attorney general — the state’s top law enforcement officer — to challenge a conviction was “unprecedented” and an affront to the people of Kansas City. In a news conference on Monday, she accused Bailey, a Republican who was appointed to the attorney general’s office in Ja...

See the Blackhawks' 2023-2024 schedule

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 12:00:43 GMT

CHICAGO — Thanks to their placement in the NHL Draft, Tuesday is a little more exciting for a few reasons. First, because the Blackhawks will make their No. 1 overall selection in just a day, which will likely be Connor Bedard, and second because fans know when he'll first wear the team's sweater. Here is the Blackhawks' full 2023-2024 schedule..- Preseason home opener - Sep. 28 vs Blues- Season Opener - Oct. 10 at Penguins- 5-Game road trip to open season- Home Opener - Oct. 21 vs Golden Knights.@WGNNews pic.twitter.com/KbqmN5nYM9— Larry Hawley (@HawleySports) June 27, 2023The Blackhawks announced their full preseason and regular season schedules on Tuesday at 2 p.m., doing so with a little more anticipation than the last few years thanks to the likely pick of Bedard.The team will open their six-game preseason on Thursday, September 28 against the Blues at home. They'll play three at the United Center then three on the road, with the last in St. Louis on Saturday, October...

'World's smallest Buc-ee's' reappears in West Texas desert

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 12:00:43 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — The world's smallest Buc-ee's travel center has reopened in West Texas, but there's a catch.You won't find any gas, Beaver Nuggets or spotless restrooms here. The travel center is actually an art installation.The art piece, located between Sanderson and Marathon, originally popped up last year. It has now "mysteriously reappeared in the West Texas desert, much to the delight of residents and visitors alike," according to a press release from Buc-ee's. Buc-ee’s Marathon? Art installation of iconic store pops up in West Texas The real Buc-ee's said it doesn't know who created the attraction, but it is "delightfully amused." The team "immediately dispatched a cleaning crew," said Jeff Nadalo, general counsel for Buc-ee's.The world's largest Buc-ee's opened (for real) near Knoxville, Tennessee, Monday. The new travel center won't hold the title for long though. An even bigger Buc-ee's is planned in Luling.

Gov. Greg Abbott announces second special session to focus on property tax plan

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 12:00:43 GMT

Editor’s Note: The video above shows KXAN News Today’s top headlines for June 27, 2023AUSTIN (KXAN) -- On Tuesday, Gov. Greg Abbott announced Special Session No. 2, calling lawmakers back to the Texas Capitol "to provide lasting property tax cuts for Texans," according to a press release.The special session begins at 3 p.m. Tuesday. The Texas House and Senate approved separate property tax plans but didn't come to an agreement during the first special session. Texas lawmakers wrap first special session with no bills to governor’s desk "Unless and until the House and Senate agree on a different proposal to provide property tax cuts, I will continue to call for lasting property tax cuts through rate reductions and working toward eliminating the school property tax in Texas. Special sessions will continue to focus on only property tax cuts until property tax cut legislation reaches my desk," Abbott wrote in the release.Earlier Tuesday, Speaker of the House Dade Phelan sent out a memo...