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North Carolina GOP legislators making changes to new abortion law days before enforcement

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:25 GMT

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina Republican legislators rolled out on Thursday adjustments to the state’s new abortion restrictions that are set to take effect in days, addressing some provisions that litigation seeking to block the law’s enforcement calls confusing and inconsistent.GOP senators said the changes offered on the Senate floor were small, designed to affirm the intent of the measure enacted last month over Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper’s veto that in part would ban starting July 1 nearly all abortions after 12 weeks of pregnancy. “We very much see it as something that is technical and clarifying,” Sen. Ralph Hise, a Mitchell County Republican, told reporters after the Senate voted for the abortion alterations, tacked on to another pending state health agency bill. “It makes no substantive changes.”But the language appears to attempt to thwart a federal lawsuit filed last week by Planned Parenthood South Atlantic and a doctor who performs abortions that...

Families detail stress, terror and sadness after Nashville school shooting in court documents

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:25 GMT

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Nearly three months after a shooter killed six people at her daughter’s school in Nashville, Katherine Heath watches the third-grader lie on her husband’s chest whenever her child has a “sad day.”After losing multiple classmates, Heath’s daughter is now visibly withdrawn, attending counseling, and learning to live in a world without her best friend.“She will come to my husband and just lay on his chest. He will say something like ‘It’s been a hard month baby,’” Heath wrote in a recent court filing. “And she’ll just faintly reply `yea.’”Heath and more than a dozen other parents wrote about life after the March 27 shooting at The Covenant School, offering images of their still-shaken children to compel a judge not to allow the release of the shooter’s writings and other documents. Audrey Hale, a 28-year former Covenant student, indiscriminately opened fire at the private Christian elementary school in March, killing three children ...

Mexico’s top court again overrules president on electoral reform

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:25 GMT

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico’s Supreme Court on Thursday overturned another set of electoral law changes favored by President Andrés Manuel López Obrador. The 9-2 ruling is likely to further fan the growing dispute between the president and the courts, which have blocked some of his key legal overhauls, including a related change in May. The justices said López Obrador’s Morena party changed the electoral legislation after it was approved in Congress.The reforms would have reduced the spending and size of the country’s independent National Electoral Institute, and limit its authority to oversee political parties and candidates. López Obrador has accused the high court of overstepping its authority by judging whether Congress followed its own rules.In May, the court overturned another part of the electoral changes because Congress rushed the measure through to a vote without debate, or even time to read it.López Obrador has a habit of demanding legislators approve bills they often...

Trump, DeSantis interviews show Fox influence on GOP field still strong despite troubled year

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:25 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — The two leading GOP presidential contenders had very different interview experiences with Fox News in the past week — each an illustration of the influence that even a damaged Fox has over the Republican nominating process.Donald Trump’s interview with Bret Baier, which aired in two parts Monday and Tuesday, was meaty and newsworthy. Baier pressed the former president about his indictment on hoarding confidential documents and pushed back on Trump’s false claims about the 2020 election.Ron DeSantis’ session with Trump’s former press secretary, Kayleigh McEnany, on Wednesday was far softer.Their appearances alone are evidence that Fox, weakened financially by the $787 million settlement over defamation charges reached with Dominion Voting Systems and suffering in the ratings following Tucker Carlson’s firing, remains the media kingmaker for Republicans who want to be president.After the first part of his Trump interview aired, Fox announc...

Montreal police chief rejects street check moratorium despite racial profiling data

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:25 GMT

Montreal’s police chief is refusing to impose a moratorium on street checks despite a second independent report concluding that racialized people are disproportionately targeted by the practice.Fady Dagher made the comments Thursday after he released an independent report by researchers from several Quebec universities who recommended he temporarily suspend random police stops. A moratorium would be purely symbolic, he said, adding that he preferred “constant small steps” to address racial profiling and ensure police street checks respect residents’ rights.“I know I’m going to create some disappointment,” the police chief said of his decision to reject the moratorium. “But I don’t want to announce a symbolic measure. I want to solve the deep problem at the roots.”Researchers looked at 2021 data and found that Indigenous Montrealers were six times more likely to be stopped than were white people in the city. The data showed ...

Canopy Growth reports $648 million net loss in Q4 as it parts way with BioSteel staff

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:25 GMT

Canopy Growth Corp.’s chief executive said the company has made management changes and parted ways with some staff as it continues to review its BioSteel business after uncovering “material misstatements” in the sports drink unit’s previous financial filings.“Based on the results of the review, we’ll be implementing several remedial actions to strengthen our controls for the BioSteel business,” David Klein, chief executive of the Smiths Falls, Ont.-based cannabis company, said on a Thursday call with analysts.“We felt it was important to act swiftly to provide stability to the business at this pivotal time, so to this effect, we have exited several members of the BioSteel leadership team and are considering all legal remedies available to us including litigation to recover damages and costs associated with and resulting from the findings of the BioSteel review.”His remarks came after Canopy promised in May to refile three of its ...

Skilling: Possible showers, thunder Thursday night ahead of sunny weekend

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:25 GMT

SMOKY SKIES AND ELEVATED AIR POLLUTION LEVELS persisted for a 9th consecutive rain-less day Thursday.The smoke is blowing in at high levels from fires burning in Ontario & Quebec provinces in Canada---while the stagnant air mass which has been mired in an atmosphere blocking pattern and has therefore lingered over the area all week, has grown more polluted in the lower reaches of the atmosphere. The low level build-up of pollutants, including particulates and ozone, is behind the continuing AIR QUALITY ALERTS which continue through Friday night.THE NEW DROUGHT MONITOR arrived from the NWS and USDA today and shows drought conditions continue expanding across the Chicago area and Midwest. The vast majority of the Chicago area in now in an area of SEVERE DROUGHT per the index---and the portion of the Chicago area in drought expanded by 17% today.Northeast winds off Lake Michigan produced a huge lakefront to inland temp spread again—from 90-deg inland at Oswego and Genoa (in DeKalb ...

14-year-old girl shot while outside in West Pullman

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:25 GMT

CHICAGO — A 14-year-old girl was shot Thursday afternoon while she was outside near a sidewalk in West Pullman.Chicago Police Department officers were called to the shooting around 4:15 p.m. in the 12200 block of South Racine Avenue. Mother instructed 14-year-old son to shoot, kill man at hot dog stand, court docs allege When they arrived, they found the girl who was shot in the leg, police said.The girl was taken to Comer Children's Hospital in good condition, according to the police and fire departments.Police haven't released additional details about the incident but they said the girl was near a sidewalk when she was shot.No one has been arrested yet and detectives are still investigating.

$200K bond for man accused of injuring 4 in hit-and-run outside Sox ballpark

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:25 GMT

CHICAGO (AP/WGN) — A 20-year-old Chicago man, who is facing multiple charges in connection with a hit-and-run collision that injured four pedestrians, two critically, outside Guaranteed Rate Field, the home of the Chicago White Sox, appeared in bond court Thursday. Condelarious Garcia, 20, faces four felony counts each of failure to report an injury accident and aggravated reckless driving causing bodily harm, police said. The pedestrians were injured just after 6:20 p.m. Tuesday as they headed to the White Sox game against the Texas Rangers.Garcia also faces one misdemeanor count of driving on a suspended license and citations for failure to reduce speed, operating an uninsured motor vehicle, and having an expired registration.SEE ALSO: Son of victim speaks out after driver in hit-and-run crash near Guaranteed Rate Field chargedInside the courtroom Thursday, Garcia's public defender spoke to his client's clean criminal history and strong family support, visible as his parents, aunt...

Cook County looks ahead at 2024 budget, thousands of jobs remain vacant

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:25 GMT

CHICAGO -- It's mostly good news when it comes to the Cook County fiscal budget for 2024, however there are still a short fall that is projected.A $214.7 million surplus from a personal property replacement tax, and higher sales tax due to inflation, that expects to benefit Cook County. But heading into 2024, the county is forecasting an $85.6 million budget gap for next year.That’s partially due to a $22 million higher pension payment than this year, due to reforms at the state capitol. Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle thinks that deficit can be filled without raising taxes or making layoffs. Critics becoming impatient with Mayor Johnson’s approach towards crime prevention in Chicago There are also 4,000 job vacancies, which the county says has helped in payroll savings. Many in the healthcare sector - including 700 registered nurse vacancies - which is a top priority to fill, by offering tuition reimbursement and retention bonuses.Other costs for the county include c...