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Waves of migrants brave jungle to reach border

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:43:24 GMT

BAJO CHIQUITO, Panama — Rain-swollen rivers only briefly slowed the otherwise uninterrupted flow of migrants through this jungle-covered border area separating Colombia and Panama and by midweek another 2,000 bedraggled migrants stumbled out of the Darien jungle.Pregnant women and men carrying children atop their shoulders waded across the waist-deep Tuquesa river and into the Indigenous outpost of Bajo Chiquito where some fell to the ground in exhaustion and relief as Panamanian officials waited to register their arrival.Crossing through the dense, lawless jungle not long ago was unthinkable to most people. In recent years, it became a brutal slog of a week or more. But some migrants arriving this week described an organized trek completed in as little as 2 ½ days on trails marked by colored ribbons and assisted by guides and porters, part of what officials say has become a business generating millions of dollars.That efficiency combined with the unrelenting economic factors pushin...

Here’s what the Rangers said about the Orioles ahead of Saturday’s ALDS opener: ‘It’s going to be a battle’

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:43:24 GMT

No bulletin-board material was handed out Friday.The Orioles and Texas Rangers participated in a media day before Game 1 of the American League Division Series on Saturday, and both teams had only positive things to say about their opponent.Baltimore manager Brandon Hyde praised the Rangers’ offense, which scored the most runs in the AL at 5.44 per game, while Texas manager Bruce Bochy highlighted the Orioles’ young core.The Orioles, who earned the AL’s top seed after a 101-win campaign, spent all week resting and getting ready for the series, while the 90-win Rangers played in the wild-card series and swept the Tampa Bay Rays. Baltimore and Texas faced off for two series during the regular season, splitting the six games. But they haven’t played one another since late May, adding a level of intrigue heading into the series.Ahead of Game 1 on Saturday, here’s what the Rangers said about the Orioles.Starting pitcher Nathan EovaldiOn the Orioles ...

Security camera, bodycam video released of mass shooting at California biker bar

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:43:24 GMT

In urgent shouts amped with adrenaline, Orange County Sheriff’s deputies repeatedly yelled for the Cook’s Corner gunman to surrender last August in a gun battle shown for the first time in video footage released Friday.But the deputy’s expletive-filled commands went unheeded and the five-minute shootout didn’t end until the gunman who had killed three and injured six others lay dead himself.The video footage from the body camera of a rifle-bearing deputy and from the dash camera of a patrol car shows that from the second they arrived the evening of Aug. 23, seven deputies were battling with the killer, a retired Ventura police sergeant, at the Trabuco Canyon roadhouse.The shooter was later identified as 59-year-old John Patrick Snowling.Warning: The video may disturb some readers. Sheriff’s officials said Snowling entered the bar, walked directly to his wife, Marie, and opened fire without a word. He hit Marie Sprawling, who had earlier filed for divorce, once in the jaw before...

Boston gets greener with $11M federal grant for urban forestry, green spaces

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:43:24 GMT

Environmentalists in Boston are rejoicing as the city’s most tree-deprived neighborhoods are set to become a whole lot greener.U.S. Sen. Ed Markey has secured $11 million in the federal funding that will be pumped toward enhancing urban forestry and access to green spaces across Chinatown, East Boston, Dorchester, Mattapan and Roxbury. The city’s allotment is included in a $22 million pool for the entire Bay State.The funding comes after the city teamed up with Mass Audubon in the spring to spearhead a coalition dedicated to providing resources to residents who have trees growing on their properties but might not be aware of how to properly care for them.Markey celebrated the funding alongside Mayor Michelle Wu and members of the green jobs program, PowerCorpsBOS, at Franklin Park on Friday.The city’s tree canopy and green spaces are unevenly distributed across its neighborhoods, a result of “systemic disinvestment,” the senator said. The funding will address heat and flooding, decr...

Man accused of killing 10 at Colorado supermarket in 2021 is ruled mentally competent to stand trial

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:43:24 GMT

BOULDER, Colo. (AP) — A judge ruled Friday that the man accused of killing 10 people at a Colorado supermarket in a 2021 rampage is mentally competent to stand trial. The decision allows the prosecution of Ahmad Al Aliwi Alissa to move forward. Judge Ingrid Bakke ruled that Alissa, who has schizophrenia, is able to understand court proceedings and contribute to his own defense.Bakke presided over a hearing last week to consider an August determination by experts at a state mental hospital that Alissa was competent after previous evaluations found otherwise. Alissa’s defense attorney asked for the hearing to debate the finding. In her ruling, Bakke said she was convinced that, following forced medication, Alissa was more communicative and had a “far improved capacity to elucidate his reasoning and decision-making.” That’s a critical component of competency, which partly hinges on Alissa being able to make informed decisions in his own case, such as whether to testify himself.Al...

Three killed in small plane crash near Chilliwack, B.C., airport

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:43:24 GMT

CHILLIWACK, B.C. — Three people have been killed in a small plane crash in Chilliwack, B.C. RCMP say in a statement the plane crashed not far from the airport in Chilliwack, about 100 kilometres east of Vancouver. The Transportation Safety Board says it is sending a team of investigators to the site in the Fraser Valley. Haylie Morris was at work sitting in a forklift when she saw the plane pass right in front of her and says she knew it was flying much too low. She says the plane slammed down right beside the Chilliwack Motor Inn. The plane’s registration number seen in photos from the crash site show that the Piper PA34 belongs to SkyQuest Aviation, a flight school based in nearby Langley, B.C.This report from The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 6, 2023. The Canadian Press

Neck hold used on Elijah McClain emerges as focal point in officers’ trial over his 2019 death

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:43:24 GMT

BRIGHTON, Colo. (AP) — A neck hold that Denver-area police used on Elijah McClain prior to the Black man’s 2019 death lasted only seconds but has emerged as a focal point in the first criminal trial against officers and paramedics charged in his death.Defense attorneys for the first two officers to go on trial closed their case Friday without calling any witnesses. Rather, they sought to use the prosecution’s own witnesses and video that’s been shown repeatedly to jurors to make their case that Aurora officers Randy Roedema and Jason Rosenblatt’s actions weren’t to blame in McClain’s death.The district attorney initially did not to pursue criminal charges, but the case was re-examined in 2020, resulting in a criminal indictment and becoming a rallying cry for protests against police brutality against Black people following the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis.Prosecutors spent two weeks painting a picture of excessive force by officers who u...

Woman who was returned from Syria prison camp faces terrorism charge

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:43:24 GMT

TORONTO — A 29-year-old woman who was among a group of women and children returned to Canada in April after years in a Syrian prison camp has been charged with a terrorism-related offence.RCMP say the charge was laid following an investigation by the force’s Integrated National Security Enforcement Team.Four Canadian women and 10 children landed in Montreal in April after being held for years at the al-Roj camp, with three of the women arrested upon arrival and released on conditions.Police say Ammara Amjad was arrested in Milton, Ont., on Thursday for allegedly participating in activities of the Islamic State group.Amjad appeared in Brampton provincial court for a bail hearing and has been released subject to conditions.Her next court date is set for Nov. 17.This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 6, 2023.The Canadian Press

Federal judge in Oklahoma clears the way for a ban on medical care for transgender young people

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:43:24 GMT

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — A federal judge in Tulsa declined to stop a new law from taking effect that makes it a felony crime for health care workers in Oklahoma to provide gender-affirming medical care to young transgender people.U.S. District Court Judge John Heil III issued his order late Thursday denying a motion for a preliminary injunction sought by the plaintiffs, who include a medical provider and family members of transgender children in Oklahoma. Heil wrote that the plaintiffs had not demonstrated that parents have a fundamental right to choose such medical care for their children.“This an area in which medical and policy debate is unfolding and the Oklahoma Legislature can rationally take the side of caution before permitting irreversible medical treatments of its children,” Heil wrote.The new law, which bans medical treatments like puberty-blocking drugs or hormones for those younger than 18, was passed by Oklahoma’s Republican-controlled Legislature and signed by Gov. ...

No charges in deadly 2019 Hard Rock hotel building collapse in New Orleans, grand jury rules

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:43:24 GMT

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — A grand jury in Louisiana has decided against indicting anyone in the deadly collapse four years ago of a Hard Rock Hotel that was under construction in New Orleans.The panel, which heard evidence in the case over several months, met once more on Thursday. It was the last chance to file criminal charges before a four-year window closed to pursue gross negligence charges under state law.Orleans Parish District Attorney Jason Williams decided to have the panel hear testimony and vote on potential charges, rather than directly filing them, and it returned a “no true bill” verdict, meaning at least nine jurors did not find sufficient evidence to establish criminal liability. Williams said in a statement that the grand jury did not hear enough evidence to meet the threshold for a criminal case.“Unfortunately, criminal negligence carries a much higher burden than civil negligence, and upon deliberating, the jurors decided there simply wasn’t enough certainty to proceed,...