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Eighth endangered Florida panther struck and killed by vehicle this year, wildlife officials say

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:24:29 GMT

NAPLES, Fla. (AP) — An endangered Florida panther was struck and killed by a vehicle, officials said.The 2-year-old male panther’s remains were found Monday along Interstate 75 in Collier County, near the western end of Alligator Alley, wildlife officials said.All eight known panther deaths this year were caused by vehicle collisions, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.Florida panthers once roamed the entire Southeast, but their habitat now is mostly confined to a small region of Florida along the Gulf of Mexico.Up to 230 Florida panthers remain in the wild.

Florida man allegedly shoots, kills neighbor’s son for trimming trees over property line

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:24:29 GMT

(CNN) — A Volusia County, Florida, man was arrested early Monday morning after allegedly shooting and killing his neighbor’s 42-year-old son who had been trimming tree limbs along his fence line Sunday evening, the Volusia Sheriff’s Office said in a Facebook post.Edward Druzolowski, 78, confronted Brian Ford about being on his property before threatening to shoot him, the VSO said in the post. When Ford refused to leave, Druzolowski shot the man, who died despite life-saving measures by the first two deputies on the scene.Ford’s mother told sheriff’s deputies in a 911 call that her son had been trimming the trees at her house, which is directly next to Druzolowski’s, when her neighbor shot him. She also mentioned Ford’s 8-year-old son was near him when the shooting happened, according to court documents.In a separate 911 call, Druzolowski’s wife told authorities her husband “didn’t mean to do this” and “just meant to scare him (Ford),” court documents showed.Druzolowski sa...

Temple University says acting president JoAnne A. Epps has died after collapsing on stage

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:24:29 GMT

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Temple University acting president JoAnne A. Epps has died after collapsing at a memorial service at the university Tuesday afternoon, the university said.Epps was transported to Temple University Hospital, where she was pronounced dead around 3:15 p.m. Tuesday, the university said.“There are no words that can describe the gravity and sadness of this loss,” board chairman Mitchell Morgan said in a statement. “President Epps was a devoted servant and friend who represented the best parts of Temple. She spent nearly 40 years of her life serving this university, and it goes without saying her loss will reverberate through the community for years to come.”Epps, the university’s former law school dean and provost, was named to the post in April following the resignation of Jason Wingard, Temple’s first Black president. Wingard resigned in March after leading the 33,600-student university since July 2021.

Two workers injured in accident at Concord construction site

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:24:29 GMT

Two workers were taken to an area hospital Tuesday after they were injured in an accident at a construction site in Concord, the town’s assistant fire chief said. Assistant Fire Chief Walter Latta in a statement said crews first responded to the area of Elm Street around 11:15 a.m. after receiving a report of a “construction incident.”Once on scene, officials said, firefighters found two construction workers had been injured when a piece of construction equipment hit them along with a four foot piece of granite curbing that they were in the process of installing for a new sidewalk. Speaking with 7NEWS, Latta said officials estimate the construction equipment and the granite curb that hit the construction workers together weighed roughly one ton.“They were very fortunate to have only sustained serious injuries at this time,” Latta said. “They were very lucky.”Latta said the workers were treated at the scene before being taken to Lahey Hospital and Medical Center in Burlingt...

Chelsea police searching for missing 11-year-old boy with autism

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:24:29 GMT

Chelsea police asked for the public’s help Tuesday in efforts to find a missing 11-year-old boy with autism. Police said the boy’s name is Susant Thapa. He is believed to be wearing a blue shirt and pants and has dark hair. Police were searching in the area of 615 Washington Avenue as of around 3:40 p.m. Chelsea police said anyone who may see Thapa should contact police before approaching him.This is a developing story; stay with 7NEWS on-air and online for the latest updates.

Sun Sticks Around

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:24:29 GMT

We’ve all heard the saying “if you don’t like the weather in New England, wait a day” and yesterday and today prove just that. From soaking rains yesterday to a brisk sunshine today, we need (and frankly, deserve) a few dry and sunny days. We’ll get just that this week. Temperatures climbed to the lower 70s today which is actually average for this time of year. Our average high is 72° and Boston even climbed to 73°. But that stiff wind made it feel cooler. We’ll lose the wind the next few days. It will be a cooler morning tomorrow with temperatures starting off in the 50s.The fall like air mass will be with us for the rest of the week. We’ll lose the wind for the rest of the week but the sunshine will stick around.Temperatures will drop by a degree or two but the biggest change this week will be the lack of wind going forward. We’ll stay pretty seasonable with temperatures in the low 70s… until Saturday. More clouds move in for t...

How Patriots OC Bill O’Brien assessed the offense after 2 weeks

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:24:29 GMT

Through two weeks, the Patriots’ passing game under Bill O’Brien is undoubtedly better than it was during last season’s disaster. It passes the eye test, and there have been positive early returns.Mac Jones is among the league leaders in several passing categories, though that’s been a byproduct of playing from behind. But the quarterback and his unit have looked more fluid and competent than they did at any point last season. Still, though, there’s a gear and level they’re still trying to find as they search for their first win of the season.“For us, I think it’s about finishing drives,” O’Brien said Tuesday. “I think we moved the ball at times, I’m not saying we moved the ball all the time, but we moved the ball at times. But we’re inconsistent. We have to coach it better and try to get to be more consistent and finish drives. We get in there and we drive the ball 30-40 yards and then we stall, so we have to do a better job of stringing plays together to be able to finish drives.”...

Ray Epps, ex-Marine targeted by a Jan. 6 conspiracy theory, is charged with a misdemeanor in riot

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:24:29 GMT

By ALANNA DURKIN RICHER, MICHAEL KUNZELMAN and LINDSAY WHITEHURST (Associated Press)WASHINGTON (AP) — Ray Epps, a former Marine who became the target of a Jan. 6, 2021, conspiracy theory, has been charged with a misdemeanor offense in connection with the U.S. Capitol riot and is expected to plead guilty, according to court papers filed Tuesday. Epps, who claimed in a lawsuit filed this year that Fox News Channel made him a scapegoat for the Capitol riot, is charged with disorderly or disruptive conduct on restricted grounds, court records show. Epps’ attorney, Edward J. Ungvarsky, said in an email that the case was filed with an anticipation that Epps would plead guilty to the charge. The judge has scheduled a plea agreement hearing for Wednesday. Epps, a one-time supporter of President Donald Trump who has said he went to Washington to protest the 2020 election Trump lost to Joe Biden, was falsely accused by Fox of being a government agent who was whipping up trouble th...

After unintended 12-year pause, South Carolina says it has secured drug to resume lethal injections

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:24:29 GMT

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — South Carolina has obtained a drug needed to carry out lethal injections and is ready to perform the state’s first execution in over 12 years, officials announced Tuesday.The pause on executions wasn’t official. The state’s supply of the three drugs it used to kill inmates expired and drug companies refused to sell them any more because they could be publicly identified.The South Carolina General Assembly passed a shield law in May allowing the state to keep secret the procedure for executions and the suppliers of drugs or other items used.On Tuesday, four months later, state Corrections Director Bryan Stirling announced he bought a supply of pentobarbital and the state would begin using the sedative as the only drug in its executions.Jeffrey Collins, The Associated Press

A Moscow court declines to hear an appeal by jailed US journalist Evan Gershkovich

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:24:29 GMT

MOSCOW (AP) — Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich appeared Tuesday in Moscow City Court, seeking release from jail on espionage charges, but it declined to hear his appeal and returned the case to a lower court to deal with unspecified procedural violations.The decision means Gershkovich, 31, will remain jailed at least until Nov. 30, unless his appeal is heard in the meantime and he is released — an unlikely outcome.Before the session was closed, Gershkovich appeared in the glass defendants’ cage, smiling at fellow journalists and wearing a yellow sweater and blue jeans. He was detained in March while on a reporting trip to the city of Yekaterinburg, about 2,000 kilometers (1,200 miles) east of Moscow.There was initial confusion about the outcome when the state news agency Tass reported the court had rejected Gershkovich’s appeal, but it later changed its report to say the case was sent to the lower court.The court proceedings are closed because prosecutors say deta...