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Before Texas mass shooting, locals felt abandoned by police

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:15:58 GMT

CLEVELAND, Texas (AP) — Manuela Lara’s Mexican food stand is not far from the house on Walter Drive, the one with the Christmas lights still up, where a man next door with an AR-style rifle walked over and killed five of his Honduran neighbors.Lara is also an immigrant and has lived for years in the Trails End neighborhood, where residents say law enforcement was slow to respond to frequent gunfire long before the rural sheriff’s department drew scrutiny for taking more than 10 minutes to get to the scene of the April 28 shooting, and for the ensuing four-day manhunt.“There aren’t enough patrols. The police don’t come over here,” Lara said. “This happened because police didn’t come in here.”The capture of 38-year-old Francisco Oropeza Tuesday night has not eased concerns in the largely Latino neighborhood about 60 miles (100 kilometers) north of Houston, where many immigrant residents feel disregarded and disrespected by officials from the local level up to the governor.In the...

At least 8 fake electors have immunity in Ga. election probe

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:15:58 GMT

ATLANTA (AP) — The prosecutor investigating interference in the 2020 election in Georgia has agreed to immunity deals with at least eight Republican fake electors who signed a certificate falsely stating that then-President Donald Trump had won the state.Defense attorney Kimberly Debrow revealed the existence of the immunity deals in a court filing Friday, saying her eight clients had accepted the agreements last month. The filing does not identify the eight people who were offered immunity deals.Last July, a lawyer for Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis’ office revealed that each of the 16 people who signed the false elector certificate was a target of her investigation, which is examining whether Trump and his allies committed any crimes while trying to overturn his narrow election loss.The 16 fake electors met at the state Capitol on Dec. 14, 2020, and signed a certificate declaring falsely that Trump had won the presidential election and declaring themselves the state’s...

Over 2,000 migrants kidnapped in Mexico last year

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:15:58 GMT

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico’s government said Friday over 2,000 migrants were kidnapped by smuggling gangs and drug cartels last year, as authorities started a search for ten Colombians abducted in northern Mexico this week.Mexico’s national immigration agency said authorities had freed 2,115 migrants of all nationalities kidnapped by gangs in 2022.Gangs and cartels appear to be increasingly charging migrants fees to cross Mexico, and then kidnapping them for ransom.A relative of one of the missing Colombians said kidnappers have called to demand thousands of dollars from relatives in the United States. It was the latest in a string of recent mass migrant abductions in Mexico.Reached by telephone in Bogotá, Colombia, Johan Morales — the son of a couple who went missing Tuesday — said his parents and other relatives had been in the northern border state of Sonora when he lost contact with them.Morales said his relatives had been planning to reach the Arizona border and turn themselves ...

FAA leader warns of summer travel ‘havoc’ if GOP cuts pass

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:15:58 GMT

The acting head of the Federal Aviation Administration said Friday that budget cuts approved by House Republicans would cause the agency to furlough thousands of workers and stop hiring new air traffic controllers, making summer air travel worse.The FAA Acting Administrator Billy Nolen said in a letter to lawmakers that spending cuts also would slow efforts to modernize technology, including an alert system that failed in January and briefly grounded planes around the country.Nolen issued the warning in a required report to Congress about a shortage of air traffic controllers. He said the FAA is on pace to hit its goal of hiring 1,500 controllers by the end of September and is chipping away at a shortage that was made worse by the pandemic, when the agency suspended training new controllers.“Despite these efforts, the spending cuts recently passed by the House of Representatives would wreak havoc on summer air travel,” Nolen told lawmakers. Last month, the House approved legislation...

Limited Front Range floods forecasted, despite large snowpack

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:15:58 GMT

BOULDER, Colo. (KDVR) -- A flood warning has been issued Friday afternoon for portions of Routt County in northwest Colorado, where historic snowfall continues to melt. That above-average snowpack has already produced flooding in towns like Hayden, where property damage is being reported.But could that snow produce problems in Denver this spring? National Weather Service meteorologist Greg Heavener said probably not. "It’s been a relatively slow melt-off, so it’s causing some heightened conditions, some increased flows, maybe some streams that haven’t run in a few years are running this year, some ditches as well. But for the most part, we’re not really forecasting any impacts with the snow melt off this year,” he said. Heavener said forecasters are paying close attention this year, knowing the right conditions could create dangerous situations.  Denver weather: Mild temperatures with a few spring showers Specifically, they're watching for a quick warm-up over areas where snow is ...

'Know before you go': I-76 to close over the weekend for paving

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:15:58 GMT

ADAMS COUNTY, Colo. (KDVR) -- A stretch of Interstate 76 will be completely closed this weekend for a repaving project.Westbound I-76 will be closed between Federal Boulevard and Sheridan Boulevard while the Colorado Department of Transportation repaves starting Friday at 9 p.m. What to know about Cinco de Mayo closures, festivities CDOT advises drivers to "know before you go" and plan for extra travel time during the day. They expect delays to be minimal at night. It is expected to re-open Sunday at 9 p.m., though CDOT said that the schedule is weather-dependent and drivers should check on the latest closure information.Westbound I-76 travelers can use a detour: exit at Federal Blvd and turn right. Turn left on 64th Avenue to Sheridan Blvd., then turn left on Sheridan Blvd. to get back on Interstate 76.

Avalanche victim's family seeks donations for search and rescue group

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:15:58 GMT

SUMMIT COUNTY, Colo. (KDVR) — The family of a man killed in an avalanche last week is hoping to honor his memory through donations to the search and rescue team that recovered his remains.According to Summit County officials, 31-year-old Benjamin Ryan died while backcountry skiing on Bald Mountain on Saturday. The Colorado Avalanche Information Center said he was caught and buried in a small avalanche.Summit County Rescue Group was called and dispatched to respond. “We are an all-volunteer team of about 70 people, and our responsibility is to rescue people in the backcountry,” member Charles Pitman said. "All year long, 365 days a year, 24 hours a day … If you’re in distress, we’re the team that will find you and get you out of trouble." Cold case: Who murdered Sioux Feather Nightwalker in 2015? He said it took the team almost 12 hours to locate and recover the skier.“We don’t get a lot of fatalities,” he said. “Some of them affect me more than others. This one did. You read ...

Random shooting leaves 11-year-old boy dead at Dania Beach store

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:15:58 GMT

DANIA BEACH, Fla. (AP) — A gunman fatally shot an 11-year-old boy and wounded a man before turning the gun on himself inside a South Florida convenience store in an apparently random attack, sheriff’s officials said Friday.Broward County Sheriff’s deputies said Darren Rosenthal, 29, shot a man sitting inside a car outside the Dania Beach 7-Eleven at about 11 p.m. Thursday. He then went inside the suburban Fort Lauderdale store and killed the boy. He then killed himself.The names of the boy and the wounded man were not released. The man was taken to the hospital, but his condition was also not released.“Detectives do not believe there is any connection between the gunman and the victims; this does appear to be a random act,” sheriff’s spokesman Carey Codd said at a Friday news conference. “There does not appear to be a connection between the two victims.”Store worker Maximo Limas said Rosenthal gave no warning before he started shooting.The wounded man “was chilling...

Pedestrian hospitalized after crash in Miami Gardens

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:15:58 GMT

Rescue crews took one person to the hospital after they were struck in Miami Gardens.Miami Gardens Police and Miami-Dade Fire Rescue units responded to the scene of the crash in the area of Northwest Seventh Avenue and 197th Street, at around 3 a.m., FridayParamedics transported the victim to an area hospital in unknown condition.

Florida representative pulls bill that put historic Miami Beach buildings at risk of demolition

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:15:58 GMT

As the Florida Legislature wound down its session Friday, preservationists in South Florida breathed a sigh of relief in a building battle. At least for now.The sponsor of a measure being considered in the Florida House has withdrawn it.The bill proposed buildings that fail to meet Federal Emergency Management Agency flooding standards could be demolished.The sponsor, Fort Myers Republican Spencer Roach, said he pulled it because of feedback from constituents and fellow lawmakers.Preservationists worried that if the bill became law, it would have given the green light to owners of historic properties, like the Art Deco buildings on South Beach, to allow the structures to fall into disrepair, which would clear the way for them to be torn down and redeveloped.Roach said he will introduce a revised version of the bill next year.