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Death toll rises to 67 in Maui wildfires

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 12:19:11 GMT

LAHAINA, Hawaii (AP) — Hawaii officials say the confirmed wildfire death toll on Maui has risen from to 67, up from 55 previously. Maui County says in an online statement that firefighting efforts are continuing and the Lahaina fire is not yet contained. THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.LAHAINA, Hawaii (AP) — Incinerated cars crushed by downed telephone poles. Charred elevator shafts standing as testaments to the burned-down apartment buildings they once served. Pools filled with charcoal-colored water. Trampolines and children’s scooters mangled by the extreme heat.Residents of Lahaina were being allowed back home on Friday for the first time since wildfires that have killed at least 55 people turned large swaths of the centuries-old town into a hellscape of ashen rubble.Associated Press journalists witnessed the devastation, with nearly every building flattened to debris on Front Street, the heart of the Maui community and the economic hub of the is...

Prosecutors decline to charge officer who shot and wounded autistic Utah teenager

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 12:19:11 GMT

Prosecutors in Utah on Friday declined to file charges against a Salt Lake City police officer who shot and badly wounded an unarmed 13-year-old boy with autism after responding to his mother’s 911 call for help when the boy had a breakdown.The September 2020 shooting drew widespread scrutiny and was one of several around the U.S. that fueled questions about how police respond to calls involving people with mental illness. The family of victim Linden Cameron reached a $3 million settlement with Salt Lake City last year in a civil lawsuit over the life-changing injuries and emotional trauma the boy suffered from the shooting.Salt Lake County District Attorney Sam Gill called the shooting “unjustified” in a letter sent to the city’s police department. But Gill declined to charge the officer in part because two use-of-force experts who reviewed the case came to opposite conclusions regarding the officer’s conduct.“We cannot say that the shooting of an unarmed 13-year ...

Men attacked Alabama boat co-captain for ‘just doing my job,’ he says

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 12:19:11 GMT

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — An Alabama boat co-captain was hanging on “for dear life” as men punched and tackled him on the capital city’s riverfront, he told police after video of the brawl circulated widely online. Dameion Pickett, a crew member of the Harriott II in Montgomery, described the brawl in a handwritten statement to authorities included in court documents, saying he was attacked after moving a pontoon boat a few feet so the city-owned riverboat could dock. Four white boaters have been charged with misdemeanor assault in the attack against Pickett, who is Black, as well as a teen deckhand, who was punched and is white. The deckhand’s mother heard a racial slur before Pickett was hit, she wrote in a statement. A fifth person, a Black man who appeared to be hitting people with a folding chair during the subsequent fight, has been charged with disorderly conduct, police announced Friday.Video of the melee sparked scores of memes and video reenactments.Pickett told police...

Chemicals from Etobicoke industrial fire spills over into creek, affecting wildlife

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 12:19:11 GMT

A significant fire that erupted at an industrial building in Etobicoke on Friday has resulted in chemicals spilling over into Mimico Creek and affecting local wildlife.Toronto Fire Services were called to Brenntag Canada at 35 Vulcan Street near Martin Grove Road and Belfield Road around 1:15 a.m. following explosions at the building.Over 100 firefighters battled the fire that spread to adjacent buildings. Officials contained the fire and attempted to keep it away from more hazardous chemicals in the facility. Given the nature of the chemicals stored at the site, concern immediately shifted to potential health and environmental threats.Etobicoke resident Craig Strathy tells CityNews he was at Royal Woodbine Golf Course on Friday after the fire broke out at the nearby industrial building. He immediately noticed a change in the colour and consistency of Mimico Creek, which runs through the golf course.“I witnessed the toxic runoff from the Vulcan Street fire this morning. I got ...

Court dismisses challenge to Biden’s restoration of Utah monuments shrunk by Trump

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 12:19:11 GMT

A judge Friday dismissed a lawsuit from the state of Utah challenging President Joe Biden’s restoration of two sprawling national monuments in the state that were downsized by President Donald Trump.U.S. District Judge David Nuffer said Biden acted within his authority when he issued proclamations restoring Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monuments in 2021. The monuments are on land sacred to many Native Americans. Nuffer said Biden could issue such proclamations creating monuments “as he sees fit” and those actions were not reviewable by the court.The part of southeastern Utah where the two monuments are located has been at the center of some of the country’s most heated land management debates.Utah Gov. Spencer Cox and the office of Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes said the state would begin work immediately on an appeal. The Republican governor predicted that the issue would ultimately be decided by the U.S. Supreme Court.Nuffer’s ruling comes just t...

A man posed as a veterinarian and performed surgery on a pregnant dog who died, authorities say

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 12:19:11 GMT

NAPLES, Fla. (AP) — A southwest Florida man was arrested Friday for claiming to be a veterinarian and performing surgery on a pregnant dog who died of complications from the procedure, authorities said.The man was a licensed pet groomer but not a licensed veterinarian, the Collier County Sheriff’s Office said in a social media post.The 61-year-old Collier County man was charged with animal abuse and practicing veterinary medicine without a license.The 6-year-old Chihuahua named Sugar died following the surgery in May. Sugar’s owners had been introduced to the man as a veterinarian and reached out to him because the 6-pound (2.7-kilogram) dog appeared to be having difficulty delivering her puppies, the sheriff’s office said.The man came to the owners’ home and performed a cesarean section on Sugar in a converted ambulance. He removed a stillborn puppy and charged $600, according to the sheriff’s office. After Sugar became ill from an infection a week lat...

Officer-involved shooting in Morgan Park under investigation

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 12:19:11 GMT

CHICAGO -- A heavy police presence can be seen in Morgan Park following reports of an officer-involved shooting Friday evening.According to the Chicago Police Department, officers responded to an officer-involved shooting near the intersection of West 111th Street and Racine Avenue in Chicago's Morgan Park neighborhood on Friday. 3 firefighters injured following Northwest Side house fire The Chicago Police Department and the Civilian Office of Police Accountability (COPA) are investigating this incident.No further information has been made available at this time.Stay with WGN-TV as this story develops.

Chicago man sentenced for assaulting police officers during Jan. 6 riot

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 12:19:11 GMT

CHICAGO -- A Chicago man was sentenced on Friday for assaulting law enforcement during the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.James McNamara, 61, of Chicago, reportedly traveled to Washington, D.C., to attend a rally with an acquaintance and arrived at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, according to court documents. Illinois Supreme Court upholds state’s ban on semiautomatic weapons When McNamara arrived at the Capitol, court documents said that he made his way to the West Terrace and observed a crowd attempting to gain access through the closed North doors.Just before 3:15 p.m. on Jan. 6, 2021, McNamara witnessed protestors being forcibly removed from the building through the closed North doors by law enforcement officers. The Chicago man then ascended the steps toward the doors and lunged at the officers, swinging his arms with a clenched fist. Court documents report that McNamara swung his arms and fist at a Metropolitan Police Department Officer.According to court recor...

Missouri 14-year-old pays off lunch debt for former school

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 12:19:11 GMT

(NewsNation) — As schools resume, in certain regions food insecurity remains a challenge for many districts. Students arrive hungry and districts accumulate debt while providing free meals.Millions of children face this issue nationwide, but a Missouri teen is drawing from his personal experience of uncertainty about lunch and actively working to aid children in his local community. “I’m only one person, but if everyone starts doing something like this, it will start to make change," said DeJuan Strickland. At 14 years old, Strickland demonstrates age is no barrier to impact. With determination, he successfully addressed his community's child hunger issue. Through a GoFundMe campaign, he cleared lunchroom debt for students at his former elementary school, McCurdy Elementary. Strickland's initial goal of $200 was surpassed, raising $400 instead.“The reason why I wanted to do that was because I’ve experienced not having enough money to pay for school lunches," Strickland said.During S...

Migrant child dies on border bus in Texas

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 12:19:11 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- A child died on one of the buses that Operation Lone Star has been using to move migrants from the Texas border to other parts of the country, the Texas Division of Emergency Management (TDEM) said Friday.The child started showing signs of "health concerns," and the bus pulled over and security personnel on board called 911, the release said.An ambulance arrived, and the bilingual security personnel translated for the parents and the paramedics who were providing care for the child, according to TDEM.The child was taken to a local hospital to receive additional medical attention and was later pronounced dead, the release said."Every loss is a tragedy," the statement said in part.The child came into the country in Brownsville with her parents. The bus was heading for Chicago.After being processed by U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the City of Brownsville, each bus passenger underwent a temperature check and was asked if they had medical conditions that may req...