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Quebec mother acquitted in daughters’ deaths after third murder trial

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 16:14:14 GMT

LAVAL, Que. — A Quebec woman has been acquitted in the 2009 deaths of her young daughters after a third trial on murder charges.Adele Sorella was convicted of murder in 2013 and 2019 follow jury trials, but both of those decisions were overturned on appeal.The third trial was heard before Quebec Superior Court Justice Myriam Lachance in Laval earlier this fall, but without any witnesses or new evidence.Lachance said today in her ruling, which took nearly three hours to deliver, that there were gaps in the Crown’s theory that led her to acquit Sorella on two counts of murder.The young victims, nine-year-old Amanda and eight-year-old Sabrina, were found dead in their playroom on March 31, 2009, laying side by side in their school uniforms.Their bodies bore no signs of violence and the cause of their death has never been determined.Sorella was arrested the following day after crashing her SUV into a hydro pole.Her husband and the girls’ father was Giuseppe De Vito, a man wi...

G League player and girlfriend are arrested in killing of woman found dead near Las Vegas: Police

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 16:14:14 GMT

LAS VEGAS (AP) — A player with the Sacramento Kings’ G League affiliate and his girlfriend have been arrested in the killing of a woman whose remains were found earlier this month near Las Vegas, authorities said.Chance Comanche, 27, and Sakari Harnden, 19, will be charged with murder and kidnapping in the killing of 23-year-old Marayna Rodgers, the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police announced Sunday.Rodgers was reported missing on Dec. 7 and her remains were later found in the Las Vegas suburb of Henderson, police said.Authorities have not released a cause of death or discussed a possible motive, but police said investigators suspected foul play and obtained evidence to arrest Harnden and Comanche.Police said Harnden was a friend of Rodgers, who was a medical assistant from Washington state.According to police, Rodgers was out with friends in Las Vegas on Dec. 5 and had a prearranged meeting with Harnden, who brought Comanche with her.Harnden was arrested Wednesday in Las Vegas an...

Parenting advice YouTuber Ruby Franke of Utah set to take plea agreement in child abuse case

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 16:14:14 GMT

A Utah mother of six who gave parenting advice via a once-popular YouTube channel called “8 Passengers” is expected to enter a plea agreement at a hearing Monday on charges that she abused and starved two of her children, her attorney said. Winward Law announced in a statement Friday that the alleged abuse occurred while Ruby Franke was influenced by a relationship counselor who led her to “a distorted sense of morality.” The statement does not say what charges Franke might plead guilty to or if any sentencing agreement had been reached. “Ruby Franke is a devoted mother and is also a woman committed to constant improvement,” Winward Law said in a statement. Franke initially believed that Jodi Hildebrandt “had the insight to offer a path to continual improvement,” but said that Hildebrandt “took advantage of this quest and twisted it into something heinous.” Hildebrandt “systematically isolated Ruby Franke from her extended family, older children, and her husband, Kevin Franke,...

B.C. watchdog investigates after man killed in police-involved shooting in Abbotsford

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 16:14:14 GMT

ABBOTSFORD, B.C. — One man is dead after a police-involved shooting in Abbotsford, British Columbia, on Sunday night.Police say the shooting happened in the 1700 block of Riverside Road, and the section between Marshall and King roads has been closed due to the ongoing investigation.Abbotsford Police say in a statement that one man died in the incident, although his name and other details surrounding the shooting have not been released.No police officers were injured in the incident.Police say they have notified B.C’s Independent Investigations Office, and the watchdog agency is leading the investigation into what happened.Abbotsford is located about 70 kilometres east of Vancouver.This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 18, 2023.The Canadian Press

Christmas celebrations cancelled in Bethlehem, Jesus' traditional birthplace due to Israel-Hamas war

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 16:14:14 GMT

BETHLEHEM, West Bank (AP) — Officials in Bethlehem said Christmas celebrations will be canceled in Jesus' traditional birthplace due to the Israel-Hamas war and the thousands of Palestinians lives lost. The cancellation of Christmas festivities, which typically draw thousands of visitors, is a severe blow to the town's tourism-dependent economy. But joyous revelry is untenable at a time of immense suffering of Palestinians in Gaza, said Mayor Hana Haniyeh.More than 18,700 Palestinians have been killed and more than 50,000 wounded during Israel's blistering bombings, according to health officials there, while some 85% of the territory's 2.3 million residents have been displaced. Since Oct. 7, access to Bethlehem and other Palestinian towns in the Israeli-occupied West Bank has been difficult, with long lines of motorists waiting to pass military checkpoints. The restrictions have also prevented many Palestinians from exiting the territory to work in Israel.City le...

NY lawmakers call out Chick-fil-A over Sunday closures at highway rest stops

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 16:14:14 GMT

ALBANY, N.Y. (WTEN) – A group of New York State Assembly officials wants to ensure all travelers can access every restaurant operating at rest stops along the New York State Thruway, seven days a week.It's not an issue for most of the rest-stop eateries, but it does single out one: Chick-fil-A, which operates at seven of the Thruway's 27 rest stops. What’s the fastest fast food drive-thru? It isn’t Chick-fil-A The bill's sponsor and co-sponsors are now aiming to prevent further food-service contracts at Thruway stops from closing during busy travel days."While there is nothing objectionable about a fast food restaurant closing on a particular day of the week, service areas dedicated to travelers is an inappropriate location for such a restaurant," the justification for the proposed bill reads, after calling out Chick-fil-A specifically. "Publicly owned service areas should use their space to maximally benefit the public. Allowing for retail space to go unused one seventh of the we...

Why Apple is set to pull some Apple Watches from US shelves

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 16:14:14 GMT

(NEXSTAR) — As early as this week, you won't be able to find some Apple Watches on store shelves or online.Apple confirmed to Nexstar on Monday that they will be pausing the sales of Apple Watch Series 9 and Ultra 2 on their website starting Thursday. Apple's retail locations will no longer be selling the watches after Christmas Eve.This comes as Apple faces a legal dispute over the technology the smartwatches use to run the blood oxygen feature on the devices. Masimo sued Apple in federal court in 2020 and accused the tech giant of poaching employees and stealing trade secrets related to its light-based technology for measuring blood-oxygen levels, as The Hill previously reported. The company sued Apple again in 2021 after the release of the Apple Watch Series 6, which was the first model to have the blood oxygen feature. Apple then sued Masimo last year, alleging the company copied their technology. There’s a new iPhone update: What’s in it, and who can get it? The 2020 case en...

Minnesota native starts nonprofit for Maui wildfire victims

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 16:14:14 GMT

BRAINERD — This Christmas will be like no other ever experienced in Maui, Hawaii, where many residents no longer have homes to call their own or the company of loved ones they so cherished, let alone a festive tree and decorations.But one Minnesota native hopes to make the holiday as jolly as it can be, under the circumstances.Hannah Erickson (Courtesy photo via Forum News Service)Originally from Crosslake and a 2014 graduate of Pequot Lakes High School, Hannah Erickson moved to Maui five years ago. The coastal town of Lahaina on Maui’s western side is now her home, and it’s struggling.Wildfires broke out on the island Aug. 8, with flames eventually fanned by Hurricane Dora. At least 100 people died, and most of Lahaina was reduced to ash, just like Erickson’s house.She was in Minnesota when the fire broke out, helping out at her sister and brother-in-law’s hockey camp in Brainerd. She wasn’t initially sure what the future held for her and her marketing company and was hesitant to g...

Timberwolves’ Anthony Edwards releases statement in response to social media controversy

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 16:14:14 GMT

Anthony Edwards released a statement on social media Monday regarding screen shots circulating on social media of an alleged messaging conversation in which the Timberwolves guard pressures a woman to get an abortion.“I made comments in the heat of a moment that are not me, and that are not aligned with what I believe and who I want to be as a man,” Edwards’ statement read. “All women should be supported and empowered to make their own decisions about their bodies and what is best for them. I am handling my personal matters privately and will not be commenting on them any further at this time.”This is the second time in 15 months that the 22-year-old has posted on social media in response to a personal controversy. He apologized last fall after posting a video to his Instagram of himself making anti-gay comments.Related ArticlesMinnesota Timberwolves | Timberwolves’ offense starts slow, then revs up. Why is that? Minnesota Timberwo...

WNBA changes Commissioner’s Cup format with each team playing 5 games over 2-week period

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 16:14:14 GMT

NEW YORK — The WNBA is changing its Commissioner’s Cup format, playing half as many games and contesting them all during a two-week period in early June.Teams now will play only five games — once against every other team in the conference — which is down from the 10 in the first three years. The old format had teams playing one home game and one road game against each other that counted toward the Commissioner’s Cup. Now, some teams will play three games at home while others will play two. They will alternate each season who has the extra home game.“The newly designed, concentrated structure for this in-season tournament adds an increased sense of urgency and excitement as we place a particular spotlight on Eastern and Western Conference Commissioner’s Cup play in a two-week window near the tip-off of our regular season.” WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert said.Games will be played between June 1-13. The championship game will be played on June 25 at the home of the team with the bes...