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Fun in the sun: State beaches open up for Memorial Day Weekend

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:29:10 GMT

It’s time to go have some fun in the sun.The Department of Conservation and Recreation opened 81 beaches and waterfronts across the state Saturday just in time for Memorial Day. Weekend lifeguard services are also scheduled to start this weekend at many waterfronts, the department said.“DCR works, every year, to make our waterfronts and pools as safe as possible for visitors seeking relief from the summer heat,” DCR Commissioner Brian Arrigo said in a statement. “Starting this weekend, I am excited to welcome families back to our parks and beaches and I encourage everyone to take precautions and follow posted signage when visiting our properties to ensure a safe and fun experience.”Full lifeguard services are scheduled to start on June 17 at select beaches and waterfronts. And DCR also plans to start water quality testing at all 81 designated swimming areas. Ropes and buoys will be placed at inland water areas to mark off safe swimming areas, the department said.Safety signage — tra...

Crime Briefs: Seized coke, bank robber, and multiple people hit by car

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:29:10 GMT

State police and postal inspectors seized three kilograms of cocaine Friday that officials said were mailed from Puerto Rico to a “large-scale” Bay State-based drug trafficking enterprise.Law enforcement officials said they found the cocaine when they searched a parcel delivered to Stephen Marsden of Quincy, who was arrested and taken to a state police barracks for booking. Marsden was held on $50,000 cash bail pending an arraignment in Quincy District Court next week.Police said they found five firearms, loose ammunition, drugs, a money counting device, and materials used to pack drugs during a search of Marsden’s apartment in Quincy.“A check revealed that one of the guns had been stolen during a  housebreak in Oxford, North Carolina. Marsden does not have a license to carry firearms,” Police said in a statement.Billerica police looking for man accused of robbing TD BankPolice are asking the public to help identify a man who they say robbed a TD Bank in Billerica Friday afternoon.B...

GOP-controlled Texas House impeaches Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton, triggering suspension

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:29:10 GMT

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Texas’ Republican-led House of Representatives impeached state Attorney General Ken Paxton on Saturday on articles including bribery and abuse of public trust, a sudden, historic rebuke of a GOP official who rose to be a star of the conservative legal movement despite years of scandal and alleged crimes.Impeachment triggers Paxton’s immediate suspension from office pending the outcome of a trial in the state Senate and empowers Republican Gov. Greg Abbott to appoint someone else as Texas’ top lawyer in the interim.The 121-23 vote constitutes an abrupt downfall for one of the GOP’s most prominent legal combatants, who in 2020 asked the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn President Joe Biden’s electoral defeat of Donald Trump. It makes Paxton only the third sitting official in Texas’ nearly 200-year history to have been impeached.Paxton, 60, decried the move moments after many members of his own party voted to impeach, and his office pointed to internal reports that fo...

Why Texas’ GOP-controlled House impeached Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:29:10 GMT

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — After years of legal and ethical scandals swirling around Texas Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton, the state’s GOP-controlled House of Representatives on Saturday voted to impeach him, causing his immediate suspension from office.The extraordinary and rarely used maneuver came in the final days of the state’s legislative session, setting up a bruising political fight that pitted Paxton, who has aligned himself closely with former President Donald Trump and the state’s hard-right conservatives, against House Republican leaders, who appear to suddenly have had enough of the allegations of wrongdoing that have long dogged Texas’ top lawyer.Paxton fought it every step of the way, calling the process “corrupt,” and asking supporters to rally for him at the state Capitol during the vote.Here is how the impeachment process works in Texas, and how the 60-year-old Republican became just the third official to be impeached in the state’s nearly 200-year history:THE PR...

Biden, McCarthy agree to talk on debt crisis, speaker says negotiators ‘closer to an agreement’

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:29:10 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy agreed to speak Saturday evening as they race to strike an agreement that would resolve the looming debt crisis ahead of a June 5 deadline to avert a catastrophic U.S. default.Biden spoke earlier in the day with the Democratic leaders in Congress to discuss the status of the talks, according to two people familiar with the situation and granted anonymity to discuss it. But they had not reached a deal yet, another person familiar with the calls said.The Republican speaker gathered top allies behind closed doors at the Capitol as negotiators pushed for a deal that would raise the nation’s borrowing limit and avoid a catastrophic default, while also making spending cuts that House Republicans are demanding. As he arrived at the Capitol early in the day, McCarthy said that Republican negotiators were “closer to an agreement.” McCarthy’s comments echoed the latest assessment from Biden, who said Friday evening that ba...

‘More connected’: Researchers looking at growing food under solar panels

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:29:10 GMT

Lawns, backyards and roofs could be used to produce both solar power and fresh vegetables, University of Alberta researchers say.Guillermo Hernandez, a soil scientist, and Camila Quiroz, a research intern from Peru, are looking into growing crops under solar panels to improve the use of space in cities and farms. “We know how to generate electricity from sunlight. We also know how to grow crops,” says Hernandez. “But the question is, can we do the two things in the same space?” Crop harvesting under solar panels is called agrivoltaics, a relatively new concept to improve land-use efficiency by producing energy and food in the same spot. In a 25-day experiment, Hernandez and Quiroz grew batches of spinach under three systems — thick solar panels, thin solar panels and without solar panels. The researchers used simulated sunlight in a small room at the university during the Alberta winter. Quiroz, who is studying energy engineering in Peru, says there werenR...

CPD: Man wanted for sexually assaulting women at gunpoint in South Shore

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:29:10 GMT

CHICAGO — The Chicago Police Department sent out a community alert Saturday notifying the public of a man wanted for posing as a woman on Snapchat in order to rob and sexually assault women at gunpoint in South Shore.Police said that in each instance — at least four times — female victims spoke to a person they believed was also a female on Snapchat. After a short time, an in-person meeting was set up between the two at an address in the 1900 block of East 73rd Place, or the 7700 block of South Euclid Avenue.Once the victims arrived, a Black male offender, around 5'4" to 5'7", carrying a handgun (in one instance, a knife) appeared and threatened the victims, robbing them of money and cell phones before taking them to a different location to penetrate them, police said. 3 men hospitalized after drive-by shooting in Auburn Gresham Times and Locations7400 Block of South Euclid Avenue on March 21, 2023, between the hours of 2:00 a.m. and 3:00 a.m.1900 Block of East 73rd Place on May 8...

Salvation Army hosts block party in Humboldt Park to connect residents with resources

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:29:10 GMT

CHICAGO — The Salvation Army hosted a family-friendly event in Humboldt Park which, along with the fun, introduced residents to safe alternatives for the summer.The Rock the Block celebration kicked off the season at the Freedom Center at Chicago and Christina Avenue. 12 shot, 3 dead in overnight shootings in Chicago ahead of weekend The festival had music, crafts, farm animals, pony rides and a safe haven for Humboldt Park families.After receiving a Reimagining Public Safety grant from the state, the money must be spent on youth programs designed to curb violence.Another goal is to educate the community on services the organization offers, like housing and rental assistance, a food pantry and free after-school programs and summer camp.Parents said young people on the West and South sides desperately need activities like these, especially when the school ear ends.

Texas House votes to impeach Attorney General Ken Paxton

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:29:10 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — The Texas House of Representatives voted 121-23 in favor of impeaching Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton Saturday.The House had to decide whether there was sufficient evidence to justify going to an impeachment trial. Now that the House has voted to approve the articles of impeachment, the matter will go to the state Senate. “We will not tolerate corruption, bribery and abuse of power,” Rep. Andrew Murr, R-Junction, said in closing statements. Previous coverage: Potential impeachment looms over AG Ken Paxton after investigative hearingWhat we know about possible impeachment against Attorney General Ken PaxtonWhat do the 20 Articles of Impeachment against Ken Paxton mean?How does the impeachment process work in Texas? The House General Investigating Committee laid out 20 articles of impeachment to the House members Thursday night. The articles, or accusations, are the result of a two-month investigation that began after Paxton’s proposal to use state funds to settle ...

Central PA twins at top of class separated by two minutes at birth and a fraction of GPA

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:29:10 GMT

CAMP HILL, PA (WHTM) — High school graduation season is in full swing and people at one Pennsylvania ceremony saw something pretty rare and really cool. Let's just say the valedictorian and salutatorian know each other even better than most pairs at the top of their classes do.Jose and Antonio Centenera are fraternal twins, but brothers don't come much closer than these two Trinity High grads. They're separated by two minutes at birth but only hundredths of a GPA point. WHO R U: What your license plate number could tell other drivers Antonio, the valedictorian, and Jose, the salutatorian of their class, didn't necessarily surprise everyone, including Trinity High School Principal John Cominsky.But this isn't a story about a dramatic sibling rivalry or a fight for number one. The truth is it's an even better story."It's almost like they were sad that somebody had to be first. It's that kind of thing. That's how supportive they are of one another," said Cominsky."It wasn't really an...