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Quakes rattle New Zealand but no reports of major damage

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:19:13 GMT

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — A series of moderately strong earthquakes rattled New Zealand’s North Island on Wednesday morning but there were no immediate reports of major damage or injuries.A preliminary magnitude 5.4 quake hit the rural Hawke’s Bay region near the town of Dannevirke about 10:15 a.m. and was followed soon after by a preliminary magnitude 5.2 quake, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. Several milder aftershocks followed. The quakes posed no threat of a tsunami, New Zealand’s National Emergency Management Agency said.Near the epicenter, residents reported feeling a severe shaking as items crashed from shelves. Some schools evacuated. The first quake was felt as a mild but long rumbling in the capital, Wellington, about 250 kilometers (155 miles) away. The nation’s earthquake monitoring agency, Geonet, received reports from more than 22,000 people who reported feeling the first quake.New Zealand, which is home to 5 million people, is sometimes...

McCarthy edges Republicans closer to House debt vote

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:19:13 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — House Republicans pushed their debt ceiling package to a vote as soon as Wednesday as Speaker Kevin McCarthy and his leadership team huddled with key holdouts late into Tuesday evening, working to ensure they would have majority support for passage.Prospects for the sweeping package were buoyed by a nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office analysis showing the Republican plan would reduce federal deficits by $4.8 trillion over the decade if the proposed changes were enacted into law. The House Republican plan would lift the debt ceiling by $1.5 trillion into 2024 in exchange for steep budget cuts Democrats and even some Republicans oppose. President Joe Biden has threatened to veto the bill. McCarthy declined to say late Tuesday whether he had the 218 votes needed from his slim majority in the face of Democratic opposition. The Republican speaker’s office at the U.S. Capitol became a revolving door of lawmakers coming and going, including a contingent of Iowa ...

Texas bill proposes up to $25K for armed school ‘sentinels’

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:19:13 GMT

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Texas schools could offer stipends of up to $25,000 to staff members who add the role of armed campus “sentinels” to their regular duties under a proposal advanced Tuesday by state lawmakers in response to the Uvalde classroom attack last year.With U.S. mass shootings on a record pace so far in 2023, there have been new calls among some lawmakers for more armed personnel in schools. Also on Tuesday, U.S. Sen. Rick Scott of Florida proposed an $80 million federal program to fund armed officers in all U.S. schools. Texas already lets teachers carry guns under a voluntary program that requires firearm lessons but has drawn relatively few takers. Under the new proposal, armed personnel must also train in identifying students with mental health issues. “What I want to pay them for is hopefully getting the training needed to spot the children before we have a problem,” said Republican state Rep. Ken King, who authored the bill.The legislation, which overwhelmingly pas...

'There was like a quarter in there:' Restaurant owners say they're lucky following break-in

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:19:13 GMT

CHICAGO — Osvaldo Nunez has been serving up birria, or goat meat, for almost two years in the Belmont Cragin neighborhood without being a target of a break-in.That streak came to an end Monday when Nunez's wife received a concerning call from a relative about their restaurant."He was like your glass was shattered at the business," said Alice Martinez, co-owner of Barca Birria Tatemada found on West Belmont Avenue. "I was like oh my god."According to Nunez, Surveillance cameras were unable to capture the people who broke in, but the incident happened sometime after they closed Sunday night, and before they opened up shop on Monday morning."I saw the window all crashed in and there's two big boulders," Nunez said. "And I'm like, 'wow.'"A boarded up window now fills the space where glass once stood before someone smashed into the restaurant. Despite the damages, Nunez said the thieves got away with very little—a phone charger and an almost empty cash register."I always take all the mo...

Police: Elderly man shot neighbor in head near Antioch

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:19:13 GMT

ANTIOCH TOWNSHIP, Ill. -- A 79-year-old man has been arrested after he reportedly shot his neighbor in the head after arguing over the use of a leaf blower.According to the Lake County Sheriff's Office, deputies responded to the 40700 block of North Black Oak Avenue in unincorporated Antioch on reports of an unresponsive man lying in a driveway just after 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, April 12. Rosati’s Pizza franchisees to pay $250K in back wages, damages to employees Upon arrival, paramedics were on-scene attempting to save 59-year-old William Martys' life. He was transported to Advocate Condell Medical Center in Libertyville where he was later pronounced dead.Further investigation showed that while Martys was using a leaf blower in his yard, his neighbor, 79-year-old Ettore Lacchei, approached and started arguing with Martys. At that time, Lacchei allegedly shot Martys in the head.Lacchei was arrested almost two weeks after the incident on Tuesday, April 25.

Illinois reaction mixed over news Kim Foxx will not seek 3rd term in office

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:19:13 GMT

CHICAGO — Former prosecutors, lawmakers, the head of Chicago's police union and Illinois elected officials weighed in Tuesday following news that Cook County State's Attorney Kim Foxx will not run for re-election in 2024.Some praised Foxx's time in office, while others criticized her tenure. SEE ALSO | Kim Foxx says she will not seek re-election"I think the writing was on the wall and good riddance," said current Fraternal Order of Police President John Catanzara. The relationship between the Cook County State's Attorney's Office and the FOP was often icy."The rhetoric matters and when you’re literally minimizing criminal behavior, it sends a horrible signal," Catanzara said. "It’s a driver for a lot of things. The lawlessness even with these teen roving bands of 'I can do whatever I want to do, wherever I want to do it,' and there’s no repercussions."Mayor-elect Brandon Johnson released a statement Tuesday, praising some of Foxx's accomplishments during her tenure, including overtu...

Taliban kill mastermind of suicide bombing at Kabul airport that left 13 US troops dead

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:19:13 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — A ground assault by the Taliban killed the Islamic State militant who spearheaded the August 2021 suicide bombing at the Kabul airport that left 13 U.S. troops and about 170 Afghans dead during the chaotic U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, U.S. officials said Tuesday.Initially, neither the U.S. — nor apparently the Taliban — were aware that the mastermind was dead. He was killed during a series of battles early this month in southern Afghanistan between the Taliban and the Islamic State group’s affiliate, according to several officials.But in the past few days, U.S. intelligence confirmed “with high confidence” that the Islamic State leader had been killed, a senior administration official said. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss intelligence matters.Over the weekend, the U.S. military began to inform the parents of the 11 Marines, the sailor and the soldier who were killed in the blast at Abbey Gate, and they shared the information ...

VIDEO: Indiana deputy saves woman from choking on french fries

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:19:13 GMT

NOBLE COUNTY, Ind. -- A sheriff's deputy in Indiana is being praised a hero after responding to a call where he saved a driver from choking.According to the Noble County Sheriff Department, Deputy Jerry Weber overheard dispatch talking to a caller about a motorist who was possibly choking on Friday, April 21. VIDEO: Wisconsin police pull bobcat from inside car Upon arrival, Deputy Weber found the motorist choking and started to perform the Heimlich maneuver in an attempt to dislodge the obstruction and allow the motorist to breath. The deputy was successful and the driver was thankful."Job well done Jerry, you are truly an asset to the department and you make all of us very proud," Noble County Sheriff Department wrote on their Facebook.

Austin ISD looking to identify a development partner for teacher housing site

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:19:13 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — Rental prices in Austin could be impacting teacher retention in Austin ISD, but the district is hoping to help keep teachers with current and future programs and housing."In AISD, we have an exclusive deal with the Austin Apartment Association," Arnoldo Gutierrez, assistant superintendent of human capital with Austin ISD, said.In a partnership announced on KXAN earlier in April, the school district is working with the Austin Apartment Association to find apartments that will offer incentives for teachers. "From discounted rates to waving some fees," Gutierrez said. "It is something that is exclusive for our teachers in Austin ISD."According to Zumper, as of April 2023, the average rent for a one-bedroom apartment in Austin was close to $1,600."We want our teachers to be able to live where they work," Amie Ortiz, interim executive director of employee effectiveness, experience and sustainability with AISD, said.Ortiz said the district is working on multiple ways to he...

Shelter-in-place order lifted at Austin Community College: Riverside campus

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:19:13 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — The Riverside campus of Austin Community College went under a shelter-in-place order briefly Tuesday night after reports of an armed person near campus.The school said on Twitter, as of 6 p.m., all campus doors will be closed and locked due to the reports.At 6:20 p.m., ACC said on Twitter the campus was cleared to resume normal activities after an investigation by local police.The ACC Riverside Campus is off Grove Boulevard in southeast Austin — between Pleasant Valley Road and Montopolis Drive. This developing story will be updated.