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Democrats advance gun-control bills through Pennsylvania House

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 07:27:07 GMT

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Authorities could temporarily seize firearms and background checks would be expanded for gun buyers, under two bills passed Monday in the Pennsylvania House, where Democrats are using their razor-thin majority to push gun-control measures after a yearslong standstill in the politically divided government.The party describes the proposals as relatively moderate measures to cut down on gun trafficking, suicide deaths, accidental shootings and day-to-day violence. Republicans oppose the bills, saying they punish law-abiding gun owners.The “red flag” bill, which would allow a judge to order the seizure of firearms if asked by family members or police, passed on a 102-99 vote, with two Republicans voting alongside Democrats, and one Democrat flipping to vote with Republicans. Nineteen states have similar laws, according to Everytown for Gun Safety, a leading gun control advocacy group.Rep. Mike Schlossberg, a Democrat from Lehigh County, recalled his own struggles ...

Lawsuit targets ambulance company for paramedic accused of sexually assaulting 2 elderly women

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 07:27:07 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A lawsuit filed against medical transport provider American Medical Response West in California court says the ambulance company’s lax hiring and oversight allowed a paramedic to sexually assault two women in their 80s while en route to a hospital. The law firm of Cotchett, Pitre & McCarthy filed the suit last week in San Mateo County Superior Court. It also names American Medical Response, Inc., based in Colorado, as a defendant. AMR operates in most U.S. states.Miguel Nieblas Ontiveros, 35, has pleaded not guilty in criminal court to two felony counts of forcible oral copulation. Anne Marie Murphy, the lead attorney on the case, said the paramedic should never have been left alone with vulnerable patients, one of whom was allegedly assaulted in May of last year and the other in December.“It’s a horrific situation. Our client is an 82-year-old Asian woman who was frail and she needed to be transported to a hospital,” she said. “Unfortunately, th...

Uxbridge community still rebuilding one year after tornado touchdown

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 07:27:07 GMT

It’s been one year since a natural disaster swept across southern Ontario and Quebec, when a tornado left at least 11 people dead, downed trees and power lines and caused extensive damage to buildings including many in Uxbridge.The tornado that was embedded in a derecho, a windstorm associated with a line of thunderstorms, and Uxbridge was one of the hardest hit locations.“We declared a state of emergency within minutes,” said Dave Barton, the mayor of the township of Uxbridge.The difference a year makes – the stop sign has been repaired and the trees cleaned up, but the scars of an EF-2 tornado can still be seen and felt throughout the town of Uxbridge.“People didn’t feel safe in their homes for a little while, and still when we get a strong wind, people are still really nervous of what can happen,” said Barton.On May 21, 2022, the storm quickly moved across southern Ontario leaving hundreds of thousands without power, with the estimated cost of ...

FACT FOCUS: Fake image of Pentagon explosion briefly sends jitters through stock market

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 07:27:07 GMT

An image of black smoke billowing next to a bureaucratic-looking building spread across social media Monday morning, with the claim that it showed an explosion near the Pentagon. The posts sent a brief shiver through the stock market and were quickly picked up by news outlets outside the U.S., before officials jumped in to clarify that no blast actually took place and the photo was a fake.Experts say the viral image had telltale signs of an AI-generated forgery, and its popularity underscores the everyday chaos these now increasingly sophisticated and easy-to-access programs can inflict.Here’s a closer look at the facts.CLAIM: An image shows an explosion near the Pentagon.THE FACTS: Police and fire officials in Arlington, Virginia, say the image is not real and there was no incident at the U.S. Department of Defense headquarters across the Potomac from the nation’s capital. Despite this, the image and claim was spread by outlets including RT, a Russian government-backed media compan...

Guam braces to take a hit from Typhoon Mawar as the storm heads toward the Pacific US territory

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 07:27:07 GMT

HONOLULU (AP) — Guam’s governor urged residents to stay home and warned the island could take a direct hit from Typhoon Mawar as the storm strengthened on its path toward the U.S. territory in the Pacific. Gov. Lou Leon Guerrero urged residents in a YouTube message to remain calm and prepare for Mawar, which the weather service said could hit the southern part of Guam at 10 a.m. local time Wednesday. Guam is 20 hours ahead of Honolulu.“We may take a direct hit,” Patrick Doll, lead meteorologist for the National Weather Service in Tiyan, Guam, told The Associated Press. “If we don’t take a direct hit, it’s going to be very close.”The center of the storm was 260 miles (418 kilometers) southeast of Guam, where it’s already Tuesday and moving 7 mph (11 kmh) toward Guam, Doll said. It’s expected to arrive as a “high-end” Category 3 storm, possibly reaching “low-end” Category 4, he said. Sustained winds were at 105 mph (169 kmh), gusting up to 124 mph (200 km...

Skilling: Clear Monday night before warm, cloudy Tuesday

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 07:27:07 GMT

Chicagoans enjoyed the 2nd warmest weekend of 2023 with a Saturday high of 73 and an 81-degree high Sunday.Today's (Monday's) 84 degrees likely high marks the 9th time this year temps have reached or exceeded 80-deg—and a 9th is likely Tuesday—with Tuesday's likely to exceed today's reading by 3-degrees. Lake breezes will continue cooling lakeshore areas.A jarring change to cooler weather with a 23 degrees 24-hour high temp pullback likely at O'Hare is to hit Wednesday with a backdoor cold front's passage. The front is to race southward the length of Lake Michigan ushering 25 to 30 mph north/northeasterly wind gusts into the area Wednesday—strong winds likely to build 5 feet or greater waves and to produce rip currents along the shoreline.The front will pass with only a scattering of clouds but with smoke off Canadian wildfires likely to pick up in coming days. Firefighters in western Canada are hopeful rains in the British Columbia and Alberta will help in the effort to fight the f...

18 males broke into USPS office in Loop overnight

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 07:27:07 GMT

CHICAGO — Police are searching for as many as 18 males who broke into a USPS office found in the Thompson Center in the Loop early Monday morning. Police said the group broke into the front doors at the postal office near the 100 block of West Randolph Street around 12:35 a.m. It is unclear at this time if anything was taken from the post office.According to a statement from USPS, "The US Postal Inspectors and Chicago Police Department are investigating the property damage incident at the Post Office located at the Thompson Center."WGN also reached out to USPS for comment on what Chicagoans should do if they have mail to pick up or drop off at their Thompson Center location, as well as if there will be an alternative location available to do so while it is closed. They have yet to reply.Advocates from the nearby West Loop Community Organization said incidents like this are a cause for concern for everyone in the area. The group has been advocating for more safety measures, including...

A big reason the White Sox finally got a winning homestand

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 07:27:07 GMT

CHICAGO — Finally in 2023, the White Sox had a week where there were consistent positive results on the field. A group that's had a lot of difficulties this season was a big reason why. During their six-game stretch against the Guardians and Royals, the starters went 5-1 and had a 2.06 ERA. That resulted in a series win over Cleveland and the White Sox first sweep of the 2023 season against Kansas City this past weekend. Combined with a three-game series before that against the Astros, the team won their first homestand of 2023, going 6-3.It's a starting staff that's been very maligned this season with only one starter with an ERA under four. As a staff, the White Sox had an ERA over five for most of the season, only getting it under that this weekend (4.99 - 26th in MLB).Here's how the staff did this week in what is easily their best of the 2023 season.Tuesday - Lance Lynn - 7 innings, 0 runs, 7 strikeouts, 0 walksWednesday - Mike Clevinger - 6 innings, 2 runs, 5 strikeouts, 4 walk...

A Bears' NFC North rival will host the 2025 NFL Draft

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 07:27:07 GMT

NEW YORK — For the next two years, Bears' fans will have to go into the city of an NFC North rival for the NFL Draft. That will be particularly hard a little under two years from now. On Monday, the NFL announced that the 2025 NFL Draft will be held in Green Bay, Wisconsin in April of that year. The event will take place in and around the home of the Packers, Lambeau Field, and the "Titletown" campus. It will be the first time the event will be held in the State of Wisconsin since 1939 when Milwaukee served as the host. for the 1940 NFL Draft. The 22 rounds of selections were made at the Schroeder Hotel (Now Hilton Milwaukee City Center) on December 9, 1939.This comes after Detroit will serve as the host for the 2024 NFL Draft on April 25-27 of next year."The draft has become our biggest offseason event hosted in different cities and spectacular locations across the country, and we are excited to work with the Packers and Discover Green Bay to bring the 2025 NFL Draft to Green Bay a...

Clock ticks as debt ceiling deadline nears

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 07:27:07 GMT

WASHINGTON (Nexstar) -- After a tumultuous weekend of on-again/off-again negotiations, President Joe Biden and Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy will meet at the White House Monday evening.Ahead of the meeting, though, McCarthy and Biden appeared no closer to striking a deal."It's very hard to get them off that spending spree that they're addicted to," McCarthy said.Biden said he couldn't "guarantee that they wouldn't force a default by doing something outrageous. I can't guarantee that."Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen warns that if Congress doesn't agree to raising the debt ceiling the US could see catastrophic consequences."It's not an acceptable situation for us to be unable to pay our bills," Yellen said.Those bills include the ability to pay creditors, US military personnel and Social Security recipients.A major sticking point is the GOP demand to include more work requirements for people who receive government welfare, such as food stamps and Medicaid."We in Congress are wil...