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Ann Uccello, first female mayor in Connecticut, dies at 100

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:19:20 GMT

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — Antonina “Ann” Uccello, the first woman to be elected a mayor in Connecticut when she won an upset victory as a Republican in the capital city of Hartford in 1967, has died. She was 100.Uccello, who went on to serve in the Nixon, Ford and Carter administrations, died of natural causes Sunday night at a hospital in Hartford, said Jacqueline Gustafson, who is married to Uccello’s nephew, David Gustafson.“She just had remarkable intellect, resiliency and determination,” Jacqueline Gustafson, of West Hartford, said in a phone interview Tuesday. “She was someone I greatly admired. … Ann was always someone I could talk to.”Tributes from state political leaders poured in Tuesday afternoon as word of Uccello’s passing began circulating.“Ann Uccello was a trailblazer who was born and raised in Hartford and dedicated her career in public service to the city she loved,” Democratic Gov. Ned Lamont said in a statement. “She had a remarkable spirit a...

Gallego slams Sinema over 2018 bank deregulation vote

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:19:20 GMT

TEMPE, Ariz. (AP) — Democratic Rep. Ruben Gallego slammed independent Sen. Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona on Tuesday for backing a bank deregulation bill he says contributed to the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, highlighting Sinema’s Wall Street ties as he campaigns for her seat. The contrast over the 2018 legislation feeds Gallego’s push to portray Sinema as a friend of powerful interests, a central theme of the Senate campaign he launched in January.“It’s not like we received different information. We got the same pitches as all the members of Congress,” Gallego told reporters outside Silicon Valley Bank’s offices in Tempe. “But when push came to shove, and the vote came to the floor, I voted to protect Arizona and she voted to protect Wall Street.”A spokesperson for Sinema, Hannah Hurley, said the senator is not focused on the election and declined to respond to Gallego’s comments.Sinema on Sunday applauded the Biden administration’s announcement that people who de...

Lawyers want Roger Goodell role cut in NFL race bias claims

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:19:20 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Lawyers for NFL Coach Brian Flores and two other Black coaches asked a judge Tuesday to reconsider her decision letting some of a federal lawsuit’s racial discrimination claims against the league and its teams possibly go before Commissioner Roger Goodell in arbitration proceedings rather than before a jury.In a Manhattan court filing, the lawyers said Judge Valerie E. Caproni should take another look at her March 1 ruling allowing most claims in a lawsuit by Flores to go before a jury but forcing claims by two other coaches into arbitration.They said the decision threatens the fairness of arbitration proceedings nationwide by upsetting “an extensive and well-developed body of case law requiring that arbitration be a reasonable replacement for a judicial forum.”The lawyers wrote that letting Goodell preside over claims by the coaches gives other employers a green light to insert “completely biased arbitrators” into arbitration agreements.They said they now fear...

Mandatory paid time off: ‘a strain’ for Illinois business

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:19:20 GMT

CHICAGO (AP) — Doug Knight’s family has owned Springfield amusement park Knight’s Action Park since 1930, himself for 43 of those years.The pandemic was a bear — Knight fought to keep his doors open, and when they closed for COVID-19, he pushed to reopen as soon as possible. Inflation, too, has been an obstacle. From inflatable inner tubes to chlorine for the pools, prices have risen for “everything we buy,” and now a new Illinois law represents “another bump on the road” for business owners, he says.On Monday, Illinois became one of three U.S. states to mandate paid time off “for any reason,” up to 40 hours per year for full-time employees. Small business owners in Illinois say they know the importance of taking care of their workers, but some view the paid leave requirement as a government-imposed burden.“When you hit the big bump and go off the cliff, what does that do for ya?” Knight said.The legislation takes effect on Jan. 1, 2024. Employees will accrue one h...

Police: One year later, Oswego man still missing as search continues

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:19:20 GMT

OSWEGO, Ill. — The whereabouts of a man from Oswego remain unknown one year after family members reported him missing, police said Tuesday. Edward Gardner was last seen in Chicago on the evening of Sunday, March 13, 2022. Family members reported seeing the 22-year-old at this residence in Bolingbrook one day prior, on March 12. Edward Gardner (Photo provided by police)Edward Gardner (Photo provided by police)Edward Gardner (Photo provided by police)Edward Gardner (Photo provided by police)According to Oswego police, Gardner was driving a 2021 white Dodge Charger with Florida license plate No. QMND02. On March 29, 2022, Garnder's vehicle was involved in a multi-vehicle crash in Hammond, Indiana."The Charger’s occupants ran from the scene of the crash and based on information obtainedduring the investigation, it is not believed that [Gardner] was one of the occupants," police said. Despite numerous attempts at tracking Gardner's movements, police say he has not been seen or hear...

Free-to-public training academy offers Chicagoans insight into COPA

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:19:20 GMT

CHICAGO — The Civilian Office of Police Accountability hopes to provide locals with a better understanding of what they do by opening their doors to the public as part of a new six-week training program. “This is the first time we’ve ever taken our training academy and broken it down for the public,” said Andrea Kersten, COPA’s chief administrator. “People know about COPA releasing a video or they may know about an investigation but a lot of times, our work goes on in silence.” COPA is tasked with investigating complaints against CPD officers, ranging anywhere from alleged excessive force to coercion.  COPA’s chief administrator Andrea Kersten (Photo: WGN)“This is our opportunity to explain that process, to communicate to the public the why behind when we can and can't share information, Kersten said.  To explain how they get the job done, COPA is launching the People’s Academy on Tuesday, March 21. The multiweek program will be taught by experts in the fiel...

Man fatally shot while inside car in Chicago's Greater Grand Crossing

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:19:20 GMT

CHICAGO — A male adult is dead following a shooting Tuesday afternoon in Chicago's Grand Crossing neighborhood.Police said the shooting happened just before 2:10 p.m. in the 7100 block of S. Eberhart in the area of Greater Grand Crossing. The male victim was inside a vehicle when someone approached and shot the male adult in the chest.SEE ALSO | 1-year-old boy found dead in Grand Crossing ApartmentThe shooting victim crashed into a nearby vehicle in the 7200 block of S. Eberhart. He was rushed to the University of Chicago Medical Center in critical condition, where he was pronounced dead. The age of the shooting victim is unknown, police added.No one is in custody. Anyone with information may leave an anonymous tip at cpdtip.com.

DOJ suing Rite Aid for missing 'red flags' in opioid epidemic

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:19:20 GMT

(The Hill) - The Department of Justice (DOJ) is suing pharmacy giant Rite Aid for allegedly filling hundreds of thousands of prescriptions for controlled substances that had “obvious red flags” amid the country’s opioid epidemic. The DOJ is arguing that Rite Aid violated the federal False Claims Act and the Controlled Substances Act, submitting false prescription claims to government health care programs and knowingly filling unlawful prescriptions for controlled substances, according to a Tuesday release.“We allege that Rite Aid filled hundreds of thousands of prescriptions that did not meet legal standards," Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta said. "According to our complaint, Rite Aid’s pharmacists repeatedly filled prescriptions for controlled substances with obvious red flags, and Rite Aid intentionally deleted internal notes about suspicious prescribers."“These practices opened the floodgates for millions of opioid pills and other controlled substances to flow illega...

Pentagon report explores possibility of alien ship visits

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:19:20 GMT

WASHINGTON (Nexstar) – A new government report is raising eyebrows across the country -- especially among anyone interested in extraterrestrial -- as physicist and Harvard professor Abraham “Avi” Loeb says there's a possibility humans aren't the only civilization in the universe.“Whether we live in such a reality or not is not a philosophical question, we just have to look out,” Loeb said.Loeb teamed up with the Pentagon office that investigates unidentified aerial phenomena, and they came up with a draft report that says it's possible alien ships have already visited our solar system. La Niña is over: Here’s what that means for Oregon Specifically, Loeb thinks the first interstellar object spotted passing through our solar system in 2017, given the name Oumuamua, could be an extraterrestrial mothership.Loeb says it didn't have the characteristics you'd find in meteors or other known objects.“We consider a possibility where an object as big as Oumuamua, which was a football f...

Part of mall roof in Minnesota collapses under heavy snow

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:19:20 GMT

DULUTH, Minn. (AP) — Part of the roof at a shopping mall in Duluth, Minnesota, collapsed early Tuesday as workers were removing several inches of snow that had fallen over the weekend, authorities said.No one was injured when the roof fell in at Miller Hill Mall about 9 a.m. Tuesday, when most of the mall's stores were still not open. Everyone in the building at the time has been accounted for, Duluth city spokeswoman Kelli Latuska said.The building was evacuated and is closed. La Niña is officially over, NOAA announces: What does that mean? Authorities did not say exactly what caused the collapse but it came after the Duluth area received about 12.5 inches of snow over the weekend. Duluth International Airport has recorded more than 116 inches of snow this season — more than 40 inches above normal.Barnes & Noble manager Scott Skar said he heard a loud noise, “like something rolling across the roof" before another employee said the roof had collapsed, MPR News reported. ...