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Judge in Missouri transgender care lawsuit agrees to step aside but decries ‘gamesmanship’

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:26:27 GMT

ST. LOUIS (AP) — A judge agreed Friday to step aside in a lawsuit challenging a new Missouri law restricting gender-affirming health care for minors, despite what he called “gamesmanship” from the plaintiffs’ lawyers for requesting a new judge.St. Louis Circuit Judge Steven Ohmer was appointed by the Missouri Supreme Court to preside over the lawsuit that seeks to overturn the Missouri law. The lawsuit was filed in July by the ACLU of Missouri, Lambda Legal and the law firm Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner on behalf of families of three transgender minors, a St. Louis health care center and LGBTQ+ organizations.Ohmer said at a hearing that assigning a new judge will delay resolution of the case, possibly into next year. It’s unclear when the state Supreme Court will make the appointment.“And the wheels of justice keep spinning in the mud,” Ohmer said.Ohmer in August denied the plaintiffs’ request for a preliminary injunction to block the new law, days before it went int...

Teen seriously injured when struck by car in Vaughan last week has died; SIU investigating

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:26:27 GMT

A 17-year-old has died from injuries sustained after being struck by a vehicle in Vaughan a week ago.According to the province’s Special Investigations Unit a York region police officer was patrolling the lot of Canada’s Wonderland on the evening of Oct. 13 when he observed a 17-year-old male behaving suspiciously.When the officer exited his vehicle to investigate further, the teen fled on foot and the officer pursued him on foot as well.The teen made his way to Jane Street near Norwood Avenue, south of Major Mackenzie Drive, where he was struck by a vehicle. He was taken to hospital in serious condition.In an update on Friday, the SIU said the teen died of his injuries in hospital on Oct. 19.The SIU is continuing to investigate the incident while the York Region Major Collision Investigation Unit conducts its own parallel investigation.The SIU is an independent government agency that investigates the conduct of officials that may have resulted in death, serious injury, sexual assau...

Spain’s royals honor Asturias prize winners, including Meryl Streep and Haruki Murakami

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:26:27 GMT

OVIEDO, Spain (AP) — American actor Meryl Streep on Friday received Spain’s prestigious Princess of Asturias Arts Award at a ceremony presided over by the Spanish royal family in the northern city of Oviedo.During her acceptance speech, Streep spoke about the empathy actors must feel for their characters and which people in cinemas and theaters feel for people on screen or stage that look — or sound — different to themselves, as something that could be useful in everyday life too.“Empathy may be a radical form of outreach and diplomacy useful in other theaters of endeavor” she said. “In our world, in our increasingly hostile, volatile world, I hope we might take to heart another rule every actor is taught, that is: it is all about listening.”The prize was one of eight awarded this year in areas covering the arts, literature, science and international cooperation among others. The annual awards are among the most important in the Spanish-speaking world.Others honored at the ceremony ...

Alberta livestock producers affected by drought to receive aid to offset costs

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:26:27 GMT

The governments of Alberta and Canada are to provide $165 million to support livestock producers affected by drought and extreme weather conditions.The Canada-Alberta Drought Livestock Assistance program is aimed at livestock producers with grazing animals.Alberta Agriculture Minister RJ Sigurdson says it will allow those in need to apply for financial support to cover losses they incurred to manage and maintain their breeding herds.He says eligible producers could access up to $150 per head for breeding animals.Under the cost-share deal, the federal government is providing $99 million and Alberta is to chip in another $66 million.Sigurdson says it has been a rough year for many livestock producers and he’s hopeful the program will tide them over until next season.“This year’s drought and excessive heat has resulted in our ranchers facing extra costs due to lost grazing days. We recognize their stress as the winter-feeding months approach,” Sigurdson said....

Navigator cancels proposed Midwestern CO2 pipeline, citing ‘unpredictable’ regulatory processes

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:26:27 GMT

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — A company on Friday said it would cancel its plans for a 1,300-mile (2,092-kilometer) pipeline across five Midwestern states that would have gathered carbon dioxide emissions from ethanol plants and buried the gas deep underground.Navigator CO2 Ventures’ Heartland Greenway project is among a handful of similar ventures supported by the renewable fuels industry and farming organizations, but many landowners and environmental groups oppose the pipelines and question their safety and effectiveness in reducing climate-warming gases.In a written statement, the company said the “unpredictable nature of the regulatory and government processes involved, particularly in South Dakota and Iowa” were key to the decision to cancel the project.Navigator’s pipeline would have carried planet-warming CO2 emissions from more than 20 plants across Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska and South Dakota for permanent storage deep underground in Illinois.Iowa Renewab...

Man arrested, warrant issued for second man in alleged mortgage fraud in Brampton

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:26:27 GMT

A 39-year-old man has been arrested and charged after his involvement with an alleged mortgage fraud in Brampton, and a second male responsible for the alleged incident is wanted.Investigators from Peel police’s Fraud Bureau say in 2021 a private lending company by the name of Dreamz Holdings Limited, which was owned and operated by the victim, was reportedly approached by a mortgage agent identifying as Satyamkumar Trivedi, regarding an investment. The victim provided a second mortgage valued at over $600,000 for what he believed was a gas station business in Barrie. The lender did not receive any payments for the business, and when he tried to locate the borrower could not find him. The information used in the application for the mortgage, including the photo identification, was falsified. The victim reported the incident to police, and after investigation, 53-year-old Stephen Spencer was identified as the second culprit, who acted as the borrower.On Oct. 4, investigators ar...

DeSantis allies ask Florida judge to throw out Disney’s counterclaims in lawsuit

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:26:27 GMT

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Agreements that Disney made with the governing district for Walt Disney World before it was taken over by appointees of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis weren’t legally valid, and the company’s counterclaims against the district should be dismissed, the governing body said in court papers filed this week.The governing district now controlled by supporters of the Republican governor said in court papers Wednesday that a state court judge should dismiss Disney’s counterclaims. The counterclaims seek a court declaration that the agreements are valid and that the district’s board of DeSantis allies violated the company’s contracts, free speech and due process rights.The agreements shifted control over design and construction at Disney World from the district to the company and prohibited the district from using the likeness of Disney characters or other intellectual property without Disney’s permission. The agreements were signed in February b...

Juveniles charged with dousing acid on playground slides that injured 4 children

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:26:27 GMT

LONGMEADOW, Mass. (AP) — Two juveniles have been charged after several slides at a Massachusetts park were doused with acid in this summer and four children were injured, the Hampden District Attorney Anthony Gulluni said.The juveniles, whose identities cannot be released due to their ages, have been charged with four counts of assault and battery on a child with injury and assault and battery with a dangerous weapon as well as vandalism, Gulluni said. His office did not say whether the pair have been arrested.“Our collective effort to charge those we believe are responsible should make clear that protecting this community’s children is among our highest priorities,” Gulluni said in a statement late Thursday. “Whether the threat and harm caused were intended as pranks or malicious acts, it will not be tolerated.”In June, police and firefighters responded to Bliss Park in Longmeadow for a report of a suspicious substance on the playground equipment. At about the same time, fire...

Mother, daughter from Evanston who were held hostage by Hamas have been released

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:26:27 GMT

JERUSALEM — The mother and daughter from Evanston who were being held hostage have been released by Hamas, the family's rabbi told WGN News Friday.Hamas said it released two American citizens they had been holding captive in Gaza since their Oct. 7 raid on Israel.In a statement, the Palestinian militant group said that in an agreement with the Qatari government, it was freeing a mother and daughter for humanitarian reasons.The family's rabbi confirmed WGN News that Judith Tai Raanan and her 18-year-old daughter Natali have been released. They were visiting family in Israel and were reportedly taken hostage by Hamas, according to the family’s rabbi.Natalie is a recent graduate of Deerfield High School.Rabbi Dove Hillel Klein with the Tannenbaum Chabad House spoke with the WGN News following their release. He said he had received word from Israel that they had been released.   "For us, it's a very joyous day,” Klein said. “To bring home to America, to Chicago,...

House Republicans look for reset after Jordan loses Speaker fight: Live coverage

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:26:27 GMT

GOP Speaker nominee Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) once again fell short of the Speakership Friday in a third vote, continuing the two-week-long stalemate that has plunged the chamber into chaos.Jordan bled more Republican support in the latest attempt, losing 25 GOP votes compared to 20 and 22 on the first and second ballots, respectively.“Our plan this weekend is to get a Speaker elected to the House of Representatives as soon as possible so we can help the American people," Jordan said earlier Friday when asked what his plan is for the weekend.The Ohio Republican scrapped plans to hold a third vote on his bid Thursday after opponents came out of a meeting saying they would maintain their resistance to him and at least two lawmakers who voted for him previously said they would switch their votes.The Republican conference on Thursday also swatted down a proposal to temporarily empower Speaker Pro Tempore Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.), which was viewed by many as a last-ditch way to resume business...