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New Mexico attorney general accuses landowners of preventing public access to the Pecos River

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 11:47:31 GMT

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico’s top prosecutor is going after landowners who he says are illegally and unconstitutionally depriving the public of access to stretches of one of the state’s most well-known rivers.The case involving access to the Pecos River is the first brought after the state Supreme Court in 2022 settled a long-simmering dispute over whether boaters and anglers had a right to access streams and rivers that cross private property. Under the New Mexico Constitution, water within the state belongs to the public but the banks next to that water and the land beneath the water may be owned privately. The court found that public easement covers what would be reasonably necessary to use the water itself and that any use of the beds and banks must have minimal impact. Attorney General Raúl Torrez brought the case after people reported being threatened by landowners with physical violence for wading, fishing and boating on portions of the Pecos River that flow thr...

Closing arguments next in FTX founder Sam Bankman’s fraud trial after his testimony ends

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 11:47:31 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried underwent a final barrage of questions on Tuesday from a prosecutor aimed at showing that he’s not being honest about how much he knew about the disappearance of $8 billion from his customers’ accounts, setting the stage for final arguments in his fraud trial on Wednesday.The four days of testimony by the 31-year-old cryptocurrency entrepreneur will be summarized by his lawyer and prosecutors before a jury begins deciding his fate as early as Thursday.Bankman-Fried insisted in his testimony in Manhattan federal court that he didn’t defraud anyone before his cryptocurrency empire collapsed last November, leading to his arrest a month later and his extradition to New York to face fraud charges that could result in decades in prison if he is convicted.Initially freed on a $250 million personal recognizance bond, he was permitted to reside with his parents in Palo Alto, California, until August, when Judge Lewis A. Kaplan ruled that he...

B.C.-based Helijet orders first electric vertical-takeoff aircraft

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 11:47:31 GMT

VICTORIA — A British Columbia helicopter airline says it’s placed Canada’s first order for an electric vertical-takeoff aircraft to add to its passenger and cargo fleet.Helijet International president Danny Sitnam says the ALIA aircraft built by Vermont-based BETA Technologies will allow quicker, quieter and more efficient landings and takeoffs from hospitals and other emergency zones.The ALIA is an eVTOL aircraft, standing for electric vertical takeoff and landing, and Sitnam says those capabilities offer tremendous potential for emergency response, air ambulance and organ transfer services in B.C.Sitnam says the zero-emission aircraft, which is currently undergoing regulatory tests, will carry five passengers and a pilot.It has wings, four drone-like horizontal rotors that allow it to take off like a helicopter, and a propeller at the back for thrust.   Helijet, which is based in Vancouver, says the ALIA will be available for private and commercial service in 2026.BETA...

Natalee Holloway’s confessed killer returns to Peru to serve out sentence in another murder

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 11:47:31 GMT

LIMA, Peru (AP) — A Dutchman who recently confessed to killing American high school student Natalee Holloway in 2005 in Aruba was returned to Peru on Tuesday to serve the remainder of his prison sentence for murdering a Peruvian woman.Joran van der Sloot arrived in Lima in the custody of law enforcement. The South American country’s government agreed in June to temporarily extradite him to the U.S. to face trial on extortion and wire fraud charges.Van der Sloot was long the chief suspect in Holloway’s disappearance in Aruba, though authorities in the Dutch Caribbean island never prosecuted him. Then in an interview with his attorney conducted in the U.S. after his extradition, he admitted to beating the young woman to death on a beach after she refused his advances. He said he dumped her body into the sea.Van der Sloot, 36, was charged in the U.S. for seeking a quarter of a million dollars to tell Holloway’s family the location of her remains. A plea deal in exchange for a 20-year s...

Why are so many ladybugs trying to get into your home right now?

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 11:47:31 GMT

If you think there are a lot more ladybugs in Toronto than usual, you’re right — and also wrong. While they’re making their presence felt inside homes and garages right now, the sudden increase in ladybug sightings is not an indication of increased numbers.“It’s called the Halloween Beetle, but it’s also called the Asian multicoloured Ladybird Beetle, and its scientific name is Harmonia Axyridis,” explains Antonia Guidotti, entomology technician at the Royal Ontario Museum.They’re looking to get inside at this time of year for the same reason everyone else is — it’s cold.“These ladybird beetles really need a warmer place [to overwinter]. So they’re coming into our homes or garages and they’re looking for the south side of the building because that’s a little bit warmer and they congregate when they come indoors to hibernate,” she explains.That’s partially because they are not native to Ca...

Maine gunman may have targeted businesses over delusions they were disparaging him online

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 11:47:31 GMT

Maine State Police documents released Tuesday shed light on why a delusional U.S. Army reservist who killed 18 people at a bowling alley and a bar in Lewiston may have targeted those locations. Robert Card, 40, was found dead Friday, two days after a rampage that also wounded 13 people and shut down multiple communities during a massive search on land and water. Three hours after the shooting began, state police interviewed a woman who said Card believed the Just-In-Time Recreation bowling alley, Schemengees Bar and Grille and several other businesses were “broadcasting online that Robert was a pedophile.” The woman said Card had been delusional since February after a break-up, had been hospitalized for mental illness and prescribed medication that he stopped taking, according to a police affidavit filed in support of an arrest warrant request. Police also spoke to Robert’s brother, who said Card had been in relationship with someone he met at a cornhole competition at the bar. Anot...

Migrants in Chicago face harsh winter conditions as city works to provide aid

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 11:47:31 GMT

CHICAGO — Migrants who recently arrived in the city got their first real taste of the brutal Chicago winter on Tuesday afternoon.The freezing temperatures and snowfall echo the growing concerns among migrant families sleeping on the frigid sidewalks of Chicago's Police Districts.Migrant families, deeply concerned about the harsh conditions, say they do not know how much longer it will be before they get moved to shelters, causing worries about their children's safety to grow. 'A complete 180’: City to use shuttered Kmart as migrant shelter after reversing course On Tuesday, the Mayor's office issued a news release offering details about plans to provide aid to asylum seekers and unhoused Chicagoans amid the frigid conditions.According to city officials, 16 warming buses will be provided by the CTA at the landing location and at 16 police district locations from 8 p.m. to 8 a.m. daily.Officials said coats and warm clothing will also be provided to those at the landing zone, police ...

ISP releases footage from Springfield State Trooper shooting

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 11:47:31 GMT

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WCIA) -- State Police have released dashboard camera and surveillance video footage of a shooting last week that left a State Trooper hospitalized.Authorities said Illinois State Trooper Dakotah Chapman-Green was shot in both legs by 37-year-old Cristobal Santana while performing a traffic stop on Toronto Road in Springfield Tuesday night.Nearby surveillance video shows the suspect chasing after the injured officer, and proceeding to hit him multiple times with his gun. Chapman-Green suffered a brain bleed and skull fracture. Despite his condition, Chapman-Green stood up, and walked back to his squad car, clearly injured. State Police released the video of the incident to their YouTube channel. The video may disturb some readers and viewer discretion is advised. ORIGINAL: Man in custody for shooting Illinois State Trooper allegedly killed his ex-girlfriend in Chicago, family says ISP Director Brenden Kelly commended Chapman-Green's courage at a news conference T...

Tyler Christopher, Joliet native who starred on 'General Hospital,' dies at 50

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 11:47:31 GMT

Tyler Christopher, known best for his role as Nikolas Cassadine on daytime's long-running soap opera General Hospital, has died. The Emmy winner actor was 50. Christoper's former co-star, Maurice Benard, who has played mob boss Sonny Corinthos on the soap opera for three decades, confirmed the news on Instagram. ‘Friends’ star Matthew Perry dead at 54 "Tyler passed away this morning following a cardiac event in his San Diego apartment," Benard wrote. "Tyler was a truly talented individual that lit up the screen in every scene he performed and relished bringing joy to his loyal fans through his acting."Benard went on to call Christoper "an advocate for better mental health and substance use treatment who openly spoke about his struggles with bipolar depression and alcohol."Multiple entertainment outlets also confirmed the news.Christoper starred as Nikolas Cassadine, on and off, from 1996-2016. He would join the cast of Days of Our Lives in 2017. He departed the role in 2019.Chris...

Children's hospitals prepare for surge in admissions amid shortage of RSV drug

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 11:47:31 GMT

(The Hill) -- A supply shortage means a drug that can prevent respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) in infants won't have a major immediate impact, children's hospitals said, and they are preparing for a surge in admissions this respiratory disease season."Widespread access [to the new antibody drug] will take time across many sectors of the pediatric population and won't have as great an impact on volumes this immediate respiratory season," the Children’s Hospital Association said in a statement.This illustration provided by AstraZeneca depicts packaging for their medication Beyfortus. (AstraZeneca via AP, File)Nirsevimab, marketed as Beyfortus, was approved in August. It’s a single shot that can be given to infants up to 8 months old, and high-risk babies up to 19 months old. The drug is a monoclonal antibody, rather than a traditional vaccine, meaning babies will be able to directly receive antibodies to prevent severe RSV disease, rather than prompting the immune system to develop t...