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Missouri man set for execution on ’emotional roller coaster,’ attorney says

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 17:50:56 GMT

A man on Missouri’s death row is on “an emotional roller coaster” amid efforts to spare his life with just one day before his scheduled execution, his attorney said.Michael Tisius, 42, is set to die by injection Tuesday evening at the state prison in Bonne Terre for killing two jailers in 2000 in an ill-fated effort to free a man from a county jail. He would be the third Missouri man, and the 12th nationally, put to death in 2023.A clemency request before Republican Gov. Mike Parsons focuses on several issues. Among them: Tisius was just 19 at the time of the killings; he had been neglected as a child; and a juror at his 2010 resentencing may have been illiterate — in violation of Missouri law. It’s unclear when Parson will announce his decision. A message left Monday with his spokeswoman wasn’t immediately returned.The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to halt the execution based on Tisius’ age when the crime occurred. A federal judge last week stayed the exec...

Resident sues after Iowa building collapse kills 3, says city and owners didn’t warn them of danger

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 17:50:56 GMT

DAVENPORT, Iowa (AP) — The bodies of three men have been removed from the site of a collapsed six-story apartment building in Davenport, Iowa, about a week after part of the century-old structure tumbled to the ground, the city’s police chief announced Monday. “We don’t have any other information at this time that there are any additional people missing,” Chief Jeff Bladel said.As officials were announcing the recovery of the bodies, the first of what could be numerous lawsuits by residents and their families was filed. Tenant Dayna Feuerbach is accusing the city of Davenport and the building’s current and former owners of knowing of the deteriorating conditions and failing to warn residents of the risk.The lawsuit alleges multiple counts of negligence, seeks unspecified damages and notes that additional suits are likely. “The city had warning after warning,” attorney Jeffrey Goodman said in an interview with The Associated Press. He called it a common trend in major str...

Toronto to get its own ‘Law & Order’ spinoff on Citytv in spring 2024

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 17:50:56 GMT

TORONTO — The “Law & Order” franchise is expanding to Canada.Citytv says it has greenlit a one-hour spinoff dubbed “Law & Order Toronto: Criminal Intent” for spring 2024. It says the crime drama will “showcase original Canadian stories” written and produced by a Canadian team.It’s billed as a psychological thriller that follows an elite squad of detectives who investigate high-profile crime and corruption in the city.The 10 episodes will be produced by Lark Productions and Cameron Pictures Inc., in association with Citytv, with production set for this fall in Toronto. Rogers Sports & Media executive Hayden Mindell says the Citytv parent is thrilled to bring Canadian stories to the long-running franchise.“The timeless appeal of the cases explored in the globally successful ‘Law & Order’ franchise continue to draw in Citytv audiences week after week,” Mindell, senior vice president, television, said Monday in a release.The decade-long “Law & Order: Crim...

Scholar, activist Cornel West says he will run for president in 2024 as 3rd-party candidate

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 17:50:56 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Scholar and progressive activist Cornel West announced Monday he is running for president next year as a third-party candidate, saying he wants to empower people who have been “pushed to the margins.” In a Twitter video, West said he will run as a member of The People’s Party. He criticized both major political parties and their standard bearers, President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump. Both Biden and Trump are running again in 2024.“In these bleak times, I have decided to run for truth and justice, which takes the form of running for president of the United States as a candidate for the People’s Party,” West said. “I enter in the quest for truth. I enter in the quest for justice, and the presidency is just one vehicle to pursue that truth and justice, what I’ve been trying to do all of my life.” West is a well known Black scholar and author and a former professor at Harvard and Princeton universities. He criticized former Pres...

Amid row over ‘drought berries,’ German lawmakers cancel trip to southern Spain

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 17:50:56 GMT

BERLIN (AP) — A German parliamentary delegation canceled plans Monday for a visit to fruit farms in a drought-hit region of southern Spain, after a campaign in Germany to discourage consumers from buying “drought berries” sparked political controversy.The cross-party visit by nine German lawmakers this week was meant to include a stop in the Doñana national park in Andalusia, home to some of Europe’s most important wetlands. The conservative regional government of Andalusia, which is experiencing its worst drought in nearly three decades, wants to expand water extraction rights in the wetlands.Spain’s Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has made the matter an issue in the campaign ahead of elections next month.The German parliament’s environmental committee said that “in view of the high political importance that the topics of the trip have gained in recent days in the upcoming Spanish national elections, (the committee) has decided to refrain from its long-planned trip to ...

Sonic boom heard over Washington is a rare sound with a rich history

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 17:50:56 GMT

NORFOLK, Va. (AP) — People living in and around the nation’s capital on Sunday experienced a rare, if startling, sound: A sonic boom. The boom was heard after U.S. military dispatched a fighter jet to intercept an unresponsive business plane flying over restricted airspace. The Air Force gave the F-16 permission to fly faster than the speed of sound — something civilian aircraft rarely get to do — as the jet scrambled to catch up with the Cessna Citation. The result was a thunderous rumble that resonated across a metropolitan area that’s home to more than six million people.Below is an explanation of what sonic booms are and their history in the U.S. WHAT IS A SONIC BOOM? Sonic booms are thunderous-like noises that are heard on the ground when airplanes overhead fly faster than the speed of sound. That speed is typically about 760 mph near sea level, but can vary depending on the temperature, altitude and other conditions, according to the Congressional Research Service....

New Hampshire Gov. Sununu rules out 2024 presidential bid, warns that crowded GOP field helps Trump

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 17:50:56 GMT

New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu said Monday that he will not seek the presidency in 2024, arguing that Republican candidates with “no path to victory must have the courage to get out” of their party’s increasingly crowded primary to stop former President Donald Trump. The 48-year-old governor, who has emerged as a frequent Trump critic, made the announcement on CNN and followed up with a social media post and an op-ed in the Washington Post. “I will not seek the Republican nomination for president in 2024,” Sununu tweeted. “The stakes are too high for a crowded field to hand the nomination to a candidate who earns just 35 percent of the vote, and I will help to ensure this does not happen.”Sununu was among a small group of Republican officials still openly contemplating a presidential bid. Even with his decision, the 2024 GOP White House field will be large. Earlier Monday, former Vice President Mike Pence filed paperwork declaring his campaign for president. He joined a field...

Plane destroyed after flying over DC, crashing in rural Virginia, leaving 4 dead

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 17:50:56 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal investigators trudged through rugged terrain Monday in search of wreckage from a business jet to solve the mystery of why the plane veered off course and slammed into a mountain, killing four people.A day after the plane flew over the nation’s capital, prompting the military to scramble fighter jets, the Federal Aviation Administration said in a brief update that the pilot and three passengers were killed and that the plane was “destroyed” in the crash. Their identities weren’t immediately released.NTSB investigator Adam Gerhardt told reporters it will take investigators a while to reach the remote crash scene about two to three miles north of Montebello. They expect to be on the scene for at least three to four days. NTSB spokesperson Jennifer Gabris said that the investigators had to hike to the site on foot because of the mountainous terrain.Attention on the crash and its cause was heightened by its unusual flight path over Washington, D.C. a...

Death toll rises to 42 as Haiti struggles to recover from floods

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 17:50:56 GMT

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — The death toll from the heavy floods that hit Haiti over the weekend has risen to 42, with another 11 people missing, authorities said Monday.At least 85 people are injured, and more than 13,600 homes were flooded, forcing people to evacuate, according to Haiti’s Civil Protection Agency.The rains pelted Haiti’s western, northwestern, southeastern and central regions, officials said.The weather has since improved, but many crops were damaged amid a spike in starvation, and people are trying to find temporary shelters after the rain turned roads into rushing rivers of brown water.The World Food Program said tens of thousands of people have been affected, with the greatest damage reported in Port-au-Prince’s metropolitan area and in Haiti’s western region.“A significant weather-induced event of this level so early in the hurricane season…raises concerns about the ability to provide a sustained response should extreme weather incidents continue to occur,” th...

Missing 12-year-old girl last seen in Oakland, Chicago police say

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 17:50:56 GMT

CHICAGO — Chicago police seek the public's help locating a missing 12-year-old girl last seen in Oakland on Sunday. Davina Blackman stands 5-foot-4-inches and weighs 113 pounds with brown eyes and black hair. According to police, the missing teen was last seen in the 4000 block of S. Lake Park. She may be wearing a brown shirt and black jeans. Read more: Latest Chicago news headlinesDavina may also be in the area of the 4100 block of S. Drexel Blvd, police added.Anyone with information may leave an anonymous tip at cpdtip.com.Tipsters may also call police at (312) 747-8380.