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Wisconsin judge rules that GOP-controlled Senate’s vote to fire top elections official had no effect

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:43:57 GMT

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — A vote by the Republican-controlled Wisconsin Senate last month to fire the state’s nonpartisan top elections official had no legal effect, and lawmakers are barred from ousting her while a lawsuit plays out, a Dane County judge ruled on Friday.Administrator Meagan Wolfe will continue serving as head of the Wisconsin Elections Commission pending a decision on whether elections commissioners are legally required to appoint someone for the Senate to confirm, Judge Ann Peacock said.Senate Republicans voted in September to fire Wolfe, despite objections from Democrats and the Legislature’s own nonpartisan attorneys, who said the Senate didn’t have the authority to vote at that time.Democratic Attorney General Josh Kaul sued to challenge that vote, and in court filings earlier this month, Republican legislative leaders changed course and claimed their vote to fire Wolfe was merely “symbolic” and had no legal effect. They also asked Peacock to order ...

Sheriff names 5 people fatally shot in southeast North Carolina home

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:43:57 GMT

CLINTON, N.C. (AP) — A sheriff’s office in southeast North Carolina released on Friday the names of five people found fatally shot in a home earlier this week.Sampson County sheriff’s deputies were called to a home off Garland Highway outside Clinton shortly before 1 a.m. Thursday for a report of a homicide. They found five people dead from gunshot wounds, Sheriff Jimmy Thornton said in a statement.The victims were Alfonza Jeffers, 73, of Clinton; Lamar Williams, 58, of Rose Hill; Dagoberto Lopez, 33, of Garland; Hector Salazar Lopez, 39, of Garland; and Jamie Lynn Rowland, 47, of Clinton, the sheriff’s office announced.Thornton did not have information about a suspect late Friday but told reporters his department was investigating some people of interest.Authorities had received a 911 call from a person who spoke to one victim around 11 p.m. Wednesday and later found the bodies when they entered the home, Capt. Eric Pope said in a news conference Thursday.The sher...

Museum plan for Florida nightclub massacre victims dropped as Orlando moves forward with memorial

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:43:57 GMT

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Leaders of a private foundation working to build a museum and memorial to honor the victims of a massacre at a gay nightclub in Florida said Friday that they were dropping their plans to build a museum, even as the city of Orlando is moving ahead with constructing the memorial.Officials with the onePulse Foundation said in a public letter that they are unable to move ahead with a museum to commemorate the 49 people who were killed and 53 victims injured when an attacker opened fire in the gay nightclub in June 2016. A SWAT team killed the shooter, who had pledged allegiance to the Islamic State group, following a standoff.At the time, it was the worst mass shooting in modern U.S. history. But that number was surpassed the following year when 58 people were killed and more than 850 were injured among a crowd of 22,000 at a country music festival in Las Vegas.Fundraising and planning for the project slowed down during the COVID-19 pandemic and once shutdowns eased...

Judge in Young Dolph murder case removes himself based on appeals court order

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:43:57 GMT

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — A judge removed himself from the Young Dolph murder case Friday after he was ordered to do so by a Tennessee appeals court, which questioned whether he could be impartial to a man charged with killing the rapper two years ago.Shelby County Criminal Court Judge Lee Coffee asked the court clerk to assign a new judge in the high-profile case. The Tennessee Court of Appeals issued its order Sept. 28 after Coffee refused to step down at the request of the lawyer for Justin Johnson, who is charged with two other men in the fatal shooting of Young Dolph in November 2021.The lawyer, Luke Evans, had argued that Coffee could not be impartial after the judge failed to inform him about an order limiting Johnson’s ability to communicate with people outside the jail other than Evans.Johnson and Cornelius Smith have pleaded not guilty in the killing of Young Dolph, whose real name was Adolph Thornton Jr. The rapper, producer and independent music label owner was gunned down i...

Richard Moll, who found fame as a bailiff on the original sitcom 'Night Court,' dies at 80

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:43:57 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Richard Moll, a character actor who found lasting fame as an eccentric but gentle giant bailiff on the original “Night Court” sitcom, has died. He was 80.Moll died Thursday at his home in Big Bear Lake, California, according to Jeff Sanderson, a family spokesperson. Moll played "Bull” Shannon on NBC's “Night Court” from 1984-1992 alongside stars Harry Anderson and John Larroquette. His character formed a close friendship with the court’s other bailiff, Roz Russell, played by Marsha Warfield. Bull was known for his shaved head, catchphrase, “Ohh-kay,” and a dim but sweet world view.After “Night Court” ended, Moll contributed his trademark gravelly voice to various video games and comic book projects like “Batman: The Animated Series” as Harvey Dent and appeared in horror films like “Ghost Shark” (2013) and “Slay Belles” (2018).He voiced Scorpion on the 1990s' “Spider-Man: The Animated Series” and had small parts in 1994's “The Flintstones," the Arnold Schwarzenegger c...

3 Chicago men accused of stealing over $6K worth of merchandise from Lombard liquor store

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:43:57 GMT

DUPAGE COUNTY, Ill. — Charges have been filed against three Chicago men accused of burglarizing a Lombard liquor store on Wednesday, according to DuPage County State’s Attorney Robert Berlin.27-year-old Travonta Turner, 26-year-old Deandre Richardson and 27-year-old Jonnie Fort were granted pre-trial release during their first court appearance on Thursday morning. All three were charged with one count of burglary and one count of retail theft, the DuPage County State’s Attorney said in a news releas. ISP anti-human trafficking operation lands 6 behind bars Authorities say the charges stem from an alleged retail theft that took place just after 10:30 p.m. on Wednesday at Lombard Liquors in the 400 block of West 22nd Street in Lombard, Ill.According to Berlin, the three men allegedly entered the liquor store with bags and filled them with $6,123.29 worth of merchandise before they left the store without paying. The three men then allegedly fled the scene in a Ford Escape.Illinois St...

Richard Moll, 'Night Court' bailiff, dies at 80

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:43:57 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Richard Moll, a character actor who found lasting fame as an eccentric but gentle giant bailiff on the original “Night Court” sitcom, has died. He was 80.Moll died Thursday at his home in Big Bear Lake, California, according to Jeff Sanderson, a family spokesperson.Moll played "Bull” Shannon on NBC's “Night Court” from 1984-1992 alongside stars Harry Anderson and John Larroquette. His character formed a close friendship with the court’s other bailiff, Roz Russell, played by Marsha Warfield. Bull was known for his shaved head, catchphrase, “Ohh-kay,” and a dim but sweet world view.After “Night Court” ended, Moll contributed his trademark gravelly voice to various video games and comic book projects like “Batman: The Animated Series” as Harvey Dent and appeared in horror films like “Ghost Shark” (2013) and “Slay Belles” (2018).He voiced Scorpion on the 1990s' “Spider-Man: The Animated Series” and had small parts in 1994's “The Flintstones," the Arnold Schwarzenegger co...

DeSantis points to 'liberal, soft on crime policies' in wake of Maine mass shooting

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:43:57 GMT

(The Hill) — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) pointed to “liberal, soft on crime” policies in the wake of a mass shooting in Maine that left 18 people dead earlier this week. “[Y]ou look, a lot of the guys who commit violent crime, and yes, less than what we saw in Maine, a lot of these people go in and out of the justice system because of liberal, soft on crime policies,” DeSantis, a 2024 GOP presidential candidate, said in a Fox News interview Friday. “You do a crime, you should do the time; stop cycling people back out,” DeSantis continued. “That will make communities safer, and Biden doesn't wanna do that.” The shooting occurred late Wednesday, across multiple locations in Lewiston, Maine, leaving at least 18 people dead and 13 injured. The suspect, Robert Card, 40, has not been apprehended and there is an ongoing search for him.The shooting drew calls among Democrats for gun regulation, including Maine Rep. Jared Golden, the representative of the district where the shooting o...

Parent group says children's image safety online worth protecting

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:43:57 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — When parents post photos of their children online, they run the risk of bad actors taking those photos for nefarious ends, according to Parents for Image Consent (PIC).The group claims, citing research by ImageShield, that one in five people are victims of "online image abuse."PIC's national spokesperson Cathy Pedrayes said the group wants to help parents keep kids safe and limit the damage such abuse can cause."If it's grandma sharing the photo, maybe you're okay with that," Pedrayes said, "But if it's some random blog that you've never heard of...selling weight loss supplements using your family photos, maybe you're not okay with that."Pedrayes, a mom and online influencer, wants to strike a balance between not posting any photos and over-sharing. She recommends that parents talk with their kids about online safety."It has to be a conversation that starts early," she said. "In the beginning, there might be more monitoring measures from the parents...because they're...

Orphaned sea otters make Minnesota Zoo their new home

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:43:57 GMT

Two baby sea otters, now named Denali and Nuka, are in the care of the Minnesota Zoo after being rescued by Alaska SeaLife Center staff just days apart.Denali was rescued in September with permission from the United States Fish and Wildlife Service after receiving reports that the otter was abandoned near Kenai, Alaska. The otter was reported to be malnourished and dehydrated, just over 5 months old.Nuka, estimated to be only a few days old, was found days later when an off-duty SeaLife Center staff member saw an orca attack Nuka’s mother. The mother never resurfaced, but Nuka was able to be rescued.After being moved to the Minnesota Zoo, one of the SeaLife Center’s partners, Denali and Nuka are receiving “around the clock care,” according to the zoo in Apple Valley. That includes “extensive health monitoring and assistance with eating, grooming and swimming.”Dr. Anne Rivas, Minnesota Zoo Director of Animal Health, said in a press release that car...