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Central US now getting worst of the drought

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:17 GMT

By Jim Salter | Associated PressST. LOUIS — Mike Shane’s Illinois farm got a nice soaking on May 8, shortly after he planted his corn crop. Since then, rain has been hard to come by.Plenty of storms have ventured close only to fizzle out before making it to Shane’s 200-acre spread near Peoria.“It comes across the Mississippi River and then just disappears,” Shane, 47, said. “My corn looks absolutely terrible right now.” Without substantial rain soon, “I just don’t see any hope for it,” he said.Heavy rain over the winter eased the drought in the West, but now the middle of the country is extraordinarily dry. Crops are stressed, rivers are running low, and cities and towns are anxiously hoping for a break in the weather.Experts say the drought in the central U.S. is the worst since at least 2012, and in some areas, is drawing comparisons to the 1988 drought that devastated corn, wheat and soybean crops. This year, although temperat...

‘Velo guy’ Ross Stripling flashes hotter heater vs. Blue Jays, reflects on facing former team

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:17 GMT

TORONTO — There’s a joke going around the Giants’ clubhouse. And maybe there’s a hint of truth to it.Is Ross Stripling a velo guy now?“I’m not claiming it yet,” Stripling said Thursday, “but if it wants to stick around, I won’t be mad about it.”Returning from a low back strain, Stripling made his first appearance in more than month Wednesday, allowing one run on four hits to take a 6-1 loss to the finish line. The number that stuck out most: 93.2 mph, or his average fastball for the outing — a full mile-per-hour faster than his average this season.That comes on the heels of a rehab outing in Arizona where Stripling said he recorded the second-fastest heater he’s ever thrown: “Like 95 point something.” He maxed out at 94.6 mph Wednesday.Of course, there was potentially another factor contributing some extra adrenaline to Stripling’s bloodstream.“Obviously back in an environment like this, facing my ex...

Man who founded Your Black Muslim Bakery spinoff convicted of $34.6 million fraud scheme

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:17 GMT

OAKLAND — Eight years after he was busted for using forged FBI credentials to acquire a security contract with the Port of Oakland, a Contra Costa man has been convicted of 44 felonies for a $34.6 million fraud scheme, court records show.The lengthy verdict form for Dahood Sharieff Bey, also known as Attila Colar, includes multiple charges of conspiracy, bank fraud, wire fraud, aggravated identity theft, making false statements to a bank, destruction of property, being a felon in possession of a firearm, filing a false tax return, obstruction of justice, and witness tampering. He faces a maximum of 30 years in prison on the conspiracy counts alone and is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Haywood Gilliam in September.Bey represented himself during trial, according to court records.In the 2010s, Dahood Bey formed a spinoff of the now-defunct Your Black Muslim Bakery after its leader, Yusuf Bey IV, was convicted of murdering Oakland journalist Chauncey Bailey, as w...

‘This is how we say good bye on Facebook’: Oakland woman allegedly posted bloody photo after daughter’s homicide and confessed to family

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:17 GMT

OAKLAND — Authorities have now revealed that the Oakland woman accused of fatally stabbing her 10-year-old daughter inside their apartment taped a goodbye message on Facebook and then returned afterward to post a bloody selfie, the latest indication that her mental health was deteriorating around the time of the homicide.Rosa Orozco-Suarez, 33, posted a video of her daughter, Sophia Lorenzo Orozco, with the caption, “This is how we say good bye on Facebook,” and “see you on the other side,” authorities say. Then she signed off social media and allegedly stabbed the young girl to death before turning the knife on herself.In addition to confessing to multiple family members, Orozco-Suarez allegedly returned to social media to post a photograph of herself with a bloody wound to her neck. One of the family members she called to confess got in touch with the Oakland Police Department, which sent officers to the family’s Bancroft Avenue apartment in Eas...

Brentwood couple sentenced for producing child pornography

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:17 GMT

(KRON) -- A Brentwood couple were sentenced for producing and conspiring to produce child pornography, the United States Department of Justice announced Thursday. Matthew Lee Pelton and Heather Electa Halwig Gharibian were sentenced to 30 years and 22 years respectively, according to United States Attorney Ismail J. Ramsey.Pelton, 50, of Brentwood, pleaded guilty on Feb. 14, 2023. Gharibian, 53, also of Brentwood, pleaded guilty on Feb. 21, 2023. The DOJ states that according to plea agreements, the couple admitted that from March 29, 2021 until at least June 14, 2021, they conspired to produce and film visual depictions of two minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct. ‘Influencer mom’ Katie Sorensen sentenced to Sonoma County jail Using the WhatsApp messenger app, Pelton requested that Gharibian perform sexual acts on a 10-year-old child entrusted to her care. Pelton "described his arousal, gave instructions on how to perform sexual acts on the victim, and requested that Ghari...

San Mateo summer program director arrested for child sex abuse

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:17 GMT

(KRON) -- A Redwood City man was arrested on child sex abuse charges after a parent alerted police. The accused predator worked for a summer program held at Fiesta Gardens International School at 1001 Bermuda Drive in San Mateo, according to police. A mother reported "inappropriate interactions" between her child and a staff member of the summer program on Wednesday. The San Mateo Police Department wrote, "The Boys and Girls Club operated the summer school program at the school."Kevin Granados-Elizalde, 25, was employed by the Boys and Girls Club as an assistant site director for the summer program, according to police. "Because of the magnitude and seriousness of the victim’s statements, SMPD Detectives worked unceasingly," police wrote. Detectives said they determined Granados-Elizalde had sexually abused the victim, who is less than 14 years old. According to the Boys and Girls Club's website, its free summer program at Fiesta Gardens International School is for students in grade...

Fate of record tech industry tie-up headed to judge as Microsoft defends $69B Activision deal

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:17 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The fate of what could be the priciest merger in tech industry history will soon be in the hands of a federal judge who must decide whether to stop Microsoft from closing its deal to buy video game company Activision Blizzard. Federal antitrust enforcers have sued to block the $69 billion acquisition that they say will harm competition between Microsoft and gaming industry competitors such as Sony and Nintendo. But Microsoft has largely had the upper hand in the 5-day San Francisco federal court hearing that’s scheduled to end Thursday, calling in its CEO Satya Nadella and other executives, including longtime Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick, to testify in favor of the merger.The Federal Trade Commission, which enforces antitrust laws, has asked U.S. District Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley to issue an injunction that would temporarily block Microsoft and Activision from closing the deal before the FTC’s in-house judge can review it in an August tr...

Anthony Nesty is a significant presence at US swimming nationals in a sport struggling to diversify

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:17 GMT

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — In a sport still struggling to diversify, Anthony Nesty is a significant presence on the pool deck at the U.S. national championships.He overcame long odds to win an Olympic gold medal. He worked his way up to become one of America’s top swimming coaches. And he’s Black. “You know you’re a role model,” Nesty told The Association Press. “You have to take that very seriously. Maybe it’s why I work so hard at what I do. I try to be the best Anthony Nesty I can be.”Nesty is the head coach at the University of Florida and oversees one of the top pro teams in the country, a star-studded group that includes Olympic gold medalists Katie Ledecky, Caeleb Dressel and Bobby Finke. When Ledecky went looking for a new team after graduating from Stanford, she couldn’t help but be impressed by the results Nesty was producing out of Gainesville.Dressel won five gold medals at the Tokyo Olympics. Finke, a relative unknown on the international scene, swept t...

North Carolina governor signs law clearing up several aspects of impending abortion law

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:17 GMT

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Last-minute revisions to North Carolina’s new abortion restrictions that take effect this weekend were signed into law on Thursday by Gov. Roy Cooper.The Democratic governor’s decision to act quickly on changes from the Republican-controlled legislature should minimize the immediate results from a pending legal challenge. Still, a federal judge might temporarily block parts of the law that before it goes into effect Saturday.A lawsuit by a physician and Planned Parenthood South Atlantic claims that sections in the restrictions were so vague and confusing that doctors feared unintentionally breaking the law, affecting their ability to care for women seeking abortions. Enactment of the clean-up language appears to make moot arguments about several provisions cited in the lawsuit. That’s according to lawyers for abortion providers, legislative leaders and the state, who spoke before U.S. District Judge Catherine Eagles during a Wednesday hearing.Cooper ...

Man wanted on Jan. 6 charges arrested in former President Barack Obama’s Washington neighborhood

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:17 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — A man wanted for crimes related to the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol was arrested Thursday in the Washington neighborhood where former President Barack Obama lives, law enforcement officials said. Taylor Taranto, 37, was seen by law enforcement a few blocks from the former president’s home, and he fled even though he was chased by U.S. Secret Service agents. He has an open warrant on charges related to the insurrection, two law enforcement officials said. The officials were not authorized to speak publicly about an ongoing case and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity. They said Taranto also made social media threats against a public figure. Metropolitan Police arrested him on charges of being a fugitive from justice. The explosives team swept Taranto’s vehicle. It wasn’t clear what, exactly, Taranto is accused of doing in the riot, where supporters of then-President Donald Trump smashed windows and beat and blo...