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Vermont’s largest city votes to allow noncitizen voting

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 11:36:00 GMT

BURLINGTON, Vt. (AP) — Vermont’s largest city has voted to allow noncitizens who are in the country legally to vote in local elections. The proposed charter change for Burlington now must be considered by the Legislature and the Republican governor. Burlington would be the third city in the state to make the change. Noncitizen residents are currently allowed to vote in municipal elections in Vermont’s capital city of Montpelier, and Winooski, the most diverse community in the state. The Republican National Committee filed lawsuits against Montpelier and Winooski asking judges to declare noncitizen voting unconstitutional and lost those challenges. Federal law prohibits noncitizens from voting in federal elections, including races for president, vice president, Senate or House of Representatives.In January, the Vermont Supreme Court ruled that such voting in local elections in Montpelier doesn’t violate the state constitution. A new complaint was filed in court Thursday against...

Robert Blake, actor acquitted in wife’s killing, dies at 89

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 11:36:00 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Robert Blake, the Emmy award-winning performer who went from acclaim for his acting to notoriety when he was tried and acquitted in the killing of his wife, died Thursday at age 89.A statement released on behalf of his niece, Noreen Austin, said Blake died from heart disease, surrounded by family at home in Los Angeles.Blake, star of the 1970s TV show, “Baretta,” had once hoped for a comeback, but he never recovered from the long ordeal which began with the shooting death of his wife, Bonny Lee Bakley, outside a Studio City restaurant on May 4, 2001. The story of their strange marriage, the child it produced and its violent end was a Hollywood tragedy played out in court.Once hailed as among the finest actors of his generation, Blake became better known as the defendant in a real-life murder trial, a story more bizarre than any in which he acted.In a 2002 interview with The Associated Press while he was jailed awaiting trial, he bemoaned the change in ...

Oregon looking at allowing people in prison to vote

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 11:36:00 GMT

SALEM, Ore. (AP) — A bill that would allow inmates of prisons and jails in Oregon to vote in elections moved on Thursday toward a Senate floor vote with the approval of the judiciary committee, with Republican members voting against.The action on the bill in the Democratic-dominated Oregon Legislature underscores how blue states are taking steps to expand voter access while red states are moving in the opposite direction.Only two other states — Maine and Vermont — and Washington, D.C., allow convicted people to vote while still incarcerated, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.According to the NCSL, felons lose their voting rights in 22 states only while incarcerated and receive automatic restoration upon release. Felons in 15 states lose their voting rights during incarceration and typically also while on parole or probation. In 11 states, felons lose their voting rights indefinitely for some crimes, require a governor’s pardon for the rights to be restored o...

CP NewsAlert: ‘Historic’ $2.8B class-action Indigenous court settlement approved

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 11:36:00 GMT

VANCOUVER — A Federal Court judge has approved a $2.8 billion settlement agreement between the Canadian government and plaintiffs representing 325 First Nations. More coming. The Canadian Press

Report: Trump invited to testify before NY grand jury

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 11:36:00 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Former President Donald Trump has been invited to testify next week before a New York grand jury that has been investigating hush money payments made on his behalf during his 2016 presidential campaign, according to a news report.The New York Times cited “ four people with knowledge of the matter ” in reporting that the invitation was made by the Manhattan district attorney’s office. Such an invitation often indicates a decision on indictments is near.The district attorney’s office declined to comment. A Trump spokesperson issued a statement that disparaged the investigation by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, a Democrat, as politically motivated.Any indictment would mark the first time any former U.S. president has been charged with a crime. It would come as Trump is ramping up a run to regain the White House in 2024 while simultaneously battling legal problems on multiple fronts.The district attorney in Atlanta, Georgia, has said decisions are “...

Attorneys appeal Alex Murdaugh’s convictions, life sentence

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 11:36:00 GMT

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Attorneys for Alex Murdaugh on Thursday filed a notice to appeal his convictions for the murder of his wife and son along with his life sentence. The trial in rural South Carolina lasted six weeks and included more than 75 witnesses, but culminated in a jury taking less than three hours to find the 54-year-old Murdaugh guilty last week.Murdaugh called 911 on the evening of June 7, 2021, saying he found his son and wife dead when he returned home from a one-hour visit with his mother, who has dementia.Authorities said Paul Murdaugh, 22, was shot twice with a shotgun, each round loaded with different sized shot, while Maggie Murdaugh, 52, was struck with four or five bullets from a rifle. A crime scene report suggested that both victims were shot in the head after initially being wounded near dog kennels on the Murdaughs’ sprawling rural property.Prosecutors took more than a year to charge the disgraced lawyer with murder but decided not to pursue the death penal...

La Nina is gone. Here are the deadly storms during its run

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 11:36:00 GMT

La Nina seemed to treat Louisiana and the rest of the Southeast United States like a punching bag. Its three-year barrage of body blows has come to an end, but left behind a lot of scars from hurricanes and tornadoes among other weather disasters.Experts caution that attributing any single event to La Nina or its better-known cousin, El Nino, is difficult as they pronounced Thursday that the La Nina weather phenomenon has come to an end. But they can say generally that tornadoes in the Southeast and hurricanes are more frequent during La Nina.Here are some examples of the 44 different billion-dollar extremes of nasty weather during La Nina’s reign:1. A historic December 2021 tornado outbreak in Kentucky, Tennessee, Missouri and Arkansas that killed 93 people and caused $4.2 billion in damage. Tornadoes twisted across 800 miles, including one single tornado that plowed across nearly 166 miles of Kentucky and a bit of Tennessee. At the time scientists attributed warm air during a cold...

Columnist’s tweet about Jagmeet Singh’s turban called out by Sikh community

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 11:36:00 GMT

A tweet from a Toronto Sun columnist about federal NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh’s turban choice is being called “insensitive” and “inappropriate” by Canada’s Sikh community.While MPs were questioning grocery store CEOs in the House of Commons on Wednesday, columnist Brian Lilley tweeted a picture of Singh, with the caption, “Jagmeet looks like he wore his No Name turban today just to grill Galen Weston at committee.”“I know he changes the colours for special days or occasion [sic] but didn’t expect to see No Name yellow today. Is it on purpose or a coincidence?” the tweet continued.Jagmeet looks like he wore his No Name turban today just to grill Galen Weston at committee.I know he changes the colours for special days or occaision but didn't expect to see No Name yellow today. Is it on purpose or a coincidence? pic.twitter.com/rOmModWgkc— Brian Lilley (@brianlilley) March 8, 2023Gurpreet Kaur Rai, a spokesperson...

Security guard injured after Wacker Drive bank robbery

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 11:36:00 GMT

CHICAGO — A security guard was injured after being injured during a bank robbery in downtown Chicago Thursday.According to police, law enforcement responded to an armed robbery at the Fifth Third Bank on South Wacker Drive in downtown Chicago just before 3 p.m. Thursday evening.WGN-TV crews were able to confirm that a suspect shot out a window during the armed robbery before fleeing the scene. Pedestrians told WGN-TV crews that cash could be seen flying around outside the bank.A 59-year-old bank security guard confronted the suspect when they pulled out a gun and began shooting.The security guard produced his service weapon and fired back at the suspect. The 59-year-old suffered a graze wound before the suspect fled the scene eastbound on Madison AvenueThe security guard was injured and treated at the scene, according to police. According to the FBI, the suspect is described as being about 5 feet 7 inches tall and was wearing a black hooded jacket, a mask, winter gloves and blue jea...

Robert Blake, actor acquitted in wife's murder, dies at 89

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 11:36:00 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Robert Blake, the Emmy award-winning performer who went from acclaim for his acting to notoriety when he was tried and acquitted of murdering his wife, died Thursday at age 89.A statement released on behalf of his niece, Noreen Austin, said Blake died from heart disease, surrounded by family at home in Los Angeles.Blake, star of the 1970s TV show, "Baretta," had once hoped for a comeback, but he never recovered from the long ordeal which began with the shooting death of his wife, Bonny Lee Bakley, outside a Studio City restaurant on May 4, 2001. The story of their strange marriage, the child it produced and its violent end was a Hollywood tragedy played out in court.Once hailed as among the finest actors of his generation, Blake became better known as the defendant in a real-life murder story more bizarre than any in which he acted.In a 2002 interview with The Associated Press while he was jailed awaiting trial, he bemoaned the change in his status with his fans n...