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Florida official says migrants flown to California went willingly, refutes claims of coercion

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:15:35 GMT

By TRÂN NGUYỄN and OLGA R. RODRIGUEZ (Associated Press)SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration said Tuesday that three dozen migrants whom the state flew from the U.S. southern border to California on private planes all went willingly, refuting allegations by California officials that the individuals were coerced to travel under false pretenses.Two planes arrived in Sacramento, on Friday and Monday, each carrying asylum-seekers mostly from Colombia and Venezuela. The individuals had been picked up in El Paso, Texas, taken to New Mexico and then put on charter flights to California’s capital of Sacramento, said California Attorney General Rob Bonta. He’s investigating whether any violations of criminal or civil law occurred.Alecia Collins, a spokeswoman for the Florida Division of Emergency Management, said in a statement that “through verbal and written consent, these volunteers indicated they wanted to go to Calif...

Citizens embark on chaotic scramble to escape floodwaters after Ukraine dam breach

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:15:35 GMT

By MSTYSLAV CHERNOV (Associated Press)KHERSON, Ukraine (AP) — As shelling from Russia’s war on Ukraine echoed overhead, dozens of evacuees on an island in the Dnieper River scurried onto the tops of military trucks or into rafts to flee rising floodwaters caused by the breach of a dam upstream. The unnerving bark of dogs left behind further soured the mood of those ferried to safety. A woman in one raft clutched the head of her despondent daughter. A stalled military truck stuck in swelling waters raised the panic level as Red Cross teams tried to manage an orderly evacuation.Nobody knew just how high the waters rushing through a gaping hole in the Kakhovka dam would rise, or whether people or pets would escape alive. The scrambled evacuation by boat and military truck from an island neighborhood off the southern Ukrainian city of Kherson downstream on Tuesday testified to the latest human chaos caused by Russia’s war in Ukraine.Ukrainian authorities accused Russia...

Two Republicans to jump into race for open Senate seat last held by Anne Gobi

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:15:35 GMT

Two Republicans plan to announce this week campaigns for the Senate seat last held by Anne Gobi, who left the Legislature this month to serve in the Healey administration, teeing up a special election sometime this year.State Rep. Peter Durant, a Spencer Republican, made his run official Monday in updated filings with the state’s campaign finance office after the Herald reported his intentions last week. Durant plans to formally announce his campaign Wednesday at 11 a.m. on the Holden Common.Rebekah Etique, the 24-year-old former campaign manager of the last Republican to challenge Gobi and lose, said she will also seek her party’s nomination.“This is something I’ve been strategically thinking on for a while, so it’s time and I’m announcing it this week,” she told the Herald during a telephone interview on Monday. “I think it’s a really great time.”Etique, a paralegal, ran the campaign of James Amorello in 2022, when he managed to grab 46% of the general election vote despite runnin...

Multiple people injured in shooting near Virginia Commonwealth University, police say

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:15:35 GMT

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — A shooting near Virginia Commonwealth University in downtown Richmond injured multiple people Tuesday, a police spokeswoman said.There was no longer an active threat to the community, according to police spokeswoman Tracy Walker.It wasn’t immediately clear what led to the shooting in the area of Monroe Park, which is near the VCU campus and a large theater.VCU advised the community in an online alert around 5:30 p.m. that police were responding after shots were fired.Matthew Stanley, a spokesman for Richmond Public Schools, said via email that he did not have full details about what transpired but was able to confirm that an incident took place in Monroe Park after a high school graduation.Richmond Public Schools said on its website that a different graduation scheduled for later Tuesday had been canceled “out of an abundance of caution.”State police sent an alert warning people to avoid the area.

Virtual meetings are bad for business, Boston Council president says

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:15:35 GMT

Boston City Council President Ed Flynn is trying to get his colleagues on board with a proposal that would eliminate virtual meetings and hearings, saying that having everyone back in person is good for business.Flynn filed a hearing order for the Wednesday City Council meeting, that aims to foster discussion around reverting back to a pre-pandemic, in-person-only format for public officials taking part in municipal meetings.Virtual accessibility would continue to be offered for the public and persons with disabilities, the order states.An in-person format would support the local economy, Flynn’s office said Tuesday, by bringing back city board members and staffers, attorneys, project proponents and residents to meetings, some of whom are bound to visit restaurants, coffee shops and other businesses.“Downtown Boston plays a key role in driving our economy,” Flynn said in a statement. “I am hoping for a productive conversation as we work to continue to bring foot traffic, business an...

Lawmaker wants hospitals to have test kits on hand amid drink spiking concerns

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:15:35 GMT

Madeline LeBlanc, a Northeastern University student who lives in Pembroke, said she believes her drink was spiked in August 2018.“I was brought to the hospital where I was treated like a dumb, drunk teenage girl,” LeBlanc told a group of lawmakers on Tuesday. “They didn’t have any testing available to test me for date rape drugs. So since then, I have lived with not knowing if and what was placed into my drink that night.”And during her first week in college in September 2019, LeBlanc said she was raped.“I do believe that my drink was spiked by the monster who raped me, but I will never have proof because again, testing was not available, even with the rape kit,” she said. “There has been a lot of unknown with both of these traumatic events. I wonder what drugs were put into my drink and were they different drugs both times? I wonder how many people they have done this too.”LeBlanc said she supports legislation from state Sen. Paul Feeney that would require hospitals across th...

Mike Preston’s Ravens observations on QB Lamar Jackson’s improvement, roster battles and more | COMMENTARY

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:15:35 GMT

The Ravens’ offense was missing a handful of notable players Tuesday, but the quarterback play was better than it was a week ago.There are expected to be some problems and delays in development as new offensive coordinator Todd Monken installs his scheme, but the Ravens appeared to pick up the pace Tuesday afternoon.Starting quarterback Lamar Jackson has developed some chemistry with wide receiver Nelson Agholor, connecting with the veteran on several back-shoulder throws despite tight coverage.In years past, Jackson seldom threw those types of patterns. He also has his timing down on intermediate outside routes. Jackson’s passes were high and tight Tuesday, and very seldom did he throw behind the receivers.In the past, the Ravens failed to attack the outside of the field on passing plays. It might have been because of Jackson’s inaccuracy or former offensive coordinator Greg Roman’s lack of trust in Jackson’s arm strength, but at least Monken seems to ...

Ticker: Unruly passenger incidents keep climbing; Hollywood actors authorize strike 

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:15:35 GMT

With air travel rebounding from the pandemic, a new study found that bad behavior among airline passengers has continued to rise.A new analysis by the International Air Transport Association shows that unruly passenger incidents on airplanes increased 47% from 2021 to 2022, from one incident per 835 flights to one incident per 568 flights.Though incidents of physical abuse often draw the most attention, the most common types of incidents were “non-compliance, verbal abuse and intoxication,” according to the report. Other misdeeds included bringing outside alcoholic drinks into the cabin, failing to wear a seat belt and packing too much baggage.Physical abuse incidents occurred on 1 in every 17,200 flights, a small fraction, but still an increase of 61% over the prior year. By comparison, the odds of a person being struck by lightning in their lifetime are 1 in 15,300, according to the National Weather Service.Hollywood actors authorize strikeActors represented by the Hol...

Boston lawyer who was considered for Massachusetts U.S. Attorney appointed as a lead prosecutor at The Hague

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:15:35 GMT

A Boston lawyer who was one of the final names being considered for the U.S. Attorney role in Massachusetts, before Rachael Rollins was ultimately picked and later resigned in disgrace, has been appointed as the top prosecutor at The Hague for the Kosovo war crimes tribunal.Kim West, a partner at Ashcroft Law Firm in Boston, was recently selected as the Specialist Prosecutor at the Kosovo Specialist Chambers and Specialist Prosecutor’s Office in The Hague, Netherlands.West was one of the high-profile local lawyers who were being looked at as the replacement for Andrew Lelling to lead the Bay State U.S. Attorney’s Office. Rollins, the Suffolk County district attorney at the time, was later picked as U.S. Attorney — and she recently resigned following bombshell investigative reports from two federal watchdog agencies.Instead of the experienced and accomplished West running the Massachusetts U.S. Attorney’s Office, she’s now heading to the European Union-b...

Live music coming back to Suffolk Downs: The Stage set to open later this month

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:15:35 GMT

Live music is coming back to Suffolk Downs.Artist Steve Lacy will be performing in the first show at the former East Boston horse racetrack in 20 years when he takes the stage June 16 – the beginning of The Stage at Suffolk Downs.The city’s newest outdoor music spot takes up 186,000 square feet, featuring room for up to 8,500 fans.Suffolk Downs hasn’t hosted a musical show in roughly 20 years, but the venue has attracted some major artists in its existence. The Beatles marked the first band to perform there, playing to 25,000 fans in 1966. The Jackson 5, Radiohead and Bjork also held concerts.The Stage represents an attempt at reviving the live music scene in Eastie, and fans can expect the new era of shows to be something between a festival and a headlining concert, said Josh Bhatti, senior vice president of The Bowery Presents, a leading concert promotion and venue management company along the East Coast.“What we were trying to do was have an outdoor venue in a field, nothing more...