Idaho State News

Pocatello woman hosting fundraiser at Barrie’s Ski and Sports on Saturday to benefit Ukraine

Tue, 20 Feb 2024 02:32:24 +0000

POCATELLO, Idaho (KIFI) - It's been two years since the war between Russia and Ukraine began, and during that time, Pocatello resident and Ukraine native Lena Contor has organized multiple fundraisers to help with relief efforts.

Contor is organizing another fundraiser this Saturday at Barrie's Ski and Sports from 3 to 6 p.m.

Contor says they will be selling solar lights for $20 a piece with the proceeds going to purchase flour and firewood. She's hoping to raise $10,000 for the fundraiser.

She has a promise from doTerra Healing Hands to match her dollar for dollar up to that amount. With the $20,000, Contor will purchase an abundant amount of flour and firewood. She says the money will be able to make 132,000 loaves of bread.

"Ukraine is known for having 30% of the world's topsoil," Contor said. "It's kind of an embarrassment. It's like if I was raising money for potatoes for Idaho. Ukraine used to be the breadbasket of Europe, and now all those lands, those fields, even people's gardens are mined."

Contor plans to make deliveries in her eighth trip to Ukraine in a few months, where her safety is tested every time she goes.

"It's been over a year and a half since people slept in their beds," Contor said. "They have to sleep in their cellars in the bomb shelters, because you never know where the bomb is going to fall."

Contor says the tension between the two countries still remains the same

"Unfortunately, it's not getting any closer to the end of it," Contor said. "That's the saddest part for me, because I had a fundraiser exactly a year ago at Barrie's and I didn't think I would have another one, because everyone hoped that the war would be over by now."

Contor wants people to know that giving just a few dollars can have a big effect.

"What you can buy here, you can buy probably five times more in Ukraine," Contor said. "Even $10 can go a long way there."

Even though she's perceived it as repetitive, Contor says she continues to have local support.

"Everybody's getting tired of donating and I understand it," Contor said. "I have even mixed feelings about doing this fundraiser, but I run into people who tell me, no, you still need to do it because there are many people who want to support Ukraine here in Pocatello."

With that support, Contor believes it's her calling to step up and do something.

"I cannot help with this war like I cannot stop it," Contor said. "The only thing I can do is to give them something that they can hold on while this madness is happening."

Mother and 4 children killed in fire identified

Tue, 20 Feb 2024 02:24:53 +0000

By KMOV Staff and Russell Kinsaul

Click here for updates on this story

FERGUSON, Missouri (KMOV) — The St. Louis County Police Department has opened a criminal investigation into an early morning fire that killed a mother and her four children in Ferguson. The fire happened at 510 N. Clay Avenue and caused extensive damage.

A relative identified the adult victim of the fire as 38-year-old Bernadine “Birdie” Pruessner. She was hired in 2022 as a professor at Lewis and Clark College, according to online reports.

“Her smile would light up the room. She was just one of those people that if you were in a bad mood and you talked to her, she would make you feel a lot better,” said Tyler Justice, a relative.

The children who perished in the fire are identified as 9-year-old twin daughters, Ellie and Ivy, a 5-year-old son, named Jackson, and a 2-and-1/2-year-old Millie.

“They were some of the smartest, brightest kids you could have, and full of life just like she was,” said Justice.

A neighbor said he woke up at 4:30 a.m. and saw the glow of the flames through his window. The neighbor said he ran to the house and banged on the door to try to wake the family while his wife called 911.

Friend, family and neighbors are devastated to know that no one was able to escape the fire. Jamie Young is a neighbor.

“It felt like my heart just fell to the bottom of my stomach. And all i could really do was just pray,” she said.

The Ferguson Police Department requested St. Louis County Bureau of Crimes Against Persons detectives take over the investigation. St. Louis Regional Bomb and Arson detectives and Crime Scene Unit detectives are also assisting.

“This was a wonderful group of people that the world is sadly lesser for, for not having,” said Justice.

Birdie Pruessner was known for her love of animals and regularly had chickens and rabbits. An animal rescue organization was at the house late in the afternoon to rescue 11 rabbits and two cats. The family’s 3 dogs did not survive the fire.

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Capital One to buy Discover for $35 billion in deal that combines major US credit card companies

Tue, 20 Feb 2024 02:04:00 +0000

NEW YORK (AP) — Capital One Financial is buying Discover Financial Services for $35 billion, in a deal that would bring together two of the nation’s biggest lenders and credit card issuers.

Discover Financial shareholders will receive Capital One shares valued at nearly $140, according to a news release issued by the companies Monday. Discover shares closed Friday trading at $110.49.

Virginia-based Capital One was the 12th largest U.S. bank as of the third quarter, with $471.4 billion in total assets and $346 billion in deposits, according to S&P Global. Illinois-based Discover was the 33rd biggest, with $143.4 billion in assets and $104 billion in deposits.

Both companies have benefitted from Americans’ increased use of credit cards. In the fourth quarter of 2023, Americans held $1.13 trillion on their credit cards, and aggregate household debt balances increased by $212 billion, up 1.2%, according to the latest data from the New York Federal Reserve.

At the same time, the two lenders have had to boost their reserves against the possibility of rising borrower defaults. After battling inflation for more than two years, many lower- and middle-income Americans have run through their savings and are increasingly running up their credit card balances and taking on personal loans.

The additional reserves have weighed on both banks’ profits. Last year, Capital One’s net income available to common shareholders slumped 35% versus 2022, as its provisions for loan losses soared 78% to $10.4 billion. Discover’s full-year profit sank 33.6% versus its 2022 results as its provisions for credit losses more than doubled to $6.02 billion.

Discover’s customers are carrying $102 billion in balances on their credit cards, up 13% from a year earlier. Meanwhile, the charge-off rates and 30-day delinquency rates have climbed.

El Salvador’s Bukele wins supermajority in Congress after painstaking vote count

Tue, 20 Feb 2024 02:03:40 +0000

By MARCOS ALEMÁN and MEGAN JANETSKY
Associated Press

SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador (AP) — El Salvador President Nayib Bukele and his New Ideas party have won the supermajority the leader needs in Congress to govern as he pleases. Electoral officials announced the results Monday after a painstaking vote counting process, which has raised the hackles of electoral watchdogs and the country’s weak opposition, who cite irregularities. Bukele overwhelmingly won reelection Feb. 4, but what had remained up in the air was whether his New Ideas party would be equally as successful in legislative elections. On Monday, officials announced that New Ideas won 54 seats of the 60 congressional seats. Allied parties won an additional three seats.

“The state GOP doesn’t have clean hands in this” says Dan Cravens – Bingham County Republicans react to court ruling

Tue, 20 Feb 2024 01:50:21 +0000

BINGHAM COUNTY, Idaho (KIFI) - The legal back and forth between the Bingham County Republican Central Committee and the Idaho GOP is costing thousands of dollars, and costs could continue.

On Sunday, the Bingham County Republicans acknowledged their election was invalid. That comes after Judge Darren Simpson's ruling on Friday.

The decision comes after a months long battle between the Bingham County Republicans and the State GOP.

It all started after an Bingham County Republican Central Committee election last July to fill then-chairman Dan Craven's seat after he resigned. Matt Thompson was elected to fill the position.

However, the Idaho State Republican Party deemed the election invalid, as the seat was not technically not vacant at the time of the election - which meant the election broke the party's bylaws.

According to Ben Fuhriman, spokesman for the Bingham County Republican Central Committee, the election ruling was only a piece of the puzzle.

Furhiman wrote Simpson's decision also "demonstrates that Dorothy Moon and the Idaho GOP acted in bad faith in its dealings with the BCRCC," which he also claims is the larger issue.

"Whether we have the election correct or whether we didn't have the election correct," Fuhriman said. "...we never once got any bit of communication from them one way or the other. A phone call would have would have solved everything. But we never got that. On September 5th, we finally got her [Dorothy Moon's] ruling that we had done everything wrong and she had to come and redo it. So by that point, we had no time to fix it ourselves where we could have if we had just had a phone call."

Fuhriman continued, "May 21st will be a new primary election where all the Bingham County Precinct
Committeeman will be elected and the executive committee will once again be reorganized, all
without the interference of Dorothy Moon. We call that a victory."

However, according to Bryan Smith, the attorney representing the state GOP, what Fuhriman suggests would also break the state party's rules.

"State law says that only the incumbent chairman of the county can [give] notice and preside over that meeting," Smith said.

"They can't notice that meeting - they don't have an incumbent chairman, therefore they're not able to give notice of a reorganization meeting in May. Therefore, they cannot elect new officers, and they must have Dorothy come down and reorganize the chairman first, because they don't have a chairman."

I was also able to get in touch with the man behind initial the election, former chairman Dan Cravens. He said the situation has been blown out of proportion.

"The state GOP doesn't have clean hands in this...especially dealing with the state party it's become very, very contentious," Cravens said.

"Not just in Bingham County, but in other counties and there still is a high level of distrust between a lot of county central committees. From what I hear, where, you know, there's fear, the state chair will come in and try to reorganize their party to get folks that are very much more favorable to her point of view."

According to Cravens, there has always been a fight between what he calls Reagan or traditional Republicans and the more Libertarian wing of the party.

It seems that fight may have cost Republicans thousands of dollars.

Ben Fuhriman of the Bingham County Republicans tells us they voted 18-3 to send $10,000 as a retainer for their legal bills with this case. He says other members may have also sent private donations.

And that's just their down payment.

According to attorney Bryan Smith, both sides have spent tens of thousands of dollars in privately raised funds on legal fees.

Alexey Navalny honored by Bono and U2 during Las Vegas concert

Tue, 20 Feb 2024 01:49:32 +0000

By Alli Rosenbloom, CNN

(CNN) — Bono and U2 got their audience involved in a tribute to late Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny during their concert at Las Vegas’s Sphere over the weekend.

Speaking to the crowd on Saturday, according to audience video, Bono spoke about the upcoming two-year anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and acknowledged the millions of people affected by the ongoing conflict.

“For these people, freedom is not just a word in a song. For these people, freedom is the most important word in the world – so important that Ukrainians are fighting and dying for it. And so important that Alexey Navalny chose to give his up,” Bono said.

Navalny, an outspoken critic of the Kremlin whose 2020 poisoning with a nerve agent made global headlines, was reported dead on Friday by the Russian prison service. He was 47.

He died after becoming unwell and falling unconscious while on a walk in the Siberian prison he was being held at, according to the Russian prison service.

“Apparently, Putin would never, ever say his name so I felt tonight, the free people from here – people who believe in freedom – we must say his name,” Bono said.

Bono then led a chant of Navalny’s name that the audience joined in on. The band then began to play a cover of Crowded House’s “Don’t Dream It’s Over.”

The band has been supportive of the Ukrainian people.

In addition to raising funds, Bono and U2 guitarist, The Edge, gave a performance at the Khreschatyk metro station in Kyiv in May 2022 on the invitation of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

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CNN’s Sophie Tanno and Darya Tarasova contributed to this report.

¿De qué acusan al expresidente de Honduras Juan Orlando Hernández y qué puede pasar con él?

Tue, 20 Feb 2024 01:40:59 +0000

Luis Ernesto Quintana Barney

(CNN Español) — Un día antes del inicio del juicio en Estados Unidos por cargos de narcotráfico, el expresidente de Honduras Juan Orlando Hernández mantiene su inocencia.

En una carta dirigida al pueblo hondureño supuestamente escrita por Hernández y publicada en la red social X (antes Twitter) por su esposa, Ana García de Hernández, el exmandatario volvió a negar los cargos en su contra.

“Esas acusaciones son falsas e injustas, llenas de mentiras construidas de manera novelesca”, dice la misiva, en la que Hernández promete defenderse y luchar por su libertad. Desde su extradición en abril de 2022, Hernández ha estado recluido en una cárcel de máxima seguridad en Brooklyn, Nueva York.

CNN intentó comunicarse con los abogados de Hernández para verificar la autenticidad de la carta, pero hasta el momento no ha obtenido respuesta.

El gobierno de Estados Unidos alega que Hernández conspiró con narcotraficantes durante su presidencia (2014-2022) para facilitar la importación de cientos de miles de kilos de cocaína a Estados Unidos.

A partir del martes, se conformará un jurado que empezará a evaluar las pruebas en su contra y decidirá sobre la inocencia o culpabilidad de quien fuera considerado uno de los principales aliados de Estados Unidos en la guerra contra el narcotráfico y el crimen organizado.

¿Quién es Juan Orlando Hernández?

Juan Orlando Hernández, o JOH como es popularmente conocido, fue presidente de Honduras entre 2012 y 2022, durante dos mandatos. En su gestión, mantuvo fuertes vínculos con Estados Unidos, en medio de políticas cooperación en campos com narcotráfico, delincuencia y seguridad, e inmigración.

Los expresidentes Barack Obama y Donald Trump elogiaron en diversas ocasiones los logros del gobierno de Hernández, como la firma de un acuerdo anticorrupción con la Organización de los Estados Americanos (OEA) en 2016 y el acuerdo entre ambos países sobre los solicitantes de asilo ratificado en 2019.

Al mismo tiempo, sin embargo, las autoridades estadounidenses empezaban a construir un caso contra Hernández por supuestamente utilizar su cargo público para apoyar a organizaciones de narcotráfico en Honduras, México y otros lugares.

Juan Orlando Hernández, de la silla presidencial de Honduras a acusado en EE.UU.

Documentos de un tribunal estadounidense indican que el entonces presidente estaba siendo investigado por la DEA desde al menos 2013, un caso que el propio Hernández confirmó mediante un comunicado en 2019.

El expresidente finalmente fue extraditado a Estados Unidos en abril de 2022, apenas tres meses después de dejar el cargo, para enfrentar cargos de narcotráfico y posesión de armas.

Hernández ha rechazado las acusaciones y ha declarado inocente de todos los cargos, alegando que se basan en declaraciones de individuos a los cuales su gobierno ayudó a detener y enviar presos a Estados Unidos.

¿De qué lo acusan?

El Departamento de Justicia de EE.UU. presentó tres cargos contra el exmandatario: conspiración para importar cocaína a Estados Unidos, conspiración para poseer armas de fuego y dispositivos destructivos para el narcotráfico, y posesión de ese tipo de armamento durante la conspiración de narcotráfico.

Según la tesis de los fiscales estadounidenses, Hernández, junto a otros coacusados, incluidos miembros de su familia y colaboradores cercanos, participó por años en “una conspiración de narcotráfico corrupta y violenta para facilitar la importación de cientos de miles de kilogramos de cocaína a Estados Unidos”.

El Departamento de Justicia sostiene que el exmandatario presuntamente recibió millones de dólares en sobornos para “utilizar su cargo público, las fuerzas del orden y el ejército para apoyar a organizaciones de narcotráfico en Honduras, México y otros lugares”.

“Hernández abusó de su posición como presidente de Honduras desde 2014 hasta 2022 para operar el país como un narcoestado”, dijo el secretario de Justicia de Estados Unidos, Merrick Garland cuando se dio a conocer la acusación.

¿Cómo sería el juicio en su contra?

Tras varios cambios de fecha, el juicio comienza el martes 20 de febrero con la selección del jurado, que estará compuesto por 12 miembros principales y un número de suplentes determinado por el juez.

Luego, la fiscalía y la defensa darán sus argumentos iniciales seguido por la presentación de los testigos. Los fiscales han indicado que planean llamar a varios testigos colaboradores.

Aunque sus nombres no han sido revelados públicamente, se especula que entre ellos estaría Fabio Lobo, hijo del expresidente de Honduras Porfirio Lobo, quien fue sentenciado en 2017 a 24 años de cárcel en Estados Unidos por delitos de narcotráfico.

Aún no está claro si la defensa piensa presentar sus propios testigos o si Hernández dará declaraciones.

En una moción presentada ante la corte la semana pasada, Renato Stabile, uno de los abogados de Hernández, le pidió al juez Kevin Castel aplazar el juicio entre 90 y 180 días en parte porque algunos de los testigos que declararían a favor del expresidente tenían problemas con visas para viajar a Nueva York, pero la petición fue denegada.

¿Cuál podría ser su condena?

De ser hallado culpable, Hernández podría ser sentenciado a un máximo de cadena perpetua por cada uno de los cargos.

¿Qué pasó con los otros acusados?

Juan Carlos “El Tigre” Bonilla, exjefe de la Policía Nacional de Honduras, y Mauricio Hernández Pineda, exfuncionario policial y primo del expresidente, quienes estaban vinculados al mismo caso, optaron a inicios de febrero por ser juzgados por separado y se declararon culpables del delito de conspiración para importar cocaína al país, según registros judiciales.

Sus abogados dijeron entonces a CNN que las declaratorias de culpabilidad habían sido parte de un acuerdo para que los fiscales pidieran condenas reducidas, pero que no incluía declarar en contra del exmandatario.

Otro personaje vinculado a la misma trama de narcotráfico, Juan Antonio “Tony” Hernández, hermano del exmandatario, fue sentenciado en 2021 a cadena perpetua en Estados Unidos por delitos relacionados con drogas y manejo de armas.

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William Byron launches Hendrick Motorsports’ 40th anniversary season with win in Daytona 500

Tue, 20 Feb 2024 01:36:01 +0000

By JENNA FRYER
AP Auto Racing Writer

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) — William Byron launched Hendrick Motorsports’ 40th anniversary season by snapping the team’s nine-year Daytona 500 losing streak with a win Monday in the rain-delayed “Great American Race.”

The last Hendrick driver to win the Daytona 500 was Dale Earnhardt Jr. in 2014. The 26-year-old from Charlotte, North Carolina, is the sixth different driver to win the 500 for Rick Hendrick, the winningest team owner in NASCAR history who made his way to victory lane on the actual 40th anniversary of his first Cup win.

“The first time we came here, we didn’t think we had any business even being here,” Hendrick said in victory lane. “We felt way out of our league. Now here we are 40 years later. You couldn’t write the script any better. To win this on the 40th, to the day, it’s just awesome.”

The ninth Daytona 500 win for Hendrick Motorsports tied the team with Petty Enterprises for most in NASCAR history.

“William Byron was already a superstar, and I mean, he just went to another level of being superstar,” said Hendrick vice chairman Jeff Gordon, himself a three-time Daytona 500 winner in the No. 24 Chevrolet.

“I wasn’t driving the car, but I felt like I was making every lap out there with him. We’re going to celebrate. This is a huge win.”

The fourth and final caution of the race began when Hendrick driver Alex Bowman hit Byron from behind and it caused Byron to sideswipe Brad Keselowski and trigger a 23-car crash that caused a red flag that lasted more than 15 minutes.

There were four laps remaining on the final restart and Byron was in second in the No. 24 Chevrolet. He and Ross Chastain of Trackhouse Racing pushed back and forth for the lead and it was Byron out front as a crash broke out behind him just as he’d crossed under the white flag marking the final lap of the race.

Byron won under caution and was followed by teammate Alex Bowman in a sweep for Chevrolet. Christopher Bell in a Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing finished third and was followed by Chevys from Corey Lajoie of Spire Motorsports and AJ Allmendinger of Kaulig Racing.

Bubba Wallace was sixth in a Toyota for 23XI Racing and was followed by John Hunter Nemecheck in another Toyota but for Legacy Motor Club. Chase Briscoe was eighth in a Ford for Stewart-Haas Racing and followed by Legacy driver Erik Jones and SHR teammate Noah Gragson.

The race ran one day later than scheduled because of persistent rain all weekend at Daytona International Speedway. Monday was supposed to open with the rescheduled second-tier Xfinity Series race and then lead into the 500, but when it was still raining Monday morning, NASCAR reordered the events and made the Xfinity race the closer.

Joey Logano started from the pole in a Ford for Team Penske — a first for Roger Penske’s storied team — in an all-Ford front row. Right before the race began, three-time Daytona 500 winner Denny Hamlin became the betting favorite, according to FanDuel Sportsbook.

There was no pre-race concert Monday as scheduled performer Pitbull said he’d return next year to make good on his appearance. He said a scheduling conflict prevented him from staying in Daytona on Monday, but, grand marshal Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson did stay the extra day and was the most popular attraction in pre-race activities.

Johnson was swarmed on the starting grid, in the fan zone and received the loudest ovation in the pre-race driver meeting, to which he showed up 30 minutes ahead of schedule wearing a black tank top.

The flexibility NASCAR has shown this month in working within its schedule to avoid inclement weather is practically unprecedented in the first 75 hours of the series. NASCAR, to start the month, moved the exhibition Clash at the Coliseum up a full day because of impending rain. At Daytona, it rescheduled the ARCA Series race from Saturday to Friday night, and made early decisions to move both the Xfinity and Cup Series races.

The decision to postpone the Cup race a day was made early Sunday morning and prevented fans from sitting in rain-soaked grandstands to see if the race would begin.

Just hours later, teams used Sunday’s rain delay to reveal to The Associated Press that they have hired one of the country’s top antitrust and sports lawyers to advise them in their ongoing dispute with NASCAR over a new revenue-sharing model.

The decision to hire Jeffrey Kessler, partner and co-executive chair of Winston & Strawn LLP, followed a meeting at Daytona that included the majority owner from every chartered team. Although the teams invited NASCAR representatives to attend, none did.

Kessler’s hiring was revealed to AP by the five members of the team ownership negotiating committee. It comes amid a breakdown in negotiations between teams and NASCAR that led the 36 chartered teams to decline last month to extend their exclusive negotiating window with the sanctioning body on the existing deal.

___

AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing

Idaho bill to expand contraceptives access sent to House floor after narrow committee vote

Tue, 20 Feb 2024 01:29:12 +0000

BOISE (Idaho Capital Sun) — A bill to expand birth control access is making its way to the Idaho House floor after it passed in a House Business Committee hearing Monday afternoon.

Senate Bill 1234, which previously passed the Senate in a 19-16 vote, would require that insurance companies provide up to a six month supply of prescribed contraceptives to enrollees. The bill’s main sponsor, Sen. Melissa Wintrow, D-Boise, previously said the bill would make it easier for women who only have access to a one or three month supply of contraceptives under their current insurance plan.

The bill passed the House Business Committee in a 9-7 vote. There was limited time for testimony during the hearing, but three people spoke in support of the bill, including individuals with health care backgrounds.

Julie Bouchard, a retired obstetrician gynecologist, testified in support of the bill. She said the bill would alleviate some of the barriers women seeking reproductive health care in Idaho face. She said there is a shortage of women’s health providers, which makes it harder for women to access contraceptives.

“This legislation is important to me because I spent 35 years providing women’s health care,” she said. “I’ve delivered hundreds of babies, hundreds of Idahoans that may be your children… Access to comprehensive family planning creates healthier communities and results in cost savings to states, families and insurance companies.”

The bill is moving forward to the House floor with a recommendation that it pass. If the bill passes the House, it would head to the governor for consideration.

Most Idaho conservatives support birth control access, survey shows

As Senate Bill 1234 makes its way through the Statehouse, a recent survey shows that most Idahoans support contraceptives access.

The survey, “Idaho Contraceptive Research,” was conducted by GS Strategy Group and the Idaho Contraceptives Education Network — a nonprofit focused on educating Idahoans about contraceptive options. It surveyed 500 Idahoans between September and October, of which 51% of respondents said they consider themselves “very conservative,” and 76% said they consider themselves anti-abortion.

Highlights of the survey include:

Support for birth control access is strong: 83% of respondents agreed that all people in Idaho should have affordable access to contraception.
Idahoans believe birth control is important: 85% of respondents said contraceptives are important to reduce unplanned pregnancies and abortion
Idahoans want policies in place: 46% of respondents said they think lawmakers should enact policies to make it easier to access birth control, while 37% said they think lawmakers should keep access the same as it is now.

“The overwhelming support among Idaho conservatives for contraceptive access reflects a shared understanding that birth control is vital both to individual well-being and to the overall health of our communities,” Kelley Packer, a former Idaho House Representative and board member of the education network, said in a press release.

The post Idaho bill to expand contraceptives access sent to House floor after narrow committee vote appeared first on East Idaho News.

Capital One is buying Discover in a $35.3 billion deal

Tue, 20 Feb 2024 01:25:32 +0000

New York (CNN) — Capital One announced it’s acquiring Discover Financial Services for $35.3 billion in an all-stock deal, giving the bank a leg up in the competitive credit card market.

Under the terms of the deal announced Monday evening, Discover (DFS) shareholders will receive a little over one share of Capital One (COF) for every Discover share they own. That represents an almost 27% premium from Discover’s closing share price of $110.49 on Friday.

If the deal is finalized, current Capital One shareholders will own a 60% stake in the combined company, while Discover shareholders will own the remaining 40%.

Capital One said it believes the deal will close in late 2024 or early 2025.

With a market valuation of almost $28 billion, Discover is considerably smaller than the other three major credit card networks in the US — Visa (V), Mastercard (MA) and American Express (AXP). Credit card networks are the liaison between card issuers and merchants, for whom they set fees.

Getting Discover, which also issues its own credit cards, under the same roof as Capital One would give the bank a major leg up against competing credit card-issuing banks such as JPMorgan Chase (JPM), Bank of America (BAC) and Citigroup (C), which don’t process transactions themselves.

Richard Fairbank, the founder and CEO of Capital One, said in the Monday announcement that the deal would “build a payments network that can compete with the largest payments networks and payments companies.”

A marriage between Capital One and Discover, if approved by regulators, would also give Capital One a new source of revenue from the merchant fees it collects.

Currently, Capital One issues credit cards with Mastercard, Visa and Discover. The deal would likely result in more of its cards getting switched to the Discover network, the Wall Street Journal reported earlier on Monday before the deal was officially announced.

The companies are hosting a joint conference call Tuesday morning at 8:00 am ET.

The post Capital One is buying Discover in a $35.3 billion deal appeared first on East Idaho News.

'A non-traditional approach': Meridian fire training talks air preservation, controlled breathing

Tue, 20 Feb 2024 01:21:00 +0000

MERIDIAN — Firefighters are more likely to be diagnosed with and die from cancer.

Missouri House votes to ban celebratory gunfire days after Chiefs’ parade shooting

Tue, 20 Feb 2024 01:20:13 +0000

By SUMMER BALLENTINE
Associated Press

COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — Missouri’s Republican-led House has passed a ban on celebratory gunfire in cities less than a week after a deadly shooting at the Kansas City Chiefs’ Super Bowl parade. The bipartisan-supported bill passed Monday after a tearful and confrontational debate between Republicans and Democrats over the best way to address last week’s shooting. House Democrats earlier that day called for more regulations on guns. Majority Leader Jon Patterson says House Republicans support gun rights. But he says Republicans should be open to talking, including about gun laws. Police have said a dispute may have led to last week’s shooting. Authorities have not made any indication that the gunfire was celebratory.

California man booked into Utah jail after the discovery of $5M-$7.5M worth of drugs in his car

Tue, 20 Feb 2024 01:14:10 +0000

A California man faces a potential charge of possession of methamphetamine with the intent to distribute it after the discovery of some 260 pounds of the drug in his car after he was stopped for allegedly speeding in Emery County Sunday. | Utah Highway Patrol

CASTLE DALE, Utah (KSL.com) — A California man faces a potential charge of possession of methamphetamine with the intent to distribute it after the discovery of some 260 pounds of the drug in his car after he was stopped for allegedly speeding in Emery County.

The drugs found in the auto have an estimated street value of $5 million to $7.5 million, according to the probable cause affidavit in the case.

Steven Brian Esquivias, 26, was pulled over along I-70 on Sunday after a Utah Highway Patrol trooper clocked him going 101 mph in an 80 mph zone. He was driving a rental vehicle but didn’t have the renter’s contract for the car, saying a friend had rented the auto for him, raising the suspicions of the trooper. Esquivias appeared “as if he was going to hyperventilate” after which the trooper asked if he could search the car, getting permission.

“The search revealed four large totes full of a white crystal substance, later measured at 260 pounds of methamphetamine,” reads the affidavit. Esquivias was booked into the Emery County jail on suspicion of possession of meth with the intent to deliver and speeding. He has not yet been charged in district court, but a judge on Monday ordered that he be held without bail.

The affidavit says he’s from California but didn’t list a hometown.

The post California man booked into Utah jail after the discovery of $5M-$7.5M worth of drugs in his car appeared first on East Idaho News.

OPINIÓN | El derecho a luchar por la vida

Tue, 20 Feb 2024 00:58:21 +0000

Luis Ernesto Quintana Barney

Nota del editor: Wendy Guerra es escritora cubanofrancesa y colaboradora de CNN en Español. Sus artículos han aparecido en medios de todo el mundo, como El País, The New York Times, el Miami Herald, El Mundo y La Vanguardia. Entre sus obras literarias más destacadas se encuentran “Ropa interior” (2007), “Nunca fui primera dama” (2008), “Posar desnuda en La Habana” (2010) y “Todos se van” (2014). Su trabajo ha sido publicado en 23 idiomas. Los comentarios expresados en esta columna pertenecen exclusivamente a la autora.

(CNN Español) — Cuba fue el primer país de América Latina y el Caribe en despenalizar el aborto. Tan temprano como 1936 ya existían clínicas donde ciudadanas cubanas y mujeres de otras partes de América Latina, ingresaban en las clínicas, con la intención de abortar legalmente bajo determinadas causales. En la Cuba actual no existe propiamente la llamada ley de aborto o interrupción voluntaria del embarazo; sin embargo, entre 1961 y 1965, se le creó una base legal dentro de la ley 62 reflejada en el Código Penal, autorizando esta práctica hasta las doce semanas de gestación; siempre y cuando se realice bajo los márgenes del Sistema Nacional de Salud.

Salir de un policlínico directo a la escuela o el trabajo, tras realizarse un aborto, es una práctica muy frecuente entre mujeres cubanas, y al decir de la periodista independiente Yoani Sánchez en uno de sus expresivos artículos, “la práctica se ha vuelto casi tan rutinaria como extraerse una muela”.

Debido a la ya interminable crisis humanitaria, que desde hace décadas atraviesa el país, los preservativos, las pastillas anticonceptivas, dispositivos intrauterinos y otros métodos de anticoncepción escasean. Basados en testimonios actuales de amigos y conocidos, pero sobre todo en mi propia experiencia vivida hace cuatro años en Cuba, un legrado o una regulación menstrual, este último practicado sin anestesia antes de las seis semanas de gestación, funcionan como el verdadero método anticonceptivo.

Según la Encuesta Nacional de Fecundidad, realizada por la estatal Oficina Nacional de Estadística e Información (ONEI), los abortos y las regulaciones menstruales en Cuba han aumentado 14% entre 2009 y 2022. El estudio, que incluyó a 12.093 personas (6.471 mujeres y 5.622 hombres) de 15 a 54 años, arrojó que cerca del 35 % de los embarazos no deseados en la isla terminaron en abortos. La encuesta refleja una baja tasa de fecundidad entre mujeres de entre 15 y 49 años y un aumento de los embarazos en adolescentes. Según muestra esta indagación, las cubanas tienen un promedio de 1,14 hijos, la menor tasa de la región (donde el promedio es de 1,85, según estudios de la Comisión Económica para América Latina y el Caribe) y similar a la de los países industrializados de bajo crecimiento en su población.

Contrariamente a lo que ocurre en varios países del mundo, donde las mujeres se organizan, marchan y levantan sus voces enérgicamente, reclamando su legítimo derecho al aborto, en Cuba, sobre ese territorio ganado, se han perdido los límites. Abortar ha tornado en un ejercicio masivo, la rápida, fácil y ligera solución a una problemática mayor, económica, habitacional, política, ideológica, social y ética.

¿Cómo resolver internamente algo tan profundo y trascendental como la decisión de traer o no traer un ser humano al mundo? Muchas de nosotras nos hemos visto obligadas a aplazar la determinación de ser madres, debido a la grave situación que atravesaron y atraviesan tres generaciones de cubanas en edad fértil.

Insistir y abusar de estos procedimientos, en apariencia inofensivos, puede detonar en efectos irreversibles: cicatrices en el revestimiento uterino, perforación del útero, infecciones agudas, problemas de fertilidad y graves consecuencias en la salud física, sexual y mental. La Ley 62 no especifica hasta cuantos abortos puede estar expuesta una mujer; sin embargo, “establece que el aborto es legal hasta la 12 semana de embarazo”. El procedimiento indica que el aborto puede ser practicado con autorización médica en los casos que esté en peligro la vida, la salud, que haya sido producto de una violación o incesto, o que el feto venga con alguna malformación.

En los artículos 267 a 271 del Código Penal se establecen las penas para quien realice abortos fuera de las regulaciones de salud establecidas y las penas correspondientes.

“Se penaliza con privación de libertad de 2 a 5 años si el aborto se comete por lucro, si se realiza fuera de las instituciones oficiales o si se realiza por persona que no es médico. En caso de que se realice a propósito el aborto o destruya de cualquier manera el embrión, por haber ejercido actos de fuerza, violencia o lesiones sobre la mujer, es sancionado con privación de libertad de 2 a 5 años o de 3 a 8, según el caso.

“En caso de que resulte muerta la mujer la penalización es con privación de libertad de cinco a doce años, y quien lo realice sin la debida prescripción facultativa incurrirá en sanción de privación de libertad de 3 meses a un año o multa de cien a trescientas cuotas”.

¿Qué ocurre cuando ese derecho de toda mujer se convierte en una exigencia?

Hace pocos días Barbara Isaac, madre de la presa política Lisdany Rodríguez, denunció en redes sociales que su hija está siendo presionada a abortar por las autoridades cubanas, específicamente, indica, “por la Seguridad del Estado”. El Gobierno cubano no se ha referido al caso.

Lisdany es una de las hijas mellizas de Bárbara, tanto ella como su hermana fueron acusadas de sedición y castigadas con severas penas de cárcel por salir a protestar pacíficamente en las calles de La Habana, el 11 de julio del 2021. Según cuenta Isaac, Lisdany, embarazada y en la cárcel, requiere de atención médica, en cambio lo que recibe son presiones de las autoridades. “Ella se siente muy mal, y no hay gravinol para los mareos, entonces la Seguridad del Estado quiere obligarla a abortar pero ella no quiere (…) Tiene miedo de que le vaya a pasar algo y yo también temo por la vida de ellos”, declaró Bárbara Isaac.

Javier Larrondo, presidente de Prisioners Defenders también ha denunciado el hecho, advirtiendo la situación deplorable en la que se encuentra la presa política cubana, con poca alimentación, escasa medicación y atención médica.

En conversación con la activista feminista y periodista Marta María Ramírez, quien acompaña a mujeres en situaciones de riesgo de violencia feminicida, le preguntamos cuáles son las soluciones legales o prácticas para sortear este tipo de obligatoriedad y atropello a mujeres encarceladas, en especial a las presas políticas.

“La única opción que nos queda es la exposición pública de este intento de esterilización forzada. Al no existir separación de poderes en Cuba y frente a la criminalización, mayor participación del activismo feminista, pese a que esto signifique hacerle el trabajo al Estado. Paralelamente, acompañar a las familias de nuestras prisioneras políticas (a ellas no nos dan acceso directo) y a las activistas políticas, para que puedan tomar decisiones informadas sobre sus derechos, también sexuales y reproductivos, de cara a la violencia política, con sesgo de género, que enfrentan a diario y de manera cada vez más brutal.

“Yo creo que debíamos estudiar y sacar a la luz los antecedentes bien documentados de estas prácticas de esterilizaciones forzadas en la isla, desde la época del fascismo y hasta nuestros días, en el mundo entero, con otras prisioneras políticas, con personas gestantes de criaturas con otras capacidades. Mi experiencia en el estudio de la historia de la barbarie machista indica que lo que hoy está sucediendo con Lisdany y su criatura no es un hecho aislado.

“Tenemos que seguir peleando por una Ley, y porque esta incluya el aplazado acceso a educación sexual integral desde edades tempranas en el sistema de enseñanza cubano, no solo desde el punto de vista biológico-reproductivo, sino con un enfoque de Derechos Humanos, de género, de diversidades sexuales. La primera libertad que perdemos mujeres y personas LGBTIAQ+ es sobre nuestros cuerpos, después se nos arrebatan otras bajo cualquier argumento machista.

“El Estado cubano es un macho violento que decide por ti. Si te le enfrentas, si siente que pierde el poder y el control, es capaz de todo. Aunque ya no estamos tan solas como antes, hay que exponerlo. El precio es alto, pero no nos queda de otra”.

Si el derecho a abortar en Cuba es una batalla ganada, antes y después de 1959, entonces la nueva contienda comienza en otro lugar. El viaje hacia un mecanismo autónomo, de empoderamiento femenino, con medios económicos, prácticos y vehículos sociales, culturales independientes y tan necesarios para el llamado proceso de planificación familiar.

Hay que ser muy precisos en el concepto de “embarazo no deseado”. En ciertos contextos, económicos o socio políticos, desear no es poder. Una cosa es no poder ir adelante con un embarazo por asuntos ajenos a la voluntad de la futura mamá, y otra, muy diferente, es no anhelarlo, no soñarlo, no quererlo y, sobre todo, las consecuencias que a posteriori nos traen el haber tomado estas decisiones.

Quienes, como yo, un día optaron por acostarse en una de esas frías camillas, de las que ya no hay vuelta atrás, tal vez hoy sueñan con cambiar su biografía. Abandonar corriendo el policlínico, esperar nueve meses para conocer a nuestro bebé y conformar una familia. Muchas de nosotras, años más tarde, repasando los hechos, sentimos un profundo vacío. Nos preguntamos cómo sería una vida rodeada de hijos, y anhelamos vivir con ellos en un país que se nos parezca, adaptado a nuestras propias necesidades, donde las cifras de natalidad sean cada vez más altas que los abortos. ¿Y cómo lograrlo si al intentar expresar nuestras preocupaciones, debatir o disentir públicamente, corremos el riesgo de convertirnos en problemáticas, sospechosas, acusadas y culpables?

Al cierre de este artículo, la cadena CNN intentó comunicarse con el Gobierno de Cuba para conocer sus opiniones acerca de la problemática que se ha generado en torno a la determinación de Lisdany, dar a luz a su bebé a pesar de encontrarse en cautiverio, y las implicaciones de esa decisión, pero lamentablemente no obtuvimos respuesta.

Sin nuevas políticas públicas, firmes y certeras, que protejan a las mujeres y a sus hijos, resulta difícil establecer carreteras jurídicas que nos guíen legalmente hacia nuevas conquistas.

Las cubanas y cubanos necesitamos dar pasos más arriesgados. Instrumentar una vía coherente y justa, una base actualizada de protección a la familia como lo que es, el embrión fundacional de cualquier sociedad civilizada.

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Fiscal de Venezuela acusa a la activista Rocío San Miguel de entregar información sensible a diplomáticos extranjeros

Tue, 20 Feb 2024 00:53:28 +0000

macamilarincon

(CNN) –– El fiscal general de Venezuela, Tarek William Saab, acusó este lunes a Rocío San Miguel, activista detenida desde el pasado 8 de febrero por cargos de supuesta traición y conspiración, de entregar información sensible a diplomáticos de cuatro países extranjeros.

En una rueda de prensa, Saab dijo, sin presentar pruebas, que San Miguel mantuvo reuniones con funcionarios europeos para dar información sobre los sistemas de defensa aérea de Venezuela.

¿Cuánto lleva la activista Rocío San Miguel detenida por el Gobierno de Maduro?

“¿Por qué habría de reunirse con el representante de una superpotencia europea? Esa información es confidencial y fue compartida con al menos una potencia extranjera. Tenemos pruebas de reuniones similares con al menos tres potencias extranjeras más”, dijo Saab. También afirmó que el comportamiento de San Miguel se parecía más al de un espía que al de una defensora de derechos humanos. Además acusó a San Miguel de supuestamente recibir pagos en efectivo de una corporación petrolera extranjera.

San Miguel ha negado anteriormente las acusaciones de traición y conspiración. Su abogado, Joel García, dijo a CNN este lunes que las recientes acusaciones son “parte de todo este andamiaje de mentiras, de censura, un ataque contra una voz disidente”.

“Una ONG de derechos humanos siempre tiene relaciones con embajadas, como todas las ONG”, dijo García, y añadió: “Reunirse con una delegación diplomática no significa que seas un espía, porque las relaciones diplomáticas son diplomáticas”.

Quién es Rocío San Miguel, la activista actualmente detenida en Venezuela

En los últimos días, varias instituciones multilaterales y países extranjeros han manifestado su rechazo al arresto de San Miguel, una destacada activista y fundadora de Control Ciudadano, ONG con sede en Caracas que investiga a las fuerzas armadas venezolanas.

Horas antes este lunes, García dijo que su cliente estaba detenida en el Helicoide, una sede del servicio de inteligencia que sirve como centro de arresto para políticos presos en Caracas.

La ONU y EE.UU. expresan “profunda preocupación” por la detención de la activista venezolana Rocío San Miguel

La semana pasada, la Casa Blanca dijo que estaba “profundamente preocupada” por el arresto de San Miguel.

El jueves pasado, Venezuela expulsó al personal de la misión local del la Oficina del Alto Comisionado de Derechos Humanos de la ONU después de que la agencia expresara preocupación por la detención de San Miguel, según una fuente de la ONU familiarizada con el asunto.

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Capital One is buying Discover in a $35.3 billion deal

Tue, 20 Feb 2024 00:22:54 +0000

By Elisabeth Buchwald, CNN

New York (CNN) — Capital One announced it’s acquiring Discover Financial Services for $35.3 billion in an all-stock deal, giving the bank a leg up in the competitive credit card market.

If the deal is finalized, current Capital One shareholders will own a 60% stake in the combined company, while Discover shareholders will own the remaining 40%.

Capital One said it believes the deal will close in late 2024 or early 2025.

A marriage between Capital One and Discover, if approved by regulators, would also give Capital One a new source of revenue from the merchant fees it collects.

The companies are hosting a joint conference call Tuesday morning at 8:00 am ET.

This story has been updated with additional details.

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A deputy and a woman he arrested have been found dead after the patrol car crashed into river

Tue, 20 Feb 2024 00:17:47 +0000

(CNN) — A sheriff’s deputy and a woman he arrested have both been found dead after officials say the officer accidentally drove his patrol car into the Tennessee River.

Robert J. Leonard, a deputy with the Meigs County Sheriff’s Office, made a radio call Wednesday saying he was returning to the local jail with someone he had arrested, District Attorney Russell Johnson said at a Thursday news conference. After making the call, Leonard didn’t respond to a status check from dispatchers. The deputy made one last radio call saying “water,” shortly after sending his wife a text message telling her about the arrest, according to Johnson.

A dive team found Leonard’s vehicle in the river during a search along a bridge at the deputy’s last known location, Johnson said. Once the vehicle was removed from the water Thursday, investigators found the body of Tabitha Smith, the woman Leonard had arrested, covered in mud in the back seat, while the driver’s seat was empty.

On Thursday night, the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office reported Leonard’s body had been found.

The district attorney said he believes the deaths were accidental and explained the deputy wasn’t familiar with the area.

“We’re operating under the theory that it was an accident. He missed his turn,” Johnson said Thursday. “He wasn’t familiar and he was doing other things that may have caused him to go underwater. There’s skid marks and some scratch marks too. So there’s some indication that he was on the brakes, at least trying to stop … So it sounds like, you know, just an unfortunate accident.”

Meigs County Sheriff’s Office Chief Deputy Brian Malone said Leonard, who was from New York, had only been with the sheriff’s office since December.

On Monday, the Knox County Medical Examiner confirmed to CNN the female in the back seat of the car was identified as Smith.

It was not immediately clear what charges Smith was being detained on.

Friends remembered her as a happy and outgoing 35-year-old mother of two who often went by “Tabby,” according to CNN affiliate WVLT.

“She was a happy person, outgoing, she loved life,” Smith’s friend Sheena Mchome told WVLT.

“I could not imagine being trapped and knowing my life was going to end,” said Mchome.

Smith’s friend Emilie Neusel said she had “a heart of gold, and despite any struggles and troubles she had, she was a great person,” according to WVLT.

“I hope they remember her by her name. Tabby Smith,” Neusel went on. “And I hope she’s remembered by more than (being) the girl in the back seat.”

The Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office announced on Facebook there will be a funeral procession for Leonard on Tuesday.

The post A deputy and a woman he arrested have been found dead after the patrol car crashed into river appeared first on East Idaho News.

FBI and allies seize dark-web site of world’s most prolific ransomware gang

Tue, 20 Feb 2024 00:10:08 +0000

By Sean Lyngaas, CNN

(CNN) — The FBI and its international allies have seized a dark-web site that the world’s most prolific ransomware gang has used to extort its victims, according to a message on the website viewed by CNN.

It’s a blow to the near-term operations of a multinational ransomware gang known as LockBit, which has been a menace to organizations all over the world, including health care providers in the US. The hackers claimed credit for a November ransomware attack that forced New Jersey-based Capital Health to cancel some patient appointments.

LockBit also claimed responsibility for ransomware attacks on the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China and Fulton County, Georgia, in recent months.

“We can confirm that Lockbit’s services have been disrupted as a result of International Law Enforcement action — this is an ongoing and developing operation,” says a message posted on the hackers’ website on Monday, along with the seals of the FBI, UK National Crime Agency (NCA) and a host of other law enforcement agencies from Australia to Germany.

An NCA spokesperson confirmed to CNN that a law enforcement operation against LockBit was underway, adding that the agency will publicly disclose more details on Tuesday.

An FBI spokesperson told CNN: “There will be a formal announcement and additional details to follow.”

Seizing a ransomware group’s dark-web site forces cybercriminals to set up new computer infrastructure to extort victims. It can also signal deeper law enforcement access to the hackers’ networks. In another operation against a ransomware gang announced a year ago, the FBI said it had access to decryption software that saved victims about $130 million in ransom payments.

Analysts believe LockBit has members or criminal partners in Eastern Europe, Russia and China. Like other cash-flush ransomware groups, LockBit rents out its ransomware to “affiliates,” who use the malicious code in attacks, then takes a cut of the ransom paid out by victims.

LockBit accounts for a quarter of the ransomware market based on victim information the hackers have posted online, according to Don Smith, vice president of threat research at cybersecurity firm Secureworks.

This operation is the latest move in a multi-year struggle between the FBI and its allies around the world and ransomware gangs that are often based in Eastern Europe and Russia.

While there have been notable arrests and law enforcement seizures of millions of dollars’ worth of ransom payments, the ransomware economy continues to thrive.

Cybercriminals extorted a record $1.1 billion in ransom payments from victim organizations around the world last year despite US government efforts to cut off their money flows, crypto-tracking firm Chainalysis estimated.

“It is highly unlikely core members of the LockBit group will be arrested as part of this operation, since they are based in Russia,” Allan Liska, a ransomware expert with cybersecurity firm Recorded Future, told CNN.

Nonetheless, he said, the law enforcement seizure of LockBit’s website “means there will be a significant, if short lived, impact on the ransomware ecosystem and a slow-down in attacks,” Liska said.

“LockBit has also developed a reputation as one of the most ruthless ransomware operators, encouraging affiliates to target hospitals and schools,” he added. “My hope is that these sectors will get some breathing room to build their defenses.”

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Charges dropped against man accused of wife’s death in UTV accident

Mon, 19 Feb 2024 23:57:20 +0000

Fremont County Courthouse | EastIdahoNews.com

ISLAND PARK – A local man was cleared of all charges regarding the death of his wife in a UTV crash in 2021.

Scott Taylor was charged in May 2022 with felony vehicular manslaughter, misdemeanor driving under the influence, and misdemeanor resisting and obstructing an officer after his wife was killed in a UTV accident.

District Judge Steven Boyce issued a ruling on Feb. 9 saying he found “good cause” to dismiss all counts against Taylor with prejudice. When charges are dismissed with prejudice, they cannot be filed again.

Taylor posted to Facebook after the ruling, thanking his attorney, Allen Browning, and those who “stood behind me with love.”

“It’s been a hard time losing my everything Tonya Taylor! But to be falsely accused to felony manslaughter was almost too much!! But GOD gives a strength beyond comprehensive to us,” Taylor posted. “I thank all of you who stood behind me much love! And those who didn’t and believes the lies, I pray you never have to go through this. An innocent ride took my everything!”

The prosecution filed a motion to dismiss the charges on Feb. 6. Fremont County Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Rocky Wixom says his office moved to dismiss the charges partially because of a new expert witness.

“The state made its decision to dismiss the charges against Scott Taylor based upon a number of circumstances, including a recently disclosed expert opinion provided by the defense,” said Wixom.

According to a news release from Browning, the prosecutor moved to dismiss all charges against Mr. Taylor “in the interests of justice.”

Browning says Taylor was not intoxicated at the time of the accident, which was previously alleged, and that Tonya Taylor was driving the UTV, not Scott Taylor.

“There was no evidence that Scott had been driving at that time, and no evidence he was intoxicated either,” says the release.

Tonya and Scott survived the tipping-over of the UTV, as they were both restrained with seatbelts.

According to Browning, Scott tried to pull the vehicle back after realizing that Tonya was stuck underneath it in the water, but it would not move. He then ran for help and called 911. A sheriff’s deputy came and tried to help but could not.

“By the time a vehicle with a tow-strap was able to free Tonya from the vehicle, attempts to revive her failed,” says the release.

The post Charges dropped against man accused of wife’s death in UTV accident appeared first on East Idaho News.

Fiscalía de Sonora confirma la muerte de tres migrantes tras ataque armado; dos mujeres y un menor de edad

Mon, 19 Feb 2024 23:41:33 +0000

Luis Ernesto Quintana Barney

(CNN Español) — El fiscal general de Sonora, Gustavo Salas, confirmó este lunes que dos mujeres y un menor de edad migrantes murieron en un ataque armado perpetrado el jueves pasado contra los vehículos en los que viajaban en la localidad de Sáric, cuando buscaban llegar a la frontera entre México y Estados Unidos.

Salas reportó en una rueda de prensa ofrecida en la Cuarta Zona Militar del estado norteño de Sonora que los migrantes muertos son un menor de edad ecuatoriano, una mujer que se presume que es peruana y otra mujer que sería hondureña.

“Lamentablemente sí tenemos confirmada la noticia del deceso de tres personas, un menor y dos mujeres. Ya fueron por lo menos dos de ellos, el menor y una de ellas identificados y se han echado a andar todos los procesos para la entrega de los cuerpos a las embajadas o sus familiares para que puedan ser inhumados”, explicó el fiscal, y agregó que hay otras personas heridas.

El fiscal informó que autoridades federales habían detenido a ocho personas con relación a este ataque, sin precisar más detalles del operativo. Al respecto, autoridades de Sonora informaron en X que los ocho detenidos estaban en posesión de armas de fuego, cargadores y chalecos tácticos.

El domingo, el colectivo 1800 Migrante denunció que más de 50 personas viajaban en los vehículos que sufrieron el ataque armado, que según afirmaron fue perpetrado por hombres vestidos con uniformes tipo militar color azul marino.

“Hubo un enfrentamiento entre dos bandas criminales” y “se usaron armas de alto calibre”, indicó la publicación en las redes sociales de 1800 Migrante.

CNN contactó a la representación de Perú y Ecuador en México para solicitar información sobre las víctimas del ataque, sin que hasta el momento haya tenido una respuesta.

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Minnesota man who shot 2 officers and a firefighter wasn’t allowed to have guns

Mon, 19 Feb 2024 23:37:20 +0000

By JOHN HANNA
Associated Press

A man who died after fatally shooting two police officers and a firefighter in a wooded Minneapolis-area neighborhood wasn’t legally allowed to have guns and was entangled in a years-long dispute over the custody and financial support of his three oldest children, court records show.

Authorities on Monday identified Shannon Gooden, 38, as the man who opened fire on police in the affluent suburb of Burnsville after they responded to a domestic disturbance call early Sunday. The call reported that he had barricaded himself in his home with family members, including seven children aged 2 to 15. He was found dead inside the home hours later.

Ecuador confirma que desistió de entregar equipos militares soviéticos a EE.UU.

Mon, 19 Feb 2024 23:35:17 +0000

macamilarincon

(CNN) –– La canciller de Ecuador, Gabriela Sommerfeld, informó este lunes durante una comparecencia en la Asamblea Nacional que, por disposición del presidente Daniel Noboa, desistieron de entregar equipamiento militar a Estados Unidos, como lo había anunciado en días pasados el propio presidente Noboa, por considerar al antiguo equipamiento como “chatarra”.

Rusia adelanta que Ecuador desistió de entregar equipos militares soviéticos a EE.UU.

Ante la consulta de un legislador sobre si Ecuador transferirá equipos militares a Estados Unidos para luego ser entregados a Ucrania, la funcionaria indicó que no entregarán material bélico a ningún país que actualmente se encuentre en un conflicto armado internacional, y recordó que Ecuador es miembro no permanente del Consejo de Seguridad de la ONU.

“Ecuador es parte del Consejo de Seguridad de las Naciones Unidas y, como miembro, nosotros promulgamos la resolución de conflictos siempre respetando el derecho internacional y la solución pacífica a estas controversias”, precisó Sommerfeld.

La confirmación de que Ecuador ya no transferirá equipos militares soviéticos a Estados Unidos para que sean transferidos a Ucrania llega luego de que este viernes el embajador de Rusia en Ecuador, Vládimir Sprinchán, adelantara en declaraciones a dos medios estatales rusos que Ecuador desistió del envío de equipamiento ruso a Estados Unidos.

En días pasados, el subsecretario adjunto de la Oficina de Asuntos del Hemisferio Occidental del Departamento de Estado de Estados Unidos, Kevin Sullivan, dijo a la televisora local Teleamazonas que Ecuador estaba considerando la entrega de equipamiento bélico soviético a Ucrania como parte del acuerdo de intercambio entre Ecuador y Estados Unidos. Tras esto, el Servicio Federal Ruso para la Cooperación Técnico-Militar rechazó que se considere como “chatarra” al equipo militar soviético e informó que Rusia ofreció opciones para mantener los equipos en Ecuador.

Rusia levanta el veto a la exportación de banano para 5 empresas de Ecuador

La decisión del Gobierno de Ecuador de desistir del envío de equipamiento soviético a EE.UU. se dio horas después de que Rusia levantó el veto a la exportación de banano para cinco empresas ecuatorianas.

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Cuatro pescadores salieron en un bote frente a la costa del Golfo de Florida el sábado por la mañana. Todavía no han regresado

Mon, 19 Feb 2024 23:30:21 +0000

Luis Ernesto Quintana Barney

(CNN) — Está en curso una búsqueda de cuatro pescadores que no regresaron de un viaje en bote el sábado frente a la costa del Golfo de Florida, dicen las autoridades locales.

Ángel Hernández Muñoz, de 38 años, Rubén Mora Sr., de 54 años, Julio César Cordero Briones, de 37 años, y Vargas Parra, de 35, partieron de Venice, Florida, aproximadamente a las 8 a.m. del sábado por la mañana, dijo el Departamento de Policía de Venice en una publicación del domingo en Facebook.

Se esperaba que el grupo regresara esa noche, según un miembro de la familia, dijo la policía.

El mar no estaba “demasiado agitado” cuando el grupo de pescadores experimentados partió, pero surgió una densa niebla que podría haber sido “un factor” en su desaparición, dijo el capitán del Departamento de Policía de Venecia, Andy Leisenring, en una conferencia de prensa el lunes.

Más tarde el sábado el tiempo empeoró.

“Al pasar la noche y el domingo, el viento se levantó, el mar se levantó y, por supuesto, ha estado lloviendo la mayor parte del tiempo”, dijo Leisenring. “Incluso ahora, las condiciones son de mares de aproximadamente 4 a 6 pies (1,2 a 1,8 metros), por lo que no es muy seguro estar allí para una embarcación pequeña”.

Alrededor de 13 barcos policiales locales han continuado la búsqueda del barco hoy a 16 kilómetros de la costa entre Longboat Pass y la isla Captiva, dijo Leisenring. La Guardia Costera de Estados Unidos ha estado buscando a 130 kilómetros de distancia y hasta ahora ha cubierto 11.900 kilómetros cuadrados, añadió.

“La búsqueda aún está en curso con @USCG y los activos aéreos y de superficie de las agencias asociadas”, dijo el Distrito Siete de la Guardia Costera el lunes X.

El barco es un SportCraft blanco de 1975 de 23 pies (7 metros), según Leisenring.

Los pescadores no dejaron un plan de navegación – que indica el destino previsto y el plazo del viaje – con sus familias, por lo que no está claro hasta dónde llegó el grupo, dijo el capitán de la policía.

La policía confirmó que el vehículo y el remolque del barco todavía estaban estacionados en la rampa para botes de Marina Park, donde partió el grupo. Instaron a cualquier persona que tenga conocimiento sobre el barco perdido a que se comunique con el Departamento de Policía de Venecia.

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A deputy and a woman he arrested have been found dead after the patrol car crashed into the Tennessee River

Mon, 19 Feb 2024 23:22:41 +0000

By Rebekah Riess and Zoe Sottile, CNN

(CNN) — A sheriff’s deputy and a woman he arrested have both been found dead after officials say the officer accidentally drove his patrol car into the Tennessee River.