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As Police Week honors fallen officers, concern over increased assaults on Minnesota cops

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:51:30 GMT

With four law enforcement officers fatally shot in Minnesota and western Wisconsin in a recent one-month span, memorial services this week for fallen officers are taking on more poignancy.National Police Week is when officers who died in the line of duty are honored and remembered. It also comes at a time when assaults against officers in Minnesota have been up: More than double were reported last year compared to 2019, according to state data.“We have observed over the last many years, the amount of vitriol that has been directed toward our officers, deputies throughout the state and the country,” said Todd Axtell, the recently retired St. Paul police chief. “… There are no other professions in public service where you have to wear a bullet-resistant vest when you go to work, so the stakes are high.”People in the field cited various reasons why they believe attacks on officers have increased — worsening tensions, particularly since the killing of...

MN Democrats say these ideas will control health costs, but medical providers opposed

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:51:30 GMT

Minnesota Democrats’ efforts to impose new rules on the health care industry have run into aggressive lobbying by some of the state’s biggest medical groups.Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party members want more oversight of nurse staffing levels, drug prices, overall medical costs and health system mergers. Their effort to expand access to MinnesotaCare, the state insurance program for the working poor, also is facing some industry backlash.All of these ideas remain pending as lawmakers scramble to finish the next state budget by Monday, when the Legislature has to adjourn.Hospital and health system leaders say their sector is confronting the worst financial challenges in decades. They say half of Minnesota hospitals are losing money and all health systems face workforce shortages.Caregivers and patient advocates counter that the changes are long overdue and will make health care more affordable and patient-centered. They also argue that the policies will help stop the flood o...

House votes to send Santos expulsion resolution to Ethics Committee

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:51:30 GMT

The House on Wednesday punted the question of whether Rep. George Santos (R-N.Y.) should be removed from Congress, referring an expulsion resolution to the Ethics Committee and shielding Republican lawmakers from having to weigh in on the matter directly.The chamber voted 221-204-7 to send the resolution to the Ethics panel, a largely redundant move since the committee has been investigating Santos since March amid mounting questions about his background and finances. The panel is looking into whether he engaged in unlawful activity during his 2022 campaign and failed to properly disclose information to the House, among other areas of inquiry.All five Democrats on the Ethics Committee — Susan Wild (Pa.), Glenn Ivey (Md.), Veronica Escobar (Texas), Deborah Ross (N.C.), Mark DeSaulnier (Calif.) — voted present, as did Reps. Chrissy Houlahan (D-Pa.), Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (D-Wash.). The remaining votes fell along party lines.Santos voted with Republicans to refer the resolution to th...

Why sports betting struck out again among Missouri lawmakers

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:51:30 GMT

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – While Missouri's neighboring states continue to allow sports betting, it's still illegal in the Show Me State to place a wager on your favorite team.Missourians will continue to have to cross state lines to place a sports bet. Odds were high at the beginning of session to legalize it, but anyone placing a wager on the Missouri General Assembly would have lost. At the end of session, Senate Leadership is placing blame on one Republican lawmaker."Until that happens, he is solely responsible that we don't have sports betting in Missouri, no more, no less," Senate President Caleb, R-Columbia, said.During the final press conference of the 2023 legislative session on Friday, Rowden said it's Sen. Denny Hoskins', R-Warrensburg, fault that sports betting struck out."Either he finds more friends or he needs to get out of the way and let Missourians be able to do this thing they should have been able to four or five years ago," Rowden said.Hoskins said what's standing in...

Death toll from blinding I-55 dust storm crashes rises to 8

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:51:30 GMT

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) — The death toll from numerous crashes on Interstate 55 that occurred amid a blinding dust storm has risen to eight, a coroner said Wednesday.Ruth Rau, 81, of Sorento, who was a passenger in a car that crashed in the May 1 dust storm, died of blunt force injuries Tuesday night at a Springfield hospital, Sangamon County Coroner Jim Allmon said.The crashes involved a total of 72 vehicles, with at least 37 people taken to hospitals. Top Story: St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner resigns High winds had kicked up dangerous clouds of blinding dust off farm fields, police have said.The crashes closed I-55 in both directions in Montgomery County, 75 miles (120 kilometers) north of St. Louis. Gov. J.B. Pritzker described the scene as horrific.Winds at the time were gusting between 35 mph (56 kph) and 45 mph (74 kph), the National Weather Service said.

It's spraying season! Efforts to control mosquitoes following recent wet weather

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:51:30 GMT

CHESTERFIELD, Mo. - Recent rains and heavy downpours left standing water all over the St. Louis region. And that brings the return of mosquitoes."The warm weather is starting to come around and warm up for springtime," said Ryan Kelley, operations manager for Rottler Pest and Lawn Solutions. "The combination of that and standing water and sunshine that really makes the mosquitoes breed pretty quickly. You'll notice that when you're outside in the evening trying to enjoy your time outside."Kelley is treating a Chesterfield home on a warm Wednesday afternoon, looking for low spots, standing water, and places mosquitoes might hide, like around a clogged gutter or the undersides of a gutter. Goat senior prank ends Missouri athlete's competition "It is known that some things attract mosquitoes more than others, however if mosquitoes are in the area, they're going to find you no matter what," Kelley said. "Male mosquitoes do feed on plant nectar, but they don't bite humans. The females ...

Colorado property tax and TABOR measure hit with immediate legal challenge

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:51:30 GMT

A conservative group has launched a legal challenge to a ballot measure aimed at blunting the sharpness of looming property tax spikes by increasing the cap on state revenue.Advance Colorado and Englewood City Council member Steven Ward filed the lawsuit Monday in Denver County District Court to challenge the measure. The measure was referred by lawmakers, through SB23-303, in the waning day of the recently concluded legislative session.The measure, in short, would cut $50,000 from the base valuation of a property and shave some of the percentage points used to establish the property taxes owed. To keep local governments from feeling the worst of the lost revenue, as well as set money aside for the state education fund and a rental assistance program, it would raise the cap on how much money the state can keep under the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights, or TABOR. It will go before voters this November as Proposition HH.The lawsuit alleges the bill behind the measure violates the stat...

Rapids Notebook: MLS PA releases 2023 Rapids salaries; Colorado looks to get back on track against Atlanta

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:51:30 GMT

On Tuesday, the Major League Soccer Players’ Association released its first round of player salary data and fans got a first look at the Colorado Rapids’ 2023 budget.The salary guide, which released information for every player in MLS, is an annual date many look forward to because it points to how rosters were built. In the case of Colorado, one common theme stood out: Spend wisely on young players.Colorado spent $13,106,961 on its budget, however, after a team official Tuesday clarified caveats* regarding three players, the budget is roughly $11,705,180, which would drop the team’s spending from 20th to 26th across the 29 clubs in MLS.Here are other takeaways from the PA data, which are based on guaranteed compensation, or a player’s base salary, signing and guaranteed bonuses which are annualized over the course of a season.• The Rapids acquired eight new players from the start of the offseason until the primary trade window closed last month. In total, th...

Woman, 55, considered endangered is missing from southern Colorado

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:51:30 GMT

A 55-year-old woman is missing from southern Colorado and authorities are asking for the public’s help in locating her.Please share this alert. Edna Quintana has been missing since May 3 from Saguache County. If you see her, please call 911. pic.twitter.com/cjikh5Plv3— CBI (@CBI_Colorado) May 17, 2023Related ArticlesCrime and Public Safety | Missing Boulder woman found safe in New York Crime and Public Safety | Man is missing for over a month and Denver police ask for public’s help in locating him Crime and Public Safety | CBI issues alert for missing 71-year-old man who was last seen Tuesday Crime and Public Safety | Missing Indigenous Person Alert issued for man last seen in Denver Crime and Public Safety | Fort Collins police looking for man with developmental disabilities who may be in Denver area Edna Quintana was last seen on May 3 in Saguache County, according to a Colorado Burea...

Father killed in Hawaiian Gardens, $30,000 reward offered for information

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:51:30 GMT

A $30,000 reward is being offered in the search for a gunman who killed a 40-year-old father in Hawaiian Gardens.The victim, Carlos Alvarez-Diaz, was driving with a 14-year-old relative when shots rang out, striking and killing Alvarez-Diaz.His family members are now pleading for answers and justice, hoping the $30,000 reward can help them track down the suspect responsible.On Saturday, Oct. 8, 2022, at around 1:09 a.m., Alvarez-Diaz was shot while driving northbound on Norwalk Boulevard at 226th Street.Police found Alvarez-Diaz with a fatal gunshot wound in the upper torso. The 14-year-old passenger was also shot but survived.“He leaves behind a wife, two girls, and a baby boy who’s never going to meet his dad,” said Adrian Alvarez, the victim’s brother. “He was loved by everybody.”Carlos Alvarez-Diaz in a photo from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.Detectives haven’t announced whether they’ve retrieved surveillance video from the residential area where Alvarez-Diaz was ...