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Guatemala’s electoral authority blocks the suspension of President-elect Arévalo’s political party

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:10:51 GMT

GUATEMALA CITY (AP) — Guatemala’s top electoral authority said Sunday it blocked the suspension of President-elect Bernardo Arévalo’s Seed Movement, at least temporarily giving the party back its legal status and cutting off an attempt by opposing political forces to weaken him.The decision by the Supreme Electoral Tribunal came days after the electoral registry suspended the party on a judge’s order. The Attorney General’s office is investigating whether there was wrongdoing in the gathering of required signatures for the party’s formation years earlier.The tribunal said the suspension could not stand because it did not come from an electoral body. Its decision holds until the official end of the electoral period Oct. 31, because Guatemala’s electoral law does not allow the suspension of a party during the electoral period.The Seed Movement had also appealed the suspension through the normal court system, but so far without result. It is expected that come Nov. 1, the party could b...

5 people have pleaded not guilty to Alabama riverfront brawl charges

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:10:51 GMT

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — Five people charged in an Alabama riverfront brawl that drew national attention as white boaters fought with Black riverboat crew members have pleaded not guilty to assault and disorderly conduct charges.Four white boaters, who police said were filmed hitting or shoving a Black riverboat captain in Montgomery, pleaded not guilty to misdemeanor assault charges. A Black man, who police said was filmed swinging a folding chair and hitting people in the subsequent melee, pleaded not guilty to misdemeanor disorderly conduct charges. Montgomery Municipal Court records show the not guilty pleas were entered last week. Videos of the brawl were widely shared on social media and spawned a multitude of memes, jokes, parodies, reenactments and even T-shirts.Richard White, a lawyer representing one of the white boaters, told WSFA that he wants to make sure his client is treated fairly given the national attention. Montgomery Police Chief Darryl Albert told reporters last ...

A senior Ennahdha opposition official has been placed under house arrest in Tunisia

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:10:51 GMT

PARIS (AP) — Tunisia’s opposition Islamist party Ennahdha said that one of its senior officials has been placed under house arrest by authorities in what it called an illegal decision.Ennahdha condemned in a statement Sunday the sanction against Abdel Karim Harouni and called for him to be released. The National Salvation Front, Tunisia’s main opposition coalition which includes Ennahdha, said in a statement that Harouni had been placed under house arrest from Saturday evening, one day before he was to take part in a meeting to prepare the party’s congress scheduled in October.The opposition coalition denounced an “arbitrary decision” that comes “in the context of the arrest of the historical leaders of the Ennahdha party, the closure of all its headquarters, and threats to its leaders and activists.”The National Salvation Front said it “considers this new step to be part of the series of continuous measures attacking democracy and freedoms in Tunisia.”The move comes aft...

3 dead after head-on motorcycle crash in Big Rock: Sheriff

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:10:51 GMT

BIG ROCK TOWNSHIP, Ill. — Three people are dead after a car crash in Big Rock Saturday night.According to the sheriff, a Honda Civic was travelling westbound on Route 30 from Davis Road when it passed a vehicle in front of him in the eastbound lane in a no passing zone and struck a motorcycle head-on. The Kane County Sheriff's Office identified the driver of the Honda as 55-year-old Jaime Bibiano. The motorcyclist was identified as 56-year-old Scott Luczynski and a passenger on the motorcycle, 58-year-old Kathleen Luczynski. 3 men shot, 1 critical in South Austin Bibiano was pronounced dead on the scene. The passenger of the motorcycle was pronounced dead on the scene and a few minutes later, the motorcyclist was pronounced dead at Mercy Hospital in Aurora. Deputies are unaware if drugs or alcohol were involved, and no roadways are closed as a result of the crash.

Man opens fire on driver after being hit by driver in Garfield Park

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:10:51 GMT

CHICAGO — A man is dead after he hit a person while driving who then shot him in Garfield Park Saturday, Chicago police say.According to officers, a 30-year-old man was driving in the 3800 block of West Madison Street around 4:20 p.m. on Saturday when he hit another man with his car.  2 teens shot, 1 critical, after Mount Carmel HS football game in Woodlawn Police say the man who was hit by the car then pulled out a gun and shot the driver several times. The driver of the vehicle was taken to the hospital where they were later pronounced dead.There is no one in custody in connection to the shooting and officers say an investigation is now underway. $38,000 recovered after robbery, high-speed chase in Bensenville Anyone with information on the deadly shooting can leave a tip for police at CPDtip.com. Tips can be left anonymously.

Facing mounting challenges, schools embrace the 4-day week

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:10:51 GMT

(The Hill) — Hundreds of U.S. school districts have sought to combat the teacher shortage and raise the quality of life for their students and faculty by making a big change: a four-day week. The trend of a four-day week has been rising among American companies and schools since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, with many finding benefits to having an extra day off. In schools, most students and teachers are getting Friday or Monday off while having slightly longer school days the rest of the week to make up for the missing day. “The number of school districts with a four-day school week has increased to about 850 districts nationally. Two years ago, it was around 650, so it's going up” said Aaron Pallas, professor of sociology and education at Teachers College for Columbia University. The trend toward four-day school weeks is in part a response to multiple educational issues that flared up during the pandemic, including teacher retention and absenteeism. 32-hour ...

Smoked sausage product, chicken strip meal recalled due to possible 'contamination'

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:10:51 GMT

(WHTM/NEXSTAR) — Thousands of pounds of smoked sausage products and frozen chicken strip entrees are being recalled over concerns that they may be contaminated with foreign matter.According to the USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service, Hillshire Brands is recalling approximately 15,876 pounds of blended meat and poultry smoked sausage products for potential contamination. The problem was discovered when the company received consumer complaints about bone fragments in the product. Cause of death revealed for ‘Margaritaville’ singer Jimmy Buffett One person reported suffering an oral injury after consuming the smoked sausage. Federal regulators are concerned that some products may be in consumers' refrigerators or freezers.The affected product — 14-ounce Hillshire Farm Smoked Sausage made with pork, turkey, and beef — was sold in California, Maryland, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Virginia. The packaging of a recalled Hillshire Farm Smoked Sausage made ...

Stillwater prison on emergency lockdown after 100 inmates refuse to return to cells

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:10:51 GMT

The Stillwater prison was placed on emergency lockdown Sunday after about 100 prisoners in a living unit declined to return to their cells, authorities said.It’s not yet clear why the inmates are refusing orders, according to a Minnesota Department of Corrections press release. No injuries have been reported.Staff have been removed from the housing unit’s common areas at the Minnesota Correctional Facility-Stillwater.Two correctional officers are safe in the unit’s secure control area and “in communication with facility command personnel,” the press release said.The department said it has activated a crisis negotiation team and deployed a special operations response team “out of an abundance of caution.”Related ArticlesCrime & Public Safety | Man shot to death and found lying outdoors in Frogtown early Sunday Crime & Public Safety | Hastings man dies in car crash on Highway 55 Friday night Crime & ...

Americans have long wanted the perfect endless summer. Jimmy Buffett offered them one.

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:10:51 GMT

It seemed wistfully appropriate, somehow, that news of Jimmy Buffett’s death emerged at the beginning of the Labor Day weekend, the demarcation point of every American summer’s symbolic end. Because for so many, the 76-year-old Buffett embodied something they held onto ever so tightly as the world grew ever more complex: the promise of an eternal summer of sand, sun, blue salt water and gentle tropical winds.He was the man whose studied devil-may-care attitude became a lifestyle and a multimillion-dollar business — a connecting filament between the suburbs and the Florida Keys and, beyond them, the Caribbean. From Margaritaville to the unspecified tropical paradise where he just wanted to eat cheeseburgers (“that American creation on which I feed”), he became a life’s-a-beach avatar for anyone working for the weekend and hoping to unplug — even in the decades before “unplugging” became a thing.“It’s important to have as much fun as possible while we’re here. It balances out the time...

Gent’s Barb Company partners with others to give free school supplies in Cohoes

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:10:51 GMT

COHOES, N.Y. (NEWS10) — School supplies and haircuts are among the many expenses families worry about since everything can cost hundreds of dollars per student. That’s why Anthony Weils, a barber at Gent’s Barber Company in Cohoes, decided to partner with other businesses in the area to help.“To give back to the community and the kids,” he said. “It’s the next generation coming up, so we need them to be ready for the future. We wanted them to go back to school with a fresh haircut and all of their supplies.” Get the latest news, weather, sports and more delivered right to your inbox! Owner of the barber shop, Sean Quell, said that families were able to grab some food while also making sure each child was all set with their supplies and new look.“Just seeing the smiles on the kids. And the excitement from the parents is just fantastic,” Quell said.And Coyle and Rich Manziello attended the event with their son. But they also wanted to make a donation to help the cause.“We just broug...