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'Smallville' actor Allison Mack released from prison for role in sex-trafficking case tied to cult-like group

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:01:58 GMT

The television actor Allison Mack, who pleaded guilty for her role in a sex-trafficking case tied to the cult-like group NXIVM, has been released from a California prison, according to a government website.Mack, best known for her role as a young Superman’s close friend on “Smallville,” was sentenced to three years behind bars in 2021 after pleading guilty two years earlier to charges that she manipulated women into becoming sex slaves for NXIVM leader Keith Raniere.Online records maintained by the Federal Bureau of Prisons said Mack, 40, was released Monday from a federal prison in Dublin, California, near San Francisco. Her release was first reported by the Albany Times-Union.Mack avoided a longer prison term by cooperating with federal authorities in their case against Raniere, who was ultimately sentenced to 120 years in prison after being convicted on sex-trafficking charges.Mack helped prosecutors mount evidence showing how Raniere created a secret society ...

'Please do something': Kids' private files dumped online after school hacks

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:01:58 GMT

The confidential documents stolen from schools and dumped online by ransomware gangs are raw, intimate and graphic. They describe student sexual assaults, psychiatric hospitalizations, abusive parents, truancy — even suicide attempts.“Please do something,” begged a student in one leaked file, recalling the trauma of continually bumping into an ex-abuser at a school in Minneapolis. Other victims talked about wetting the bed or crying themselves to sleep.Complete sexual assault case folios containing these details were among more than 300,000 files dumped online in March after the 36,000-student Minneapolis Public Schools refused to pay a $1 million ransom. Other exposed data included medical records, discrimination complaints, Social Security numbers and contact information of district employees.Rich in digitized data, the nation’s schools are prime targets for far-flung criminal hackers, who are assiduously locating and scooping up sensitive files that not long ago were committed to...

It’s time to accept that higher mortgage rates are here to stay

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:01:58 GMT

(NerdWallet) - The era of low mortgage rates is over. Embracing this reality will hasten your owning a house that meets your needs.Low rates flourished for 11 years, as the 30-year mortgage remained below 5% from February 2011 to April 2022. Since then, it has remained mostly above 5%, averaging 6.72% in June in Freddie Mac's weekly survey.Some forecasters predict that rates will decline over the next 12 months. But they don't foresee rates dropping below 5% anytime soon. If you want to buy a home, it's tempting to be in denial that this is happening. But as you start to accept that we're now in a time of higher rates, you can achieve closure (literally, when you close on the purchase of a home)."People are still working through their five stages of grief on this mortgage rate stuff," says Lisa Sturtevant, chief economist for Bright MLS, the real estate listing service for the mid-Atlantic region. "And I think you have to reach the stage of acceptance at some point that certainly ra...

University of Texas Police Department welcomes new chief

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:01:58 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- New leadership is joining the University of Texas at Austin Police Department Wednesday with the swearing in of new police chief Eve Stephens.UTPD will host the swearing-in ceremony at 8 a.m. Wednesday. Stephens joins UTPD after retiring from the Austin Police Department in March, following almost 24 years of service there.

Law enforcement suicide: How state and federal governments support officers, track deaths

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:01:58 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — "Cops are those individuals others look to solve problems and protect persons in need. Weakness is not seen as an option and therefore, they will often refuse to acknowledge their own internal struggles," an online obituary stated.That obituary was written for a Texas police officer who took his own life last year on Dec. 2. The following day on Dec. 3, a second Texas police officer from a different law enforcement agency also died by suicide.Both officers were in their 40s and had been with their departments for over 15 years. The unfortunate deaths of these two officers were brought to KXAN's attention by an anonymous source who wanted to bring awareness to how one Texas police chief honored the officer they lost and acknowledged the importance of mental health in their profession. Chief Jeff Bryan has been with the Garland Police Department for almost 27 years. Bryan said this was the first officer who died by suicide since he's been with Garland PD. "It hit us li...

Albany Police investigating July 4th homicide

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:01:58 GMT

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- The Albany Police Department is investigating a homicide that happened in a Second Street apartment on Tuesday around 11:45 p.m. Police say upon arrival, they found 26-year-old Eduardo Montes of Albany inside the basement apartment with a gunshot wound to his torso. Get the latest, news, weather, sports and community events delivered right to your inbox! Police say Montes was evaluated by emergency personnel and was pronounced dead at the scene. After a preliminary investigation, police say it appears Montes was in a physical altercation with someone known to him in the apartment and was shot as a result.Anyone with information regarding this case is asked to call the Albany Police Detective Division at 518-462-8039.

Crews investigating fatal garage fire in St. Charles County

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:01:58 GMT

ST. CHARLES COUNTY, Mo. - Crews are investigating a garage fire that left one person dead in St. Charles County. Central County Fire and Rescue responded to the call a little after midnight after someone reported a fire in the garage on Arlington Drive. SLMPD investigating several overnight shootings Upon arrival, heavy fire was spreading from the garage to the attic. Three people were able to escape the fire safely, but one of the occupants died inside.There's no word on if this fire was firework related. FOX 2 will update this story with more information as it becomes available.

Affinia Healthcare in north St. Louis closed due to power outage

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:01:58 GMT

ST. LOUIS - The Affinia Healthcare location on North Florissant will be closed again Wednesday because of a power outage.Patients will be notified and if needed, appointments will be rescheduled. Missouri’s prescription drug monitoring program to launch soon All other Affinia Healthcare locations will be open.

Monster Battle is Meow Wolf’s latest attempt to import a wacky Santa Fe event to Denver

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:01:58 GMT

Get your pitchforks and torches ready, because a monster battle is headed for Cheesman Park.Well, not that kind of monster battle, but an epic face-off of the weirdest costumes and best dancing, all in the spirit of family fun. Meow Wolf, the Santa Fe-based interactive entertainment company that runs Meow Wolf Denver’s Convergence Station, is importing its popular Monster Battle event from Santa Fe for an Aug. 10 Colorado debut.The event, which will run from 4 to 9 p.m. at Denver’s Cheesman Park (1900 E. 11th Ave.), will feature music from Meow Wolf’s DJ Snaggy and other artists to be announced. It’s the rare, all-ages acctivity at which people can simply show up, regardless of skill level or background. A community party, in other words.“No tickets, no RSVPs, no lines — just you, the ghouls and your best dance moves,” officials said in a press statement, noting that the event began in 2008 as a spontaneous dance-off in Santa Fe Plaza.Past e...

Facing new drug reality, Colorado lawmakers reconvene opioid committee for first time in 4 years

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:01:58 GMT

The legislative committee tasked with helping to guide Colorado’s response to substance use has reconvened for the first time in four years to face a drastically changed drug landscape, a worsened overdose crisis and a series of worrisome data points about the state’s patchwork treatment system.The Opioid and Other Substance Use Disorders Study Committee — featuring six Democrats and four Republicans from the state legislature — met for the first time Thursday and will meet again over the coming months with the goal of forwarding potential bills to the full General Assembly when it reconvenes in January.The group had met for three straight years through 2019, but COVID-19’s emergence derailed its schedule. The committee returns now not only near the peak of the state’s drug crisis, but also amid internal divisions within the legislature about how to address the issue.In what amounted to a state of the state’s drug use, the committee’s ...