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With state bailout uncertain, BART board OKs budget with $93 million deficit and fare hikes

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:24:01 GMT

With the fate of a requested state transit bailout uncertain, the BART board of directors this week approved a $5.1 billion, two-year budget calling for fare and parking fee hikes — as a projected $93 million deficit looms in 2025.Though the 2024 budget that starts in July is balanced, BART spokesman James Allison said Friday it was the first time the transit agency has approved a budget with a deficit.BART and other transit agencies have suffered a sluggish recovery from state lockdowns during the COVID-19 pandemic, and say without a bailout to offset depressed ridership, they are heading off a “fiscal cliff.” The agencies have appealed to Gov. Gavin Newsom for a bailout in the budget that must be approved by Thursday.“Despite our best efforts to hold the line on expenses and grow revenues with modest fare increases, we are still facing a structural, ongoing budget gap,” said BART Board General Manager Bob Powers. “It’s a stark reminder tha...

Oakland murder suspect’s plea deal: One day in jail, probation, in killing of woman who knew too much about gang’s involvement in triple homicide

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:24:01 GMT

OAKLAND — A Bay Area man suspected of aiding fellow gang members to murder a woman in order to prevent her from telling police what she knew about a triple homicide in Richmond has been offered a plea deal: admit to witness tampering, and get out of jail immediately.On April 10, 23-year-old Matias Mendoza-Mendoza accepted the deal, pleading no contest to a single count of dissuading a witness from testifying, a felony, with the expectation that prosecutors dismiss murder charges and move to sentence him to two years probation and one day in jail. Mendoza-Mendoza is set to go before Judge Morris Jacobson on June 13 for sentencing.Mendoza-Mendoza was released from jail later that day, under what is known as a Cruz Waiver, court records show. It is a legal term that allows defendants to be out of custody before they’re formally sentenced, with the understanding that if they’re implicated in criminal activity during the interim period they can face much stiffer consequ...

Volunteers rush to save animals after Ukraine dam collapse

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:24:01 GMT

By Vasilisa Stepanenko | Associated PressKHERSON, Ukraine — The rescue volunteer holds out his hand, but the dog, stranded on a floating island of debris in a southern Ukrainian city inundated by flooding, is too traumatized to approach. Volodymyr Holubnichii offers the scared animal some food; the dog sniffs and relaxes.“Don’t be scared,” Holubnichii soothingly tells the animal, which eventually accepts a leash and being carried to safety.Holubnichii, a volunteer with Animal Rescue Kharkiv, spent days cruising the flooded streets of Kherson city after the Kakhovka dam collapsed on Tuesday and submerged entire towns. He is one among the organization’s 70 volunteers determined to rescue as many animals as possible, plucking them from the rooftops and garages of flooded homes before they die of dehydration and hunger.The flooding has killed civilians, ruined crops, displaced landmines, and caused widespread environmental damage. Kyiv accused Moscow of blowing u...

San Jose groom dies during honeymoon in Hawaii after snorkeling accident

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:24:01 GMT

HONOLULU (KRON / KHON) -- A San Jose newlywed couple's dream Hawaiian honeymoon vacation turned into a tragic nightmare this June.Honolulu Emergency Medical Services said they responded to a 911 call at 10:27 a.m. June 1 at Electric Beach in Nānākuli. The groom, a 49-year-old San Jose man, had been snorkeling with his wife when something went wrong, witnesses told KHON2. The man was unresponsive when bystanders pulled him out of the ocean and performed CPR on the beach. First responders transported the groom to a hospital, where he later died, KHON2 reported.The honeymoon tragedy continued when the wife discovered that someone had stolen her backpack, driver's license, rental car keys, and rental car from Electric Beach. The thief snatched the wife's belongings while she was watching CPR being performed on her husband, a witness said.Honolulu police confirm they are investigating a theft and auto theft related to the incident.The victim's friend reached out to KRON4 and identified t...

American Family Insurance Championship Tour Scores

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:24:01 GMT

FridayAt University Ridge GCMadison, Wis.Purse: $2.4 millionYardage: 7,083; Par: 72First RoundJustin Leonard31-31—62Steven Alker33-32—65Paul Broadhurst33-32—65Marco Dawson31-34—65Steve Stricker33-32—65Paul Stankowski33-33—66Charlie Wi33-33—66Davis Love III33-34—67David McKenzie34-33—67Colin Montgomerie32-35—67K.J. Choi33-35—68Joe Durant34-34—68Retief Goosen34-34—68Dicky Pride35-33—68Stephen Ames32-37—69Billy Andrade33-36—69Woody Austin34-35—69Darren Clarke35-34—69David Duval35-34—69Ernie Els37-32—69Steve Flesch36-33—69Paul Goydos34-35—69Mark Hensby34-35—69Billy Mayfair33-36—69Timothy O’Neal34-35—69Vijay Singh34-35—69Scott Verplank33-36—69Y.E. Yang35-34—69David Branshaw32-38—70Alex Cejka34-36—70Bob Estes35-35—70John Huston37-33—70Skip Kendall35-35—70Scott McCarron33-37—70Larry Mize35-35—70John Senden37-33—70Wes Short36-34—70Jeff Sluman34-36—70Ken Tanigawa35-35—70Willie Wood34-36—70Fred Couples36-35—71Scott Dunlap35-36—71Tim Herron37-34—71Lee Janzen36-35—71Tom Pernice36-35—71Bre...

American Family Insurance Championship Par Scores

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:24:01 GMT

FridayAt University Ridge GCMadison, Wis.Purse: $2.4 millionYardage: 7,083; Par: 72First RoundJustin Leonard31-31—62-10Steven Alker33-32—65-7Paul Broadhurst33-32—65-7Marco Dawson31-34—65-7Steve Stricker33-32—65-7Paul Stankowski33-33—66-6Charlie Wi33-33—66-6Davis Love III33-34—67-5David McKenzie34-33—67-5Colin Montgomerie32-35—67-5K.J. Choi33-35—68-4Joe Durant34-34—68-4Retief Goosen34-34—68-4Dicky Pride35-33—68-4Stephen Ames32-37—69-3Billy Andrade33-36—69-3Woody Austin34-35—69-3Darren Clarke35-34—69-3David Duval35-34—69-3Ernie Els37-32—69-3Steve Flesch36-33—69-3Paul Goydos34-35—69-3Mark Hensby34-35—69-3Billy Mayfair33-36—69-3Timothy O’Neal34-35—69-3Vijay Singh34-35—69-3Scott Verplank33-36—69-3Y.E. Yang35-34—69-3David Branshaw32-38—70-2Alex Cejka34-36—70-2Bob Estes35-35—70-2John Huston37-33—70-2Skip Kendall35-35—70-2Scott McCarron33-37—70-2Larry Mize35-35—70-2John Senden37-33—70-2Wes Short36-34—70-2Jeff Sluman34-36—70-2Ken Tanigawa35-35—70-2Willie Wood34-36—70-2Fred Couples36-35...

Aquí es donde supuestamente Trump guardaba documentos clasificados en Mar-a-Lago

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:24:01 GMT

(CNN) — El expresidente Donald Trump presuntamente guardaba documentos clasificados en varios lugares de su resort en Mar-a-Lago, incluido un salón de baile público, un baño y un dormitorio.Según la acusación del fiscal especial contra Trump publicada el viernes, el complejo de Florida organizó más de 150 eventos sociales, incluidas bodas, estrenos de películas y eventos para recaudar fondos entre enero de 2021 y agosto de 2022, cuando el FBI ejecutó una búsqueda de los documentos aprobada por el tribunal en las instalaciones.Si bien el Servicio Secreto protegió a Trump y a los miembros de su familia después de que dejó el cargo, la agencia no fue responsable de las cajas o el contenido, y Trump tampoco dijo que había documentos clasificados en Mar-a-Lago, afirma la acusación.Algunos documentos clasificados contenían información sobre las capacidades nucleares y de defensa de Estados Unidos que requerían un manejo especial, según la acusación.Aquí es donde se almacenaron o enc...

Secretariat Triple Crown celebration at Belmont subdued by death and air quality

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:24:01 GMT

This was supposed to be the year thoroughbred racing celebrated the 50th anniversary of Secretariat’s magnificent Triple Crown triumph as the current crop of 3-year-olds finished their run on center stage.Heading into the $1.5 million Belmont Stakes on Saturday, the racing has become almost an afterthought as the public has focused on a recent spike in deaths of horses at racetracks and air quality problems in the northeast caused by wildfires in Canada. And there is no Secretariat on the scene to make everyone forget the issues.A highly competitive field of nine led by 2-year-old champion Forte and Preakness winner National Treasure is set to run in the 1 1/2 miles test of champions on a card that features almost all stakes races.At least one problem disappeared Friday as live racing resumed at Belmont Park thanks to a major improvement in air quality. The heavy smoke had forced the track to cancel Thursday and prompted New York Gov. Kathy Hochul to warn Saturday’s racing cou...

Blue Jays cut pitcher Anthony Bass after latest anti-LGBTQ+ comments

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:24:01 GMT

TORONTO (AP) — The Toronto Blue Jays cut pitcher Anthony Bass on Friday, one day after the right-handed reliever said he didn’t think an anti-LGBTQ+ social media post he shared last month was hateful.The team now has seven days to trade Bass or put him on waivers.The move came hours before Bass was set to catch a ceremonial first pitch from Toronto LGBTQ+ activist leZlie Lee Kam before Friday’s game against Minnesota as the Blue Jays begin their fourth annual Pride Weekend celebration.The Blue Jays said pitcher Kevin Gausman would catch the first pitch instead of Bass.Bass apologized before a May 30 game against Milwaukee, one day after sharing a post on his Instagram calling for boycotts of Target and Bud Light over support they showed for the LGBTQ+ community. Both companies are dealing with fallout from those campaigns, which have included hostile and homophobic criticisms and calls from LGBTQ+ activists not to cave to the pressure.Bass, who was booed by Toronto fans in his two h...

Pigs run loose on metro highway after semitruck tips over in Minnesota

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:24:01 GMT

LITTLE CANADA, Minn. (AP) — Pigs ran loose on a metro highway after a semitrailer truck that was carrying 50 hogs overturned, causing an hours-long shutdown Friday morning in Minnesota on Interstate 694.State troopers tried to corral several loose pigs that cameras showed running through traffic, the Star Tribune reported.The truck tipped over around 7:35 a.m. and caused morning rush hour traffic to back up for more than a mile, Minnesota Department of Transportation cameras showed. The truck driver was not hurt, according to Lt. Gordon Shank with the Minnesota State Patrol. Ten pigs died in the crash.Authorities rounded up the pigs, some of which were injured.Investigators are looking into what caused the semi to tip on its side as it navigated the curve on I-694 where it joins with northbound Interstate 35E.Nearly five years ago, more than 20 pigs spilled onto the roads in a more rural part of the state after a semitruck overturned at a highway interchange near Mankato. About 90 p...