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House Republicans issue a subpoena to federal prosecutor in Hunter Biden’s case

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 23:32:26 GMT

By FARNOUSH AMIRI (Associated Press)WASHINGTON (AP) — House Republicans issued a subpoena Tuesday to a federal prosecutor involved in the criminal investigation into Hunter Biden, demanding answers for what they allege is Justice Department interference in the yearslong case into the president’s son. Rep. Jim Jordan, chair of the House Judiciary Committee, called on Lesley Wolf, the assistant U.S. attorney for Delaware, to appear before the committee by Dec. 7, according to a copy of the congressional subpoena obtained by The Associated Press. “Based on the Committee’s investigation to date, it is clear that you possess specialized and unique information that is unavailable to the Committee through other sources and without which the Committee’s inquiry would be incomplete,” Jordan wrote in an accompanying letter to Wolf. The Justice Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The subpoena to Wolf is the latest in a series of ...

Police: Kentucky bank shooter wrote in journal about ease of buying assault weapon before killings

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 23:32:26 GMT

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — The man who fatally shot five coworkers at a Louisville bank in April wrote in his journal that he wasn’t sure if his mental health struggles would preclude him from purchasing a gun and then later, after acquiring one just days before carrying out the mass shooting, remarked on how easy the transaction turned out to be.The journal writings by Connor Sturgeon were contained in a 64-page report released Tuesday by Louisville police, where authorities say they have now closed the investigation into the actions of the 25-year-old who also died that day in an exchange of gunfire with authorities. Sturgeon wrote that it “was so easy” to purchase the assault rifle, a Radical Firearms RF-15, from a Louisville gun store, according to the police file. He bought the rifle, 120 rounds and four magazine cartridges for $700 six days before the shooting, and the process took about 45 minutes, he said.“Seriously, I knew it would be doable but this is ridiculous,” he wrote. H...

Accuser sues Bill Cosby for alleged abuse dating to 1980s under expiring New York survivors law

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 23:32:26 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — A woman who worked as a stand-in at “The Cosby Show” in the 1980s said in a lawsuit Tuesday that Bill Cosby drugged and sexually abused her after offering to mentor her in her acting career. It is the latest in a string of lawsuits filed against Cosby under New York’s expiring Adult Survivors Act, which has given victims of sexual abuse a one-year window for claims that would otherwise be barred by time limits. That window closes on Thanksgiving.The anonymous accuser said that soon after meeting Cosby while working on his show, he started offering style tips and performing acting exercises with her in his dressing room. When he invited her to his home, she accepted, she said, in part because of “Cosby’s wholesome image as `America’s Dad,'” according to the lawsuit.Once there, she said she blacked out during an acting exercise after drinking wine apparently laced with an intoxicant. She awoke “partially undressed and vomiting into a toilet,” according to the law...

Kai Thomas wins Atwood Gibson Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize for debut novel

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 23:32:26 GMT

TORONTO — Debut novelist Kai Thomas took home the top fiction prize at the Writers’ Trust Awards on Tuesday evening for his story of two Black women at the northern end of the Underground Railroad.Thomas, who is from Ottawa, won the $60,000 Atwood Gibson Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize for “In the Upper Country,” published by Penguin Canada, at a ceremony in Toronto.“I’ve obviously never done this before and having guides like you all is fantastic,” he said after thanking his editors and publisher.Thomas’s novel was also shortlisted for the Governor General’s Literary Award for fiction and the 2023 Amazon Canada First Novel Award.Writers’ Trust jurors praised the book as a “mesmerizing, lyrical testament to the power of storytelling.”“Thomas deftly and compassionately braids deeply engrossing stories within stories that explore a little-known aspect of Canadian history,” they wrote in their citation.Mea...

Food insecurity continues to get worse in Ontario and across Canada, study shows

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 23:32:26 GMT

As so many Canadians have been battered with inflation and soaring costs on a wide range of goods, a new study out of the University of Toronto is showing food insecurity is getting worse in Ontario and other provinces.Researchers at PROOF, which works to provide policy recommendations to deal with food insecurity, found 18.7 per cent of Ontario households were dealing with food insecurity. That figure is 2.6 per cent higher than 2021. Roughly similar numbers were found in other provinces.“Food insecurity, we’ve known it’s been around for a long time and the fact that it’s getting worse now is something that I think all governments should be paying attention to,” Tim Li, a research program coordinator, told CityNews on Tuesday.“What we saw when we compared the previous year to this year is a majority of the increase of the additional households that were food-insecure were in Ontario.”According to figures provided by PROOF, 2.8 million Ontar...

2 suspects sought after Rexdale stabbing

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 23:32:26 GMT

Toronto police say two suspects are being sought after a stabbing in Rexdale on Tuesday night.It happened shortly after 7 p.m. in the Kipling Avenue and Brookmere Road area.Officers located a male with stab wounds at the scene. He’s been taken to hospital with undisclosed injuries.Two male suspects remain at large.Stabbing:Kipling Ave & Brookmere Rd area7:08 pm-reports of a stabbing -police o/s-locate a male w/stab wounds-transported to hospital-2 suspects: #1 male, white, 30's, blonde hair & goatee, #2 male 17/18 yrs, skinny, 5'10, black jacket & black pants#GO2693178^av— Toronto Police Operations (@TPSOperations) November 22, 2023

Physicians, clinic ask judge to block enforcement of part of a North Dakota abortion law

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 23:32:26 GMT

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — Physicians and the former, sole abortion provider in North Dakota on Tuesday asked a judge to block enforcement of part of a revised law that bans most abortions, saying a provision that allows the procedure to protect a woman’s health is too vague.North Dakota outlaws all abortions, except in cases where women could face death or a “serious health risk.” People who perform abortions could be charged with a felony under the law, but patients would not.Tuesday’s request for a preliminary injunction asks the state district court judge to bar the state from enforcing the law against physicians who use their “good-faith medical judgment” to perform an abortion to treat pregnancy complications that could “pose a risk of infection, hemorrhage, high blood pressure, or which otherwise makes continuing a pregnancy unsafe.” The doctors and clinic are asking the injunction to remain in place until their suit against the full law goes to trial next year.Physicians have per...

Brawling fans in stands delay start of Argentina-Brazil World Cup qualifying match for 27 minutes

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 23:32:26 GMT

RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — Lionel Messi led his Argentina lineup off the field and into the locker rooms because of a brawl between rival fans in Brazil, delaying the start of their South American World Cup qualifier by 27 minutes Tuesday at the Maracana Stadium.Argentina players asked fans in the stands for calm before heading to the locker rooms. Goalkeeper Dibu Martinez raced to one of the rails in front of the Argentina fans to ask police to stop the violence.Police used batons to break up the fights in the crowd. Parts of seating were being thrown and hit some spectators behind one of the goals. At least one fan left the stadium bleeding from his head.Argentina told Brazil officials they would only return to the pitch after the situation was calm. They returned after 22 minutes in the locker rooms, and warmed up for several minutes before the game was finally started.It was 0-0 at halftime. As the match began, dozens of police surrounded Argentina fans as they cheered, and even more...

China is expanding its crackdown on mosques to regions outside Xinjiang, Human Rights Watch says

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 23:32:26 GMT

The Chinese government has expanded its campaign of closing mosques to regions other than Xinjiang, where for years it has been blamed for persecuting Muslim minorities, according to a Human Rights Watch report released Wednesday.Authorities have closed mosques in the northern Ningxia region as well as Gansu province, which are home to large populations of Hui Muslims, as part of a process known officially as “consolidation,” according to the report, which draws on public documents, satellite images and witness testimonies.Local authorities also have been removing architectural features of mosques to make them look more “Chinese,” part of a campaign by the ruling Communist Party to tighten control over religion and reduce the risk of possible challenges to its rule.President Xi Jinping in 2016 called for the “Sinicization” of religions, initiating a crackdown that has largely concentrated on the western region of Xinjiang, home to more than 11 million Uyghurs and other Muslim ...

Damage 'extensive' at Calumet Fisheries after accidental fire

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 23:32:26 GMT

CHICAGO — The Chicago Fire Department battled a fire Tuesday afternoon at Calumet Fisheries that left "extensive" damage.Just after 1:15 p.m., the department said they responded to the Chicago staple, located in the 3200 block of East 95th Street.CFD said the fire was in the roof area and no injuries have been reported. However, the department said damage to the restaurant is "extensive." Fire officials later ruled the blaze accidental due to an electrical issue. Courtesy Chicago Fire DepartmentThe fire was in a large void in the upper area of the building, authorities said. It was struck out, though potential damage is not known at this time.The restaurant reopened Saturday after it was closed by health officials over dead mice and droppings.The iconic restaurant is known for smoking fish steps away from the Calumet River.