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Biden administration picks Maryland for new FBI headquarters, AP sources say

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:00 GMT

By LINDSAY WHITEHURST and MARY CLARE JALONICK (Associated Press)WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration has chosen a location for a new FBI headquarters in Maryland, people familiar with the selection said Wednesday as the suburban Washington location was selected over nearby Virginia following a sharp competition between the two states.The site is planned for Greenbelt, about 13 miles (20 kilometers) northeast of Washington, two people familiar with the process told The Associated Press. They spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the plans ahead of an announcement.Consideration for a new headquarters has been going on for more than a decade.Democratic Maryland Gov. Wes Moore argued in recent months that building it there would be fast and save taxpayers $1 billion. He said a headquarters in the majority-Black Prince George’s County would meet equity goals raised by President Joe Biden.Virginia, on the other hand, has the FBI Academy in Quantico. That state&#...

Driver pulled from burning car

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:00 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- Firefighters pulled a driver from a car that caught fire after crashing into a structure in the Tierrasanta neighborhood Wednesday afternoon.According to the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department, a gas meter was hit during the incident, which occurred on the 10500 block of Gabaccho Drive in San Diego.No further information is available at this time. This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

Gloria running for re-election in 2024

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:00 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria is running for re-election in 2024, he announced on his Instagram Wednesday."Today, I officially pulled papers to run for re-election as your Mayor! Together, we have confronted our city’s toughest problems head-on, made progress, and gotten things done," Gloria said.The former California state assemblyman representing San Diego was elected mayor in 2020, replacing Kevin Faulconer after his eight-year run from 2014 to 2020. Gloria beat out former city councilmember Barbara Bry in the 2020 election. Results: Nov. 7 Special Election "I’m running for re-election to continue this work and to #FinishTheVision — a San Diego #ForAllofUs!" Gloria added on social media.Gloria's announcement comes a day after the special election, during which San Diegans voted for the District 4 county supervisor, Chula Vista city attorney and two water measures in Fallbrook and Rainbow.The 2024 mayoral race will be determined in next year's General Election on Tue...

Millions for border sewage treatment projects in California stuck in Congress

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:00 GMT

SAN DIEGO (Border Report) -- As you walk along the Tijuana River Valley, it's hard not to smell the pungent smell of sewage, effluent flowing its way down the valley toward the Pacific Ocean.It's been a problem for decades as Tijuana's sewage infrastructure has failed to keep up with a city that seemingly grew to two million residents overnight. The system constantly spews untreated raw sewage that eventually makes its way north of the border.In 1999, the International Wastewater Treatment plant was built in the valley just north of the border to help control the problem."It captures wastewater from Tijuana, treats it and sends it three miles offshore. Otherwise, if that plant didn’t exist all, all of that untreated wastewater and sewage would run down and impact us here in South San Diego," said Paloma Aguirre, mayor of Imperial Beach. California group seeks disaster declaration for Tijuana River Valley ‘sewage crisis’ Aguirre's city has taken the brunt of the sewage problem as t...

4 elections offices in Washington are evacuated due to suspicious envelopes, 2 containing fentanyl

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:00 GMT

SEATTLE (AP) — Four county elections offices in Washington state were evacuated Wednesday after they received envelopes containing suspicious powders — including two that field-tested positive for fentanyl — while workers were processing ballots from Tuesday’s election.The elections offices were located in King County — home of Seattle — as well as Skagit, Spokane and Pierce counties, the Secretary of State’s Office said in emailed news release. Local, state and federal agents were investigating, and no one was injured, officials said. Secretary of State Steve Hobbs called the incidents “acts of terrorism to threaten our elections.”“These incidents underscore the critical need for stronger protections for all election workers,” he said.Renton police detective Robert Onishi confirmed that an envelope received by workers at a King County elections office field-tested positive for fentanyl, while Spokane Police Department spokesperson Julie Humphreys said fentanyl was found in an...

Woman charged with threatening federal judge in abortion pill case arrested in Florida

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:00 GMT

FORT MYERS, Fla. (AP) — A woman accused of threatening to kill a federal judge in Texas who suspended approval of the abortion drug mifepristone earlier this year was arrested Wednesday in Florida, court records.Alice Marie Pence made her initial appearance in Fort Myers federal court after her arrest, according to court records. She faces charges of transmitting a threatening interstate communication and influencing a federal official by threat. Her next hearing is scheduled for Nov. 22 in Dallas federal court.Court records didn’t list an attorney for Pence.According to an indictment, Pence called the chambers of a federal judge in Amarillo, Texas, in March and threatened to kill him. The indictment doesn’t name the judge, but the only federal judge in Amarillo is U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk.In April, Kacsmaryk, an appointee of former President Donald Trump, ordered a hold on federal approval of mifepristone in a decision that overruled decades of scientific a...

Los Angeles coroner’s investigator accused of stealing a crucifix from around the neck of a dead man

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:00 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A Los Angeles County coroner’s investigator has been arrested on suspicion of stealing a gold chain and crucifix from around the neck of a dead man, prosecutors said Wednesday. The suspect, a 34-year-old man, faces one felony count of grand theft and one misdemeanor count of petty theft, the district attorney’s office said in a statement.While responding to the heart-attack death of a warehouse worker last January, the investigator was recorded on surveillance video removing the crucifix necklace from the body and placing it in his medical bag, the statement said. He did not return the item or document it as required in a property receipt.In addition, when authorities searched the suspect’s desk, they found antique coins with a receipt in the name of a man who died in November 2022. The suspect, employed by the Medical Examiner’s Office since 2018, had handled the man’s death investigation.District Attorney George Gascón said the allegations repr...

Michigan responds to Big Ten, saying commissioner doesn’t have discipline authority, AP source says

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:00 GMT

ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) — The University of Michigan warned Big Ten Commissioner Tony Petitti about overstepping his authority and rushing to judgment, insisting Wednesday that he cannot discipline coach Jim Harbaugh under the conference’s sportsmanship policy for an alleged sign-stealing scheme that has rocked college football.Parts of the blistering 10-page letter sent to Petitti was shared with The Associated Press by a person who has seen it and spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized by the school to disclose its contents.The letter is Michigan’s response to the Big Ten’s notification of potential discipline of Harbaugh’s undefeated second-ranked team, which is among the favorites to win the national championship.Yahoo Sports first reported the contents of Michigan’s response.Michigan’s letter said the Big Ten cannot take action if a formal decision has not been made about whether rules were violated, the person said. The school also say...

Hawaii governor announces $150M fund for Maui wildfire victims modeled after 9/11 fund

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:00 GMT

HONOLULU (AP) — Hawaii Gov. Josh Green on Wednesday announced the creation of a $150 million fund to help those who lost family members or who were injured in Maui’s wildfires. Beneficiaries will receive payments of more than $1 million as early as April to June of next year, the governor’s office said in a news release. Those getting money from the fund will waive their right to file legal claims.The fund aims to enable swift and generous financial payments for losses without requiring people to go through time-consuming litigation, the release said. It also aims to finance the rebuilding of Lahaina in a manner “that embodies Hawaii’s values and traditions.” Initial money for the fund is being provided by the state, Maui County, Hawaiian Electric and Kamehameha Schools, which is a major landowner in the Lahaina area. All four have been named in lawsuits over the wildfires. Green said he expects more partners to join the initiative. The fund is modeled on the Septe...

Costa Rica’s $6 million National Bank heist was an inside job, authorities say

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:00 GMT

SAN JOSE, Costa Rica (AP) — Little by little an employee of Costa Rica’s National Bank took advantage of a surveillance blindspot to slip more than $6 million worth of currency into envelopes and casually walk out of the country’s largest bank, authorities said Wednesday.First announced last month, it was the largest bank heist in the country’s history. Police carried out 11 raids and arrested eight bank officials Wednesday.The 3.3 billion colon (US$6.1 million) robbery that apparently went unnoticed and unreported for weeks caused much finger-pointing in the Central American nation.There were no lack of distressing details.For example, while one employee, a treasurer, took the cash out of the bank, several others allegedly covered it up. Authorities are still trying to determine if they were in on the robbery or just didn’t want to take the blame when it was discovered the money was missing.Also, the last physical accounting of the bank’s cash was made in 2019. And investigators ar...