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Mayor Johnson announces 2 more appointments to key city leadership positions

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:01:36 GMT

CHICAGO — Mayor Brandon Johnson has appointed two more to key city leadership positions.In a news release, the mayor announced Thursday the appointment of Lissette Castañeda to serve as the city's Department of Housing (DOH) commissioner and Jose Tirado to serve as the executive director of the city's Office of Emergency Management and Communications (OEMC).Thursday's announcement comes on the heels of Mayor Johnson's announcement last week of three city department commissioner appointments.Here is more on Thursday's two new appointments:Lissette Castañeda Castañeda comes to the role of DOH commissioner with two decades of experience in affordable housing development, housing services and organizational leadership. According to a news release from the Mayor's Office, Castañeda will be tasked with streamlining the affordable housing development process, in accordance with the mayor's recent executive order, and expanding homeownership to Chicagoans in "historically dis...

Hypochondriacs at risk for early death — and more

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:01:36 GMT

For Thursday, Dec. 28, WGN’s Dina Bair has new medical information, including: More Coverage: WGN's Medical Watch Study: Care riskier for patients of hospitals owned by private equityHospitals owned by private equity firms make health care more hazardous for patients. According to a new study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, more adverse events were reported at hospitals after private equity firms purchased them. Researchers compared the results to hospitals not owned by private equity. Firms have been buying into the US healthcare system.  Acquisitions include nursing homes, behavioral health systems, and private physician offices.  Further research shows higher death rates at nursing homes and more costs to taxpayers when private investment is involved. Hypochondriacs at risk for early deathPeople who are paranoid about being or becoming sick are at higher risk of dying of a severe illness. Those with anxiety disorder are diagnosed as ...

Cher files for conservatorship of her youngest child Elijah Blue Allman 

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:01:36 GMT

(The Hill) — Famed singer and actress Cher has filed for a conservatorship of her son, Elijah Blue Allman, citing his alleged substance abuse and mental health struggles as grounds for assuming control of his estate. According to court documents obtained by media outlets including People, Page Six, and USAToday, the “Goddess of Pop” claims that Allman, her youngest child, is "substantially unable to manage his financial resources," adding that a conservator is "urgently needed ... to protect Elijah’s property from loss or injury.”Cher argues in the documents that she should act as sole conservator, claiming that it would not be in her son’s best interests for his estranged wife, Marieangela King, to take on the role. The filing, first reported by The Blast, states that King and Allman, who entered divorce proceedings in 2021, had a “tumultuous relationship” marked by a “cycle of drug addiction and mental health crises.”According to USA Today, the singer’s attorneys claim that if Kin...

'Very sweet ending': Gypsy Rose Blanchard's attorney speaks after her release from prison

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:01:36 GMT

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (KOLR) — "It's a very sweet ending to a very long story," attorney Mike Stanfield told Nexstar's KOLR while discussing the release of his client, Gypsy Rose Blanchard. In 2016, Blanchard was sentenced to 10 years in prison for her role in the stabbing death of her mother Clauddine "Dee Dee" Blanchard. The now 32-year-old pled guilty to second-degree murder, and her ex-boyfriend, Nicholas Godejohn, is serving a life sentence for fatally stabbing Dee Dee.In June 2015, when Gypsy was 23, she arranged for Godejohn, whom she met on a Christian dating site, to travel to Springfield, Missouri, to kill her mother, according to prosecutors.Gypsy was released from the Chillicothe Correctional Center at 3:30 a.m. CT on Thursday, Dec. 28 after serving 85% of her 10-year prison sentence.Stanfield, who has been working on Gypsy's case from the beginning, will be heading to Chillicothe, Missouri, to meet with Gypsy and her family following her release."It's one of the most difficu...

Some KXAN investigations that led to meaningful change in 2023

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:01:36 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) – KXAN investigators spent 2023 working hard on projects that stemmed from viewers’ questions and concerns. Many of those projects resulted in change in Austin and the state. From multi-faceted all-hands-on-deck projects like KXAN’s deep dive into TX tag troubles to smaller-in-scale investigations that led to a woman at the center of an Austin Police Department civil rights investigation getting added to a missing persons list and eventually found, here are some of the investigations that had an impact this year.  EXPLORE: Read all of KXAN's investigations TxTag Troubles Auto-payment issues, double billing and incorrect statements were all complaints KXAN received – by the hundreds – from Texas Department of Transportation toll road and TxTag users. In the TxTag Troubles investigative effort, KXAN allocated more than two dozen journalists to hold TxDOT officials accountable, fight for public records, catalog hundreds of ...

Sunny skies, followed by a chance of light snow, predicted this holiday weekend

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:01:36 GMT

Two white-tail bucks, recently spotted at Fort Snelling State Park, should be able to enjoy the sunshine that the Twin Cities office of the National Weather Service predicts will return on Friday. The projected high is 41.As highs dip into the 30s on Saturday, there’s a chance for light snow, the NWS reports: “Minor snow accumulations may result in slick travel Saturday night into Sunday morning,” the NWS said in a forecast on X, formerly Twitter.On Sunday, New Year’s Eve, highs are expected to hover in the low 30s. On Monday, New Year’s Day, expect sunshine and patchy clouds, with a predicted high of 34.Related ArticlesLocal News | A cougar caught on video roaming through a Minneapolis backyard is likely dead Local News | Cathedral Christmas Festival among holiday events in the Twin Cities this year Local News | US proposes plan to help the snow-dependent Canada lynx before warming shrinks its habitat Loc...

Vikings name rookie Jaren Hall starting quarterback for Packers game

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:01:36 GMT

The quarterback carousel continues for the Vikings.After mulling over the decision for the past few days, head coach Kevin O’Connell confirmed that rookie quarterback Jaren Hall will start for the Vikings when they play host to the rival Green Bay Packers on New Year’s Eve.This is an opportunity Hall has been waiting for since he made the first start of his NFL career last month when the Vikings played the Atlanta Falcons on the road. He finished 5 for 6 passing for 78 yards in that game before suffering a concussion on a scramble near the goal line that knocked him out of the game.This means veteran quarterback Nick Mullens has been benched after starting the past two games for the Vikings. The decision comes after Mullens threw four interceptions in a 30-24 loss to the Detroit Lions on Christmas Eve. He also threw two interceptions in a 27-24 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals.Asked about Hall this week, star receiver Justin Jefferson spoke highly of the way the rookie has...

New York opts into summer food program for children

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:01:36 GMT

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- Over $200 million in federal funding is being invested into providing meals for low-income school-aged children this summer. The announcement comes after Governor Kathy Hochul decided to opt into the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Summer Electronic Benefit Transfer Program for Children. Get the latest news, weather, sports and more delivered right to your inbox! The USDA's program is focused on combating hunger and food insecurity children face during the summertime. Governor Hochul committed to covering half of the administrative costs of operating the program. The USDA will cover the other half. "No child should have to worry about having access to healthy, nutritious meals when school is out of session for the summer," said Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer. "We know that hunger never takes a vacation, and thanks to the Summer EBT initiative, over 2 million children across New York who rely on school meals during the year will get the assistance ...

Police are looking for a suspect in an ATM robbery in Franklin County

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:01:36 GMT

FRANKLIN COUNTY – Police are looking for a man who robbed an ATM on December 27 in Franklin County. On Wednesday, around 4:30 a.m., Franklin County Police heard an ATM alarm sounding at the Bank of Washington located in Gray Summit, Missouri.  A deputy arrived and noticed that the ATM machine had been busted loose from the concrete and was lying in the parking lot of the bank. The suspect was wearing a blue and black plaid button-down flannel, a yellow baseball cap, and a black mask that covered his face besides his eyes. The truck is a two-door older model in tan color. They are asking for public assistance. If anyone recognizes the truck or suspect in the attached photos, contact the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office Criminal Investigations Division at 636-583-2560. 

Michigan man reportedly skips out on nearly $7,000 Aspen bar tab, released on $1,500 bond

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:01:36 GMT

A man was arrested for theft and causing disturbances throughout multiple Aspen establishments over the course of two days, allegedly racking up a nearly $7,000 bar tab.Related ArticlesCrime and Public Safety | Fourth teen suspect arrested in fatal Aurora shooting, scooter theft in Del Mar Park Crime and Public Safety | Convicted Parker Kohl’s thieves argued for lesser charge because items were on sale Crime and Public Safety | Denver Mayor Mike Johnston’s car stolen, recovered The suspect, from Birmingham, Michigan, has been charged with two petty offenses and one class five felony for theft.On Dec. 26, Pitkin County Regional Dispatch Center aired a disturbance at 601 Dean Street in which an intoxicated man, later identified as the suspect, had allegedly jumped onto the Silver Queen Gondola without paying and caused a scene in the process, according to arrest records. Shortly after 1 p.m., he arrived at the top of the gondola an...