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Report: Russia charges Journal reporter with espionage

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:12:15 GMT

MOSCOW (AP) — Jailed Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich has been charged with espionage in Russia and has entered a formal denial, two Russian news agencies reported Friday.The state news agency Tass and the Interfax news agency said a law enforcement source informed them that Russia’s Federal Security Service, known as the FSB, had officially charged the American journalist. The news outlets didn’t say in what form Gershkovich was formally charged or when it happened, but generally suspects are presented a paper outlining the accusations. In the Russian legal system, the filing of charges and a response from the accused represent the formal start of a criminal probe, initiating what could be a long and secretive Russian judicial process.Tass quoted its source as saying: “The FSB investigation charged Gershkovich with espionage in the interests of his country. He categorically denied all accusations and stated that he was engaged in journalistic activities in Russia.” The...

Paul Cattermole of UK pop group S Club 7 dies at 46

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:12:15 GMT

LONDON (AP) — Paul Cattermole, a member of early-2000s British pop group S Club 7, has died just weeks after the band announced a reunion tour. He was 46.The band and Cattermole’s family said Friday that “it is with great sadness that we announce the unexpected passing of our beloved son and brother Paul Cattermole.”They said Cattermole was found at his home in Dorset, southwest England, on Thursday and pronounced dead later that afternoon.“While the cause of death is currently unknown, Dorset Police has confirmed that there were no suspicious circumstances,” they said.In a statement on social media, members of S Club 7 said they were “truly devastated by the passing of our brother Paul. There are no words to describe the deep sadness and loss we all feel.”“We were so lucky to have had him in our lives and are thankful for the amazing memories we have,” the band said.Formed in 1998 by Simon Fuller, the music mogul behind the Spice Girls, S Club 7 was launched – like The Monkee...

Chippewa woman makes history as North Dakota poet laureate

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:12:15 GMT

North Dakota lawmakers have appointed a Chippewa woman as the state’s poet laureate, making her the first Native American to hold this position in the state and increasing attention to her expertise on the troubled history of Native American boarding schools.Denise Lajimodiere, a citizen of the Turtle Mountain band of Chippewa Indians in Belcourt, has written several award-winning books of poetry. She’s considered a national expert on the history of Native American boarding schools and wrote an academic book called “Stringing Rosaries” in 2019 on the atrocities experienced by boarding school survivors.“I’m honored and humbled to represent my tribe. They are and always will be my inspiration,” Lajimodiere said in an interview, following a bipartisan confirmation of her two-year term as poet laureate on Wednesday.Poet laureates represent the state in inaugural speeches, commencements, poetry readings and educational events, said Kim Konikow, executive director of the...

Yields, expectations for rate hike rise after jobs report

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:12:15 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Yields rose in the U.S. bond market Friday following a highly anticipated report on the U.S. job market. The U.S. stock market was closed in observance of Good Friday, as were many markets across Europe. That left the U.S. bond market as one of the few open to react to the latest jobs update, which showed hiring lost a bit more momentum than expected last month but largely remained resilient. The data was so anticipated because it could offer a big clue for the Federal Reserve, which faces a tough decision on interest rates that will affect the entire economy. Should it keep raising rates in order to drive down inflation that’s still high? Or should it hold off given signs of a slowing economy and stress in the banking system caused by the past year’s barrage of rate hikes? The immediate reaction from the bond market Friday seemed to lean toward another hike. Not only did yields rise for Treasurys, so did bets for the Fed to raise rates by another quarter of a ...

Justice Thomas says he didn’t have to disclose luxury trips

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:12:15 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas said Friday he was not required to disclose the many trips he and his wife took that were paid for by Republican megadonor Harlan Crow.Describing Crow and his wife, Kathy, as “among our dearest friends,” Thomas said in a statement that he was advised by colleagues on the nation’s highest court and others in the federal judiciary that “this sort of personal hospitality from close personal friends, who did not have business before the Court, was not reportable.” Thomas did not name the other justices or those in the judiciary with whom he had consulted.The nonprofit investigative journalism organization ProPublica reported Thursday that Thomas, who has been a justice for more than 31 years, has for more than two decades accepted luxury trips from Crow nearly every year.Thomas, 74, and his wife, Virginia, have traveled on Crow’s yacht and private jet as well as stayed at his private resort in New York’s Adirondack Moun...

1 fatally shot, 2 wounded in shooting on Chicago's West Side

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:12:15 GMT

CHICAGO — One person was killed and two others were injured in a shooting on the city's West Side Friday morning.The shooting happened just before 10 a.m. in the 700 block of North St. Louis. Police said two men and a woman were standing outside hen a dark-in-color sedan approached and began firing shots.All three victims were transported to Stroger Hospital. A 34-year-old man sustained a gunshot wound to the right shoulder and was pronounced dead. 1 dead, 3 wounded in shooting at Park Forest home A 38-year-old man sustained gunshot wounds to the lower back and right foot and is in critical condition. A 31-year-old woman sustained two gunshot wounds to the left foot and is in stable condition. No one is in custody. Area Four detectives are investigating.

'Six feet under, bury him:' Former Antioch man charged for threatening Lake County judges

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:12:15 GMT

ANTIOCH, Ill. — A 44-year-old man formerly from Antioch has been charged and sentenced for threatening Lake County judges, documents say. According to police reports, Grayson Kash Jackson entered a guilty plea of two felony counts of threatening a public official.On October 7, 2021, police received a phone call from Jackson who expressed his displeasure at the ruling of his pending divorce case. 1 dead, 3 wounded in shooting at Park Forest home A police report stated that while speaking to authorities, Jackson said, "If Judge ****** is not arrested, that he is going to make sure he is f****** dead six feet under, bury him alongside Judge ****." Police officials arrested Jackson at his home in Arkansas days later and extradited him back to Lake County where he has remained.

Man found shot dead at liquor store in East Chicago, ID'd

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:12:15 GMT

EAST CHICAGO, Ind. — A man who was shot and killed inside of a Liquor store in Northwest Indiana Thursday night has been identified. Police identified the victim as 47-year-old John Rodriguez of East Chicago. According to police, officers responded to calls of 8 rounds of shots being fired in the 3801 block of Euclid Avenue around 11:33 p.m. Bond set at $10M for Joliet man in fatal shooting Upon arrival, police entered Euclid Liquors and found the unresponsive man lying face down on the floor. Rodriguez suffered two gunshot wounds to the chest and was pronounced dead on the scene. The incident is being investigated as homicide. This is an on-going investigation and if any information is recovered on the incident, contact the anonymous tip line at (219) 391-8500

Cubs' new partnership is an MLB first

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:12:15 GMT

CHICAGO — Early in the 2023 season, the Cubs are making are doing something no other MLB team has done before. The Cubs have announced a partnership with Mynd Drinks, making them the first CBD partner of an MLB team. @WGNNews pic.twitter.com/elrcR1oGNn— Larry Hawley (@HawleySports) April 7, 2023On Friday, the club announced that Chicago-based Mynd Drinks will be their official CBD partner, becoming the first in the league to do so. As part of the deal, the company will have on-field signage on the baselines along with a few in-game features at Wrigley Field.Mynd Drinks will also have international marketing rights for the Cubs-Cardinals series in London on June 24 and 25. This comes after the MLB signed its own CBD partnership deal in October 2022 with Charlotte's Web. To announce the partnership, the Cubs posted a meditation video on their social media channels featuring the sounds of Wrigley Field that was narrated by radio play-by-play announcer Pat Hughes.“When MLB opened ...

WATCH LIVE | WGN weatherman Jim Ramsey honored in Island Lake

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:12:15 GMT

ISLAND LAKE, Ill. — Former WGN weatherman Jim Ramsey, who passed away April 8, 2022, is being honored by the Village of Island Lake, the place he called home.Ramsey spent 30 of his 42 year weather forecasting career at WGN-TV before retiring in 2017. Beloved former WGN weatherman Jim Ramsey dies at 69 Friday he will be added to the village's "Island Lake Notables Wall of Fame." The event is set for noon and open to the public. His former colleagues Jackie Bange and Bob Jordan are expected to be in attendance, along with his widow Leslie Ramsey.WGN has honored Ramsey over the years including when he retired in 2017, a somber reflection of his life upon his death in 2022, and a WGN Morning News remembrance of his good natured appearances on the often lighthearted broadcast.You can read his obituary here.WGN plans to livestream this event in its entirety within this story beginning at approximately 12 p.m.