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Illinois releases monarch butterfly license plates

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:04:57 GMT

CHICAGO -- Illinois residents can finally get their long-awaited monarch butterfly specialty license plate.State lawmakers made the announcement on Thursday saying it makes good on promise they made in 2016 after they passed legislation to create the state's first universal specialty plate. The move was aimed at limiting the number of specialty license plates. Snoop Dogg says he’s giving up smoking weed By 2018, more than 2,000 residents had pre-ordered the monarch butterfly specialty license plates.The funds will go towards protecting the endangered monarch butterfly from extinction as part of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources' Roadside Monarch Habitat Fund.For more information on the Illinois monarch butterfly license plates, click here.

Indiana judge says Richard Allen had access to Delphi documents all along and wasn't hindered

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:04:57 GMT

CARROLL COUNTY, Ind. — The special judge assigned to the Delphi murders investigation has responded to the Indiana Supreme Court and said that Richard Allen's claim of not having access to all documents related to the case has no merit and that he has not been hindered in any way from accessing them. Previously, the original attorneys for Richard Allen — Andrew Baldwin and Bradley Rozzi — filed several motions with the Indiana Supreme Court after they were removed from the murder case by Gull in the aftermath of an evidence leak. The lawyers asked the Supreme Court to review Gull's handling of the case and accused her of violating public access by keeping some filings a secret along with claiming she hasn't provided Allen with complete access to all the documents involved in the case. Judge in Delphi murder case faces deadline to produce transcript of closed-door meeting Gull responded on Thursday by saying that Allen and his attorneys were incorrect and had complete access to al...

Illinois electric vehicle rebate program out of funds

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:04:57 GMT

CHICAGO -- The Illinois Electric Vehicle Rebate Program has reportedly run of out of funds for the latest rounds just weeks after opening.Illinois Environmental Protection Agency officials said that the number of application received for the Electric Vehicle Rebate Program has already surpassed the $12 million approved by the state. ORIGINAL: Illinois to offer rebates for electric vehicle buyers The funds were intended to last multiple application cycles and cover the entire 2024 fiscal year.Moving forward, the state said the program will prioritize applicants that qualify as "low-income." The maximum rebate is $4,000.

Austin ISD says it caught up on helping 200+ special ed students. It happened in 12 days

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:04:57 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) – Austin Independent School District said on Thursday it met one of the first deadlines the Texas Education Agency set out to fix the district’s special education system.The school district has been under the watch of a state-appointed monitor since September. The board of trustees voted 8-1 to accept the deal from TEA after state investigators found the district repeatedly failed to evaluate students suspected of needing special education services on time.  In a letter to parents, the district said it met TEA’s Oct. 31 deadline to evaluate students who had been waiting since the 2021-22 and 2022-23 school year. District officials also said they created education plans for all those students. At 15, she needs special education and homebound services to learn. For weeks, she got neither But according to data previously provided by TEA and AISD, it would mean the district created education plans for more than 239 students in a matter of 12 days.The district report...

CDC reports a 'staggering' rise in measles infections globally, Texas doctor urges people to get vaccinated

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:04:57 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) – The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released a report Thursday showing that measles cases increased by nearly 20% globally in 2022, following a steady decline in measles vaccination coverage in recent years. Compared to 2021, deaths globally have increased by 43%, according to the CDC.“The increase in measles outbreaks and deaths is staggering, but unfortunately, not unexpected given the declining vaccination rates we’ve seen in the past few years,” said John Vertefeuille, director of CDC’s Global Immunization Division, in a press release. “Measles cases anywhere pose a risk to all countries and communities where people are under-vaccinated. Urgent, targeted efforts are critical to prevent measles disease and deaths.”  Measles is a highly contagious virus that can be spread when a person sneezes or coughs. The virus is so contagious that if one person becomes infected, around 90% of not immune people around them will also become infected.&nb...

Woodbury City Council broke open meeting law when it suspended SRO program, state says

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:04:57 GMT

A state official says Woodbury City Council violated Minnesota’s open meeting law in September when members called a closed session and temporarily suspended a school resource officer contract.In a non-binding opinion issued this week, Minnesota Department of Administration Commissioner Tamar Gronvall said members of the council improperly used attorney-client privilege exemptions to hold a closed session on Sept. 6, where they moved to end the officers contract.Woodbury City Administrator Clint Gridkey on Thursday defended the council’s use of a closed session and said they are working with city legal counsel to review the opinion.“The Woodbury City Council fully believed it had a good-faith legal basis to go into closed session on September 6 to address the potential for litigation regarding prematurely breaching the school resource officer contract,” he said in a statement. “This was a complex legal situation that needed to be addressed expediently due to recent changes in ...

Rice Creek Commons development of former TCAAP site considers additional housing

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:04:57 GMT

The Arden Hills development project known as Rice Creek Commons may add an additional 500 housing units to the 427-acre property.The former Twin Cities Army Ammunition Plant parcel, which was bought in 2013 by Ramsey County, will be redeveloped to include business, retail and a proposed 1,960 housing units, said Kari Collins, director of community and economic development for the county.The goal for the sprawling development is a cohesive mix of residential and commercial neighborhoods surrounding a town center. The additional 500 units would be constructed in the southwest neighborhood and the southern part of the town center, according to a September presentation given by Alatus, the project’s developer.Housing density was a previous sore spot for the project as the city wanted fewer housing units and the county wanted more.“Through exploration in 2023, we feel the site is ready to accommodate 1,960 homes to be more accommodating to the housing needs the region is facing right now...

Big Johnson's Kitchen is open for business

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:04:57 GMT

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) - Asylum seekers from New York City began showing up in the Capital Region communities back in May. Some are now eligible to work. NEWS10 met up with one asylum seeker who recently started their very own LLC. Attorney General’s office interviews asylees in Albany This is no ordinary shopping day for asylum seeker Johnson Coronel. The food he is buying is going toward his American dream.  “I'm very happy to be able to do this on my own. To start my own business,” said Coronel.We first met him in back in June when he was at an event welcoming the new asylees to the Capital Region. The Venezuelan has been in the country for well over 180 days and has been work eligible for some time.  But he didn’t want to work for just anyone. He wanted to be his own boss.  Johnson exclaimed, “Big Johnson Kitchen is open!”Big Johnson Kitchen is a catering company that just got its first job. Johnson invited NEWS10 along for his first shopping trip as a valid new ...

Warrant issued for suspect in fatal Clayton shooting, victim identified

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:04:57 GMT

CLAYTON, Mo. - The Major Case Squad reports that a warrant has been issued for a suspect wanted in connection with a deadly shooting Monday in Clayton, Missouri. Investigators have identified Trennell J. Johnson, 18, as a suspect in the death of Joshua D. Harris, 41. Harris was found dead from an apparent gunshot wound outside his home. Johnson remains at large. The St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney's Office is seeking charges of second-degree murder and armed criminal action, both Class A felonies, against Johnson. The Major Case Squad reports that a warrant has been issued for Trennell Johnson, wanted in connection with a deadly shooting Monday in Clayton, Missouri. (Photo provided by: Major Case Squad of Greater St. Louis)Joshua Harris was identified as the victim of a deadly shooting Monday in Clayton, Missouri. (Photo provided by: Major Case Squad of Greater St. Louis)Following a report of shots fired, officers rushed to the 7500 block of Wydown near Hanley Road just befor...

Religious leaders challenge Missouri's abortion ban, cite separation of church and state

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:04:57 GMT

ST. LOUIS - Religious leaders appeared in court Thursday in Downtown St. Louis to fight against Missouri's abortion ban. The case could have major implications for the future of Missouri’s law, which bans most abortions.Some religious leaders claim the state law violates the separation of church and state.“They sued us back in January, and we are here to defend the abortion laws that the people of Missouri passed through their elected representatives," said Joshua Divine. "We have been fighting this for the past 11 months." St. Louis police warn of surge in carjackings and break-ins In June, faith leaders won a motion to move forward with their abortion ban challenge.“We hope that the court will recognize that this is clearly the intent and purpose of the legislature to impose their religious beliefs on everyone in Missouri by passing this abortion ban, and [we hope the courts] strike it down," said K.M. Bell, Senior Litigation Counsel with the National Women's Law Center.Leaders...