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Asian shares advance on back of Wall Street rally

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:44:24 GMT

By ELAINE KURTENBACH (AP Business Writer)BANGKOK (AP) — Asian shares advanced Wednesday after a Wall Street rally led by the banks most beaten down by the industry’s crisis. Oil prices fell back and U.S. futures were little changed.Investors are awaiting an interest rate decision by the Federal Reserve, which is expected to temper its efforts to tame inflation given the recent turmoil that has wracked the banking sector. Some of Wall Street’s fear washed out after U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said the government could offer the banking industry more assistance if needed.Most economists expect the Fed to announce a relatively modest quarter-point hike in its benchmark rate, its ninth hike since March of last year.Markets around the world have pinballed sharply this month on worries the banking system may be cracking under the pressure of the fastest set of hikes to interest rates in decades. This week’s rally now runs into a huge test with the Fed deci...

Celtics finish road trip strong, dominate Kings in best performance since All-Star break

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:44:24 GMT

Before the Celtics took off for their longest road trip of the season, they stressed a sense of urgency. They knew they weren’t playing up to their standards, and they recognized the importance of correcting their inconsistencies with the playoffs coming soon.“For us, being able to know that we don’t have any games left in the regular season, that we need to come together, and we need to start acting like this is it for us and every game matters and get into that rhythm,” Marcus Smart said before the trip.The six-game journey wasn’t perfect. They dropped a game to the Rockets, the worst team in the Western Conference. Bad habits haunted them in a brutal loss to the Jazz. But on Tuesday, they finished the stretch with a much-needed statement. Against one of the hottest teams in the league, the Celtics picked a good time for their best all-around performance since the All-Star break with a dominant 132-109 victory over the Kings.It was one game – and the Celtics still need to sh...

Homeless voucher program receives pushback after arrests

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:44:24 GMT

EL CAJON, Calif. -- An emergency El Cajon City Council meeting was held Tuesday as police say a 16-year-old girl was sexually assaulted at a motel used by homeless voucher recipients.Police said Monday they arrested two men during an investigation of alleged molestation at a Motel 6 on Montrose Court. Officers booked Lawrence “Larry” Cantrell, 34, into San Diego Central Jail on suspicion of drug-related charges. Michael Inman, 70, was booked on suspicion of violating parole and possession of child pornography. “Unless they can guarantee us that they will vet every single person who goes in there, I don’t think we should have this program period,” said city councilmember Michelle Metschel. Is this San Diego’s rainiest ‘water year’ on record? Mayor Bill Wells has complained the program is bringing more crime to the East County city. Families in the homeless voucher program have said the ability to have a clean place to live while they try to get back on their feet has been crit...

Dozens of flights delayed at San Diego airport amid storm

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:44:24 GMT

SAN DIEGO — Dozens of flights were delayed Tuesday at San Diego International Airport as an atmospheric river brought heavy rain and high winds to the area.As of 2 p.m. over 70 arriving flights and over 40 departing flights at SAN were delayed, according to the airport's website. Several flights were cancelled as well.The flight cancellations and delays are not tied to any specific airline, with several companies seeing their flights delayed.You can find the most recent flight status information here.A Severe Thunderstorm Warning was issued earlier in the day by the National Weather Service, with the airport being in the area covered by the warning.It was not immediately clear how long the delays are expected to last, as the weather is expected to pick back up again later in the evening Tuesday.You can track the latest storm conditions with the FOX 5 Weather Radar.The flight delays follow a recent string of storms that have hit the region. In February, a powerful winter storm s...

Race record trails ‘wild card’ prosecutor in Louisiana death

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:44:24 GMT

FARMERVILLE, La. (AP) — In this conservative corner of northern Louisiana, where reverence for law enforcement runs deep and Blue Lives Matter flags often fly alongside the Stars and Stripes, the case of five white officers charged in the deadly 2019 arrest of Black motorist Ronald Greene is seen as anything but a slam dunk.So even with explosive body-camera video showing officers stunning, beating and dragging Greene, the Black district attorney in mostly white Union Parish has decided to bring in a hired gun: an experienced white special prosecutor with a folksy law-and-order bravado and a three-decades-long reputation for winning complicated cases across the state.But Hugo Holland’s background is also marked by accusations of racial bias, including new claims uncovered by The Associated Press, that make him an unlikely advocate for racial justice. In fact, he says the concept has no place in the Greene case or anywhere in the justice system.“Justice is justice,” Holla...

Judge to consider allowing abortions to resume in Wyoming

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:44:24 GMT

CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — A judge will hear arguments Wednesday over whether abortions will be allowed in Wyoming while a sweeping new ban gets challenged in her court.The ban took effect Sunday, making abortion illegal in Wyoming despite earlier rulings by Teton County District Court Judge Melissa Owens that blocked an earlier ban hours after it took effect last summer.Owens will now consider whether to block the new ban, too, while a lawsuit proceeds.She’s not expected to immediately weigh in, though, on a different new Wyoming abortion law: a first-in-the-nation ban on abortion pills. Abortion-rights supporters are also seeking to stop that law, signed by Republican Gov. Mark Gordon on Friday, but it is not set to take effect until July 1.So far, Owens has sympathized somewhat with the two nonprofits, two doctors and two other women who have sued to block Wyoming’s broader abortions bans. In July, Owens found that their concerns that the law would harm women and doctors a...

Kansas could soon approve ‘born alive’ abortion bill

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:44:24 GMT

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas proposal based on the disputed idea that providers leave newborns to die after unsuccessful abortions is nearing legislative approval, as Republicans pursue limited anti-abortion measures following a decisive statewide vote last year protecting abortion rights.The Kansas House was set to take a final vote Wednesday on a bill declaring that when an abortion procedure inadvertently results in a live birth, medical personnel must take the same steps to preserve the newborn’s life as “a reasonably diligent and conscientious” provider would with other live births. The measure is similar to a proposed Montana law that voters there rejected in November.The U.S. Supreme Court declared in June that states can ban abortion, and the Republican-controlled Kansas Legislature has long had strong anti-abortion majorities in both chambers. But a 2019 Kansas Supreme Court decision protected abortion rights and in August 2022, voters rejected a proposed change to th...

Doctors expected to testify in Gwyneth Paltrow’s ski trial

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:44:24 GMT

PARK CITY, Utah (AP) — More witnesses are expected to testify on Wednesday in a trial about a 2016 ski crash between Gwyneth Paltrow and the retired Utah man suing her and claiming her recklessness left him with lasting injuries and brain damage.On the opening day of the trial, Paltrow and retired optometrist Terry Sanderson appeared across the courtroom from each other, looking nonplussed to hear arguments that have become familiar over the past seven years of legal proceedings. Since Paltrow and Sanderson’s skis intertwined on what they expected to be an enjoyable day on the slopes with friends and family, the two have been tangled in a lengthy legal drama about what really happened on a beginner’s run that day at one of the most upscale ski destinations in the United States.The mountain, Deer Valley Resort, has among the region’s most expensive lift tickets and is known for its après-ski champagne yurts and proximity to Park City — a posh resort town known for hosting the Sundanc...

No winning ticket sold for Tuesday’s $40 million Lotto Max jackpot

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:44:24 GMT

There was no winning ticket sold in Tuesday’s Lotto Max $40 million draw.The jackpot for the next draw on March 24 will be an estimated $50 million with two $1 million Maxmillion prizes up for grabs.The Canadian Press

Oregon lawmakers approve $200M for housing, homelessness

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:44:24 GMT

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Oregon lawmakers passed a sweeping $200 million housing and homelessness package on Tuesday, displaying a bipartisan will to tackle two of the state’s most pressing crises.The vast majority of the funding — about $157 million — is aimed at boosting homelessness and eviction prevention services. The money will go toward increasing shelter capacity, addressing youth homelessness, and funding rapid rehousing efforts and rental assistance programs.“This bill will help us build more housing, get people off our streets and make our communities more safe,” Democratic state Sen. Aaron Woods, who carried one of the two bills in the package, said on the Senate floor.Like much of the U.S. West, Oregon has struggled with a surge in homelessness driven in part by high costs and a lack of affordable housing options. Analysts and agencies estimate Oregon is short 140,000 housing units, and federal data shows its homeless population has increased by 22% since 2020.The cr...