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Obama Foundation CEO talks Chicago's new mayor, Obama Center updates

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 14:19:18 GMT

CHICAGO — After serving as a top advisor in the Barack Obama administration, Valerie Jarrett is now the chief executive of the Obama Foundation.In her new role with the Obama Foundation, Jarrett recently sat down with Chicago's new mayor, Brandon Johnson."I think Mayor Johnson is a mayor that cares deeply about Chicago. His roots are vested deeply in education making sure that every Chicagoan has the best education possible," Jarrett said. "He’s building an inclusive team. He made a point of mentioning to me knowing that I was a part of the Washington/Sawyer/Daley administration that he’s recruited people from mayors all of his predecessors all working together under a big tent."Johnson campaigned as an uber-progressive promising to raise $800 million in revenue to pay for investments in social services. Conservative business leaders around Chicago balked at his plan at the time, and rallied around his opponent, Paul Vallas. What to know about Trump’s appearance in federal court i...

The end of 'The Last Dance': Remembering the 25th Anniversary of the Bulls' most recent championship

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 14:19:18 GMT

WGN News Now's Larry Hawley takes a look back at the 25th anniversary of the Bulls' last NBA championship in this edition of "Channel 9 Was There" - a tribute to 75 years of WGN-TV.CHICAGO - If the course of an 82-game regular season and four rounds of playoffs were "The Last Dance," then the final note was heard 25 years ago on Wednesday.It was in perfect tune, crafted by a skilled conductor, and executed by one of the greatest to ever create a symphony of basketball excellence. The moment was the fitting way to exit the floor, both figuratively at the Delta Center and more broadly into basketball lore. "The Last Dance" of "The Last Dance" is now 25 years old as of Wednesday - and memories of the last of the Bulls' championships of the 1990s remain strong as it reaches its silver anniversary.That was June 14, 1998 - a true moment in time in Chicago sports. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)It was the conclusion of a long and somewhat draining season for the Bulls, one in which the chatter ...

Harvard Medical School morgue manager, others charged with trafficking body parts

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 14:19:18 GMT

BOSTON (WWLP) - The manager of Harvard Medical School's morgue, his wife, and multiple others have been indicted for allegedly trafficking stolen human remains.Cedric Lodge, 55, stole organs and other parts of cadavers donated for medical research and education before their scheduled cremations from the morgue between 2018 and 2022, federal prosecutors in Pennsylvania have alleged. The body parts were taken without the school's knowledge or permission, authorities said, adding that the school has cooperated with the investigation.Bodies donated to Harvard Medical School are used for education, teaching or research purposes. Once they are no longer needed, the cadavers are usually cremated and the ashes are returned to the donor’s family or buried in a cemetery.Lodge would sometimes take stolen remains — which included heads, brains, skin and bones — to his Goffstown, New Hampshire home where he and his wife, 63-year-old Denise Lodge, would then sell the remains to buyers in other st...

Illinois man charged after dreaming of intruder, shooting himself while asleep: sheriff

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 14:19:18 GMT

LAKE BARRINGTON, Ill. (WGN) — A suburban Illinois man with a revoked FOID card has been arrested and charged after he accidentally shot himself while dreaming, according to the Lake County Sheriff's Office.Deputies said they responded to a report of a Lake Barrington resident with a gunshot wound around 9:50 p.m. on April 10. When deputies arrived at the home, they found 62-year-old Mark Dicara with a gunshot wound to the leg.Deputies applied a tourniquet to Dicara’s leg, as he was losing a significant amount of blood.Further investigation revealed Dicara had a dream that someone was breaking into his home. In his dream, he retrieved his .357 magnum revolver and shot at who he believed was the intruder, the sheriff's office said in a news release.When he fired, he shot himself instead and apparently woke up from the dream, the release stated.Dicara was taken to a local hospital where he was treated for his wounds and later released.Investigators said they confirmed there was not a b...

Kevin Spacey: I'll get job offers 'the moment I am cleared' of sexual assault charges

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 14:19:18 GMT

(The Hill) - Kevin Spacey says there are job opportunities waiting for him “the moment” that he’s cleared of sexual misconduct charges in London."I know that there are people right now who are ready to hire me the moment I am cleared of these charges,” the former “House of Cards” actor told the German newspaper Die Zeit in an interview published Wednesday.“The second that happens, they're ready to move forward," Spacey said."It's a time in which a lot of people are very afraid that if they support me, they will be canceled." Treat Williams of ‘Everwood,’ ‘Hair’ dead after motorcycle crash The 63-year-old Academy Award winner was charged criminally last year by English prosecutors with sexually assaulting three men in separate incidents in 2005, 2008, and 2013. Additional charges against Spacey were added in January.Spacey has pleaded not guilty to all the charges, and the trial is reportedly expected to begin later this month. Who will replace Pat Sajak on ‘Wheel of Fo...

Federal judge hears bid to block Indiana's ban on gender-affirming care for minors

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 14:19:18 GMT

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Indiana’s Legislature trampled upon the rights of young transgender patients and their parents with a new law aiming to ban them from accessing puberty blockers, hormones and gender-affirming surgeries, an attorney told a federal judge Wednesday.A federal judge in Indianapolis made no immediate ruling after hearing about 90 minutes of arguments from the Indiana attorney general’s office and the American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana, which is seeking a preliminary injunction that would stop the law from taking effect July 1. The group filed its lawsuit, on behalf of four transgender patients and an Indiana doctor who provides transgender medical treatment, within hours after Republican Gov. Eric Holcomb signed the bill April 5.The lawsuit says the ban violates the U.S. Constitution’s equal protection guarantees as well as federal laws regarding essential medical services, and wrongly prohibits Indiana doctors from communicating with out-of-state...

Liberty Hill to make Pride proclamation

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 14:19:18 GMT

LIBERTY HILL, Texas (KXAN) – On Wednesday, the City of Liberty Hill is set to make a proclamation to recognize Pride Month, according to the council agenda.Amanda Crossland, who lost her son Jaycee to suicide shortly after he came out as gay, said she’s been speaking closely with the mayor about this.“I promised him after he died I would do everything I can to make sure this doesn’t happen to someone else,” she said. “To make sure people like him know they have support.”The proclamation reads as follows:Whereas, Liberty Hill is a Loving, Wholesome and Family-centered community; and Whereas, Liberty Hill is an inclusive and supportive community; and Whereas, We value all of our citizens because of the unique and precious nature of all of God’s children; and Whereas, We oppose hate, abuse, discrimination or bullying of any person, Now Therefore, I, Liz Branigan, as Mayor, do proclaim the month of June as Pride Month in Liberty Hill, in harmony with the larger community of the United S...

‘No’: Footage shows Orlando cop refused to hand over license, fled traffic stop

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 14:19:18 GMT

An Orlando police officer is facing charges after fleeing a traffic stop near Oviedo last week while driving in his agency-issued cruiser, according to the Seminole County Sheriff’s Office.Officer Alexander Shaouni was stopped by a Seminole County deputy sheriff last Tuesday for driving about 80 mph in a 45 mph zone while driving east on Florida Avenue without his siren or emergency lights on. The deputy sped to catch up with Shaouni, pulling him over on De Leon Street and angling in front of the police cruiser to make the stop.Body camera video, which blurs Shaouni’s face, shows the officer was upset that he was pulled over, telling the deputy he was driving into work.“What does it look like I am dressed for?” Shaouni said. The deputy replied, “Let me see your driver’s license.”“No,” Shaouni said, before getting back into his cruiser and driving off with his lights flashing.Court records show he was charged with fleeing a law enforcement officer, reckless driving, speeding and resi...

Area contractor arrested in connection to employee death

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 14:19:18 GMT

NORTHVILLE, N.Y. (NEWS10) - The Northville Village police have arrested an area construction contractor in connection with the death of one of his employees.The village police say they were called out to a location about a man bleeding from his head who was in and out of consciousness back in May. Asylees in Albany want work, not a handout “It was reported initially to us by Mr. Wiedemann that the male victim had fell at The Batchellerville Bridge and struck his head,” said Chief of Police Richard Richardson.Jeremiah Wiedemann, owner of Wiedemann Sons, told police his worker 38-year-old James Warner fell. But police say he lied.“We went over to the bridge, we looked, we didn't find any evidence of any type of scene where somebody had fell,” said Richardson. “We found out that it didn't actually happen there.”They say they found Wiedemann and Warner miles away.“Long story short, we ended up at the spillway on South Main Street right here in the village Northville,” said Richardson....

St. Charles County veterans collect used U.S. flags to respectfully retire them

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 14:19:18 GMT

ST. CHARLES COUNTY, Mo. - Military veterans working in the St. Charles County government spent Wednesday collecting used or damaged American flags.The Veterans Best Practices Working Group held a drive-by collection event at the corner of Monroe and North Second streets."We will collect them, and then we take them to the AMVETS in St. Peters. And in September, they do an actual flag retirement ceremony," said Dennis Wiss, manager of the St. Charles County Airport.The group said it's a way to respect and honor the flag, instead of tossing it in the trash."They have a color guard, they play Taps, they have a 21-gun salute. And then they retire the flags by burning them and then the ashes are buried at a plot at the AMVETS," Wiss said. Violent twist follows parents’ intervention on daughter’s Snapchat sessions The group has collected more than 9,500 flags since its establishment in 2017.Wiss said they've collected more than 300 flags so far this year. That means they've reached their...