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Kansas governor thwarts small legal settlement with business over COVID-19 restrictions

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:56:43 GMT

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas’ Democratic governor on Thursday scuttled a small legal settlement favored by top Republican officials between the state and the owner of a Wichita fitness studio forced to shut down during the first months of the coronavirus pandemic and then operate under restrictions.The settlement would have cost the state $4,305.46 and ended a lawsuit filed in December 2020 by Ryan Floyd and his business, Omega Bootcamps Inc. The case has yet to go to trial in Sedgwick County District Court in Wichita, and Attorney General Kris Kobach asked Gov. Laura Kelly and eight leaders of the Republican-controlled Legislature to sign off, as required by state law.Six of those eight legislative leaders are Republicans, and all six voted to approve the settlement during a live online WebEx meeting that Kelly convened. But Kelly opposed it, along with the House and Senate’s top Democrats, and under Kansas law, the governor’s action decided the issue.Kelly did not ...

Fire: 4 people shot near 61st and Union in Englewood

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:56:43 GMT

CHICAGO — Four people were shot Thursday in Englewood, according to the Chicago Fire Department.The shooting happened around 5:30 p.m. near West 61st Place and South Union Avenue. ‘What would happen if I bashed you with this bat?’: $800K bond for Chicago woman accused of battery spree According to the fire department, two people were taken to the hospital in grave condition, one person is in serious to critical condition and one person is in fair condition.All of the people who were injured were adults, the fire department said. Additional information hasn't been released at this time. This is a breaking news story and will be updated as information becomes available.

From catching to coaching: Steve Ruzich's leaves his baseball legacy at South Suburban College

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:56:43 GMT

SOUTH HOLLAND, Ill. — He's been a Hall of Famer for almost a decade, but a baseball coach in the south suburbs is hardly slowing down.For 37 years, Steve Ruzich been in the dugout at South Suburban College, a junior college program in South Holland that has experienced plenty of success during his tenure. He's collected over 1,300 wins for the Bulldogs, who play in the National Junior College Athletic Association's Division I with a host of championships collected. "It's never been about me," said Ruzich of his time at SSC. "It's always been about giving something back to the game."Initially he'd hoped that would be through his play as a catcher on the field when he was a standout at the College of St. Francis (now University of St. Francis) in Joliet. He was drafted by the White Sox in the 30th round of the 1985 MLB Draft and played in six games with the club's Gulf Coast League team.But that would be it for Ruzich's pro baseball career, and at 24, he was on the search for a way t...

Calumet City couple, social worker partnered in $1M Medicare fraud scheme, prosecutors allege

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:56:43 GMT

CHICAGO — A married Calumet City couple behind a nonprofit service for seniors allegedly schemed with a social worker to fraudulently obtain more than $1.16 million from Medicare.All three are charged with health care fraud, according to an unsealed federal indictment. Richard and Tammie Pitts operated American Warriors which offered psychotherapy services to residents of senior living facilities in the Chicago area from 2019 to 2021.  More than 600 catalytic converters recovered in largest single bust in the country, sheriff says The indictment alleges that the couple schemed with social worker Charlo Jordan and submitted defrauding claims to Medicare for psychotherapy services that were not provided.As part of the scheme, Richard Pitts invited residents of the senior facilities to attend breakfast meetings, which often included guest speakers or group activities, as a way to identify Medicare beneficiaries whose information would then be used for fraud.When the pandemic caused t...

Police: 2 rob jewelry store with gun, hammer in Bloomingdale mall

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:56:43 GMT

BLOOMINGDALE, Ill. -- Police are searching for two suspects who reportedly robbed a jewelry store at the Stratford Square Mall in Bloomingdale three weeks ago.According to the Bloomingdale Police Department, officers responded to the Stratford Square Mall on reports of an armed robbery on Saturday, April 22. Suburban school fight leads to attempted murder charge Further investigations showed that the suspects displayed a handgun with an extended magazine and a hammer during the robbery.The suspects fled the scene in a Black Jeep Grand Cherokee. Their vehicle was last seen on eastbound on I-88 in the Oak Brook area.The investigation is ongoing.Anyone with information regarding this incident are asked to contact the Bloomingdale Police Department at 630-529-9868.

'I caught him,' Des Moines woman saves two-year-old falling from 2nd story window

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:56:43 GMT

DES MOINES, Iowa (WHO) -- Just before noon on Monday, Kyrie Jones was taking out her dog when she saw a window screen laying on the ground."I noticed the window screen was on the ground, a couple of things were thrown out the window and the window was open," said Jones. "I was coming back in, I seen the little one poke his head out. And I was like 'Go get mommy, go get mommy.'"The little boy was the neighbor's, and he was putting his head out of his family's two-story home. Jones jumped into action, running to the front of her neighbor's house, knocking on the door and ringing the doorbell. But, no answer. New Edison Park business burglarized twice in less than 24 hours "I don't know if I just didn't wait long enough or what...I called just the non-emergency number and just let them know I was kind of concerned," said Jones. The Des Moines Police Department got the call and responded within minutes. Jones walked back to check on the toddler, but now he was hanging from the two-sto...

Jimmie Allen accused of raping, sexually abusing former manager, lawsuit claims

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:56:43 GMT

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — A former manager of country music star Jimmie Allen has filed a lawsuit claiming the musician raped and sexually abused her.The lawsuit, filed on May 11 in U.S. District Court, also includes Wide Open Music (WOM) and its founder Ash Bowers.According to the document, when the plaintiff (referred to as Jane Doe) was assigned to work with Allen as his day-to-day manager, Bowers warned her that the singer was “known to push inappropriate sexual boundaries” and that he was “promiscuous but harmless.” Parents claim daughter is disfigured from hot chicken nugget In May 2020, Doe alleges Allen began sexually harassing her openly and publicly by making comments about her being single, her innocence, and her appearance. According to the lawsuit, he would ask her personal sexual questions, including asking if she was a virgin.After a March 2021 dinner between Allen, Doe, and “industry executives,” the suit claims the singer sexually assaulted Doe while she was incap...

Tornado touches down in Colorado, caught during live newscast

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:56:43 GMT

BRUSH, Colo. (KDVR) — A tornado touched down in northeastern Colorado on Wednesday as severe weather moved through the area, and it was all caught during a live television broadcast. Storm chaser Nathan Moore captured the video of the tornado along Highway 71, south of Interstate 76 near Brush."This is our first visual confirmation of a tornado on the ground," said Dave Fraser, chief meteorologist at Nexstar's KDVR. Meet the guys behind video of giant snapping turtle ‘Chonkosaurus’ in Chicago River The tornado was confirmed at 5:55 p.m. about 6 miles east of Gary, or 14 miles southwest of Akron, according to the National Weather Service. It was moving north at 30 mph.The NWS said there were no reports of any damage.Fraser described the tornado as a landspout. A tornado warning was in effect in the area through 6:15 p.m.Tornado warnings were frequent throughout Wednesday in northeast Colorado, including in parts of the metro in Arapahoe and Douglas counties and on the Eastern Plain...

Insight: What kind of raise should you expect in 2023

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:56:43 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — New numbers show worker's raise expectations were off from what employers planned to pay out. ABJ: Here's how big of a raise employees are expecting in 2023 KXAN's Tom Miller talked with the Austin Business Journal's Will Anderson about how much you can expect.Read a transcription of the discussion below or use the video player above to watch.Tom: Let's start with a look back. How big have raises been in years past and what's been driving that?Anderson: Yeah, with more jobs out there open than there are people looking for work... and employment has been quite low. Raises have been at historical numbers for the past few years and hit about 6.7% late last year, year over year increase in salary.Tom: This year, people are expecting more big raises again, but it might be different. Why is that?Anderson: Yeah, I think there's a gap between what people are experiencing--obviously higher inflation, higher grocery costs, and employers now who are looking forward to perhaps...

Late homers propel big comeback win for Longhorns in Big 12 softball tournament

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:56:43 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — Down four runs with two outs in the sixth inning, the No. 7 Texas Longhorns softball team decided to hit the ball out of the park.Three home runs worked the game back to a 6-6 tie, and then the Longhorns took care of Texas Tech 7-6 in eight innings in the opening round of the Big 12 Conference softball tournament Thursday in Oklahoma City.MORE THAN THE SCORE: Stay up to date on sports stories like these, and sign up for our More than the Score sports newsletter at kxan.com/newslettersA wild pitch by Texas Tech relief pitcher Erna Carlin with the bases loaded allowed Bella Dayton to score the game-winning run, but the real fireworks happened in the sixth and seventh innings.Dayton started the comeback bid with a line-drive 2-run home run that hugged the right-field line to cut the deficit to 6-4 in the sixth inning. After a clean top of the seventh for Texas, Katie Cimusz and Vanessa Quiroga blasted back-to-back home runs to tie the game at 6-6. Cimusz hit an 0-2 pitc...