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Man charged, $1M in drugs seized after officers discover pill lab at Richmond Hill townhouse

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:17 GMT

A man is facing several charges after police discovered a drug lab at a Richmond Hill townhouse last week.In a release, York Regional Police said officers were called to a home near 16th Avenue and Bayview Avenue around 9:30 p.m. on Dec. 11 for reports of unknown trouble.Officers arrived and found a man inside a townhouse unit. Police allege a further investigation revealed the residence was being used as a secret drug lab that “was actively pressing hundreds of pills suspected to be oxycodone.”Officers returned the next day with a search warrant and seized 23 kilograms of various powders, 781 litres of liquids, more than 34,000 and pill-making paraphernalia. Police also seized rounds of 9mm caliber ammunition.The total street value of the drugs seized is more than $1 million, according to the police release.Police say 35-year-old Richmond Hill resident Zoltan Mootoo is facing eight charges, including three counts of drug possession with the purpose of trafficking. Polic...

Publishers association struggled to find willing recipient of Freedom to Publish Award

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:17 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Book publishers are facing so much government pressure worldwide that one trade group was unable to find anyone willing to accept its annual International Freedom to Publish Award.Instead, the Association of American Publishers (AAP) is honoring “all publishing houses in multiple countries and regions of the world that continued to publish” in the face of opposition this year.“This year we heard from numerous publishers from various parts of the world who were grateful to be considered for recognition, but who also live in fear of the additional scrutiny, harassment, and danger that such an honor might bring,” Terry Adams, who chairs the AAP’s Freedom to Publish Committee, said in a statement Tuesday. “As a result, this year’s award is for the many houses who quietly fight the battle for free expression under impossibly difficult circumstances.”The publishers association established the award in 2002, recognizing houses from outside the U.S. “who have dem...

Good news: Plovers in a dangerous time

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:17 GMT

In today’s Big Story Podcast, before we break for the holidays, The Big Story team decided to try to end our year on a positive note with a week of good news stories. We hope this week brings you hope, light and laughter. It’s often our job to deliver bad news, but that doesn’t mean that’s all the world is.Today: Fatima Syed, the Ontario Reporter at The Narwhal, brings us a story about birds that might as well be a Netflix reality show.“This is going to be a story about a summer romance on the beach, but it starts with a suspected murder, and includes a cheating scandal,” says Syed.We don’t want to reveal too much, so just listen and enjoy.You can subscribe to The Big Story podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google and Spotify.You can also find it at thebigstorypodcast.ca.

Chris Christie’s next book, coming in February, asks ‘What Would Reagan Do?’

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:17 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, a candidate for the Republican nomination for president, has a book coming out next year on the legacy of a GOP hero — former President Ronald Reagan.Threshold Editions, a conservative imprint at Simon & Schuster, announced Tuesday that it will publish “What Would Reagan Do?: Life Lessons from the Last Great President” on Feb. 6.“It’s amazing what how much Reagan was able to achieve by sticking to his principles and connecting on a human level with those around him,” Christie writes in the introduction. “Each chapter of this book is not only great history, it also contains a blueprint for bringing our country back to achieving big things at home and around the world.”Christie’s previous books include “ Let Me Finish ” and “ Republican Rescue.”The Associated Press

Man charged with first-degree murder in strangulation of missing 15-year-old girl

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:17 GMT

CHICAGO — A 24-year-old man has been charged in the strangulation of a 15-year-old girl in the city's South Shore neighborhood.Joshua Williams, of Chicago, faces one felony count of first-degree murder and one count of being a fugitive from justice.According to the Chicago Police Department, the body of Amarise Parker was found inside a residence in the 7200 block of South Phillips Avenue on Dec. 12. She was pronounced dead on the scene.Amarise Parker, 15Williams was arrested Saturday after being identified as the offender who killed Parker. He was placed into custody and charged accordingly. Mother: Girl, 15, was dating someone who lived in South Shore building where her body was found Williams faces a detention hearing Tuesday.

New Texas law could reshape state authority over the U.S. border

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:17 GMT

AUSTIN (Nexstar) -- A new Texas law that allows the state to effectively deport undocumented migrants could test the balance of power between the states and the federal government, challenging years of legal precedent that has reserved the power to police the border to federal authorities.Senate Bill 4 authorizes state judges and police to order migrants back across the Rio Grande -- a deportation power reserved for federal agencies like Border Protection and ICE. In 2012, the Supreme Court ruled in Arizona v. U.S. that the federal government's immigration laws supersede Arizona's efforts to regulate immigration at the state level. In that case, the Court halted a law that criminalized being unlawfully present in the United States -- very similar to Texas' Senate Bill 4.Gov. Greg Abbott said on Monday he "welcomes a Supreme Court decision that would overturn the precedent set in the Arizona case.""We believe this law has been crafted in a way that can and should be upheld by the cou...

More Austinites will be eligible for free library cards in 2024

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:17 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Austin residents who currently pay more than $100 annually for a public library card will soon be eligible to waive that fee. Currently people who live within the city limits are able to obtain an Austin public library card for free, but that benefit does not extend to everyone with an Austin address. Those who live in a limited-purpose or extraterritorial jurisdiction (ETJ) have to pay a non-resident fee to get a library card. Austin Public Library system named one of best in Texas The ETJ is "the unincorporated land within five miles of Austin’s boundary that is not within the city limits or ETJ of another city. It is the territory where Austin alone is authorized to annex land," according to the city of Austin. "Any barrier to access is not great in my eyes when it comes to libraries," Sarah Cypher, a writer who is moving to Austin soon. She learned that her house was located in an ETJ through a neighborhood Facebook group and reached out to city council to ex...

Pflugerville ISD board to meet Tuesday on superintendent search

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:17 GMT

PFLUGERVILLE, Texas (KXAN) – The Pflugerville Independent School District Board of Trustees will hold a special meeting Tuesday evening at 6 p.m. to discuss its search for a new superintendent, according to the board's agenda. The board accepted Dec. 14 the resignation of Douglas Killian, who served PfISD for nearly seven years. His last day with PfISD is Dec. 31, according to the district.Board members will meet Tuesday evening with search consultants, according to the agenda, and talk about the search, timeline, and community input. Board members will also discuss potential superintendent candidates and get legal advice about the search, the agenda said.The meeting will occur before the regular board meeting at 7 p.m. in the PISD Administration Building on 1401 West Pecan. Both meetings will be live streamed here.The board named Steve Flores as interim superintendent on Dec. 14.

‘People on the Range are nervous’ as Japanese company announces deal to buy US Steel

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:17 GMT

DULUTH — U.S. Steel shaped Minnesota’s Iron Range, transforming the region from a frontier to a key part of the country’s industrial complex.“U.S. Steel isn’t just a really big company that employs a lot of people in the area,” said Aaron Brown, an Iron Range historian and author. “It’s the reason that a lot of towns that currently exist were formed.”While the Merrit Brothers began shipping ore from the Mesabi Range in 1892, East Coast financiers like John D. Rockefeller, Andrew Carnegie, Henry Oliver, J.P. Morgan and Charles Schwab began to take over or peddle influence, resulting in the founding of the United States Steel Corp. in 1901.And that, Brown said, is when the Iron Range transformed.But now, the iconic Pittsburgh-based company is being sold to Japan’s Nippon Steel in a $14.9 billion deal announced Monday.No big changes have been relayed to the more than 1,800 employees at U.S. Steel’s Minntac and Keetac iron ore mines and pellet plants in Keewatin and Mountain Iron, and N...

Warren County offering free van service for senior citizens

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:17 GMT

WARREN COUNTY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- Starting January 2, 2024, Warren/Hamilton Counties Office for the Aging and Warren County Veteran's Services will start a new senior transportation program for those over the age of 60 and military veterans, offering free shuttle transportation for errands in the Glens Falls/Queensbury area. According to Warren County, a private contractor provided senior shuttle service in western and northern Warren County towns for years, but the plan was stalled at the end of 2022 with little heads up to the affected communities and residents. Get the latest news, weather, sports and more delivered right to your inbox! Seniors will be picked up and dropped off at their homes with service in each community outlined as such:Bolton/Hague – 1st and 3rd TuesdayChestertown/Brant Lake/Horicon – 2nd & 4th TuesdayWarrensburg/Johnsburg – 1st & 3rd ThursdayThurman/Stony Creek – 2nd & 4th ThursdayThe Warren County Veterans' Services...