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NYPD officer cites 'courtesy cards,' used by friends and family of cops, as source of corruption

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:08 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — A New York City police officer is speaking out against the use of “courtesy cards” by friends and relatives of his colleagues on the force. He's accusing department leaders of maintaining a sprawling system of impunity that lets people with a connection to law enforcement avoid traffic tickets. Get the latest, news, weather, sports and community events delivered right to your inbox! Though not officially recognized by the NYPD, the laminated cards have long been treated as a perk of the job. The city’s police unions issue them to members, who circulate them among those who want to signal their NYPD connections—often to get out of minor infraction like speeding or failing to wear a seat belt.In a federal lawsuit filed in Manhattan this week, Officer Mathew Bianchi described a practice of selective enforcement with consequences for officers who don’t follow the unwritten policy. Current and retired officers now have access to hundreds of cards, giving them away in ex...

Springfield home cook to compete on MasterChef

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:08 GMT

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — A local chef will be making her debut on MasterChef: United Tastes of America this week.On this season of MasterChef, home cooks from all over the nation compete against each other based on their region and culinary skills. The four regions include the West, Northeast, Midwest and South.Local home chef Sarah Fry will make her debut as a contestant on the "Midwest Audition" episode on Wednesday, May 31, on FOX at 7:00 p.m.There will be five slots—or aprons— available for each region making up the top 20 finalists in America. Fry will be one of ten contestants competing for five positions representing the Midwest. Springfield Cardinals unveil new alternate identity as the Springfield Cashew Chickens In the interview above, she talks about Gordan Ramsey and cooking "a unique dish from home". The dish is Springfield Style Cashew Chicken!You can find the second half of Fry's interview here: MasterChef Season 13 judges include Gordan Ra...

Judge grants order to partially seal Ralph Yarl shooting case

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:08 GMT

KANSAS CITY, Mo. - A Clay County judge partially sealed the criminal case against a Northland man accused of shooting a Black teenager.The judge granted the motion filed by the attorney representing 84-year-old Andrew Lester earlier this month.According to the court order, the judge ordered only prosecutors and the defense should have access to the discovery answers and discovery documents in the case. The threats and harassment demonstrate Defendant's life and physical safety are in jeopardy.Court OrderLester is accused of shooting and injuring 16-year-old Ralph Yarl on April 13 in a Northland Kansas City neighborhood. Investigators said the teenager confused Lester’s address with a home about a block away where he was supposed to pick up his younger brothers. Ralph Yarl, more walk at brain injury awareness run in Kansas City In Tuesday's order, the judge stated media coverage of the case decreased Lester's ability to receive a fail trial. That includes a stor...

Body of Sister Wilhelmina Lancaster placed in glass enclosure

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:08 GMT

GOWER, Mo. - The body of Sister Wilhelmina Lancaster was placed in a glass enclosure weeks after she was exhumed and found to be "incorrupt," despite being buried in a wooden coffin without embalming four years ago.Her body is still intact, leading thousands of people to make the pilgrimage to a rural Catholic monastery."I was so nervous," Holly Smothers said. "I never felt the kind of nervous that I had." Historic Sauer Castle reportedly has new owner Outside the Gower monastery, people young and old lined up to witness what some are calling a miracle."We are believers, I'm a believer," Father Luis Felipe Suarez said. "People want to see and touch.""I felt a very strong emotion to come to this," Dan Smothers said.The Benedictines of Mary, Queen of Apostles expected to only find bones in her cracked wooden coffin, but instead found no real signs of decay after four years. Want to camp at ‘The Conjuring’ house? Be sure to pack your courage "What I'm taking in today it builds my f...

Missouri's $397,000 'Show Me Cash' jackpot split between St. Charles and Kansas City

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:08 GMT

ST. CHARLES -- Two people hit the Show Me Cash jackpot for the April 23 drawing. One ticket matching all five numbers drawn was sold at Discount Wine & Spirits on Elm Street in St. Charles. The other ticket was sold in Kansas City.The players split the $397,000 jackpot. Each of them got $198,500. Missouri governor asked to halt execution of Michael Tisius  The Missouri Lottery says that this is the second Show Me Cash jackpot in 2023 to be split by two winners this year. Winning tickets for the March 8 drawing were sold in Ballwin and St. Louis. There were also two Show Me Cash jackpots split between players in 2022.The odds of one person hitting the jackpot in this game are one in 575,757. Jackpots in this game start at $50,000 and grow until someone wins.

Denver records one of its wettest Mays in decades. What does that mean for wildfires?

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:08 GMT

Following repeated afternoon showers – and intermittent barrages of hail – Denver has logged its fourth wettest May on record, putting the precipitation in competition for one of the city’s wettest months in well over a century.As of Wednesday morning, Denver had recorded 5.52 inches of rain, according to National Weather Service Meteorologist Bruno Rodriguez. And while more showers might be expected in the afternoon, not enough rain is likely to fall to nudge the city into any of the top three slots.The top three wettest Mays in Denver are:3: May, 1969, which recorded 6.12 inches.2: May, 1957, which recorded 7.31 inches.1: May, 1876, which recorded 8.57 inches. This is also the wettest month in Colorado history.Much of the state’s eastern half has also enjoyed above-average rainfall, particularly along the Front Range and into the northeastern plains, Rodriguez said. Some areas saw between 3 to 5 inches more rain than usually falls, up to 200% of their normal precipitation. Some ar...

Editorial: Political patronage must end in Denver with either Brough or Johnston

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:08 GMT

Political patronage has no place in American politics, and yet the practice of putting friends, relatives, and donors in plum jobs is so ever-present that when Denver mayoral candidate Kelly Brough blew the whistle on a politician seeking a job in exchange for an endorsement, no one batted an eye.But we do not have to accept this small-scale corruption in Denver, even as presidents for decades — Eisenhower, Kennedy and Trump — have given relatives key positions in their administrations. And despite a push for the opposite, Biden continued the tradition of dolling out ambassador positions to political allies although he scaled down the practice from the prior administration.The next mayor coming in must stand strong against even the appearance of impropriety. In Denver, it is especially critical because of the strong-mayoral format of governance where the mayor’s cabinet wields more power than the 13 elected members of the City Council.Whether the candidate winning Tuesda...

Man left blinded by ball thrown at Angels Stadium sues team

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:08 GMT

A man is suing the Los Angeles Angels nearly a year after being hit in the face and eye by a souvenir ball during a game in Anaheim.David Mermelstein, 55, attended the June 22 game at Angels Stadium with his friends in an effort to take his mind off recent personal tragedies: His father, a Holocaust survivor, had just died and he was diagnosed with brain cancer, according to the civil complaint.“Things went horribly wrong,” the complaint reads.After Juan Lagares — then an Angels outfielder — caught the third out of the top of the 6th inning, the Gold Glove winner “randomly hurled the ball into the stands at high velocity,” striking the unsuspecting Mermelstein on the left side of his face and eye, according to the complaint.The plaintiff, who was sitting in the outfield bleachers, had looked down for a moment to eat some peanuts and had “no reasonable expectation to be on guard for a baseball careening toward him at high speed,” according to the complaint. Mermelstein heard the crow...

Police seek hit-and-run driver who sent pedestrian flipping over car in Westlake

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:08 GMT

A man was seriously injured after he was hit by a car while crossing the street earlier this month, and the Los Angeles Police Department is hoping the public can help find the driver.Just before 8 p.m. on May 14, the unidentified Angeleno was crossing at 3rd Street and Westlake Avenue in the Westlake neighborhood of Los Angeles when he was struck from behind by a gray 2007-10 Toyota Camry, police said in a news release. Surveillance footage of the incident shows a speeding compact car strike the man, who then flips over the vehicle before crashing into the pavement. After hitting the man, the driver continued west on 3rd Street, then turned north onto Alvarado Street, police said. The man was taken to a local hospital with non-life-threatening, but still severe, injuries. He is expected to make a full recovery.A reward of up to $25,000 is available for information leading to the driver's identification, apprehension and conviction, or resolution through a civil compromise. If anyon...

Celebrating 16 Years of Qusqo And Milk Jar In Encino – Here’s What’s Popping Up

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:08 GMT

The women-owned Peruvian Qusqo Bistro and Gallery in West LA will celebrate 16 years on Friday, June 2, with a night of performances by local LA artists and  Dj Dooby Doo curated by host Arlee, as well as food and drink, RSVP for dinner recommended. Performances include Ashley Taylor, Detrell, Icy Tim, Naomi Renae, Irama and Juse MC. Just in time to celebrate the fifth anniversary of JAPAN HOUSE Los Angeles,  UKA, a new dining destination overlooking Hollywood, opens on Thursday, June 8, and will feature contemporary kaiseki dining — an ever-changing omakase menu of small plates will interpret kaiseki tradition by spotlighting fresh seasonal and interlocal ingredients.Led by chefs Yoshitaka Mitsue and Shingo Kato, UKA draws on their deep roots in Japanese and French fine dining restaurants worldwide, as well as previous roles as private chefs to the UN Ambassador for Japan in New York. Presented on artisan-made traditional tableware, UKA features a nine-course prix fixe menu with ce...