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At least 10 dead after explosion in Dominican Republic

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:31:50 GMT

(CNN) — At least 10 people died and 37 more were injured in an explosion in the Dominican Republic on Monday, according to the office of President Luis Abinader.A further 11 people are missing following the blast, which occurred in the town of San Cristobal in the south of the country, the president’s office said in a statement Tuesday.More than two dozen rescue units responded to the explosion, and the injured were taken to various hospitals. The cause of the explosion has not been established, added the statement.In remarks from the National Palace on Monday, President Luis Abinader expressed his concern for the situation and said he is closely following events, state broadcaster RTVD’s Central 4 Noticias reported.

Massachusetts cops seize more than 4 pounds of cocaine from Springfield operation, police say

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:31:50 GMT

State and local police seized more than two kilograms of cocaine on Friday during searches of three locations in Springfield and South Hadley following an investigation by the Massachusetts State Police Commonwealth Interstate Narcotics Reduction Enforcement Team and U.S. Homeland Security Investigations.During the raid, authorities arrested Jarrell Smith, 28, of Springfield, on Haig Avenue in South Hadley on charges of trafficking cocaine and conspiracy to violate narcotics laws, to which he pleaded not guilty at his arraignment at Belchertown District Court.A Massachusetts State Police statement adds that a search of Smith’s Arthur Street home turned up about 160 grams, which is about a third of a pound, of suspected cocaine and two handguns, one with a fully loaded 30-round extended magazine and a laser sight. The police say that Smith is not licensed for any guns.Dorchester woman pleads guilty to rental fraudAs if rents weren’t too high already in Boston, a Dorchester woman has ...

Trump’s legal woes in Georgia may be one indictment too far for voters, pollster says

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:31:50 GMT

Of all the legal complications facing Donald Trump, state level felony charges may be the most damaging to his campaign, according to the director of UMass Lowell’s polling center.Trump, late Monday, was named along with 18 co-conspirators in a nearly 100-page, 41-count indictment detailing their alleged violations of Georgia’s Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations, or RICO laws. The 45th President of the United States will be required to surrender himself to law enforcement authorities in Georgia by next Friday.While it may seem like just another drop in an ocean of legal allegations against the former commander-in-chief, the case in the Peach State will bring the sort attention that Donald Trump needed to avoid if he wants to win the state this time around, according to John Cluverius, a political scientist and polling expert with the University of Massachusetts Lowell.“It creates real electoral trouble for Donald Trump beyond a normal legal entanglement or scandal, becau...

Yankees Notebook: Baserunning blunders have been piling up

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:31:50 GMT

ATLANTA — With the Yankees down, 8-2, on Monday, Harrison Bader made the final out of the sixth inning when Braves starter Max Fried picked him off of first base.The Yankees challenged the call, but replay review didn’t spare them from an inexcusable out.“You just can’t get picked off there,” Bader said, echoing a sentiment shared by Aaron Boone after the Yankees’ 11-3 loss. “I take full responsibility for that.”While Bader showed accountability for the gaffe, he also said that the left-handed Fried has a “balk move.” Asked if he thought Fried balked on the play, Bader said, “I don’t know. I think it’s the same thing you can say about balls or strikes or a balk move or no balk move. It’s what the umpires call and that’s the standard.“Regardless of the situation, the umpires’ calls are the calls, and I have to be able to adjust accordingly to that. I knew how good his move was going ...

DeSantis passes on Trump criticism, blames ‘weaponization’ of justice for charges

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:31:50 GMT

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Tuesday declined to criticize his opponent former President Donald Trump over his most recent legal woes, instead choosing to take the opportunity to attack the justice system.Florida’s governor, who is currently polling 40-points or more behind the 45th President in the race for their party’s nomination, held an invite only press call with some members of the New England media on Tuesday, just hours after the nation learned the former president would face a fourth felony indictment.DeSantis seemed to suggest that prosecutors in Georgia had other matters to attend to, other than holding his chief rival to account for asking the Secretary of State there to “find” him over 11,000 votes.“Atlanta has huge problems with crime right now and there has been an approach to crime which has been less than exacting,” DeSantis said. “I think there have been criminals that have been let out that shouldn’t have been let out.“And so t...

Flash Flood Warning in effect for parts of East County

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:31:50 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- A Flash Flood Warning has been issued Tuesday for east central San Diego County, weather officials said.The warning is in effect until 6:15 p.m. for parts of East County including Julian, according to National Weather Service San Diego.A Flash Flood Warning released by National Weather Service San Diego on Aug. 15, 2023. (NWS San Diego) Coronado Bridge reopens following closure from police activity Around 4:15 p.m., the doppler radar alerted officials about thunderstorms producing heavy rain across the warned area.NWS San Diego advises travelers to not drive on flooded roads and remain alert for flooding even in locations not receiving rain.Check back for updates on this developing story.

North Korea asserts US soldier bolted into North after being disillusioned with American society

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:31:50 GMT

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korea asserted Wednesday that a U.S. soldier who bolted into the North across the heavily armed Korean border last month did so after being disillusioned with the inequality of American society and racial discrimination in its Army.It’s North Korea’s first official confirmation of detention of Private 2nd Class Travis King, who entered the North while on a civilian tour of a Korean border village on July 18. He became the first American detained in the North in nearly five years.The North Korean official news agency, KCNA, said King told investigators that he had decided to enter North Korea because he “harbored ill feelings against inhuman mistreatment and racial discrimination within the U.S. Army.”It said King also expressed his willingness to seek refuge in North Korea or a third country, saying he “was disillusioned at the unequal American society.”KCNA is a propaganda arm of North Korea’s dictatorship and often releases statements an...

Death toll rises to 11 in powerful explosion near the Dominican Republic’s capital; 10 still missing

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:31:50 GMT

SAN CRISTOBAL, Dominican Republic (AP) — The death toll from a powerful explosion near the Dominican Republic’s capital rose to 11 on Tuesday, with dozens injured. Firefighters were searching through smoldering rubble as people gathered outside hospitals, looking for missing loved ones.President Luis Abinader visited San Cristobal, located just west of Santo Domingo, to meet with those affected. Authorities said an additional 10 people were missing and that authorities were still trying to extinguish the fire amid collapsed buildings and charred vehicles.“The search for survivors has been very difficult,” Abinader said.Juan Manuel Méndez, director of the Emergency Operations Center, said at a press conference Tuesday night that authorities had found the remains of unidentified people inside one building but were waiting on forensics to determine the number of bodies.Monday’s explosion also left more than 50 people injured as the blast tore through a bustling commercial c...

Judge calls new Texas election law unconstitutional but state says it will appeal ruling

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:31:50 GMT

HOUSTON (AP) — A judge has called a new law unconstitutional that passed in the GOP-led Texas Legislature and will dictate how elections are run in the state’s most populous county, which is a Democratic stronghold and home to Houston.The law, which would abolish a position that oversees elections in Harris County, was temporarily blocked by state District Judge Karin Crump in Austin after county officials filed a lawsuit earlier this month.But the judge’s order, issued Monday, was short-lived. It was put on hold on Tuesday after the Texas Attorney General’s Office filed a notice that it will appeal to the Texas Supreme Court. The new law, set to take effect Sept. 1, was pushed through by Republican lawmakers who accused Harris County officials of mismanaging recent elections. Democrats accused Republicans of singling out the county because, like other large urban areas around the state, it has increasingly voted Democratic.In a statement, the Texas Attorney General’s Office said th...

Georgia case against Trump presents problems from the start, from jury selection to a big courtroom

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:31:50 GMT

ATLANTA (AP) — Putting 19 people on trial at the same time is a difficult assignment for any prosecutor — whether or not one of those defendants is a former president of the United States running to reclaim his old office.The sprawling racketeering indictment returned this week by a grand jury in Atlanta presents a wide range of challenges. A big one is political: Finding jurors who don’t have unshakeable opinions about Donald Trump and others in his orbit.Beyond that, with so many defendants, prosecutors and defense lawyers will labor to keep the names and conflicting stories straight for those jurors over weeks or months. There will be countless legal details and basic logistics to argue or work out — even down to finding a courtroom big enough to fit everyone.In an early example of the lengthy litigation ahead, lawyers for former Trump chief of staff Mark Meadows filed a quick motion Tuesday to transfer the case from state to federal court. They said all the actions he took were ...