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Teen sentenced to 7 years in prison for deadly Lakewood arson

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:44:00 GMT

One of the two teenagers convicted of murder in a deadly Halloween 2022 apartment fire has been sentenced to seven years.Lakewood police in November 2022 arrested a 14-year-old and a 12-year-old in the fire that killed 31-year-old Kathleen Payton and her 10-year-old daughter Jazmine Payton-Aguayo, injured ten other people and displaced everyone in the 32 units of the Ashley Square Apartments, 935 Sheridan Blvd.The 14-year-old, now 15, pleaded guilty in July to two counts of first-degree murder, first-degree arson and assault charges.He was sentenced Tuesday to seven years in the Colorado Department of Human Services Division of Youth Service with 113 days of pre-sentence confinement credit, according to a news release from the First Judicial District Attorney’s Office.The other teen has a status hearing Oct. 16.

Airbnb renter stays at Brentwood home for more than a year without paying

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:44:00 GMT

It's sometimes said that uninvited guests are most welcome when they leave, but Brentwood resident Sascha Jovanovic wouldn't know from personal experience. Instead, as he detailed to the Los Angeles Times, a one-time Airbnb tenant has remained on his property for over a year, refusing to either leave or pay."When Elizabeth Hirschhorn’s Airbnb stay ended in April 2022, she simply didn’t move out. She’s been living there rent-free ever since, and she refused to budge unless Jovanovic paid her a relocation fee of $100,000," the Times reports.Hirschhorn's attorney told the Times that "she was not required to pay rent because the city had never approved the unit for occupancy and that its shower was constructed without a permit."Because of those code violations, the city determined that Jovanovic couldn't evict Hirschhorn, whom he claims won't let him into the unit to bring it up to code.“She’s the tenant from hell,” Sebastian Rucci, an attorney representing Jovanovic, told the Times. “I...

Powerball players flocking to 'lucky' Los Angeles minimarket

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:44:00 GMT

With the Powerball jackpot climbing to over $1 billion, players not only from California but from surrounding states have been arriving in droves to buy tickets from one "lucky" minimarket in downtown Los Angeles' Fashion District.Two and a half months ago, a customer at Las Palmitas Mini Market bought the only ticket in the country to hit a $1.08 billion jackpot. Powerball jackpot up to $1.4 billion after no one matches all the numbers The person who purchased the winning ticket at Maria Menjivar’s store is the last to win the Powerball main prize, which, like Menjivar's business, has been growing ever since. “My business has increased over 40 percent,” she told the California Lottery. “Not only am I selling more lottery tickets, people are buying other items in my store when they come in.”Whenever a store sells the winning ticket to a big jackpot, "that store suddenly becomes the lucky place," the California Lottery stated in a report. Two Powerball tickets worth over $1 mil...

CA workers will get 5 sick days instead of 3 under law signed by Gov. Newsom

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:44:00 GMT

Workers in California will soon receive a minimum of five days of paid sick leave annually, instead of three, under a new law Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Wednesday.The law, which takes effect in January, also increases the amount of sick leave workers can carry over into the following year. Newsom said it demonstrates that prioritizing the health and well-being of workers “is of the utmost importance for California’s future."“Too many folks are still having to choose between skipping a day’s pay and taking care of themselves or their family members when they get sick,” Newsom said in a statement announcing his action.It was one of more than a dozen bills the Democratic governor signed Wednesday. He has until mid-October to act on all the legislation sent to him this year. He can sign, veto or let bills become law without his signature.Beyond preventing workers from choosing between taking a day off or getting paid, proponents of the sick day legislation argue it will help curb the spre...

Biden administration pivots on border wall, allows construction in Texas

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:44:00 GMT

(The Hill) -- The Biden administration announced Wednesday that 26 federal laws were waived to allow border wall construction in Texas, marking the administration's first use of an executive power often used by former President Donald Trump to fund projects along the southern border. The waived laws will help expedite the construction of barriers and roads in Starr County, Texas, which is experiencing "high illegal entry," the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said in a statement posted to the U.S. Federal Registry. The U.S. Border Patrol saw more than 245,000 people in the last fiscal year try to enter the United States in the Rio Grande Valley Sector, the DHS said, citing data from August.“There is presently an acute and immediate need to construct physical barriers and roads in the vicinity of the border of the United States in order to prevent unlawful entries into the United States in the project areas,” DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said in the statement. Some of the wa...

CIF state football championships: Why NorCal isn’t hosting any games

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:44:00 GMT

The California Interscholastic Federation is ready for a football test drive.It’s not sure how smooth things will go and won’t have all the specifics for several weeks. It just knows that it will be different than any of its other state football championships since the format expanded to numerous divisions in 2015.For the first time since expansion, all divisions (15 now) will be played at three neutral venues, which the CIF’s federated council approved last spring.Tuesday, the CIF announced the sites for the games: Saddleback College in Mission Viejo, which played host to the upper-division games the past two seasons, El Camino College in Torrence and Pasadena City College.The North won’t have any games this season.Brian Seymour, the CIF’s associate executive director, told the Bay Area News Group on Wednesday that the agreement with the three Southern California community colleges is for one season.“This is the jumping-off stage,” Seymour said. “We’re trying something new. We are ...

Google takes on Apple with Pixel 8 that’s more like the iPhone

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:44:00 GMT

By Mark Gurman and Vlad Savov | BloombergGoogle is looking to challenge Apple Inc. head-on with new Pixel phones that are more iPhone-like than ever before.This year’s Pixel 8 and 8 Pro are closer in price to Apple’s counterparts, have similar flat-edged screens and can make payments with face identification. Alphabet Inc.’s Google introduced its new lineup Wednesday — including fresh watches and earbuds — and raised the starting price of its phones by $100 each.The Pixel 8 Pro matches the iPhone 15 Pro at $999, while the Pixel 8 costs the same as the iPhone 14 at $699. The new prices reflect the upgraded displays and cameras used in the latest devices, which are still “punching above our weight class,” according to Google product manager Patrick Hennessey, suggesting that consumers are getting more for their money.The Pixel rollout is Google’s latest attempt to make a dent in the market. Though its Android operating system runs the majority of the world’s smartphones, the company’s...

Live updates: Sen. Dianne Feinstein's memorial service Thursday

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:44:00 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) -- A memorial service for the late U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein is to be held on the front steps of San Francisco City Hall on Thursday, in the city where she served as its first female mayor. The service is scheduled to start at 1 p.m., and several dignitaries and notable people will speak.The memorial will not be open to members of the public after Sen. Feinstein’s office previously said it would be. The service will be broadcast live on KRON4 and streamed on KRON On Thursday at 1 p.m. with special coverage beginning at noon.Speakers at Sen. Feinstein’s memorial service include:U.S. President Joe Biden (recorded)U.S. Vice President Kamala HarrisSan Francisco Mayor London BreedU.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck SchumerU.S. House Speaker Emerita Nancy PelosiEileen Mariano (Sen. Feinstein’s granddaughter)Former President Bill Clinton is expected to be in attendance as well as California Governor Gavin Newsom.Sen. Feinstein will be buried at a private, family-only...

No. 13 Washington State looks to continue momentum with key Pac-12 contest at UCLA

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:44:00 GMT

No. 13 Washington State (4-0, 1-0 Pac-12) at UCLA (3-1, 0-1), Saturday, 3 p.m. ET (Pac-12 Network)Line: UCLA by 3 1/2, according to FanDuel Sportsbook. Series record: UCLA leads 41-20-1.WHAT’S AT STAKE?Both teams are coming off their bye week, but in different straits. After a 38-35 win over Oregon State, Washington State is one of four teams in the Pac-12 that remain unbeaten and has the nation’s second-ranked passing offense. UCLA is trying to bounce back after a loss at Utah on Sept. 22 when it didn’t score until late in the fourth quarter. This is the first time the Cougars and Bruins have met since their 2019 meeting in Pullman, Washington, which remains one of the craziest games in Pac-12 history. UCLA trailed 49-17 in the third quarter before it outscored Washington State 50-14 in the final 19 minutes. Demetric Felton caught a 15 yard TD pass from Dorian Thompson-Robinson with 67 seconds remaining to give the Bruins a 67-63 victory.KEY MATCHUPWashington State̵...

Oprah Winfrey gives $2.5M to Silver Spring-based U.S. Dream Academy

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:44:00 GMT

Oprah Winfrey announced the $2.5 million gift via video message at the group’s annual “Power of a Dream” event on Oct. 2, 2023. (Courtesy U.S. Dream Academy)Silver Spring, Maryland-based The U.S. Dream Academy, a nonprofit that supports the children of incarcerated parents, received a surprise donation of $2.5 million this week from Oprah Winfrey.Winfrey announced the gift via video message at the group’s annual “Power of a Dream” event in honor of the charity’s 25th anniversary. The Gala took place Oct. 2 at the Museum of the Bible in D.C.“Education is one of the forces that helped me be who I am in the world today. I am a believer in helping children be the best that the can be, as the Academy has done for a quarter of a century,” Winfrey said.The academy set a fundraising goal from its supporters of $1 million this year, bringing the total to $3.5 million with the addition of Winfrey’s gift.Winfrey has donated a total of $10 million through the years to th...