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Prep roundup: Washington-Fremont sends St. Francis to third straight baseball loss

Published Fri, 07 Feb 2025 11:15:49 GMT

BaseballWashington-Fremont opened the season with three losses in its first four games. St. Francis swept a doubleheader last week against Northern California powerhouse De La Salle.But baseball can be an unpredictable game, even in high school and especially this season.Thursday, the surprises continued as Washington traveled to Mountain View and thumped St. Francis 6-2 behind five scoreless innings from Brandon Valdovinos and two RBIs apiece from Mateo Torres and Mateo Valadez.The Huskies stretched their winning streak to four while improving to 9-5.St. Francis – ranked eighth by the Bay Area News Group – lost its third in a row since winning two against De La Salle and fell to 10-8.“It was huge,” said Washington coach Michael Sewell, who told his players afterward, “We have to build off this. Brandon Valdovinos was very solid for us tonight.”Washington never trailed.The Huskies scored a run in the first when Narayan Venkataramana singled to drive in Ezekie...

Evidence mounting that California sheriff’s detective illegally listened to attorney-client phone calls

Published Fri, 07 Feb 2025 11:15:49 GMT

Evidence is mounting in court documents that an Orange County sheriff’s detective illegally listened to at least five recorded calls between a jail inmate and an attorney — including calls in which the officer was warned by the lawyer not to listen.Recordings of the calls were included in a motion filed Wednesday, April 12, by Assistant Public Defender Scott Sanders in an unrelated drug case. Sanders is seeking the personnel records of newly promoted Sgt. Matthew LeFlore in that case.Sheriff’s spokesperson Carrie Braun said the department is examining Sanders’ motion to determine how to proceed.“The department takes any allegation of misconduct seriously,” Braun said. “We are reviewing the motion and are committed to investigating, if discovered, any instances of misconduct.”The conversations were among the nearly 34,000 attorney-client calls that were inadvertently recorded by the sheriff’s telephone vendor, GTL, now known as ViaPath Technologies. The breach was reported in 2018.Le...

Disneyland will hold first official gay Pride events in June

Published Fri, 07 Feb 2025 11:15:49 GMT

Disneyland announced Thursday, April 13 that it will hold its first officially sanctioned Pride Nite as an after-hours ticketed event.This is a departure for Disneyland Anaheim, which has allowed unofficial events such as the annual “Gay Days” celebration, but has never held an official event on its own.“I’m happy Disney is finally doing something, especially in the wake of what is going on in Florida,” said Eddie Shapiro, organizer of the annual unofficial Gay Days event in Anaheim.Shapiro was referring to a dispute in Florida between Disney and the governor, over HB 1557, a new law dubbed “Don’t Say Gay” that bans discussion of gay issues in public K-3 classrooms. After then-Disney CEO Bob Chapek criticized the proposed law, Gov. Ron DeSantis moved to assert control over the Reedy Creek Improvement District, which oversees land use and maintenance for Walt Disney World.The Anaheim Pride events are scheduled for 9 p.m. to 1 a.m. on June 13 and 15 as part of a series of “Disneyland ...

Live artillery round found on Northern California beach

Published Fri, 07 Feb 2025 11:15:49 GMT

EUREKA  — An old, live artillery round found buried in the sand on a Northern California beach was rendered safe, authorities said Thursday.Beachgoers with metal detectors found the ordnance Wednesday on Humboldt County’s Centerville Beach and contacted law enforcement, according to sheriff’s office statement.Related ArticlesCrime and Public Safety | What highly classified Pentagon documents did Air National Guardsman Jack Teixeira allegedly leak? Crime and Public Safety | North Korea fires missile that may have been new type of weapon Crime and Public Safety | Airstrikes kill at least 100 in Myanmar village Crime and Public Safety | Explosion in Russian cafe kills prominent military blogger Crime and Public Safety | Ukrainian official offers plan for a Crimea without Russia Explosive ordnance detail deputies determined the object was a “live antique military-grade artillery round,” the statement said.“A...

Left lane is the new slow lane on many streets: Roadshow

Published Fri, 07 Feb 2025 11:15:49 GMT

Q: When did the “passing lane” become the new slow lane? Consistently, when I drive westbound on Ygnacio Valley Drive into Walnut Creek, most vehicles are in the “passing lane”, then the center lane, with the slow lane usually wide open. Do people think they’ll get to where they’re going faster by clogging up and going slow in the passing lane? Or did the driving laws change and I missed it?Gerald Fogel, ConcordA: Yes, your observation is right about relative lane speeds now, on many city streets, and sometimes the freeway. The laws didn’t change, but drivers’ choices and behavior have. A few years ago, a traffic cop scolded me for saying there was no fast or slow lane on a wide city street, but I still disagree. So many people think the far left lane will be faster, and they just need to look around to see what the reality is, on that street, at that time.Now we’ll flip to another road that has gotten a lot of attention, only th...

Bay Area News Group girls athlete of the week: Aleena Helms, Amador Valley softball

Published Fri, 07 Feb 2025 11:15:49 GMT

Amador Valley softball player Aleena Helms is the Bay Area News Group’s high school girls athlete of the week for April 3-8 after she received 38.53% of the vote at the 5 p.m. deadline Wednesday.Archbishop Mitty softball player Ava Markert (27.12%) placed second and Prospect softball player Diana Noriega was third.Congratulations to all the candidates for this week’s recognition.Helms, a senior, drove in all three runs for the Dons in their upset over highly-ranked Archbishop Mitty, a team that had thrown perfect games in the previous two games. Helms’ single in the bottom of the third inning gave Amador Valley the lead. The Dons also defeated Carondelet and Livermore during the Livermore Stampede tournament.To nominate an athlete for next week’s poll, email [email protected] by Monday, April 17, at 11 a.m. Please include stats and team results.We also review stats submitted to MaxPreps.com by coaches/team statisticians for consideration.Winners are announced ea...

Spain: Court releases man charged with sending letter bombs

Published Fri, 07 Feb 2025 11:15:49 GMT

MADRID (AP) — A Spanish magistrate on Friday ordered the conditional release of a man charged with terrorism for sending six letters containing explosives to high-profile diplomatic and government targets. The National Court magistrate said Pompeyo González Pascual, 74, must appear in court each week, relinquish his passport and remain in Spain as conditions for getting and remaining out of jail. In deciding to release him, the court considered that González Pascual had no previous criminal record and found there was no indication he might commit more offenses. A date for his trial has not been set.González Pascual, a resident of the town of Miranda de Ebro in north-central Spain, was arrested in January for allegedly sending letter bombs to Spain’s prime minister and to the U.S. and Ukrainian embassies in Madrid late last year. An employee at the Ukrainian Embassy was slightly injured while handling one of the letters. Police said they found a bomb-making workshop at González Pascu...

JPMorgan Chase profits jump 52% amid banking turmoil

Published Fri, 07 Feb 2025 11:15:49 GMT

JPMorgan Chase & Co. posted a 52% jump in its first-quarter profits, helped by higher interest rates, which allowed the bank to charge customers more for loans. The bank saw deposits grow noticeably, as business and customers flocked to the banking titan after the failure of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank last month. With JPMorgan’s strong results, as well as solid results from Citigroup and Wells Fargo on Friday, there seem to be few signs of potential trouble in the banking system — at least among the nation’s biggest, most complex financial institutions. “These were the most watched bank earnings announcements in over a decade, with market participants scouring the results looking for signs of cracks in the US banking sector. Those analysts looking for signs of the banking crisis were greatly relieved to not find any,” said Octavio Marenzi, CEO of the consulting firm Opimas LLC, in an email. JPMorgan, the nation’s biggest bank by assets posted a prof...

DC Emancipation Day 2023: What’s open, what’s closed?

Published Fri, 07 Feb 2025 11:15:49 GMT

D.C. Emancipation Day celebrates the District of Columbia Compensated Emancipation Act of 1862, which ended slavery in the nation’s capital and freed 3,100 people.The law offered newly freed people money to emigrate and also provided financial reimbursement to others who had been slave owners.D.C. commemorates the act every April 16, which falls on a Sunday this year. As a result, many D.C. government agencies are observing the holiday on Monday, April 17.More DC NewsMore Local NewsMayor Muriel Bowser and members of her administration will begin four days of festivities on Friday, April 14.Here’s what’s closed and open and the road closures for D.C. Emancipation Day:What’s ClosedD.C. schools will be closed Monday, April 17.All of D.C.’s libraries are closed Sunday, April 16. On Monday, April 17, one library will be open in each of D.C.’s eight wards.The Department of Public Works will not collect trash or recycling on Monday, April 17. Instead, D....

Trump and Pence to speak at NRA convention in Indianapolis

Published Fri, 07 Feb 2025 11:15:49 GMT

Watch Video: Trump, Pence and other 2024 Republican presidential hopefuls to attend NRA conventionTwo-time running mates former President Donald Trump and former Vice President Mike Pence, who may soon be opponents for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, are speaking at the National Rifle Association’s annual meeting in Indianapolis on Friday.The NRA convention is not just a gathering for gun enthusiasts; it also attracts Republican presidential hopefuls who want to showcase their support for Second Amendment rights. The NRA endorsed Trump during its 2016 annual convention.Pence hasn’t yet announced whether he will seek the presidency, but he has been visiting early-voting primary states, while Trump, the first major candidate in the race, and his allies insist the voters are already lined up to support him. Former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson, who recently declared he’s running for president, is making an appearance at the convention. Florida Gov. Ron De...