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Judge suggests change to nitrogen execution to let inmate pray and say final words without gas mask

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:05:59 GMT

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — A federal judge who is weighing whether to allow the nation’s first execution by nitrogen hypoxia to go forward next month, urged Alabama on Thursday to change procedures so the inmate can pray and say his final words before the gas mask is placed on his face.U.S. District Judge R. Austin Huffaker made the suggestion in a court order setting a Dec. 29 deadline to submit information before he rules on the inmate’s request to block the execution. The judge made similar comments the day prior at the conclusion of a court hearing.Alabama is scheduled to execute Kenneth Eugene Smith on Jan. 25 in what would be the nation’s first execution using nitrogen gas. Nitrogen hypoxia is authorized as an execution method in Alabama, Mississippi and Oklahoma but has never been used to put an inmate to death.The proposed execution method would use a gas mask, placed over Smith’s nose and mouth, to replace breathable air with nitrogen, causing Smith to die from lack of oxygen....

Eby to target predators after talking to dad of sextortion victim Carson Cleland, 12

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:05:59 GMT

VICTORIA — Premier David Eby says an emotional conversation with the father of a 12-year-old British Columbia boy who killed himself after falling prey to online sextortion has prompted him to push for more protections for youth.Eby says the New Democrat government plans changes in the new year honouring the memory of Carson Cleland of Prince George, who police said died in October after being victimized online.The premier says he spoke with Carson’s father who told him that since their son’s death, the family has been contacted by the families of three of his classmates, who said their children were also talking online with strangers.Eby says people from across B.C. have been contacting his office saying their children were in situations similar to Carson’s and they only found out due to publicity surrounding the boy’s death.He says Carson’s family are facing devastating loss this holiday season but demonstrated remarkable courage by going public with ...

Dispute over criminal jurisdiction flares in Oklahoma between tribal police, jailers

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:05:59 GMT

OKMULGEE, Okla. (AP) — A dispute erupted this week between police officers from the Muscogee Nation and jailers in a small eastern Oklahoma county that led to one jailer facing a battery charge in tribal court.The confrontation underscores the tension between tribal authorities and some state and county officials over the limits of tribal sovereignty. Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt has been a frequent critic of expanded tribal sovereignty and of the landmark 2020 U.S. Supreme Court decision that determined state prosecutors lack criminal jurisdiction over certain crimes committed in Indian Country.The latest altercation began Monday when tribal police attempted to deliver a man arrested for suspected fentanyl possession to the Okmulgee County jail. Jailers refused to accept the prisoner, and a scuffle broke out between a jailer and a tribal officer. The jailer was charged Wednesday in tribal court with battery, and a warrant was issued for his arrest. Okmulgee County jail officials did...

Cardinal Capital Management joins calls for Chamandy to return as Gildan CEO

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:05:59 GMT

WINNIPEG — Another shareholder of Gildan Activewear Inc. has joined calls for the company to reinstate Glenn Chamandy as CEO. In a letter to the apparel company’s board, Cardinal Capital Management says it was shocked when the board decided to terminate Chamandy earlier this month. Chamandy was terminated without cause after four decades with the company he co-founded. Cardinal, which joins several other firms in its call for Chamandy’s return, says it’s concerned about the credibility of the board’s narrative. Gildan didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment, but earlier this week said its plan to replace Chamandy was a careful and deliberate process. Cardinal’s letter states that 35 per cent of company shareholders have publicly stated they want Chamandy back, while only six per cent support the board’s decision.This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 21, 2023.Companies in this story: (TSX:GIL)The Canadian Press

Man who led police on crash-filled escape run in stolen U-Haul now facing dozens of charges

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:05:59 GMT

A Toronto man is facing three dozen charges after leading police on a crash-filled escape run in a stolen U-Haul truck through the east end of the GTA on Wednesday.Toronto police say they were in the area of Danforth and Wolfe Avenues searching for 47-year-old Jim Dimce Kaluzovski, one of four suspects wanted in a Dec. 8 brazen daytime robbery at a Scarborough electronics store in which an off-duty police officer was stabbed.Investigators say they saw Kaluzovski driving the stolen cube van and attempted to stop the vehicle. Kaluzovski refused and “purposely accelerated into two police vehicles,” with one police officer suffering minor injuries in the process. Police say Kaluzovski then struck other vehicles as he fled the scene with another man inside the truck. It was later learned that the second man had been abducted at gunpoint earlier in the day and forced into the vehicle.Police say they continued to follow the stolen truck “at a safe distance” while al...

New York bill could interfere with Chick-fil-A’s long-standing policy to close Sundays

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:05:59 GMT

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — New York lawmakers have introduced a bill that would require restaurants in state highway system rest areas to operate seven days a week, a measure apparently aimed at interfering with a policy at the fast food chain Chick-fil-A of staying closed on Sundays.The bill, introduced last week, is yet another salvo in a yearslong political battle involving the company, whose late founder Truett Cathy infused its business practices with his conservative Christian values.Loved by many for its chicken sandwiches, but disliked by others over its founder’s opposition to same-sex marriage, Chick-fil-A has always kept its locations closed on Sundays so employees can enjoy time with their families and “worship if they choose,” according to the company’s website.While the bill, if passed, would apply to all restaurants, Chick-fil-A is mentioned by name in some written legislative materials explaining the justification for the proposed law.State Assemblymember Tony Simone,...

Cristina Pacheco, foremost chronicler of street life in Mexico for half a century, has died at 82

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:05:59 GMT

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Cristina Pacheco, the foremost chronicler of street life in Mexico City for half a century, died Thursday at 82.With her newspaper column and television shows, Pacheco shed light on the common, unsung heroes who kept Mexico’s economy and culture alive.Pacheco was most often seen walking the streets of Mexico City, conducting animated interviews with craftspeople, street vendors, merchants, musicians and people from all walks of life. “With more than 50 years in the world of journalism, Cristina Pacheco was close to her people and to each and every story she heard on the streets of Mexico,” according to an announcement by her show, “Talking with Cristina,” which confirmed her death.Her daughter, Laura Emilia Pacheco, also confirmed the death, but did not specify a cause. Pacheco was married to Mexican writer José Emilio Pacheco, who died in 2014.Pacheco had taken a leave from her television show earlier this month, citing “health reasons, serious health reasons,” w...

Former Colorado funeral home operator gets probation for mixing cremated human remains

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:05:59 GMT

FRISCO, Colo. (AP) — The former owner of two central Colorado funeral homes has been sentenced to a year of probation after pleading guilty to charges that her funeral home included the cremated remains of an adult when it gave the ashes of a stillborn boy to his parents in December 2019.Staci Kent was also fined $5,000 when she was sentenced earlier this month, the Summit Daily reported.Kent and her husband, former Lake County Coroner Shannon Kent, were charged with unlawful acts of cremation related to their funeral home in Leadville. They also owned a funeral home in Silverthorne.Staci Kent pleaded guilty to one count of unlawful cremation, and a second count was dismissed. She also pleaded guilty to violating the mortuary consumer protection law. Prosecutors dismissed a charge of abuse of a corpse and a charge of violating a law that describes how funeral homes must care for bodies.Shannon Kent pleaded guilty to two counts of unlawful cremation in December 2022 and was sentenced...

Man accused of attacking Muslim lawmaker in Connecticut ordered to undergo psych exam

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:05:59 GMT

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — A man accused of attacking a Connecticut state representative outside a Muslim prayer service was ordered Thursday to undergo a mental competency evaluation.Andrey Desmond, 30, appeared in Superior Court on several charges, including attempted sexual assault in the June attack on state Rep. Maryam Khan, who was attending a service at Hartford’s XL Center with her family marking Eid al-Adha, the end of the Hajj, the annual pilgrimage by Muslims to Mecca.Court records show that Desmond, who was living in New Britain, has a history of mental illness. The New York Times reported that he had been placed under intensive monitoring three years ago in New York after being diagnosed with schizophrenia.Desmond’s public defender, John Stawicki, asked for the mental health evaluation, saying he does not believe his client understands what is happening and could assist in his own defense. Desmond is scheduled to return to court on Feb. 1 following the exam.Khan...

THINGS TO KNOW: Deadline looms for new map in embattled North Dakota redistricting lawsuit

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:05:59 GMT

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — The clock is running out on a Friday deadline for North Dakota’s Republican-controlled Legislature to draw new legislative boundaries compliant with the Voting Rights Act for two Native American tribes who successfully sued for new lines.It’s unclear what will happen next, with the 2024 election calendar looming and a flurry of legal filings in recent days.A federal judge last month ruled that the state’s 2021 redistricting map violates the landmark 1965 civil rights law in diluting the strength of Native American voters. He gave the secretary of state and lawmakers five weeks, ending Friday, “to adopt a plan to remedy the violation.”Secretary of State Michael Howe is appealing the decision. The Legislature’s Redistricting Committee began meeting this month to address the ruling and review options of maps. Requests to delay the ruling or extend the deadline have so far been unsuccessful.WHAT IS THE CASE? The Turtle Mountain Band of...