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No. 1 North Central football eyes 30th straight win, third Stagg Bowl championship 

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:43:12 GMT

NAPERVILLE, Ill. — Top ranked North Central College football found itself in an unfamiliar situation during Saturday’s national semifinal — for the first time all season, they trailed in a game. “The massage was to keep swinging,” said junior quarterback Luke Lehnen. “We had a stretch there where we had like five three-and-outs in a row, obviously you don’t want that as an offense. But the big interception from Zack Orr really helped our confidence, and we were like okay the defense is getting stops for us we got to go out there and respond because we hadn’t responded the entire third quarter.” The Cardinals fourth quarter deficit wasn’t for long. Joe Sacco’s touchdown run in the final 6 minutes put NCC back in front, and two huge defensive stops helped close out their 34-27 win at Wartburg and a trip to a 4th straight Stagg Bowl Friday night in Salem, Virginia against Cortland.  “Really fortunate to be a part of [the Stagg Bowl] four times,” said head coach Brad Spencer. ...

Luke Combs helping a fan who nearly owed $250K for selling unauthorized merchandise

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:43:12 GMT

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Country singer Luke Combs is making amends to a disabled Florida woman who sells tumblers online after she was ordered to pay him $250,000 when she got snared in a crackdown his lawyers launched against companies that sell unauthorized merchandise with his image or name on it.Combs in an Instagram video posted Wednesday said he told his attorneys to remove Nicol Harness from a lawsuit they filed in an Illinois federal court and that he was sending her $11,000. She had sold on Amazon 18 tumblers she had made with his name and likeness for $20 each, grossing $360.The singer, who recently topped the country charts with his remake of Tracy Chapman's “Fast Car,” also said he would start selling his own tumbler with the proceeds going to pay Harness' medical bills — she has heart disease and was recently hospitalized. He also said he would fly Harness and her family to an upcoming concert so he could meet her. Nearly half of teens say they are online ‘almost...

Woman accused of hiring man to kill estranged wife's family in Pennsylvania

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:43:12 GMT

BEDFORD COUNTY, Pa. (WTAJ) -- A Pennsylvania woman is accused of hiring a man to burn down a house where her estranged wife was staying with family. Heather Ann Dibert, 43, of Duncansville, is facing 32 felony charges and seven misdemeanors for allegedly hiring 34-year-old Zachery Sellers to burn down the home her estranged wife was staying at with five others.According to a criminal complaint filed by Pennsylvania State Police Wednesday, Dibert allegedly gave Sellers money and drugs to come to Napier Township and burn down the home just after midnight on Oct. 28. Police said while this was happening, Dibert was setting up an alibi by traveling to a strip club in West Virginia. Detectives said that they were able to track both Dibert and Sellers via their phone locations the 24 hours leading up to the arson and into the next morning. Woman gets 70 years in prison for killing two bicyclists in Michigan charity ride According to the complaint, Dibert had ventured to the area of her...

Project Connect explores how to remove mass transit pinch points in light rail design

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:43:12 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- With Austin Transit Partnership advancing environmental and design work on the city's upcoming light rail system, project heads spoke Wednesday about how they're using specialty technology to see the transit experience through the eyes of its users.KXAN spoke with ATP last month about specialty tech eyeglasses employed to help track users' journeys through Austin's current mass transit system. ATP worked with 14 volunteers from a range of backgrounds and user experiences to track biometric sensors, such as the number of steps they took accessing transit, where their eyes looked during the process as well as their heart rate, body temperature and perspiration levels.The Austin Transit Partnership utilized specialty tech glasses that help track different biometric sensors, including how many steps users take while using mass transit, where their eyes look while accessing bus or rail services as well as their body temperature, heart rate and perspiration. (KXAN Photo/T...

St. Paul shooting leaves man dead on University Avenue; suspect quickly caught by police

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:43:12 GMT

A shooting in St. Paul’s Summit-University area left a man dead Wednesday afternoon.Officers responded to the 400 block of West University Avenue just before 3 p.m. when a 911 caller reported hearing shots fired and seeing someone lying on the ground. Police found a man with apparent gunshot wounds on the southwest corner of University Avenue and Arundel Street, said Sgt. Mike Ernster a police spokesman.Paramedics took the man to Regions Hospital, where he died a short time later.A police sergeant was on patrol in the area and, “immediately after the shooting, he witnessed a possible suspect run from the area of the crime,” Ernster said. The sergeant stopped the man and took him into custody. After further investigation, he was brought to police headquarters to be interviewed by investigators, according to Ernster.Investigators are working to determine the circumstances of the shooting.The Ramsey County medical examiner’s office will confirm the identity of t...

Senate passes mammoth annual defense policy bill

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:43:12 GMT

The Senate on Wednesday passed the annual defense policy bill, a compromise $886 billion package that lays out how the Pentagon will be funded through the next fiscal year.  The vote to approve the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) was 87-13.House lawmakers will next take up the legislation. The bill faces resistance in the House from far-right lawmakers who are opposed to the package, in part because it fails to include House-passed provisions to rid the Pentagon of what they say are “woke” policies.In addition to keeping the Defense Department's programs and policies funded, the defense bill will authorize tens of billions of dollars for aircraft and ships and give a historic 5.2 percent pay raise to troops.The NDAA also eyes bolstering U.S. national security abroad, with $11.5 billion slated to deter China in the Indo-Pacific region and another $800 million to support Ukraine.  Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) on Wednesday urged senators to pass the...

Facebook video shows person forced into van in Aurora on Wednesday

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:43:12 GMT

A video of a person being forced into a white van in Aurora on Wednesday morning was shared thousands of times on social media, prompting Aurora police to ask for help from the public in finding out more information.The video appears to show at least four people forcing someone into a white van with tinted windows before closing the door, according to a post shared by the Aurora Police Department on X.Related ArticlesCrime and Public Safety | Burglaries at over 40 Denver-area marijuana dispensaries lead to charges for members of two organized crime groups Crime and Public Safety | Family alleges UCHealth cut off Indigenous patient’s hair, then lied about it Crime and Public Safety | 1 killed, 2 hospitalized in fatal Aurora crash Sunday night Crime and Public Safety | Motorcyclist hit twice and killed in overnight crash in west Aurora Sunday Crime and Public Safety | 3 hospitalized in overnight Aurora sh...

Family of girl, 12, raped by home intruder in Culver City speaks out

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:43:12 GMT

While police search for the dangerous predator, the family of a 12-year-old girl who was sexually assaulted in her own bedroom by a home intruder earlier this month is speaking out and asking for the public’s help to identify the man.  The incident, according to a news release from the Culver City Police Department, occurred on Dec. 2.  The adult male suspect allegedly entered the residence at around 2-3 a.m., assaulted the victim and left the residence approximately four to five hours later, at around 7 a.m., on foot.   The young girl’s parents, who only wanted to be identified by their first names, were alerted to the assault after their daughter woke them up.  “She came to wake me up and just straight out said, ‘Mom, I need to call the police,’” Alexis, the victim’s mother, told KTLA’s Kimberly Cheng.  Alexis added that the family is devastated and in disbelief that this happened to their daughter, especially in the safety of their own...

Procession honors Southern California Air Force major killed in Osprey crash

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:43:12 GMT

Loved ones gathered for a final salute to an Air Force major killed in an Osprey crash in Japan.The Nov. 29 airplane crash killed eight service members in Yakushima Island, including U.S. Air Force Maj. Luke A. Unrath, 34, a Southern California native.A procession to honor Unrath took place Wednesday from the Los Angeles International Airport to a mortuary in his hometown of Riverside.A flag-draped casket was unloaded from an aircraft and placed into a hearse as a long line of servicemembers stood at attention.Community members and residents were also seen lining the streets in solidarity.“They need all the support we can give them right now.,” said Sue Holley, a Riverside resident. “He deserves all the respect I can give him and just by standing here is my way of giving my respect to the man.”U.S. Air Force Major Luke Unrath, 34, was one of eight U.S. military service members killed in an Osprey crash on Nov. 29, 2023. (Unrath Family)U.S. Air Force Major Luke Unrath, 34, was one of...

School janitor accused of molesting students acquitted on all charges

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:43:12 GMT

A man who worked as a school janitor and was accused of molesting multiple students has been released from custody after he was acquitted on all charges.Pedro Martinez, 50, of Hesperia, was arrested by San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department deputies in January 2019 on allegations that he molested a 6-year-old boy at Maple Elementary School where he worked.At the time of his arrest, investigators said they found additional victims who corroborated the first victim's claim. They also said there may be other victims who had not yet come forward.Martinez was ultimately charged with 11 counts of child sex abuse, and he was held in custody since his arrest. His trial, which was delayed multiple times due to the COVID-19 pandemic and on request by the San Bernardino County District Attorney's Office, began in August.The trial was held in the Joshua Tree District over the course of more than three months. On Monday, nearly five years after his arrest, Martinez was acquitted on 10 of the...