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Endangered red wolf can make it in the wild, but not without `significant’ help, study says

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:37:10 GMT

WAKE FOREST, N.C. (AP) — The endangered red wolf can survive in the wild, but only with “significant additional management intervention,” according to a long-awaited population viability analysis released Friday.The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service also released an updated recovery plan Friday for “Canis rufus” — the only wolf species unique to the United States. It calls for spending nearly $328 million over the next 50 years to get the red wolf off the endangered species list.“This final revised recovery plan will help the conservation and survival of the Red Wolf, ensuring these endangered canids endure in the wild for future generations,” Interior Department Assistant Secretary for Fish and Wildlife and Parks Shannon Estenoz said in a news release. But the announcement comes with a lot of caveats. The viability analysis says it will take drastic reductions in gunshot and vehicle deaths, stepped-up efforts to prevent wolf-coyote mixing, and creative methods to increase reprod...

Chicago man accused of sexually assaulting 2 women captured in Oregon after manhunt

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:37:10 GMT

CHICAGO — A Chicago man accused of sexual assault, robbery and escaping from electronic monitoring is in custody after he was tracked down in Oregon, according to the Cook County Sheriff’s Office.Authorities say 34-year-old Rene Chandler, who is accused of sexually assaulting two women in Chicago in 2018, was taken into custody in Portland, Oregon, on Wednesday after he was tracked down by the Cook County Sheriff’s Fugitive Apprehension Unit. ‘We are all in shock’: 3 dead after being found unresponsive in Edgewater apartment According to authorities, there were four arrest warrants out for Chandler. Two were connected to alleged sexual assaults in 2018, a third was in connection to a robbery charge in 2019 and a fourth warrant stemmed from an alleged escape from electronic monitoring in 2020.Authorities say Chandler used several fake names, IDs and social security numbers to evade capture by police. Girl, 10, shot by stray bullet that entered her home on South Side Following his...

'Suspicious' skull brings checked baggage to a halt at Salt Lake airport

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:37:10 GMT

SALT LAKE CITY (KTVX) — The checked baggage system at the Salt Lake International Airport was brought to a screeching halt for two hours earlier this month while the Transportation Security Administration investigated a suspicious item in someone's luggage. The suspicious item? A plastic skull fitted with a sensor and a 9-volt battery. 5in1 Rocker Bassinet recalled; company not cooperating The skull was flagged on Monday, Sept. 18, around 8 a.m. by a TSA explosive detection unit as a "potential security threat." When TSA officers reviewed the X-ray image on-screen, they saw what appeared to be a human skull with "unidentifiable components" inside. Altogether, authorities said, it resembled an improvised explosive device. The Salt Lake City Police Airport Division was notified of the discovery. Together with TSA, officers worked to mitigate any immediate threat with an explosive canine. Officers also located the passenger to explain what they found in his luggage. A "suspicious" sk...

Capitol Hill lawmakers honor and remember Senator Dianne Feinstein

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:37:10 GMT

WASHINGTON (Nexstar) -- A black cloth and white roses sat upon the senate desk that for years belonged to Sen. Dianne Feinstein. The other California senator, Alex Padilla (D-CA), joined a tearful remembrance on the senate floor, just hours after Feinstein's death was announced."We bid farewell to my dear friend," Padilla said. "An outright champion for the state of California."Lawmakers also honored her as a trailblazer for women."When we talk about the giants on whose shoulders we stand, for me that's Dianne." said Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY)."Dianne was a leader in fighting for women’s rights and protecting our communities from violence and gun violence," noted Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV).Sen. Feinstein’s legacy includes her work to help pass the 1994 assault weapons ban. She was known on Capitol Hill for fighting for the causes she believed in and she worked until the very end, casting her vote Thursday afternoon."And she won and she won and each time made the country ...

Austin wants to 'cap and stitch' TxDOT's I-35 expansion -- but can it afford it?

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:37:10 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- The City of Austin has been working with the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) for years to make major changes to the state's Interstate 35 Capitol Express Central project. But as a major funding deadline looms, Council Member Vanessa Fuentes hinted at the question during a mobility committee meeting Thursday: How is the City going to pay for it? The City of Austin needs to fork over roughly $730 million dollars to TxDOT if it wants all of the "caps and stitches" it worked into TxDOT's central expansion plan. As of Friday, a spokesperson for the City of Austin said there are no funds secured, though they said they are "continuing to discuss all options available with TxDOT including funding deadlines" and that it's continuing to work with its finance department to locate funding options. What’s a ‘cap and stitch’ and why do Austin leaders say it’ll revamp I-35? "Austin Transportation and Public Works Department just applied for $105M from the USDOT for a ...

Boat ramp at Decker Lake closed due to low water levels

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:37:10 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — Beginning Sunday, public access to the boat ramp at Lake Walter E. Long, or Decker Lake, would be closed, according to the City of Austin.The city said on Sept. 12, the elevation of the lake was 554.07 feet above mean sea level, which was approximately one foot below the normal operational range. Officials said the lake level was too low to safely allow boating.“The lake level is maintained by pumping water from the Colorado River. Flows from the Colorado River have been insufficient to allow pumping into Lake Walter E. Long due to lack of local rainfall and reduced inflows into the Highland Lakes,” the city said.According to the city, the decision about lake access was made in collaboration with Austin Energy, Austin Water and the Lower Colorado River Authority. “Austin Energy, Austin Water and Austin Parks and Recreation will continue to monitor available Colorado River flows and will resume pumping operations as conditions allow which will allow the boat...

'My fight will continue': Paxton whistleblower ready for lawsuit to move forward

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:37:10 GMT

AUSTIN (Nexstar) - Two weeks after Attorney General Ken Paxton's acquittal in his impeachment trial, the Texas Supreme Court announced on Friday that the whistleblowers' lawsuit against Paxton can move forward.The lawsuit was filed by former top deputies at the Office of Attorney General who claim they were wrongfully fired by Paxton. The former employees say the firings came after making "good faith" reports to the FBI about alleged actions taken by Paxton for the benefit of Austin-area real estate developer Nate Paul. Whistleblower lawsuit against Ken Paxton can move forward in real court, Supreme Court rules The ruling from the Texas Supreme Court clears the way for the lawsuit to return to a Travis County trial court. The lawsuit had been on hold after a $3.3 million dollar settlement with the whistleblowers was proposed. Concerns over using taxpayer funds to pay the settlement helped lead to the Texas House investigation of Paxton and subsequent impeachment trial.Nexstar s...

White Bear Lake bar parking lot shootout leads to charges

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:37:10 GMT

A man has been charged in connection with a shootout last weekend in the parking lot of Doc’s Landing in White Bear Lake.During the exchange of gunfire, a bystander inside the bar was grazed with a bullet and one of the suspected shooters was shot in the leg.The Ramsey County attorney’s office charged Kardell Baraka Otae Jackson, 49, of St. Paul, on Friday with second-degree assault and possession of a firearm by a prohibited person.The criminal complaint detailed a wild shootout with bullets flying everywhere:Officers were called to the bar Sunday at 12:50 a.m.A man had bumped into a table, knocked over a glass of soda onto his ex-girlfriend’s sister, and the two argued. The woman’s boyfriend, Jackson, became involved and threatened the other man with a pool cue.The first man told investigators he went out to his car in the parking lot to get his 9mm as a “precaution.” When he saw Jackson in the parking lot he said, “Yo,” to him and J...

Dalton Risner got some work with the first team. Will Vikings make a change on offensive line?

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:37:10 GMT

The good news is Dalton Risner at least knows how to get to the lunchroom at TCO Performance Center now. After joking last week that he already has gotten lost a few times at the practice facility, the recently signed veteran offensive lineman has started to acclimate to his new surroundings, and he could be on the field for the Vikings as soon as Sunday.Though head coach Kevin O’Connell hasn’t announced which players will start on the offensive line, he confirmed that Risner will be available if the Vikings choose to go in that direction.“Just had a conversation with him,” O’Connell said. “He is fired up.”Asked about his progress over the past week, Risner said he’s been working at both guard positions so far, meaning, in theory, he could replace either left guard Ezra Cleveland or right guard Ed Ingram. Frankly, where he slots into the lineup doesn’t matter to Risner, who prides himself on being versatile.“My job isn̵...

Vikings will be without young safety Lewis Cine at Carolina

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:37:10 GMT

Though he was inadvertently left off the initial injury report, young safety Lewis Cine did not practice at all for the Vikings this week.As a result, Cine will not be available for Sunday’s game against the Carolina Panthers in Charlotte, N.C. He is dealing with a hamstring injury.Asked for more details on Cine’s injury, head coach Kevin O’Connell confirmed it happened in the middle of a drill.“Just opened up and kind of felt the hammy a little bit,” O’Connell said. “Everything I’ve been told, he is working through it pretty quickly.”It’s not a major loss for the Vikings in the grand scheme of things. As of right now, Cine doesn’t see much playing on defense, buried behind safeties Harrison Smith, Cam Bynum, Josh Metellus, and Theo Jackson on the depth chart.But Cine has a role on special teams, replacing injured receiver Jalen Nailor as a gunner last week against the Los Angeles Chargers.The biggest issue for Cine i...