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Florida man guilty in 2017 serial killings of 4 people

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:01:41 GMT

A Florida man pleaded guilty Monday to randomly shooting four people in a 2017 killing rampage that set a Tampa neighborhood on edge for weeks.Howell Donaldson III entered the guilty pleas to four counts of first-degree murder and was sentenced to four consecutive life sentences without parole, according to court records. The surprise plea deal means that Donaldson will avoid the death penalty, prosecutors said.“This coward committed unspeakable acts and wreaked havoc on our community for weeks on end,” said State Attorney Suzy Lopez in a news release. “He will now be locked away in a prison cell for the rest of his life where he will make no more headlines.”Donaldson, 30, admitted to the shooting deaths between Oct. 9 and Nov. 14, 2017, of Benjamin Mitchell, Monica Hoffa, Anthony Naiboa and Ronald Felton. They were each shot in the early morning hours in the Seminole Heights neighborhood with the same type of ammunition while doing everyday tasks such as waiting at a bus stop or cr...

Ukraine boycotts judo world championships over Russia, Belarus inclusion

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:01:41 GMT

Ukrainian athletes won’t participate in the World Judo Championships in Qatar next week because the Russian and Belarusian teams are being allowed to compete under a neutral flag, the Ukrainian Judo Federation (UJF) said Monday.The International Judo Federation’s (IJF) decision last week to allow Russian and Belarusian athletes to compete contradicts the position of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) on neutral athletes, the Ukrainian governing body said, alleging that many of them were active participants in the Russian military which invaded Ukraine.“The majority of the [Russian] team are athletes who are active servicemen of the armed forces of the Russian Federation, part of the army that attacked Ukraine on February 24, 2022 and is still waging a brutal full-scale war on our territory,” the UJF said in a statement on its website.In March, the IOC recommended that Russian and Belarusian athletes should be able to compete in the upcoming Paris 2024 ...

Former Hopkinton deputy police chief indicted on child rape charges stemming from time as school resource officer

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:01:41 GMT

The former deputy police chief of Hopkinton has been indicted on several child rape charges related to his time as a school resource officer, according to the Middlesex District Attorney’s Office.In a news release, the DA’s office announced that John “Jay” Porter, 54, had been indicted by a grand jury on three charges of Rape of a Child “in connection with allegedly assaulting a student while he was assigned as a school resource officer in the Town of Hopkinton school system.”“The incidents allegedly occurred during 2004 and 2005 while the victim was a 15 year old student,” the DA’s office stated. “During that time the defendant allegedly assaulted the victim on multiple occasions off school property.”According to the district attorney, as of Friday, April 28, Porter was no longer a part of the Hopkinton Police Department.An arraignment for the former deputy police chief has not yet been scheduled.This is a developing story;...

Multi-tractor-trailer crash on I-84 in Sturbridge closes eastbound lanes, forces detour through weigh station

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:01:41 GMT

A crash involving two tractor-trailers and a car closed all traffic lanes on I-84 in Sturbridge Monday morning, forcing vehicles to be directed through a nearby weigh station, according to officials.The Massachusetts State Police said the crash caused cargo and debris to spill onto the roadway along with fuel, prompting the shutdown.Image provided by the Massachusetts State PoliceSharing images of the scene on social media around 10:45 a.m., the MSP Twitter account said traffic was being diverted through a nearby weigh station as cleanup efforts continue.Authorities said injuries related to the crash appeared to be minor in nature. This is a developing story; stay with 7NEWS on-air and online for the latest updates.Image provided by the Massachusetts State Police

First Republic Bank seized, sold in fire sale to JPMorgan

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:01:41 GMT

By KEN SWEET (AP Business Writer)NEW YORK (AP) — Regulators seized troubled First Republic Bank early Monday, making it the second-largest bank failure in U.S. history, and promptly sold all of its deposits and most of its assets to JPMorgan Chase in a bid to end the turmoil that has raised questions about the health of the U.S. banking system.It’s the third midsize bank to fail in less than two months. The only larger bank failure in U.S. history was Washington Mutual, which collapsed at the height of the 2008 financial crisis and was also taken over by JPMorgan in a similar government-orchestrated deal.“Our government invited us and others to step up, and we did,” said Jamie Dimon, chairman and CEO of JPMorgan Chase. Dimon said in a conference call with both reporters and investors that he believed “this part of this (banking) crisis is over.” Other midsize banks reported their results last week and the vast majority of them showed deposits had ...

Donald Trump asks for mistrial in NYC civil rape case, saying judge has been ‘unfair’

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:01:41 GMT

Molly Crane-Newman | New York Daily NewsDonald Trump has moved to have his New York City civil rape trial tossed, complaining Monday that the judge hasn’t given him a fair shake.In an early-morning court filing, Trump lawyer Joe Tacopina accused Judge Lewis Kaplan of unfairly sustaining a bevy of objections from E. Jean Carroll’s lawyer on grounds they were argumentative.Tacopina said Kaplan has made “pervasive unfair and prejudicial rulings” in the case on trial for a week.Tacopina said it wasn’t fair that Kaplan allowed Carroll to describe to the jury of a vengeful Trump having two tables of lawyers when she “has a comparable amount of lawyers.”Trump also complained that Kaplan would allow Natasha Stoynoff to testify without his lawyers questioning her first outside of the jury’s presence. Stoynoff had accused Trump of forcing his tongue down her throat when she interviewed him at Mar-a-Lago for People Magazine in 2005.Carroll, 79, is suing Trump for sexual battery and defamation ...

City starts Mass and Cass clear out; launches new ‘Friends and Family’ reunification effort

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:01:41 GMT

The city of Boston has begun removing tents and the personal encampments of people in the area known as Mass and Cass today, according to city officials.The removal comes after efforts to clear the area were suspended during the winter.“Individuals in the area are being asked to voluntarily remove their tent and are being encouraged to take advantage of the free shelter, substance use treatment, relocation, and storage options available to them,” the city said in a statement.The clear out comes a week after a high profile arrest in the area when a Level 3 sex offender was charged with assault after allegedly following an MIT student into her Beacon Street apartment.Nahom Getaneh, 33, was ordered held without bail last week pending his trial. He was arrested on Southampton street in the Mass and Cass area.The location, at the intersection of the South End and Roxbury, has long been a gathering place and encampment zone for homeless people and those with substance abuse problems.A yea...

How Brandon Hughes’ return to the IL with left knee inflammation will shake up the Chicago Cubs bullpen

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:01:41 GMT

Learning how to manage left knee inflammation is part of Chicago Cubs left-hander Brandon Hughes’ everyday reality.The issue stems from Hughes’ 2015 surgery to repair the meniscus in his left knee. Since then, his left knee has no cartilage and is essentially bone-on-bone, Hughes explained, constantly leading to inflammation. It flared up in spring training, causing him to open the season on the injured list. His knee again became bothersome to the point that the Cubs placed him on the 15-day IL Saturday, retroactive to Thursday.Hughes’ latest situation began after the series against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Wrigley Field last weekend.“It always will flare up a little bit after each (outing),” Hughes said Sunday, “and then it’s just a point of, like, how much it fills with (fluid), I guess.”Hughes, 27, appeared in five games between IL stints, allowing two runs, two walks and tallying nine strikeouts in 5⅔ innings. He took a bl...

Arson investigation underway after fire at National City auto repair shop

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:01:41 GMT

NATIONAL CITY, Calif. — An arson investigation is underway after an early morning fire at a National City vehicle repair shop.Around 2:20 a.m., a passerby reported seeing black smoke and hearing explosions coming from a business located at 1902 Highland Avenue, according to the National City Police Department.Firefighters were able to extinguish the blaze a short time after arriving on scene. This San Diego area is among the most expensive ZIP codes in California Footage captured of the scene shows fire damage to the building as well as a vehicle inside the shop that was heavily burned.There were no injuries related to this incident, according to police.The owner of the business was notified and came out to the scene.The cause of the fire has not yet been determined and arson investigators were called out to look into the incident.

‘You destroyed us’: $250K reward offered for info leading to arrest in soccer ref’s murder

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:01:41 GMT

A reward of up to $250,000 is being offered for information leading to the arrest of a suspect in the brazen killing of a 49-year-old Woodbridge man while he was referring a soccer game in North York.Officers responded to calls for shots fired at La Liga Sports Complex in the Finch Avenue West and Alness Street area at around 7:20 p.m. on Sunday, October 9, 2022.Edwin Farley Alvarado Quintero died after being taken to a local trauma centre. Two other males were injured, but survived.On Monday — on what would have been Quintero’s 50th birthday — Toronto Police Service in conjunction with the Bolo Program announced the $250,000 reward, hoping it will help lead them to the suspect in the case, Cristian Adolfo Cuxum, who was 19 at the time of the shootings.Toronto police have issued an arrest warrant for 19-year-old Christian Cuxum. TPS/HOQuintero’s wife, Alexandra Barrera, released a statement on Monday, saying instead of planning her husband’s music-fille...