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Fentanyl caused ‘Gangsta’s Paradise’ rapper Coolio’s death

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:17:49 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Coolio, the rapper who was among hip-hop’s biggest names of the 1990s with hits including “Gangsta’s Paradise” and “Fantastic Voyage,” died last year because of fentanyl, his manager said.Coolio’s former longtime manager Jarez Posey told The Associated Press Thursday that Coolio’s cause of death was fentanyl and that he also had traces of heroin and methamphetamine in his system. The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s Office listed his death as accidental and cited cardiomyopathy as a “significant condition.” Posey also confirmed that investigators determined Coolio’s severe asthma and cigarette smoking played a role in his death. Coolio — born Artis Leon Ivey Jr., on Aug. 1, 1963 — died at the Los Angeles home of a friend on Sept. 28, 2022. He was 59. Coolio won a Grammy for best solo rap performance for “Gangsta’s Paradise,” the 1995 hit from the soundtrack of the Michelle Pfeiffer film “Dangerous Minds” that sampled Stevie Wonder’s 1976 song “Pastime P...

Arizona judge skeptical of suit seeking to execute prisoner

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:17:49 GMT

PHOENIX (AP) — A judge expressed skepticism about whether he can order any changes in response to a lawsuit against Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs, that attempts to force her to carry out an execution previously scheduled for Thursday.Superior Court Judge Frank Moskowitz agreed to let attorneys brief their arguments in the coming weeks, but he also said he’s not sure what he has the power to do — since the Arizona Supreme Court order authorizing the execution of Aaron Gunches in the 2002 killing of Ted Price will expire late Thursday night.“What can I do? There is no warrant of execution to do anything with,” Moskowitz said, noting he can’t issue or extend such a court order. The judge scheduled a June 23 hearing for lawyers to make their arguments.Hobbs — who has ordered a review of Arizona’s death penalty protocols because of the state’s history of mismanaged executions — had vowed to not carry out any death sentences until there’s confidence the state can do so without violating ...

Arkansas House OKs bill allowing permitless concealed carry

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:17:49 GMT

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — A permit would not be required to carry a concealed handgun in Arkansas under a bill lawmakers sent Thursday to Republican Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, which supporters say is meant to clear up a decade-old disagreement about the state’s gun laws.Sanders’ office said she plans to sign the measure approved by the majority-Republican House on a 81-11 vote.“The governor strongly supports the Second Amendment,” spokeswoman Alexa Henning said in a statement. “This bill further clarifies that Arkansas is a constitutional carry state.”Both gun rights and gun control advocates already widely considered Arkansas to be one of more than two dozen states that doesn’t require a concealed carry permit. That’s followed a 2013 change to the state’s gun laws that’s prompted differing interpretations on how it’s affected the state’s concealed carry requirements.The bill was approved Thursday with no debate in the House, but opponents ...

B.C. lifts health-care mask rules with province ’emerging’ from pandemic, Henry says

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:17:49 GMT

VICTORIA — British Columbia has lifted pandemic restrictions including mandatory mask-wearing in health-care settings, and proof of vaccination and COVID test results for visitors in care homes.Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry said Thursday that the requirement for health-care workers to be fully vaccinated would remain, but the steady decline in COVID-19 hospitalizations indicated the province was “emerging” from the pandemic.Henry said that despite the continued presence of COVID-19 infections in the next few months, authorities were likely to be able to say that B.C. was no longer in a pandemic.The lifting of restrictions took effect immediately, but Henry said it did not mean such restrictions would not return in the fall, as experts were still studying the seasonality of COVID.B.C. Health Minister Adrian Dix said the province would start its spring booster vaccine program on April 11, targeting people with the highest risk of severe COVID infections such a...

Officials: Eight people rescued at Florida Panhandle beach

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:17:49 GMT

PENSACOLA, Fla. (AP) — Eight people were rescued Thursday at a Florida Panhandle beach as weather forecasters predicted a high chance for rip currents in the area, officials said.Escambia County Fire Rescue responded to Johnson Beach in Perdido Key twice, the Pensacola News Journal reported. The area is on the Gulf of Mexico just southwest of Pensacola.Rescue workers pulled three adults and four children from the water shortly before 2 p.m., officials said. Two children and one adult were taken by LifeFlight to a nearby hospital, and another child was taken by ambulance. Their conditions weren’t immediately known.About two hours later, rescue workers responded to another call about a person in distress in the water. Officials said that person was helped out of the water by another beachgoer and then taken by LifeFlight to an area hospital.It wasn’t immediately known whether rip currents were to blame for either of the incidents, but the National Weather Service in Mobile...

Suspect shoots 2 hostages, officer in California, officials say

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:17:49 GMT

ROSEVILLE, Calif. (KTXL) — A shooting in Placer County, California, on Thursday afternoon left one person dead and two people with gunshot wounds, including a California Highway Patrol officer, according to law enforcement. One suspect is now in custody.According to Roseville Police Captain Kelby Newton, a CHP officer was shot at around 12:30 p.m. while attempting to serve an arrest warrant near Roseville's Woodcreek High School and a local park. These are the non-emergency phone numbers for law enforcement agencies in the Sacramento area Police say the suspect began shooting at responding officers while running from the scene. It was at this time that the suspect took two hostages, according to authorities. Both hostages were hit by the suspect's gunfire, resulting in one of their deaths, according to Newton. During the shootout, nearby Woodcreek High School, the Riley Library and the Mahany Athletic Center were placed on lockdown, RPD says. A kid'...

Austin Police seeking help solving 2019 cold case murder

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:17:49 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — On Thursday, Austin Police asked for help solving a cold case murder that happened in 2019. APD said investigators have followed up on all available information during the ongoing investigation. According to police, on April 9, 2019, at approximately 10:44 p.m., APD officers responded to a shooting at Givens Park in east Austin.APD said when officers arrived, 47-year-old Andre Lanier Davis Jr. was found face down in the parking lot. Police said Davis had been shot, and he died on the scene.Witnesses told police that Davis was playing dominoes at the park that night when one or more individuals robbed him and shot him after complying with their demands. The Travis County Medical Examiner's Office conducted an autopsy and ruled the death a homicide.A person was previously arrested for Davis’ death, but the charges were later dismissed "pending further investigation."APD asked for anyone with information about this incident to contact the APD Cold Case Unit at (512...

3rd generation officer among St. Paul’s newest on patrol as recruitment efforts ramp up

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:17:49 GMT

Kevin Reinke, right, a retired St. Paul police officer who was the department’s historian, pins the a police badge on his son, Braden Reinke, during a police academy graduation ceremony Thursday, April 6, 2023, at Harding High School in St. Paul. Kevin Reinke’s father pinned a police badge on him 37 years ago. St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter, far left, looks on.(Andy Rathbun / Pioneer Press)As Kevin Reinke pinned a police badge on his son, it mirrored what his father did for him 37 years ago. Braden Reinke became one of St. Paul’s newest officers Thursday and the third generation in his family to join the department’s ranks.Kevin Reinke, now retired, remembers asking his father why he never encouraged him to be an officer when he was a kid.“He looked at me and said, ‘Being a police officer, you have to have that love in your heart for that job. You can’t do it for somebody else,’ ” Reinke said. “And that is so true.”He t...

Movie review: ‘Air’ tells the compelling tale of Nike’s game-changing Air Jordan shoe

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:17:49 GMT

Ben Affleck’s new film “Air” is about a lot of things, including basketball, the sneaker industry and the power of trusting your instincts, even if no one else does.It’s not, however, about Michael Jordan – not really, anyway. The man considered by many to be the greatest athlete of all time is barely shown on screen in the affable sports drama, which follows the efforts of Nike employee Sonny Vaccaro (Matt Damon) to sign Jordan and create what would become the iconic Air Jordan sneakers. It’s more about Michael Jordan as a power of nature rather than a mere mortal.Jordan himself was not involved in the film, but he did meet with Affleck and suggested casting Viola Davis as his mother, which proved to be a savvy move. The 57-year-old actress – who recently became the 18th person ever to win an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony – serves as the heart and soul of the film, which is otherwise mostly populated with broken weirdos.Chief among them is Vaccaro, a man obsessed w...

Remembering lost loved ones on NYS Missing Persons Day

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:17:49 GMT

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- April 6 is Missing Persons Day in New York state. It's also Suzanne Lyall's birthday. The Ballston Spa woman went missing 25 years ago when she was a 19-year-old student at the University of Albany.Lyall was last seen getting off a bus at UAlbany when she returned from her job at Crossgates Mall. Her family established the Center for Hope, which supports families whose loved ones have gone missing. Get the latest, news, weather, sports and community events delivered right to your inbox! Missing Persons Day is meant to help people continue to remember their lost loved ones even after they've returned to their own lives."It's a very difficult time," state Sen. Jim Tedisco said. "It's a time when people remember their lost loved ones, but it's a time when they talk to each other, how they can cope with these tragedies. And that's so important to be able to cope with it and stand up and get on with your daily life."The New York State Missing Persons Remembran...