Connecticut Bill Would Make Weaponized Drones Legal for Cops

Connecticut police officers would have the ability to use drones equipped with lethal weapons under a bill now pending in the state House of Representatives.

A Parrot Bebop quadcopter drone flies at the Parrot stand at the 2015 IFA consumer electronics and appliances trade fair on September 4, 2015 in Berlin, Germany. (Credit: Sean Gallup/Getty Images)

The bill authorizing police use of “deadly” weaponized drones passed 34-7 in the state legislature’s joint Judiciary Committee on Wednesday. It was then sent to the House floor for debate and a vote, neither of which has been scheduled.

The law was originally written to ban the use of weaponized drones after a Connecticut resident, Austin Haughwout, attached a handgun and flamethrower to his drone on separate occasions over the past two years. The state government has tried and failed to pass legislation on drones three times since then.

However, the bill includes an amendment that would allow police officers to attach weapons to drones. Committee co-chair Paul Doyle, who helped add the amendment, said law enforcement should be able to use drones, but only as a last resort.

“It’s conceivable that it is a positive resolution in an emergency, aka terrorist situation,” he told CNN. “If a terrorist is in the middle of an operation, in theory, the drone could kill him.”

Another co-chair of the Judiciary Committee, William Tong, told CNN the entire bill is intended to improve public safety. The amendment allows law enforcement to use drones if they feel it’s necessary, but it prevents citizens from weaponizing drones on their own.

“The bill establishes basic standard guidelines for the use of drones,” he said. “We don’t want to limit law enforcement’s ability to use drones, but we want them to have regulation as well.”

Supporters: It will protect citizens

Tong explained that under this law, the state’s main body of regulation for police, the Police Officers Standards and Training Council, would be responsible for creating guidelines on how officers should use drones. The guidelines would be sent back to the state legislature for final approval.

The Connecticut Police Chiefs Association supports this allowance. Farmington Police Chief Paul Melanson told CNN that if police were to use drones, it would be to defend, not harm, citizens.

“No one is looking for law enforcement to arm drones for offensive purposes,” Melanson said. “The police didn’t want to preclude any possibility in the future of using the drones to protect citizens.”

Melanson told CNN that he could envision police using drones in situations such as defusing bombs or disarming drones used by terrorists or criminals.

At least one lawmaker who voted on the bill, Sen. Gary Winfield, said he didn’t agree with the amendment but thinks it merits further discussion.

“I don’t think it’s been completely thought through,” he said. “But I voted yes because I didn’t want to kill the bill. I want to rework it.”

Opponents see potential for abuse

The new controversial proposal is already facing opposition from civil rights advocates.

The head of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Connecticut, David McGuire, said the group is troubled by the potential for police to misuse drones if the amendment becomes law.

“We’ve seen some police in Connecticut use disproportionate force against people of minorities, and we think that drones would exacerbate this problem,” McGuire told CNN. “We’ve been working hard to try and reestablish trust in law enforcement, and this bill sends the wrong message.”

The ACLU of Connecticut is working together with the Connecticut NAACP to change the bill before it comes up for a vote.

The state NAACP president, Scot Esdaile, told CNN that if the bill passes, there will be protests.

“We don’t want these new technologies in our neighborhood because we know that eventually they will be abused and turned against us,” he said.

Some police officers, such as Hartford Deputy Chief of Police Brian Foley, also expressed worries about the use of weaponized drones.

“When you begin to automate things you begin to invite technical glitches,” Foley said. “It seems like in this day and age too many things could go wrong.”

Connecticut would not be the first state to allow police to use weaponized drones. North Dakota passed a bill two years ago that allows their use, though it says the weapons must not be lethal.

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Some EpiPens Recalled, FDA Says

Thirteen lots of Mylan’s EpiPen and EpiPen Jr. are being voluntarily recalled by the manufacturer, the US Food and Drug Administration said Friday.

An EpiPen two pack is seen in this file photo. (Credit: WOIO via CNN Wire)

“This recall is due to the potential that these devices may contain a defective part that may result in the devices’ failure to activate,” the FDA said in a news release.

EpiPens are used to give an emergency injection of epinephrine to treat life-threatening allergic reactions.

The 13 lots of recalled EpiPens were distributed between Dec. 17, 2015, and July 1, 2016, the FDA said. Lot numbers of the affected devices can be found on the FDA website.

Consumers should contact Mylan at 800-796-9526 or customer.service@mylan.com with any questions. Meridian Medical Technologies manufactured the devices, which were distributed by Mylan Specialty, the FDA said.

EpiPens not included in the recall do not need to be replaced before their expiration dates, the FDA said.

Mylan came under criticism last year for jacking up the price of the EpiPen. In 2009, an EpiPen two-pack cost less than $100. By 2016, its sticker price rose to $609.

Amid accusations of price gouging, Mylan CEO Heather Bresch testified before Congress in September. And in October, the company agreed to pay the US government $465 million after it was accused of falsely classifying the EpiPen to overcharge the Medicaid system.

In response, Mylan started offering $300 savings cards for patients who have to pay full price and began developing its generic spinoff.

About 15 million people have food allergies in the U.S., and allergic reactions account for about 200,000 emergency room visits per year, according to Food Allergy Research & Education.

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Irvine Mother and Daughter Accused of Operating National Prostitution Ring

The women were forced into the sex trade and moved from one state to another. They were required to make $800 a day — working 12 to 14 hours while paying house fees, transportation costs and hotel and food expenses. Often times they were assaulted, raped and robbed by customers.

Authorities arrested Hong “Gina” Jing in this Irvine home and charged her with multiple counts of racketeering and sex trafficking. (Credit: Rick Loomis / Los Angeles Times)

Investigators said that when they began to unravel the national prostitution ring in Minnesota last month, they traced the heart of the operation nearly 2,000 miles west, to a home in a quiet, well-landscaped neighborhood of Irvine.

Prosecutors said it was from this home that Hong “Gina” Jing and her daughter, 23-year-old Fangyao “Michelle” Wu, ran the sex trafficking enterprise with the help of two other people, including a woman from Chino Hills.

This week, Minnesota prosecutors charged the four with multiple counts of racketeering and sex trafficking.

Click here to read the full story on LATimes.com.

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Google Maps Users Can Transform the App Into Mrs. Pac-Man Game for Limited Time

In an April Fools’-inspired release it calls Mrs. Pac-Maps, Google is giving users of its popular Maps app the ability to morph real-world topographies into a playable Mrs. Pac-Man game.

Mrs. Pac-Man eats her way through downtown Los Angeles in Google Maps’ April Fools’ Day feature.

The gameplay can be activated on iPhones and Androids by tapping the Mrs. Pac-Man icon in the, or on desktop computers by clicking the Mrs. Pac-Man button in the bottom left corner of the screen.

The feature, unveiled Friday, will only be around until April 4, the company said.

The game is recreated in all its 8-bit glory, complete with arcade theme music, bonus fruit and colorful archnemeses Pinky, Blinky, Inky and Clyde. The biggest difference is instead of navigating a maze, players race through city streets to gobble the blinking dots.

Activating the game transforms whatever section of the world is displayed on the screen, allowing users to chomp through any location, from their neighborhood to the streets of Tokyo or Rome.

Players get five lives, but if you run out, you can just start over. Signing in to your Google account allows you to share your scores with friends.

This isn’t the first time Google has introduced such a capability — it first offered a Pac-Man game inside the Maps app on April Fools’ Day in 2015 — so the characters may chomp their way back into Maps in the future.

 

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Beachwood Drive Gate to Hollywood Sign Trail to Close April 18

A popular access point that thousands of tourists and hikers use every month to get near the Hollywood sign will close April 18, Los Angeles city officials said Friday.

Pedestrians will no longer be able to travel up Beachwood Canyon to reach the Hollyridge Trail or other paths into Griffith Park. They still will be able to reach trails near the famous sign from other points, such as Canyon Lake Drive to the west, officials said.

The city is closing the gate at the top of north Beachwood Drive to hikers in order to comply with a court order to reduce the number of people on the route.

The Sunset Ranch Hollywood Stables sued the city, saying officials had advertised the route, flooding it with 15,000 people a month. The stables argued that customers were unable to get to the property, situated a few hundred yards beyond the gate, and sometimes were turned away by city guards.

Click here to read the full story on LATimes.com. 

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White House Releases Financial Disclosures of Top Trump Aides

The financial background of President Donald Trump aides such as Jared Kushner, Steve Bannon and Gary Cohn were coming into clearer focus Friday as the White House released financial snapshots of its employees.

White House adviser Steve Bannon makes remarks during a discussion at the Conservative Political Action Conference in National Harbor, Maryland, on Feb. 23, 2017. (Credit: Mike Theiler / AFP / Getty Images)

The forms disclose the assets those aides held when they walked in the doors of the White House — before administration counsel advised them to resign from various postings, divest certain holdings or recuse themselves from future decisions.

The releases were expected to include the financial information of around 180 White House employees, but it was unclear whose forms would be available Friday.

Reporters were beginning to pore over the documents released Friday evening. ProPublica published the disclosures in their entirety.

White House chief strategist Steve Bannon made up to $2.5 million last year, according to the financial snapshot of his business holdings.

The holdings of Kushner, a real estate executive like Trump, will also reveal some of the finances of Ivanka Trump, to whom he is married.

Kushner resigned from 266 positions to take his job in the West Wing, a senior administration official told reporters.

And Cohn, Trump’s chief economic adviser, will likely have the most complicated package of documents as the former president of giant Goldman Sachs.

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Redlands Firefighters Resuscitate Puppy After House Fire

Arizona Girl Who Disappeared Nearly 5 Years Ago at the Age of 6 Found Dead: Police

An Arizona girl who disappeared from her home almost five years ago is dead, police in Tucson said Friday.

Isabel Celis is seen in a photo posted by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.

The remains of Isabel Celis were discovered earlier this month during a search by authorities, Tucson Police Chief Chris Magnus said.

“This is not the ending that any of us hoped for but it is also not the ending of the case,” he said.

Isabel was 6 when she disappeared from her Tuscon home in April 2012.

She was last seen by family members when she went to bed at 11 p.m. on a Friday. When her father went to wake her at 8 a.m. Saturday — a half-hour after her mother had gone to work — he said the girl was nowhere to be found, according to police.

Police have followed 2,200 leads in the case, which attracted national attention.

No arrests have been announced and the chief would not discuss suspects at a news conference.

The chief said Isabel’s remains were found in a rural part of Pima County, which includes Tuscon.

DNA from the remains was sent to a lab in Virginia, he said.

“Unfortunately the results of this DNA analysis did confirm that the remains were those of Isabel Celis,” Magnus said.

The chief said the discovery was not happenstance but he declined to say what led officers to the site.

CNN affiliate KGUN said the girl’s family released this statement: “We want to thank the community for the support they have continued to show for Isa over the years and for refusing to give up hope. Now is our time to mourn. We ask for our privacy during this time so that we can do that.”

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3 in Custody After Fire Leads to Bridge Collapse in Atlanta

Three people are in custody after a fire that led to the Interstate 85 bridge collapse in Atlanta Thursday, officials said.

Citing the state fire marshal's office, Atlanta's WSB-TV reports that one man has been charged with criminal damage to property and two others with criminal trespass.

Drivers in one of the nation’s most congested cities faced a jarring new reality Friday as they were forced to game out how to get around a collapsed portion of Atlanta’s Interstate 85 — one of the Southeast’s major north-south arteries.

A mysterious fire collapsed part of I-85 northbound Thursday evening — injuring no one — and also damaged the southbound portion, forcing the closure of all five lanes in each direction for the foreseeable future.

The shutdown likely sets the city up for traffic headaches for months after creating navigation hell Thursday with jams that extended five miles or more and stranded motorists for hours.

The closure comes at a sensitive time for a city accustomed to gridlock — with hordes of spring break vacationers poised to drive though the regional hub and the Atlanta Braves set to play a preseason game Friday night in their new stadium northwest of the city.

“I think it’s as serious a transportation crisis as we could have,” Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed said Thursday evening.

CNN contributed to this report.

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Highland Man Arrested After Brutally Beating Wife in Front of Their 3 Small Children: Police

A Highland man accused of brutally attacking his wife in front of their three young children and threatening to kill her early Friday has been arrested, according to police.

The suspect, identified as 45-year-old Carlton Gerald Springer, got into a fight with his wife in the early morning hours at a residence in the 29000 block of Lytle Lane. He allegedly began punching her numerous times as their kids watched, the Highland Police Department stated in a news release.

Authorities described the attack as “brutal.”

Springer’s wife tried to leave, but the suspect took her cellphone and smashed it, the release said. He then allegedly threatened to kill her while holding a knife.

As the victim tried to calm her husband, he continued to beat her all over her body, according to police.

She was eventually able to get away, fleeing to a local San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Station where she reported the assault, the release stated.

The victim was taken to a hospital and treated for her injuries.

Deputies responded to the home and located Springer, who was trying to leave in a vehicle with the three children.

He was arrested without incident and booked into the West Valley Detention Center on suspicion of spousal assault, criminal threats and false imprisonment, police said.

The mother and children were later reunited.

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Surveillance Video Shows Woman Stealing Package With $2,300 Worth of Knives From Yucaipa Front Yard

A woman was caught on camera stealing a package with $2,300 worth of knives from a front yard in Yucaipa, police said Friday.

Video shows the woman knocking on the front door of a home while on her cellphone. When no one answered, she picked up the large package and ran away.

The package contained a set of kitchen knives that Yucaipa police said is worth about $2,300.

Police have not been able to identify the woman, but they believe she was last seen in the city.

Anyone with information about the incident or the woman can call 909-918-2305.

Detectives are searching for a woman who stole a package worth over $2,000 from a front porch https://t.co/6FqulzLc93 http://pic.twitter.com/s1rBqfp3iz

— Yucaipa Police (@YucaipaPD) March 31, 2017

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Growing Manatee Population Prompts Federal Government to Remove It From Endangered Species List

Florida’s growing manatee population is a “dramatic turnaround” from the 1970s, the federal government said as it officially removed the aquatic creatures from the endangered list.

In this file photo from 2014, a manatee is seen in waters off the coast of Florida. (Credit: Forrest Brown/CNN)

The West Indian manatee will now be considered threatened — a marker of progress in the species’ recovery.

Environmental and animal groups decried Thursday’s announcement from the US Fish and Wildlife Service, saying it is premature and comes without a firm long-term recovery plan.

Officials have said that the “downlisting” does not change federal and state protections for the animals, which were put on the endangered list in March 1967. They say the move shows various partners have worked to increase the population numbers and protect habitat.

“While there is still more work to be done to fully recover manatee populations, particularly in the Caribbean, manatee numbers are increasing and we are actively working with partners to address threats,” Jim Kurth, the US Fish and Wildlife Service’s acting director, said in a statement.

The action came about a month after Florida officials said that for the third straight year, spotters counted more than 6,000 manatees.

By contrast, just a few hundred manatees were counted in the 1970s, officials said.

The US Fish and Wildlife Service, which manages manatee refuges and sanctuaries, last year proposed reclassifying the West Indian manatee, which includes the Florida manatee. It received thousands of public comments — many opposing the change — before announcing its final decision.

The Endangered Species Act defines an endangered species as one currently in danger of extinction throughout all or a significant portion of its range. A threatened species is one that is likely to become endangered within the foreseeable future.

The Save the Manatee Club claims scientific evidence does not support the reclassification of the animals, which are nicknamed “sea cows” because of their aquatic plant diet.

The club also said it is worried about the possible loosening of regulations in the Trump administration.

“We believe this is a devastating blow to manatees,” Executive DIrector Patrick Rose said in a statement.

The club has been concerned about the concentration of manatees during the winter outside power plants, particularly in the northern part of the state. That makes them too dependent on artificially warm water, the club says.

While the number of counted manatees increased, so, too, did the losses to boat-inflicted injuries. Of 520 deaths last year, 104 were attributed to boats. That’s been of concern.

Federal and state regulations target speeders in manatee zones and have a “positive impact,” Gil McRae, head of the state’s Fish and Wildlife Research Institute, told CNN earlier this year.

Christina Martin, an attorney for the Pacific Legal Foundation, said the decision to remove manatees from the endangered list was years overdue.

Her organization represents Florida residents who formed Save Crystal River.

“I am glad the federal government is finally formally acknowledging what its experts first recognized one decade ago: The manatee is on the mend and no longer in danger of extinction,” Martin said in a statement.

“This is a victory for our client, Save Crystal River, Inc., a group that is restoring habitat in the river and pursues government accountability. This is also a victory for everyone who believes that the government must follow the requirements of the law.

The US Fish and Wildlife Service said government, industry and residents are making a difference by reducing manatee deaths and increasing access to natural springs.

Part of the government’s job, McRae said, is to make conservation improvements that get species reclassified as soon as possible.

Still, animal groups say the species faces too many dangers.

The Save the Manatee Club said it wants the US Fish and Wildlife Service to update its manatee recovery plan and bring back recovery teams. And the Center for Biological Diversity said the threats from boat strikes and habitat loss persist.

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WonderCon 2017 Underway in Anaheim

WonderCon, the comic book, science fiction and film convention is underway in Anaheim. Click here for details of upcoming events over the weekend.

Chip Yost reports for the KTLA 5 News at 3 on March 31, 2017.

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60-Year-Old Woman Dies After Being Hit by Vehicle in Downtown Los Angeles; LAPD Investigating

A female pedestrian was fatally struck by a vehicle on the outskirts of Downtown Los Angeles early Friday afternoon, fire officials said.

The deadly incident occurred about 12:21 p.m. in the 500 block of East Cesar E Chavez Avenue, in the tunnel where the road goes under the rail road tracks near Union Station, according to a Los Angeles Fire Department alert.

The victim, identified only as a 60-year-old woman, died at the scene.

It was not known what type of vehicle was involved in the fatal crash, LAFD said.

Los Angeles Police Department personnel are at the scene investigating, and no additional details were immediately released.

Check back for updates on this developing story. 

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Officials Believe Terrorist Organizations Plant Explosives in Electronic Devices That Can Evade Airport Screenings

US intelligence and law enforcement agencies believe that ISIS and other terrorist organizations have developed innovative ways to plant explosives in electronic devices that FBI testing shows can evade some commonly used airport security screening methods, CNN has learned.

Heightening the concern is US intelligence suggesting that terrorists have obtained sophisticated airport security equipment to test how to effectively conceal explosives in laptops and other electronic devices.

The intelligence, gathered in the last several months, played a significant role in the Trump administration’s decision to prohibit travelers flying out of 10 airports in eight countries in the Middle East and Africa from carrying laptops and other large electronic devices aboard planes.

The findings may raise questions about whether the ban is broad enough. CNN has learned that, through a series of tests conducted late last year, the FBI determined the laptop bombs would be far more difficult for airport screeners to detect than previous versions terrorist groups have produced. The FBI testing focused on specific models of screening machines that are approved by the Transportation Security Administration and are used in the US and around the world.

“As a matter of policy, we do not publicly discuss specific intelligence information. However, evaluated intelligence indicates that terrorist groups continue to target commercial aviation, to include smuggling explosive devices in electronics,” the Department of Homeland Security told CNN in a statement. “The U.S. government continually re-assesses existing intelligence and collects new intelligence. This allows DHS and TSA to constantly evaluate our aviation security processes and policies and make enhancements when they are deemed necessary to keep passengers safe. As always, all air travelers are subject to a robust security system that employs multiple layers of security, both seen and unseen.”

US authorities have said the electronics ban is focused on the eight countries in part because of intelligence indicating a greater threat there. Intelligence and law enforcement assessments done in recent months also indicate that, though the broader vulnerabilities exist, the US has more confidence in detection machines and security screeners at airports in the US and Europe. Advanced technology and training helps mitigate the risk.

The US and European countries use a layered approach to security screening that goes beyond X-ray equipment, according to US officials, including the use of bomb-sniffing dogs and explosive-trace detection.

Aviation security expert Robert Liscouski, a former Homeland Security assistant secretary for infrastructure protection, said limiting the ban to eight countries makes sense based on the capability and locations of terrorist groups.

Not only are US and European airports better protected, he said, but developed countries have a “better policy regime” that allows them to set standards and ensure uniform compliance.

“We don’t have the same level of confidence in other areas of the world because we don’t have the government bodies and stature to assure compliance,” said Liscouski, president of Secure Point Technologies.

When it originally announced the electronic ban, the TSA issued a statement explaining that it “works closely” with other countries to protect the traveling public. “TSA is confident in the security of all of our last point of departure airports,” the statement said. “TSA regularly assesses the effectiveness of security at all foreign airports served by U.S. air carriers and foreign air carriers that provide last point of departure services to the United States. This ensures international airports maintain a level of security consistent with international standards.”

When the electronics ban was announced, US officials told CNN they were concerned that terrorists had developed ways to hide explosives in battery compartments. But the new intelligence makes clear that the bomb-makers working for ISIS and other groups have become sophisticated enough to hide the explosives while ensuring a laptop would function long enough to get past screeners. Though advanced in design, FBI testing found the laptops can be modified using common household tools.

FBI experts have tested variants of the laptop bombs using different battery and explosive configurations to assess how difficult it would be for airport screeners to detect them.

The intelligence that contributed to the ban on electronic devices was specific, credible and reliable, according to three officials who used the same words to describe it. One official called the intelligence “hair-raising.”

At the same time, they also said there was no single, overwhelming piece of intelligence that led to the ban, rather it was an accumulation of intercepted material and “human intelligence.”

The airline restriction, which took effect March 21, bans many electronics from the cabins of planes flying directly to the United States from airports in eight countries. Passengers on those flights must place electronic devices larger than cellphones in their checked luggage. The United Kingdom, which possesses the same intelligence, implemented a similar rule this month for airplanes flying from six countries, including two that are not on the US list.

The ban was instigated after intelligence and law enforcement agencies determined that terrorists were working to place explosives inside laptop battery compartments in a way that would enable the devices to still power on in order to pass airport screenings, according to information shared with CNN.

Intelligence officials received a wake-up call in February 2016, when an operative from al-Shabaab, an al Qaeda affiliate in Somali, detonated a laptop bomb on a Daallo Airlines flight from Mogadishu to Djibouti. The explosives were hidden in a part of the laptop where bomb-makers had removed a DVD drive, according to investigators. Airport workers helped smuggle the bomb on the plane after it passed through an X-ray machine. In that case, the bomber was blown out of the airplane but the aircraft was able to make an emergency landing. However, experts have said the bomb would have been more devastating had the plane reached cruising altitude.

The military and intelligence community has grown increasingly concerned in the last few months about the potential ability of terror groups to get bombs on board airplanes, according to several US officials. The US has been tracking specific intelligence from al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), al Qaeda in Syria and ISIS, officials said.

The group with the greatest level of bomb-making expertise is al Qaeda in Yemen. Its master bomb-maker, Ibrahim al Asiri, has worked for years on designing explosive devices that can be hidden on bodies or in items such as printer cartridges. Since 2014, US officials have been concerned that Asiri’s expertise had migrated to other groups.

To some degree, the fact that terrorist groups have been trying to install bombs in electronic devices is a testament to the success of advanced security techniques. Screening equipment and procedures have improved significantly since the terror attacks on September 11, 2001, making it more difficult to bring explosives onto airplanes. Bomb-makers continue to modify devices to get around enhanced screening.

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Newlywed Couple Holds Wedding Reception at In-N-Out in San Gabriel Valley

A couple who got married in Rowland Heights on Friday followed up their wedding with some double-doubles and animal style fries at a nearby In-N-Out, where they held their reception.

Juan Pablo Cervantes and Vanessa Cervantes held their wedding reception at an In-N-Out Burger in the City of Industry on March 31, 2017. (Credit: KTLA)

After tying the knot at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Church, Juan Pablo Cervantes and Vanessa Cervantes headed over with their wedding party and guests to the In-N-Out Burger located at 17849 Colima Rd. in the City of Industry.

The groom told KTLA that the newlyweds “really like In-N-Out,” and that was “the only reason” they decided to hold their wedding reception at the enormously popular California-based burger chain.

Cervantes also explained that he serves in the United States Air Force and is stationed in New Mexico, where are there are no In-N-Outs.

“And I’ve been gone for a while,” he added.

The newlyweds, still dressed in their wedding attire, celebrated the nuptials by each ordering a double-double, while Juan Pablo added an order of animal style fries.

The husband and wife say they are headed to England for their honeymoon.

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SoCal Congressman Adam Schiff Steps Into High-Profile Role as Trump’s Public Prosecutor

Before answering a question, Rep. Adam B. Schiff pauses as if mentally reviewing what he can say.

Adam Schiff, the ranking Democrat on the U.S. House Intelligence Committee, speaks to the press about the committee’s ongoing investigation on Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election at the Capitol in Washington, D.C., on March 30, 2017. (Credit: NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP/Getty Images)

On Capitol Hill over the last month, he has become President Trump’s public prosecutor and — soft-spoken, deliberate, a little stiff — he is nearly the president’s polar opposite.

In seemingly daily appearances on cable television or before the microphones at news conferences, Schiff eschews the usual Washington hyperbole and snarky sound bites. The slow, relentless precision with which he speaks reflects his six years at the U.S. attorney’s office in Los Angeles. It also reveals the weight of handling national security secrets for the last two years as the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee and a member of the so-called Gang of Eight, the bipartisan group of House and Senate leaders who, alone among 535 members of the Congress, are privy to the country’s most sensitive intelligence.

Even when Schiff calls the president a liar, he manages to do it with the somber admonishment of a dad schooling an unruly child, as if to say he’s not mad, just disappointed.

Click here to read the full story on LATimes.com.

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State Senator Introduces Legislation to Train Motel Employees to Spot Signs of Human Trafficking

State Sen. Toni Atkins (D-San Diego) wants to increase services for human trafficking survivors and make it easier in court to put away their abusers.

Flanked by prosecutors and hotel industry officials at a news conference Friday in San Diego, the former Assembly speaker announced new housing and mental health assistance for victims and introduced legislation that would require hotels and motels to train their employees to spot signs of human trafficking.

Another of her proposals would expand the character evidence that prosecutors can bring forth at trial against defendants charged with selling victims for sex or labor.

The bills are meant to attack a multibillion-dollar trade that has a wide sweep in California, home to three cities on the FBI’s list of 13 top human trafficking destinations: San Diego, San Francisco and Los Angeles. National human trafficking hotline calls across California generated 1,323 cases in 2016 — nearly twice as many as any other state.

Click here to read the full story on LATimes.com. 

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Metro Launches Community Market in MacArthur Park in Effort to Regulate Street Vending

For years, street vendors in the MacArthur Park area turned a stretch of sidewalk alongside the Metro Red Line station into a makeshift street market.

But for the first time on Thursday, the sidewalk was cleared. There were no vendors bickering over space and no one sitting under beach umbrellas with an array of items laid out on blue tarps. Instead, there were two rows of red- and white-tented tables that vendors used to make their sales without the hassle of law enforcement.

The setup is part of a one-year pilot program launched in Westlake by the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority, or Metro, in conjunction with city and county officials, as well as street vendors.

“Finally a safe space for all to sell and shop,” Los Angeles County Supervisor Hilda Solis wrote in her Twitter account. A section of Westlake falls under her district.

Click here to read the full story on LATimes.com. 

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Cleanup Continues After Boat Overturns, Crashes Into Pilings at Redondo Beach Pier

Cleanup is expected to continue Friday after a boat crashed into the pilings of the Redondo Beach Pier, sending four people into the wind-driven waves around sunset Thursday.

Four people were tossed into the water when a boat overturned next to the Redondo Beach Pier on March 30, 2017. (Credit: Jason Wells / @singularitycode)

High onshore winds, pushed the sailboat closer and closer to pier, multiple witness videos showed. A large wave finally overturned the vessel, dumping the four occupants into the choppy waters of of King Harbor. The boat slammed against the pilings and righted itself but eventually broke apart.

All four people were rescued after Los Angeles County lifeguards, Harbor Patrol and Redondo Beach firefighters responded.

"There's quite a bit of force from the waves and the pilings certainly are not very forgiving," Redondo Beach fire Division Chief Rob Rappaport said Thursday night. "So they're certainly very lucky."

Authorities said they expected to recover the boat wreckage on Friday. The condition of the four rescued boaters was not clear, but their injuries had not been serious.

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Members of Congress to Hold Town Hall on Missing Black Girls in D.C. and Across U.S.

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A coalition of African-American members of Congress announced Friday that it will hold a town hall next month to address the dozens of missing black children in Washington and nationwide.

According to the Metropolitan Police Department, Shaniah Boyd was last seen on March 21, 2017.

The announcement by the Congressional Caucus on Black Women and Girls comes amid calls for federal assistance to help locate missing African-American girls whose profiles are posted almost daily on the Washington Metropolitan Police Department’s Twitter feed.

“In 2014, the Black and Missing Foundation reported that 64,000 black women and girls were missing nationwide,” Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman, D-New Jersey, said Friday in a statement. “It appears that there are many structural and institutional components contributing to the issues, including economic disadvantages and/or poverty in communities of color, disparate treatment of missing black women and girls by law enforcement, and lack of public awareness or response.”

“Therefore, on behalf of our constituents and the thousands of missing children and women of color across the country we will call a town hall to discuss and dissect this national emergency and seek to push forward proposals that will reconcile this disparity,” she said.

The group said it had not yet finalized the timing or location for the event.

Annual statistics show cases of missing children have remained relatively steady in Washington over the past several years — with 2,222 cases in 2014, 2,433 in 2015 and 2,242 in 2016.

The Metropolitan Police Department recorded 501 cases of missing children so far in 2017.

“We have received a lot of media attention and a lot of concern from the public because of the number of releases,” MPD Commander Chanel Dickerson said at a March news conference. “There have been concerns that young girls in the District of Columbia are victims of human trafficking or have been kidnapped, or that there’s an increase in the number” who have gone missing.

“And I say this without minimizing the number of missing persons in DC — because one missing person is one person too many — but there’s actually been a decrease,” she added. “There is always a concern of human trafficking, but we have no evidence for this.”

The lawmakers hope the town hall leads to policy solutions to combat this problem.

“This town hall will include representatives from law enforcement, advocacy groups and community members and other relevant stakeholders who are influential in this space to ensure that all perspectives and concerns are heard,” said Kirsten Allen, a spokeswoman for Coleman. “The Caucus co-chairs and caucus members seek to understand these perspectives and, in turn, will use them to inform potential policy and programming solutions on the federal level.”

The Congressional Caucus on Black Women and Girls was launched in 2016 by co-chairs Coleman, Robin Kelly and Yvette Clarke.

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In Wake of ‘The Martian,’ Scientists Successfully Grow Potatoes in Mars-Like Conditions

Potatoes at a gardeners’ market. (Clemens Bilan/Getty Images)

By Ese Olumhense

Using a simulator that replicates the extreme environmental conditions present on Mars, Peruvian scientists have successfully grown a small potato plant, a feat that the researchers say bodes well for both extraterrestrial agriculture and food production in dry regions of the globe.

“It’s not only about bringing potatoes to Mars, but also finding a potato that can resist non-cultivable areas on Earth,” astrobiologist Julio Valdivia of Peru’s University of Engineering and Technology told the Associated Press on Thursday.

Valdivia is collaborating with a team at NASA’s Ames Research Center in Silicon Valley’s Mountain View, which helped him design the Mars environment simulator. It features below-zero temperatures, a high concentration of carbon monoxide, and the air pressure found at an altitude of nearly 20,000 feet. Work began on the potato project in 2016.

Both teams will continue attempting to grow potato plants in more extreme conditions to get a wider range of results.

As the AP reported on Thursday, NASA has conducted similar studies in the past. Most of this work, however, has centered on optimizing extraterrestrial environments to increase food and oxygen outputs, also known as terraforming.

Space spuds and the f-word

Here on Earth, the new research could help solve the famines that threaten an estimated 20 million people around the world, among them approximately 1.4 million children. As Valdivia said, the success of the potato experiment means that food could likely be grown in areas like deserts and other arid regions that don’t typically receive enough rainfall to sustain agriculture.

Global aid organizations, including the United Nations and the World Food Program, are warning of the current risk of famine in three such areas — Somalia, Yemen, and in parts of Nigeria. In South Sudan, the world’s newest country, the UN recently designated a famine in some areas, affecting more than 1 million people.

“Famine has become a tragic reality in parts of South Sudan and our worst fears have been realized,” said Serge Tissot, a U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization representative in South Sudan. “Many families have exhausted every means they have to survive.”

Most of the food insecurity in these regions is the result of civil conflict — the UN has called this widespread food scarcity the most pressing humanitarian crisis since the end of World War II. A Friday WFP report said “severe” food insecurity is “worsening” globally.

Famine occurs when three conditions are met: roughly one-third or more of the population in a given area is acutely malnourished; at least 20 percent of the population in the specific area has extremely limited access to food; and the death rate in this group must exceed two per 10,000 people each day.

“Famine is not a word that we use lightly,” Erminio Sacco, a food security expert with the FAO, told Al-Jazeera in a February interview on the crisis.

Will outer space become a haven for the wealthy?

The AP and others have pointed out the parallels between the Mars potato experiment and the 2015 movie “The Martian,” starring Matt Damon, who played an astronaut stranded in space. (Spoiler alert: Damon’s character survives the ordeal by growing potatoes on Mars.)

Scientists in real life are closer than ever to growing food in extreme conditions, which means that humans might really be able to live in space someday. A NASA expert, speaking to the AP, mentioned “deploying” plant growth systems “before humans arrive” on other planets.

The image that statement conjures — of humans possibly moving to space — is a lot like the plot of another Matt Damon sci-fi film, “Elysium.” Set several decades in future, “Elysium” depicts a world in which the rich move to a luxurious space station, while everyone else is stranded on an environmentally depleted Earth.

While the movie takes place in a world that’s at least centuries away, private citizens are already planning their travel to space. SpaceX, the company that designs, makes, and launches spacecraft, announced this year that it would send two “very serious” passengers on a trip around the moon in late 2018. The pair have paid a “significant deposit,” said SpaceX CEO Elon Musk. And, since he’s promised the trips will be a “significant driver of revenue,” one can safely assume the round trip tickets were not cheap.

As The Verge points out, one berth on a Russian rocket cost NASA around $80 million.

There’s no telling yet if space will indeed become a haven for the wealthy. In the meantime, though, scientists dreaming in that direction will probably improve life here on Earth.

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Arkansas Plans to Put 8 Inmates to Death in 10 Days, But State Can’t Find Enough Volunteers to Witness Executions

Over the course of 10 days in April, Arkansas plans to put to death eight inmates.

The state code requires that no fewer than six “respectable citizens” be present at each execution.

An execution chamber in Texas is seen in this file photo. (Credit: by Joe Raedle / Newsmakers via Getty Images)

There’s one problem: Arkansas is having a hard time finding enough volunteers to witness them.

The volunteer pool is apparently thin enough that Department of Corrections Director Wendy Kelley invited members of a local Rotary Club to volunteer.

“Temporarily there was a little laugh from the audience because they thought she might be kidding,” Bill Booker, acting president of the Little Rock Rotary Club, told CNN affiliate FOX16. “It quickly became obvious that she was not kidding.”

Kelly’s “informal efforts” continue, the corrections department told CNN on Friday.

“We remain confident in our ability to carry out these sentences,” spokesman Solomon Graves said.

Who watches executions?

The people who are allowed to witness an execution varies by state, said Robert Dunham, the director of the Death Penalty Information Center in Washington DC.

Typically, family members of the defendant and relatives of the victims are present, he said. Sometimes a state requires that lay people who have no stake in the case are present, too.

That could be a member of the media or a citizen witness, like in Arkansas.

The Arkansas Code doesn’t require that witnesses vary from execution to execution.

So, it’s conceivable that some of the volunteers could witness more than one, Dunham said.

“It’s not natural watching the intentional taking of a human life,” he said. “It has an emotional impact on people.”

And witnessing multiple execution more than just doubles the impact, he said.

“It increases exponentially.”

One obstacle at a time

The eight death row inmates will be put to death between April 17 and April 27, a move that death penalty opponents have called “unprecedented.”

The series of execution has been attributed to the state’s soon-to-be-expire supply of midazolam, a contentious drug that’s been blamed for a spate of botched executions in recent years.

The April executions would mark the first time since 2005 that Arkansas has put an inmate to death.

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PUC College Major and Careers Event – Problem Solvers

It has been said there is no better investment than education. In this KTLA Problem Solvers our Christina Pascucci goes back to school to help a group of local under-served students become head of their class.

Christina Pascucci reports on the KTLA5 News at 11pm on 3/30/17.

Find more information or to donate, go to PUC Schools.

 

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New Sunday Brunch Menu at E.P. & L.P.

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Flynn’s Request for Immunity – in Exchange for Testimony in Russia Investigation – Meets Resistance

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Former national security adviser Michael Flynn’s offer to testify in return for immunity from prosecution hovered over the investigations Friday into Russia’s communications with top aides to President Donald Trump.

Flynn’s lawyer, Robert Kelner, said late Thursday that Flynn would testify in exchange for immunity. And Trump himself supported Flynn’s request for immunity Friday morning in a tweet, saying, “Mike Flynn should ask for immunity in that this is a witch hunt (excuse for big election loss), by media & Dems, of historic proportion!”

Mike Flynn should ask for immunity in that this is a witch hunt (excuse for big election loss), by media & Dems, of historic proportion!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 31, 2017

But as of Friday afternoon, it did not appear that investigators had accepted his offer. A Democratic source said that Democrats on the intelligence committee are resistant to the offer.

Rep. Adam Schiff, the top Democrat on the intelligence committee, said Friday it was too early to say whether they would agree to Flynn’s request, but put Flynn’s offer in greater context.

“We should first acknowledge what a grave and momentous step it is for a former National Security Advisor to the President of the United States to ask for immunity from prosecution,” Schiff said in a statement.

A spokesman for House Intelligence Chairman Devin Nunes said that House investigators have spoken with Flynn’s lawyer about bringing him in for questioning, but that immunity was never discussed.

The House intelligence committee “had a preliminary conversation with Michael Flynn’s lawyer about arranging for Flynn to speak to the committee,” Nunes spokesman Jack Langer said. “The discussions did not include immunity or other possible conditions for his appearance.”

Spokespersons for the Senate intelligence committee declined to say Friday if the panel would accept Flynn’s offer, but a Senate intelligence committee source said it seemed unlikely, although it was too early to say with certainty.

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ICE Agents Will Continue to Make Arrests at Courthouses, Trump Administration Says

The Departments of Justice and Homeland Security said this week that immigration agents will continue to make arrests at courthouses — and encouraged cities to revoke their sanctuary policies if they object.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents detain an immigrant on Oct. 14, 2015, in Los Angeles. (Credit: John Moore/Getty Images)

The letter, released Friday but sent Wednesday, was a response to California Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye, who wrote to Attorney General Jeff Sessions and DHS Secretary John Kelly saying that Immigrations and Customs Enforcement “appear to be stalking undocumented immigrants in our courthouses to make arrests.”

The subject of ICE arrests at courthouses has been particularly sensitive in recent weeks between major cities and federal officials, as local jurisdictions have complained that arresting undocumented immigrants in courthouses has a chilling effect on their participation in prosecuting criminals as witnesses and reporting victims.

Los Angeles has said reporting of crimes like sexual assault and domestic violence are down by one-quarter in immigrant communities.

“Our courthouses serve as a vital forum for ensuring access to justice and protecting public safety,” Cantil-Sakauye wrote in her letter earlier this month. “Courthouses should not be used as bait in the necessary enforcement of our country’s immigration laws.”

But DHS has maintained that courthouses are not considered “sensitive locations” and that apprehending individuals in controlled environments is safer than doing so on the street.

In their letter, Sessions and Kelly object to Cantil-Sakauye’s use of the word “stalking,” saying ICE is constitutionally and lawfully authorized to arrest anyone with probable cause.

They also insist that arrests by ICE are targeted and not indiscriminate — though advocacy groups have complained that ICE has arrested non-criminal undocumented immigrants in recent stepped-up enforcement.

As the administration continues to pressure sanctuary cities, the attorney general and DHS secretary criticized California and its jurisdictions for having policies of non-cooperation with ICE — blaming those policies for the courthouse arrests.

“Some jurisdictions, including the State of California and many of its largest counties and cities, have enacted statutes and ordinances designed to specifically prohibit or hinder ICE from enforcing immigration law by prohibiting communication with ICE, and denying requests by ICE officers and agents to enter prisons and jails to make arrests,” Sessions and Kelly wrote. “As a result, ICE officers and agents are required to locate and arrest these aliens in public places, rather than in secure jail facilities where the risk of injury to the public, the alien, and the officer is significantly increased because the alien can more readily access a weapon, resist arrest, or flee.”

Sessions and Kelly said that because courthouses require screening for entry, they are the safest places to make arrests of known targets.

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$25 Million Settlement of Trump University Lawsuit Approved by Federal Judge in San Diego

Thousands of former Trump University students will get most of their money back, with a judge on Friday approving a $25 million settlement.

Materials for a Trump-affiliated course are shown in a file photo. (Credit: CNN)

“The settlement is fair, adequate, and reasonable,” stated the decision of Judge Gonzalo Curiel of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California.

Nearly 4,000 former students submitted claims and those who are eligible could get back about 90% of their money.

The settlement was agreed to last November, just 10 days after Donald Trump won the presidential election, but still needed court approval.

Trump University was created in 2005, and promised to teach students investing techniques they could use to get rich in real estate — just like Trump.

A “one-year apprenticeship” at Trump University cost $1,495, according to court documents, while a “membership” cost at least $10,000 and the “Gold Elite,” the seminar’s most expensive class, cost $35,000.

Trump University effectively closed in 2010, the same year the New York Department of Education directed the program to stop operating without a license.

In advertisements for Trump University, Trump said he “hand-picked” the instructors, but he did not remember a single instructor during a deposition.

The November settlement brought together former Trump University students from three lawsuits: two federal class-action suits in San Diego, and a separate one brought by New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman.

The approval of the settlement had been opposed by one former student, Sherri B. Simpson, who thought she could get more money by going to trial. Simpson told CNN she spent about $20,000 on Trump University courses in 2010.

Judge Curiel dismissed Simpson’s objection. “That only one procedurally valid objection was filed… is indicative of the fairness, adequacy, and reasonableness of the Settlement,” he said.

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Tenn. Teacher, Missing Teen Spotted at Okla. City Wal-Mart; First Confirmed Sighting Since Alleged Kidnapping

The Tennessee teacher and 15-year-old girl who are the subject of a manhunt were spotted at a Walmart in Oklahoma City earlier this month, the first confirmed sighting of the two since officials say the teacher kidnapped the girl.

The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, which released this photo, has confirmed a sighting of the 15-year-old victim in an ongoing Amber Alert, along with the 50-year-old man believed to have kidnapped her earlier this month.

Tad Cummins, 50, is suspected of abducting Elizabeth Thomas, his former student in Maury County, Tennessee, according to the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI).

Thomas has been missing since March 13, weeks after a student reported she saw the pair kissing, police say.

Surveillance images released Friday show Cummins and Thomas at a Walmart on East I-240 Service Road in Oklahoma City on the afternoon of March 15.

There, Cummins used cash to purchase various food items, according to the TBI. The images show that Cummins has darkened his hair and that Thomas may have red hair now, the TBI said in a statement. Investigators are working to determine what vehicle they were using.

Law enforcement officials believe Cummins is armed with two handguns and driving a silver Nissan Rogue with Tennessee plates.

Cummins was added to the state's "Top 10 Most Wanted" list on Friday, TBI said.

 

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Chicago-Area Man Credits Cellphone App for Helping Him Lose 500 pounds

A 45-year-old man once-confined to his suburban Chicago-area home for years said he lost 500 pounds with the help of a cellphone app.

In 2011, Rafael Zuniga weighed over 800 pounds.  His weight was a lifelong battle that spiraled out of control, KTLA sister station WGN-TV reported.

Over the past six years, he has lost 500 pounds. While he did the work alone, Zuniga said that ultimately, it was an app that got him on the path to living again.

Stress from work as a real estate adjuster and a bad break up left him at an all-time high of 831 pounds. Alcohol and fast food were his best friends.

"I’m always thinking I’ve got to lose a couple hundred pounds and I’ll be back in the mix," he says.  “But it wasn't a couple hundred pounds. My weight doubled.  I was in shock.  As stupid as it sounds, I was in shock."

Rock bottom

"When I was unable to keep cleaning myself, I guess that was my rock bottom," he told WGN.

In July 2011, he was taken to the hospital and labeled morbidly obese. He was fighting lymphdema, hypertension, and cellulitis among other things.

It was a turning point for Zuniga.

"It was a beautiful day out and I had seen everybody.  Life was passing me by," he said.

That is when Zuniga decided to change his path of physical and financial ruin to one of wellness. After researching weight loss, he discovered the app "LoseIt!"

Zuniga's goal was to weigh 250 pounds and travel the world.

"The image of me just being by an ocean, man, that helped me out tremendously,” he says.

How the weight loss app changed his life

Zuniga uses the app to count his calories, track his meals, and seek support from other users trying to lose weight.  The app taught him to eat smarter, he said.

But he also started exercising. At first, it meant the smallest of movements.

"I was sitting at the edge of my bed doing sit ups. I refused to believe that I was disabled,” he says.

Zuniga now does cardio five times a week and lifts weights two to four times a week.  He eats a high-protein diet, cuts out the carbs, and counts every calorie he eats.

And he has not had any surgical procedure to lose the weight. There is no more alcohol and he does take a prescribed appetite suppressant.

The real motivator? A vacation

In 2014, Zuniga's dream came true. Labeling himself as "skinny for him" -- he was down to 400 pounds -- his father booked him a business class seat to the Dominican Republic.

Over the past three years, Zuniga has shed another 100 pounds bringing his overall weight loss in excess of 500 pounds.

He told the station he'd like to lose another 50 and get his doctors more comfortable with the idea of double knee replacements for his severe osteoarthritis. Removing his excess skin might get him close, but insurance doesn't cover the procedure.

Zuniga is just the beginning of the rest of his life. Clean living with the help of an app is opening a whole new world for him, he said.

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Get Your Caps On for Dodgers Opening Day, and Listen to Rodney Peete Broadcast from the Field on AM 570 L.A. Sports

Catch "Lunchtime with Roggin and Rodney" weekendays 12-2p on AM 570 L.A. Sports, radio home of the Los Angeles Dodgers. Plus catch For Peete's Sake on OWN Saturday's at 10p.m.

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Jasika Nicole on Tranforming into Georgia for “Underground”

Catch Underground on WGN America Wednesday at 10p.m., search for your channel www.wgnamerica.com.

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Pregnant Middle School Teacher in Texas Arrested After Allegedly Having Sex With Student Multiple Times

A pregnant middle school teacher in Roanoke, Texas, has been arrested after she was accused of having sex multiple times with a 15-year-old male student.

Katherine Ruth Harper is seen in a booking photo obtained by KTLA sister station KDAF.

Katherine Ruth Harper, 27, a seventh grade teacher and cheerleader coach at Tidwell Middle School, was taken into a custody after a three month investigation of the sexual allegations, KTLA sister station KDAF in Dallas reported on Thursday.

Northwest school district officials received an anonymous tip back in December that she was having a relationship with a student in her class, according to an arrest warrant affidavit.

Harper and the student had allegedly been sending text messages to each other that led to them meeting in her Fort Worth home or his home in Trophy Club, according to the affidavit.

The pair also allegedly exchanged nude photographs through their cellphones, the Star-Telegram reported.

Based on cellphone records, the two communicated with each other 76 times from June 1 to July 31. The teen allegedly admitted to having a sexual relationship with Harper when school officials questioned him, according to KDAF.

His phone was seized by police.

Harper is facing a felony charge of an improper relationship between an educator and student.

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Friday Forecast: Winds Move Out as Temps Warm Up

Look for the powerful overnight winds to move out of the area Friday afternoon as temperatures begin to warm up. Henry DiCarlo has KTLA’s forecast on March 31, 2017.

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High There: Dating App Caters to Pot Smokers

High There is a dating app catering to cannabis users. It was created in 2015 by co-founder Darren Roberts after he noticed medical marijuana-using friends having trouble finding partners. Kacey Montoya reports for the KTLA 5 News at 10 on March 30, 2017.

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First of Two 55-Hour Closures on 15 Freeway in Fontana Set to Begin Friday Night

The first of two 55-hour weekend closures impacting traffic on the 15 Freeway in Fontana is set to begin Friday night.

The Duncan Canyon Road overpass is seen in an image provided by Google Maps.

The closure is part of a $3 million project to install a new storm drain underneath the freeway, according to a news release from Caltrans.

The southbound side of the 15 Freeway at Duncan Canyon Road will be closed for 55 hours as crews put a culvert box in place immediately north of the overpass, Caltrans stated.

The closure will begin at 9 p.m. Friday and continue until 4 a.m. Monday.

The shut down will likely create traffic delays in the area, especially Sunday evening as many drivers are returning from weekend trips to Las Vegas.

Southbound vehicles can take the 215 Freeway through Devore then connect to the 210 Freeway in San Bernardino as a detour.

The second closure will be in place the following weekend for vehicles traveling in the opposite direction.

The northbound side of the freeway will be closed at Duncan Canyon Road beginning at 11 p.m. on April 7 and will remain shut down until 6 a.m. on Monday, April 10, according to Caltrans.

A map of a planned closure in Fontana was provided by Caltrans.

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Suzy Nakamura Talks Season Finale of “Dr. Ken”

Dr. Ken season finale airs tonight at 8:30p on ABC. This segment aired on the KTLA Morning News, Friday, March 31, 2017.

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How Office Pools Increase Workplace Morale

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Is Giants' NFL Draft quarterback interest real? | Talk Is Cheap (PODCAST)

The Giants are kicking a lot of tires on a lot of quarterbacks.

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2 White House Staffers Help Get Info on Trump Team Intelligence Collection to Rep. Devin Nunes

A pair of White House staffers helped provide House Intelligence Committee Chairman Devin Nunes information last week that may show some of President Donald Trump’s top aides were picked up in intelligence collection.

House Intelligence Committee chairman Rep. Devin Nunes (R-CA) walks to the House floor on Capitol Hill, March 24, 2017. (Credit: Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

The information has also derailed the House investigation into Russian interference in the US election.

Ezra Cohen-Watnick and Michael Ellis, two National Security Council officials in the Trump White House, are believed to be two of the individuals involved in assisting Nunes last week in gathering intelligence materials, a US official confirmed to CNN Friday.

The New York Times and The Washington Post reported Thursday on the identities of Nunes’ sources.

It is not immediately clear to CNN if either individual was directly involved in showing Nunes the documents. The Washington Post, citing an unnamed official, reported Cohen-Watnick found the reports but had no role in getting it to Nunes.

Democratic sources on the House intelligence committee said Wednesday that staff were briefed on the alleged source of Nunes’ information Wednesday, but could not independently confirm their identities.

“As he’s stated many times, Chairman Nunes will not confirm or deny speculation about his source’s identity, and he will not respond to speculation from anonymous sources” Nunes spokesman Jack Langer said in a statement to CNN Friday.

Nunes has been adamant that he would not reveal who alerted him to the intelligence collection last week. Pressure has been mounting on him, day after day, since he made his stunning announcement last week.

CNN reported Monday that Nunes met with his source on White House grounds last Tuesday — one day before revealing briefing the press and Trump on his findings. Hours after it was reported Nunes received his intelligence on White House grounds, House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi and the committee’s top Democrat, Rep. Adam Schiff, called on Nunes to recuse himself from the House Russia investigation.

Nunes has so far refused to remove himself from the investigation, and has been supported by House Speaker Paul Ryan. But some House Republicans have begun expressing concerns about Nunes’ ability to lead the investigation after the events of the past week.

Members of the House intelligence committee say, meanwhile, that they are still waiting to review the information Nunes reviewed. Nunes initially said he expected that information would be provided by the National Security Agency last Friday, but has consistently pushed that timeline back.

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Oregon Hiker Warned for Taking ‘Malnourished’ Bear Cub to Wildlife Center

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A Salem man has quite the story to tell after he rescued a bear cub he believes was close to death in the Cascade foothills.

A Salem man has quite the story to tell after he rescued a bear cub he believes was close to death in the Cascade foothills. (Credit: Turtle Ridge Wildlife Cen./KPTV)

Corey Hancock says he was out hiking in the Elkhorn area on the North Fork of the Santiam River in Marion County. He was out there after work on Monday taking pictures of the waterfalls, KPTV reported.

“I hiked in a couple miles and shot some photos and the rain started coming in,” Hancock said.

As he was headed back to his car he came across a black bear, lying lifeless along the side of the trail.

“It was cold, raining, just sitting there in the rain not moving, not breathing,” Hancock said.

For several minutes he watched the young cub to see if its mother would come for it or if it would get up and take off, but that didn’t happen. In the next few minutes, he made the decision to step in. He scooped up the bear and headed for his car.

There he raced to find cell service. During that time giving the bear rescue puffs, trying to keep it alive and breathing, but the cub kept struggling.

“I kind of held him and right as I was kind of thinking maybe I should go put him back in the woods, he took a breath,” Hancock said.

Hancock then took to Facebook with a picture of him and cub. He pleaded for help on where a good place to take the bear would be. He eventually settled on the Turtle Animal Center in Salem where vets agreed to take a look at the young black bear.

“She mentioned how emaciated, and malnourished and dehydrated he was, you know, so he probably hadn’t eaten for several days,” Hancock said.

Vets would give the bear, known as Elkhorn, fluids and stay with it through the night.

In a statement to FOX 12 the center wrote:

Yesterday evening we received a malnourished, lethargic black bear cub. The cub, nicknamed “Elkhorn,” received several rounds of sub cutaneous fluids. His hydration and body temperature finally normalized around 2a.m. Nearly 12 hours later, he is showing significant signs of improvement!

Elkhorn was transferred to a wildlife veterinarian with Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife where he will have a full health exam, and pending the results, will be placed in the care of an out-of-state center to continue his rehabilitation.

We owe a big THANK YOU to Elkhorn’s hero Corey for finding the distressed cub and safely bringing him to us.
“When I was there he was clawing at his cage and biting his cage and growling and acting like a little ball of fury,” said Hancock.

The bear is now in the hands of the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife who issued a statement Tuesday as well writing:

The bear is now in the care of ODFW’s wildlife health lab/veterinary staff and doing well. We estimate it is 3.5 months old and weighs 4.1 pounds.

We advise people to never assume a young animal is orphaned unless they saw the mother die. It is quite common for young to temporarily be left alone in the wild.

From what we know, this bear cub, which is quite young, was picked up trailside. Its mother could have been moving it to a more secure location. We don’t know if it was truly orphaned.

He should have called ODFW, OSP, or wildlife rehabilitator before removing the cub from the wild. He did take it to rehabber but we currently do not have any approved Oregon rehab facilities for holding of bear cubs so we have picked up the cub and will be evaluating it, and determining next steps. Options with bear cub like this are: back to mother in the wild (we are not planning this because chances of reuniting them unlikely), to a rehabber out of state, or to accredited zoo for lifetime in captivity.

This is a good time of year to remind people to leave wildlife in the wild. We see this happen a lot in the spring, with all sorts of young animals including birds, deer fawns and elk calves, and even cougar kittens, getting picked up because people assume they are orphaned. Often, it’s a death sentence for the animal, which misses the chance to lead a normal life in the wild and also to learn skills from its parent like where to feed, what to eat, how to behave, etc.

Because it’s bad for wildlife, and can be dangerous for people, it’s also against the law. Oregon State Police will be following up with the hiker.

Removing or “capturing” an animal from the wild and keeping it in captivity without a permit is against state law (OAR 635-044-0015), as is transporting many animals.
Hancock says he made the right decision and is happy Elkhorn was able to live to see another day.

“I think anybody else you know that would have been in my place in that moment would have done the same thing,” said Hancock.

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