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Jury awards $25.6M to fired white Starbucks manager 

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:05:06 GMT

CAMDEN, N.J. — Jurors in federal court have awarded $25.6 million to a former Starbucks regional manager who alleged that she and other white employees were unfairly punished after the high-profile arrests of two Black men at a Philadelphia location in 2018.Shannon Phillips won $600,000 in compensatory damages and $25 million in punitive damages on Monday after a jury in New Jersey found that race was a determinative factor in Phillips’ firing, in violation of federal and state anti-discrimination.In April 2018, a Philadelphia store manager called police on two Black men who were sitting in the coffee shop without ordering anything. Phillips, then regional manager of operations in Philadelphia, southern New Jersey, and elsewhere, was not involved with arrests. However, she said she was ordered to put a white manager who also wasn’t involved on administrative leave for reasons she knew were false, according to her lawsuit.Phillips said she was fired less than a month late...

A new cannabis-friendly Las Vegas hotel navigates through Nevada’s rules

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:05:06 GMT

Richard N. Velotta and McKenna Ross | Las Vegas Review-Journal (TNS)LAS VEGAS — Two days before The Lexi Hotel on Sahara Avenue was scheduled to open to guests and a day before people were invited to an opening reception, Elevations Hotels and Resorts CEO Alex Rizk was nervous.Much of the old furniture that was used in the Artisan Hotel, the former name of the 64-room property, was sitting in the hotel’s parking lot and Rizk was promised a shipment of new furniture that day – though he wasn’t sure if it was going to arrive on time.But it did.The evening soiree went as planned and when the day came, people began checking into their rooms of what is billed as Las Vegas’ first cannabis-friendly lodging.“At some point, you’re forced to accept the fact that everything won’t be perfect for the first 60 to 90 days, but we’ll still do our best to open up with what we have,” Rizk said in an interview during a media preview of the hotel’s opening.Rizk said his new fixtures were ordered, bough...

A Vermont man charged with killing his mother at sea over inheritance dies awaiting trial

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:05:06 GMT

By LISA RATHKE and DAVE COLLINS (Associated Press)The Vermont man charged with killing his mother off the coast of New England in a scheme to inherit millions of dollars has died in jail while awaiting trial, federal authorities said Thursday. Nathan Carman, 29, pleaded not guilty last year to fraud and first-degree murder in the death of his mother, Linda Carman, and was scheduled to go on trial in October.An eight-count indictment also says Carman shot and killed his wealthy grandfather John Chakalos as he slept in 2013, in order to obtain money and property from his grandfather’s estate. But the indictment does not charge Carman with his grandfather’s killing, and he had consistently denied any involvement in the two deaths.The cause of Carman’s death was not immediately clear. He was the sole occupant of a county jail cell when guards found him dead at around 2:30 a.m., said Doug Losue, superintendent of the Cheshire Corrections Department, which runs the facil...

FDA advisers endorse updating COVID vaccines to target latest omicron strain

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:05:06 GMT

By LAURAN NEERGAARD and MIKE STOBBE (AP Medical Writers)The COVID-19 vaccines are on track for a big recipe change this fall.Today’s vaccines still contain the original coronavirus strain, the one that started the pandemic — even though that was long ago supplanted by mutated versions as the virus rapidly evolves.Thursday, the Food and Drug Administration’s scientific advisers said the next round of shots in the U.S. should only include protection against the newest variants that are now dominant worldwide — a branch of the omicron family tree named XBB.The FDA will make the final decision. Vaccine makers said during the meeting that they could have updated vaccines available within months, depending on the strain.While infections have declined, the virus could be a real concern next winter, FDA’s vaccine chief Dr. Peter Marks said as the daylong meeting began.“We’re concerned that we may have another wave of COVID-19 during a time when the ...

Fourth of July recipe: Grilled Jalapeno, Corn and Idaho Potato Salad

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:05:06 GMT

Jessica Yadegaran | The Mercury NewsThis recipe from NeighborFood blogger Courtney Rowlands and the Idaho Potato Commission is the stuff of smoky barbecue dreams.The secret to this epic potato salad is in the drizzle. You drizzle reserved bacon grease on the vegetables — corn, jalapenos and red onions — before grilling them, then mix everything together with a creamy, cilantro-based dressing. You’ll never go back to store-bought again.———GRILLED JALAPENO, CORN AND IDAHO POTATO SALADServes 6 to 8Ingredients:1/2 pound bacon2 pounds Idaho red potatoes, cut into wedges or bite-sized chunks2 jalapeños, seeded and choppedKernels cut from 2 ears of corn1/2 red onion, choppedSalt and pepperDressing:3/4 cup sour cream1/4 cup mayonnaise1/4 cup cilantro, plus more to garnish1 jalapeño, seeded and roughly choppedJuice of 1 lime1 teaspoon honey2 teaspoons minced garlicDirections:Heat the grill over medium-high heat (400 to 425 degrees Fahrenheit).In a skillet on the stove, cook the bacon until c...

Losing value: Housing slowdown leads to first equity drop since 2012

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:05:06 GMT

LOS ANGELES — For the first time in more than a decade, the average U.S. homeowner with a mortgage has less home equity than they did a year earlier.Among the roughly 63% of U.S. homes with a mortgage, average homeowner equity per borrower was $274,070 in the first quarter, down 1.9% from the same quarter last year, according to real estate data tracker CoreLogic.The last time average homeowner equity fell year-over-year was in the first quarter of 2012, when the housing market was still regaining its footing after the mortgage meltdown and ensuing foreclosure crisis that helped trigger the Great Recession.All told, U.S. homeowners with a mortgage lost a combined $108.4 billion in home equity between the first quarter of last year and the first three months of 2023, a drop of 0.7%, according to CoreLogic.Massachusetts is one of 13 states that showed a drop, according to the data, with a reduction of $2,000 year-over-year for the period ending with the first quarter. The average drop...

U.S. attorney general to visit Minneapolis for ‘civil rights matter’ announcement

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:05:06 GMT

By STEVE KARNOWSKI and JIM SALTER (Associated Press)MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Two years after the U.S. Department of Justice launched an investigation into the Minneapolis Police Department following the killing of George Floyd, Attorney General Merrick Garland is visiting Minneapolis to make an announcement in “a civil rights matter.”Justice Department and city officials declined on Thursday to confirm that Friday’s news conference at the federal courthouse in Minneapolis is to announce findings of that police department investigation. But a Justice Department advisory said Garland will be joined by Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, Police Chief Brian O’Hara and others. Also, a link to a Justice Department public webinar scheduled for Friday afternoon has the heading, “DOJ Presentation for MPD Investigative Findings.”The “pattern or practice” investigation was launched in April 2021, a day after former officer Derek Chauvin was convicted o...

A Missouri doctor’s death is steeped in mystery and speculation. Authorities aren’t talking

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:05:06 GMT

CASSVILLE, Mo. (AP) — John Forsyth was known as a hard-working doctor who cared deeply for his patients and often teased nurses in the emergency room to ease tension. He was a father of eight and newly engaged. He also co-founded a cryptocurrency business with his brother.His sudden disappearance from a southwestern Missouri town last month — and the eventual discovery of his body in an Arkansas lake — has led those who knew him to wonder what happened to the man who seemed happier than he’d been for some time. A lack of information from law enforcement has only deepened the mystery, prompting amateur sleuths to espouse theories on Facebook.“It’s like the world dropped on us; we’re just in shock” said his sister Tiffany Forsyth. “There’s a part of me that’s not quite sure this is real yet. I guess it comes in steps.”Forsyth, 49, disappeared on May 21 from a parking area at a public swimming pool. His body, which had suffered an apparent gunshot wound, was found nine days later. An a...

Quebec firefighters struggling to control wildfires in northern, western regions

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:05:06 GMT

QUEBEC — Officials say firefighters are still struggling to control wildfires in two Quebec regions as the situation has improved in the rest of the province.As of Thursday afternoon, there were over 100 active fires in the southern half of the province and another 20 in the far north. The province’s forest fire prevention agency — SOPFEU — classified 26 of the southern fires as out of control.SOPFEU official Sylvain Tremblay told a press conference that rainfall hasn’t been sufficient to halt the progression of fires in the northern and western parts of the province.Fire officials are concerned about the behaviour of wildfires in those two regions as firefighters try to maintain what progress they have made.Tremblay doesn’t anticipate help from the weather in the next few days. “The forecasts are bad,” he said Thursday. “For the three days ahead, we don’t expect any rain in these areas. So, if we don’t have rain there and the fair wea...

State of emergency to be lifted in Lytton, B.C., two years after fire destroyed town

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:05:06 GMT

LYTTON, B.C. — Almost two years after a wildfire ripped through Lytton, B.C., residents will soon be able to return to their properties.Council for the Village of Lytton has voted to allow the local state of emergency to expire on June 19. The emergency was declared June 30, 2021, after B.C.’s sweltering heat dome triggered a wildfire that raced through the village, killing two people and burning homes, businesses, the ambulance station, police detachment and village office.Lytton Mayor Denise O’Connor says those who plan to return could start rebuilding within a few months, but they still don’t know how many residents will be coming back. Temporary facilities including a health centre and village hall are being established after rebuilding delays that involved archeology work and concerns over toxic soil left by the fire.Premier David Eby says the province has put tens of millions of dollars into the project so far and more will likely be needed, but he’s ve...