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Robot police dog returns to NYPD despite earlier criticism

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:56:27 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — New York City officials unveiled three new high-tech policing devices Tuesday, including a robotic dog that critics called creepy when it first joined the police pack 2 1/2 years ago.The new devices, which also include a GPS tracker for stolen cars and a cone-shaped security robot, will be rolled out in a manner that is “transparent, consistent and always done in close collaboration with the people we serve,” said police Commissioner Keechant Sewell, who joined Mayor Eric Adams and other officials at a Times Square press conference where the security robot and the mechanical canine nicknamed Digidog were displayed.“Digidog is out of the pound,” said Adams, a Democrat and former police officer. “Digidog is now part of the toolkit that we are using.”The city’s first robot police dog was leased in 2020 by Adams’ predecessor, former Mayor Bill de Blasio, but the city’s contract for the device was cut short after critics derided it as creepy and dy...

ACTRA and Cossette find common ground after a public call-out of the ad agency

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:56:27 GMT

TORONTO — Theunion representing Canada’s commercial actors has signed an agreement with Cossette Media that allows performersto work with the ad agency for the remainder of the year. The agreement comes amid an ongoing labour dispute between the Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television and Radio Artists (ACTRA) and Institute of Canadian Agencies (ICA), whose members include Cossette.It also comes on the heels of an ACTRA campaign to shame brands that work with agencies represented by the ICA, and a call on the federal government to stop working with Cossette. Cossette and ACTRA said in a statement they signed a “letter of continuance” for the remainder of 2023. Both declined to comment further on the agreement, signed Thursday. In the labour dispute, ACTRA has sought higher pay, protections and benefits for about 9,000 commercial actors it represents. The ICA said last month it has not barred ACTRA members from work.In a statement Friday, ACTRA said they “look forwa...

Man pleads no contest to shooting anti-abortion campaigner

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:56:27 GMT

IONIA, Mich. (AP) — A western Michigan man who said he accidentally shot an 84-year-old woman campaigning against abortion rights at his home has pleaded no contest to assault and two other charges, records show.The shooting occurred in September in Ionia County. Richard Harvey, 75, said Joan Jacobson was talking to his wife about opposing a constitutional amendment on the November ballot and had refused to leave. Harvey pleaded no contest Monday to assault, careless discharge of a gun and reckless use of a gun, according to online records. A no-contest plea is treated like a conviction at sentencing.Messages seeking comment were left for the prosecutor and Harvey’s attorney Tuesday.Harvey last year told WOOD-TV that his shotgun fired when he tried to knock away Jacobson’s clipboard. Jacobson was treated at a hospital for a shoulder wound.“It was an accident,” Harvey insisted.Jacobson had a different opinion.“I think he knew what he was doing, and I think it was intentio...

Laurentian Bank plans high-interest online chequing account as part of digital push

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:56:27 GMT

Montreal-based Laurentian Bank is preparing a digital push as it looks to attract more deposits and reach customers outside Quebec. CEO Rania Llewellyn says that while the bank was offering good rates on guaranteed investment certificates last year, it was limited by the fact that customers weren’t able to open accounts without physically going to one of its branches. She said in an interview during the bank’s annual shareholders meeting that within the next few weeks, customers will be able to open a chequing account with a three per cent interest rate online.  Laurentian Bank has had to catch up to more technologically-advanced competitors. When Llewellyn was hired in 2020, it had no mobile application and activating a credit card could take up to 25 days.Llewellyn says the bank exceeded its objectives in 2022, despite inflation and economic disruption caused by the war in Ukraine.Earnings per share increased by 14 per cent in 2022, compared with an initial target of f...

Italy planning 5-figure fines for monument and art vandalism

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:56:27 GMT

ROME (AP) — Italy will push for a law imposing stiff, five-figure fines on vandals who damage monuments or other cultural sites, to help pay for the repairs and clean-up. At a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday, the government approved proposed legislation championed by the culture minister that would impose fines starting at 10,000 euros (nearly $11,000) and as high as 60,000 euros (about $65,000).Premier Giorgia Meloni’s right-wing government has a comfortable majority in Parliament, so the proposal is expected to be easily approved and adopted into law.Culture Minister Gennaro Sangiuliano said that it recently cost the government 40,000 euros (almost $44,000) to clean the façade of the 15th-century Palazzo Madama, which is home to the Italian Senate, after it was vandalized. Just days ago, activists pressing for more action on climate change dumped black dye into the waters of a monumental fountain sculpted by Bernini at the foot of the Spanish Steps. “The attacks on monuments and ...

U.S. decries leaked classified docs over security, misinformation fears

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:56:27 GMT

WASHINGTON (Nexstar) – Biden administration and Pentagon officials say there is a serious concern for national security following a leak of dozens of classified documents with information on the war in Ukraine and U.S. involvement.Officials say they are taking the leak very seriously as the Pentagon has reached out to allies, and is now limiting the number of people with access to key documents. The agency is also holding daily meetings to asses the damage.U.S. officials are outraged about the leaked documents as National Security Council member John Kirby said, “There is no excuse for these kinds of documents to be in the public domain.”Dr. Joanna Spear, professor of international affairs at George Washington University says the leak is a serious national security concern that also exposes information about other U.S. allies.“One of the things that's notable is how current they are,” Spear said.The professor noted there are signs parts of the documents were changed to spread misinf...

MMA fighter charged with manslaughter after Florida bar fight

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:56:27 GMT

PANAMA CITY BEACH, Florida (WMBB) — An amateur MMA fighter was arrested after he allegedly killed another man in the parking lot of a Panama City Beach, Florida bar. Ross Allen Johnson, 23, of Cartersville, Ill., was charged with manslaughter by the Panama City Beach Police Department. The incident happened Sunday night in the parking lot of a bar in the 10500 block of Front Beach Road. Police wrote that Johnson is an amateur mixed martial artist with a record of five wins and two losses and three years of "advanced fighter training."  Walmart removes T-shirt from sale after shoppers notice vulgar acronym Johnson was running toward a fight involving a friend when he struck another man behind the ear, police added. That man was 31-year-old Dayvon Larry, of Malone, Fla. Base officials told Nexstar's WMBB that Larry was Airman First Class and a member of the 325th Security Forces Squadron.Police noted that Johnson never attempted to get help for Larry after he all...

Racist graffiti, threats spray-painted on California elementary school

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:56:27 GMT

RIVERSIDE COUNTY, Calif. (KTLA) – Parents and teachers in Riverside County, California, are calling for action after an elementary school in Anza was defaced with death threats and racist graffiti.The racial slurs and swastikas, along with other graphic images, were spray-painted on and around the Hamilton Elementary School last week.  Student honored for helping thwart alleged school shooting plot While the incident happened during spring break, it’s unclear exactly when the vandal or vandals hit the school. A spokesperson with the Hemet Unified School District said the incident occurred last Tuesday. Officials at the school said they learned about the graffiti on Wednesday and notified law enforcement immediately before cleaning up the hateful messages on Wednesday and Thursday.  The Riverside County Sheriff’s Department, however, paints a different picture, saying deputies were not notified about the racist graffiti until Monday.  While the timeline is unclear, o...

Missing woman found alive in Jeep submerged in Texas lake

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:56:27 GMT

MARION COUNTY, Texas (KETK) – Deputies responding to a call about a Jeep submerged in a Texas lake made a shocking discovery after pulling it out of the water: There was a woman inside.The rescued woman, who authorities haven't publicly identified, was taken to a hospital in Marion County, Texas, Friday morning. Officials say you shouldn’t eat from these East Texas lakes Marion County Sheriff's Office officials said a fisherman called the sheriff's office after he found the black Jeep submerged in the south side of Lake O' the Pines.Photo Courtesy of Marion County Sheriff's Office.Photo Courtesy of Marion County Sheriff's Office.The fisherman told dispatchers that the Jeep was about forty feet from the Woody's Camp boat ramp. Deputies and a local wrecker crew arrived, officials said, and when they started preparing to remove the Jeep from the lake they discovered a person was still inside and moving. East Texan catches one of the largest Largemouth Bass in state history With the...

What are the chances Biden extends the student loan pause again?

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:56:27 GMT

President Biden faces a ticking timer on the resumption of student loan payments by the end of the summer — but will he allow it to go off?The payments, paused amid the coronavirus pandemic, are set to begin either 60 days after the Supreme Court makes a ruling on Biden’s student debt forgiveness program or 60 days after June 30, the White House has said. Biden had also previously said the payments would resume at the beginning of 2023, and that there would not be another extension of the pause, which began under then-President Trump in 2020. Although the White House won’t discuss the possibility of a Plan B if the high court strikes down Biden's relief proposal, experts believe yet another extension of the loan payment pause is a possibility. “I definitely think this is on the table,” said Rebecca Natow, assistant professor of educational leadership and policy at Hofstra University and a higher education policy expert. Policy-wise, the move would put the Democra...