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California to receive more federal aid to combat homelessness

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:10:05 GMT

Five major U.S. cities and the state of California will receive federal help to get unsheltered residents into permanent housing under a new plan launched Thursday as part of the Biden administration's larger goal to reduce homelessness 25% by 2025.The All Inside initiative will partner the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness and its 19 federal member agencies with state officials in California and local governments in Los Angeles, Chicago, Dallas, Seattle and the Phoenix metro area. The goal is for the federal government to provide “knowledge, resources and elbow grease” to population centers where nearly half the nation's unhoused residents live, said Susan Rice, President Joe Biden's domestic policy advisor. The administration will offer “tailored support” for two years to improve efforts toward housing unsheltered people in the participating communities, including embedding a federal official in each area, officials said.A homeless encampment in Woodland Hills is now part o...

Amalia Judiscak Dead after Wrong-Way Crash near 40th Street [Phoenix, AZ]

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:10:05 GMT

17-Year-Old Girl Died after Two-Vehicle Crash near Osborn RoadPHOENIX, AZ (May 19, 2023) – Early Sunday morning, police responded to a wrong-way crash that claimed the life of Amalia Judiscak.The incident occurred on May 14th, at around 3:00 a.m., near 40th Street and Osborn Road involving two vehicles.Upon investigation, the officers have learned that 17-year-old Judiscak was travelling in the wrong direction on 40th street and collided with a vehicle occupied by a driver and a passenger.Emergency crews arrived shortly after and pronounced Judiscak dead at the scene.Meanwhile, the driver and passenger of the other involved vehicle sustained non-life-threatening injuries. Medics transported them to the hospital for treatment.At this time, it is unknown if impairment played a role in the collision. Further investigation is still ongoing.Meanwhile, the roadway was blocked during the length of the incident but it has reopened since.The team at Sweet James sends their sincere symp...

Heber Alexander Henriquez Arrested after Hit-and-Run Crash on Mission Drive [Cathedral City, CA]

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:10:05 GMT

34-Year-Old Man Arrested after Killing 78-Year-Old in a Pedestrian Crash near San Luis Rey DriveCATHEDRAL CITY, CA (May 19, 2023) – Sunday morning, police arrested Heber Alexander Henriquez after a fatal hit-and-run crash on Mission Drive.The incident happened on May 14th, at around 6:05 a.m., in the 6700 block of Mission Drive, just east of Palm Springs International Airport.According to reports, a 78-year-old man was walking along a sidewalk when 34-year-old Henriquez struck him. Following the crash, Henriquez fled the scene without rendering aid to the victim.First responders arrived at the scene and located the man with extreme injuries. Officials pronounced the 78-year-old man dead at the scene.At this time, officials have not released the identity of the man, but police said that he was a resident of Cathedral City.Meanwhile, police found Henriquez and they arrested him on a homicide charge and hit-and-run resulting in death.Police urge anyone with information regarding ...

Woman Fatally Struck in Hit-and-Run Accident on Interstate 880 [Fremont, CA]

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:10:05 GMT

Female Victim Pronounced Dead after Hit-and-Run Collision near State Route 62FREMONT, CA (May 19, 2023) – Early Sunday morning, a woman was fatally struck in a hit-and-run accident on Interstate 880.Authorities responded to the scene around 2:40 a.m., on the northbound lanes of the freeway near the off-ramp to State Route 262 and Mission Boulevard.Officers say Good Samaritans of a Mitsubishi, a man and a woman, pulled over to assist another single-vehicle crash involving a Chevrolet.The woman and the driver of the Mitsubishi were able to move the Chevy to the side where they parked behind it. As the woman was standing between the two vehicles, the driver of a Ford F-150 slammed into the rear of the Mitsubishi, pushing it into the woman.Due to the extent of injuries sustained, medics pronounced her dead at the scene.Meanwhile, the driver of the Ford fled the scene on foot and authorities have no lead about the suspect.Also, police arrested the driver of the Chevy with a DUI cha...

Jim Brown dies at 87; NFL legend was prominent civil rights activist in 1960s

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:10:05 GMT

By Tom Withers | Associated PressPro Football Hall of Famer Jim Brown, the unstoppable running back who retired at the peak of his brilliant career to become an actor as well as a prominent civil rights advocate during the 1960s, has died. He was 87.A spokeswoman for Brown’s family said he passed away peacefully in his Los Angeles home on Thursday night with his wife, Monique, by his side.One of the greatest players in football history and one of the game’s first superstars, Brown was chosen the NFL’s Most Valuable Player in 1965 and shattered the league’s record books in a short career spanning 1957-65.Brown led the Cleveland Browns to their last NFL title in 1964 before retiring in his prime after the ’65 season to become an actor. He appeared in more than 30 films, including “Any Given Sunday” and “The Dirty Dozen.”An unstoppable runner with power, speed and endurance, Brown’s arrival sparked the game’s burgeoning ...

Jeff Bezos gave Lauren Sanchez what every billionaire’s girlfriend will now want

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:10:05 GMT

Now that Jeff Bezos has revealed that he decorated the prow of his new $500 million yacht with a sculpture of a “curvaceous winged goddess,” which bears a striking resemblance to his girlfriend Lauren Sanchez, it’s easy to imagine that the partners of other billionaires will also want their likenesses to be incorporated into the designs of their family mega-yachts.As the Daily Mail first reported this week, Bezos and Sanchez were seen lounging on one of the decks of his enormous new yacht, Koru, as it was moored off the coast of the Spanish island Mallorca. The yacht is believed by many to be the largest sailing yacht in the world.As paparazzi captured images of the Amazon founder shirtless, and Sanchez wearing a tiny pink bikini, they also snapped photos of the ship’s figurehead. It appears to be a highly visible gesture of Bezos’ love for the former TV personality, as well as his idea of a cool new status symbol that will be the envy of other billiona...

Mexico’s Popocatepetl volcano shudders to life

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:10:05 GMT

By María Verza | Associated PressMEXICO CITY — Mexico’s Popocatepetl volcano rumbled to life again this week, belching out towering clouds of ash that forced 11 villages to cancel school sessions.The residents weren’t the only ones keeping a close eye on the towering peak. Every time there is a sigh, tic or heave in Popocatepetl, there are dozens of scientists, a network of sensors and cameras, and a roomful of powerful equipment watching its every move.The 17,797-foot (5,426-meter) volcano, known affectionately as “El Popo,” has been spewing toxic fumes, ash and lumps of incandescent rock persistently for almost 30 years, since it awakened from a long slumber in 1994.The volcano is 45 miles (72 kilometers) southeast of Mexico City, but looms much closer to the eastern fringes of the metropolitan area of 22 million people. The city also faces threats from earthquakes and sinking soil, but the volcano is the most visible potential danger — and the most closely...

The Cost of Dying: Index of the stories, plus end-of-life planning resources

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:10:05 GMT

Here are links to the Cost of Dying project, a series by Bay Area News Group science writer Lisa M. Krieger examining end-of-life issues. All of the articles, plus more recent coverage of the topic, can also be found at www.mercurynews.com/tag/cost-of-dying.StoriesLife-and-death decisions: “My father’s final days in a hospital bed were far from the natural death he desired. His story poses a modern dilemma: Just because it’s possible to prolong a life, should we?”Nine lessons I learned about ‘a good death’: Lisa Krieger draws on reader response in this follow-up two weeks after the original story.Planning your death: How others make — and how you should make — the deeply personal and difficult decisions.One nurse’s end-of-life choice: The clarity of the San Jose woman’s decision also gave her loved ones the ability to celebrate her final days, more than suffer her death.Palliative care improves lives and eases the cost of dying: Outpatient palliat...

Hotline mailbag: ESPN’s move to streaming (what it means for the Pac-12), the wait for SDSU, the hope for UNLV and more

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:10:05 GMT

The Hotline mailbag is published every week. Send questions to [email protected] and include ‘mailbag’ in the subject line or hit me on Twitter: @WilnerHotline.Some questions have been edited for clarity and brevity.What are the media rights implications for the Pac-12 (and college sports) resulting from ESPN selling its main channel directly to consumers as a standalone streaming service?  — @MattZemekFor those who missed it, the Wall Street Journal reported Thursday that ESPN will indeed become a direct-to-consumer offering.Yes, the main network is being turned into a streaming platform, just like Apple and Amazon, Peacock and Paramount … and ESPN+.When the transition happens — it’s undoubtedly years away — all the college football content owned and licensed by ESPN will be available on streaming.Which would seem to undercut the narrative that the Pac-12 is doomed if the next media rights deal includes a streaming component.Which is what the...

High school football: Why Serra, De La Salle teamed up for a college showcase and what it means moving forward

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:10:05 GMT

SAN MATEO — May is a busy time for college football coaches tasked with evaluating high school players who one day might help their teams on Saturdays.From city to city, school to school, they pile up miles and long hours away from home in the name of recruiting.Thursday, two of Northern California’s premier high school programs — Serra and De La Salle — made it easier on the coaches. They used one of their spring practice days to hold a two-hour showcase at Serra’s Brady Family Stadium.Rules prohibit high school teams from working out together. So Serra went through its drills in the first hour. De La Salle arrived by bus from Concord just as Serra was finishing and practiced in the second hour.Essentially, they took a page out of Southern California’s playbook as powerhouse teams from that end of the state have held similar showcases for years.The combination of weather (chamber of commerce perfect) and turnout (a number of college coaches attended) could not have worked out bette...