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Jurors convicts Colordo police officer in death of Elijah McClain, acquits a second

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:42:00 GMT

Elijah McClain is pictured in this undated photograph. (Photo provided by family of Elijah McClain)BRIGHTON — Jurors on Thursday delivered a split decision in the trial of two Aurora police officers charged in the death of Elijah McClain, convicting one officer but acquitting the other after nearly three weeks of testimony.The jury found Aurora police officer Randy Roedema, 41, guilty of criminally negligent homicide and third-degree assault — the two lesser charges he faced.Jurors acquitted former officer Jason Rosenblatt, 34, on all charges. He put his head in his hands on the defense table after the verdict, then cried as he hugged supporters and his attorneys. He had been charged with reckless manslaughter, criminally negligent homicide and second-degree assault.Roedema sat quietly when the verdict was read and did not comment when he left the courtroom. Some of his supporters wept when they heard the guilty verdict. Criminally negligent homicide is a low-level felony, while thi...

White Bear Township couple mark two milestones at the hospital: their first baby, and their wedding

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:42:00 GMT

Ellie DeMars Zepper and Eric Zepper of White Bear Township were planning to get married at the Ramsey County Courthouse in St. Paul this week, but their son had other plans.Arlo Marcos Zepper — all 8 pounds, 13 ounces and 21¼ inches of him — was born at 7:11 a.m. Sunday at M Health Fairview St. John’s Hospital in Maplewood, six days before his due date.“We knew we were pushing it,” Eric Zepper said. “We kind of like to do things at the last minute.”When the couple arrived at St. John’s in the wee hours of Sunday morning, staff asked if they wanted to speak with a hospital chaplain. “I jokingly asked, ‘Do they do marriages?’” Ellie Zepper said. “Because that was the one thing we wanted to do before the baby arrived. We wanted to tie the knot and make it official.”The couple got engaged and exchanged rings last month during an outing to the Renaissance Festival in Shakopee. “We’ve known for awhile that we were going to do this,” Eric Zepper said. “It wasn’t a big sur...

Doctors group calls its 2009 ‘excited delirium’ paper outdated and withdraws its approval

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:42:00 GMT

A leading doctors group on Thursday formally withdrew its approval of a 2009 paper on “excited delirium,” a document that critics say has been used to justify excessive force by police.The American College of Emergency Physicians in a statement called the paper outdated and said the term excited delirium should not be used by members who testify in civil or criminal cases. The group’s directors voted on the matter Thursday in Philadelphia.“This means if someone dies while being restrained in custody … people can’t point to excited delirium as the reason and can’t point to ACEP’s endorsement of the concept to bolster their case,” said Dr. Brooks Walsh, a Connecticut emergency doctor who pushed the organization to strengthen its stance.Earlier this week, California became the first state to bar the use of excited delirium and related terms as a cause of death in autopsies. The legislation, signed Sunday by Gov. Gavin Newsom, also prohibits police officers from using it in ...

ATV/UTV accidents involving minors on the rise in Missouri

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:42:00 GMT

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. - The Missouri State Highway Patrol is warning parents about the dangers that off-road vehicles, like ATVs and UTVs, present for children. Of the nearly 300 ATV crashes last year in Missouri, more than 70% of them resulted in injuries, leaving 26 people dead. This year, MSHP says those numbers are on the rise and include too many kids. All-terrain vehicles, better known as ATVs, don't just exist in rural areas anymore. The vehicles are popular for all ages on trails, fields and neighborhoods. The problem is, some behind the wheel are driving without much experience. Football coach shot in front of players at practice, St. Louis community shocked "We just have seen an increase in the number of crashes, particularly with younger kids that are being injured or killed in these crashes," said Captain John Hotz with the Missouri State Highway Patrol. "You're seeing a lot of kids out there, particularly in unsupervised roles, where they are driving these big, powerfu...

DEA takes new course of action as powdered fentanyl plagues streets and schools

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:42:00 GMT

FERGUSON, Mo. - A room full of grieving families gathered Thursday at St. Louis Community College in Florissant Valley, all in an effort to work with St. Louis’ DEA division to combat powdered fentanyl overdose deaths. The Drug Enforcement Administration looks to a new course of action as powdered fentanyl not only plagues the streets, but is also making way into St. Louis-area schools. Last month, during the DEA's division summit, special agent Michael Davis informed us of new statistics in the St. Louis metro. On average, seven out of every 10 pills sold over the table now contain fentanyl here in the area. Football coach shot in front of players at practice, St. Louis community shocked Davis says a surge in overdoses and seizures is what’s forcing the need for a new course of action. He says the region could surpass 1,000 deaths by the end of the year. "We're seeing record numbers of powdered fentanyl and fake pills, and these are pills that look like legitimate prescription pi...

Nuggets Podcast: Nikola Jokic dominates NBA GM survey, Jamal Murray’s ESPN ranking, the rookies and remembering Brendan Malone

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:42:00 GMT

In the latest edition of the Nuggets Ink podcast, beat reporter Bennett Durando is joined by editor Matt Schubert to discuss training camp in San Diego, Denver’s first preseason game and all things NBA. Among the topics discussed: A trio of rookies are looking to crack coach Michael Malone’s notably veteran-heavy lineup. Who has risen to the challenge early on in preseason and who still has some maturing to do?The annual NBA general managers poll was released this week. Where does Nikola Jokic rank according to the GMs? Is Jamal Murray now flirting with All-NBA status based on recent polls?A remembrance of Brendan Malone, NBA legend and father of current head coach Michael Malone.Is it Benny, Benito, Ben? And how do you even pronounce Durando in modern America?Subscribe to the podcastSoundCloud | iTunes | Stitcher | Spotify | RSSProducer: AAron OntiverozMusic: “Follow the Leader” The Trujillo CompanyWant more Nuggets news? Sign up for the Nuggets Insider to g...

CU Buffs set to face Stanford in kicking off second half of season

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:42:00 GMT

Conference wins have been hard to come by since Colorado joined the Pac-12 before the 2011 campaign.Beating conference foes has been so difficult, in fact — CU is 28-78 against the Pac-12 since 2011 — that there’s rarely been a reason to complain about any of those wins.That’s not the mindset of the Buffaloes’ first-year head coach, however. Deion Sanders wasn’t happy with CU’s performance in last week’s 27-24 win at Arizona State — just the second win for the program ever in Tempe.There is an opportunity in front of the Buffaloes to get right on Friday, though, when Stanford visits Folsom Field.“He knows what he’s looking for on the field and he knows what he’s looking for, for his players and his coaches how to act,” said CU linebackers coach Andre Hart, who has worked with Sanders for several years. “So when he doesn’t see that, he will get directly in your face and let you know exactly where he is and where you should be. I love that about him. He lets you do your job, but at th...

Junior high students building tiny home to help family experiencing homelessness

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:42:00 GMT

Woodshop students at an Orange County junior high school are hard at work building a tiny home that they hope will ultimately help a family experiencing homelessness in their community. As the Nicolas Junior High eighth graders prepare for that big project, their teacher, Mucio Vidales, has them scaling it down and working on an even tinier model home first. "Right now, we’re working on a one-twelfth small scale of our tiny home that we’re going to be building here at Nicolas,” student Marina Damito told KTLA’s Chip Yost. “Right now, we’re building the insulation, the floorboards the walls, all the framing.” Fullerton School District Assistant Superintendent Jeremy Davis said the project really started last year when the then seventh graders built a shed to understand some of the skills they would need to build a real tiny home. The superintendent also said that the project is being funded by community partners, as well as funds from grants.  “Our goal is to not only ...

Hospital seeks help identifying man found unconscious in park

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:42:00 GMT

Providence Saint John’s Health Center in Santa Monica is asking for the public’s help to identify a patient.A photo of the unidentified patient at Providence Saint John’s Health Center. (Providence Saint John’s Health Center)The patient is described as a man in his mid-60s with graying light brown eyebrows, facial hair and scars on his head and face.He has no distinctive tattoos or birthmarks, and his hair was shaved during his treatment, a news release said.He was brought to the hospital on Oct. 3 after being found unconscious in a local park.Family or close friends who can identify this patient can call the hospital ICU at 310-829-8745 or the hospital main number at (310) 829-5511 and ask for the house supervisor on duty.

Movie Review: ‘Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour’

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:42:00 GMT

It opens with a clock counting down until show time — the dropped stomach, rollercoaster slowly encroaching its apex sensation — and then, a gentle fake out. Taylor Swift is heard before she is seen. “It's been a long time...” her voice carries. Then the drop hits: an abridged performance of “Miss Americana & the Heartbreak Prince” into “Cruel Summer,” a track that TikTok breathed new life into four years after its initial release on her 2019 album “Lover.”This is the moment it should become clear: “Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour” film is a near exact replica of her blockbuster concert performance, which recaps all 10 of her studio albums across 17 years of recorded work. There will be no narrative breaks, no behind-the-scenes footage, no additional ornamentation of the monolithic set (with the exception of a few CGI effects and album title cards to introduce each epoch.) The film delivers on the promise of its title: this is the Eras Tour in full — conveni...