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Former Aurora VA suicide prevention director reassigned again amid internal investigation

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:37:42 GMT

The former leader of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs’ Aurora-based suicide prevention center will not be taking a temporary assignment in the VA’s national office amid an internal investigation into toxic workplace concerns.Less than two weeks after The Denver Post outlined “emotional, mental and psychological abuse” inside the Rocky Mountain Mental Illness Research, Education, and Clinical Center, the VA reassigned the director, Dr. Lisa Brenner, to a less prominent position.The department initially had said Brenner would assume the role of deputy director in the VA’s national office for suicide prevention while the investigation played out.Following publication of The Post’s reporting, however, a VA spokesperson said she instead would be detailed in a “non-supervisory capacity” to the VA Eastern Colorado Health Care System, working in a task group for suicide prevention.Brenner’s attorney, David Schleicher, in a statement Fri...

Men connected to construction yard theft found with arsenal of weapons, authorities say 

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:37:42 GMT

Two men were arrested for a slew of charges following a theft investigation that turned up a cache of weapons at a home in San Bernardino. According to the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department, the incident was reported around 8:30 a.m. Thursday morning when the reporting party requested help retrieving stolen property. The caller told the Sheriff's Dispatch that he arrived to work at a construction site in the 17800 block of Valley Boulevard in Bloomington to find that items had been stolen and that he had tracked them to a house in the 7000 block of Tippecanoe Avenue in unincorporated San Bernardino.  Charlie Sheen attacked at Malibu home by neighbor: LASD “The business owner believed he located his property and a vehicle involved in the theft at the address on Tippecanoe Avenue,” SBSD said in a press release. “[Deputies] responded, detained possible suspects, viewed video surveillance of the initial theft and notified the Fontana Station, who services the area where ...

Lightning closes L.A. County beaches

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:37:42 GMT

Lightning has closed Los Angeles County beaches on Friday, according to the Los Angeles County Fire Department, Lifeguard Division.The closures stretch from Redondo Beach to Zuma Beach, officials said on X, formerly Twitter. California Weather Radar Map "Please stay off of the beach and please stay out of the water until the cell passes," officials added.The closure comes one day after a similar closure was enacted in Malibu due to the recent spate of storms.

5 tips for tackling Disneyland during the busiest week of the year

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:37:42 GMT

Disneyland is preparing for the craziest week of the year during the busy Christmas holiday season and we’ve got a few tips to help you navigate what promises to be the Busiest Place on Earth.The 10-day period between Saturday, Dec. 23 and Monday, Jan. 1 is shaping up to be the most crowded week of the year at Disneyland and Disney California Adventure.ALSO SEE: Disneyland Hotel active shooter hoax draws significant police response“The only thing to say about this coming week is that it’s going to be busy,” according to MousePlanet.Disneyland’s variable ticket prices serve as a good indicator of the overall popularity of various dates — and often a good barometer of crowd size.Disneyland tickets will be at their most expensive price of $194 from Dec. 23 through Jan. 6.Tickets are sold out for Christmas Day, Dec. 25 at Disneyland and Dec. 27 and 28 for both parks at the time of publication. Check the Disneyland availability calendar for updates.ALSO SEE: 5 fireworks shows coming to D...

What Japanese star pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto agreeing to megadeal with Dodgers means for SF Giants

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:37:42 GMT

The Dodgers have already won the offseason, flexing financial might unprecedented in the sport.Los Angeles has committed over a billion dollars to two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani, Japanese phenom pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto and by trading for and extending pitcher Tyler Glasnow.Per multiple reports, Yamamoto chose the Dodgers over bids from both New York teams, the Giants, Boston, Toronto and Philadelphia, agreeing to a 12-year, $325 million deal. His contract — the most money ever guaranteed to a pitcher — includes a $50 million signing bonus, an additional $50.6 million posting fee, and a pair of opt-outs, per ESPN.Yamamoto, the three-time Pacific League MVP, was a perfect Giants target — a potential global superstar who would sell jerseys and ticket sales and give the Giants an identity as a team built around sensational starting pitching.Now, he’s a Dodger. Their spending spree makes them the clear favorite in the National League West, which they have won 10 of the past 11 ...

New Banksy artwork taken from London street as crowd looks on

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:37:42 GMT

LONDON (AP) — In front of a crowd of onlookers, the latest work of the elusive artist Banksy was snatched from a London street less than hour after he confirmed its installation Friday.Related ArticlesWorld News | UN approves Gaza aid resolution with no call for cease-fire World News | Gaza death toll exceeds 20,000 as Israel expands ground war World News | Ranking the 12 biggest bombshells from 2023 celebrity memoirs by Harry, Britney, Barbra, Jada and more World News | 6 historical mysteries that scientists finally cracked in 2023 — and one they didn’t World News | Unforgettable: These famous people died in 2023 A red stop sign with three military drones on it was taken in the middle of the day by a man with bolt cutters as witnesses snapped photos in the Peckham section of south London.People commenting on Banksy’s Instagram accurately predicted it wouldn’t be there long after the artist posted a phot...

UN approves Gaza aid resolution with no call for cease-fire

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:37:42 GMT

By Edith M. Lederer | Associated PressUNITED NATIONS — The U.N. Security Council adopted a watered-down resolution Friday calling for immediate speeded-up aid deliveries to hungry and desperate civilians in Gaza – but without the original call for an “urgent suspension of hostilities” between Israel and Hamas.The long-delayed vote in the 15-member council was 13-0 with the United States and Russia abstaining. The vote came immediately after the United States vetoed a Russian amendment that would have restored the call to immediately suspend hostilities. That vote was 10 countries in favor, the U.S. against and four abstentions.The final-vote U.S. abstention avoided a second American veto of a Gaza resolution following Hamas’ surprise Oct. 7 attacks inside Israel. A relieved U.S. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield told the council after the resolution’s adoption: “This was tough, but we got there.”She said the vote bolsters efforts “to allevi...

Mailbag: The impact of an ACC collapse, flexibility for WSU and OSU, the issues with football breaking away and more

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:37:42 GMT

The Hotline mailbag publishes each Friday. Send questions to [email protected] and include ‘mailbag’ in the subject line. Or hit me on Twitter: @WilnerHotline.Please note: Some questions have been edited for clarity and brevity.If the ACC breaks up, what happens to Cal, Stanford, and SMU? — @JonBernal19The ACC’s tumultuous situation potentially impacts a slew of schools beyond the three entering the conference next summer, but let’s focus on the Bay Area tandem.Desperate as they were following the collapse of the Pac-12, Stanford and Cal took a significant risk by signing the ACC’s grant-of-rights contract and locking themselves into a 12-year deal during a time of massive upheaval across college athletics.At the time, the ACC was viewed by many as the next conference to rupture.Fast forward to Dec. 3: Florida State’s exclusion from the College Football Playoff carried immediate and clear implications for the future of the ACC, reinforci...

Days before trial, man charged in Fremont police killing of pregnant teen takes 17-year prison term in plea deal

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:37:42 GMT

OAKLAND — With the start of his jury trial just days away, a 25-year-old Bay Area man accepted a plea deal required him to admit fault for the Fremont police killing of 16-year-old Elena Mondragon, as well as an earlier, unrelated fatal crash in Oakland.Rico Tiger pleaded no contest on Dec. 11 to attempted murder and assault on peace officers, robbery, and two vehicular manslaughter counts — one for Mondragon, who was killed by officers as Tiger reportedly rammed a police van with a stolen BMW, and a second for Cristel Antunez-Ayala, who was killed in a vehicle crash at Bancroft and 90th Avenues in Oakland after Tiger allegedly ran a red light at high speeds after an Oakland officer spotted him driving by.On Jan 10, 2024, Tiger is scheduled to be formally sentenced to 17 years in state prison.Last year, a federal civil jury awarded $21 million to Mondragon’s family, holding Tiger 51 percent liable for her death and three involved Fremont officers 49 percent liable,...

CHP seized over 9M lethal doses of fentanyl in Tenderloin in 2023, governor says

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:37:42 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) -- The California Highway Patrol seized over 40 pounds of fentanyl in San Francisco this year -- the equivalent of over 9 million lethal doses -- Gov. Gavin Newsom said. The drugs were seized in the roughly 10-block radius of SF's Tenderloin as part of a joint operation with the San Francisco Police Department.In addition to the drugs being seized, the CHP also issued more than 4,468 citations and made 428 arrests for illegal activity, according to a statement from the governor's office. CHP officers also recovered more than a dozen firearms linked to crimes. Bay Area city makes list of most dangerous in the US, study finds "We're cleaning up San Francisco's streets," said Gov. Newsom. "Working alongside our local and federal partners, the CHP is seizing more drugs and more illegal guns and providing the safety and security every Californian deserves."The joint enforcement effort was launched on May 1. Officers were deployed in multiple teams in the Tenderloin...