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Prosecutor ends probe of FBI’s Trump-Russia investigation with harsh criticism, but no new charges

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:05:30 GMT

By ERIC TUCKER and LINDSDAY WHITEHURST (Associated Press)WASHINGTON (AP) — A special prosecutor has ended his four-year investigation into possible FBI misconduct in its probe of ties between Russia and Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign with withering criticism of the bureau but a meager court record that fell far short of the former president’s prediction he would uncover the “crime of the century.”The report Monday from special counsel John Durham represents the long-awaited culmination of an investigation that Trump and allies had claimed would expose massive wrongdoing by law enforcement and intelligence officials. Instead, Durham’s investigation delivered underwhelming results, with prosecutors securing a guilty plea from a little-known FBI employee but losing the only two criminal cases they took to trial.The roughly 300-page report catalogs what Durham says were a series of missteps by the FBI and Justice Department as investigators undertook a ...

TSA is testing facial recognition at more airports, raising privacy concerns

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:05:30 GMT

By REBECCA SANTANA and RICK GENTILO (Associated Press)BALTIMORE (AP) — A passenger walks up to an airport security checkpoint, slips an ID card into a slot and looks into a camera atop a small screen. The screen flashes “Photo Complete” and the person walks through — all without having to hand over their identification to the TSA officer sitting behind the screen.It’s all part of a pilot project by the Transportation Security Administration to assess the use of facial recognition technology at a number of airports across the country.“What we are trying to do with this is aid the officers to actually determine that you are who you say who you are,” said Jason Lim, identity management capabilities manager, during a demonstration of the technology to reporters at Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport. The effort comes at a time when the use of various forms of technology to enhance security and streamline procedures is on...

Ravens agree to deal with center Sam Mustipher, an Owings Mills native and former Bears offensive lineman

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:05:30 GMT

The Ravens have been without a backup center since Trystan Colon bolted for the New York Jets in free agency this offseason. Monday, they filled that vacancy.Free agent Sam Mustipher, who spent his first three years with the Chicago Bears, has agreed to a deal with the Ravens, a source with direct knowledge of the situation confirmed to The Baltimore Sun. It’s reportedly a one-year contract.For Mustipher, it’s also a homecoming. The 26-year-old grew up in Owings Mills and starred at Our Lady of Good Counsel High School in Olney before going to Notre Dame.The Bears declined to extend a restricted free agent tender to Mustipher in March.Undrafted out of Notre Dame in 2019, Mustipher surprisingly became the Bears’ center late in the 2020 season, starting the last six games of the year. The following season, he started all 17 but struggled, with a Pro Football Focus grade of just 51 for 2021.Though he improved last season, earning a 63.4 mark from PFF, Mustipher was at...

How a decades-old Holocaust mystery fueled Anne Berest’s ‘The Postcard’

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:05:30 GMT

When Anne Berest began work on “The Postcard,” she didn’t know how the novel would end. In fact, she didn’t know if there was an end to the mystery based on her own family’s investigation into the origin of an unusual postcard.“I was anxious,” the French author confesses over a video call during her recent stay in Los Angeles.“The investigation took me four years,” Berest explains. “In the book, it’s four months, but, in reality, it’s almost four years.”Related: Sign up for our free newsletter about books, authors, reading and moreThe award-winning work of autofiction, originally published in France in 2021 as “La Carte Postale” and recently translated into English by Tina Kover and published via Europa Editions on May 16, begins in 2003 with the arrival of a postcard. On it are the names Ephraïm, Emma, Noémi and Jacques, the parents and siblings of Berest’s maternal grandmother, who were killed during the Holocaust. Years later, Berest and her mother, Lélia, embark on a mission to ...

‘Disney’s Aladdin’ repeats its magic at the Fisher Theatre

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:05:30 GMT

The show’s called “Aladdin” — “Disney’s Aladdin,” to be precise — but everyone knows it’s all about the Genie.And fortunately the current touring production of the musical, which performed at Detroit’s Fisher Theatre through Sunday, May 14 — has a good one.Robin Williams, of course, established the Genie as an iconic character with his manically nuanced voice performance in the 1992 animated film. He set a high bar but at the same time established a template for the actors who would follow in the Tony Award-winning stage adaptation, which premiered 12 years ago in Seattle and stopped during January of 2018 at the Detroit Opera House. Energy and personality are the keys to a successful Genie, and Marcus M. Martin has both in abundance.Playing Genie as a kind of Oprah/Steve Harvey/Billy Porter hybrid, Martin hits the stage as the curtain lifts like a full blank of Klieg lights — and that’s just his smile. His performances leading ensemble pieces such as “Friend Like Me” and “Prince Al...

What are the drunken driving limits in Massachusetts? .08 gets you arrested

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:05:30 GMT

If your blood-alcohol level exceeds .08 you are considered drunk in the Bay State. If you’re driving a commercial vehicle, the threshold is .04. Your weight has a lot to do with how many drinks you can consume. Here’s how it breaks down:Related ArticlesCrime & Public Safety | Charlie Baker’s son pleads ‘not guilty’ to OUI charge after allegedly blowing 0.15 on breath test .06 = Judgement is impaired.08 = Impairment of muscle coordination, driving skills.10 = Deterioration of reaction time and control.12 = Vomiting usually occurs.15 = Balance and movement impaired.20 = Most people begin to experience blackouts.45 = Most people dieSo, how many drinks can I have? Go here to calculate that…Source: Awareawakealive.org; Massachusetts Drunk Driving Laws

Botanical Building moves into next construction phase

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:05:30 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- Renovations to the Balboa Park Botanical Building have been moved into the next part of construction, City of San Diego officials announced last week."Visitors to Balboa Park can expect to see different segments of the building covered like this for at least several months as crews work to bring the iconic building back to its original 1915 look," city officials wrote on social media.In this phase, crews will be sandblasting the steel structure of the building, as well as applying a protective coating and paint. The tent-like cover helps to protect visitors from any debris that might leave the construction zone during this work, according to the city.The outside of the Botanical Building as it moves into the next part of construction work. (Courtesy of the City of San Diego)The building, which is one of the most photographed landmarks in San Diego County, is currently in the midst of a major $21 million renovation project to revitalize the building and the surrounding g...

Police seek suspect in Toronto rental scam

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:05:30 GMT

Toronto police are trying to track down a man who allegedly defrauded several people in an apartment rental scam.Police say Cem Devrim Turetken, 49, advertised apartments for rent in Toronto on various websites.But investigators say he didn’t own the properties and wasn’t authorized to rent them out.The alleged scam took place between November 2022 and February 2023.Investigators say the suspect used a variety of different aliases and company names online, including Smart Rental Property Management Inc. located in Sudbury and GTA Rentals.Police are asking the public to consider the following when searching for apartment rentals:research the property in persondouble check the address to ensure it isn’t being listed elsewherenever pay with cash, wire transfer or hard-to-trace equivalents, such as MoneyGram or bitcoinbe aware of “too good to be true” rent ratesdo not give a rent or security deposit before signing a leasespeak to Building Property Management and ...

Judge: 29-year-old who posed as teen student because she was lonely can enter pretrial program

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:05:30 GMT

NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J. (AP) — A 29-year-old woman accused of using false documents to enroll as a New Jersey high school student and attend some classes over a four-day period will be allowed to enter a pretrial intervention program, a state judge ruled Monday.The woman had pleaded not guilty in March to a charge of providing a false government document. Her lawyer has said she did so because she was lonely and longed to return to her days with friends in school but now realizes she made a mistake. She will have to undergo a mental health evaluation and, if she completes the program, the charge against her could eventually be dismissed.The woman is a South Korean citizen who came to the United States by herself when she was 16 to attend a private boarding school, the lawyer said. She later graduated from Rutgers University in 2019.The lawyer said his client had no nefarious intentions when she enrolled at New Brunswick High School in January. She was just seeking to return to “a place ...

English scrap metal recycler sentenced to 9 months in jail for wall collapse that killed 5

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:05:30 GMT

BIRMINGHAM, England (AP) — The owner and a manager of an English scrap metal recycling plant were sentenced to nine months in jail Monday for safety lapses after a wall collapsed and killed five migrant workers in 2016, a government workplace safety agency said. Wayne Hawkeswood and Graham Woodhouse were convicted in Birmingham Crown Court of violating the Health and Safety at Work Act, the Health and Safety Executive said.The workers died instantly when the 50-ton (45-metric tonne) wall toppled onto them at the start of their shift at Hawkeswood Metal Recycling on July 7, 2016. They had to be identified by their fingerprints.A breath of wind could have knocked over the wall, the court was told. Investigators found other unstable walls at the site, as well as inadequate training and poor safety records. “Five men lost their lives in the most appalling of circumstances,” inspector Amy Kalay said after the sentencing. “Their deaths should not have happened. They went to work to earn a...