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2 men sentenced to 25 years to life after killing California college student, dumping body in river

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:14:19 GMT

Two men who ordered a college student into the trunk of his own car, shot him dead apparently for hanging out with people the killers didn’t like and then dumped his body in the San Gabriel River near Long Beach’s El Dorado Park were sentenced to 25 years to life each after pleading guilty to first-degree murder, authorities said.Rueben Alexander Ortega, 26, of Lakewood and Edgar Miguel Espinoza, 25, of Downey entered their pleas in Long Beach Superior Court on Thursday, Aug. 3 — seven years to the day after the crimes took place. They were immediately sentenced, prosecutor John Chang said.Ortega and Espinoza ordered the victim, 19-year-old Nick Cubas of Downey, into the trunk, tied him up, drove him to an alley and Espinoza shot him multiple times with a shotgun at close range, according to testimony at the 2017 preliminary hearing.Ortega and Espinoza then drove Cubas’ body south to Long Beach and dumped it at the San Gabriel River near Willow Street, authorities said. The body was...

Alaska flooding destroys structures, sparks Juneau evacuations

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:14:19 GMT

By Elizabeth Wolfe and Jamiel Lynch | CNNRecord-breaking river flooding has destroyed at least two structures in Juneau, Alaska, and prompted local evacuations after a sudden outburst from a glacier-dammed lake inundated the region, officials say.City officials declared a local emergency on Sunday as the flooding made the banks of the Mendenhall River unstable and blocked some roads with silt and debris.“Although river levels continue to fall, at least two structures have been lost to the river and others are at risk and/or have been evacuated,” the City and Borough of Juneau said in a news release Sunday morning.The torrent was caused by glacial lake outburst flooding from the Suicide Basin – an ice- and water-filled basin adjacent to Juneau’s Mendenhall Glacier – and flowed into the Mendenhall Lake and river, causing the lake to crest Saturday night, according to the National Weather Service in Juneau.The lake crested at a record 14.97 feet – far higher than the previous record of...

Why Taylor Swift friendship bracelets are much more than plastic beads

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:14:19 GMT

Thousands of Taylor Swift fans showed up early to SoFi Stadium in Inglewood on Thursday, Aug. 3 for the singer-songwriter’s first of six sold-out shows. Many donned outfits that resembled the wardrobe featured in Swift’s music videos and mimicked her onstage costuming and their wrists were hidden by rows of friendship bracelets.It’s become a rite of passage along The Eras Tour to come with arms loaded up with the multi-colored, beaded bracelets that have silly things Swift has said, song lyrics or little inside jokes spelled out in beads on them. Fans also have plastic baggies filled with these bracelets — like the kind you learn to make in Girl Scouts, during art class in elementary school or while hanging out with friends at a sleepover.Before the show, fans handed out the bracelets to each other, sometimes swapping, oftentimes providing some those that either didn’t know about the bracelets or couldn’t afford to make or purchase any after shelling out hundreds (or thousands) of d...

San Jose city workers vote to strike in mid-August

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:14:19 GMT

Two unions representing around 4,500 San Jose employees voted to authorize a three-day strike starting on Aug. 15, in an effort to push the mayor and city council to support higher wages for its workers.The strike would mark the first time since 1981 that a large group of city employees walk off the job in protest of working conditions.“We need better benefits and pay for our workers,” said San Jose Fire Department 911 dispatcher Scarlet Darmousseh. “We need to be able to recruit and retain workers.”The two unions, IFPTE Local 21 and MEF-AFSCME Local 101, make up a wide swath of city workers from departments that include parks, libraries, code enforcement and airport employees. Roughly 99 percent of the union employees approved the strike in a four-day vote that occurred last week, though the exact number of employees who participated was not made public.If the strike ends up happening, city services would almost certainly be impacted. San Jose administrative...

Officer gets 4+ years for role in George Floyd killing

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:14:19 GMT

By Brad Parks and Eric Levenson | CNNTou Thao, the former Minneapolis police officer who held back a crowd of bystanders during George Floyd’s fatal arrest in May 2020, was sentenced to four years and nine months in prison Monday for aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter.Thao gave a short comment on his role in Floyd’s death in a statement prior to his sentencing in a Minnesota courthouse.“Obviously, on that day, we didn’t intend on – I didn’t intend on doing any malice or anything like that, or try to hurt anyone. That was never my intent. I did the best I thought I could,” he said. “Obviously the outcome didn’t come out the way I wanted it, so I’ll leave it at that.”He then spoke for about 20 minutes about how he rediscovered Christianity after Floyd’s death and delivered a religious sermon to the court.Hennepin County Judge Peter A. Cahill was unimpressed.“Mr. Thao, to be perfectly honest, after three years of reflection, I was hoping for a little more remorse, regret, a...

Two-bedroom home in Oakland sells for $1.7 million

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:14:19 GMT

1872 Clemens Road – Google Street ViewA 1,557-square-foot house built in 1928 has changed hands. The historic property located in the 1800 block of Clemens Road in Oakland was sold on June 28, 2023. The $1,707,000 purchase price works out to $1,096 per square foot. The layout of this single-story house consists of two bedrooms and one bath. The home’s exterior showcases roofing materials crafted from tar and gravel. Inside, there is a fireplace. Additionally, the home includes a garage. Situated on a spacious 6,090-square-foot lot, the property offers ample outdoor space.Additional houses have recently been purchased nearby:On Leimert Boulevard, Oakland, in April 2023, a 3,040-square-foot home was sold for $2,300,000, a price per square foot of $757. The home has 4 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms.In June 2023, a 3,377-square-foot home on Bridgeview Drive in Oakland sold for $1,960,000, a price per square foot of $580. The home has 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms.A 2,481-square-foot home on the ...

Plea deal ‘very close’ in SJSU sexual assault trial that ended in hung jury

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:14:19 GMT

SAN JOSE – Four days after a mistrial was declared in San Jose State’s sexual assault trial, former head athletic trainer Scott Shaw is nearing a deal with prosecutors to plead guilty to at least one of six federal charges.“We think we are very close if not there,” Shaw’s defense lawyer, Dave Callaway, told the judge Monday morning. “But Mr. Shaw needs time to talk to his family.”After the two-week trial that ended last week with a hung jury – with at least 10 of the 12 jury members voting to convict – one of the jurors came to observe the Monday court proceeding and pumped his fist at the news. “Yes!’’ he said.“I’m thrilled. You’re going to do a retrial or a change of plea. Either way it bodes well for the victims,” said the male juror, one of the eight-woman, four-man jury who didn’t want to be identified. “And hopefully that’ll close things out.”Neither Callaway nor Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Pitman would say what kind of deal they were close to or to how many charges Shaw m...

Bayview District homicide being investigated by SFPD

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:14:19 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) -- An incident that left one man dead from a gunshot wound in San Francisco's Bayview District is being investigated as a homicide, according to the San Francisco Police Department. Officers responded at 11:10 p.m. Friday to the 1000 block of Quesada Avenue for possible gunshots and reports of a shooting. Double stabbing in San Jose being investigated as homicide Arriving on the scene, officers sound a man suffering from a gunshot wound. Aid was rendered and the victim was transported to the hospital with life-threatening injuries. The victim was later pronounced deceased.An investigation is being led by the San Francisco PD homicide detail.

Double stabbing in San Jose being investigated as homicide

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:14:19 GMT

(KRON) -- A woman and a boy were found dead of stab wounds at a residence in San Jose Friday in an incident that's being investigated as homicide, according to the San Jose Police Department. Officers responded on Friday, Aug. 4 at around 10:06 a.m. to conduct a welfare check in the 1600 block of Parkmore Avenue. Man dies after being rescued from water near Harbor Bay in Alameda At the scene, officers found the woman and boy both suffering from at least one stab wound each. Medics pronounced both victims deceased at the scene.The victims' identities will be released by the Santa Clara County Coroner's Office following confirmation of identity and notification of next of kin.The incident marks San Jose's 23rd and 24th homicides of 2023.The motives and circumstances surrounding the stabbings are under investigation, according to SJPD.

Police identify victims in North Perry Airport Cessna crash

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:14:19 GMT

Authorities released the identities of the victims who died days after a small plane crashed at North Perry Airport. Pembroke Pines Police identified the pilot as 31-year-old Felipe Becerra Cardenas of Pembroke Pines, and the passenger as 23-year-old Shelby Thomas from Port Wentworth, Georgia. According to detectives, the plane was carrying three people when it took off Friday around noon in what’s called a discovery flight.A discovery flight is when a flight instructor takes a paying customer up in the air who is interested in learning how to fly.At some point shortly after takeoff, investigators said, the aircraft fell from the sky.Officials with the National Transportation Safety Board said the plane was transported to Fort Pierce as part of their investigation. It’s a process that will take at least a year.The NTSB and the Federal Aviation Administration continue to investigate.