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Woodland Park school board is violating teachers’ free speech rights with gag order, lawsuit alleges

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:46:12 GMT

Woodland Park’s teachers union is suing the local school district and Board of Education, alleging employees’ First Amendment rights were violated by a policy adopted earlier this year that prohibits educators from speaking to the press or posting on social media about district decisions without consent.  The Woodland Park Education Association also plans to seek a preliminary injunction to block the policy, according to the lawsuit, filed Thursday in U.S. District Court in Denver. “If it seems that Woodland Park has been in the press an inordinate amount of times for such a small town, you can place the blame squarely on the (district) and (the board),” said Amie Baca-Oehlert, president of the Colorado Education Association, in a statement. “They are intent on politicizing all aspects of Woodland Park’s public education system, and will stop at nothing to demoralize their public school educators and negatively impact their students’ learning environments.”The Colorado Educati...

FBI offering reward 20 years after L.A. boy was kidnapped in Mexico City

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:46:12 GMT

The FBI is offering a $20,000 reward for information in the 20-year-old kidnapping of a Los Angeles boy in Mexico City.Joshua Keshaba Sierra Garcia was months shy of turning 3 when he was kidnapped on Aug. 12, 2003.At the time, Garcia was with relatives who had traveled to the Mexican capital to have him baptized.He was last seen around 11 a.m. that morning, when he was wearing a grey sweatshirt, blue shorts and sandals.Garcia’s babysitter was killed during the kidnapping and after a series of ransom calls, a money drop resulted in the arrest of one suspect by Mexican law enforcement.Garcia, however, was not turned over and he has not been located.An original photo and aged-processed photos and sketches of Joshua Keshaba Sierra Garcia were provided by the FBI on Aug. 11, 2023. At the time, the boy was 3 feet tall and weighed about 25 to 28 pounds. He had black hair and brown eyes at the time, and had his ears pierced.The FBI is offering the reward for information leading to Garcia’s...

Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Selena Gomez top Instagram's Rich List

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:46:12 GMT

Instagram continues to make some of the world's biggest celebrities really rich. A new list is out showing who is the highest paid for 2023 so far. According to Hopper HQ, soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo tops the list with nearly 600 million followers. He's now earning $3.2 million per post. That's $900,000 more than he made last year. Another soccer superstar, Lionel Messi, is now the second highest-paid Instagram earner. He rakes in a whopping $2.6 million off each post. PSG's Lionel Messi reacts during the French League One soccer match between Paris Saint-Germain and Clermont at the Parc des Princes in Pari on June 3, 2023. (Michel Euler/Associated Press)In third place is Selena Gomez with just under $2.6 million for her posts. Selena Gomez, a cast member in "Only Murders in the Building," turns back for photographers at the second season premiere of the Hulu series on June 27, 2022, at the Directors Guild of America in Los Angeles. (Chris Pizzello/Associated Press)Kylie Jenner, ...

Man who bought Michael Jordan rookie card with fake signature gets $34K refund

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:46:12 GMT

Sports card collector Ed Yakich was refunded more than $34,000 after he bid on and won an autographed Michael Jordan rookie card that wasn't actually signed by the NBA legend. Yakich, a Florida resident, had purchased the card through the PWCC auction house along with documentation that showed the card was authentic and certified by a firm called PSA/DNA.After receiving the card, he sent it off to that same firm for grading. They later called back, informing him the signature was fake.“In our opinion, the aforementioned signature is not authentic and did not pass PSA/DNA authentication," the grading company said. Nearly 70% of MLB players polled choose same city for possible expansion team “It stopped me in my tracks, and quite honestly ruined my weekend and put the last eight to 10 weeks of my life in a spindle, because it was quite a shock,” Yakich told Nexstar's WFLA.Sports card collector Ed Yakich paid $34,200 for a Michael Jordan rookie card that he later learned had an inaut...

Claiming Her Space: Simran Porwal’s Advocacy for Authentic Self-Expression

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:46:12 GMT

In this vibrant world, one voice echoes resonantly, fighting to shatter the barriers of imposter syndrome and advocating for authentic self-expression. That voice belongs to Simran Porwal, a trailblazing producer who has carved her space in the storytelling industry. Her life’s journey is a powerful tale of how she’s fought the feeling of being an outsider and advocated for self-empowerment, bringing about a big change in her art, work, and life.Growing up in a male-dominated Indian society, Simran found herself trapped in a web of traditional roles. She was confined to spaces and roles defined by societal norms. However, in the chaos of her reality, she found her escape in storytelling. Movies and TV shows became her refuge, introducing her to worlds where freedom wasn’t just theoretical.However, her interest in these narrative worlds grew into active engagement after she started making short documentaries for a non-profit organization committed to preserving Indi...

Man Dies in Motorcycle Accident on State Route 78 [Oceanside, CA]

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:46:12 GMT

Male Rider Fatally Struck in Motorcycle Collision near Interstate 5OCEANSIDE, CA (August 11, 2023) – Late Sunday night, a man sustained fatal injuries in a motorcycle accident on State Route 78.Officers responded to the scene around 11:01 p.m., along the westbound lanes of SR-78, approaching the I-5 northbound transition ramp.Per reports, the rider of a 2012 Harley Davidson lost control on the ramp for reasons unknown. The motorcycle was then hit by a Mitsubishi Outlander, driven by a 69-year-old man from San Diego.Emergency personnel rushed the 29-year-old male motorcyclist to a hospital where he later succumbed to his injuries. At this time, authorities have not yet released his identity.The Mitsubishi driver did not sustain any injuries. Following preliminary duties, the CHP did not suspect alcohol and drugs to be a factor in the collision.Officials are asking anyone with additional information about the State Route 78 motorcycle crash to contact the CHP Oceanside Area offi...

Handsome Dick Manitoba gets Face to Face

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:46:12 GMT

The KinksFace to Face (Reprise)Handsome Dick Manitoba gets Face to Face: Former Dictators singer Handsome Dick Manitoba told us about his love for a Kinks gem.Handsome Dick Manitoba: Let me start by saying when I had my radio show for 14 years at Sirius satellite radio I came up with all kinds of questions.(Reprise)What’s your favorite album? What’s your favorite song? What’s your worst album? What’s your worst song? One of my favorites were… the worst album cover ever! That one was really fun. Now that I got that out of the way, I’ll start by copping out and saying it’s impossible with the thousands of albums I’ve listened to to pick a favorite. After I hand it to you and I pick it, I could take a nap, and when I wake up from that nap, I might change my mind!!I’m a child of the British generation. There’s a ton of Stones and Beatles albums  that could be number one at any moment but since this is the moment in life that counts, the moment you’re asking me to pick my favorite album ...

‘I just lost it,’ California judge texts his court staff, prosecutors say. ‘I just shot my wife’

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:46:12 GMT

It seemed like a morbid joke, the late-night text prosecutors say Orange County Superior Court Judge Jeffrey Ferguson sent to his court clerk and bailiff:“I just lost it. I just shot my wife. I won’t be in tomorrow. I will be in custody. I’m so sorry.”Minutes before the text was sent, prosecutors say, Judge Ferguson pulled a Glock .40 pistol from an ankle holster and fatally shooting his wife, Sheryl, in the chest at close range in front of an adult son.Slurring his words, smelling of alcohol and still wearing his now empty ankle holster, a prosecution court filing says, the judge made a series of expletive-laden, seemingly remorseful confessional comments to responding officers.“What the (expletive) did I … well, I guess I’m done for a while,” the judge said to police, according to prosecutors. “Oh my God. … My son. … My son. … (Expletive) me. … What an (expletive) I am, Jesus Christ. I’m sorry. … I (expletive) up. … Oh man, I can’t believe I did this.”Related: California judge cha...

Only 16% of Californians can afford to buy home as mortgage rates rise

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:46:12 GMT

By John Gittelsohn | BloombergBuying a home in California slipped further out of reach as interest rates climbed and scarce inventory bolstered prices.Only 16% of households could qualify to purchase a median-priced single-family home in the second quarter, the California Association of Realtors reported Friday. That’s down from 19% in the first quarter and 17% a year earlier.The state faces an affordability crisis that threatens to hamper growth in the economy and population. People and companies have left California, or chosen not to move there because housing is so much more expensive than in most of the US.“In the long run — three or four years — we’ll see tight supply and lower affordability will trim the competitiveness of California if nothing is done to increase the supply of housing,” Oscar Wei, deputy chief economist for the state Realtors group, said in an interview.Nationally, more than a third of households could afford to purchase a $402,600 median-priced home, accordi...

Walnut Creek: Man charged with 15 felonies in burglary spree targeting businesses

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:46:12 GMT

WALNUT CREEK — A 40-year-old man has been arrested and charged with committing a string of burglaries targeting local business, Contra Costa prosecutors announced Friday.The Daly City resident was charged with 15 felonies alleging he burglarized seven businesses. The other charges include grand theft, for the items he allegedly stole, and vandalism, for the property he allegedly broke to gain entry into the stores.Related ArticlesCrime and Public Safety | SUV gutted in fiery Oakland crash; no one found inside Crime and Public Safety | Walnut Creek man shot early Friday on Piedmont Avenue in Oakland Crime and Public Safety | Man dead after Antioch shooting Thursday night Crime and Public Safety | Man shot in arm at East Bay park Crime and Public Safety | Oakland police identify man who was recently shot and killed in front of his wife In addition to the burglary case, the man faces separate charges ...