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Massachusetts emergency shelter numbers: An updated dashboard ‘provides a more holistic view’

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:48:00 GMT

State officials updated the look of an online dashboard that tracks how many families are in Massachusetts emergency shelter system, a key metric that tells the public how close the state is to a new capacity limit Gov. Maura Healey outlined this week.The dashboard, updated daily Monday through Friday, showed 7,089 families were in the system as of Thursday, which is propped up by a network of hotels and motels across the state to deal with an influx of migrants from other countries.Forty-four families enrolled in the emergency shelter system Wednesday into Thursday, which was the latest available data on the dashboard, which is updated on weekdays to reflect the prior weekday’s numbers. More than 3,600 families were staying in traditional shelters, more than 3,300 were hotels and motels, and 89 were in temporary shelters, according to the dashboard.“This is a new look for a dashboard that previously existed on the site. It provides a more holistic view of the emergency ...

5 things to watch in the Chicago Bears-Las Vegas Raiders game — plus our Week 7 predictions

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:48:00 GMT

The Chicago Bears and Las Vegas Raiders will meet Sunday at Soldier Field without their starting quarterbacks.Justin Fields is out with a right thumb injury for the Bears, and the Raiders’ Jimmy Garoppolo will miss the game with a back injury. So it will be a battle of backups as the Bears (1-5) look to win their second game of the season behind rookie Tyson Bagent, and the Raiders (3-3) try to build a winning streak behind Brian Hoyer or Aidan O’Connell.As kickoff approaches, here’s our snapshot look at the game.Player in the spotlightTyson BagentThe undrafted rookie from Division II Shepherd will make his first career start as Fields recovers from a dislocated thumb suffered Sunday against the Minnesota Vikings.Bagent was asked to step up in the second half of that game and completed 10 of 14 passes for 83 yards, no touchdowns, an interception and a lost fumble in the 19-13 Vikings win.Bears wide receiver Darnell Mooney on Friday said he thinks Bagent is “u...

Howie Carr: Massachusetts’ plan for gun safety is to surrender guns to the corrupt State Police

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:48:00 GMT

Who will guard the guards themselves?That’s the eternal question that comes to mind as you read the Democrats’ unconstitutional 122-page gun grab bill now hurtling towards the governor’s desk at the State House.Much of the confiscation of legal firearms from law-abiding citizens will be charged to the second-most corrupt law-enforcement agency in the United States (after the FBI).I refer of course to the Massachusetts State Police.By rough count, the disgraced MSP are mentioned 38 times in the new legislation, and the colonel pops up 44 times.What could possibly go wrong?William F. Buckley Jr. once famously said that he would rather be governed by the first 100 names in the Boston telephone book than by the faculty of Harvard University.To update Buckley’s comment, I would prefer the state’s gun laws be enforced by the first 100 names on the membership rolls of the Gun Owners Action League (GOAL) than by the MSP.For sure, GOAL members are a much more law-abiding bunch than the troop...

Mounties arrest ‘top priority’ U.S. fugitive wanted in Creston, B.C.

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:48:00 GMT

CRESTON, B.C. — The RCMP says a fugitive from the United States has been arrested in Creston, B.C.The Mounties say they were alerted Friday that the man, who was wanted in the U.S. on allegations of rape, attempted kidnapping and aggravated assault, was in the Creston Valley.They say he was a “top priority fugitive” in the U.S.Police say officers quickly found and arrested Cole Levine without issue. He is being held in custody. Police say they are now working with Canada Border Services and the American authorities to return Levine to the U.S.This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 21, 2023.The Canadian Press

Police arrest three in Alberta for trafficking Toronto woman

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:48:00 GMT

Three people in Grande Prairie, Alta., have been arrested for the alleged human trafficking of a Toronto woman, Alberta Law Enforcement Response Teams (ALERT) said Friday.Investigators say the suspects recruited the woman through social media and “coerced” her into moving from Toronto under the pretense of a legitimate job.Once she arrived in Grande Prairie, ALERT says she was forced to work in the sex trade under the threat of violence and had her money withheld in order to “pay back the travel expenses she was fronted.”However, in May, she escaped the situation and contacted the Toronto Police Service.Officers say the suspects were arrested on Sept. 19 with the help of the Grande Prairie RCMP. Two homes were searched, and cash, a truck, and $30,000 worth of cocaine were seized. Staff Sgt. Chris Hayes with ALERT Human Trafficking says his best advice for avoiding situations like this is to know who you’re communicating with and what you’re gettin...

Hezbollah official says his group already ‘is in the heart’ of Israel-Hamas war

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:48:00 GMT

BEIRUT (AP) — A top official with Hezbollah vowed that Israel will pay a high price whenever it starts a ground offensive in the Gaza Strip and said Saturday that his militant group based in Lebanon already is “in the heart of the battle.”The comments by Hezbollah’s deputy leader, Sheikh Naim Kassem, came as Israel shelled and made drone strikes in southern Lebanon and Hezbollah fired rockets and missiles toward Israel. For Hezbollah, heating up the Lebanon-Israel border has a clear purpose, Kassem said: “We are trying to weaken the Israeli enemy and let them know that we are ready.” Hamas officials have said that if Israel starts a ground offensive in Gaza, Hezbollah will join the fighting. Exchanges of fire along the Lebanon-Israel border have picked up in the two weeks since the attack by the Palestinian militant group Hamas that killed over 1,400 civilians and soldiers in southern Israel. Retaliatory Israeli airstrikes on Gaza have killed more than 4,000 Palestinians.There are c...

York U threatens sanctions against student unions over controversial statements about Hamas attacks

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:48:00 GMT

York University has called for the resignation of the leaders of three student unions following controversial statements made about the Hamas attack on Israel earlier this month.University President and Vice-Chancellor Rhonda Lenton said in a statement Friday that they believe the student unions have breached their responsibilities under the Regulation Regarding Student Organizations by failing to operate in an open, accessible, democratic, non-discriminatory manner when it comes to all students.The university has given the unions until 5 p.m. Oct. 25 to retract their statements, acknowledge the harm done to members and to the community by the statements, and for union executives to resign or they will face further consequences.“If the union denies that a breach has occurred, there will be a due process hearing to determine if there has been a breach, which could result in sanctions, the most severe of which would be the University withdrawing recognition of the union,” ...

Home Depot employee allegedly embezzled $1.2M in cash in California

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:48:00 GMT

(KRON) -- A San Rafael, California Home Depot employee was arrested after the home improvement retail store alleged she embezzled approximately $1.2 million over the past year, according to the San Rafael Police Department.Home Depot reported the incident to police on Oct. 17 after an internal investigation revealed the female employee allegedly started taking cash from the retail store starting in August 2022. At the time of arrest, police said the employee had over $8,000 in her possession. How to protect yourself from student loan scams as bills resume A search warrant served at the employee’s residence uncovered a small amount of cash and a “high volume” of designer merchandise, which police investigators believe was purchased with the embezzled funds.Police said the employee admitted to taking cash from the business since last year.The employee was booked into Marin County Jail on felony embezzlement charges. Detectives added a bail enhancement due to the amount of cash alleg...

These scary movies raise heart rates the most, study finds

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:48:00 GMT

(NEXSTAR) – Looking for a scary flick that will get your heart racing and haunt your dreams? These movies are scientifically proven to do that – at least the first part. The Science of Scare Project strapped heart-rate monitors to 250 test subjects and measured which horror films impacted their heart rate in two important ways. The first is overall beats per minute, or BPM. Spikes in heart rate could indicate a movie has effective jump scares that get the blood pumping. The team also measured heart rate variance (HRV), which is the time between each heart beat. They used this measurement to assess how stressed audience members might become while watching the film, making it "a good indicator of slow burn fear and dread." ‘Brutal heat’: South Carolina expert who set world’s hottest pepper record does it again They combine the two metrics to create a "Scare Score" and determine which scary movies have the biggest impact. The highest possible score is 100.The highest ranked movie is...

Sporting goods store with Ferris wheel, aquarium coming to Cedar Park

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:48:00 GMT

CEDAR PARK, Texas (KXAN) — A new sporting goods store—with a Ferris wheel inside—is planned in Cedar Park. Scheels is expected to open a Cedar Park store in 2026, the company announced Friday. The sporting goods store will have specialty shops, boutiques and over one million pieces of inventory.The 240,000-square-foot store will also have a 65-foot Ferris wheel, a 16,000-gallon saltwater aquarium, a wildlife mountain, a candy shop, sports simulators and a restaurant. Cedar Park SCHEELS will open in 2026. (Courtesy SCHEELS)Cedar Park SCHEELS will open in 2026. (Courtesy SCHEELS)The store will have over 500 employees, with a majority hired locally, according to the company.The North Dakota-based company opened its first Texas location in The Colony in 2020. A release said the Cedar Park store will be the company's 35th location. The Scheels store will be part of a major mixed-use development on New Hope Drive that will also have an NFM store, convention center and hotel. The Scheels s...