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Trump pleads not guilty to criminal charges in historic indictment

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:52:11 GMT

Donald Trump pleaded not guilty to 34 felony counts of falsifying business records related to Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s investigation of hush money payments to porn star Stormy Daniels amid the 2016 presidential campaign. Trump entered the plea during an unprecedented and extraordinary court proceeding bound for the history books.A grand jury investigating Trump indicted him March 30, making him the first former president in United States history to face criminal charges.The charges against Trump had remained under seal until today’s court appearance and are being made public shortly.Trump reportedly faces more than 30 counts related to business fraud and hush money payoffs to women on the eve of the 2016 election, with whom he allegedly cheated on his wife, Melania. That includes Daniels and playboy model Karen McDougal.Former US president Donald Trump appears in court at the Manhattan Criminal Court in New York on April 4, 2023. (Photo by Steven HIRSCH / POOL / AFP...

Trump pleads not guilty to 34 charges; admonished by judge

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:52:11 GMT

By MICHAEL R. SISAK, ERIC TUCKER, JENNIFER PELTZ and WILL WEISSERT (Associated Press)NEW YORK (AP) — A judge has warned former President Donald Trump to refrain from rhetoric that could inflame or cause civil unrest.Trump, speaking briefly during his arraignment, told the judge he was pleading “not guilty” and was advised of his rights by the judge. Judge Juan Merchan also warned Trump that he could be removed from the courtroom if he is disruptive, but Trump spoke only a few times to respond to questions.He’s next due in court in December, but his lawyers asked for him to be excused from attending the hearing in person because of extraordinary security proceedings. THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.NEW YORK (AP) — Former President Donald Trump pleaded not guilty Tuesday to 34 felony counts of falsifying business records arising from a hush money payment to a porn actor during his 2016 campaign, according to two law ...

Dolphins Deep Dive: NFL meetings takeaways, Mike McDaniel and Steve Ross committed to Tua

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:52:11 GMT

The South Florida Sun Sentinel’s Chris Perkins and David Furones recap the NFL meetings and discuss the Dolphins’ commitment to quarterback Tua Tagovailoa. ()

Director: Marriott’s ‘Damn Yankees’ about love, baseball, the underdog

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:52:11 GMT

When Lincolnshire’s Marriott Theatre asked San Diego-based James Vasquez to direct the musical, “Damn Yankees,” running April 12-June 4, there was no hesitation, just joy.“I love ‘Damn Yankees,’” said Vasquez. “Two of my favorite things in life are musical theater and baseball,” he said, and that’s what the show is about. The musical, which won seven Tony Awards, features lots of singing and dancing with a plot involving the New York Yankees and the Washington Senators and the race for the pennant in the 1950s.“Given the opportunity to tell this story again was something I wasn’t going to pass up,” said Vazquez, who directed the production in 2017 in San Diego.There’s plenty more Vasquez loves about the show besides it being about baseball.“For me it is a story about true love and about home,” he said. “We think the grass might be greener on the other side, but we are often reminded...

Healey to establish Latino Council to advise her administration

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:52:11 GMT

The governor will use her executive authority to create an entirely new state council aimed at improving the well-being of the state’s Latino communities, her administration has announced.“Our Latino community makes Massachusetts strong. With the collective vision and drive of this incredible group of Latino leaders, we will grow even stronger. Together, we can break down systemic barriers and expand access opportunities by prioritizing education, job training, entrepreneurship and affordability,” Gov. Maura Healey said with the Tuesday announcement.The governor, according to her office, will sign an executive order establishing a 40 member advisory board called the Governor’s Council on Latino Empowerment, tasked with advising the governor on “strategies to expand economic opportunities for and improve the overall wellbeing of Massachusetts’ Latino community.”The former executive director of the Massachusetts Office for Refugees and Immigrants, Josiane Martinez, will chair the new ...

Former Team USA soccer stars succeessfully bring women’s pro team to the Bay Area

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:52:11 GMT

Some of the biggest women’s sports stars in Bay Area history are about to change the region’s sporting landscape.Four former U.S. national team stars and Santa Clara Broncos — Brandi Chastain, Leslie Osborne, Danielle Slaton and Aly Wagner — have completed their nearly three-year mission to bring a National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) team to the San Francisco Bay Area.The NWSL announced Tuesday morning that the league has awarded expansion rights to its 14th team to an investment group led by the four former U.S. women’s national team stars and Sixth Street, a global investment firm, and other prominent women executives and community leaders.“This is a monumental occasion,” said Chastain, a primary star of the 1999 World Cup. “The impact that women’s soccer specifically is having on the sports landscape and business sector is something that we’ve been talking about for so long and we believed in. To see it coming back to the bay is truly incredible.”The team, which will announce i...

Affleck shoots, scores with winning ‘Air’

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:52:11 GMT

MOVIE REVIEW“Air”Rated R. At the AMC Boston Common, Coolidge Corner and suburban theaters.Grade: A-Some might argue that the invention of the Air Jordan was not among the most important historical developments of the 20th century. But others would disagree, and with over $5 billion in sales for the Jordan Brand, of which Michel Jordan has had an at-the-time unprecedented, but well-deserved percentage, a case can be made. Reuniting the Academy Award-winning, “Good Will Hunting” buddies of Cambridge Ben Affleck and Matt Damon, “Air” was a “black list” screenplay written by Alex Convery. The film directed by Affleck (“Argo,” “The Town”) features Damon as driven, innovative Nike agent “Sonny” Vaccaro and director Affleck in a weird hairpiece as the eccentric, purple Porsche-driving Nike founder Phil Knight. Jordan is not portrayed in the film, although we do meet the parents, especially his mother and chief negotiator Deloris Jordan (Viola Davis).Also important to the story line are ske...

Rally rabbit: MLB team’s good luck charm has four lucky feet

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:52:11 GMT

In a game where much depends on fate – a ball that takes an unlucky bounce, a sudden gust that sends a sure home run just foul, a hard hit ball that careens off the corner of a base and miraculously ends up in the first baseman’s glove – is it any wonder that ball players put a lot of stock in good luck charms?They follow rituals, wear lucky socks, eat the same pre-game meals, all in hopes of recapturing a bit of baseball magic. The San Francisco Giants’ lucky charm is a rabbit’s foot. Four of them, actually.Alex the Great, a giant Flemish rabbit who weighs in at 32 pounds (34 during the offseason), has become the Giants’ unofficially official rally rabbit. He has a proven record, when it comes to bringing good luck to the boys by the Bay. The Giants have won 24 games when Alex was in attendance and lost just four.Many of those victories, says Alex’s owner, Josh Row, were come-from-behind wins, including Alex’s first game, where the Giants were down two runs, before the rabbit magic...

UN says its female Afghan staffers banned from working

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:52:11 GMT

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Female Afghan employees of the United Nation have been banned by the ruling Taliban from working in the country, U.N. officials said Tuesday.The U.N. mission expressed “serious concern” after its female staffers were prevented from reporting to work in eastern Nangarhar province.“We will continue to pursue all avenues to ensure that we can reach the most vulnerable people, especially women and girls,” U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said.He said U.N. officials were told through “various conduits” that the ban applied to the whole country.Taliban spokesmen were not immediately available for comment and the group did not issue a statement.Despite initial promises of a more moderate rule than during its previous stint in power, the Taliban have imposed harsh measures since seizing power in 2021 as U.S. and NATO forces were pulling out of Afghanistan after two decades of war.Girls are banned from education beyond sixth grade and women are barred from working, stu...

Woman charged with dangerous driving following fatal collision in Markham

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:52:11 GMT

A female driver has been charged following a fatal two-vehicle collision in Markham.York Regional Police were called to the Bur Oak Avenue and McCowan Road area just before 2:30 p.m. on January 14 for reports of a crash between two vehicles — an SUV and a Hyundai Elantra.It’s alleged that a 45-year-old male driver and a 75-year-old female passenger in the Hyundai were rushed to a local hospital with serious injuries. The woman died of her injuries in the hospital. Police did not update the man’s current condition.A 59-year-old female driver of the SUV was taken to the hospital with minor injuries.Police identified the woman as Joanne Chan of Markham. She’s been charged with dangerous driving causing death and will appear in court on May 4, 2023.