Alabama
Jasper: Police are looking for a man who disguised himself as Batman while stealing musical instruments from churches. A burglary happened Dec. 11 at King’s Way Church in Irondale, AL.com reports. The caped crook stole a keyboard and a guitar, according to Irondale Detective Sgt. Michael Mangina. The suspect came back to the same church Jan. 6 and stole two more guitars. Both times the impostor used a rock to enter the church, Mangina said. On Jan. 9, two churches in Jasper and one in unincorporated Walker County were also burglarized, Jasper police wrote on Facebook. Musical instruments and electronics were also stolen. Anyone with information can call Irondale police, Jasper police or the Walker County Sheriff’s Office. “We have to take this bad guy off the streets,” Mangina said. “Stealing from a church is not the way to get to heaven.”
Alaska
A man waves with distress signal “SOS” outside Susitna Valley, Alaska, on Jan. 9. Alaska State Troopers rescued Tyson Steele, 30, who survived in a makeshift shelter after his remote cabin burned last month. (Photo: Alaska State Troopers via AP)
Skwentna: Weeks after a man’s remote cabin burned down, he was rescued by Alaska State Troopers who found him by a makeshift shelter with an SOS signal stamped in the snow. Tyson Steele, 30, was picked up Thursday in what appeared to be good health at his remote homestead 20 miles outside Skwentna, troopers said in a dispatch. A mid-December fire had killed his dog and left Steele with no means of communication, Steele told troopers. After his family members and friends hadn’t heard from him for several weeks, they requested a welfare check. The trooper helicopter crew reached the homestead about 11 a.m. and saw Steele waving his arms near the makeshift shelter. Skwentna, with a population of 35, is 70 miles northwest of Anchorage. The trooper helicopter transported Steele to Anchorage.
Arizona
Bookmans Flagstaff employees returned a record autographed by John Williams that Hamill hadn't seen since the '90s. (Photo: Brandee Newkirk/Special for The Republic)
Flagstaff: The force was strong enough at a local store to reunite Luke Skywalker with his long-lost vinyl record. Actor Mark Hamill is praising workers at Bookmans Entertainment Exchange for returning the “Star Wars: A New Hope” soundtrack that had been a gift from film composer John Williams. Hamill tweeted that it felt “totally unexpected & positively surreal” to get back the record he hadn’t seen since the early 1990s. He commended the store for being honest and not selling it. Williams had written on the vinyl’s sleeve: “Dear Mark Hamill, May the force always be with us.” The record was one of numerous “Star Wars” items brought in by a woman after her father’s death in 2018. Micheil Salmons, the store’s general manager, said Hamill signed a DVD of “Star Wars: A New Hope” and two medals that are replicas of those given to his character and Han Solo, played by Harrison Ford, in the film.
Arkansas
Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson speaks to reporters in Little Rock on Monday after speaking to a legislative committee about his decision to continue accepting new refugees. (Photo: Andrew Demillo/AP)
Little Rock: The Republican governor on Monday defended his decision to continue accepting new refugees, challenging skeptical GOP lawmakers to avoid creating “fear” about welcoming people from other countries. Gov. Asa Hutchinson told a legislative committee that fewer than 50 refugees will likely be resettled in Washington County in northwestern Arkansas under his decision. Arkansas is among 42 states that have said they will continue to accept refugees since the Trump administration issued an order in September that gave state and local governments the authority to refuse to accept them for the first time in history. “Each of you are leaders in your community. You’ve got a choice to make: You can create fear, or you can help resolve fear,” Hutchinson told lawmakers. He introduced them to two refugees from Congo and another from Afghanistan who have resettled to Arkansas in recent years.
California
A Hermes copper butterfly near Barrett Lake, south of Alpine, southeastern San Diego County, Calif. (Photo: Michael Couffer/Grey Owl Biological Consulting via AP)
San Diego: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has proposed adding a California butterfly to the list of threatened species, officials say. The agency wants the Hermes copper butterfly added to the list in recognition of the threats it faces in its home region of San Diego County, The San Diego Union-Tribune reports. The service filed its proposal Jan. 8, estimating it will take a year to finalize the listing and draw up critical habitat plans for the butterfly. A public comment period for the listing is expected to run through March 9. The Hermes copper lives only in Mexico’s Baja California and California’s San Diego County, which has a high concentration of endangered species, federal wildlife officials say. The butterfly is among a suite of local species suffering from urban sprawl and wildfires that have altered the landscape in recent decades, officials say.
Colorado
Fort Collins: The state Department of Public Safety announced Monday that it will scale back “proactive” investigation of mysterious drone sightings that have perplexed residents since late last year. The department has confirmed no incidents of criminal activity, and investigations have not substantiated reports of suspicious or illegal drone activity, according to a report released Monday. Beginning before the holidays, the drones – which were initially spotted traveling in grid-like formations – were reported to be seen flying at high altitudes from about 7 to 10 p.m. in northeastern Colorado, as well as in southwestern Nebraska, according to the Denver Post. The FAA, 25 other government agencies and private companies, including Amazon, claimed to know nothing about the initial sightings in northeastern Colorado, according to a list compiled by 9News.
Connecticut
Benedict Arnold by Pierre Eugene du Simitiere. (Photo: Library of Congress)
Norwich: The city planned to mark the birthdate of the nation’s most famous traitor, Benedict Arnold, by turning off the Christmas lights at City Hall on Tuesday. Regan Miner, the executive director of the Norwich Historical Society, said the event serves as a “tongue-in-cheek way” to mark the 279th anniversary of Arnold’s birth. Danye Rugh was to deliver a lecture after the lights were turned out, accompanied by period-themed cocktails and food. The son of Norwich was born in 1741 and fought for the Continental Army before wounding his leg in the Battle of Saratoga. The region handles Arnold’s legacy in different ways. In New London, Arnold’s body is burned in effigy, and a replica of his leg is placed in a coffin and sent to Norwich.
Delaware
A multivehicle crash closes Del. 1 just south of Dewey Beach. (Photo: Maddy Lauria/Delaware News Journal)
Dover: The First State’s roads are still some of the nation’s most deadly. After some improvement a year ago, the state’s number of traffic deaths grew from 111 in 2018 to 132 last year, a rise of about 19%, according to the Office of Highway Safety. The number of pedestrian deaths rose from 24 to 30, returning Delaware to among the nation’s leaders. “There’s no silver bullet to solve this,” says John McNeal, chairman of the state’s Pedestrian Council. Education campaigns and some road improvement projects have been implemented since 2015, when Delaware ranked as the most deadly state for pedestrians. But officials acknowledge the efforts haven’t been enough and say more needs to be done. Two weeks into 2020, at least three pedestrians have died in crashes.
District of Columbia
Washington: Unsafe and filthy conditions at Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority parking garages have prompted changes in how the structures are cleaned. Feces, bottles of urine, used condoms, overflowing trash and other unsanitary conditions were found at several Metrorail station garages, the transit authority’s Office of the Inspector General said in a summary of its report. The transit authority spent $2.2 million on contracted cleaning services, according to the inspector general. The audit found the employees weren’t doing their job properly 84% of the time. The Metro system took action immediately and began pressure-washing efforts after learning of the inspector general’s findings, spokeswoman Sherri Ly said in a statement, according to news outlets. The agency also plans to phase out contractors in favor of hiring custodial workers in-house, according to the statement.
Florida
Tallahassee: In his State of the State address Tuesday, Gov. Ron DeSantis called for teacher raises, the eradication of Burmese pythons in the Everglades, and a new law to force girls to get their parents’ permission before getting an abortion. DeSantis said keeping taxes low, improving education and protecting the environment will help Florida continue to grow. The speech marked the opening of the Legislature’s annual 60-day session. He spoke in the House chamber, where lawmakers desks’ were covered in flowers. Members of the Supreme Court and the state’s three Cabinet members also attended the address. While touting a boost in adoption, DeSantis told lawmakers he wants them to pass a bill that would require girls under the age of 18 get their parents’ permission to get an abortion. The state already requires girls’ parents be notified if they have an abortion.
Georgia
An injured right whale calf swims alongside its mother about 8 miles off the coast of Georgia on Jan. 8. (Photo: Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission via AP)
Savannah: An endangered newborn right whale spotted with grievous injuries to its head off the state’s coast is unlikely to survive, though scientists may try to inject the calf with antibiotics using a syringe fired from an air gun if they can safely get close enough, government experts said Monday. Foggy weather along the coast was delaying efforts to relocate the wounded baby whale and its mother by plane. The calf was first seen from the air last Wednesday, and a boat crew got close enough Friday near St. Simons Island for scientists to conclude its injuries were worse than initially feared. Scientists estimate 400 or fewer North Atlantic right whales still exist. Dr. Teri Rowles, a veterinarian for the National Marine Fisheries Service, said the wounds were likely caused by the propeller of a boat.
Hawaii
Unlimited salad and breadsticks are finally coming to the Aloha State. (Photo: Darden Restaurants)
Honolulu: This tropical state is getting its first Olive Garden. A popular Honolulu bar and restaurant will close and be replaced by a new outlet of one of the nation’s biggest restaurant chains, officials say. The Mai Tai Bar and Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. at Ala Moana Center, the state’s largest mall, are slated to close next month, The Honolulu Star-Advertiser reports. Bubba Gump Chief Operations Officer Jim DuFault said the closure is the result of a rental dispute, and Bubba Gump is prepared to file a lawsuit if the landlord or a future tenant attempts to “steal our Mai Tai intellectual property.” Olive Garden filed a $50,000 building permit for the mall location. The Italian-American restaurant chain, owned by Darden Restaurants Inc., is coming to Hawaii after years of television commercials running in the state.
Idaho
Grangeville: The screen of a 65-year-old drive-in movie theater was destroyed by high winds, and the owner says he hopes to rebuild – if he can find someone who can do the specialized work. Chris Wagner, owner of Sunset Auto Vue drive-in theater in Grangeville, told The Lewiston Tribune the screen has only been damaged by winds twice since it was built in 1955. The first time, in 2007, he rebuilt with a modern design that was intended to withstand wind gusts up to 110 mph. But last week, high winds estimated by the National Weather Service at about 60 mph flattened the 32-by-72-foot outdoor screen, leaving behind a mass of twisted metal. “I’ll be making a call to the manufacturer, but he was 75 years old when he showed up the last time (in 2007) to do it,” Wagner said. There are only a handful of drive-in theaters in the Gem State.
Illinois
Chicago: The state is updating its birth certificate system to affirm the gender identities of transgender parents, after a transmasculine person asked to be officially recognized as a father who gave birth to their daughter. Myles and Precious Brady-Davis of Chicago learned after their daughter, Zayn, arrived in December that the Illinois Department of Public Health automatically names the parent who gives birth as “Mother/Co-Parent” on a birth certificate. Myles Brady-Davis is transmasculine, which describes a person who was born female but is typically masculine in gender expression. Transmasculine people do not always identify as male. Myles, who uses they/them pronouns, carried and gave birth to Zayn and wants to be listed as her father, the Chicago Sun-Times reports. Precious Brady-Davis is a transgender woman and the baby’s mother.
Indiana
Holocaust survivor Eva Kor received worldwide acclaim when she publicly forgave the Nazis and devoted her time to educating others about the danger of eugenics and the Holocaust as well as the power of forgiveness. She died July 4, 2019, at the age of 85. (Photo: Kelly Wilkinson/IndyStar)
Indianapolis: Gov. Eric Holcomb has declared Jan. 27 “Eva Education Day” in honor of the late Eva Kor, the Holocaust survivor who dedicated much of her life to educating the world about the experiments of Nazi doctor Josef Mengele. Jan. 27 is the 75th anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz concentration camp, where Kor and her twin sister, Miriam, were subjected to Mengele’s experiments. The Terre Haute woman’s experience was chronicled in a documentary titled “Eva: A-7063.” That film is part of an Eva Educational Toolkit that has been distributed to every middle school and high school in Indiana. Kor died July 4, 2019, while conducting her annual group tour of the Auschwitz concentration camp in Poland.
Iowa
Harlan: A man has asked a judge to let him engage in a sword fight with his ex-wife and her attorney so he can “rend their souls” from their bodies. David Ostrom, 40, of Paola, Kansas, said in a Jan. 3 court filing that his former wife, Bridgette Ostrom, 38, of Harlan, Iowa, and her attorney, Matthew Hudson, had “destroyed (him) legally.” The Ostroms have been embroiled in disputes over custody and visitation issues and property tax payments. The judge had the power to let the parties “resolve our disputes on the field of battle, legally,” David Ostrom said, adding in his filing that trial by combat “has never been explicitly banned or restricted as a right in these United States.” He also asked the judge for 12 weeks’ time so he could secure Japanese samurai swords. Shelby County District Court Judge Craig Dreismeier said in his own filing Monday that he won’t be issuing a decision anytime soon, citing irregularities with both sides’ motions and responses.
Kansas
Wichita: A former Newman University professor who alleged the university discriminated against her because she was a woman should receive more than $800,000 in damages and be reinstated, a federal jury ruled Monday. The jury found in favor of Cindy Louthan, former assistant professor of elementary education at Newman, who sued the private Roman Catholic university in Wichita in 2018. Cindy Louthan alleged a supervisor was hostile toward women and harassed and discriminated against her because she is female. She also contended the university did not investigate her concerns and punished her when she complained about the supervisor, ending in her losing her job, The Wichita Eagle reports. Louthan was one of five former university employees who sued the school alleging unfair treatment or termination in recent years. The university has denied the allegations in each case.
Kentucky
A 15-year-old student was expelled from Louisville's Whitefield Academy, a private Christian school, after her family says this photo of her celebrating her birthday was posted to social media and shared with school leaders. (Photo: Provided)
Louisville: A Christian school expelled a student last week after her family says school officials discovered the 15-year-old had celebrated her birthday with a rainbow-themed cake. Kimberly Alford says that until Jan. 6, her daughter had been a freshman at Whitefield Academy. That’s when Alford says she received an email from the academy’s head of school, Bruce Jacobson, explaining how her daughter was being expelled “immediately due to a post on social media.” Alford had recently posted a photo on her Facebook page showing her daughter celebrating her birthday at a Texas Roadhouse restaurant, wearing a sweater featuring a rainbow design and sitting by a colorful, rainbow-themed cake. Alford says someone shared the photo with school officials. Alford says Jacobson wrote that the picture “demonstrates a posture of morality and cultural acceptance contrary to that of Whitefield Academy’s beliefs” and follows two years of “lifestyle violations.” Alford says her daughter is not gay, and the cake was simply a fun treat.
Louisiana
Baton Rouge: The zoo in the capital city is asking for the public’s help to name its newest male giraffe. The Baton Rouge Zoo is holding a contest for people to nominate their favorite names for the facility’s latest addition, born last month. Nominations will be accepted through Jan. 22. Zoo staff will take those public submissions and narrow them to three finalists, which will be up for a final vote from the public after that. The zoo will announce the finalists and more details about the voting at a later date. Six-year-old giraffe Rosie gave birth Dec. 26 to the male giraffe, the 20th giraffe to be born at the Baton Rouge Zoo.
Maine
Augusta: A proposal in the Legislature would halt a form of discrimination against people who take medication to prevent HIV infection. Democratic Sen. Heather Sanborn of Portland said the state’s insurance code should be amended to prevent denial of life insurance for people who take pre-exposure prophylaxis medication to prevent HIV. The prophylaxis is commonly called “PrEP.” The proposal received a public hearing before the Health Coverage, Insurance and Financial Services Committee on Jan. 8. It will be subject to committee votes before it can move on to the full Maine Legislature. Sanborn said the state’s insurance code should “reflect modern medical practices, instead of perpetuating discriminatory behavior.”
Maryland
Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan outlines his budget proposal for the next fiscal year during a news conference Tuesday in Annapolis. (Photo: Brian Witte/AP)
Annapolis: Gov. Larry Hogan highlighted initiatives to fight violent crime in Baltimore, improve education statewide and protect the environment Tuesday in presenting his budget plan for the next fiscal year. Hogan, a Republican, referenced a violent weekend in the state’s largest city in calling on lawmakers to support his crime-fighting proposals this session. On Saturday, 12 people were shot – five of them fatally – in Baltimore. It marked the third time in the past month that at least eight people were shot in a single day. “The No. 1 concern of Marylanders by far is crime,” Hogan said at a news conference. “Citizens are demanding more accountability for the violent criminals for shooting and killing people in the streets of Baltimore.” The city had 348 homicides last year, the fifth straight year with more than 300 slayings in the city. It was Baltimore’s most violent year ever on a per capita basis.
Massachusetts
Boston: A group working to make it legal in the state for doctors to prescribe a lethal dose of medication to mentally competent patients with terminal illnesses says it will continue its fight despite a recent legal setback. Compassion & Choices in its suit filed in 2016 said legalizing the practice, referred to as medical aid in dying or MAID, would help terminally ill patients avoid needless suffering. In a decision Dec. 31, a judge said the issue should be left up to lawmakers. Compassion & Choices said in a statement Monday that it intends to appeal. “This setback is disheartening, but we will continue this legal battle,” Dr. Roger Kligler, a Cape Cod physician with terminal cancer and one of the plaintiffs in the lawsuit, said in the statement. Second Thoughts Massachusetts, a group that opposes medical aid in dying, praised the decision.
Michigan
Detroit: Michigan State Police has suspended the contract with the company that issues the state’s breath alcohol testing devices amid concerns the results could be flawed. In a letter written to police and prosecutors statewide, state police officials warned law enforcement agencies about “performance-related issues” with the Datamaster DMT breathalyzer devices, according to the Detroit News. Such issues could affect drunken driving cases. The letter did not identify the problems or how they were uncovered. State police Lt. Michael Shaw said the agency will take over calibration of the devices, as well as the contractor’s duties of certifying and serving the breathalyzer units. Oakland University criminal justice professor Daniel Kennedy said such issues with the breathalyzer devices could be troublesome for drunken driving cases in Michigan.
Minnesota
Wild turkeys walk through a residential neighborhood in Moorhead, Minn., on Jan. 8. (Photo: Dan Gunderson/Minnesota Public Radio via AP)
Moorhead: The city might consider requesting a state permit to remove aggressive wild turkeys after some residents complained about the birds, a police official said. Moorhead Deputy Police Chief Tory Jacobson said the police department doesn’t have the skills or resources to add wildlife management to its list of responsibilities. The department, which also runs the city’s animal control unit, estimates about 300 turkeys are currently roosting and walking in residential neighborhoods. Moorhead residents shared tales about living in close proximity to the wild turkeys during the department’s meeting last week, Minnesota Public Radio News reports. Some feel as though the turkeys are taking over. But others welcome the animals as neighbors. Brett Bernath says about 20 to 30 congregate in his backyard, leaving behind filth.
Mississippi
Gov. Tate Reeves and his wife, Elee Reeves, sing along with one of the inaugural ball performers Tuesday in Jackson, Miss. (Photo: Rogelio V. Solis/AP)
Jackson: Republican Tate Reeves was inaugurated as governor Tuesday, pledging to provide economic opportunities for all people in the state and to defend a “loving culture that underpins our quality of life.” Reeves, 45, is the 65th governor of Mississippi. He succeeds Republican Phil Bryant, who served two terms. “This will be an administration for all Mississippi,” Reeves said during his inaugural speech. Reeves served two terms as lieutenant governor and two terms before that as the elected state treasurer. He took the oath as governor before family, friends, lawmakers and other officials in the House chamber of the state Capitol. “A culture of love and kinship has knitted Mississippi families together, and tied them to each other, for ages,” Reeves said. “It is what makes us special in a fast-paced and transient world. I will defend that culture against the erosion that frays societies.”
Missouri
Kansas City: Planned Parenthood is challenging the state’s denial of claims for Medicaid payments for a second time in two years. KCUR reports that Planned Parenthood’s affiliates in Overland Park, Kansas, appealed Missouri’s cutoff of their fiscal 2020 funding last week in Jackson County, Missouri, after an administrative law judge ruled against them last month. Meanwhile, an appeal of the cutoff of 2019 funding is pending before the Missouri Supreme Court. “It’s kind of a continuation of the same old song and dance,” said Charles Hatfield, Planned Parenthood’s attorney. Republican lawmakers in Missouri have for years sought to stop any taxpayer money from going to Planned Parenthood, even clinics that do not provide abortions. But legislators struggled with “loopholes” that allowed Planned Parenthood clinics that provide other health care to continue receiving funding.
Montana
Helena: A campaign to legalize, regulate and tax marijuana use has submitted two proposed ballot initiatives for state review, the group New Approach Montana announced. The first ballot proposal would legalize recreational use of marijuana for adults in Montana and establish a regulatory framework and a 20% sales tax. Part of the tax money would be used to reduce the tax on medical marijuana from 2% to 1%. The second ballot issue is a constitutional amendment that would restrict marijuana consumption, like alcohol, to people age 21 or older. The initiatives were delivered to the secretary of state and the Legislative Services Division on Monday, Montana Public Radio reports. The Attorney General must approve the language before the group can start gathering signatures in an effort to put the issues before voters in November 2020.
Nebraska
Lincoln: The Game and Parks Commission has prepared special Valentine’s Day offers for people who want to mark the day at a state park. Guests who reserve a cabin or lodge room – at a 30% discount – at Eugene T. Mahoney State Park between Feb. 10 and Feb. 14 can add a Valentine’s Special package to their reservation. The $25 offer includes a gift package consisting of a rose, two wine glasses, sparkling juice, a 2020 Nebraskaland Calendar, chocolates and more. For a getaway at Ponca State Park, make a reservation and celebrate Birds and Breakfast, Feb. 14-15. Enjoy dinner and a 30% discount on cabin lodging on Valentine’s Day night at Platte River State Park. Or reserve a cabin at Lewis and Clark State Recreation Area from Feb. 14 to Feb. 16 for a 30% discount. Add the Silver Package for $25 and get complimentary champagne, wine or cider; sausage and cheese platter; bouquet of flowers; cheesecake dessert; drink tickets and more.
Nevada
Coolamity Jane, in hat, perches on a Las Vegas rooftop. (Photo: Chris Drescher)
Las Vegas: Animal rescuers have confirmed one of three hat-wearing pigeons that gained popularity on social media has died. Lofty Hopes Pigeon Rescue employees say fumes from glue used to affix the hats could have poisoned Bille the Pidge. Lofty Hopes Pigeon Rescue tweeted Sunday that the female bird was weak and had lost toes to a condition where its toes are isolated by a string and fall off. Officials say the three pigeons were first discovered in December wearing miniature red cowboy hats in Las Vegas. Rescue employees say the hats were glued on. Employees say pigeons have fragile respiratory systems, and a veterinarian had to trim feathers to remove the hats. It wasn’t certain if the bird’s death was connected to the hat. It is still unknown who put the hats on the birds. Billie is survived by two other former cowboy pigeons – Cluck Norris and Coolamity Jane.
New Hampshire
Concord: Animals are on the agenda at the Statehouse with bills aimed at both protecting and pursuing them. Lawmakers have filed at least a dozen bills this session focused on wildlife or domesticated animals, including measures to ban the declawing of cats and docking of dog tails. Both bills have public hearings Thursday. Three bills before a House committee Tuesday were about killing other species. One would repeal a prohibition on hunting with ferrets; another would create a new safari hunting license for those taking elk and boar at a private game reserve; and a third would lower the bar for killing animals that damage crops or other property. Current law allows someone to kill wild animals that cause “actual and substantial” damage, but a bill sponsored by Rep. Howard Pearl, R-Loudon, would remove the “and substantial” language. He said requiring substantial damage was too subjective.
New Jersey
Trenton: State lawmakers on Monday passed legislation to prohibit flavored vaping products, sending the measure to Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy’s desk. The Democrat-led Senate passed the bill 22-15, with the Democratic-controlled Assembly voting 53-11 with eight lawmakers not voting on the measure that bans e-cigarettes flavors, including any fruit or candy among others. Lawmakers say the flavors are meant to hook young people, who are using the products in increasing numbers. Opponents of the legislation, who crowded part of the Statehouse complex Monday, say officials should better enforce the smoking age instead of barring of-age adults from buying products they enjoy using. The smoking age in New Jersey is 21. Murphy has been supportive of the idea of a flavor ban, but his office didn’t respond when asked how he’ll handle the legislation.
New Mexico
Las Cruces: The National Science Foundation has awarded two universities in the state and the New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute a $5 million grant to establish a comprehensive forestry research center for the Southwest. The five-year grant will fund the development of a Center of Excellence in Forest Restoration. It will be charged with advancing the understanding of the effects of restoration activities on forested areas through a combination of multidisciplinary research and education. The center will train students in fire management as well as forest ecology and restoration, offering undergraduate and masters programs at Highlands University. Plans also include developing a collaborative Ph.D. program between Highlands and New Mexico State University.
New York
New York City police officers observe commuters using turnstiles at a Harlem subway station. (Photo: Bebeto Matthews/AP)
New York: The city’s policing of subway fare beaters is drawing scrutiny from the state’s attorney general for possible racial bias. Letitia James announced Monday that her office is investigating the New York Police Department’s fare-enforcement practices after the department released new data showing black and Hispanic people account for the vast majority of its fare-related summonses and arrests. James’ office sent a letter to the police commissioner Monday seeking additional data, such as the number of officers assigned to each subway station each day – figures she said could shed light on whether officers are targeting communities of color. James, a Democrat, promised to take legal action if her office finds evidence of discrimination. NYPD spokeswoman Devora Kaye said officers “patrol day and night to keep 6 million daily riders safe and enforce the law fairly and equally without consideration of race or ethnicity.”
North Carolina
Corolla: A group that manages herds of wild horses on the state’s coast is warning drivers to watch out for the animals taking advantage of unseasonably warm weather by sleeping on the sand at night. Temperatures in the 60s and 70s across the Carolinas have the wild horses acting “more like it’s June, not January,” the Corolla Wild Horse Fund said in a message posted to social media. The pleasant weather has coaxed the animals out of the islands’ forests, where they usually shelter from cold winter winds, and into the path of recreational vehicles, The News & Observer reports. Daniel T. Myers III was driving on Corova Beach over the weekend when he spotted the horses in the dark. He told McClatchy News Group the animals are very hard to see and warned others to keep an eye out. Crashes are one of the leading causes of death among the Outer Banks herds, the newspaper says.
North Dakota
Bismarck: A pipeline spill of oil-field wastewater has affected cropland in northwestern North Dakota. State environmental scientist Bill Suess said regulators were notified Monday of the 8,400-gallon pipeline leak in Renville County. The pipeline is operated by Wichita Falls, Texas-based Cobra Oil and Gas. Suess said the spill of produced water happened 2 miles north of Sherwood and within a mile of the U.S.-Canada border. The cause of the pipeline leak is unknown. Produced water is a mixture of saltwater and oil that can contain drilling chemicals. It’s a byproduct of oil and gas development. Suess said about 1,000 square feet of cropland was affected. He said no water sources were harmed.
Ohio
Columbus: Self-driving shuttles will do a circuit through a residential neighborhood in the capital city as part of a yearlong pilot program starting in late January. Three 12-passenger, disabled-accessible electric shuttles will travel the 2.8-mile route in the Linden neighborhood. The shuttles, which are autonomous but monitored by on-board operators, will run between 6 a.m. and 8 p.m and connect riders to locations with social services like St. Stephen’s Community House, which has a food pantry and health and job resources. Other stops include a recreation center and a transit center. The circuit will be timed so riders can connect to Central Ohio Transit Authority buses. The route will be suspended for 30 minutes in the morning and afternoon as a precaution because of students walking to school, says Mandy Bishop, the program manager for Smart Columbus, the city’s mobility initiative.
Oklahoma
Oklahoma City: The state has adopted a new electronic tracking system that will allow sexual assault survivors to monitor the location and status of their rape kits. The purpose of the system is to empower survivors with information, help law enforcement with investigations, and foster transparency and public trust, The Oklahoman reports. Only survivors and entities that update the system can access the records. The Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation operates the system, which was authorized through legislation passed last year. A task force made recommendations in an effort to improve the state’s response to sexual assaults. “I’m hoping it will hold all of us accountable to make sure that we don’t let victims fall through the cracks,” says Andrea Fielding, division director of criminalistics for the OSBI.
Oregon
Virginia Perkins, 25, sits outside the Ross store after moving from the sidewalk outside the former Nordstrom before crews come in to clean the area in downtown Salem on Jan. 9, 2020. People experiencing homelessness have been staying outside the former Nordstrom and the Rite Aid downtown for about two weeks. (Photo: ANNA REED / STATESMAN JOURNAL)
Salem: The City Council has voted unanimously to draft an emergency declaration legally allowing car camping in certain areas. Many members of the public who spoke at the council meeting Monday supported the push for car camping but stressed more needed to be done to help the homeless population. Most demanded immediate action. Mayor Chuck Bennett said he was “deeply concerned” about the homeless crisis, but it has been 30 years in the making, and officials are working to fight that crisis in a matter of weeks. He said the actions made during Monday’s session will help meet the needs of the community. A study researching the option found the city has neither the funds nor the resources to manage a city-sponsored program. A privately sponsored program – where site owners provide supervision, trash receptacles and access to bathrooms – was suggested as an alternative.
Pennsylvania
Harrisburg: The state’s second lady, Giselle Fetterman, will help lead a campaign to raise awareness of this year’s census and encourage residents to respond, state officials said Monday. Fetterman, whose husband is Lt. Gov. John Fetterman, said she will tour the state, making stops in Philadelphia and in Centre, Erie, Allegheny, Lancaster and Luzerne counties over the next three months. Gov. Tom Wolf signed an executive order in 2018 to create a commission to help ensure a robust census count and signed legislation in October authorizing up to $4 million to buttress the count. Meanwhile, 94 nonprofit community organizations are working together to encourage their targeted communities to return census forms. Current census projections show Pennsylvania is growing more slowly than the rest of the country and is expected to lose a congressional seat in 2023.
Rhode Island
Providence: The federal government is finally paying for baggage screening systems at the state’s main airport that were upgraded after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, U.S. Sen. Jack Reed said. The Democrat met Friday with officials from the Rhode Island Airport Corp. and the Transportation Security Administration at the T.F. Green Airport in Warwick to discuss air travel safety. Reed said millions were allocated nationally in a 2020 spending bill to reimburse airports for baggage screening systems and security improvements, of which $5.5 million will be directed to T.F. Green. The airport upgraded its baggage screening systems after the terrorist attacks, enhancing safety and saving the federal government millions in reduced labor and worker’s compensation costs, but the airport corporation wasn’t fully reimbursed, Reed said. The payment brings the total reimbursement so far to $18 million of $30 million owed, he said.
South Carolina
A May 2019 rendering from Atlanta development firm RocaPoint Partners shows a plaza envisioned in front of the proposed $65 million Greenville County administrative building at the corner of University Ridge and Church Street near Greenville's central business district. International architectural firm Foster and Partners are designing the building. (Photo: Provided)
Greenville: Mayor Knox White says he’s found a way to commit up to $5 million toward buying land for affordable housing at County Square, although he says he’s still working on the details. The mayor says the $5 million would be in addition to $2 million Greenville County had previously pledged toward affordable housing in the neighborhood that includes County Square. It’s the latest step in a project that has been in the works for three years: the $1 billion public-private redevelopment of county-owned land along University Ridge. Negotiations have intensified since since last summer among city and county leaders, downtown residents and RocaPoint over how best to hash out a plan everyone can live with. It is the biggest project Greenville has ever seen, promising thousands of jobs, millions in tax revenues, and a 37-acre expansion of the downtown business district.
South Dakota
Elk Point: A school district will pay $65,000 to settle a discrimination lawsuit brought by a former honor student. Addison Ludwig says she was singled out by the former Elk Point-Jefferson High School principal after she was featured in the student newspaper in 2017 and described a hobby as “Netflix n’ Chill with my boyfriend.” Ludwig says she didn’t know it was a term some use to describe casual sexual encounters until the principal, Travis Aslesen, made her look it up on the internet. Aslesen revoked her senior privileges and honors study hall and removed her as editor of the newspaper. Ludwig in her lawsuit said male students who used the term had not been disciplined, including a boy who had used the term in a profile in the newspaper earlier in the year, the lawsuit said.
Tennessee
Nashville: The state Senate started the 2020 legislative session passing its first bill of the year: a controversial measure that protects religious adoption agencies if they choose to discriminate against same-sex couples. The bill, sponsored by Sen. Paul Rose, R-Covington, declares that no licensed adoption agency would be required to participate in a child placement if doing so would “violate the agency’s written religious or moral convictions or policies.” It also prohibits the state from denying an agency’s license or grant application for public funds because of the group’s refusal to place a child with a family based on religious objections. The adoption agency would also be protected from lawsuits for such a refusal. The Senate passed the bill 20-6, with five Republican members declining to vote on the measure, including Lt. Gov. Randy McNally, R-Oak Ridge. The House passed the bill in April, and it now heads to Gov. Bill Lee for his signature.
Texas
Stephenville: Researchers at Tarleton State University’s Southwest Regional Dairy Center are using devices similar to Fitbits to track the health habits of dairy cows, the Weatherford Democrat reports. The researchers say tracking a cow’s eating, sleeping and movement helps them take better care of the animals, according to a press release from the Texas A&M University System. The devices track how long cows eat, how long they lay down and how many steps they take, while another wearable device monitors how much milk each cow gives. “We have two Fitbits on every cow,” Southwest Regional Dairy Center Director Barbara Jones says. The data can warn producers that a cow may be sick before the animal starts showing symptoms. The devices also free up time for the dairy producer, who can tend to other business instead of monitoring their herd visually, according to the press release.
Utah
Membership in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has slowed in Utah and dropped in the faith’s home base of Salt Lake County, the Salt Lake Tribune reports. (Photo: Rick Bowmer/AP)
Salt Lake City: Membership growth in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has slowed to its lowest level in decades. The church added just 4,900 members in the state in between October 2018 and September 2019, according to statistics it provided to The Salt Lake Tribune. Utah’s total population grew by 53,000 people over the same period, according to estimates. The church grew by fewer than 10,000 people in a year only one other time since 1989, the first year the newspaper had access to membership data. That was in 2018, when membership rose by just over 9,000 people. By comparison, the faith widely known as the Mormon church added more than 40,000 new members in 2013, which was the high mark of the last decade. In Salt Lake County, the state’s largest, the number of Latter-day Saints fell by 6,710 even as the county’s total population grew by 10,000 people.
Vermont
Montpelier: A bill has been proposed in the Legislature to decriminalize adult prostitution. The legislation is co-sponsored by four female legislators. Rep. Selene Colburn, a Burlington progressive, said she thinks decriminalizing sex work will improve safety and health of prostitutes, mynbc5.com reports. “The underlying question is do we need to criminalize consensual sex between adults on any terms?” she said. Sex trafficking, exploitation and solicitation of minors will remain a serious felony, she said. The bill is in the House Judiciary Committee.
Virginia
Virginia Del. Jennifer Carroll Foy, D-Prince William, sits at her desk on the floor of the House of Delegates after her Equal Rights Amendment bill passed out of committee earlier at the Capitol in Richmond on Tuesday. (Photo: Bob Brown/Richmond Times-Dispatch via AP)
Richmond: The state moved a step closer to ratifying the Equal Rights Amendment on Tuesday, even as the measure’s future nationally remains in doubt. A House committee approved a resolution to ratify the gender equality measure, which advocates hope will become the next amendment to the U.S. Constitution. The 13-9 vote split along party lines, with all Democrats supporting it and all Republicans opposing it. A Senate committee already advanced a similar resolution. The resolutions are now before the full House and Senate, where floor votes are expected Wednesday. Democrats control both chambers, and their legislative leaders have said their caucuses unanimously support the measure. “Each action we take to move this resolution forward signals to the country that we’re more than ready to do our part in creating a world where women are treated as equals,” Del. Jennifer Carroll Foy, a sponsor of the House resolution, said in a statement.
Washington
Seattle: The Seattle Police Department’s civilian watchdog has found that an officer’s ruse in a 2018 hit-and-run case contributed to the driver’s suicide. The Office of Police Accountability said that to get the suspect to turn himself in, the officer told one of the suspect’s friends that the crash left a woman in critical condition and that she might not survive, The Seattle Times reports. In reality, it was a fender-bender with no injuries. The driver’s friend told him what the officer had said, and the driver began to think he had possibly hit a pedestrian without knowing it. The friend reported that the driver had been addicted to heroin for two decades and became increasingly despondent over the possibility he killed someone. Soon thereafter, in June 2018, he died by suicide. The officer was suspended for six days without pay.
West Virginia
Charleston: Rescue dogs could soon become the state’s official state dog under a proposal approved Tuesday in the Senate. The resolution, sponsored by state Sens. Ryan Weld and Stephen Baldwin, says it seeks to bring attention to dogs living in the more than 500 animal shelters in West Virginia. “Just because a dog is at a shelter doesn’t mean that there’s something wrong with the dog,” said Weld, a Republican. “That dog needs a second chance and is looking for a new friend, just like you might be.” The proposal now moves to the House of Delegates. West Virginia already has a bunch of official state flora and fauna. The black bear is the state animal, the sugar maple is the state tree, the cardinal is the state bird, and the rhododendron is the state flower.
Wisconsin
Madison: Republicans are introducing a package of bills that would impose tougher sanctions and sentences on criminals. The legislation would require the Department of Corrections to recommend revoking a person’s extended supervision, parole or probation if he or she is charged with a crime; prohibit people convicted of violent crimes from finishing probation early; and block violent criminals from participating in early release programs. The bills also would impose a mandatory 180-day jail sentence for shoplifting; forbid prosecutors from amending charges of illegally possessing a gun against a person convicted of a violent felony or attempting to commit a violent felony; and expand the violations that could land a child in a youth prison to include any act that would be a felony in adult court.
Wyoming
Casper: A company has settled a federal lawsuit by a former employee who claimed she was pressured to take Scientology courses as a condition of her employment. Julie A. Rohrbacher filed the lawsuit in 2018 against Teton Therapy, which operates physical and occupational therapy offices in four Wyoming locations. Rohrbacher claimed that owner Jeff McMenamy declined to promote her and then forced her to resign in 2013 after she refused to enroll in Church of Scientology courses. She sued under the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits religious harassment and discrimination at work. The suit was settled Jan. 2, and Chief U.S. District Judge Scott Skavdahl dismissed the case, the Casper Star-Tribune reports. Scientology is a church founded by science fiction writer L. Ron Hubbard in the early 1950s. The church has about 10 million members worldwide.
From USA TODAY Network and wire reports
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