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Letters: Neglected buildings | Sentencing reform | Headline misleads | Pointing finger | Online safety | Overpopulation

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 16:11:58 GMT

Submit your letter to the editor via this form. Read more Letters to the Editor.Penalties on neglectedbuildings should riseRe: “Officials consider elevating penalties” (Page A1, Aug. 25).Mayor Mahan, Vice Mayor Kamei and City Council members Torres and Foley have proposed that San Jose increase the fees on negligent property owners. The First Church of Christ, Scientist at St. James Park is one of these properties. By increasing the fees substantially and increasing the vigilance by code enforcement, we can save landmarks that add beauty, and historical and cultural value to our city.Historic buildings give us a sense of the past, our heritage, and enrich our lives with their beauty and stories of earlier generations. We must protect these treasures, and this proposal would help to do that.Paul BoehmSan JoseGuardrails in placefor sentencing reformRe: “Proposed bill raises anxiety, concerns” (Page A1, Aug. 30).Regarding the concerns about SB 94, the bill follo...

Giuliani pleads not guilty in Georgia election case

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 16:11:58 GMT

By Kate Brumback | Associated PressATLANTA — Rudy Giuliani on Friday pleaded not guilty to Georgia charges that accuse him of trying, along with former President Donald Trump and others, to illegally overturn the results of the 2020 election in the state.In filing his not guilty plea with the court, the former New York mayor and Trump attorney also waived his right to appear at an arraignment hearing set for Sept. 6. He joins the former president and at least 10 others in forgoing a trip to Atlanta to appear before a judge in a packed courtroom with a news camera rolling.Trump and Giuliani are among 19 people charged in a sprawling, 41-count indictment that details a wide-ranging conspiracy to thwart the will of Georgia’s voters who had selected Democrat Joe Biden over the Republican incumbent.The charges against Giuliani, along with other legal woes, signal a remarkable fall for a man who was celebrated as “America’s mayor” in the aftermath of the 9/11 terro...

SF Giants announce two players added to September roster

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 16:11:58 GMT

SAN DIEGO — The Giants were glad to see the calendar turn to September, putting a 12-15 August in the rearview mirror with a win Thursday night.The start of September also meant that the Giants could add two additional players to their roster, bringing the total to 28, though only one was a new arrival in the clubhouse Friday afternoon.Shortstop Brandon Crawford, already in San Diego, was activated from the injured list, and right-hander Keaton Winn was called up from Triple-A.Related ArticlesSan Francisco Giants | Contender or pretender? One team looks the part in SF Giants’ romp over big-pocketed Padres San Francisco Giants | SF Giants: When Kyle Harrison will make his next start; Brandon Crawford update San Francisco Giants | SF Giants miss out on waivers extravaganza, but it’s not all bad news San Francisco Giants | Despite loss in finale, SF Giants back on postseason track after series with Reds San Fra...

Vacaville man charged with attempted murder in Lafayette freeway shooting

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 16:11:58 GMT

MARTINEZ — Contra Costa prosecutors have charged a Vacaville man with attempted murder in connection with a July 26 shooting on Highway 24 in Lafayette, court records show.The 24-year-old Vacaville man was charged with attempted murder, assault with a firearm and being a felon in possession of a firearm, all felonies. He is being held in lieu of $500,000 bail at the Solano County Jail, where he was wanted in connection with pending police chase and gun charges, records show.The victim, a woman who’d been in a relationship with the suspect, was driving westbound on Highway 24 the day of the shooting. The suspect allegedly drove up behind her in a silver Lexus and opened fire.The woman was not struck by gunfire, but her Chevrolet Impala was hit several times, police said.Police later recovered the Lexus in on Columbus Parkway in Benicia, authorities said. Investigators reportedly later spoke to a family member of the victim who told them the suspect was angry at the woman ...

Oakland A’s prospect Soderstrom back in the majors as MLB rosters expand for September

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 16:11:58 GMT

The A’s recalled top-ranked prospect Tyler Soderstrom and left-hander Sam Long on Friday as teams expanded their rosters from 26 to 28 players.Soderstrom was not in the A’s starting lineup for the opener of a weekend homestand against the Los Angeles Angels, and its unclear how the catcher/first baseman will be utilized in the final weeks of the season.The 21-year-old catcher/first baseman has had mixed results in his first exposure in the majors. He was optioned to Triple-A Las Vegas on Aug. 21 after he opened August in a 6-for-47 (.128) slump with 16 strikeouts and a .457 on-base percentage. His return to the minors lasted just eight games.Soderstrom went 2 for 3 with six RBIs in his first game back at Triple-A and was 5-for-10 with 10 RBIs three games into his return to the Aviators. But in the past five games, Soderstrom was 1 for 16. Overall, Soderstrom hit 21 home runs with 62 RBIs in 77 games at Triple-A this season.The A’s first pick in the 2020 draft made his big league deb...

Inside an FBI interrogation room: Here’s what happened after a Boogaloo follower showed up to confess role in Oakland federal cop killing

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 16:11:58 GMT

Robert Alvin Justus Jr. decided he’d had enough. He wanted to get something off his chest, and he needed the FBI.Two weeks earlier, Justus  drove an unmarked white van past the federal building in Oakland while his acquaintance, a U.S. Air Force sergeant named Steven Carrillo, showered the building’s security booth with bullets, killing one Federal Protective Services security officer and wounding a second guard.Justus had grown increasingly paranoid since the May 2020 shooting. He’d seen a silver SUV with tinted windows outside his Millbrae apartment, and guessed — accurately, it turned out — that the vehicle belonged to the FBI. But mostly, he feared that fellow followers of the Boogaloo movement —a loosely organized anti-government group that is preparing for a second Civil War —might come after him.“My life’s been a living hell since then,” Justus told the agents at the beginning of an hours long FBI interrogation in June 2020. He later added,...

Mohamed Al Fayed dies at 94; Harrods owner publicly grieved deaths of son Dodi and Princess Diana

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 16:11:58 GMT

By Danica Kirka, Cara Rubinsky and Jill Lawless | Associated PressLONDON — Mohamed Al Fayed, former owner of the famed Harrods department store in London whose son was killed in a car crash with Princess Diana, has died, his family saidx Friday. He was 94.Al Fayed, a self-made Egyptian businessman who also once owned the Fulham Football Club, was devastated by the death of son Dodi Fayed in the car crash in Paris with Princess Diana 26 years ago. He spent the rest of his life mourning the loss and fighting the British establishment he blamed for their deaths.“Mrs Mohamed Al Fayed, her children and grandchildren wish to confirm that her beloved husband, their father and their grandfather, Mohamed, has passed away peacefully of old age on Wednesday August 30, 2023,″ his family said in a statement released by the Fulham club. “He enjoyed a long and fulfilled retirement surrounded by his loved ones.″Al Fayed was convinced that Dodi and Diana were killed in a conspiracy masterminded by P...

DC restricts use of business space where dogs drowned; Bowser meets with pet owners

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 16:11:58 GMT

D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser’s office announced Thursday that it would revoke the certification of occupancy for the space that once held the District Dogs dog day care.The “danger placard” placed at the business by D.C.’s Department of Buildings prohibits access to the space except for cleanup operations, a spokeswoman for the agency told WTOP in an email.“Any proposed new use of this space shall be subject to a new Certificate of Occupancy and will undergo renewed plan reviews to ensure safety against enhanced flood risk,” the spokeswoman said.Just two weeks ago, the Northeast D.C. facility flooded, trapping employees and leaving 10 dogs dead.Earlier this week, the grieving owners continued to ask for answers from regional leaders. Some of them met with Bowser on Thursday to ask for significant changes that would prevent another tragedy.Colleen Costello, an advisory neighborhood commissioner in Northeast D.C. whose shepherd mix, Maple, died, told 7N...

Mason Greenwood joins Getafe on loan from Manchester United

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 16:11:58 GMT

MADRID (AP) — Getafe acquired former Manchester United forward Mason Greenwood on loan on Friday, after the English player left his old club following a criminal investigation into a possible attempted rape that was closed by prosecutors.The deal was announced just before the summer market closed.The 21-year-old England forward has not played for United since January 2022.Greenwood was implicated in controlling and coercive behavior and assault relating to a young woman after images and videos were posted online.Prosecutors in England closed their case in February, saying “after a combination of the withdrawal of key witnesses and new material that came to light meant there was no longer a realistic prospect of conviction.”But his club and the player decided last month it was best to part ways and for him to find a new club.Greenwood will join a Getafe that is likely to fight to avoid relegation.___AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccerSource

Muere Mohamed Al-Fayed, el multimillonario egipcio cuyo hijo Dodi Al-Fayed falleció junto a la princesa Diana

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 16:11:58 GMT

(CNN) –– Murió Mohamed Al-Fayed, el magnate egipcio que transformó la suerte de los grandes almacenes Harrods y del Fulham Football Club en Londres, informó su familia en un comunicado. Tenía 94 años.“La señora Mohamed Al Fayed, sus hijos y nietos desean confirmar que su amado esposo, su padre y su abuelo, Mohamed, falleció en paz el miércoles 30 de agosto de 2023”, se lee en la declaración que publicó el Fulham FC este viernes.Al-Fayed se enfrentó a la realeza británica después de que su hijo Dodi muriera en un accidente automovilístico junto a Diana, la princesa de Gales.El multimillonario se abrió camino en la alta sociedad londinense comprando varios establecimientos lujosos después de llegar al Reino Unido en la década de 1970, y también fue propietario del histórico Hotel Ritz en París durante cuatro décadas.Sin embargo, resultó ser una figura cada vez más controvertida durante su lucha pública por la ciudadanía británica, y más aún después de la muerte de Diana y su hijo, Dod...