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Opinion: The old orange wicked witch, melting under the pressure, is only getting worse

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:15:57 GMT

Is it just me or does Donald Trump appear to be melting like the Wicked Witch of the West in the Wizard of Oz? The 77-year-old is looking tired, sweaty, and doused in too much orange spray tan.Ordinarily, I would deem such derision uncouth, but Trump deserves a taste of his own medicine just as he has earned the legal problems he now faces.His weariness is understandable, given that he’s in the crosshairs of Jack Smith, the special counsel with the no-nonsense name.Also on his mind is Fani Willis, the Georgia prosecutor, and racketeering statute specialist. Those who know her say, “She don’t play.”Their dogged pursuit to reveal the truth about Trump’s desperate attempts to overturn the 2020 election has him good and worried.He lashed out at Smith as a “deranged” Trump-hater, and claimed that Willis is a “young racist” who had an affair with a gang member.You could say that the ex-president is only doing what Republicans do best; engage in personal attacks.Before securing the 2...

Ed Sheeran set record at Empower Field, then dined at Casa Bonita

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:15:57 GMT

British musician Ed Sheeran came to Denver’s Empower Field on Saturday for a concert that brought a record 85,233 fans to the football stadium. But that wasn’t the only legendary thing Sheeran did while in town.According to a post on Instagram, Sheeran scored a coveted chance to dine at Casa Bonita in Lakewood, where he checked off several bucket list attractions.Take a spooky tour of Black Bart’s cave – check!Watch the famous cliff divers – check!Get a picture taken inside a fake jail – check!Enjoy mariachi music – check!No word on what Sheeran thought about the food, but he looked like he was enjoying the chips and salsa.Related ArticlesEntertainment | Colorado’s creative, cultural and service-industry workers look to unions for leverage Entertainment | Letters: Casa Bonita no longer family budget-friendly Entertainment | As Casa Bonita’s reopening drew near, this small business owner got the boot Entertainment | ...

Charges reduced for two officers in Elijah McClain case as trial nears

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:15:57 GMT

Prosecutors last week reduced the criminal charges against two Aurora police officers charged with manslaughter in the death of Elijah McClain.Prosecutors with Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser’s office on Thursday dropped the sentence enhancement counts against Aurora police Officer Randy Roedema and former officer Jason Rosenblatt in McClain’s 2019 death, court records show.The pair still face charges of reckless manslaughter, criminally negligent homicide and assault in connection with McClain’s killing, but they no longer face crime-of-violence sentence enhancers on top of those charges. The state’s sentence enhancers carry mandatory minimum prison sentences upon conviction and can significantly increase the amount of time a convicted person must spend behind bars.Senior Assistant Attorney General Jason Slothouber wrote in a motion to dismiss that the sentence enhancer charges in this case were redundant and legally unnecessary.“As is often the practi...

Live updates: Tropical Storm Hilary shatters rain records, causes widespread flooding

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:15:57 GMT

As forecast, Tropical Storm Hilary drenched Southern California with several inches of rain, causing flash flooding and prompting many schools to close Monday. Refresh this page to see the most recent updates below.Live Hilary Radar | Interactive Storm Tracker 8:55 a.m. Monday - A mudslide has closed the No. 5 line of the northbound 101 Freeway in Studio City.The California Highway Patrol estimates the closure at Universal Studios Boulevard will last two hours.8:49 a.m. Monday -Los Angeles Fire Department Chief Kristin Crowley said that no major injuries or deaths have been reported due to the storm, despite the department receiving more than 4,100 911 calls, over 1,000 more than normal."Fortunately, we have yet to receive any report of any significant injuries or damage related tot he storm," said Crowley.Crowley added that the public should stay clear of any downed power lines.8:42 a.m. Monday - The National Weather Service of Los Angeles said totals for Hilary have broken “virtua...

Tropical Storm Hilary: how much rain fell in your area?

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:15:57 GMT

Southern California is getting soaked by Tropical Storm Hilary, and while even more rain is expected through Monday, a staggering amount of rainfall has already landed in some areas. These are the rain totals for Los Angeles and Ventura counties as of 3 a.m. Monday, according to the National Weather Service. The rainfall totals for the other regions listed below are as of 11:15 p.m. Sunday night.Los Angeles County Lewis Ranch: 7.04 inchesLeona Valley: 6.97 inches Crystal Lake: 6.58 inchesSaugus: 6.45 inches Cogswell Dam: 6.38 inchesSawpit Dam: 6.22 inchesBig Pines Recreation Park: 6.18 inchesAliso Canyon: 6.06 inchesSanta Anita Dam: 6.02 inchesLake Palmdale: 5.98 inches Mescal Smith: 5.81 inches San Gabriel Dam: 5.67 inchesMount Baldy: 5.66 inchesValyermo: 5.65 inches Newhall: 5.59 inches Castaic Junction: 5.43 inches Morris Dam: 5.41 inchesBig Dalton Dam: 5.35 inchesDel Valle: 5.24 inches East Pasadena: 5.21 inchesMill Creek: 5.11 inches Chilao South: 5.00 inchesInspiration ...

Forecasters say 'virtually all' daily rainfall records broken in Los Angeles

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:15:57 GMT

Forecasters in Los Angeles said Monday that “virtually all” of the city’s daily rainfall records have been broken as the storm Hilary, now a post-tropical cyclone, hit Southern California on Sunday, bringing historic rainfall, flooding and mudslides to the area. The National Weather Service (NWS) of Los Angeles said totals for Hilary have broken “virtually all rainfall daily records,” as of 3 a.m. Monday, according to a post on X, formerly known as Twitter. The local NWS said 7.04 inches of rain fell in Lewis Ranch over a two-day period, while Lake Palmdale had 5.98 inches and the University of California, Los Angeles, had 4.26. The storm made landfall Sunday along Mexico’s Baja California Peninsula, around 150 miles south of Ensenada, Mexico. As it moved through Tijuana on Sunday, improvised homes on the hillsides south of the U.S. border were threatened by the flooding. By Sunday night, the storm moved over San Diego and north toward inland desert areas. Hilary is the first tropic...

Chart: Rainfall totals for Tropical Storm Hilary in Southern California

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:15:57 GMT

The mountains near Los Angeles and San Diego recorded the most rain as Tropical Storm Hilary swept into Southern California over the weekend.In the National Weather Service’s 48-hour totals ending at 7 a.m. Monday, many stations in the San Gabriel and San Bernardino mountains had readings of 5 to 6 inches.Mount San Jacinto, above Palm Springs, had a reading of 11.6, and Upper Mission Creek, 10 miles southeast of Big Bear, had 13.54. These are raw data, not yet subjected to quality control.Stovepipe Wells, in Death Valley, and Red Rock Canyon, near Las Vegas, both recorded about 3 inches in those 48 hours. Downtown Las Vegas reported 0.63 inches.The storm’s effects petered out in the southern Sierra Nevada. Yosemite Valley reported 0.44 inches, Mammoth Lakes and Donner Lake 0.84, and Reno 0.31.Some 48-hour readings:LocationInchesLake Arrowhead8.31Mt. Laguna7.11Palomar Mountain6.84Santa Anita Dam6.53Cajon Pass6.31Mt. Baldy5.84Newhall5.71Castaic Junction5.47Burbank5.07Palmd...

Hurricane Hilary: Here’s what Southern California news looked like last time a tropical storm made landfall in 1939

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:15:57 GMT

Headlines and stories from the San Pedro News-Pilot in September 1939 chronicled, in real time, the devastation that unfolded the last time a tropical storm made landfall — that time near Long Beach.“Storm Victim Found at Cabrillo Beach.”“Furious Storm Wrecks Beach Homes.”“C.G. Still Hunting 34 Boats – Southland Storm Toll Rises, Coast and Island Coves Searched for Unreported Craft.”With Southern California under a tropical storm watch, let’s take a look back at the last time such a torrent actually made landfall in the region.By the time that storm was over, the breakwater and bathhouse in San Pedro were damaged and 93 deaths were reported across Southern California. Forty-five of those died in flooding on land and another 48 were lost at sea. The property damage totaled in the millions of dollars.Numerous stories posted on The California Digital Newspaper Collection website tell the story of the devastation from that tropical storm, nicknamed El Cordonazo, or The Lash of St. Franc...

California police officer charged after woman suffers brain injury during arrest

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:15:57 GMT

A Hemet police officer was arrested on Friday, Aug. 18, after being charged with assaulting a woman during an arrest in July, causing her to suffer a brain injury, authorities said.Jacob Alan Hobson, 29, was arrested at the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department and charged with two counts of assault likely to cause great bodily injury and one count of assault under color of authority. The District Attorney’s Office also filed two enhancements of causing a person to become comatose or permanently paralyzed that could each add five years to a sentence if Hobson is convicted.One of the assault charges carries a possible sentence of two or three years; the second assault charge and the charge of assault under color of authority could result in sentences of 16 months to three years, according to the criminal complaint.Hobson was placed on paid leave, the Hemet Police Department said. He has been on the force since January 2022, said Alan Reyes, a department spokesman.Hemet police as of F...

Pac-12 preview: Breaking the playoff drought and other bold bowl predictions

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:15:57 GMT

The postseason has not been a happy place for the Pac-12 in recent years.The conference hasn’t reached the College Football Playoff since the 2016 season (Washington), hasn’t won a New Year’s Six game since the 2019 season (Oregon) and frequently struggles to fill its allotment of bids.Will the final year of Pac-12 football as we know it produce enough bowl-eligible teams to match the seven available slots? Will two teams participate in the New Year’s Six games? Will the playoff drought finally end?Presenting our fearless bowl projections.Rose Bowl/College Football Playoff (Jan. 1)Team: Washington (vs. semifinalist)Comment: No two-loss team has been invited to the CFP, and the Huskies won’t be the first. That said, no Pac-12 team has gone undefeated in the regular season during the playoff era; the Huskies won’t be the first to do that, either. So the path to glory likely means navigating a difficult schedule with only one stumble. We expect a vic...