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Takeaways from AP’s investigation of a Texas sheriff’s history of alleged corruption and dysfunction

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 12:54:31 GMT

COLDSPRING, Texas (AP) — Sheriff Greg Capers was the classic picture of a Texas lawman as he announced the capture of a suspected mass killer: white cowboy hat on his head, gold star pinned to his chest, white cross on his belt and a large pistol emblazoned with his name on his hip.Capers addressed television cameras in May at the end the search for Francisco Oropeza, who had evaded hundreds of officers for four days after allegedly killing five neighbors when they complained his late-night shooting was keeping their baby awake. But an Associated Press investigation found the sheriff’s turn in the national spotlight belied years of complaints about corruption and dysfunction that were previously unknown outside the piney woods of San Jacinto County. Capers did not directly respond to requests for comment, but his second-in-command dismissed the accusations as “straight-up lies.”Here are the key takeaways from the AP investigation:UNDERSTATED RESPONSE TIMEDuring the search for Oropez...

Deputies accused a Texas sheriff of corruption and dysfunction. Then came the mass shooting

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 12:54:31 GMT

COLDSPRING, Texas (AP) — Sheriff Greg Capers was the classic picture of a Texas lawman as he announced the capture of a suspected mass killer: white cowboy hat on his head, gold star pinned to his chest, white cross on his belt and a large pistol emblazoned with his name on his hip.For four days, Francisco Oropeza had evaded hundreds of officers after allegedly killing five neighbors when they complained that his late-night shooting was keeping their baby awake. The sheriff said his deputies arrived in 11 minutes, but Oropeza was gone. With the search over, Capers had a message for the victims’ families.“They can rest easy now,” Capers told a row of television cameras in May. The burly sheriff later personally hauled the “coward” across a town square into court.But an Associated Press investigation led the sheriff’s office to disclose that deputies took nearly four times as long as Capers initially said to arrive at the mass shooting. The AP also found Capers’ turn in the nati...

Some cities are digging up water mains and leaving lead pipe in the ground

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 12:54:31 GMT

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — Prandy Tavarez and his wife were expecting a baby when they bought a four-bedroom house in a well-kept neighborhood of century-old homes here. They got to work making it theirs, ripping off wallpaper, upgrading the electrical and replacing windows coated in paint that contained lead, a potent neurotoxin that can damage brain development in children.That wasn’t the only lead. The pipe carrying water to their home was made of it, too. Providence’s tap water had had dangerous lead levels for years. So it wasn’t surprising in 2008 when a road crew came through and dug up the street to take out the pipe. Then they left part of it in the ground.“They put on a Band-Aid,” Tavarez said.Around the country, utilities have been leaving lead pipe in the ground even when it is easiest to remove during water main work. Worse, they have been removing sections, disturbing the pipe and leaving the rest, which can spike lead levels, causing harm that will last a lifetime,...

Cooler lakeside Sunday—but warmth to reach lakefront Mon-Tue. in Chicago; Excessive Heat threatens Southwestern U.S.

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 12:54:31 GMT

A Beautiful Day For The Beach SundayWhile it will be cooler by the lake on Sunday, the heat on Monday and Tuesday reaches up to the lakefrontWe've seen a big turnaround in rainfall already this month.  Through the first 8 days of July O'Hare (Chicago's official reporting station) has received more rain than in May (0.71") and June (2.36") combined.  Those two months were a combined 5.52" drier than average.  The flooding rains from last weekend and even another significant round early in the workweek, still only knocked central Cook County from a severe drought to a moderate drought.  Much of the area is still in a severe drought and the entire region could still use more rainfall.  We likely won't have any measurable rain again until Tuesday and even then, a lot of the region will remain dry. Wednesday brings the best chance for rain and over the next 7 days, through next Saturday, the computer forecast models predict an average of 1.46" of rain in Chicago.An Excessive Heat Warning...

Riverside doctor arrested again for alleged sexual assault of patients

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 12:54:31 GMT

A Riverside doctor was arrested Friday for the second time on allegations he sexually assaulted multiple patients.The suspect was identified as Dr. Sam Sannoufi from Newport Beach, according to the Riverside Police Department.Sannoufi owns the Timeless Skincare Laser Clinic and Primary Care Family Practice on the 6900 block of Brockton Avenue in Riverside.Sannoufi was first arrested on June 27 after a female victim claimed she was sexually assaulted during a consultation exam with him.At the time, Sannoufi was arrested and booked on sexual assault charges before being released on $1 million bail.Since then, additional victims have come forward with similar allegations of being sexually assaulted by Sannoufi. Sam Sannoufi in a booking photo from the Riverside Police Department. Ventura County drug ‘delivery driver’ arrested, has suspected ties to Mexican cartel On July 7, he was arrested for additional sexual assault crimes and booked into the Robert Presley Detention Center. He is...

Underground vault fire leads to explosion in SF's Pacific Heights

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 12:54:31 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) -- Crews are responding to an underground vault fire that led to an explosion, the San Francisco Fire Department confirmed. The fire happened on the 2100 block of Pacific Avenue in the city's Pacific Heights neighborhood.A manhole cover exploded underneath a car and led to the damage of several windows in the area, according to SFFD. Citizen App video (above) shows a Tesla damaged due to the explosion.As of 9 p.m., no injuries have been reported. SFFD is asking the public to avoid the area at this time.KRON On is streaming news live now.embed-container { position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%; height: 0; overflow: hidden; max-width: 100%; } .embed-container iframe, .embed-container object, .embed-container embed { position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; }This story will be updated.

‘Stay weather aware’: DC region under Flood Watch Sunday as excessive rainfall is expected

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 12:54:31 GMT

Be aware! Most of the D.C. area will be under a Flood Watch and a moderate risk for excessive rainfall on Sunday. Here’s what you need you know.Flood Watch is in effect from Noon to 10 p.m. Sunday.Severe Weather Alert with potential for large hail, damaging winds and tornadoes.The last Flood Watch will be in effect starting noon Sunday and extend through 10 p.m. bringing a  much more active weather pattern through the drought-stricken capital region, said 7News meteorologist Mark Peña.“A very potent storm system will bring a line of storms through the region starting from the west around 10 a.m.-11 a.m. and progressing toward the DC Metro/I-95 corridor around 1 p.m.-3 p.m. time frame. The storms are expected to be relatively slow moving prompting the threat for flash flooding,” Peña tells WTOP.Everyone is likely to see the impacts of this storm system, he added.A widespread 1 to 2 inches of rainfall is expected across the watch area, with isolated totals in excess ...

Herbers, Brady guide Fire to 1-0 victory over Nashville

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 12:54:31 GMT

CHICAGO (AP) — Fabian Herbers scored a first-half goal and Chris Brady made it stand up in the Chicago Fire’s 1-0 victory over Nashville SC on Saturday night.Herbers scored the lone goal when he took a pass from Maren Haile-Selassie in the 34th minute and found the net for a fourth time this season. Brady finished with two saves to earn the clean sheet for Chicago (6-7-8). Joe Willis did not make a save in goal for Nashville (11-6-5), which lost to the Fire for the first time after two victories and two draws in the first four meetings. Nashville beat Chicago 3-0 at home earlier this season.Chicago snapped a two-match losing streak at home in all competitions. The skid came after an 11-match unbeaten run at home. The Fire have not lost three straight matches at home in all competitions since the 2010 season in MLS/Super Liga play.Chicago held Nashville’s Hany Mukhtar in check. The league leader with 13 goals this season has a pair of hat tricks in his career against the ...

Betts hits MLB-record 10th leadoff homer in first half to help Dodgers rout Angels 10-5

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 12:54:31 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — All-Star Mookie Betts hit his 10th leadoff homer — most in the first half in major league history — and the Los Angeles Dodgers busted out with five homers for the second straight game to beat the slumping Angels 10-5 on Saturday night.The Dodgers head into the All-Star break a season-high 13 games over .500 with a record of 51-38, a half-game behind NL West-leading Arizona.The Angels dropped their season-high fifth straight to fall below .500 at 45-46. It was their 10th consecutive loss in the Freeway Series, the club’s longest-ever skid against the Dodgers. The Angels gave up 11 hits in an 11-4 loss Friday.Angels All-Star Shohei Ohtani hit his major league-leading 32nd homer, a 433-foot, two-run blast in the seventh. He came up a double shy of hitting for the cycle. The two-way superstar singled in the first and tripled in the third. Betts’ 408-foot solo shot, his 26th of the season, came on the second pitch of the game by Reid Detmers. Betts eclipsed the ...

Cities have long made plans for extreme heat. Are they enough in a warming world?

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 12:54:31 GMT

CHICAGO (AP) — Natural disasters can be dramatic — barreling hurricanes, building-toppling tornadoes — but heat is more deadly. Chicago learned that the hard way in 1995.That July, a weeklong heat wave that hit 106 degrees Fahrenheit (41 degrees Celsius) killed more than 700 people. Most of the deaths occurred in poor and majority Black neighborhoods, where many elderly or isolated people suffered without proper ventilation or air conditioning. Power outages from an overwhelmed grid made it all worse.Initially slow to react, Chicago has since developed emergency heat response plans that include a massive push to alert the public and then connect the most vulnerable to the help they may need. Other cities like Los Angeles, Miami and Phoenix now have “chief heat officers” to coordinate planning and response for dangerous heat. Around the world, cities and countries have adopted similar measures.But experts warn those steps might not be enough in a world that is seeing heat records con...