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Brazilian president’s former lawyer takes seat as Supreme Court justice

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:04 GMT

RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — The former personal lawyer of Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva took a seat on the country’s Supreme Court on Thursday amid criticism that their relationship poses a conflict of interest.Lula appointed Cristiano Zanin in June, drawing accusations from the opposition that he is jeopardizing the impartiality of Brazil’s highest court by making a friend one of its justices. The president denies having a friendship with the lawyer. Zanin, who holds a law degree from Sao Paulo’s Pontifical Catholic University, specializes in procedural and business law and has been involved in more than 100 cases before the Supreme Court, according to the Chamber of Deputies.He helped Lula overturn a graft conviction stemming from Brazil’s sprawling “Car Wash” corruption investigation, getting him freed after 580 days of incarceration. The Supreme Court annulled all convictions of Lula, and ruled in 2021 that the judge overseeing the case had been biased. Tha...

Trump leaves Bedminster club to travel to Washington for his court appearance. Follow live updates

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:04 GMT

Follow along for live updates as Donald Trump is due to appear in federal court Thursday after being indicted by the Justice Department for his efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election. It’s the third criminal case brought against the former president as he seeks to reclaim the White House. ___WHAT TO KNOW— Here’s a breakdown of the sprawling election indictment— Trump lawyer hints at a First Amendment defense in the Jan. 6 case— Republicans are remaining silent about the latest charges against Trump— The judge assigned to Trump’s case is a tough punisher of Capitol rioters— Here’s where the various cases involving Trump stand___DEPARTS BEDMINSTER Trump has left his club in Bedminster, New Jersey, to head to Washington, where he will face a judge on federal conspiracy charges alleging the former president conspired to subvert the 2020 election.Trump will fly by private plane to Washington, where he is expected to surrender to authorities and make his f...

Man killed in shooting at Lansing gas station

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:04 GMT

LANSING, Ill. — A man was shot and killed at a gas station in Lansing Thursday morning.The shooting happened around 4:39 a.m. at the QuikTrip gas station near the intersection of 173rd and Torrence.According to police, it appears an attempted robbery of a customer led to several shots fired at the gas station.When officers arrived to the scene, they found a man, in his 50s, fatally shot. At this time, police cannot confirm how many people fired shots. Woman killed, toddler son among 3 others shot on South Side An active investigation into the shooting is underway with the South Suburban Major Crimes Task Force assisting. Lansing Police Chief Al Phillips told WGN the gas station had just opened a few weeks ago. Police said officers are working with QuikTrip to review surveillance video of the shooting.

Crumbl Cookies to open a location near Wrigley Field

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:04 GMT

CHICAGO — A popular cookie restaurant is going to be opening in the vicinity of Wrigley Field, but fans of it are going to have to wait a bit. Crumbl Cookies has already put up signage for their newest Chicago location at 1111 W. Addison Street in the same building as the Taco Bell Cantina, Movement Gym, and Chase bank that's located a half-block from the ballpark. But if you're hoping to have some of the cookies before or after games during the 2023 season, you are out of luck. According to Crumbl, the location located just outside of Wrigley Field will not be opening until the spring of 2024, which could be in time for the start of the next Cubs' season. This will be the seventh store in the City of Chicago opened by the company that was founded in Logan, Utah in 2017. There is a Crumbl Cookies in Brickyard, Lincoln Park, the Loop, Old Town, Roscoe Village, and Wicker Park. Known for its creative cookie designs and toppings, the chain has over 800 stores in the United States &...

Trump expected to plead not guilty in arraignment for election turnover attempt

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:04 GMT

WASHINGTON (Nexstar) – Thursday is a historic day as former President Donald Trump is expected to plead not guilty to charges that say he attempted to defraud the United States by trying to undo election results.The case involves charges that legal experts say is the most important criminal case in U.S. history and is against a former U.S. president.“We have never had a situation where a president is accused of plotting basically the overthrow of democracy itself,” George Washington University Law Professor Paul Schiff Berman said. “This indictment is a conspiracy not just to lie but to develop a whole slate of electors to change the outcome of a democratic election.”Schiff Berman says the 45-page indictment lays out a clear case against Trump.However, Trump's legal team says the former president was only following the advice of his legal advisors and trump allies like Republican Alabama Senator Tommy Tuberville say the charges are a political interference with the upcoming election...

Message in a balloon flies nearly 900 miles from Nashville to Central Texas

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:04 GMT

KYLE, Texas (KXAN) -- You've heard of a message in a bottle — but what about a message in a balloon that's flown nearly 900 miles?It might sound like fiction, but that was the reality for Kyle residents Jaymes and Rachael Knox. On Wednesday night, Jaymes was playing in the backyard with his dogs when he saw a balloon falling from the sky, carrying what appeared to be a rolled-up note. Can your roof save you some money? "He runs in and he was like, 'babe, put your shoes on! We have an adventure,'" Rachael said.In a field behind their house, they found a blue aluminum balloon. Attached was a note, written in a child's handwriting that read: "Haray, haray! You got this messig today! Olivia Brown sent this."Written on the bottom of the letter was a phone number. Jaymes and Rachael texted it and nearly immediately, they heard back from a family -- located in Nashville.Kyle residents Jaymes and Rachael Knox discovered a balloon and an attached note had traveled nearly 900 miles from Nas...

United to offer nonstop flights from Austin for UT-Alabama game

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:04 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — United Airlines is making it easier for Longhorns fans to travel to Alabama for next month's game against the Crimson Tide.The airline will fly nonstop between Austin-Bergstrom International Airport and Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport, which is about an hour away from Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa.Two flights will leave Austin on Friday, Sept. 8, one at 1:20 p.m. and the other at 3:45 p.m. Returning flights will be on Sunday, Sept. 10. Game day is Saturday, Sept. 9, with kickoff set for 6 p.m. A ‘Classic’ and a ‘Rivalry’: UT football games against Alabama, Oklahoma get new looks United is adding 127 nonstop flights to its schedule, designed to help shuttle fans to 30 college football games. The airline said it flew more than 50,000 fans to games last year."We're committed to providing a best-in-class travel experience for our customers, whether they're traveling around the globe, or flying to see their favorite college football team play," said&...

After years of delays, Ken Paxton appears in court for securities fraud case

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:04 GMT

HARRIS COUNTY, Texas (Nexstar) — After eight years of delays and a change in venue, suspended Attorney General Ken Paxton appeared in a Harris County court Thursday morning in a securities fraud case against him.Paxton faces felony charges and is accused of defrauding investors in a tech startup after being indicted in 2015."It's a good day for Texas because it's on the road to healing. It's on the road to justice. Finally, something's going to be done one way or another," prosecutor Kent Schaffer said.The pretrial hearing lasted just nine minutes. Thursday's developments were simple procedural matters to determine the logistics of a coming trial, yet lawyers on each side stressed the significance of reaching this moment."I think one of the game changers today is being in front of a judge who understands the law, who is dedicated to ruling on motions," prosecutor Brian Wice said. "With all due respect, for the two plus, three plus years this case was in another court, that didn't ha...

Liberty Hill looks to transform its downtown with land purchase

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:04 GMT

LIBERTY HILL, KXAN (KXAN) — The Liberty Hill Economic Development Corporation recently purchased land in the heart of the city. Agency leaders said the purchase is an effort to attract outside developers to turn the area into a destination for the growing community.The 1.51-acre plot is near the intersection of Main Street and Myrtle Avenue just behind Veteran's Memorial Park.The LHEDC Board President Tiffany Stillwell said the purchase aims to control and lead development in the city's downtown.“The City of Liberty Hill Council and staff, the LHEDC and the City’s Downtown Revitalization Committee believe that to have control of this parcel to develop ourselves, or to use as an incentive to entice outside developers is the stake in the ground we need to further jumpstart downtown development," Stillwell said.Liberty Hill city leadership said the land purchase is a step toward its ideal vision of a bustling downtown with retail, dining, and entertainment."This project will entail a p...

What happens to bugs during wildfires?

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:04 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) – This may be shocking to some, but grasshoppers and other insects also do not want to be engulfed in flames. KXAN reporters covering a Bastrop fire – 75% contained as of Wednesday night – observed hundreds of grasshoppers fleeing the blaze. MORE: At least one home affected as Powder Keg Pine Fire in Bastrop estimated at 117 acres, 75% contained “[Insects] are going to need essentially the same things that we do – they need food, they need water, they need a place to live,” Texas A&M entomologist Wizzie Brown said. “When you have something like a wildfire, they're going to try to escape that just like us.”Brown said a bug’s temperature-withstanding capabilities may vary. Some may be able to stick it out a little longer while the temperatures rise, while others can’t handle too much heat. But whatever type of insect it is, when the flames get too close for comfort, they are getting out of there. “If they're adult insects capable of flying, then they can ...