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Connecticut city’s ‘mishandled ballots’ fuel election skeptics. Experts call problem local, limited

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:14 GMT

A judge’s order for a new primary in Connecticut’s largest city because of what he called mishandling of absentee ballots is fueling skepticism about the security of U.S. elections, as well as conspiracy theories involving the 2020 presidential election.But election experts contend what happened in Bridgeport — people captured on surveillance video dropping stacks of ballots into outdoor collection boxes — is unique to Bridgeport, a working class city of more than 144,000 that has a long history of voting irregularities. At the very least, they said, it is pretty rare and shouldn’t be seen as evidence of widespread problems.“In Connecticut, this is a problem here and here alone,” longtime election law attorney Bill Bloss, who is representing the Democratic candidate who successfully challenged the outcome of the city’s mayoral primary, said Thursday when asked about the case fueling misinformation about former President Donald Trump’s 2020 defeat.An Ass...

Meg Ryan steps behind the camera and stars in new rom-com ‘What Happens Later’ opposite David Duchovny

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:14 GMT

Meg Ryan is back where she belongs: starring in a romantic comedy.Meg shares the screen with David Duchovny in “What Happens Later.” Deco sat down with the pair, who play ex-lovers given the chance by Mother Nature to revisit their relationship.David Duchovny (as Bill): “How’ve you been?”Meg Ryan (as Willa): “Oh, for the last 20 years?”David Duchovny (as Bill): “Twenty-five, maybe.”You never know who you’ll bump into in an airport. In “What Happens Later,” former couple Meg Ryan and David Duchovny run into each other and are stranded when a massive storm grounds their flights.Airport employee on intercom: “Attention, Boston and Austin passengers. Those flights have been delayed until further notice.”Meg Ryan (as Willa): “Just those two flights?”David Duchovny (as Bill): “Just us.”Airport employee on intercom: “Yes.”Meg Ryan (as Willa): “That’s…...

2 people taken to hospital after car crashes into building in Marlboro

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:14 GMT

Two people were taken to area hospitals Thursday after a car crashed into a business in Marlboro, officials said. The crash happened on Simarano Drive Thursday afternoon. Speaking with reporters Thursday night, city fire officials said authorities were first called about an erratic driver in Marlboro around 4:30 p.m. Moments later, officials said, a call came in reporting a car had crashed into a building. Marlborough Fire Department Battalion Chief Eric Christensen said the car ended up traveling down an I-495 off-ramp and through an intersection before slamming into the lobby of IPG Photonics. “They were traveling highway speeds down the ramp and there were no brake marks,” Christensen said. First responders arriving on scene found two men inside the car. Christensen said both were unconscious and required “extensive extrication” as they were pinned under the car’s dashboard. Officials said the driver was taken to a hospital by ambulance. The passenge...

Column: The Superdome has been a house of horrors for Chicago Bears QBs. Can Tyson Bagent reverse the trend Sunday?

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:14 GMT

The first start for a backup quarterback can be the best one a lot of the time.That’s a theory one veteran personnel man holds.“Nobody has any tape on you,” he said. “They don’t know who you are. They don’t know how you throw the ball. They don’t know what your game is. They don’t know how you’re being used.“A lot of backups can win their first game, and I have seen it over time. Some of them didn’t have any arm strength but they do things a little different.”Tyson Bagent won his first start for the Bears in Week 7, a 30-12 victory against the Las Vegas Raiders at Soldier Field. It’s worth wondering if that result played a factor in owner Mark Davis’ decision to fire general manager Dave Ziegler and coach Josh McDaniels on Tuesday.The second act wasn’t quite as smooth for Bagent in a 30-13 loss against the Los Angeles Chargers at SoFi Stadium. He completed 25 of 37 passes for 232 yards and two ...

Nick Nurse’s 76ers beat Raptors for second time in a week

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:14 GMT

Joel Embiid had 28 points, 13 rebounds and seven assists and the Philadelphia 76ers won in their first game since trading James Harden, beating the Toronto Raptors 114-99 on Thursday night.Kelly Oubre Jr. and Tobias Harris each scored 23 points for the 76ers. Tyrese Maxey had 18.Scottie Barnes led the Raptors with 24 points and O.G. Anunoby had 16.Toronto snapped a three-game losing streak with a 130-111 home victory over the Milwaukee Bucks on Wednesday night. The Raptors failed to build off the win and instead made it two losses already this season to the 76ers. Related: Raptors snap 3-game losing streak, starters dominate in win vs. Bucks The 76ers may need another game or two before they finally adapt to a roster without Harden. They were used to playing without the 10-time All-Star – the 76ers went 2-1 without him – but coach Nick Nurse needs time to integrate the new additions.Nurse already faced challenges in his first season on the bench after fi...

Colombia will try to control invasive hippo population through sterilization, transfer, euthanasia

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:14 GMT

BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — Colombia will try to control its population of more than 100 hippopotamuses, descendants of animals illegally brought to the country by late drug kingpin Pablo Escobar in the 1980s, through surgical sterilization, the transfer of hippos to other countries and possibly euthanasia, the government said Thursday.The hippos, which spread from Escobar’s estate into nearby rivers where they flourished, have no natural predators in Colombia and have been declared an invasive species that could upset the ecosystem.Authorities estimate there are 169 hippos in Colombia, especially in the Magdalena River basin, and that if no measures are taken, there could be 1,000 by 2035.Environment Minister Susana Muhamad said the first stage of the plan will be the surgical sterilization of 40 hippos per year and this will begin next week.The procedure is expensive — each sterilization costs about $9,800 — and entails risks for the hippopotamus, including allergic reactions to anest...

3 passengers sue Alaska Airlines after off-duty pilot accused of trying to cut engines mid-flight

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:14 GMT

SEATTLE (AP) — Three passengers sued Alaska Airlines on Thursday, saying they suffered emotional distress from an incident last month in which an off-duty pilot is accused of trying to shut down the engines of a plane while catching a ride in the cockpit from Washington state to San Francisco.In the complaint filed Thursday in King County Superior Court in Washington state, San Francisco residents Matthew Doland and Theresa Stelter and Paul Stephen of Kenmore, Washington, alleged that the pilot should never have been allowed in the cockpit because he was suffering from depression and a lack of sleep. Alaska Airlines did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment but has previously said the flight never lost power.Alaska pilot Joseph David Emerson, 44, was riding in the jump seat — an extra seat in the cockpit — when he suddenly said “I’m not OK” and tried to pull two handles that would engage a fire-suppression system and cut fuel to the engines, authorities said in c...

Biologists are keeping a close eye on a rare Mexican wolf that is wandering out of bounds

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:14 GMT

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Northern New Mexico or bust — that seems to be the case for at least one Mexican gray wolf that is intent on wandering beyond the boundaries set for managing the rarest subspecies of gray wolf if North America. Federal and state wildlife managers confirmed Thursday that the endangered female wolf has traveled north of Interstate 40 and beyond a recovery zone that spans parts of southwestern New Mexico and southeastern Arizona. It was documented crossing the interstate west of Albuquerque last week and most recently was tracked to a mountainous area west of Jemez Springs.This marks the second time the wolf — identified as F2754 — has ventured north. It reached the foothills of the Rocky Mountains near Taos, New Mexico, last winter before it was caught and released back into the wild in Arizona.Both state and federal wildlife managers said they were monitoring the wolf’s movements and have yet to decide whether it will be captured again and relocated. Environm...

California officials confirm 2 cases of dengue, a mosquito-borne illness rarely transmitted in US

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:14 GMT

LONG BEACH, Calif. (AP) — Two people in Southern California have come down with dengue fever without traveling outside the United States, where the mosquito-borne illness is rare, health officials said.A Pasadena resident was confirmed to have dengue last month but is recovering, officials said. “This is the first confirmed case of dengue in California not associated with travel and is instead an extremely rare case of local transmission in the continental United States,” the Pasadena Public Health Department announced.The case remains under investigation, but it appears that someone became infected with the dengue virus, returned home and was bitten by a mosquito that passed it on to the local resident, according to Pasadena health officials.On Wednesday, Long Beach officials announced another domestically contracted dengue case and said that person has recovered.Both cities’ health departments said the risk of exposure to others was low. Dengue is caused by several related v...

Florida dentist charged in murder-for-hire case says he was a victim of extortion, not a killer

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:14 GMT

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — A Florida dentist on trial in a murder-for-hire case involving his ex-brother-in-law claimed Thursday that he was a victim of extortion by the killers, but wasn’t actually involved in the plot to kill the prominent Florida State University professor.Charles Adelson, whose sister Wendi was in a bitter custody battle with professor Dan Markel when Markel was shot in his car outside his Tallahassee home in 2014, testified in his own defense. He said his ex-girlfriend told him an ex-boyfriend committed the crime and now wanted Adelson to pay more than $300,000 or he would be killed, too.“I’m not going to be part of paying for a murder. This is insane,” Adelson said he told his ex-girlfriend, Katherine Magbanua. “She’s like, ‘Look. If you don’t pay in 48 hours, they will kill you.’ I said, ‘Katy, I feel like I’m being extorted.”Previously, Dan and Wendi Markel had divorced and were granted shared custody of their two children. But We...