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Bill to legalize sports wagering headed to Kentucky Senate

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 09:13:22 GMT

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — A bill to legalize sports betting in Kentucky was advanced by a Senate committee on Wednesday, leaving its supporters still facing their biggest challenge as opponents mounted a last stand.The panel sent the measure to the full Senate, setting up a potentially dramatic vote on whether the state that’s home to the Kentucky Derby should let its residents legally wager on other sporting events.“The people of Kentucky want this,” Senate Majority Floor Leader Damon Thayer said. “It’s time that we give them the choice — for free will, God-given free will — to engage in legal sports betting.”The bill’s Senate prospects are uncertain, due to a higher procedural hurdle to overcome. It needs a three-fifths vote in each chamber to pass, since it’s a revenue-producing bill in an odd-numbered year. The bill passed the House recently, but the Senate has been seen as the bill’s toughest test.It still needs to receive procedural readings in the Senate, meanin...

Reality star Todd Chrisley’s son Kyle charged with assault

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 09:13:22 GMT

SMYRNA, Tenn. (AP) — Kyle Chrisley, the son of reality TV star Todd Chrisley of the show “Chrisley Knows Best,” has been charged with aggravated assault in Tennessee, authorities said.The arrest comes just months after his father and stepmother, Julie Chrisley, were both sentenced to several years in prison for charges including bank fraud and tax evasion.Kyle Chrisley was charged Tuesday with aggravated assault in Smyrna, news outlets reported, citing Rutherford County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Lisa Marchesoni. Chrisley was booked in the Rutherford County jail and later released on $3,000 bond, Marchesoni said.The tight-knit, boisterous Chrisley family gained fame with the reality show, which was first recorded in the Atlanta area and later in Nashville. Smyrna is about 15 miles (24 kilometers) south of Nashville.Federal prosecutors said the couple engaged in an extensive bank fraud scheme and then hid their wealth from tax authorities while flaunting their lavish lifestyle. To...

Juez permite publicación de informe sobre presunto abuso sexual en Arquidiócesis de Baltimore

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 09:13:22 GMT

BALTIMORE — Un juez otorgó permiso a la Oficina del Fiscal General de Maryland para publicar una versión redactada de un informe de investigación que detalla las acusaciones de abuso sexual contra más de 150 sacerdotes católicos romanos y examina la respuesta de la Arquidiócesis de Baltimore.Los funcionarios no precisaron cuando se publicará el reporte. Completado el año pasado, el documento ha permanecido sellado porque contiene información obtenida de funcionarios de la iglesia a través de citaciones del gran jurado, procedimientos que son confidenciales en Maryland. Sin embargo, los abogados del estado pidieron permiso a la corte para publicar sus hallazgos, y el juez de la corte de circuito de Baltimore, Robert Taylor, dictaminó el mes pasado que se debe hacer pública una versión redactada.El siguiente paso fue que Taylor revisara una lista de redacciones propuestas, que aprobó el martes. Una vez que el fiscal general haya hecho esas redacciones, su oficina puede publicar el inf...

Colorado in top 25 states for gun-related deaths

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 09:13:22 GMT

DENVER (Stacker) — When it comes to gun-related deaths in the United States, 2020 was unfortunately a banner year, recording the highest number of gun-related deaths ever in a single year, driven by a surge in firearm-related homicides.According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's most recent findings, overall firearm-related deaths rose 15% over 2019 numbers to reach more than 45,000 nationwide, while firearm-related homicides went up 35%. In terms of the national rate of gun deaths based on population, per-capita numbers actually decreased (13.6 deaths per 100,000 people) from their historical peak (16.3 per 100,000) set in 1974, largely due to the rise in the overall population—more than 100 million since the 1980 census. Nonetheless, both the number of gun-related homicides and suicides reached levels not seen since the early 1990s.Investigating firearm-related deaths also helps highlight public health crises, particularly as related to suicide. Suicides accounte...

Bobby Caldwell, ‘What You Won’t Do For Love’ singer and songwriter, dead at 71

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 09:13:22 GMT

(CNN) — Bobby Caldwell, the soulful singer and songwriter behind R&B hits like “What You Won’t Do For Love” and “Open Your Eyes,” has died, according to a statement from his wife, Mary Caldwell.He was 71.“Bobby passed away here at home. I held him tight in my arms as he left us. I am forever heartbroken. Thanks to all of you for your many prayers over the years,” Mary Caldwell’s statement, shared on his verified Twitter account, read in part.She said Caldwell had been dealing with health issues for some time.Caldwell’s hit song “What You Won’t Do For Love” hit the Billboard 100 charts after its release in 1978. Artists including Tupac Shakur, Common and John Legend have all sampled his music.Questlove, who collaborated with Common on “The Light,” which sampled Caldwell’s “Open Your Eyes,” shared a tribute to the late artist on Instagram, describing how he tried to work wit...

Georgia Tech to face Florida State in 2024 opener in Dublin

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 09:13:22 GMT

ATLANTA (AP) — Georgia Tech and Florida State will open the 2024 season in Dublin, Ireland.The Aer Lingus College Football Classic matchup announced Wednesday will mark the second time that two Atlantic Coast Conference teams have opened the season in Ireland. Georgia Tech beat Boston College 17-14 in the 2016 opener in Dublin.The game, scheduled for Aug. 24, 2024, at Aviva Stadium, will make Florida State’s first international game. Georgia Tech will serve as the home team.“This is an incredible opportunity for our student-athletes at Florida State and Georgia Tech to expand the reach of ACC football and play in front of an international audience,” ACC commissioner Jim Phillips said.Georgia Tech coach Brent Key said the game is “a unique chance for our student-athletes to experience a new culture, for our fans to support us at an incredible destination and for Georgia Tech to further promote our Institute, athletics department, students and alumni on a global stage.”Florida S...

Miami’s Cavinder twins reach March Madness after transfer

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 09:13:22 GMT

CORAL GABLES, Fla. (AP) — Women’s basketball practice at Miami had been over for 30 minutes. Most of the coaches were gone. Almost all the players were gone. The scoreboard had long been turned off.The Cavinder twins were still working.Haley and Hanna Cavinder made their way around the 3-point arc, one shooting, then the other, over and over with a couple male practice players rebounding. The guys didn’t have to do much, since most every shot went through the net with a soft swish.“What nobody knows about the twins,” Miami coach Katie Meier said, “is that they’re gym rats.”NCAA Tournament-bound gym rats, that is, with ninth-seeded Miami playing eighth-seeded Oklahoma State on Saturday at Indiana in the Greenville 2 Region. The twins are major influencers with 4.4 million followers on TikTok alone, two of the bigger stars of the NIL era in college athletics, a pair of 22-year-olds who didn’t set out to get famous through short videos. They’re as serious about basketball as they are j...

Trump allies file ethics complaint against Gov. DeSantis

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 09:13:22 GMT

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Allies of former President Donald Trump have filed a complaint with the Florida Commission on Ethics accusing Gov. Ron DeSantis, a leading potential 2024 primary rival, of violating campaign finance and ethics rules with a shadow run for the White House. DeSantis’ office called it a “frivolous and politically motivated” charge.The 15-page complaint filed Wednesday by MAGA Inc., a Trump-supporting super political action committee, asks the commission to investigate Florida’s Republican leader for allegedly “leveraging his elected office and breaching his associated duties in a coordinated effort to develop his national profile, enrich himself and his political allies, and influence the national electorate.” The complaint was shared with The Associated Press.It says DeSantis is “already a de facto candidate for President of the United States,” citing the governor’s meetings with donors, outreach by allies to potential staff an...

Finland gears up for Turkey’s NATO blessing, as Sweden gets left behind

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 09:13:22 GMT

BRUSSELS — Turkey is expected to greenlight Finland’s NATO membership in the coming days — while leaving its running mate Sweden in limbo. Finnish President Sauli Niinistö announced Wednesday he will meet his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in Istanbul on Friday, as Ankara edges closer to signing off on Helsinki’s NATO aspirations. “It was known that once President Erdoğan has for his part made the decision concerning the ratification of Finland’s NATO membership, he would wish to meet and fulfill his promise directly from President to President,” Niinistö said in a statement.“The Turks have hoped that I be present when they announce this decision. Of course, I accepted the invitation and I will be there to receive his expression of will,” he said. NATO’s 30 member countries formally invited Finland and Sweden to join the military alliance last summer, but Turkey and Hungary have dragged out the ratification process. A...

Rodgers plans to play for Jets in 2023, awaits Packers’ move

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 09:13:22 GMT

Aaron Rodgers said Wednesday he intends to play for the New York Jets in 2023 after 18 seasons in Green Bay as the four-time NFL MVP quarterback waits for the Packers to trade him.Rodgers made his comments during an appearance on “The Pat McAfee Show” on YouTube and Sirius XM. The 39-year-old Rodgers said he believes the Packers want to move on and make 2020 first-round pick Jordan Love their starting quarterback.“At this point, as I sit here, I think since Friday I’ve made it clear that my intention was to play and my intention was to play for the New York Jets,” Rodgers said. “I haven’t been holding anything up at this point. It’s been compensation the Packers are trying to get for me, kind of digging their heels in.”Packers president and CEO Mark Murphy has acknowledged the team granted the Jets permission to talk to Rodgers. The Jets sent a contingent that reportedly included owner Woody Johnson, coach Robert Saleh and general manager Joe Douglas to Rodgers’ home in Southern Cal...