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Executive at Donald Trump’s company says ‘presidential premium’ was floated to boost bottom line

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:57:14 GMT

By MICHAEL R. SISAK (Associated Press)NEW YORK (AP) — Donald Trump’s top corporate deputies considered adding a “presidential premium” to his Trump Tower penthouse, Mar-a-Lago resort and other assets during his White House years, a gambit that would’ve padded his net worth by nearly $145 million, an executive at the former president’s company testified Friday.Trump Organization Assistant Vice President Patrick Birney told Trump’s New York civil fraud trial that they ended up scrapping the idea, but state lawyers contend that merely going through the exercise underscores how Trump and his underlings were intent on finding ways to beef up his bottom line. Trump is expected to return to court for the trial next week when fixer-turned-foe Michael Cohen is scheduled to take the witness stand.Birney said Trump executives considered tacking 25% onto the Trump Tower apartment’s value as a “premium for presidential personal residenc...

2 LAPD officers claim they were racially profiled in Beverly Hills; attorneys plan to expand class action lawsuit

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:57:14 GMT

Civil rights attorneys on Friday announced that they plan to expand a class action lawsuit against the Beverly Hills Police Department alleging racial profiling after two Black Los Angeles Police Department officers said they were also profiled in the city.Ben Crump and Brad Gage said during a news conference Friday that they will likely expand the complaint to include a second lawsuit based on new statements they’ve gathered. The initial complaint, announced in 2021, said a disproportionate number of black people were arrested in Beverly hills between March 2020 and July 2021.Attorneys claim police arrested people for things like jaywalking or riding scooters on the sidewalk, and that the large majority of those arrested were Black. Additionally, they claim most of the cases did not lead to a conviction.Attorneys also said two Black LAPD officers provided sworn declarations claiming that they were also racially profiled years ago, with one of the incidents dating back to 2013.The o...

1 Killed, 2 Badly Injured in Wrong-Way Crash on Interstate 17 [Phoenix, AZ]

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:57:14 GMT

1 Pronounced Dead after Wrong-Way Car Accident near Dove Valley RoadPHOENIX, AZ (October 13, 2023) – Early Saturday, police arrived to the scene of a fatal wrong-way collision on Interstate 17. The event transpired shortly before 4:00 a.m. on October 7th, within the southbound lanes of the freeway near Dove Valley Road.Reports indicate that a vehicle was traveling the wrong direction within the southbound lanes. This led to a devastating collision with another vehicle.One individual lost their life, as confirmed by responding paramedics. However, officers have not yet released their identity.Emergency personnel closed off the southbound lanes during clearing operations. Additional details will be provided once they become available.The team at Sweet James offers their warm and sincerest sympathies to the friends and family of the deceased victim. May you find comfort and strength during this difficult time.Losing a loved one due to someone’s recklessness leaves a lasting...

Wild Oakland double homicide has resulted in felony cases against three men, but no murder charges thus far

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:57:14 GMT

OAKLAND — A hectic June double homicide at a local gas station has resulted in felony charges against three men who police identified as suspects, but none of those arrested have been charged with killing either victim, court records show.The three felony cases were all filed after the June 4 shootout at a gas station on 66th Avenue and San Leandro Street, where at least three people fired guns and both victims were shot while attempting to flee to safety. All three suspects were identified through surveillance footage, authorities said.The victims, 23-year-old Idriek Patterson, of Newark, and 25-year-old Anteasa Collins, of Stockton, were killed at different times during the shootout. Collins was transported to a hospital with a gunshot wound to the head and pronounced dead that same night, authorities said.The shooting was reported around 5:30 a.m. Two cars pulled into the gas station and gunfire erupted just moments later. Patterson was in a Buick with a woman and a man ide...

Review: Old-fashion love story blossoms in unlikely setting in ‘Nollywood’

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:57:14 GMT

The new play at San Francisco Playhouse is a familiar tale of an inexperienced ingenue who dreams of stardom, suddenly thrust into the intrigues and in-fighting of the movie biz. What distinguishes “Nollywood Dreams” from other star-is-born narratives is that it’s set in the booming Nigerian film industry of the 1990s.Now making its West Coast premiere at S.F. Playhouse, “Nollywood Dreams” premiered off-Broadway two years ago. It’s the Bay Area’s latest sampling of the work of Ghanaian-American playwright Jocelyn Bioh, whose musical “Goddess” premiered at Berkeley Repertory Theatre last year. Her comedy “School Girls; Or the African Mean Girls Play” was in rehearsals at Berkeley Rep when the 2020 COVID shutdown set in.Bioh’s latest play is full of huge personalities pricelessly embodied by the all-local cast, all but one of whom are making their S.F. Playhouse debut, with accents that sound remarkably solid (at least to this viewer’s relatively untrained ear).Angel Adedokun is...

Teen girl suspected of trying to outrace CHP, crashing into vehicles during Oakland chase

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:57:14 GMT

OAKLAND — California Highway Patrol officers pursued a stolen vehicle arrested a 16-year-old girl who the agency said rammed three of their vehicles and two other cars as she tried to get away early Thursday.Related ArticlesCrime and Public Safety | Oakland mother of four dies days after being shot in her sleep Crime and Public Safety | East Bay hospital technician charged with sexual battery of patient, other victims possible police say Crime and Public Safety | The fired Oakland police chief is on a list of candidates to fill his old job. Does he have a chance? Crime and Public Safety | ‘An unconscionable failure’: New evidence shows deputies at East Bay jail ignored man’s failing health as he slowly died Crime and Public Safety | Body camera video shows East Bay cops shot, killed man with rifles from a long distance Officers also arrested a 15-year-old boy and a 16-year-old boy...

San Francisco street vendors accused of selling stolen merchandise

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:57:14 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) -- San Francisco prosecutors filed charges against two people who were nabbed for allegedly selling stolen goods in the Mission District. Veronica Lumbreras-Villanueva, 40, of Daly City, and Deysi Ramirez, 59, of San Francisco, are accused of "fencing" or selling merchandise that had been previously stolen from numerous Bay Area retail stores, according to the District Attorney's Office. The San Francisco Police Department said it officers identified two illegal street vending booths that had suspected stolen merchandise displayed for sale. Branded merchandise at the booths were displayed with retail store tags, security tags, and other identifiable antitheft devices still attached.Police officers said they recovered $16,066 worth of stolen retail merchandise from the duo.Fencing operations fuel organized retail theft rings seeking to profit from crime."Fencing stolen goods incentivizes organized retail theft, commercial burglaries and otherdangerous criminal co...

Israeli Settlers Take Advantage of Gaza Chaos to Attack Palestinians in West Bank

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:57:14 GMT

This article includes graphic images of violence.While the world focuses on the Hamas massacre in Israel and Israel’s bombing of Gaza, settlers in the West Bank are taking advantage of the chaos to attack and expel Palestinians from small villages.Settlers — Israeli Jews living in the occupied West Bank — and soldiers have killed 51 Palestinians in the West Bank since Saturday, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health in Ramallah. At least two villages, Al-Qanub and Wadi Al-Sik, have been entirely depopulated as a result of the violence by Israeli settlers.A Palestinian in At-Tuwani, a village in the Masafer Yatta area, is in critical condition after a settler, accompanied by a single Israeli soldier, invaded the community on Friday and shot him at point-blank range. The attack was documented by the Israeli human rights group B’Tselem.?????: ????? ??? ????? ??? ???????? ???? ?-?????? pic.twitter.com/2K6or6V80j— B'Tselem ???? ?????? (@btselem) October 13, 2023I...

Israel Warns Palestinians on Facebook — but Bombings Decimated Gaza Internet Access

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:57:14 GMT

Amid a heavy retaliatory air and artillery assault by Israel against the Gaza Strip on October 10, Israel Defense Forces spokesperson Avichay Adraee posted a message on Facebook to residents of the al-Daraj neighborhood, urging them to leave their homes in advance of impending airstrikes.It’s not clear how most people in al-Daraj were supposed to see the warning: Intense fighting and electrical shortages have strangled Palestinian access to the internet, putting besieged civilians at even greater risk. Following Hamas’s grisly surprise attack across the Gaza border on October 7, the Israeli counterattack — a widespread and indiscriminate bombardment of the besieged Gaza Strip — left the two million Palestinians who call the area home struggling to connect to the internet at a time when access to current information is crucial and potentially lifesaving.“Shutting down the internet in armed conflict is putting civilians at risk.”“Shutting down the internet in armed conflict is puttin...

If Sean McVay’s first child arrives on a Sunday this month, the Rams will have to play without him

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:57:14 GMT

THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. (AP) — If Sean McVay’s first child arrives on a Sunday this month, the Los Angeles Rams will have to take the field without him.McVay and his wife, Veronika, are expecting “in the next couple of weeks,” the head coach confirmed Friday.When asked about the Rams’ contingency plans if the big day coincides with a game day, McVay smiled and said: “I won’t be at the game.”McVay didn’t delve into details on the Rams’ plans for his undetermined paternity absence, but defensive coordinator Raheem Morris is a two-time NFL head coach with extensive experience.The Rams (2-3) host Arizona (1-4) this Sunday, and they’re home again next week against Pittsburgh.The 37-year-old McVay has expressed his eagerness to be a father for several years, even citing his desire to spend time with his future children as a reason he might not stick with the Rams for long. After taking extended time to think about quitting in each of the past two offseasons, the youn...