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Train engineers deal with Union Pacific will improve schedules and address quality-of-life concerns

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:18:31 GMT

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Engineers who operate trains for Union Pacific will soon have much more predictable schedules allowing them to plan when they are going to be off, a change that addresses one of the key quality-of-life concerns that pushed the rail industry to the brink of a strike last fall.The Omaha, Nebraska-based railroad announced a deal with the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen union Wednesday that will let UP’s roughly 5,600 engineers plan on having four days off in a row after working 11 days straight.“The 11-4 work/rest schedule will be life-altering for employees who are used to working on-call 24/7, 365 days a year,” said BLET National President Eddie Hall. “This significant change in scheduling not only will make life better for locomotive engineers and their families, it also should help Union Pacific retain and recruit employees.”Workers said during the contract talks that demanding schedules, combined with the railroads’ strict attendance...

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton likely broke laws, Republican investigation finds

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:18:31 GMT

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton on Wednesday faced sudden new risks to his political future as an investigative state House committee laid out an extraordinary public airing of scandal and alleged lawbreaking that has long trailed one of Texas’ top Republicans. For more than two hours, investigators presented findings alleging that Paxton sought to hide an affair, misused his office to help a donor, skirted protocols “grossly outside” norms and built a culture of fear and retaliation in his office. Investigators told the GOP-led House General Investigative Committee that there was evidence that Paxton had committed multiple felonies and misdemeanors over the years, including misuse of official information, abuse of official capacity and retaliation.The dramatic turn of events in the Texas Capitol unleashed a new test of Paxton’s durability in a way the conservative firebrand has not previously confronted despite a felony indictment in 2015 and an o...

Police: Student arrested in shooting death of another student outside Pittsburgh school

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:18:31 GMT

PITTSBURGH (AP) — A student was taken into custody in the shooting death of another student early Wednesday just outside a school in Pittsburgh shortly before classes were due to start, police said. Police said the shooting happened just before 7:30 a.m. by the front steps of Oliver Citywide Academy. Officers found the victim with gunshot wounds in front of the school and gave first aid, Major Crimes Commander Richard Ford told reporters at the scene.An officer saw another student running from the school with a gun. The student was arrested and police recovered a gun, Ford said. The victim was taken to a hospital in critical condition and later died, he said. No other injuries were reported.Ford said the students were minors, but didn’t specify their ages or release their names. According to the city school district’s website, Oliver Citywide Academy is a full-time special education center serving grades 3-12. It wasn’t immediately clear what prompted the shooting.Most student...

Backcountry to open DC store, its first location on the East Coast

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:18:31 GMT

Backcountry will open its D.C. store in Northwest next month. (Courtesy Backcountry)Big online outdoor sports gear and apparel retailer Backcountry will open one of its few brick-and-mortar retail stores in D.C.The Backcountry store will open next month at 2108 14th St. NW. The three-story store will be staffed by outdoor experts. Backcountry said the D.C. store will also tailor product offerings that reflect popular outdoor activities in the region.Its stores carry everything from ski and snowboarding equipment to fishing, hiking, camping and biking gear.Backcountry was founded in 1996 in Park City, Utah. Its original retail store is adjacent to its fulfillment center in Salt Lake City.“With our retail locations, our goal is to equip our customers with the gear, knowledge, and the confidence they need to get outside by combining the expert guidance of our Gearheads with our expansive product assortment,” said CEO Melanie Cox.Backcountry stores are also configured to hos...

Haley commits to federal abortion ban but says it’s unlikely without more Republicans in Congress

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:18:31 GMT

MANCHESTER, N.H. (AP) — Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley on Wednesday pledged to sign a federal ban on abortion but noted that passing one would be highly unlikely without more Republicans in Congress.Although Haley didn’t say how many weeks a federal ban should encompass, her commitment to signing one is the most specific she has been on the issue during her presidential campaign. The former South Carolina governor and U.S. ambassador to the United Nations said “no one has been honest” about how difficult a ban could be to achieve, in a closely divided federal government.“It would take a majority of the House, 60 senators and a president to sign it,” Haley said at St. Anselm College in Manchester, New Hampshire, suggesting that even a few GOP pickups in the 2024 elections wouldn’t make the difference in passage. She was referring specifically to the supermajority required for major legislation to clear the 100-member Senate. “We haven’t had 60 Republican se...

Veteran defender Jordi Alba leaving Barcelona this summer

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:18:31 GMT

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Spain left-back Jordi Alba will leave Barcelona this summer after 11 years with the Catalan club.The 34-year-old Alba and the Spanish champions announced Wednesday that they’ve agreed to terminate his contract one season early.Alba, who joined in 2012 from Valencia, helped Barcelona will six La Liga titles, five Copa del Rey trophies and the Champions League in 2015.“FC Barcelona would like to publicly express its gratitude to Alba for his professionalism, commitment and dedication, and his ever-positive and friendly relationship with all members of the Barça family, and wishes him every fortune in the future,” the club said in a statement.“Barça will always be a home for you, Jordi,” it added.The veteran defender has made 458 appearances for Barcelona and has contributed 19 goals and 91 assists.Last week, longtime holding midfielder Sergio Busquets also announced he will leave the club this summer.Barcelona hosts Mallorca on Sunday before ending its se...

Loveland officer fired after allegedly hitting woman

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:18:31 GMT

LOVELAND, Colo. (KDVR) — A Loveland Police officer was fired after he allegedly responded with an "inappropriate use of force" and hit a woman in the face.The Loveland Police Department said officers responded around 8:30 p.m. Saturday to a report of a woman wandering in and out of traffic and speaking incoherently in the area of North Garfield Avenue and East 29th Street. When officers arrived, they placed the woman into protective custody and took her to a local hospital for evaluation. Denver mayoral candidates discuss their plans for public safety According to Loveland Police, once at the hospital, the woman was handcuffed and placed into an examination room, where they said she was verbally abusive toward health care workers and spat on a nurse and an officer.The officer who was allegedly spat on struck the woman in the face in what Loveland Police called an "inappropriate use of force." Police said the woman sustained minor injuries to her face.Another officer immediately in...

Niall Horan announces 2024 tour

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:18:31 GMT

(CNN) — Niall Horan is headed out on tour next year.The former One Direction member announced “The Show Live on Tour” 2024, which will take him to Europe, North America and more.“There’s nothing better than watching the crowd sing back to you with all that emotion on their faces and knowing that they’re attaching the song to something meaningful in their own lives,” Horan said in his announcement. “To me, that’s always the greatest thing that can ever come from songwriting.”“It’s been far too long and I can’t wait to see your beautiful faces, Horan added in an Instagram post.Horan recently revealed that he will release his third album, “The Show,” on June 9. The singles “Heaven” and “Meltdown” will be included on the album.On the upcoming tour, Horan will perform in England, France, Germany, Denmark, Sweden, Italy, Spain and more. He will also head to Australia and New Zealand. The North American leg kicks off in Fort Lauderdale, Florida and will head to Nashville, Philadelphia, New...

Filled Broadway seats hit pre-pandemic levels in first full season since Covid

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:18:31 GMT

(CNN) — Filled Broadway seats reached pre-pandemic levels in the 2022-2023 season — which is the first full season of shows since Covid first forced theaters to shutter, The Broadway League announced Tuesday.“Broadway is making a strong rebound as audiences are returning to New York City to experience extraordinary live theatre,” Charlotte St. Martin, the president of the industry’s national trade association, said in a statement.A total of 88.4% of Broadway show seats were filled in the 2022-2023 season, the League’s statement said. That’s comparable to the 89.7% in the 2018-2019 run, which was the the last full season pre-Covid.The most recent Broadway season attracted nearly 12.3 million people to 40 new productions and 35 continuing productions, and it grossed about $1.6 billion, the League added.Before Covid hit stateside, Broadway had been enjoying a strong run: That last 2018-2019 season attracted record attendance of 14.7 million and grossed a record $1.8 billion.B...

FTC investigates America’s baby formula shortages

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:18:31 GMT

New York (CNN) — The Federal Trade Commission has launched an investigation into the protracted shortages of baby formula in the United States that left store shelves bare of the essential product for several months, probing whether baby formula makers colluded in bidding on state contracts.The agency, according to documents posted on the agency’s website, is looking into whether Abbott Laboratories and other formula manufacturers have “engaged in collusion or coordination with any other market participant regarding the bidding” for state contracts.Additionally, the FTC is investigating whether company coordination affected sales more broadly, outside of the Women, Infants and Children (WIC) formula-supply program. The Wall Street Journal was first to report on the probe.Abbott said in an email to CNN that the company is cooperating with the FTC’s requests.The company also pointed to its earlier response on March 16 to the FTC in which th...