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Man sentenced to life in prison for killing '60s soul singer

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:57:40 GMT

A homeless man who was convicted of killing an elderly woman on New Year's Day while attempting to rape her has been sentenced to life in prison, according to the Orange County District Attorney's Office.Rosendo Xo Pec, 28, was found guilty of killing 76-year-old Betty Jane Willis, a former soul singer in the 1960s on Jan. 1, 2018, at a strip mall in Santa Ana.Willis was a recording artist in the 1960s, working with prominent artists of the time, including Bill Medley of the Righteous Brothers and pianist and songwriter Leon Russell. As a solo act, Willis recorded several songs, including "Someday You'll Need My Love," "Act Naturally," and "Take My Heart."After falling on hard times, Willis became homeless and began living on the streets of Santa Ana, the DA's Office said.Rosendo Xo Pec is shown in a booking photo released by Santa Ana police on Jan. 1, 2018.Willis was killed by Pec as he attempted to rape her in the parking lot of a strip mall on the 1600 block of W. 1st Street. Pe...

17th, 18th and 19th buses with migrants arrive in L.A.

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:57:40 GMT

Three buses filled with migrants from arrived in Los Angeles on Friday, making the 17th, 18th and 19th buses to arrive in L.A. since June. A third of all the migrants that have arrived in L.A. via bus have been children. L.A. Welcomes Collective confirmed the arrival of the buses Friday morning, all three from Texas, including one from Brownsville and two from Del Rio. There were a total of 109 migrants that arrived on the buses, the organization said. While complete demographics have not been made available, the migrants come from Colombia, El Salvador, Haiti, Mexico, Nicaragua, Peru and Venezuela."The LA Welcomes Collective learned of two of today's buses early this morning, stretching our resources in order to ensure that people were greeted with dignity and respect, supported to get to their destinations, reunited with family and connected with sponsors,” the organization said in a statement. Upon arrival, they were taken to a receiving site and provided humanitarian support ser...

Ventura man sentenced for deadly shooting, destructive pursuit

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:57:40 GMT

A Ventura man was sentenced to 32 years in prison for a deadly shooting and destructive police pursuit.The suspect was identified as Richard Hernandez, 27, by the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office.Hernandez pled guilty to charges of second-degree murder for the fatal shooting of Cameron Miller, an Oxnard resident.On June 29, 2016, Hernandez and three others — Alexis Ivan Ramirez, 28, Luis Aguilar, 26, and a 16-year-old girl were driving down East Main Street in Ventura. They stopped to confront two men walking on the sidewalk, police said. A verbal altercation ensued where gang names were yelled at the victims and Hernandez flashed a handgun.The four suspects then returned to their car and drove down the road. A few blocks away, they waited for the victims to walk by before firing several shots at the two men, police said.Miller was struck three times and died at the scene. The second victim was struck once but survived. The suspects sped off before authorities arrived....

Toys R Us to expand brick and mortar retail operations, including airports and cruise lines

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:57:40 GMT

Toys R Us is looking to make a major comeback, announcing this week it plans to expand its brick and mortar operations and add 24 new flagship stores in the country.WHP Global, the iconic toy store brand's parent company, announced it has partnered with a retail group to roll out new flagship stores across the U.S. beginning in 2024, as well as create new retail experiences for travelers by opening stores in airports and on cruise ships.The first airport store will open in November at the Dallas Fort Worth International Airport, the company said. Officials for WHP Global said the Toys R Us brand is still widely recognized and is growing rapidly since it acquired controlling stake in the company in 2021."Since acquiring Toys R Us, we have increased our global retail footprint by more than 50% with openings in the United States, United Kingdom, India, Dubai, and Mexico," said WHP Chief Executive Officer Yehuda Shmidman. "We now have over 1,400 stores and e-commerce sites across 31 cou...

After ouster of Gabe Kapler, SF Giants say they need to reset ‘standard’

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:57:40 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO — Under appropriately gray skies Friday afternoon, players went about their business as usual at Oracle Park. Patrick Bailey conferenced with catching coach Craig Albernaz in the outfield. Brandon Crawford prepared himself for his possible sendoff Sunday.Still, it was impossible to ignore the solemn news of the day.They played so poorly, collapsed so totally, that their manager of four years, Gabe Kapler, was fired with three games to go.“This is a s—ty day for the Giants baseball,” starter Logan Webb said. “As a whole, we haven’t done our job.”Outfielder Austin Slater found out when he arrived in the clubhouse and said there “was definitely some shock.” His platoon partner, Mike Yastrzemski, called it “unfortunate” but acknowledged that “this is the nature of the beast and he wears the burden of our performance.”The Giants went from 13 games over .500 in the first week of August to out of the play...

The top five most expensive home sales in Saratoga, reported the week of Sep. 18

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:57:40 GMT

A house that sold for $8.4 million tops the list of the most expensive residential real estate sales in Saratoga in the past week.In total, five residential real estate sales were recorded in the area during the past week, with an average price of $5 million. The average price per square foot was $1,501.The prices in the list below concern real estate sales where the title was recorded during the week of Sep. 18 even if the property may have been sold earlier.5. $1.1 million, condominium in the 19200 block of Vineyard LaneThe sale of the condominium in the 19200 block of Vineyard Lane, Saratoga, has been finalized. The price was $1,140,000, and the condominium changed hands in September. The condominium was built in 1971 and has a living area of 1,132 square feet. The price per square foot was $1,007. The condominium features two bedrooms and two bathrooms.4. $3.5 million, single-family residence in the 18700 block of Dundee Ave.The property in the 18700 block of Dundee Ave. in Sara...

'Ringleader' of 1966 Monterey County killing spree granted parole

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:57:40 GMT

(KRON) -- A California inmate who went on killing spree in the 1960s in Monterey County was granted parole, and prosecutors vowed this week to continue fighting against his scheduled release.Jose Francisco Velasquez was 24 years old when he acted as a "ringleader" behind a series of killings in 1966, the Monterey County District Attorney's Office said. He is now 81 years old. The Board of Parole Hearings granted his request for freedom citing California's Youthful Offender and Elder Parole laws."We believe the inmate continues to pose an unreasonable current risk of harm to the public based on the egregious facts of these murders and currently lacks insight into both his responsibility for these murders and his sexual deviance," prosecutors wrote."During a horrific crime spree in 1966, inmate Velasquez and his crime partners Luis Francisco Pacheco, Jose Luis Galvan, Frank Urrea Gonzales, and Juan Vasquez Garcia, brutally murdered four victims," the DA's Office wrote. On July 29, 196...

Alzolay returns from injured list as slumping Cubs seek bullpen boost for final weekend

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:57:40 GMT

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Adbert Alzolay returned from the the injured list Friday in hopes of providing a boost for the struggling Chicago Cubs bullpen during their playoff push.Alzolay has been one of the Cubs’ top relievers, but he hasn’t pitched since Sept. 9 due to a forearm strain. The Cubs made room for him by optioning pitcher Keegan Thompson to their spring facility in Arizona.The Cubs have done a poor job of protecting leads without him. They have fallen out of playoff position by losing five games this month that they had led in the eighth inning or later. They blew a 6-0 lead on Tuesday and squandered ninth-inning and 10th-inning advantages Wednesday while getting swept in Atlanta this week.“We’ve missed him when he’s out,” Cubs manager David Ross said before Friday’s game at Milwaukee. “He’s been a big part of our success, so having him back helps us kind of shorten the game hopefully, which we haven’t been able to do a lot lately. When we get one of our better arms back, ...

EE.UU. impone restricciones de visado a 100 funcionarios de Nicaragua, a quienes señala de apoyar violaciones a derechos humanos

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:57:40 GMT

(CNN Español) — Estados Unidos impuso este viernes restricciones de visado a 100 funcionarios municipales de Nicaragua, a quienes señala de apoyar violaciones a los derechos humanos y las libertades llevadas a cabo por el Gobierno de Daniel Ortega, informó el Departamento de Estado en un comunicado.Con las personas sancionadas van más de 1.000 funcionarios que reciben medidas similares por parte del Gobierno estadounidense “por su respaldo a abusos, por limitar las libertades civiles y actuar contra organizaciones independientes”, precisó la nota de prensa.El anuncio del Departamento de Estado se produce solamente unos días después de que el Gobierno de Ortega emitiera un decreto que anuló la personalidad jurídica de la escuela de negocios Instituto Centroamericano de Administración de Empresas (Incae) y expropió sus bienes en Nicaragua.La institución educativa reprobó la decisión y anunció que mantendrá en operaciones su sede en San José, Costa Rica.“Aquellos que participan e...

Looming shutdown could destabilize Maryland’s budget picture

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:57:40 GMT

In Maryland, more than 350,000 households directly benefited from wages or retirement income from the federal government. The $31 billion in income accounts for nearly 11% of all income earned in the state, according to the Office of the Comptroller. Photo: Board of Revenue Estimates. In Maryland, more than 350,000 households directly benefited from wages or retirement income from the federal government. The $31 billion in income accounts for nearly 11% of all income earned in the state, according to the Office of the Comptroller. Photo: Board of Revenue Estimates. A looming federal government shutdown could destabilize Maryland’s budget outlook.Minor decreases in projected revenues announced Thursday by the...