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Hastings strangling charge upped to 1st-degree murder. Pattern of domestic abuse, premeditation alleged.

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

A grand jury has indicted a man for first-degree murder, alleging a pattern of domestic abuse and premeditation in the killing of his 36-year-old girlfriend in Hastings.The Dakota County attorney’s office previously charged Kyle Steven Williams, 34, with second-degree murder in the death of Kelly Jo Marie Kocurek. She was found unresponsive, bloody and bruised May 18, 2021, in a room at Coratel Inn and Suites on Vermillion and 25th streets. She was taken to Regions Hospital in St. Paul and was in a coma before dying May 23, 2021, according to a criminal complaint filed against Williams.Kyle Steven Williams (Courtesy of Dakota County Sheriff’s Office)Williams told Hastings police officers that Kocurek strangled herself with a cord, but an autopsy determined her manner of death was homicide. She was also found with numerous traumatic head injuries attributed to physical assault, including bruises on her face, head and ear, in addition to fractures on both sides of her jaw....

Missouri, Kansas utilities back bills to reestablish monopoly on transmission projects

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

Missouri’s largest electric utility believes a bill aimed at reducing competition and giving monopoly providers an advantage in building transmission lines will avoid cost overruns and deliver better results for customers.In its home state, where it stands to benefit, Ameren Missouri has offered its full-throated support to legislation aimed at giving the company the right of first refusal to build transmission lines, and argued opponents’ worries about limiting competition are “disingenuous at best.”“Do you want local companies with roots in our state and communities, with a vested interest in our future, who build infrastructure for the long term interest in Missourians, who live here building these major transmission projects?” Warren Wood, Ameren Missouri’s legislative and regulatory vice president, asked in a Missouri House committee hearing earlier this month. But in 2016, when Kansas considered similar legislation — which would have cut Ameren out of bidding in favor of ...

Debate over transgender health care threatens to upend Missouri legislative session

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

Lawmakers return to the Missouri Capitol Monday to kick off the second half of the 2023 legislative session with a laundry list of priorities and a constitutional deadline to get them done. Legalizing sports betting, changing the initiative petition process, education policy shifts, tax cuts, banning foreign land ownership, expanding postpartum health care and a litany of other high-profile issues are jockeying for position — all while legislators wrestle with what will be the largest state budget in Missouri’s history. But hovering in the background is a specter that has haunted the General Assembly for the last two years and threatens to once again upend the legislative process. GOP infighting in the Missouri Senate has largely subsided this year, save for a pair of flare ups just before last week’s spring break. But that uneasy truce is teetering. A group of eight Republican senators are vowing to “use whatever tools and procedures necessary under the Mis...

Rockies spring training report: Bud Black unconcerned with closer Daniel Bard’s World Baseball Classic struggles

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

Symptoms of the yips returned for Daniel Bard in the World Baseball Classic, but Rockies manager Bud Black isn’t worried about his closer.Bard was erratic in his outing for Team USA in the quarterfinals of the WBC over the weekend. In the Americans’ 9-7 win over Venezuela, Bard was pegged for four earned runs on two walks, a hit batsmen, a single and a wild pitch while not recording an out.It was the sort of outing that had Rockies fans wondering if the 2020 MLB Comeback Player of the Year, who posted a reliable 1.79 ERA in 57 games with 34 saves last year, is struggling with the same yips that kept him off a big-league mound from 2014-19.Black told MLB.com’s Manny Randhawa he doesn’t believe that’s the case, even though Saturday against Venezuela hasn’t been Bard’s lone ugly outing of the tournament. The 37-year-old also gave up four runs on four hits and a walk in two-thirds of an inning in a pool play game against Mexico. His 43.20 ERA ov...

Frozen strawberries recalled over Hepatitis A risk

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

Frozen organic strawberries sold at Costco, Aldi, Trader Joe’s and other retailers have been recalled after the products were linked to five cases of hepatitis A in Washington state, the Food and Drug Administration said.The administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in partnership with state and local agencies, are investigating the cases, which included two people who were hospitalized.“Consumers, restaurants and retailers should not sell, serve or eat recalled frozen strawberries,” the FDA said in a statement. “These recalled products should be returned or thrown away.”Investigators found that five people who became ill and provided information about what they ate all reported to have consumed the strawberries, the FDA said.The strain of hepatitis A is genetically identical to a strain that caused an outbreak of hepatitis A infections in 2022, which was linked to fresh organic strawberries also imported from Baja California, Mexico.The two vendors in the l...

Ja Morant ready to rejoin Grizzlies, NBA suspension over

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

By TERESA M. WALKER (AP Sports Writer)Ja Morant’s eight-game NBA suspension is over, and the two-time All-Star may rejoin the Memphis Grizzlies.The dynamic guard is expected to be on the bench Monday night when Memphis hosts Dallas, though it’s unclear exactly when he’ll play, with the earliest being Wednesday. The Grizzlies announced Sunday that Morant would not play against the Mavericks because of a “Return to Competition Reconditioning.”“He is going to be part of practice (Tuesday), and obviously we’re hopeful for Wednesday so long as everything medically clears out,” Memphis coach Taylor Jenkins said, adding the delay is part of the “ramp-up process.”The Grizzlies host Houston on Wednesday in the first of two consecutive games against the Rockets in Memphis.The Grizzlies know Morant has been working out, trying to be ready for this moment. Memphis was off Sunday after back-to-back wins, and Jenkins said he would like M...

A historic Denver theater is getting a $9.3 million renovation — and that’s just the beginning for new arts campus

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

Denver will pay an architecture firm just shy of $9.3 million over the next three years to lead the design and engineering work that will turn a midcentury theater on the Loretto Heights campus in southwest Denver into the centerpiece of the city’s next cultural hub.The City Council on Monday unanimously approved the contract with Perkins Eastman Architects. The firm has a studio that specializes in working on theaters on college campuses. It’s the first piece of a multi-phase effort that would see the city take over the theater and a neighboring library building on the campus and turn them into cultural amenities for a part of the city that officials say has never seen a public investment of this scale.The funding was provided by a $30 million bond approved by voters as part of the city RISE bond package in 2021.Councilman Kevin Flynn, whose District 2 includes the Loretto Heights campus, called Monday’s contract “the start … of the single largest city...

Crypto wants its shine back

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

By David Yaffe-Bellany and Erin Griffith, The New York TimesSAN FRANCISCO — At a cryptocurrency conference in Denver this month, a group of singers clad in bright orange onesies took the stage to perform what one industry website later described as an anthem for the crypto faithful, a “blockchain ‘Blowin’ in the Wind.’”The chorus was a list of crypto’s most notorious villains, from trash-talking entrepreneur Do Kwon to disgraced FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried, punctuated by four-letter expletives.“In the next bull market, we promise not to use,” the song continued, “centralized exchanges run by these toxic dudes.”After a disastrous 2022, when a procession of prominent crypto firms imploded, the industry is angling for an audacious rebrand. Executives like Kwon and Bankman-Fried — once beloved crypto celebrities, with hundreds of thousands of devotees hanging on their every tweet — are now personae non gratae. Their former admirers argue that these crypto villains never tr...

This is the best place to get a burrito in California, according to Yelp

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

Whether you prefer a traditional burrito filled with rice, beans and cheese or prefer a unique creation, such as a lobster sushi burrito, there is no wrong way to enjoy the famous dish.In honor of National Burrito Day on April 6, Yelp released its ranking of the “best” places to get a burrito in each state. For Californians looking to try the “best” burrito in the Golden State, Curbgrill in Burbank is the place to go. 3 California taco restaurants named best in the country, according to Yelp The popular food truck is famous for its breakfast burrito but also serves other food items such as breakfast croissants, quesadillas and bowls. Customers have also raved about their smash burgers.“The food was amazing and customer service was beyond great,” one customer shared on Yelp. “We got the breakfast bowl, smash burger and breakfast quesadilla and they were all mouthwatering.” California restaurant considered the ‘best’ place to get hot chocolate “I would highly recommend the restaur...

Protests fill Kenyan capital as officials crack down

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

By Evelyne Musambi | Associated PressNAIROBI, Kenya — At least three Kenyan legislators and several protesters have been arrested and then released for participating in protests in Kenya’s capital, Nairobi, in which opposition supporters demanded the resignation of President William Ruto.Opposition leader Raila Odinga joined thousands of demonstrators and announced weekly demonstrations until the president resigns or the cost of living goes down.Odinga’s convoy of dozens of cars drove around the city after being blocked from accessing the central business district.He made public addresses on several stops and his motorcade was teargassed several times by police. In response his supporters pelted stones at the police.Odinga asserted that his car was shot at by the police and his party spokesperson shared a photo of a shattered windscreen online.Police did not respond to a request from The Associated Press to comment on the shooting claims.The legislators arrested have bee...