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Illinois man sentenced to 110 years in prison for deadly bar shooting

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:05:53 GMT

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. (WMBD) -- Barring a successful appeal, Michael Bakana will spend the rest of his life in prison, a judge ordered Monday.Chief McLean County Circuit Judge J. Casey Costigan sentenced Bakana to 110 years in prison for a double shooting that left one woman dead and her friend injured outside a Downtown Bloomington bar two years ago.Specifically, the judge imposed a 60-year sentence for first-degree murder in connection with the Jan. 30, 2021, shooting death of 22-year-old Mariah Petracca outside Daddios. 19-year-old charged with 1st degree murder in connection to Chatham fatal shooting The judge also handed down a 50-year prison term for attempted first-degree murder for shooting Bibianna Cornejo, who suffered permanent nerve damage to her left arm during the same incident.By law, the sentences must be served consecutively. Also, Bakana, 44, of Normal, must serve 100% of his 60 years handed down on the murder conviction and 85% for the attempted first-degree m...

City of Blanco, water supplier at odds over emergency restrictions

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:05:53 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — The City of Blanco says its water supplier is to blame for the city's water shortage and emergency restrictions.The city says that Blanco City Attorney Tim Tuggey sent a letter to Texas Water Company alleging the city's water shortage is due to "the company’s decision to prioritize delivery to other customers, causing our water supply to drop dangerously low." ‘We had 24 hours of water left’: City of Blanco bumps up to Stage 6 water restrictions after supply issues KXAN has reached out to Texas Water Company for a comment on the letter and this story will be updated once we hear back.Texas Water Company has provided the city of Blanco with water for more than a year as its own water planet has been down for renovations. In the letter, Tuggey said the city "believes the actions of the company are a violation of the law, as well as a clear violation of a long-established memorandum of understanding between the city and the company."Read the city's letter to Texas Wat...

Carlos Correa’s single in 10th gives Twins 4-3 walk-off win over Mariners

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:05:53 GMT

Shortly after delivering a walk-off hit on Sunday, one which came after the Twins rallied to overcome deficits in both the ninth and 10th innings, catcher Ryan Jeffers described a dugout with more belief lately.“When we’re not getting runs, we’re kind of starting to believe in ourselves that we can come back and we can get hits on whoever’s out there,” Jeffers said.Well, the Twins did it again on Monday.After Griffin Jax served up a go-ahead two-run home run in the top of the ninth on Monday, the Twins rallied back again, using consecutive doubles from Alex Kirilloff and Max Kepler in the bottom of the ninth to square things back up.Carlos Correa’s single in the 10th gave the Twins a 4-3 walk-off win over the Mariners on Monday night at Target Field.The late fireworks came after the Twins (54-48) were just an out away from winning the game in the top of the ninth. Instead, Jax allowed two-out hits to pinch hitters — a single to Cal Raleigh and the go-ahead home run to Kolten Wong — ...

Crow Wing County deputy, 3 others injured in fiery collsion

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:05:53 GMT

A Crow Wing County sheriff’s deputy and three others were injured in a fiery, three-vehicle collision Monday afternoon  north of Baxter, Minn.The crash happened about 2 p.m. in the southbound lane of Highway 371.According to the Minnesota State Patrol, a Buick Regal driven by Charlotte Elaine Zimmerman, 78, of Brainerd, was stopped in the left lane on southbound Highway 371 near Barbeau Road.A Dodge Durango, driven by Jeffrey Alan Miller, 59, of Minneapolis, was stopped behind the Regal. A Crow Wing County sheriff’s Ford Explorer squad vehicle, driven by Matthew Wayne Jorgens, 42, of Nisswa, rear-ended the Durango, pushing the Durango into the Regal.“The squad car did start on fire and was a total loss” the Crow Wing County Sheriff’s office reported. “The deputy involved did have minor injuries and was transported to the St. Joseph Hospital.”Zimmerman, Miller and a passenger in his vehicle, Ronda Rae Miller, 58, of Minneapolis, were also transported to St. Joseph’s Medical Center in...

3 arrested in Aitkin County after toddler sickened by fentanyl exposure

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:05:53 GMT

Three people were arrested at a residence north of Garrison in Aitkin County after a 2-year-old became unresponsive due to exposure to controlled substances.The incident in north-central Minnesota happened in the early morning hours on Friday, the Aitkin County Sheriff’s Office reported. Family members removed the child from the residence and eventually called 911 from a vehicle in the Garrison area. Crosby medics responded, CPR was administered and Naloxone, a drug for opioid overdose, was given. The child was transported to Twin Cities hospital by air ambulance for further care and is reported to be stable.A search warrant was later executed at the residence. Teams executing the search warrant were from the Aitkin, Itasca and Mille Lacs Drug Task Force and the Lakes Area Drug Investigation Division. Upon entry to the residence a different 2-year-old child in a crib was located in close proximity to a plate of crushed fentanyl while a ceiling fan was running overhead, the sheriff’s...

Plans to reopen New Life Evangelistic Center are underway

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:05:53 GMT

ST. LOUIS - Reverend Larry Rice says he wants to reopen the New Life Evangelistic Center. It has been closed for the last six years after numerous building code violations and overcrowding at the shelter.“We want to be a church open from 8:30 to 4:30 daily, providing a wide variety of services to everyone and anyone who are homeless,” Rice said.In March 2017, the City of St. Louis revoked the shelter’s permit due to over-occupancy and building code violations. The Board of Building Appeals upheld that decision.Rice said he has spent thousands of dollars on upgrades and is asking the city to allow him to reopen the basement, first and second floors. Crews investigating fatal 3-vehicle crash in north St. Louis In the future, he said he hopes to provide internet service to help people find jobs, a free store, and showers. Rice also wants to bring in outside agencies to provide a "holistic approach" to the homeless.On Monday, he and his staff gave a tour of some of the building's repa...

Rockies’ bullpen, Nolan Jones’ ninth homer squash Nats

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:05:53 GMT

The Rockies were thrown out twice at the plate Monday night. It used to be that something like that would be the death knell for them on the road.But not for these Rockies, at least not at this particular point and time.They’ve emerged from the All-Star break playing solid baseball. Their 10-6 win over Washington at Nationals Park improved their record to 6-3 since the break, including a 3-1 mark on the road.The formula: excellent work from the bullpen and timely hits, particularly home runs.Colorado utilized another bullpen game Monday night, and five pitchers, led by “opener” Jake Bird (two scoreless innings, one hit allowed) and Karl Kauffmann (one run over four-plus innings on two hits), squashed the Nats.At least until Washington scored five runs over the last two innings. Right-hander Gavin Hollowell faltered in the eighth, giving up a two-out, three-run homer to Jeimer Candelario. Hollowell walked CJ Abrams and plunked Lane Thomas to set up Candelario’...

Man carjacks Fieldhouse employee, flees across NE Colorado at speeds of 108 mph

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:05:53 GMT

A Florida man may have missed breakfast Monday at the Morgan County Detention Center, but he made it back in time for lunch.Juan Barreneche, 37, of Riviera Beach, Fla., had been arrested by Fort Morgan police around 11 p.m. Sunday for trespassing at a local hotel, first being called for a disturbance at 6:14 p.m. and a second time related to a trespass call. The charge allows for a personal recognizance bond release and by 4 a.m. he had been released from custody.“It is always frustrating to see individuals with repeated law enforcement contact released from the detention center only to commit crimes against persons a short time later,” Police Chief Loren Sharp wrote in an email.Barreneche was a subject of a third call in the city at about 5:45 p.m. Monday when police believe he stole a pickup truck.“Upon investigation, Fort Morgan officers were able to determine that Barreneche had approached a male employee of the Fort Morgan Fieldhouse, asking for a ride,” Sharp said. “When the v...

Loveland man dies in motorcycle accident Sunday night

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:05:53 GMT

​Loveland police are investigating a fatal motorcycle accident that took place shortly after 10 p.m. Sunday.​When officers arrived at the scene of the collision​ involving a motorcycle in the 6300 block of North Garfield Ave., they discovered the motorcyclist had life​-threatening injuries​, according to a Loveland Police Department news release.The ​37-year-old Loveland ​man was ​t​aken to a local hospital by Thompson Valley EMS, where he was pronounced ​dead.Preliminary investigations revealed the motorcyclist was traveling southbound on North Garfield Ave at a high rate of speed​, the release said. ​H​e struck the back of a truck towing a trailer and was ejected off the motorcycle.The ma​n was not wearing a helmet​, the release added.Police ​are continu​ing to investigate to ​d​etermine if speed and alcohol are contributing factors of the crash.There were no other injuries.The identity of the ​m​otorcyclist will be released later by the Larimer County Coroner’s Office.Anyone with...

Israeli doctors reveal Netanyahu’s chronic heart problem only after implanting pacemaker

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:05:53 GMT

JERUSALEM (AP) — After undergoing emergency surgery to implant a pacemaker, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, 73, made a video appearance from a hospital near Tel Aviv. Wearing a crisp dark suit, he grinned and declared energetically that he felt “great, as you can see.”But the Sunday photo-op failed to reassure Israelis, who were shocked to learn the same day that their longest-serving prime minister had concealed a long-known heart problem. The admission was a stark contrast to the image of a fully healthy, energetic leader that Netanyahu has gone to great lengths to bolster. A week after a fainting spell, Netanyahu was urgently fitted with a pacemaker to control his heartbeat. Only then did staff at the Sheba Medical Center reveal Sunday night that Netanyahu has for years experienced a condition that can cause irregular heartbeats.Until Sunday, the cardiologists had publicly played down concerns, saying the prime minister was dehydrated and describing his heartbeat as “c...