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Larger crowds, less chaos: Why summer travel may be less bumpy

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:30:57 GMT

2022 was the year of revenge travel. Travelers took trips they skipped in 2020 and 2021, catching up on a backlog of weddings and family reunions. Others finally checked off bucket list trips.Travel came back strong, resulting in high prices and packed airports. But with the surge, chaos often ensued. Hotels cut back on housekeeping, largely driven by a hotel worker shortage. Car rental costs spiked due to high demand and low supply. The flight delay rate hit highs not seen since 2014. All that culminated into major, distressing events shared by many travelers, such as the Southwest Airlines holiday meltdown.But if 2022 felt crowded, 2023 could be more so. Checkpoint data from the Transportation Security Administration for two out of the first three months of the year show that average airport passenger counts have actually exceeded their 2019 levels — and they’re set to keep growing.“In January, we experienced our first full month where travel volumes exceeded the same month in 201...

Headed to the Jimmy Buffett concert this weekend? Beat the crowd with these tips

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:30:57 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- The time has finally come -- Snapdragon Stadium will host its first-ever concert on Saturday with Jimmy Buffett transforming San Diego into "Margaritaville."The icon will be joined by his Coral Reefer Band, plus special guests like GRAMMY Award-winner Jason Mraz and country music singer-songwriter Mac McAnally.The much anticipated show comes after the original concert date was postponed due to health issues experienced by Buffet. The iconic singer took time off to recuperate, but is now ready to take the stage in America's Finest City. 3 artists added to San Diego County Fair Concert Series lineup Snapdragon Stadium said fans with tickets to the original October 22, 2022 date should have received an email from Ticketmaster with information on how to get those passes honored at the rescheduled show. For those still looking to snag a ticket to watch the "Trip Around the Sun" singer live, there are still seats available for purchase. As it turns out, the San Diego Padres...

Kansas looses legal fight over voting law passed in 2021

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:30:57 GMT

MISSION, Kan. (AP) — Kansas has lost a legal fight over one of the voting laws that its Republican-led Legislature passed in the wake of the 2020 election. U.S. District Judge Kathryn Vratil ruled Thursday that it was unconstitutional to make it a crime for groups to include voter’s name, address and other information on advance ballot applications.Two national nonprofit groups, VoteAmerica and the Voter Participation Center, sued after two voting laws were passed in 2021 over the veto of Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly. One of them included the restriction on prefilling ballots, even if the voter provided the information and requested an advance mail ballot application. The groups, whose mission is to promote voting among traditionally underserved groups, including young and minority voters, argued that there is a higher response rate when the group prefills the applications. Nearly 70,000 Kansas voters submitted an advance mail voting application provided by the Voter Participation Ce...

Biden marks Cinco de Mayo by going to taqueria in Washington

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:30:57 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden celebrated Cinco de Mayo on Friday by stepping out for tacos at a Washington food hall. His stop prompted one onlooker to remark, “This is the most D.C. thing that’s ever happened to me.”Biden was joined by Vice President Kamala Harris at Taqueria Habanero. The president paid in cash for his order of and posed with staff for pictures. To the people peering over a wall to see him, he joked, “Don’t jump.”Cinco de Mayo is a yearly celebration on May 5 that commemorates Mexico’s 1862 victory over France in the Battle of Puebla. The holiday has become increasingly popular in the United States.Last year, Biden and his wife, Jill, celebrated Cinco de Mayo at the White House. In 2021, the president visited Las Gemelas, a Mexican restaurant in Washington and told workers there that the company would be receiving financial aid from his COVID relief package.The Associated Press

School dean who shot student sentenced for racketeering

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:30:57 GMT

BOSTON (AP) — A former Boston high school dean serving a 26-year sentence in state prison for shooting a student he had recruited to deal drugs has received an additional 18 years or more on a federal gang-related charge. Prosecutors said that Shaun Harrison, 63, lived a double life, portraying himself as an anti-violence activist and mentor for troubled teens while hiding his own gang ties, and luring students into drugs and violence.In 2022, Harrison pleaded guilty to a count of racketeering conspiracy, also referred to as a RICO conspiracy. Harrison is serving time after his 2018 conviction for attempting to kill a student who was selling marijuana in the high school at Harrison’s direction, authorities said. The 17-year-old was shot in the back of the head after a dispute over declining drug sales, prosecutors said. The student survived but suffered partial face paralysis, permanent hearing loss and other injuries. Massachusetts U.S. Attorney Rachael Rollins said Harrison ...

It’s Cornell for New Orleans student with $10M in offers

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:30:57 GMT

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — A 16-year-old high school senior in New Orleans who received scholarship offers from 149 colleges and universities totaling $10 million said Friday that he has chosen to attend Cornell University.Dennis “Maliq” Barnes will graduate on May 24 from the International High School of New Orleans, where he earned a 4.98 grade point average. He also has 27 college credits through a dual enrollment program with Southern University of New Orleans.He plans to study computer science at Cornell, an Ivy League school in Ithaca, New York. He has also said he is considering law school.“Today is an exciting day for me and my family, and I look forward to working with Cornell’s College of Engineering over the course of my undergraduate education,” Barnes said.In an interview las week, Barnes said that a major reason he cranked out applications to close to 200 schools was his desire to have numerous educational and financial options. He ultimately was accepted at 186 colleges and u...

Russia jails theater director amid crackdown on dissent

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:30:57 GMT

TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — A Russian court on Friday ordered pretrial detention for a theater director facing charges of justifying terrorism, the latest move in a relentless crackdown on dissent in Russia that spiked to unprecedented levels since the start of the war in Ukraine. The Zamoskvoretsky District Court in Moscow jailed Zhenya Berkovich, a prominent independent theater director and playwright, for two months pending investigation and trial. Berkovich was detained in the Russian capital on Thursday because of the play she staged, “Finist, the Brave Falcon.” Police also raided the apartments of her parents and her grandmother in St. Petersburg. The play, named after a Russian fairy tale, depicts Russian women who faced prosecution after being lured into marriage and life in Syria by representatives of radical Islam. It was written by playwright Svetlana Petriychuk, who was also detained on Thursday and appeared in the same court on Friday right after Berkovich. The authorities ...

New Hampshire history marker for communist draws GOP anger

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:30:57 GMT

CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — A historical marker dedicated to a New Hampshire labor activist who championed women’s rights and was a founder of the American Civil Liberties Union — but who also joined the Communist Party and was sent to prison — has draw objections from Republican officials and scrutiny from the governor.Known as “The Rebel Girl” for her fiery speeches, Elizabeth Gurley Flynn was born in Concord in 1890. A green and white Historical Highway Marker dedicated to her, one of 278 across the state, was unveiled Monday near her birthplace. In addition to her rights activism, the marker also says she joined the Communist Party in 1936 and was sent to prison in 1951. She was one of many party members prosecuted “under the notorious Smith Act,” the marker says, which forbade any attempts to advocate, abet or teach the violent destruction of the U.S. government. Flynn later chaired the Communist Party of the United States and she died in Moscow during a visit in 1964, at age 74. She ...

Toronto police officer charged with sexual assault: SIU

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:30:57 GMT

A 14-year member of the Toronto police force has been charged with sexual assault in connection to an alleged attack last spring.The Special Investigations Unit says they were notified on June 29, 2022, by Toronto police of an incident that took place involving one of their officers and a woman on May 19, 2022.Following an investigation, the police watchdog has charged Const. Ramdial Lokenath with one count of sexual assault and one count of breach of trust. He will appear in court to answer the charges at the end of the month.The SIU did not provide any further details of the incident as the matter is now before the courts.In a statement to CityNews, Toronto police say Lokenath – who works out of 41 Division – has been suspended with pay, as per the Police Services Act.The SIU is an independent government agency that investigates the conduct of officials that may have resulted in death, serious injury, sexual assault and/or the discharge of a firearm at a person.

Murder charges filed against California ex-college student

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:30:57 GMT

DAVIS, Calif. (AP) — Northern California prosecutors on Friday charged a 21-year-old former university student with two counts of murder and one of attempted murder in connection with a series of stabbings in the college community of Davis.Carlos Dominguez is scheduled to be arraigned on charges Friday afternoon in the Superior Court of California, County of Yolo. He was picked up for questioning Wednesday near the city park where he was alleged to have killed his second victim and has been in jail since early Thursday.Yolo County prosecutors said Dominguez is eligible for a life prison term without the possibility of parole or the death penalty, given the multiple murders. He is accused of fatally stabbing two people, including a fellow student, and stabbing a third victim who is now recovering.It was not immediately clear if Dominguez had retained an attorney who could speak on his behalf. He could be appointed a public defender at his arraignment. News of his arrest Thursday was ...