USA TODAY International Edition
50 ☆ States
ALABAMA Clarke County: An appellate court has reinstated an indictment against a former sheriff, clearing the way for him to go to trial on campaign finance and ethics charges.
ALASKA Fairbanks: The case of a homeless man who froze to death in the state’s second- largest city has exposed a hole in the safety net of care provided to a vulnerable population in one of the coldest places in the country. The city has no lowbarrier shelter to provide help and a warm place to stay on an unconditional basis.
ARIZONA Nogales: The lawyer for a rancher being held on $ 1 million bond says her client did not shoot and kill the Mexican man whose body was found on his property last month near the U. S.- Mexico border, but earlier that day fired warning shots at smugglers carrying AK- 47 rifles and big backpacks on his land.
ARKANSAS Little Rock: Nearly two years after Arkansas became the first state to enact a now- blocked ban on gender- affirming care for minors, Republican lawmakers are trying to effectively reinstate the ban with a proposal to make it easier to file malpractice lawsuits against doctors who provide such care.
CALIFORNIA San Francisco: Investigators found an illegal drug lab in the wreckage of a house that exploded last week, killing a woman and damaging neighboring homes, police said.
COLORADO Fort Collins: Police said they arrested a man at a downtownarea 7- Eleven after he had barricaded himself in the store and started a fire.
CONNECTICUT Wallingford: Police said four juveniles were arrested in connection with a fire at a playground and surrounding areas of a park last year, the Hartford Courant reports.
DELAWARE Dover: A former executive of the only financial institution to be criminally charged in connection with the federal bank bailout program in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis has reached a settlement with federal securities regulators in a related civil action. In a court filing, attorneys for William North and the Securities and Exchange Commission asked a federal judge in Delaware to suspend activity in the SEC’s lawsuit against North pending commission authorization of the proposed consent judgment. North is the former chief credit officer for Wilmington Trust.
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Washington: President Joe Biden has fired the embattled Architect of the Capitol, Brett Blanton, following a scathing inspector general report on his personal and professional management and calls for his removal.
FLORIDA Sarasota: The New College of Florida board of trustees – now dominated by conservatives chosen by Gov. Ron DeSantis – voted to approve hiring a DeSantis ally as the interim president. The trustees agreed to an 18- month contract with Richard Corcoran that will pay him $ 699,000 a year, which is about $ 400,000 more than the previous president earned at the school.
GEORGIA Brunswick: The Georgia Ports Authority and a federal agency have signed off on a big expansion of the state- operated seaport. The port authority’s chief executive, Griff Lynch, signed an agreement with the Army Corps of Engineers to widen and deepen portions of the shipping channel to make room for larger cargo ships to reach the Port of Brunswick.
HAWAII Maui: Federal investigators are seeking more information about an incident in which a United Airlines plane dropped to within about 800 feet of the ocean surface after taking off from Hawaii. United says the pilots are getting additional training. The Boeing 777 dropped more than 1,400 feet before climbing again, according to data from tracking service Flightradar24. The plane then continued on to San Francisco. No injuries were reported.
IDAHO Boise: A woman who had been reported missing is safe after being found by employees of a Boise business, the Idaho Statesman reports.
ILLINOIS Chicago: A man was hospitalized in critical condition after being shot by a police officer investigating a vehicle that was double- parked, authorities said.
INDIANA Indianapolis: A bill that could make it harder for people to observe law enforcement interactions is raising concerns with the American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana over police accountability. House Bill 1186 would consider a person who “knowingly or intentionally” approaches within 25 feet of a law enforcement officer after being ordered to stop as encroaching on an investigation.
IOWA Des Moines: In the first few minutes of a meeting about restructuring Iowa’s state government, a Zoom user took over the television monitor and showed a sexually explicit video. It was one of several Zoom bombings to hit Iowa Senate subcommittees this session. Sen. Jason Schultz, R- Schleswig, said the Senate has taken “all the precautions that we could think of ” to prevent future interruptions. But he suggested Zoom access may be sacrificed if issues continue.
KANSAS Topeka: A man was convicted of crimes linked to a March 2021 crash in which a pickup truck being towed by another pickup came loose, struck a motorcycle and killed its riders.
KENTUCKY Louisville: More license plate cameras that officials say will help track down stolen vehicles could soon come to Louisville’s East End. Louisville Metro Councilman Anthony Piagentini put forward $ 48,150 from his district’s Capital Infrastructure Fund to allow Louisville Metro Police to purchase nine Flock Safety cameras in his district that includes East End cities and neighborhoods such as Middletown, Douglass Hills and Lake Forest.
LOUISIANA Shreveport: Family members of Alonzo Bagley, a Black man who was killed as he tried to flee police responding to a disturbance call, have filed a $ 10 million lawsuit against the officer who shot him.
MAINE Augusta: A lawmaker has proposed a bill to require the state to offer to buy out farmers whose land was contaminated by longlasting chemicals caused by the spreading of sludge.
MARYLAND Berlin: Atlantic General Hospital says its outpatient walk- in lab and imaging departments had resumed full operations after being hit by what it called a “ransomware incident” in late January.
MASSACHUSETTS Boston: Mayor Michelle Wu filed a plan meant to address the city’s skyrocketing rents. It would set the annual maximum allowable rent increase based on the change in the consumer price index plus 6%, or a maximum increase of 10%, whichever is lower.
MICHIGAN Munising: Authorities have recovered the body of an ice climber who fell into Lake Superior in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.
MINNESOTA Anoka: Health officials have urged workers at the Federal Ammunition company plant to get their children tested for lead exposure after four kids with family members who work there were found to have elevated levels of lead in their blood.
MISSISSIPPI Jackson: The Country Club of Jackson neighborhood could join a list of entities pulling out of the city water system, which has been plagued by issues for decades, if bills making their way through the legislature become law.
MONTANA Helena: Nearly $ 19 million will be available to address contaminants in the state’s drinking water as part of the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency’s announcement of water infrastructure investments, the Helena Independent Record reports.
NEBRASKA Omaha: Multiple residents were displaced after a fire at an apartment complex caused thousands of dollars of damage, the Omaha World- Herald reports.
NEVADA Sparks: The city council unanimously rejected a $ 441,000 settlement offer regarding former fire chief Mark Lawson.
NEW HAMPSHIRE Concord: The state House dealt a blow to efforts to quickly close and replace the state’s troubled youth detention center. The Senate passed a bill last month that would require construction of a new facility to be put out to bid by March and completed by November 2024. But the House passed an amendment with no debate that lacks a firm deadline. Debate over the future of the Sununu Youth Services Center began years ago, but it has come to a boil amid horrific sexual abuse allegations.
NEW JERSEY Trenton: State Sen. Samuel Thompson said he’s leaving the Republican Party and plans to seek reelection this year as a Democrat. Thompson, 87, said in a phone interview that he decided to leave the GOP after party leaders questioned his fitness for office because of his age.
NEW MEXICO Santa Fe: The state Senate approved a proposed ban on the local disposal of spent nuclear fuel, unless the state provides its consent first. The bill from Democratic state Sen. Jeff Steinborn could impact a proposed multibillion- dollar facility that is expected to temporarily store spent nuclear fuel from commercial power plants across the nation.
NEW YORK Albany: More than 10,000 state employees will be eligible for 12 weeks of fully paid parental leave starting Tuesday under a new policy from Gov. Kathy Hochul’s administration.
NORTH CAROLINA Raleigh: Attorney General Josh Stein won’t defend state restrictions on dispensing abortion pills that are being challenged in a lawsuit and instead will argue the restrictions are preempted by federal regulations protecting access to the pills, Stein’s office said.
NORTH DAKOTA Bismarck: After racist taunts were directed at Native American high school basketball players, several tribal nations are asking the Jamestown School District and the North Dakota High School Activities Association to tighten rules and increase transparency on how the incident was handled, the Bismarck Tribune reports.
OHIO Columbus: Gov. Mike DeWine wants the state to require parental consent for kids under 16 to get new accounts on TikTok, Snapchat and other social media platforms.
OKLAHOMA Oklahoma City: A bill that would support the state’s involvement in the international cockfighting industry is being framed as an extension of the state’s criminal justice reform efforts. Senate Bill 1006 would let counties decide whether to reduce penalties for cockfighting and breeding of fighting chickens.
OREGON Salem: The executive director of the state’s liquor regulatory agency announced his resignation amid a criminal investigation into allegations that he and other senior officials used their positions to divert rare bourbons for personal use.
PENNSYLVANIA Philadelphia: Temple University has withdrawn free tuition from striking graduate student assistants and given them a month to pay or face sanctions.
RHODE ISLAND Providence: The rate of sexually transmitted infections has increased dramatically in the state in recent years. In Rhode Island from 2012 to 2021, newly diagnosed infectious syphilis cases have increased 382%, from 68 cases in 2012 to 328 cases in 2021, according to the Rhode Island Department of Health.
SOUTH CAROLINA Anderson: Law enforcement agents confiscated over 600 fake championship rings across four major U. S. professional sports leagues and the NCAA from a memorabilia store as part of a seizure of counterfeit merchandise, the Secretary of State announced.
SOUTH DAKOTA Pierre: Gov. Kristi Noem signed a bill that prohibits gender- affirming care for transgender people under the age of 18. The bill bans the prescription of puberty blockers, cross- sex hormones and gender- affirming surgery for minors.
TENNESSEE Memphis: U. S. poet laureate Ada Limón is scheduled to read from her writings later this month at Rhodes College, the school said. Limón will read her poetry and sign books on Feb. 23 as part of the Jack D. Farris Visiting Writers Series.
TEXAS Austin: Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick presented a list of 30 priority bills that range from handling the state’s money for the next two years to legislation addressing teacher pay, parental rights and the state water supply.
UTAH Park City: After several reported incidents of discrimination and racism at the school, the principal of Ecker Hill Middle School said all students will go through anti- bullying training, KPCW reports.
VERMONT South Hero: After three men fell through the ice and died this past week while fishing on Lake Champlain, the Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department warned people to stay off the frozen lake due to unsafe conditions.
VIRGINIA Richmond: Senate Democrats defeated legislation for a second time this session that would have allowed prosecutors to charge drug dealers with second- degree murder if a user dies of an overdose.
WASHINGTON Kitsap County: Daytime traffic delays across the Agate Pass Bridge crossing began Monday morning, according to the state’s Department of Transportation, and will last through February. Drivers should be prepared for one- way alternating traffic to accommodate annual maintenance and a bridge inspection.
WEST VIRGINIA Charleston: Lawmakers in the state’s House of Delegates greenlit an investment of
$ 105 million in taxpayer dollars to support a Bill Gates- backed company that is building a renewable energy battery plant in the state’s Northern Panhandle.
WISCONSIN Madison: Republican lawmakers introduced a bill that would expand the definition of illegal strip searches after a school superintendent told six girls to remove their clothes during a search last year for vaping devices.
WYOMING Cheyenne: The Senate Labor, Health and Social Services Committee voted to advance a bill that would permanently establish the 988 suicide hotline in the state, the Wyoming Tribune Eagle reports.
From USA TODAY Network and wire reports