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Skilling: Warm, dry weekend ahead

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:51:08 GMT

Chicago records a 4th consecutive day in the 90s—and the 7th consecutive day of ABOVE NORMAL TEMPS FridayEast winds off Lake Michigan set up another day with a BIG TEMP SPREAD from the lakeshore to inland areas. At mid-afternoon Friday, temps ranged from 96 at Oswego and 95 at Warrenville and Plainfield to 66 at the Wilmette Harbor buoy, 68 at Waukegan Harbor and 73 on the Lake Forest shoreline.  That's a spread of as much as 29-deg.Air quality issues continued Friday with the Illinois EPA issuing an AIR QUALITY ALERT due to elevated ozone and particulate levels.We're back to a dry weather situation.  NO RAIN OR T-STORMS in the Chicago area Friday.  That had been expected. Isolated storms formed over western Illinois---well west of the Chicago area. Drying has occurred with dew points, a measure of atmospheric moisture, way down—as low as the upper 40s Friday afternoon versus the muggy 60s Wed and Thursday.Thursday's rains were selective and, while heavy at ...

Aurora man sentenced to 100 years for breaking into woman's home, sexually assaulting her

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:51:08 GMT

DUPAGE COUNTY, Ill. -- A 26-year-old man has been sentenced to 100 years in prison for breaking into a woman's home, sexually assaulting her, and then forcing her to drive him to her bank to withdraw money from her account in 2018.According to the DuPage County State's Attorney's Office, the Naperville Police Department responded to reports of a home invasion at 7:15 a.m. on March 23, 2018. SWAT responds to man on rooftop of Humboldt Park building Further investigation showed that Thaddeus Jones, 26, formerly of Aurora, had broken into the woman’s home, sexually assaulted her, then forced her into her car which he then drove to her bank to withdraw money for him out of her account.Jones then returned to the woman’s home with her at which time the woman was able to escape.Jones then fled the scene in the woman’s car. Within hours, Jones was located at a motel in Naperville and taken into custody. He has remained in custody at the DuPage County Jail since that time. Wood Dale man ...

'Jail is not the answer': Leaders to discuss mental health diversion program details

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:51:08 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — For the last several years, Joy Jiles' 39-year-old son, Miguel, has cycled in and out of jail. He has schizophrenia and his mom worries without more readily available mental health resources, the cycle is going to continue. "I love my son so they're gonna call me, I'm gonna do everything that I can in my power to try and help him but I just feel like other things need to be done," Jiles said. Her son is in jail right now, expected to be released over the next few months. Joy Jiles holds up a photo of her 39-year-old son, Miguel, who is in the Travis County Jail. Miguel suffers from a severe mental health illness (KXAN photo/Grace Reader)Next week, Travis County leaders are working on providing resources for people like Miguel. Travis County is in the beginning stages of creating a mental health diversion program and diversion center so that instead of going to jail, some people who have committed non-violent offenses would get mental health and substance use care ins...

Does the 'drag ban bill' target transgender Texans?

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:51:08 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- A bill that bans "sexually oriented performances" in the presence of minors passed during Texas' 88th legislative session. As the bill moved forward, transgender Texans voiced concerns that the bill might target them for non-explicit performances or for merely existing in public spaces. Lambda Legal South Central Regional Director Shelly Skeen spoke on these fears, and said that this bill does not apply to transgender people going about their lives."I don't want people to feel like they can't walk around and do their daily lives, if they're trans, if they're non-binary or they don't conform with old-school gender roles," Skeen said. "I want people to feel like they can still do what they would normally do. I don't want people to be scared by this bill."Skeen did leave open the possibility that law enforcement could overreach or use it to selectively target marginalized people."People who are trans are targeted, people who are Black and trans are even more targeted,"...

Live: Biden expected to address bipartisan debt ceiling deal

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:51:08 GMT

(NewsNation) — President Joe Biden on Friday will address the debt ceiling deal that he negotiated with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy that sailed through Congress with bipartisan support. The deal will suspend the debt limit for two years, while also putting in new work requirements for older Americans receiving food assistance. It also boosts funding for veterans and defense and approves a natural gas pipeline going from West Virginia to Virginia. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office said the plan cuts the deficit by $1.5 trillion over the next decade. Biden is expected to speak at 7 p.m. EDT from the East Coast. NewsNation will livestream the address here. When will you need to start repaying your student loans? The House passed the debt ceiling bill with more than 300 supporting votes, most of which came from Democrats.But some progressive Democrats and independents are not celebrating. In a tweet, U.S. Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wa...

Texas lawmakers allocated more than $2 billion to increase the state’s water supply, reduce flooding

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:51:08 GMT

AUSTIN (Texas Tribune) — During this year’s legislative session, Texas lawmakers allocated part of the state’s historic $32.7 billion surplus toward better protecting the state against droughts and floods — an investment that followed one of the hottest summers on record and the worst drought in a decade.Climate change has brought higher temperatures to Texas that accelerate evaporation rates from reservoirs and dry soil more quickly, meaning less water flows into rivers and streams. At the same time, rising temperatures and warmer oceans — which increase the amount of water in the air — increase the risk of extreme rainfall in Texas.Significant flooding and extreme rain events are more frequent following droughts, according to the Fourth National Climate Assessment.What did the Legislature change?Texas lawmakers allocated more than $2 billion this year to increase water supplies, fix failing water infrastructure and prevent flooding.One billion dollars of the state’s surplus money ...

What could Texas' largest nurse strike mean for Austin patients?

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:51:08 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN)-- Ascension Seton nurses are poised to walk off the job if they don't come to a contract agreement with the company. The National Nurses Organizing Committee/National Nurses United said its 900 registered nurses at Ascension Seton Medical Center voted to authorize a one-day strike. ‘Largest nurses strike in Texas history’: Ascension Seton nurses vote to authorize strike If that happens, the union group said it would be the first nurses strike in an acute care setting, as well as the largest nurses strike in Texas history."It was time to escalate and to really, you know, drive the point home that we can't wait any longer," registered nurse Lindsay Spinney said. Spinney has been part of negotiations and said they've been meeting with their employer since November, with "little to no progress." She said Ascension needs to increase pay to keep and retain workers. "We're able to have the support staff that we need, we're able to have the supplies that we need-- we just n...

CapMetro Board approves initial Project Connect recommendation

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:51:08 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) – The Capital Metro Board of Directors unanimously approved Friday Austin Transit Partnership’s pick for the first Project Connect rail line, making it one stop closer to being adopted.  The recommendation for the initial light rail system, which runs from 38th Street down south to Oltorf St and southeast to Yellow Jacket Lane, already has the approvals of the ATP Board of Directory and the Austin City Council. This was the last approval needed before the plan will be reviewed and formally adopted in a joint meeting between ATP, CapMetro and the City of Austin on June 6.  MORE: Recommended Project Connect light rail plan unveiled “It's been a long road,” District 7 Council Member Leslie Pool, who sits on the board, said. “This isn't a valedictory because we were at the very beginning, but it is a moment,” Pool continued. Transit officials estimate the rail line will serve just under 30,000 riders daily and will provide access to over 136,000 jobs....

Texas baseball takes down Louisiana to open NCAA Tournament run

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:51:08 GMT

CORAL GABLES, Fla. (KXAN) -- The second-seeded Texas baseball team opened up their NCAA Tournament run with a 4-2 win over Louisiana.The Longhorns took down the Ragin' Cajuns at Mark Light Field on the University of Miami campus after a weather delay of nearly two hours pushed the start time to 2:46 Central Time. The win for Texas marks their fifth-straight regional winning their opening game.Texas ace Lucas Gordon was again masterful on the mound, going seven innings allowing just one run and striking out eight. Zane Morehouse came in for the final two innings allowing the other Louisiana run.The offense came on strong for the Longhorns after Louisiana took a 1-0 lead in the sixth. Texas answered with two runs in the bottom half of the inning for the lead and never looked back.Mitchell Daly blistered a home run to open the scoring in the sixth before Porter Brown gave the burnt orange the lead with an RBI single.Texas added two more runs in the seventh behind a Dylan Campbell RBI d...

Iowa firm will buy bankrupt Windom pork processing plant for $13M; 1,000 jobs still lost for now

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:51:08 GMT

WINDOM, Minn. — An Iowa pork processor has successfully bid $13 million for the shuttered HyLife Foods slaughterhouse in Windom, according to documents filed Friday in U.S. Bankruptcy Court.HyLife filed for bankruptcy protection in April and since then more than 1,000 employees have been unsure about the southwestern Minnesota plant’s future. However, the new owner, Premium Iowa Park, doesn’t plan to retain any of them, HyLife said.Initially, the Delaware-based bankruptcy court was to approve the sale on Friday, but the parties involved were still finalizing documentation, according to Michael Comerford, attorney for HyLife. The sale hearing was rescheduled for June 9.Premium Iowa Pork could not immediately be reached for comment about the results of the May 26 auction.Premium Iowa Pork is based in Hospers, Iowa, with a second facility, Premium Minnesota Pork, in Luverne.“We had a successful buyer for our facility in Windom, subject to court approval,” a spokeswoman for Canadian-bas...