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Ukraine soccer league set for a title-deciding game in a remarkable, war-hit season

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 06:55:03 GMT

GENEVA (AP) — Two soccer teams exiled from cities in war-battered eastern Ukraine play each other Sunday in the safer western part of the country with the league title at stake.The showdown between competition leader Shakhtar Donetsk and second-place Dnipro-1 at Arena Lviv can be decisive in a soccer season that is finishing on schedule in remarkable circumstances. The stadium was one of four in Ukraine, including Shakhtar’s home in Donetsk, secure enough in 2012 from Russian aggression to co-host that year’s European Championship with Poland.Shakhtar leads by five points and needs just a draw this weekend to secure the title ahead of the last scheduled round on June 4.“I think it will maybe be one of our best matches ever,” Ukrainian league chief executive Ievgen Dykyi told The Associated Press this week in a call from Kyiv. “Because the situation now is really hard and all the players understand about this.”In Dnipro on Friday, the Russian military struck a medical cli...

As Elizabeth Holmes heads to prison for fraud, questions remain about her motives

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 06:55:03 GMT

SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) — As Elizabeth Holmes prepares to report to prison next week, the criminal case that laid bare the blood-testing scam at the heart of her Theranos startup is entering its final phase.The 11-year sentence represents a comeuppance for the wide-eyed woman who broke through “tech bro” culture to become one of Silicon Valley’s most celebrated entrepreneurs, only to be exposed as a fraud. Along the way, Holmes became a symbol of the shameless hyperbole that often saturates startup culture.But questions still linger about her true intentions — so many that even the federal judge who presided over her trial seemed mystified. And Holmes’ defenders continue to ask whether the punishment fits the crime.At 39, she seems most likely to be remembered as Silicon Valley’s Icarus — a high-flying entrepreneur burning with reckless ambition whose odyssey culminated in convictions for fraud and conspiracy.Her motives are still somewhat mysterious, and some supporters say fed...

Texas’ GOP-held House set for impeachment proceedings against Attorney General Ken Paxton

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 06:55:03 GMT

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Texas’ GOP-led House of Representatives was set to hold historic impeachment proceedings against Attorney General Ken Paxton on Saturday as the scandal-plagued Republican called on supporters to protest a vote that could lead to his ouster. The House scheduled an afternoon start for debate on whether to impeach and suspend Paxton from office over allegations of bribery, unfitness for office and abuse of public trust — just some of the accusations that have trailed Texas’ top lawyer for most of his three terms. The hearing sets up what could be a remarkably sudden downfall for one of the GOP’s most prominent legal combatants, who in 2020 asked the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn Joe Biden’s electoral defeat of President Donald Trump. Only two officials in Texas’ nearly 200-year history have been impeached. Paxton, 60, has called the impeachment proceedings “political theater” based on “hearsay and gossip, parroting long-disproven claims,” and an attemp...

A growing number of LGBTQ+ Russians seek refuge from war, discrimination in Argentina

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 06:55:03 GMT

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) — Anastasia Domini and wife Anna Domini walked hand in hand on a recent sunny day in Argentina’s capital while their four restless children played nearby.It’s a common sight in a country where same-sex marriage has been legal for more than a decade. But the couple, who got married shortly after arriving in Buenos Aires early last year, still remember the fear they felt when they first decided to hold hands in public after leaving Russia, which explicitly outlawed same-sex marriages in 2020.“It was really scary,” Anastasia Domini said, but “we were looking around and really, really nobody was looking.”For the Dominis, who changed their last names so they could more convincingly pretend to be sisters in Russia, the stroll exemplified how much their lives had changed since they moved, joining an increasing number of LGBTQ+ Russians who decided to leave their homeland and settle in Argentina to escape discrimination and the war with Ukraine.Over the pa...

3 robbery suspects arrested after pursuit, standoff in La Verne

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 06:55:03 GMT

Three robbery suspects were arrested after leading officers on a pursuit and barricading inside a home in La Verne on Wednesday.The suspects were identified as Anissa Virgen, 19, Erica Mireles, 29, and Victor Hugo Benitez, 30, according to the Glendora Police Department.Police responded to reports of the trio stealing from a Kohl’s store in Glendora where Benitez was allegedly taunting an employee while armed with brass knuckles and a taser.When officers arrived, the suspects fled the scene in a stolen vehicle, leading police on a pursuit that ended in La Verne.All three suspects jumped out of the vehicle and ran off into a neighborhood, police said. The two female suspects entered a nearby home and hid inside a closet while the homeowner was present.The male suspect, Benitez, jumped the fences of several homes before entering a residence while the homeowner was also inside.Two female suspects entering a victim's home arrested after leading officers on a pursuit in La Verne on May 2...

NCS softball playoffs: How California captured its first section title – ‘This was our year to be great’

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 06:55:03 GMT

MORAGA – Though gold medals were draped around their necks, the California softball team’s attention wasn’t focused on the hardware they had earned after defeating San Ramon Valley 5-1 in the North Coast Section Division I title game. Instead, they looked and listened to coach Tony Bari, who told the underclassmen to cherish the school’s first section championship. “Freshmen, this doesn’t happen every year,” Bari declared in a postgame speech. Alyssa Villarde, among the many circled around Bari in the Saint Mary’s College outfield, was a senior who appreciated the message. “It means a lot, because all of us seniors started with the COVID year so it was hard from the get-go,” Villarde said. “I’m super-excited, because it’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. We’d never even been this far.”MORAGA – California players Shayla Santolucito (left) and Kaitlyn Le (right) embrace as the San Ramon Valley players watch from the dugout. San Ramon Valley and California played in an NCS...

Oakland A’s struggles: When’s the last time an MLB team has started this poorly?

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 06:55:03 GMT

OAKLAND – Oakland A’s right-hander James Kaprielian hasn’t experienced anything like this before. He’s pretty sure none of his teammates have, either.In fact, for well over a century, no player on a Major League team has lost on such a consistent basis as the A’s have this season.Thanks in part to their own miscues and some misfortune, the A’s allowed four runs in the third inning and lost 5-2 to the Houston Astros on Friday before a postgame fireworks-influenced crowd of 13,345 at the Coliseum.At 10-43, the A’s, now on a season-high nine-game losing streak, have the second-worst record of any big-league team since 1900, only ahead of the 1904 Washington Senators, who were 9-41 after 53 games (with three games called with the score tied).“This is a challenge. I mean, this is tough,” said Kaprielian, now 0-5 this season. “I’ve never gone through something like this. I don’t think anyone has. We’re historically losing games r...

Man arrested in connection with SF homicide

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 06:55:03 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) -- A man was arrested on Thursday in connection with an April San Francisco homicide, the San Francisco Police Department said. Anthony Timmons, 23, was taken into custody blocks away from where the homicide was committed. Woman working for Alameda County juvenile center accused of sex acts with teen The killing happened on the 200 block of Golden Gate Avenue at about 1 p.m. on April 1. SFPD responded to the report of a shooting and found a 52-year-old man with gunshot wounds. He later succumbed to his injuries.SFPD's homicide unit identified Timmons as the suspect. He was recognized by an officer in the area of Jones Street and Market Street at about 3 p.m. After a brief pursuit, he was arrested. According to SFPD, a search of Timmons revealed drugs and a loaded gun with an extended magazine.KRON ON is streaming news live now.embed-container { position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%; height: 0; overflow: hidden; max-width: 100%; } .embed-container iframe, ...

Della Donne lifts Mystics past Sky; Ogunbowale leads Wings over Storm

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 06:55:03 GMT

CHICAGO (AP) — Elena Delle Donne scored 25 points, including a late go-ahead 3-pointer, Shakira Austin had 15 points and 11 rebounds and the Washington Mystics beat the Chicago Sky 71-69 on Friday night.Ariel Atkins rebounded her own miss and found Delle Donne open for a 3 with 22.4 to play. Kahleah Copper drove into the lane and was fouled before making 1 of 2 free throws with 10.4 left to get Chicago within 69-67. But Atkins sealed it by making two free throws for a four-point lead.Natasha Cloud had a team-high seven assists for Washington (2-2), which forced Chicago into 21 turnovers.Marina Mabrey led Chicago (2-1) with 19 points. Courtney Williams had 13 points, nine rebounds and five assists and Copper scored 12.Chicago forward Morgan Bertsch left late in the first half after landing awkwardly following a blocked shot and did not return. Rebekah Gardner also had to be helped off the court with 38.1 seconds left in the fourth quarter.WINGS 95, STORM 91SEATTLE (AP) — Arike Ogunbo...

McCutchen sparks record-tying home run barrage as Pirates sink Mariners 11-6

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 06:55:03 GMT

SEATTLE (AP) — Andrew McCutchen hit the 21st leadoff homer of his career, the first of four home runs off Seattle starter George Kirby, and the Pittsburgh Pirates matched a franchise record with seven long balls on their way to an 11-6 win over the Mariners on Friday night.The seven home runs more than doubled Pittsburgh’s previous high for a game this season (three) and marked the third time since 1901 the Pirates hit seven in a game. They previously did it in 2003 and 1947, both against St. Louis.McCutchen’s towering drive on the second pitch of the game was his eighth of the season and just the beginning for the Pirates. Jack Suwinski had his second multi-homer game of the season, with a two-out, two-run shot to center field off Kirby in the fifth inning and a long solo homer to right in the seventh.Bryan Reynolds finished with four RBIs including a two-run triple, an RBI single and his seventh homer all in his final three at-bats.Carlos Santana, a key piece of Seattle’s playoff ...