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Cheers and tears as Karen and Nepali store replaces troubled St. Paul strip club

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:34:21 GMT

In a celebration full of cheers and tears, a ribbon cutting was held Saturday for the opening of a new Karen and Nepali grocery store in the former location of the controversial Lamplighter Lounge strip club.The owners spent months renovating the space at 160 Larpenteur Avenue West in St. Paul.The Lamplighter Lounge was St. Paul’s only strip club and was ground zero for a number of shootings including the June 2020 murder of Nia Black, a 23-year-old cosmetologist who was shot outside the club.A year ago, the St. Paul City Council sought to close down the club, holding an emotional public impact session to gauge how the nightclub has affected neighborhood residents. However, the council did not have the authority to do so and was legally required to renew its liquor license.In March 2022, the city said it they would cancel the strip club’s licenses. Shortly after, the business closed permanently.Kim O’Brien, executive director of the Rice & Larpenteur Alliance, called...

Tulip Fest crowns the new 2023 Tulip Queen

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:34:21 GMT

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) — Since 1949, the Tulip Festival has also included the tradition of crowning the Tulip Queen. The five 2023 Tulip Queen finalists were part of a reception...the final step in the judging process. And then, on Saturday, it was announced that the new 2023 Tulip Queen is Olivia Owens.Owens was among the dozens of hopefuls nominated for the crown based on their volunteer service and leadership skills. Her mother says she is very grateful that her daughter was a part of the whole experience. Get the latest, news, weather, sports and community events delivered right to your inbox! “It’s an honor that someone would recognize her and her recognize her accomplishments,” Vanessa Owens said. “And I think she looks forward to the opportunities to give back to the community that has been her village for so long.”Olivia is an Eagle Point Elementary School alumni, and she says she is excited to give back to the community she was raised in.“I’m just in awe,” she said. “To be...

Driver, passenger shot overnight on I-70 in St. Louis

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:34:21 GMT

ST. LOUIS - A gunman shot a driver and a passenger on Interstate 70 overnight in St. Louis. One woman shot suffered critical injuries. The shooting happened just before 2 a.m. Saturday in the eastbound lanes of I-70 near Salisbury Street. Investigators say the victims, a 36-year-old man and a 35-year-old woman, were in a car when another driver suddenly drove in front of them. Moments later, one passenger in that vehicle began shooting at the victims' car. I-64 open after massive flooding from a main break The suspect vehicle then sped away from the victims. The two people shot then rerouted and stopped near Halls Ferry Road and Lucas-Hunt Road in north St. Louis County. The St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department says the woman suffered multiple gunshot wounds to her abdomen and one to her arm. The man suffered gunshot wounds to his right arm and torso. Both are being treated for their injuries. This is a developing story. FOX 2 will update as more information becomes available.

Don Denkinger, umpire whose career was overshadowed by blown Cardinals call, dead at 86

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:34:21 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Don Denkinger, a major league umpire for three decades whose blown call in the 1985 World Series overshadowed a career of excellence, died Friday. He was 86.Denkinger died at Cedar Valley Hospice in Waterloo, Iowa, Denise Hanson, one of his three daughters, said.Denkinger joined the American League staff in 1969. He worked four World Series over three decades in the big leagues but was remembered most for a call he didn't get right.St. Louis had a 3-2 Series lead over Kansas City and was ahead 1-0 in the bottom of the ninth inning of Game 6, three outs from the title, when pinch-hitter Jorge Orta led off with a slow bouncer to the right side. First baseman Jack Clark ranged to field the ball and flipped a sidearm toss to reliever Todd Worrell covering the bag.Denkinger signaled safe but replays showed Worrell caught the throw on the base ahead of the runner. After Steve Balboni's single, a bunt, a passed ball and an intentional walk, pinch-hitter Dane Iorg looped a t...

Zelenskyy meets Pope Francis at Vatican and seeks backing for Ukraine’s peace plan

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:34:21 GMT

By FRANCES D’EMILIO (Associated Press)ROME (AP) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had private talks with Pope Francis at the Vatican on Saturday, later saying he sought support for his peace plan from the pontiff, who in the past has offered to try to help end the full-scale war launched by Russia a year ago.Zelenskyy held his hand over his heart and said it was a “great honor” to meet with the pope. Francis, using a cane for his knee problem, came to greet the Ukrainian president before ushering him into a papal studio near the Vatican’s audience hall. In a tweet after the 40-minute audience, Zelenskyy expressed gratitude to Francis for “his personal attention to the tragedy of millions of Ukrainians.” He said he spoke with the pontiff “about the tens of thousands of deported (Ukrainian) children. We must make every effort to return them home.” Last month, Ukraine’s prime minister, Denys Shmyhal, asked the pope to ...

Driver in wrong-way crash in Aurora dies at hospital police investigation is ongoing

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:34:21 GMT

A driver died after a wrong-way crash in Aurora early Saturday, police said.The crash happened about 4:30 a.m. in the Laredo Highline area on North Airport Boulevard just south of East Colfax Avenue, the Aurora Police Department said in a news release.The driver of a black 2011 Smart car was northbound in the southbound lanes of Airport Boulevard when the vehicle collided with a gray 2014 Subaru Outback, police said.Both drivers were taken to a hospital, police said. The driver of the Smart car suffered fatal injuries and the driver of the Subaru was treated for minor injuries.An investigation is ongoing, police suspect DUI contributed to the crash. The name of the driver who died will be released by the Arapahoe County Corner’s Office after family is notified.Anyone who witnessed the crash, or who has dash camera footage of the incident, and has not yet talked with police is asked to call Metro Denver Crime Stoppers at 720-913-7867 (STOP).Saturday’s incident is the 20th...

DeSantis vies with Trump to sway Iowa conservatives, warns of a Republican ‘culture of losing’

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:34:21 GMT

By THOMAS BEAUMONT and MICHELLE L. PRICE (Associated Press)SIOUX CENTER, Iowa (AP) — Warning of a Republican “culture of losing,” Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis sought on Saturday to weaken former President Donald Trump’s grip on the GOP as the party’s leading presidential prospects collided in battleground Iowa.DeSantis, expected to announce his 2024 presidential campaign any day, made little effort to connect with voters one-on-one at a picnic fundraiser in Sioux Center as several hundred conservatives ate hamburgers. He focused instead on a formal speech promoting his willingness to embrace conservative cultural fights and sprinkled his remarks with indirect jabs at Trump.“Governing is not about entertaining. Governing is not about building a brand or talking on social media and virtue signaling,” said DeSantis, who wore a blue button-down shirt without a tie or jacket. “It’s ultimately about winning and producing results.”Tr...

Feds using hidden cameras in effort to nab San Francisco drug dealers

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:34:21 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO — In their endless bid to stop drug dealing in the city’s Tenderloin neighborhood, authorities have added a new layer to the formula of sending undercover cops to buy drugs from whoever’s willing to sell: planting hidden cameras at the scene.Now, federal prosecutors are marching into court equipped with videos allegedly showing defendants selling drugs to undercover San Francisco police officers. In one case, the camera was planted literally right under the suspected dealer’s nose, as he counted out cash and handed an undercover officer a bag of methamphetamine.On March 8, an undercover officer arranged to buy 57 grams of methamphetamine from a man named Henry Alvarado for $500, prosecutors allege. The officer drove up to the meeting spot at Van Ness Avenue and Ellis Street in San Francisco, and invited Alvarado into his car. Video situated just below the passenger seat recorded everything, and police repeated the trick twice more that month in ...

Abortion fight: North Carolina governor vetoes 12-week limit, launches override showdown

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:34:21 GMT

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — In front of an exuberant crowd, North Carolina’s Democratic governor vetoed legislation Saturday that would have banned nearly all abortions in his state after 12 weeks of pregnancy.About 1,000 abortion-rights activists and voters watched on a plaza in the capital of Raleigh as Gov. Roy Cooper affixed his veto stamp to the bill in an unconventionally public display. The veto launches a major test for leaders of the GOP-controlled General Assembly to attempt an override vote after they recently gained veto-proof majorities in both chambers. The bill was the Republican response to last year’s U.S. Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade.“We’re going to have to kick it into an even higher gear when that veto stamp comes down,” Cooper told the crowd. “If just one Republican in either the House or the Senate keeps a campaign promise to protect women’s reproductive health, we can stop this ban.”Andrea Long, a 42-y...

Islamic Jihad leader tells Egyptian TV station that cease-fire with Israel has been reached

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:34:21 GMT

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) — Islamic Jihad leader tells Egyptian TV station that cease-fire with Israel has been reached.Source