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Citing pay and working conditions, Forest Lake school bus drivers give notice of intent to strike

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 10:31:39 GMT

School bus drivers in Forest Lake could strike as early as May 2 if an agreement with Forest Lake Area School District isn’t reached by then.Citing low wages and long work days, the union that represents the district’s 76 school bus drivers and special education bus aides notified district officials on Friday that they had filed an intent to strike with the state Bureau of Mediation Services. That action triggers an automatic 10-day cooling-off period, which is required under state law.The potential strike would impact students who attend Forest Lake Area Schools, Lakes International Language Academy, North Lakes Academy and St. Peter Catholic School.A Teamsters Local 320 official said Thursday that the school district can’t hire enough bus drivers to fill open slots because pay is 12 percent “under market.” Drivers in the district start at $18.60 an hour; drivers in the Cambridge School District make $25.50 an hour, said Amy Perusse, negotiator and business agent for the union. One...

The relationship of Low’s Alan Sparhawk and Mimi Parker fuels the new doc ‘Cue the Strings’

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 10:31:39 GMT

Duluth trio Low has always been a remarkable and unusual band, so it makes perfect sense that the new documentary “Cue the Strings: A Film About Low” is also both remarkable and unusual.The film is screening Friday and Saturday at Minneapolis’ Main Cinema as part of the Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Festival.As expected, “Cue the Strings” is not a traditional documentary. Instead, it’s a series of Low’s music videos pieced together with concert and backstage footage and other outtakes to create a sort of cinematic tone poem that traces the band’s nearly three-decade career.Local director Phil Harder — who will join Low’s Alan Sparhawk for post-screening Q&A sessions — was able to create the film thanks to a relationship he’s had with the band since the very start.“Cue the Strings” opens with footage from Low’s first music video, for “Words,” which they shot on a frozen Lake Superior with Harder and a 16mm camera. Ha...

Greenfield man pleads guilty to criminal sex act charge

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 10:31:39 GMT

GREENFIELD, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- A Greenfield man accused of sexually assaulting a woman at a Super Bowl party in February has pleaded guilty. Get the latest, news, weather, sports and community events delivered right to your inbox! Charles Semzock, 37, is accused of assaulting a woman in a storage room at a home in Greenfield. Other people at the home forced their way into the storage room to help her.Semzock pleaded guilty to a felony Attempted Criminal Sexual Act charge. He will be sentenced in June.

Hail damage reported in Lincoln County  

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 10:31:39 GMT

TROY, Mo. - Residents living in Troy, Missouri, reported downpours of hail Thursday afternoon.“The neighbors across the street were in their garage watching it, and I couldn’t even see out my front window,” said Taylor Jones, a Troy resident.The Lincoln County Emergency Management Agency was monitoring conditions and reports the damage does not appear to be severe. Top Story: Severe storms possible Thursday afternoon and evening “We had a lot of leaves stuck to vehicles, and homes have had some reports of minor damage to sidings and shingles,” said Adam Stanek, Lincoln County EMA director.He encouraged residents to sign up for the county’s emergency alert system to help be weather prepared.

Thefts prompt 17 states, including Colorado, to urge recall of Kia, Hyundai cars

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 10:31:39 GMT

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Attorneys general in Colorado and 16 states on Thursday urged the federal government to recall millions of Kia and Hyundai cars because they are too easy to steal, a response to a sharp increase in thefts fueled by a viral social media challenge.Some Kia and Hyundai cars sold in the United States over the last decade do not have engine immobilizers, a standard feature on most cars that prevents the engine from starting unless the key is present.Videos circulating on the social media service TikTok have shown how people can start Kia and Hyundai models by using only a screwdriver and a USB cable. In Los Angeles, thefts of Hyundai and Kia cars increased by about 85% in 2022, now accounting for 20% of all car thefts in the city, according to the California attorney general’s office.These social media-inspired thefts have often ended in tragedy, with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration blaming the stolen car trend for 14 reported crashes and eig...

Pasadena man gets 10 years in federal prison for fraudulent EDD card use, meth, weapons possession 

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 10:31:39 GMT

A man from Pasadena was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison on Thursday for using dozens of fraudulently obtained Employment Development Department (EDD) cards to fraudulently withdraw nearly $1 million in cash and for possessing methamphetamine and ammunition. Robert Sloan Mateer, 32, was also ordered to pay $937,173 in restitution. He pleaded guilty to one count of use of unauthorized access devices, one count of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and one count of being a felon in possession of ammunition in November 2022. Mateer, whose criminal history includes a felony conviction for taking a vehicle without consent, was pulled over for a traffic violation in Pasadena with 36-year-old Los Angeles native and co-conspirator Sarah Taylor Brown on Oct. 1, 2020.   Arrests made in $10M Arizona-to-California recycling fraud case Authorities searched Mateer’s Maserati SUV and found approximately 85 grams of methamphetamine, two cell phones with deb...

Major San Bernardino Mountain road under emergency repair due to winter storm

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 10:31:39 GMT

A major mountain road near Lake Arrowhead is undergoing emergency repairs due to severe damages caused by winter storms. Caltrans crews have been working to repair Route 189 between North Bay Road and State Route 173 since April 4. Crews observed large cracks in the pavement along with the retaining wall below being bulged and are working on a layering system repair, according to Emily Leinen with Caltrans District 8. “It is going to be a layering system repair so that means we’re going to be putting down material and then a rock blanket, and then concrete, and we just keep building those layers up,” Leinen said. Caltrans crews are also working to repair guardrail and potholes caused by the storm, which officials say will take time because the ground is still saturated. Local residents are concerned with the damages and potholes and are hoping to see repairs soon. “I’ve seen a couple of crews but we were talking on our way here that we could really...

San Jose math tutor arrested on suspicion of sharing child sexual abuse material online

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 10:31:39 GMT

SAN JOSE — The director of a San Jose math tutoring center has been arrested on suspicion of possessing and distributing child sexual abuse material, authorities said.Deoel Credo Noveno, 30, of San Jose, was arrested April 11, the San Jose Police Department said in a statement Thursday.In September, detectives determined Noveno was in possession of and distributing the material on social media applications as “Zanrath#6659” and “Leothe9th1,” police said.Detectives also learned Noveno was employed as the center director of a Mathnasium in San Jose, where he tutored and had access to young children, police said.Mathnasium, which has locations throughout the Bay Area, offers private math tutoring, according to its website.In addition to arresting Noveno, detectives served a search warrant at his residence, police said. Police did not disclose what, if any, evidence they found at the home.Related ArticlesCrime and Public Safety | Man shot and killed in South San Jose Cri...

Prep basketball: Burlingame boys coach resigns after cancer diagnosis

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 10:31:39 GMT

Longtime Burlingame boys basketball coach Jeff Dowd is stepping away from coaching after being diagnosed with prostate cancer.Dowd, 58, was diagnosed in September but continued to coach. His resignation was first reported by the San Mateo Daily Journal.“I was trying to keep it close since I was trying to figure out how it would affect me,” Dowd told the Bay Area News Group on Thursday. “Before the season I met with a doctor I felt pretty comfortable with and he said ‘We’ll get you through the year, and then we’ll talk.’”Dowd coached Burlingame for 21 seasons over two stints — 1997-2012 and 2018-23 — and led the team to a 393-171 record, 10 league titles and Central Coast Section crowns in 2021 and 2022.Dowd said that after he received his diagnosis, he watched his diet closely while exercising more.“As strange as it seems, I feel great,” Dowd said. “I feel like I’m in some of the best shape of my life.”Dowd said he has experienced an outpouring of support from friends an...

Millbrae 6th grade teacher arrested for allegedly sexually assaulting students

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 10:31:39 GMT

(KRON) -- A teacher at a Millbrae middle school was arrested on Thursday in connection with sexual assault of students, the San Mateo County Sheriff's Office said. Matthew Garrett, 54, is accused of touching young students from 2007 to 2022.Officials were first told of a sexual assault on Feb. 24, 2023. SMCSO deputies responded to the school, located at 850 Taylor Blvd, at about 5 p.m. for the alleged sexual assault of a student. San Jose math tutor arrested for child porn possession After learning about the allegation, Garrett was placed on administrative leave, SMCSO said. An investigation revealed that the assault occurred between November 2021 and March 2022. While the sheriff's office investigated the assault, detectives learned of other juvenile victims. SMCSO said they claimed they were touched inappropriately between 2007 and 2022. Garrett was arrested at his San Francisco home on Thursday. He was booked into the Maguire Correctional Facility on 10 counts of sexually mole...