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Idaho to ban gender-affirming care for transgender youth

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:15:24 GMT

BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Starting next year, anyone in Idaho who provides gender-affirming medical care for transgender youth could end up a convicted felon, after the state’s Republican governor signed legislation banning the treatment late Tuesday.At least one organization has already promised to sue over the new law. The American Civil Liberties Union of Idaho announced Wednesday it was looking for potential plaintiffs for the lawsuit and asked anyone impacted by the legislation to reach out. Idaho is one of at least 13 states to enact a law restricting or banning gender-affirming care for minors, and nearly two dozen more are considering similar bills. Under Idaho’s new law, physicians will face up to 10 years in prison if they provide hormones, puberty blockers or other gender-affirming care to people under age 18. Opponents of the legislation say it will likely increase suicide rates among teens, but proponents say the bill is necessary to “protect children” from medical or s...

Report details ‘staggering’ church sex abuse in Maryland

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:15:24 GMT

BALTIMORE (AP) — More than 150 Catholic priests and others associated with the Archdiocese of Baltimore sexually abused over 600 children over the past 80 years, according to a state report released Wednesday that accused church officials of decades of cover-ups.The report paints a damning picture of the archdiocese, which is the oldest Roman Catholic diocese in the country and spans much of Maryland. Some parishes, schools and congregations had more than one abuser at the same time — including St. Mark Parish in Catonsville, which had 11 abusers living and working there between 1964 and 2004. The Maryland Attorney General’s Office issued the report during Holy Week — considered the most sacred time of year in Christianity ahead of Easter Sunday — and said the number of victims is likely far higher. “The staggering pervasiveness of the abuse itself underscores the culpability of the Church hierarchy,” the report said. “The sheer number of abusers and victims, the depravity of the ab...

Chicago police looking for missing 64-year-old woman

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:15:24 GMT

CHICAGO — Chicago police are asking for help finding a missing 64-year-old woman last seen late Monday night by her husband before he went to bed.Zofia Perkowska is described as being about 5 feet 2 inches tall, weighing about 142 pounds, with gray hair and green eyes. SWAT responds to Trump Tower for domestic-related incident According to information from the Chicago Police Department, her husband last saw her around 10 p.m. Monday in the 5200 block of West Oakdale Avenue before he went to bed.When he woke up around noon on Tuesday, she was gone, Chicago police said. Southwest is letting a friend fly free, but you better hurry Perkowska may have a two-wheel cart with her and can't walk a long distance due to medical conditions, police said. Police said she is frequently in the area of West Diversey Avenue and North Laramie Avenue.Anyone with information is asked to call Area Five SVU detectives at 312-746-6554.

SWAT responds to Trump Tower for domestic-related incident

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:15:24 GMT

CHICAGO — SWAT officers were called to Trump Tower Wednesday for a domestic-related incident.Just after 11:15 a.m. Wednesday, CPD was dispatched to the building, located in the 400 block of North Wabash.Authorities called in SWAT after they believed the incident was domestic-related. Police have since concluded the incident. Firefighter dies after Gold Coast high-rise blaze; second in last 2 days No injuries were reported, but one individual was taken to a local hospital for evaluation.A WGN News crew at the scene said residents were not being allowed back into the building at this time.One individual was taken into custody.WGN News will update this story once more information becomes available.

Sunny, cooler and clear with a mild weekend ahead

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:15:24 GMT

Powerful NON-STORM winds have raked the area amid plunging temps Wednesday afternoon. Gusts have hit 54 mph at Midway and 46 mph at O'Hare. And temps will have tumbled from a 2023 high of 72-deg Wed morning at O'Hare to 49-deg by 6pm.The past two days have seen 1.05" of rain at O'Hare and 0.57" at Midway—but more than 2" of rain has fallen the past several days at Arlington Heights and Riverwoods (2.07").  And t-storm gusts overnight and Wed morning reached 79 mph in Lee County, IL at Compton—and 66 mph at northwest Indiana's Valparaiso.Chillier weather's ahead in coming days—with lows tonight dropping to the low and mid 30s and highs Thursday of 54—a reading several deg below the "normal" high of 55 for this time of year.Winds will turn in off Lake Michigan Friday and Saturday restricting Friday highs to the upper 40s and cooling shoreline areas into Eastern Sunday—but with less impact each day.  While inland highs return to the 60s Saturday, lakeshore air temps are likely to be cl...

Hyde Park girls boxing program looks to change perceptions

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:15:24 GMT

CHICAGO -- Girls are fighting outdated stereotypes, poor self confidence and preconceived ideas with a right hook at Saint Thomas School in Hyde Park."I just want every girl to know how much strength and power she has inside herself," says Box United Founder, Mary Kate Vanecko.Vanecko founded Box United in 2019, the only all girls boxing program in Chicago."Anytime someone looks at a young girl boxing really well it can instantly transform or change perceptions about what you think is possible in terms of how strong girls are or what you think girls can do," says Vanecko. ‘Let’s show them’: Elmhurst mother starts sports program for special needs children More than 350 girls have found new inner strength through the ten week boxing program, finding their power and voice through a set of pink gloves.A two punch approach, teaching fundamentals, followed by a second hit of self love. The second half of every session is dedicated to building mental health and wellness, through confiden...

Novel treatment shows promise against rare cancer in kids, researchers say

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:15:24 GMT

(AP) - A novel treatment using supercharged immune cells appears to work against tumors in children with a rare kind of cancer, researchers reported Wednesday.Nine of 27 children in the Italian study had no sign of cancer six weeks after the treatment, although two later relapsed and died.The treatment — called CAR-T cell therapy — is already used to help the immune system fight leukemia and other cancers in the blood. This is the first time researchers have achieved such encouraging results in solid tumors, experts in the field said, and raises hopes that it can be used against other kinds of cancers.It’s too soon to call it a cure for neuroblastoma, a nerve tissue cancer that often starts in infancy in the adrenal glands near the kidneys in the abdomen. After cancer scare, Hugh Jackman urges fans to use sunscreen Standard treatment can be intense, involving chemotherapy, surgery and radiation, depending on the cancer’s stage and other factors. The children in the study had cance...

Woman killed after pushing climber away from falling ice column in Utah

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:15:24 GMT

DUCHESNE COUNTY, Utah (KTVX) – A 40-year-old woman is dead after pushing a fellow climber out of the way of a massive, falling ice column in Utah. The woman, identified as Margrett O'Neill of Salt Lake City, was attempting to scale Raven Falls near Indian Canyon in northeastern Utah on Sunday with two other climbers, according to the Duchesne County Sheriff's Office.As they were climbing, authorities say the ice column fractured and began falling toward the group."One climber pushed their fellow female climber, age 21, out of the way, which probably saved her life," the sheriff's office explained. Cruise passenger falls off balcony, dies after ship leaves Florida O'Neill then became trapped under two blocks of ice while a third climber, a 34-year-old man, fell roughly 40 feet down the icy edge. The 21-year-old woman was able to climb down and contact emergency crews. Authorities were able to find the man, who suffered serious injuries, and airlift him to an area hospital. Initial...

Liberty Hill ISD school apologizes to parents after misinformation about gun threat

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:15:24 GMT

Editor’s Note: The video above shows KXAN News Today’s top headlines for April 5, 2023.LIBERTY HILL, Texas (KXAN) — A Liberty Hill ISD elementary school apologized to parents in a letter after a student's "inappropriate" comment led to misinformation, according to a letter from the school.A student at Santa Rita Elementary School told a student there was a gun in their backpack, and the letter said the student then told a teacher.After a three-hour investigation involving Liberty Hill ISD police, the student did not have a gun or access to a gun at home, the letter said. Furthermore, the school said, "at no time did this student threaten to harm anyone.""We apologize that the lack of communication in this incident led to misinformation and created concern for the SRE community," the letter said.To read the letter in full, see the document below:Santa Rita ES Statement 04.05.2023_1680726643DownloadThe student was then turned over to the administration to work with the child's parent...

Do you know where your home's safe place is during severe weather?

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:15:24 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Central Texas' severe weather season is here. From March to early June is the time this area sees the majority of its severe thunderstorms. April 5, 2023, has been set aside as the day for you and your family to review or develop a plan of where to go in your home if one of our KXAN First Warning Weather meteorologists comes on the air to say a tornado is affecting your hometown or neighborhood. The National Weather Service in tandem with Weather-Radio Nation is asking you to be a part of Wednesday's call to action by taking a selfie in your safe place and posting it. It's called a Safe Place Selfie. Take a picture of you or your family in the safest part of your home and send it NWS by using the hashtag #SafePlaceSelfie.Using the hashtag lets you join in the conversation and show others that important safe place.On this day, Kristen Currie, Sean Kelly, Weather Producer Eric Henrikson and I found our safe space at the KXAN studios. And, lucky for us, we don't have f...