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Opinion: I got an up-close view of how one city struggled to address homelessness

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:32:00 GMT

Editor’s Note: This article was written for Mosaic Vision, an independent journalism training program for high school students who report and photograph stories under the guidance of professional journalists.When the city of Santa Clara proposed its plan to build interim housing for unhoused people at Benton Street and Lawrence Expressway, I saw it as a major step toward combating homelessness in our county.But while the city and its partner, Santa Clara County, touted the move as a possible solution, many neighbors had significant objections to the plan.Throughout five months of community review, opponents assailed what they saw as poor planning and later expressed concerns over costs. Neighbors seized on those arguments and their objections prolonged the process —leaving people unsheltered.As an average student rarely involved in local politics, I was first intrigued by the shelter’s proposal but was caught off guard by the growing anger expressed at each meeting. At one point, I ...

Cinequest 2023: Here are 12 films to see at San Jose festival

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:32:00 GMT

Get ready for your closeup once again, Cinequest.In-person screenings of what’s been hailed as one of the best film festivals in the nation resume this month, a first since 2020 when the fest had to shut down midway through due to COVID-19 restrictions. And although the SAG-AFTRA strike is still going on, organizers say it is not affecting the Cinequest schedule,This year’s lineup features numerous world premieres, guest appearances, meet-ups and more And from what we’ve seen, it promises to be one of the best programs yet.The festival kicks off with a killer opening night feature on Aug. 15 in San Jose and closes — also on a high note — on Aug. 30.There are 253 films to pick from, 82 of which are world or U.S. premieres. While most are in San Jose, some screenings will also be held at the swanky Mountain View Showplace ICON Theatre.To get you started, we’ve come up with a dozen films you should mark on your calendars.For tickets, passes and more in the lineup, visit cin...

Alleged Los Angeles street racers charged with murder in young musician’s death

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:32:00 GMT

Two men thought to have been street racing were charged with murder in the hit-and-run death of a 20-year-old pedestrian in Los Angeles, police said Thursday.A car fatally struck Anna Michelle Solis around 10:20 p.m. on July 21 as she was crossing Hill Street near 33rd Street, about four blocks from the University of Southern California campusWitnesses said the car that struck her, a Jaguar, was apparently racing a Dodge Challenger on Hill Street. One car reportedly stopped briefly after the crash, then both fled.Solis was pronounced dead at the scene. A police detective said at a news conference Thursday that she had just performed at a nearby music venue and was carrying her guitar and amplifier.Two men were arrested last week: the Jaguar’s alleged driver, a Palmdale man, on Aug. 3, and the Dodge’s alleged driver, a Los Angeles man, on Aug. 4. The cars were impounded as evidence.Both men face murder charges, and the Palmdale man faces an additional felony hit-and-run c...

California judge charged with wife’s murder; 47 weapons seized at his home

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:32:00 GMT

An Orange County Superior Court judge was charged on Friday, Aug. 11, with murder eight days after he was arrested on suspicion of killing his wife at their Anaheim Hills home.Judge Jeffrey Ferguson — formerly a longtime OC prosecutor and currently an elected judge — is facing a first-degree murder charge, along with two firearm-related sentencing enhancements for the Aug. 3 shooting of his wife, Sheryl Ferguson.A Glock .40 was used in the killing, which “involved domestic violence,” according the criminal complaint. Earlier that evening, the judge is accused of “making a hand gesture indicative of pointing a gun” at his wife, according to the filing.Ferguson’s attorneys Paul Meyer and John Barnett issued a joint statement saying that murder charges were unwarranted.“This is a tragedy for the entire Ferguson family,” they said. “It was an accident and nothing more.”The judge was arrested the night of the shooting after officers found his wife fatally shot inside the couple’s two-sto...

Remains of missing Belmont man found nearly 4 years after reported missing

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:32:00 GMT

(KRON) -- The remains of an elderly Belmont man have been found nearly four years after he was reported missing. Back in Aug. 2019, Paul Farmer left his home in Belmont for an evening walk. The then 84-year-old, who suffered from memory loss, was reported missing after he failed to return home.Several agencies searched areas across Belmont and San Mateo County but could not locate him. Over the course of three years, multiple searches were conducted and dozens of tips were investigated, police said. 3 bodies found in Danville house; murder-suicide suspected In 2023, Farmer’s identification card was found in March in a waterway in lower San Mateo which was later reported to the department in May. This discovery led Belmont Police investigators to an area south of Highway 92 near Hillsdale Boulevard, Belmont police said.On June 25, police discovered human remains after a search through a hillside and dense brush. The remains were discovered to be that of Paul Farmer, according to t...

Disney's 'San Fransokyo Square' will open as mashup between SF and Tokyo

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:32:00 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) -- There's a new theme land coming to Disney's California Adventure Park this month that's been envisioned as a futuristic mashup of San Francisco and Tokyo. "San Fransokyo Square," which opens on Aug. 31 is inspired by the 2014 Disney Animation Studios feature, "Big Hero 6."The film is set in the fictional futuristic city of San Fransokyo and is about a robotics prodigy and his friend, an inflatable "healthcare robot" named Baymax. The theme land is described as a "vibrant, diverse locale full of neighborhood restaurants and small businesses -- home to Big Hero 6!" Regulators approve expansion of SF driverless car service "This bustling seaside plaza will continue its transformation as the San Fransokyo Public Works Department brings this area to life," the San Fransokyo section of the Disneyland website says.Baymax, "the huggable healthcare robot" will be one of the characters that populates the area, along with "boy genius Hiro Hamada," the main character i...

Prosecutors say California judge charged in wife’s killing had dozens of weapons

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:32:00 GMT

SANTA ANA, Calif. (AP) — A Southern California judge was charged Friday with murder in the shooting death of his wife and 47 weapons were seized from the house, authorities said.Orange County Superior Court Judge Jeffrey Ferguson, 72, was arrested last week after his adult son called 911 to report his mother, Sheryl Ferguson, had been shot at the family’s home in the upscale neighborhood of Anaheim Hills, the district attorney’s office said in a statement. He was released a day later on $1 million bail. Now prosecutors are requesting a hearing to impose additional bail conditions on Ferguson because authorities recovered 47 weapons and more than 26,000 rounds of ammunition during a search of his home. A rifle registered in his name is not accounted for, the statement said. They want Ferguson to surrender his passport and wear an ankle monitor.Source

St. Louis activists praise Biden’s support for compensation over Manhattan Project contamination

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:32:00 GMT

ST. LOUIS (AP) — St. Louis-area activists have been fighting for years to get government compensation for people with cancer and other serious illnesses potentially connected to Manhattan Project nuclear contamination. This week marked a major victory, with support coming from the president.Uranium was processed in St. Louis starting at the onset of World War II as America raced to develop nuclear bombs. In July, reporting as part of an ongoing collaboration between The Missouri Independent, the nonprofit newsroom MuckRock and The Associated Press cited thousands of pages of documents indicating decades of nonchalance and indifference for the risks posed by uranium contamination. The government documents were obtained by outside researchers through the Freedom of Information Act and shared with the news organizations.Since the news reports, bipartisan support has emerged to compensate those in St. Louis and elsewhere whose illnesses may be tied to nuclear fallout and contamination. ...

Funeral held for fan killed in Athens attack. UEFA President Ceferin to meet Greek PM

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:32:00 GMT

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — A funeral service was held Friday for a Greek soccer fan killed in an attack led by Croatian supporters that has rattled European sporting officials.Hundreds of mourners — many wearing the black and yellow colors of the Michalis Katsouris’ team, AEK Athens — gathered outside a church Elefsina, 25 kilometers (15 miles) west of Athens, clapping as his white casket was carried past them.The 29-year-old AEK fan died from a stab wound, and 10 others were injured when scores of Croatian supporters wielding wooden clubs and metal bats attacked bystanders outside AEK’s Opap Arena on Monday, police said.A Champions League qualifier between AEK and Dinamo Zagreb that was due to be held hours later was called off by UEFA, soccer’s governing body in Europe.UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin will visit Greece next week and plans to meet on Wednesday with Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and the head of the Greek Football Federation, Panagiotis Baltakos.Representative...

Greece safely evacuates dozens of migrants from a sailboat off the southern coast

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:32:00 GMT

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Greek authorities said Friday they safely evacuated dozens of migrants from a sailboat reported in trouble off the southern coast of Greece, amid a rise in migration to the Mediterranean country.The coast guard said all the people on board, estimated at up to 70, were transferred to a patrol boat in international waters southwest of the Peloponnese region, and were being taken to the port of Katakolo.The evacuation followed a large search and rescue operation involving three coast guard patrol and rescue boats, a navy ship, aircraft and four merchant vessels, a coast guard statement said.It was launched after Greek maritime authorities received an alarm message early Friday reporting a boat in danger some 70 kilometers (40 miles) southwest of the port of Pylos in the Peloponnese.The coast guard said the migrants’ boat was not letting in water or otherwise in danger, as had been initially reported.The incident occurred near the site of a maritime tragedy i...