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Former Northwestern athletic director Jim Phillips speaks out amid hazing scandal

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:22:41 GMT

GREENSBORO, N.C. — A former Northwestern athletic director is speaking out for the first time after a hazing scandal continues to play out where he worked for 13 years.Jim Phillips, the current commissioner of the Atlantic Coast Conference, released a statement on Wednesday after he was named in a lawsuit being brought by a former Wildcats football player on Tuesday. This comes as the school continues to deal with the fallout of the allegations of hazing in that program along with accusations of mistreatment in other sports. This led to the ouster of longtime football head coach Pat Fitzgerald, baseball coach Jim Foster, and the filing of lawsuits by former players against Northwestern while others have retained the services of attorneys for possible litigation. Ben Crump, former Northwestern players discuss hazing allegations Here is Phillips' statement through the ACC's media relations."This has been a difficult time for the Northwestern University community, a place that my ent...

'Be nice to each other:' 7 residents of a suburban senior living home offer advice on living 100 years

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:22:41 GMT

WHEELING, Ill. — At Villa Addolarata in northwest suburban Wheeling, seven residents have lived a century.Some, like Cecilia Pedtke, have even surpassed it. She’s 106-years-old.The centenarians were recently honored during a celebratory mass.Peter Lococo attributes “good genes” for his 100 year run.“And being lucky,” he said. “I went through WWII and North Africa and South Pacific and never heard a shot fired.”“And I’m Irish and I never tell my age,” Laverne Washburne said.   At 101-years-old, she makes her own rules.“Sometimes I think, ‘Gee whiz, Lord what else am I going to have to face in my life?’” Clara Antram, 100, said.But what the collective group does know is an honest answer to what it feels like to live so long.“It’s rather boring to be honest with you it’s the same routine every day,” Lococo said.“It feels great,” Stephanie Ziemba, 100, said. “I have my faculties. I’m not in diapers.” Related: At 109, education pioneer Edith Renfrow reflects on ‘The greatest ...

Democrats push legislation for Supreme Court ethics

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:22:41 GMT

WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) — Democrats are pushing for a more stringent ethics code at the Supreme Court after recent reports highlighted questionable ties between some justices and donors.Democrats are advancing efforts to beef up oversight at the Supreme Court."This legislation will be a crucial first step for restoring confidence in the court,” said Sen. Dick Durbin, D-IL.Durbin said ethics reforms are needed after reports revealed conservative justice Clarence Thomas and others failed to disclose gifts and dealings with donors. Rhode Island Democratic Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse said Congress has an obligation to step in."This can't go on," said Whitehouse. "Because the highest court in the land has the lowest standard of ethics anywhere in the federal government.”The bill would require Supreme Court justices to adopt a code of conduct and create new methods to investigate alleged violations. Senate committee approves a bill to impose stronger ethics standards on Supreme Court just...

Daughter of retired MLS player dead after being thrown from boat

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:22:41 GMT

HORRY COUNTY, S.C. (WBTW) - The daughter of a retired professional soccer player is dead following a boating accident in South Carolina, her family has confirmed. Olivia Knighton, 11, of Massachusetts was among nine people thrown overboard when their 23-foot boat was hit by a large wake from another boat on the Intracoastal Waterway Wednesday, according to the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources. There were 12 people on the boat at the time, and no one else was hurt.Knighton was hit by the propeller after being thrown overboard, the DNR said. She died at a local hospital after the incident, according to Horry County Fire Rescue."We are in the process of a detailed inquiry that includes collecting witness statements, examining the boat and working to develop a complete picture of what happened," the DNR said. "Our thoughts are with the child’s family and loved ones." Former NFL quarterback Ryan Mallett dies in apparent drowning in Florida Brad Knighton, a former goalie f...

Delayed flight strands passengers at NYC airport for 30 hours: 'It's been a circus'

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:22:41 GMT

NEW YORK (WPIX) – A delayed flight caused Hawaiian Airlines passengers to be stranded at JFK Airport for more than a day, according to two sources at the airport on Wednesday. Jeff White told Nexstar's WPIX that he and his fellow passengers were stuck at John F. Kennedy International Airport for more than 33 hours. ‘This is not American’: Sheryl Crow responds to Jason Aldean’s controversial song “It’s been a circus,” White said. “There are small children … elderly people, and mothers with newborns who were unable to retrieve their baggage due to this delayed flight.” White said he and fellow passengers have been shuffled between gate 18B and A9. He also claimed the only compensation they received was a $12 food voucher. White said the airline would not give passengers their luggage back so they could get on the next flight to Hawaii and would not exchange the tickets for another company.Passengers were told the cause of the delay was a problem with the aircraft involving...

Big 12 basketball: Texas men play Houston twice, women take on Iowa State once in 2023-24

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:22:41 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — As the Texas Longhorns embark on their final season as members of the Big 12 Conference, conference officials announced the breakdown of conference games for both men's and women's basketball on Thursday.No times or dates have been announced, but both Texas programs know who they'll play twice plus the team they'll play only once during the conference season.MORE THAN THE SCORE: Stay up to date on sports stories like these, and sign up for our More than the Score sports newsletter at kxan.com/newslettersWith 14 teams in the Big 12 this year before the Longhorns and Oklahoma depart for the Southeastern Conference, Texas will play five teams twice and the other eight once for 18 conference games.Texas men's Big 12 opponentsHome-and-away: Baylor, Houston, Oklahoma, Texas Tech, West VirginiaHome only: UCF, Iowa State, Kansas State, Oklahoma StateAway only: BYU, Cincinnati, Kansas, TCUTexas women's Big 12 opponentsHome-and-away: Baylor, Oklahoma, Kansas State, TCU, Texas ...

Austin enacts new speed zones near 3 school campuses

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:22:41 GMT

Editor's Note: The video above shows KXAN Live’s top headlines for July 20, 2023AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Austin City Council voted Thursday to reduce speed limits and enact new school zones in areas surrounding three school campuses in east and south Austin. Police, housing, homelessness: Austin City Council back from summer break The first change would establish a maximum speed of 20 miles per hour during designated times along a portion of Pecan Brook Drive in east Austin. The new zone would run along Pecan Brook Drive from 920 feet west of Lazy Creek Drive to 520 feet west of Lazy Creek Drive.The changes will reduce speeds near Magnolia Montessori for All as a supplementary school zone to the existing school zone near LBJ High School.New school zone near Magnolia Montessori for All in east Austin (Courtesy: City of Austin)A second change will create a maximum speed of 15 miles per hour on segments of Escarpment Boulevard, Trissino Drive and Bernia Drive for students attending Bear Cree...

4th hottest year to date, but isolated weekend storms on the horizon

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:22:41 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- As the heat rolls on, Austin is experiencing it's 4th hottest year-to-date with no meaningful relief from the heat expected.We tied the record high at Austin's Camp Mabry, reaching 106º like we did on this date last year.We also set another record warm low temperatures this morning with Austin's Camp Mabry only dropping to 80º, beating the previous record warm low of 78º from 2019 and 2011.In case you missed it: Austin set an all-time record for number of consecutive days with highs of 105°+. The streak is now at 10 days, but we may drop below that magical number by the middle of next week.Thursday afternoon forecast highsExcessive Heat Warnings and Heat Advisories have been extended yet again, this time through Friday at 8 p.m. These heat alerts will likely be extended into the weekend and beyond.Heat alerts in effect through 8 p.m. FridaySlim rain chances return for the weekend with Sunday bringing the "best" rain chances. Still, most areas get no rain and tempera...

How a combination of COVID lawsuits and media coverage keeps misinformation churning

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:22:41 GMT

By Darius Tahir, KFF Health NewsPublic health has had its day in court lately. And another day. And another day.Over the course of the pandemic, lawsuits came from every direction, questioning public health policies and hospitals’ authority. Petitioners argued for care to be provided in a different way, they questioned mandates on mask and vaccine use, and they attacked restrictions on gatherings.Historically, “there’s been nothing but a cascade of supportive deference to public health,” said Lawrence Gostin, a professor specializing in public health law at Georgetown University. That changed during the pandemic. “It’s the opposite. It’s been a torrent.”Even as COVID-19 wanes, lawyers representing the health care sector predict their days in court aren’t about to end soon. A group of litigators and media companies, among others, are eyeing policy changes and even some profits from yet more lawsuits.Because such groups can reach millions of people, public health advocates like Gostin...

Nicholas Kristof: When children are bought and sold

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:22:41 GMT

More than a decade ago, I met a scared 15-year-old who was trying to recover her life after having been kidnapped by a pimp and sold for sex.Melanie Thompson recalled the day her life changed: She and two other girls in New York City ran into some older boys who invited them to hang out. The girls did so, the boys provided alcohol, Melanie blacked out — and she says she woke up to being raped. She told me how a pimp then locked her with another girl in an abandoned house, and she had a new job: having sex with strangers against her will.She was 13.When we spoke two years later, she was in a residential program for formerly trafficked girls. She was thoughtful, charming and fond of poetry, but I wondered if she would be able to rebuild her life. Then I lost track of her, until a message arrived from her this spring. We met, and she filled me in on her bumpy journey — and her campaign against what she sees as misguided liberalism that would legalize pimping.Melanie spent years in fost...