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Leicester hires Dean Smith as manager until end of season

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 11:22:21 GMT

LEICESTER, England (AP) — Leicester hired Dean Smith on Sunday as manager until the end of the season as it fights to avoid relegation from the Premier League.The former Aston Villa manager has been out of work since leaving Norwich earlier this year. Smith will oversee the final eight games of Leicester’s campaign following the firing of Brendan Rodgers on April 2.The Foxes have lost both games since Rodgers left, leaving them 19th and two points from safety.Smith faces a tough start. Leicester’s next game is at title-chasing Manchester City on Saturday.“I’m really happy to have the opportunity to lead the team during these final weeks of the season,” Smith said on the club’s official website. “The challenge in front of us is clear, but it’s one myself and my coaching team have experienced before and, with the quality in this squad and the number of games remaining, it’s very much achievable.”The club said Smith will take training for the first time on Tuesday, __...

Barcelona held by Girona to 0-0 home draw in Spanish league

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 11:22:21 GMT

MADRID (AP) — Barcelona failed to rebound from its humiliating loss to Real Madrid in the Copa del Rey semifinals and was held to a 0-0 home draw with Girona in the Spanish league on Monday.The result still allowed Barcelona to increase its lead over second-place Madrid to 13 points with 10 matches remaining. Madrid lost 3-2 to Villarreal at home on Saturday. Barcelona lost 4-0 to Madrid at the Camp Nou last week. It was the first time Barcelona had lost to Madrid at home by four goals since 1963 and it hoped to rebound in the team’s rare Monday game.“The only thing that worries me now is to win the Spanish league,” Barcelona coach Xavi said. “We are still in a good position. We can’t be satisfied with a draw at home, but we are still 13 points ahead with 10 rounds left. We have to look at it positively.”Barcelona playmaker Gavi had one of the best chances to break the deadlock when his header off a corner kick was saved by Girona goalkeeper Paulo Gazzaniga deep into stoppage ...

Pirates’ Oneil Cruz out at least 4 months with broken ankle

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 11:22:21 GMT

PITTSBURGH (AP) — The Pittsburgh Pirates will have to see if they can keep their hot start going without Oneil Cruz. The 6-foot-7 shortstop had surgery late Sunday to repair a fractured left ankle and is out at least four months.Cruz’s left leg bent awkwardly underneath him as he tried to score from third on a chopper in the sixth inning of Sunday’s 1-0 victory over the Chicago White Sox. Cruz opted to slide late and collided with the legs of White Sox catcher Seby Zavala, causing Cruz’s leg to fold up underneath him as his momentum carried the rest of his body across the plate.While the Pirates believe Cruz will be able to return by mid-August, manager Derek Shelton stressed he’s more concerned about Cruz’s health and state of mind. Shelton added that there was a “sense of relief” that the injury wasn’t worse.“My solace is in the fact that he’s OK,” Shelton said.Pittsburgh placed the 24-year-old Cruz on the 10-day injured list and called up utili...

White Sox SS Anderson leaves game with knee soreness

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 11:22:21 GMT

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — White Sox shortstop Tim Anderson left Chicago’s game in Minnesota on Monday with left knee soreness after being involved in a minor collision at third base.Anderson went to cover third base on an apparent double-play ball in the fourth inning. Michael Taylor’s groundball was fielded by third baseman Hanser Alberto, who hesitated before throwing to second for a forceout. Elvis Andrus then threw to Anderson, trying to get runner Matt Wallner.Wallner slid into Anderson’s legs as he went into the base.“He felt a little bit of pain when it happened and he felt like he could play through it, and then it just stiffened up a little bit,” White Sox manager Pedro Grifol said. “We’ll see how that plays out, but I’m optimistic.”Anderson was down for several minutes before getting up and staying in the game. He was replaced in the next inning by Romy González. The team announced after the game that Anderson is being further evaluated.The two-time ...

Hydrocodone found during Gannon Stauch's autopsy

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 11:22:21 GMT

EL PASO COUNTY, Colo. (KDVR) — Week two of Letecia Stauch’s trial started with autopsy results for Gannon Stauch, her 11-year-old stepson that she’s accused of murdering, along with wiretap recordings and evidence pictures. Dr. Susan Ignacio, a Florida medical examiner, took the stand Monday to review the autopsy for Gannon Stauch. Ignacio pointed out 18 stab wounds, or sharp force object injuries, on Gannon’s body; four blunt force injuries on his head; and a gunshot wound.“He also had hydrocodone in the liver tissue,” Ignacio said. “I found it unusual.”Wiretap recordings played in courtWiretap recordings from a couple of weeks after Gannon’s disappearance played in the courtroom. Letecia is recorded making several calls to an online company asking for an email with the report she paid for. FBI Special Agent Andrew Cohen said they traced the phone number Letecia called back to an online company called fakepolygraph.com.Related:‘She was killing the demons in her life’: Sanity the fo...

Tina Peters sentenced to community service, home detention

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 11:22:21 GMT

Correction: This story has been updated to correct that Tina Peters is the former clerk in Mesa County.MESA COUNTY, Colo. (KDVR) -- Former Mesa County Clerk and Recorder Tina Peters was sentenced on Monday after she was found guilty of obstruction of government operations last month.A judge sentenced Peters to 120 hours of community service and four months of home detention with an ankle monitor. Peters was arrested in February last year during the execution of a search warrant in downtown Grand Junction.Peters was accused of using an iPad to record a hearing. A search warrant was issued for Peters’ iPad and she was detained while at a coffee shop in Grand Junction. Denver’s mayoral candidate Johnston suggests micro-communities to help homeless She was found not guilty of obstruction of a peace officer stemming from the incident. Peters, who has become a prominent national figure in the election conspiracy movement, had faced up to six months in jail. Peters' attorn...

Mets Notebook: Starling Marte still out with sore neck

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 11:22:21 GMT

The good news is that Mets’ outfielder Starling Marte passed concussion protocol Sunday and appears to be in the clear as far as head injuries go one day after sliding into Jean Segura’s knee at third base. The bad news is that he still has neck pain and is out of the lineup Monday against the San Diego Padres, though the Mets are hopeful they can use him in later innings if necessary.For now, Marte is still considered day-to-day.“The concussed part of it, we think we’re in pretty good shape, but the neck is a little bit sore today,” manager Buck Showalter said Monday afternoon. “I’m hoping that it manages as we go forward and that he might be available at some point tonight, but I’m not sure yet.”This was the second time Marte had been checked for a concussion in the last month, being hit by a pitch in the head last month during spring training. He cleared protocol without any sign of head injuries both times, which is encouragi...

Eng talks T troubles, ‘restoring pride’ on first day as MBTA head

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 11:22:21 GMT

The MBTA’s new general manager Phillip Eng officially took the reins Monday — promising to move quickly on the laundry list of issues with T reliability, safety and communication and restore “pride” in the system.“Right now, the T is taking a lot of criticism,” Eng said at a press conference following a tour of the Cabot Yard and Maintenance Facility. “But once we build that love back — and I know the people that I’ve met want us to succeed — once we build that back, it’s gonna be the best place to work again.”Eng was hired in March, becoming one of the highest-paid transit heads in the country and taking on an agency plagued by issues from fires and derailments to hiring challenges to just providing regular, reliable service.Eng addressed a number of these troubles on his first day, kicking off with the slow zones put in place after last month’s grim safety inspection.The new GM said he’s “bee...

Robbins: Justice Thomas raises bar on embarrassing behavior

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 11:22:21 GMT

When President George H.W. Bush chose Clarence Thomas to replace Thurgood Marshall on the U.S. Supreme Court in 1991, he called Thomas “the best man for the job on the merits.” This claim was preposterous, and over the course of the 32 years since Thomas was nominated his appointment has been a national embarrassment.His confirmation was marred by a sweeping under the rug of compelling evidence that while he was head of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, Thomas had engaged in repeated acts of crude sexual harassment. On the nation’s highest court for almost one-third of a century, his lack of anything resembling intellectual engagement has been the only notable thing about him. Even to call Thomas an ideologue would seem to elevate him, because the term presupposes that his votes are the thoughtful product of ideology rather than the rapid determination of which political “team” the parties to any case before the Court seem to be on.However, it’s one thing for a Supreme Co...

Black lawmaker who was expelled reinstated to Tennessee seat

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 11:22:21 GMT

By JONATHAN MATTISE, TRAVIS LOLLER and KIMBERLEE KRUESI (Associated Press)NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — One of the two Black Democrats who were expelled last week from the GOP-led Tennessee House was reinstated Monday after Nashville’s governing council voted to send him straight back to the Legislature.The unanimous vote by the Nashville Metropolitan Council took only a few minutes to restore Rep. Justin Jones to office just four days after Republicans stripped him of his seat.Moments later, Jones marched to the Capitol several blocks away. He took the oath of office on the steps and entered the building while supporters sang “This Little Light of Mine.”A loud round of applause erupted as Jones walked into the chamber with Democratic Rep. Gloria Johnson, who was also targeted for expulsion, but spared by one vote.“To the people of Tennessee, I stand with you,” Jones said in his first statement on the House floor. “We will continue to be your voic...