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One of two “Brazen Bandits” sentenced to 27 years in prison for 10 armed bank robberies over three months

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 16:10:18 GMT

A Denver man was sentenced Tuesday to 27 years in prison for 10 armed robberies over three months.According to the plea agreement, between Jan. 6, 2021 and March 31, 2021, 39-year-old Jerome Bravo and his co-defendant Jonathan Gullette robbed 10 banks in Denver, Aurora and Arvada.Officials said Bravo, a Denver resident, and Gullete, a 24-year-old Aurora resident, robbed seven Denver banks, two in Aurora and one in Arvada.The two were nicknamed the “Brazen Bandits” for their risky tactics during the robberies, including vaulting counters, waving guns and taking the teller drawers from the banks, a Thursday news release stated.Bravo pleaded guilty in November, and was originally scheduled to be sentenced in February.According to the news release from the United States Attorney’s Office, the FBI Rocky Mountain Safe Streets Task Force, Colorado Bureau of Investigation, Denver Police Department, Aurora Police Department and Arvada Police Department investigated the case...

Animal rights group files lawsuit against Cheyenne Mountain Zoo seeking to relocate elephants

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 16:10:18 GMT

A lawsuit has been filed by a nonhuman rights group against the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo seeking to remove five elephants from the facility, claiming that the animals suffer chronic stress and health problems because of their captivity and environment.The Nonhuman Rights Project filed the lawsuit Wednesday in El Paso County District Court seeking legal rights for the elephants, according to an NhRP news release. The case is the first lawsuit filed in Colorado by the group.Elephants Jambo, Kimba, LouLou, Lucky, and Missy were born in the wild in Africa, taken from herds as babies and imported to the United States in the 1970s and 1980s, the release said.“From the moment their adult family members were likely killed in front of them and they were sold off to be put on display and put to work in circuses and zoos, these elephants’ lives have consisted of one trauma after another,” said NhRP attorney Jake Davis. “We can see this today in the stereotypic behavior, indicative of brain damage...

The already hectic NBA offseason now poised for free agents to make moves

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 16:10:18 GMT

By TIM REYNOLDS (AP Basketball Writer)Chris Paul has already been traded twice this offseason, ending up with Golden State. Bradley Beal is now with Phoenix, John Collins was sent to Utah, and Kristaps Porzingis is about to start anew with Boston in a deal that sent Marcus Smart to Memphis.They have new places to call home. It’s time to see if Kyrie Irving, Draymond Green, Khris Middleton and dozens more will be on the move in the next few days.As proven by the run of trades in recent weeks, and big news from James Harden on Thursday, NBA teams aren’t waiting for free agency to make moves. The window of offseason player movement begins Friday at 6 p.m. EDT, when teams are permitted to start talking to free agents — with the caveat that most deals cannot become official until July 6.“Obviously, money’s a thing. I mean, that’s just for anybody,” said Miami guard Max Strus, a free agent who’s in line for a big payday, going from $1.8 mill...

$2.9 million gene therapy for severe hemophilia is approved by FDA

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 16:10:18 GMT

By MATTHEW PERRONE (AP Health Writer)WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. officials on Thursday approved drugmaker BioMarin’s gene therapy for the most common form of hemophilia, a $2.9 million infused treatment that can significantly reduce dangerous bleeding problems.The Food and Drug Administration approved Roctavian for adult patients with severe cases of hemophilia A, the inherited blood-clotting disorder that can lead to bleeding after minor injuries or scrapes. It’s the first gene therapy for those patients.The IV therapy is a long-awaited alternative to current treatments, including weekly doses of a protein needed to help blood clot. Some patients take a newer, longer-acting biotech drug that replaces the protein.BioMarin said in a statement that the FDA approval was based on a three-year study showing a 50% reduction in annual bleeding incidents among 134 patients who received the treatment. Most patients continued to respond to the treatment beyond three years, withou...

A chatbot to waste the time of telemarketers? Genius!

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 16:10:18 GMT

Chatbots and artificial intelligence are clearly the Next Big Thing in Silicon Valley, but many of us, including myself, haven't seen much practical use for the technology.Until now.A Monrovia, California man named Roger Anderson has created an AI-powered chatbot designed to dupe telemarketers and scammers into thinking they're speaking with a real person -- and then wasting as much of their time as possible.Brilliant.The Wall Street Journal shared an encounter between a telemarketer named Kevin and Anderson's chatbot, which he calls Jolly Roger."Thank you for calling card services," Kevin said, even though it was his bank (or scam operation) that called Anderson, not the other way around. "How are you doing today?""Huh," the chatbot replied."What do you think, how much is owed on your credit cards, collectively," Kevin asked."I’ve been having trouble with my television remote," answered the chatbot. "Can you help me figure out how to change the channel to watch my favorite show?""I...

Travis Scott avoids criminal charges in Astroworld crowd crush: Report

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 16:10:18 GMT

Rapper Travis Scott got some good news Thursday, as a grand jury declined to indict him and others in the deadly crowd crush at his Astroworld festival in November 2021.The incident killed 10 people and left thousands injured. Scott and several others were involved in the criminal probe of the tragedy, which went to a grand jury in Houston, according to Reuters. Houston mourns, investigates deaths at Travis Scott’s Astroworld Scott's lawyer Kent Schaffer told the outlet he expected the decision would be coming down on Thursday. “Nothing Travis did or failed to do fits within the Texas criminal code,” Schaffer said to the publication. Schaffer's prediction proved true later Thursday afternoon, as the grand jury declined to indict his client, the Houston Chronicle reports. However, Scott still faces civil lawsuits related to the Nov. 5, 2021, incident, when a fatal crowd crush took place at the festival founded by Scott, who is from Houston. As the over-capacity crowd pressed forwar...

Long Beach plans to create LGBTQ+ cultural district

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 16:10:18 GMT

As Pride Month comes to an end, the city of Long Beach released plans to create an official LGBTQ+ cultural district along the Broadway corridor, a section of the city that has a long history of being a community hub for LGBTQ+ members.The city released a preliminary report on June 23 outlining what the proposed district could look like, initial feedback from about 500 residents and a detailed account of Long Beach’s checkered history with LGBTQ+ individuals dating back to 1914.  L.A. school board approves resolution in support of LGBTQ+ community While the city is now known for its growing LGBTQ+ community, the report outlines that hasn’t always been the case.In 1914, for example, two men were arrested during a raid of the Long Beach 606 Club and the 96 Club, two locations considered safe spaces for community members, according to the report. The situation was a massive media event and garnered much attention for the process of entrapment.It wasn’t until the 1960s when the LGBTQ+...

Horse racetrack hosts 'Grandparents' Race' and hilarity ensues

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 16:10:18 GMT

You have to give these grandparents props just for participating.Emerald Downs racetrack in Washington state hosted a “Grandparents’ Race” on June 25, with at least a dozen seniors sprinting out of the starting gate for the inaugural event.The race spanned a distance of about 40 yards and, despite several runners wiping out, everyone eventually finished the race.Several runners in Emerald Downs' inaugural Grandparents' Race wiped out. June 25, 2023. (Emerald Downs via Storyful)The winner, Everett resident Steve Butler said he had not participated in a race since 1973 when he raced a lineman at his high school football practice.

California's historic work on possible Black reparations moves to the Legislature

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 16:10:18 GMT

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Members of California's Black reparations task force handed off their historic two-year report to state lawmakers Thursday, beginning the next chapter in the long struggle to compensate the descendants of slavery. The first U.S. panel of its kind met one last time Thursday, urging supporters to press lawmakers into action on more than 100 recommendations. State legislators and Gov. Gavin Newsom must agree for any money to be paid or for any policy changes to be adopted.“This book of truth will be a legacy, will be a testament to the full story,” said Lisa Holder, a civil rights attorney and task force member. “Anyone who says that we are colorblind, that we have solved the problem of anti-Black animus and racism, I challenge you to read this document.”The mood was buoyant, but tinged with frustration and anger that hours earlier, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down affirmative action in higher education, programs that have disproportionately helped Black stu...

The Celebrity Influence: Trading Cards on the Rise

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 16:10:18 GMT

The ownership of exclusive and rare items, from luxury cars to original art pieces, is a common pastime for many people, including celebrities. Some enjoy the chase, while others see it as a way to express how far they’ve come from the fruits of their labor. And since COVID-19, there’s been an emerging asset that’s beginning to hold newfound prestige in the entertainment world: trading cards.In the age of social media and streaming, the trading card industry has recently seen a resurgence like no other time in its history. From the multi-platinum selling rappers Drake and Snoop Dogg to beloved actors Bryan Cranston and Mark Wahlberg, entertainers from all walks of life are diving head first into the “the hobby”— the term used by collectors, traders, and sellers to refer to the trading cards industry as a whole.At the helm of this resurgence is Dappz Sports: a Los Angeles-based media company and 24/7 live-stream shopping experience for the most passionate enth...