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Skilling: Beautiful weekend ahead for Chicagoland

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:51:47 GMT

The longest spell of warm weather in three week—including the warmest weekend to date in 2023—is getting underway.Chicago's high temp hit 70-degrees for the 9th time this year. We're running way ahead of last year at this time when only four 70s were on the books. We've had four 80s so far in 2023---last year had recorded only one to date.The warm weather taking hold is the first extended spell of elevated temps in nearly 3 weeks. Sixteen of the past 19 days have averaged at or below normal—so this warm-up will be noticeable.And the warming has legs. Modeling suggests each of the coming 15 days is to produce temps which are above normal.The coming weekend is to come in an eye-opening 21-deg warmer than last and is to blow past our previous warmest 2023 weekend which occurred back on April 7 & 8th. This weekend is to see daytime highs in the 70s—even flirting with 80 and it is to average 68-deg-----which is more than 16-deg warmer than the April 7-8 weekend more than a month ago....

Illinois gets more than $4M over TurboTax 'free ads' settlement

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:51:47 GMT

CHICAGO — Filed your taxes with TurboTax? You may be eligible for more money.Intuit, the owner of the online software used to file taxes, will pay $141 million in restitution, including more than $4.38 million to Illinois residents. Under the agreement reached in May 2022, Intuit will provide restitution to consumers who started using the commercial TurboTax Free Edition for tax years 2016 through 2018 and were told that they had to pay to file even though they were eligible for the version of TurboTax offered as part of the IRS Free File program.RELATED: Intuit to pay $141M settlement over ‘free’ TurboTax ads, here’s who is eligibleThe 143,000 affected will be contacted by email and checks will be mailed throughout the month of May.Some checks will be mailed as early as next week. “Intuit deceived customers into paying for their products while attempting to diminish free tax services available through the federal government,” said Attorney General Kwame Raoul. “I am pleased that co...

Father of girl who disappeared in 1982 to face murder trial

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:51:47 GMT

ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) — A Chicago man has been ordered to stand trial for murder in connection with the 1982 disappearance of his 8-month-old daughter, whose body has never been found, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel said Thursday.Isiah Williams, 76, accused in the presumed death of Olisa Williams, was bound over for trial in Washtenaw County, Nessel said.Williams allegedly took the girl from the arms of her mother, Denise Frazier-Daniel, during a struggle on April 29, 1982, in Ohio and took her to Michigan, where she was last seen alive that summer in Williams’ custody, Nessel said. Boater finds missing man dead in Fox River in McHenry County Olisa was never found and is presumed dead, Nessel said.Ann Arbor police asked the attorney general's office to review the case in early 2021. An open-murder charge was brought against Williams that October, and a lengthy extradition process followed, Nessel said.Williams is due in Washtenaw Circuit Court for a pretrial conference...

PHOTOS: Check out a sneak preview of this year's Austin Outdoor Living Tour

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:51:47 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — This Saturday, Austinites will have the opportunity to tour 10 backyards decked out by local landscape architects. The annual Austin Outdoor Living tour, organized by the Modern Architecture Design Society that puts on the Austin Modern Home Tour, showcases local landscape architectural feats to inspire those with landscape aspirations themselves.  MORE: A shed filled with dolls, a house adorned with mermaids and more in Austin’s Weird Homes Tour "Some people don’t know what to do with their space and so they are looking for ideas," said Laura Parsons, a designer whose home is featured in this year's tour. "I love inspiring people and hope we can help them with their spaces."The back and front yards on Saturday's tour will feature a varying assortment of designs. Some projects featured, like Parsons', have more modern and sleek designs, perfect for hosting parties, and others, like Reese Baloutine's — of Seedlings Gardening — showcase a project that heightens the n...

APD officer facing 2 separate murder charges heads to first pretrial court hearing

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:51:47 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — Court proceedings for two separate murder charges against Austin police officer Christopher Taylor, 31, continued Thursday morning with a scheduled hearing.Thursday’s hearing was a pretrial with witnesses, according to Travis County records.In July 2019, Taylor was accused of shooting and killing 46-year-old Mauris Nishanga DeSilva in downtown Austin during a check welfare call. In addition to a murder charge, he also faces a charge of deadly conduct for the discharge of a firearm related to the 2019 incident.In April 2020, Taylor was also accused of shooting and killing 42-year-old Michael Ramos in southeast Austin during a confrontation.Court records displayed that Taylor was arrested and booked into the Travis County jail twice in 2021 related to the investigations—once in March and another time in August.Records showed Taylor was set to appear again May 15 for another pretrial with witnesses.As of Thursday, Taylor’s trial for the murder charges was set for May 22...

Who's funding Austin police oversight measures? Equity Action money largely national

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:51:47 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Austin voters will have the option to vote "yes" or "no" on two separate propositions this Election Day. Both will impact police oversight.KXAN has extensively covered the groups behind these competing propositions -- one a political action committee focused on public safety and the other backed by the Austin Police Association -- but who's funding those groups? Let's get into it. Prop A: Equity ActionThe group behind Prop A, Equity Action, wants the Office of Police Oversight to have more access to police files, among other changes. You can read more about each proposition here. Of the more than $790,000 Equity Action has raised since April 1, 2022, more than $770,000 of it is coming from outside of Austin, City of Austin campaign finance data shows. The majority of that money comes from only two groups, the Heising-Simons Foundation ($450,000) and Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Philanthropies ($325,000). The Heising-Simons Foundation lists its address as Los ...

Orioles fight back after blowing 7-run lead to beat Royals, 13-10, win 7th straight series

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:51:47 GMT

What appeared to be a blowout win in the making Thursday started to turn into a potentially devastating loss for the Orioles. That is, until Ramón Urías bailed out Baltimore’s pitching staff in the eighth inning.The Orioles led 8-1 in the third as the offense jumped on Kansas City right-hander Jordan Lyles, but Baltimore starter Grayson Rodriguez and the bullpen combined to surrender that lead by the seventh to give the Royals a one-run advantage.Pinch-hitting against seven-time All-Star reliever Aroldis Chapman, Urías absolved Rodriguez and the bullpen of their misdeeds, lining a two-run single to put the Orioles up one, an advantage the bullpen wouldn’t relinquish again as Baltimore defeated Kansas City, 13-10.Urías’ single scored Adam Frazier and Jorge Mateo, both of whom walked to open the eighth and stole a base to get into scoring position. The third baseman then tacked on insurance in the ninth with a two-run double to right-center field....

Man charged with setting one mosque fire; he’s also suspected of vandalizing Ilhan Omar’s office

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:51:47 GMT

A man suspected of setting fires to Minneapolis mosques and vandalizing the office of U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar was indicted Thursday on federal charges of arson and damage to religious property.Jackie Rahm Little, 36, was indicted by a federal grand jury for an April 24 fire at the Masjid Al-Rahma mosque. Authorities are also investigating him as a suspect in a fire that damaged the Masjid Omar Islamic Center inside a Somali shopping mall on April 23, as well as in the January vandalism of U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar’s office and of a Somali American police officer’s vehicle, U.S. Attorney Andrew Luger said at a news conference.“The freedom to worship is sacrosanct. We will respond to any attack on any house of worship with urgency and determination,” said Luger, who noted that the charge accusing Little of damaging religious property is a civil rights violation.An undated photo provided by the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Minnesota of Jackie Rahm Little, who was arrested on Satur...

Minneapolis scientist Brian Alzua to compete on Friday’s episode of ‘Jeopardy!’

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:51:47 GMT

Brian Alzua, a biocompatibility scientist from Minneapolis, will compete on “Jeopardy!” in an episode that airs at 4:30 p.m. Friday on KARE 11.“I’m so excited to share that I will be on ‘Jeopardy’ coming straight to your living room on May 5!! Be sure to shout anything I didn’t know the answer to at your screen for maximum viewing enjoyment,” Alzua wrote in an Instagram post that showed him and host Mayim Bialik on the game show’s set.It remains to be seen if Alzua can match the success of Minneapolis meteorologist Eric Ahasic, who won six games in a row last June and returned to compete in two shows of the Tournament of Champions in November.Now in its 39th season, “Jeopardy!” draws a weekly audience of more than 20 million viewers. The show has won a total of 43 Emmy Awards and a Peabody Award for “celebrating and rewarding knowledge.”Related ArticlesMovies & TV | Meghan Markle’s estranged family gives interview before coronation, pleads for reunio...

2 baby bison born in Dakota County park come as a ‘wonderful surprise’

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:51:47 GMT

“It was a wonderful surprise,” said Tom Lewanski, when two baby bison were born back-to-back last weekend at Dakota County’s Spring Lake Park Reserve.When eight bison were relocated to the park last fall, Lewanski, who works as the park’s natural resource manager, said they were keeping an eye on the lead bison and had suspicions she was pregnant.Much to their surprise, a two-year-old bison gave birth to a new calf on April 28 and, 24 hours later, the other two-year-old bison gave birth as well.“It was a total surprise,” Lewanski said, adding “The lead cow may not even be pregnant.”Located northwest of Hastings, the park is along the Mississippi River and includes around 160 acres of prairie landscape.During the winter months, Lewanski said the bison were out of public view for the most part to give the herd time to bond and create their own social structure.“We intentionally secluded them so they could form their own herd … We wanted them to get to know each other and their new hom...