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Friends and family gather for the funeral of Houston rapper Big Pokey

Published Fri, 07 Feb 2025 12:01:53 GMT

HOUSTON (AP) — Family and friends gathered at the funeral over the weekend for Houston rapper Big Pokey, an original member of the pioneering group Screwed Up Click.Pokey, who was born Milton Powell, died June 18 at the age of 48 after collapsing at a performance in Beaumont, located east of Houston. Those attending his service Saturday at Fountain of Praise church in Houston included Mayor Sylvester Turner, Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee and rappers Paul Wall, Trae Tha Truth and Slim Thug, the Houston Chronicle reported.Pokey was known for Texas and Gulf Coast hits such as “Ball N’ Parlay,” “Who Dat Talking Down,” and a verse on DJ Screw’s nearly 36-minute freestyle known as “June 27th.” He was also featured on Megan Thee Stallion’s 2022 “Southside Royalty Freestyle.” Nationally, Pokey was most known for a featured appearance on Wall’s 2005 debut hit song, “Sittin’ Sidewayz.” The chorus was sampled from Pokey’s verse on “June 27th.”Pokey, who grew up in Houston, began garnering l...

Union to provide update on strike by nearly 7,400 port workers across B.C.

Published Fri, 07 Feb 2025 12:01:53 GMT

VANCOUVER — The union representing thousands of striking British Columbia port workers says it plans to offer an update on negotiations later today. The International Longshore and Warehouse Union Canada says it will provide more details on the ongoing talks at a 3:30 p.m. news conference in Vancouver. It will mark the first time the union has spoken publicly since nearly 7,400 members walked off the job on Saturday morning.The BC Maritime Employers Association has previously said federally mediated talks with the union took place over several days and were slated to continue today.Business groups across Canada have sounded the alarm about the potential economic impact of the strike, which affects thousands of cargo loaders and 49 of the province’s waterfront employers at more than 30 ports across the province.The union has previously said contracting out, port automation and cost of living are key issues in the dispute.This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jul...

CPD: 13-year-old girl missing from Humboldt Park

Published Fri, 07 Feb 2025 12:01:53 GMT

CHICAGO — The Chicago Police Department is seeking the public's help in finding a 13-year-old year old girl who went missing in Humboldt Park Tuesday.Missing 13-year-old Miracle Brown.Police said Miracle Brown, 13, was last seen in the 4000 block of West Hirsch Street on June 27.She's described as being around 4-feet-10-inches tall, weighing around 160 pounds, with brown eyes and black hair, with police saying she may be as far away as St. Paul, Minnesota.Anyone with information that can help police find Brown can reach Area Five detectives with CPD at 312-746-6554.

Report: Former Austin Parks employee falsified timecards, received $11K in unearned wages

Published Fri, 07 Feb 2025 12:01:53 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — A new investigative report released from the City of Austin's Office of the City Auditor found a former Parks and Recreation Department employee fraudulently collected $11,000 after falsifying time cards for six months.Now-former PARD employee Desarae Ybarra submitted timesheets for hours she didn't work between June and December 2021, per the auditor report. She began working at PARD as an IT geospatial technician in March 2021 and "was responsible for updating tree inventory data across 300 public parks" in the city, per the report.Joshua Erickson, an environmental conservation program manager at PARD, oversees planning and directing environmental conservation program strategies, while Kirsten Schneider is an environmental program coordinator and reports to Erickson.Per the report, "Ybarra became Erickson's direct report due to management vacancies at PARD" in July 2021. Erickson designated Schneider to assist him in overseeing Ybarra's work and approving her times...

Twins to remain on Bally Sports North through end of season

Published Fri, 07 Feb 2025 12:01:53 GMT

BALTIMORE — Bally Sports North will continue to broadcast Twins games through the end of this season, an industry source confirmed, after a period of uncertainty as to whether the station’s parent company, Diamond Sports Group, would commit to making a payment for the second half of the season.The Twins were owed two payments totaling $54.8 million from Diamond, which is going through bankruptcy proceedings, for the rights to telecast their games this season. The latter payment was due at the beginning of July.For fans, this news means nothing will change in the near-term as Bally Sports North will continuing broadcasting Twins games through this season.This comes after Diamond initially had only paid the Twins 75 percent of the first payment the club was owed back in April. A federal bankruptcy judge ruled in favor of the Twins and three other teams last month, requiring Diamond to pay the teams the full contract rate. The Twins subsequently received the remaining 25 percent of the...

Highest-rated ice cream shops in St. Louis, according to Yelp

Published Fri, 07 Feb 2025 12:01:53 GMT

Ice cream is a treat all year round, although the frequency and volume consumed during the hotter months might eclipse the colder months. The range of flavors in ice cream shops has evolved since the olden days when flavors were mainly limited to vanilla, chocolate, and strawberry.The best shops nowadays offer fresh combinations and ingredients you may never have imagined could be made into ice cream. Yes, you can find your classics, but also new concoctions like black sesame cookies and cream or honey lavender. Some shops boast flavors with even more unheard-of ingredients and combinations, like the savory herb tarragon or pineapple with pink peppercorns.Ice cream creators have also expanded into rethinking frozen yogurt, soft serve, and vegan options. The dairy-free folks no longer have to order the only sorbet on the menu. There are non-dairy milk ice creams made from plant-based milks like oat or almond and other plant-based products like avocado or sunflower butter.One of the b...

Man injured after car slams into him in Pacoima 

Published Fri, 07 Feb 2025 12:01:53 GMT

A man was hospitalized after being struck by a car in Pacoima on Sunday afternoon. According to LAPD, officers responded to the intersection of Laurel Canyon Boulevard and Osborne Street around 1 p.m. for a call of a vehicle striking a pedestrian. The victim, described only as a 30-year-old male, suffered an injury to his leg but was conscious and breathing at the scene, police said.  Thousands of L.A. County residents could lose Medi-Cal coverage after pandemic rules expire According to LAPD, officers responded to the intersection of Laurel Canyon Boulevard and Osborne Street around 1 p.m. for a call of a vehicle striking a pedestrian. (Citizen App)Witnesses said that the crash may have been a result of a vehicular assault, but authorities have not yet confirmed if that is true. Video posted to the Citizen app shows first responders loading a man onto a stretcher and into an ambulance from under a blue canopy on the sidewalk. The video also shows the wrecked vehicle, a ...

Over 1,000 pounds of illegal fireworks seized in San Bernardino 

Published Fri, 07 Feb 2025 12:01:53 GMT

Authorities in San Bernardino recently seized 1,500 pounds of illegal fireworks from two suspects. According to a tweet sent out by the San Bernardino Police Department, officers contacted two people who were believed to be selling illegal fireworks. Further investigation yielded eight boxes of illegal fireworks in the suspects’ vehicle. When police searched the home of one of the victims, they found another 200 boxes of illegal fireworks.  Both suspects were arrested on felony charges. 

Athletics’ Brent Rooker named to the 2023 All-Star team

Published Fri, 07 Feb 2025 12:01:53 GMT

OAKLAND — Brent Rooker concedes he is having some difficulty processing his new-found status as an American League All-Star.Rooker, 28, was the Athletics selection Sunday to the 2023 All-Star game in Seattle on the basis of a red hot start which has since tailed off into a slump for the better part of the last two months.So being included on the American League team with the likes of the Los Angeles Angels’ Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout and the New York Yankees’ Aaron Judge is pretty heady stuff.“I will feel very out of place. I promise that,” Rooker said. “I will look around the clubhouse and kind of wonder who let me in and why they let me in. But it will be a real cool feeling and I’m going to be one of the guys in that clubhouse. I am going to be the guy looking around wide-eyed and star-struck, that’s for sure.”Rooker, claimed off waivers from the Kansas City Royals last November, is the A’s leader in both home runs (13...

Electric closer Camilo Doval is SF Giants’ lone All-Star selection

Published Fri, 07 Feb 2025 12:01:53 GMT

NEW YORK — Gabe Kapler requested Camilo Doval’s presence in his office at about 4:15 Sunday afternoon, some three hours before first pitch of their series finale against the Mets. The meeting, the Giants’ manager told him, regarded his work in the running game, an area of focus where he’s made strides this season.A few minutes later, a round of applause could be heard from outside the room. Of course the scheduled topic of discussion was but a ruse: It was All-Star selection Sunday.“They played a prank on me. They told me that they were going to talk to me about the running game,” Doval said. “I was like, ‘Really? But I’ve been doing good on the running game.’ After they talked for a little bit, they gave me the news of being selected to the All-Star game. I just felt like a little kid, really nervous, I didn’t know what to say.”Doval, the National League leader in saves (24) with a 1.89 ERA and 12.9 strikeouts per nine innings, ...