04-16-2024  9:28 am   •   PDX and SEA Weather
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NORTHWEST NEWS

Grants Pass Anti-Camping Laws Head to Supreme Court

Grants Pass in southern Oregon has become the unlikely face of the nation’s homelessness crisis as its case over anti-camping laws goes to the U.S. Supreme Court scheduled for April 22. The case has broad implications for cities, including whether they can fine or jail people for camping in public. Since 2020, court orders have barred Grants Pass from enforcing its anti-camping laws. Now, the city is asking the justices to review lower court rulings it says has prevented it from addressing the city's homelessness crisis. Rights groups say people shouldn’t be punished for lacking housing.

Four Ballot Measures for Portland Voters to Consider

Proposals from the city, PPS, Metro and Urban Flood Safety & Water Quality District.

Washington Gun Store Sold Hundreds of High-Capacity Ammunition Magazines in 90 Minutes Without Ban

KGW-TV reports Wally Wentz, owner of Gator’s Custom Guns in Kelso, described Monday as “magazine day” at his store. Wentz is behind the court challenge to Washington’s high-capacity magazine ban, with the help of the Silent Majority Foundation in eastern Washington.

Five Running to Represent Northeast Portland at County Level Include Former Mayor, Social Worker, Hotelier (Part 2)

Five candidates are vying for the spot previously held by Susheela Jayapal, who resigned from office in November to focus on running for Oregon's 3rd Congressional District. Jesse Beason is currently serving as interim commissioner in Jayapal’s place. (Part 2)

NEWS BRIEFS

Mt. Hood Jazz Festival Returns to Mt. Hood Community College with Acclaimed Artists

Performing at the festival are acclaimed artists Joshua Redman, Hailey Niswanger, Etienne Charles and Creole Soul, Camille Thurman,...

President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. Approves Major Disaster Declaration for Oregon

Yolanda J. Jackson has been named Federal Coordinating Officer for federal recovery operations in the affected areas. ...

Americans Willing to Pay More to Eliminate the Racial Wealth Gap, Creating a New Opportunity for Black Business Owners

National research released today provides encouraging news that most Americans are willing to pay a premium price for products and...

Vibrant Communities Commissioner Dan Ryan Directs Development Funding to Complete Next Phase of Gateway Green Project

Portland Parks & Recreation (PP&R) is beginning a new phase of accessibility and park improvements to Gateway Green, the...

Application Opens for Preschool for All 2024-25 School Year

Multnomah County children who will be 3 or 4 years old on or before September 1, 2024 are eligible to apply now for free preschool...

Pro-Palestinian demonstrators shut down airport highways and key bridges in major US cities

CHICAGO (AP) — Pro-Palestinian demonstrators blocked roadways in Illinois, California, New York and the Pacific Northwest on Monday, temporarily shutting down travel into some of the nation's most heavily used airports, onto the Golden Gate and Brooklyn bridges and on a busy West Coast highway. ...

Asbestos victim's dying words aired in wrongful death case against Buffet's railroad

HELENA, Mont. (AP) — Thomas Wells ran a half-marathon at age 60 and played recreational volleyball until he was 63. At 65 years old, doctors diagnosed him with mesothelioma, a rare and aggressive lung cancer linked to asbestos exposure. “I’m in great pain and alls I see is this...

Caleb Williams among 13 confirmed prospects for opening night of the NFL draft

NEW YORK (AP) — Southern California quarterback Caleb Williams, the popular pick to be the No. 1 selection overall, will be among 13 prospects attending the first round of the NFL draft in Detroit on April 25. The NFL announced the 13 prospects confirmed as of Thursday night, and...

Georgia ends game on 12-0 run to beat Missouri 64-59 in first round of SEC tourney

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Blue Cain had 19 points, Justin Hill scored 17 off the bench and 11th-seeded Georgia finished the game on a 12-0 run to beat No. 14 seed Missouri 64-59 on Wednesday night in the first round of the Southeastern Conference Tournament. Cain hit 6 of 12 shots,...

OPINION

Loving and Embracing the Differences in Our Youngest Learners

Yet our responsibility to all parents and society at large means we must do more to share insights, especially with underserved and under-resourced communities. ...

Gallup Finds Black Generational Divide on Affirmative Action

Each spring, many aspiring students and their families begin receiving college acceptance letters and offers of financial aid packages. This year’s college decisions will add yet another consideration: the effects of a 2023 Supreme Court, 6-3 ruling that...

OP-ED: Embracing Black Men’s Voices: Rebuilding Trust and Unity in the Democratic Party

The decision of many Black men to disengage from the Democratic Party is rooted in a complex interplay of historical disenchantment, unmet promises, and a sense of disillusionment with the political establishment. ...

COMMENTARY: Is a Cultural Shift on the Horizon?

As with all traditions in all cultures, it is up to the elders to pass down the rituals, food, language, and customs that identify a group. So, if your auntie, uncle, mom, and so on didn’t teach you how to play Spades, well, that’s a recipe lost. But...

AFRICAN AMERICANS IN THE NEWS

Belgian police shut down a far right conference as it rallies ahead of Europe's June elections

BRUSSELS (AP) — Belgian police shut down a gathering of far-right politicians and supporters on Tuesday, citing concerns about public order, while attendees protested curbs on free speech and vowed to find another venue for Day 2. The annual National Conservative conference, held...

Home values rising in Detroit, especially for Black homeowners, study shows

DETROIT (AP) — Home values in Detroit — especially for Black residents — have increased by billions of dollars in the years following the city's exit from the largest municipal bankruptcy in U.S. history, according to a study released Tuesday. The University of Michigan Poverty...

Voters to decide primary runoffs in Alabama's new 2nd Congressional District

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — Alabama voters are set to cast their ballots Tuesday to decide party nominees for the state's 2nd Congressional District, which was redrawn by a federal court to boost the voting power of Black residents. The outcome of the hotly contested runoffs will set...

ENTERTAINMENT

Golf has a ratings problem, and the Masters could shine a light on why viewers are tuning out

AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) — Golf has a ratings problem. The week-to-week grind of the PGA Tour has essentially become No Need To See TV, raising serious concerns about what it means for the future of the game. Now comes the Masters, the first major championship of the year and...

George Lucas to receive honorary Palme d'Or at Cannes Film Festival

George Lucas will receive an honorary Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival next month, festival organizers announced Tuesday. Lucas will be honored at the closing ceremony to the 77th French film festival on May 25. He joins a short list of those to receive honorary Palmes. Last...

Luke Combs leads the 2024 ACM Awards nominations, followed by Morgan Wallen and Megan Moroney

Luke Combs leads the nominees for the 2024 Academy of Country Music Awards with eight nods to his name, it was announced Tuesday. For a fifth year in a row, he's up for both male artist of the year and the top prize, entertainer of the year. The 59th annual ACM Awards...

U.S. & WORLD NEWS

What a murderous Winnie the Pooh can tell us about the public domain and remix culture

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The giant stuffed bear, its face a twisted smile, lumbers across the screen. Menacing music...

House Speaker Mike Johnson pushes towards a vote on aid for Israel, Ukraine and Taiwan

WASHINGTON (AP) — House Speaker Mike Johnson is pushing toward action this week on aid for Israel, Ukraine and...

New recruiting programs put Army, Air Force on track to meet enlistment goals. Navy will fall short

WASHINGTON (AP) — After several difficult years, the Army and Air Force say they are on track to meet their...

Ukrainian president signs controversial law to boost conscription to fend off Russia's aggression

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed a controversial law Tuesday, days after it...

9 corpses found adrift in boat off Brazil were likely migrants from Mauritania and Mali, police say

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Brazilian police investigating the grim discovery of a boat full of corpses say the dead...

North Korea is buying Chinese surveillance cameras in a push to tighten control, report says

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korea is putting surveillance cameras in schools and workplaces and collecting...

By Michael Pearson CNN





(CNN) -- A teenager testified Friday that he saw one of the two Steubenville, Ohio, boys accused of raping a 16-year-old girl engage in sexual conduct with the girl during a car ride.

The 17-year-old also told Judge Thomas Lipps that he used his cellphone to record Trent Mays putting his fingers inside the girl's vagina during a drive from one party to another. The boy said he deleted the video the next morning.

The teen, whom CNN is not identifying because of his age, testified only after Lipps, who is presiding over the trial without a jury, granted him immunity from prosecution.

Mays, 17, and Ma'lik Richmond, 16, are accused of raping the girl during a series of end-of-summer parties in August.

According to prosecutors, Richmond and Mays each penetrated the victim's vagina with their fingers, an act that constitutes rape under Ohio law.

Mays also is accused of illegal use of a minor in nudity oriented material.

Lawyers for the teens, both players on Steubenville's high school football team, say the two are innocent.

CNN is not identifying the girl in line with its policy of not identifying the alleged victims of sexual assault. CNN also is not identifying minors who testify at the trial but is identifying Mays and Richmond, whose names have been used by court officials and their attorneys and in multiple media accounts.

On Thursday, prosecutors presented texts messages they said were between Mays and various friends in which Mays allegedly discussed the girl's inebriation and acknowledged sexual conduct with her.

Some of the messages were between Mays and the alleged victim.

In one message she asks what happened "last night."

"And don't lie about anything. I need to know the truth. People keep asking. Idk (I don't know) what to say," the message said, according to Joann Gibb, a computer forensic investigator with the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation, who read the messages to the court.

Mays responded that "nothing happened last night," but told her in the message she performed a sex act on him, Gibb testified.

In some of the messages from Mays, according to Gibb, he writes that he had sex with the girl. In others, he says the girl performed a sex act on him.

One message asked Mays: " Did u do it?"

He responded, according to Gibb: "No, lol. She could barely move."

Another message to Mays from still another friend asked "how dead is she?"

Mays responded, according to Gibb, "not at all, she's looking for her phone."

Still another graphic message from Mays to a friend appeared to detail his anger over being accused of rape.

"I'm pissed all I got was a hand job, though. I should have raped since everyone thinks I did," the message said, according to Gibb.

Prosecutors contend the text messages between Mays and his friends and classmates on August 12 detail a night of heavy drinking and the sexual abuse of the girl.

The defense questioned the validity of the messages, with Mays' attorney asking computer forensic expert Gibb whether she could be absolutely sure the messages were from his client.

"I can't put a person behind a cellphone," she said.

In earlier testimony, teens who attended some of the booze-soaked parties testified the girl appeared to be drunk, stumbling and slurring words.

But on cross-examination some said she seemed to be able to walk and answer questions. Defense lawyers tried to dismantle what prosecutors said was the central argument in the case -- whether the girl was too drunk to understand what was happening to her.

The trial, which is likely to stretch into the weekend, is moving quickly to accommodate the schedule of the judge. A verdict is expected by Sunday.

The case has cast an unwelcome spotlight on Steubenville, a small, down-on-its-luck town along the banks of the Ohio River.

Critics have accused community leaders of trying to paper over rampant misconduct by players of the highly regarded Steubenville High School football team and have suggested that other students took part in the assaults or failed to do enough stop them.

The case has attracted the attention of bloggers and even the loosely organized hacking group Anonymous, which have questioned everything from the behavior of the football team to the integrity of the investigation.

CNN's Poppy Harlow and Brian Vitagliano contributed to this report.

The Skanner Foundation's 38th Annual MLK Breakfast