DAVISON – The Oxford Wildcats were perfect in the shootout and slipped past the Lake Orion Dragons 2-1 (SO) in Thursday’s district final.

“Lake Orion was good tonight, very, very good, and they had a fantastic season. I knew we were going to get their best,” Oxford head coach Adam Bican said. “It’s good just to get out of here with a win.”

The Wildcats made all three of their kicks, and Wildcats goalie Nolan Mauser saved all three Lake Orion kicks to give Oxford the victory.

“Obviously, I was nervous going to pens, but I just stayed confident in my abilities and made some saves,” Mauser said. “I do a decent job of waiting, not letting them fool me or deceive me, and I just read their legs and trust my instincts.”

The game was an up-and-down affair with both teams playing very direct. Oxford broke on top with 14:53 to play in the first half when Ryan Pietsch laid off a ball at the top of the penalty area for Tristan Warthun, who fired a swerving shot through a crowd and just inside the right post for a 1-0 Oxford lead.

Lake Orion tied the game just before halftime when Deniz Redzep played a ball out of midfield that Billy Kappler headed in with 2:36 on the first half clock.

The momentum went back and forth in this one as neither team could maintain control for an extended period of time. The Wildcats ended up with a slight edge in shots, amassing 21 total attempts versus 18 shots for Lake Orion.

“Both teams played really hard. You saw both teams compete. They both had opportunities. It sucks that it had to end that way (penalty kicks), but someone has to advance,” Lake Orion head coach Jason Wise said.

Oxford’s effort was spearheaded by the play of Ryan Clark and Drew Cady, who were both all over the field for the Wildcats.

“While we’re out on the field, while we’re huddling, we talk about all the times we’ve ran bleachers. All the sweat, hard work, tears we’ve done,” Clark said. “It was a great game. It was fun to play them again because we played them in regular season, and we played them last year three times.”

Lake Orion was led by the play of Austin Negri and center backs Will Farmer and Matt Toffolo.

With the win, Oxford (14-1-5) claims its second straight district title and will move on to regionals next week where the Wildcats will face the winner of Friday night’s game between West Bloomfield and Walled Lake Central.

“We’ll probably go take a look at them,” Bican said. “We played West Bloomfield earlier. But it really does not matter what happened in the regular season. You can learn a couple things about people, but when it’s the postseason everybody is up. So we’re looking for another really strong challenge, and we are not looking past that game. I promise you.”

Photo gallery from No. 4 Oxford vs. Lake Orion in boys soccer district championship action

Lake Orion finishes the year 11-4-2 and won the Oakland Activities Association White Division.

“We had a good number of guys coming back, and there is a lot of experience. But I thought the spirit’s up from the guys. They really bought in, and they really gelled as a team. I thought that was what was really nice,” Wise said.

The Dragons will graduate 14 seniors as they move up to play in the OAA Red next year.

“It’s going to be like a whole new roster, or half a whole new roster next year, and a lot of those seniors do put in some solid minutes. So it’s going to be interesting in the Red.”

Fourth-ranked Oxford defeated Lake Orion 2-1 in penalty kicks to win the D1 district held at Davison High School on Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024.

 

 

AUBURN HILLS – The majority of Cranbrook-Kingswood’s players that took the field Thursday night know all too well how difficult it is to defeat the same side three times in a season.

Last fall, the Cranes lost to Orchard Lake St. Mary’s twice in the regular season, then defeated the Eaglets 3-0 for a district championship.

This year Cranbrook won both games prior to the postseason, and its players were all too aware of how hard it’d be to avoid falling victim to that identical pattern with the two sides matched up at the same stage of the postseason for the second year in a row.

“The people that were here last year, which is most of us, we knew what we were feeling last year was a ton of anger, a ton of grit coming into this game, and last year we ended up winning,” Cranbrook senior Paul Lee said. “We knew they were going to come in with the same intensity, and that we had to play really, really well to come up with the win.”

The Cranes got that elusive third win over St. Mary’s Thursday night at Avondale High School, winning 1-0 for their third consecutive district title.

It marked new territory, though, for first-year head coach Jacob Nunner, who before playing at Michigan was familiar to being between the sticks in the CHSL at Warren De La Salle.

“It’s fantastic,” Nunner said. “An unbelievable feeling. This school has been so welcoming. I’m surrounded by great people, I have a great AD, fantastic coaching staff and players. We’ve been working. Props to these boys, they deserved it. Whether in the gym, on the field, in the film room, they’ve been working hard and it’s just nice to see all the work pay off into something tangible.”

In a match full of opportunities born out of set pieces, it was fitting that the lone ball to cross the line came from one. With 18:07 left in the opening half, Cranbrook won a long free kick that may have taken a deflection off an opposing player after being served in by Lee and couldn’t be kept from going in despite an outstretched effort by St. Mary’s goalkeeper Mason Lanfear.

“We rehearse a lot of different types of set pieces in training, so that one, to see it executed in training and then executed here, it was fantastic to see,” Nunner said. “You want it whipped and driven in, and obviously when you put service into the box, sometimes bad things happen. I think one of their defenders maybe mishit it. We needed it. It was big for our momentum.”

Added Lee, “I just tried to hit it in a dangerous area. I didn’t even see what happened; I thought my teammate scored it.”

St. Mary’s came out direct and in control of possession the first 10 minutes before both teams began to carve out chances as the half wore on. Lanfear had to come far off his line and withstood heavy contact to deny one attack, then the Eaglets produced a nervy moment from a corner kick just several minutes before Cranbrook got its goal.

The Eaglets were perhaps unlucky not to come away level at intermission with their looks in the last two minutes, one of which included Gab Richer’s pass from near the end line that flashed across the goalmouth but didn’t connect with a teammate.

“I thought we had a good game plan, stuck to the game plan,” St. Mary’s head coach Keith Jeffrey said. “Our work rate was good. We knew we had to match their intensity because that’s a team that’s well-coached and plays with intensity. And we created a lot actually. I thought we were unlucky to be down 1-0 at half, but at the end of the day, sometimes that’s the way that goes.

“We knew they’re very organized. They’ve got a great center back in Paul. (Senior Milo Kiezun’s) very effective, he’s the nucleus for them. We wanted to make it difficult on them, then try to hit some dangerous balls in … We tried to (makes changes and) give them a different look, made some adjustments, and they made some adjustments. Again, I thought we had chances, corners and free kicks. I thought we could hit a few more diagonal balls in the  box, but they found a way to defend and get balls out.”

After a number of big moments in those first 40 minutes, Cranbrook managed to subdue the Eaglets for much of the second half. The most favorable chance came in the final few minutes when again Lanfear was called into action and gave a shot attempt a right-handed punch while elevated, then had to fend off the continued attack when he hit the ground to give the Eaglets a look at tying the match on the other end, but St. Mary’s attack never got in for any sort of grade-A opportunity before time ran out.

Photo gallery of Cranbrook vs. OLSM in Division 2 boys soccer district championship action

St. Mary's, who defeated Holly and Waterford Kettering both by scores of 2-1 to reach Thursday's final, finishes the season with a record of 9-11.

"I think our team was very dangerous, very competitive," Jeffrey said. "You take away the record -- a lot of the games we lost in the last, like, five minutes of the game, very unlucky again. But the team competed, showed up every day. I've got a lot of returners. We're still young, goalie's a freshman, we'll be returning two captains. The future's bright, man."

Cranbrook defeated Avondale and Brother Rice to get to Thursday's district final. The Cranes (10-5-1) now get a few days off to prepare for fifth-ranked Mason next Wednesday in Goodrich.

"We're looking forward to it," Nunner said. "We'll be up for it."

 

One suspect was wearing a mask while the other was hiding in the background as they rang the doorbell of the Murray family home in Rochester Hills. However, their attempt to conceal identities didnt stop them both from being caught in a matter of days.

Now, 37-year-old Carlos Hernandez and 39-year-old Joshua Zuazo, both from Dearborn, are facing charges for murder and unlawful imprisonment. They allegedly pretended to be DTE utility workers looking for gas leaks to gain access to the home in a planned robbery attempt.

Watch our previous report when Hernandez was charged in the video below: Man charged with murder after allegedly killing Rochester Hills man while posing as DTE worker

Austin Rogers' parents live near the home in the house he grew up in.

Definitely a relief for the street and also for the city and the entire area, Rogers said of the arrests, which he noted happened quicker than he expected. I was very surprised and very happy they were off the streets and very happy they were charged with what theyre charged with.

PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Video shows fake DTE workers accused of killing man, hurting wife in Rochester Hills Video shows fake DTE workers accused of killing man, hurting wife in Rochester Hills

In the attempted robbery, the two men are accused of killing the 72-year-old homeowner Hussein Murray. According to the prosecutor, Murrays wrists and legs were found duck taped. His 72-year-old wife was also duck taped upstairs as the suspects demanded she tell them where they kept the jewelry and cash. At one point, Hernandez allegedly hit her when she screamed.

Investigators believe the family was targeted because they owned a pawn shop and jewelry store in Hamtramck. They say there's no indication the Murray's knew the two suspects.

PREVIOUS COVERAGE: 'Its been like hell.' Family of Slain Rochester Hills man speaks out as suspects are arrested 'Its been like hell.' Family of Slain Rochester Hills Man speaks out

We believe it was not random, it was focused on this family, this house. For what reason? We think at this point, without different information, it was because they were small business owners," Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard said. "We've seen that kind of targeting on jewelry stores and cash-driven businesses in the past, so that's our working thought at this point.

While Hernandez was arrested in Louisiana, Zuazo was arrested in Plymouth Township. Bouchard says getting the Ring doorbell video out to the public was crucial in tracking down the suspects.

WATCH: Scene video of man arrested in Louisiana after alleged murder in Rochester Hills (courtesy KTBS in Shreveport) WATCH: Scene video of man arrested in Louisiana after alleged murder in Rochester Hills (courtesy KTBS)

Those images really started bringing tips in because he was very recognizable even with the mask, Bouchard said. "We got some information and the breadcrumbs kind of led us to different addresses or houses or potential cars, and one thing led to another on both these folks.

Zuazo will appear in Rochester Hills court on Friday for his arraignment, which is scheduled for 1:15 pm.

Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook-Kingswood scored off a set piece in the opening half, the difference for the Cranes in their 1-0 district championship victory over Orchard Lake St. Mary’s Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024 in Auburn Hills.

Vice President Kamala Harris continued her focus on Great Lakes battleground states she hopes will deliver her the White House.

Today the focus was in Wisconsin. She made two stops there with a message the centered on the economy and her rival Donald Trump.

At a rally in LaCrosse, Harris blasted Trump for comments he made about January 6.

"He called it a 'day of love,'" Harris said.

Earlier, Harris addressed the killing of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, the architect of the Oct. 7 attacks in Israel.

"Justice has been served," Harris said. "And the United States, Israel and the entire world are better off as a result."

RELATED STORY | Harris, Trump court suburban Pennsylvania voters in path to White House

Former President Donald Trump gave remarks Thursday Night at the Alfred E. Smith dinner in New York City. The white-tie dinner raises money for Catholic Charities.

Harris did not appear in person, but spoke virtually.

Historically, opposing candidates have appeared at the dinner together, often making lighthearted jabs at each other.

Also on Thursday, in a pre-taped episode of the conservative PMD podcast, Trump blamed Ukraine's president Volodymyr Zelenskyy for Russia's invasion. He said if he wins on November 5, he would settle the war in Ukraine before his inauguration.

"I think the world's going to behave, and I think I will settle Russia-Ukraine while I'm president-elect," Trump said.

Both candidates will stump in Michigan on Friday. Trump is scheduled to be in Detroit, while Harris has multiple stops statewide.

DETROIT (AP) — Artemi Panarin had his eighth career hat trick and the New York Rangers rolled to a 5-2 victory over the Detroit Red Wings on Thursday night.

Panarin became the first Rangers player to have multiple points in the first four games of a season. He scored twice on the power play. Vincent Trocheck also had a power- play goal and assisted on all of Panarin’s goals.

Jonathan Quick made 29 saves in his season debut. Victor Mancini also scored.

The Rangers have won the last five meetings, including twice this week. New York had a 4-1 home victory over Detroit on Monday night.

Moritz Seider and J.T. Compher scored for Detroit. Red Wings goalie Cam Talbot was pulled in the second period after allowing five goals.

Takeaways

Rangers: The power play ranked third in the league last season with four players recording at least 11 goals, including Panarin and Trocheck. It looks just as dangerous this season with Panarin leading the way with three man-advantage goals.

Red Wings: Detroit just missed the playoffs last season, in large part because it was 25th in goals allowed (3.33). The Red Wings are off to a 1-3 start while giving up 15 goals in the losses.

Key moment

The Red Wings had a 5-on-3 advantage after the Rangers committed two penalties in the first six minutes. Detroit, which has only one power-play goal in 13 attempts this season, failed to cash in. Just over a minute after the Rangers’ penalty kill, Panarin scored on New York’s first shot on goal.

Key stat

Panarin has 39 points in 24 career games against the Red Wings, including 15 goals. He has at least one point in 10 of the last 11 meetings.

Up next

Rangers: At Toronto on Saturday night.

Red Wings: At Nashville on Saturday.

The unemployment rate in the U.S. changed little this month, holding at 4.1%, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. But some experts are concerned about the future as job openings outpace the workforce and older generations retire.

The latest report from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce shows there are 8 million job openings in the U.S. and 6.8 million people unemployed a gap that is expected to increase as older Americans retire in waves described by some as a "silver tsunami."

Lightcast, a company that focuses on providing labor market data to help empower communities, reported in September that U.S. employers will soon face the largest labor shortage the country has ever seen. The latest report, titled The Rising Storm: Building a Future-Ready Workforce to Withstand the Looming Labor Shortage lays out a deficit of six million workers by 2032. According to findings, foreign born workers are helping keep the economy afloat by filling roles in construction, hospitality, and other sectors.

A new labor report released this year by Mercer, a consulting firm, predicts over the next five years the medical work will experience a shortage of more than 100,000 health care workers. The states expected to be hit the hardest include Georgia, Massachusetts, Tennessee, New Jersey and New York.

RELATED STORY | Robust hiring highlights surprising September US jobs report

This October the National Association of Home Builders also reported that thousands of construction workers will be needed to reduce the nations housing deficit. NAHB is estimating a shortfall of 1.5 million homes.

According to the Home Builders Institute report, immigrant workers now account for 24.7% of the construction workforce, a historic new high. In construction trades, the share of immigrants surpassed 31%.

The data clearly shows that we're very, very dependent on foreign labor to get that work done, Hetrick said. We didn't have children for several decades the younger population overwhelmingly goes to college so that leaves us with, 'well, then who builds homes?' You know, 'who fixes highways?'

Hetrick says Americans need to brace for the silver tsunami of older workers leaving the workforce. According to Lightcast, of the 5 million workers who left the workforce in 2021, 80% were over the age of 55, and with the average retirement age now dropping to 61 its further shrinking the labor market.

This massive group of people, very driven, you know, 2 income households, they have a lot of money and they're all retiring and so they're all going from producers to consumers, Hetrick said.

As older generations retire the demand for goods will increase, adding a strain to a job market struggling to find workers during a time when there is historically low participation in the labor force.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce also examined the labor shortage and cited several factors leading to more job openings, including people living on savings or whats left of pandemic aid, low legal migration,and women leaving the workforce to become homemakers.

Hetrick says the solution to the issues at hand is promoting trade specialties, cross-training new generations, incorporating Artificial Intelligence, and employing migrants to help fill positions.

At the end of the day, you need a body in the job, Hetrick said. If you don't get the body and the job, then you provide less service.You are a restaurant that doesn't open all their tables.You're a hospital that doesn't fill all of their beds.You're a construction company that doesn't build all of the homes that you were hoping to build.

In fall of 2022, more than 15 million students were enrolled in college for an undergraduate degree, according to the Education Data Initiative.

Hetrick says the job market is saturated with college graduates with similar degrees and the job openings are for service level jobs like hospitality and construction. He predicts companies will have to increase their wages to lure new employees that could in return lead to consumers paying higher prices.

The Small Business Administration received nearly 50,000 applications for disaster relief after hurricanes Helene and Milton struck just days apart.

The SBA is now running out of money for its disaster assistance loan program and will have to put it on pause.

The agency's loans are meant to provide help to small businesses, renters and home owners but now the SBA is now asking people to turn to other agencies like FEMA for relief, if they can find it.

RELATED | Mayorkas to Scripps News: Some hurricane survivors reluctant to accept FEMA assistance due to disinformation

Rob Schroeder, a Washington Bureau Chief at Marketwatch said the SBA received "overwhelming demand" after the multiple hurricanes and said "the money went fast."

That lead the agency to suspend the disaster program, and many were asked to look at state and county options for help.

Other federal programs have also dealt with unique struggles following the hurricanes.

In a Scripps News investigation, Sec. Alejandro Mayorkas said some hurricane survivors had been reluctant to accept certain types of help from FEMA, citing rampant misinformation.

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, the Democratic vice presidential candidate, will be returning to Michigan this weekend.

The Harris-Walz campaign announced that he'll be in Saginaw for a church service at Victorious Believers Ministries that's set for 10:45 a.m on Sunday. He's scheduled to arrive at the airport in Freeland at 9 p.m. on Saturday.

Additional details about the visit have not been announced including if he's expected to speak.

In addition to his Michigan visit, Walz is scheduled to visit Massachusetts, Connecticut and New York between Saturday and Monday.

Earlier this week, Walz spoke with 7 News Detroit during a one-one-one interview where he tackled several topics including Detroit growth, the Middle East conflict and the economy.

You can watch the full interview in the video player below: WATCH: Tim Walz one-on-one interview with 7 News Detroit

Walz visited Macomb County last week. He spoke with United Auto Workers in Warren and met with a group of Black men voters in Utica.

Related: JD Vance tackles economy, autos, 'childless cat ladies' & more topics in WXYZ 1-on-1 interview

Vice President Kamala Harris will be visiting Oakland County on Friday. She made two stops in Detroit on Tuesday, which included hosting a radio town hall with Charlamagne tha God.

Watch our coverage of Harris' Detroit visit in the video player below: Kamala Harris focuses on Black voters during Detroit campaign stops

Former President Donald Trump will be campaigning in Detroit on Friday at Huntington Place.

Both presidential campaigns have made many stops in battleground state Michigan as the election nears.

Video: Detroit Free Press Marathon, presidential candidate visits making for a busy weekend Detroit Free Press Marathon, presidential candidate visits making for a busy weekend

The keys to the White House may be decided on the ground in Pennsylvania, where campaigns are blanketing the commonwealth, and the pivotal suburbs.

Both former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris visited the Philadelphia suburbs this week as they vie for Pennsylvanias 19 electoral votes, and the suburban residents who could prove crucial to their effort.

We just want to make sure that Kamala wins, said Rosemary Moller. Because the alternative is very frightening.

She and her husband, Jeffrey, added to the more than one million door knocks the campaign has completed in the state as volunteers canvass out of 50 campaign offices. They hit the pavement in Montgomery County, a region they too call home.

If you've judged by lawn signs, you'd have to say that, like, 99% of the lawns don't have a sign out at all, so you don't really know what's what's going on, said Jeffrey Moller.

In our neighborhood, Rosemary Moller added, It's a little bit more Kamala than Trump.

The Harris-Walz campaign approaches Pennsylvania with go-everywhere tactics, but a senior advisor for Pennsylvania notes the suburbs are a significant target. Theyre full throttle with organizing, phone calls and paid media, recognizing the need for significant margins in the suburbs to win Pennsylvania.

In 2016, Hillary Clinton received 742,226 votes in the four counties surrounding Philadelphia. Trump ultimately won the state. But in 2020, President Joe Biden got 170,792 more, when he ultimately turned the state blue that year.

RELATED STORY | Pennsylvania GOP group comes out with support for Harris-Walz ticket

But the campaign sees the suburbs as their own blue wall, and believes they are seeing enthusiasm in Pittsburgh and Philadelphia that will match 2020 levels.

Our township isn't the well to do area that you might find elsewhere in Montgomery County, people trying to raise their kids and put their kids through school and so forth. So I think money is a big issue, said Jeffrey Moller, adding he doesnt believe it makes sense to connect higher prices to the Biden administration.

The campaign is homing in on messages including Harris plan to combat price gouging, her healthcare policy, reproductive rights and around the issue of democracy.

It believes theyre making progress in their suburban margins, according to a senior advisor for Pennsylvania, in part contending Trumps extremism is driving voters to them as they also focus on swaying Republicans, and make efforts in more historically red areas.

During the Republican primary, more than 19% of voters supported Nikki Haley over Trump in Bucks County, and nearly 25% of voters supported Nikki Haley over Trump in Montgomery County.

The coalition we have built has room for everyone who is ready to turn the page on the chaos and instability of Donald Trump, Harris said during a rally alongside Republicans who have endorsed her at Washington Crossing.

But former president Donald Trumps team has dismissed concerns over former Haley supporters backing Harris, as they zero in on issues like inflation, the economy and the border.

We win this great commonwealth, we are going to win the whole ball game, Trump said during a town hall in Oaks, PA earlier this week, his first visit to the collar counties since the Republican National Convention.

A campaign official described it as a battle of ideas, noting they are quadrupling down on the message are you better off now than you were four years ago? in the counties surrounding Philadelphia.

The official said they are feeling good about the counties, pointing to their ground game investments, the campaign having more than two dozen offices across the state, and Bucks County where slightly more Republicans than Democrats have registered to vote.

Thats where Caroline Devenuto is volunteering, one of thousands across the state.

Definitely feeling confident because there's so much more visibility this election, she said, who is volunteering as a Trump Force 47 team captain this election.

I've never gotten money from anybody in my entire life, much less from the President of the United States. So during COVID, when, like, all of us single mothers were out here scrapping for money, like, you know, trying to make ends meet, that was the I was like, you know, he sees us. He cares about us. she said.

For each campaign, reaching women in the suburbs is a particular focus.

Well, I've always supported Trump. My biggest issue, as I mentioned, was immigration. I'm a first generation American. My parents immigrated to America legally and that's how it should be done, the way my parents came to this country, said Vicky Wagner.

She was part of a group of women that came together to see Trump at the town hall. For some, it was their first time seeing the former president, pointing to immigration, safety, affordability and foreign affairs as top concerns.

I know people that voted for him first and then the second election they did not in this election they're back. Women. So hopefully, you know, we're going to see a big change in that. I hope more women do come out, said Colleen Rossi, noting she did consider other candidates but believes hes the only one that can get the job done and plans to vote for him again.

But polling has shown a historic gender divide, with women breaking for Harris in record numbers. Her campaign believes it has grown support among them, and on the trail has heavily focused on reproductive rights.

Im a nurse, so you know, it might not be my choice, but even though I'm 68 years old, I still have a vote, and I can vote for my, you know, my nieces and other women I know, said Rosemary Moller.

With a race in battlegrounds thats sure to be close, there are still challenges. Former Democratic Congresswoman Marjorie Margolies, the first woman to represent her suburban Philadelphia district in Congress, now teaches about women in politics at the University of Pennsylvania.

I still think that many, many, many people are more comfortable walking into the voting booth and voting for a White male. And that's what I said when on the when I went to Congress the first year of the woman, we knew that we were pushing the rock up the hill, Margolies said.

Now comes a push into the home stretch outside Philadelphia for each campaign, in the collar counties that could decide the presidency.

RELATED STORY | Harris' interview with Fox News is marked by testy exchanges over immigration and more

Kamala Harris is widely expected to win traditionally blue Maryland, but its a tougher race for the state's open U.S. Senate seat. The Democratic candidate, Angela Alsobrooks, is a longtime protege of the vice president, and is largely running her campaign on the same issues.

"A lot of her values align, I think, with Maryland's values," Alsobrooks told Scripps News Thursday in Baltimore.

Like Harris, protecting abortion rights has been a key part of her campaign, and Alsobrooks has indicated her support to eliminate the filibuster to codify Roe V. Wade. But, in a state most analysts believe will go for Harris by a wide margin, Alsobrooks is significantly underperforming compared to the Vice President in the latest statewide polling.

According to a late September poll from the University of Maryland Baltimore County's Insitute of Politics, Harris appears to be winning Maryland over former President Donald Trump by over 20 points.

Alsobrooks is leading former Republican Governor Larry Hogan, but only by single digits.

Alsobrooks attributes this to her challenger's high name ID, after he served as one of the nations most popular governors for eight years.

"What we consistently see is that as people hear more about my own record and about my message, they are supporting me," Alsobrooks told Scripps News.

RELATED STORY | Scripps News exclusive: US Capitol Police chief confident agency is prepared for potential election violence

In the closing days of the 2024 campaign, polls show a growing chance that Republicans will retake control of the Senate, and Democrats are in an all-out sprint to shore up support.

Senator Chris Murphy, of Connecticut, is the third Democratic senator to stump with Alsobrooks this week.

There are a number of different pathways with which Democrats can hold, and potentially expand, their majority," Murphy told Scripps News. "Listen, people counted us out, as Democrats in the Senate, in 2020 [and] 2022."

"We've won a majority, we expanded our majority, and I think we'll do the same thing again in this election day," Murphy said.

At the start of 2024, Gallup found that independent voters make up the largest political bloc in the U.S. An Average of 43% of U.S. adults identified as independent in 2023, tying a record set nearly a decade ago. Identification with either party is tied at 27%, a slow decline for both since 2008.

As the countdown to the 2024 presidential election begins, correspondent Gianna Toboni travels to the crucial swing state of Arizona to meet with independent Americans from all walks of life. From ranchers to lawyers to church leaders and more, this diverse, multi-generational panel comes together for a straight-to-the-point discussion about the biggest issues.

Watch this episode of "In Real Life: Independent America" in the video player.

Google security expert Kimberly Samra told Scripps News that people need to learn how to spot scams whenever possible.

Online scams have increased markedly in recently years.

According to the FBI, Americans reported losses to the tune of $12.5 billion from online scams last year. It was a record number, up over 20% from the year before.

Samra previously worked in external relations for IBM Security and says these online scams "run the gamut whether it's phone calls, text messages, emails even online scams in some of those resources you see in your search results," on platforms like Google.

RELATED | Google illegally maintains monopoly over internet search, judge rules

Samra says to look out for red flags, like area codes on phone calls from places in other countries or states where you don't have ties. She says to try and avoid clicking on links in suspect text messages or emails.

You can hover over links with your computer's cursor to see if the URL is one that looks legitimate.

Scams are becoming very sophisticated, and that can lead people to becoming a victim of a cyberscam even when they are trying to be aware. Take advantage of features like two-factor authentication and passkeys instead of passwords, which help resist phishing.

By KATE BRUMBACK and JEFF AMY

ATLANTA (AP) — National and state Republicans on Thursday appealed a judge’s ruling that said seven election rules recently passed by Georgia’s State Election Board are “illegal, unconstitutional and void.”

The Republican National Committee and the Georgia Republican Party are appealing a ruling from Fulton County Superior Court Judge Thomas Cox, who ruled Wednesday that the State Election Board did not have the authority to pass the rules and ordered it to immediately inform all state and local election officials that the rules are void and not to be followed.

The rules that Cox invalidated include three that had gotten a lot of attention — one that requires that the number of ballots be hand-counted after the close of polls and two that had to do with the certification of election results.

In a statement Thursday announcing the appeal. RNC Chairman Michael Whatley accused Cox of “the very worst of judicial activism.”

“By overturning the Georgia State Election Board’s commonsense rules passed to safeguard Georgia’s elections, the judge sided with the Democrats in their attacks on transparency, accountability, and the integrity of our elections,” Whatley said. “We have immediately appealed this egregious order to ensure commonsense rules are in place for the election — we will not let this stand.”

The ruling came in a lawsuit filed by Eternal Vigilance Action, an organization founded and led by former state Rep. Scot Turner, a Republican. The suit argued that the State Election Board overstepped its authority in adopting the rules.

The ruling was hailed as a victory by Democrats and voting rights groups, who say rules the State Election Board has passed in recent months could be used by allies of Donald Trump to cast doubt on results if the former president loses the presidential election to Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris. Recent appointments to the five-member board have put three Trump-endorsed Republicans in the majority. They have passed new rules over the objections of the board’s lone Democrat and the nonpartisan chair.

County election officials from around the state — the people who run the elections — have voiced concerns over the flood of new rules taking effect so close to Election Day.

The other rules Cox said are illegal and unconstitutional are ones that: require someone delivering an absentee ballot in person to provide a signature and photo ID; demand video surveillance and recording of ballot drop boxes after polls close during early voting; expand the mandatory designated areas where partisan poll watchers can stand at tabulation centers; and require daily public updates of the number of votes cast during early voting.

A new study out of the University of Colorado found that homeless encampments aren't linked to rises in crime.

The study looked at data between 2019 and 2023 and focused on crime in one-quarter to three-quarters of a mile radius around sweep sites. And as time went on, those minimal decreases in crimes like auto theft and public disorder became even smaller.

RELATED STORY | In Real Life: Overcoming Homelessness

Researchers also found that, in some cases, rates of violent crime went up after encampments were removed.

According to the Commonsense Institute, the number of unsheltered homeless in the metro area grew 247% in the last six years. The number of newly homeless grew 240% in the same time, and the number of chronically homeless grew 305%.

Denver has the fifth largest homeless population in the country per capita, according to U.S. News and World Report higher than San Francisco.

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An important takeaway is researchers say they believe the lessons learned from this study can be applied to other cities around the country that are struggling with what to do with encampments as well.

With the recent Supreme Court decision Grants Pass vs. Johnson that allows cities to make the decision to displace people, researchers say this analysis should make city leaders think if sweeping is the best use of resources as encampment sweeps do not help those who are homeless, and according to this studys results, are also not making the rest of us any safer.

The Texas Supreme Court late on Thursday night delayed the execution of Robert Roberson, who was originally scheduled to be put to death earlier in the day after being convicted of murder in a case related to shaken baby syndrome.

A Texas House committee had requested the stay so that Roberson could testify at a hearing in his case next week.

Wednesday the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles denied a request for clemency for Roberson.

On Thursday the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals had rejected an appeal to halt the execution.

Also on Thursday the U.S. Supreme Court declined to halt the execution. Justice Sonya Sotomayor wrote urging Texas Gov. Greg Abbott to issue a 30-day delay in Roberson's case. Gov. Abbott has so far not commented on the case.

Roberson was convicted and sentenced to death for the 2002 killing of his 2-year-old daughter, Nikki Curtis.

RELATED STORY | Texas intends to execute Robert Roberson, whose attorneys claim he was wrongly convicted

Prosecutors allege Roberson abused his daughter and violently shook her to death, leading to the "shaken baby syndrome" diagnosis.

Roberson's attorneys claim he was wrongly convicted. His defense now points to undiagnosed pneumonia as his daughter's cause of death claiming Nikki stopped breathing in her sleep.

The post The Metro Events Guide: Art exhibits, maker markets and more to explore this weekend in Detroit appeared first on WDET 101.9 FM.

According to the Department of Natural Resources, the owners of the Mollie Kathleen Gold Mine in Colorado were sent a cease and desist letter following an inspection by the Colorado Division of Reclamation, Mining and Safety.

This inspection was conducted after last week's deadly malfunction that killed one and trapped more than 20 people.

The letter prohibits the mine from reopening until DRMS' ongoing review of the mine's operation has been completed. You can read the letter for yourself below.

The Department of Natural Resources also says that Colorado tourist mine safety is regulated by the Mine Safety and Training Program within DRMS.

Active mines are regulated through the Federal Mine Safety & Health Administration.

RELATED | Elevator malfunction at Colorado gold mine under investigation after deadly tragedy

According to the Department of Natural Resources, before last week's incident, DRMS Mine and Safety Training Program reports had found the Mollie Kathleen Mine satisfactory with no observed hazards or violations.

The mine was last inspected on August 29, 2024.

The Mollie Kathleen Mine is the only Colorado tourist mine with a personnel elevator.

According to the Department of Natural Resources, in addition to yearly inspections, mine operators of tourist mines are required to conduct daily inspections.

A record of these inspections is required to be maintained and made available to inspectors upon request.

DRMS provides the log books for these records however, the records are stored by the individual mine operators.

According to the Department of Natural Resources, Colorado tourist mines overall have an excellent safety record.

The Teller County Sheriff's Department as well as the U.S. Occupational and Safety Health Administration are continuing to investigate this incident.

DRMS's Mine Safety and Training Program will continue to evaluate the facility to make sure it follows the guidelines of the Mine Safety Training Program for Tourist Mines.

The DRMS's Mine Safety and Training Program has agreed to help with any requests for assistance with any of the ongoing investigations.

This story was originally published by Dani Whitaker at

Scripps News Colorado Springs

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