When turbulent weather with whipping winds and heavy snow is in the forecast, meteorologists sometimes warn that a storm could bomb out or become a bomb cyclone. But what exactly does this mean?
According to the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, certain storms undergo bombogenesis, which happens when a storms central pressure drops at least 24 millibars in 24 hours. These storms are sometimes called bomb cyclones. Storm intensity is measured by central pressure, so the lower the pressure, the stronger the storm.
Such rapidly strengthening storms are capable of producing heavy rain, blizzard conditions and intense winds that can create dangerous conditions such as downed trees and power outages.
If youre watching TV at night and the weather report comes on and youre hearing bomb cyclone being used, that usually means theres quite a bit of active weather going on, said Andrew Orrison, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in College Park, Maryland.
Bomb cyclones can happen in any season, but mainly occur during fall and winter when frigid air from the Arctic can creep south and clash with warmer air masses.
Its really the clash of those air masses that really kind of helps to generate the areas of low pressure in the first place, said Orrison.
Regions in North America that are prone to seeing bomb cyclones include Alaska, the Pacific Northwest and the Great Lakes region.
A Macomb County youngster drowned Friday night at an indoor swimming pool at a facility in northern Oakland County, police said.
According to the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office, the 5-year-old girl from Sterling Heights died about 7:30 p.m. at the Deer Lake Athletic Club on the 600 block of White Lake Road in Independence Township.
The sheriff’s office said detectives are investigating the circumstances surrounding the incident.
Authorities did not release the child’s name.
Sheriff’s officials said additional information will be released as the investigation proceeds.
A federal judge on Saturday denied Minnesotas emergency request to halt a surge of federal immigration enforcement agents in the Twin Cities region.
U.S. District Judge Katherine Menendez said her ruling does not make a final determination on the states claim that the federal government has overstepped its authority. She also stressed the decision was not a ruling on the legality of specific actions taken by federal agents.
Menendez wrote that granting the injunction would harm the federal governments efforts to enforce federal immigration laws.
The Court must view plaintiffs claims through the lens of the specific legal framework they invoke, and, having done so, finds that plaintiffs have not met their burden, she wrote.
The judge noted Minnesota officials did not explain how to draw a clear line between what is constitutionally permissible and what is not.
State officials alleged the Trump administration targeted Minnesota as political retribution and gave the state unequal treatment, saying other states with larger undocumented populations could see bigger surges in enforcement activity.
But Menendez ruled the state failed to show how the executive branchs discretionary decisions violate the law.
SAN FRANCISCO — For six years, Detroit Pistons fans have grown accustomed to watching Isaiah Stewart serve as an enforcer and defensive anchor. In the first 46 games of this season, Stewart has elevated his production on defense even more.
He is leading the league’s second-best defense and is currently in the running for several defensive awards. While registering a career-best average of 1.9 blocks per game, Stewart ranks sixth in total rejections with 78. He leads the NBA in defended field-goal percentage at the rim, holding his opponents to 43.0% shooting.
Stewart will be honored with a bobblehead giveaway before the Pistons’ home game against the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday. But the bobblehead won’t feature Stewart defending the rim. Instead, it’s Stewart riding a tractor and dressed in farmer’s overalls.
“This bobblehead represents my love and passion for farming. I have a tractor that I operate and use on my land,” Stewart told The Detroit News. “I’m interested in all different kinds of crops. If my mind isn’t on basketball, my mind is on farming. I am always researching something about farming every single day. I feel like it’s my calling.”
In southern California, Stewart owns two agricultural properties called Paraiso De La Luz, which is Spanish for “Paradise of Light.” His main hub focuses on producing tropical and subtropical fruits such as figs, finger limes, grapes, kumquats, mangos, passion fruit and pomegranates. Two hours down the road, he owns a desert hub that solely produces dates, in partnership with Sam Cobb Farms.
During the offseason, Stewart works diligently on his crops. When the Pistons are in season, however, he relies on his employees and the property manager for daily updates.
“It speaks to his character, his intelligence. He’s a guy who wants to make the world better. He understands what the world needs, in terms of farming and the environment. I think it is amazing,” Jalen Duren said to The Detroit News. “He’s always coming in here, talking about the new cows he’s got, or whatever new trees he planted. I think what he’s doing is great. I’m inspired.”
Stewart’s passion for farming began at his childhood home in Rochester, N.Y. He has fond memories of watching his father, Dela Stewart, tending to the family’s backyard garden. His father grew a variety of vegetables, including cucumbers, greens and tomatoes. Stewart’s favorite part of watching his father was seeing him transform his work into delightful meals.
The hard work that the elder Stewart put into the family garden instilled a strong work ethic in his son, which ultimately helped him reach the NBA. However, he could never have predicted that his efforts would later inspire his son to pursue farming as a second career more than 20 years later.
“He had a garden in our backyard. Every year, as soon as the weather got good enough, he would go back there and clean it up. Uproot everything. Make a fence with sections of different plants,” Stewart said. “I know he is proud of what I am doing. With him being from Jamaica, and his father did it – that is who he got it from – and now, I’m doing it.”
Stewart’s upbringing and passion have laid the groundwork for his farming career as he strives to be a pioneer in the industry.
Black farmers once dominated the agricultural business, but over several decades, the demographic has significantly diminished. As he continues to inspire a generation of NBA hopefuls in Detroit, Stewart hopes his agricultural work will increase the number of Black farmers nationwide.
Stewart intends to sell his harvest in grocery stores one day to provide consumers with high-quality produce. It’s his way of bringing better fruits and vegetables to consumers, who might be missing out because of infrastructure problems some farmers face when trying to deliver their crops to supermarkets.
“My family loves it. They see how invested I am in it and how much I care about it,” Stewart said. “They know what I’m striving to be. I am not doing this for fun. I’m doing it because I want to be one of the best farmers in the world when it is all said and done.”
Detroit Pistons forward Isaiah Stewart, left, and Houston Rockets center Alperen Sengun, right, jostle for position during a free throw in the first half of an NBA basketball game Friday, Oct. 24, 2025, in Houston. (ERIC CHRISTIAN SMITH — AP Photo, file)
BLOOMFIELD HILLS — More often than not, it’s Da’ron Mason that leads the scoring charge for Bloomfield Hills, in triumph or defeat.
But the Black Hawks’ 53-41 victory over Pontiac in front of a packed house Friday night showed why the OAA Blue frontrunners go beyond their star senior.
“This was one of those games, I didn’t have any feel for the stat line, who scored what, who did a good job on the glass,” Black Hawks head coach Brian Canfield said. “It was a full team effort. Then, you look at the book, Carter Hartfield had 17, but everyone else … when Da’ron’s the fourth-leading scorer and you can still pull that game out and win by double-digits, that’s pretty significant for us.”
Mason finished with seven points and was among a handful of Black Hawks who scored between a handful and eight in the win.
“We just came out knowing we had trust in each other,” Mason said of the effort in the second half. “I have trust in all those guys. I’m just glad they trust me to get them that pass. We knew we were the better team and had to show them (Pontiac) that.”
Bloomfield Hills came in on an eight-game winning streak, and the only game during that span decided by fewer than nine points was its 43-42 win in Pontiac on Jan. 9 when the two teams last met.
With the Black Hawks at 5-0 in the league and Pontiac the next-best contender at 3-1 going into the rematch, Friday’s result was going to have major ramifications, and the Phoenix had to feel good about their chances midway through. Caden Covington had two 3-pointers in the first quarter and JJ Claudio knocked down three in the second and had 17 points already by halftime when Pontiac led 29-20.
“I just think we came out with energy, and we executed very well in the first half,” Phoenix head coach Dion Harris said. “I don’t know how many turnovers we had, but we got shots at the basket, hit shots, and didn’t turn it over much in the first half. These kids play well when everything’s going right.”
Canfield and Mason sent a message at the interval, though.
“We knew that we were playing under our skill level, and we felt like we could do more and we had to bring the energy up,” Mason said. “We all came together as a collective and said we needed to play harder, especially on the defensive side. We had to come out and show them that’s what we do, we play 90 full feet.”
Those words of self-affirmation paid dividends, apparently.
Pontiac's JJ Claudio (0) attempts to score over Bloomfield Hills' Carter Canfield (3) in the second half of Friday's OAA Blue contest. Claudio led all scorers with 22 points, but the Phoenix fell on the road, 53-41. (BRYAN EVERSON - MediaNews Group)
A corner triple by Brennan Bies chopped the lead down to just four less than 90 seconds into the third quarter, and Ryan Hunt knocked down 3-pointers just a little over a minute apart, the second of which knotted the contest at 33-33 with 3:34 left in the quarter.
“I think they dame out in the second half, hit the first two threes, and we had to call a timeout,” Harris said. “That took away some of our mojo, our energy, and we didn’t come down and score those first three or four possessions. It’s hard for these guys to come back out of that when they other team goes on a run and we miss consecutive shots. We still don’t know how to play through that.”
The teams were tied at 36 at the end of the third, but the fourth was all Bloomfield Hills (14-2, 6-0). Hartfield and Carter Canfield each connected from distance in the first 48 seconds to force a Pontiac timeout, then Hartfield scored and Hunt got a turnaround jumper to bounce a few times on the iron and fall. A sharp pass into the post by Meyer Saperstein to Canfield capped off a 12-0 run by the Black Hawks with about 3:30 remaining.
All the while, Pontiac (8-6, 3-2) couldn't buy a make from 3-point range, and its second-half woes from the charity stripe (3 of 10) only made matters worse. The Phoenix only had two points throughout the entire quarter until Claudio (22 points) connected from NBA range with 38 seconds left in regulation.
On the game turning, Coach Canfield said, "I thought the first quarter was back and forth, then they knocked down two threes, and I told guys at the (end of it), 'You won that first quarter, you had played better for a longer period of time, but they just got two threes.' And they continued to make threes. Both teams executed well, but they made perimeter shots, we didn't.
"Da'ron struggled in the first half, and obviously when you have a player of that caliber (struggle), he's such an important part of the team, the team's gonna struggle. The second half, the turnaround was a couple adjustments with spacing against the defensive pressure that gave us some open looks on the perimeter, and we're a really good shooting team, so I didn't think we were going to continue to miss shots like that ... Another big part of that is, early fourth quarter, Da'ron picked up his fourth foul, and after I've just said when a player of that caliber doesn't play well, we need him, but he was on the bench when we went on that run.
"It's been the same story (for our team). They've been in close games for a half our so, sometimes three quarters, but at some point in fourth quarters, we've been able to tighten up the defense, secure rebounds and pull out the win."
Asked whether he believed the circumstances contributed to how his team performed down the stretch, Harris replied, "Absolutely. I think that added pressure, it effected us. I don't want to say we can't play under pressure but we've had three opportunities (against Avondale, Pershing and now Bloomfield Hills) to make statements in games, and we need better leadership out on the floor so we can overcome those moments where things aren't going right ... We have about a month left before state starts and we have to focus all our energy on getting better at what we need to do to make a playoff run now."
Even with the win, Coach Canfield wasn't about to declare the OAA Blue as belonging to the Black Hawks, who continue their second go-around against league opponents on Feb. 6 against Troy. "Look, we have a two-game lead with four games left for us, but I've done this long enough to know I'm not counting on anything until it's final," he said. "And for us, it is just one game at a time. Anybody in our league can beat anybody, but our goal is to be the best team we can be regardless of the record, and in order for us to do that, we have to win the next game."
Bloomfield Hills senior Ryan Hunt celebrates his second 3-pointer in a row in the third quarter of the Black Hawks' 53-41 home victory over Pontiac Friday night. (BRYAN EVERSON - MediaNews Group)
Federal prosecutors announced charges Thursday against a Wichita man in connection with a Facebook post threatening to kill Rep. Ilhan Omar.
Adam Lee Osborn, 60, is charged with one count of using interstate communications with a threat to injure and one count of influencing, impeding and retaliating against a federal official by threatening.
The charges come the same week as a Minnesota man was tackled after spraying an unknown substance on Omar during a town hall in Minneapolis.
On Jan. 23, the Kansas Bureau of Investigation received a voluntary emergency disclosure request from Facebook about a user who posted on the platform, Im going to kill Ilhan Omar in white text on a purple background.
Facebooks disclosure included user information that connected the post to Osborns account.
The KBI, working with the Wichita Police Department, went to Osborns Wichita apartment to talk to him about the posts.
When officers told Osborn they wanted to talk about his Facebook posts, Osborn said he knew they were the ones about Omar and allegedly admitted, Yeah, I wrote those.
During a subsequent interview, Osborn said he was blind and didnt have the means to follow through on his threats to Omar. Osborn also referenced recently elected New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, saying, Someone needed to take his sorry ass out too, and they need to.
Osborn allegedly told investigators that he hoped his posts maybe provoke someone to handle business. When officers asked him what handle business meant, he told them to take em out. When officers asked him what take em out meant, he said, kill them.
Wichita police and KBI agents alerted agents at the FBI Field Office, which worked to present the affidavit in support of criminal charges to federal prosecutors.
Osborn made his initial appearance before a federal judge on Jan. 26 in Wichita. He remains in federal custody pending an arraignment and detention hearing set for Feb. 4.
The Ark experimented with the format of its annual Ann Arbor Folk Festival on Friday night, Jan. 30, at Hill Auditorium.
And in Greensky Bluegrass, it couldn’t have found a better band to do that with.
For the first night of the 49th annual incarnation of the Ark’s largest fundraising event, the festival eschewed the usual multi-act bill (six will be part of the lineup on Saturday. Jan. 30) with truncated sets and presented a more traditional headliner-with-opening act (Junior Brown). That allowed Greensky, formed more than 25 years ago in Kalamazoo, to do what it does best — take a couple hours and stretch out, mixing tight songcraft with improvisational daring do, its five members improvising and dancing around expansive song arrangements.
It’s certainly worked for the group, whose plugged-in approach with acoustic instruments has made it one of the darlings of the nu (blue)grass world and a large-venue headliner around the world.
Greensky Bluegrass performs for the 49th Annual Ann Arbor Folk Festival Friday night, Jan. 30, at Hill Auditorium (Photo by Andrew Rogers/The Ark)
But the Greenskyers were clearly stoked to be playing their first Folk Festival, as well as returning to Ann Arbor for the first time since 2013; dobro player Anders Beck told the audience that the group, which headlined at the Fillmore Detroit last August, was actually planned to not play shows this winter and instead focus on making a new album, but that the Folk Festival was a gig on the band’s bucket list.
“It’s good to be playing Greensky Music in Michigan,” he noted.
The troupe’s two-hour, 16-song set certainly reflected that feeling as well as the sea change in approach for the festival, with many Greensky faithful standing throughout while some mainstays noticeably drifted out during the show.
Following a characteristically fiery set from country singer-guitarist Brown — an Ark regular resplendent in his suit and cowboy hat and dazzling as always on his hybrid “guit-steel” double-neck guitar — Greensky set the tone with a fast-paced “Past My Prime,” with mandolinist Paul Hoffman singing and the Beck picking through the first of his many solos during the night and the band’s custom light show immersing itself onto Hill’s walls and ceilings. But the set hit stride as the next three songs — “Monument,” “Streetlight” and a warp-speed “Burn Them” — flowed into each other, their sturdy melodies giving way to improvisational forays by Beck, Hoffman, guitarist-vocalist Dave Bruzza and banjoist Michael Bont, while Mike Devol held things together on his bass.
Junior Brown performs for the 49th Annual Ann Arbor Folk Festival Friday night, Jan. 30, at Hill Auditorium (Photo by Andrew Rogers/The Ark)
Likely takeaways for Greensky fans were epic, extended performances of “Whatchoo,”the Traveling Wilburys “Handle With Care” and “Don’t Lie,” as well the dobro-mandolin exchange during “Weather,” a particularly emotive “Windshield” and a playful romp through “Fixin’ to Ruin.” The group also covered fellow Michigander Billy Strings’ “While I’m Waiting Here,” and it encored with appropriate version of Jerry Garcia and David Grisman’s “Drink Up and Go Home.”
Whether it was a successful start for the festival will be the subject of review and discussion in days to come. But, no question, it was another successful — and more than that, really — night with an undeniably upper-strata live act.
The Ark’s 49th Ann Arbor Folk Festival concludes at 7 p.m. Saturday,. Jan. 31 at Hill Auditorium, 825 N. University Ave., Ann Arbor. Amos Lee, Dawes, the Crane Wives, Jon Muq, Rabbitolgy and emcee Ryan Montbleau perform. 734-761-1800 or theark.org.
Greensky Bluegrass performs for the 49th Annual Ann Arbor Folk Festival Friday night, Jan. 30, at Hill Auditorium (Photo by Andrew Rogers/The Ark)
The Los Angeles Police Department said multiple demonstrators were arrested Friday as anti-immigration enforcement rallies took place nationwide.
Police said several violent agitators were taken into custody after officers ordered the crowd to disperse. Some demonstrators threw objects at officers after the orders were issued, according to the LAPD.
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass expressed concern that violent protests could lead to an escalation. President Donald Trump had sought to deploy National Guard troops to Los Angeles, but a federal judge blocked the move, ruling he did not have the authority to deploy them domestically without the governors approval.
Peaceful protest is a constitutional right. I urge Angelenos to exercise that right safely and not give this administration an excuse to escalate, Bass said.
The protests came as the 50501 Project urged U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to scale back its operations amid stepped-up enforcement in Minneapolis and other cities. The group called for a nationwide economic boycott Friday, urging people to skip school, work and shopping. A day of protests is planned for Saturday.
NEW YORK (AP) — From her house up high in Colorado’s Elk Mountains, author Shelley Read can only look out in amazement at the worldwide success of her debut novel, “Go as a River.”
“There were upward of 30 translations already secured before the novel was introduced in the U.S.,” says Read, a fifth-generation Coloradan who lives with her husband in Crested Butte, in a home they built themselves. “And that is when I was like, ‘Oh my goodness.’ It’s thrilling, scary, magnificent.”
Published in 2023 by Spiegel & Grau, “Go as a River” received little major review attention beyond trade publications when first released and its honors are mostly regional, including a High Plains Book Award and a Reading the West Book Award. But her novel has been a hit in the U.S. and well beyond, appearing on bestseller lists everywhere from North America to Scandinavia and selling more than 1 million copies. Mazur Kaplan, co-founded by producer Paula Mazur and independent book seller Mitchell Kaplan, is working on a film adaptation. Eliza Hittman, whose credits include the award-winning “Never Rarely Sometimes Only,” is expected to direct.
Read’s 300-page novel spans from the 1940s to the 1970s, and centers on a 17-year-old Colorado farm girl’s ill-fated romance with an itinerant Indigenous man and how it haunts and changes lives for decades to come. “Go as a River” proves that some books can break through without high-profile endorsements or author name recognition. It also adds the 61-year-old Read to a special list of first-time authors — from Frank McCourt to Louis Begley — middle aged or older who finally get around to that book they had been meaning to write and receive wide acclaim.
“What she’s done is unusual,” says Spiegel & Grau co-founder Cindy Spiegel. “Every now and then someone comes along who has a vision that they’ve held for many, many years and they really do write it down. Most people don’t.”
A native of Colorado Springs, Read is a graduate of the University of Denver who has a master’s degree from Temple University’s creative writing program. She is a longtime educator who parsed and absorbed so many books, with works by Virginia Woolf and Czeslaw Milosz among her favorites, that one of her own inevitably came out on the other end.
A teacher with a story of her own
For nearly three decades, she taught writing and literature among other subjects at Western Colorado University. During that time, a character kept turning up in her thoughts, the germ of what became her novel’s protagonist, Victoria Nash. There was something about Victoria, an empathetic quality, Read related to. But she had her career and two young children, and “was just trying to keep my head above water as a super busy mom and with a lot of very intense challenges.”
With Victoria unwilling to leave her be, Read began jotting down notes on Post-its, napkins and other papers that might be around. With her husband’s encouragement, she took early retirement and committed to completing her book. She had written stories in her early years, but had never attempted a full-length narrative.
“I had no idea where it was going. I had no intentions about where it was going, because I had never written a novel before,” Read says, speaking via Zoom from her home. “Once I figured out this was going to be a novel, I was like, ‘Oh no!’ I have studied novels thousands of times throughout my life, but I never even considered that I would write one.”
Read stepped down in 2018 and by the following year had finished a manuscript, drawn in part from such historical events as a 1960s flood in Iola, Colorado, and from her lifelong affinity for the local landscape. First-time authors of any age struggle to find representation, but during a 2017 writers conference at Western Colorado University, Read had met Sandra Bond, a Denver-based agent. A “Colorado girl,” Bond calls herself.
“We hit it off immediately,” Bond says. “We have very similar backgrounds in growing up in Colorado.”
Writing is rewriting
Read’s manuscript “knocked my socks off,” Bond remembers, but it wasn’t an easy sell. The second half of the book “didn’t quite meet the standards of the first” and Bond didn’t have the editing skills to fix it. “Go as a River” was turned down by 21 publishers before Spiegel signed it up. Spiegel & Grau, which began as a Penguin Random House imprint and reopened in 2020 as an independent a year after PRH shut it down amid a corporate reorganization, has worked with authors ranging from Ta-Nehisi Coates and Sara Gruen to Iain Pears and Kathryn Stockett.
“I had a feeling Cindy might be able to see how to guide Shelley in revising the second half — what was really working and what wasn’t and why,” Bond says.
Spiegel and Read worked on revisions — the finished version is entirely from Victoria’s perspective; the original draft shifted narrators midway. Meanwhile, the publisher showed the manuscript to the international agent Susanna Lea, who “read it one sitting” and quickly arranged for meetings with foreign publishers. It was mid-July, and she remembers tracking down publishers in Norway and Finland and other parts of Scandinavia at a time of year when book executives usually are on vacation.
“Suddenly, they were all reachable,” she says.
Read is working on a second novel, set in southeastern Colorado, where her homesteader-grandparents lived. Meanwhile, royalties from “Go as a River” allowed her a few indulgences, from installing solar panels on her house to a little travel, not to mention paying off college tuition for her son and building up the family retirement savings.
“Not too sexy,” she acknowledges. “We’re still do-it-yourselfers, & I still drive an old Toyota pickup. The main thing about the royalties is that I get to be a writer for a living, and that is a dream come true.”
This cover image released by Spiegel & Grau shows “Go as a River” by Shelley Read. (Spiegel & Grau via AP)
DETROIT – After the magic of the evening had faded, after all the history of the moment had soaked in, Patrick Kane was ready to put it in the background.
Kane achieved history in Thursday’s 4-3 shootout loss to Washington, assisting on Ben Chiarot’s second-period goal. Kane passed Westland’s Mike Modano with 1,375 points, making the Hall of Fame-bound Buffalo native the NHL all-time leader in points among U.S.-born players.
The Wings knew Kane was going to break the record eventually. It was just a matter of time. But in Kane’s estimation, it was nice to finally get the record, and now concentrate on what the Wings can accomplish the rest of the season. The Wings are among the top teams in the Eastern Conference and poised to break their nine-year playoff drought.
“It’s nice to have it over with in some ways,” Kane said. “Just kind of worry about the rest of the season, and what we can accomplish as a team and hopefully go do something special as a group. At the start of the season there’s a lot of attention and talk about 500 goals and possibly getting this record.
“So, it’s nice to get there, be done with it and move on.”
Kane scored goal No. 500, another impressive milestone, Jan. 8 against Vancouver, also at Little Caesars Arena.
That was an exciting moment for Red Wings fans. But Thursday night might have been even more special.
“One of those hockey moments that you’ll remember where you were when he got it, if you’re a big fan of Patrick Kane or you’re part of our team,” coach Todd McLellan said. “Now he can just move on and stack numbers on top of that number. But you have to work hard to get it and we’re all happy for him.”
On the record-smashing play Thursday, a nice passing play, Kane found Alex DeBrincat, who set up Chiarot for a one-timer.
“Great play all-around,” Kane said. “(Andrew Copp) Copper pulling up, hitting me with some speed, hitting Cat, pulling up and hitting the late guy. Copper gets to the net and a great shot by Benny.”
Kane’s teammates streamed onto the ice and mobbed him. The LCA crowd, which gravitated toward Kane as soon as he signed with the Wings in 2023, erupted in cheers.
“Incredible for him and his family and really special to just be able to witness that live,” captain Dylan Larkin said. “I know a lot of those points were in Chicago (that Kane scored), but to see how our fans have embraced him and how he’s embraced our city is really special and says a lot about how much he loves the game. No matter where he’s playing, if people appreciate him, he’s going to give love back to them.”
The depth of the moment, the history of it all, wasn’t lost on Kane’s teammates.
“It’s hard to really grasp how special it is,” said DeBrincat, a long time teammate of Kane’s in Chicago and now in Detroit. “A lot of people have known he’s going to hit it (get the record) and is one of the best American players to ever play, and we knew that before tonight.
“But it is special to pass Modano. He’s been working hard for it, so he deserves it. It’s part of what makes him special.”
Kane looked to set the record in the first period, setting up DeBrincat for a goal. But video confirmed both players looked to be offside, erasing the goal.
“Pretty crazy the way you think you have it and then it comes back for offside,” Kane said. “I don’t think many of us knew it was offside on the ice, but there was a feeling something was going on when the guys didn’t come from the bench.”
Kane has long been an American player that U.S. youngsters have gravitated to because of his offensive wizardry and team success with the Blackhawks (three Stanley Cups). Thursday’s record was another watershed moment in an impactful career.
“Throughout my career, there’s been some American guys that have come up to me and said some really nice things, some younger guys that appreciated the way I played when I was younger and they were younger and I was a guy they looked up to,” Kane said. “(It’s) pretty cool to hear that when it’s something you’re not really expecting.”
Kane also appreciated a video message Modano supplied that was broadcast during the next timeout after Kane set the points record.
“He’s one of the best American players of all time,” Kane said of Modano. “He’s a guy I looked up to a lot when I was younger. I remember the moment he passed Phil Housley in San Jose on a breakaway goal, and to see him up there (on the scoreboard), as a former Red Wing too, sending a message like that was pretty classy.”
Kane, 37, didn’t immediately delve into his future, other than focusing on the Wings’ potential the rest of this season. He’s playing this season on a one-year, $3 million contract. But it’s extremely likely Kane will play at least one more season, given his success this season.
“He’s still got it,” DeBrincat said. “He’s still one of the smartest players I’ve ever played with, and obviously the skill is there. As long as he wants to go, he’s going to be able to go and be a difference-maker in the league for a while.”
Top of the charts
Most NHL points by U.S.-born players:
Patrick Kane: 1,375
Mike Modano: 1,374
Phil Housley: 1,232
Jeremy Roenick: 1,216
Joe Pavelski: 1,068
Note: Brett Hull (1,391 points) was born in Canada but represented the U.S. in international events.
Detroit right wing Patrick Kane celebrates after earning his 1,375th career point, the most by any U.S. born player, on a goal during the second period of a game between the Detroit Red Wings and the Washington Capitals at Little Caesars Arena, in Detroit, January 29, 2026. (DAVID GURALNICK —Tribune News Service)
PITTSBURGH — Still suffering from a post-holiday drag? After the fun of Christmas and New Year’s, it’s completely understandable if you’re having a hard time snapping back into a routine.
The fact that it’s still getting light too late and dark too early — we won’t set our clocks forward for spring until March 8 — only adds to the funk that is a Western Pennsylvania winter, marked by gray skies, a freezing mix of snow and rain and slushy sidewalks.
After a steady diet of festive desserts, rich and hearty sides and too much alcohol, “everyday” cooking might feel daunting on a busy weeknight. A relaxed holiday schedule has left many of us out of practice in getting dinners on the table at a set time. And if you’ve over-indulged over the past few weeks, you might be trying to eat less to shed those extra holiday pounds.
We get it. It can be tough to get back on track and re-establish home cooking habits, especially when the frozen dinner aisle and takeout make it so easy to compromise. That’s why it’s often best to start the process with baby steps — simple meals that don’t call for lots of ingredients or take too much time (or effort) start to finish.
To help inspire you, we’ve assembled five flavorful recipes that each require no more than six everyday ingredients and only take about a half hour to prepare on the stovetop.
Don’t love washing pans? Me either! All of the following are made and served from a single skillet, guaranteeing easy cleanup.
There is a slight catch: All five dishes assume you have kitchen staples like vegetable oil or extra-virgin olive oil, salt and pepper, garlic cloves, unsalted butter, sugar and various spices already on hand.
All prove, however, that sometimes the simplest dinners are the best ones, and they don’t have to be boring.
Easy Lemon Chicken
PG tested
I’ve made this dish for my family too many times to count, and still it’s a favorite. You can use less butter if you’re trying to cut down on fat and calories. For a gluten-free dish, dust the chicken in cornstarch or almond flour instead of all-purpose flour.
I think it’s best on rice, but kids love their noodles!
2 whole chicken breasts, boned, skinned and halved
4 tablespoons butter, divided
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2 cups unbleached flour
Salt and pepper
2 lemons
Chopped fresh parsley
Cooked rice or noodles, for serving
Wash and dry chicken breasts. Pound them flat between two pieces of waxed paper or inside a resealable plastic bag with a mallet or rolling pin.
Melt 2 tablespoons butter and oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Pour flour in a plastic bag, season with salt and pepper, and drop the breasts in to coat. Shake off excess flour.
Turn heat up to moderately high and put chicken breasts in the skillet. Depending on how thin you’ve pounded them, they should cook approximately 3 minutes on each side or until cooked through and still tender. When they’re done, season with salt and pepper, remove to a plate and set aside while you make the sauce.
Add 2 remaining tablespoons of butter to the chicken skillet and melt, scraping up brown bits in the pan.
Juice 1 lemon and slice the other. Add juice and lemon slices to skillet and cook until bubbly, then return chicken to the pan, spooning sauce over. Garnish with fresh parsley.
Serve with rice or cooked noodles.
Serves 4.
— Gretchen McKay, Post-Gazette
Rigatoni with Tomato Cream Sauce
PG tested
Nothing is more comforting in winter than a bowl of pasta with red sauce. Here, crushed tomatoes simmer with cream and grated Parmesan to create a super-fast super-savory sauce for rigatoni. Add a simple green salad and loaf of crusty Italian bread for a complete meal.
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 (28-ounce) can whole San Marzano tomatoes
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon concentrated tomato paste
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for serving
Salt, to taste
Red pepper flakes, to taste
4 cups cooked rigatoni or penne noodles
In a deep skillet, heat butter until melted.
Add tomatoes to pan, crushing them with a fork or potato masher. Simmer, stirring often, until the tomatoes have broken down, about 10 minutes. Season to taste with salt.
Stir in heavy cream and tomato paste and cook until the sauce thickens slightly, about 3 minutes. Stir in Parmesan cheese and toss to combine. Taste, add salt and, if you like some spice, a few pinches of red pepper flakes.
Add cooked pasta to pan and toss to combine.
Serve in warmed bowls, with extra Parmesan cheese.
Serves 4.
— Gretchen McKay, Post-Gazette
Pork and Coconut Pineapple Rice
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If there ever was a marriage made in culinary heaven, it has to be pork and pineapple. This easy recipe pairs bite-sized chunks of sweet, juicy pineapple with tender bites of teriyaki-marinated pork tenderloin. The combo is piled high on a bed of creamy, equally tropical coconut rice.
For pork
1/4 – 1/2 cup teriyaki sauce
1 pound pork tenderloin, cut into bite-sized chunks
20-ounce can pineapple chunks, drained, or 1 fresh pineapple, peeled, cored and cubed
Olive oil, for sauteing
For rice
2 cups jasmine rice
1 (14-ounce) can unsweetened full-fat coconut milk
1 1/2 cups water
1 teaspoon salt
Generous pinch of sugar
Chopped cilantro, for garnish
Marinate pork in 1/4 cup of teriyaki sauce for 2-3 hours or overnight.
Rinse rice in several changes of cold water until the water runs clear. Use a large fine-mesh sieve to drain any remaining water and place rice in a pot.
Add coconut milk, water, salt and sugar. Bring the mixture to a boil over high heat.
Once it starts to boil, turn the heat down to low, cover and cook for 20 minutes. Uncover and continue to cook for 5 minutes, then fluff and cover to keep warm.
While rice is cooking, prepare pork. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a nonstick skillet or grill pan over medium-high heat. Add pork, discarding the excess sauce. If you add all the sauce with it, it will steam the meat instead of caramelizing it.
Leave pork undisturbed in the hot pan for a few minutes to get better caramelization. Throw in pineapple and cook for 2-3 minutes so it gets saucy and caramelized, too. If desired, add a few additional tablespoons of sauce after everything is brown.
Portion cooked rice into bowls and top with a scoop or two of the saucy pineapple pork. Finish with chopped cilantro and slices of pickled jalapeño, if you happen to have any in the fridge.
Skillet Tortellini with Sausage and Cherry Tomatoes
A quick one-pan dinner pairs sweet Italian sausage with cheese tortellini and grape tomatoes. (Gretchen McKay/Pittsburgh Post-Gazette/TNS)
PG tested
Tortellini are great for last-minute meals because they are so easy to cook and go with many different sauces. In this recipe, they are cooked directly in the pan with sweet Italian sausage along with sweet cherry or grape tomatoes.
The original recipe calls for dried tortellini, but I substituted frozen pasta. Fresh basil adds both color and freshness. If you have some grated Parmesan in the fridge, add that, too, for a cheesy finish.
1 pound bulk sweet or hot Italian sausage
2 garlic cloves, sliced thin
12 ounces frozen cheese tortellini
1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium heat until shimmering.
Add sausage and cook, breaking up meat with wooden spoon, until no longer pink, about 4 minutes.
Add garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add 1 cup water, tortellini and a pinch of salt and bring to boil.
Reduce heat to medium and simmer, stirring occasionally, until pasta is tender, about 10-12 minutes.
Stir in tomatoes and cook until slightly softened, about 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste, drizzle with olive oil to taste and sprinkle with basil.
Serves 4.
— Adapted from “Five Ingredient Dinners” by America’s Test Kitchen
Single-Seared Garlic Shrimp Tacos
Seared shrimp tacos stuffed with cabbage slaw. (Gretchen McKay/Pittsburgh Post-Gazette/TNS)
PG tested
Tacos are a welcome weeknight meal because they don’t take a lot of time or effort. These feature quick marinated shrimp and an easy green cabbage slaw. They’re simple but super satisfying.
Both flour and corn tortillas work; just be sure to warm them on a hot skillet or in the microwave before stuffing them with shrimp and cabbage to keep them pliable.
2 limes
Salt and pepper
2 cups thinly sliced cabbage
1/2 small red onion
4 teaspoons, plus 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, divided
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder
24 large shrimp (about 1-1 1/2 pounds), peeled, deveined and patted dry
8 corn or flour tortillas, warmed in a microwave or on a hot skillet
In large bowl, whisk juice from 1 lime, 1 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.
Mix in cabbage and onion. Set aside, tossing occasionally, while you prepare the shrimp.
In medium bowl, stir together 2 teaspoons oil, half the minced garlic, chili powder, 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Add shrimp and stir to combine. Allow to marinate for 5 minutes.
In a 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high, heat 1 teaspoon of oil until shimmering.
Add half the shrimp in an even layer and cook, undisturbed, until deep golden brown on the bottoms, about 2 minutes. Stir, then transfer to plate.
Repeat with another 1 teaspoon oil and the remaining shrimp, but leave shrimp in pan. Return first batch to pan.
Add remaining minced garlic; cook over medium, stirring, until the shrimp are opaque throughout, about 1 minute.
Transfer to a clean plate or bowl.
Add remaining 1 tablespoon oil and cilantro to the cabbage mixture and toss to combine. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Divide the shrimp among the tortillas (3 to each), top with cabbage mixture and serve with lime wedges.
Serves 4.
— Adapted from “Milk Street Shorts: Recipes That Pack a Punch” by Christopher Kimball
Boston University researchers in a groundbreaking study found that those with CTE have a much higher chance of being diagnosed with dementia.
The largest study of its kind from the Boston University CTE Center reveals that the progressive brain disease chronic traumatic encephalopathy should be recognized as a new cause of dementia.
The BU researchers discovered that those with advanced CTE — who had been exposed to repetitive head impacts — had four times higher odds of having dementia.
“This study provides evidence of a robust association between CTE and dementia as well as cognitive symptoms, supporting our suspicions of CTE being a possible cause of dementia,” said Michael Alosco, associate professor of neurology at Boston University Chobanian and Avedisian School of Medicine.
“Establishing that cognitive symptoms and dementia are outcomes of CTE moves us closer to being able to accurately detect and diagnose CTE during life, which is urgently needed,” added Alosco, who’s the co-director of clinical research at the BU CTE Center.
The researchers studied 614 brain donors who had been exposed to repetitive head impacts, primarily contact sport athletes.
By isolating 366 brain donors who had CTE alone, compared to 248 donors without CTE, researchers found that those with the most advanced form of CTE had four times increased odds of having dementia.
The four times odds are similar to the strength of the relationship between dementia and advanced Alzheimer’s disease pathology, which is the leading cause of dementia.
Dementia is a clinical syndrome that refers to impairments in thinking and memory, in addition to trouble with performing tasks of daily living like driving and managing finances. Alzheimer’s disease is the leading cause, but there are several other progressive brain diseases listed as causes of dementia that are collectively referred to as Alzheimer’s disease related dementias (ADRD).
With this new study, the authors argue that CTE should now also be formally considered an ADRD.
The study also reveals that dementia due to CTE is often misdiagnosed during life as Alzheimer’s disease, or not diagnosed at all. Among those who received a dementia diagnosis during life, 40% were told they had Alzheimer’s disease despite showing no evidence of Alzheimer’s disease at autopsy. An additional 38% were told the causes of their loved one’s dementia was “unknown” or could not be specified.
In addition, this study addressed the controversial viewpoint expressed by some clinicians and researchers that CTE has no clinical symptoms. As recently as 2022, clinicians and researchers affiliated with the Concussion in Sport Group meeting, which was underwritten by international professional sports organizations, claimed, “It is not known whether CTE causes specific neurological or psychiatric problems.”
Alosco said, “There is a viewpoint out there that CTE is a benign brain disease; this is the opposite of the experience of most patients and families. Evidence from this study shows CTE has a significant impact on people’s lives, and now we need to accelerate efforts to distinguish CTE from Alzheimer’s disease and other causes of dementia during life.”
As expected, the study did not find associations with dementia or cognition for low-stage CTE.
The BU CTE Center is an independent academic research center at the Boston University Avedisian and Chobanian School of Medicine. It conducts pathological, clinical and molecular research on CTE and other long-term consequences of repetitive brain trauma in athletes and military personnel.
FILE – A doctor looks at PET brain scans at Banner Alzheimers Institute in Phoenix on Aug. 14, 2018. (AP Photo/Matt York, File)
By Ariana Perez-Castells, The Philadelphia Inquirer
Job hunters beware: some of the hard-earned skills listed on your resume are going unnoticed by potential employers.
Workers’ profiles on job posting websites often feature general abilities, like leadership, communication, teamwork, and problem-solving, a recent report from the Wharton School says. But they’re not highlighting the “specialized, execution-oriented skills,” employers are seeking. That’s created a “skills mismatch economy.”
“People are not representing their skills in a way that’s necessarily resonating with the skills that employers want,” said Eric Bradlow, the vice dean of artificial intelligence and analytics at the Wharton School, who co-authored the report.
Meanwhile, AI has been speeding the shift from a “role-based labor market to a skills-based economy,” the report outlines, making it all the more poignant to know what skills employers actually want.
Bradlow, says generative AI has been “a positively destructive bomb on roles and titles,” by making workers able to carry out tasks that they didn’t know how to do in the past. So “having a specific job title is becoming less relevant.”
The Wharton School worked in partnership with Accenture, a professional services firm, to analyze millions of job postings and worker profiles for the report. The study used data from Lightcast, a labor market data provider, and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Bradlow spoke with The Inquirer about their findings.
This conversation has been edited for length and clarity.
Q: What are some skills included on resumes that don’t make much difference to employers, because everyone seems to have them?
A: Do we think it’s important to communicate? Well, yeah, of course, it is. Do we think it’s important to have leadership skills and manage teams well? Yeah, of course. Last time I checked, those were really important parts of the job — but everybody puts that down. We’re not saying in the report that those skills aren’t important. What we’re saying is there’s an over supply of people stating those skills, as opposed to companies saying these skills are what’s going to get you the job.
Companies are realizing that depth of skill is what’s going to be really important.
Q: Do people lack the specialized skills employers are looking for? Or are they just failing to highlight them on their resumes?
A: That’s something, trust me, I wish I could answer.
If we had people’s transcript data, or if we knew what courses someone had taken, then we could try to get an understanding of what skills people actually have.
I think two things are going to happen, based on this Wharton-Accenture Skills Index gap report. Number one is, you will see a migration where people [will say] “I need to acquire those skills, if I don’t have them, if I want a job.” Second, you’ll see [organizations] — whether it’s an academic institution or a for-profit institution — saying “wait a second, here, we need more people with this skill. We’ll create a certification program.”
Q: You found that some skills are actually tied to higher-paying jobs. Was that surprising?
A: I’m not sure I had hypotheses about which skills would be paid higher or lower.
I think maybe the part that surprised me a little bit was that there wasn’t massive swings and variation like “if you have this skill, your salary doubles.” That’s not what we found in the data.
Q: What advice would you give someone crafting their resume?
A: One is talk about the specific skills you have. Every resume I read says “I’m an effective communicator, experienced leader.” That’s fine, but that’s not what’s going to stick out and become differentiated, because everyone’s going to say that. To the degree that you have specific expertise and depth or skills, those are the kinds of things to put on the resume.
The second thing I would say is that … we should be in the skills acquisition business, be a lifelong learner. Skills will always be valued. Jobs in a particular workflow can go away. People with skills will be hired.
Take, for instance, a customer support agent in a customer satisfaction group. If you’re someone with exceptional problem solving skills, you’re hearing your customer, and you’re able to tie it to some remedy, that skill is not going to go away even if the job you’re currently in happens to go away.
Q: What skills are needed more or needed less because of the adoption of AI recently?
A: I don’t view it as AI replacing humans. I view AI as that decision-support tool you should use for every decision. If I were an employer today, I wouldn’t even consider hiring someone that didn’t recognize the power of artificial intelligence as a decision-support aid. I don’t know what business decision — pricing decision, product launch decision, product design decision, possibly even hiring decision — [for which] I wouldn’t use artificial intelligence as a decision support tool.
I would also say, equally, I’m very concerned about the agentic use of AI — in some sense totally handing over high stakes decisions.
Q: From where you stand, is AI coming for people’s jobs, as we often hear, or is it coming for their skills? What’s the difference?
A: Go through the history of mankind.
The train engine came. So you mean we don’t need as many horses? Electricity came. You mean we don’t need as much coal? Green energy came, and so now we don’t need as much nuclear fusion?
Doesn’t technology always come and translate one set of jobs to another set of jobs? It’s not AI is coming for your job. What companies are realizing about AI is there are certain roles and functions that AI can do extraordinarily well, with high accuracy, and in some cases better than humans can do. These tend to be functions, by the way, that many humans don’t like doing anyway.
I don’t see AI coming for your job any more so than any set of technology. This is an extraordinarily disruptive technology, but we’ve lived through periods of extraordinarily disruptive technology.
Easterseals MORC has opened the first of many planned Behavioral Health Urgent Care (BHUC) clinics. It's located at 22200 W. Nine Mile Rd. in Southfield.
The clinic is fully staffed by licensed behavioral health clinicians, registered nurses, medical assistants and peer support specialists to provide immediate, accessible assistance.
Those experiencing mental health, substance use or other self-identified crises can seek help via walk-ins or virtual appointments. Services are available Monday through Friday, 8:30am - 3:30pm, regardless of insurance status or ability to pay.
Easterseals MORC has also created a Winter Blues and SAD resource guide (morc.easterseals.com) to ensure everyone remains mentally health during the grey days of Michigan winter.
Many live under Temporary Protected Status (TPS), a program that allows people from countries in conflict a chance to live and work in the U.S. for a period of time.
We sat down with Viles Dorsainvil, executive director of the Haitian Community Help and Support Center in Springfield, to talk about the potential end of TPS.
"Folks will be feeling miserable," Dorsainvil said. "Not being able to leave their house, not being able to go to work."
WATCH: Haitian migrants in Springfield express anxiety over potential end to TPS
Haitian migrants in 'constant fear' of ICE raids as temporary protected status expected to end
Dorsainvil said many Haitian migrants are anxious about what next week's deadline means for their future in the country.
"It's a state of lawlessness where somebody can come to you and shoot you, and there is no investigation, there is no follow-up," Dorsainvil said.
Dorsainvil said many migrants, including himself, have been spooked by national stories of ICE agents arresting people throughout the country. He pointed to the recent situation in Minnesota, where federal agents shot and killed 37-year-old Alex Pretti last week.
"It has been a constant fear," Dorsainvil said.
It's possible TPS won't end next week, as a federal judge is expected to rule on a temporary pause status any day.
Still, Dorsainvil said he's worried federal agents will target Springfield if it does end.
"If you speak in a different accent as me, automatically you are a target," Dorsainvil said. "So, it is a very unusual time."
He said many Haitian migrants boost Springfield's economy by opening businesses, buying homes and paying taxes.
Vice President JD Vance said the growing immigration population has strained local resources and pushed up housing costs.
The potential impact on Springfield's economy is something that Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine has also expressed concern over. Over the past few months, DeWine has repeatedly questioned how the end of TPS could impact a city like Springfield.
"It is not in the best interest of Ohio for these individuals, who are workers and who are working, to lose that status," DeWine said.
However, DeWine acknowledged that the decision comes down to the federal government. He said his office has no indication that federal agents will come into Springfield.
DeWine added that local and state law enforcement will cooperate with federal authorities. We reached out to the City of Springfield about what the end of TPS would mean for the city.
A spokesperson tells us they, too, have no confirmation that ICE will come to Springfield. They add that immigration policy and enforcement decisions rest with the federal government.
The city spokesperson said Springfield Police Chief Allison Elliott has been in ongoing dialogue with federal immigration officials to establish clear lines of communication.
ICE did not respond to our request to comment on this story.
Dorsainvil said his center is continuing to help people in the community prepare for the end of TPS. He said his office is offering resources and advice on how to behave with federal agents.
He said his main advice for the community is to lie low.
"If there is a possibility for them to stay home and call us, we ask of them to call us for any type of service in need instead of putting themselves in danger," said Dorsainvil.
This article was written by Alex Null for the Scripps News Group in Cincinnati.
Intensive care nurses immediately doubted the word of federal immigration officers when they arrived at a Minneapolis hospital with a Mexican immigrant who had broken bones in his face and skull.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents initially claimed Alberto Castaeda Mondragn had tried to flee while handcuffed and purposefully ran headfirst into a brick wall, according to court documents filed by a lawyer seeking his release.
But staff members at Hennepin County Medical Center determined that could not possibly account for the fractures and bleeding throughout the 31-year-old's brain, said three nurses familiar with the case.
It was laughable, if there was something to laugh about, said one of the nurses, who spoke to The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss patient care. There was no way this person ran headfirst into a wall.
The explanation from ICE is an example of recent run-ins between immigration officers and health care workers that have contributed to mounting friction at Minneapolis hospitals. Workers at the Hennepin County facility say ICE officers have restrained patients in defiance of hospital rules and stayed at their sides for days. The agents have also lingered around the campus and pressed people for proof of citizenship.
Since the start of Operation Metro Surge, President Donald Trumps immigration crackdown in Minnesota, ICE officers have become such a fixture at the hospital that administrators issued new protocols for how employees should engage with them. Some employees complain that they have been intimidated to the point that they avoid crossing paths with agents while at work and use encrypted communications to guard against any electronic eavesdropping.
Similar operations have been carried out by federal agents in Los Angeles, Chicago and other cities, where opponents have criticized what they say are overly aggressive tactics. It's not clear how many people have required hospital care while in detention.
Injuries appeared inconsistent with ICE account
The AP interviewed a doctor and five nurses who work at HCMC, who spoke on condition of anonymity to talk about Castaeda Mondragns case. AP also consulted with an outside physician, and they all affirmed that his injuries were inconsistent with an accidental fall or running into a wall.
ICEs account of how he was hurt evolved during the time that federal officers were at his bedside. At least one ICE officer told caregivers that Castaeda Mondragn "got his (expletive) rocked after his Jan. 8 arrest near a St. Paul shopping center, the court filings and a hospital staff member said. His arrest happened a day after the first of two fatal shootings in Minneapolis by immigration officers.
The situation reached a head when ICE insisted on using handcuffs to shackle his ankles to the bed, prompting a heated encounter with hospital staff, according to the court records and the hospital employees familiar with the incident.
At the time, Castaeda Mondragn was so disoriented he did not know what year it was and could not recall how he was injured, one of the nurses said. ICE officers believed he was attempting to escape after he got up and took a few steps.
We were basically trying to explain to ICE that this is how someone with a traumatic brain injury is theyre impulsive, the nurse said. We didn't think he was making a run for the door.
Security responded to the scene, followed by the hospital's CEO and attorney, who huddled in a doctor's office to discuss options for dealing with ICE, the nurse said.
We eventually agreed with ICE that we would have a nursing assistant sit with the patient to prevent him from leaving, the nurse said. They agreed a little while later to take the shackles off.
The Department of Homeland Security, which includes ICE, did not respond to repeated requests for comment on Castaeda Mondragn's injuries. A deportation officer skirted the issue in the court documents, saying that during the intake process at an ICE detention center, it was determined he had a head injury that required emergency medical treatment.
Gregorio Castaeda Mondragn said his older brother is from Veracruz, Mexico, and worked as a roofer. He has a 10-year-old daughter living in his hometown he helps support.
According to his lawyers, Alberto Castaeda Mondragn entered the U.S. in 2022 with valid immigration documents. Minnesota incorporation filings show he founded a company called Castaeda Mondragn the following year with an address listed in St. Paul.
He appears to have no criminal record. His lawyers told a court that Castaeda Mondragn was racially profiled during the crackdown, and that officers determined only after his arrest that he had overstayed his visa.
He was a brown-skinned, Latino Spanish speaker at a location immigration agents arbitrarily decided to target, his lawyers wrote in a petition seeking his release from ICE custody.
Hours after arrest, immigrant has eight skull fractures
Castaeda Mondragn was initially taken to an ICE processing center at the edge of Minneapolis. Court records include an arrest warrant signed upon his arrival by an ICE officer, not an immigration judge.
About four hours after his arrest, he was taken to a hospital emergency room in suburban Edina with swelling and bruising around his right eye and bleeding. A CT scan revealed at least eight skull fractures and life-threatening hemorrhages in at least five areas of his brain, according to court documents. He was then transferred to HCMC.
Castaeda Mondragn was alert and speaking, telling staff he was dragged and mistreated by federal agents, though his condition quickly deteriorated, the documents show.
The following week, a Jan. 16 court filing described his condition as minimally responsive and communicative, disoriented and heavily sedated.
AP shared the details of Castaeda Mondragns injuries with Dr. Lindsey C. Thomas, a board-certified forensic pathologist who worked as a medical examiner in Minnesota for more than 30 years. She agreed with the assessment of hospital staff.
I am pretty sure a person could not get these kinds of extensive injuries from running into a wall, Thomas said, adding that she would need to see the CT scans to make a more definitive finding.
I almost think one doesnt have to be a physician to conclude that a person cant get skull fractures on both the right and left sides of their head and from front to back by running themselves into a wall," she said.
ICE officers stay with hospitalized detainees for days
ICE officers have entered the hospital with seriously injured detainees and stayed at their bedside day after day, staffers said. The crackdown has been unsettling to hospital employees, who said ICE agents have been seen loitering on hospital grounds and asking patients and employees for proof of citizenship.
Hospital staff members said they were uncomfortable with the presence of armed agents they did not trust and who appeared to be untrained.
The nurses interviewed by AP said they felt intimidated by ICEs presence in the critical care unit and had even been told to avoid a certain bathroom to minimize encounters with officers. They said staff members are using an encrypted messaging app to compare notes and share information out of fear that the government might be monitoring their communications.
The hospital reminded employees that ICE officers are not permitted to access patients or protected information without a warrant or court order.
Patients under federal custody are first and foremost patients, hospital officials wrote in a bulletin outlining new protocols. The hospitals written policy also states that no shackles or other restraints should be used unless medically necessary.
We have our policies, but ICE personnel as federal officers don't necessarily comply with those, and that introduces tension, said a doctor who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to comment for the hospital.
Hospital spokeswoman Alisa Harris said ICE agents have not entered our facilities looking for individuals."
On Saturday, more than two weeks after Castaeda Mondragn was arrested, a U.S. District Court judge ordered him released from ICE custody.
We are encouraged by the courts order, which affirms that the rule of law applies to all people, in every corner of our country, including federal officers, said Jeanette Boerner, director of Hennepin County Adult Representation Services, which filed the lawsuit on Castaeda Mondragns behalf.
To the surprise of some who treated him, Castaeda Mondragn was discharged from the hospital Tuesday. A hospital spokeswoman said she had no information about him.
The Justice Department filed court documents this week affirming Castaeda Mondragn is no longer in custody. Prosecutors did not respond to a request for comment on the man's injuries.
Castaeda Mondragn has no family in Minnesota and coworkers have taken him in, the man's brother said. He has significant memory loss and a long recovery ahead. He won't be able to work for the foreseeable future, and his friends and family worry about paying for his care.
He still doesnt remember things that happened. I think (he remembers) 20% of the 100% he had, said Gregorio Castaeda Mondragn, who lives in Mexico. Its sad that instead of having good memories of the United States, youre left with a bad taste in your mouth about that country because theyre treating them like animals.
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