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Medical Cannabis Commission pauses license awards due to possible scoring problems

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:14:52 GMT

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — The Alabama Medical Cannabis Commission on Friday pulled back licenses that had been awarded to cultivators, dispensaries and others after discovering potential problems with how applicants were scored.The commission voted during an emergency meeting to indefinitely stay the medical cannabis business licenses that had been awarded Monday for the state’s new medical marijuana program. “The stay is recommended due to the (commission’s) discovery of potential inconsistency in the tabulation of scoring data,” Dr. Steven Stokes, an oncologist who chairs the commission, said during the meeting. Stokes did not elaborate on the problem. Brittany Peters, a spokeswoman for the commission, told The Associated Press that she could not comment further.Stokes said the commission will seek an independent review of all scoring data and will reconsider the issuance of licenses when the stay is lifted. He cast the pause as a temporary setback. “We’re trying t...

Ex-Trump lawyer turned witness against him loses bid for release from probation

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:14:52 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Former President Donald Trump’s onetime personal lawyer and the key witness against him in his New York state criminal prosecution lost his bid Friday for early release from probation following a three-year prison sentence after federal prosecutors said he’s lying again.U.S. District Judge Jesse M. Furman in Manhattan cited Michael Cohen’s recent comments in a book and television appearance as reasons to conclude that early release from court supervision would not ensure rehabilitation and deterrence from future crimes.The credibility of Cohen — who served as Trump’s personal lawyer from his early 2017 inauguration until his 2018 arrest — will be scrutinized if a jury ever hears the state criminal case filed against Trump over payments Cohen says he made on Trump’s behalf to silence two women who claimed they had affairs with Trump before the Republican became president.In court papers, federal prosecutors highlighted Cohen’s recent public comments ...

Taiwan opens doors to more Canadian beef 20 years after mad cow disease

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:14:52 GMT

OTTAWA — Canada says it has regained market access to Taiwan for Canadian beef and beef products from animals over 30 months of age.Taiwan imposed import restrictions on beef from animals both over and under 30 months in 2003 after the discovery of Canada’s first case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy. The government says Taiwan lifted restrictions for under-30-month beef in 2016. In a press release Friday, the federal government says the regained access will be an opportunity to expand Canadian beef exports to Taiwan and diversify export markets in the Indo-Pacific Region.Agriculture and Agri-Food minister Marie-Claude Bibeau says in the press release that expanding trade partnerships in that region is a top priority for the federal government.Earlier this year, Japan lifted the last of its restrictions against Canadian beef. This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 16, 2023.The Canadian Press

Extratropical cyclone kills 3 in southern Brazil, 12 still missing

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:14:52 GMT

SAO PAULO (AP) — Authorities of the southern Brazil state of Rio Grande do Sul said Friday that three people died and 12 were missing after an extratropical cyclone swept through the region. Gov. Eduardo Leite said two people died in the city of Sao Leopoldo and one was killed in Maquine, on the state’s coast.“Our priority at the moment is to find those missing and save people who might still be isolated due to the floods,” Leite said on Twitter. He said President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva offered federal help to handle the crisis.Several roads were still blocked in Rio Grande do Sul, flights to the state’s main cities were cancelled throughout the day and electricity was out across state.Mayors of cities that were affected said twice as much rain fell in 24 hours than would normally be expected for the entire month of June.The mayor of Maquine said on his social media channels that precipitation in his city surpassed 29.4 centimeters (about 11 inches) in one day.The Ass...

Maple Leafs aiming to sign Matthews to 8-year max contract: report

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:14:52 GMT

It’s unclear when the news will come and what the number will be, but it appears good news is on the horizon when it comes to Auston Matthews staying with the Toronto Maple Leafs beyond next season.“I still am convinced that Auston Matthews is going to sign in Toronto. I’ve been consistent about that, I still believe it,” Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman said during the latest episode of 32 Thoughts: The Podcast, released Friday.From the viewpoint of Matthews’ camp, Friedman explained that the elite 25-year-old centreman can expect to sign “two more big contracts in his future.”“I think the Maple Leafs are gonna try to get a max-term deal out of this,” Friedman said. “I don’t know what the likelihood is, but I think they’re gonna try.”Per Friedman, new Leafs GM Brad Treliving met with Matthews in Arizona last week. Unlike last summer’s dinner meeting with Jonathan Huberdeau, who signed an eight-ye...

Family of girl who died in Border Patrol custody holds New York funeral, says they want justice

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:14:52 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Balloons with rainbows and Minnie Mouse surrounded the casket of an 8-year-old girl who died in Border Patrol custody as dozens of people gathered Friday to remember Anadith Tanay Reyes Alvarez in New York City. Her family had been heading to the city last month before their journey across the southern U.S. border ended in tragedy. The child’s death has put the U.S. government under new scrutiny over the care given to thousands of detained migrants.The girl’s mother, Mabel Alvarez Benedicks, hugged almost every guest, thanking them for coming to honor their daughter. She grabbed a handful of tissues to wipe her eyes and nose.Anadith had a history of heart problems and sickle cell anemia, her mother has said. An internal investigation found that Border Patrol medical personnel were informed about the girl’s medical history but declined to review the file before she had a seizure and died on May 17, her family’s ninth day in custody. “We are laying ou...

RCMP say no critical injuries in crash of B.C. bus carrying pipeline camp workers

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:14:52 GMT

PRINCE GEORGE — A bus loaded with camp workers supporting construction of the Coastal GasLink pipeline crashed Friday north of Prince George, B.C., injuring 17 of the 30 people on board, the work camp operators said. Horizon North, which runs a number of such camps in northern B.C., said in a Facebook post that the bus was transporting the company’s employees to a work site when it crashed.“We are conducting a full investigation to determine the cause of the incident,” Horizon North’s statement said. “We are in the process of gathering additional information and will communicate with all relevant stakeholder groups as the situation develops.”In a written statement, TC Energy, the company behind the Coastal GasLink pipeline project, said the crash located 900 kilometres north of Vancouver involved a charter bus.“We are grateful for the support and care of those individuals, and that this did not result in a more serious accident,” the s...

Hundreds flee drug cartel turf battles in rural western Mexico

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:14:52 GMT

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Gun battles between drug cartels forced about 700 people to flee their rural villages in the western Mexico state of Michoacan, activists and a local priest said Friday. Rev. Jorge Armando Vázquez said dozens of people are sleeping in the nave of a parish church in the hamlet of El Rosario, on the outskirts of the city of Apatzingan. Hundreds of others are sheltering with local families, after hours-long gun battles chased them from their homes Tuesday.Jolted awake in the pre-dawn hours by gunfire, they had to wait until daylight to flee to the town of El Rosario. Many are from towns 15 or 20 miles (25 ro 35 kilometers) away.“So many people came it surprised me,” said Vázquez. “It’s such a sad situation, because I think they need a lot of psychological help, but that help needs to reach them where they are.”Residents fled from several farm hamlets along Michoacan’s Rio Grande, after bullets hit their homes. “There have been a series of armed clashes in...

Extreme heat baking much of Texas, with forecasters saying no relief anytime soon

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:14:52 GMT

HOUSTON (AP) — Summer doesn’t officially start until next week, but extreme heat was already making itself right at home in Texas on Friday, with temperatures soaring above triple digits in many cities.Excessive heat warnings or heat advisories were issued for much of Texas, including Brownsville, Corpus Christi, Dallas, Houston, Laredo and San Antonio, according to the National Weather Service. Some of the cities with triple digit highs on Friday included Austin, Del Rio, Junction, Laredo and San Angelo.Houston’s excessive heat warning was the first one issued for the city in nearly seven years. The temperature on Friday in Houston rose to 95 degrees Fahrenheit (35 degrees Celsius), with a heat index of 111 degrees Fahrenheit (44 degrees Celsius). The temperature in Corpus Christi was also 95 degrees by Friday afternoon, but its heat index swelled to 119 degrees (48 degrees Celsius). Heat index values take into account the temperature and relative humidity and indicate how hot it f...

New bill seeks to make farmland more affordable for new and underserved farmers

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:14:52 GMT

WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) -- Some farmers can't afford to own the land they use to grow their produce and livestock."I was going to have to stop farming altogether," said Susan Mitchell.For Mitchell, finding farmland was an uphill battle. She spent nearly a decade bouncing from one leased plot of land to another."It was incredibly challenging to find something that was affordable for me as a full-time working farmer," Mitchell said.And she's not alone. Mitchell says many farmers struggle to buy their own land, either because there isn't any available or it's too expensive."There are fewer farmers now than there have ever been, so the number population nationwide keeps decreasing," Mitchell said.To help, some lawmakers are backing bipartisan legislation to help make farmland more affordable, especially for young or underserved farmers."Number one, make sure we actually have food production in this country, and number two, it would also give people like Susan an opportunity to pursue their...