DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ A Solemn Walk Through Highland Park One Year After Parade Massacre
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-04 | by ( Mitch Smith | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Hernan Cuevas was just a few days into his tenure as pastor of a Roman Catholic parish in Highland Park when the parade took place. Mr. Cuevas had rounded up congregants for the church float and bought granola bars to hand out to people along the route. He said it was not until he saw “a wave of people walking toward us, running, crying” that “we thought, ‘These are not fireworks. Mr. Cuevas said his congregants had processed the trauma from that day differently, and had different ideas about how to observe this Fourth of July. Others left town for the holiday, seeking distance from the pain.

Persons: Hernan Cuevas, Cuevas, ’ ” Organizations: Roman Catholic Locations: Highland Park

☆ Chicago and NASCAR, an Odd Couple With High Hopes, Take It to the Streets
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-02 | by ( Mitch Smith | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

A contractor at the track was electrocuted and died on Friday while final preparations for the race were underway. NASCAR’s visit to Chicago had been the subject of intense local debate since Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced it last summer without involving residents or City Council members in negotiations. Though NASCAR’s contract with Chicago calls for three years of racing, the new mayor, Brandon Johnson, could move to cancel the deal. “You can walk down the streets a little bit and not get recognized, so I hear a lot of conversations,” Mr. Wallace said. But you hear a lot of excitement, too.”Robert Chiarito contributed reporting.

Persons: NASCAR’s, Lori Lightfoot, Lightfoot, Brandon Johnson, Bubba Wallace, ” Mr, Wallace, ” Robert Chiarito Organizations: City Council, Chicago, NASCAR Locations: Chicago

☆ NASCAR to Start Its Engines Along an Unlikely Course: Downtown Chicago
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-30 | by ( Mitch Smith | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

There is also a chance that the street race is a one-off. Ms. Lightfoot, who brought the race to the city, lost her bid for re-election this year and left office in May. Her successor and fellow Democrat, Mayor Brandon Johnson, has been polite but circumspect about NASCAR, though he attended a pre-race event this week. “Will this idea lead to the expansion of how we think about what can be offered in a major city?” Mr. Johnson said in an interview shortly before his inauguration. “If, on the other hand, it goes badly, I think there will be pressure on the new mayor to cancel this deal.”

Persons: Lightfoot, Brandon Johnson, “, Mr, Johnson, ’, Brian Hopkins, ” Organizations: NASCAR, Chicago City Council Locations: Chicago

☆ Judge Mostly Blocks Indiana Ban on Transition Care for Minors
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-16 | by ( Mitch Smith | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Families of transgender children sued to block the law, saying that it would have put transgender youth at immediate risk of unwanted changes to their bodies, which would have lifelong consequences. Their lawyers noted that major medical organizations, including the American Academy of Pediatrics, support gender-transition care and have said that bans pose serious mental health risks to young people, infringing not only on their rights but also on the rights of doctors and parents. At least 17 states have passed laws this year banning or severely limiting transition care for minors as Republicans have made restrictions on transgender people a legislative focus. Still, supporters of transgender rights have had success countering those laws in the courts. Judge Hanlon, who heard arguments on the injunction on Wednesday in a wood-paneled courtroom in downtown Indianapolis, was appointed to the Federal District Court by President Donald J. Trump.

Persons: Kenneth J, Falk, Judge Hanlon, Donald J, Trump Organizations: American Academy of Pediatrics, American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana, Federal, Court Locations: capitols, Indianapolis

The Justice Department accused the Minneapolis police on Friday of discriminating against Black and Native American people, using deadly force illegally and trampling the First Amendment rights of protesters and journalists — damning claims that grew out of a multiyear investigation and may lead to a court-enforced overhaul of the police force. The federal review was touched off by the murder of George Floyd, a Black man, by a Minneapolis officer in 2020, a crime that led to protests and unrest across the country. But the Justice Department’s scathing 89-page report looked well beyond that killing, describing a police force impervious to accountability whose officers beat, shot and detained people without justification and patrolled without the trust of residents. But to many people in the city, where protesters had complained for years about police excesses, Mr. Floyd’s death, as horrifying as it was, was not entirely surprising. The Justice Department investigators described “numerous incidents in which officers responded to a person’s statement that they could not breathe with a version of, ‘You can breathe; you’re talking right now.’”

Persons: George Floyd, Department’s, General Merrick B, Garland, Floyd’s, Floyd, Derek Chauvin, ’ Organizations: Department, Minneapolis police, Minneapolis Police Department, Justice Department Locations: Minneapolis

The Justice Department accused the Minneapolis Police Department of rampant discrimination, unlawful conduct and systemic mismanagement in a scathing 89-page report released on Friday. The federal investigation, launched in the aftermath of the murder of George Floyd by a Minneapolis officer, “found that the systemic problems in M.P.D. made what happened to George Floyd possible.”Here are some of the key allegations in the report, which echoes complaints that some Minneapolis residents have made for years, and which could lead to a court-enforced consent decree:

Persons: George Floyd, “ Organizations: Department, Minneapolis Police Department Locations: Minneapolis, M.P.D

Crowd: “No justice, no peace.” Floyd’s death triggered major protests in Minneapolis, and sparked rage across the country. Officers Thomas Lane and J. Alexander Kueng step out of the car and approach the blue S.U.V. According to the criminal complaints filed against the officers, Floyd says he is claustrophobic and refuses to enter the police car. Her footage shows that despite calls for medical help, Chauvin keeps Floyd pinned down for another seven minutes. Chauvin kept his knee on Floyd’s neck for over eight minutes, according to our review of the video evidence.

Persons: It’s, George Floyd, ”, Derek Chauvin, Floyd, “, Thomas Lane, J, Alexander Kueng, Lane, yanks Floyd, Tou Thao, Thao, Chauvin, Kueng, Darnella Frazier, I’ve, ” Floyd, Bro, They’ve, He’s, “ Floyd, George Floyd’s Organizations: Police, Cup Foods, yanks, Foods, Minneapolis Police Department Locations: Minneapolis, Houston, Floyd, United States

The report is expected to be released at a news conference with Attorney General Merrick Garland, Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta and city officials. The expected announcement was previously reported by Bloomberg Law and KSTP-TV in Minnesota. The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division has negotiated consent decrees in the past to enforce policing overhauls in Baltimore, Cleveland and Ferguson, Mo., among other cities, after similar investigations. The murder of Mr. Floyd, a Black man, by Officer Derek Chauvin in May 2020 touched off protests and civil unrest across the country and led to calls to fundamentally rethink or defund policing. Mr. Floyd’s death, video of which circulated widely online, brought condemnations from across the political spectrum and criminal convictions for the police officers who were involved, a relatively rare occurrence.

Persons: George Floyd, General Merrick Garland, Vanita Gupta, Ferguson, Floyd, Derek Chauvin, Floyd’s Organizations: Minneapolis Police Department, Bloomberg Law, Civil, Division Locations: Minnesota, Baltimore , Cleveland, Mo

The warnings about the old brick building on Main Street just kept coming. There was an engineer’s report in February about a compromised wall. Over months, assessments were written, work permits were issued and some repairs were made. Still, as alarm grew and complaints mounted, people were allowed to remain in their apartments at 324 Main Street in Davenport, Iowa, a city of 100,000 residents situated about halfway between Des Moines and Chicago. But last week, a day after that 911 call, a section of the downtown building cleaved off and fell into a parking lot.

Persons: ”, Jane Banks, Branden Colvin Sr Locations: Davenport , Iowa, Des Moines, Chicago

☆ All 3 Missing in Iowa Building Collapse Found Dead, Officials Say
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-05 | by ( Mitch Smith | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

The LatestThe police in Davenport, Iowa, said on Monday that they had found the bodies of all three men who had been missing since a section of a downtown apartment building collapsed last week. City officials said on Sunday that one of the men, Branden Colvin Sr., a resident who had returned home shortly before the building fell on May 28, had been found dead. On Monday, they said the bodies of the remaining two — Ryan Hitchcock and Daniel Prien — had also been found in the rubble. No one else is known to have died in the incident, and the authorities said on Monday that they were not aware of any other people who were still unaccounted for. The Davenport police chief, Jeffery Bladel, said that city and state agencies were investigating the collapse.

Persons: Branden Colvin Sr, Ryan Hitchcock, Daniel Prien —, Davenport, Jeffery Bladel Organizations: Davenport police Locations: Davenport , Iowa

☆ In a Contentious Lawmaking Season, Red States Got Redder and Blue Ones Bluer
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-04 | by ( Mitch Smith | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

After the court said Americans have the right to carry guns outside their home, Democrats passed new laws this year seeking to limit access to firearms, while gun rights supporters filed lawsuits challenging restrictions and Republicans passed laws expanding gun access. On abortion, an issue the court returned to the states, Republicans moved to severely restrict or ban access in several states, including Florida, Nebraska, North Carolina, North Dakota, South Carolina and Wyoming, despite intraparty fights about how far to go. Democrats sought to strengthen abortion protections in many of their states. “I’ve been working my entire life to have an opportunity like this,” said Melissa Hortman, the speaker of the Minnesota House. But while she expressed no regrets about acting quickly, Ms. Brinks acknowledged that doing so “was not exactly the most beneficial in terms of establishing really good working relationships” with Republicans.

Persons: “ I’ve, ”, Melissa Hortman, Winnie Brinks, Brinks, “ Organizations: Republicans, Minnesota House, Michigan Senate Locations: Florida , Nebraska, North Carolina , North Dakota, South Carolina, Wyoming, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota

On Monday morning, hours after part of a century-old apartment building crumbled onto a downtown street, officials in Davenport, Iowa, said they were not aware of anyone still trapped in the rubble. Demolition, they said, was “expected to commence” the next day. But by nightfall on Memorial Day, it was clear that Davenport leaders had badly miscalculated: After protesters gathered at the site, rescue crews found a resident inside the building and pulled her to safety. “The immediate question I know people are asking is, ‘How did she get there? And why wasn’t she found earlier?’” Mayor Mike Matson said Tuesday as officials acknowledged that more people remained missing.

Persons: Mike Matson, “, ” Organizations: Fire Department, Davenport Locations: Davenport , Iowa

☆ What Chicago’s New Mayor Says About the City’s Biggest Challenges
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( Julie Bosman | Mitch Smith | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

It wasn’t long ago that Brandon Johnson, 47, was a county commissioner and teachers’ union organizer, unknown to many Chicagoans. On Monday he was sworn in as the city’s 57th mayor. He knocked out the incumbent mayor, Lori Lightfoot, in the first round of balloting in February, then beat Paul Vallas, a far more conservative and well-funded Democrat, in the runoff last month. Chicago’s downtown is emptier, its public schools have fewer students, and crime rates remain far higher than before the pandemic. In an interview last week at his transition office along the Chicago River, Mr. Johnson said he was cleareyed about the scope of the challenges awaiting him but confident about the city’s trajectory.

☆ Missouri Lawmakers Pass Bill to Ban Transition Care for Minors
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-10 | by ( Mitch Smith | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

Background: Transition care was already in flux in MissouriThe vote on Wednesday was not the first attempt to limit transgender care in Missouri this year. Why It Matters: New limits are emerging across the countryThe Missouri bill comes amid a national blitz of Republican legislation targeting transition care for transgender youth. The rapidly changing legal landscape has placed transition care out of reach for many transgender children in the Midwest and South, infuriating L.G.B.T.Q. Several states bordering Missouri — Iowa, Kentucky, Tennessee and Oklahoma — have passed new limits on transition care for minors this year. An attempt to ban care for minors in Kansas failed when lawmakers did not muster enough votes to override the Democratic governor’s veto.

☆ Embattled St. Louis Prosecutor to Resign Amid Effort to Disqualify Her
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-04 | by ( Mitch Smith | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The chief prosecutor in St. Louis, who made history as the first Black woman to hold the post but faced widespread criticism for her handling of violent crime, said on Thursday that she would resign on June 1. The prosecutor, Circuit Attorney Kimberly Gardner, a Democrat, was facing an effort by Missouri’s attorney general, a Republican, to remove her from office. Her resignation means the governor, also a Republican, can appoint a replacement to serve as the lead prosecutor in an overwhelmingly Democratic city that has long struggled with high crime rates and disinvestment. In recent months, Attorney General Andrew Bailey accused Ms. Gardner of overseeing an office that failed at its most basic tasks, with warrant applications that went unreviewed for months and overburdened assistant prosecutors who sometimes failed to show up for court. Mr. Bailey said on Thursday that there was no reason for Ms. Gardner to stay until June, and that his office was “undeterred with our legal quest to forcibly remove her from office.”“Every day she remains puts the city of St. Louis in more danger,” said Mr. Bailey, who has asked a judge to remove her.

☆ Efforts to Restrict Transgender Health Care Face Pushback in Three States
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Mitch Smith | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Republican efforts to restrict gender-transitioning treatment hit roadblocks in three states on Wednesday. Across the country, transgender rights have emerged this year as a defining legislative issue, with Republicans enacting sweeping new restrictions in states they control. In just the past few weeks, new bans have been signed into law in Idaho, Indiana and North Dakota, with similar policies still under consideration in other states. Laura Kelly’s veto of a bill that would have revoked the medical licenses of doctors who provided gender-transitioning care to children and allowed people who received that treatment as children to sue their doctors. In Missouri, a state judge blocked new restrictions, which were set to take effect on Thursday, until at least Monday evening.

☆ After Front Door Shooting, Kansas City Grapples With Race
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-23 | by ( Mitch Smith | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — From one vantage point, a post-pandemic boom seemed to be taking hold in Kansas City. It was the only Midwestern city selected to host World Cup soccer games. “We need to clean up our house so that we can be proud and not performative when we have company,” said Gwen Grant, the president and chief executive of the Urban League of Greater Kansas City. She said her city needed to “address the root causes of these problems, and address the systems, and not run away from the tough race and racism conversations.”

In Missouri, Mr. Lester, who lived alone, told the police after the shooting that he fired his gun because he saw someone on his front step apparently trying to enter and was “scared to death” of being physically harmed. Zachary Thompson, the Clay County prosecutor, said that there was a “racial component” to the shooting but did not elaborate. Mr. Lester is white; Ralph, who was released from the hospital and is now recovering at home, is Black. In New York, a lawyer for Mr. Monahan, Kurt Mausert, disputed the authorities’ account of the shooting on Saturday night, saying that several vehicles were speeding up Mr. Monahan’s driveway, with engines revving and lights shining, which “certainly caused some level of alarm to an elderly gentleman who had an elderly wife.”As the two men made court appearances in Missouri and New York, basic outlines of their histories were emerging from neighbors and relatives. Neighbors said that Mr. Monahan, a self-employed builder and longtime resident whose home sits on about 40 mostly wooded acres, had a reputation as a sometimes surly character who loved dirt bikes and largely kept to himself.

☆ Shooting of Teen Who Rang Doorbell at Wrong House Unsettles Kansas City
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-18 | by ( Mitch Smith | Julie Bosman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — On Tuesday morning, hundreds of Staley High School students filled the street outside their school in a display of anger and support for their fellow student, Ralph Yarl, who was shot by a homeowner after he rang a doorbell at the wrong house in Kansas City last week. But many residents of Kansas City remained deeply troubled by the events that had shaken their city for the last several days. Some asked why Mr. Lester was released from police custody last week rather than being charged immediately. A few wondered if a jury would sympathize with Mr. Lester, who told the police that he was “scared to death” of being physically harmed before shooting Ralph.

☆ Exploring the Lakes of Minneapolis With $350,000: Could She Afford Three Bedrooms?
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-13 | by ( Mitch Smith | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

When Rae Bullinger returned to the Minneapolis area three years ago after a spell in Nebraska, she knew she was there to stay. Ms. Bullinger, 26, loved summer bike rides around the city’s lakes and enjoyed the lively food scene. She liked the apartment’s location and hoped to stay in South Minneapolis, where well-kept neighborhoods of single-family homes are interspersed with parkland and walkable retail districts. “You’re still a part of the city of Minneapolis, but you’re not downtown,” she said. When Ms. Bullinger began looking last fall, he said, there were plenty of choices within her budget.

Search resuls for: "Mitch Smith"

20 mentions found