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Major guilty plea in Santa Clara County gun permit corruption case

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:16:33 GMT

A man charged in a landmark corruption case that accused top Santa Clara County sheriff commanders of favor-trading concealed-gun permits has pleaded guilty, becoming the first indicted defendant convicted from a scandal that ultimately led to former sheriff Laurie Smith’s ouster under heavy political and legal scrutiny.SAN JOSE, CA – AUGUST 31: Michael Nichols, right, is photographed outside of the San Jose Hall of Justice on Monday, Aug. 31, 2020, in San Jose, Calif. Nichols was arraigned on conspiracy and bribery charges involving concealed weapon permits in Santa Clara County. (Aric Crabb/Bay Area News Group) Michael Adrian Nichols, 48, a Milpitas-based gunmaker, admitted in court Thursday to one misdemeanor count  of conspiracy to solicit a bribe, in connection with a 2020 indictment alleging that he — along with a political fundraiser for Smith, a sheriff’s captain and an attorney friend — brokered a deal for a large donation supporting Smith’s 201...

Sharks’ Duclair in spotlight; and how long losing streak can end (from a guy who’s been there)

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:16:33 GMT

SAN JOSE – Anthony Duclair will play his 500th career NHL game on Thursday night when the San Jose Sharks host the Vancouver Canucks.“I’m so blessed,” Duclair said Thursday morning. “All I can think of right now is my family back home and all the sacrifices they made for me to live my childhood dream. Five hundred goes by pretty quickly.”But considering Duclair’s contract status – and the Sharks’ dismal start to the season – it’s fair to wonder how many more milestones the winger will celebrate in San Jose.One of the pressing questions Sharks general manager Mike Grier will have to answer in the coming months is how many of his pending unrestricted free agents he’ll try to sign past this season. That list is led by Duclair, who is in the final year of a three-year, $9 million deal and could net the Sharks a sizeable return prior to March’s trade deadline because of his speed and scoring pedigree.Grier said at the start of training camp that he did see the value of extending so...

Home decor: 7 ways to make your porch look more inviting

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:16:33 GMT

Today’s column is a plea on behalf of neighbors who are tired of looking at porches and patios cluttered with rusty tricycles, dilapidated dog houses, step ladders, last year’s Christmas lights and every faded tchotchke that didn’t quite make it to the garbage bin but should have.A few weeks ago, a fed-up reader wrote in to say, “How about an article on how to undecorate your porch? Honestly, it has gotten out of hand. In my neighborhood, porches are ‘decorated’ with signs, chairs, tables, lamps, stools, end tables, pillows, plants, wreaths, string lights, mini refrigerators, lawn statues, fake trees, wicker deer and more, sometimes all on one porch! Can you please tell your readers to throw away half of what they have on their porches, then throw away half of what is still left? Thanks. Marlene”We talk a lot in this column about decluttering the inside of our homes, but we shouldn’t ignore the rooms outside. In fact, decluttering and thoughtfully furnishing ...

Workday outage Thursday appears to be resolved

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:16:33 GMT

(KRON) -- A widespread outage that hit Workday Thursday morning appears to be resolved, according to Downdetector. Reports of the outage began coming in shortly before 5 a.m. and rose steadily throughout the morning.Of the over 1,200 workers flooding Downdetector to report outages, 68% of them complained of problems with the website, 17% complained of server connection issues and 16% reported log-in issues. SF man convicted in 2021 Walgreens smash-and-grab Commenters on the Downdetector outage page reported difficulties logging in to the platform, problems sending verification emails, and trouble making purchase order receipts, among other issues. As of 11:30 a.m. Thursday, the platform seemingly remained down. Visitors to the Workday website were met with a message that read, "Workday is currently unavailable.""We are experiencing a service interruption. Your service will be restored as quickly as possible," the message continued. "We apologize for the inconvenience. If you are a...

Playa Hotels: Q3 Earnings Snapshot

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:16:33 GMT

AMSTERDAM (AP) — AMSTERDAM (AP) — Playa Hotels & Resorts NV (PLYA) on Thursday reported a loss of $10.5 million in its third quarter.On a per-share basis, the Amsterdam-based company said it had a loss of 7 cents. Losses, adjusted for non-recurring costs, were 6 cents per share.The developer and operator of all-inclusive resorts posted revenue of $213.1 million in the period, beating Street forecasts. Three analysts surveyed by Zacks expected $202.9 million._____This story was generated by Automated Insights (http://automatedinsights.com/ap) using data from Zacks Investment Research. Access a Zacks stock report on PLYA at https://www.zacks.com/ap/PLYASource

Biden says 74 US dual nationals have left Gaza Strip as he dispatches Blinken to Mideast

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:16:33 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden said Thursday that 74 U.S. citizens with dual citizenship have left the Gaza Strip, announcing the development as he dispatched his top diplomat to the Middle East for consultation with Israeli and Jordanian leaders concerning the Israel-Hamas war.“We got out today 74 American folks out that are dual citizens,” Biden said in a brief exchange with reporters as he hosted Dominican Republic President Luis Abinader for an Oval Office meeting.The White House has previously said some 500 to 600 U.S. citizens had been trapped in Gaza since the start of the Oct. 7 Israel-Hamas war. Since then, the nearly four-week-old conflict continues to rage on with no end in sight. The administration said earlier this week that five Americans were among dozens of dual citizens who were able to get out of the Strip where a humanitarian crisis is unfolding. White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said that the administration was hopeful that a...

Rocket Companies: Q3 Earnings Snapshot

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:16:33 GMT

DETROIT (AP) — DETROIT (AP) — Rocket Companies, Inc. (RKT) on Thursday reported third-quarter earnings of $6.2 million.The Detroit-based company said it had net income of 4 cents per share. Earnings, adjusted for one-time gains and costs, came to less than 1 cent on a per-share basis.The average estimate of six analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for a loss of 2 cents per share.The company posted revenue of $1.2 billion in the period, also exceeding Street forecasts. Five analysts surveyed by Zacks expected $1.02 billion._____This story was generated by Automated Insights (http://automatedinsights.com/ap) using data from Zacks Investment Research. Access a Zacks stock report on RKT at https://www.zacks.com/ap/RKTSource

Carvana: Q3 Earnings Snapshot

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:16:33 GMT

TEMPE, Ariz. (AP) — TEMPE, Ariz. (AP) — Carvana Co. (CVNA) on Thursday reported third-quarter net income of $782 million.On a per-share basis, the Tempe, Arizona-based company said it had net income of $3.60. Earnings, adjusted to extinguish debt, came to 23 cents per share.The results surpassed Wall Street expectations. The average estimate of 10 analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for a loss of 85 cents per share.The company posted revenue of $2.77 billion in the period, which matched Street forecasts._____This story was generated by Automated Insights (http://automatedinsights.com/ap) using data from Zacks Investment Research. Access a Zacks stock report on CVNA at https://www.zacks.com/ap/CVNASource

Ballon d’Or winner Bonmatí helped get a win over sexism in Spain. Now it’s time to ‘focus on soccer’

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:16:33 GMT

SANT JOAN DESPÍ, Spain (AP) — It’s been a whirlwind last few months for Aitana Bonmatí, the newly crowned Ballon d’Or winner, with memorable victories on and off the field.Far from the days of being the only girl playing on her village’s soccer team, Bonmati led Spain to Women’s World Cup glory in August after helping Barcelona win the Champions League for a second time, while being named the best player at both competitions.The 25-year-old midfielder was also named the best player in the world along with Lionel Messi.Amid all the huge successes, it has also been a fraught time for Bonmatí after she and her fellow Spain teammates decided they would not be silent when the now-former president of the Spanish soccer federation Luis Rubiales kissed forward Jenni Hermoso on the lips without her consent during the World Cup awards ceremony, drawing attention away from their greatest achievement.While Bonmatí says that taking a stand was a source of pride and strength for the players...

Boot Barn: Fiscal Q2 Earnings Snapshot

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:16:33 GMT

IRVINE, Calif. (AP) — IRVINE, Calif. (AP) — Boot Barn Holdings Inc. (BOOT) on Thursday reported fiscal second-quarter earnings of $27.7 million.On a per-share basis, the Irvine, California-based company said it had profit of 90 cents. Earnings, adjusted for pretax expenses, came to 91 cents per share.The results beat Wall Street expectations. The average estimate of seven analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for earnings of 88 cents per share.The Western apparel and footwear retailer posted revenue of $374.5 million in the period, falling short of Street forecasts. Five analysts surveyed by Zacks expected $378.4 million.For the current quarter ending in December, Boot Barn expects its per-share earnings to range from $1.67 to $1.79.The company said it expects revenue in the range of $522 million to $535 million for the fiscal third quarter.Boot Barn expects full-year earnings in the range of $4.75 to $5 per share, with revenue ranging from $1.68 billion to $1.7 billion...