QUOTE OF THE DAY
“It will be a long, slow commute. I can’t wait until the summer comes.”
Alexander Baez, 24, a judicial marshal from East Hartford, Conn., after a winter storm that caused at least 25 deaths in the Northeast and left hundreds of thousands without power Article, 1A
Southwest states flirt with 90 degrees
PHOENIX - With much of the Northeast gripped by snow and ice storms, the Southwest is riding a heat wave that is setting record-high temperatures and sent people to beaches and golf courses Friday.
People in Phoenix and Los Angeles were sunning themselves in 80-degree weather, with forecasters predicting more of the same through the weekend.
Both cities are known for warm weather, but the National Weather Service said the temperatures are uncharacteristically high for this time of year. The heat is the result of a high-pressure system off the coast of Southern California.
In the Southwest, the weather service said several cities in Arizona may break February records during the Washington’s Birthday weekend. Phoenix is expected to reach 87 today and 85 on Sunday. Both would be new highs for those dates.
Down south in Tucson, the mercury is expected to hit 89. But Tucson could possibly receive its first 90-degree day of the year, said Charlotte Dewey, a National Weather Service meteorologist in Phoenix. In southwest Arizona, Yuma was expected to reach 91 today.
Pentagon warns freed Afghan militants
WASHINGTON - If any of the 65 Afghan militants who were released from a former U.S. prison in Afghanistan return to the battlefield, they risk being hunted down by U.S. forces, a Pentagon official suggested Friday.
“Without getting into hypotheticals, every day we continue to go after those enemies in Afghanistan that are targeting our forces, the forces of our allies and the Afghan people, and nothing’s going to change about that. And should one of these detainees rejoin the fight, they need to know that they do it at their own peril,” said the Pentagon’s press secretary, Navy Rear Adm. John Kirby.
The 65 were released Thursday by the Afghan government over strenuous objections by the U.S. government, which says the men are dangerous Taliban fighters and bomb-makers likely to return to killing foreign forces and Afghans.
Kirby said the 65 are not considered targets at the moment.
The Obama administration also has been aggravated by President Hamid Karzai’s refusal to sign a long-term security agreement with the U.S. that he agreed to last year. The pact would provide the legal basis for any U.S. forces to remain in Afghanistan as trainers and advisers after the international combat mission ends in December.
Jurors check on option in teen’s death
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - Jurors deciding the fate of a Florida man charged with fatally shooting a teen after an argument over loud music asked a judge Friday whether they can reach a verdict on some counts but not others.
Judge Russell Healey told them the answer is “yes.”
Michael Dunn is charged with first-degree murder in the shooting death of 17-year-old Jordan Davis outside a Jacksonville convenience store in 2012. Dunn claims he shot the Marietta, Ga., teen in self-defense. But prosecutors told jurors Dunn shot the teen because he felt disrespected by Davis during an argument over loud music.
Dunn also is charged with three counts of attempted murder - because three of Davis’ friends were in the car Dunn shot into - and a single count of shooting a firearm at a vehicle.
The sequestered jurors couldn’t reach a verdict Friday evening despite deliberating for 22 hours over three days.
They went back to their hotel and planned to return to the courthouse this morning.
3 kids among 5 dead in Minnesota fire
MINNEAPOLIS - A predawn blaze at a north Minneapolis duplex killed five people, including at least three children, officials said Friday.
A neighbor described how a young family of eight living in the upstairs unit screamed for help as firefighters smashed into the burning building to rescue them.
Minneapolis Fire Chief John Fruetel said three children died at the scene. The Hennepin County medical examiner’s office later confirmed the two additional deaths but did not release any information about the victims.
Neighbors and a landlord identified one of the injured as Troy Lewis. Lewis was in satisfactory condition Friday night at Hennepin County Medical Center. Two of his daughters, Shaca and Electra Lewis, were in critical condition.
Fire officials said 15 people lived in the duplex.
Brandi Craig, who lives across the street and watched as firefighters tried to rescue the children, said the residents of the duplex’s lower unit were able to get out. She said Lewis’ wife died in November after an illness and that Lewis lived in the upper level with seven children, ages 1 to 9.
Front Section, Pages 4 on 02/15/2014