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Virginia Tech professor urges parents to be vigilant about ‘smart’ toys

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:16:32 GMT

It’s toy-buying season, and internet-connected toys are on a lot of kids’ lists. But there’s growing concern about how much data those toys are collecting.Donna Wertalik, a professor at Virginia Tech’s department of marketing, told WTOP that smart toys are typically equipped with a camera or microphone and have Wi-Fi or Bluetooth connection.“Parents really need to check when it says [a toy] is compatible with an online platform or program,” she said. “What does that mean? Is there a privacy policy for the child? Where is the data being sent?”Wertalik said it’s not about “freaking parents out,” but rather encouraging them to be vigilant and aware about how tech toys collect data and how that data is being utilized.She said parents should check the back of a toy box or the toy maker’s website for the privacy policy and see how they can opt out of data collection. If a company does not have a transparent privacy policy and parental safety controls, she said those are red flags.Sh...

US Park Police release body camera footage of deadly DC shooting

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:16:32 GMT

A man is seen running from U.S. Park Police in Northwest, D.C. on Nov. 22 in newly released body camera footage from the District's ongoing investigation. (Courtesy, US Park Police) A man is seen running from U.S. Park Police in Northwest, D.C. on Nov. 22 in newly released body camera footage from the District's ongoing investigation. (Courtesy, US Park Police) Nearly a month after a deadly exchange of gunfire injured one U.S. Park Police officer and killed a D.C. resident, body camera footage from the department’s Office of the Inspector General is shedding some light on the moments leading up to the shooting.Park Police said the footage, released Monday during a community briefing, “shows the signifi...

ANC commissioner fined $500 for voting twice in 2020 election

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:16:32 GMT

Vanessa Rubio, an elected official in D.C. who serves as an Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner, voted twice in the 2020 general election, according to an investigation carried out by the D.C. Board of Elections.Rubio was fined $500 and will need to pay it by Jan. 8.“We also take judicial notice of the fact that Ms. Rubio is an elected official,” the board said in a statement. “We see fit to hold her to a higher standard than other voters.”According to the board, evidence showed that a ballot was issued by Maryland elections officials to Rubio in 2020.Additionally, Rubio was issued a ballot by the D.C. Board of Elections.“Evidence further shows that those two ballots were indeed cast,” the board said.Investigators determined that Rubio voted in person in Maryland on Nov. 1, 2020, and in person in D.C. on Nov. 3.Rubio “acknowledged voting twice,” investigators said, but she claimed that it was her “understanding that it was permiss...

Drew Lock starts at QB for Seahawks even with Geno Smith active; Jalen Hurts active for Eagles

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:16:32 GMT

SEATTLE (AP) — Drew Lock started at quarterback for the Seahawks against the Eagles on Monday night, even though Seattle’s usual starter, Geno Smith, was active.Philadelphia quarterback Jalen Hurts was active after having been listed as questionable because of an illness that prompted him to travel separately from his teammates to Seattle.Smith has a groin injury that caused him to miss last week’s loss at San Francisco.Smith’s went through his pregame routine about two hours before kickoff and appeared to be moving well. But when the full team came out for pregame warmups, Lock was taking snaps and Smith was not seen on the field.Smith had been a limited participant in practice all week after suffering the injury in practice on Dec. 7. Lock was 22 of 31 for 269 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions last week in his first start since being acquired by Seattle in the trade that sent Russell Wilson to Denver.Seattle was without starting safety Jamal Adams (knee) and ...

Denver father loses his life saving daughter from oncoming driver

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:16:32 GMT

DENVER (KDVR) — A man from Denver risked his life to save his 2-year-old daughter from getting hit by an oncoming driver.The family of Alonso Garcia says he pushed his daughter out of the way before he was hit. He was taken to the hospital and died shortly after he was released."He loved her very much. He did everything for her. Even sacrificing his own life for her," said Karla Alanis, Garcia's sister. "Alonso took his daughter out to get something to eat, and they were on foot. He took her in a stroller. They were walking across the crosswalk when a car came on head-on and hit Alonso."'It's hard for me to accept he's gone'She said in that split second, her brother made a quick decision.“Decided to throw the stroller to push Liz his daughter out the way before getting ran over," she said. FOX31 Newsletters: Sign up to get breaking news sent to your inbox Alanis told FOX31 she rushed to the scene."I was the one who gave my brother CPR. So it's hard for me to accept he’s gone," she...

Captain in Colorado correctional facility recognized for outstanding service

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:16:32 GMT

DENVER (KDVR) — The Denver Women’s Correctional Facility is home to 798 inmates. From crimes against property to crimes against people, women who have been convicted in a court of law call this place home.Capt. Dan Davis calls this place his vocation. Denver Police officer recognized for going beyond the call of duty “I was looking for an introduction into law enforcement, and at that time the two agencies that were hiring most and reaching out were the Department of Corrections and the Denver Sheriff’s Department,“ said Davis.Davis signed up with the DOC 20 years ago and never looked back.“Intentionally it was meant to be a stepping stone to go to another career," said Davis. "However, I got into it, I fell in love with the business.“ Davis started with the emergency response team and became the commander of that unit for 13 years. “The lure of not any day being the same, you know, I was a use of force specialist," said Davis. "Eventually, I went on to become one of the master u...

Woman thankful to be alive after utility pole, transformer, wires fall on car in Newton

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:16:32 GMT

A local driver said she is thankful to be alive after a falling tree sent a utility pole, a transformer and wires crashing onto her SUV in Newton on Monday. The incident happened around 10 a.m. on Dedham Street and Bonnie Filkins’ car partially melted and burned. “I’m just glad I’m OK,” Filkins later told 7NEWS. “It wouldn’t have been a good Christmas for my family.” Filkins said she was driving during Monday’s stormy weather when she saw the tree come down across the road in front of her. Though she said she saw the tree, she said she wasn’t considering the wires until the pole fell onto her car. “It sounded like a bomb went off,” she said. Filkins said glass shattered into her car. She said she saw smoke, heard pops and realized her car was catching fire. Though Filkins got out safely, first responders took her to an area hospital to get her cuts checked for glass. Back at the crash site on Dedham Street, the damage left behind was still visible ...

3 things we heard from the Chicago Bears, including whether Matt Eberflus regrets his defensive call on 3rd-and-15

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:16:32 GMT

Chicago Bears coach Matt Eberflus, tight end Cole Kmet and linebacker Tremaine Edmunds met with reporters Monday to recap Sunday’s 20-17 loss to the Cleveland Browns.Here are three things we learned.1. Matt Eberflus said there are ‘three or four’ play calls he’d like back every game.One of those Sunday was Joe Flacco’s third-and-15 pass to David Njoku on the Browns’ winning field-goal drive late in the fourth quarter.“That one there, when it doesn’t work in a critical situation,” Eberflus said. “Of course you’d like to see it work in that situation, but it didn’t.”Eberflus sent Edmunds, nickel back Kyler Gordon and safety Jaquan Brisker to blitz on the play, and 6-foot-3, 309-pound defensive tackle Justin Jones dropped in coverage. Njoku got behind Jones, caught the pass that Flacco floated to him, broke a tackle by Tyrique Stevenson and got to the Bears 19 to set up Dustin Hopkins’ winning 34-yard f...

Judge criticizes Trump’s expert witness as he again refuses to toss fraud lawsuit

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:16:32 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Former President Donald Trump has lost his latest bid to end the business fraud lawsuit he faces in New York as he campaigns to reclaim the White House.Judge Arthur Engoron issued a written ruling Monday denying the Republican’s latest request for a verdict in his favor in a lawsuit brought by New York Attorney General Letitia James.And in doing so, the judge dismissed the credibility of one of Trump’s expert witnesses at the trial, a professor who testified that he saw no fraud in the former president’s financial statements.The trial is centered on allegations Trump and other company officials exaggerated his wealth and inflated the value of his assets to secure loans and close business deals.In the three-page ruling, Engoron wrote that the “most glaring” flaw of Trump’s argument was to assume that the testimony provided by Eli Bartov, an accounting professor at New York University, and other expert witnesses would be accepted by the court as “true and a...

New video captures moments leading up to deadly shooting by Elk Grove Village police

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:16:32 GMT

ELK GROVE VILLAGE, Ill. — An Elk Grove Village family is searching for answers after police shot and killed their son less than three weeks ago.On Monday, Elk Grove Village Police released bodycam video capturing the moments leading up to the fatal shooting.24-year-old Jack Murray died on Dec. 1, after he was reportedly shot several times in the chest by Elk Grove police officers. 5 charged in connection with retail thefts around DuPage County While the newly released footage offers a glimpse into what unfolded, family members say they still want answers about how and why things escalated the way they did.Police responded to a call at a home they had been to before, along Fern Drive.Murray called 911 on himself that day, saying someone had a knife. When the operator called back, his father picked up the phone. His father told the operator that Murray was possibly intoxicated and added that his son had been injured the night before and that he was trying to get him to go to th...