WJPA News

A large crowd gathered at noon on Sunday in front of the Washington County Courthouse to protest the fatal shooting of 37-year-old Renee Good, who was shot and killed by an ICE officer last week  in Minneapolis.  Washington’s protest was one of  hundreds held across the county over the weekend following the shooting of Good by federal officers.  Speaking to the Associated Press, Good’s former husband, who declined to be identified for the safety of their children, said his former wife was not an activist and had never, to his knowledge, even attended a protest.  Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara says a protest Friday night turned violent when people threw ice, snow and rocks at officers. Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey faults “agitators who are trying to rile up large crowds.” The demonstrations come as the U.S. Department of Homeland Security pushes forward in the Twin Cities with what it calls its biggest-ever immigration enforcement operation.

Washington County Commissioner Chairman Nick Sherman took to social media to provide an update on progress of the Courthouse Square Building demolition. In a post to Facebook on Friday, Sherman said that currently contractors are conducting a wall shoring project that is stabilizing a wall between the Washington County Courthouse and the new Public Safety Building. Sherman says that once that project is complete, the timeline will be demolition in late March, site preparation in April and the construction on the new Public Safety Building will begin in May. The Public Safety Building will hold the new 9-1-1 operations center that will employ the new emergency radio system, offices for the Sheriff, and a booking center. The cost of the project is estimated to be between $30 and 35 million.

The Donora Fire Company now says a report of a ‘person in distress’ turned out to be unfounded over the weekend. First responders were on the Monongahela River on Saturday. In a social media post, the Rostraver Township Fire Department said it was assisting the Donora Fire Company with a search on the river. Rostraver reportedly provided water rescue resources to search the area and used a thermal imaging drone. Officials say they were “unable to locate a person in distress.”

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Federal agents are carrying out immigration arrests in Minnesota’s Twin Cities region already shaken by the fatal shooting of a woman. Agents on Sunday rammed the door of one home and flooded inside before leading a man away in handcuffs. In a dramatic scene similar to those playing out across Minneapolis, agents arrested the man minutes after pepper spraying a handful of protesters who confronted the agents. A Homeland Security spokesperson says more than 2,000 immigration arrests have been made in Minnesota since the beginning of December. The Twin Cities remains on edge after 37-year-old Renee Good was shot and killed by an immigration officer Wednesday.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said Sunday the Department of Justice has served the central bank with subpoenas and threatened it with a criminal indictment over his testimony this summer about the Fed’s building renovations. The move represents an unprecedented escalation in President Donald Trump’s battle with the Fed, an independent agency he has repeatedly attacked for not cutting its key interest rate as sharply as he prefers. The renewed fight will likely rattle financial markets Monday and could over time escalate borrowing costs for mortgages and other loans. The subpoenas relate to Powell’s testimony before the Senate Banking Committee in June, the Fed chair said, regarding the Fed’s renovation of two office buildings.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — President Donald Trump says Iran wants to negotiate with the U.S. after his threat to strike the country over its crackdown on protesters. Activists said Monday the death toll in the demonstrations has risen to at least 544. Iran has not yet responded to Trump’s comments. The foreign minister of Oman traveled to Iran this weekend, possibly to mediate. Trump and his team are considering responses, including cyberattacks and direct strikes. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, speaking to foreign diplomats in Tehran, insisted “the situation has come under total control” in fiery remarks that blamed Israel and the U.S. for the violence, without offering evidence.

Paul Thomas Anderson’s ragtag revolutionary saga “One Battle After Another” and Chloe Zhao’s Shakespeare drama “Hamnet” took top honors at Sunday’s 83rd Golden Globes, where the up-for-sale Warner Bros. dominated the awards. While the Globes have a tradition of spreading the wealth around, Anderson became just the second filmmaker to ever sweep best film, best director and best screenplay. Only Oliver Stone, for “Born on the Fourth of July,” managed the same feat. Timothee Chalamet won his first Golden Globe for “Marty Supreme.” “Sinners” won for best score and cinematic and box-office achievement.