Month: March 2026

By Arielle Mitropoulos, Ricky Podgorski

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    MANCHESTER, New Hampshire (WMUR) — A woman from Weare is accused of violating New Hampshire’s Civil Rights Act for allegedly threatening a man because he is Black.

The Attorney General’s Office said that in October 2024, Diane Durgin, 67, drew a gun on the man and threatened to kill him when he mistakenly drove to her property to complete a prearranged purchase of a car part.

She allegedly repeated the threat after the man explained he was lost and fired two shots at his car when he drove away.

Investigators said the victim drove off the side of the driveway and into a ditch. He then ran to the end of the driveway and called 911.

When asked why she fired her gun, Durgin allegedly said she fired because the man was Black, according to the Attorney General’s Office.

Durgin was indicted on charges of reckless conduct with a deadly weapon, criminal threatening against a person with a deadly weapon, and one count of attempted first-degree assault with a deadly weapon.

“The basis of the Civil Rights Act was enacted for these specific cases,” President of the Manchester NAACP Branch Arnold Mikolo said.

The attorney general released a complaint under the New Hampshire Civil Rights Act Tuesday.

The complaint requested a temporary restraining order, criminal prosecution, and civil penalty of $5,000 for each violation.

“Am I surprised this happened? No. Do I wish it would never happen again? Yes,” President and CEO of the New Hampshire Center for Justice and Equity Anthony Poore said.

Poore added there is no place in the Granite State for this type of activity and behavior.

“At the end of the day, we’re becoming increasingly diverse and nuanced and complex, and there are some people that simply aren’t going to appreciate the beauty of that,” Poore said.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Alan Gionet

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    COLORADO (KCNC) — It’s been a long few days in the Middle East. The war with Iran has meant missile and drone attacks between Iran and Israel and other countries as well. The United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain.

The U.S. State Department is urging Americans to leave 14 countries in the Mideast, if they can. That’s not easy.

“The airports are closed here. They closed down,” said Ericka Lewis Mansfield, a former CBS Colorado anchor and reporter now living in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates. Leaving, she says, is not really an option. But she doesn’t feel the need either.

“In the last couple of days, I think things have been relatively quiet here. Things are open,” she said.

The family has a holiday homes business. Some travelers have not shown up, others are staying longer. The family moved from their home on the 50th floor of a building to a ground floor rental unit during the crisis out of concern about the safety of getting down from a high floor if needed.

Being caught up in an international conflict is a different feeling for people in Dubai, where very few are native.

“The feeling of safety and security really has been a big part of living here, and it’s a big part of why a lot of people have been moving to Dubai and why people visit Dubai,” Mansfield said.

It’s more complicated for her college-aged son.

Joshua Mansfield, 21, is in his final year at a university in Tel Aviv, Israel.

“My apartment has, like, a shelter in it, so it’s just like, an extra bedroom,” he explained.

It’s called a mamad, which is a safe room with thick walls and blocked windows. The door is thick and metal.

“I’m lucky, not every apartment has a mamad. Some buildings have, like, like, miklatim, like an underground shelter,” he explained.

Josh and an Israeli friend were recently in the room after hearing a series of booms. Tel Aviv has been the target of Iranian counterattacks. Israel’s defense system has stopped many incoming projectiles, but there’s been damage.

He’s not in a position to leave either, with no flights out.

“I mean, it’s not necessarily possible to leave, even if I wanted to,” Josh said.

The attacks have lessened since Saturday, but there’s still reason not to spend too much time outside, although they’d been for a walk earlier in the day. At the beach, people were partying on the Israeli holiday of Purim. His friend Amir was staying with him, due to the potential danger getting through the streets back to his mother’s home.

But it was worse during the 12-day war with Iran last year, when President Trump claimed Iran’s nuclear enrichment program had been “obliterated.”

“When the June war happened, like, 10 days into it, I took a car from Tel Aviv to Jordan. And I left from there, but even now, that’s not necessarily possible, because, well, Jordan is getting bombed, too.”

Mansfield was glad the U.S. and Israel were going after Iran.

“It’s a very big threat. It makes sense from Israel’s point of view to go in there and destroy, basically, what is left of the launchers, what is left of the missiles and even for the Americans, to be able to take out such a regime.”

There is reason for caution he noted, even outside of the Middle East.

“It definitely is possible and a worry that both Israel and the U.S. have had. You can see through official warnings where Israel was telling Israelis abroad to be vigilant.”

A ramp up in terrorism remains a possibility beyond the conflict’s borders, but in Tel Aviv they will continue to deal with the potential of retribution. Josh and his friend said at the moment they’ve been watching a lot of movies, while thinking about his family.

“It does concern me, but it’s already happening,” he said. “Usually it’s just Israel that gets hit. Like again in June. But now I get notifications on my phone, like, big explosions heard in Dubai, and I’m worried for my family, and Dubai is known as a safe place.”

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Caitlyn Scott

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    UNITY TOWNSHIP, Pennsylvania (WTAE) — The United States Secret Service, with assistance from Pennsylvania State Police, has opened an investigation into a multi-million-dollar theft scheme in Unity Township.

Officials said an individual from Unity Township contacted them after they were scammed out of $5 million from someone who posed to be employeed with the Federal Trade Commission.

Pennsylvania State Police was notified of the fraud investigation by the U.S. Secret Service in late February.

The victim said they first responded to text messages regarding a PayPal transaction. The response then led to the victim being contacted again by a person who claimed to work at the Federal Trade Commission.

Officials said the victim was first asked to provide cash, and later asked to purchase gold bars. The transaction occurred in the Unity Township area.

Secret Service, with the assistance of the Pennsylvania State Police, is asking any victim of similar circumstances, regardless of a completed transaction, to contact state police at 724-832-3288.

Authorities are encouraging potential victims to report any suspicious activity and to never give out any personal information. You are also encouraged to never offer payments without consulting a credible agency first.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Logan Smith

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    COLORADO (KCNC) — An Aurora restaurant paid a fine to the U.S. Department of Labor after an investigation found a 17-year-old employee was allowed to load a trash compactor — a federally prohibited hazardous task for a minor — and 14- and 15-year-old employees worked more hours than federal law allows.

The owners of Mt. Fuji Sushi & Hibachi recently paid a $22,249 civil penalty, according to the Department of Labor.

Under federal law, a trash compactor cannot legally be loaded by anyone under 18 years of age.

Similarly, workers of 14 and 15 years of age are not permitted to work later than 7 p.m. between Labor Day and May 31, or later than 9 p.m. between June 1 and Labor Day. Workers that age are also not allowed to work more than eight hours per day on a non-school day, per federal law.

The restaurant employed 14 such workers, according to the agency.

The investigation also determined the restaurant failed to properly pay overtime to its 19 adult employees. The chefs, kitchen staff, and other workers were paid their normal hourly rate instead of the required time-and-a-half overtime rate for hours beyond 40 hours per week.

The restaurant agreed to pay $20,213 in back wages to the employees after the investigation.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Jasmine Arenas

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    COLORADO (KCNC) — More than two years after Denver began requiring residential rental licenses, the city is increasing penalties for landlords who have not complied.

As of today, 28,926 residential rental properties are licensed, covering about 185,000 rental units across the city.

Denver’s Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection has teamed up with the city’s health department to strengthen enforcement. Now, if a property has a public health violation and is operating without a license, the landlord faces an automatic $250 fine. Penalties can escalate to as much as $5,000 and may include jail time.

When tenants call the city to report issues such as mold or unsafe living conditions, a public health investigator responds. Those visits have also helped officials identify landlords who never obtained the required residential rental license.

“What we want to do is see landlords get the required license, which comes with passing an inspection and paying a small fee,” said Eric Escudero with Denver’s Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection. “That license is good for four years, and it helps us achieve our goal of making sure Denver has the safest rental properties in America.”

Escudero says about 5,000 non-compliant properties have been identified, with an estimated $150,000 in fines issued to date.

“If you’re a landlord and it’s been over two years since this license requirement took effect and you’re still refusing to get that inspection and license, the city is left with no choice but to issue a fine,” Escudero said. “We can even issue a criminal citation that puts a landlord in court facing criminal penalties.”

One of the properties now facing a criminal citation is The Raven, formerly known as The Felix apartment complex. Despite the city issuing more than $50,000 in fines, tenants say conditions have not significantly improved.

Eida Altman with the Denver Metro Tenants Union says fines on their own can actually further strain struggling properties.

“Even after those penalties have increased, I still have tenants who do not have heat, who do not have hot water,” Altman said. “Tenants are taking showers at rec centers before work.”

Altman believes a better solution would be to have tenants pay rent into a designated account if a landlord fails to meet licensing requirements. The funds would be used only for on-site repairs and maintenance until the property comes into compliance.

Residents have filed a class-action lawsuit against their landlords.

“Too often, when a property is not compliant with the licensing program, the rent money is not being used to repair things; it’s being used elsewhere,” she said.

City officials say the coordinated effort between the health department and the licensing and consumer protection agency is designed to root out the worst offenders and keep residents in the Mile High City safe.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.