Author: CNN Newsource

By Alyssa Munoz

Click here for updates on this story

    NEW MEXICO (KOAT) — The New Mexico Historic Women’s Marker Program is introducing a K-12 curriculum to bring the stories of women who have significantly contributed to the state’s history into classrooms across New Mexico.

“It’s not only the women that one would know, like Georgia O’Keeffe, but it’s other people who have made changes within their community,” said Karen Abraham, a member of the program’s steering committee.

In 2007, the program installed its first women’s marker. Now, there are about 97 markers recognizing 125 women or groups of women, each with a sign detailing who they were and what they accomplished. Inspired by this initiative, seventh grade teacher Lisa Nordstrum, who is now the curriculum developer and education director for the program, developed a comprehensive K-12 curriculum for teachers statewide.

Nordstrum explained the curriculum’s accessibility, saying, “The ease of just clicking on to the little section of the groups of lessons and the very specific outlining of every step of that lesson, the materials that are needed, the PDFs that you just download.” She added that students could engage in activities like reading profiles, creating art projects, or having conversations in character as these historical women.

The lessons come with different ways to get students involved, and as the grades progress, the stories delve deeper. “Extending beyond the information that’s on the website and really inspiring older students as researchers and detectives, I’d like to think of history as doing detective work and digging into those historic documents,” Nordstrum said.

Both Abraham and Nordstrum emphasized that the program is not just about women but about people who have made a difference. “It is a program for everybody. It’s just not about women. It’s about people who have made a difference, that happened to be women,” they 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 Lindsay Weber

Click here for updates on this story

    YOLO COUNTY, California (KCRA) — A California man was convicted by a Yolo County jury on Tuesday of multiple counts of murder for the deaths of his infant children over the course of a decade, according to the district attorney’s office.

Paul Allen Perez, 63, described by the DA as a transient throughout Central California, was arrested in January 2020 in connection with the slayings of his five children.

The Yolo County District Attorney’s Office said the conviction stems from murders between 1992 and 2001 in Central and Northern California. The investigation began on March 29, 2007, after one of the infants’ remains was found by fishermen, weighed down and submerged in a cooler in the Conway Slough east of Woodland. DNA testing determined Perez was the biological father.

“In my 40 years in law enforcement, I cannot think of a case more disturbing than this one,” Yolo County Sheriff Tom Lopez told KCRA 3 in 2020.

After investigators identified the infant’s remains as 1-month-old Nikko Lee Perez, further DNA analysis revealed the baby had siblings. Kato Allen Perez was born in Merced in 1992 and is known to be deceased, the sheriff’s office said at the time.

The three other siblings were also believed to be deceased by 2020, but their remains had not been located. They are: Mika Alena Perez, born in Merced in 1995; Nikko Lee Perez, born in Fresno in 1997; and Kato Krow Perez, born in Fresno in 2001.

Beyond the conviction of multiple counts of murder, Perez was also convicted Tuesday of one count of assault on a child under 8 with force likely to create bodily injury resulting in death. A case enhancement for multiple murders was also found to be true.

“These crimes involved pure evil,” said Yolo County District Attorney Jeff Reisig in a news release. “The defendant should die in prison. May the souls of his murdered children rest in peace.”

Perez faces life in prison without the possibility of parole. He is scheduled to be sentenced on April 6.

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 Hannah Hilyard

Click here for updates on this story

    MILWAUKEE (WISN) — A car slammed into a 70-year-old school crossing guard during morning drop-off at Pulaski High School, according to Milwaukee police.

The call came in just before 8 a.m. to South 25th Street and Oklahoma Avenue on Milwaukee’s south side.

“Having the children there witnessing it. They’re screaming. Parents are screaming. It was just all around not a good situation for all involved,” witness Annika Taylor told WISN 12 News Tuesday.

Taylor was traveling to work when she heard the crossing guard’s familiar whistle and stopped, but she said another car kept going.

“It pulled around,” Taylor said.

“Did you see that?” WISN 12 News Hannah Hilyard followed up.

“Yes, it pulled around the other car to get on through, and then they hit the crossing guard,” she replied. “I don’t think they realized that the whistle went off and that the crossing guard was standing there trying to help a child get through.”

Police confirmed that the driver remained at the scene, and first responders quickly transported the injured crossing guard to the hospital. The guard is well-known in the area for her consistent presence outside the school.

“There has not been a day that I’ve dropped (my son) off and she has not been there in the morning or in the afternoon helping the kids get … across the street safe,” one Pulaski mother who wished to remain anonymous told WISN 12 News.

She’d like to see traffic changes on Oklahoma Avenue for drop-off and pick-up times.

“A light or something, or maybe patrol officers, traffic patrol officers,” she said.

Taylor also emphasized the need for drivers to take their time.

“We need to all have a little bit more patience and take into account that if someone is stopped, there’s probably a good reason to it.”

Police did not arrest the driver. Instead, they said officers cited the driver for not having insurance. They said the guard did suffer serious injuries but is expected to survive.

Pulaski’s principal sent a letter to families on Tuesday, saying:

“Dear Pulaski High School Families and Staff,

“We value you as members of our school community, and we want to keep you informed.

“This morning while students were arriving for the school day, a crossing guard was hit by a car and was hurt. The Milwaukee Police Department and other first responders arrived to assess the situation and help the crossing guard. Unfortunately, we are not able to share any information on the person’s condition.

“We understand that some students and staff were in the area and that this event may be upsetting. If your child needs assistance, please contact the school office to be connected to the school counselor, nurse, psychologist, or social worker. School staff may access the Employee Assistance Program to learn about available options.”

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 Erik Nielsen

Click here for updates on this story

    REXBURG (eastidahonews.com) — Halfway through Emily Miller’s pregnancy, she and her husband, David, learned news no parent ever wants to hear — that their long-awaited second son would not survive after birth.

Over the years, David channeled that grief into a poem, which has since been adapted into an illustrated children’s book. His hope is that the book can provide comfort and hope to anyone who has lost a loved one.

The book, “Twice as Well,” is self-published and available.

Baby Daniel had been eagerly anticipated by the Millers and their first son, Charlie, who is now 19 years old. Charlie was born after years of trying to conceive; Daniel came several years later.

But that anticipation quickly turned to sorrow when the family learned Daniel had a lethal form of dwarfism.

“There were already a lot of big feelings around it,” David said. “And then when we got the news of his condition, it just felt like a very significant period in our lives.”

From that moment on, the family lived with what grief counselors often call “anticipatory grief” — the weight of knowing what was coming without being able to stop it.

“We were told by the nurses and grief counselors that this was something that could either bring us together as a family or pull us apart,” David said.

“I knew it would be a significant period in our lives, (and) that we would feel the effects of for the rest of our lives,” he said. “So, I began taking notes. I would carry around 3-by-5 cards in my pocket — in my shirt pocket or my pants pocket.

“And I would journal on these cards. I would write down thoughts that were motivational and inspirational, things that came to me in conversations with Charlie when he was 4 (years old), or with Emily, or with other people. I really started to compile a lot of thoughts because I understood this was going to be an important time.”

At first, David had no ambition beyond helping himself and his family process their grief and remember Daniel in a way that also allowed them to move forward. As the Millers searched for resources to help Charlie, they found many lacking.

“They did a really good job acknowledging sadness and disappointment,” Emily said. “But we felt like they would actually make him feel worse, not better.”

“That’s when we started wishing for something different,” she said, “something that acknowledged the sadness but also helped build forward.”

Over time, David began sharing his writings with his family, reading them to his children and occasionally sharing them with others facing similar losses.

“People really connected with it,” he said. “Especially other fathers.”

Eventually, David realized the writing could be helpful to others in book form.

“This was never about turning it into a profit machine,” he said. “It was something that was useful for us as a family.”

David chose to self-publish the book, which allowed him to preserve its spiritual message.

“I think we all long for the idea that there’s more than this life,” he said. “That’s a pretty universal feeling.”

The illustrations, which have a soft, whimsical quality, were created by Shana Keegan, an artist the Millers discovered at BYU–Idaho.

“When approaching such a tender subject, I relied on David and Emily’s thoughtful input on what they wanted to see depicted,” Keegan said. “I tried my best to create warm and inviting imagery so readers could feel happy and hopeful. I also really enjoyed illustrating elements that were meaningful to the family, like the colorful hot air balloons, which are a symbol of hope. It was an honor to work on this story.”

Keegan visited the Millers’ home, met the children and incorporated subtle details from their lives. The family depicted in the book does not represent the Millers exactly, allowing as many families as possible to see themselves in the story.

For the Millers’ children, “Twice as Well” is more than a book; it’s a shared language for remembering their brother.

“Before every basketball game, I kind of think, ‘Whatever I do tonight is for Daniel,’” said Samuel, 12.

Daughter Ada, 9, described moments when she feels protected — times she believes her brother is still watching over her. “I think he’s like our guardian angel,” she said.

David hopes the book will provide encouragement to families as they move through the grief process.

“Even though you may be going through something really hard and tragic,” he said, “it doesn’t have to destroy the rest of your life.”

Instead, the book encourages families to honor the people they’ve lost by continuing to live fully.

“You can find purpose in sorrow,” he said. “You can honor the person you’re missing by continuing to live a full life.”

“This isn’t something we’re trying to make money from,” Emily said. “The hope is just that it can comfort people, freely.”

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 Sadie Buggle

Click here for updates on this story

    BOULDER COUNTY, Colo. (KRDO) — A Colorado teacher who worked at multiple schools along the Front Range is now behind bars, accused of persuading multiple juveniles to act as if they were under hypnosis before directing them to perform sexually explicit acts on camera. Investigators say he sold the content online until a series of online safety alerts exposed the scheme.

According to the Boulder County Sheriff’s Office, 39-year-old Patricio Alejandro Illanes was arrested on Jan. 5 after a months-long investigation into tips from Meta, Inc., reporting that an account he owned and operated was creating and selling sexually explicit content.

Those tips led Boulder detectives to search Illanes’ personal cell phone, which revealed multiple sexually explicit videos involving apparent juveniles that had been shared on various messaging applications and paid subscription pornography sites.

The sheriff’s office said an investigation into that content revealed that Illanes had instructed juveniles to “perform a script” in front of a green screen while pretending to be in a hypnotic state. The sessions escalated to victims removing clothing and engaging in explicit acts at Illanes’ direction. Illanes allegedly filmed and photographed these sessions before editing the content “for sexual gratification” and selling it online.

Boulder officials say they’ve already identified four out-of-state individuals who were involved in these “hypnotic role-play sessions” as juveniles.

Illanes now faces 50 charges, including dozens of Class 3 felony counts related to sexual exploitation of a child – covering the creation, production, possession, and distribution of explicit material – as well as 10 misdemeanor counts of unlawful practice of an occupation or profession.

Detectives said they also recovered additional “hypnosis-like” photographs that appear to depict clothed students in a school setting, further raising concerns about Illanes’ access to minors through his multiple professional roles across the state.

At the time of his arrest, Illanes was an English teacher at Arvada Senior High School. The sheriff’s office confirmed that after administration was notified of the investigation, they swiftly placed him on administrative leave before terminating him.

However, authorities say Illanes had access to students for up to 10 years before that role in positions he held in schools, libraries, and youth programs across Longmont, Boulder, Lafayette, Denver, Erie and Arvada, including:

2010-2015: City of Longmont Children and Youth Services 2013-2017: New Meridian Alternative High School in Longmont 2015-2021: Longmont Library – Children and Teens Section 2017-2019: Centaurus High School in Lafayette 2019-2020: Mapleton School District in Denver 2019-2023: Erie Middle School & Erie High School 2024-2025: Arvada Senior High School Investigators are now asking for any current or former students and co-workers of Illanes who may have additional information related to this investigation to come forward.

Anyone who believes they or their child may have been a victim of Illanes is encouraged to contact the law enforcement agency where the incident occurred, the Boulder County Sheriff’s Office said.

The investigation involved assistance from multiple local, state, and federal agencies, including the FBI and law enforcement departments across Colorado, Oregon and Ohio.

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 A.J. Bayatpour

Click here for updates on this story

    MILWAUKEE (WDJT) — For farm owners who rent out their barns for special events, including weddings, 2026 is ringing in a new state law that is forcing them to make a difficult choice.

Back in 2023, legislative leaders did some last-minute maneuvering to tuck new language into a broader bill that updates Wisconsin’s alcohol laws. That measure primarily allowed breweries to start making canned cocktails and seltzers while also allowing wineries to extend their hours.

Late in the process, leaders added language that regulated the wedding barn industry. Those restrictions, which took effect at the start of this year, require barn operators to either get a liquor license or a special non-sale event permit.

The new permits require barns to have a licensed bartender serving alcohol on the property, and the venues can only host a maximum of six events per year. Renters are only allowed to serve beer and wine.

A bipartisan group of lawmakers is circulating a bill that would loosen those restrictions.

“What the previous legislation is really trying to do is to force more venues to operate as bars that don’t want to,” State Sen. Andre Jacque (R-New Franken) said in an interview Friday, Jan. 2. “And this really isn’t making any sort of changes in terms of liability. This is simply preserving that consumer choice.”

The new proposal would allow wedding barns without a liquor license to host as many as 36 events in a year.

Renters would still be required to have a licensed bartender serving drinks, but they’d also be allowed to have liquor at their events.

“You ought to be able to serve a Wisconsin Old Fashioned at your wedding,” State Sen. Mark Spreitzer (D-Beloit) said. “And right now, even with those six events, you can’t do that.”

Afton Krysiak, co-owner of The Gathering Barn in Fort Atkinson, said she’s in the process of getting a liquor license for her venue. Hosting events throughout wedding season was part of the plan when they bought the land, so she said there was no real alternative.

“We, financially, would not be able to survive, seeing that we just bought the venue in 2022,” Krysiak said. “We wouldn’t have been able to survive on six [events] alone.”

Krysiak said the process of meeting liquor license requirements has proven costly. She said it cost about $30,000 to install necessary refrigeration equipment.

She added getting all of her questions answered about the licensing process has also been maddening.

“We’re still a little lost on what it is that we have to have,” Krysiak said. “Talking to the Department of Health, and the Department of Health says it’s the [Wisconsin] Department of Revenue, so we’ve gone back and forth a lot.”

For Jean Bahn, who owns the Farmview Event Barn near Oshkosh, getting a liquor license was never really an option.

“At my age, I do not want to start another business,” Bahn told CBS 58 Friday. “I have no experience whatsoever running a retail operation of any kind, especially alcohol.”

Bahn argued it was unfair to apply liquor licensing standards to farm owners who are only renting out their barns to private parties.

“We simply rent space,” she said. “This is no different than a group going to a city park and renting the pavilion and bringing in their food and drink.”

Others, including the Tavern League of Wisconsin, see it differently. Supporters of the law have argued it’s unfair for barns to rent out space for events where alcohol is served while avoiding the regulations other venues face.

Spreitzer said he believes the bill he and Jacque are now circulating represents a good compromise. He hoped to move forward with the bill before the current two-year legislative session wraps up in March, when lawmakers shift into campaign mode.

Since legislative leaders, including Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu, approved adding the wedding barn language to the 2023 bill, it’s highly unlikely this bill would get a vote in the Senate.

Spreitzer said the bill’s supporters might try to get their bill in through the backdoor, adding their own language to a different bill as an amendment.

“For a lot of these venues, their wedding season starts in May,” Spreitzer said. “We still have time to fix this, but we don’t have a lot of time.”

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.