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JonBenet Ramsey, who competed in beauty pageants, was found dead in the basement of her family's home in the college town of Boulder the day after Christmas in 1996. Her body was found several hours after her mother called 911 to say her daughter was missing and a ransom note was left behind. JonBenet was bludgeoned and strangled. Her death was ruled a homicide, but nobody was ever prosecuted. The details of the crime and video footage of JonBenet competing in pageants propelled the case into one of the highest-profile mysteries in the United States. The police comments came as part of their annual update on the investigation, a month before the 28th anniversary of JonBenet's killing. Police said they released it a little earlier due to the increased attention on the case, apparently referring to the three-part Netflix series "Cold Case: Who Killed JonBenet Ramsey." In a video statement, Boulder Police Chief Steve Redfearn said the department welcomes news coverage and documentaries about the killing of JonBenet, who would have been 34 this year, as a way to generate possible new leads. He said the department is committed to solving the case but needs to be careful about what it shares about the investigation to protect a possible future prosecution. "What I can tell you though, is we have thoroughly investigated multiple people as suspects throughout the years and we continue to be open-minded about what occurred as we investigate the tips that come in to detectives," he said. The Netflix documentary focuses on the mistakes made by police and the "media circus" surrounding the case. Listen now and subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | RSS Feed | SoundStack Police were widely criticized for mishandling the early investigation into her death amid speculation that her family was responsible. However, a prosecutor cleared her parents, John and Patsy Ramsey, and brother Burke in 2008 based on new DNA evidence from JonBenet's clothing that pointed to the involvement of an "unexplained third party" in her slaying. The announcement by former district attorney Mary Lacy came two years after Patsy Ramsey died of cancer. Lacy called the Ramseys "victims of this crime." John Ramsey continued to speak out for the case to be solved. In 2022, he supported an online petition asking Colorado's governor to intervene in the investigation by putting an outside agency in charge of DNA testing in the case. In the Netflix documentary, he said he advocated for several items that were not prepared for DNA testing to be tested and for other items to be retested. He said the results should be put through a genealogy database. In recent years, investigators identified suspects in unsolved cases by comparing DNA profiles from crime scenes and to DNA testing results shared online by people researching their family trees. In 2021, police said in their annual update that DNA hadn't been ruled out to help solve the case, and in 2022 noted that some evidence could be "consumed" if DNA testing is done on it. Last year, police said they convened a panel of outside experts to review the investigation to give recommendations and determine if updated technologies or forensic testing might produce new leads. In the latest update, Redfearn said that review ended but police continue to work through and evaluate a "lengthy list of recommendations" from the panel.Arsenal make Mikel Arteta proud after smashing Sporting Lisbon
By ZEKE MILLER, Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — President-elect Donald Trump on Tuesday reached a required agreement with President Joe Biden’s White House to allow his transition staff to coordinate with the existing federal workforce before taking office on Jan. 20. The congressionally mandated agreement allows transition aides to work with federal agencies and access non-public information and gives a green light to government workers to talk to the transition team. But Trump has declined to sign a separate agreement with the General Services Administration that would have given his team access to secure government offices and email accounts, in part because it would require that the president-elect limit contributions to $5,000 and reveal who is donating to his transition effort. The White House agreement was supposed to have been signed by Oct. 1, according to the Presidential Transition Act, and the Biden White House had issued both public and private appeals for Trump’s team to sign on. The agreement is a critical step in ensuring an orderly transfer of power at noon on Inauguration Day, and lays the groundwork for the White House and government agencies to begin to share details on ongoing programs, operations and threats. It limits the risk that the Trump team could find itself taking control of the massive federal government without briefings and documents from the outgoing administration. As part of the agreement with the White House, Trump’s team will have to publicly disclose its ethics plan for the transition operation and make a commitment to uphold it, the White House said. Transition aides must sign statements that they have no financial positions that could pose a conflict of interest before they receive access to non-public federal information. Biden himself raised the agreement with Trump when they met in the Oval Office on Nov. 13, according to the White House, and Trump indicated that his team was working to get it signed. Trump chief of staff-designate Susie Wiles met with Biden’s chief of staff Jeff Zients at the White House on Nov. 19 and other senior officials in part to discuss remaining holdups, while lawyers for the two sides have spoken more than a half-dozen times in recent days to finalize the agreement. “Like President Biden said to the American people from the Rose Garden and directly to President-elect Trump, he is committed to an orderly transition,” said White House spokesperson Saloni Sharma. “President-elect Trump and his team will be in seat on January 20 at 12 pm – and they will immediately be responsible for a range of domestic and global challenges, foreseen and unforeseen. A smooth transition is critical to the safety and security of the American people who are counting on their leaders to be responsible and prepared.” Without the signed agreement, Biden administration officials were restricted in what they could share with the incoming team. Trump national security adviser-designate Rep. Mike Waltz met recently with Biden national security adviser Jake Sullivan, but the outgoing team was limited in what it could discuss. “We are doing everything that we can to effect a professional and an orderly transition,” White House national security spokesman John Kirby told reporters on Monday. “And we continue to urge the incoming team to take the steps that are necessary to be able to facilitate that on their end as well.” “This engagement allows our intended Cabinet nominees to begin critical preparations, including the deployment of landing teams to every department and agency, and complete the orderly transition of power,” said Wiles in a statement. The Trump transition team says it would disclose its donors to the public and would not take foreign donations. A separate agreement with the Department of Justice to coordinate background checks for vetting and security clearances is still being actively worked on and could be signed quickly now that the White House agreement is signed. The agency has teams of investigators standing by to process clearances for Trump aides and advisers once that document is signed. That would clear the way for transition aides and future administration appointees and nominees to begin accessing classified information before Trump takes office. Some Trump aides may hold active clearances from his first term in office or other government roles, but others will need new clearances to access classified data. Trump’s team on Friday formally told the GSA that they would not utilize the government office space blocks from the White House reserved for their use, or government email accounts, phones and computers during the transition. The White House said it does not agree with Trump’s decision to forgo support from the GSA, but is working on alternate ways to get Trump appointees the information they need without jeopardizing national security. Federal agencies are receiving guidance on Tuesday on how to share sensitive information with the Trump team without jeopardizing national security or non-public information. For instance, agencies may require in-person meetings and document reviews since the Trump team has declined to shift to using secure phones and computers. For unclassified information, agencies may ask Trump transition staff to attest that they are taking basic safeguards, like using two-factor authentication on their accounts.Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov arrived in North Korea on Friday for talks with North Korean military and political leaders as the countries deepen their cooperation over Russia’s war in Ukraine. In announcing the visit, Russia’s Defense Ministry didn’t say whom Belousov would meet or the purpose of the talks. North Korean state media didn’t immediately confirm the visit. Belousov, a former economist, replaced Sergei Shoigu as defense minister in May after Russian President Vladimir Putin started a fifth term in power. Photos released by the Defense Ministry showed Belousov walking alongside North Korean Defense Minister No Kwang Chol on a red carpet at a Pyongyang airport. North Korean military officials were seen clapping under a banner that read, “Complete support and solidarity with the fighting Russian army and people.” Belousov noted after his arrival that military cooperation between the countries is expanding. He applauded a strategic partnership agreement signed by Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un following their June meeting in Pyongyang, which he said is aimed at reducing tensions by maintaining a “balance of power” in the region and lowering the risk of war, including with nuclear weapons. The June meeting demonstrated the “highest level of mutual trust” between the leaders, Belousov said, and “also the mutual desire of our countries to further expand mutually beneficial cooperation in a complex international environment.” North Korean Defense Minister No also praised the expanding cooperation between the countries’ militaries and reiterated North Korea’s support for Russia’s war in Ukraine, describing it as a “just struggle to protect the country’s sovereign rights and security interests.” The visit comes days after South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol met with a Ukrainian delegation led by Defense Minister Rustem Umerov in the South Korean capital, Seoul, and called for the two countries to formulate countermeasures in response to North Korea’s dispatch of thousands of troops to Russia to help its fight against Ukraine. Kim in recent months has prioritized relations with Russia as he tries to break out of isolation and strengthen his international footing, embracing the idea of a “new Cold War.” The United States and its allies have said North Korea has sent more than 10,000 soldiers to Russia in recent weeks and that some of those troops were engaging in combat. North Korea has also been accused of supplying artillery systems, missiles and other military equipment to Russia that may help Putin further extend an almost three-year war. There are also concerns in Seoul that North Korea, in exchange for its troops and arms supplies, could receive Russian technology transfers that could improve its nuclear weapons and missile programs. “The Russian defense minister doesn’t visit North Korea just to celebrate bilateral ties,” said Leif-Eric Easley, a professor at Ewha University in Seoul. “This visit indicates Putin and Kim’s military cooperation in violation of international law is about to increase further.” Yoon’s national security adviser, Shin Wonsik, said in a TV interview last week that Seoul believes that Russia has provided air defense missile systems to North Korea in exchange for sending its troops. Shin said Russia also appears to have given economic assistance to North Korea and various military technologies, including those needed for the North’s efforts to build a reliable space-based surveillance system, which Kim has stressed is crucial for enhancing the threat of nuclear-capable missiles targeting South Korea. Shin didn’t say whether Russia has already transferred sensitive nuclear weapons and ballistic missile technologies to North Korea. Yoon’s office hasn’t said whether the two governments discussed the possibility of South Korea supplying weapons to Ukraine in his talks with Umerov. Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, South Korea has joined U.S.-led sanctions against Moscow and provided humanitarian and financial support to Kyiv. But it has avoided directly supplying arms, citing a longstanding policy of not giving lethal weapons to countries actively engaged in conflicts. Yoon has said his government will take phased countermeasures, linking the level of its response to the degree of Russian-North Korean cooperation. It wasn’t immediately clear whether Belousov will meet with Kim, the North Korean leader. Last year, Kim hosted a Russian delegation led by then-Defense Minister Shoigu and gave him a personal tour of a North Korean arms exhibition, in what outside critics likened to a sales pitch. That event came weeks before Kim traveled to Russia for talks with Putin which sped up military cooperation between the countries. During another meeting in Pyongyang in June this year, Kim and Putin signed a pact stipulating mutual military assistance if either country is attacked, in what was considered the two countries’ biggest defense deal since the end of the Cold War. The Russian report about Belousov’s visit came as South Korea scrambled fighter jets to repel six Russian and five Chinese warplanes that temporarily entered the country’s air defense identification zone around its eastern and southern seas, according to the South’s Joint Chiefs of Staff. It said the Russian and Chinese planes did not breach South Korea’s territorial airspace. South Korea’s Defense Ministry said it held telephone calls with Chinese and Russian defense attaches based in Seoul to protest the flights and urge the countries to prevent recurrences.
Jessica Blair, director of the Electoral Reform Society (ERS) Cymru, supported calls for a recall system to allow voters to remove misbehaving politicians between elections. But Ms Blair said voters should have a say over the replacement, warning an element of personal accountability will be lost with the Senedd’s new “closed-list” electoral system. From 2026, people will vote for parties rather than individuals as Wales ditches first past the post in favour of a full form of proportional representation, with no by-elections being held. Ms Blair said: “This idea of replacing someone with the next person on the list, it could be ... from the voters’ perspective ... seen as a party being rewarded for bad behaviour.” Giving evidence to the Senedd’s standards committee, she added: “This shouldn’t be necessarily about parties keeping control, it should be about voters having their say.” Labour’s Mick Antoniw pointed out it is the person, not the party, that has transgressed. But Ms Blair said: “That could also reflect badly on the party or the way a party’s handled it, so I don't think it's necessarily as clear cut, as this is one person’s actions.” She told the committee that three of the four UK Parliament by-elections triggered by recall petitions since 2019 were won by a different party. She said: “Parties can be punished for an individual’s bad behaviour or it could be a reflection of changing political support post election. There doesn’t seem to be a real case for retaining that party’s seat, especially three years after an election, for example.” The standards committee will make recommendations on how a recall mechanism should work in Wales as part of its inquiry on Senedd members’ accountability. Hannah Blythyn, who chairs the committee, asked witnesses whether the circumstances for recalling a Senedd member should be the same as Westminster. Ms Blair suggested the triggers – a custodial sentence of less than 12 months, a suspension of at least ten sitting days, or an expenses offence conviction – make a good starting point.
As snow blankets the Colorado mountains, outdoor enthusiasts have a unique opportunity: the winter hut trip. Whether you’re a skier or a snowshoer, a hut trip offers an excellent opportunity to connect with nature while exploring the rugged beauty of the state’s wilderness and enjoying the warmth and camaraderie of a cozy mountain hut. From the towering peaks of the San Juan Mountains to the snow-covered trails in Summit County, Colorado’s winter hut trips provide an unforgettable experience for adventurers of all levels. Huts fill up fast, so check each property’s for pricing and availability. Located between Telluride and Silverton near the top of Ophir Pass in the San Juan Mountains, the Opus Hut was built for backcountry skiers, mountaineers, hikers and mountain bikers. At 11,700 feet, the hut sits at treeline with low-angle glades below and open slopes above. While intermediate powder skiing is available out the back door of the hut, owner Travis Mohrman said the terrain is best suited for experienced backcountry skiers. Mohrman estimates that 15% to 20% of the groups visiting Opus Hut do so with guides. “They’re not personally comfortable with the terrain or they’re not from the area,” Mohrman said. “They guides are knowledgeable about local conditions — what the snow is, what’s safe and what’s not safe.” The cabin accommodates up to 20 people in five rooms. Some visitors book the whole hut and bring friends and family, while others reserve available beds in unbooked rooms. The hut features solar-powered lighting and 110-volt outlets for charging electronic devices. It also has filtered drinking water, hot and cold tap water, and indoor composting toilets. It provides full bedding and clean sleeping bag liners. During winter, the hut has four to six employees who sleep in a separate cabin. They prepare meals with natural, organic, and, when possible, locally grown products. The hut accommodates vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free diets–just be sure to inform the staff beforehand. It also offers beer, wine, and a limited selection of spirits for purchase. “You can travel much lighter if you don’t have to bring in your food,” said Mohrman, who took over the hut three years ago. “You don’t have to focus on the upkeep of being in the backcountry.” Reservations for Opus Hut open Aug. 1. “The winter fills up quick,” Mohrman said. “Every winter weekend books in the first five minutes.” Nestled at 11,200 feet in the San Juan National Forest, Campfire Ranch Red Mountain Pass is the perfect base for exploring world-class skiing, split boarding, snowshoeing, and ice climbing. Located between Silverton and Ouray, it’s is accessible during the winter via a half-mile backcountry over-snow approach. Campfire Ranch is an ideal choice for novices. While other Colorado hut systems require you to carry your own food, bring sleeping bags, and live off-grid, this one provides food service, solar-powered electricity, Wi-Fi, and bedding. The dog-friendly cabin accommodates eight people. “We took a hospitality approach to remove barriers to entry for people who want to have the experience but don’t have the gear or the knowledge,” said Katrin Meiusi, director of marketing for the properties. Campfire Ranch first opened a campground on the Taylor River in Almont near Crested Butte. RVs are not permitted at the campground, which is open from May to October. Amenities include unlimited firewood, clean bathrooms, and drinkable well water. The 38 backcountry huts managed by the non-profit 10th Mountain Division Hut Association are connected by 350 miles of trails among some of the tallest peaks in the lower 48 states. All huts, some of which accommodate up to 17 people, have kitchens with propane burners for cooking — propane is provided. They provide pots, pans, potholders, dishware, cooking and eating utensils, a percolator or French press for coffee, salt and pepper, paper towels, dish soap, hand sanitizer, cleaning supplies and trash bags. Some huts have ovens and propane grills. All huts provide lighting from on-site solar power, propane or a generator. A few huts also have outlets for charging small devices such as phones. The huts have either an outhouse or an indoor bathroom with toilet paper supplied. All huts include mattresses and pillows, but you must bring your sleeping bag and pillowcase. Summit Hut Association operates five backcountry huts open for winter from November to May. Francie’s and Janet’s cabins are also open for summer use from July to September. All huts have solar-powered lights, fully stocked kitchens, and wood-burning stoves. Francie’s, Janet’s, and Sisters’ cabins have saunas and indoor toilets. The association hosts its annual Backcountry Ball fundraiser in October at The Maggie on Peak to kick off the season. The event includes dinner, drinks, a silent auction and entertainment. Proceeds help maintain the network of backcountry cabins.Work to expand Berkeley County’s overcrowded jail
ESTERO, Fla. (AP) — Sydney Shaw scored 20 points and made four 3-pointers, JJ Quinerly added 14 points and No. 12 West Virginia handed Boise State its first loss, 82-47 on Saturday in the Gulf Coast Showcase. West Virginia advances to the championship game on Sunday, while Boise State plays for third place. The Mountaineers have started 8-0 in back-to-back seasons after last year's 11-0 beginning. Quinerly also had three steals to help West Virginia reach double figures in that category in every game this season. The Mountaineers also forced 20-plus turnovers for the eighth straight game. Boise State was held to just six points in the first and third quarters. West Virginia went on two 10-0 runs in the first quarter to build a 16-point lead. The Mountaineers led by double figures the rest of the way. It was 45-23 at halftime then Quinerly scored four straight points to begin a 9-0 run that ended in a 32-point lead. Freshman Jordan Thomas, coming off her first career double-double, had 10 points and six rebounds for West Virginia. Elodie Lalotte scored 11 points for Boise State (7-1). Teryn Gardner addd 10. West Virginia was coming off an 89-54 victory over High Point on Friday to begin the tournament. The Mountaineers led by as many as 39 points and forced 22 turnovers in that one. ___ Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here . AP women’s college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-womens-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/womens-college-basketball
Surging Online Sales Eclipse Brick-and-Mortar Shopping on Black FridayST. LOUIS — If the Boston Bruins hadn’t fired Jim Montgomery on Tuesday, Drew Bannister would still be the St. Louis Blues head coach. That’s how Blues general manager Doug Armstrong explained his decision to fire Bannister on Sunday morning, after just 22 games this season, and replace him with Montgomery. Advertisement “There was no inclination to make a coaching change,” Armstrong said. “When Jim got let go in Boston, he was someone I’ve respected, someone I’ve admired, someone I felt had all the attributes to be a long-term coach for the Blues. This decision was based, I would say, almost 100 percent on having someone of Jim’s caliber become available.” Montgomery and the Blues agreed on a five-year contract, and after a conference call with Armstrong and the team’s captains Sunday morning, he is expected to join the club in New York on Sunday night ahead of its game against the Rangers . The news wasn’t a complete shock. The Athletic laid out the possibility last week because the Blues weren’t living up to Armstrong’s expectations of competing for a playoff spot this season along with Montgomery’s sudden availability. The club went 39-31-6 in 76 games under Bannister. It dropped to 9-12-1 on the season after a 3-1 loss to the New York Islanders on Saturday — six points back of a wildcard spot in the Western Conference standings. In 22 games this season, the offense has scored two goals or fewer 13 times and one goal or fewer seven times. The power play is ranked 25th in the NHL (16.7 percent) and the penalty kill is No. 24 (75.9 percent). “When I talked to Drew today, the situation that we were in — a young coach learning, learning with young players — it wasn’t an easy situation for him to walk into,” Armstrong said. “I thought he did a good job. He was making mistakes. We were all making mistakes. So Drew was learning as we went on. “I was more than prepared to go through the peaks and valleys with Drew until Monty became available, and then it just felt like that might not be available over the next few years. I didn’t know when the next opportunity would come, and I felt it was the right thing to do for the Blues franchise.” The Blues had interest in Montgomery last offseason, but when Boston advanced to the second round of the playoffs, Armstrong took the interim tag off Bannister and announced a two-year contract for him to be the head coach. When asked Sunday if Montgomery was indeed the focus of the Blues’ internal discussions last summer, Armstrong replied: “He really wasn’t because he had a job. I don’t spend a lot of time on the wish list of what’s out there. Quite honestly, I didn’t spend much time thinking about Monty this summer.” Advertisement But it’s clear after Montgomery’s hiring that he would have been on the wish list had there been one. Armstrong said he’s a coach who can help the club now and in the future. “He’s really at the prime of his coaching career right now, and we’re the benefactors of that,” Armstrong said. “He’s the full package, or at least we hope he’s the full package. He can coach a team that’s evolving and coach a team that is evolved and ready to win. As we continue to learn how to be competitive on a nightly basis, Monty can push us all to get better, and then when we get there, he can take us to the promised land.” It was evident, too, that Armstrong didn’t see Bannister as that guy, making references to the fact that inexperience behind the bench can no longer be used as an excuse as the team tries to find its way in the coming weeks. Montgomery was 120-41-23 in Boston, including the highest single-season win total in NHL history (65-12-5) in 2022-23. “I go back to when Ken Hitchcock came in — coaching is not an issue,” Armstrong said. “He is a hell of a coach. The game is old. It’s 100-plus years old, and he’s got the best record in any one season. He knows how to coach. So if there were any questions marks about that, that is gone now.” Despite making the move that he felt was best for the organization, Armstrong acknowledged the perception of a coaching carousel in St. Louis, which will have its third guy behind the bench in less than a calendar year on Wednesday. Bannister was promoted to replace Craig Berube in mid-December last year. He becomes the fifth coach fired by Armstrong, after Davis Payne, Ken Hitchcock, Mike Yeo and Berube. “I certainly understand if that’s how people are viewing it,” Armstrong said. “I think the one with Craig, it was a heck of a run and a change was needed. I think Drew coming in and doing a good job as the interim was positive. We went through the process last year of thinking about other coaches and I came back that Drew had done enough to warrant the opportunity to learn on the job here in the NHL and work through that. Advertisement “As I said, I woke up (earlier this week) and had no plans of doing this type of a news conference at all. Except a coach that I believe is a difference-maker became available, and we reacted to it.” Armstrong insisted the move says nothing about the state of the Blues’ retool. “When we first talked about the retool, we used the (Los Angeles Kings’) model for three or four years, and we’re 1 1/2 years into it,” Armstrong said. “One of the things that we’re doing is we’re waiting on (Dalibor) Dvorský, (Jimmy) Snuggerud, (Otto) Stenberg, (Theo) Lindstein and (Adam) Jiricek. Those are five first-round picks that we’re excited about having. “It’s very important for me to say that our vision of where we’re at has not changed. When we said that we were going to retool, bringing in Monty today doesn’t put Dvorský, Snuggerud, Stenberg ... any closer to playing. That comes with maturity. What it does, it gives us a really good coach for today and tomorrow.” As for today, are the Blues a potential playoff team this season with Montgomery now at the helm? “Our record would indicate that no, we’re not headed to the playoffs,” Armstrong said. “I think our season to date has fluctuated. We’re obviously having a hard time on both ends of the special teams and scoring goals, and that’s not a good recipe to have success. “I think getting those ( Philip Broberg and Nick Leddy ) back will help stabilize things. Losing Robert Thomas , like we did, took away from the offense, and it hasn’t come back since he’s come back. So we have our work to do. We have a lot of things that Jim has to get organized to his satisfaction, and we’re able to move ahead.” (Photo of Jim Montgomery: Bruce Bennett / Getty Images)Israel approves proposed ceasefire with Lebanon's Hezbollah
