Washington State Senator Rebecca Saldaña (D-Seattle) has introduced a bill that would allocate state funds to provide unemployment benefits to illegal immigrants, despite the state's $10-17 billion budget deficit. The proposed legislation, SB 5023, aims to create a separate program for workers ineligible for federal unemployment insurance due to their immigration status.
Freddie Escobar, president of the United Firefighters of Los Angeles County (UFLAC), criticized Los Angeles leaders for neglecting the city’s fire department, contributing to challenges in combating massive wildfires like the Palisades Fire. The fire has burned 24,000 acres, with another 14,000 acres scorched by the Eaton Fire, exposing severe resource and staffing shortages within the Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD).
A federal judge in Vermont sentenced Luis Fernando Barragan-Palacios, 29, to 18 months in prison for smuggling nearly 100 migrants across the Canadian border into the United States. Barragan-Palacios, originally from Oaxaca, Mexico, earned approximately $500,000 from the human smuggling operation over a five-month period. He is expected to be deported upon completing his sentence.
Singer-songwriter Shaboozey’s highly anticipated Grand Ole Opry debut, originally scheduled for January 18, has been postponed due to the ongoing wildfires in Los Angeles.
The Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) announced that most schools and offices will reopen on Monday, Jan. 13, following improved conditions across the region after last week’s wildfires.
President Joe Biden announced the cancellation of student loans for 150,000 borrowers on Monday, just one week before the upcoming transition to a Trump administration.
Actor Milo Ventimiglia and his wife, model Jarah Mariano, who is expecting their first child, have tragically lost their Malibu home in the devastating wildfires currently ravaging Los Angeles.
The Los Angeles area is enduring its fifth consecutive day of relentless wildfires, with the Palisades Fire intensifying on Friday night and prompting additional evacuations. As of Saturday evening, the Los Angeles Medical Examiner confirmed at least 16 fatalities linked to the blazes, which have destroyed an estimated 12,000 structures.
A disturbing case underscores the ongoing failures of the U.S. immigration system under lax border policies. Yordy Centeno-Melchor, a 30-year-old illegal immigrant with a criminal record spanning over a decade, was arrested on New Year’s Eve in Alabama for allegedly attempting to kidnap a teenage girl.
