Slain woman’s kin object to release

Slain woman’s kin object to release

NEW CASTLE, Pa.

The family of a pregnant Pennsylvania woman who was slain along with her unborn son in 2009 is objecting to the release of the convicted killer, who was 11 at the time of the slaying.

The parents of the victim, Kenzie Houk, 26, and other relatives confirmed Jordan Brown was released after a Monday juvenile court hearing closed to the public. Lawrence County judge John Hodge has jurisdiction over Brown until he’s 21 and put the 18-year-old on probation in the custody of an uncle, who lives in Ohio, just across the border from the western Pennsylvania county where Houk was slain. Houk was the fiancee of Brown’s father.

Study: Opioids tied to cardiac deaths

CHICAGO

Accidental overdoses aren’t the only deadly risk from using powerful prescription painkillers – the drugs also may contribute to heart-related deaths and other fatalities, new research suggests.

Among more than 45,000 patients in the study, those using opioid painkillers had a 64 percent higher risk of dying within six months of starting treatment compared with patients taking other prescription pain medicine. Unintentional overdoses accounted for about 18 percent of the deaths among opioid users, versus 8 percent of the other patients.

“As bad as people think the problem of opioid use is, it’s probably worse,” said Wayne Ray, the lead author and a health policy professor at Vanderbilt University’s medical school. “They should be a last resort and particular care should be exercised for patients who are at cardiovascular risk.”

Kin of beheaded man agree with policy

OTTAWA, Ontario

Relatives of a Canadian man beheaded by Islamic militants in the Philippines said Tuesday that they agree with Canada’s policy of not paying ransom for hostages.

Robert Hall had been held hostage by the militant Abu Sayyaf group since September 2015. The deadline for a ransom payment passed Monday, and Abu Sayyaf released a gruesome video of Hall’s beheading. It shows Hall in an orange shirt kneeling in front of a black Islamic State-style flag in a jungle area before he was killed. Officials in the Philippines have confirmed his death.

Hall’s family said in a statement that every option to free him was considered, and efforts to that end were “vast and exhaustive.”

Kansas school board to ignore fed decree

TOPEKA, Kan.

The Kansas State Board of Education voted unanimously on Tuesday to ignore a directive from President Obama’s administration that public schools allow transgender students to use restrooms matching their gender identity, and instead the board left decisions up to school districts.

What remains unclear is whether the 10-0 vote will endanger over $479 million in federal aid, or about 10 percent of the state’s education budget.

EMTs who ignored dispatch call resign

NEWARK, N.J.

Two emergency medical technicians caught live-streaming themselves as they ignored a call for help while in the drive-thru line of a New Jersey fast-food restaurant have resigned.

University Hospital spokeswoman Stacie Newton tells NJ.com the EMTs resigned “as a result of their inappropriate conduct,” which violated the Newark hospital’s policies.

The resignations were submitted just days after the EMTs were suspended without pay after the discovery of their video by hospital officials.

Associated Press