Utah news

• Shuttle bus crashes, tips over on I-15 near Utah-Idaho border

  24-02-2018 23:43
  
  A shuttle bus transporting at least 6 occupants crashed and tipped over on southbound I-15 Saturday afternoon, Utah Highway Patrol officials report.
  
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• Bill inspired by elected official's struggle with dementia now in governor's hands

  24-02-2018 23:14
  SALT LAKE CITY — The story of late Salt Lake County Recorder Gary Ott left a mark of struggle and tragedy on the county. But now, it's also one that's close to leaving a mark on Utah law.SB38, a bill inspired by the political and legal challenges that swirled around Ott as he spent more than three years in office while suffering a progressive form of dementia, received official approval from the Utah Legislature on Friday.If signed by Gov. Gary Herbert, it would set in statute a multi-step
  
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• Senate calls for more action on postpartum depression and anxiety

  24-02-2018 20:37
  SALT LAKE CITY — A resolution that identifies postpartum depression and anxiety as "a serious statewide public health issue" was approved Friday by the Senate in a unanimous vote.Eric Dyches, of Salem, whose wife's postpartum depression and anxiety led to her untimely death in February 2016, leading him to advocate for better understanding of the issue, was in attendance on the Senate floor as SCR11 was introduced and voted on.Dyches and the measure's sponsor, Sen. Brian Zehnder, R-Hollada
  
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• 5 techy things in the Utah Legislature

  24-02-2018 20:28
  
  From self-driving cars to drones, here are five tech-centric bills on Capitol Hill.
  
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• Utes basketball players' home burglarized during game

  24-02-2018 18:28
  
  As the University of Utah men's basketball team was beating UCLA Thursday night, it appears someone was busy at the house where some players live.
  
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• Gunman shot his way into home, held 99-year-old woman hostage, police say

  24-02-2018 18:21
  WEST VALLEY CITY — A gunman fleeing from police was arrested early Saturday after he allegedly shot out the sliding glass door of a random home to gain entrance, then held a 99-year-old woman hostage.Freddy Alexander Velasquez, 18, had been missing since November, when court records indicate he escaped from a Weber County Jail work crew.The incident began hours earlier, about 8 p.m. Friday, when a shooting was reported at a Magna house near 2600 S. Melville Ave. (8040 West). No one was inj
  
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• Gunman shot his way into home, held 99-year-old hostage, police say

  24-02-2018 18:21
  WEST VALLEY CITY — A gunman fleeing from police was arrested early Saturday after he allegedly shot out the sliding glass door of a random home to gain entrance, then held a 99-year-old woman hostage.The woman suffered some bruises during the frightening ordeal, but family members say she held her own — at one point warning the intruder to stop messing up her clean house — before he eventually agreed to let her go.Freddy Alexander Velasquez, 18, was booked into the Salt Lake Co
  
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• Gunman broke into home, held 99-year-old woman hostage, police say

  24-02-2018 18:21
  WEST VALLEY CITY — A gunman fleeing from police was arrested early Saturday after he allegedly shot out the window of a random home to gain entrance, then held a 99-year-old woman hostage.The incident began hours earlier, about 8 p.m. Friday, when a shooting was reported at a Magna house near 2600 S. Melville Ave. (8040 West). No one was injured in the shooting. Police identified the suspected gunman and tracked him to a hotel in West Valley City, said Unified Police Lt. Brian Lohrke."When
  
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• Police: Man arrested in West Valley City after taking 99-year-old woman hostage

  24-02-2018 16:07
  
  A man was arrested early Saturday morning after police say he barricaded himself inside a home and took a 99-year-old woman hostage.
  
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• 4 killed in small plane crash near Colorado border

  24-02-2018 06:43
  SALT LAKE CITY — Four people were killed in a small plane crash in San Juan County near the Colorado border.Crews found the wreckage of the small plane about 5 p.m., the San Juan County Sheriff's Office said on Facebook. The names of those who died in the crash have not been released.Jen Knellinger, a spokeswoman for the Colorado Wing Civil Air Patrol, said the plane crashed in an area rutted with canyons and covered in up to a foot of snow.The plane, which is registered in Alberta, Canada
  
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• Bill creating process for transgender Utahns to legally change their gender fails

  24-02-2018 05:25
  SALT LAKE CITY — A bill intended to make it clear how transgender people could legally change their gender through the courts failed in the Senate on Friday after a lengthy and sometimes emotional debate.The sponsor of SB138, Sen. Todd Weiler, R-Woods Cross, choked up as he described watching a neighbor family deal with a transgender child. Weiler said he had felt the issue was foreign to him until he realized their vulnerability."My decision has been to try to love people," Weiler said, s
  
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• Utah County officials searching for 24-year-old missing woman

  24-02-2018 05:22
  
  Officials in Utah County are searching for a woman who has been missing since February 18.
  
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• Winter's return brings sledding fun and highway headaches

  24-02-2018 05:02
  SALT LAKE CITY — Winter weather has made another appearance across northern Utah, and it's expected to stick around.Snowfall throughout the day Friday snarled traffic on the Wasatch Front. Transportation managers logged 224 crashes, including slideoffs and minor collisions, by early evening in Salt Lake County alone."Conditions are extremely slick," said Utah Department of Transportation spokesman John Gleason. Utah County had three dozen crashes by early afternoon, while Davis and Weber c
  
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• More reforms possible in state water management

  24-02-2018 05:02
  SALT LAKE CITY — As Utah continues to harness management of its water resources, lawmakers are steadily pushing legislation to tweak problems auditors and others highlighted in the last few years.One of them?Universal sourcing requirements for drinking water systems that are too high, leading to oversized piping and inflated numbers over how much water a city actually needs to meet residential and public safety requirements."This size is way above what average consumption is across the sta
  
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• Proposal would restrict reporters' access to representatives before votes

  24-02-2018 04:36
  SALT LAKE CITY — A Utah lawmaker wants to bar reporters from the floor of the House of Representatives 45 minutes before they are scheduled to debate and vote at the Utah Capitol.The proposed buffer time is tucked into a legislative resolution, HR4, alongside other potential changes to House procedures.Sponsor Rep. Jim Dunnigan says the move would limit distraction for lawmakers when they are trying to gear up for the day and review last-minute materials before they vote."It seems reasonab
  
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• Officials: 4 killed in San Juan County plane crash

  24-02-2018 04:33
  
  The wreckage of a small plane has been found in eastern San Juan County in southeast Utah, officials said.
  
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• Utah Valley Hospital opens 100-Day Heart Challenge to the public

  24-02-2018 04:05
  
  Intermountain Healthcare is promoting a healthy heart lifestyle through a competition at Provo's new LiVe Well Center.
  
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• Revised transportation task force bill would hike Utah sales tax to 4.85%

  24-02-2018 03:44
  SALT LAKE CITY — A sweeping transportation bill that overhauls how UTA is managed now would raise the state sales tax by 0.15 percent starting in 2019 to raise $80 million annually for mass transit projects.The latest version of SB136, sponsored by Sen. Wayne Harper, R-Taylorsville, the co-chairman of the Legislature's Transportation Governance and Funding Task Force, is expected to be heard in the Senate Monday."It really needs to pass because it creates the form and the structure for how
  
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• Revised transportation task force bill would hike state sales tax to 4.85%

  24-02-2018 03:44
  SALT LAKE CITY — A sweeping transportation bill that overhauls how UTA is managed now would raise the state sales tax by 0.15 percent starting in 2019 to raise $80 million annually for mass transit projects.The latest version of SB136, sponsored by Sen. Wayne Harper, R-Taylorsville, the co-chairman of the Legislature's Transportation Governance and Funding Task Force, is expected to be heard in the Senate Monday."It really needs to pass because it creates the form and the structure for how
  
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• Utah Senate leaders say it's time to talk about gun control, school safety

  24-02-2018 03:08
  SALT LAKE CITY — Senate President Wayne Niederhauser, R-Sandy, said Friday he believes it's time for Utah lawmakers to look at gun control in the context of school safety following last week's deadly mass shooting at a Florida high school.But he does not think it is something legislators can tackle in the final two weeks of this year's session."I want to sort out what would be good policy versus what would just be window dressing," Niederhauser told reporters after being asked about restri
  
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• Utah Beef Council fees unconstitutional, officials say

  24-02-2018 02:40
  SALT LAKE CITY — A hobby farmer with three head of cattle is forcing the state to reorganize the private nonprofit Utah Beef Council because he says the fees he pays are requiring him to unconstitutionally support political speech.For years, ranchers have paid 50 cents a head each time cattle are sold. That money goes to the Utah Beef Council, a private nonprofit entity that runs advertising campaigns and is made up primarily of members of the Utah Cattlemen's Association.The arrangement w
  
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• Park City man chosen as English Olympics announcer for 6th time

  24-02-2018 02:28
  
  For the sixth time, Carl Roepke was chosen to be the English voice for an Olympic venue.
  
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• Lawmaker warns of 'havoc' unless surplus water issue fixed

  24-02-2018 02:21
  SALT LAKE CITY — A Utah lawmaker warned that a city's ability to provide water through temporary contracts to recipients outside its service area could lead to havoc unless voters change the Utah Constitution.Rep. Keven Stratton, R-Orem, chose his words deliberately when he presented HJR15 to members of the Natural Resources, Agricultural and Environment Committee on Friday."This is a very sensitive issue. If we realized the havoc that could be wreaked without an adjustment here," Stratton
  
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• Photos: School districts show off students' talents, knowledge

  24-02-2018 02:12
  The Grantsville High School chamber orchestra performs during District Schools Day on the Hill at the Capitol in Salt Lake City on Friday. The event, sponsored by the Utah School Boards Association, featured musical performances and booth from students attending schools in several districts across the state.See the world through the eyes of award-winning photojournalists. Click through the gallery above to view the unique images our visual storytellers captured today. Don't forget to follow the
  
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• Utahn pleads no contest to stealing money from terminally ill child

  24-02-2018 02:02
  PROVO — A Pleasant Grove man accused of stealing funds meant for the family of a terminally ill child pleaded no contest to reduced charges and agreed to pay back the money.James Fowlke Richards, 46, entered no contest pleas Thursday to two counts of communications fraud, reduced from a second-degree felony to a class A misdemeanor.In exchange, an additional second-degree felony charge of communications fraud was dismissed, along with a third-degree felony charge of forgery.Addie Fausett,
  
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• Friday storm dumps 6 inches of snow, delays hundreds of flights

  24-02-2018 02:01
  
  An over performing storm dumped twice the amount of snow expected on parts of northern Utah Friday, causing at least 130 traffic accidents and delaying hundreds of flights.
  
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• Man struck by lightning at St. George golf course

  24-02-2018 01:59
  
  A 38-year-old man was struck by lightning at the Sunbrook Golf Course in St. George on Friday afternoon, officials confirmed.
  
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• Naturalist volunteers needed in Layton and Kaysville

  24-02-2018 01:37
  LAYTON — Volunteer naturalist guides are needed at both the Great Salt Lake Shorelands Preserve in Layton and the Wetlands Discovery Point in Kaysville to educate fourth-grade students as part of the Wings & Water program.Volunteer times are Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays during the months of April, May, September and October.The dates to train volunteers are Tuesday mornings starting on Feb. 27 and going through March 5.Volunteers will conduct field trips for fourth-graders from a
  
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• Former Weber State employee accused of misusing public money

  24-02-2018 01:33
  OGDEN — A former Weber State University employee was booked into jail this week as police investigate whether he misused public funds while working at the school.James Ervin Owens, 44, was arrested by Weber State police and booked into Weber County Jail Wednesday for investigation of misusing public funds, theft by deception and forgery, according to a university spokesman.Owens began working for the university in September 2008, spokesman John Kowalewski said. When he resigned in November
  
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• Salt Lake County accepting applications for arts funding

  24-02-2018 01:22
  SALT LAKE CITY — Applications from arts and cultural projects or organizations are now being accepted for funding as part of Salt Lake County's Cultural Facilities Support Program.Phil Jordan, cultural planning and project director, said applications will be accepted until April 20. The selected projects will be considered for funding during the county's 2019 budget process.Applicants are required to attend a mandatory workshop next Thursday, from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. at the Salt Lake County G
  
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• Motorist critically injured in crash on US 189

  24-02-2018 00:58
  
  A motorist was critically injured after the vehicle they were driving hit a wall on U.S. 189 before it was struck by another vehicle after the motorist was able to get out of their vehicle Friday afternoon, troopers said.aid.
  
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• UTA seeks new members for advisory panel

  24-02-2018 00:43
  SALT LAKE City — The Utah Transit Authority is searching for people to serve on a citizen advisory group overseeing accessibility issues for people with disabilities.Members of the public who are interested in serving on the panel must be residents of Box Elder, Weber, Davis, Salt Lake, Tooele or Utah counties.The full committee meets every other month, typically on the second Monday, for approximately 2 1/2 hours. Each member is also required to serve on a subcommittee that will meet at l
  
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• St. George Police arrest man on human trafficking charges

  24-02-2018 00:43
  
  A 24-year-old man was arrested in St. George Friday on human trafficking charges.
  
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• Utah bill would give teens fleeing polygamy more rights

  24-02-2018 00:12
  
  Teenagers fleeing polygamous communities would get more legal protection from parents who could expose them to sexual abuse or forced marriage under a proposal approved Friday by a panel of Utah lawmakers.
  
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