Barbara Gagne 
HOUSTON, Texas — The week is ending the way Houston summers usually do — hot, sticky, and unpredictable. Scattered showers and thunderstorms are expected to roll through this afternoon as the sea breeze pushes inland. Rain chances sit around 30% for most of the area, so not every neighborhood will get wet. But the storms … Read more
ATLANTA, Georgia — There are bars, and then there are places that become part of a city’s soul. Manuel’s Tavern on North Highland Avenue is the second kind. This week, the Poncey-Highland institution turned 70 — and Atlanta is celebrating like it means something. Because it does. A Three-Day Party Seven Decades in the Making … Read more
BELLINGHAM, Washington — July was a bittersweet month for food lovers in Whatcom County. Four new spots quietly opened their doors while two familiar favorites said goodbye — leaving regulars surprised and locals curious about what comes next. The new spots worth checking out Fika Coffee opened July 11 at 4252 Cordata Pkwy in Bellingham, … Read more
PORT CHARLOTTE, Florida — A coffee shop with deep New England roots has quietly opened its doors in Port Charlotte, and the man behind it says this one is personal. Aroma Joe’s, a beloved brand with more than 135 locations across the Northeast, is now serving customers at 16400 Franklin Ave., just off U.S. 41 … Read more
EL PASO, Texas — A booking photo has been released for the man accused of stabbing his own mother to death in South-Central El Paso, as chilling details emerge about what he told police after the killing. Juan Valles Valenzuela, 30, was arrested and charged with murder on Saturday, Aug. 1, after officers responded to … Read more
UNITED STATES — Sydney Towle was 26 years old, had over a million people watching her fight, and never stopped showing up for them — even when the fight was taking everything she had. The popular TikTok creator passed away after being diagnosed with cholangiocarcinoma, a rare and aggressive cancer that forms in the bile … Read more
BROOKHAVEN, Georgia — A 25-year-old woman is facing a felony animal cruelty charge after witnesses watched her throw kittens out of a moving car in broad daylight Wednesday afternoon. Brookhaven Police responded around 2:30 p.m. to the area of Peachtree Road and Osborne Road after receiving reports of the incident. Valentina Tobon Henao was identified … Read more
HOMESTEAD, Florida — A 5-year-old boy showed up at an emergency room with both eyes swollen shut, marks across his body, and injuries that told a story no child should ever live through. What police uncovered next was deeply disturbing. Maurice Timothy Dukes, 36, and his live-in girlfriend Sarahi Azucena Gonzalez, 22, were arrested after … Read more
DURHAM, North Carolina — A newborn baby boy was found alive in a toilet inside an apartment last month, and the teenager who gave birth to him is now facing serious felony charges. Syeisha Johnson, 18, and her boyfriend Elijah Speight, 19, were both arrested after first responders were called to a residence on Ross … Read more
MUNCIE, Indiana — Mark Trent opened his home to a couple with nowhere to go. That generosity cost him his life. Ian Shelden, 46, was sentenced this week to 69 years in prison for murdering his 55-year-old roommate — a killing hidden for years on a Tennessee mountainside, until Shelden’s own words led police straight … Read more