Free Republic

(Reuters) -Californians were urged to ratchet down the use of electricity in their homes and businesses on Wednesday as a wave of extreme heat settles over much of the state, stretching tight power supplies to their breaking point. Temperatures in the most populous state are forecast to climb to well above 100 Fahrenheit (38 Celsius) during the afternoon. The extreme conditions are the latest sign of the impact of climate change in the U.S. West, where wildfires and severe drought have emerged as a growing threat. As spells of excessive heat become more frequent, the strain on power and water...

HIGHLAND PARK, Ill., July 5 (Reuters) - The man charged with killing seven people at a Chicago-area July Fourth parade slipped past the safeguards of an Illinois "red flag" law designed to prevent people deemed to have violent tendencies from getting guns, officials revealed on Tuesday. [...] Sergeant Chris Covelli of the Lake County Sheriff's Office said earlier in the day that Crimo had legally purchased a total of five guns, including the suspected murder weapon, despite having come to law enforcement's attention twice for behavior suggesting he might harm himself or others. The first instance was an April 2019...