News

Arizona home inspector posted videos online. One builder filed a complaint  The Arizona Republic

Arizona home inspector posted videos online. One builder filed a complaint  The Arizona Republic

Today is Wednesday, July 24, the 206th day of 2024. There are 160 days left in the year.

Today’s Highlight in History:

On July 24, 1969, the Apollo 11 astronauts — two of whom had been the first humans to set foot on the moon — splashed down safely in the Pacific.

Also on this date:

In 1567, Mary, Queen of Scots, was forced to abdicate her throne to her one-year-old son James.

In 1847, Mormon leader Brigham Young and his followers arrived in the Salt Lake Valley in present-day Utah.

In 1866, Tennessee became the first state to be readmitted to the Union after the Civil War.

In 1915, the SS Eastland, a passenger ship carrying more than 2,500 people, rolled onto its side while docked at the Clark Street Bridge on the Chicago River. An estimated 844 people died in the disaster.

In 1932, the “Bonus Army,” a group of thousands of WWI veterans and their supporters who gathered in Washington D.C. to protest the US government’s refusal to redeem cash bonus certificates given to the veterans for their service, clashed with D.C. police; two protesting veterans were shot and killed.

In 1959, during a visit to Moscow, Vice President Richard Nixon engaged in his famous “Kitchen Debate” with Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev.

In 1974, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously ruled that President Richard Nixon had to turn over subpoenaed White House tape recordings to the Watergate special prosecutor.

In 1975, an Apollo spacecraft splashed down in the Pacific, completing a mission which included the first docking with a Soyuz capsule from the Soviet Union.

In 2010, a stampede inside a tunnel crowded with techno music fans left 21 people dead and more than 500 injured at the famed Love Parade festival in western Germany.

In 2013, a high-speed train crash outside Santiago de Compostela in northwest Spain killed 79 people.

Today’s Birthdays:

• Comedian Ruth Buzzi is 88.
• Actor Dan Hedaya is 84.
• Actor Chris Sarandon is 82.
• Actor Robert Hays is 77.
• Actor Michael Richards is 75.
• Actor Lynda Carter is 73.
• Movie director Gus Van Sant is 72.
• Former Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., is 71.
• Country singer Pam Tillis is 67.
• Basketball Hall of Famer Karl Malone is 61.
• Retired MLB All-Star Barry Bonds is 60.
• Actor Kadeem Hardison is 59.
• Actor-singer Kristin Chenoweth is 56.
• Actor Laura Leighton is 56.
• Actor-singer Jennifer Lopez is 55.
• Director Patty Jenkins (“Wonder Woman”) is 53.
• Actor Eric Szmanda is 49.
• Actor Rose Byrne is 45.
• Country singer Jerrod Niemann is 45.
• Actor Elisabeth Moss is 42.
• Actor Anna Paquin is 42.
• Former NHL center Patrice Bergeron is 39.
• Actor Mara Wilson is 37.
• TV personality Bindi Irwin is 26.

The Olympic rings hang from the Eiffel Tower, monuments are emblazed with imagery of the Games and security gates are blocking easy access to some of the top landmarks in the City of Love.

Tightened security ahead of the opening ceremony Friday along the Seine river means both locals and the visitors who have descended on the city must navigate snaking metal barriers requiring a QR code attained in advance to pass through.

It’s challenging the Paris Olympics slogan of “Games wide open.”

While tough security measures have sealed off kilometers (miles) of the Seine for the opening ceremony, it’s not stopping those intent on enjoying some of the iconic sights of the French capital.

Tourists are still snapping photos in front of the Louvre museum’s iconic pyramid, people parade past the hilltop Sacre Coeur basilica and Arc de Triomphe, and there’s even been a proposal or two in front of the Eiffel Tower.

The sun sets against the Hotel des Invalides as a spectator walks on the Alexander III bridge over the Seine River, Friday, July 19, 2024, in Paris, ahead of the 2024 Summer Olympics. (AP Photo/David Goldman) Copies of one of the most famous Greek statues, the Venus of Milo, stand on the steps of the French National Assembly ahead of the 2024 Summer Olympics, Friday, July 19, 2024, in Paris, France. The Venus, by artist Laurent Perbos, has regained her arms and is now equipped with the attributes of six sporting disciplines. (AP Photo/David Goldman)

The Eiffel Tower is illuminated as diners sit in a cafe ahead of the 2024 Summer Olympics, Friday, July 19, 2024, in Paris. (AP Photo/David Goldman) Alejandro Machuca, left, proposes to his girlfriend, Aura Guizar, both of Guadalajara, Mexico, in front of the Eiffel Tower decorated with the Olympic rings, Wednesday, July 17, 2024, while on vacation in Paris. She said yes. (AP Photo/David Goldman) A woman from Mexico poses in the courtyard of the Louvre museum, which is outside the security perimeter set up for the Olympic Games, Friday, July 19, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/David Goldman)

A patron takes a photo while sitting at a cafe along the Seine River, Wednesday, July 17, 2024, in Paris, France, ahead of the 2024 Summer Olympics. (AP Photo/David Goldman) Kids play in Olympic rings set up on Place de la Bastille, Friday, July 19, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/David Goldman) Vivianne Robinson, of Los Angeles, shows the flag pole she carries with all the countries who have hosted an Olympics as she stops to talk to people on the street while walking through Paris ahead at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Saturday, July 20, 2024. This will be Robinson’s seventh Olympics she will have attended in person. (AP Photo/David Goldman)

The Olympic torch is seen during a relay in the courtyard of the Louvre Museum Sunday, July 14, 2024 in Paris. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena) The Eiffel Tower is seen behind a Paris Olympics canvas, from the Trocadero plaza Thursday, July 18, 2024 in Paris. (AP Photo/David Goldman) The Sacre Coeur basilica stands in the background, left, as visitors reach the top of the George Pompidou Beaubourg museum ahead of the 2024 Summer Olympics, Sunday, July 21, 2024, in Paris. (AP Photo/David Goldman)

People shop at an open-air market in front of Team USA House, Friday, July 19, 2024, in Paris, France. Team USA House is set up at the former Paris stock exchange and will offer activities and a base to cheer on and celebrate Team USA at the Olympic Games. (AP Photo/David Goldman) The Hotel de Ville, or town hall, is decorated for the 2024 Summer Olympics as children shoot basketballs at a fan zone set on the square, Sunday, July 21, 2024, in Paris. France. (AP Photo/David Goldman) A couple embraces in the street as the flag of France hangs from a restaurant ahead of the 2024 Summer Olympics, Sunday, July 21, 2024, in Paris. (AP Photo/David Goldman)

A child rides a carousel near Sacre Coeur of Montmartre Basilica, ahead of the 2024 Summer Olympics, Monday, July 22, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell) A woman uses water to clean the sidewalk outside a building on a quiet street adjacent to road closures ahead of the 2024 Summer Olympics, Monday, July 22, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell) People walk past souvenir shops and restaurants below Sacre Coeur of Montmartre Basilica, ahead of the 2024 Summer Olympics, Monday, July 22, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

Members of a firefighter brigade band cross the street to perform at a ceremony at the Arc de Triomphe ahead of the 2024 Summer Olympics, Saturday, July 20, 2024, in Paris. (AP Photo/David Goldman) This photo shows a view from the Eiffel Tower ahead of the 2024 Summer Olympics, Monday, July 22, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko) A full moon rises behind the Olympic rings hanging from the Eiffel Tower, Monday, July 22, 2024, in Paris, France. The opening ceremony for the Olympic Games is Friday. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

A store owner, who didn’t want to give his name, moves a display into his souvenir shop as he closes for the evening near the Eiffel Tower ahead of the 2024 Summer Olympics, Saturday, July 20, 2024, in Paris. He’s said he’s seen his business decline since a security perimeter went into effect limiting the public’s movement near the Seine river. (AP Photo/David Goldman) Stella Andrade, who is pregnant, and her daughter Rafaela, from Brazil, visit the Eiffel Tower ahead of the 2024 Summer Olympics, Monday, July 22, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko) People walk past a restaurant decorated with artwork, ahead of the 2024 Summer Olympics, Monday, July 22, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

A bicyclist reaches over a security fence set up for the 2024 Summer Olympics to take a picture of the sunset as the Conciergerie building, a former prison, now used partly as a law court, stands in the background at left, Sunday, July 21, 2024, in Paris. (AP Photo/David Goldman)

General Daily Insight for July 24, 2024

Clarity can be glimpsed through cosmic fog. Still, with the intuitive Moon squaring optimistic Jupiter, it may be hard to see any red flags through our rose-colored glasses. The Moon also misunderstands balanced Venus, bringing a contrast between what we think should happen in a perfect world and what we’re actually feeling inside. Finally, the Moon will conjoin consistent Saturn at 4:31 pm EDT, grounding us and providing us with the mental fortitude to make long-term, stable decisions. Come back down to earth.

Aries

March 21 – April 19

Ignored issues could come back to bite you. You might be completely unaware of a problem or you may have consciously avoided this knowledge. Either way, it’s likely to make you feel lost in the dark, whatever form it takes. It could be that you don’t want it to be true because you liked how you felt better before you knew this piece of information, but disregarding it in this way doesn’t make it untrue. Be aware — it’s for the best.

Taurus

April 20 – May 20

Let your friends lead the way. The obvious answer may not be so obvious to you today, but to the people around you, it’s more likely to be understood. This can incite feelings of isolation or fear — that’s natural. Everyone is in the dark sometimes, and you deserve someone to lead us out of the darkness just as much as others do. Even though it might not initially resonate with you, pay attention to any recent advice you’ve received. It may come in handy.

Gemini

May 21 – June 20

You could be speaking up without knowing the whole story. While you may feel that you have all the information you need to make an informed decision about an idea, a business, or a person of authority in your life, it’s important to make sure that you actually know what you’re talking about. If not, you could run into trouble, so the less you say might be the better. Stick to talking about what you can back up with objective sources for the time being.

Cancer

June 21 – July 22

What makes you feel secure might require an upgrade. You may have been hanging onto something out of sentimentality or staying somewhere because of a sense of comfort it brings, but look around! If you’re outgrowing this comfort zone, you’ll notice the places where it’s starting to lose its luster. You could find your soul longing to step outside of the box that you’ve drawn around yourself — making plans to travel could be your best way out. Don’t confuse familiarity with positivity.

Leo

July 23 – August 22

Be wary of skipping over an important step. You may have many hopes and dreams, but when you picture them in your head, you could be mentally fast-forwarding over the more difficult tracks on the roadmap to success because they’re not as fun. However, if you continue to avoid these opportunities to work hard and prove that you’re tough enough to live your dreams, then you might find that you’re making less progress than you want to be. Don’t attempt to bypass necessary hard work!

Virgo

August 23 – September 22

You might be caught between what you want to do and what you have a responsibility to do. Temptation calls your name throughout the day, and exhaustion or impressionability could be making it even more difficult to resist. No matter how relaxing it sounds to ignore your work or let someone else pick up your slack, procrastination is unlikely to pay off in the end. To avoid souring future fun, it would be smart to get your responsibilities out of the way first!

Libra

September 23 – October 22

You might be made aware of a timewaster in your life. This could be a repetitive pattern that’s keeping you stuck in a rut, a habit that’s taking up too much of your focus, or even a person who’s impeding your full potential. You could be mentally living in the future or in a fantasy by getting lost in art, but stay alert! Such distractions mean you may miss out on what’s happening in your life in the present. Use your time wisely.

Scorpio

October 23 – November 21

Promises that you make could be risky. It’s important to make sure that you aren’t making unkeepable oaths –because you’re in danger of being tempted or even encouraged to make promises that are a bit out of your range. The people on the other side of these agreements won’t be happy if you fall short of what you said you would deliver! It’s a good idea to refrain from exaggerating, even if something feels possible in the heat of the moment.

Sagittarius

November 22 – December 21

Your emotions may be overly dependent on another person. Maybe there’s a peer or mentor in your life that you care deeply for or that you are counting on, but you may end up struggling if you rely on them too heavily at present. They may either be unwilling or unable to give you what you’re looking for, and it can be difficult to emotionally accept being let down by them. Make sure that you have a backup plan for any important projects.

Capricorn

December 22 – January 19

Hidden jealousy from others might be hard to spot. You might find that someone in your circle is not happy for you when it comes to a recent accomplishment or step up in the world. Perhaps they’ll consciously or unconsciously work to divert attention from you rather than encourage you or be honest about their envy. Those who are not in your corner may downplay your accomplishments or attempt to overshadow them, so pay attention to the genuine reactions your good news gets.

Aquarius

January 20 – February 18

You’re capable of having a fun day, but indulging in joyful distractions could cause you to miss out on an opportunity that you’ve been waiting for. It might be a choice between the smart, responsible thing to do and the fun, spontaneous thing to do. There’s not really a wrong direction to take, but you may feel a little disappointed if you focus on what you didn’t do rather than what you did. Just enjoy whichever path you choose to take!

Pisces

February 19 – March 20

Your heart can guide you back to what you truly want. It may be harder to see through the desires of everybody else when you’re trying to find your calling — or even just a hobby that makes you feel alive. You may be soul-searching right now, and it’s particularly important to find a quiet place where you can listen to your innermost desires and feelings. This should allow you to plot a course straight for them. Don’t shy away from feeling your feelings!

MIAMI — Jazz Chisholm Jr. and Nick Gordon each drove in two runs, Jesús Sánchez homered and Kyle Tyler and four relievers held Baltimore without a run after the third inning as the Miami Marlins beat the Orioles 6-3 on Tuesday night.

Baltimore, which slipped into a tie with Cleveland for the best record in the American League at 60-40, was slowed after losing second baseman Jorge Mateo and starting pitcher Albert Suárez due to injuries in the third inning.

Mateo collided with shortstop Gunnar Henderson as they dove to catch a grounder off the bat of Sánchez behind the second base bag and exited because of left elbow pain. He will undergo an MRI on Wednesday.

Suárez’s outing ended when Miami’s next hitter, Otto López, hit a comebacker that deflected off the pitcher’s right shin and rolled near the Marlins’ dugout on the third-base side for a single that loaded the bases. Suárez was diagnosed with a contusion.

“It hurts more now than when I got hit. The adrenaline is down now,” Suárez said. “The X-rays came out negative, thankfully. Just swollen. Nothing else.”

Chisholm had two hits, including a two-run double that capped a four-run second inning and put Miami ahead 4-1. Sánchez led off the inning with a 429-foot homer, his 12th of the season, and Gordon added a run-scoring single.

“Everybody before the game was talking about how they feel so good today and how we’re going to have a great series against the Orioles,” Chisholm said.

Chisholm also had two stolen bases and made a throw from center field that caught Colton Cowser at third after he took off from first on Ryan Mountcastle’s single in the third.

“We talked about in the pre-game that you can’t hurt ourselves on the bases and give away extra outs,” Marlins manager Skip Schumaker said. “We have to play the game the right way in order to beat a team like that. I felt like we did that.”

Josh Bell and Otto López each had a pair of singles for the Marlins, who have the worst record in the National League at 36-65.

Tyler, promoted from Triple-A Tuesday, struck out five and allowed three earned runs in 4 2/3 innings. A.J. Puk (4-8) pitched two perfect innings of relief for the win. Tanner Scott closed with a scoreless ninth for his 17th save.

Marlins relievers have allowed three runs over 18 innings since the All-Star break.

“That’s our jobs down there, when your name’s called, get the job done,” Puk said. “We’re relaxed and confident and throwing the ball well.”

Suárez (5-4) gave up six runs and eight hits in two-plus innings.

The Orioles scored two runs in the third on RBI singles by Ryan O’Hearn and Colton Cowser, before the Marlins extended their lead to 6-3 in the bottom half of the inning on a sacrifice fly by Xavier Edwards and Gordon’s RBI groundout.

“We just did not play well,” Orioles manager Brandon Hyde said. “We made a lot of mistakes early in the game, ran ourselves out of innings twice. We need to play better.”

Jordan Westburg’s run-scoring single in the first provided an early lead for Baltimore, which leads the majors in homers with 157 but didn’t have another hit after O’Hearn’s two-out single in the fifth.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Marlins: LHP Josh Simpson (left elbow neuritis) threw a 35-pitch bullpen Tuesday and could be scheduled for two additional bullpens before he progresses to throw live batting practice. … RHP Yonny Chirinos was designated for assignment to make room Tyler’ on the roster.

UP NEXT

RHP Chayce McDermott will make his major league debut for the Orioles in the second game of the series Wednesday while the Marlins will go with RHP Edward Cabrera (1-3, 7.36 ERA).

By STEVE KARNOWSKI

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — State election directors from across the country voiced serious concerns to a top U.S. Postal Service official Tuesday that the system won’t be able to handle an expected crush of mail-in ballots in the November election.

Steven Carter, manager of election and government programs for the postal service, attempted to reassure the directors at a meeting in Minneapolis that the system’s Office of Inspector General will publish an election mail report next week containing “encouraging” performance numbers for this year so far.

“The data that that we’re seeing showing improvements in the right direction,” Carter told a conference of the National Association of State Election Directors. “And I think the OIG report is especially complimentary of how we’re handling the election now.”

But state election directors stressed to Carter that they’re still worried that too many ballots won’t be delivered in time to be counted in November. They based their fears on past problems and a disruptive consolidation of postal facilities across the country that Postmaster General Louis DeJoy has put on hold until after the elections.

Monica Evans, executive director of the District of Columbia Board of Elections, recounted how she never received her mail ballot for her own June primary. She ended up voting in person.

“We had, at last count, over 80 ballots that were timely mailed as early as May for our June 4 primary election,” Evans said, noting that her office could have accepted them as late as June 14, but they still arrived too late. “We followed up and we just kept getting, ‘We don’t know what happened. We don’t know what happened.’”

While former President Donald Trump has complained without foundation that fraudulent mailed ballots cost him a second term in 2020, mail-in voting has become a key component of each party’s strategy to maximize the turnout of their voters in 2024. Now Republicans, sometimes including Trump, see it as necessary for an election that is likely to be decided by razor-thin margins in a handful of swing states. Republicans once were at least as likely as Democrats to vote by mail, but Trump changed the dynamics in 2020 when he began to argue against it months before voting began.

Bryan Caskey, the elections director for Kansas who’s also the association’s incoming president, asked Carter to consider a hypothetical jurisdiction that has a 95% on-time rate for mail deliveries, which he said is better than what almost all states are getting.

“That still means that in the state that sends out 100,000 ballots, that’s 5,000 pissed-off, angry voters that are mad about the mail service,” Caskey said, adding, “Actual elections are being determined by these delays, and I just want to make sure that you’re hearing why we’re so upset.”

“It’s totally understandable,” Carter said. “The frustration is understandable.”

The association’s current president, Mandy Vigil, the elections director for New Mexico, said in an interview afterward that she appreciated that the service was at least willing to engage with the state officials, but that she’s concerned that there isn’t enough time before the general election.

“I think that we are at a place where we really need them to pay attention,” Vigil said. “You know, we’ve been voicing our concerns since last November. But we just aren’t seeing the changes as we’re working through our primary elections. And when it comes to November, like, we need to see a difference.”

Nineteen senators wrote to DeJoy last month asking the postmaster general about the service’s policies and plans to prepare for the 2024 election cycle. They pointed out how the first regional consolidation, in Virginia last year, led to delivery delays that led some local election officials there to direct residents to bypass the mail and place their primary election ballots in designated drop boxes. They noted that Virginia’s on-time delivery rate fell below 72% for fiscal 2024, or over 15% below the national average.

Other consolidations have been blamed for degraded service in Oregon, Virginia, Texas and Missouri. The consolidation has also created concern among lawmakers in Utah, where state law requires that ballots be mailed from within Utah, but the postal service now processes mail from some counties in Nevada after moving some operations from Provo to Las Vegas. The entire Minnesota and North Dakota congressional delegations wrote to DeLoy last month after an inspector general’s audit documented nearly 131,000 missing or delayed pieces of mail at six post offices over the course of just two days.

DeJoy paused the cost-cutting consolidations until January 2025 in the wake of bipartisan criticism, but lawmakers want a commitment that the resumption won’t lead to further delivery delays.

TALLAHASSEE — University of Florida trustees Tuesday brought back former President Kent Fuchs to lead the school on an interim basis, after the sudden resignation of President Ben Sasse.

Fuchs, who spent about eight years as UF president, will return to the role on Aug. 1.

Sasse, who has been president less than two years, announced Thursday he will step down effective July 31 because of his wife’s health. He said he would work with Fuchs on the transition.

“I just want to offer whatever help. I’ll be able to carry water and row alongside him,” Sasse said.
Fuchs’ return was first announced in an email distributed to the university before a vote by the Board of Trustees late Tuesday afternoon. The appointment also requires approval from the state university system’s Board of Governors.

Fuchs said his role over the next year will be to ensure the university maintains its momentum and to “make sure the university’s in just great shape and prepared for that next leader.”

“I plan to lean into the job and enjoy it. And I believe that can become contagious for all of us,” Fuchs said during the brief trustees conference call. “So, it’ll be a year of fun, as well as hard work.”

Fuchs, who left the presidency in early 2023, came to UF in 2015 after serving as provost of Cornell University. During his time as president, he was credited with helping boost UF into the top 10 of public universities in the closely watched U.S. News & World Report rankings and for guiding the university during the COVID-19 pandemic.

But Fuchs also drew controversy over issues such as a decision to prevent three political-science professors from serving as expert witnesses against the state in a lawsuit over a high-profile elections law. The university ultimately walked back the decision, but not before the issue drew national media attention and a federal lawsuit in which six professors alleged a UF policy violated First Amendment rights.

After leaving the presidency, Fuchs worked as a professor in the university’s Herbert Wertheim College of Engineering.

Sasse left a Nebraska U.S. Senate seat to take the Gainesville job and will remain at the university as a professor.

A compensation package for Fuchs wasn’t immediately released.

Sasse’s five-year contract includes a $1 million base salary, with annual performance bonuses of up to 15 percent. He will forego a $1 million payout that would have been provided if he served the full five-year term.

Fuchs had a total compensation package of $1.4 million a year when he left the president position.
The Board of Trustees is expected to start a national search for a permanent replacement for Sasse.

What once seemed like an easy decision — disciplining the mom of a transgender student for allegedly violating a state law — has turned into a tough dilemma for Broward School Board members.

They weren’t ready to make a decision at a Tuesday board meeting at Plantation High about whether to fire or impose some other discipline against Jessica Norton, an employee who allowed her transgender daughter to play girls’ volleyball for Monarch High in Coconut Creek. A 2021 state law known as the Fairness in Women’s Sports Act bans students who are born male from playing girls’ sports.

The School Board plans to discuss the issue again at a July 30 meeting.

Superintendent Howard Hepburn has recommended firing her. Whether that will be his recommendation next week remains to be seen. Some board members said termination was too harsh and that she was a scapegoat. Others criticized the district’s investigation as flawed.

Norton was removed from her job as information specialist at Monarch High in late November, as the district launched an investigation. She said after Tuesday’s meeting she appreciates the board is reviewing the case closely, but she’s also ready for the matter to be over.

“It’s been 239 days. It’s been very taxing on my family, and we deserve a resolution,” she said. “It’s been really hard to deal with this.”

Jessica Norton, parent of a transgender student and volleyball player formerly at Monarch High School, reacts Tuesday as the Broward County School Board discusses her daughter during a meeting at Plantation High School. (Joe Cavaretta/South Florida Sun Sentinel)

The matter was supposed to be resolved last month but was pulled by Hepburn a few days before the meeting, with district officials citing a packed agenda.

The latest delay came after board member Torey Alston asked Hepburn on Tuesday to provide information on what discipline has been imposed on other employees who violated state laws. Alston said he’d heard allegations the efforts to terminate Norton are political, and he said he wants to make a “data-driven decision” consistent with similar cases.

Hepburn told him there are no similar cases but agreed to review the matter further.

Several board members and public speakers said the issue had been politicized by the state. The district used to be a champion of LGBTQ issues, even passing a resolution in 2021 opposing the transgender sports ban.

But the School Board, while still left-leaning, has shifted more to the right in recent years, due to several Republicans joining and the state Legislature passing a number of laws that critics see as anti-LGBTQ that the district has tried to enforce.

As Broward started investigating the Monarch High student in November, a spokeswoman for the Department of Education released a statement saying Gov. Ron DeSantis won’t tolerate anyone being born male playing girls sports, and the state expected “serious consequences” for those who broke the law.

But who exactly should be held accountable and what the discipline should be has proven elusive for the school district. At least seven district administrators at two schools were investigated related to the athlete but all denied knowing for sure the student was transgender. Former Superintendent Peter Licata recommended the administrators get three-day suspensions, but Hepburn cleared them before their cases could come to the board, leaving only Norton to face discipline.

Norton had worked for the district since 2017 with no prior issues and had received top marks on most evaluations.

Creating more uncertainty, General Counsel Marylin Batista told the School Board there is nothing in the state law that addresses discipline for employees who violate the law. The law says the recourse is a family who believes their child has been harmed as a result of a transgender child’s participation gets to sue the school district.

Broward School Board member Daniel Foganholi speaks during a discussion about Jessica Norton, parent of a transgender student and volleyball player formerly at Monarch High School, during a meeting at Plantation High School on Tuesday. (Joe Cavaretta/South Florida Sun Sentinel)

Board member Daniel Foganholi, who has said he is opposed to transgender girls playing on girls sports teams, questioned whether there was selective enforcement. He said “it’s clear” other people in the district knew the student played girls’ sports, since the family had filed a lawsuit against the school district and the state in 2021 challenging the law.

“This whole situation feels like it’s literally putting out one sole person for what multiple people should be held accountable for,” Foganholi said. “It feels like you’re using one person as a scapegoat in this situation and it feels wrong.”

Norton said after the meeting, “I agree with him. There’s no other way around it.”

In an unexpected juxtaposition to the normal divide on the board, Debbi Hixon, one of the board’s more liberal members, called for strict consequences against the mom. Hixon said she should be banned from being able to access student records, a restriction that would disqualify Norton from her current job.

“I just don’t believe she understands the severity of what happened when she decided to do what she did and would not feel bad doing it again,” Hixon said. “I appreciate a mom fighting for the rights of their children, but she crossed a line in protecting her daughter that affected many other people and children.”

The case led the Florida High School Athletic Association to fine the school $16,500 for violating the state law, and the Monarch principal was temporarily reassigned, causing the school to be led by an assistant principal for most of the school year.

But some board members said they didn’t understand why Hepburn recommended termination, when a professional standards committee, made up of district administrators, reviewed the case and recommended a 10-day suspension. Hepburn said Tuesday there was “willful neglect to follow the law” as outlined in a report by the district’s Special Investigative Unit.

But that investigation included a number of errors as well as details that were later contradicted by the district. Norton’s lawyers also argued the report often criticized her for actions she took as a parent, not an employee, before the state law was even passed.

One allegation is the mom listed the child’s birth as female on a sports participation form, which was contrary to the child’s birth certificate at the time. However, that request was made prior to the women’s sports law taking effect in July 2021, and the mother was months away from finalizing a gender change on the child’s birth certificate, the report showed.

Jessica and Gary Norton, parents of a transgender student and volleyball player formerly of Monarch High School, leave a Broward County School Board meeting at Plantation High School, on Tuesday, July 23, 2024. (Joe Cavaretta/South Florida Sun Sentinel)

The investigative report said the mom asked an employee at her child’s elementary school in 2017 to change the gender of the child and didn’t provide proper documentation, which the investigation said was a violation of district policy. But on Tuesday, Board member Sarah Leonardi asked Jaime Alberti, chief of safety and security, about that and got a different answer.

“I do not think the policy was in place in 2017. I think the policy changed later,” Alberti responded.

Norton told investigators she made the request for the school to make a gender change in the computer system after attending an LGBTQ roundtable with then-Superintendent Robert Runcie. The police investigation questioned whether the meeting took place.

“All calendars were reviewed and no LGBTQ+ roundtable meeting was found between March 2017 and June 2017,” a detective wrote in a supplementary investigative report.

But within the exhibits of the same report, there are three pages of emails and a calendar entry about a superintendent’s LGBTQ roundtable held on May 5, 2017.

Some School Board members suggested that Norton used her position as an information management specialist to change her own child’s records. The investigation found one example of that, where she changed her child’s legal name to the current girl’s name. But the investigators voiced no concern about that in the report because the child’s name had been legally changed in court.

“That was a true and lawful change because you had the correct documentation,” Detective Holly Tello told Norton in an interview. “Just for the record I want to make sure that that’s clear.”

“Correct,” Norton replied.

Board member Jeff Holness was the only board member to oppose delaying the matter. He asked the School Board to approve a five-day suspension Tuesday. He said the family has already suffered a lot. The student withdrew from Monarch and enrolled in online school and was banned from playing any sports for year.

“All of us dropped the ball in some way. We need to collect information accurately, and I don’t believe we did that,” Holness said. “I believe we should provide some consequence to the parent but not termination.”

By ALANNA DURKIN RICHER, CLAUDIA LAUER and MICHAEL KUNZELMAN

WASHINGTON (AP) — Two local law enforcement officers stationed in the complex of buildings where a gunman opened fire at former President Donald Trump left to go search for the man before the shooting, the head of Pennsylvania State Police said Tuesday, raising questions about whether a key post was left unattended as the shooter climbed onto a roof.

Pennsylvania State Police Col. Christopher Paris told a congressional committee that two Butler County Emergency Services Unit officers were stationed at a second-floor window in the complex of buildings that form AGR International Inc. They spotted Thomas Matthew Crooks acting suspiciously on the ground and left their post to look for him along with other law enforcement officers, he said.

Paris said he didn’t know whether officers would have been able to see Crooks climbing onto the roof of an adjacent building had they remained at the window. A video taken by a lawmaker who visited the shooting site on Monday shows a second-story window of the building had a clear view of the roof where Crooks opened fire; it was unclear if the video showed the window where the officers had been stationed.

The Pennsylvania State Police commissioner’s testimony before the House Homeland Security Committee provides new insight into security preparations for the Trump rally in Butler, Pennsylvania on July 13, but raises further questions about law enforcement’s decisions before Crooks opened fire.

Butler County District Attorney Richard Goldinger, who oversees the emergency services unit, didn’t immediately respond to a text message Tuesday from The Associated Press. A Secret Service spokesperson didn’t respond to questions from the AP, including who gave the command for those officers to leave their post.

The revelation comes amid growing questions about a multitude of security failures that allowed the 20-year-old gunman to get onto the roof and fire eight shots with an AR-style rifle into the crowd shortly after Trump began speaking. One spectator was killed and two others were injured. Trump suffered an ear injury but was not seriously hurt.

Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle resigned earlier Tuesday, a day after she was berated for hours by Democrats and Republicans over the agency’s failure to protect the Republican presidential nominee. Cheatle told lawmakers on the House Oversight and Accountability Committee on Monday that the assassination attempt was the Secret Service’s “most significant operational failure” in decades.

The Homeland Security Committee also had asked Cheatle to testify but lawmakers said she refused. Cheatle’s name was on a card on a table in front of an empty chair during the hearing, which began shortly before her decision to step down became public.

Several investigations into the shooting by the Biden administration and lawmakers are underway. Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson and Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries said Tuesday they are supporting a bipartisan task force to investigate the attempt on Trump’s life. The House could vote as soon as Wednesday to establish the task force, which will be comprised of seven Republicans and six Democrats.

Local law enforcement began to search for Crooks after they noticed him acting strangely and saw him with a rangefinder, a small device resembling binoculars that hunters use to measure distance from a target. Officers didn’t find him around the building and a local officer climbed up to the roof to investigate. The gunman turned and pointed his rifle at him. The officer did not — or could not — fire a single shot. Crooks opened fire toward the former president seconds later, officials have said.

Cheatle acknowledged that the Secret Service was told about a suspicious person two to five times before the shooting, but there was no indication at that time that he had a weapon. She also revealed that the roof from which Crooks opened fire had been identified as a potential vulnerability days before the rally. Cheatle said Trump would never have been brought onto the stage had Secret Service been aware there was an “actual threat,” but Crooks wasn’t deemed to be a “threat” until seconds before he began shooting.

Authorities have been hunting for clues into what motivated Crooks but have not found any ideological bent that could help explain his actions. Investigators who searched his phone found photos of Trump, President Joe Biden and other senior government officials. He also searched for the dates for the Democratic National Conventional as well as Trump’s appearances and searched for information about major depressive disorder.

_____

Lauer reported from Philadelphia. Associated Press reporters Michael R. Sisak in New York and Kevin Freking in Washington contributed.

BY SETH BORENSTEIN

WASHINGTON (AP) — On Sunday, the Earth sizzled to the hottest day ever measured by humans, yet another heat record shattered in the past couple of years, according to the European climate service Copernicus Tuesday.

Copernicus’ preliminary data shows that the global average temperature Sunday was 17.09 degrees Celsius (62.76 degrees Fahrenheit), beating the record set just last year on July 6, 2023 by .01 degrees Celsius (.02 degrees Fahrenheit). Both Sunday’s mark and last year’s record obliterate the previous record of 16.8 degrees Celsius (62.24 degrees Fahrenheit), which itself was only a few years old, set in 2016.

Without human-caused climate change, records would be broken nowhere near as frequently, and new cold records would be set as often as hot ones.

“What is truly staggering is how large the difference is between the temperature of the last 13 months and the previous temperature records,” Copernius Director Carlo Buontempo said in a statement. “We are now in truly uncharted territory and as the climate keeps warming, we are bound to see new records being broken in future months and years.”

While 2024 has been extremely warm, what kicked Sunday into new territory was a way toastier than usual Antarctic winter, according to Copernicus. The same thing was happening on the southern continent last year when the record was set in early July.

But it wasn’t just a warmer Antarctica on Sunday. Interior California baked with triple digit heat Fahrenheit, complicating more than two dozen fires in the U.S. West. At the same time, Europe sweltered through its own deadly heat wave.

“It’s certainly a worrying sign coming on the heels of 13 straight record -setting months,” said Berkeley Earth climate scientist Zeke Hausfather, who now estimates there’s a 92% chance that 2024 will beat 2023 as the warmest year on record.

July is generally the hottest month of the year globally, mostly because there is more land in the Northern hemisphere, so seasonal patterns there drive global temperatures.

Copernicus records go back to 1940, but other global measurements by the United States and United Kingdom governments go back even further, to 1880. Many scientists, taking those into consideration along with tree rings and ice cores, say last year’s record highs were the hottest the planet has been in about 120,000 years. Now the first six months of 2024 have broken even those.

Scientists blame the supercharged heat mostly on climate change from the burning of coal, oil and natural gas and on livestock agriculture. Other factors include a natural El Nino warming of the central Pacific Ocean, which has since ended. Reduced marine fuel pollution and possibly an undersea volcanic eruption are also causing some additional warmth, but those aren’t as important as greenhouse gases trapping heat, they said.

Because El Nino is likely to be soon replaced by a cooling La Nina, Hausfather said he would be surprised if 2024 sees any more monthly records, but the hot start of the year is still probably enough to make it warmer than last year.

Sure Sunday’s mark is notable but “what really kind of makes your eyeballs jump out” is how the last few years have been so much hotter than previous marks, said Northern Illinois University climate scientist Victor Gensini, who wasn’t part of the Copernicus team. “It’s certainly a fingerprint of climate change.”

University of Pennsylvania climate scientist Michael Mann said the difference between the this year’s and last year’s high mark is so tiny and so preliminary that he is surprised the European climate agency is promoting it.

“We should really never be comparing absolute temperatures for individual days,” Mann said in an email.

Yes, it’s a small difference, Gensini said in an interview, but there have been more than 30,500 days since Copernicus data started in 1940, and this is the hottest of all of them.

“What matters is this,” said Texas A&M University climate scientist Andrew Dessler. “The warming will continue as long as we’re dumping greenhouse gases into the atmosphere and we have the technology to largely stop doing that today. What we lack is political will.”

___

Read more of AP’s climate coverage at http://www.apnews.com/climate-and-environment

___

Follow Seth Borenstein on X at @borenbears

______

The Associated Press’ climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.

By ASHRAF KHALIL

WASHINGTON (AP) — Protesters against the Gaza war staged a sit-in at a congressional office building Tuesday ahead of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s address to Congress, with Capitol Police making multiple arrests.

Netanyahu arrived in Washington Monday for a visit that includes meetings with President Joe Biden and a Wednesday speech before a joint session of Congress. Dozens of protesters rallied outside his hotel Monday evening, and on Tuesday afternoon, hundreds of demonstrators staged a flashmob-style protest in the Cannon Building, which houses offices of House of Representatives members.

Organized by Jewish Voice for Peace, protesters wearing red T-shirts that read “Not In Our Name” took over the building’s rotunda, sitting on the floor, unfurling signs and chanting “Let Gaza Live!”

After about a half-hour of clapping and chanting, officers from the U.S. Capitol Police issued several warnings, then began arresting protesters — binding their hands with zip ties and leading them away one-by-one.

“I am the daughter of Holocaust survivors and I know what a Holocaust looks like,” said Jane Hirschmann, a native of Saugerties, New York, who drove down for the protest along with her two daughters — both of whom were arrested. “When we say ‘Never Again,’ we mean never for anybody.”

The demonstrators focused much of their ire on the Biden administration, demanding that the president immediately cease all arms shipments to Israel.

“We’re not focusing on Netanyahu. He’s just a symptom,” Hirschmann said. “But how can (Biden) be calling for a cease-fire when he’s sending them bombs and planes?”

As of 8 p.m. Tuesday night, the Capitol Police said they did not have a final tally of the number of people arrested. But JVP claimed in a statement that 400 people, “including over a dozen rabbis,” had been arrested.

Mitchell Rivard, chief of staff for Rep. Dan Kildee, D-Mich., said in a statement that his office called for Capitol Police intervention after the demonstrators “became disruptive, violently beating on the office doors, shouting loudly, and attempting to force entry into the office.”

Kildee later told The Associated Press that he was confused why his office was targeted, saying he had voted against a massive supplemental military aid package to Israel earlier this year.

Netanyahu’s American visit has touched off a wave of protest activity, with some demonstrations condemning Israel and others expressing support but pressuring Netanyahu to strike a cease-fire deal and bring home the hostages still being held by Hamas.

Families of some of the remaining hostages held a protest vigil Tuesday evening on the National Mall, demanding that Netanyahu come to terms with Hamas and bring home the approximately 120 Israeli hostages remaining in Gaza. About 150 people wearing yellow shirts that read “Seal the Deal NOW!” chanted “Bring Them Home” and listened to testimonials from relatives and former hostages. The demonstrators applauded when Biden’s name was mentioned, but several criticized Netanyahu — known by his nickname “Bibi” — on the belief that he was dragging his feet or playing hardball on a proposed cease-fire deal that would return all of the hostages.

“I’m begging Bibi. There’s a deal on the table and you have to take it,” said Aviva Siegel, 63, who spent 51 days in captivity and whose husband, Keith, remains a hostage. “I want Bibi to look in my eyes and tell me one thing: that Keith is coming home.”

Multiple protests are planned for Wednesday, when Netanyahu is slated to address Congress. In anticipation, police have significantly boosted security around the Capitol building and closed multiple roads for most of the week.

Biden and Netanyahu are expected to meet Thursday, according to a U.S. official who spoke on condition of anonymity ahead of the White House announcement. Vice President Kamala Harris will also meet with Netanyahu separately that day.

Harris, as Senate president, would normally sit behind foreign leaders addressing Congress, but she’ll be away Wednesday, on an Indianapolis trip scheduled before Biden withdrew his reelection bid and she became the likely Democratic presidential candidate over the weekend.

Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump announced on Truth Social that he would meet with Netanyahu on Friday.

___

Associated Press writers Stephen Groves, Farnoush Amiri and Ellen Knickmeyer contributed to this report.

Home inspector terrified after owner leaves life-size Michael Myers mannequin behind  Dexerto

Home inspector terrified after owner leaves life-size Michael Myers mannequin behind  Dexerto

Q: Ira, after Bam Adebayo, who do you think will be the Heat’s next Olympian? I thought it might have been Tyler Herro, after he got to work in Olympic camp, but now I’m not so sure. – Sandy.

A: My money would be on Jaime Jaquez Jr., who worked earlier this month with the USA Basketball Select Team against the Olympic roster in Las Vegas. Plus, with the Olympic coaching hierarchy, it would make sense that Erik Spoelstra, now an Olympic assistant to Steve Kerr, could be up next as Olympic coach. As it is, Jaime, who is of Mexican heritage, bypassed an opportunity to play for Mexico in this Olympic cycle, indicating an interest and belief of a potential Team USA invitation down the road. While there is somewhat of a Dream Team element to this 2024 Team USA Olympic roster, the resumes likely would have to be as lofty going forward among candidates, especially when it comes to the next cycle for the World Cup.

Related Articles

• Miami Heat | Submit your “Ask Ira” question here!

Q: Ira, watching Bam Adebayo play alongside Anthony Davis and Joel Embiid, how do the Heat do that? – Sam.

A: By acquiring a Hall of Fame big man? That’s why this Team USA Olympic roster is viewed as somewhat of a dream team, which is likely what it will remain for Bam Adebayo, a dream. But with Erik Spoelstra an Olympic assistant, it could at least open Heat eyes to pairing Bam with another big man. Monday’s exhibition, because of Anthony Davis’ foul trouble, finally gave Bam the chance to play alongside Joel Embiid. The minutes were as intriguing as one might expect.

Q: Pelle Larsson has some Goran Dragic to his game. – Tom.

A: So, in other words, be patient, considering Goran Dragic was traded twice early in his career before he hit his NBA stride. Pelle Larsson certainly has shown potential, but at least at the moment, Josh Richardson and Alec Burks appear to be ahead of him in the Heat hierarchy. And that’s OK, too. The Heat have the benefit of allowing their second-round pick out of Sweden to develop. But Pelle’s last two games of summer league could not have been more heartening. He already seems to have, as you put it, a Dragic-like “it” factor.

Here are the top stories for Tuesday, July 23, 2023. Get the weather forecast for today here.

SUBSCRIBE NOW: Get our free Morning Update email. Sign up here.

Florida Democrats say more than 92% of state’s convention delegates support Harris for president

‘Southernmost Southernmost House’ up for sale in Key West, boasting stunning views

‘A baby just got shot’: Toddler killed in drive-by shooting at birthday party in Fort Lauderdale

Restaurant news: IT Italian and Carrot Express open in Hollywood, Kebab Shop expands to Coral Springs

As Moskowitz demands Secret Service chief’s ouster, he cites Stoneman Douglas aftermath

Meet the South Florida athletes set to compete for the US at 2024 Olympics

Heavy rain temporarily shuts down two Broward emergency rooms

Former CEO of Pompano Beach business pleads guilty in $200 million Ponzi scheme

Travel Troubleshooter: A booking error leads to a nonrefundable hotel room, or does it?

Miss Manners: I feel guilty after declining to switch airplane seats with an older lady

Today is Tuesday, July 23, the 205th day of 2024. There are 161 days left in the year.

Today’s Highlight in History:

On July 23, 1967, the first of five days of deadly rioting erupted in Detroit as an early morning police raid on an unlicensed bar resulted in a confrontation with local residents, escalating into violence that spread into other parts of the city and resulting in 43 deaths.

Also on this date:

In 1903, the Ford Motor Company sold its first car, a Model A, for $850.

In 1958, Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II named the first four women to peerage in the House of Lords.

In 1982, actor Vic Morrow and two child actors, 7-year-old Myca Dinh Le and 6-year-old Renee Shin-Yi Chen, were killed when a helicopter crashed on top of them during filming of a Vietnam War scene for “Twilight Zone: The Movie.” (Director John Landis and four associates were later acquitted of manslaughter charges.)

In 1983, an Air Canada Boeing 767 ran out of fuel while flying from Montreal to Edmonton; the pilots were able to glide the jetliner to a safe emergency landing in Gimli, Manitoba. (The near-disaster occurred because the fuel had been erroneously measured in pounds instead of kilograms at a time when Canada was converting to the metric system.)

In 1990, President George H.W. Bush announced his choice of Judge David Souter of New Hampshire to succeed the retiring Justice William J. Brennan on the U.S. Supreme Court.

In 1996, at the Atlanta Olympics, Kerri Strug made a heroic final vault despite torn ligaments in her left ankle as the U.S. women gymnasts clinched their first-ever Olympic team gold medal.

In 1997, the search for Andrew Cunanan, the suspected killer of designer Gianni Versace and others, ended as police found his body on a houseboat in Miami Beach, an apparent suicide.

In 1999, the space shuttle Columbia blasted off with the world’s most powerful X-ray telescope and Eileen Collins became the first woman to command a U.S. space flight.

In 2003, Massachusetts’ attorney general issued a report saying clergy members and others in the Boston Archdiocese had probably sexually abused more than 1,000 people over a period of six decades.

In 2006, Tiger Woods became the first player since Tom Watson in 1982-83 to win consecutive British Open titles.

In 2011, singer Amy Winehouse, 27, was found dead in her London home from accidental alcohol poisoning.

In 2012, Penn State’s football program was all but leveled by penalties for its handling of the Jerry Sandusky child sex abuse scandal as the NCAA imposed an unprecedented $60 million fine, a four-year ban from postseason play and a cut in the number of football scholarships it could award.

In 2019, Boris Johnson won the contest to lead Britain’s governing Conservative Party, putting him in line to become the country’s prime minister the following day.

In 2021, Cleveland’s Major League Baseball team, known as the Indians since 1915, announced that it would get a new name, the Guardians, at the end of the 2021 season; the change came amid a push for institutions and teams to drop logos and names that were considered racist.

Today’s Birthdays:

• Retired Supreme Court Justice Anthony M. Kennedy is 88.
• Actor Ronny Cox is 86.
• Rock singer David Essex is 77.
• Actor Woody Harrelson is 63.
• Rock musician Martin Gore (Depeche Mode) is 63.
• Actor & director Eriq Lasalle is 62.
• Rock musician Slash is 59.
• Basketball Hall of Famer Gary Payton is 56.
• Model-actor Stephanie Seymour is 56.
• Sen. Raphael Warnock, D-Ga., is 55.
• Actor Charisma Carpenter is 54.
• Country singer Alison Krauss is 53.
• R&B singer Dalvin DeGrate (Jodeci) is 53.
• Actor-comedian Marlon Wayans is 52.
• Actor Kathryn Hahn is 51.
• Former White House intern Monica Lewinsky is 51.
• Actor Stephanie March is 50.
• R&B singer Michelle Williams is 45.
• Actor Paul Wesley is 42.
• Actor Daniel Radcliffe is 35.

General Daily Insight for July 23, 2024

Accepting change can be challenging. When the ego-driven Sun is at odds with ever-evolving Pluto at 1:38 am EDT, we may dig in our heels and refuse to let go of a behavior, place, or person that we’ve outgrown. The intuitive Moon faces challenges from erratic Uranus and trickster Mercury, creating a storm of information that muddies our ability to focus and change. When the Moon moves into sensitive Pisces, a sense of peace might be easier to find. Let’s not hold on too tightly.

Aries

March 21 – April 19

You might be allowing yourself to get stuck in the past. Whether something or someone continually brings up memories from your past or you’re constantly spiraling into the desire to go back and redo something that’s already been done, this isn’t a healthy way to live life. When you find yourself swimming in regret, don’t let yourself get caught in the whirlpool of wishing you’d done things differently. Instead, live in the now by taking direct action to improve your future.

Taurus

April 20 – May 20

Two directions might be calling your name. Balancing life’s joys with work’s necessities is a cornerstone of existence, one that can cause a lot of stress as you either work to maintain equilibrium or choose one and let the other fall. Alternatively, you may have two people in your life giving you conflicting advice. Their differing areas of expertise and shared knowledge of your life could make it even harder to know which direction you’re meant to take. Remember, the final say is yours.

Gemini

May 21 – June 20

Implementing a fresh mindset won’t be simple. You may have wanted to open your mind in the past, allowing yourself to take in new information and grow. Unfortunately, being led astray by a source you trusted could have caused you to close off and refuse to deviate from what you’re already doing. Your inner life will never stop growing! If you confine it to a too-small space, you might end up feeling trapped in your old ways. Don’t let your soul become rigid.

Cancer

June 21 – July 22

Your sense of security may be tested without warning. You might find that you don’t have as much money in the bank as you thought you did, or someone that you believed you could rely on could have turned out to be flakier than you expected. It’s not easy to be let down, especially when you feel blindsided, but it’s important to remember who you are and the struggles that you’ve survived up to this point. You’re tougher than you think.

Leo

July 23 – August 22

You might be clinging to a connection that is no longer serving you. Even if you and another person were close in the past, you may have taken different paths in life. Attempts to connect with them could hurt more than help. They might unintentionally be revealing how they feel about you or their priorities in life. It could be time to step back and allow them the space that they need to grow — and, at the same time, give that to yourself.

Virgo

August 23 – September 22

You might be getting ready to spruce things up. There may be certain areas of your life that you need to get in order, whether your spiritual life is decidedly chaotic or your material life is stuffed to the brim with clutter. You need space to build peace! Do your best to free yourself, even if it’s just for today, from a barrage of outside negativity or a whirlwind of inner distractions. Focus on what you can do to get organized here and now.

Libra

September 23 – October 22

Your present may clash with your past. It might seem like a good idea to combine your current social circle with the people that you used to spend time with, but this can get awkward very quickly. You could find that they don’t have much in common aside from their connections to you — although you may even realize that you identify more with one group than the other. Trust your inner compass to lead you through any ensuing drama with kindness.

Scorpio

October 23 – November 21

You might find that your head and your heart are guiding you toward different places. Your head may demand that you choose the sensible option, while your heart insists that you deserve to indulge in the opposite choice. It’s hard to know what to do when you feel so conflicted, but it’s important to take such decisions seriously. If making a pro/con list doesn’t help, try flipping a coin. Before you look at the results, ask yourself what you hope they are. That’s your answer.

Sagittarius

November 22 – December 21

You’re letting go of predetermined ideas about who you are or “should” be. You may have spent a long time believing something that you no longer identify with, or you might feel as though the universe is pulling you away from a career or hobby you’d always loved. Such a dramatic inner shift can seem sudden, but looking at your recent thoughts around it may say otherwise. Either way, it’s a sign to do some personal reflection about who you want to be going forward.

Capricorn

December 22 – January 19

Trust can be hard to develop with someone specific. You may have a history with this person that makes it difficult to rely on them, or you might be afraid to trust anyone that you don’t know much about, making all acquaintances into wild cards. Maybe you were emotionally hurt by friends or family in the past, leading you to avoid talking about deep subjects or sharing your emotions, but old wounds shouldn’t stop future healing. Mutual vulnerability can be a powerful bonding experience.

Aquarius

January 20 – February 18

Avoiding someone may currently feel safer than opening up. There may be someone in your life that you’re giving the cold shoulder to, despite their best attempts to make amends or win you over again. You might have decided that they haven’t done enough to convince you of their sincerity, or you could have closed yourself off to reconnecting with them. This is your decision to make. That said, silence will create more distance between you, so be sure it’s what you want.

Pisces

February 19 – March 20

Familiarity with struggling doesn’t make it any easier to overcome. You might be feeling attached to something that is actually causing you to fall behind, even as it seems impossible to release. You’re not someone who gives up easily, and you may see handling this subject as a challenge — perhaps you’re insistent on making a friendship work when the other person is making no effort or can’t let go of an old coping mechanism. Be honest with yourself about what could improve your life.

The mere fact that competitive NBA basketball was being played on July 22 made Monday night at the Las Vegas NBA Summer League unusual enough.

The fact that the game then went to an overtime decided by the first team to score seven points in the extra period made it all the more unusual.

But, in the end, ultimately satisfying for the Miami Heat, who managed to steal into the desert night with the championship of the event with a 120-118 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies, a win decided when Heat second-round pick Pelle Larsson scored on a driving shot in the lane to end the untimed extra period.

For the Heat, the victory, which included rings and a postgame trophy ceremony, capped a 6-0 run in Las Vegas and an overall 8-1 summer, when factoring in a 2-1 record in the preceding California Classic summer league in San Francisco.

It took an across-the-board effort Monday night for the Heat to secure the championship, with first-round pick Kel’el Ware closing with 21 points and 10 rebounds, supported by 24 points from Josh Christopher, 21 from Alondes Williams, 19 from Cole Swider and 16 from Larsson. It was a Cole 3-pointer that helped the Heat force overtime.

Christopher, who like Williams and Swider remains without a contract commitment from a team for next season, was named Most Valuable Player of the championship game.

“We’ve been grinding from the start, and now we win,” said Christopher, who closed 6 of 10 on 3-pointers. “Just trust and playing hard. We wanted to win, and we won.”

It proved to be a considerable challenge, with the Grizzlies getting 32 points from Jake LaRavia, 29 from Scotty Pippen Jr. and 28 from GG Jackson.

“They made it tough for us,” Heat summer coach Dan Bisacio said.

The @MiamiHEAT raising that #NBA2KSummerLeague hardware!

MIAMI — Francisco Lindor homered twice, Jeff McNeil also went deep and the New York Mets beat the Miami Marlins 6-4 on Monday night.

McNeil had three RBIs as the Mets split the four-game series against the National League’s worst team. New York (51-48) is 5-5 versus Miami (35-65) this season.

“It’s not easy to hit them here, even pull side,” Lindor said. “It’s baseball. I guess the ball was flying for me. It was a good day.”

Mets starter David Peterson (5-0) permitted two runs and six hits in five innings. The left-hander walked four and struck out four.

“I felt I did some good things and some things that we’ll get better at,” said Peterson, who had not pitched since July 11. “You get back in your routine as quick as you can and get the second half rolling.”

José Buttó relieved Peterson and allowed one run over two innings. Phil Maton worked a perfect eighth, aided by a diving catch from center fielder Harrison Bader.

Down 6-3, the Marlins rallied against closer Edwin Díaz in the ninth, when Nick Gordon hit a one-out single and Jazz Chisholm Jr. walked. Bryan De La Cruz followed with a dribbler that Díaz fielded, but he looked at second — where nobody was covering — before throwing soft and late to first, loading the bases.

Josh Bell grounded out, scoring Gordon and advancing Chisholm and De La Cruz as McNeil made a tough play at second base. Díaz retired Jake Burger on a popup for his 12th save in 17 tries.

“They created some traffic but he kept making pitches,” Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said of Díaz. “I liked how he continued to mix the fastball, the slider. He got the job done.”

Marlins manager Skip Schumaker was ejected by plate umpire Rob Drake for arguing balls and strikes after the eighth inning.

“Rob’s a good umpire. He’s been around a long time,” Schumaker said. “It’s nothing personal. I just felt like he had to know what I felt.”

McNeil’s two-run shot in the second put the Mets ahead 2-0. He drove the first pitch from Marlins starter Yonny Chirinos (0-2) into the second deck of the right-field seats for his eighth homer and third of the series.

“I know the power’s there. Just kind of searching for some hits and abandoned that a little bit,” McNeil said. “There’s still a time and place for poke the ball the other way and put the ball in play. Different approaches for different times.”

The Marlins narrowed the gap on Vidal Bruján’s RBI double in the second before McNeil’s sacrifice fly and Lindor’s solo homer in the fourth made it 4-1.

New York padded its lead when Chirinos plunked Jose Iglesias with the bases loaded in the fifth.

Solo shots from Bell in the fifth and De La Cruz in the seventh got Miami within 5-3.

Lindor ended a string of 12 1/3 scoreless innings by Marlins relievers in the series when he connected off JT Chargois with another solo homer in the ninth.

Chirinos gave up five runs and nine hits with four walks in five innings.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Mets: 3B Mark Vientos got the night off after getting hit on the helmet by an errant throw in Sunday’s game. Mendoza said Vientos cleared protocols and participated in baseball activities, but he felt it was appropriate to rest him Monday.

UP NEXT

Mets: LHP Jose Quintana (4-6, 4.13 ERA) starts the opener of a two-game Subway Series at Yankee Stadium on Tuesday night. RHP Luis Gil (10-5, 3.17) pitches for the Yankees.

Marlins: Had not announced a starter for the opener of a three-game home series against Baltimore on Tuesday. RHP Albert Suárez (5-3, 2.82 ERA) goes for the Orioles.