Schools respond to ICE actions, high school fight arrests, Swift kiss for an Eagles fan
Hey, there, Small Wonder.
Wake up and smell the roses. Or the coffee. Or something pleasant you prefer. (Roses last twice as long if you change the water every day and keep ice in it. That's a Valentine's Day tip at no additional charge.)
Did you hear that Newark may get its first tattoo parlor? Here's another recent story about tattooing in Delaware's prisons. It's not two-for-Tuesday, but figured I'd throw that in.
We are working hard on our pre-Super Bowl coverage, which we will be serving up for you up 'til kick off and beyond. Ryan Cormier offers this fun story today: A Delaware Eagles fan gets a Taylor Swift kiss. 'I will probably never wash my face again'. Here are some additional Bird-related links:
Be sure follow Martin Frank's NFL coverage and to sign up for our Eye on the Eagles newsletter.
And there's lots more where that came from!
And now more news ...
Delaware schools brace to protect students amid expanded ICE action under Trump
Wide eyes looked up at her.
Jennifer Nein had been searching for words all week. Maybe words could reassure fellow staff at North Georgetown Elementary as executive orders flow from a presidential inauguration. Maybe some words could calm children as young as 4 years old who don't feel safe coming to school, who don't know whether family will be home after the bell rings.
'I told them that I would not let anybody in this building that would hurt – that I'd go to jail before I let them touch their sweet little heads,' said the multi-language learning coordinator within Indian River schools. 'And one little boy said to me: 'You have big muscles?''
Read Kelly Powers' story to see how local schools are responding to President Trump's executive action and ICE.
Also worth your time …
Breaking news: Police arrest 6 students after a fight broke out in Delaware high school
Entertainment: Longwood Gardens crushes attendance record, offers winter adventures
Development: What happened when new Sussex County councilman proposed moratorium on major subdivisions
Real estate: Delaware home sales up 20% in December while prices rise 5% compared with previous year
News Quiz: Raw milk laws and another Dave Portnoy review. Try this week's news quiz
Gallery of the day: Man shot by Wilmington police during drug investigation on city's East Side
Sports: Dover's Buttillo honored for return to lacrosse, football despite serious crash injuries
What's going there, Delaware?
Reporter Molly McVety always has her eye on development in the First State.
Her weekly newsletter What's Going There, Delaware and the Facebook group by the same name offer a forum for development news, trends and interaction with you, our readers.
Check it out. And you can always report development news to Molly at mmcvety@gannett.com
Random Acts of Kindness
We are happy to introduce our new monthly column, Random Acts of Kindness by Krys'tal Griffin: 'Whatever possessed them to be so kind?': Delaware man recounts strangers who helped him
Do you know someone who made a difference to someone when they really needed it? Is there a Good Samaritan you'd like to see highlighted, someone who offered a kindness, that made a difference for you, or made someone's life a little better in Delaware? Random Acts of Kindness aims to share these stories. If you know someone deserving of a story, email Krys'tal Griffin at kgriffin@delawareonline with as much information as you can provide.
Note to readers
Daily Briefing is your first stop for top Delaware news, a friendly guide to other Delaware Online services – our best projects, digital archives, e-edition, online puzzles and comics, polls, regional and seasonal guides, award-winning photos and videos, social media highlights & more.
This is your morning briefing. We strive to make it engaging, useful and informative.
Thank you to our readers who support us as subscribers, making our local coverage of your community possible. Check out our Subscribers Guide.
⭐ Get out: Delaware's top concerts in February 2025
🍳 Comfort food: Mission BBQ in Milltown to open in the coming weeks. Here are the details
🧩 Brain teaser: Make magic with Mahjongg Dimensions
✈️ Get away: Wilmington Airport offers flights to New Orleans for Super Bowl 59. Here are the details
🥾 Get moving: You can still ice skate at Twin Lakes
🛠️ Problem solved: Set up your kitchen with these fun gadgets
💗 Give back: How and where to donate blood in Delaware in 2025
And now, more news we don't want you to miss …
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Fox News
29 minutes ago
- Fox News
Illegal alien accused of causing fatal semi truck crash that killed 3 people: 'Shocking and criminal'
An illegal immigrant truck driver has been arrested and faces deportation after allegedly attempting to make an unauthorized U-turn in Florida — resulting in a crash that killed three people. Harjinder Singh, who entered the country illegally and obtained a commercial driver's license in California, has been charged with three counts of vehicular homicide in connection with Tuesday's fatal crash, according to a news release from the Florida Dept. of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (FLHSMV). "This is a devastating tragedy made even worse by the fact that it was totally preventable," White House Spokeswoman Abigail Jackson told Fox News Digital in an email. "Illegal aliens that have no legal right to be in our country certainly should not be granted commercial drivers' licenses." While operating a commercial semi-truck with a trailer on the Florida Turnpike in Fort Pierce, Singh allegedly attempted a U-turn in an unauthorized area. This resulted in the trailer jackknifing and colliding with a minivan — leaving all three of the minivan's passengers dead, according to officials. "Gavin Newscum's pro-illegal alien policies have deadly consequences," Jackson added. "Yet he continues to double down and put illegals over American citizens." Singh, who officials believe crossed the US-Mexico border in 2018, remains in custody on both state vehicular homicide charges as well as immigration violations. An Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detainer has been issued, according to an X post from the Official White House Rapid Response account. "The actions taken by the defendant while operating a commercial tractor-trailer are both shocking and criminal," FLHSMV Executive Director Dave Kerner said in a statement. "Three people lost their lives as a result of his recklessness, and countless friends and family members will experience the pain of their loss forever." A law passed in 2013 allows California residents to obtain a driver's license, regardless of their immigration status. ICE did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Newsom demands information from Trump after Border Patrol appearance outside his news conference
Gov. Gavin Newsom filed a request Sunday seeking records from the Trump administration to explain why a phalanx of Border Patrol agents showed up outside a news conference held by leading California Democrats last week. Newsom filed a Freedom of Information Act request with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security asking for "all documents and records" related to the Aug. 14 Border Patrol operation in downtown Los Angeles, which took place outside the Japanese American National Museum in Little Tokyo. At the news conference, Newsom announced a campaign to seek voter approval to redraw California's congressional maps to boost Democrats' chances of retaking the House and stymieing Trump's agenda in the 2026 midterm elections. "Trump's use of the military and federal law enforcement to try to intimidate his political opponents is yet another dangerous step towards authoritarianism," Newsom posted Sunday on X. "This is an attempt to advance a playbook from the despots he admires in Russia and North Korea." Newsom announced at the press event the 'Election Rigging Response Act" — which would scrap independently drawn congressional maps in favor of those sketched by Democratic strategists in an attempt to counter moves by Republicans in Texas and other GOP-led states to gerrymander their own districts to favor Republicans in the 2026 midterms. Meanwhile, dozens of armed federal agents massed in the adjacent streets wearing masks, helmets and camouflage. Newsom and other leading Democrats, including L.A. Mayor Karen Bass, dismissed the Border Patrol action as an intimidation tactic. In response to questions from The Times on Sunday, Department of Homeland Security spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin said the agents were "focused on enforcing the law, not on [Newsom]." McLaughlin said two people were arrested during the Little Tokyo operation. One was a drug trafficker, according to McLaughlin, who said the other was a member of Tren de Aragua, a Venezuelan gang that has been a focus of the Trump administration's efforts to use the Alien Enemies Act to speed up deportation efforts. She did not respond to questions about how many agents were deployed or what specific agencies were involved in the Aug. 14 operation. Border Patrol Sector Chief Gregory Bovino, who has been leading the Trump administration's aggressive immigration operations in California, was at the scene and briefly spoke to reporters. McLaughlin did not name either person arrested or respond to a request for further information or evidence of links between the arrests and the Venezuelan gang. "Under President Trump and [Department of Homeland Security] Secretary [Kristi] Noem, if you break the law, you will face the consequences," she wrote in an e-mailed statement. "Criminal illegal aliens are not welcome in the U.S.' On Thursday, witnesses at the scene identified one of the men arrested as Angel, a delivery worker who was carrying strawberries when he was captured. 'He was just doing his normal delivery to the courthouse,' said the man's colleague, Carlos Franco. 'It's pretty sad, because I've got to go to work tomorrow, and Angel isn't going to be there.' In the FOIA request, Newsom's legal affairs secretary, David Sapp, called the Border Patrol deployment an "attempt to intimidate the people of California from defending a fair electoral process." In addition to documents related to the planning of the raid, the FOIA request also seeks "any records referencing Governor Newsom or the rally that was scheduled to occur" and communications between federal law enforcement officials and Fox News, which allowed the Trump-friendly media outlet to embed a reporter with Border Patrol that day. Trump's increased use of the military and federal law enforcement against his political rivals has drawn growing concern in recent months. The president deployed the National Guard and U.S. Marines to quell protests against immigration raids in Los Angeles earlier this year. Just last week, Trump sent swarms of federal law enforcement officials to Washington, D.C., to combat what he sees as out-of-control crime, despite the fact that most crime statistics show violence in the nation's capital is at a 30-year low. Although Newsom demanded an answer by early September, the federal government is notoriously slow in responding to FOIA requests and will often delay responses for years. A spokesman for Newsom did not immediately respond to questions on Sunday about what, if any, other legal steps the governor was prepared to take. Voters would have to approve Newsom's plan to redraw the congressional maps in a special election in November. The new maps, drawn by Democratic strategists and lawmakers behind closed doors instead of the independent commission that voters previously chose, would concentrate Republican voters in a few deep-red pockets of the state and eliminate an Inland Empire district long held by the GOP. In total, Democrats would likely pick up five seats in California in the midterms under the redrawn maps, possibly countering or outpacing Republican efforts to tilt their map red in Texas. Other states have already begun to consider redrawing their maps along more partisan lines in response to growing anxieties over the fight to control the House of Representatives in 2026. Times staff writer Seema Mehta contributed to this report. Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times. Solve the daily Crossword
Los Angeles Times
2 hours ago
- Los Angeles Times
Newsom demands information from Trump after Border Patrol appearance outside his news conference
Gov. Gavin Newsom filed a request Sunday seeking records from the Trump administration to explain why a phalanx of Border Patrol agents showed up outside a news conference held by leading California Democrats last week. Newsom filed a Freedom of Information Act request with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security asking for 'all documents and records' related to the Aug. 14 Border Patrol operation in downtown Los Angeles, which took place outside the Japanese American National Museum in Little Tokyo. At the news conference, Newsom announced a campaign to seek voter approval to redraw California's congressional maps to boost Democrats' chances of retaking the House and stymieing Trump's agenda in the 2026 midterm elections. 'Trump's use of the military and federal law enforcement to try to intimidate his political opponents is yet another dangerous step towards authoritarianism,' Newsom posted Sunday on X. 'This is an attempt to advance a playbook from the despots he admires in Russia and North Korea.' Newsom announced at the press event the 'Election Rigging Response Act' — which would scrap independently drawn congressional maps in favor of those sketched by Democratic strategists in an attempt to counter moves by Republicans in Texas and other GOP-led states to gerrymander their own districts to favor Republicans in the 2026 midterms. Meanwhile, dozens of armed federal agents massed in the adjacent streets wearing masks, helmets and camouflage. Newsom and other leading Democrats, including L.A. Mayor Karen Bass, dismissed the Border Patrol action as an intimidation tactic. In response to questions from The Times on Sunday, Department of Homeland Security spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin said the agents were 'focused on enforcing the law, not on [Newsom].' McLaughlin said two people were arrested during the Little Tokyo operation. One was a drug trafficker, according to McLaughlin, who said the other was a member of Tren de Aragua, a Venezuelan gang that has been a focus of the Trump administration's efforts to use the Alien Enemies Act to speed up deportation efforts. She did not respond to questions about how many agents were deployed or what specific agencies were involved in the Aug. 14 operation. Border Patrol Sector Chief Gregory Bovino, who has been leading the Trump administration's aggressive immigration operations in California, was at the scene and briefly spoke to reporters. McLaughlin did not name either person arrested or respond to a request for further information or evidence of links between the arrests and the Venezuelan gang. 'Under President Trump and [Department of Homeland Security] Secretary [Kristi] Noem, if you break the law, you will face the consequences,' she wrote in an e-mailed statement. 'Criminal illegal aliens are not welcome in the U.S.' On Thursday, witnesses at the scene identified one of the men arrested as Angel, a delivery worker who was carrying strawberries when he was captured. 'He was just doing his normal delivery to the courthouse,' said the man's colleague, Carlos Franco. 'It's pretty sad, because I've got to go to work tomorrow, and Angel isn't going to be there.' In the FOIA request, Newsom's legal affairs secretary, David Sapp, called the Border Patrol deployment an 'attempt to intimidate the people of California from defending a fair electoral process.' In addition to documents related to the planning of the raid, the FOIA request also seeks 'any records referencing Governor Newsom or the rally that was scheduled to occur' and communications between federal law enforcement officials and Fox News, which allowed the Trump-friendly media outlet to embed a reporter with Border Patrol that day. Trump's increased use of the military and federal law enforcement against his political rivals has drawn growing concern in recent months. The president deployed the National Guard and U.S. Marines to quell protests against immigration raids in Los Angeles earlier this year. Just last week, Trump sent swarms of federal law enforcement officials to Washington, D.C., to combat what he sees as out-of-control crime, despite the fact that most crime statistics show violence in the nation's capital is at a 30-year low. Although Newsom demanded an answer by early September, the federal government is notoriously slow in responding to FOIA requests and will often delay responses for years. A spokesman for Newsom did not immediately respond to questions on Sunday about what, if any, other legal steps the governor was prepared to take. Voters would have to approve Newsom's plan to redraw the congressional maps in a special election in November. The new maps, drawn by Democratic strategists and lawmakers behind closed doors instead of the independent commission that voters previously chose, would concentrate Republican voters in a few deep-red pockets of the state and eliminate an Inland Empire district long held by the GOP. In total, Democrats would likely pick up five seats in California in the midterms under the redrawn maps, possibly countering or outpacing Republican efforts to tilt their map red in Texas. Other states have already begun to consider redrawing their maps along more partisan lines in response to growing anxieties over the fight to control the House of Representatives in 2026. Times staff writer Seema Mehta contributed to this report.
