Latest news with #Mendez
Yahoo
6 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Coloradans weigh in on what police should do about street racing
BOULDER, Colo. (KDVR) — A social media post from Colorado State Patrol Boulder has people weighing in about street racing, reckless driving and what should be done to enforce it. Measles case confirmed in vaccinated Coloradan who flew into DIA The need for speed in the metro area is a sound haunting a number of residents in the Lowry and Aurora area. 'It's troublesome, it's dangerous, I wish they would do it somewhere else,' Bill, a Lowry resident, said. 'You hear the noise every night,' Aurora resident Ed told FOX31. 'We've got a school right down the street from where we live. And I've had people going by my house at 72 miles an hour and probably a 25 or 30 mile an hour zone.' In total, throughout 2024, the Colorado State Patrol said citizens made 2,000 street racing complaints on the Street Racing Working Group's website, while many more complaints were made to local police. 'Street racing — it is a big problem in Boulder,' CSP trooper Sherri Mendez said. Mendez told FOX31 street racing reports to CSP doubled so far this year, compared to the same time frame last year. FOX31 asked about how impounding enforcement works currently. 'If the officer sees the crime, they can tow the vehicle or impound the vehicle and hold it, hold it as evidence,' Mendez said. 'But it's all on whatever is happening or what's going on. The totality of the circumstances, meaning everything that's going on with the investigation. We can't just take a vehicle because someone complained about it, because they have to identify a driver.' CSP Boulder posted this public survey poll on X. As of Thursday afternoon, more than 500 people voted: 70% voted yes 16% voted no 13% voted 'depends on the safeguards.' 'These vehicles ought to be impounded immediately,' Ed said. 'And if it were up to me, they'd be impounded for a damn long time.' Is your name Ryan? Denver meetup seeks to set world record at Rockies game Joey Williams is a part of the car enthusiast community in Colorado. He works to organize events called 'chill-ins' where people can show off their cars on the infield of the speedway instead of out on the street. FOX31 asked for his take on the survey. 'Them impounding the car and taking it from someone, I do not have a problem with that at all,' Williams said. 'Same thing where we tell people if you obey the law, the police, in theory, shouldn't do anything. If you're going to a car meet-up and you're going from one spot to the next, you're just cruising. You should have no problem getting from point A to point B without getting in trouble.' You can report street racing on the Report Street Racing website. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Time of India
22-05-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
Panamanian union leader seeks asylum at Bolivian embassy
PANAMA CITY: top union leader involved in protests against Panama's President Jose Raul Mulino scaled the fence of the Bolivian embassy to seek asylum Wednesday, authorities said, following the arrest of a colleague. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now The powerful is fighting the Panamanian government on several fronts, including pension reform. Saul Mendez's asylum plea came after authorities recently detained another union leader, Jaime Caballero, on suspicion of money laundering. According to Panama's foreign ministry, "in the early hours of Wednesday morning, Mr Mendez climbed over the fence of the diplomatic mission, knocked on the door, and with a note in hand requested political asylum." The embassy informed Panama that the request would be considered by Bolivia's national refugee council, the ministry said in a statement. Following Mendez's asylum plea, prosecutors announced it had issued an arrest warrant against "Panamanian citizens" as part of a probe into Suntracs for suspected aggravated fraud, money laundering and illicit association. The statement did not mention any names, but local media reported the warrants targeted Mendez and former union leader Genaro Lopez. Masked police also raided several Suntracs offices, including its headquarters in Panama City. Mulino has branded the left-wing union "a mafia." The organization often leads protests against his right-wing government focused on issues ranging from social security reforms, an agreement allowing US troops to deploy to bases along the Panama Canal, and moves to reopen a contested copper mine. Suntracs is one of the organizers of an indefinite strike by construction workers launched almost a month ago.
Business Insider
18-05-2025
- Business
- Business Insider
A Taskrabbit earning 4-figures monthly shares 4 pro tips to make money on the platform
Michael Mendez has been working as a full-time Taskrabbit for seven years. He's grown from 0 to 1,500 reviews, has a nearly perfect rating, and earns up to $4,000 a month. He advises new taskers to start with lower rates and focus on building positive reviews. Michael Mendez never considered himself a particularly handy person. So, when he signed up for Taskrabbit in 2018, he questioned whether he had the skillset to make a living on a platform that matches freelance "taskers" with people who need help building things. Seven years later, he's completed more than 2,000 tasks and has a nearly perfect rating, plus more than 1,500 reviews. He earns enough money completing two to three tasks per day — he specializes in furniture assembly — to sustain his lifestyle in Oakland, California. "I've been paying rent, I've been paying my taxes, and everything is working out very well," said Mendez, who values the flexibility and freedom that come with setting his own schedule over a high income. If he wanted to boost his income, which ranges between $2,000 and $4,000 a month, he could. "If I just set my hours until 9 p.m., I feel like I'd be able to fill it in, but it's not my preference," the 34-year-old told Business Insider. Whether you're looking for a more flexible full-time gig or want to earn extra money on the side, Taskrabbit is a viable income source. "It's not for everyone," said Mendez. "You have to have it in you to put yourself out there because you're kind of selling yourself. You have to be very presentable and be good with the clients." If that sounds like you and you decide to build a profile, consider these four tips from a pro. 1. Start broad and niche down Consumers can hire Taskrabbits for a variety of home tasks, from moving and heavy lifting to handyman services and cleaning. If you're confident in or enjoy a particular skill, start there. If you're still figuring out what you're good at, consider Mendez's approach: Offer a broad range of services to test the waters. You'll figure out what works and what doesn't — for Mendez, furniture assembly worked, while cleaning did not — and can adjust your profile accordingly, only offering what you excel at. Once he niched down, "I became a lot faster at what I was doing," he said. As he got better at assembling furniture, he was able to charge more, and he grew to love the work. "Especially Ikea work, I started falling in love with it. It's kind of like a meditation for me. It's very calming." 2. Start by offering a lower-than-average rate As a new tasker, you won't yet have reviews or ratings that can set you apart; what can distinguish you is your price, which is up to the individual tasker to set. When Mendez first started, he was still figuring out how long certain tasks took and his general worth on the platform, so he kept his hourly rate below average. "I charged a lot less in the beginning because I didn't know if I had the skillset that people were looking for," he said. As he got better and more efficient, and, as a result, accumulated more positive reviews, he increased his prices. He also learned to adjust his rate depending on the season. In the summer, for example, demand spikes as more people are moving. "You get a lot of work coming in and it's usually necessary to put your price up." The other thing you have control over is your profile. Be specific about the services you offer, include a high-quality photo, and don't limit your clientele by setting parameters such as a two-hour minimum, he said: "That's one thing that could shy a client away from picking me, and I want no reason for a client to not pick me. I just want my profile to be as welcoming as possible." 3. Consistency wins In general, you'll be rewarded if you're consistently completing tasks and have a low cancellation rate. "If you stop working for about a month, it brings your profile down and makes it hard to get recognized," he explained. Consistency isn't a problem for Mendez, who describes himself as a homebody — "I really don't like to be away from my home and my cat" — but if you like to travel, consider the implications. Or, consider traveling with your tools and completing jobs on the road, said Mendez, who spent a year driving across the country, living and working in various cities before he settled down in Oakland. 4. Reviews matter Especially when you're first starting out, explain to your clients how important reviews are. Customers are prompted to leave a rating and a review in the app after a job is completed, but Mendez still takes the time to ask in person: "I say at the end of a job, 'If you're able to leave a rating and review for me it helps me out so much. It's the best tip I can get. It gets me more jobs and keeps me doing what I like to do.'" Don't be discouraged by negative reviews. Mendez still remembers two bad reviews from his early days on the platform — "I thought I was going to have to stop," he said — but he's since learned that you can't please everyone, no matter the quality of your work.
Yahoo
17-05-2025
- Yahoo
Father in New Bedford window smash ICE arrest speaks about ‘traumatic' detainment
A Guatemalan man living in New Bedford who was arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) last month is speaking out against his detainment. Juan Francisco Mendez was the subject of an ICE operation where he was detained after agents smashed his car window with a hammer, according to the Associated Press. Mendez was inside the vehicle with his wife when the windows were broken, the Associated Press reported. Mendez, 29, was released from custody on Thursday and currently out on bond — required to wear an ankle monitor, WCVB reported. During a Spanish-language press conference on Friday, Mendez spoke about his detainment, calling it 'traumatic,' according to WCVB. 'I am not a criminal. They unjustly detained me, without any charge,' Mendez said. 'I just want to give my family safety and stability, just like many other immigrants.' Ondine Galvez Sniffin, Mendez's attorney, said her client has no criminal record and has a pending immigration case to obtain asylum, WCVB reports. Galvez Sniffin said that Mendez's asylum claim has not been approved yet. Mendez's wife, Marilu Domingo Ortiz, has been approved for asylum, the lawyer said. 'This is completely off the charts,' Galvez Sniffin said. 'As her husband, he derives the same status that she has, so he is also protected from being removed back to the country.' In an interview with the Associated Press, Galvez Sniffin said that the ICE agents claimed they were seeking another man with a different name before they dragged Mendez and his wife out of the car. Domingo said she felt 'scared' when ICE broke into their car, never expecting that a member of her family would be detained like this, the Associated Press reported. 'We came here to do honest work. To fight for our family,' Ortiz said through a translator. 'What they did, or what they're doing right now, no, it's not fair. We don't deserve that treatment.' ICE, however, said Mendez is in the United States illegally, according to WCVB. 'During the course of his arrest, he refused to comply with officers' instructions and resisted apprehension,' ICE said in a statement. Mendez and his wife live in New Bedford with their 9-year-old son, according to WCVB. ICE arrests in Massachusetts are continuing to play out in public. One of the more recent arrests took place in Worcester. Rosane Ferreira-De Oliveira, a Brazilian mother of three, was arrested in the middle of Eureka Street on May 8. ICE agents detained Ferreira-De Oliveira as a crowd of more than 30 people approached and shouted at the agents, demanding to see a warrant. She is currently being held in a facility in Rhode Island. In Chelsea on Mother's Day, ICE agents broke through an SUV window as a family left church together, NBC10 reported. A man was ripped from the vehicle, thrown to the ground, handcuffed and arrested, according to NBC10. During the arrest, the man could be heard asking why ICE was arresting him, saying he wasn't resisting, according to NBC10. Mass. substitute teacher faces child sex abuse material charges Mass. destination makes 2025 list of top 40 family-friendly vacations Westfield Technical Academy 2025 prom photos Should Democrats stick with Harris? New poll shows surprising result in Trump rematch 2025 West Springfield High School Prom Read the original article on MassLive.
Yahoo
16-05-2025
- Yahoo
Immigrant released on bond in Massachusetts a month after ICE broke car window with hammer
BOSTON, Mass. (AP) — A man living in Massachusetts who U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents detained in April after smashing his car window with a hammer has been released, his lawyer said Friday. Juan Francisco Mendez was released Thursday on a $1,500 bond after a month of being held at Strafford County Corrections in Dover, New Hampshire. He will also be required to wear a GPS ankle monitor while the U.S. government continues to pursue his deportation, said one of Mendez's attorneys, Ryan Sullivan. Mendez, 29, was taken into custody by agents on April 14 in New Bedford, Massachusetts, as he drove to a dental appointment. The agents claimed they were looking for another man with a different name who lived in the same neighborhood before they dragged him and his wife out of the car. The lawyers for Mendez, who is from Guatemala, said he was detained while in the process of applying for asylum status — something he is still pursuing. He has no criminal record, and the government held him for weeks without initiating deportation proceedings against him, leading to his case being dismissed by an immigration judge on May 8. After that hearing, the U.S. government charged Mendez with being in the country illegally before a judge ordered his release on a minimum bond Thursday. 'They decided he was brown, so they stopped him, and because he couldn't prove he had status, they detained him,' Sullivan told The Associated Press on Friday. The incident, recorded on video by Mendez's wife, Marilu Domingo Ortiz, shows ICE agents using a hammer to smash the car window and then seize Ortiz. Ortiz and her 9-year-old son have already been given protection under an asylum status over fears of facing persecution if they returned home to Guatemala. Mendez was in the process of applying for what is called derivative asylum, where you can get asylum if a family member already has it. Another lawyer for Mendez's family, Ondine Galvez-Sniffin, told The Associated Press last month that when she arrived at the scene, Mendez's wife was crying and shaking, yelling 'Help Me' in Spanish as he was driven away in handcuffs. The lawyer said last month that in almost 30 years of immigration work, the case was the first time she had seen "such violent drastic measures being taken.' A spokesperson for ICE did not return a phone or email message requesting comment on Friday afternoon.
