Latest news with #WinCo
New York Post
3 days ago
- Business
- New York Post
The cheapest grocery stores in 2025 have been named — and the first-place winner is expanding in NYC
Check out these checkouts. As food prices are expected to rise by up to 3.5% in 2025, according to the USDA, many Americans are looking for ways to keep their grocery bills in check. A recent study by MarketForce, which surveyed over 4,300 shoppers, highlights the grocery stores that best balance affordability with quality. 8 As food prices are expected to rise by up to 3.5% in 2025, according to the USDA, many Americans are looking for ways to keep their grocery bills in check. Whether it's inflation, supply chain issues or simply the high cost of living, everyone could use a break at checkout. Here's your chance, according to the roundup, with seven grocers helping customers stretch their dollars without sacrificing taste or freshness. 1. Lidl: Discount giant with a European twist 8 Lidl food market was rated the most affordable, quality grocery store in the country. Refrina – Lidl has been a rising star in the U.S. discount grocery scene, especially in NYC, where it has been expanding locations, including in Brooklyn. The store layout is inspired by European roots, which helps Lidl keep its overhead low by minimizing staffing and using a streamlined warehouse-style setup. This helps reduce costs for shoppers, making it one of the most budget-friendly options for families. According to the MarketForce study, an impressive 81.4% of customers return to Lidl because of its unbeatable value. The store's affordable pricing is made better with the quality of its products, the report notes. In addition to the usual grocery items, Lidl also surprises customers with seasonal and non-food items, from power tools to potted plants. 2. WinCo Foods: Wholesale prices — without a membership 8 WinCo operates a warehouse-style model focusing on low prices by cutting out the middleman. Oksana – If you've ever dreamed of paying Costco prices without the membership fee, WinCo Foods is where it's at. This employee-owned chain has become a household name in many parts of the U.S., with 139 locations spread across 10 states. WinCo operates a warehouse-style model focusing on low prices by cutting out the middleman. It buys directly from manufacturers and even has customers bag their own groceries. The strategy must be working: a whopping 73.1% of shoppers cited value for money as their main reason for frequenting WinCo. Its bulk sections are also noted as a treasure trove for those seeking to stock up on essentials like flour, rice and dried goods at steep discounts. 3. Grocery Outlet: Where discounts meet discovery 8 According to the survey, 71.4% of shoppers reported returning to Grocery Outlet for the exceptional value it provides. Sundry Photography – Grocery Outlet's business model revolves around selling overstocked or discontinued items at discounted prices. Locations vary by region, but the appeal is universal: customers can score big on both name-brand and private-label products. Fresh produce, dairy and meat are always stocked, while their natural and organic sections offer a variety of specialty items like vegan and gluten-free foods — often for less than what you'd find at other places. Notably, 71.4% of shoppers reported returning to Grocery Outlet for the exceptional value it provides. 4. Aldi: The discount king 8 With a European-inspired model, Aldi keeps costs low with fewer staff, simple displays and self-bagging of groceries. JHVEPhoto – Aldi's reputation for value is legendary — and the numbers don't lie. The MarketForce study found that 70.4% of shoppers favor Aldi for the exceptional value it offers. With a European-inspired model, Aldi keeps costs low by minimizing staff, using simple displays, and encouraging customers to bag their own groceries. Despite this no-frills approach, Aldi shoppers can find everything from pasta and canned goods to frozen items and fresh produce. If you're looking to make your budget stretch even further, Aldi is also home to great deals on dairy, baked goods and even alcohol. 5. Wegmans: Upstate store spreads far and wide 8 A solid 68.7% of MarketForce respondents cited value for money as their main reason for choosing Wegmans. JHVEPhoto – Known for its vast selection of high-quality store-brand products, Wegmans is a favorite among many shoppers, particularly in the Mid-Atlantic region. The family-owned grocer boasts more than 110 stores and has become well-known for its excellent customer service and affordable prices. A solid 68.7% of MarketForce respondents cited value for money as their main reason for choosing Wegmans. Wegmans stands out for its wide range of organic and healthy food options, from fresh produce to gluten-free snacks. The grocer expanded to Long Island earlier this year and continues to extend its reach beyond the Northeast. 6. Trader Joe's: Trading up 8 Trader Joe's has quirky offerings and high-quality private-label goods that have become fan favorites. jetcityimage – Despite its smaller footprint compared to traditional grocery stores, about 67.2% of study participants mentioned that they return because of the store's value. While it's famous for its affordable and fun frozen-food options, much-beloved Trader Joe's also serves up fresh produce, unique snacks, seasonal items and high-quality private-label goods. 7. Costco: Bulking up 8 Costco members appreciate the wholesale prices on everything from household essentials to luxury items. JHVEPhoto – While Costco may require a membership, the savings it offers can make it worth the investment. Known for its bulk-buying model, Costco allows customers to purchase everything from household essentials to luxury items at steeply discounted prices. Whether it's buying a year's supply of toilet paper, a bulk pack of fresh fruit, gourmet cheeses or pantry staples, according to the MarketForce study, 61.4% of customers return to Costco for its impressive deals.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Yahoo
Forklift operator dies in workplace accident at WinCo Distribution Center
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — An Independence man died on Wednesday morning following a workplace accident at the WinCo Distribution Center in Woodburn, authorities said According to Woodburn police, the incident took place around 11:40 a.m. 'Preliminary investigation indicates that the incident occurred when a semi-truck was moved while a forklift operator was still inside the container. As a result, the forklift fell from the container,' police said. The forklift operator, Christopher Ryan De Jesus, 39, was pronounced dead at the scene. 'The semi-truck driver remained on site and is fully cooperating with law enforcement. Both the forklift operator and the semi-truck driver were working for third-party contractors at the (WinCo) Distribution Center,' police said. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
The Punishment For This L.A. Deputy Convicted of Excessive Force Against a Black Woman Will Make Your Blood Boil
A Los Angeles County sheriff's deputy was convicted of a felony connection to his violent actions against a Black woman in 2023 outside a supermarket. Despite having faced a decade in prison, his sentence just got turned into a slap on the wrist. Los Angeles County Sheriff's Deputy Trevor Kirk was seen on video yanking a Black woman by her shirt and neck onto the ground outside the WinCo supermarket in Lancaster. As he pinned her on the ground with his knee to her groin, he mushed her face and called for backup. Kirk was reportedly responding to an alleged burglary and matched a man to the description of the suspect. The woman got into the mix after she announced to the police that she was recording the arrest and demanded they tell the man why he was being arrested, per CBS News. Kirk then walked up to the woman and immediately got physical. He also pressed his knee into the woman's neck and pepper-sprayed her twice in the face, body camera footage shows. Prosecutors accused him of using his LASD radio to mislead his colleagues that he was 'in a fight' when he was obviously dominating the woman per the videos, the report says. As a result, the lady suffered head trauma and injuries to her arms and wrists. Following a three-day trial, he was found guilty of a felony count of deprivation of rights under color of law, putting him at risk of 10 years in prison. However, upon the swearing in of a new U.S. attorney, the government doubled back and hired a third party to review the case, per The Los Angeles Times. They then asked the court to allow them to offer the deputy a misdemeanor plea deal despite the jury verdict. Kirk was then facing only a year in prison. U.S. District Judge Stephen V. Wilson granted the request Monday, sentencing Kirk to only four measly months in prison. This decision comes around the same time President Donald Trump released an executive order vowing to 'unleash high-impact local police forces and protect and defend law enforcement officers wrongly accused and abused by State or local officials.' We're not saying politics influenced the government's change of heart in the case. Though, even the judge was taken aback by the sudden shift. 'In my view, the jury verdict was fully supported and the case was not unfairly argued, as the government at some early point argued,' said Judge Wilson, via the Los Angeles Times. 'The job of a police officer is a very difficult one … but with those factors in mind, there is a responsibility to act appropriately.'
Yahoo
02-06-2025
- General
- Yahoo
How L.A.'s new top federal prosecutor erased felony verdict in deputy's excessive force case
It took a federal jury an hour to convict a Los Angeles County Sheriff's deputy of using excessive force after he assaulted and pepper-sprayed a woman outside a supermarket in Lancaster in 2023. The prosecutors made their case in a three-day trial in February, ultimately persuading jurors to find Trevor Kirk guilty of a felony count of deprivation of rights under color of law. Kirk faced up to 10 years in prison. But on Monday, U.S. District Judge Stephen V. Wilson sentenced Kirk to four months in prison, after last week granting the government's request to dismiss the felony charge. With that dismissal, Kirk faced up to a year in prison. Ahead of sentencing, the government had requested probation that included three months of home detention and 200 hours of community service. The defense team asked for a term of two months of home confinement and 300 hours of community service. "In my view, the jury verdict was fully supported and the case was not unfairly argued, as the government at some early point argued," Wilson said after handing down his sentence. "The job of a police officer is a very difficult one ... but with those factors in mind, there is a responsibility to act appropriately." Kirk declined to speak during the sentencing hearing. Tom Yu, an attorney representing Kirk, said they plan to appeal Wilson's earlier denial of their motion for an acquittal. The sentencing capped a controversial case that saw the federal government abandon a conviction and take the highly unusual legal step of offering Kirk a misdemeanor plea deal after jurors had spoken. That plea deal played a role in the resignation of several federal prosecutors last month and raised concerns over how the office will handle pending cases against law enforcement. The post-trial plea agreement landed the same week Trump issued an executive order vowing to 'unleash' American law enforcement, and it followed other recent controversies that have raised alarms about the eroding independence of the U.S. Justice Department under the Trump Administration. Seated in the front row of the packed courtroom Monday was U.S. Atty. for Los Angeles Bill Essayli, a staunch Trump ally and hard-line conservative who was appointed in April and under whom the felony verdict unraveled. Approached after the hearing, Essayli declined to comment. A federal jury indicted Kirk last September in connection with a June 2023 incident, in which the deputy — who was responding to a robbery report — threw a woman to the ground and pepper-sprayed her in the face while she filmed him outside a Lancaster WinCo. Although the woman matched the description of a suspect Kirk had received from a dispatcher, she was not armed or committing a crime when he confronted her, court records show. Before the case went to trial, according to a motion filed by Asst. U.S. Atty. Robert J. Keenan, the government was willing to enter into a plea agreement that would have allowed Kirk to plead to a misdemeanor. Kirk instead took his chances on a jury trial and lost. In January, Nick Wilson, founder of a first-responder advocacy group and spokesperson for the Los Angeles Sheriff's Professional Assn., wrote to Trump urging him to intervene before the case went to trial. In the letter, he said left-wing activists wanted to make an example of Kirk. 'This case is about more than just one deputy, it's about the survival of law and order in America,' he wrote, according to screenshots of the letter posted on social media. 'If the radical left can destroy the career of a peace officer for simply doing his job, no officer is safe.' The trial went ahead anyway. In his opening statement on Feb. 4, Asst. U.S. Atty. Brian R. Faerstein told jurors that Kirk had used excessive force against the victim, Jacy Houseton, by slamming her to the ground and pepper spraying her "when it was unnecessary to do so." "At the end of this trial, the United States will ask you to hold the defendant accountable for abusing his power and authority," Faerstein said. Tom Yu, Kirk's attorney, told the jury that Kirk had relied on his training to deal with a "resistant suspect." "There is a world of difference between a use of force and excessive force," he said. Two days later, the jury returned with a guilty verdict. Essayli was sworn in as the new U.S. attorney on April 2. The following week, prosecutors on the Kirk case filed a motion to delay the sentencing hearing because Essayli wanted to review the case. When asked about the review, the U.S. attorney's office said former U.S. Atty. Martin Estrada in March 2023 established an executive position within the office to address ethics and post-conviction issues. The office said it gets requests to review cases pre-and post-conviction, but declined to comment on how many cases have been reviewed since 2023. Estrada did not respond to an email seeking comment on the Kirk case last week and declined to speak to a Times reporter when approached in person. Soon after his appointment, Essayli requested that the Riverside County district attorney's office "conduct an independent and impartial review of the case and evidence in the Kirk matter," according to District Attorney Mike Hestrin. "I assigned a team of experienced investigators and prosecutors to thoroughly review the evidence and case details, evaluating what, if any, charges we would consider for prosecution had the case been submitted to us for potential filing," Hestrin said in a statement. The U.S. attorney's office declined to comment on why Essayli involved the Riverside County district attorney's office in a federal case out of Lancaster. A legal expert called the move highly unusual. "I think it looks like he was trying to shore up evidence to find the result he was looking for. The fact that he went outside the office is an indication he wasn't getting the support that he wanted from the prosecutors within the office," said Carley Palmer, a former federal prosecutor in Los Angeles, who is now a partner at Halpern May Ybarra Gelberg LLP. Given the allegations of partisanship swirling around the case, Palmer also questioned why Essayli didn't ask the Los Angeles County district attorney's office to lead the review, given Dist. Atty. Nathan Hochman's status as a political independent. "It does seem like if you were looking for additional takes on this case, it might make sense to go to the former federal prosecutor now working across the street now managing the county where the crime took place," said Palmer. A spokesman for the L.A. County district attorney's office said Essayli has never contacted Hochman about the Kirk case. In April, Wilson denied a motion from Yu for an acquittal. The judge ruled that footage of the incident was sufficient evidence for a jury to find that Kirk used 'objectively unreasonable force.' On April 22, the judge refused the government's request to postpone Kirk's sentencing. Two days later, according to Hestrin, the Riverside County prosecutors and investigators Essayli tapped to review the case attended a meeting in L.A. with the U.S. attorney and his staff to present their findings and recommendations. When asked what those findings and recommendations were, the Riverside County district attorney's office referred that question to the U.S. attorney's office, which declined to comment. On May 1, the government filed a "post-trial" plea agreement under which Kirk would plead guilty to misdemeanor violation of deprivation of rights under color of law. The downgrade to a misdemeanor is significant as Kirk would have lost the right to be a law enforcement officer or own a gun with a felony conviction. The only assistant U.S. attorney who signed off on the plea agreement, Robert J. Keenan, was not previously involved in the case. The next day, the original prosecutors involved all withdrew from the case. Last week, Wilson rejected the plea agreement — which recommended that Kirk be sentenced to probation. But the judge granted the prosecution's motion to lessen the charges against the deputy to a misdemeanor — despite the jury conviction. More than 50 people packed the courtroom for the sentencing hearing Monday, including former Sheriff Alex Villanueva, who has championed Kirk's case online. Before the proceeding began, supporters embraced Kirk, who wore a cross-shaped pin that bore the American flag. As the hearing got underway, Kirk's attorney told the judge that both he and the government had recently been informed that attorney Caree Harper, who has represented Houseton, filed a writ with the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals seeking a stay of the proceedings. Wilson briefly stepped away to determine whether that would impact the hearing but ultimately decided to proceed. Keenan told the judge that the government believed a prison sentence to be "unnecessary" and "unreasonable." In handing down his sentence, Wilson said that, in his view and the jury's view, Kirk's actions were "just plain inexplicable." He said that Kirk "knew there was no danger to himself or anyone else," before he pepper sprayed Houseton. "This was pretty awful," Wilson said. "Yes, it wasn't as terrible as many cases or most cases I see, but this is the case before. In my view, it can't go unpunished ... This is the way the court feels the ends of justice are achieved." Kirk agreed to surrender himself on Aug. 28. 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.
Los Angeles Times
02-06-2025
- Politics
- Los Angeles Times
How L.A.'s new top federal prosecutor erased felony verdict in L.A. deputy's excessive force case
It took a federal jury an hour to convict a Los Angeles County Sheriff's deputy of using excessive force after he assaulted and pepper-sprayed a woman outside a supermarket in Lancaster in 2023. The prosecutors made their case in a three-day trial in February, ultimately persuading jurors to find Trevor Kirk guilty of a felony count of deprivation of rights under color of law. Kirk faced up to 10 years in prison. But on Monday, U.S. District Judge Stephen V. Wilson sentenced Kirk to four months in prison, after last week granting the government's request to dismiss the felony charge. With that dismissal, Kirk faced up to a year in prison. Ahead of sentencing, the government had requested probation that included three months of home detention and 200 hours of community service. The defense team asked for a term of two months of home confinement and 300 hours of community service. 'In my view, the jury verdict was fully supported and the case was not unfairly argued, as the government at some early point argued,' Wilson said after handing down his sentence. 'The job of a police officer is a very difficult one ... but with those factors in mind, there is a responsibility to act appropriately.' Kirk declined to speak during the sentencing hearing. Tom Yu, an attorney representing Kirk, said they plan appeal Wilson's earlier denial of their motion for an acquittal. The sentencing capped off a controversial case that saw the federal government abandon a conviction and take the highly unusual legal step of offering Kirk a misdemeanor plea deal after jurors had spoken. That plea deal played a role in the resignation of several federal prosecutors last month and raised concerns over how the office will handle pending cases against law enforcement. The post-trial plea agreement landed the same week Trump issued an executive order vowing to 'unleash' American law enforcement, and it followed other recent controversies that have raised alarms about the eroding independence of the U.S. Justice Department under the Trump Administration. Seated in the front row of the packed courtroom Monday was U.S. Atty. for Los Angeles Bill Essayli, a staunch Trump ally and hard-line conservative who was appointed in April and under whom the felony verdict unraveled. Approached after the hearing, Essayli declined to comment. A federal jury indicted Kirk last September in connection with a June 2023 incident, in which the deputy — who was responding to a robbery report — threw a woman to the ground and pepper-sprayed her in the face while she filmed him outside a Lancaster WinCo. Although the woman matched the description of a female suspect Kirk had received from a dispatcher, she was not armed or committing a crime when he confronted her, court records show. Before the case went to trial, according to a motion filed by Asst. U.S. Atty. Robert J. Keenan, the government was willing to enter into a plea agreement that would have allowed Kirk to plead to a misdemeanor. Kirk instead took his chances on a jury trial and lost. In January, Nick Wilson, founder of a first-responder advocacy group and spokesperson for the Los Angeles Sheriff's Professional Assn., wrote to Trump urging him to intervene before the case went to trial. In the letter, he said left-wing activists wanted to make an example of Kirk. 'This case is about more than just one deputy, it's about the survival of law and order in America,' he wrote, according to screenshots of the letter posted on social media. 'If the radical left can destroy the career of a peace officer for simply doing his job, no officer is safe.' The trial went ahead anyway. In his opening statement on Feb. 4, Asst. U.S. Atty. Brian R. Faerstein told jurors that Kirk had used excessive force against the victim, Jacy Houseton, by slamming her to the ground and pepper spraying her 'when it was unnecessary to do so.' 'At the end of this trial, the United States will ask you to hold the defendant accountable for abusing his power and authority,' Faerstein said. Tom Yu, Kirk's attorney, told the jury that Kirk had relied on his training to deal with a 'resistant suspect.' 'There is a world of difference between a use of force and excessive force,' he said. Two days later, the jury returned with a guilty verdict. Essayli was sworn in as the new U.S. attorney on April 2. The following week, prosecutors on the Kirk case filed a motion to delay the sentencing hearing because Essayli wanted to review the case. When asked about the review, the U.S. attorney's office said former U.S. Atty. Martin Estrada in March 2023 established an executive position within the office to address ethics and post-conviction issues. The office said it gets requests to review cases pre-and post-conviction, but declined to comment on how many cases have been reviewed since 2023. Estrada did not respond to an e-mail seeking comment on the Kirk case last week and declined to speak to a Times reporter when approached in person. Soon after his appointment, Essayli requested that the Riverside County district attorney's office 'conduct an independent and impartial review of the case and evidence in the Kirk matter,' according to District Attorney Mike Hestrin. 'I assigned a team of experienced investigators and prosecutors to thoroughly review the evidence and case details, evaluating what, if any, charges we would consider for prosecution had the case been submitted to us for potential filing,' Hestrin said in a statement. The U.S. attorney's office declined to comment on why Essayli involved the Riverside County district attorney's office in a federal case out of Lancaster. A legal expert called the move highly unusual. 'I think it looks like he was trying to shore up evidence to find the result he was looking for. The fact that he went outside the office is an indication he wasn't getting the support that he wanted from the prosecutors within the office,' said Carley Palmer, a former federal prosecutor in Los Angeles who is now a partner at Halpern May Ybarra Gelberg LLP. Given the allegations of partisanship swirling around the case, Palmer also questioned why Essayli didn't ask the Los Angeles County district attorney's office to lead the review, given Dist. Atty. Nathan Hochman's status as a political independent. 'It does seem like if you were looking for additional takes on this case, it might make sense to go to the former federal prosecutor now working across the street now managing the county where the crime took place,' said Palmer. A spokesman for the L.A. County district attorney's office said Essayli has never contacted Hochman about the Kirk case. In April, Wilson denied a motion from Yu for an acquittal. The judge ruled that footage of the incident was sufficient evidence for a jury to find that Kirk used 'objectively unreasonable force.' On April 22, the judge refused the government's request to postpone Kirk's sentencing. Two days later, according to Hestrin, the Riverside County prosecutors and investigators Essayli tapped to review the case attended a meeting in L.A. with the U.S. attorney and his staff to present their findings and recommendations. When asked what those findings and recommendations were, the Riverside County district attorney's office referred that question to the U.S. attorney's office, which declined to comment. On May 1, the government filed a 'post-trial' plea agreement under which Kirk would plead guilty to misdemeanor violation of deprivation of rights under color of law. The downgrade to a misdemeanor is significant as Kirk would have lost the right to be a law enforcement officer or own a gun with a felony conviction. The only assistant U.S. attorney who signed off on the plea agreement, Robert J. Keenan, was not previously involved in the case. The next day, the original prosecutors involved all withdrew from the case. Last week, Wilson rejected the plea agreement — which recommended that Kirk be sentenced to probation. But the judge granted the prosecution's motion to lessen the charges against the deputy to a misdemeanor — despite the jury conviction.
