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WASHINGTON ¡ª The number of laid-off Americans applying for unemployment benefits fell to roughly 880,000 last week, a sign of possible improvement but evidence that the viral pandemic keeps forcing many businesses to slash jobs. The latest figures, released Thursday by the Labor Department, suggest that nearly six months after the eruption of the coronavirus, the economy is still struggling to sustain a recovery and rebuild a job market that was devastated by the recession. All told, the government said that 13.3 million people are continuing to receive traditional jobless benefits, up from 1.7 million a year ago. 629

VISTA, Calif. (KGTV) - A North County prosecutor told a judge at an emotional hearing Tuesday that the husband accused of killing his estranged wife and her sister in Escondido admitted to the murders with qualifiers.Juan Carlos Ortega, 33, appeared in Vista court at an arraignment for last week¡¯s deaths. Firefighters found the body of 26-year-old Ana Soto in a burning white SUV at the corner of Country Club and Kauana Loa drives in the Harmony Grove area Thursday morning.RELATED: Escondido police: Burned-out SUV tied to home where woman was found deadA trace on the SUV¡¯s license plate led to a home on West 11th Avenue, where police found the body of Veronica Soto Ortega. Two young children were sleeping inside the house and taken into protective custody.About 14 hours after the discovery of his wife¡¯s body, homicide detectives arrested Soto Ortega's husband, Juan Carlos Ortega, at his Carlsbad workplace, police said.Ortega is being held without bail. He is being charged with two counts of capital murder, which carry the possibility of the death penalty or life in prison without parole. There is also a special circumstance of lying in wait. RELATED: Suspect arrested in connection with deaths of 2 women in EscondidoDozens of family members attended Tuesday¡¯s arraignment. The mother of one of the victims became emotional and had to be carried from the courtroom.City News Service contributed to this report. 1460

VISTA (CNS) - A man who fatally beat his cousin in the front yard of an Oceanside home was convicted Thursday of second-degree murder.Joel Cardona, 37, was found guilty for the Aug. 2, 2018, death of Nestor Jurado, 37, following a trial that began last week at the Vista courthouse. A sentencing date has not yet been set, but the second-degree murder conviction means Cardona faces at least 15 years to life in state prison.Cardona was arrested on the morning of Aug. 2 during a tussle with Jurado in front of a home on Arthur Avenue, according to police and prosecutors. Jurado was unconscious by the time officers arrived and arrested Cardona, and medics tried in vain to revive him before pronouncing him dead at the scene.RELATED: Oceanside Police: Man dies after fistfight with relativeThe motive for the fight and subsequent killing was unclear.A Feb. 18 court date was set, during which Cardona's prior convictions will be reviewed, potentially affecting his sentence. 984

VISTA (KGTV) ¡ª A driver accused of crossing into wrong-way traffic and killing an Escondido cyclist turned to a witness after the crash and said, ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± before speeding off, according to court testimony Tuesday.Jamison Connor, 41, appeared in a Vista courtroom for a preliminary hearing on several charges. Judge Carlos Armour determined there is enough evidence against Connor to proceed to trial, which was tentatively set for June 2.Connor is accused in the hit-and-run crash that killed 36-year-old Kevin Lentz.RELATED: Suspect accused of hitting, killing Escondido cyclist makes court appearanceFriends mourn bicyclist killed in hit-and-run crashLentz was cycling with a group along La Honda Road north of El Norte Parkway when he was hit head-on Nov. 23, 2019.Officers initially arrested Connor on an unrelated parole warrant for suspected drug and weapons violations, but quickly linked him to the deadly crash.¡°I feel like the evidence is very, very strong and so that helps me be a little more confident that there will be justice in this,¡± said Devin Rickey, one of several friends who attended Tuesday¡¯s preliminary hearing.RELATED: Grieving family learns of hit-and-run arrest on Thanksgiving holidayAn Escondido police officer testified at the hearing that after the crash, a witness tried to follow the fleeing sedan. The driver turned to the witness and said, ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± before taking off, Officer Trent Aronson testified. 1453

Volkswagen has been fined another €800 million (6 million) over its diesel emissions scandal, this time because of failings at its Audi subsidiary.Volkswagen said Tuesday it accepted the fine imposed by German prosecutors, waving its right to appeal. It said the penalty would hit earnings this year."As a negative special item, [it will] reduce the group earnings for fiscal year 2018 accordingly," it said in a statement.The penalty by Munich prosecutors is just the latest consequence of the scandal that emerged in 2015 and initially wiped out billions off the company's value.Volkswagen admitted cheating on clean air rules with software that made emissions look less toxic than they actually were.The fine concludes the Munich prosecutors' investigation into the company. However, probes into executives, including Audi's former CEO Rupert Stadler, continue, the prosecutors said.The €800 million fine comprises a €5 million penalty for administrative offenses, the maximum allowed under German law.On top of that, prosecutors ordered Volkswagen to repay €795 million they said the company made from the cheating. The prosecutors said this included profits from the sales of affected vehicles.In this case, the diesel emissions cheating affected nearly 5 million cars sold by the Volkswagen group in Europe and the United States, prosecutors said. Specifically, it concerned V6 and V8 diesel engines manufactured by Audi and installed in Audi, Volkswagen and Porsche brands, and Audi vehicles equipped with EA 189 and EA 288 engine made by Volkswagen.Shares in Volkswagen (VLKAF) and Audi (AUDVF) were trading higher on Tuesday. Volkswagen stock is down 11 percent so far this year. 1699

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