Through the smoke billowing out from the two explosions and amidst the screams of those injured and scared, a modern tool stepped up in the chaos to bring needed information and a semblance of order during the horrific attack Monday, April 15 on the Boston Marathon. Twitter, the modern-day ally who aided so much in the reporting of Tunisia and the Middle East rebellions, once again provided a forum for all those seeking to find and put out information in second-by-second updates.

The bombs went off at 3 p.m. along Boylston Street, Boston, as seen here on this graphic created by The New York Times, about an hour and a half after the first runners of the Boston Marathon crossed the finish line. Pictures, videos, and tweets were almost immediately posted online as Boston Police and other officials directed the uninjured to evacuation routes, and medical personnel rushed into the smoke, broken glass, and blood.

Photographers, news stations, and friends and family members of the runners all held cell phone cameras to record what should have been a wonderful moment of accomplishment, with many snapping photos in the otherwise clear afternoon light. Though the pictures and videos rapidly turned grim, reporters and authorities were quick to utilize the advantage these recordings provided. The Boston Police department’s twitter page put up a tweets such as that an explosion did indeed occur, and kept updating the page with information on what citizens of Boston were expected to do.

As more and more images went up, police were able to have before and after pictures of the finish line and of at least one of the bomb sites. Any possible way investigators can piece together what happened is crucial.

The ability to use Twitter also allowed civilians, both those caught in the attack and those with friends or family in the area, to reassure one another of their locations and safety, even though authorities, to prevent any remote detonations, shut down cell phone service in the Boston area. Through texting, Twitter, and Facebook, people were able to find their loved ones, and find information on where to go or how to help.

Many other sites and organizations used Twitter as a posting board, putting up links to other sources of information and aid. Google put up a reminder about their Google Person Finder program, a system that allows you to enter in a person’s name or information and uses it much like a status, searching their database and others like it for matching or related information. This allows people to help one another find their loved ones during times when phones are disabled.

The Red Cross used Twitter to inform the public that they, at that time, did have enough donated blood to meet the demand. This was important to get out, as some of the runners who were not injured by the blasts headed towards the nearest hospital with the goal to give blood. The extra people milling about the emergency rooms and lobbies were an unneeded distraction with the hundreds of victims being rushed in.

News reporters and even the White House used the social media to update the American people on what was being done and when to expect more information. At 6:00 p.m. that day, three hours after the first explosion, the official White House twitter page announced when President Obama would address the nation. 

What all this boils down to is that in our age of the Internet, information can be updated again and again as new facts and new events are happening, even in the middle of a confusing and shocking crisis. In this way, officials can get out necessary information, can utilize the eyes and experiences of witnesses, and people can find their loved ones in an amazingly short time. For all the bad talk that this generation of technology gets, its uses in times of trouble are many and, as this event shows, are rapidly becoming invaluable.

Image credit: R.I.P. Boston Bombing

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All over social media sites like Twitter and Facebook there has been a growing outcry at CNN’s coverage of the Steubenville Rape Trial. During the recent six minute news item, most of the time was spent commenting on how distressful and emotional the trial was for the two criminals.

CNN first addressed the two rapists, Trent Mays (17) and Ma’lik Richmond (16), as star football players and as the report progressed the praise grew. Poppy Harlow, who sat in the court room during the trial, mentioned how these “two young men with promising futures, star football players and good students watched as their lives fell apart.” To add to this, she mentioned how emotional it was to sit in the court room as the two rapists were found guilty of raping an intoxicated 16 year old girl.

Only a few comments were made about the young victim, and not one of them was about how vicious the offence inflicted on her was. The two men raped, videoed and took pictures of the young girl but instead, Poppy Harlow chose to focus on Malik crying when he heard his sentence.

And then viewers watched as the two men stood and apologised to the family of the young girl, their family and to the community – again Poppy Harlow mentioned how hard it was to watch the scene.

The report ended with Paul Callan, CNN’s legal contributor, talking about how hard life will be for the two men and how the consequences of their horrendous actions will follow them for the rest of their lives, without a single mention of how this is justified.

Rightly so, many people became angry from the report and voiced their outcry on Twitter, Facebook and other social networking site. But some went a step further. Gabriel Garcia started an online petition to have CNN apologise on air for their report. On the site he wrote:

That CNN decided to paint the tears of the convicted Steubenville rapists in a sympathetic light and say how their lives were ruined — while completely ignoring the fact that the rape victim’s life is the one whose life was ruined by these rapists’ actions — is disgusting and helps perpetuate a shameful culture in which young people never understand the concept of consent and in which rape victims are blamed and ostracized. Changing that culture must be done brick by brick, and it can start by heaping public shame on this major cable news network and forcing them to admit that they are wrong. Publicly.

Around 230,000 people have signed it some of them including their own reasons for doing so including Danielle Hauck, Huntingdon, PA who wrote:

These boys were rapists. They knew what they were doing. To say that their poor little lives were ruined for RAPING SOMEONE? They deserve far more than serving a year in Juvie and being registered as a sex offender for life. Disgusting, CNN. That poor young woman who was assaulted… and then made into the perpetrator rather than the victim? Absolutely foul and inhuman.

TheWrap have allegedly been told by two insiders at CNN, that Poppy Harlow is aware of the outrage and has been badly affected by it. They state that “Poppy is taking this extremely personally as a woman,” said one executive. “She’s outraged that someone would think she’d do such a thing” as slant her coverage toward rapists. “It’s gotten so out of control.”

Poppy Harlow has said nothing publically and CNN has yet to respond to the demand. But if they are hoping that this issue will simply go away they should think twice. People interested in justice will continue champion for the victim in this trial and all cases of sexual assault, even when News programs such as CNN let us down.

Image Courtesy : Marsmet523

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Thursday, January 24, California Senator Dianne Feinstein introduced the Assault Weapons Ban of 2013. Before 10 assault weapons, the Senator delineated some 150 firearms to be prohibited from sale, transfer, import and manufacture for their, ‘dangerous, military-style’ nature. The ban does provide exemptions for thousands of hunting and sporting rifles as well as guns operated manually by bolt, pump, lever and slide-action.

It also provides exemption for weapons used by government officials, law enforcement and retired law enforcement.

Senator Feinstein defended her assault on automatic and semi-automatic weapons by invoking the December 14 Elementary School massacre at Sandy Hook. “The future of the nation is at stake,” stated the Senator, magnifying the bill as a package to stop mass-murders by stemming the deadly tide of their weapons of choice.

The same day of Senator Feinstein’s presentation, the conservative Breitbart News reported at least two stories where the assault rifle AR-15 Bushmaster deterred home invasions by its supremacy over concealed arms used by would-be robbers.

The AR-15 was the weapon used by Adam Lanza at Sandy Hook to senselessly massacre small school children.

To Senator Feinstein’s credit, her bill does not seem to discriminate between concealed weapons and rifles, targeting at least 30 automatic pistols. Indeed, Senator Feinstein’s 2013 Assault Weapons Ban prohibits magazines carrying more than 10 bullets, hoping to belittle the god-complex of dangerous sociopaths that enjoy dealing death at random.

However, what will an assault weapons ban really accomplish? Besides further stigmatizing guns and those that use them, it reframes usage as a criminal activity rather than an American right.

Chicago, for example, boasts some of the strictest gun laws and saw record gun-related homicides this year upwards of 500.

Famously, Major Rudy Giuliani combated the New York crime wave by placing more guns on the street by prioritizing policing and the NYPD. He went on to be voted the second most popular Major in the history of New York.

Senator Feinstein’s home state of California faces precinct closures and record gun sales as citizens seek to comfort their nerves by replacing an active police force with a paranoid home defense. Interestingly enough, cash strapped California continues to pay top dollar to psychiatrists, hoping that preventative medicine might cope with the scourge of criminalism.

But tax funded million dollar salaries to penitentiary psychiatrists and preventative gun bans cannot hope to replace the heart and soul of a humble and dedicated armed police force facing a large armed citizenry sending gun sales nation-wide to record heights.

Gun sales rose in 48 out of 50 states in 2012, and the December statistics for background checks rose in every single state of the Union. Last December, sales numbers tell the story of a scared constituency; the top 5 states recorded 60% growth in the wake of Sandy Hook.

As the country mourned, Massachusetts alone saw a 36% rise in gun permits. Shop keepers noted that women increasingly purchase guns, accounting for a third of customers now where once they were seldom seen.

The FBI also noted the rising popularity of guns post Sandy Hook by reporting 39% rise in background checks to set a new monthly record.

Directly following the Sandy Hood tragedy, the Pew Research Center for People and Press conducted a poll where still only half the polled believed the gun control superseded the American right to bear arms.

Pew did note the 65% of respondents believed that assault weapon ownership made the nation more dangerous – not safer. The typical concealed pistol, however, now, by and large, classifies as assault due to its automatic capabilities.

So while the liberal media played shock journalism and pointed fingers at conservatives during the Presidential decree to join the residents and victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre in grief, the nation continued to arm itself.

David Gregory, in a December 23 broadcast of ‘Meet the Press,’ illegally brandished an automatic magazine banned from the District of Columbia to shock his viewership into appeasing liberals who wish to criminalize guns and their culture.

Ironically, as police investigated his brazen behavior, the President of the United States paid a surprise visit to boost ratings of the flagging show and talk about his take of the Fiscal Cliff talks.

Perhaps there is a cognitive dissonance in the media.

President Obama himself, in a pre-taped discussion with Barbara Walters on ‘Nightline’, December 26, joked that he ran for President so that his daughters could hang out with ‘men with guns.’ Both the President and Chicago Major Rahm Emanuel send their children to schools with an armed guard.

And yet the liberal media cries foul when the NRA concluded its Sandy Hook silence to propose a Federal mandate to arm all schools such that the misbegotten can not so hideously waltz into institutions of learning and commit murder.

So Thurday, January 3, the Sandy Hook Elementary School reopened under armed guard. A concerned police presence identified grown-ups and insured the students that they went to the most secure school in America.

Marlboro, New Jersey followed similar protocols, posting an armed and uniformed officer at each of the eight elementary schools and middle schools.

Since 2007, the Harrods, Texas school board has allowed for teachers to carry concealed weapons to ensure a minimal level of protection in the face of a stringent budget that does not provide for an armed guard.

Spokespeople for Oklahoma, Missouri, Minnestota, South Dakota and Oregon have all stated that they will consider similar methods.

Indeed, the Fontana, California school district just bought 14 AR-15s to police itself.

President Clinton, in 2000, on the one year anniversary of the ignominious Columbine School shooting, announced $120 million in federal grants to promote his ‘COPS in Schools,’ program.

Certainly it is too soon for the rabid liberal media to admit that good-guys with guns stop bad-guys with guns.

Perhaps we will have to witness the Democratic machine stall in a contested political atmosphere before the sober minded remind the nation of the now bi-partisan wish to dedicate as much fire-power in the protection of our school children as we do to foreign wars.

Image Courtesy :  paljoakim

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The numbness of grief, the feeling of loneliness, and the reliance of faith when in despair are common humanly reactions, that may be anyone’s reality by chance. We live in an era, where “moving on” and “letting go” are default expectations after the death of a loved one. But what if a son did not want to be separated from his deceased father; what if faith was stronger than death. Recently, the Associated Press reported a strange case of a distraught son who wasn’t quite ready to let his father go.

The two unidentified brothers, aged 38 and 48, allegedly stole their father’s coffin after the burial ceremony had been delayed due to heavy rain. The elder brother particularly had an exceptionally hard time accepting his father’s passing especially after the recent death of his mother. Nevertheless, both sons of the late 92-year-old Clarence Street, were arrested after police officers found an empty casket inside their van at the Citgo gas station, a mile away from the location where the body was soon discovered.

This bizarre situation started to unfold as the Detroit police was notified that a white van and a purple pickup entered the Gethsemane Cemetery and allegedly left with a casket from the mausoleum. According to Detroit news, the estimated time of disappearance was between 8 am and 9:30 am on Monday. The next day, officers tracked the van and found the vacant coffin, then later the body of Mr. Street. That morning the body was found “intact and unharmed” in a freezer belonging to the elder brother in the basement of a two-story wooden house located on the 4600 block of Eastlawn Street.

Lieutenant Harold Rochon told Detroit news that the 48-year-old Detroit man, “was very, very, very distraught; he is very religious, and he was hoping his father would be resurrected. He was hoping for a miracle.” The 48-year-old brother is believed to have mental problems according to investigators after an interview was conducted. The police refused to reveal the names of the two brothers and had not charged them with anything yet as the investigation is still ongoing.

Initially, the burial ceremony was scheduled to be on Saturday but was delayed until Monday due to a storm. Currently, Mr. Street’s body rests is in the Detroit Swanson Funeral Home. According to Mr. Rochon, the burial has been rescheduled and now, family members are looking for another casket. If found guilty, the brothers may be charged with disinterment, a crime that may resort up to 10 years in prison. Currently, the men are undergoing a forensic examination to determine whether they should be charged or not.

From dust we were created, and to dust we shall return. Sometimes people have a hard time coping with grief and being separated from recently deceased loved ones. And sometimes people have a really, really hard time coping with grief, hence the case of the Street was born.

Image Courtesy : MudflapDC

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On Friday, December 14, 20-year-old Adam Lanza opened fire at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown Connecticut. Reportedly 28 people were killed in total, including 20 children and the shooter himself.

Lanza had at least three guns with him: a Glock and a Sig Sauer, which he brought into the school, and a .233-caliber rifle, which he left in the back seat of his car. He had hundreds of rounds and no apparent motive. He killed many innocent people before he took his own life. When police arrived, children were led away with their eyes closed, so they could not see the horrors behind them.

The shooter said nothing as he shot students in two classrooms.

Parents rushed to pick up their students, shocked and terrified. Stephen Delgiadice, whose 8-year-old daughter attends the elementary school, said “It’s alarming, especially in Newtown, Connecticut, which we always thought was the safest place in America.”

The Newtown Bee chronicles the heroes that risked their lives to save others. A janitor ran throughout the rooms, warning everyone about what was happening and checking to make sure doors were locked from the inside. Teachers and students locked themselves in classrooms, hiding in closets and corners of the room as gunfire echoed down the halls. Principal Dawn Hochsprung, just coming out of a meeting, warned other teachers behind her to lock the door before confronting Lanza head on. She was shot moments later. Someone in the office had turned on the intercom, broadcasting the shots to the rest of the school as a final warning to protect the students. The quick thinking of these and many more saved the lives of many.

This shooting is the second worst in U.S. history, following the 33 dead in the Virginia Tech massacre in 2007. Connecticut citizens remember Columbine school as well, when 15 students were killed in 1999.

According to the Chicago Tribune, police “believed [Adam] to suffer from a personality disorder.” He lived with his mother Nancy Lanza, the first victim of his attack. He then went to the Sandy Hook, where police speculate Nancy may have worked as a substitute teacher, to open fire in the classrooms. A majority of the students were between the ages of five and nine.

A teary-eyed President Obama called for action to stop these senseless killings, adding that “[the students] had their entire lives ahead of them — birthdays, graduations, wedding, kids of their own. Among the fallen were also teachers, men and women who devoted their lives to helping our children.” The shooting has brought the subject of gun control up for debate once more as relatives, friends and neighbors mourn their loss.

A candlelight vigil was held at St. Rose of Lima Church, where hundreds of people gathered to pray for the families of the victims.

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Joseph Kalbfell, a 54-year-old Salem, Ohio man is awaiting the verdict in his trial for importuning a minor for sexual activity. Prosecutors allege that Kalbfell offered to perform oral sex on a 12-year-old boy. In addition to the now 14-year-old boy, other witnesses testified that a man believed to be Kalbfell also made lewd comments to three young girls and another young boy.

In the charged offense, the boy claimed he was pushing his bicycle when a man in a gray van commented on his posterior. The boy responded with a derogatory comment and the man then allegedly offered to perform oral sex on the boy. The boy repeated the derogatory term and the man drove away. Kalbfell denies soliciting the boy and told police the boy made up the story against him because Kalbfell refused to give him a cigarette.

Ohio’s Importuning Laws

The state of Ohio has strict laws regarding the importuning (solicitation) of minors for sexual activity. The criminal statute prohibiting importuning creates separate offenses based on the age of the alleged minor victim and the relative age of the alleged offender. It clearly says that “[n]o person shall solicit a person who is less than thirteen years of age to engage in sexual activity with the offender, whether or not the offender knows the age of such person.”

The statute prohibits the solicitation of a minor age 13, 14 or 15 years old for sexual conduct when the alleged offender is 18 years old or older and is at least four years older than the minor. Whether the alleged offender knew the minor’s age is irrelevant. When the minor is age 16 or 17 and the alleged offender is 18 years old or older (and at least four years older than the minor), the alleged offender must have at least recklessly disregarded the minor’s age.

The Ohio legislature clearly structured the statute to only criminalize sexual conduct involving very young minors and when the relative age difference is such that the minor may not be in full control of the situation. What the statute does not criminalize is sexual activity involving two consenting teenagers 13 and older as long as the age difference is not four years or more.

Potential Penalties

The consequences for importuning a minor of any age are serious. Even a first offense involving a minor under 13 is a third degree felony and “there is a presumption that a prison term [between nine and 36 months] shall be imposed.” If the alleged offender “previously has been convicted of a sexually oriented offense or a child-victim oriented offense,” the offense becomes a felony of the second degree carrying a mandatory prison sentence of two to eight years.

Importuning a minor 13 or older is a felony of the fifth degree and a prison term of six to 12 months is presumed on a first offense. If the alleged offender “previously has been convicted of a sexually oriented offense or a child-victim oriented offense,” the offense is a fourth degree felony with a mandatory prison term of six to 18 months.

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Many motorists are aware of the risks associated with distracted driving; however, drivers continue to engage in this dangerous practice. Various news sources have detailed the hazards associated with texting, eating or talking on the phone while driving. However, sources report that there is a new problem on the horizon–webbing.

According to a new study by State Farm, Internet surfing on portable devices while driving is the latest danger. The practice, also known as “webbing,” is particularly common among teens. The frequency of this practice among young drivers has increased from 29 percent in 2009 to 48 percent in 2012.

While webbing is common for younger motorists, State Farm asserts that motorists of all ages are webbing while driving. Between 2009 and 2012, research found that the number of drivers using the Internet while operating a vehicle increased to 21 percent from 13 percent for all age groups.

California put laws into effect in 2008 and 2009, which restrict drivers from texting or using a cellphone while driving.

In 2008, the state completely prohibited the use of a cellphone while driving. Therefore, a driver cannot talk on a wireless phone while driving unless he or she is using a hands-free device, such as a Bluetooth, headset or car kit.

Including penalty assessments, the fine for a first offense is $76. A second offense is $190. A violation of the handheld cell phone ban is a reportable offense, which appears on a violator’s driving record.

All minors are prohibited from using wireless devices use while driving, including hands-free devices.

Furthermore, a motorist cannot write, transmit or read text-based communication on an electric wireless communications device while driving a motor vehicle. The law specifies that a driver may not use the Internet or send emails on a cellphone while driving. These activities are illegal even if the motorist is stopped in traffic.

The fine for violating this anti-texting law is $20 for the first offense and $50 for each subsequent offense. However, additional penalty assessments can add to the fines.

While states have used legislative efforts to prevent distracted driving, motorists continue to take serious risks on the road. Unfortunately, all it takes is a simple text message to compromise the life of another.

If you have been injured in a distracted driving accident, you should contact an experienced personal injury attorney today.

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A high school student’s hopes for leniency from an Ohio court were dashed recently when he was sentenced to life in prison without parole for his part in a series of killings.

The 17-year-old defendant was charged with aggravated murder and attempted murder in the deaths of three men and the wounding of another. He was allegedly an accomplice in a plot hatched by an older man to lure victims with a phony Craigslist posting.

The posting was for a job opportunity doing farm labor. Three men in their 40s or 50s were killed, one near Akron and the others in southeastern Ohio at a farm where they had come expecting job interviews.

The victims were selected because they were single, out of work and unlikely to raise red flags with law enforcement if they disappeared. Robbery was the motive for the crimes, said prosecutors.

The man who escaped death was lured like the others by the promise of an employment opportunity. When the potential victim showed up at the farm, the older man tried to shoot him, but succeeded only in wounding him in the arm as he fled.

Boy Claimed Influence From “Evil” Adult

The wounded man testified at the 17-year-old’s trial, identifying him as the 53-year-old shooter’s accomplice. Prosecutors did not claim that the teen had actually shot any of the victims himself.

The older man, who has a prison record and presented himself as an Akron street minister, apparently had become the young man’s spiritual mentor. The youth claimed that he could not see his way clear to any alternatives when he was drawn into the murder plot, though he now realized that his mentor is evil.

The teen’s defense attorneys had asked the judge to consider that the youth came from a broken home and had no prior record, and to take his age into account. Additionally, the high schooler said he did not realize that his mentor intended to murder the men until he shot the first victim.

Pleas For Leniency Denied

The young man’s defense attorneys tried to negotiate a more lenient sentence in exchange for testimony against the triggerman in his upcoming trial, and sentencing was briefly delayed for talks. The attorneys had hoped for a deal that would allow the young man to be released within 20 to 30 years.

In the end, the judge said that despite any mitigating factors the defense presented, the killings were cold-blooded executions, and the 17-year-old had had an opportunity to stop them.

Every case is different, and every defendant is innocent until proven guilty. Having a capable defense attorney is a criminal defendant’s best chance for acquittal or a reduced sentence. Whatever the outcome, it is wise to engage an experienced criminal defense attorney, because life and liberty may be at stake.

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Washington, U.S.A. — Strangers committed about 1.8 million nonfatal violent crimes in 2010, or about 38 percent of all nonfatal violent victimizations during the year, the Justice Department’s Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) announced on December 11. This represents a 77 percent decline from 7.9 million nonfatal violent crimes committed by strangers in 1993, according to the earliest available data from the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS).

During a more recent period from 2001 to 2010, the rate of violence committed by strangers declined 47 percent and the rate committed by offenders the victims knew declined by 41 percent. The percentage declines for these two rates were not statistically different.

In the NCVS, nonfatal violent crimes include rape, sexual assault, robbery, aggravated assault and simple assault. Simple assault (assault not involving an injury or a weapon) made up 60 percent of violent victimizations committed by strangers in 2010, followed by aggravated assault (20 percent), robbery (17 percent) and rape or sexual assault (two percent).

More than half (52 percent) of all robberies in 2005-10 were committed by strangers, down from nearly two-thirds (64 percent) of robberies in 1993-98. Aggravated assaults and simple assaults committed by strangers also declined between the two periods, while the percentage of rapes and sexual assaults remained stable.

Based on data from the FBI’s Supplementary Homicide Reports (SHR), among homicides in which the victim-offender relationship could be determined, strangers committed between 21 percent and 27 percent of homicides from 1993 to 2008, compared to between 73 percent and 79 percent of homicides committed by offenders known to the victims.

In 2010, males (9.5 victimizations per 1,000 males) experienced violence by strangers at nearly twice the rate of females (4.7 per 1,000). From 1993 to 2010, males (down 83 percent) experienced a larger decline than females (down 76 percent) in the rate of violence committed by strangers.

In each time period studied, young adults ages 18 to 24, people who were never married, and American Indians or Alaska Natives had the highest rates of violent victimization by a stranger among all groups in the respective categories. In 2005-10, people age 65 or older experienced the lowest rates (1.6 per 1,000) of violent victimization by strangers.

Other findings from 2005-10 include:

• Persons in urban areas experienced higher rates of violent victimizations by strangers than persons in suburban and rural areas.
• A higher percentage of violence by strangers occurred in public places (51 percent) (e.g., commercial establishments, parking lots or garages, open areas, streets or aboard public transportation) than in private places (26 percent).
• Strangers committed about nine percent of violent crimes that occurred in the victim’s home.
• About half of violent victimizations committed by strangers occurred while the victims were away from home traveling, shopping or doing leisure activities.
• About 10 percent of violent crimes committed by strangers involved a firearm, compared to five percent of violent crimes committed by someone the victim knew.
• About 22 percent of victims of violence committed by strangers were injured, compared to 31 percent of victims who knew the offender.

The NCVS collects information from victims on the frequency, characteristics and consequences of criminal victimization, using a nationally representative sample of about 40,000 households comprising nearly 75,000 persons. In the FBI’s SHR program, a part of the Uniform Crime Reporting program, law enforcement agencies report monthly supplemental data about homicide incidents with details on location, victim, and offender characteristics.

The report, Violent Victimization Committed by Strangers, 1993-2010 (NCJ 239424), was written by BJS statistician Erika Harrell. The report, related documents and additional information about the Bureau of Justice Statistics’ statistical publications and programs can be found on the BJS website at http://www.bjs.gov.

Image Courtesy : Daryl Lang / Shutterstock.com

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Israel Keyes killed himself in his Alaska jail cell this past week, ending a reign of terror that is mostly untold. At the time of his death, he had admitted to killing eight victims from 2001 to 2012, though investigators suspect there are at least three more. Authorities believe that they know approximately half of the crimes Keyes committed during his 34 years of life.

Keyes both slit his wrists with a razor blade and strangled himself with his bed linens. He was discovered on Sunday, December 2, but it is not clear as of now which one of these actually killed him.

Keyes’ final crime, which led to his arrest, was the kidnapping, sexual assault and murder of Samantha Koenig of Anchorage, Alaska. The 18-year-old girl was killed soon after she was abducted but the search continued for a month. The FBI based their search off of a hooded figure withdrawing money from an ATM in Texas in Koenig’s name, as well as driving her rented Ford Focus. When he was brought to the jail, he was facing federal murder and kidnapping charges, but investigators soon discovered much more.

The New York Times reports that law enforcement has “produced detailed timelines of Mr. Keyes’s extensive road trips — driving thousands of miles, by his own account, over the last decade — and [is] trying to match missing persons reports with his travels.” They are searching for bodies nationwide, in Washington, Texas, New York, Wyoming, and Vermont. Keyes admitted to the murders of Bill and Lorraine Currier in Vermont, an open-ended case from June 2011. The couple was supposedly randomly chosen, but Keyes had carefully planned the murder, and their bodies were never found. The details of the other murders are not precise.

FBI Special Agent Jolene Goeden told the Huffington Post that Keyes “enjoyed it. He liked what he was doing. He talked about getting a rush out of it, the adrenalin, the excitement out of it.” His only concern was how it would affect his girlfriend and daughter

Keyes was very good at covering up his tracks, leaving no trace of himself behind at the murder scenes. Investigators had no idea that his crimes were so extensive when he was brought in, with a list including rape, arson and armed robbery of banks. He was also a meticulous planner, stashing “murder kits” to use for hiding bodies. These kits included things like guns, ammunition, trash bags and bottles of Drano, according to USA Today.

Detective Sgt. Cliff Harrold of the Lane County, Ore. Sheriff’s Office, believes that two Oregon teachers, Steven Haugen and his girlfriend Jeanette Bauman, were part of Keyes’ campaign. He believes that their disappearance lines up with the timeline of one of Keyes’ cross-country treks. Harrold stated, “We’ll see if there’s anything that they’ve learned in their investigation that will link it to our open case.”

Keyes’ first crime was the rape of a teenage girl in Oregon, the only one of his victims that he did not kill. He admits to knowing the girl personally, unlike any of his other victims. The girl would be in her 20′s-30′s now.

The New York Times reports that authorities are rushing to uncover more information: “What makes the task even more chilling and urgent, the authorities said, is that every crime he spoke about in detail after his arrest was substantiated.”

It is believed that the continuing investigation will uncover only more horrors of Keyes’ past. He will be buried on Sunday in Washington.

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Los Angeles, U.S.A — On Friday, October 26 , The Bradley Manning Support Network is proud to present an evening in support of Army PFC Bradley Manning , the accused WikiLeaks whistle-blower. The night will feature a discussion led by Bradley Manning Support Network organizer Emma Cape, as well as an intimate acoustic performance by legendary singer-songwriter Graham Nash.

The event will be held at Church in Ocean Park (235 Hill Street, Santa Monica, California  90405) and is set to begin at 7:30pm. A limited number of tickets are available starting today at 12pm PDT for$70 in advance or $90 at the door. Donors may also purchase a special pre-performance reception withGraham Nash, which includes a show ticket, for $300. All tickets are tax-deductible contributions, minus$25 per ticket.

PFC Bradley Manning is a 24-year-old soldier and alleged source of WikiLeaks documents that reveal a pattern of unpunished war crimes in the Middle East and secret corporate influence on foreign policy around the world. Shortly before arrest, he said, “I want people to know the truth, because without information, you cannot make informed decisions as a public.”

While Bradley Manning has risen to the forefront as an icon of the anti-war and government transparency movements, and has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize as a result, he currently faces life in prison at the hands of a furious military prosecution bent on discouraging U.S. whistle-blowers.

The Bradley Manning Support Network, a cooperative effort of organizations and activists around the world, including prominent Pentagon Papers whistle-blower Daniel Ellsberg, exists to raise legal fees and organize public support against Bradley’s unduly harsh treatment.

One of music’s most legendary singer-songwriters and vocal harmonists, Graham Nash has been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame twice—with The Hollies and Crosby, Stills & Nash—and is in the Songwriters Hall of Fame. He is also an internationally renowned photographer and digital imaging pioneer.

For tickets and more info, please visit: www.bradleymanning.org/tickets.

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New York, U.S.A. – For the eleventh anniversary of 9/11, AJC Executive Director David Harris issued the following statement:

“Eleven years ago, our city and nation suffered monstrous acts of terrorism. We were attacked by radical Islamist forces not for a specific policy, but for who we are — an open, democratic, pluralistic society.

“We remember the cherished lives of the nearly 3,000 people who were murdered on that fateful day, a day seared into our memory forever.

“We can only begin to imagine the enduring pain — and irretrievable loss — of the families, friends, and colleagues of those who were slain.

“And we recall the extraordinary courage of those who put their own lives on the line—and, in many cases, sacrificed their lives—so that others might live.

“Painful memories will always remain, as they should, but remembrance stirs us to reflect on both the evil and, yes, the good that emerged on that tragic day and in its aftermath.

“The good is rooted in the heart and soul of American society. Right after 9/11, as a country, we stood as one. We were all in this together—as proud, strong, determined Americans. We must never lose that sense of common destiny.

“Memories and reflections of 9/11, and what has transpired since, inspire us to recommit to the core values that form the bedrock of the United States of America. We must never falter in the defense of human freedom and human dignity.

“And never again should we underestimate our enemies or suffer from a failure of imagination. 9/11 was a sobering reminder that those who despise what we stand for—liberty, diversity, religious freedom, and women’s equality—will stop at nothing in the name of their demented political and religious ideology.

“We and our allies—the family of democratic countries and common values—must remain ever vigilant and ever united.”

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Pennsylvania, U.S.A. — If a child has spent the summer in an abusive or neglectful home, it may be in the first few days back at school that the tell-tale signs of abuse are most likely to emerge and be recognized, the director of training for the Pennsylvania Family Support Alliance (PFSA) says.

“It may be easier for teachers and other school employees to recognize that something was or is amiss because of the time lapse,” Tina Phillips said. “A child who has been abused or neglected over the summer may look or act dramatically different from when school ended a few months earlier. A returning child also may see school or a teacher as a safe haven and feel comfortable enough to open up.”

Teachers and other school employees are considered “mandated reporters,” which means they have a legal duty to report suspected child abuse or neglect.

“The first few weeks back at school are when teachers need to be attuned to looking for signs of abuse or neglect,” Phillips said. “They may notice behavior or physical signs that suggest abuse. Most kids are coming back from a happy, fun-filled summer, and it shows. Kids that have had a tough time will present a contrast. Teachers need to be alert.”

• Among the suggestive signs are such things as:
• Unexplained bruises, burns, broken bones, or other injuries, or obviously unaddressed medical or dental needs.
• Showing up at school early or staying late and not wanting to go home, or a fearful reaction to parents.
• Behavior that seems overly compliant, withdrawn, or passive, or aggressive behavior towards oneself or others.
• Poor hygiene or clothing that’s dirty or poorly fitted.
• Lack of interest in previously enjoyed activities such as sports, clubs, or playing an instrument.
• Demonstrating sexual knowledge or behavior not typical for the child’s age.

Phillips said the behavior of parents at parent-teacher conferences or school open house nights also can signal problems at home—such indicators as showing little or no concern for the child’s welfare, blaming the child for problems at home or school, requesting harsh discipline, conveying that a child is worthless or burdensome, making demands on a child beyond his or her developmental abilities, or rejecting offers of help for a child’s problems.

“These are some of the signs that something could be wrong—but they are by no means all inclusive,” Phillips said.

Phillips stressed that the law does not require certainty when it comes to reporting suspected child abuse or neglect. She said, “The operative word is ‘suspected.’ It’s not necessary to be absolutely sure. The only threshold is reasonable suspicion.”

She said it’s better to make a report and let Children and Youth Services conduct an investigation than it is to hold back.

Anyone can report suspected child abuse or neglect by calling ChildLine at 800-932-0313.
PFSA is a nonprofit agency that annually trains more than 8,000 professionals, including teachers, in how to recognize and report suspected child abuse.

It supported and helped win passage and enactment of Senate Bill 449, which now requires teachers and other school personnel to receive training on recognizing and reporting child abuse.

PFSA also is the Pennsylvania sponsor of The Front Porch Project, a community-based training initiative that educates the general public about how to protect children from abuse and works with more than 50 affiliate agencies across Pennsylvania to provide information, educational materials, and programs that teach and support good parenting practices.

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Following the mass shootings first in Aurora, Colorado and then at the Sikh Temple in Wisconsin, the shooting outside the Empire State Building in New York marks the third mass shooting this summer in the United States. The incident occurred at 34th Street and Fifth Avenue, near New York’s most famous skyscraper.

Just after 9AM, local time, a gunman opened fire in the street near the Empire State Building. According to the New York Post, two men who were coworkers started arguing in the street during the morning rush. They began fighting on the pavement when one of them drew a gun and shot the other fatally in the head, after striking him three times. The shooter then put his gun in his black bag and walked away from the scene.

A local construction worker, Chris Ogden, saw the gunman opening fire and then informed officers near the Empire State Building. New York Police Department arrived at the scene within a few minutes after receiving the emergency call. The New York Police Department officers, who were on foot, confronted the gunman who turned to his gun and fired at them. One of the officers killed the gunman in the confrontation. Police later confirmed that the gunman had indeed been shot dead.

Counting the shooter, there were a total of two deaths at the scene and nine more people were injured — four women and five men. Some of them may have been shot accidentally by officers, but they have all been taken to a number of hospitals in the city and fortunately none of them were seriously wounded. They are all expected to recover quickly.

The FBI has confirmed that the shooting was not terrorist-related. The incident was nothing more than a workplace dispute, but still caused a sense of panic in the city of New York, whose inhabiters have lived through all too familiar scenes in the past.

Police commissioner Ray Kelly identified the shooter as Jeffrey Johnson, aged 53. Johnson shot his 41-year-old former manager using a 45 caliber semiautomatic handgun. The shooter was a Hazan Imports employee for the last six years, designing women’s accessories and clothes and he had been fired from his job about a year ago as part of downsizing in the company. While the incident took place near the the Empire State Building, the landmark was not otherwise connected to the shooting.

New York City’s mayor, Michael Bloomberg, one of America’s biggest gun law reform advocates, said that “soothing words are nice, but maybe it is time that the two people who want to be President of the United States stand up and tell us what they are going to do about it,” expressing his discontent for both President Obama and his republican rival Mitt Romney.

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Washington, U.S.A. — A recent wave of high-value unlicensed software cases settled by the Business Software Alliance (BSA) underscores the persistent problem of software piracy in the United States. While U.S. piracy rates have dipped overall – as noted in the 2011 BSA Global Software Piracy Study – the commercial value of software piracy in the U.S. still adds up to almost $10 billion, with 31 percent of computer users admitting to pirating software.

“Since January, BSA has settled a number of cases of unlicensed software – including eight cases representing a value of more than $2.5 million,” said Jodie Kelley, BSA’s Senior Vice President of Anti-Piracy and General Counsel. “Using pirated software – even if unknowingly – has the potential to expose a company to devastating legal, financial, and security risks. The companies involved in these cases are effectively denying copyright owners the rights to compensation for their hard work and intellectual property.”

These eight companies have agreed to pay settlements ranging from $120,000 to $625,000 to settle claims that they used unlicensed copies of software published by BSA members Adobe, Autodesk, Microsoft, Quest, and Symantec.

A summary of the recent cases follows:

• Costumes Galore, Inc., an online retailer of Halloween costumes and accessories based inNorth Mankato, MN.
• ChannelAdvisor, a Delaware-based global e-commerce software provider.
• DEI Communities, based in Omaha, NE, which owns and operates apartment communities throughout the central United States.
• RQ Construction Inc., of Carlsbad, CA.
• Affordable Power, LP, an energy provider to residential and commercial sectors in Houston, TX.
• eLitigation Solutions, Inc., of Pleasanton, CA, a provider of eDiscovery and Hosted Review services.
• A major defense contractor in the Northeast.
• A network of automotive dealerships.

As part of the settlements, the involved companies have agreed to delete all unlicensed software from their computers, acquire any licenses necessary to become fully compliant, and take measures to ensure future compliance.

“The significant uptick in high-value cases of unlicensed software this year further confirms what BSA has been closely studying for more than 20 years – software piracy is a global problem, and one that will continue to evolve in form and size unless companies and governments alike reduce risks and increase their IT efficiencies,” Kelley said. “Software is a strategic asset for organizations of all sizes and must be managed properly. BSA is committed to educating businesses about proper software management – and we offer a number of resources at bsa.org.”

BSA also provides educational resources to help protect businesses of all sizes from the risks associated with pirated software. To educate IT managers and SAM practitioners, BSA offers SAM Advantage, an industry-aligned online training course and certification program that teaches businesses the skills needed to effectively manage their software. Additionally, BSA’s Certified in Standards-based SAM for Organizations is the first and only enterprise-level certification certification that affirms an organization is compliant with its software license agreements and its SAM processes are aligned to the International Organization for Standardization SAM standard.

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Tampa, U.S.A. — On August 20, Kelly Shackelford, President and CEO of Liberty Institute, and Tony Perkins, President of the Family Research Council, officially released The Survey on Religious Hostility in America at a press conference during Platform Week at the Republican National Convention.

Simultaneously, they launched an interactive website at www.religioushostility.org, where more than 600 cases of religious hostility, most occurring during the past decade, are documented and available for public download.

Whether a federal judge threatens a high school valedictorian with incarceration for referring to Jesus in her graduation speech; a city official prohibits senior citizens from praying over their meals; or the U.S. Department of Justice tells churches and synagogues which pastors and rabbis they can hire and fire, attacks on Americans’ religious freedoms have dramatically increased, both in frequency and in the types of incidents.

On the site, the public can view a U.S. map that contains a sampling of the 25 most egregious incidents of religious hostility. There is also a place to share personal stories of religious discrimination, and a photo gallery representing more than a dozen groundbreaking cases.

“There is really no place you can go in America to avoid these chilling attacks—every community and every age group is affected,” Shackelford said. “We have hundreds of examples. It’s more prolific than we’ve ever seen in the history of our country.”

Perkins added, “As our country enters one of the most critical elections of our time, it’s vital that people of all faiths continue the important work of defending our most precious liberty.”

In 2004, The Survey of Religious Hostility in America was born when Shackelford, along with a number of Liberty Institute’s clients, testified before the U.S. Senate about the growing religious hostility in America. Because the opposition insisted these select testimonies were simply isolated incidents, Senators Kennedy and Cornyn asked Liberty Institute to provide additional information, which led to the development of the first hostilities document.

Led by President and CEO Kelly Shackelford, Liberty Institute is a nonprofit law firm, dedicated to defending and restoring religious liberty across America — in our schools, for our churches and throughout the public arena. Liberty Institute’s vision is to reestablish religious liberty in accordance with the principles of our nation’s Founders. For information, visit www.LibertyInstitute.org.

Since 1983, Family Research Council (FRC) has advanced faith, family and freedom in public policy and public opinion. President Tony Perkins and his team of seasoned experts promote these core values through policy research, public education on Capitol Hill and in the media, and grassroots mobilization.

Through outreach to pastors, FRC equips churches to transform the culture. Strategically located inWashington, D.C., FRC is the leading voice for the family in our nation’s halls of power. For information, visit, www.frc.org.

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Illinois, U.S.A. — The National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) has released on August 20th Hot Wheels − its list of the 10 most-stolen vehicles in the United States. The report examines vehicle theft data submitted by law enforcement to the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) and determines the vehicle make, model and model year most reported stolen in 2011.

For 2011, the most-stolen vehicles in the nation were:

Each year, NICB reviews all NCIC vehicle theft records to produce its national and state lists of the 10 most-stolen vehicles. Hot Wheels is the only report that examines all theft data without regard to a vehicle’s insured status − if a vehicle was reported stolen to law enforcement, it is captured in this report.

The top 10 places were evenly split in 2011 with five belonging to foreign brands and five to U.S. automakers. Most popular models among the domestic brands were Ford, Dodge and Chevrolet pickup trucks each holding one spot with the Dodge Caravan and Ford Explorer rounding out the domestic models.

Once again, 2011 is on track to continue the national vehicle theft decline. Preliminary 2011 FBI crime statistics indicate a 3.3 percent reduction from the 737,142 thefts recorded in 2010. Vehicle thefts have not been this low since 1967.

“While overall thefts continue to decline, we are seeing a trend toward increases in the thefts of late model vehicles − ones that are theoretically harder to steal due to sophisticated key code technology,” said NICB President and CEO Joe Wehrle.

“Today’s vehicle thieves are typically professional criminals who have figured out how to get the key code for a specific vehicle, have a replacement key made, and steal the vehicle within a matter of days. We are aware of nearly 300 thefts that took place in the first three months of this year in which we believe replacement keys using illegally obtained key codes were used to steal the vehicle. We are working closely with our member companies, law enforcement, and the vehicle manufacturers to track these illegal key code transactions and stop the thefts or recover the stolen vehicles before they can be resold here or shipped out of the country to be sold overseas.”

Even one theft is one too many if it happens to you. NICB urges motorists to follow its “layered approach” to auto theft prevention. By employing these simple, low-cost suggestions, people can make their vehicles less attractive to thieves.

NICB’s four layers of protection are:

• Common Sense:  Lock your car and take your keys. It’s simple enough, but many thefts occur because owners make it easy for thieves to steal their cars.
• Warning Device:  Having and using a visible or audible warning device is another item that can ensure that your car remains where you left it.
• Immobilizing Device:  Generally speaking, if your vehicle can’t be started, it can’t be stolen. “Kill” switches, fuel cut-offs and smart keys are among the devices that are extremely effective.
• Tracking Device:  A tracking device emits a signal to the police or to a monitoring station when the vehicle is stolen. Tracking devices are very effective in helping authorities recover stolen vehicles. Some systems employ “telematics,” which combine GPS and wireless technologies to allow remote monitoring of a vehicle. If the vehicle is moved, the system will alert the owner and the vehicle can be tracked via computer.

Considering a used vehicle purchase? Check out VINCheckSM, a free vehicle history service for consumers. Since 2005, NICB has offered this limited service made possible by its participating member companies. Check it out at: www.nicb.org/vincheck.

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Harrisburg, U.S.A.  – Governor Tom Corbett has signed execution warrants for three men, each of whom were convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to death.

Terry Ray Chamberlain, Andre Staton and David Richard Ramtahal are scheduled to be executed in October. They are incarcerated at the State Correctional Institution at Greene.

Terry Ray Chamberlain , 60, was found guilty of breaking into the home of his estranged wife, Sherri Chamberlain, and her boyfriend, Greg Inman, on August 22, 1991, where he shot each of them multiple times, including an execution-style shot to the head.

A neighbor testified that on the morning of the murders, Mrs. Chamberlain telephoned her home, saying she and Inman had been shot, asking her to call an ambulance and identifying the gunman as Chamberlain. The neighbor’s husband arrived at the home and found the pair dead. A Bradford County jury convicted Chamberlain of two counts of first-degree murder and returned two death sentences on May 13, 1994.

Chamberlain is scheduled to be executed on October 9.

Andre Staton, 49, was found guilty of stabbing to death his former girlfriend, Beverly Yohn, despite a protection from abuse order against him. One of the victim’s sons testified that, on the morning of Feb. 25, 2004, Staton kicked in the locked back door of their home, entered the kitchen, pulled out a knife and began stabbing his mother until she fell on the floor. Yohn died of multiple stab wounds to the heart and left jugular vein. A Blair County jury convicted Staton of first-degree murder and he was sentenced to death on May 3, 2006.

Staton is scheduled to be executed on October 10.

David Richard Ramtahal , 28, was found guilty of shooting another man, Jarrett Osborne, as he ran to escape an attempted armed robbery. On Nov. 15, 2006, Ramtahal and another man, carrying guns and covering their faces, approached three men, their intended victims, who were standing on a street corner. Hearing the robbers, the three men fled. Ramtahal fired a shot, wounding Osborne initially, but the bullet traveled through his pelvis and severed an artery, causing high volume blood loss. An ambulance was called, but Osborne was pronounced dead in the hospital emergency room.

Ramtahal, who is also serving a life sentence for an unrelated murder in 2007, was sentenced to death in Bucks County Court on May 18, 2009. His accomplice in the Osborne killing pleaded guilty to third-degree murder and was sentenced to 12-to-24 years in state prison.

Ramtahal is scheduled to be executed on October 11.

With these warrants, which were signed Thursday, Corbett has now signed 19 execution warrants.

Executions in Pennsylvania are carried out by lethal injection.

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Chicago, U.S.A. — The Chicago office of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-Chicago) called for an FBI hate crime investigation of an acid bomb attack on a Muslim school in that state.

CAIR-Chicago said someone threw a bottle filled with acid and other unspecified materials at the College Preparatory School of America during the nighttime Ramadan prayers on Sunday night. Worshipers said they heard a loud bang and discovered that the acid bomb had been thrown at the window of the school. No one was injured.

This is the second such incident targeting an Illinois Muslim institution this past weekend. On Saturday, CAIR’s Chicago office reported that air rifle shots were fired at the outer wall of the Muslim Education Center (MEC) mosque in Morton Grove, Ill.

“These and other incidents of anti-Muslim bigotry are occurring in an atmosphere of hate resulting from inflammatory statements by elected officials nationwide,” said CAIR-Chicago Executive Director Ahmed Rehab.

On August 10, Chicago Muslims spoke out against fear-mongering comments made by Illinois Congressman Joe Walsh in which he said that Islamic radicals were living in Chicago’s suburbs.

A diverse group of Muslims, Jews and Christians held a press conference in downtown Chicago to warn against the effects of such irresponsible remarks, especially coming as they did following incidents such as the deadly shooting spree at a Sikh temple in Wisconsin.

On August 13, the Oklahoma chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-OK) called on state and federal law enforcement authorities to investigate a paintball attack on an Oklahoma mosque as a hate crime.

CAIR-OK said vandals fired numerous paintballs at the doors of the Grand Mosque of Oklahoma City early on August, 12 and then fled the scene. The attack, which the mosque’s director first thought was a volley of bullets, was captured on surveillance video. Local police are investigating the incident.

Few days ago, CAIR’s national headquarters issued a community safety advisory for American mosques following other incidents targeting Muslim houses of worship in Missouri and Rhode Island and after the deadly shooting attack on the Sikh temple.

In one incident, a Missouri mosque previously targeted by an arsonist burned to the ground. In California, pig legs were left at a Southern California mosque and four teens face hate crime charges for harassing worshipers at a northern California mosque.

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New York, U.S.A. – New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg and Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly have announced a partnership with Microsoft Corp. designed to bring the latest crime prevention and counterterrorism technology capabilities to worldwide law enforcement, public safety and intelligence agencies, among others.

The NYPD teamed with Microsoft to develop the Domain Awareness System (DAS), a sophisticated law enforcement technology solution that aggregates and analyzes public safety data in real time, providing NYPD investigators and analysts with a comprehensive view of potential threats and criminal activity.

For example, analysts are notified of suspicious packages and vehicles, and NYPD personnel can actively search for suspects using advanced technologies such as smart cameras and license plate readers.

The NYPD and Microsoft jointly developed the DAS by bringing together Microsoft’s technical expertise and technologies with the day-to-day experience and knowledge of NYPD officers. The result is a solution that is uniquely tailored to meet the specific needs of its users. As part of the agreement, the NYPD will receive 30 percent of revenue from the sales of the DAS system to other customers worldwide.

“Part of the reason we have been able to continue driving down crime to record lows while devoting considerable resources to counterterrorism is our heavy investment in technology and our willingness to develop new, cutting-edge solutions to keep New Yorkers safe,” Bloomberg said. “This new system capitalizes on new, powerful policing software that allows police officers and other personnel to more quickly access relevant information gathered from existing cameras, 911 calls, previous crime reports, and other existing tools and technology.

It will help the NYPD do more to prevent crimes from occurring and help them respond to crimes even more effectively. And because the NYPD built the system in partnership with Microsoft, the sale of the product will generate revenue for the city that will fund more new crime-prevention and counterterrorism programs.”

“The system is a transformative tool because it was created by police officers for police officers,” Kelly said. “Its development is a testament to the talent and experience of our officers. And this agreement with Microsoft will allow the NYPD to continue to fund innovative counterterrorism and crime prevention programs.”

DAS combines NYPD operational knowledge with Microsoft technology expertise, and Microsoft is now bringing the solution to market in an effort to extend these capabilities to other jurisdictions. Public safety organizations interested in deploying DAS will go through a process of customization based on unique organizational and regional requirements.

“Microsoft is honored to partner with the NYPD to provide these important public safety capabilities to other jurisdictions,” said Kathleen Hogan, corporate vice president of Microsoft Services. “The NYPD is a respected leader and is continually innovating to help ensure the safety of New York’s citizens. It is a privilege to support its work with our technology and professional services.”

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Attorney General Mike DeWine’s Human Trafficking Commission released a report at a meeting Wednesday revealing startling facts about rampant sex trafficking throughout Ohio, putting simply: “Ohio’s response to child sex trafficking is weak.”

The report details factors that contribute to the state’s status as a sex trafficking hot spot, outlines the reforms already put in motion, and recommends what further steps must be taken to eliminate human trafficking in Ohio.

The Report

Victims from Columbus, Cincinnati, Dayton, Cleveland and Toledo were interviewed over a 3-year period, providing data of over 300 women.

Over a hundred of those women were reportedly forced into the trade under the age of 18; some were as young as 12. Of those underage, most were recruited by women involved in the trade who first appeared friendly. The majority of recruits made by men were victims over 18, who first acted as boyfriends before turning abusive.

Many victims experienced childhoods full of abuse, rape and poverty.

The report also reveals customers of sex trafficking to cover a wide array of demographics, including drug dealers, businessmen, police officers, lawyers, truckers, athletes and politicians.

Pay can range from $10 to $150, depending on the requested services.

What’s already been done?

A similar study conducted by the Commission two years ago estimated that more than 1,000 Ohio children were trafficked every year, in addition to over 800 immigrants.

These facts prompted Representative Teresa Fedor of Toledo to introduce House Bill 262, turning human trafficking into a first-degree felony. The bill allows victims the ability to sue their traffickers for damages and see records of prostitution or solicitation expunged. Fedor calls it a “basic human rights issue.” Her bill, dubbed the “safe harbor law,” went into effect in June.

The bill followed Ohio Governor John Kasich’s decision to sign an executive order in March, which created a 90-day task force focused on studying police response to the problem.

“Can you tell me how a 13-year-old kid can be snatched, blackmailed, drugged, raped in our state, in our country?” Kasich said during an emotional signing of the order, thinking of his own 12-year-old twin daughters.

Such slow police response helps contribute to the problem, Wednesday’s study claims.

The report provides evidence of one police call featured on a Primetime special about child sex trafficking in Toledo, in which police took 90 minutes to respond to multiple calls from neighbors who witnessed screams and fighting.

Toledo is the forth largest sex-trafficking city in the U.S, following Miami, Portland and Las Vegas.

Why Ohio?

The report cites multiple reasons in addition to ill-prepared first responders as to why Ohio attracts many traffickers. This includes a growing pool of legal and illegal immigrant populations, its close proximity to the Canadian border, and a high rate of runaways in Ohio. It also reports that the three institutions that should assist in eliminating sex trafficking—the criminal justice system, the social service system, and the health care system—are “either ineffective or insufficient.”

Currently, most individuals prosecuted as a result of sex trafficking are those most easily caught: the victims.

But the juvenile justice system is “not the appropriate place for traumatized victims of the human trafficking,” the study says, and the child welfare system doesn’t provide clear enough language to provide assistance.

Not only do these toothless laws attract traffickers to Ohio—victims end up in a worse position after their arrest.

“Without some form of intervention, 77 percent of sexually exploited youth simply continue to be prostitutes in adulthood,” argued Fedor.

What happens next?

The report offers six recommendations to combat sex trafficking, including a focus on arresting and convicting buyers and engaging schools in the fight.

Very few resources exist for victims of sex trafficking in Ohio, which will change if advocate Theresa Flores has her way. Flores has written a book on her own experience as a sex trafficking victim and is in the process of obtaining a state license for a Columbus-area group home for victims. No such place in Ohio currently exists.

“We have allowed this to happen,” said Flores. “We don’t like to think that it happens here, but slavery is alive and well in the U.S.”

U.S. Attorney Steven Dettelbach of Cleveland agrees that a community effort is necessary to end sex trafficking.

“It’s all around, literally hiding in plain sight,” said Dettelbach, who has made human trafficking a high priority for his office. “If you see something, you have to say something.”

Dettelbach says anyone suspicious of trafficking should call the FBI at 216-522-1400.

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Los Angeles, U.S.A. — The Greater Los Angeles Area (CAIR-LA) chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) sent a letter to the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) urging it to investigate an incident targeting Muslims as a federal hate crime.

CAIR-LA said three pig legs were left at the planned mosque site of Al-Nur Islamic Center in Ontario, California. Worshipers told CAIR-LA that the pig legs were thrown on the site’s driveways just before 10 p.m. on August 7 by two women who then drove off in a white pick-up truck. A security guard witnessed the incident and a report has been filed with the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department. The congregation has faced vocal opposition in the past.

“We urge the DOJ to investigate possible federal charges for the perpetrators of this disturbing incident,” said CAIR-LA Executive Director Hussam Ayloush. “Only firm action by local, state and federal law enforcement authorities will send the message that bias-motivated attacks on Muslims, or Americans of any faith, will not be tolerated.”

Ayloush also noted that four teenagers were arrested following an incident on August 4 in which the American Muslim Association in Hayward, Calififornia, was pelted with oranges and lemons as worshipers prayed inside. At least one worshiper was hit by the objects. A mosque official reported that August 4 harassment was the fourth such incident in the recent past.

A few days ago, CAIR’s national headquarters issued a community safety advisory for American mosques following other incidents targeting mosques in Missouri and Rhode Island and after the deadly shooting attack Sunday on a Sikh temple in Wisconsin.

A CAIR team on August 8 visited the site of the burned Missouri mosque to meet with Muslim leaders and law enforcement officials. The team also took part in an interfaith Ramadan fast-breaking meal (iftar) at a local church on Wednesday evening.

CAIR is America’s largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization. Its mission is to enhance the understanding of Islam, encourage dialogue, protect civil liberties, empower American Muslims, and build coalitions that promote justice and mutual understanding.

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Washington, U.S.A. — A five-month-old boy from Tennessee was the eighth child to die from heatstroke in a vehicle in the past days, bringing this year’s total deaths to 23. Safe Kids Worldwide is issuing a national alert to stop these heartbreaking and entirely preventable tragedies.

“Whether you are a parent, caregiver or just a concerned bystander, you can help save lives,” says Kate Carr, President and CEO of Safe Kids Worldwide. “We are urging everyone to ACT: Avoid hyperthermia-related deaths by never leaving your child alone in a car and always locking doors and trunks; create reminders and habits for you and your child’s caregivers to ensure you don’t forget your child; and Take action if you see a child unattended in a vehicle by immediately calling 911.”

According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, this past July was the hottest month on record for the nation. With more hot weather to come and the record number of deaths in the first week of August, it’s critical to get the word out. Even on a mild day, temperatures inside a car can rise nearly 20 degrees in 10 minutes. Leaving a window slightly open has no effect on the temperatures inside a car.

Every year, children die of heatstroke, also known as hyperthermia, while unattended in vehicles. Safe Kids warns that these deaths can happen anytime, anywhere. In partnership with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Safe Kids and its network of 600 coalitions are focused on raising awareness to stop these needless deaths.

“More than 550 children have died this way since 1998,” said Carr. “Most people don’t think this could possibly happen to them, yet it does.”

Heat stroke happens when the body cannot cool itself fast enough and the core temperature rises to dangerous levels. Children’s bodies heat up three to five times faster than an adult’s.

“Kids react differently to heat than adults,” says Dr. Leticia Ryan of Children’s National Medical Center, Emergency Medicine and Trauma Services. “Infants and young children haven’t fully developed the internal systems regulating body temperature, putting them at much greater risk for organ failure and death when exposed to excessive heat. We see this all too often in the emergency room, and it’s absolutely devastating.”

Since 1998, more than half of fatalities occurred when a distracted caregiver forgot their child was in the car. Thirty percent occurred when a child was playing in an unattended vehicle and became trapped and seventeen percent were intentionally left.

Together, we can cut down the number of deaths and near-misses by remembering to ACT. Avoid heat stroke-related injury and death by:

• Never leaving your child alone in the car, even for a minute.
• Consistently locking unattended vehicle doors and trunks.
• Create reminders and habits that give you and your child’s caregiver a safety net:
• Establish a peace-of-mind plan. When you drop off your child, make a habit of calling or texting all other caregivers, so all of you know where your child is at all times.
• Place a purse, briefcase, gym bag, cell phone or an item that is needed at your next stop in a back seat.
• Set the alarm on your cell phone or computer calendar as a reminder to drop your child off at childcare.
• Take action if you see an unattended child in a vehicle:
• Dial 911 immediately and follow the instructions that emergency personnel provide – they are trained to determine if a child is in danger.

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The man responsible for the massacre that killed six people in a Sikh Temple in Wisconsin shot himself in the head, as confirmed by the FBI on August 8. The authorities have maintained so far that the shooter, Wade Michael Page, died from being shot during a confrontation with a police officer after the killings.

FBI Special Agent in Wisconsin, Teresa Carlson, said on a news conference on Wednesday that, according to the security video footage of the scene, it was the shot in the head, not the one from the police officer received in the stomach, that killed Page. Therefore, he committed suicide when he was already injured by the first officer, who responded to emergency calls in the temple of Oak Creek, south of Milwaukee.

Carlson, who leads the investigation, also confirmed that Page acted alone and did not blame anyone else for the shooting. In the hours after the incident, local police did not rule out that Page had received support.

Carlson said the FBI is going to keep investigating, to determine the causes which would lead the Army veteran to act against a religious temple, and why he would choose the one on Oak Creek.

“This is a guy that has moved around a lot, and so we are very, very thorough. We’re going to try to talk everybody that he may have had contact with or anywhere that he may have been. So we’ve got leads going in a lot of different places.”

Although Page’s supremacist ideas are well known, there is still a lot to be clarified: “We may never know exactly why he chose that place at that time,” Steven Conley, an FBI assistant, told reporters. “We may have a good idea of his motives when the investigation is finished, but the reasons may have disappeared with Page.”

Authorities also said on press conferences that Lt. Brian Murphy, the veteran Oak Creek police officer who first arrived at the temple and was shot at least eight times, is recovering.

“He’s progressing amazingly and we’re very, very thankful for that,” said Oak Creek Police Chief John Edwards. “Yesterday he was up walking and they had him sitting up for a period of time.”

As part of the investigation, police arrested Page’s former girlfriend on August 7 as a “felon in possession of a firearm,” according to South Milwaukee police investigator Michael Hill. However, she is not being accused of playing a role in the slaughter.

Image Courtesy of   BC Gov Photos

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Washington, U.S.A. — The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) said  that American Muslims “stand with their Sikh brothers and sisters” following a deadly shooting attack targeting a house of worship of that faith in Wisconsin.

In a statement, the Washington-based Muslim civil rights organization said:

“While details of the attack and the motivation of the attacker are still emerging, American Muslims stand with their Sikh brothers and sisters in this time of crisis and loss. We condemn this senseless act of violence, pray for those who were killed or injured and offer sincere condolences to their loved ones.”

CAIR officials are in contact with the Milwaukee Muslim community as it offers support to its Sikh neighbors.

Because of this and other violent incidents, CAIR is urging mosques and houses of worship of all faiths nationwide to review advice on security procedures contained in its “Muslim Community Safety Kit.”

CAIR has in the past spoken out against bias-motivated attacks on American Sikhs. Sikh men who wear beards and turbans as part of their faith are often targeted by bigots who mistake them for Muslims.

Last year, CAIR offered a $5,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the individual or individuals who gunned down two elderly Sikh men in Elk Grove, Calif.

Philadelphia Mayor Michael A. Nutter, President of The U.S. Conference of Mayors, also condemned the Wisconsin shooting. He stated: “Once again our attention is focused on an inexplicable act of violence by a gunman who has killed at least six people and injured several more, including a police officer.

“The nation’s mayors express their outrage at yet another mass shooting and send their condolences to the victims, their families, and their community. Oak Creek Mayor Steve Scaffidi is in our thoughts and prayers today as he helps his city cope with this tragedy.”

“This shooting occurred as people prepared for a morning worship service in the Sikh Temple of Wisconsin in Oak Creek. While we don’t yet have information about the shooter’s motives, the weapons used, or how he obtained them, we do know that once again guns have been used in a mass killing of innocent people.

“Just 17 days have passed since the tragic shooting in Aurora. The U.S. Conference of Mayors repeats its call for reasonable changes in our gun laws and regulations that could help to prevent senseless tragedies such as the one that has shocked Oak Creek and the nation.”

image Courtesy of   ICPJ

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Five Sikh men and one woman were killed on Sunday, August 5, in a shooting at a Sikh Temple in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Victims are Sita Singh, 41; Ranjit Singh, 49; Satwant Singh Kaleka, 65; Prakash Singh, 39; Paramjit Kaur, 41; and Suveg Singh, 84. Three other people were wounded, and two are still in intensive care, fighting for their lives.

The killer went into the Sikh temple at 10:30 AM when mass was about to start. He opened fire against the patrons and killed four people inside the temple. Then he went outside and killed two more in the parking lot next to the religious house.

The gunman, Wade Michael Page, was shot dead by police in the parking lot. Authorities say that Page shot at the police officer who arrived at the scene first while the officer was tending to one of the victims. Later Page fired at two police cars. The police did not believe they had other options than to shoot him.

According to authorities, the killer was a United States Army veteran who served from 1992 until 1998. The Southern Poverty Law center, a group that studies hate crimes said that they have been following Page’s steps during the past ten years. They say that Page was involved in neo-nazi movements and that he was the frontman of a racist, ‘white power’ band called End Apathy.

Mark Potok, the spokesman and director of publications and information for the Southern Poverty Law Center described Michael Page: “This guy was in the thick of the white supremacist music scene and, in fact, played with some of the best known racist bands in the country.”

“The music that comes from these bands is incredibly violent and it talks about murdering Jews, black people, gay people and a whole host of other enemies. It is music that could not be sold over the counter around the country,” Potok said.

Police is now trying to find out why Page attacked the Sikh temple. Sikhism is a monotheistic religion that has its biggest congregation in India, along with 27 million followers around the world.

Indian Prime Minister and member of the Sikh religion, Manmohan Singh, made a statement to express his grief and sadness that a religious group was being targeted so deliberately: “That this senseless act of violence should be targeted at a place of religious worship is particularly painful,” said Singh.

Meanwhile, the top Sikh religious body, said it would send a committee to meet Singh and India’s ambassador to the US to demand Sikhs be protected from future attacks.

This attack is the second massacre to take place in the United States in the past weeks. The gun control law is currently on everyone lips, and it will be a topic for discussed ahead of the Presidential elections.

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Washington, U.S.A. — The National Law Enforcement Partnership to Prevent Gun Violence, an alliance of nine major national police leadership organizations, announced its call for background checks for all firearms purchasers and a ban on high-capacity ammunition magazines on July 27 at a news conference in Washington, DC. The group has been working with state law enforcement associations and leaders this summer in key states, pressing for expanded background checks for firearms purchasers and other public safety measures. But the Aurora theater shooting has intensified their calls for timely action.

“The nation is waiting for lawmakers to move beyond hand-wringing and shoulder-shrugging in response to these mass catastrophes,” said Hubert Williams, Chair of the National Law Enforcement Partnership to Prevent Gun Violence and President of the Police Foundation. “These mass murders are neither acceptable, nor inevitable. There are numerous public safety initiatives – that are backed by the public and law enforcement – that will reduce the frequency and severity of this type of carnage. Our nation must establish as a top priority addressing this horrific gun violence that shatters our safety and security.”

The Partnership’s policy agenda includes background checks for all firearms purchasers and a limit on large-capacity ammunition magazines. The background check measure would complement the existing Brady Law, enacted in 1994, which established background checks for gun purchases at federally licensed gun dealers. But an estimated 40% of firearm transactions occur through non-dealers sales – leaving nearly half the firearm sales in the United States unregulated.

“Knowingly permitting four out of ten firearm sales to occur completely unregulated is irresponsible and counterproductive to public safety,” said James Johnson, incoming Chair, National Law Enforcement Partnership to Prevent Gun Violence, and Chief of Police in Baltimore County, MD. “Police do our jobs everyday patrolling the streets and protecting the public while putting their own lives on the line. Law enforcement needs the support of our lawmakers to enact policies that will keep officers and the public safer.”

While the Aurora shooting suspect reportedly passed background checks in obtaining his firearms, Williams emphasized the importance and effectiveness of background checks in keeping guns from other dangerous people, stressing that nearly 2 million prohibited purchases were stopped between 1994 and 2009. He noted that background checks will help reduce gun violence that touches dozens of Americans every day.

“Gun violence is impacting us all,” Williams said. “In 2011, gunfire was the leading cause of death for police killed in the line of duty, surpassing motor vehicles for the first time in 14 years. Gun violence occurs day in and day out, claiming 34 Americans every single day.”

Background checks are overwhelmingly supported by the public – and gun owners themselves: 86% nationally, including 81% of gun owners, support background checks for all firearms purchasers, regardless of seller or venue.

The Partnership has been collaborating with law enforcement leadership organizations in key states to educate U.S. Senate candidates and the public, building bipartisan support to expand background checks to gun sales beyond licensed dealers. In Virginia and Wisconsin law enforcement leaders recently met with U.S. Senate candidates in private sessions specifically focused on gun violence, emphasizing the need for strengthened background checks.

The meetings were strictly educational in nature and candidates participated despite being told that there would be no endorsements made. The police leaders also held major press conferences in each state to publicize their calls for action.

Williams dismissed those saying action is impossible on gun issues, noting, that there were naysayers in the 80s and 90s when, “Law enforcement was pivotal in passing a string of federal gun laws:  the ban on cop-killer bullets; the ban on undetectable plastic guns; and the Brady Law requiring background checks for guns purchased through licensed dealers. We know that common sense can prevail.”

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Washington, U.S.A. – During a briefing with Congress on Attorney General Eric Holder’s Task Force on Children Exposed to Violence, Justice Department officials and task force co-chairs Joe Torre and Robert Listenbee, Jr. described their comprehensive work since the task force launch in October 2011 and discussed lessons learned through four public hearings held across the country over the last nine months.

The task force is a key part of Attorney General Holder’s Defending Childhood initiative to address children’s exposure to violence and will present policy recommendations in a final report to the Attorney General later this year.

At the briefing, Joe Torre, a Yankee legend, executive vice president of Major League Baseball and founder of the Joe Torre Safe At Home Foundation, described the impact of witnessing abuse as a child.

“It took decades before I finally started to talk about the violence in my childhood,” Torre said. “And as the task force has heard from one person after another, things haven’t changed enough.  Every child deserves a safe home, a safe school, and a safe community.”

The task force held four hearings from November 2011 to April 2012 in Baltimore, Albuquerque, N.M.,Miami and Detroit, and heard personal testimony from 65 people from 27 states and the District of Columbia. These included survivors of violence, young people, social service providers, medical personnel, researchers, practitioners, advocates, tribal and local officials, private foundation representatives, and community residents.

“Violence hurts children across the country—whether they live in urban, rural or tribal communities,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Justice Programs Mary Lou Leary. “The Department of Justice is committed to reducing this impact and identifying concrete ways to make our children and our communities safer.”

The task force is composed of 13 leading experts, including practitioners, child and family advocates, academicians and licensed clinicians.

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The Anaheim police brutality drama has not come to an end. Another violent protest against the deadly police shooting, which caused Manuel Diaz to lose his life and ended with 24 arrests and several injuries.

Protests have been going on for a few days, this time as many as 500 demonstrators and 250 police officers were confronting eachother for several hours. Most of the protesters acted peacefully but some became violent so the police had to use pepper balls and beanbag rounds.

The clash began after a City Council meeting in which different leaders from Anaheim, California voted to ask the U.S. attorney’s office to investigate the incidents from last weekend, which saw a shooting involving an officer that ended with the loss of Manuel Diaz’s life. Diaz was catalogued by the police as a known gang member but during the incident he was unarmed, which caused public outrage from the witnesses against the police. The protests have been going on since Saturday.

The council chamber surroundings were filled with protesters. At the beginning they were there peacefully, but as the place became overcrowded, some people pushed on the windows so the police had to push them back.

However, this was not the violence trigger, as the protesters just marched to the police headquarters and then back to the City Council. The event that lead to violent protests was the detention of a man who the police thought was armed, but in reality wasn’t, so the crowd started throwing rocks at the officers.

Sgt. of the Anaheim police Bob Dunn explained that the violent protesters seemed to be outsiders who wanted to provoke a violent clash between the police and the other protesters.  At one point, the animosity at the protest escalated with Molotov cocktails being thrown, and business windows were smashed and trashcans were set on fire.

The night ended with the detention of 24 protesters, 20 adults and four minors, with five people hurt, a police officer, two members of the media and two protesters, but no life-threatening injuries were reported.

The Diaz family is suing the city and the Police Department, and is asking, according to their lawyer, for $50 million in compensation for damages.

The Police Chief John Welter explained that in Diaz’s case, two officers had approached three men, including Manuel Diaz, who were acting suspiciously in an alley. Upon noticing the officers the men ran away and Welter explained that Diaz failed to obey the police officers orders to stop, and while in pursuit, he threw a package which was believed to be heroin on to the roof of a complex building.  The Police Chief did not explain the motives behind the police officers actions.

Image Courtesy of   TypeMRT

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“No justice, no peace” and “cops, pigs, murderers,” were the words the protesters chanted against a deadly police shooting in Anaheim, California this weekend.

The protesters congregated on Sunday on the outsides of the police department to protest against an officer-involved shooting that left a man dead and led to a violent clash between the police and the witnesses.

Anaheim Police Chief John Welter held a press conference to explain what happened on Saturday (July 24). He stated that two officers were put on paid leave after one of them fatally injured  Manuel Diaz,  a 24-year-old man who the police said was a known gang member, even though no weapon was found on Diaz.

Chief Welter said the officers approached three men in an alleyway when they ran away, and Manuel Diaz was one of those men. One of the officers chased Diaz to the front of an apartment complex where the shooting occurred. Diaz died in a hospital a few hours later. Welter did not explain why the police officer shot Diaz.

After the shooting, angry witnesses threw bottles and other objects to the officers who immediately responded with tear gas and beanbag rounds. Also, a police dog got out of a car and attacked a woman who was holding her children, which made the situation even worse. Violent protests have occurred during the whole weekend.

In reference to the dog incident Chief Welter said they were extremely sorry and added “I’m certainly very concerned about anyone who was bit. It’s embarrassing to us. The officer, I’m telling you, was just devastated.”

Anaheim’s Mayor Tom Tait wants to solve this crisis as soon as possible; during a press conference he said that “transparency is essential” and that “the investigation will seek the truth. And whatever the truth is, we will own it.”

This is not the first case of citizen outrage against actions done by the police in California. In 2011 a video appeared on the internet of an officer blasting pepper spray on the face of protesters who were peacefully seated at northern California university. The officer’s actions–who was a member of the university police force–led to indignation and anger from the crowd at the scene, who started shouting to the officer.

The officer was dressed in riot gear so his face was covered and just left the scene after the crowd started shouting. Nine of the students were treated on the scene and only two were taken to the hospital and released the same day. Numerous Twitter and Facebook accounts criticized the officer’s actions and supported the students’ protests.

Image Courtesy of  a katz / Shutterstock.com

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