We have another grotesque application of Sharia law out of Saudi Arabia. A court in Medina has applied Islamic law to sentence a man to three years in jail and 450 lashes for being gay. The unnamed 24-year-old man was arrested after a sting operation by the notorious Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice (CPVPV) where they arranged a meeting over social media.
Continue reading “Saudi Court Hands Down Sharia Sentence To Gay Man: 3 years in Jail and 450 Lashes”
In the same week as the State Department report endorsing findings that the CIA lied to Congress and brutalized suspects, the CIA is now admitting that its recent denials of hacking Senate computers was also false. Once again, however, there is not even a suggestion of discipline, let alone criminal charges, for CIA officials who lied to Congress (or allowed others to lie) and hacked into congressional computers.
Continue reading “CIA Admits Hacking Senate Computers After Months of Denials”
The State Department has issued a document that endorses the findings of the Senate report on the CIA’s interrogation and detention practices after the 9/11 attacks. The document notably avoids references to “torture” but discussed now the CIA brutalized suspects and misled Congress. Putting aside such word substitutions of “brutalizing” for “torture” and “misleading” for “lying,” there remains one glaring omission: not a single CIA official was disciplined, let alone criminally charged. One official even publicly admitted to destroying evidence to avoid its use in court in a torture prosecution. He was allowed to retire with honors and accolades. The Bush and Obama Administration steadfastly refused to prosecute such officials. Indeed, soon after coming to power, Obama went to the CIA to assure officials that they would never face prosecution.
In Pakistan, a Muslim mob has killed a seven-year-old girl and her baby sister (as well as their grandmother) in the latest carnage to defend the faith from blasphemy. The cause of the outrage was a simple picture posted on Facebook that was deemed offensive to Islam. The mob accused members of the Ahmadi sect, who live under continual discrimination by the Pakistani government and the threat of death from Muslims over their faith.
We just discussed yesterday the lifting of the injunction on the “Doc for Glocks” law in Florida — a law barring doctors from asking patients about weapons in their home as a general practice. Now Pennsylvania Dr. Lee Silverman has taken the “Docs for Glocks” approach in a more literal direction. After patient Richard Plotts, 49, (left) pulled out a gun and started shooting people, Silverman pulled out his own weapon and engaged Plotts in a gun battle — leading to the wounding of both men but stopping Plotts. Plotts by the way was reportedly upset by the hospital’s gun free zone policy.
Police are seeking these two men who held up a medical clinic at gunpoint to steal hundreds of dollars’ worth of Viagra and other drugs. With that same Viagra pills, they might not be hard to spot.
Continue reading “The World’s Most Unfair Line Up? Two Older Men Sought In Theft Of Viagra”
A woman identified as Ekaterina Parkhomenko from Torez has become the very face of inhumanity and greed around the Malaysian Air crash site in the Ukraine. People around the world have been disgusted by stories of the Russian-backed militia stealing credit cards and cellphones from the crash site as well as preventing investigators from detailing the facts about the crash. However, pro-Russian local Parkhomenko allegedly went further and actually posted pictures on social media sites bragging about how she was able to snatch looted mascara from a dead woman and then took selfies showing how the mascara looked on her.
We have been following the seemingly endless cases of shootings of dogs around the country. The latest is in El Monte, California where the police entered a family’s front yard some nine months ago (passed “Beware of Dog” signs) and fatally shot the family’s 2-year-old German shepherd. There was no imminent crime or exigent circumstance. Police were coming to collect a photograph of the teenage son of Cathy Luu and Chi Nguyen, whom they had previously reported had run away from home (he returned shortly afterward). A video tape shows the officers, Detective Arlen Castillo and then Officer Ken Fraser, open the gate without calling into the house. Fraser actually pets the family’s pit bull on the way in. Then the German shepherd comes out barking at Castillo and Castillo shoots the dog.
There is a new ruling out today that is relevant to the interesting piece written by Kimberly Dienes this weekend on child punishments. The New York appellate court has ruled that a Long Island father is not guilty of neglect for spanking his eight-year-old son for swearing. This issue is coming before the courts with greater frequency as spanking becomes less common in society and child abuse laws become more strict.
Continue reading “New York Court: Spanking Not Form Of Child Neglect or Abuse”
United States District Court Judge Frederick Scullin Jr. has finally handed down a ruling in Palmer v. District of Columbia overturned the city’s total ban on residents on carrying firearms outside their home. The litigants repeatedly went to court to try to force Scullin to rule during the five year wait for a decision. They probably now feel it was worth the wait. The court held the D.C. law was unconstitutional under the Second Amendment. The D.C. Attorney General’s Office and city council has continued to resist the rulings in District of Columbia v. Heller (2008) and McDonald v. Chicago (2010) and have spent copious amounts of money and time defending this law. The city could have drafted more tailored laws but seemed intent to re-fight aspects of its historic loss in Heller. The Office of Attorney General continues to dig a deeper hole both legally and financially for the citizens in such litigation.
Continue reading “Federal Judge Shoots Down D.C. Ban On Carrying Firearms Outside Of The Home”
I just saw this story about how Petersburg police and prosecutors have been under fire after an internal memo surfaced from 1st Sgt. Carl Moore, telling officers not to speak with defense attorneys and suggesting that they could lose their jobs if they help strength defense cases even by telling the truth to counsel. Petersburg City Manager William Johnson (left) is making no statement at this time: he was recently arrested for allegations of assault and domestic battery against his wife. Petersburg Commonwealth’s Attorney Cassandra Conover (right) was also criticized for thanking Moore despite the memo’s conflict with ethical rules governing prosecutors. However, I have not been able to find anything more recent on this story about the instructions or the ethical review.
There is an interesting (and tragic) case out of France where Andre Bamberski, 76, was convicted for organizing the kidnapping five years ago of retired doctor Dieter Krombach. Krombach was accused at the time of raping and murdering Kalinka Bamberski, 15: the daughter of Bamberski and the step daughter of Krombach. When a German court refused to extradite Krombach for the 1982 murder, Bamberski had him kidnapped and dumped (tied up) in front of a French courthouse in 2009. Bamberski was found guilty and was looking at ten years but was given a one-year suspended sentence.
Continue reading “German Doctor Drugs, Rapes, and Kills Teenager in France Before Fleeing Country . . . Father Arranges Doctor To Be Kidnapped and Dumped in Front of French Courthouse”
Accounting Professor Mark Landis has been arrested in a bizarre alleged crime where the San Francisco State University and University of San Francisco professor taped students using his San Francisco apartment’s bathroom.
Continue reading “California Professor Arrested for Allegedly Taping Students in His Apartment Bathroom”
Submitted by Darren Smith, Weekend Contributor
We previously discussed the case of California State Senator Leland Yee accused of several corruption and weapons charges, including an accusation of conspiracy to import weaponry from terrorists in the Far East. The case stems from Leland’s alleged association with a San Francisco based criminal organization. Previous articles may be read regarding the original accusations HERE, and his suspension from the California Senate HERE.
A new indictment was unsealed against Leland alleging Racketeering and Conspiracy To Obtain Property Under The Color Of Official Right.
Continue reading “Indicted California Senator Yee Charged With Additional Felonies”
We have been discussing the growing support for the legalization of marijuana in the United States. Now, it is being reported that The New York Times will come out on Sunday in favor of legalization — a major endorsement for the movement.