Lady’s Man: Italian Court Convicts Twenty-Three Americans in Kidnapping Case of Abu Omar

240px-Hassan_Mustafa_Osama_Nasr_CIATwenty-three suspects, including the former CIA station chief in Milan Robert Lady, were convicted of kidnapping by an Italian court for the CIA’s “extraordinary renditions.” It is the first such trial on the controversial practice.

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Ohio Police Taser Man After He Runs Into Burning Home to Save Sister and Friends

taser gun bart officer-218-85MIke Bartlett of Kent, Ohio probably thought that the worst thing that happened to him on Sunday was finding his house on fire at 4:30 am. He was wrong. After Bartlett ran in and out of the house to save people, he was tasered by officers standing outside and arrested.
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Praising the Dear One? Videos Raise Concerns Over Use of School Children To Praise the President

225px-official_portrait_of_barack_obama225px-Kim-jong-il_portraitWe have been discussing the propriety of public schools putting on worshipful performances about President Barack Obama. While I voted for him and support many of his policies, it does concern me to see children enlisted in such performances, which are not the norm in American education or politics. While some extreme conservatives have been campaigning on this issue, I do believe that there is a legitimate objection to the use of children to sing the praises of political leaders.
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Maine Voters Repeal Law Allowing Gays to Marry

100px-Seal_of_Maine.svg180px-New_York_City_Proposition_8_Protest_outside_LDS_temple_20The gay-rights movement has suffered a harsh defeat at the hands of voters in Maine. The voters repealed a law that allowed for same-sex marriage — reducing the states allowing same-sex marriage or civil unions. Maine is now the 31st state to reject same-sex marriage. [The two men on the state seal are now strictly prohibited from marrying each other in the State of Maine].
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Hanging Rascell: New York Man Arrested for Hanging Girlfriend’s Cat — and Videotaping Himself in the Act

3nf3k43m15O35P25Rd9b3df75c5522d8c1b5a180px-Olhos_de_um_gato-3In Syracuse, New York, Rascell Williams is looking at a curious charge for a horrible crime. Williams, 28, is charged with hanging his girlfriend’s four-month-old kitten with a belt and making a video of the animal struggling. It was discovered by the girlfriend, Joanne Cichy, the day after Halloween and turned over the police.

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Save Money, Live Shorter? Wal-Mart Accused of Violating CDC Guidelines in Policies that Spread Flu

225px-new_walmart_logosvgWhat would we do without Wal-Mart? When Wal-Mart is not destroying historic sites or abusing employees and customers (here) it is working hard to guarantee the efficient spread of swine flu or H1N1. The Center of Disease Control (CDC) is now intervening to address Wal-Mart draconian labor practices which violate the CDC guidelines, common sense, and human decency. The store imposes a “demerit” system that penalizes employees for staying home with flu-symptoms — preferring it appears for them to come to work to infect customers. It may require a slight change to the slogan “Save Money. Live Better” to reflect the shorter life expectancy for employees and customers alike.

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Massachusetts Officer Charged With Stealing Child Pornography From Evidence Vault

180px-Handcuffs01_2003-06-02Prosecutors in Adams, Massachusetts have a novel case involving evidence that will be used twice in separate unrelated trials, including for one crime after the evidence was put into the evidence vault itself. Adams Police Officer Alan C. Vigiard, 45, is accused of possession of child pornography. His first “possession” occurred in his review of child pornography in the evidence vault.
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Saudi Court Upholds Planned Beheading and Crucifixion of Convicted Rapist

Saudi Arabia flagA Saudi court has reviewed and upheld the sentence of a 22-year-old man to be beheaded and crucified for the raping of five children. It is the latest medieval measure from the Saudi Sharia courts.
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Video: Arizona Officer Swipes Document From Defense File Behind the Back of Defense Counsel in Courtroom

This is one of the most incredible videos that I have seen. In the video above, Officer Adam Stoddard with the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office is clearly shown reading confidential papers of defense attorney Joanne Cuccia while she is addressing the court on behalf of jail inmate Antonio Lozano (accused of fighting with another inmate). He then pulls a sheet from the file on the defense table and gives it to another deputy to be copied.
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Shock Video: Minneapolis Officer Tasers Man in Neck While His Hands Are on Hood of the Car

In a highly disturbing video, Minneapolis police officers are shown tasering a man who is clearly shown with his hands on the hood of a car and not resisting arrest. Rolando Ruiz is seen and heard screaming in pain from the taser, which is applied to the back of his neck and held to his body as he falls to the street.

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Going Postal: Reporters Reportedly Throw Punches in Press Room at the Washington Post

PH2005121601018180px-El_Hijo_De_Santo_vs_Blue_Demon_JrThe Washington Post recently saw a journalistic battle of a different kind when Style reporter Manuel Roig-Franzia and editor Henry Allen got into a physical altercation. Punches reportedly flew from the reporters until other journalists intervened — and presumably began to try to grab an exclusive on the cause for the fight. Left is a picture of Roig-Franzia and right may or may not be a picture of Allen in an editorial meeting.
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San Jose Police Taser Man and Break His Arm After He Tries to Clean His Hands

taser gun bart officer-218-85San_Jose_Police_Department_StarScott Wright paid a heavy price for clean hands. Wright was working on his old Cadillac in a parking lot when San Jose police approached. When Wright reaches for a rag to wipe off the oil on his hands, the police tasered him and then beat him with their batons — breaking his arm. They proceeded to charge him with resisting arrest — a charge that we often see in such cases where officers seek to justify such encounters.

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Lawyer Charged in Bizarre Attack on State Legislator In Indiana

bildedelaney_portrait_206x280Prosecutors in Carmel, Indiana have a perfectly bizarre crime involving a state representative, a lawyer, money-laundering for the Russian mob, a porn store, and a decades old grudge. In the case, Indiana State Representative Ed DeLaney was injured by longtime foe, lawyer Augustus Mendenhall, 38, in what the latter says was an elaborate trick gone bad.
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