Connecticut Teacher Arrested After Stealing Money for Another Teacher and Caught on Videotape

111309-Dinnean.JPGThere are theories on the rational criminal actor, but I doubt Susan Dinnean, 55, would qualify in Wilton, Connecticut. The teacher at Middlebrook Middle School is accused of stealing $20 from the purse of another teacher — resulting in her loss of a $95,000 a year job.
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Indian Tribe Sues Self-Help Author Over Use of Sweat Lodge

jamesray-0608Touch_the_Clouds_1877aWe previously followed the investigation into the three deaths in a sweat lodge run by “Spiritual Warrior” James Arthur Ray at the Angel Valley Retreat Center in Sedona, Arizona. Now, the Lakota Sioux Tribe is suing, demanding the prosecution of Ray under the 1869 Treaty of Fr. Laramie for appropriating a Native American ritual.
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No Good Deed Goes Unpunished: Man Convicted After Turning in a Discarded Shotgun to Police

SurreypolicePaul Clarke, 27, a veteran, thought that he was doing the right thing when he found a shotgun in his garden. He took the shotgun to the police station and was immediately arrested for possession of a firearm without permit and criminally charged — an offense that brings five years imprisonment. Prosecutor Brian Stalk insisted that this is a strict liability offense and his intent to help police does not matter — he is a menace to society as defined under the criminal code.

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Journalist Charged with Pornography for Sending Pictures of Woman in Unassisted Child Birth to Government Officials

125px-Flag_of_Zambia.svg85px-Coat_of_arms_of_zambiaThere is a disturbing trial being held in Zambia where the news editor of The Post, Chansa Kabwela, sent photos of a woman giving birth in a hospital car park without assistance to highlight the costs of a nursing strike and poor government policies. She was right. The officials, including Zambia’s President, Rupiah Banda, were horrified. They immediately arrested Kabwela for distributing pornography.
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“Religious Convictions”: When Children Die, Religion Is No Defense

300px-AbrahamHere is today’s column from the Washington Post on the benefits of a new type of “good-faith” defense. While “religious convictions” are usually a reference to personal faith, it turns out that it has a distinct and disturbing meaning for criminal sentencing.
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City of Fights: Internet Promotion Sparks Violence in Paris

200px-Tour_Eiffel_Wikimedia_CommonsWe often discuss liability issues associated with promotional events. Now, it seems that the French are dealing with the same problem. An Internet company canceled a promotional event in which it promised to hand out thousands of dollars in cash. The result was violence as the crowd took out their disappointment on police and parked cars. The site for Mailorama still shows a bus throwing money.

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School Accused of Terrorizing Students With Faked Murder

tape3_MED284401sdcParents at the Fox Hill Primary School in Sheffield England are a bit put out over a curious educational program at the school. When children showed up at the school recently, they were met by a bloody crime scene, a dead teacher on the ground, and police. They were asked to solve the crime but not told that it was all for fun.
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The Lawyers Who Say Meep! High School Calls Police After Attorney Says Meep to Principal

Beaker_muppetFirst there were the Knights Who Say Ni! (below). Now we have the problem of the lawyers who say Meep! After reading the recent publications over the decision of the principal of Danvers High School banning students from saying the word “Meep,” Entertainment lawyer Theodora Michaels decided to act and wrote a letter using the four-letter word to Principal Thomas Murray, who comes across as a high school version of Dean Vernon Wormer from Animal House. She was immediately reported to the police for investigation by the school.
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Federal Court Upholds Right of Woman to Sue After Police Officers Tackle Her In Emergency Room During Premature Birth

135px-JSO_BadgeA federal court of appeals has ruled that Melanie Dawn Williams, 24, can sue after she was tackled by Jacksonville, Florida police in a hospital where she was experiencing a premature birth. Once inside the ER and she screamed, ā€œI’m pregnant. Someone help me. I am bleeding.ā€ It took the intervention of a nurse to get the police to release her to deal with her serious medical condition.

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Ex-Rep. William Jefferson Given 13-Year Sentence

160px-william_jefferson_official_photo180px-Prison_cellThe former Louisiana Rep. William Jefferson received a sentence of 13 years today — the longest term ever imposed on a congressman convicted of bribery. However, it was significantly below the 27 years sought by the Justice Department, which also failed in its attempt to have Jefferson immediately incarcerated. Instead, Jefferson, 62, will be allowed to remain free pending his appeals.

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