Free Republic

WINNFIELD, LA. -- At 1:28 p.m. on Jan. 17, Baron "Scooter" Pikes was a healthy 21-year-old. By 2:07 p.m., he was dead. What happened in the 39 minutes in between -- during which Pikes was handcuffed by police and shocked nine times with a Taser while reportedly pleading for mercy -- is spawning suspicions of a political cover-up in this lumber town infamous for backroom dealings.

The government watchdog group known as Judicial Watch recently filed a lawsuit against the U.S. State Department, for that agency’s failure to turn over certain documents related to the prosecution of Border Patrol Agents Ramos and Compean… The suit comes after the government refused to comply with a Freedom of Information Act request for documents which detailed the agreement made between the governments of Mexico and the United States, which allowed drug smuggler Osbaldo Aldrete-Davila to return to this country to actually testify against Ramos and Compean. The FOIA request was filed by Judicial Watch on April 17, 2008. The...

HOMEOWNERS must let council inspectors in to check for DANCING BEARS after they were handed 1,043 powers to pry. Armies of clipboard-touting officials can demand entry to check on everything from pot plants to fridges. Details of the vast array of laws were quietly slipped out to MPs last Tuesday by the Home Office. The list includes 430 new powers of entry brought in by Labour ministers – a year after a report said there were only 266. The checks include whether POT PLANTS have pests or imported “passport” documents, or if HYPNOTISM is being practised illegally. Inspectors can demand...

Police in St. Louis seized cars, then freely drove them for months at a time. Perk extended to troubled daughter of police chief. Cars seized from motorists are being used as the personal rides of police officers and their relatives in St. Louis, Missouri. St. Louis Post-Dispatch investigative reporters uncovered the scandal while tracking down how Aimie Mokwa, 33, daughter of Police Chief Joe Mokwa, ended up driving vehicles registered to St. Louis Metropolitan Towing and its subsidiaries. Like many cities across the nation, St. Louis has adopted an ordinance giving police officers the ability to grab automobiles from people...

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- A police lieutenant in Daytona Beach was fired over accusations that he threatened slower emergency response times if he was not given complimentary specialty Starbucks coffee drinks. An internal police investigation found that Daytona Lt. Major Garvin received free coffee for about two years from a city Starbucks coffee store. However, when recently denied free coffee from new management, Garvin allegedly told managers that he could change the police department's response time if they refuse to give him complimentary drinks. Garvin is accused of saying, "If something happens, either we can respond really fast or we...

The Chicago Police Board made the correct decision in suspending — and not firing — an officer who was videotaped beating a 60-year-old man handcuffed and shackled to a wheelchair, a Cook County judge has ruled.

What prompted Pembroke Pines police to conduct a dawn paramilitary raid that ended with the June 12 shooting death of homeowner Vincent Hodgkiss? In its application for a narcotics search warrant, police cited an anonymous complaint of drug dealing, surveillance of high-turnover visitors and two searches of Hodgkiss' trash by detectives, who found scraps of paper with handwritten numbers and trace amounts of "green, leafy substance" that tested positive for marijuana. Police conducted the raid with its Special Response Team (similar to SWAT) two days after Broward Circuit Judge Dale Cohen approved the search warrant. As a result of the...

They don't pretend to be Woodward and Bernstein. The bloggers call themselves amateur journalists and describe their website, Badgewars.com, as "the electronic bathroom wall." But they have piqued the interest of Boston police, who have launched an internal affairs investigation to find out who is behind the website. They also want to know whether the bloggers have any evidence to support the allegations they make about Boston officers violating department rules, such as abusing construction details or claiming false injuries to get time off work. Last month, Superintendent Kenneth Fong, who heads internal affairs, sent an e-mail asking for the...

CREDIT CARD FIASCO | 'Credible witness' pointed to courtroom spectator Kimberly Flores promised her mother in West Virginia a Chicago T-shirt, so she stopped in at a Walgreens. But when she went to the counter to pay for it, the 47-year-old Aurora woman became the suspect in a stolen credit card case that ended up costing her 18 months of aggravation and $11,000 in legal fees. All because of a less-than-strong case that hinged on an even weaker eyewitness. The witness was so weak, in fact, that when asked to identify the perp in court, she passed over Flores at...

MOUNT JULIET, Tenn. - A Midstate man said a police officer nearly choked him to death during a traffic stop. The incident was caught on tape. The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation is investigating how Mount Juliet Cpl. Bill Cosby interacted with James Anders, Jr. Cosby stopped the 26-year-old Wilson County man in April. Cosby suspected Anders hid marijuana in his mouth. The officer used a vascular restraint technique to keep Anders from swallowing. On the video recorded inside Cosby's patrol car, Cosby said he smelled marijuana and handcuffed Anders and his passenger. The video also showed the officer putting his...

The director of the FBI is not happy with the Supreme Court's recent handgun ruling. Robert Mueller says he tends to believe that "weapons harm people, and more often than not they harm the people carrying them." Mueller said the high court's decision, which threw out a handgun ban in Washington, D.C., "does throw a lot of things up in the air." Mueller said communities will now have to decide their own licensing programs. Mueller was speaking at a convention of the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators in Hartford, Connecticut. He says with his grandchildren going to college,...

NYPD Investigating Incident, Officers Placed On Modified Duty NEW YORK (CBS) -- Undercover police officers who arrested four men on drug charges are under investigation after surveillance video proved the men they arrested committed no crime. Drug charges against brothers Jose Colon and Maximo Colon, along with two of their friends have been dropped. The undercover NYPD officers are seen on video dancing in the street, then attempting to frame four innocent men. "I asked police officer why are you arresting me," said Maximo Colon. "Never did I get an answer." The investigators swore under oath they bought drugs from...

Woman pulled cop from wrecked car in 2002, but police said she stole service weapon A trained nurse, Rachelle Jackson immediately ran toward the sound of the crash. A Chicago police car had collided with another vehicle and was starting to smoke, two officers still inside. Fearing an explosion, she quickly pulled one officer from the passenger side.She never imagined her act of kindness nearly six years ago would land her in jail for more than 10 months on charges that she robbed, battered and disarmed a peace officer. Jackson filed a lawsuit, and on Thursday a federal jury found...

ROCK HILL, S.C. - Authorities say seven people attending high school graduations in Rock Hill, South Carolina, are facing charges after police say they cheered while students' names were being called. Authorities say six people at Fort Mill High School's graduation were charged Saturday and a seventh at the graduation for York Comprehensive High School was charged Friday with disorderly conduct. Police say those arrested yelled after students' names were called while diplomas were handed out. A police spokesman says school officials request police patrols to prevent graduation disruptions that include standing, hollering and clapping. He says those attending the...

D.C. Police Chief Cathy L. Lanier announced a military-style checkpoint yesterday to stop cars this weekend in a Northeast Washington neighborhood inundated by gun violence, saying it will help keep criminals out of the area. Starting on Saturday, officers will check drivers' identification and ask whether they have a "legitimate purpose" to be in the Trinidad area, such as going to a doctor or church or visiting friends or relatives. If not, the drivers will be turned away. The Neighborhood Safety Zone initiative is the latest crime-fighting attempt by Lanier and Mayor Adrian M. Fenty, who have been under pressure...

State may try to seize sect's assets AUSTIN — With the price care for the more than 400 children seized last month from the polygamist ranch in West Texas expected to reach into the tens of million of dollars, a legislative panel on Tuesday suggested that the state explore the possibility of garnishing the religious organization's assets to recoup the costs. "That compound didn't grow out of fairy dust," state Sen. Robert Deuell, R-Greenville, said after a Senate Finance Committee hearing where he urged state health officials to determine whether members of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter...

CANTON For residents tired of that overgrown lot that resembles a minijungle next door, the city wants to help by trying to put high-grass violators behind bars. City Council wants to beef up its existing high-grass and weeds law by making a second offense a fourth-degree misdemeanor, which is punishable by a fine of up to $250 and up to 30 days in jail. In the spring and summer, it's not uncommon for council members to field complaints from residents about overgrown lots owned by individuals or banks and corporations that ignore the law and notices in the mail. More...

With virtually no fanfare, President Bush has signed into law a plan that orders the government to take no more than six months to set up a "national contingency plan" to screen newborns' DNA that would be put into use in case of a "public health emergency." Further, the new law requires that the results of that DNA program, including "information … research, and data on newborn screening" shall be assembled by a "central clearinghouse" and be made available on the Internet. According to records of Congress, S.1858, sponsored by Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Conn., was approved in the Senate on...

HARTFORD, Conn.: A man alleges that police entered his home illegally and ripped a catheter from his body during a child pornography investigation that led to the arrest of two neighbors. Andrew Glover, 60, of New Britain filed a notice with the city Thursday that he intends to pursue a federal civil rights lawsuit. He accused the officers of inflicting severe injuries as he was recovering from intestinal surgery in February. Glover's lawyer, Paul Spinella, said police entered Glover's apartment Jan. 30 and Feb. 28. Glover wasn't involved in child pornography, has not been charged and has no criminal record,...

OPA-LOCKA, Fla. -- Federal agents on the hunt for criminals on Thursday raided the wrong house while searching for drugs. Police and federal agents raided 50 marijuana grow houses around Florida on Thursday, calling it "Operation D-Day." They seized $7 million worth of pot plants, but they also kicked in the door of Noel Llorente's Opa-locka home and found nothing but bewildered homeowners. "I was frightened for my husband because they threw him on the ground," Llorente's wife said. "I was scared. Llorente said he was just leaving for work when unmarked cars pulled up, Drug Enforcement Administration agents jumped...

A 23-year Atlanta Police Department veteran pleaded guilty on Monday to conspiring to violate civil rights by searching a private residence without a warrant, federal prosecutors said. Wilbert Stallings, 44, of Conyers, a sergeant in the department's narcotics unit, faces up to 10 years in prison and up to $250,000 in fines. A sentencing date wasn't immediately set.

In June 2005, the Supreme Court rendered its infamous Kelo v. New London decision. The Court’s 5-4 majority, despite the clear language of the Fifth Amendment, decided that “public use” (roads, bridges, etc.) really means “public purpose” (anything the government wants). In the absence of state or local laws to the contrary, the ruling in effect green-lighted whimsical use of the government’s power of eminent domain nationwide. What has happened in New London, Connecticut since the Kelo ruling is an object lesson in why the Supremes were wrong.

Video Shows S.C. Troopers Ramming Suspects Two Troopers Seen Hitting Suspects With Cruisers UPDATED: 3:42 pm EDT COLUMBIA, S.C. -- Federal prosecutors were reviewing two separate cases of South Carolina Highway Patrol officers using their cruisers to chase and ram fleeing suspects. Dashboard camera videos captured the incidents, along with an earlier one in which a trooper uses a racial slur. Both of the latest videos are from 2007. They were just released. One shows the cruiser striking a man who was running away. The man is sent flying into high grass on the roadside. The trooper later received a...

Somebody sent me an email mentioning the ATF ordering Leatherman tools engraved with "Always Think Forfeiture". I followed the link to the original message thread at www.subguns.com.The thread includes a link to the Federal Business Opportunities website, where you can read the bid for yourself.From the www.fbo.gov website:The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco & Firearms requires the following items, Purchase Description Determined by Line Item, to the following: LI 001, EXACT MATCH ONLY - Leatherman Micra Color: Blue - Part number 64340101K Engraved with: ATF-Asset Forfeiture AND "always think forfeiture" PLEASE REFER TO THE ATTACHMENT. NOTE: ATF MAY REQUEST A SAMPLE...

WEAPONS OF CHOICE Public 'threatened' by private-firearms ownership Government argues gun restrictions 'permitted by the 2nd Amendment' Posted: January 14, 2008 1:00 a.m. Eastern © 2008 WorldNetDaily.com Paul Clement Since "unrestricted" private ownership of guns clearly threatens the public safety, the 2nd Amendment can be interpreted to allow a variety of gun restrictions, according to the Bush administration. The argument was delivered by U.S. Solicitor General Paul D. Clement in a brief filed with the U.S. Supreme Court in the ongoing arguments over the legality of a District of Columbia ban on handguns in homes, according to a report from...

World Net Daily reports: Nearly a dozen members of a police SWAT team in western Colorado punched a hole in the front door and invaded a family's home with guns drawn, demanding that an 11-year-old boy who had had an accidental fall accompany them to the hospital, on the order of Garfield County Magistrate Lain Leoniak. The boy's parents and siblings were thrown to the floor at gunpoint and the parents were handcuffed in the weekend assault, and the boy's father told WND it was all because a paramedic was upset the family preferred to care for their son themselves....

Nearly a dozen members of a police SWAT team in western Colorado punched a hole in the front door and invaded a family's home with guns drawn, demanding that an 11-year-old boy who had had an accidental fall accompany them to the hospital, on the order of Garfield County Magistrate Lain Leoniak. The boy's parents and siblings were thrown to the floor at gunpoint and the parents were handcuffed in the weekend assault, and the boy's father told WND it was all because a paramedic was upset the family preferred to care for their son themselves. Someone, apparently the unidentified...

WAVERLY, Ohio (AP) — Nearly 100 drunken-driving suspects in this southern Ohio town avoided convictions or jail time last year after making voluntary $1,000 donations to the police department, county records show. More than a third of the drunken-driving cases filed by Waverly police in Pike County Court last year were dismissed, according to a report published Sunday in The Columbus Dispatch.

A new Virginia Department of Transportation study shows accidents increased by nearly a third where red light cameras were used. The Virginia Transportation Research Council today released a report expanding upon earlier research into the safety effects of red light cameras in Virginia. The new study, funded by the Virginia Department of Transportation and the Federal Highway Administration, provided a city-by-city assessment that showed significant increases in the number of injuries and accidents at intersections employing photo enforcement. The change in the frequency of injury accidents varied widely among jurisdictions -- down 5 percent in one but up between 6...

(2007-7-1) MSP has quietly notified dealers around the state that new restrictions on purchase of regulated firearms (handguns and select long guns) will take effect on August 1. Starting that date, any application to purchase such firearms will be administratively denied if it does not contain a release authorizing police to access medical records which may be on file at any state agency – or at any agency anywhere – in order to decide if the applicant is eligible to possess a gun. MSP will now assess your mental health when it decides whether to approve your purchase. Federal and...

How many alleged criminals can a law-and-order candidate be associated with before it starts to hurt? That's the question facing former New York City Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani, following the indictment Tuesday of Thomas Ravenel, his volunteer campaign chairman in South Carolina. Mayor of the World Giuliani entered the presidential campaign early this year with one tarnished pal stuffed into his baggage: his former bodyguard, police commissioner and business partner Bernard Kerik. Kerik's career began to unravel in 2004 after Giuliani urged President Bush to name him Secretary of Homeland Security — a nomination that was quickly withdrawn amid reports...

Brian D. Kelly didn't think he was doing anything illegal when he used his videocamera to record a Carlisle police officer during a traffic stop. Making movies is one of his hobbies, he said, and the stop was just another interesting event to film. Now he's worried about going to prison or being burdened with a criminal record. Kelly, 18, of Carlisle, was arrested on a felony wiretapping charge, with a penalty of up to 7 years in state prison. His camera and film were seized by police during the May 24 stop, he said, and he spent 26 hours...

ANNAPOLIS, Md. - Annapolis police raided the wrong apartment Wednesday night, using flash grenades and kicking a resident in the groin before they realized their mistake, police and the family said. Police spokesman Hal Dalton said something must have gone amiss in the briefing beforehand. "We don't know how the mistake was made," Dalton said.

Behind Rudy Giuliani's impressive lead in the polls is one fact that puzzles the pundits: Many cultural conservatives are backing a pro-choice, pro-gun control candidate. But what should be equally surprising is the strong support Giuliani is finding among libertarian-leaning Republicans, who also make up a big slice of the GOP base. Here's why: Throughout his career, Giuliani has displayed an authoritarian streak that would be all the more problematic in a man who would assume executive powers vastly expanded by President Bush. As a U.S. attorney in the 1980s, Giuliani conducted what University of Chicago Law Prof. Daniel Fischel...

HENDERSONVILLE, NC (AP) - Hendersonville, North Carolina's police chief promises to discipline members of a SWAT team who raided the wrong house with guns drawn. Chief Donnie Parks says the three officers entered the wrong residence while executing a search warrant. They were responding to complaints of illegal drug sales in the area. Parks says the police department is obligated to make restitution and is prepared to do so. The raid occurred around 1:30 Saturday morning. Sandra Braswell says officers threw two smoke grenades into the house while her 16-year-old grandson and several friends were having a party on the...

Feds detail woman's death, officers' plea Published on: 04/27/07 According to federal documents released Thursday, these are the events that led to Kathryn Johnston's death and the steps the officers took to cover their tracks. Three narcotics agents were trolling the streets near the Bluffs in northwest Atlanta, a known market for drugs, midday on the Tuesday before Thanksgiving. Eventually they set their sights on some apartments on Lanier Street, usually fertile when narcotics agents are looking for arrests and seizures. Gregg Junnier and another narcotics officer went inside the apartments around 2 p.m. while Jason Smith checked the woods....

WILMINGTON -- A golf tournament this weekend raised money for local emergency workers going through some tough times. But you may be surprised to hear who may get the money. Former Sheriff's Deputy Chris Long, the man who shot and killed Peyton Strickland while trying to serve an arrest warrant, is one of three candidates who may get the money from the Local Heroes tournament. Long has been under investigation since December 1, 2006. That's when Long shot through 18-year-old Peyton Strickland's front door while trying to serve arrest and search warrants. On Saturday Long, New Hanover County Sheriff Sid...

WILMINGTON, Del. -- The family of a former Marine who was shot to death by police during the investigation of the Pagans Motorcycle Club filed a federal lawsuit accusing state and local police of violating his constitutional rights. According to the lawsuit, police left Derek Hale, 25, of Manassas, Va., incapacitated and vomiting all over himself after shooting him with three Taser shocks as he sat on a porch step last November. Then, a Wilmington police officer shot him three times, the lawsuit stated. Hale's widow and parents filed the lawsuit on Friday, alleging that police failed to identify themselves...

The man leveled his gun at Nicole Thompson's face. Moments later, he had the mother of four on the ground with the barrel to the back of her head. According to her and her husband, the man screamed, "If you move, I'll shoot you in the f-- head!"

3/22/2007 Florida: City to Seize Homes Over a $5 Parking Ticket Brooksville, Florida proposes to foreclose homes and seize cars over less than $20 in parking tickets. The city council in Brooksville, Florida voted this week to advance a proposal granting city officials the authority to place liens and foreclose on the homes of motorists accused of failing to pay a single $5 parking ticket. Non-homeowners face having their vehicles seized if accused of not paying three parking offenses. According to the proposed ordinance, a vehicle owner must pay a parking fine within 72 hours if a meter maid claims...

Red's Trading Post in Twin Falls, Idaho, is the state's oldest gun shop, opened since 1936. In 2004, a routine BATFE audit revealed minor clerical errors. According to Red's, out of nearly ten THOUSAND firearms transferred between 1996 and 2004, the alleged error rate did not even reach 1%. Even the BATFE acknowledges these are minor paperwork errors -- there are no missing firearms and no willful illegal acts.And yet the BATFE has revoked the ability of Red's Trading Post to acquire firearms for resale, although they're still permitted to sell the firearms in stock ... for now. But that's...

Motorists who fail to show proof of liability insurance during a traffic stop could see their vehicles headed for the auction block under a bill passed Monday by the Oklahoma Senate. Sen. Patrick Anderson, R-Enid, won adoption of an amendment to allow for the seizing of vehicles when drivers cannot show that they have insurance. His plan amends a section of law that now allows police to confiscate vehicles containing drugs. Anderson's amendment was attached to a bill prohibiting inserting microchips into Oklahomans against their will. That measure was approved, 35-13, and sent to the House for consideration. Some senators...

A kitchen table game of poker earned a South Carolina woman a day in court. Columbia, SC -- Seventy-nine-year-old Amelia "Midge" Cheseborough thought it was a joke when police raided a home poker game, seized her $20 in chips and handcuffed her. But it wasn't. A 200-year-old law in South Carolina bans any game with cards or dice. So state Rep. Wallace Scarborough introduced a measure that would make playing poker, and Monopoly, legal as long as the house does not take a cut. Arrests involving poker games in South Carolina are infrequent, but when the Charleston lawmaker heard about...

Fulton DA seeks charges in shooting of 92-year-old woman in her home The Fulton County district attorney will seek felony murder charges against at least one of the three Atlanta police officers who shot and killed an elderly woman in a botched drug raid, according to one of the officer's attorneys. Defense attorney Rand Csehy, who is representing Gregg Junnier, said he received an e-mail message from District Attorney Paul Howard's office today saying the DA would seek charges before a grand jury Feb. 26. "It's an overbroad indictment," said an angry Csehy. He said that Howard's office has "broken...

Missouri: Police Roadblock Harassment Caught on TapeSt. Louis County, Missouri threaten to arrest a teenager for refusing to discuss his personal travel plans. A teenager harassed by police in St. Louis, Missouri caught the incident on tape. Brett Darrow, 19, had his video camera rolling last month as he drove his 1997 Maxima, minding his own business. He approached a drunk driving roadblock where he was stopped, detained and threatened with arrest when he declined to enter a conversation with a police officer about his personal travel habits. Now Darrow is considering filing suit against St. Louis County Police. "I'm...

Durham — Four men who authorities said posed as police officers to commit robberies from North Carolina to New York were being held Monday night in the Durham County Detention Center on $1 million bonds. Alexis D. Morillo, 23, of Reading, Pa.; Gabriele Pabon, 39, of Corona, N.Y.; Roberto Lopez, 23, whose address not immediately known; and Lameck L. Staton, 23, of Reading, Pa., are each charged with with robbery with a dangerous weapon, first-degree kidnapping and impersonating a police officer. "These gentlemen have extensive records up and down the East Coast," Durham County Assistant District Attorney Beth Koontz said,...

$1 million cash found concealed in pickup Wednesday, December 13, 2006 By DAVID FERRARA Staff Reporter State troopers found $1 million cash stuffed inside a hidden compartment in a pickup truck, but authorities refused to say much Tuesday about why they seized the money and the vehicle. The driver was alone in a 2006 Ford F-350, registered in Washington state and headed west on Interstate 10 around 3:15 p.m. Sunday, when he was pulled over, initially under suspicion of speeding, just east of the Eastern Shore Centre, said trooper spokeswoman Martha Earnhardt. Working on a "saturation patrol" designed to investigate...

WATERBURY -- It didn't matter whether drivers were drunk for state troopers from Troop I in Bethany to charge them with driving under the influence. Three years ago, drunken-driving arrests were a game for several troopers in Troop I, according to a scathing report released Monday attacking how the agency polices itself. The report, released by the state's Attorney General's Office and the New York state police, says it was an "open competition" among members of the troop's midnight shift to see who could make the most DUI arrests. "They wanted to become members of the 100 club for the...

"Cpl. Christopher M. Long has been charged with second-degree murder in connection with the Dec. 1 shooting death of Peyton Strickland, District Attorney Ben David said today." "Strickland, 18, was shot in the head and right shoulder area and fatally wounded Dec. 1 in the house he lived in at 533 Long Leaf Acres Drive. Strickland’s death is attributed to a gunshot wound to the head, officials said. His shooting came as members of the sheriff’s heavily armed and armored Emergency Response Team and UNCW police officers sought to arrest Strickland at his home at 533 Long Leaf Acres Drive....

One week after the fatal shooting of Peyton Strickland, New Hanover County Sheriff's Office Deputy Christopher M. Long was dismissed from his job. Friday's announcement came late in the afternoon in a terse release from the sheriff's office. The press release advised that it would be fruitless to ask any questions about the firing, citing ongoing investigations by the State Bureau of Investigation and the New Hanover County District Attorney's Office "regarding Long's recent actions." Sheriff Sid Causey did not return a call seeking further information. Long, 34, was a corporal and a member of the sheriff's office Emergency Response...