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NEW HAVEN — Attorneys for a group of black city firefighters Monday filed a motion asking a federal court to halt the promotion of 10 other firefighters (including four minorities) who scored well enough on 2003 exams to be promoted. The 10 firefighters’ advancements were approved Friday by the Board of Fire Commissioners, just three days after the board ratified the promotions of 14 other firefighters (all but one of them white) mandated by the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Ricci v. DeStefano. The 10 in question scored high enough on the test to be promoted, but weren’t plaintiffs with...

A New Haven man is under arrest after police found pipe bombs and a weapon in his vehicle late Saturday,  Marlon Reddick, 44 was stopped by West Haven Police last night around 11:00 p.m. in the area of Elm Street and Kimberly Avenue for equipment violations. During the motor vehicle stop, officers observed a clear plastic bag containing pills in the passenger compartment of the vehicle. After Reddick claimed no knowledge of the pills, the officers asked him to exit the vehicle as they continued their investigation, according to a police report. As officers searched the vehicle, they discovered a duffle bag behind the front seat. ...

SNIPPET: "NEW HAVEN — A 38-year-old man arrested after police discovered a pipe bomb, shotguns, gas masks and other items inside his Mercedes late Tuesday was arrested earlier this year on bombmaking charges in East Haven. John Iannucci was held at New Haven police headquarters for most of the day on a host of weapons and explosives charges. The arrest could likely complicate the situation on his current court case. He is due to appear in court on Oct. 22 on the East Haven charges of illegal possession of explosives and illegal bomb manufacturing. He was free on $25,000 bail...

NEW HAVEN, Conn. - Police have identified a suspect in the killing of a person whose body was found stuffed behind a wall in a high-security laboratory building at Yale University, law enforcement sources told NBC News on Monday. The suspect, a student, has defensive wounds, and failed a polygraph test, the sources said. The body found Sunday in the Yale Medical School building is believed to be that of Annie Le, a 24-year-old native of Placerville, Calif. She was last seen in the building on Tuesday and Sunday was to have been her wedding day. An autopsy was being...

Investigators are trying to determine whether a San Diego sailor passed Navy secrets about security weaknesses and warship movements to a British man accused of having terrorist links, according to court documents unsealed yesterday. E-mail messages from the unnamed sailor, sent in late 2000 and 2001 before the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, were found in December in computer files belonging to Babar Ahmad, who was detained Wednesday in London, according to the 31-page arrest affidavit. The computer files contained details about security arrangements and movements of the San Diego-based Constellation carrier battle group, which included the destroyer Benfold, on which...

Legislation: Still believe in post-racial politics? Read the health care bill. It's affirmative action on steroids, deciding everything from who becomes a doctor to who gets treatment on the basis of skin color. President Obama is on the record as being officially opposed to reparations for slavery. But as with other issues, you have to sift through his eloquent rhetoric and go beyond the teleprompter to get at what he really means.

Legislation: Still believe in post-racial politics? Read the health care bill. It's affirmative action on steroids, deciding everything from who becomes a doctor to who gets treatment on the basis of skin color.President Obama is on the record as being officially opposed to reparations for slavery. But as with other issues, you have to sift through his eloquent rhetoric and go beyond the teleprompter to get at what he really means. His opposition to reparations is based on the fact they don't go far enough. In a 2004 questionnaire, he told the NAACP, "I fear that reparations would be an...

Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor's backers are reportedly urging reporters to probe what one called the "troubled and litigious work history" of New Haven firefighter Frank Ricci.

NEW HAVEN — The two dozen firefighters who packed into Humphrey’s East Restaurant were celebrating a coming marriage, drinking and jawboning in the boisterous style of large men with risky jobs, but Lt. Ben Vargas spent the evening trying to escape the tension surrounding his presence. During a trip to the bathroom, he found himself facing another man. Without warning, the first punch landed. When Lieutenant Vargas awoke, bloodied and splayed on the grimy floor, he was taken to the hospital. Lieutenant Vargas believes the attack, five years ago, was orchestrated by a black firefighter in retaliation for his having...

On Monday’s Newsroom program, CNN’s Jeffrey Toobin couldn’t find a consistent argument about the Supreme Court’s ruling in favor of New Haven firefighters who accused their city of reverse discrimination. Toobin first reported that Justice Kennedy, “the swing vote in this case, as in so many others,” wrote the decision, but minutes later, he labeled it as a ruling by “the five conservatives on the Court.”

WASHINGTON - The Supreme Court ruled Monday that white firefighters in New Haven, Conn., were unfairly denied promotions because of their race, reversing a decision that high court nominee Sonia Sotomayor endorsed as an appeals court judge. New Haven was wrong to scrap a promotion exam because no African-Americans and only two Hispanic firefighters were likely to be made lieutenants or captains based on the results, the court said Monday in a 5-4 decision. The city said that it had acted to avoid a lawsuit from minorities. The ruling could alter employment practices nationwide, potentially limiting the circumstances in which...

A few months ago, David Frum wrote a cover article for the leftist magazine Newsweek smearing the most prominent conservative in America, Rush Limbaugh, as some kind of sinister McCarthyite hater who should "shut up." The message was that conservatives should shut up and surrender to liberalism. Now Ramesh Ponnuru, a senior editor of National Review, has followed in Frum's footsteps, writing an op-ed for the leftist New York Times in which he attacks conservatives as hypocrites for supporting the plaintiffs in the Ricci anti-white discrimination case. Here's his reasoning: Mr. Ricci probably deserved his promotion and had a right...

The Law Offices of Steven W. Dulan, PLC announces federal civil rights suit against City of Grand Haven and Ottawa County over open-carry ordinance. The suit, brought under Title 42, Section 1983 of the U.S. Code, was filed on behalf of Christopher Fetters, an off-duty Air Force Security Officer who was attending the Coast Guard Festival in Grand Haven last year. Mr. Fetters was openly carrying a holstered pistol, which is legal under Michigan law, as in most states. He was arrested and detained and charged with a violation of a Grand Haven city ordinance prohibiting open carry of firearms....

The Supreme Court heard arguments in an important discrimination case brought by 20 firefighters from New Haven, Connecticut. They charge that the city passed them over for promotion, despite the fact they achieved high scores on their promotion test. Nineteen of the firefighters are white, one Latino. No blacks scored high enough to qualify for promotion. The city then threw out the entire test and promoted no one. The firefighters who passed the exam are claiming they were denied promotion because of their race.

The Supreme Court has an opportunity to reaffirm or reshape the nation's civil rights laws as it faces a rare confluence of cases over the next two weeks, including a high-profile challenge brought by white firefighters who claim they lost out on promotions because of the "color of their skin." ... The most emotionally charged case is from the New Haven, Conn., firefighters, whose complaints define the real-life quandary that sometimes accompanies government efforts to ensure racial equality. The firefighters accuse city officials of violating civil rights laws and the Constitution by throwing out a promotions test on which they...

The heirs of an Apache chieftain whose remains are rumored to be held inside Yale's oldest secret society filed a lawsuit today demanding the return of their ancestor's skull. Twenty descendants of the legendary Apache chieftain Geronimo are suing the federal government, the University and the society Skull & Bones in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to seek the return of his remains as well as punitive damages. One hundred years ago today, Geronimo died of pneumonia at Fort Sill, Okla., but the suit alleges members of the society exhumed his remains in 1918 or 1919 and...

NEW HAVEN, Conn. (AP)—Nine-year-old Jericho Scott is a good baseball player— too good, it turns out. The right-hander has a fastball that tops out at about 40 mph. He throws so hard that the Youth Baseball League of New Haven told his coach that the boy could not pitch any more. When Jericho took the mound anyway last week, the opposing team forfeited the game, packed its gear and left, his coach said. Officials for the three-year-old league, which has eight teams and about 100 players, said they will disband Jericho’s team, redistributing its players among other squads, and offered...

NEW HAVEN, Conn. —Nine-year-old Jericho Scott is a good baseball player— too good, it turns out. The right-hander has a fastball that tops out at about 40 mph. He throws so hard that the Youth Baseball League of New Haven told his coach that the boy could not pitch any more. When Jericho took the mound anyway last week, the opposing team forfeited the game, packed its gear and left, his coach said. Officials for the three-year-old league, which has eight teams and about 100 players, said they will disband Jericho’s team, redistributing its players among other squads, and offered...

(Updated) Mayor John DeStefano, offering new details about a dirt bike-van collision that led to a crowd beating a driver and a 15 year-old boy losing his life, renewed a call to tackle the challenge of “disconnected” teens. DeStefano made the remarks at an unrelated City Hall press event in the wake of a Wednesday afternoon incident that has shocked the city. The incident occurred between 4:30 and 5 p.m. Wednesday. A 15 year-old boy racing a stolen Honda dirt bike up and down Shepard Street ran into the back of a van. A crowd of his friends subsequently beat...

This press release contains information on two events of the same day. The Gathering of Eagles event has a time change from the original schedule released: it is now from 12 Noon to 2 PM. The Gathering of Eagles and Eagles UP will be sponsoring the first event and attending the second event. The GATHERING OF EAGLES, a patriotic organization whose goal is to publicly support our men and women in uniform, whether active duty or veteran, announces our whole hearted participation with the New Haven GUARDIAN ANGELS and EAGLES UP in an upcoming rally at the Vietnam and Korean...

From WTNH, Channel 8 New Haven: Thief damages New Haven fountain Posted Mar. 18, 2008 6:02 AM New Haven (WTNH) _ A thief targeted the fountain on the New Haven Green and caused thousands of dollars in damage. Someone stole 32 bronze nozzles and eight bronze light fixtures from the fountain that sits across from city hall. Police think it has to do with the record-high value of scrap metal, the New Haven Register reported. The city thinks it will cost about $20,000 to repair the fountain, which is also a war memorial. http://www.wtnh.com/Global/story.asp?S=8031761

The recent criticism of hate speech on campus is entirely appropriate. But we ought to make one exception to this rule: the “religious right,” a retrograde coterie of unattractive common folk who seek to impose their irrational beliefs on the rest of us. These fundamentalists lie awake at night, plotting the imposition of the truths they have received by revelation from God. God has decreed the necessity of prohibiting abortion and gay marriage, lest the land be scourged by His wrath, so the unquestioning hordes of Jesus-freaks flood the polls on election day. The few who are at Yale (here...

New Haven (WTNH) _ Three shootings in one night has the mayor of New Haven calling on the state for help. Mayor John DeStefano says the state needs to do more to fight major crime in Connecticut's big cities. Mayor DeStefano says the three shootings on Monday are part of a culture of lawlessness and youth violence caused by the state not doing enough to help young people stay out of trouble and not doing enough to help prison inmates stay out of trouble once they're released back on the streets. One incident Monday night involved a 17-year-old with four...

DANBURY -- Some were young people, who feared their parents could be deported. Others were parents, concerned about the safety of their children. Still others who attended Wednesday night's mass rally at City Hall had no personal stake in a proposed partnership between Danbury police and U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement. But they came to voice their opposition to the plan and their support for those who could be affected by it. "This is what being an American is all about, fighting for your rights," said Fernanda Franco, of Bethel, a legal Brazilian immigrant whose rendition of "The Star-Spangled Banner"...

NEW HAVEN — Members of a watchdog group who claim undocumented workers are taking jobs away from black people did the church circuit Sunday down Dixwell Avenue. But the group of eight weren’t there to praise God or even spread Christian values. Instead, the members of Community Watchdog Project fanned into church parking lots to leave literature promoting a message of disdain for people in this country illegally. New Haven Alderman Yusuf Shah, D-23, who believes the watchdog group’s mission is divisive, racist and misguided, said that leaving negative literature for people to find after church is “highly disrespectful.” “To...

NEW HAVEN, Conn. - An e-mail sent by local immigration officials to their agency head the day after the city adopted an ID program for illegal immigrants suggests that the timing of a raid soon thereafter was not coincidental, the city's mayor said. Regional Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers told agency Director Julie Myers in a June 5 e-mail that New Haven's Board of Aldermen had voted 25-1 the previous night to make the city the nation's first to offer illegal immigrants ID cards. City officials said the cards would help immigrants better integrate into mainstream culture by allowing them...

MERIDEN (CT) — A New Haven man was sentenced Friday to eight years in prison for the vehicular manslaughter of West Haven minister Alan B. Broome in a wrong-way drunken driving crash on Interstate 91 last year, according Mothers Against Drunk Driving and the victim’s widow. Israel Quintero, 30, of 981 Ella T. Grasso Blvd., was sentenced in Superior Court in Meriden. Effie Cotto, a victim advocate with MADD, and Broome’s widow, Renee Broome, said Quintero must serve eight years and would then be subject to deportation, because he is an illegal immigrant from Mexico. Cotto and Broome attended the...

New Haven (WTNH) _ Veterans are outraged that a war memorial in New Haven has been vandalized. The Vietnam War Memorial at Long Wharf was spray painted with the threatening words "Kill whites MS 13." Seeing this just crushed the veterans we spoke to. The names on that wall that are covered in paint, are the names of those who fought and died for this country in the Vietnam War. Tonight, police are investigating whether this is the work of a violent street gang, but the veterans we spoke to, say whoever they are, aren't as tough as they might...

Ten Hispanic immigrants filed a lawsuit on Wednesday against a Connecticut city, its mayor and police chief, and federal agents who led a crackdown on illegal immigration last year. The suit filed in U.S. District Court in New Haven, Connecticut, claims the arrests violated the civil rights of nine workers and a 10th man who was stopped at a traffic light, including their right to due legal process, free speech and freedom from unreasonable searches and seizures, according to court documents.

WOODBRIDGE, Va. — As her husband steps out the back door of their suburban rental home and into the early light each morning, Veronica makes the sign of the cross. Keep my husband safe, she prays to the Virgin Mary, and away from the police. Jorge goes to find work as a construction laborer, and Veronica mostly stays inside, tending to the children. Since early summer, she's been afraid to take her three boys to the park, afraid to visit the Latino market up the road. The couple, who didn't want their surnames used because they're in the country illegally,...

New Haven Issues 3,200 City ID Cards To Immigrants Cards Designed To Help Illegal Immigrants Gain Access To Community Services (AP) NEW HAVEN, Conn. The city's new identification card program, which has drawn criticism because it is open to illegal immigrants, has been much more of a success than officials expected. New Haven began issuing the ID cards to city residents on July 24, and city leaders estimated that 5,000 of them would be handed out in the first year. But officials say they have already distributed 3,226 cards. The city also has plans to sign up more people by...

NEW HAVEN, Conn. -- While many kids and their parents get some back-to-school shopping done, one Connecticut high school student is headed to federal court. Avery Doninger said that her rights were trampled when she was denied a spot in the race for class secretary. She claims that she was punished for a remark she made about Lewis Mills High School administrators on her Internet blog. Doninger said that the posting led administrators to ban her from running for re-election as senior class secretary. She filed a lawsuit, stating that her right to free speech was violated. "The fact that...

All around the country, certain cities are refusing to inform federal authorities about the activities of illegal aliens, even foreign nationals who commit crimes in their jurisdictions. This week the police department in New Haven, Connecticut issued a memo ordering officers not to cooperate with Homeland Security on enforce warrants for illegal immigrants. This follows New Haven's distribution of ID cards to illegals so they can access city services. This, of course, is outrageous, and verges on anarchy. New Haven officials have violated Federal Statute 1373(a), and if Attorney General Gonzalez still has an office, he should prosecute them. But...

New Haven (AP) _ Two immigrant advocacy groups are suing the federal government over the recent New Haven raids, in which more than 30 suspected illegal immigrants were arrested. Junta for Progressive Action and Unidad Latina en Accion filed suit Friday in U.S. District Court against the Department of Homeland Security. They want that agency to release records on how its Immigration and Custom Enforcement agents coordinated the raids which happened back in June. City leaders and the immigrant-rights groups have questioned whether it was retaliation for New Haven's new ID card program. Federal officials have said the sweeps were...

New Haven (WTNH) _ The two men accused in the murders of a Cheshire mother and her two daughters will be back in court September 18 for a probable cause hearing. Under heavy guard Joshua Komisarjevsky and Steven Hayes were whisked into a New Haven Superior Court Tuesday morning to be arraigned on capital murder charges in the deaths of Jennifer Hawke-Petit and her two daughters Hayley,17, and Michaela,11. They did not enter pleas and spoke only to yes or no questions. Komisarjevsky and Hayes, both convicted burglars with long criminal histories, were out on parole at the time of...

In what has been called "A Tale of Two Cities," Hazleton, Pa., and New Haven have been taking sharply contrasting courses on illegal immigration. But they came to a crossroads of sorts in a Pennsylvania courtroom last week. Hazleton, once a bustling coal town that fell on hard times after the mines played out, enacted a law penalizing landlords and employers who associated with illegal aliens. In a lawsuit bankrolled by the American Civil Liberties Union, illegals and their advocates contended Hazleton was interfering with the federal government's constitutional authority over immigration. U.S. District Court Judge James Munley agreed, but...

Immigrants, Supporters Pour In For ID by Melissa Bailey July 24, 2007 3:44 PM When City Hall opened its doors for the first members of the public to sign up for the city’s controversial new ID card, so many people showed up that the line — including many undocumented immigrants— still snaked down the hallway at closing time. By day’s end, officials reported that 250 people signed up for their Elm City Residency Card. The office stayed open an hour later to accommodate some of the extra crowd; others were told to return on Wednesday. Visitors signing up for the...

(New Haven-WTNH) _ This is day four of availability for New Haven's city identification cards. People lined up before dawn to apply, and today another bank announced it will recognize the ID cards. Hundreds of people lined the sidewalk as early at four a.m. They came with their coffee in hand and children in tow. "Many of these people depend on getting a really good identification to get supplies for their families, so we're not invisible," Alberto Camarillo of New Haven said. Camarillo joined more than four hundred people applying for an ID on the third day of their issue....

Attempts by cities or other governments to sidestep federal policy and make their own provisions for illegal aliens won't get any attention from the White House, spokesman Tony Snow says. He said such efforts are not under the president's "purview." Snow was responding today to a question from Les Kinsolving, WND's correspondent at the White House. He asked about the president's reaction to local governments making their own decisions regarding immigration policy. "Reuters reports that New Haven, Conn., will begin issuing to illegal aliens city ID cards to allow them access to city programs and to open bank accounts. My...

A former Navy sailor charged with supporting terrorism by disclosing secret information about the location of Navy ships and the best ways to attack them also discussed attacking military personnel and recruiting stations,

NEW HAVEN, Conn. (July 27) - This city is becoming the first in the nation to offer identification cards to illegal immigrants, trying to bring them out of the shadows even as many municipalities crack down on them. Beginning Tuesday, New Haven will offer the ID cards to all of its 125,000 residents, including some 10,000 to 12,000 illegal immigrants. The cards will allow immigrants to open bank accounts and use other services that may be unavailable without driver's licenses or state-issued IDs. If they can open bank accounts, immigrants will be less likely to carry large amounts of cash,...

Dozens of people lined up at City Hall on Tuesday for municipal identification cards, the first city-issued ID cards specifically designed to bring illegal immigrants out of the shadows and give them access to community services.

The ID cards will be issued in an attempt to curb local crime by making undocumented immigrants more likely to report crimes or cooperate with local authorities. They will also allow them the opportunity to establish bank accounts, access local libraries and enjoy other public services that officials hope will help them integrate into the community and avoid becoming the target of robberies and other crimes. The plan has received fierce opposition from groups such as Americans for Legal Immigration PAC, who fear that the program will increase immigrant populations in the town to levels that strain public services.

The Department of Homeland Security conducted an early morning raid of undocumented immigrants in New Haven on Wednesday, arresting dozens and prompting city officials to decry what they believe to be federal retaliation for city’s approval Monday of the first-in-the-nation municipal ID program. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents made 29 arrests Wednesday, according to a spokeswoman for the agency, and city officials said they expect more arrests over the course of the next two weeks. The officials described it as the first-ever mass arrest of illegal immigrants in recent New Haven history, but the ICE spokeswoman says the arrests are...

(New Haven-AP) _ New Haven's aldermen are expected to approve city issued identification cards for illegal immigrants. The Board Of Aldermen is to vote today on the program that is being touted as the first of its kind program in the country. New Haven wants to create a municipal identification card. Supporters say the ID would help assimilate immigrants and provide benefits to other residents who may not have official IDs. The card would be recognized as official identification within city limits, allowing illegal immigrants to open bank accounts. The card also would provide all holders access to city services,...

After Action report: May 13, 2007. New Haven Connecticut. Today, May 13, 2007, members of THE GATHERING OF EAGLES met at the New Haven Green to counter a Mother's Day protest held by a local left-wing group protesting the war on terror and our president. We arrived at about 12 Noon and stayed until the so-called Peace Persons left their area. The GOE had about 8 persons who were notified on short notice to appear, while the left wing group has made it a habit to appear at this location for some time. Their attendance today was about 50 persons....

I just received a heads up that a left wing group will be holding an anti-war rally on the New Haven Green on May 13, Mother's Day. This is a short notice alert, those that can make it, let's EAGLE UP!

(New Haven-WTNH) _ New Haven police will be using their cars to promote the city's under-utilized gun tip hotline, but first they need some help from the public. Officers will be putting bumper stickers on every city police car. But they have to design the sticker first and that's where the public comes in. The police department is holding a contest for bumper sticker ideas. "We made up 3 or 4 logos and bumper stickers and we didn't like any of them," Officer Joe Avery said. "So let's leave it to the public. Let's let them come up with one."...

NEW HAVEN, Conn. --A man who traded images of child pornography and sexual abuse on the Internet was sentenced Tuesday to five years in prison after pleading for mercy, saying his effeminate appearance would make him vulnerable to abuse behind bars....

Abortion 101 at Yale By Michelle Malkin   ·   January 25, 2007 06:25 AM Dawn Eden reports that Yale medical students are celebrating "Roe v. Wade week" by holding a seminar, open to non-medical students, on how to perform abortions. --- Yale 'Roe vs. Wade Week' teaches non-medical students how to make a baby go (Whiffen)poof Good morning! I'm exhausted after taking two trains and a cab back from New Haven, so I'll leave it to Stephen of  For God, for Country, and for Yale to offer details (and, I hope, photos) of my Theology on Tap talk. I can tell...