http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/policestate/ en-us Wed, 23 Jul 2008 12:45:02 GMT Focus Forum 15 http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2049891/posts In Chicago, people like Robert Perry are subjected to exhaustive security checks. He was patted down, his wheel chair was examined and his hands were swabbed, all in public view in a see-through room at the security checkpoint. Perry, 71, is not alone "It's humiliation," Perry said. Perry was also taken to a see-through room by a TSA agent when his artificial knee set off the metal detector. "He yelled at me to get the belt off. 'I told you to get the belt off.' So I took the belt off. He ran his hands down over and pulled the... CBS2Chicago.com via Drudge http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2049891/posts#comment Wed, 23 Jul 2008 12:45:02 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2048861/posts An outspoken Long Island gun owner's home was raided by Nassau County detectives, who seized two dozen weapons he lawfully owns just one day after Rep. Carolyn McCarthy's office made a 911 call about him. The New York Post http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2048861/posts#comment Mon, 21 Jul 2008 17:23:56 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2048837/posts 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... The Sun UK http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2048837/posts#comment Mon, 21 Jul 2008 16:26:41 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2048813/posts Bluetooth Big Brother uses mobiles and laptops to track thousands of Britons Last updated at 12:04pm on 21.07.08    Thousands of people in Bath are unaware their movements may have been tracked through their bluetooth mobiles Thousands of Britons' movements have been covertly tracked by scanners placed in streets, pubs and offices for a technology experiment.  The Cityware project run by the University of Bath has secretly placed scanners around the Somerset city, with the first 10 installed 2006. The scanners pick up bluetooth radio signals transmitted from mobile phones and laptops. In a scene reminiscent of the Will Smith... The Evening Standard (U.K.) http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2048813/posts#comment Mon, 21 Jul 2008 15:43:58 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2048506/posts 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... The Newspaper http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2048506/posts#comment Sun, 20 Jul 2008 21:40:55 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2047981/posts The Washington D.C. City Council has created so many hoops for handgun owners to jump through before they can exercise their Second Amendment rights, they may require legal counsel just to identify what the hoops are.  This sorry state of affairs is much to the satisfaction of The Washington Post, which called for just such an obstructionist policy in an editorial.  At least one of those hoops is illegal, according to the Supreme Court, but a Post news story spun that fact as the opinion of “opponents of the handgun ban.”  Is editorial policy coloring the news?The Washington Post is... Townhall.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2047981/posts#comment Sat, 19 Jul 2008 13:27:30 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2046499/posts I can't help but notice that the NYS Police, the Sheriff's, and the local town and city cops no longer walk the beat or do much "protecting" They are trained now to make their primary priority issuing minor tickets that have big fines. Offense: Cell phone use = $150 bucks They also are trained to scan your auto inspection sticker, one day out of inspection and you may pay $200. Speed traps, you name it, Police are now a profit center first and foremost, more reason for people who want to prtect themselves to purchase the guns of their choice. http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2046499/posts#comment Wed, 16 Jul 2008 19:52:54 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2046116/posts Caught speeding in Highland Park in April in his father's Acura RSX, Ryan Narciso found out the hard way about a recent change in a New Jersey gun law that could send him to prison for three years.The 20-year-old sales clerk at a shop at Menlo Park Mall and former Middlesex County College student had a pellet handgun in the car, according to an indictment filed last week in Superior Court, New Brunswick.The gun, a Gamo P-23, was sitting under the rear window of the 2004 coupe. Looking like a larger-caliber handgun, the firearm drew a quick response from the... mycentraljersey.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2046116/posts#comment Wed, 16 Jul 2008 02:20:24 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2045992/posts MORE British Insanity Mother Needs Criminal Record Check Before Accompanying Epileptic Son to SchoolThe Brits are entering the terminal stages of The Nanny State. While their streets are awash in criminals, the schools failing, the Health Care system on the respirator, and Islam on the verge of being the new royalty, the Brits have redoubled their efforts to make life more difficult for British families. From the Daily Mail. (How do they find this stuff? Hotline?) "Mother stopped from travelling with son in taxi to school - because she hasn't had a criminal record check" Yep. In Britain a mother... DBKP http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2045992/posts#comment Tue, 15 Jul 2008 22:18:34 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2043060/posts WASHINGTON — More than two and a half years after the disclosure of President’s Bush’s domestic eavesdropping program set off a furious national debate, the Senate gave final approval on Wednesday afternoon to broadening the government’s spy powers and providing legal immunity for the phone companies that took part in the wiretapping program. The plan, approved by a vote of 69 to 28, marked one of Mr. Bush’s most hard-won legislative victories in a Democratic-led Congress where he has had little success of late. And it represented a stinging defeat for opponents on the left who had urged Democratic leaders... New York Times http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2043060/posts#comment Wed, 9 Jul 2008 20:05:04 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2040056/posts Holiday DUI suspects risk forced blood test Court's OK likely if breath exam is refused Wednesday, July 2, 2008 9:35 PM By Kathy Lynn Gray THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH Suspected drunken drivers won't be able to "just say no" to blood-alcohol tests in Columbus over the Fourth of July holiday weekend. Police have set up a "no-refusal weekend," meaning that anyone who refuses to take a breath-analysis test will face a blood test instead, courtesy of two local judges on call to sign warrants. Officers will take suspects to a local hospital to await the warrant and the blood draw. Ohio... The Columbus Dispatch http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2040056/posts#comment Thu, 3 Jul 2008 02:00:52 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2039726/posts From its Texas Rangers to its enthusiastic take on the death penalty, the Lone Star State has long been known for its aggressive stance on law enforcement. Thanks to a strange new law, it's a sting that may soon be felt by a number of the state's computer-repair people. A recently passed law requires that Texas computer-repair technicians have a private-investigator license, according to a story posted by a Dallas-Fort Worth CW affiliate. In order to obtain said license, technicians must receive a criminal justice degree or participate in a three-year apprenticeship. Those shops that refuse to participate will be... Gearlog http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2039726/posts#comment Wed, 2 Jul 2008 14:12:40 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2039295/posts 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,... kwtx.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2039295/posts#comment Tue, 1 Jul 2008 17:54:32 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2032815/posts MEMPHIS, TN (WMC-TV) - Exclusive video obtained by Action News 5 shows a Memphis police officer beating a suspect at 201 Poplar in an apparent case of police brutality. The video, recorded February 12th, shows Duanna Johnson in the booking area at the Shelby County Criminal Justice Center after an arrest for prostitution. The tape clearly shows a Memphis police officer walk over to Johnson - a transsexual - and hit her in the face several times. "Actually he was trying to get me to come over to where he was, and I responded by telling him that wasn't my... WMC http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2032815/posts#comment Wed, 18 Jun 2008 15:20:33 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2032374/posts You ever notice the annoying voices that owners use to speak to us? I can live with that but here’s a trend I’m happy they stopped dead in its tracks. (Jayna Hutchinson, a 33-year-old Vermont woman, was charged with cruelty to animals and resisting arrest after a police officer caught her staring at his dog in a “taunting/harassing manner.”) Dogs on the scene have reported to... http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2032374/posts#comment Tue, 17 Jun 2008 18:20:21 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2032023/posts Gordon Brown's futuristic eco-towns to fine residents for driving out of city limits Jill Sherman, Whitehall Editor Motorists living in Gordon Brown's futuristic green communities face fines for driving their cars out of town, under radical proposals being drawn up by ministers, The Times has learnt. Residents of the largely pedestrianised eco-towns may also be expected to park their cars at the outskirts and walk or cycle to their homes, up to ten minutes away. These are among possible ways being discussed with ministers to meet a government target to cut car use in eco-towns by half. Detailed planning proposals... Times Online http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2032023/posts#comment Mon, 16 Jun 2008 23:45:25 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2029868/posts Letter to the Editor: It's about time we get real about gun control in our cities. If we can have sobriety checkpoints and now motorcycle checkpoints, why don't we have cops creating gun checkpoints? Have them create checkpoints in the city where the gun violence is running rampant. Give the cops metal detectors and make people stop and get checked for guns. They are illegal and they are a lot worse than drunken drivers, and motorcyclists without the correct credentials. Let's get real here and start doing something about all these guns on our streets. If it's legal to stop... Albany Times Union http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2029868/posts#comment Thu, 12 Jun 2008 04:23:12 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2029161/posts 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... AP via Canoe http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2029161/posts#comment Wed, 11 Jun 2008 00:21:56 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2026204/posts Heather Squires was the designated driver. Never exactly a fun thing, but a college buddy of her husband's was driving up from Tucson to celebrate his acceptance into law school. So when her husband, Jason, asked, Heather said yes. It's not safe to be the designated driver these days, either. At Chuy's in Tempe, Heather's brother and her husband and the soon-to-be-law-school student knocked off four pitchers of beer. Everybody was having a great time. Around 9:30 p.m., they decided to head home. So they piled into Jason Squires' new pickup truck. As planned, Heather drove. They didn't get very... Phoenix New Times http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2026204/posts#comment Thu, 5 Jun 2008 01:12:59 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2025957/posts State officials, fearing a violent reaction from members of a West Texas polygamist sect, considered a secret plan to haul hundreds of children and their mothers to Midlothian to be separated, internal e-mails show. But a judge vetoed the plan. They also worried that mothers would try to make a "run" from the shelter with their children, feared a rampage of infections among the families and fretted about the fear of violence and state resources being overwhelmed by events. More than 1,500 pages of e-mails between the governor's office and Child Protective Services, obtained by The Dallas Morning News under... The Dallas Morning News http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2025957/posts#comment Wed, 4 Jun 2008 18:21:26 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2024932/posts ELDORADO, TEXAS -- As officials haggled Friday over how to return more than 400 children to their parents, it was becoming increasingly clear that Texas' audacious attempt to rein in the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints had backfired -- and become a lesson in the difficulty of cracking down on the 10,000-member polygamist sect. .... The town also was abuzz over an anticipated mass voter registration by the FLDS. Hours after the court first ruled against the state, two members of the sect walked into the county clerk's office and requested 300 voter registration forms, a... Los Angeles Times http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2024932/posts#comment Mon, 2 Jun 2008 19:46:05 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2023054/posts WEAPONS OF CHOICE 30 months in jail for broken gun Judge hands down penalty for misfire from 20-year-old rifle A federal judge has ordered a 30-month prison sentence for a man whose rifle misfired, letting loose three shots at a firing range, prompting 2nd Amendment supporters to warn their constituents how easily they, too, can become a "gun felon." "It didn't matter the rifle in question had not been intentionally modified for select fire, or that it did not have an M16 bolt carrier or sear, that it did not show any signs of machining or drilling, or that that... World Net Daily http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2023054/posts#comment Thu, 29 May 2008 16:52:39 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2022582/posts Seeking a balance between outreach and enforcement, Miami is launching a nearly $1 million crime-fighting initiative in Overtown that will mix police patrols, video cameras -- and suit-and-tie wearing Muslims. The stepped-up policing seeks to deter would-be lawbreakers without making Overtown residents feel ''invaded,'' in the words of Miami Commissioner Michelle Spence-Jones. Which is where the Muslims come in. Along with budgeting hundreds of thousands of dollars for increased police patrols and the installation of surveillance cameras, Miami is spending $150,000 on a ''Peacemakers'' pilot program run by a nonprofit with ties to the Nation of Islam. Miami Herald http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2022582/posts#comment Wed, 28 May 2008 19:31:27 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2020879/posts It was the call for help that launched one of the largest raids on a religious compound in U.S. history. But on Monday, a Child Protective Services attorney asked for the case involving a 16-year-old known as "Sarah," who claimed sexual and physical abuse at the hands of her husband, to be dropped. The state has all but declared the call a hoax after the phone number was traced to a Colorado woman with a history of pretending to be an abused child. The Texas Department of Public Safety even withdrew its arrest warrant against Dale Barlow, alleged husband and... Houston Chronicle http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2020879/posts#comment Sat, 24 May 2008 23:40:08 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2020118/posts City Hall Reporter One set of rules for aldermen, one set for rest of us, he says Fraternal Order of Police President Mark Donahue today decried the "double standard" that prompted Mayor Daley to endorse the idea of temporarily re-opening gun registration in Chicago after a request from Ald. Richard Mell (33rd). "We have retired police officers who have a right to carry concealed weapons across the country, and they're being barred from registering their weapons in Chicago. We've taken one of these cases to Circuit Court. Dick Mell has taken his case to the City Council," the union president... Chicago Sun-Times http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2020118/posts#comment Fri, 23 May 2008 06:51:24 GMT