Free Republic

There are at least two dozen people on St. Paul's North End obtaining permits to carry a concealed weapon in response to a summer increase in crime. St. Paul Police spokesperson, Steve Linders, said police are also stepping up patrols. "Swarming the area with as many officers as possible, using more bike patrols to increase presence and there is now one squad car dedicated entirely to responding to shots fired in the area," Linders said. The North End area that's seen the usual jump in summer crime lies primarily between Front and Larpenteur Avenues and 35E and Dale Street. Tin...

MILWAUKEE, WI — The Milwaukee County District Attorney’s Office issued multiple criminal charges against Jonathan Copeland Jr. in connection with the death of Officer Michael Michalski. Copeland faces the following charges: First degree intentional homicide, use of a dangerous weapon Attempt first degree intentional homicide, use of a dangerous weapon Possession of a firearm by a felon A criminal complaint filed against Copeland says officers were in the area near 28th and Wright on July 25 because Copeland had an “open arrest warrant” for felony drug crimes, as well as a warrant for absconding from Department of Corrections supervision. Copeland...

Full Title: Republican lawmaker, NRA lobbyist challenge Florida sheriff on 'Stand Your Ground' stance in shooting. ... The incident was captured on surveillance video and drew national attention. The argument began when Drejka questioned McGlockton’s girlfriend about parking in the handicapped parking space without a permit while McGlockton went inside the store. “He told deputies that he had to shoot to defend himself. Those are the facts and that’s the law," Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri was quoted as saying. ”No matter how you slice it or dice it that was a violent push to the ground.” ...

FULL TITLE: Man, 30, 'slits his 81-year-old grandmother's throat in the tub because he was tired of taking care of the dementia sufferer' An Arizona man is behind bars after he allegedly slit his 81-year-old grandmother's throat because he was tired of taking care of her. Brandon Smith, 30, has been charged with first-degree murder in the death of Helen Smith. Helen, who suffered from dementia, was found brutally stabbed to death in the bathroom of the home that she and Smith had shared for three years in Chandler. Smith told police that he became frustrated on Sunday morning after...

Dogged by accusations of political money laundering, Los Angeles school board member Ref Rodriguez pleaded guilty Monday to a felony count of conspiracy and resigned from office as part of an agreement with prosecutors. In the deal, Rodriguez, 47, who had no previous criminal record, will avoid jail time. Instead, he will get three years’ probation and 60 days of community service. His resignation was effective immediately.

In the 1970s, Amsterdam was a destination for hippies and wannabe hippies from around the world. Easy drugs, easy girls, easy just about anything your heart desired. Any form of sin was available for a price and sometimes for free.But such licentiousness comes with a cost. Today, Amsterdam's ombudsman is referring to the city as an "lawless jungle" where the police have given up trying to keep order after dark.AFP: "The city centre becomes an urban jungle at night," Amsterdam's official ombudsman Arre Zuurmond told Dutch daily Trouw, warning of illegal car and bike races zooming through the streets,...

A gunman killed two people at his Texas home before going to a nearby nursing home and killing two others and himself in what investigators believe are related incidents, an official said. The deaths in the Robstown area, near Corpus Christi and the Gulf of Mexico, are being investigated as murders and a suicide, Robstown city secretary Herman Rodriguez said. Police said they first were called to a shooting at Robstown's Retama Manor Nursing Center around 7 p.m. There, they found three people dead -- a female and two males, including the shooter, police said. Investigators then found two other...

PAINESVILLE, Ohio - Painesville Municipal Court Judge Michael Cicconetti, known for his very creative sentences, has handed down - or scooped out - another one. "You like to screw around with crap? That's what you're gonna do for 3 days." Bayley Toth of Painesville was found guilty of criminal mischief after a night with friends in a local park. Toth jumped on top of a van and placed a traffic cone on it. He then tipped over a porta-potty, knocked a WiFi bridge down and threw 2 lifesaving rings into the lake, one of which was never found. The Judge...

RedWolf Pope is a well-known native activist. He hosted a TedxSeattle talk about his experience at Standing Rock and spent time with KING 5 journalists, discussing issues in his community. He has now been arrested and is facing a slew of charges, including rape, battery and false imprisonment. The case against him involves both his apartments in Santa Fe, New Mexico and on Boylston Avenue in Seattle's Capitol Hill neighborhood.

Two California fathers are in critical condition after they were stabbed by their adopted son. Tom Boulet and Ken Coll were attacked in their Sherman Oaks home at 1 a.m. Tuesday after a reported argument with their son, Matthew Boulet, who had returned home from college. Law enforcement officials found the couple with multiple stab wounds. They were rushed them to a local hospital and are in critical condition, though KCAL reports they are expected to survive. Boulet was found inside the house and officers reported he admitted to stabbing of his fathers. “He was very nonchalant when he said...

Republican Rep. Jason Lewis told Fox News he has contacted the police over threats to him and even his daughters in the wake of reports about controversial statements he made as a radio show host. "It was serious enough for my office to alert the Capitol Police," Lewis told Fox News. The Minnesota congressman said his daughters were threatened in sick messages received by his office. It marks the latest in a wave of threats against not just Republican lawmakers themselves but their families. Rep. Lee Zeldin, R-N.Y., also revealed threats against his daughters this month, telling Todd Starnes that...

Former Vice President Joe Biden's niece, Caroline, avoided jail time Thursday in Manhattan Criminal Court in a sweetheart deal on a felony conviction for a $100,000 credit card scam. Caroline, 31, offered an apology while promising her wild ways are behind her, as she accepted her sentence of two-years probation. 'I not only acknowledge my conduct and take responsibility but deeply regret the harm caused,' she told Justice Curtis Farber. 'I can assure you that I have made amends, full restitution, completed community service and that nothing like this will ever happen again,' Biden said, according to the New York...

An unidentified body was found Wednesday in the waters off a Trump golf resort in New York City, the NYPD said. Police spokesman George Tsourovakas said the decomposed body was discovered Wednesday night in the East River, snagged in rocks about 500 feet off the Trump Golf Links at Ferry Point in the Bronx. Police said there have been no arrests and the investigation is ongoing....

A London man was about to be arrested, but he was determined not to go down without a fight. The Laurel County Sheriff’s Office said Deputy Taylor McDaniel responded to a call that Robert Kazee was “walking down the road, screaming and causing a disturbance” on Green Acres Road, eight miles south of London, about 3:50 p.m. Monday. When McDaniel arrived, Kazee, 39, of London, was still in the road, according to the sheriff’s office. McDaniel told Kazee that he was under arrest, and Kazee responded by taking his shirt off and fighting McDaniel. “Deputy McDaniel was finally able...

An analysis examining killings over the past decade in 52 of the largest cities in the United States found that black victims were less likely than any other racial group to have their killings result in an arrest. The Washington Post's analysis released Wednesday finds that African Americans accounted for the majority of homicide victims. According to the data, out of the 26,000 killings analyzed across the 52 cities, the victim was black in 18,600 of the cases. The analysis also found that police arrested someone in just 47 percent of the killings of African-American victims, compared to arrests made...

CHICAGO (WLS) -- A group is planning to shut down part of Lake Shore Drive on Chicago's North Side for an anti-violence protest next week. The demonstration is scheduled for 4 p.m., Thursday, Aug. 2, which will be as fans are headed to the Cubs-Padres games.

Rattled by string of violent attacks, Toronto wonders if city is unraveling As residents grapple with the latest attack to hit the city in recent months, some are asking whether it was becoming less safe Detectives in Canada are still seeking a motive for a mass shooting which left three dead – including the gunman – and injured more than a dozen others, as residents of Toronto grapple with the latest in a string of violent incidents to hit Canada’s biggest city in recent months.Federal officials said on Tuesday that there was no terror link to Sunday’s attack in which the lone gunman opened...

A former longtime police misconduct investigator claims in a new lawsuit he lost his job last year after he refused to give false testimony to make a shooting by an officer seem like it was not justified. Kelvin Lett made the claim in a complaint filed Sunday against the city of Chicago, the Civilian Office of Police Accountability, the Independent Police Review Authority, AFSCME Local 654 and Council 31 and others. Also mentioned throughout the lawsuit, but not named as a defendant, is Lori Lightfoot, the former Police Board president now challenging Mayor Rahm Emanuel for his job. The complaint...

NEW: MoCo use map to highlight areas w/ highest amount of gang-related crime this year: •Overall violent gang-related crime up 72% compared to last year •Montgomery Village + Gaithersburg most affected •MS13 prevalent near Piney Branch/University Blvd. + downtown Wheaton

Dallas police took six teens into custody for committing at least four robberies Sunday morning -- including robbing a couple at gunpoint who were out walking their dog. The couple were out walking their dog just after midnight Sunday morning near the Bishop Arts District. A neighbor’s surveillance camera captured this video of three boys approaching them with guns drawn, yelling, “Give me your wallet! Give me your phone!”