Society's ChildS


Sheriff

Oglala Sioux Tribe cop found not guilty after tasing incapacitated man 28 times


RT
Fri, 18 Dec 2015 19:51 UTC
Incapacitate man tased
© Black Powder/You Tube
A former Oglala Sioux Tribe police officer charged with three criminal offenses following the repeated use of a Taser on an unresponsive, handcuffed man in 2014 was exonerated by a South Dakota jury last week despite multiple videos of the incident.

The former officer, Rebecca Sotherland, faced charges including "deprivation of constitutional rights, assault with a dangerous weapon and obstruction of a federal investigation by filing a false report." Following a week-long trial in US District Court, the jury in Rapid City, South Dakota found Sotherland not guilty on December 8, according to the Indian Country Today Media Network.

On August 15, 2014, Sotherland, 33, was dispatched to Manderson, South Dakota on a"welfare call," the Associated Press reported. When an intoxicated and handcuffed Jeffrey Eagle Bull would not get up from where he was lying on the ground near a house, Sotherland resorted to force. She was videoed by a witness tasing Eagle Bull about 17 times while he lay unresponsive on the ground.

Sotherland's own body camera, meanwhile, taped the entire incident, which included approximately 28 Taser shocks to Eagle Bull during the 26-minute footage, which was played for the jury during the trial. According to the Rapid City Journal, 18 of the 28 jolts were "drive stuns," known to be less-painful shocks from a Taser, as opposed to the weapon's two, more powerful probes that have the capability to cause neuromuscular incapacitation.


Comment: Dead drunk or playing possum, the man was not a threat. She should be in a jail cell along with the judge that let her off.

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Sheriff

Instead of de-escalating the situation, school cop turns things up by repeatedly punching student in the face

Andrew Emett
The Free Thought Project
Fri, 18 Dec 2015 16:41 UTC

A school resource officer is under investigation after a student's cell phone video captured him repeatedly punching a teenager instead of de-escalating the incident. Temporarily reassigned pending an internal investigation, the officer has been accused of having prior run-ins with the student assaulted in the video.

On Thursday, a female student at Millard South High School recorded a cellphone video of several students arguing in the hallway before one of them suddenly charged into another teen. As security guard Tim Kimpson immediately intervened, Kimpson and the two students fell to the ground before continuing the fight on their feet.

Instead of de-escalating the fight, Officer Nicholas Caniglia could be seen in the video grabbing one of the teens and repeatedly punching him at least five times in the head and upper body. According to the Omaha Police Department, one of the teens punched Kimpson's left cheek during the brawl and was later cited for misdemeanor assault.
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Yoda

4 out of 5 Brits prefer Putin over Cameron as UK leader in reader poll

Tom Batchelor
Express UK
Fri, 18 Dec 2015 21:18 UTC
Putin Cameron
© Getty
Russian President Vladimir Putin has beaten David Cameron to be crowned the most popular choice for the next prime minster of the United Kingdom.

The ex-KGB strongman attracted the support of four out of five Express.co.uk readers, compared with just one in five who opted for the current PM running the country.

Asked 'Who would you rather was Britain's prime minister?', 78 per cent chose the Russian president, while 22 per cent voted for Mr Cameron.
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Calendar

Pew Research poll: Most Americans say scrutiny of Muslims is not warranted


Pew Research Center
Tue, 15 Dec 2015 20:45 UTC
White House
© Unknown
Little change in views of relationship between Islam and violence

Following the terrorist attacks in Paris and San Bernardino, Calif., the public's concerns about terrorism have surged and positive ratings of the government's handling of terrorism have plummeted. But other attitudes relating to terrorism and security, as well as perceptions of whether Islam is more likely than other religions to encourage violence, have shown far less change.

Pew chart negative terrorism
© Pew Research
The latest national survey by Pew Research Center, conducted Dec. 8-13 among 1,500 adults, finds that since the start of this year, the share of Americans who say the government is doing well in reducing the threat of terrorism has fallen by 26 percentage points - from 72% to 46% - and now stands at its lowest point in the post-9/11 era.

Approval of the way Barack Obama is handling the threat of terrorism also has declined, even as his overall job rating (currently 46%) - and his ratings on immigration, the economy and other issues - is little changed. Just 37% approve of the way Obama is handling terrorism while 57% disapprove, the lowest rating of his presidency for this issue.

Terrorism has reshaped the public's agenda, both at home and abroad. Currently, 29% cite terrorism (18%), national security (8%) or ISIS (7%) as the most important problem facing the country today. One year ago, just 4% of the public cited any of these issues. And while ISIS already ranked high among leading international dangers, 83% now regard ISIS as a major threat to the well-being of the U.S., up from 67% in August 2014.

Public concerns that anti-terrorism policies have gone too far in restricting civil liberties have fallen to their lowest level in five years (28%); twice as many (56%) now say their greater concern is that these policies have not gone far enough to adequately protect the country.

Comment: See also: Unbelievable! Poll finds 30% of GOP voters want to bomb Aladdin, 25% support Muslim internment camps

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Hearts

Russia sends 47th humanitarian aid convoy to Donbass, as well as New Year's presents for children and the elderly


Sputnik
Thu, 17 Dec 2015 21:11 UTC
russia aid donbass
© Sputnik/ Sergei Pivovarov
The Russian Emergencies Ministry has sent its 47th humanitarian aid convoy to Ukraine's southeastern regions, the ministry's press service informs.

"At 04:00 Moscow time [01:00 GMT], over 100 vehicles left the Donskoy rescue center of the Emergencies Ministry in the [Russian] Rostov region in the direction of the Russia-Ukraine border," a ministry spokesperson said early on Thursday.

The convoy is carrying over 1,100 tonnes (metric tons) of aid, as well as New Year presents for children and the elderly. The convoy vehicles will split into two groups at the border with Ukraine - one will go to Donetsk, while the other one will go to Lugansk.

Ukraine's southeast has been severely affected by Kiev's special military operation, launched in Donetsk and Lugansk regions in April 2014. The operation was a response to local residents' refusal to recognize the new coup-installed government in the country.

Donbass residents have also been affected by an economic blockade, imposed by Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko in November 2014.

Overall, Russia has delivered more than 56,000 tonnes of humanitarian aid to Ukraine's southeast since August 2014.

Comment: The rest of the world may have forgotten, but Russia hasn't. The citizens of the Donbass region are still in need of humanitarian aid due to the efforts by the US-controlled Kiev government to destroy the pro-Russian region.

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Attention

Unbelievable! Poll finds 30% of GOP voters want to bomb Aladdin, 25% support Muslim internment camps

Jana Kasperkevic
The Guardian
Fri, 18 Dec 2015 20:24 UTC
Donald Trump
Almost one-third of Republican primary voters would support bombing the fictional kingdom of Agrabah, according to a report released by Public Policy Polling on Friday.

More than 530 Republican primary voters were polled this week on their support for Republican candidates and foreign policy issues including banning Muslims from entering the US, Japanese internment camps from the second world war and bombing Agrabah, the kingdom from Disney's animated classic, Aladdin.

In its poll, Public Policy Polling asked the 532 Republicans: "Would you support or oppose bombing Agrabah?" While 57% of responders said they were not sure, 30% said they supported bombing it. Only 13% opposed it.

Comment: The lunatics have spoken, and their numbers are growing along with their depravity. Also see:
People, we are really screwed. Yeah, I wish I had more of an answer other than just trying to wake people up and make them aware. In previous years, the problem was that there were still way too many people unwilling to rock the boat. And way too many people who were so stressed on 911 that they easily converted to the neocon explanation that day. Now, we see that the programming is almost complete. The number of people who have been able to resist Transmarginal Inhibition breakdown that is being applied to the masses of humanity on a daily basis is getting smaller and smaller and those who have been broken and converted is getting larger and more vocal. It's almost all over but the crying.

Knowledge and Freedom: Antidote to the rising fascism


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Christmas Tree

After 20-hour-long standoff with an empty house, cops vent their frustration on a single mother's home and Christmas tree

Matt Agorist
The Free Thought Project
Thu, 17 Dec 2015 16:35 UTC
cops demolish christmas tree
On Tuesday, Cherokee County Sheriff David Groves and his heroic team of militarized storm troopers descended on the home of a single mom and her five kids. Upon removing the mother and her five children from the house, police entered into a 20-hour-long standoff — with the empty house.

According to Sheriff Groves, police were looking for Doug Alexius, a suspect wanted on a misdemeanor count of assaulting a law enforcement officer and another drug-related charge. Upon entering the home, the team used a 'hi-tech' and expensive infrared camera that showed them Alexius was hiding in the attic. Incorrectly believing Alexius was in the attic, they backed out and a 20-hour long standoff ensued.

"Time is on our side," the sheriff said during their heated standoff with an empty house. "We have the luxury of being able to rotate officers out. At some point, he's going to have to come out of there."

After not breaking things or killing anyone for 19 hours, the officers became restless, said to hell with the Sheriff's strategy of waiting for him to come out, and proceeded to storm the home.

A SWAT truck with a battering ram attached was used to poke holes and tear apart the house in an attempt to drive the nonexistent suspect out. As deputies became unable to find him, they began taking their frustration out on couches, beds, lamps, clothing, toys, and even the family's Christmas tree was ripped through a window and smashed to bits.

Comment: What was the point in destroying the rest of the house when the only place they needed to investigate was the attic? How is it that this sheriff can claim that his officers acted in the best possible manner when to add insult to injury they unnecessarily destroyed the family's Christmas tree? What infuriating incompetence!

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Eye 1

A secret catalogue of government gear for spying on your cellphone


The Intercept
Thu, 17 Dec 2015 18:15 UTC
Surveillance Catalog
© The InterceptSurveillance Catalog
The Intercept has obtained a secret, internal U.S. government catalogue of dozens of cellphone surveillance devices used by the military and by intelligence agencies. The document, thick with previously undisclosed information, also offers rare insight into the spying capabilities of federal law enforcement and local police inside the United States.

The catalogue includes details on the Stingray, a well-known brand of surveillance gear, as well as Boeing "dirt boxes" and dozens of more obscure devices that can be mounted on vehicles, drones, and piloted aircraft. Some are designed to be used at static locations, while others can be discreetly carried by an individual. They have names like Cyberhawk, Yellowstone, Blackfin, Maximus, Cyclone, and Spartacus. Within the catalogue, the NSA is listed as the vendor of one device, while another was developed for use by the CIA, and another was developed for a special forces requirement. Nearly a third of the entries focus on equipment that seems to have never been described in public before.
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Sheriff

Off-duty NYC cop verbally and physically assaults lesbian couple for no reason, then lies to get them arrested

Travis Gettys
Raw Story
Thu, 17 Dec 2015 16:31 UTC
Stephanie Dorceant
Stephanie Dorceant (YouTube)
A Brooklyn woman said a New York City police officer hurled homophobic slurs before attacking her and falsely arresting her.

Stephanie Dorceant and her ex-girlfriend filed a federal lawsuit Monday, two weeks after the 29-year-old was cleared of all charges in the case, reported the Huffington Post.

Dorceant and her then-girlfriend were walking back to their apartment in the Flatbush neighborhood when an off-duty officer, Salvator Aquino, bumped her from behind.

She asked Aquino, who was not in uniform, whether he was "alright" — but her suit accuses him of responding with an obscenity and homophobic slur.

"Mind your own business you f*cking dyke," the officer allegedly told her.

Dorceant said Aquino then punched her in the face several times, choked her and continued to use anti-LGBT slur.
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Eye 1

Two dead children found stuffed in plastic containers in commercial storage unit, connected to ongoing investigation of child abuse and torture

Lauren Walker
Newsweek
Thu, 17 Dec 2015 16:08 UTC
Redding commercial storage facility
© Andreas Fuhrmann/Record Searchlight/APA commercial storage unit facility is shown on December 15, where two children were found dead in Redding, California.
A California coroner's office completed the autopsies of two dead children found in a Northern California storage unit in a case that has required the coordination of law enforcement agencies across three counties, the Salinas Police Department said in a press conference on Thursday. Authorities are now confident that the bodies are 3-year-old Delylah Tara and 6-year-old Shaun Tara, and that the children died from ongoing abuse.

The case began on December 11 when the Plumas County Sheriff's Office received a call requesting that they check on the welfare of a 9-year-old girl in the town of Quincy. When police arrived at the apartment, they discovered a severely injured 9-year-old girl laying on the floor of a locked car parked outside. The girl weighed around 40 pounds, had multiple fractures in her fingers and shoulder, had a dislocated jaw and, according to The Plumas County News , had open sores and was infested with lice.

Authorities also discovered two 12-year-old twins, who police said were "not in the same condition" as the girl, and placed them in foster care. Plumas police arrested Tammy Joy Huntsman, 39, and her companion Gonzalo Curiel, 17, who they say were both abusing the child, and charged them with felony child abuse, torture and mayhem. Their bail is set at $1 million.
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