Blacks in New Orleans cry foul over French Quarter curfew

The City Council says stricter rules are meant to protect kids, but critics accuse members of wanting to keep low-income blacks out of sight of tourists.

From a distance, it seemed like common sense: an ordinance meant to keep children away from an open-air night-life zone with more than 350 places to buy booze, an abundance of strip joints and a 300-year-old reputation for iniquity.

But last week, as the New Orleans City Council approved a strict curfew for youths 16 and younger in the French Quarter, it sparked an incendiary debate that laid bare some of the tensions over race and police priorities that the Louisiana city — which suffers from the nation's highest per capita murder rate — is struggling to resolve as it navigates its post-Hurricane Katrina future.

The ordinance, which was unanimously approved Thursday, revises a long-standing 11 p.m. curfew on Friday and Saturday nights to 8 p.m. for the French Quarter and part of the nearby Faubourg Marigny neighborhood.

In the rest of the city, an 11 p.m. curfew remains on weekends, with an 8 p.m. or 9 p.m. curfew on weekdays, depending on the season.

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-french-quarter-curfew-20120108,0,5860351,print.story

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A far cry from 'CSI'

Many forensic pathologists are unprepared for complex child death cases.

California Gov. Jerry Brown is considering granting clemency to Shirley Ree Smith, a grandmother convicted in 1997 of shaking to death her 7-week-old grandson, Etzel Glass. Sentenced to 15 years to life in prison, Smith insists she's innocent.

Prosecutors built their case against Smith almost entirely on the findings of forensic pathologists at the Los Angeles County Department of Coroner. During an autopsy, doctors discovered a small amount of bleeding on the infant's brain and in his optic nerves. Based on this bleeding, the forensic pathologists concluded that somebody had violently shaken Etzel's body, killing him.

They ruled the death a homicide. Others, however, aren't so sure.

Etzel's body exhibited few of the signs typically associated with fatal head injuries. One doctor testifying on Smith's behalf dismissed the notion that Etzel was murdered as "fantasy." In a 2006 opinion, the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals expressed a similar skepticism, saying there was "simply no demonstrable support for shaking as the cause of death."

http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-oe-thompson-shaken-baby-syndrome-20120108,0,1425478,print.story

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Chief On The Beat

DALLAS, TEXAS - Dallas Police Chief David Brown has a new community policing effort called, "Chief on the Beat," and it's off to good start.

The event was held Saturday at Eastgate Baptist Church in Oak Cliff. It highlighted crime prevention, safety and health screenings.

The key aspect, however, was the opportunity for neighbors to get to know the police officers.

Oak Cliff resident Arthur Winn says, "I think you'd feel a whole lot more comfortable if you know the police, know how they respond to you, how often they come to your area."

Eighth grader Anthony Potts said the event made him feel more comfortable around police officers. "If there's something wrong or something bad I would go to them and tell them because its the right thing to do," Potts said.

Malware Targets Bank Accounts
‘Gameover' Delivered Via Phishing E-Mails

01/06/12

Cyber criminals have found yet another way to steal your hard-earned money: a recent phishing scheme involves spam e-mails—purportedly from the National Automated Clearing House Association (NACHA), the Federal Reserve Bank, or the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC)—that can infect recipients' computers with malware and allow access to their bank accounts.

The malware is appropriately called “Gameover” because once it's on your computer, it can steal usernames and passwords and defeat common methods of user authentication employed by financial institutions. And once the crooks get into your bank account, it's definitely “game over.”

Gameover is a newer variant of the Zeus malware, which was created several years ago and specifically targeted banking information.

http://www.fbi.gov/news/stories/2012/january/malware_010612/malware_010612

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Jan 7, 2012

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Vulnerable homeless men try to foil Orange County killer

Three transients have been stabbed to death since last month. Some are banding together for protection, and police and missions are helping.

Cary Singletary is 6-foot-2, an ex-boxer who once worked nightclub security, alternating coffee and water to stay alert through the small hours. Now, encamped on the streets of downtown Santa Ana, he's the unofficial sentry for what he calls "my people," a group of homeless whose wary existence is now shadowed by a new peril: a serial killer.

"Hopefully, they'll get the sick-minded coward," said Singletary 52, speaking of the string of stabbing deaths of middle-aged homeless men in Orange County that began just before Christmas. Singletary stood in a parking lot Thursday night clutching a safety kit — a whistle and flashlight, both donated by the Orange County Rescue Mission.

Singletary said he fears that the killer, who has attacked in neighboring Anaheim, Placentia and Yorba Linda, might strike next in Santa Ana. So he is up all night, drinking coffee, keeping watch for strangers. For company, he listens to R&B on his headphones. He sleeps in two-hour shifts on the public bus.

"If that serial killer wants to come at us, he'll have his hands full," said Singletary, who has been homeless for six months. "We've got some soldiers out here. I'm just one of them. If that whistle goes off, you'll have a whole army of homeless on him."

Across the county, at the urging of authorities, many of the homeless are seeking beds at emergency shelters, or making sure to sleep in groups outdoors, and taking pains to make themselves less conspicuous on the streets and riverbeds. Many say it is just another version of a skill they have practiced for years — survival — in a dangerous milieu. In some cases, efforts to help are complicated by mental illness, paranoia and a deep-seated fatalism.

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-homeless-killings-20120107,0,155407,print.story

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Supreme Court to rule on drug-sniffing dog case

Florida justices had ruled against the use of such dogs to detect marijuana at the door of a home without evidence of criminal activity. The high court will hear an appeal.

The Supreme Court agreed Friday to decide whether police may use a drug-sniffing dog at the front door of a house or an apartment to detect marijuana, even if the officers have no evidence of criminal conduct.

The decision in a Florida case will be the latest test of the 4th Amendment's protection against "unreasonable searches" in drug cases. It also will be the third in a trilogy of rulings on drug-sniffing dogs.

In the past, the court has upheld the use of dogs to sniff luggage at airports and to sniff around cars that were stopped along the highway. The justices said that using trained dogs in public areas didn't violate anyone's right to privacy.

The Florida Supreme Court, however, said homes are different. The 4th Amendment "applies with extra force where the sanctity of the home is concerned," the state justices said last year.

Based on that rationale, they overturned a Miami man's conviction for growing marijuana at home. Acting on a tip, officers had taken Franky, a Labrador, to the front porch of a home owned by Joelis Jardines. The dog detected the odor of marijuana and sat down as he was trained to do. The police then used this information to obtain a search warrant. They found 179 marijuana plants inside the house.

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-court-dogs-sniff-20120107,0,4502529,print.story

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Casey Anthony video: Hacked and leaked?

Anthony's attorneys say the video was hacked and illegally posted online, ABC News reported. The news outlet quoted one of her lawyers as saying: "She does not know who did it. When they did it. Why they did it. It was not authorized, therefore it had to be obtained criminally by an illegal act."

The report raises the possibility that Anthony -- acquitted last year of killing her 2-year-old daughter, Caylee -- could find herself on the other end of a legal battle in 2012, pursuing justice against an alleged hacker.

Anthony's attorneys told ABC News that the videos were for personal use in future counseling sessions, to help Anthony "remember her thought process." (It's worth watching ABC's video, above, for its recap of just how many times Anthony uses the words "I," "me" or "mine"; she never mentions Caylee.)

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/nationnow/

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WASHINGTON (AP) — The Obama administration says it is expanding the FBI's more than eight-decade-old definition of rape to reflect a better understanding of the crime and to broaden protections.

The new definition counts men as victims for the first time and drops the requirement that victims must have physically resisted their attackers.

Vice President Joe Biden, author of the Violence Against Women Act when he was in the Senate, said the new definition announced Friday is a victory for women and men "whose suffering has gone unaccounted for over 80 years." Calling rape a "devastating crime," the vice president said, "We can't solve it unless we know the full extent of it."

The change will increase the number of people counted as rape victims in FBI statistics but will not will not change federal or state laws or alter charges or prosecutions. It's an important shift because lawmakers and policymakers use crime statistics to allocate money and other resources for prevention and victim assistance.

The White House said the expanded definition has been long awaited as many states and research groups made similar changes in their definitions of rape over recent decades.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iRhCD8Mb7bswNWchZDOcvF_pbnoQ?docId=42c37d2a010a45a98cb4df956920c315

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Brea police to introduce geo-policing initiative

The Brea Police Department's new geographic policing initiative will go into effect Saturday, assigning police officers to four different specific geographic areas with two officers in each area, as well as sergeants and commanders.

"It's a community policing effort," Brea Police Department Sgt. Jim Griffin said. "We'll go from a system where officers can go back and forth around the city to a system where they'll be assigned to one specific area. This way they'll get to know the traffic, the businesses, the people."

Brea will be separated by districts in the north and south, and Yorba Linda will be separated by east and west. While officers will be able to respond to all parts of the area during emergency situations, they will remain in their designated area for regular policing. Brea will continue to have traffic units and detectives at work during the day, Griffin said.

http://www.ocregister.com/common/printer/view.php?db=ocregister&id=334550

Probe of Hollywood arson suspect Harry Burkhart widens to Canada

Authorities in Vancouver, where the suspect lived with his mother before moving to L.A., are looking into whether he was involved in a series of suspicious fires there.

Reporting from Vancouver, Canada, and Los Angeles -- The investigation of Hollywood arson suspect Harry Burkhart widened Thursday to include a probe by Canadian authorities into whether he was involved in a series of suspicious fires in Vancouver.

Burkhart, who has been charged with 37 felony counts related to the New Year's weekend arson rampage, lived in Vancouver with his mother before moving to the Los Angeles area.

Vancouver Police Department spokesman Lindsey Houghton said officials "have begun to liaise with the LAPD" but stressed that detectives have not connected Burkhart to any specific fires in that city.

Several Canadian news outlets reported that police were looking into any possible connection between Burkhart and at least 12 suspicious property arsons last year in Vancouver that remain unsolved. It's unclear, however, whether Burkhart was in the city at the times those fires occurred.

News of the probe comes a day after German prosecutors confirmed Burkhart, 24, was under investigation on suspicion of arson and insurance fraud in an Oct. 14, 2011, fire that caused major damage to a half-timbered duplex in the mountainous region near Marburg in central Germany. U.S. immigration officials have confirmed that Burkhart flew from Frankfurt to Las Vegas six days after the fire.

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-0106-hollywood-arson-20120106,0,2178888,print.story

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Prison battle in Mexico leaves at least 31 inmates dead

REPORTING FROM MEXICO CITY -- At least 31 inmates were killed and another dozen injured in pitched fighting inside a prison in Mexico's cartel-dominated Tamaulipas state, authorities said (link in Spanish).

Some of the dead were believed to be accused drug traffickers in what was described as a fight between rival gangs , the Zetas and the Gulf Cartel, housed at the prison in Altamira, a small city in the state that borders Texas.

Mexico's brutally overcrowded penitentiaries are plagued by numerous riots , deadly brawls and frequent, brazen escapes by dozens of inmates, often with the guards and even the odd warden in cahoots . By one count, 58 prisoners have been killed in the last three months.

The Altamira battle Wednesday followed reports that inmates in another jail near Mexico City were using Twitter accounts to denounce corruption by officials and, later, to beg for protection after having made the complaints (links in Spanish). The city's human rights commission said it would investigate.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/world_now/2012/01/tamaulipas-mexico-prison-battle.html

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Brazil finally ready to confront abuses in past dictatorship

A truth commission in Brazil will investigate what happened under a military dictatorship in the 1970s when hundreds of people were killed or disappeared.

Vera Paiva has spent four decades trying to find out what happened to her father after he was arrested in 1971 during Brazil's military dictatorship.

Rubens Paiva, a former congressman, is one of the country's most famous desaparecidos, or "disappeared ones," whose cases finally will be investigated by the government.

"The last time we heard of anyone seeing him, he was inside the jail and had been barbarically tortured," Vera Paiva said, sitting in her house in Sao Paulo and going through details she has told journalists and officials hundreds of times.

"As his daughter, I would love to know what actually happened," said Paiva, 57. "But it's more important that the country know the truth, so it can move forward."

Long after South American neighbors Chile, Argentina and Uruguay underwent similar bouts of self-reflection over their violent histories, Brazil's government in November approved the formation of a truth commission to investigate human rights abuses under its military dictatorship from 1964 to 1985.

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-brazil-truth-commission-20120106,0,870340,print.story

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Texas police in 911 call tell student, 'Put the gun down!'

An assistant principal at Cummings Middle School made the 911 call early Wednesday, and as officers arrive, she can be heard saying the teen was drawing a weapon, according to the Brownsville Herald , which obtained the recording.

"Be careful not to charge through the front door, he's right there," she says. "Don't walk in --there's a kid with a gun!"

She later says, "He's drawing the gun!"

Someone else yells that the student says he's willing to die, so be careful. An administrator shouts, "Lock the door!"

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/nationnow/

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Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio to seek sixth term

Joe Arpaio, criticized by the U.S. Department of Justice for what it called discrimination against Latinos, said Thursday that he would seek a sixth term as sheriff of Maricopa County in Arizona.

Arpaio, who has built a national reputation in conservative circles for his hard-line attitude to illegal immigration, announced his intention to run for reelection in news releases sent to local media.

“It is an honor and a privilege to serve as sheriff of Maricopa County. I am running for a sixth term and will continue to protect the citizens of Maricopa County by enforcing all the laws,” Arpaio said in the widely reported statement.

The sheriff also announced his plans Thursday afternoon in an appearance on Fox News. Arpaio has often appeared on the network discussing immigration issues.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/nationnow/

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Oklahoma teen mom called 'hero' for fatally shooting intruder

Sarah McKinley, 18, calmly used a shotgun to shoot and kill one of the men when he forced his way through the front door of her mobile home and past a sofa she had used to barricade it. Now, the second man is facing first-degree murder charges, and McKinley is being hailed as a hero for doing what she believed she had to do to protect herself and her 3-month-old son, Justin.

The two men were reportedly looking for drugs -- most likely painkillers -- that they believed might have been left behind by McKinley's husband, who died of lung cancer on Christmas Day.

McKinley will not face charges in connection with the case, which is garnering headlines around the world, because there appears to be little confusion about the facts of the case. Much of her ordeal was captured in a recording of the 911 call in which she asked for help -- and also asked for permission to shoot if necessary.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/nationnow/

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America's new lean fighting machine

Facing tighter budgets, the Defense Department outlines a new strategy for America's military.

Budgetary necessity may have been the mother of President Obama's reinvention of military strategy, but that doesn't mean the change is reckless or even imprudent. After the U.S. withdrawal from Iraq and with the winding down of the American presence in Afghanistan, it's time for new thinking.

In an appearance Thursday at the Pentagon, Obama unveiled the recommendations of a Defense Department study group that he said would produce a military that is "agile, flexible and ready for the full range of contingencies and threats." That would be accomplished by smaller increases in defense spending, a policy telegraphed by Obama's 10-year budget projections for fiscal 2012, which were $105 billion less than his 2011 blueprint.

Although the need for greater austerity forms the background for the new directions proposed in the report, they are convincingly justified by its analysis of geopolitical trends. It proposes a reorientation of defense planning to China and the Middle East, noting that most European countries "are now producers of security rather than consumers of it."

http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/opinionla/la-ed-obama-20120106,0,6396241,print.story

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Police Warn Southern California Homeless About Serial Killer

Homeless people in southern California were put on alert by police and advocates concerned that they're the target of a serial killer who has already slain three men.

The Orange County Rescue Mission handed out flashlights and whistles in an effort to help homeless people protect themselves after three men were stabbed to death in north Orange County.

Jim Palmer, the group's president, encouraged people to sleep in groups, or better yet, come inside to a shelter.

"Our goal is to get them into those beds," he said.

Darryl Bossier, 49, said he sleeps outside the Orange County administration building in downtown Santa Ana -- one of a dozen transients who use the benches that zigzag across the courtyard as a place to rest each night.

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2012/01/06/police-warn-southern-california-homeless-about-serial-killer/

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Attorney General Eric Holder Announces Revisions to the Uniform Crime Report's Definition of Rape
Data Reported on Rape Will Better Reflect State Criminal Codes, Victim Experiences

Attorney General Eric Holder today announced revisions to the Uniform Crime Report's (UCR) definition of rape, which will lead to a more comprehensive statistical reporting of rape nationwide. The new definition is more inclusive, better reflects state criminal codes and focuses on the various forms of sexual penetration understood to be rape. The new definition of rape is: “The penetration, no matter how slight, of the vagina or anus with any body part or object, or oral penetration by a sex organ of another person, without the consent of the victim.” The definition is used by the FBI to collect information from local law enforcement agencies about reported rapes.

“Rape is a devastating crime and we can't solve it unless we know the full extent of it,” said Vice President Biden, a leader in the effort to end violence against women for over 20 years and author of the landmark Violence Against Women Act. “This long-awaited change to the definition of rape is a victory for women and men across the country whose suffering has gone unaccounted for over 80 years.”

“These long overdue updates to the definition of rape will help ensure justice for those whose lives have been devastated by sexual violence and reflect the Department of Justice's commitment to standing with rape victims,” Attorney General Holder said. “This new, more inclusive definition will provide us with a more accurate understanding of the scope and volume of these crimes.”

http://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/2012/January/12-ag-018.html

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Jan 5, 2012

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Suspect faces life term in arson rampage

Harry Burkhart's 'rage against Americans' inspired a four-day rampage, prosecutors say. More charges are expected as bail is set at $2.85 million.

Hollywood arson suspect Harry Burkhart terrorized Los Angeles residents with a four-day rampage over New Year's weekend because he was "motivated by his rage against Americans," prosecutors alleged in court papers filed Wednesday.

Burkhart appeared in court briefly to be arraigned on 37 felony counts of arson that could send him to prison for life. He looked disheveled and distracted as jail authorities have him under suicide watch.

Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Upinder S. Kalra set bail at $2.85 million and agreed to postpone arraignment until Jan. 24 at the request of Burkhart's public defender. The judge, who declined to hold Burkhart without bail, said the government could bring more evidence at the next hearing to back its contention that the defendant poses a flight risk or could resume setting fires if freed pending trial.

Burkhart torched cars, garages and homes across a significant portion of Los Angeles "to harm and terrorize as many residents" as possible, authorities wrote in a court filing asking that Burkhart be denied bail.

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-hollywood-arsons-20120105,0,919997,print.story

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Overturned conviction frees Texas man who served 31 years in rape

Rickey Wyatt was convicted in a 1980 sexual assault in Dallas and was sentenced to 99 years in prison. But when new evidence emerged, a Dallas County judge vacated the conviction.

“It's been a beautiful thing to be able to enjoy your life as free man — for the last 15 minutes,” Wyatt told The Times, only minutes after exiting the courtroom.

In January 1981, Wyatt was arrested in connection with three related sexual assaults and was tried and convicted of one attack. Throughout the trial, he maintained his innocence, rejecting a plea bargain for a five-year sentence.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/nationnow/

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ACLU to North Carolina officials: Don't make beggars get permits

Should a panhandler be required to show a photo ID and permit, plus submit to a background check, in order to beg on the street?

Those are among new restrictions on street beggars in effect or under consideration by three governing bodies in North Carolina. But the American Civil Liberties Union of North Carolina is warning authorities that the requirements may be unconstitutional -- and possible targets of ACLU lawsuits.

The News and Observer of Raleigh reported Wednesday that the ALCU sent out warning letters this week as commissioners in Johnston County, southeast of Raleigh, considered a new panhandling ordinance. The proposed law would require a $20 fee, background check and photo ID for a monthlong panhandling permit.

All three requirements unlawfully restrict free speech, according to the ACLU.

"The least among us, those who have been hit hardest and are really down on their luck, need the most protection under the Constitution," Katy Parker, legal director of the state ACLU, told the newspaper.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/nationnow/

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BROWNSVILLE, Texas (AP) — The parents of an eighth grader who was fatally shot by police inside his South Texas school are demanding to know why officers took lethal action, but police said the boy was brandishing — and refused to drop — what appeared to be a handgun and that the officers acted correctly.

The weapon turned out to be a pellet gun that closely resembled the real thing, police said late Wednesday, several hours after 15-year-old Jamie Gonzalez was repeatedly shot in a hallway at Cummings Middle School in Brownsville. No one else was injured.

"Why was so much excess force used on a minor?" the boy's father, Jaime Gonzalez Sr., asked The Associated Press outside the family's home Wednesday night. "Three shots. Why not one that would bring him down?"

His mother, Noralva Gonzalez, showed off a photo on her phone of a beaming Jaime in his drum major uniform standing with his band instructors. Then she flipped through three close-up photos she took of bullet wounds in her son's body, including one in the back of his head.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iLo9EV4GuyqF57-NqCqKwBMHbyag?docId=ad940359a80d4d72a396130798b84a5c

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Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio Wants Facts in Civil Rights Case

The controversial Arizona sheriff accused of a long list of civil rights violations conditionally agreed Wednesday to discuss with federal officials ways to correct the alleged violations.

Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio said that his office first needs the U.S. Justice Department to provide facts to back up its allegations that his office racially profiles Latinos, bases immigration enforcement on racially charged citizen complaints and punishes Hispanic jail inmates for speaking Spanish. "I have a suspicion that politics might be involved in this, but we want to resolve (the case)," Arpaio said.

Joseph Popolizio, one of the lawyers representing the sheriff's office, said in a letter to Justice officials that Arpaio was ready to go to court if federal authorities refuse to provide the information to back up their claims.

The self-proclaimed toughest sheriff in America has been a national political fixture who has built his reputation on jailing inmates in tents and dressing them in pink underwear, selling himself to voters as unceasingly tough on crime and pushing the bounds of how far local police can go to confront illegal immigration.

The sheriff's office said it doesn't discriminate against Latinos and that Justice Department didn't provide facts to support its allegation that Arpaio's office has a culture of disregard for basic constitutional rights.

http://latino.foxnews.com/latino/news/2012/01/05/arizona-sheriff-joe-arpaio-wants-facts-in-civil-rights-case/

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Snakes (Nearly) on a Plane: TSA Unveils Top ‘Catches' of 2011

For all the ways that NewsFeed called out the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) in 2011 — creepy notes , frustrating pat-downs , potentially cancerous body scanners — it seems that the administration did have its successes.

In a recent blog post, the TSA recounted some of its most notable “catches” in 2011, including a stun gun disguised as a cell phone found at LAX (though the TSA did miss a similar contraption found on a plane at Newark airport — just sayin'!); a veritable zoo of animals at various airports; and even inert land mines .

They also intercepted your everyday weapons (knives, firearms, C4 explosives — okay, not quite your usual finds). The big lesson to be learned from the TSA's 2011 haul? Be sure you don't try to bring aboard a science project that looks like an improvised explosive device.

http://newsfeed.time.com/2012/01/05/snakes-nearly-on-a-plane-tsa-unveils-top-catches-of-2011/

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Tennessee

Clarksville police set to open Community Policing Center

The Clarksville Police Department's goal to gain the community's trust and respect through community policing has reached a milestone, as it prepares to open the New Providence Community Policing Center.

The new center, located at 640 Providence Blvd., has been converted into a community center, with computers and resources to focus on not only combating crime in the area but creating a better environment and helpful resources.

Chief Al Ansley said the new center will house the Operation Defiance program, named for the historical Civil War area.

The community policing center will officially open Thursday. The grand opening will be from noon until 3 p.m. with a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 1 p.m.

The renovated gas station is more than a new building. It is an opportunity to make a neighborhood characterized by violent crime and drugs into a productive community.

“We received a grant to go into neighborhoods and the community and focus on violent crime and drugs,” Ansley said. “We had to research our data and see what part of the community met that standard. We looked at all parts of the city where we had pockets of violent crime and drug activity, and our data showed New Providence was where we still had a high rate of violent crimes.

http://www.tennessean.com/article/20120104/NEWS21/301040118/Clarksville-police-set-open-Community-Policing-Center

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HUD awards $2.2M for project renewals

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development awarded $2.2 million in renewals for the Continuum of Care grant to projects in the Texas Balance of State Continuum of Care.

Several Galveston County organizations received renewal funding that will allow their projects to continue providing or furthering housing and supportive services for homeless families and individuals.

“These projects that have been awarded renewal funds have been successfully providing services to homeless individuals and families throughout the Balance of State region,” said Eric Samuels, director of Continuum of Care Programs. “We are encouraged by the continued funding and we hope HUD also awards funding to this year's new applicants.”

The Texas Balance of State offers support to communities in the development of comprehensive long-term solutions to address homelessness that affects about 80,000 men, women and children each day in Texas.

http://galvestondailynews.com/story/283822

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Jan 4, 2012

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Arrest in arson rampage reveals enigmatic mother and son

Harry Burkhart is accused of setting at least 50 fires shortly after his mother, Dorothee, had a hearing on being extradited to Germany to face numerous fraud charges.

For months, authorities scoured West Hollywood, carrying a photo of a squat, green-eyed woman through a bustling hive of Russian-language social clubs and cafes selling borscht and vareniki dumplings. She was Dorothee Burkhart, a fugitive wanted on a host of fraud charges in Germany.

Dorothee Burkhart was eventually arrested here and, last Thursday, she was in a courtroom for a hearing to extradite her to Frankfurt to face the charges.

Within hours, an arsonist began setting fires across a wide, significant portion of Los Angeles in a four-day assault that caused millions of dollars in damage and left many residents on edge.

The man police arrested on suspicion of starting more than 50 fires turned out to be another resident of that Russian-language nook of West Hollywood: Dorothee Burkhart's 24-year-old son, Harry.

On Tuesday, authorities were investigating the relationship between the son and mother — a relationship that appears to be mutually protective, fraught with legal troubles and laced with virulent anti-American sentiment.

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-0104-hollywood-arson-20120104,0,1021006.story

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New York firebomb attacks: Man admits hurling Molotov cocktails

According to the Associated Press, the man, whose name was not released, is facing arson-related charges, but it was unclear whether additional hate-crime charges would be lodged against him, police said.

All five attacks occurred within about two hours Sunday evening.

After examining a surveillance video of a man hurling a fiery bottle Sunday night at a home used as a Hindu place of worship and then driving away, police were able to track the suspect through the type of car and its Virginia license plate.

Authorities were investigating the possibility that the five attacks were hate crimes because they involved places of prayer, including an Islamic cultural center on the Van Wyck Expressway in Jamaica, Queens.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/nationnow/2012/01/new-york-police-question-a-suspect-about-arson-attack-on-islamic-center-deli.html

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Military expert with explosives in airport was in prior incident

A military demolitions expert who faces charges in Texas that he tried to bring explosives onto a civilian aircraft was involved in another incident of attempting to transport contraband on an airplane, federal officials said on Tuesday.

Trey Scott Atwater, who completed three military deployments in Afghanistan, is scheduled to be arraigned in district court late Tuesday afternoon, FBI Special Agent Michael Martinez said in a telephone interview from El Paso. Martinez said he could not give any other details except that Atwater would be charged with a felony of trying to bring explosives onto a flight.

Atwater, 30, was arrested Saturday at a security checkpoint at Midland International Airport after explosives in military-grade wrapping were discovered in his luggage. Atwater, who told investigators that he was an explosives expert, said he was surprised to find the explosives, believed to be C-4, in the military bag, which he grabbed to transport children's items, according to the criminal complaint filed Tuesday with the U.S. District Court for West Texas.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/nationnow/

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Florida

Bartow Restoring Its Community Policing Efforts

Bartow is resurrecting its community policing efforts.

Staffing cutbacks forced the city's police department to shelve that unit several years ago, but with the Community Redevelopment Agency's help, it's making a comeback.

The City Commission, which has final approval of CRA spending, agreed Monday night to allocate $25,000 for the project.

Police Chief Joe Hall said he will initiate neighborhood meetings and assign officers, including bicycle patrols, to neighborhoods in the CRA district.

"We want to get officers more involved with the residents so they can get more information to us," Hall said. "Our goal is to prevent crime from happening in the first place."

http://www.theledger.com/article/20120103/NEWS/120109828/1134?Title=Bartow-Restoring-Its-Community-Policing-Efforts-

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Wisconsin

Green Bay Police Begin District Policing: Updated

Starting Tuesday, Green Bay police changed the way they do business. The police department is doing "district policing," which means changes to how they fight crime and how the community can help them do it.

"Now we're going to have officers assigned to certain districts, where they'll have ownership with it, can partner with neighborhoods and business owners," Captain Joe Deuster said.

"It's a new position here at the police department. Nobody's done it before," Captain Jim Runge said. "Usually when you step into a position there's a template or footsteps you can follow in, so we're kind of creating this for ourselves."

Police divided the city into four districts with one captain in charge of each zone.

http://www.wbay.com/story/16438302/2012/01/03/green-bay-police-begin-district-policing

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Sarasota Police seek citizen involvement to halt crime

Police and government can try, but without citizen involvement, solving the ongoing crime problem in Newtown will be nearly impossible, Sarasota city commissioners were told Tuesday night.

And the commission later voted to fund a trip to a North Carolina city where intense citizen involvement is apparently working.

There were eight murders in Sarasota in 2011, all but one of which took place in Newtown, the historically black neighborhood that has remained dangerous despite years of effort and calls for a stop to the violence.

To reverse the trend, top city officials are hoping to mimic similar communities that have beaten their crime statistics by getting more citizens involved.

Responding to last year's rash of murders, police commanders last month began targeting the area, with a surge that emphasized surveillance and foot patrols to stop crime before it happens.

http://www.heraldtribune.com/article/20120103/ARTICLE/120109881/-1/news?Title=Sarasota-Police-seek-citizen-involvement-to-halt-crime

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California

Police foot patrols help with crime drop in SF

But Police Chief Greg Suhr told us that foot patrols are a big part of the community policing techniques – and “community policing” was indeed mentioned in the release – responsible for the drop.

“They're big. When we talk about increasing community involvement, that definitely includes foot patrols,” Suhr told the Guardian, explaining his policy of having a visible police presence in high-crime corridors like mid-Market, 3rd and Palou streets, and parts of the Mission District. “People should always see a cop on foot or on a bike in some places.”

For a long time, the SFPD resisted getting cops out of their cars and onto the streets – even in the first couple years of then-Mayor Gavin Newsom's tenure, when the city had almost twice the 50 murders it experienced each of the last two years -- until it became a pitched political battle in the city.

http://www.sfbg.com/politics/2012/01/03/police-foot-patrols-help-crime-drop-sf

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Police Find Child Abusers on Facebook

Police increasingly look to Facebook to investigate crimes, as an Arizona couple was arrested after allegedly binding their babies with duct tape and posting photos on the social network.

The young parents, Frankie and Kayla Almuina, are facing charges of child abuse after one of the mother's Facebook friends anonymously tipped off the Arizona Child Abuse Hotline.

According to Reuters, the couple's 2-year-old boy and a 10-month old girl were shown on the mother's Facebook page with duct tape on their wrists and ankles and with their mouths taped shut. The boy was also pictured hanging upside down from an exercise machine.

The parents told police the photos were “all in fun,” but a sheriff's department official said the children appeared to be “in sheer terror.”

Investigators seized about a dozen similar photos from the Almuina home and arrested the couple. Their children were turned over to another family member, while the parents were sent to jail.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/mobiledia/2012/01/03/police-find-child-abusers-on-facebook/print/

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Child predator watch: Homeland Security Investigations in tri-state area protects children in US and around the world

PHILADELPHIA – U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) made a total of 52 criminal arrests, resulting in 35 indictments and 38 convictions of child predators in the tri-state area in 2011.

ICE HSI investigations protect children from sexual predators, including Internet child pornographers, child sex traffickers and those who travel overseas for sex with minors. The ICE HSI office in Philadelphia, which oversees investigations in Pennsylvania, Delaware and West Virginia, investigated and concluded the following significant cases this year.

"Sexual predators are exploiting and abusing our children for their own personal gratification," said John P. Kelleghan, special agent in charge of ICE HSI in Philadelphia. "HSI and our law enforcement partners will not tolerate this behavior and will use every tool at our disposal to stop them in their tracks."

Operation Predator is a nationwide ICE HSI initiative to protect children from sexual predators, including those who travel overseas for sex with minors, Internet child pornographers, criminal alien sex offenders, and child sex traffickers. ICE HSI encourages the public to report suspected child predators and any suspicious activity through its toll-free hotline at 1-866-DHS-2-ICE or by completing its online tip form. Both are staffed around the clock by investigators.

Suspected child sexual exploitation or missing children may be reported to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, an Operation Predator partner, at 1-800-843-5678 or http://www.cybertipline.com. For more information about ICE HSI's predator investigations, visit ICE.gov.

http://www.ice.gov/news/releases/1112/111230philadelphia.htm

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DHS Announces "If You See Something, Say Something" Campaign Partnership with the National Hockey League

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) today announced a new partnership between DHS' "If You See Something, Say Something™" public awareness campaign and the National Hockey League (NHL) - highlighting the Department's continued partnership with the sports industry to ensure the safety and security of employees, players and fans.

"Every citizen plays a critical role in identifying and reporting suspicious activities and threats," said Secretary Napolitano. "By expanding the 'If You See Something, Say Something™' campaign to the NHL, we are working together to ensure the safety and security of employees, players, and fans."

As part of the Department's "If You See Something, Say Something™" partnership with the NHL, a Public Service Announcement will be read before and during games, and campaign graphics will appear on the videoboard and on ribbon boards. Safety messaging will also be printed on the back of NHL Winter Classic credentials for staff, players, and volunteers. In addition, the Department has partnered with the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and City of Philadelphia to place "If You See Something, Say Something™" advertisements throughout Philadelphia at airports and gas stations, and on buses, trains and billboards.

http://www.dhs.gov/ynews/releases/20111229-dhs-partnership-nhl.shtm

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DHS U Visa Law Enforcement Certification Resource Guide

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Jan 3, 2012

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Dead body indentified as suspected Mount Rainier gunman

The manhunt is over -- authorities have confirmed that the body found Monday at Mt. Rainier National Park is that of Benjamin C. Barnes, the gunman suspected in the fatal shooting of a park ranger a day earlier.

Barnes, 24, an Iraq war veteran who is also suspected in an earlier shooting at a New Year's Eve party near Seattle, was spotted face down in the snow by an overflying aircraft near Narada Falls in the park.

Narada Falls, one of the park's most popular tourist destinations, lies adjacent to Mount Rainier Highway--most likely unpopulated at the time because the park has been closed for the past two days due to the shooting.

It took snowshoe-clad searchers some time after the aircraft sighting to reach the body and confirm the identification, park spokeswoman Lee Snook said.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/nationnow/

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L.A. arson suspect is 24-year-old Hollywood man

Los Angeles police on Monday afternoon booked a 24-year-old man on suspicion of arson after an L.A. County sheriff's deputy detained him in connection with a string of more than 50 deliberately set fires. Booking records identified the man as Harry Burkhart, a Hollywood area resident. He is being held in lieu of $250,000 bail at the Inmate Reception Center in downtown L.A.

No new arsons have been reported since the suspect was taken into custody, but police stressed that the investigation was ongoing. The fires have caused $2 million in damage, authorities said. At a news conference Monday, officials said the arson task force is sifting through about 100 clues in the case.

Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie Beck said : "I feel very good that we've got the right guy. [The suspect] had the right stuff in his van, and we are confident in the arrest.''

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/

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California's death penalty: Unusual but not cruel

Capital punishment in California should be streamlined, not abolished.

With a drug cocktail that puts death row inmates to sleep, California's capital punishment can hardly be said to be cruel — but it is so unusual that death row inmates in the Golden State routinely die of old age or by suicide. When, or more likely if, justice comes, it doesn't come cheap. By some estimates, it costs $100,000 a year per prisoner to keep California's 718 inmates alive on death row, thanks in part to the endless, often frivolous appeals brought by inmates and death penalty opponents. If capital punishment is prohibitively expensive, it is because those professionally seeking to abolish it have made it so.

Even death penalty supporters, such as Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye of the California Supreme Court, have given up. "I don't think it is working," the newly appointed chief justice told The Times last week. California's death penalty requires "structural change, and we don't have the money." Still, Californians need a "merit-based discussion on its effectiveness and costs." But the chief justice ignored why that load continues to mount: death penalty opponents.

Death penalty foes have seized on the cost issue for their latest attempt at killing it off. Led by Natasha Minsker of the ACLU of Northern California, they are gathering signatures to put the so-called SAFE California initiative on the November 2012 ballot. Minsker's co-written report, "California's Death Penalty Is Dead," concedes that it is the appeals process that clogs the courts, noting that "death penalty trials cost up to 20 times more than trials for life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.... Taxpayers are legally required to pay for numerous appeals in death penalty cases, unlike cases involving life without possibility of parole, where the prisoner gets only one taxpayer-funded appeal."

http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-oe-johnson-death-20120103,0,903833,print.story

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Jan 2, 2012

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Op-Ed

McManus: Even despots don't live forever

Three villains — Osama bin Laden, Moammar Kadafi and Kim Jong Il — are gone.

It was a bad year for the villains of the world. Three of the biggest bad guys met their ends: Osama bin Laden, killed by U.S. commandos who stormed his villa in Pakistan in May; Moammar Kadafi, killed by Libyan insurgents who captured him (with the help of a NATO airstrike) in October; and Kim Jong Il, the ruler of North Korea, who died Dec. 17, reportedly of a heart attack.

Bin Laden was the most important. Americans remember him, of course, as the architect of the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11. But his larger achievement was in organizing Al Qaeda, a multinational movement whose purpose was to focus its violence not on local issues — plenty of terrorist groups do that — but on the distant United States. That innovation will guarantee him a place in history. "It is fair to say," former CIA analyst Michael Scheuer wrote in his biography of Bin Laden, "that he has had a greater impact on how Americans view their society, government and security than any other individual in the past 50 years."

But by the time the Navy caught up with Bin Laden, relentless U.S. attacks had reduced the "core" of Al Qaeda to only a few high-value targets, most of them in hiding. True, the organization had atomized successfully into franchise operations in Yemen, Somalia and North Africa, but the local groups quickly got caught up in local politics and lost their focus on attacks against the U.S. That caused distress to the founder, who sent letters urging his affiliates to get back to killing Americans. With Bin Laden gone, Al Qaeda isn't over, but it's a much smaller threat to us now.

New laws crack down on distracted drivers

U.S. and state regulations seek to curb drivers' use of cellphones, and some states target driving under the influence.

If your New Year's resolutions didn't include hanging up that cellphone when behind the wheel, several states plan to do it for you. A slew of new laws taking effect this year aims to curb distracted driving.

Beginning Tuesday, all commercial drivers — including truck and bus drivers — are banned from using hand-held and push-to-talk cellphones.

The new law will affect an estimated 4 million commercial drivers, according to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, which instituted the ban. New automotive laws are taking effect in a variety of states too.

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-traffic-laws-20120101,0,3203415,print.story

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LAPD: Keep lights on tonight as arson hunt intensifies

With nightfall approaching, Los Angeles authorities are urging residents to keep their outdoor lights on as police and fire officials try to catch the person or people responsible for nearly 40 arson fires in the last three days.

Officials on Sunday urged residents leave porch and carport lights on at night and make sure cars are locked. They also urged residents to report anything suspicious to authorities by calling 911.

Officials said Sunday that they have linked at least 39 fires to a series of arsons that began Friday morning in Hollywood. Most of the fires have occurred in the Hollywood and West Hollywood area, but detectives are not sure whether the arsonist or arsonists would venture into other neighborhoods. On Saturday morning, several locations in the San Fernando Valley were hit.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/

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Photos show 'person of interest' in Los Angeles fires

The Los Angeles Police Department asked for the public's help Sunday in identifying a "person of interest" in the series of fires in the Hollywood area.

The still images taken from a video show an older white male with a receding hairline and shoulder-length ponytail. He is wearing a black jacket and black pants. His image was caught on a video that showed a car fire Saturday night inside the parking structure of the Hollywood & Highland Center on Hollywood Boulevard.

The LAPD asks residents to leave porch and carport lights on at night and make sure cars are locked. Authorities also ask residents to immediately report anything suspicious by calling 911. Officials said Sunday that they have connected at least 39 fires, the first of which started early Friday morning in Hollywood. Most of the fires have occurred in the Hollywood and West Hollywood areas. Early Saturday, nearly a dozen fires broke out in the northeast San Fernando Valley.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/

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Helping L.A.'s foster kids grow up

A new California law will allow young people to receive support until the age of 21, rather than forcing them to fend for themselves at 18.

The average young person who "ages out" of the foster care system in Los Angeles County at age 18 goes on to use almost $13,000 worth of health, mental health, criminal justice and social services before his or her 22nd birthday. That is more than two years' worth of college tuition in the Cal State University system. For former foster youth who also have had involvement in the juvenile justice system — so-called crossover youth — the amount is almost three times as high, about $35,000.

These are among the starker findings from our recently completed study of outcomes for those who exited the foster care and juvenile justice systems in Los Angeles County during their young adult years. These findings highlight the economic and social hardships that many former foster youth face as they transition to adulthood, and might be cause for pessimism. But there are strong reasons to be optimistic.

One of those reasons is the California Fostering Connections to Success Act, which takes effect Jan. 1. This state law, once it's phased in over a three-year period, will allow young people to continue receiving the support of the foster care system until the age of 21, rather than forcing them to fend for themselves at 18. This change is long overdue and will help place the 5,000 foster youth who age out of care each year in California on more equal footing with their peers.

http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-oe-culhane-fosterkids-20120102,0,7238921.story

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About 150 officers converged on the mountain park after ranger Margaret Anderson was shot to death Sunday morning, and searchers used an aircraft with heat-sensing capabilities to hunt from the skies. Authorities believe the gunman was still in the woods, with weapons.

Pierce County Sheriff's spokesman Ed Troyer said that Benjamin Colton Barnes, a 24-year-old believed to have survivalist skills, was a "strong person of interest" in the slaying. "We do have a very hot and dangerous situation," Troyer said.

http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/mt-rainier-ranger-shot-death-gunman-sought-15272135

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Four Attacks in Queens With Homemade Firebombs

A wave of arson attacks spread across eastern Queens on Sunday night, and the police said the firebombings were being investigated as bias crimes — with Muslims as the targets.

No one was hurt in the four attacks, in which homemade firebombs were apparently used. In three of the four attacks, the police said, Molotov cocktails were made with Starbucks bottles.

The first attack occurred just before 8 p.m. at a bodega at 179-40 Hillside Avenue. Ten minutes later, another crude firebomb was thrown, this time at a private home at 146-62 107th Avenue, and the house caught fire. Half an hour after that, an Islamic center at 89-89 Van Wyck Expressway was the target. The last attack occurred at a house at 88-20 170th Street, the police said.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/02/nyregion/four-attacks-in-queens-with-homemade-firebombs.html

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Former police officer Chris Willden didn't hesitate when he realized children were trapped in an upside down car in an icy Utah river. He pulled his handgun, pushed it up against the submerged windows and shot out the glass. Then he reached inside.

"I was trying to grab arms, but I couldn't feel anything," Willden said. "I'm thinking ... what are we going to do?'" But he turned to see up to eight other passers-by had scrambled down the embankment to help after coming upon the accident along U.S. 89 in Logan Canyon on Saturday afternoon.

Highway Patrol Lt. Steve Winward said that after shooting out a window, Willden cut a seatbelt to free one child. He said the rescuers then helped turn the Honda Accord upright in the Logan River, and lifted it enough to free all three trapped children.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/45845801/ns/us_news-life/#

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In a special New Year message marking his appointment, Major-General Tariq Alhassan announced that 500 extra officers would be recruited from all sections of Bahrain society to boost community relations. The officers will wear distinctive uniforms and only police the local area from where they have been recruited.

“The task now after the report of the Bahrain Independent commission for Inquiry (BICI) is to look at where we've gone wrong, to face our mistakes and learn lessons,” Alhassan said.

“The first part is to reinforce our relationship with the community and also enhance our performance and capabilities with training. We're going to find 500 men and women from all local communities in Bahrain to reinforce our community service police and they will be our conduit with the community as well.” He added: “There must be soft policing as well as hard policing.”

http://www.khaleejtimes.com/displayarticle.asp?xfile=data/middleeast/2012/January/middleeast_January25.xml&section=middleeast&col=

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CERT Classes To Be Offered February In SCV

Santa Clarita area residents interested in learning more about protecting themselves and their community will have an opportunity to get involved in the Community Emergency Response Team program with classes being held starting February 6 in the SCV.

Class schedules are posted and available for enrollment online at the California Regional Community Policing Institute website at www.rcpi-ca.org. The CERT program is an all-risk, all-hazard training. This valuable course is designed to help you protect yourself, your family, your neighbors and your neighborhood in an emergency situation.

CERT is a positive and realistic approach to emergency and disaster situations where citizens may initially be on their own and their actions can make a difference. While people will respond to others in need without the training, one goal of the CERT program is to help them do so effectively and efficiently without placing themselves in unnecessary danger.

http://hometownstation.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=27545:cert-local-scv-clarita-2011-12-30

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