Got this heads-up from Commander David Kamperin on the MPD-1D Mailing List about officers shooting a pitbull in SE after they saw it attacking a six-year old girl: Continue reading
By brownpau
Category Archives: Crime & Punishment
By brownpau
By Tom Bridge
Warning Signs
Nothing like coming home to a Police warning. When I called my condo association, they said that the car bandits are running rampant in South Arlington, and that they were targeting cars with GPSes or iPod hookups. So, beware South Arlington.
By Tom Bridge
Chief Cathy in Some Trouble?
The rule is, according to the Hatch Act, it’s against the law for someone in a government uniform to partake in political behavior. Essentially, that’s exactly what seems to have happened in an ad for Councilman Jack Evans, which features the councilman in a photo op with Chief Lanier. If the photo was staged by Evans with Lanier’s permission for use in his campaign, it’s likely a violation of the Hatch Act.
By Tom Bridge
Will There Be Charges?
The Bay Bridge accident this weekend that sent a semi into the Chesapeake and has wrought havoc on the pair of spans, claimed one life and put three others in the hospital, seems to be the fault of a driver who fell asleep at the wheel. Candy Baldwin has admitted that that she fell asleep at the wheel early in the morning, and witnesses saw a car matching the description of her Camaro cross over center into the path of the truck that later plummeted into the Chesapeake.
Will there be charges for Ms. Baldwin? I dunno. Probably should be, for the death of the trucker who wasn’t able to maneuver his rig out of the way of her sleepy driving, probably for the cost of the police response, probably for the cost of keeping the bridge down to one span for the duration of the repair.
But will there be? No one’s said.
By Tom Bridge
Berwyn Heights Mayor (almost) Exonerated
So, the SWAT team broke down his door, shot his dogs, tied his family up, and it turns out it was all a giant mistake. Turns out, the Police were also missing the right kind of warrant for a no-knock execution of the search, which compounds the frustration. Two area men were arrested as part of a bizarre weed shipping ring, and over $1M in weed was confiscated by the PG County Police. While PG County Police Chief Melvin High won’t rule out the involvement of Mayor Calvo, we’ve promised we won’t rule out laughing hysterically at his name being associated with a pot scandal.
By Tom Bridge
Uncle Ted Pleads Not Guilty
Senator “Uncle” Ted Stevens has plead not guilty to charges of taking bribes. Of course, this has Alaska all nervous as he’s been great for funding Alaska’s economy, but perhaps bad for the Internet (it’s a series of Tubes. Not a truck.) and now he’s facing serious corruption charges.
I hate to see members of our government, and guests in our town, flaunt so badly the laws that govern the ethics of the body. Oh well, right?
By Tom Bridge
Fire Destroys Six Flags’ Haunted House
Image from Prince George’s County Fire/EMS Department
A major fire at the Largo, MD Six Flags amusement park destroyed their haunted house building last night. As the Haunted House attraction is only open in October, no one was inside, and no one was injured as the building burned.
I’m waiting for someone to point at Dan Snyder, as he owns the floundering Six Flags franchise, as having a role in the fire. Conspiracy Theorists in 3..2..1..
By Don
Well, of course sex worker advocacy is fun.
I’d actually put tonight’s Grind the Vote event at BeBar into my calendar several weeks ago because it sounds like a good time for what I consider a good cause. For a suggested at-the-door donation of around $10 – you can use your own discretion based on how well heeled you are – you get to watch striptease, drag, and burlesque acts while enjoying music and drink specials.
Unfortunately, in the time since I first took note of this event, the world has provided a textbook perfect case of why this kind of event is necessary. On July 23, ending almost a year-long spree, suspected serial rapist Mark Humphries shot himself rather than be arrested. By that time nine different women had been raped and threatened with death if they told.
As it turns out, that was almost superfluous. The WaPo story spends its early paragraphs covering the more True-Crime-Drama of Humprhries’ interactions with the police as he attempted to do counter-intelligence on his pursuers, so it’s not till you’re fifteen paragraphs in before the story shows why organizations like HIPS and Different Avenues are so necessary: Continue reading
By Wayan
Didn’t He Suffer Enough Punishment Already?
Miles Harrison
As he’s being charged manslaughter, I’m wondering if Miles Harrison has suffered enough already. There’s no way I can see any court-imposed punishment coming close to the beating he gives himself every waking moment.
To bring everyone up to speed, let’s review his case with a little help from the WashPost article:
By Tom Bridge
Is 19 Years Too Short To Forgive?
When the Child & Family Services Agency in DC dismissed its director on Friday, and appointed Roque Gerald as interm director, they knew about his record. In 1989, Gerald was sued by a former patient that he’d had sex with while she was under Gerald’s care. The case was settled out of court for an undisclosed sum of money. Now, of course, city officials looks like they have egg on their face, despite the fact that AG-nominee Peter Nickles says that Gerald came to them with this information during the selection process, according to WAMU.
Here’s the question: Since this happened almost two decades ago, and since no criminal charges were brought against Gerald, does this make any difference about his administrative role at CFSA?
By Tom Bridge
Can we talk about guns?
I was in a daze when I heard the story the first time. I hadn’t had my coffee yet. I was still kinda asleep after a night of tossing and turning. But then, I heard it again. The story was real.
Let’s get some stuff straight before I launch into what I suspect will be a tirade. I like guns. While I don’t own one myself, I think that the general population should be allowed to own firearms, especially for home protection. No, I’m not one of those “Hey, let’s all Open Carry!” guys, and it’s unlikely that I’d stand up and argue for a Concealed Carry Permit in the District. But I am for the individual’s right to bear arms for self-preservation, and that’s my belief no matter where you are in the United States.
So, along comes the new District gun law, which seems designed to be one-way ticket right back to the Supreme Court. Despite having been reviewed by actual lawyers, some of whom I believe may have failed basic reading comprehension tests, the law seems to fail the tests set up by Heller, which means the lawsuit’s coming just about any second now.
Of course, responding to City Council is Congressman Mark Souder (R-IN. Of course.) who wants to cram a law down the throats of the District at-large to override the law that is being proposed by the DC City Council. Specifically, he’s against the prohibition of Semi-Automatic Weapons, the provision for licensure of the weapons, and the only provision he should even open his mouth about, the storage requirements in the home.
Continue reading
By Tom Bridge
The Cardboard Samurai are Coming
When the scroll arrived at my desk this morning, borne on the winds of change by a messenger falcon, I could not believe my eyes. The Cardboard Samurai were coming. Their likes have not been seen in Washington for some time, after they were driven back by the Army of the Paper Airplane back in ’99. I had feared that would one day return.
They fight without mercy, without cease, until their cardboard tubes lay in pulpy pieces upon the ground. The havoc…
On July the 26th, they shall return to Washington DC, their cardboard tubes at their side, their cardboard armor freshly carved and worn like the samurai of old. They will meet on the Mall, betwixt the Smithsonian and Natural History Museum at 3pm to display their ancient art.
The Washington War Dance. Upon us again. Perhaps, for the last time.
Top photo: IMG_1075 by Hellathatguy
Bottom Illustration: Penny Arcade
By Tom Bridge
DC To Announce New Gun Rules
New rules, same as the old rules. The Examiner is on top of the coverage for the new laws. However, it seems that Councilman Mendelssohn’s proposal flies directly in the face of the Heller verdict. Specifically, his bill would still require that after you purchase AR-15 magazines and spent time and effort to buy the perfect one for you, the firearms stored in the home be kept unloaded and disassembled or under trigger lock.
The standard set by Heller is that requiring trigger locks and disassembly are unconstitutional, and that any law with them does not pass the test setup by Heller thusly (on page 58):
We must also address the District’s requirement (as applied to respondent’s handgun) that firearms in the home be rendered and kept inoperable at all times. This makes it impossible for citizens to use them for the core lawful purpose of self-defense and is hence unconstitutional
It seems to me to be fairly ridiculous, and a waste of time, and a slap in the face of the highest court in the land, to pass a bill that will only be struck down by the first court to hear the case. While the opinion for Heller makes not that the law lacks a clear exemption for self-defense, just adding a blanket exemption for self-defense doesn’t address the storage of firearms as effective home-defense weapons.
But, I guess they think that an unarmed populace is what they’d rather have, so be it. So long as they enjoy getting taken to court and losing.
Case O’ Guns originally uploaded by wild-smith
By brownpau
Stolen Shakespeare First Folio Recovered
December, 1998: “I shall steal this priceless edition of Shakespeare’s First Folio from a Durham University exhibition! The perfect historical literary crime! Ha ha!”
July, 2008: “I wonder if this First Folio I stole is authentic? I shall bring this to the Folger Shakespeare Library and leave it with them for analysis. No way they can tell if it was the stolen one, and what will they do if they can? Call the FBI who in turn will alert Scotland Yard? I think not! Ha ha!”
(The suspected thief was apprehended by authorities back in the UK — in the town of Washington, of all places — then questioned at Durham and released on bail.)
By Tom Bridge
Does the House Misunderstand Technology?
The answer’s probably yes. I know, I know, traditionally it’s the Senate that is the home of the whackjobs like Ted Stevens who claim that the Internet is a series of tubes, and not a truck. But, here’s the deal. Representative John Culberson (R-TX) seems to think that the House has it out for Twitter and all of the various video services. Specifically, he’s pointing to a letter written by Chair of the House Franking Committee Rep. Michael Capuano (D-MA) which suggests that any member of the House who conducts anything related to official business be done only on the House.gov domain.
That means any member of the House who embeds YouTube, Blip.tv, Qik, or any other video on their website is doing so in violation of the regulations of the Committee on House Administration. That also means that microblogging via a service like Twitter (Hey, follow us!) But, the letter that Rep. Capuano has written is actually promoting the changes necessary to allow for such a service to be used, but in exposing the current regulations, he’s putting current House members in jeopardy of disciplinary action for using social networking technologies like YouTube, etc.
Nice work, guys. Nice work.
Dusk on the National Mall originally uploaded by spinfly.
By Tom Bridge
How Can I Stop What Isn’t Going On?!
That’s the gist of what Judge Richard Leon is saying in response to the request from the Partnership for Civil Justice, who want the program that debuted DC’s Trinidad neighborhood from ever being used again. Specifically, he raised the concern that since there’s no current implementation of the “Neighborhood Safety Zones” plan, where exactly would he enjoin the MPD from operating?
Looks like we get to see this one played out only after the MPD tries to put the cordon up around another of DC’s neighborhoods.
By Don
Leaving DC for Chicago
Temple Ahead, courtesy of diskychick
No, not me (sorry) – the gun lawsuits. Now that the Heller battle is over (though it seems like the city is determined to get challenged as quickly as possible) the NRA has moved its focus on to Chicago. SCOTUSBlog has a roundup of the quintet of new suits, which I offer you a link to just in case you want to follow the traveling circus as it heads off to the north-west.