Media blackout: Mob “hunted” white victims in Cincinnatti

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Read Time:1 Minute, 57 Second

On Monday, police in Cincinnati arrested a group of teenagers who reportedly terrorized folks in the downtown area, in a series of violent assaults.

All of the beatings and robberies took place between June 1 to July 4.

Cortez Baker, 16, Randolph Jones, 16, and Kentrelle Aldridge, 16, have all been charged with several counts of robbery and assault, and more charges are likely to be filed.

WKRC reported:

    Police say the teens essentially hunted their victims. One says the suspects were passengers on his bus when they targeted him. "They didn't ask me for anything."

    Chad Laumann was beaten and robbed on East Fourth Street last month while on his way to work. Though outnumbered, the 23 year-old says he outsmarted his attackers by intentionally staying in view of the surveillance camera. "So as they're attacking you, you tell them there's a camera. Yes, I tell them there's cameras. And what did they say? They didn't say anything. They just took off running."

Two of the assailants can be seen kicking and punching Laumann, while a third rifles through his pockets.

In fact, it was that same surveillance footage which was essential in the teens' capture.

A Cincinnati bike patrol officer recognized one of the suspects by the distinctive shirt he was wearing, which he also wore on the night of the attack.

In all, police believe the gang is responsible for at least four equally vicious attacks.

Cincinnati Police Capt. Paul Broxterman described the string of assaults to WLWT, as "a pack of lions hunting down a wounded zebra."

On Tuesday, another victim came forward, whose attack was also caught on video.

All three alleged assailants live in a group home operated by Kelly Youth Services and had been given an outside pass for 'good behavior,' the night Laumann was so brutally assaulted.

Police are asking that anyone who has suffered an attack in the area, or has further information on the suspects, call Crime Stoppers at (513) 352-3040.

Of course, not one national media outlet has seen fit to give these racially-charged attacks any coverage, while providing nearly around-the-clock coverage to the George Zimmerman trial.

About Post Author

Anthony-Claret Ifeanyi Onwutalobi

Anthony-Claret is a software Engineer, entrepreneur and the founder of Codewit INC. Mr. Claret publishes and manages the content on Codewit Word News website and associated websites. He's a writer, IT Expert, great administrator, technology enthusiast, social media lover and all around digital guy.
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Will North Colorado Be The 51st State In The Union?

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Read Time:5 Minute, 36 Second

There are ten counties in northern Colorado that are discussing plans to secede from the state of Colorado in order to form a new state that would be known as "North Colorado".  North Colorado would have a population of more than 300,000 people, and it would be the 42nd largest state in the country by land area.  The county officials that are leading this movement say that a "collective mass" of issues has resulted in this desire to leave the state of Colorado for good.  In recent years, the Democratically-controlled state legislature has been pursuing new regulations on the oil and gas industries, it has imposed strict new renewable energy standards throughout the state and it has adopted new gun control measures that are highly unpopular with rural voters.  The desire to be independent of the meddling bureaucrats in the state capital is certainly a commendable goal, but there are some obstacles that will make establishing a new state very difficult.  Hopefully the challenges will not cause those pursuing this new state to lose heart.

Recently, representatives from ten Colorado counties held a meeting in the town of Akron to map out the boundaries for the new state…

    Ten counties, including Weld and Morgan, started talking about seceding last month. Now some people Lincoln and Cheyenne counties say they want to join a new state they’d call “North Colorado.”

    Organizers of the secession effort say their interests are not being represented at the state Capitol. Representatives from the 10 counties held a meeting on Monday in the town of Akron in Weld County to begin mapping the boundaries for the new state they say will represent the interests of rural Colorado.

Agriculture and the oil and gas industries would dominate this new state.  In fact, right now about 80 percent of the oil and gas revenue in the state of Colorado comes from the counties that are talking about seceding…

    “I say 80 percent of the oil and gas revenue in the state of Colorado is coming out of northeastern Colorado – Weld, Yuma County, and some of other counties,” Weld County Commissioner Sean Conway said. “Seventy percent of the K-12 funding is coming off the state lands in Weld County alone. I’m telling you we are economic drivers.”

So the state of Colorado may not be very eager to see those counties leave.

But water rights may be an even bigger issue.  Four of the five counties that do the most farming in Colorado would become part of North Colorado.  But the farmers in those counties are heavily dependent on the water rights that they rent from cities that would not be a part of North Colorado.

A new state could make getting the water that those farmers need much more difficult.  The following comes from a Huffington Post article…

    "A water right is the livelihood of many, many people in northeast Colorado … and if you put the security of that right at risk at all — as starting a brand new state might do — that could be enough to convince people they don't want to go forward with this (new state)," said James Witwer, a water attorney in Denver, who represents various municipalities and agricultural water users in northeast Colorado. "It would be problematic and risky."

    Eight major U.S. rivers flow from Colorado's mountains and into surrounding states and, because of that, Colorado has agreements in place with its neighbors — compacts that require certain amounts of water to flow across state lines.

    Such an agreement would have to be made between Colorado and North Colorado.

There are also significant political issues that make a new state a long shot.

Even if the voters approve seceding from the state of Colorado, the new state must also be approved by the Colorado General Assembly and the U.S. Congress.

And getting approval from Congress seems extremely unlikely.

First of all, Democrats in Congress would be fundamentally opposed to this new state for the same reason that Republicans won't let Washington D.C. become a state.  Democrats would not want to allow two new Republican senators from the state of North Colorado to shift the balance of power in the U.S. Senate.

Republicans may not like the idea of North Colorado either, because it could significantly hurt the Republicans in future presidential elections.  Right now, Colorado is considered to be a swing state.  If North Colorado was formed, the Republicans would always win that state, but Democrats would always take the much larger state of Colorado.  It would shift electoral college math even more in favor of the Democrats.

So it is definitely a long shot that we will ever see the state of North Colorado become the 51st state in the Union.

But without a doubt there are a lot of people that are very passionate about the idea.  In fact, those organizing this movement say that a few more Colorado counties may join and that even a couple of counties in neighboring Kansas have expressed interest.

And organizers hope to have something on the ballot this November possibly.

It will be very interesting to watch and see what happens.  No new state has been created out of an old state since West Virginia seceded from Virginia in 1863.  And of course that was during the Civil War.

According to the New York Daily News, there have been lots of attempts to create new states out of old ones in U.S. history, but the vast majority of them have ended up failing…

    This process has been successfully used in the past to create five new states — Vermont, Kentucky, Tennessee, Maine and West Virginia, according to the National Constitution Center.

    But the road to statehood is mostly littered with failures. There have been more than seventy-five unsuccessful attempts at statehood, including the fantasy states of Forgottonia, Texlahoma, Nickajack, Absaroka, and Long Island.

The odds are definitely against North Colorado.

But they should be applauded for stepping up and taking action.  You will never accomplish anything if you just sit on your sofa eating chips and watching television all the time.

So what do you think about the possibility of a 51st state called North Colorado?  Please feel free to share what you think by posting a comment below…

About Post Author

Anthony-Claret Ifeanyi Onwutalobi

Anthony-Claret is a software Engineer, entrepreneur and the founder of Codewit INC. Mr. Claret publishes and manages the content on Codewit Word News website and associated websites. He's a writer, IT Expert, great administrator, technology enthusiast, social media lover and all around digital guy.
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27 Facts That Prove That The Family In America Is In The Worst Shape Ever

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Read Time:5 Minute, 15 Second

The family is one of the fundamental building blocks of society.  If you do not have strong families, you are not going to have a strong society.  Unfortunately, the state of the family in America continues to deteriorate.  The marriage rate has fallen to an all-time low, we lead the world in divorce, and about a third of all children live in a home without a father.  Our young people have been taught that getting married and having a family is not a priority, and many of those that would like to get married and have children are not able to get the kinds of jobs that they need to support a family.  The statistics that you are about to see should absolutely shock you.  American families have never been this weak, and this is an incredibly troubling sign for the future of our nation.  What will future generations of Americans be like if they do not have stable homes to grow up in?  Will they be even more messed up than we are right now?  That is a frightening thought.  The following are 27 facts that prove that the family in America is in the worst shape ever…

#1 The marriage rate in the United States has fallen to an all-time low.  Right now it is sitting at a yearly rate of 6.8 marriages per 1000 people.

#2 Today, an all-time low 44.2 percent of Americans in the 25 to 34 year old age bracket are married.

#3 According to the Pew Research Center, only 51 percent of all adults in the United States are currently married.  Back in 1960, 72 percent of all adults in the United States were married.

#4 Back in 1950, 78 percent of all households in the United States contained a married couple.  Today, that number has declined to 48 percent.

#5 100 years ago, 4.52 were living in the average U.S. household, but now the average U.S. household only consists of 2.59 people.

#6 The United States has the highest percentage of one person households on the entire planet.

#7 In the United States today, more than half of all couples "move in together" before they get married.

#8 The divorce rate for couples that live together first is significantly higher than for those that do not.

#9 For women under the age of 30 in the United States, more than half of all babies are being born out of wedlock.

#10 In 1970, the average woman had her first child when she was 21.4 years old.  Now the average woman has her first child when she is 25.6 years old.

#11 According to the Centers for Disease Control, there were 69.3 births per 1,000 women in the 15 to 44 year old age bracket in 2007. Now the rate has fallen to 63.2 births per 1,000 women.

#12 The birth rate for American women in the 20 to 24 year old age bracket has fallen to 85.3 births per 1,000 women.  That is a new all-time record low.

#13 The United States has the highest divorce rate in the entire world.

#14 At this point, approximately one out of every three children in the United States lives in a home without a father.

#15 Without a father around, many single mothers in this country are really struggling to survive.  Sadly, approximately 42 percent of all single mothers in the United States are on food stamps.

#16 It is being projected that approximately 50 percent of all U.S. children will be on food stamps at some point before they reach the age of 18.

#17 Today, more than a million public school students in the United States are homeless.  This is the first time that has ever happened in our history.

#18 The United States has the highest teen pregnancy rate in the entire world.  In fact, the United States has a teen pregnancy rate that is more than twice as high as Canada, more than three times as high as France and more than seven times as high as Japan.

#19 In the United States today, approximately 47 percent of all high school students have had sex.

#20 Approximately one out of every four teen girls in the United States has at least one sexually transmitted disease.

#21 According to one survey, 24 percent of all U.S. teens that have at least one sexually transmitted disease say that they still have unprotected sex.

#22 Instead of being raised by parents, an increasing number of children in America are being raised by movies, television and video games.  For example, the average young American will spend 10,000 hours playing video games before the age of 21.

#23 Americans are tied with the British for the highest average number of hours spent watching television each week.

#24 There are more than 3 million reports of child abuse in the United States every single year.

#25 The United States actually has the highest child abuse death rate in the developed world.

#26 Approximately 20 percent of all child sexual abuse victims in the United States are under the age of 8.

#27 It is estimated that one out of every four girls will be sexually abused before they become adults.

Unfortunately, this is a problem that is not going to be fixed overnight.  Getting the "right politicians" into office will not solve our problems and neither will spending a bunch of money.

The change that we need is a change of the heart.  We need to change how we treat one another and we need to get our priorities straight.

Our families are really messed up, and this is hurting our kids the most.  There is no way that this country is going to have any hope for a bright future unless our families start getting stronger.

Or could it be possible that I am overreacting?

What do you think?

Please feel free to share your thoughts about the state of the family in America by posting a comment below…

About Post Author

Anthony-Claret Ifeanyi Onwutalobi

Anthony-Claret is a software Engineer, entrepreneur and the founder of Codewit INC. Mr. Claret publishes and manages the content on Codewit Word News website and associated websites. He's a writer, IT Expert, great administrator, technology enthusiast, social media lover and all around digital guy.
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Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano resigning

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Read Time:2 Minute, 16 Second

WASHINGTON – Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, who led the burgeoning Department of Homeland Security through a host of policy changes in the post 9/11 era, is resigning to head the University of California system.

Napolitano, just the third person to lead the 10-year-old department, told her senior staff Friday she would be leaving for California. She will become the president of the University of California system, which includes UCLA and the University of California, Berkeley, among other campuses. The University of California also announced Napolitano's nomination to be the 20th president of the statewide system.

"The opportunity to work with the dedicated men and women of the Department of Homeland Security, who serve on the front lines of our nation's efforts to protect our communities and families from harm, has been the highlight of my professional career," she said in a statement. "After four plus years of focusing on these challenges, I will be nominated as the next president of the University of California to play a role in educating our nation's next generation of leaders."

"I thank President Obama for the chance to serve our nation during this important chapter in our history," Napolitano said, "and I know the Department of Homeland Security will continue to perform its important duties with the honor and focus that the American public expects."

Obama issued a statement commending Napolitano for "her outstanding work on behalf of the American people over the last four years."

"At the Department of Homeland Security, Janet's portfolio has included some of the toughest challenges facing our country. She's worked around the clock to respond to natural disasters, from the Joplin tornado to Hurricane Sandy, helping Americans recover and rebuild," he said. Obama also said the American people "are safer and more secure thanks to Janet's leadership in protecting our homeland against terrorist attacks."

Napolitano, a former Arizona governor and attorney general, was appointed by President Barack Obama in 2008. She had led the department through a series of policy changes with respect to protecting the public safety, including a focus on enforcing immigration laws.

Under her tenure, DHS implemented a wide-spread policy of using prosecutorial discretion when arrested immigrants in the country without permission, saying her department needed to focus its scarce resources on criminals and those who posed a threat to public safety and national security. She also helped establish a plan to provide temporary relief from deportation for thousands of young immigrants who arrived in the United State illegally and who don't have legal status.

About Post Author

Anthony-Claret Ifeanyi Onwutalobi

Anthony-Claret is a software Engineer, entrepreneur and the founder of Codewit INC. Mr. Claret publishes and manages the content on Codewit Word News website and associated websites. He's a writer, IT Expert, great administrator, technology enthusiast, social media lover and all around digital guy.
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Busted! Cheating husband caught raping his mistress as he accidentally dials his wife’s phone (PICTURED)

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Read Time:3 Minute, 31 Second

A wife overheard her husband raping his girlfriend when his mobile phone accidentally called her, it was revealed today.

Matthew Stacey, 42, is starting a six-year jail term after being found guilty of carrying out the attack on Vittoria Di Franco, 34, of Ipswich, Suffolk, who has waived her right to anonymity.

The car salesman abused Miss Di Franco and duped her into believing he was single when they started dating – even though he was still married, Ipswich Crown Court heard.

Rape: Matthew Stacey (left), 42, is starting a six-year jail term after being found guilty of carrying out the attack on his victim Vittoria Di Franco (right, with Stacey), 34, of Ipswich, who has waived her right to anonymity

Miss Di Franco – who wants to to encourage other rape victims to come forward – said: ‘I lived in fear. I was scared. When he lived with me my entire life revolved around his needs.

‘By telling my story I want other women to come forward and stand up to abuse. Victims shouldn’t feel ashamed. I don’t hate him, but I really hate what he did. I used to put up with so much because I didn’t want to upset him.’

She said he would come home so drunk he could barely stand up, adding: ‘He was really abusive, but he was drunk half the time. He used to buy me things as if it was an excuse for what he had done.

‘He was very extreme. I went on holiday once with my mum. When I came back home he had chucked everything of mine out – the washing machine, the phone, cooker, kettle, iron, hoover’

Stacey’s estranged wife heard him raping his new partner when the speed dial on his phone was unwittingly set off during the attack, the court was told.

Stacey and Miss Di Franco had met through dating website PlentyMoreFish, said Andrew Thompson, prosecuting. He pestered her until she agreed to see him in 2009, and they began a relationship.

Mr Thompson added: ‘At times he would refer to her as the next Mrs Stacey.’

Jailed: Ipswich Crown Court (pictured) in Suffolk heard how Stacey had duped Miss Di Franco into believing he was single when they started dating, even though he was still married

But he said Stacey started acting differently towards Miss Di Franco after about five months. She suspected he was not being truthful with her and discovered he was still married.

Stacey’s wife was surprised and upset when she found out they were seeing each other. But Miss Di  Franco, believing her relationship with him was a loving and enduring one, continued to see him.

Stacey stayed at her home on a regular basis. But they had highs and lows as he would get drunk and became mean and spiteful. Stacey sexually assaulted her on one occasion, the court was told.

‘I lived in fear. I was scared. I don’t hate him, but I really hate what he did’

Vittoria Di Franco

He also raped her in 2010 after a row broke out over his mobile. Stacey felt she was taunting him as she had his phone, the court heard.

He lost his temper and she fell on the bed with his mobile beneath her. Miss Di Franco shouted at crazed Stacey to stop, but he raped her.

Mr Thompson said: ‘When he finished he retrieved the phone from the bed. At that stage he realised the phone had dialled someone, and the call had connected with his estranged wife.’

He said Stacey’s estranged wife Faith immediately recognised his voice and heard his victim pleading with him to stop. Stacey was convicted of assault by penetration and rape.

Stacey was cleared of five other rape charges relating to Miss Di Franco. He denied all the charges.

Miss Di Franco wanted to be identified because she said sex abuse victims should not be ashamed. Rape victims are granted automatic anonymity – but she spoke out in a bid to help other women.

About Post Author

Anthony-Claret Ifeanyi Onwutalobi

Anthony-Claret is a software Engineer, entrepreneur and the founder of Codewit INC. Mr. Claret publishes and manages the content on Codewit Word News website and associated websites. He's a writer, IT Expert, great administrator, technology enthusiast, social media lover and all around digital guy.
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Majority of Europeans support biometrics for ID cards or passports

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Read Time:2 Minute, 26 Second

 According to a new survey conducted by Steria, the majority of European citizens support the use of biometrics for criminal identification and for identity documents and passports, though slightly less than half are supportive of the technology replacing PIN numbers for bank cards.

Steria, a provider of IT-enabled business services, contracted Toluna to perform the survey on citizens in the UK, France , Germany, Denmark, Norway and Sweden, and found that 81 percent of respondents think biometrics for criminal identification is a good thing, and 69 percent agreed that they would support the use of biometrics in identity cards or passports.

Specifically, 81 percent of French citizens favour the application of biometrics for ID documents, compared to 74 percent of Danish respondents and 68 percent of the survey’s British respondents. Across Europe, 69 percent were also in favour of using biometrics as a form of access control for secure areas. In this case, the French respondents proved again to be the most supportive, with 77 percent, followed by the Danes at 75 percent and the Brits at 69 percent.

According to the company, only 45 percent of citizens agreed they are in favour of the use of biometrics to replace PIN numbers for bank cards. Only 41 percent of Germans were keen to use biometrics for this purpose, compared to 43 percent of Norwegians and 44 percent of Swedish citizens. The French again, are above the European average with 53 percent in favor.

Opinion was also divided on the benefits of biometrics for ID cards and passports. Roughly half of respondents said security against identity theft is the most important reason to use biometrics, while 12 percent think reducing crime is more important. Just 4 percent thinks reducing administrative strain is the most important application.

“Biometric technology is increasingly used to support a diverse range of tasks. Within the security market, it is typically used to process asylum applications and to provide smooth flow of cross-border traffic, or to identify criminal identities and control access to military facilities,” Ole Marius Steinkjer, Business developer at Steria’s Centre of Excellence, Biometrics said. “Other markets are also adopting it where it is used, to protect health records and even bank accounts. However, many citizens are still wary of adopting this technology in their everyday lives due to concerns around privacy.”

“Despite these concerns, it is becoming increasingly common for organisations to use biometrics for effective identification and authentication – for example, airlines, gyms and self-service convenience stores aiming to increase their efficiency, or pharmacies using it to secure their medicine stocks. It is absolutely vital that organisations fully understand the consumer benefits and position them correctly to encourage mainstream adoption of biometrics applications,”

Reported previously in BiometricUpdate.com, Steria recently entered into an eight-year agreement with the Danish Police for the company’s AFIS, SteriaAFIS.

About Post Author

Anthony-Claret Ifeanyi Onwutalobi

Anthony-Claret is a software Engineer, entrepreneur and the founder of Codewit INC. Mr. Claret publishes and manages the content on Codewit Word News website and associated websites. He's a writer, IT Expert, great administrator, technology enthusiast, social media lover and all around digital guy.
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IRS scandal will prevent Obamacare implementation from being fully funded

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Read Time:2 Minute, 58 Second

The growing IRS targeting scandal will prevent the IRS’ scheduled implementation of Obamacare from being sufficiently funded, even though the agency will have sweeping brand new powers to enforce President Obama’s health care law, according to experts.

“The IRS has 47 separate powers under Obamacare. That’s a problem for the IRS because it is mired in scandal. Congress understandably is not moved to do more on [funding IRS enforcement of Obamacare] right now, so the Obama administration does not have the money they were hoping for for implementation,” Ryan Ellis, tax policy director of Americans for Tax Reform, told The Daily Caller.

“The Obama administration has requested increases in their budgets for the last few years for IRS enforcement for Obamacare. That money was not freed up due to sequestration and other things. But the scandals sealed it. If there was going to be any political possibility that Congress would approve an increase in the IRS’ budget for enforcement, that’s gone now. The IRS is going to be lucky to get away with anything but a freeze,” Ellis said.

Beginning in 2014, the IRS will enforce Obamacare, requiring businesses and taxpayers to prove that they have fulfilled the law’s employer and individual mandate requirements. While the IRS has already received $500 million to help enforce Obamacare, the beleaguered agency needs hundreds of millions more to fully enforce the law, according to the Obama administration’s own projections.

President Obama’s 2014 budget asks for $1 billion in new funding for the IRS, including $440 million for Obamacare implementation.

The IRS scandal will prevent that budget from being passed without revisions to the IRS budget, according to Ellis and fellow experts at Americans for Tax Reform.

Republican Rep. Tom Price introduced the “Keep IRS Off Your Health Care Act” to ban the IRS from carrying out its scheduled implementation of Obamacare. Price’s bill quickly gained 100 House co-sponsors. Republican senator Dean Heller also introduced an amendment to a Senate farm bill to prevent the IRS from receiving more funding to implement Obamacare.

“I am deeply troubled that the IRS has been improperly targeting conservative groups. Public distrust in this agency is already at an all-time high, so providing the IRS with more power to enforce this flawed health care policy makes no sense. For these reasons, I have offered the “IRS Accountability Act” as an amendment to the Farm bill. Simply put, right now, we can’t trust the IRS to do its job,” Heller said.

Despite funding difficulties, the IRS still plans to roll out its enforcement of the controversial health-care law in 2014, and Ellis said that many taxpayers could be caught paying money to the scandal-ridden agency.

“For the individual mandate, you’re going to have to prove to the IRS that you purchased health insurance,” Ellis said, noting that all taxpayers must complete an additional tax form to prove Obamacare compliance.

The form could potentially ask taxpayers how much they paid in health insurance premiums.

“If you answer it and you say for half the year i didn’t have health insurance and I didn’t have any good reason — you’re going to have to pay the individual mandate. For most people, that will be 2.5 percent of their income, prorated throughout the course of the year,” Ellis said.

 

About Post Author

Anthony-Claret Ifeanyi Onwutalobi

Anthony-Claret is a software Engineer, entrepreneur and the founder of Codewit INC. Mr. Claret publishes and manages the content on Codewit Word News website and associated websites. He's a writer, IT Expert, great administrator, technology enthusiast, social media lover and all around digital guy.
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FREEDOM WATCH: Gun Seizures Trigger Fear Of Massive Police Power

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Read Time:8 Minute, 25 Second

A flurry of recent stories about police knocking on – and sometimes knocking in – people’s front doors have raised alarms in both the U.S. and Canada about whether the home is still constitutionally protected from increasing police power.

As WND reported, High River, Alberta, has become a recent focal point of the controversy, when it was revealed Royal Canadian Mounted Police entered the flooded town after a mandatory evacuation, broke down doors and began confiscating “several hundred” firearms.

The details are eerily reminiscent of New Orleans during hurricane Katrina, when officers similarly invaded homes and confiscated thousands of weapons they uncovered.

In High River, RCMP and province officials assured citizens the only guns taken were those “improperly secured” and “in plain view” – to be stored for safekeeping and returned to residents after the evacuation ended.

But Michael Coren of Canada’s Sun News says the authorities are “lying, because we know the police actually broke locks to get into cupboards to find out if there were guns there.”

High River resident Cam Fleury believes his house, which sits at a high point free of floodwater, was targeted by the RCMP. The following video shows his front door was broken down, and police made a bee-line for his gun cabinet:

“This whole area is the highest point in town, so there was no flood damage,” Fleury told Sun News, “so there was no reason for them to enter any of these houses.”

The RCMP’s actions drew a rebuke from Canada’s Prime Minister Stephen Harper, whose office issued a statement: “If any firearms were taken, we expect they will be returned to their owners as soon as possible. … We believe the RCMP should focus on more important tasks such as protecting lives and private property.”

Yet civil rights and gun advocates in the country warn that’s not good enough.

Faith Goldy, who has been following the story for Sun News, is concerned about the information authorities were able to gather by invading people’s homes: “Now they’ve got [firearm] serial numbers, they’ve got addresses and there is no mechanism put in place for us now to force them to abolish what has basically become an emergency, back-door [gun] registry.”

“There’s absolutely no way, no how you can justify going into people’s homes and taking their property without a warrant,” asserted Tony Bernardo of the Canadian Sport Shooting Association. “This is Canada! We have laws here!”

“People are protected from having an unwarranted search and seizure,” Goldy added, “[yet] that’s exactly what happened here.”

Gun grabbing nothing new in the U.S.

Americans are similarly protected by the U.S. Constitution’s Fourth Amendment, which states, “The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.”

Yet the Fourth Amendment was sorely tried – or outright ignored, depending on your perspective – when the residents of New Orleans faced similar floodwaters.

In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, thousands of weapons – legally obtained and owned – were simply grabbed from citizens after New Orleans Police Superintendent P. Edwin Compass III announced, “Only law enforcement are allowed to have weapons.”

Just to make sure the message was loud and clear, the city’s Deputy Police Chief Warren Riley told ABC News: “No one will be able to be armed. We are going to take all the weapons.”

Then they did exactly that.

One man at a post-Katrina meeting assembled in conjunction with the National Rifle Association said, “The bottom line is this. Once they did it, they set a precedent. And what we’ve got to be sure [of] is that the precedent stops here.”

In a series of videos, the National Rifle Association has documented the stunning weapons grab by police in New Orleans, assembling videos that show them physically taking weapons from individuals, including one woman who was stunned when officers threw her against her kitchen wall because she had a small handgun for self-defense.

The not-to-be-forgotten images, Part 1:

Herb Titus, a nationally known constitutional attorney and law professor, told WND government’s claim always is that such draconian powers will only be used “in an emergency situation.”

But there are so many “emergencies,” he said, that “all of our rights are in jeopardy.”

The Boston “emergency”

Similarly startling videos were also captured in Boston earlier this year when police conducted a city-wide manhunt in the aftermath of the Boston Marathon Islamic terror attack.

There, they burst into homes with guns drawn, ordering residents out while they searched.

Commentators said while homeowners there technically had the right to refuse a request for a search if officers didn’t have a warrant, “it seems unlikely that many residents of Watertown felt like exploring that particular legal nuance by refusing the policy entry.”

As WND has reported, the most recent example of a police-state presence is developing even now in Sanford, Fla., where neighborhood-watch participant George Zimmerman faces a nationally prominent, racially charged murder trial for the death of teenager Trayvon Martin.

Police say they fear the backlash from the community when the jury verdict is delivered, ala the days of rioting in Los Angeles when the Rodney King verdict came down.

So Sanford Police Chief Cecile Smith confirmed officers are going door-to-door talking to people.

“Our worst fear is that we’d have people from outside the community coming in and stirring up … violence,” he said.

The police live here now, ma’am

Yet surprisingly, the Fourth Amendment isn’t the only “front door” right to come under assault in recent months.

As WND reported, a lawsuit has been filed against the Henderson, Nev., police department over an incident in which its officers allegedly demanded to use a private home as a lookout for an investigation, then arrested the resident when he refused.

It raises the unusual claim that the police violated the Third Amendment, which prohibits the “quartering of soldiers” in private homes in peacetime without the owner’s consent.

“Whatever the ultimate outcome of this case, it is clear that lawyers and legal scholars should start taking the Third Amendment more seriously,” commented legal scholar Eugene Volohk. “Contrary to conventional wisdom, there is in fact a history of violations of the Third Amendment, such as the military’s brutal treatment of Alaska’s Aleutian Islanders during World War II.”

In the new case, filed just days ago, plaintiff Anthony Mitchell is suing Henderson, North Las Vegas and a long list of police officials and officers. Mitchell alleges on July 20, 2011, Henderson officers responded to a domestic violence call at a neighbor’s residence.

According to the complaint, “At 10:45 a.m. defendant Officer Christopher Worley (HPD) contacted plaintiff Anthony Mitchell via his telephone. Worley told plaintiff that police needed to occupy his home in order to gain a ‘tactical advantage’ against the occupant of the neighboring house. Anthony Mitchell told the officer that he did not want to become involved and that he did not want police to enter his residence. Although Worley continued to insist that plaintiff should leave his residence, plaintiff clearly explained that he did not intend to leave his home or to allow police to occupy his home. Worley then ended the phone call.”

The complaint then explains that members of the police departments “conspired among themselves to force Anthony Mitchell out of his residence and to occupy his home for their own use.”

According to a report in Court News, “Defendant Officer David Cawthorn outlined the defendants’ plan in his official report: ‘It was determined to move to 367 Evening Side and attempt to contact Mitchell. If Mitchell answered the door he would be asked to leave. If he refused to leave he would be arrested for Obstructing a Police Officer. If Mitchell refused to answer the door, force entry would be made and Mitchell would be arrested.’”

The lawsuit explains at least five police officers banged on Anthony Mitchell’s front door and demanded he leave, then broke down the door and pointed their guns at him.

“As plaintiff Anthony Mitchell stood in shock, the officers aimed their weapons at Anthony Mitchell and shouted obscenities at him and ordered him to lie down on the floor,” court documents explain. “Fearing for his life, plaintiff Anthony Mitchell dropped his phone and prostrated himself onto the floor of his living room, covering his face and hands.”

According to the complaint, Mitchell was subsequently transported to Henderson Detention Center, booked on charges of Obstructing an Officer and required to pay a bond to secure release from custody. All criminal charges, however, were ultimately dismissed with prejudice.

Volokh noted for damages to be due under the Third Amendment, the court would have to decide whether “police … qualify as ‘solders.’”

“On the other hand,” he said, “many police departments are increasingly using military-style tactics and equipment, often including the aggressive use of force against innocent people who get in the way of their plans. … In jurisdictions where the police have become increasingly militarized, perhaps the courts should treat them as ‘soldiers’ for Third Amendment purposes.”

About Post Author

Anthony-Claret Ifeanyi Onwutalobi

Anthony-Claret is a software Engineer, entrepreneur and the founder of Codewit INC. Mr. Claret publishes and manages the content on Codewit Word News website and associated websites. He's a writer, IT Expert, great administrator, technology enthusiast, social media lover and all around digital guy.
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Toronto battered by storm, flooding; thousands stranded

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Read Time:5 Minute, 7 Second

A severe storm in Toronto flooded parts of the city, knocked out power to thousands, and shut down roads and sections of the city’s subway system Monday, as nearly 100 millimetres of water fell across the area in a matter of hours.

Rainfall totals measured 106 mm at the suburban Pearson International Airport after the storms blew through. The rain began at 4 p.m. local time, stranding commuters in cars, buses and subway trains as the busy rush hour was getting underway.

 At the storm’s height, Toronto Hydro reported that approximately 300,000 residents were without power across the Greater Toronto Area. The agency advised residents to call 416-542-8000 to report an outage.

Tanya Bruckmueller, public affairs advisor at the agency, said Monday evening it was impossible to guess when power would be restored.

She said extra work crews were on standby ahead of the storm’s arrival, and more were being called in.

“There’s not much we can say,” Bruckmueller told CTV News Channel. “Please make sure to check in on your neighbours, your family and friends. But we don’t have an estimate for when power will be restored.”

In Mississauga, to the west, 80 per cent of the city’s 700,000 residents were without power, according to Enersource. However, late Monday it appeared that power was slowly coming back on for those residents. At 10 p.m. approximately 50,000 customers were still without power.

Subway service was shut from St. Clair West to Downsview Station, from Osgoode to Bloor Station, from Lawrence to Finch Station, from Kipling to Jane Station, and on the Sheppard line.

Power outages trapped some subway trains in tunnels until commuters could be rescued.

Shuttle buses were running, but struggled to drive through the flooded streets and around abandoned vehicles, according to TTC communications director Brad Ross.

Go Transit service was also disrupted, with part of the track on the Lakeshore West line near Long Branch completely submerged in water, making it impossible to operate trains in that area.

Metrolinx spokeswoman Vanessa Thomas said the power was shut off to the train and windows were open for ventilation. The train can carry up to 1,900 commuters during the evening rush.

Passengers on the Lakeshore East line were told to expect delays or cancellations.

Meanwhile, a rescue operation was underway late in the evening at the site of a stranded Go Transit train that got stuck on flooded tracks near Bayview Ave. and Pottery Rd. in midtown Toronto. Officers with the Toronto Police marine unit were pulling commuters from windows and moving them out via small boats.

‘Sense of panic’

Residents bombarded social media sites with images of several feet of water on sidewalks and streets, under bridges, in parking lots and even on TTC buses. Images showed cars submerged in rainwater that were left abandoned on major roadways.

Flooding closed the Don Valley Parkway, the city’s main north-south artery, between Highway 401 and the Gardiner Expressway.

Jee Yun Lee, anchor for 24-hour news station CP24, remained stuck on the DVP for several hours Monday evening, caught in the flooding on her way to work.

The Don River, which runs parallel to the highway, had overflowed and flooded onto the lanes.

At first drivers were calm, she said, “and then there was a sense of panic, the water’s creeping up, we’ve got to turn around.”

Drivers managed to turn their vehicles around, she said, but were stuck in a backlog of cars to exit the highway.

Toronto Police issued a news release Monday evening “advising the public to remain in their homes, avoid underpasses and low-lying areas. If in a stalled vehicle, please remain in your vehicle if possible until help arrives.”

Police also said that 911 operators are experiencing a high volume of calls, and urged residents to “please remain on the line and wait for a call-taker.”

According to Environment Canada, there is a slow moving cluster of thunderstorms with “very heavy downpours capable of producing localized flash flooding” hitting the Greater Toronto area. The line of thunderstorms has already passed over the Mississauga and Brampton regions, and is slowly moving eastward.

Total rainfall surpassed 90 millimetres in some areas, the agency said, easily beating the previous one-day rainfall record of 29.2 mm, set in 2008.

More rain is expected to fall Monday evening, with rainfall totals forecast to exceed 100 mm before the storm passes through later this evening.

The weather agency is warning motorists to avoid driving through water on roads.

“Even shallow fast moving water across a road can sweep a vehicle away. Watch for possible washouts near rivers, creeks and culverts.”

The storm cancelled all flights out of Toronto’s Billy Bishop Airport, and led to numerous delays and cancellations at Pearson International Airport. Pearson tweeted at approximately 9:30 p.m. that their website remained down due to “flooding in server rooms.” The airport was suggesting travellers contact their air carrier to see if their flight has been cancelled.

In Toronto, Twitter users across the city expressed shock as dark clouds suddenly blackened the skyline and it began to pour at approximately 4:30 p.m.

“Saw a mercedes300 FULLY submerged in a storm ditch in the side of the road by Pearson Airport,” one user tweeted.

“Loving the rain but no power and can’t find a flashlight to do work,” tweeted another.

Mayor Rob Ford also took to Twitter to warn residents to be careful as they make their way home.

“Be advised that we are experiencing heavy rain that may cause flooding across the City. Staff are monitoring the situation very closely,” read a tweet on the mayor’s official account.

“Please exercise caution, report flooding and avoid flooded areas. Staff will respond to reports of localized flooding as required.”
 

About Post Author

Anthony-Claret Ifeanyi Onwutalobi

Anthony-Claret is a software Engineer, entrepreneur and the founder of Codewit INC. Mr. Claret publishes and manages the content on Codewit Word News website and associated websites. He's a writer, IT Expert, great administrator, technology enthusiast, social media lover and all around digital guy.
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50 Dead As Runaway Train Derails And Explodes (PHOTOS,VIDEO)

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Read Time:5 Minute, 54 Second

The Musi-Cafe, a popular live music hangout in the town of Lac-Megantic, was hit by blasts "like an atom bomb" after an oil tanker train derailed on a bend on the nearby rail track in the small hours of Saturday morning.

The train, which had been parked overnight at the top of a nearby hill, came barrelling into the lakeside town at speed after its brakes apparently failed, sparking at least six massive explosions as it derailed.

Witnesses to the crash, which forced a third of Lac-Megantic's 6,000 residents to evacuate their homes, said the town centre resembled a warzone, with at least 30 buildings destroyed. Some spoke of fleeing floods of burning crude oil that spilled through the streets.

So fierce were the flames around the scene of the crash that rescue workers were unable to go near for much of yesterday, with a search for bodies due to begin on Sunday at dawn.

While only three fatalities had been confirmed as of Sunday morning, officials said that up to 80 people were still believed to be missing in the crash zone.

One firefighter, who asked to remain anonymous, said that at least 50 of them were thought to have been in the Musi-Cafe, which was just ten yards from the crash scene and had been consumed by the flames. “There is nothing left,” he said.

Bernard Théberge, 44, who was smoking a cigarette outside the cafe, told how he fled just in time after hearing the sound of the approaching train and realising that it was about to crash.

“It was going way too fast,” Mr Théberge told the Globe and Mail newspaper. "I saw a wall of fire go up. People got up on the outside patio. I grabbed my bike, which was just on the railing of the terrasse. I started pedalling and then I stopped and turned around.

I saw that there were all those people inside and I knew right away that it would be impossible for them to get out." Mr Théberge, who said he owed his own survival to being outside at the time, added: "There were maybe 60 people inside. This is a first. Smoking saved my life."

The cause of the crash was still unknown, but a spokesman for the Montreal Maine & Atlantic company, Christophe Journet, told the AFP news agency that the train had been stopped in the neighbouring town of Nantes, around 8 miles west of Lac-Megantic, for a crew changeover.

For an unknown reason, Mr Journet said, the train “started to advance, to move down the slope leading to Lac-Megantic,” even though the brakes were engaged.

As a result, “there was no conductor on board” when the train crashed, he said. Joe McGonigle, a vice president at Montreal, Maine & Atlantic, said the train “came loose” in the early morning hours Saturday and “started rolling down the tracks.”

The train’s engine was found about one kilometre from where the explosions took place. But Edward Burkhardt, the president of Rail World Inc., the parent company of Montreal, Maine & Atlantic Railway, said he could not yet understand how the train had got away.

“If brakes aren’t properly applied on a train, it’s going to run away,” he said. “But we think the brakes were properly applied on this train.” One witness, Nancy Cameron, posted a photo on social media websites showing one of the train’s locomotives spouting flames near Nantes.

Firefighters had apparently also been called to a fire on the same train a few hours before the derailment. Another eyewitness, Yvon Rosa, said he had just left the Musi-Cafe when he saw the train speeding into the middle of the town.

"I have never seen a train traveling that quickly into the center of Lac-Megantic," he told Radio-Canada. "I saw the wagons come off the tracks … everything exploded. In just one minute the centre of the town was covered in fire."

A team of investigators from Canada’s transportation safety agency is now investigating. The train consisted of five locomotives and 77 rail cars and was carrying oil from the US state of North Dakota. Lac-Megantic lies in the French-speaking province of Quebec, and is close to the US border. Fires were still burning more than 24 hours after the crash, creating a red glow that illuminated the night sky.

Lines of tall trees in the area looked like giant standing matchsticks, blackened from bottom to tip. Bernard Demers, who owns a restaurant near the blast site, said the explosion was "like an atomic bomb. It was very hot. … Everybody was afraid."

Canada's prime minister, Stephen Harper, offered his “thoughts and prayers” to the town and said the federal government was ready to provide assistance. The local mayor, Colette Roy-Laroche told a televised news briefing.

"When you see the center of your town almost destroyed, you'll understand that we're asking ourselves how we are going to get through this event."

Michel Brunet, a spokesman for Quebec’s provincial police, said late on Saturday that the official death toll remained at one but added: “We expect there will be more fatalities." At one emergency tent yesterday, paramedics sat idly in the torrid heat with no one to help. Residents gathered to await news of survivors, which never came.

Relatives in the tourist town of 6,000 full-time residents were already starting to grieve. Michel Brunet, a spokesman for Quebec’s provincial police, said late Saturday the official death toll remained at one but added: “We expect there will be more fatalities.”

Today, the cafe's Facebook page carried messages of condolence and desperate appeals from friends and relatives looking for looking for loved ones on the missing list. "Everybody who didn’t make it back is dead," predicted Frédérique Mailloux, 38, who said six of her friends were missing.

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“I have cried every tear in my body.” At a community centre, Jacques Bolduc and Solange Gaudreault emerged after providing a DNA sample to potentially identify their son, Guy Bolduc, a 23-year-old singer who was performing at the Musi-Cafe.

“Our boy wanted so much to live,” Mr. Bolduc told Radio-Canada. “The police told us there is no hope.” Nearly two square kilometres of the downtown were razed, said local fire chief Denis Lauzon.

“The scene is like one you see after a big forest fire. There are only parts of the buildings left, trees have been completely burnt, there is no grass left, the cars are charred. This is total destruction.”

About Post Author

Anthony-Claret Ifeanyi Onwutalobi

Anthony-Claret is a software Engineer, entrepreneur and the founder of Codewit INC. Mr. Claret publishes and manages the content on Codewit Word News website and associated websites. He's a writer, IT Expert, great administrator, technology enthusiast, social media lover and all around digital guy.
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