CIA Station Chief in Algeria Accused of Rapes

The CIA‘s station chief at its sensitive post in Algeria is under investigation by the U.S. Justice Department for allegedly raping at least two Muslim women who claim he laced their drinks with a knock-out drug, U.S. law enforcement sources tell ABC News. The suspect in the case is identified as Andrew Warren in an [...]

Army recruits mainly in South

WASHINGTON — If U.S. soldiers seem to speak with a slight drawl, that is no coincidence: the service continues to recruit mainly from Southern states, a study released Wednesday indicates. The National Priorities Project, a research organization, reported that the highest Army recruitment rates were in Southern counties and that only two of the top [...]

Recruiters banned at RIT

ROCHESTER, N.Y.–Members of the Campus Antiwar Network (CAN) at the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) are celebrating a significant victory after the director for Campus Life issued the order to stop allowing military recruiters in the Student Alumni Union. On January 15, CAN members were promoting an upcoming meeting calling for the U.S. to immediately [...]

DARPA Grant Awarded to UCR for Surveillance Video Research

RIVERSIDE, Calif. (www.ucr.edu) – Partnering with Lockheed Martin, UCR’s Bourns College of Engineering is one of three research teams receiving a grant to develop video search capabilities for Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). The $230,000 grant ($180,000 from DARPA and $50,000 from Lockheed Martin) provides researchers one year to come up with a prototype [...]

Supervisors appoint Rod Hoops as sheriff

The San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors appointed Assistant Sheriff Rod Hoops today to complete the term of Sheriff Gary Penrod, who is retiring after 37 years with the department.Hoops, 52, of Highland, has served as assistant sheriff since 2005, overseeing the patrol, specialized investigations and narcotics divisions, among other areas. See also: Good ol’ Boys [...]

Sealing of Postmus warrant questioned

SAN BERNARDINO – A judge may have violated the First Amendment when he sealed a search warrant involving the San Bernardino County assessor without any explanation, an attorney for a free-speech advocacy group said Monday. “You need to provide a reason,” said Rachel Matteo-Boehm, an attorney for the California First Amendment Coalition, of which The [...]

Waco sect leader’s mother killed

The mother of the notorious Waco sect leader David Koresh has been found stabbed to death at the house of a sister in Texas, police say. Bonnie Clark Halderman, who was in her sixties, was found dead at the home of Beverly Clark who has been taken into custody pending a court appearance. Police say [...]

Marine sentenced to 6 years in prison for rape

SAN DIEGO — A lance corporal at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar has been sentenced to six years in prison for rape. Leland Kee pleaded guilty to two counts of rape, one count of breaking and entering and one count of attempting to destroy evidence. He pleaded on Jan. 5 and the Marines announced the [...]

Army recruiting stand-down ordered after suicides

Army Secretary Pete Geren has ordered a stand-down of the Army’s entire recruiting force and a review of almost every aspect of the job is underway in the wake of a wide-ranging investigation of four suicides in the Houston Recruiting Battalion. Poor command climate, failing personal relationships and long, stressful work days were factors in [...]

Congress Seeks To Authorize & Legalize FEMA Camp Facilities

A new bill has been introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives called the National Emergency Centers Act or HR 645. This bill if passed into law will direct the Secretary of Homeland Security to establish national emergency centers otherwise known as FEMA camp facilities on military installations. This is an incredibly disturbing piece of legislation considering [...]

U. N. Crime Chief Says Drug Money Used To Keep Banks Afloat

VIENNA: The United Nations‘ crime and drug watchdog has indications that money made in illicit drug trade has been used to keep banks afloat in the global financial crisis, its head was quoted as saying on Sunday. Vienna-based UNODC Executive Director Antonio Maria Costa said in an interview released by Austrian weekly Profil that drug money [...]

US Supreme Court rules officer’s pat-down of vehicle passenger allowed

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court ruled Monday that police officers have leeway to frisk a passenger in a car stopped for a traffic violation even if nothing indicates the passenger has committed a crime or is about to do so. The court on Monday unanimously overruled an Arizona appeals court that threw out evidence [...]

The British called – They want their guns back!

Inland officials dispute study’s link of more traffic tickets during tough economic times

Police write more traffic tickets during hard economic times in a bid to generate revenue for municipalities, a study by the University of Arkansas at Little Rock suggests, but Inland officials don’t agree. The authors of “Red Ink in the Rearview Mirror” compared revenues, miles driven, the number of traffic tickets written and other factors [...]

Filing FOIA requests

I’m often asked – in interviews and from this site’s readers – how to file a Freedom of Information Act t request. It’s a fairly simple procedure – you don’t need a special form or a lawyer. I keep meaning to write and post a guide, but until that day arrives, here are some guides [...]

UCSF study raises doubts about stun gun safety

The number of in-custody sudden deaths rose dramatically during the first year California law enforcement agencies began using stun guns, raising questions about the safety of the devices, according to a new study at UCSF. The electronic weapons are intended to be a nonlethal alternative to the gun. “Tasers are not as safe as thought,” [...]

Cell phones can and are being used as bugs

[ An old trick is simply to program your phone to auto-answer, turn the ringer off, then "forget" it in the target's home for vehicle.  When you want to monitor, call the phone.  It will silently answer, and you can listen in. ]

Rumsfeld’s Plan to “Fight the Internet”

A newly declassified document gives a fascinating glimpse into the US military’s plans for “information operations” – from psychological operations, to attacks on hostile computer networks. Bloggers beware. As the world turns networked, the Pentagon is calculating the military opportunities that computer networks, wireless technologies and the modern media offer. From influencing public opinion through [...]

Hamas to pay victims of Gaza war

Hamas is set to hand out money to Gazans afflicted by Israel’s offensive on the Gaza Strip. The territory’s government was due to start giving out the money, expected to total about $45m, on Sunday - a day after a Hamas committee was established to oversee relief efforts. Ahmed al-Kurd, the Hamas-appointed minister of social affairs, also heads the National High [...]

Suit filed in killing by deputy

ADELANTO – The family of a man shot and killed last year by a sheriff’s deputy during a desert struggle filed a $10 million civil lawsuit Friday in U.S. Federal District Court in Riverside. San Bernardino County sheriff‘s Deputy Joseph Janowicz was following up on a theft case Jan. 17 when he drove down Topaz [...]

Libertarian Judge Jim Gray’s retirement party draws a bipartisan crowd

Judge Jim Gray’s retirement party was held last night at the home of Tony and Freydel Bushala, in Fullerton.  The event drew a large, bipartisan crowd.  Orange County Supervisor Chris Norby, a Republican, made a few opening comments, and got the crowd riled up.  Other Republicans in attendance included longtime Gray friend Dr. Reza Karkia, [...]

Police “High-Speed Chases:” Another Innocent Life Taken

A 67-year-old San Bernardino woman died early Saturday when a man fleeing police slammed into her car, police said. Ruby Lene Johnson was driving a 1995 Toyota Camry west on Base Line at about 12:30 a.m. when a speeding 2007 Scion traveling north on Mount Vernon Avenue ran a red light and hit her car, [...]

China censors Obama speech

Chinese television and websites have censored sections of Barack Obama’s inauguration speech, removing references made by the new US president to communism and political dissent. Obama referred to previous US generations who he said had “faced down communism and fascism” in Tuesday’s address to millions in Washington DC and around the world. He later addressed [...]

Iraq to re-open Abu Ghraib prison

The Iraqi government will reopen the notorious Abu Ghraib prison next month under the name of Baghdad Central Prison, a senior justice official has said. The announcement came as the US military began handing over detainees in its custody to the Iraqis under a new security agreement. Busho Ibrahim, Iraq’s deputy justice minister, said on Saturday the Abu Ghraib [...]

Ex-spy takes over London newspaper

Alexander Lebedev, a Russian billionaire and former KGB agent, has taken over the London Evening Standard newspaper for only one pound. The paper’s publisher – the Daily Mail & General Trust (DMGT) – said it had agreed to the sale of a majority interest in the paper to Lebedev. The billionaire businessman is believed to [...]

Reprints of Nazi papers stopped

Bavaria stops reprints of a newspaper dating back to the Nazi era until an investigation is carried out on potential copyright violations. The decision was made by justice officials in the southern German state of Bavaria who ordered the temporary ban pending an investigation into whether they violate copyrights and laws banning Nazi symbols, AP [...]

Officer admits guilt in use of force case

CHICAGO — Standing at attention in a federal courtroom Thursday, Chicago Police Officer William Cozzi admitted he was wrong to beat a combative hospital patient in 2005 after he shackled the man to a wheelchair. “Once he was handcuffed, he started swearing at me and I kind of lost it,” the 51-year-old suspended patrol officer [...]

Armed resident holds off alleged would-be burglar

An alleged would-be burglar picked the wrong house to try and break into Thursday evening. Juan M Reyna, 25, of Hesperia, was arrested on January 22 after he allegedly tried to break into a residence on the 19000 block of Yucca Street. San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department deputies were summoned to the location because while [...]

The Drug War’s Collateral Damage

At around 6pm on January 27 of last year, 80-year-old Isaac Singletary spotted a couple of drug dealers attempting to do business on his front lawn. It wasn’t the first time. Singletary, described by relatives as territorial and a bit crotchety, did what he’d done in the past. He grabbed his gun, and walked out [...]

Let My Students Drink

John McCardell, the former president of Middlebury College, says his time on campus taught him that trying to stop college students from drinking was a fool’s errand. The 1984 federal law raising the minimum drinking age to 21 not only wasn’t working; it was encouraging more reckless consumption. Two years ago, McCardell started an organization [...]

Wisconsin takes action to fight domestic abuse among cops

Editor’s note: Recently, a New York City police lieutenant stabbed and shot his wife to death, bringing up the important issue of acknowledging that police officers can be abusers or can be abused by another family member, regardless of age or gender. When Tyler Peterson killed his ex-girlfriend, along with five others, Force Science News [...]

NSA Whistleblower Tells More on Illegal Wiretapping of US Citizens (videos)

On January 21, former National Security Agency analyst Russell Tice appeared Keith Olbermann’s MSNBC show. Tice, who helped expose the NSA’s warrantless wiretapping in December 2005, told Olbermann government programs designed to spy on the American people are more extensive and far reaching than previously admitted. “The National Security Agency had access to all Americans’ [...]

Upland teacher Megaw appears in court in student-molestation case

An Upland teacher accused of molesting six of his students appeared in West Valley Superior Court Wednesday for a routine, largely uneventful hearing. James Andrew Megaw, 42, is accused of inappropriately touching three boys and three girls in his Valencia Elementary School class of second- and third-graders. Megaw, known professionally as Andy Megaw, is the [...]

Hollywood Gives Atheism a Chance

The “Imagine No Religion” billboard, a source of much controversy in this city, is now up in Hollywood near the intersection of Fountain and Highland avenues. It’s nearly identical to the one that went up on Foothill and Archibald, near The Deli. That sign, put up by the Freedom From Religion Foundation, lasted less than [...]

Creating Prisoners is a Booming Industry in Need of a Bust

In 2008, the United States passed a benchmark previously unheard of. For the first time in the nation’s history, every one in 100 adults was behind bars, making it no question that the USA is number one in the world when it comes to making people prisoners. Since 1980, the overall prison population has seen [...]

Feds threaten El Paso for discussing drug legalization

See also: Mayor vetoes resolution asking for debate on legalizing drugs Academics and the Chihuahua Government Say Decriminalizing Drugs is a Subject That Can’t be Avoided

San Bernardino County accused of violating Brown Act

San Bernardino County is being accused of violating the Brown Act, California’s open-meeting law, as it challenges the state’s medical marijuana user program. San Bernardino County joined San Diego County three years ago in challenging the program, which requires it to issue medical-marijuana identification cards to patients. The counties petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court to [...]

Breathalyzer Source Code Required for Use as Evidence

Here’s a very interesting case from Florida, where an appeals court has upheld a lower court ruling that threw out evidence from a breathalyzer test in a drunk driving case because the manufacturer of the device refused to release the source code and allow defense experts to analyze the accuracy of the machines.

“Fusion Centers”

Ever hear of a Fusion Center? They are run by the Department of Homeland Security and are locally based across the country. A fusion center is an effective and efficient mechanism to exchange information and intelligence, maximize resources, streamline operations, and improve the ability to fight crime and terrorism by merging data from a variety [...]

Malmstrom airman found guilty of larceny

GREAT FALLS, Mont. — A Malmstrom Air Force Base airman has pleaded guilty in a military court martial to bilking friends out of more than $53,000 and participating in a scam to overcharge the federal government in purchases from a sporting goods store. Sgt. Jonathan Harpole used the money to pay off gambling debts at local [...]

Death penalty sought against 4 Marines

RIVERSIDE, Calif. — Prosecutors said Wednesday they are seeking the death penalty for four Camp Pendleton-based Marines, including one from North Carolina, charged in the execution-style killings of a fellow serviceman and his wife. Sgt. Jan Pietrzak, 24, and his wife, Quiana Jenkins-Pietrzak, 26, were found gagged, tied and shot in the head Oct. 15 [...]

Canadian officials: No AWOL deportations

TORONTO — Liberal and New Democrat parliamentarians said Wednesday that U.S. war resisters would not be deported under a coalition government. Five Americans could face deportation by the end of the month unless there’s a last-minute court reprieve or an unexpected policy change by the federal government.

Ex-Oklahoma Sheriff Convicted of Rape, Bribery

A former Oklahoma sheriff was convicted of second-degree rape and bribery Saturday in a case that accused him of coercing sex from female inmates and drug court defendants. A Major County jury convicted former Custer County Sheriff Mike Burgess on 13 felonies, including five counts of second-degree rape and three counts of bribery by a [...]

The Stanford Prison Experiment

I am a Terrorist

See also: Domestic Militarization Comes to San Bernardino County Patriot Act – The War on Civil Liberties The Second Amendment Versus The Police State? Veterans for Peace (VFP) Opposes Combat Brigade’s Permanent U.S. Assignment Assignment America: Keep juries dumb Excellent Article on the Corrupt Prison-Industrial Complex Court Rules Patriot Act’s “National Security Letter” Gag Provisions Unconstitutional SoCal Martial Law Alerts’ Checkpoint Response Team [...]

Marquee sign draws fire

As the country prepared to welcome the 44th president of the United States, Monica Marini at Big Bear Convention Center was fielding calls and hate mail. The marquee at the Convention Center read “THANK YOU PRESIDENT BUSH.” A second line read “GOD HELP US NOW.” The marquee raised eyebrows and caused community members to call [...]

Police stage ‘raid’ on Commons office of another Tory MP

A Tory MP claims police entered his House of Commons office last night without a warrant and demanded to see constituency correspondence. Daniel Kawczynski said he was informed by his office about the police raid as he was due to make a speech in a Commons debate. See also: Britain: Police set to step up hacking [...]

Embedded With Gaza Medics

See also: US veto blocks UN anti-Israel resolution Israeli blockade forces Palestinians to search rubbish dumps for food 1000 Palestinian kids in Israeli jails

Oakland to fire 11 cops in search warrant case

(01-15) OAKLAND — Oakland intends to fire 11 police officers for allegedly lying to obtain search warrants in drug cases, officials said Thursday. The two sergeants and nine officers face dismissal in a scandal that has thrown into jeopardy the prosecutions of dozens of suspects. At least 12 have already had their cases dismissed because [...]

How to Deal with Government Propaganda on the Web

How should we deal with the onslaught of American and Israeli government-sponsored bloggers defending those governments’ actions (see this and this)? Well, one way is to ask bloggers who appear to be parroting pro-government propaganda without any thought the following question: “Has the American, Israeli and/or any other government directly or indirectly instructed or requested [...]