Tag: police state

Boston mayor Michelle Wu under fire after sending list of critics and protesters to police

Boston Mayor Michelle Wu, a Democrat, is facing criticism for “Nixonian tactics” after her administration admitted to creating a list of her most vocal critics and providing it to local authorities.

“The list was made in response to a request from the Boston Police Department after the Mayor had been harassed and physically intimidated by individuals for several months outside her home, at city functions such as the annual neighborhood parks coffee hours, and at other public events,” Wu spokesman Ricardo Patron said in a statement to the Boston Herald.

The acknowledgment by the administration that it had compiled the document came after the list was uncovered in an email obtained through a public records request by Wu’s opponents, the outlet noted.

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Sucharit Bhakdi & the prosecution of “thought crime”

Eminent and influential “covid” skeptic Dr Sucharit Bhakdi is about to be prosecuted tomorrow, May 23, under German law for:

  1. having incited hatred against a religious group and attacked the human dignity of others by insulting and maliciously disparaging that religious group, while acting in concert in a manner likely to disturb the public peace; and
  2. having publicly trivialized an act committed under the rule of National Socialism of the kind described in Section 6 (1) of the International Criminal Code in a manner likely to disturb public peace.

Now you may or may not agree with Bhakdi’s statements regarding the Jews and Israel. It’s your free right to do either.

You might think he doesn’t go far enough in condemning Israel, or you might think he goes too far. You might think he expressed himself clumsily and without due regard for the difference between Jewish people and the arguably criminal Israeli state. You might think it’s a stretch to describe modern Israel as “worse” than the Nazis, or you might think it’s more than accurate.

But all of that is missing the real point, which is – Bhakdi is being prosecuted for expressing an opinion.

That’s all.

Despite the weasel wording of the accusation, he wasn’t calling for or threatening acts of violence, he wasn’t even “acting in concert” to “disturb the peace” – he was just telling people what he thought.

The real question here isn’t do you agree with him, it’s do you, or any of us, want to live in a world in which a person can be penalized by the state, fined or put in prison, for the thoughts in their head?

For thought crime?

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Appeals Court PAUSES Ban on Biden Big Tech Censorship Collusion

The 5th US Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans has granted a reprieve to the Biden administration in a case concerning its interactions with social media firms over contentious online speech and “misinformation.”

The decision temporarily suspends a preliminary injunction that sought to ban censorship collusion with social media platforms in an order previously issued by US District Judge Terry Doughty.

We obtained a copy of the order for you here.

On July 4th, Judge Doughty passed an injunction that effectively barred various government departments and administration officials from advocating or inciting the suppression or removal of online content considered to be constitutionally protected free speech.

The lawsuit that led to the injunction had been lodged the previous year, alleging that the Biden administration had effectively suppressed free speech through potential regulatory threats and pressure on companies to purge what it classified as “misinformation.”

The dispute particularly centered around topics like COVID-19 vaccines and claims of election fraud.

The legal team representing the Biden administration swiftly sought a stay on the injunction, contending that it was both overly broad and vague.

They raised concerns over the potential implications of the order on the scope of discussions officials could have with social media firms and the content of public statements and that the injunction was preventing them from combating “misinformation.”

Despite these arguments, Judge Doughty declined to suspend his order. In his written denial, he stated that the administration was essentially seeking a stay so it could continue infringing on the First Amendment, a viewpoint the government vehemently disputes.

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All Birth Control Pills, Not Just One, Should Be Over the Counter

On July 13, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) finally allowed women to access one birth control pill over the counter. The FDA signaled in May that this was likely to happen after an advisory panel recommended that the agency approve over-the-counter marketing of the progestin-only oral contraceptive Opill, manufactured by the Dublin-based Perrigo Company. Progestin-only oral contraceptives have been around since 1973. Dubbed the “mini pill,” these contraceptives have their limitations.

For example, women must take the pill at the same time every day, within a three-hour window. If they miss the window, they must discontinue the pill and begin again with the next cycle. With standard birth control pills that combine estrogen and progesterone, women who miss a daily dose can double up the next day. Women who take progestin-only pills have a slightly lower risk of developing blood clots that can break off and travel through the body (venous thromboembolism, or VTE) than they do with combination pills. But the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), which has for decades advocated making all hormonal contraceptives available over the counter for women of all ages, states the risk of VTE “with combined oral contraceptive use is small compared with the increased risk of VTE during pregnancy and the postpartum period.”

ACOG is not the only medical professional organization calling to free the birth control pill. It is joined by the American Academy of Family Physicians and the American Medical Association. And most reproductive health care providers surveyed in 2016 favored over-the-counter birth control pills. These medical experts, who get paid to evaluate women and prescribe hormonal contraceptives, have the financial incentive to argue for maintaining the status quo. When they repeatedly assert that women do not need their services to obtain birth control pills, regulators should take notice.

The FDA approved over-the-counter emergency contraception, the so-called morning-after pill, for women of all ages in 2013. These pills (for example, Plan B) usually contain high progestin levels. But standard birth control pills can also be used for emergency contraception. The required dose is 8-10 pills. The FDA denies women over-the-counter access to contraceptives with one-eighth to one-tenth the potency of over-the-counter emergency contraceptives.

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House And Senate Both Move To Keep Blocking D.C. Marijuana Sales But Protecting State Medical Cannabis Laws

House and Senate appropriators have approved large-scale annual spending bills that once again include language to protect state medical cannabis programs, as well as a controversial rider to block Washington, D.C. from implementing a system of regulated marijuana sales.

The Senate and House Appropriations Committee both held markups of Fiscal Year 2024 spending legislation for Financial Services and General Government (FSGG) on Thursday. And the Senate panel, as well as a House subcommittee, have also advanced their appropriations measures for Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies (CJS).

Aside from the state medical cannabis and D.C. marijuana sales provisions, House lawmakers rejected a GOP-led amendment to the chamber’s FSGG report that would have called on the federal government to take steps to study other state cannabis regulatory models and develop a national legalization framework.

Lawmakers have consistently attempted to use appropriations measures as vehicles for cannabis reform, with mixed results. Even with Democrats in control of both chambers last session, efforts to expand marijuana protections to all legal states and enact limited cannabis banking reform stalled out following bicameral negotiations.

A rider to protect state medical cannabis programs from federal intervention, meanwhile, has been annually renewed each year since 2014—and appropriators in both chambers agreed again this Congress to keep that language intact in their respective base bills as they advance.

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Man found dead nearly 6 hours after running from Fuquay-Varina police officer

Melvis Harris and her family are desperate for answers to her son’s death. She doesn’t understand how Bryan Harris, who she calls BJ, ended up dead.

“They wouldn’t let us come in here and see my child. My baby boy,” she said Thursday evening inside her Fuquay – Varina home

The 36-year-old father of three died six hours after an interaction with Fuquay-Varina Police. It all started shortly before midnight, on Wednesday. Officers said they attempted a traffic stop after Harris who was seen leaving a Citgo Gas Station pulled in front of a truck nearly causing an accident.

Police said Harris didn’t stop for officers until he made it to his parent’s home on Fayetteville Street, less than a mile away. His father Terry Harris said he was outside when Harris showed up. “He got out and he ran and police pulled up and run behind and he went and called for the canine,” Harris recalled.

Police said Harris jumped from an embankment behind his parents’ home. Officers called in Holly Springs K-9 to help search. The police chief, Brandon Medina said after an hour and a half they called off the search.”BJ laid out there he told me that he laid out there in the woods all night long to five o’clock this morning,” continued Terry Harris.

That’s when his parents said their son showed up on their doorsteps. An hour later he wasn’t breathing. “He just kept saying I’m hurting, I’m hurting. The time he took a sip of that cold water. He went out here, hit the floor and his eyes rolled back. And she started hollering and then crying. And she said Terry he ain’t breathing.”

The family said something happened to their son once he made it over the embankment and they believe officers were behind it. They walked us to the bottom of that embankment directly behind the house pointing out what they believe to be blood stains.

“It looked like they’ve been fighting and so my concern, my question would be did they beat my son and leave him for dead,” asked Terry Harris.

But the Fuquay-Varina Police Chief Brandon Medina who watched the body camera video denies those allegations.

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Proposed California bill would fine school districts who ban books with ‘inclusive and diverse perspectives’

A proposed California bill would fine school districts that ban books.

Introduced and authored by Assemblymember Corey Jackson of Riverside, the measure does not prohibit book banning. However, it would impose a fine if books are banned because they contain “inclusive and diverse perspectives.”

The bill, AB 1078, was created to directly target local school board control of curriculum and books that will be allowed in schools. The measure was heard in the Senate Education Committee and passed 5-2 on Wednesday. 

Tensions were heated during a debate from both sides about book banning at the hearing of the California State Senate Education Committee.

“Our students of color and our LGBTQ+ students should not be threatened for their viewpoints, and they should not have education withheld from them,” State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond, who spoke in favor of the bill, said.

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Cop Fabricated Story About Being ‘Carjacked by Two Black Men’ — After He Accidentally Shot Himself

Earlier this month, a sheriff’s office in Florida announced the termination of a former officer who faked a racist carjacking and subsequent shooting to camouflage his own inability to handle a firearm responsibly.

Dakotah Wood, 21, previously employed with the Hernando County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO), has been hit with a plethora of charges, including tampering with physical evidence, false reports of crimes, and discharging a firearm in public or residential property.

On June 30, 2023, deputies responded to an alleged carjacking and shooting in Weeki Wachee Gardens, where they found Wood nursing a gunshot wound to the leg. He initially spun a tale of unknown men, who he claimed were Black, attempting to steal his vehicle. According to Wood, they threatened his life and shot him in the thigh before fleeing the scene.

As the narrative unfolded, however, inconsistencies became evident. Wood later admitted to detectives that the elaborate story was a fabrication, crafted in a desperate attempt to avoid repercussions for his own reckless behavior. He confessed to shooting himself accidentally while “playing” with his gun, alone in the park, distraught over relationship issues with his girlfriend.

Despite Hernando County Sheriff Al Nienhuis describing such situations as “relatively rare,” it’s important to underline the frequency with which such occurrences truly happen. It’s not an isolated incident or a one-off mistake by an errant officer. It speaks volumes about a systemic issue, showing a disturbing trend within law enforcement: the fabrication of crimes to cover up their own inadequacies.

A 2016 study by the National Registry of Exonerations found that police officers and prosecutors often contribute to wrongful convictions by manufacturing crimes. The fabricated story of Wood falls into the same troubling pattern, marking another instance of the gross misuse of power within law enforcement.

What’s more concerning is the damaging impact such false narratives have on community relations and the perception of marginalized racial groups. When a figure of authority, such as a law enforcement officer, propagates false stereotypes, it fuels the fire of racial bias and reinforces the cycle of prejudice and injustice.

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Police Seized Innocent People’s Property and Kept It for Years. What Will the Supreme Court Do?

Gerardo Serrano and Stephanie Wilson may have little in common. But there is at least one major tie that binds them: The government seized their vehicles, never charged either of them with a crime, and, most pertinently, made them wait years before resolving their cases.

It is not uncommon for victims of civil forfeiture—the practice that allows law enforcement to take people’s assets without having to prove the owner was guilty of a crime—to endure protracted delays before they have the opportunity to even step foot in a courtroom and defend themselves. The U.S. Supreme Court will soon hear Culley v. Attorney General of Alabama and decide if those who find themselves in that situation are entitled to a probable cause hearing after the seizure and, if so, how speedily it must happen.

That the highest court in the country has to rule on whether people get such a hearing is an apt indictment of how unaccountable civil forfeiture has become.

Serrano’s case is instructive. In September 2015, while traveling to Mexico, he stopped at the border in Eagle Pass, Texas, to take pictures. That upset some Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents, who demanded he surrender the password to his cellphone. Serrano refused. The agents then searched his new Ford F-250 truck, found five stray bullets, and accused him of smuggling “munitions of war.” Serrano had a concealed carry permit, and there was no firearm in his vehicle. The officers confiscated his car anyway.

But the fragile nature of the allegation didn’t matter, because it would never be subject to scrutiny. The government didn’t press charges. They did, however, keep his vehicle for two years, without holding a hearing where he could contest the seizure—or without ever filing a formal forfeiture complaint. 

The dearth of due process protections was devastating. Serrano paid the government $3,800—10 percent of the car’s value—as a requirement to fight the move in federal court; he was met with more radio silence, even after the feds cashed the check. A Kentucky resident, he subsequently spent thousands of dollars on rental cars while his vehicle sat halfway across the country, locked in a Texas parking lot.

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HOW MISSOURI’S ‘FELONY MURDER’ LAW TRAPS PEOPLE FOR DEFENDING THEMSELVES

Technically speaking, Antonio Meanus wasn’t supposed to own the gun he had stashed in his pants on Oct. 7, 2021. But he didn’t believe he had much of a choice.

Earlier that day in Springfield, Missouri, Meanus, a tall, 30-year-old man with a goatee and shoulder-length dreadlocks, had gotten a call from a man named Raquan White, the son of his former boss. White said he was in a financial bind. He was going to come up short on his next rent payment and wanted to sell an iPhone to a 17-year-old named I’Shon Dunham. But White had dealt with Dunham in the past and said that he “didn’t feel trustworthy.” So Meanus says White asked him to come along to make sure Dunham didn’t rob him.

Meanus, who had grown up in some of the roughest areas of St. Louis, told White that the whole thing was a bad idea and offered to just give him some money. But White insisted on going. Not one to abandon a friend, Meanus got in the car.

It had been an unusually warm fall day for the city’s 170,000 residents. About halfway through the ride to the meetup point, Meanus again tried to convince White to go home instead.

“I said, ‘This don’t sound right,’” Meanus told The Appeal in a phone interview from the state’s Crossroads Correctional Center. “Let’s just turn around and go back.” White assured him it would be fine and kept driving.

They eventually reached a two-story apartment building on 422 East Norton Road. Newly planted trees dotted the lawn around the parking lot. Dunham and a stranger emerged from the red brick apartment building. The stranger’s hand was tucked under his shirt. Dunham, a slender teenager with big eyes, a wide smile, and a peach-fuzz beard, hopped into the front seat and asked for the iPhone. But White first demanded to know what the uninvited guest was doing there.

“He cool,” Dunham said.

Dunham then lunged forward, tried to grab the iPhone, and began grappling with White in the front seat. After a brief struggle, Dunham wordlessly pulled out a gun and pointed it at White’s head.

Meanus panicked. He believed that both he and White would be killed. So he pulled out his gun and shot Dunham, killing him.

Distressed, Meanus called the police to report what had happened. He knew he couldn’t have done anything else in the circumstances. He didn’t know, however, that a single state law had already taken away his right to save himself.

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