Mexican Denies Eating Girlfriend

(Mexico City) On October 8th, Mexican writer of horror stories, Jose Luis Calva, was arrested after fleeing from police who were investigating strange smells coming from his apartment.

Police were looking into the disappearance of Calva's girlfriend, 30-year-old Alejandra Galeana, and into cases of the dismembered bodies of two other women, one an ex-girlfriend of Calva.

Investigators believe the strange smells came from decomposing human body parts in Calva's cupboard and refrigerator and bones in a cereal box. Police also found pieces of lime and partially-cooked human flesh in a frying pan. Interestingly, police additionally discovered the draft of a novel, Cannibalistic Instincts, in his apartment.

While fleeing to avoid apprehension, Calva reportedly was swinging down balconies from his upper-floor apartment and then was hit by a car. He's recovering in the hospital.

Yesterday, forensic experts reported that the pieces of flesh found in Calva's apartment are human.

Dr. Rodolfo Rojo, chief medical examiner for Mexico City's prosecutor's office, said flesh found on the plate and frying pan in suspect Jose Luis Calva's apartment corresponded to parts missing from the corpse of his 32-year-old girlfriend, Alejandra Galeana.

When queried by the police, Calva said everything was hazy because of the alcohol and cocaine he had consumed.

In testimony, Calva denies murdering his girlfriend, rather, he was hugging her and she died.

"But because of his strength, she fainted. He took her pulse and found she had died. He put her on the bed and then began to think of a way to get rid of the body, and started cutting it up to get rid of it, piece by piece," the Mexico City Attorney General's Office said in a statement recounting his testimony.

The statement said Calva claimed he was cooking the flesh to feed to his dogs and stored the severed limbs found in his refrigerator "so they wouldn't start smelling so quickly."

Heh.

Companion post at The Jawa Report.

Ohio Girls' Coach Accused of Sex Crimes

(Port Clinton, Ohio) Erin Baker, a 25-year-old girls basketball coach, formerly with Port Clinton High School, was arrested last Friday and charged with having sexual contact with a female student.

Ottawa County Prosecutor Mark Mulligan said the victim is younger than 18 and enrolled at Port Clinton High School. Baker faces six felony counts of sexual battery.

According to Superintendent Pat Adkins, Baker was not a teacher at Port Clinton Public Schools.

Her arrest came after the girl told the school counselor earlier this month Baker had improper contact with her, Adkins said. The counselor immediately told school-resource Officer Ralph Edmonds, who investigated with Ottawa County Children's Services, Adkins said.

Adkins and Mulligan declined to comment on whether the girl was a member of the basketball team or where the alleged incidents took place.

Baker was an assistant coach for about four years, Adkins said. The school board hires each coach in the district for one year at a time, and members have not yet considered basketball coaching positions for this year, he said.

"We will not hire her for this year, obviously," he said.

Baker was booked into custody at the Ottawa County Detention Facility. She was released Monday on $50,000 bond.

Cult Killing in Japan

(Nagano, Japan) This story has everything. Female death cult, secret curing water, gang-murder, evidence tampering and concealment, ransacked sushi restaurant and family members arrested. The only thing missing is Godzilla.

For the murder of a 63-year-old woman, about 20 members, ages 15 to 80, of the female Kigenkai religious cult were arrested yesterday in conjunction with the woman's family members. Authorities were initially alerted by hospital staff who noticed that the woman had been beaten to death.

Four related members of holy water cult Kigenkai who were arrested in connection with the fatal gang bashing of a sushi restaurant owner fear reprisals and may be covering up the involvement of other cultists in the elderly woman's death, police said Tuesday.

Komoro Police Station investigators suspect the four relatives of 63-year-old sushi restaurant owner Motoko Okuno, who were sent to prosecutors on suspicion of causing her death, may be keeping quiet about other Kigenkai cultists' roles in the alleged attack.

It is believed the assault on Okuno was instigated by the cult's matriarch and another 21 women members of the religious group have already been arrested in connection with the case.

Police said Okuno was fatally gang-bashed at Kigenkai headquarters in Komoro, Nagano Prefecture, on the night of Sept. 24 and into the early hours of the following morning. Her 35-year-old husband, Kazuhiro, and 37-year-old daughter, Kuriko Mori, were indicted by prosecutors for inflicting bodily injury causing death.

Another daughter, Michiko, 26, and her husband, Yuji Ike, 30, have been arrested for inflicting bodily injury resulting in death and also face the additional charge of concealing evidence.

Police said the four had talked amongst themselves to decide what to tell investigators about Okuno's death so that only they took the blame and no other cultists became involved.

Police added that Michiko and Yuji Ike had turned tables and chairs over in Okuno's restaurant to make it look as though she had been beaten there and not at the cult's lair.

The Kigenkai cult is described as a matriarchy with about 400 followers throughout Japan.

Florida Teacher Sentenced in Sex Case

(Wakulla, Florida) In February 2006, a 36-year-old exceptional education teacher at Wakulla High School, Elaine Turner, was arrested by Wakulla County Sheriff's deputies and charged with four counts of sexually assaulting a student. Turner allegedly had sexual relations with the boy on four occasions. She was released after posting $10,000 bail.

In the latest development, Turner, now 37, pleaded guilty to sexual activity with a minor and aggravated battery in accordance with a plea deal. As a result,

Elaine Turner, 37, was sentenced to 30 days in the Wakulla County Jail for the sexual activity charge, as well as 30 days probation, according to the Wakulla County clerk of court's records.

For the aggravated battery charge, she was placed on 10 years probation and will be required to either spend 150 days at the Wakulla County Sheriff's Office work camp or 150 days at the Wakulla County Jail.

In a related case from the same school,

Qunikiya Thomas, 24, was also accused in February 2006 of having sex with a student. She admitted her guilt prior to her court hearing and was sentenced on Feb. 15 to five months of community control, followed by 48 months of sex-offender probation.

Neither Turner nor Thomas still works at Wakulla High School. It's not known whether either must register as a sex offender nor if teaching credentials were revoked.

Man Marries His Grandmother

(Vladimir, Russia) One might suspect that this story is another sitcom-meets-real-life scenario, but it's not -- apparently.

From Ananova:

Russian authorities are investigating after discovering a man had married his own grandmother.

Boris Golovska, 30, married his 79-year-old grandmother Katarina in the town of Vladimir, east of Moscow.

Registry office officials reportedly failed to check whether the couple were related when they tied the knot.

The marriage has now been annulled and local prosecutors have said they are investigating the case.

This creates the absolutely outlandish possibility of a man fathering his own uncle. Or aunt.

Heh.

Arizona Teach Gets Sweet Deal in Sex Case

(Tucson, Arizona) In April 2007, a 24-year-old former teacher at Salpointe Catholic High School, Rebecca Lee Kelley, was indicted for engaging in sexual activity with a 17-year-old male student.

Kelley pleaded not guilty to four counts of sexual conduct with a minor under the age of 18, each carrying a possible punishment of two years in prison.

Today, Rebecca Lee Kelley pleaded guilty in accordance with a deal to one count of failure to report a reportable offense and three counts of contributing to the delinquency of a minor, said defense attorney Stephen Weiss.

Sentencing in the case is scheduled for Nov. 13 and Weiss said he expects Kelley will be put on probation for all counts, with the agreement calling for the maximum three years. Kelley's plea also calls for restitution, capped at $10,000, to pay for counseling for the boy and his mother.

In summary, it appears that Kelley will get probation and walk away without a felony on her record. It also appears that she won't be required to surrender her teaching credentials nor register as a sex offender.

In the words of Eric Cartman, "S-W-E-E-T!"


[Update 11/14/07]

Kelley sentenced to probation. So, another teacher mixes it up with a student and gets no punishment because of the shape of her skin. I don't believe a male teacher would have been treated as leniently. Kelley should make sure that Judge Gus Aragon is put on her Christmas list.

Tennessee Woman and Teen Prostitutes

(Rhea County, Tennessee) A 22-year-old Dayton, TN, woman, Mersadie Minton Pankey, has been arrested for operating a prostitution business involving two 16-year-old girls. According to Sex Crime Detective Rocky Potter, Pankey would take the girls to various locations in Rhea County to perform sex acts for money and then keep most of the money.

"According to our information, Mersadie would go to these locations and work up the deal while the two girls remained in the car," Potter said. "Then one girl would go in and collect the money and come back out before the second girl went in to perform the sex acts."

Pankey allegedly drove the girls to three locations, one in Dayton, one in Graysville and one on Dayton Mountain, in September. Each time the girl would have sex with up to seven men, Potter said.

Pankey reportedly met the two girls while living in the Dayton Housing Authority's Taylor Hills development.

The detective questioned Pankey and the two girls, and all three gave statements consistent with the evidence, Potter said. "The girl who performed the sex acts said she did it because she felt threatened by Pankey. She said Pankey needed the money to make her car payment," Potter said.

Pankey faces three counts of promoting prostitution and six counts of contributing to the delinquency of a minor. She was booked into custody at the Rhea County Jail. The girls were not charged.

Each time, up to seven men? Business was booming. Heh.

New York Psychologist Accused of Raping Boy

(Sand Lake, New York) A 32-year-old child psychologist for Rensselaer County, Jennifer Hastings, was arrested by State Police Saturday for allegedly raping a 14-year-old boy she was counseling. Hastings faces a charge of second-degree rape.

Police stated that Hastings repeatedly raped the boy, sometimes at her home. Rensselaer County Mental Health has suspended Hastings from her position with the county, according to county spokesman Chris Meyer.

Hastings was booked and released on $20,000 bail.


[Update 10/17/07]

Here's an interesting update from the Times Union:

Jennifer A. Hastings took the Tamarac Secondary School freshman home after school when her husband was away in Ticonderoga, the victim said in his statement to investigators. She had to sneak him past her parents' and in-laws' homes, according to the statement.

"As we entered her driveway she told me to duck down because her parents and her husband's parents live on both sides of her home. I ducked down and she drove me up to her house," the student said.

Inside her residence at 222 Sheer Road, the psychologist had intercourse twice with her court-assigned patient before spiriting him back out of the house, according to the statement.

Trooper Michael Anson, the school's resource officer, said he saw Hastings pick up the boy at school and drive off the campus, and he began investigating. Later, he spoke to Hastings, who claimed she was the boy's older sister, troopers said. But further investigation determined Hastings' true identity.

Pretty sneaky, eh?


[Update 11/12/07]

More charges filed against Hastings.



[Update 10/9/08]

Hastings admits guilt. Sentencing in December.


[Update 2/5/09]

Hastings gets prison.

Mom Nabbed for Dope in Son's Room

(Lawrence, Massachusetts) A 26-year-old local mother, Yarelis Cruz, has been accused of cultivating pot in her apartment after pictures of marijuana plants were found on her son's cell phone.

After seeing the pictures, a teacher at the 11-year-old son's school alerted authorities who subsequently conducted a search of the Cruz household and found "seeds under a large light in the boy's bedroom."

Cruz faces charges of possession and possession with intent to distribute.

No information has been disclosed regarding the medical marijuana needs of Cruz or her 11-year-old son. I guess it's possible that the boy needs to light up a blunt to relieve the chronic eye pressure caused by glaucoma. Then again, Cruz and/or her son may be undergoing chemotherapy and need marijuana to stave off nausea. Of course, there's always the possibility that Yarelis Cruz is simply a stupid doper.

Brothel Sponsors Italian Soccer Team

(Innsbruck, Austria) The Trento Calcio 1921 professional soccer team, based in Trento, Italy, has created quite a controversy by accepting over $14,000 in sponsorship funds from an Austrian brothel, Casa Bianca. Therefore, the team's website advertises the usual beer and computer products along with the services of a house of prostitution.

However, the Casa Bianca website link at the top of the list of the team's sponsors has offended some people with Casa Bianca being described as "the house of emotions," and a "sensuous place to get everything you want."

Iva Berasi, a member of Trento city council in charge of sports, was furious about the deal. "It's incredible that the (provincial) capital's team would accept a sponsor that would even give the impression that it profited from the sale of a woman's body," she told the local newspaper Trentino.

"I believe that my feeling of being offended is the same one felt by the majority of women in Trento. I would hope that the team -- which also receives public funding -- would want to find a remedy for this situation as soon as possible."

As a compromise, the team dropped the link to Casa Bianca on its website.

By the way, according to the price list for Casa Bianca, it appears that it costs over two hundred dollars just to walk in the door.

Putin Assassination Plot?

(Moscow, Russia) The Kremlin will not change President Vladimir Putin's travel plans after receiving notification of a possible assassination plot.

Presently, Putin is in Germany for a meeting today with Chancellor Angela Merkel. Tomorrow, Putin is scheduled to travel to Tehran, Iran, for meetings with President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

Interfax reported on Sunday that security services had been told suicide bombers and kidnappers were training to kill or capture Putin on his visit, due to start on Tuesday. It did not say who might be behind such groups in the Islamic Republic.

The Iranians are dismissing the assassination threat as psychological warfare promulgated by Iran's enemies -- meaning the West -- in hopes of damaging Russian-Iranian relations.

"A reliable source in one of the Russian special services, has received information from several sources outside Russia, that during the president of Russia's visit to Teheran an assassination attempt is being plotted," Interfax said.

"A number of groups of suicide bombers are preparing for this aim," Interfax, one of a small circle of Russian agencies with special access to the Kremlin, added.

It gave no details of who the sources were or whether they were linked in any way to Western governments; nor was it clear why the Kremlin would make such a report public in this way just before the planned visit.

An attempt on the life of Putin would make the global political environment substantially more interesting. And, frankly, I wouldn't rule out that Putin has some very ambitious enemies, including Russians.

La Raza, NAACP Show No Tolerance

(Kansas City) Reputed to be champions of diversity and tolerance, the National Council of La Raza and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, are showing their ugly side. Tolerance and diversity begin only after they exclude people who disagree with them.

The Washington-based National Council of La Raza, along with the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, have threatened to take their conventions elsewhere unless Frances Semler, a member of the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps, resigns from the parks board.

But after a meeting Thursday between Hispanic community groups and Mayor Mark Funkhouser, the NCLR said that it was willing to compromise but that Semler would have to revoke her membership in the group.

A spokesman for Funkhouser, who appointed Semler and has stood by her since the controversy erupted, said Friday that the mayor was out of town and wasn't commenting on the new proposal.

Welcome to the world of high-stakes political blackmail. Millions of dollars will be lost if La Raza and the NAACP move their conventions from Kansas City to another locale.

Right, wrong and the rule of law don't make a hill of beans to champions of diversity and tolerance.

Ohio Graduating More Minorities

Amidst all the continuous debate and finger-pointing about Ohio's public education systems comes this report.

The state data analysis was presented by Ohio 8, a coalition of superintendents, teachers and union presidents, at their two-day summit on urban education in Columbus last week.

All urban students are making gains, the analysis found. Although Cleveland's graduation rate for all students in 1999 was 38 percent, or one of the lowest rates in the nation, the district's graduation rate for 2005-2006 climbed to 55 percent. One urban district, Toledo, has a graduation rate of 90.5 percent, more than five points higher than the state average of 86 percent.

The improved performance could be due to a variety of reasons, urban educators, administrators and union leaders said. Training for teachers is improving and a greater variety of specialized magnet schools now exist to attract and retain students.

Another factor is the 2001 federal education law No Child Left Behind, which requires schools to divide data by race and ethnic background and holds schools responsible if individual groups of students fail. [ed. bold]

Interestingly, when time comes for criticism of the education systems, No Child Left Behind will likely be cited as the cause.

When good news regarding improved graduation rates surfaces, No Child Left Behind is relegated to "another factor" status, seemingly mentioned almost as an afterthought. In my view, No Child Left Behind is the impetus which forces schools to do a better job at teaching kids and, thereby, to enjoy improved graduation statistics.

Woman Arrested for Faking Son's Death

(Bethalto, Illinois) A 35-year-old Bethalto mom, Meredith A. Sharp, was arrested and charged Thursday with disorderly conduct for allegedly falsifying her son's death in a stunt created to presumably save face in her community.

Sharp falsely claimed her son was killed in a traffic accident in North Dakota and then arranged for a memorial service to be held at a funeral home in Granite City on September 17th. Sharp also listed the boy's death in an obituary in a local newspaper.

The scheme was exposed when Sharp's sister in North Dakota contacted authorities and said the boy was alive and in her custody.

Capt. Brad Wells of the Madison County Sheriff's Department said Sharp had no financial reason for the scheme but rather wanted to stop answering questions from friends and family about the boy after the sister gained custody.

Sharp was booked into custody at the Madison County Jail with bail set at $5,000.

Boy, if Sharp desired to make local interest in her circumstances to die down, creating national interest is surely the wrong way to do it. In fact, the whole world now knows she lost custody of her son and tried to hide the fact by faking his death. At least in this case, Sharp was duller than a Stone Age ax.

Puerto Rican Pet Massacre Mystery

(Barceloneta, Puerto Rico) For violating the no-pet policy of government housing projects, authorities conducted raids this week and seized dozens of dogs and cats.

The authorities had promised to take the animals to a shelter but, instead, they allegedly were thrown off a bridge to their deaths.

A local resident, Jose Manuel Rivera, used a backhoe to bury about 50 animals Saturday in a mass grave near the bridge where they were dumped.

He discovered the animals around dawn Tuesday after hearing barking and whimpers from animals who survived the 50-foot fall. He recovered six injured dogs, who were reunited with their owners after they saw their pets on a television news broadcast.

"One had a broken spine, and about all of them had broken legs," Rivera said.

Local Mayor Sol Luis Fontanez blamed the pet massacre on Puerto Rico-based Animal Control Solutions, a contractor for the city, but the company owner, Julio Diaz, denies that the dead animals are the ones his company collected. Diaz promised to provide records of proof to the authorities tomorrow.

Seventeen Bullet Holes

(Flagstaff, Arizona) Last month, Mark E. Steiger was killed after being shot 17 times by five law enforcement officers. Officers from the Flagstaff Police, Coconino County Sheriff's Office and Arizona Department of Public Safety fired a total of 42 times.

The number of shots isn't unusual when multiple officers open fire with modern weapons in response to an immediate threat, Flagstaff Deputy Chief Josh Copley said.

"The community should understand that once the decision is made to use deadly force the response is swift and lethal," Copley said, noting that the entire incident lasted between 2 and 3 seconds.

The shooting was ruled justified by the Coconino County Attorney, and the sheriff's office ruled that all five officers acted within their agencies' policies regarding use of deadly force.

The officers opened fire after Steiger shot and wounded Flagstaff Detective Todd Bishop.

By the way, Steiger was a mental patient who quit taking his medication.

Minnesota Mom Pinched for Prostitution

(St. Paul, Minnesota) A 23-year-old local mom, Franchaska Hogan, was arrested last Wednesday after propositioning an undercover officer for sex. All the while, Hogan's one-year-old child was in an adjacent room in her St. Paul apartment. Hogan was apprehended on suspicion of prostitution and child endangerment.

The arrest happened about 6:50 p.m. Wednesday in the 600 block of Jenks Avenue. An undercover officer had made contact with Hogan through the Internet and planned an encounter, said Tom Walsh, a police spokesman.

Hogan also faced arrest on a warrant for forgery. The child was placed in an emergency shelter.

So, it seems the Internet is being used to promote prostitution. Imagine that.

Teacher Victoria Blevins

Victoria Blevins pleads guilty to harassment by offensive touching. See update here.

Housekeeping - Bad Machine

As a heads up to regular readers, I need to mention that I've been struggling with some computer problems for about a week, which has dramatically affected my ability to research and write entries. Consequently, I'm using a borrowed computer.

I'm thinking that it's time for a new machine. Now I have to convince the goddess who handles the benjamins.

Schwarzenegger Signs Iran Divestment Bill

(Sacramento, California) Yesterday, Gov. Schwarzenegger signed the bill.

From CenterForSecurityPolicy.org:

Today, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed Assemblyman Joel Anderson's (R-El Cajon) Assembly Bill 221 to divest California's public retirement funds from billions of dollars invested in key foreign companies that invest in Iran.

"California has a long history of leadership and doing what's right with our investment portfolio," Schwarzenegger said in a written statement released last week in advance of the signing. "Last year, I was proud to sign legislation to divest from the Sudan to take a powerful stand against genocide. I look forward to signing legislation to divest from Iran to take an equally powerful stand against terrorism."

"Money is the mother's milk of terrorism. AB 221 will stop California's investments from being used to fund Iran's terror machine," said Anderson.

The Center for Security Policy cannot overemphasize the importance of this legislation, both due to the amount of money in California's pension systems and the significance of the most populous state in the Union leading the way to cut off corporate life support for the Ayatollahs.

It's about time.

California Teacher Arrested in Sex Case

(La Mesa, California) A 22-year-old music teacher and band director at Helix High School, Jessica Ashley Kahal, was arrested today on suspicion of having sex with a 17-year-old male student.

Authorities were alerted after a teacher from another school told Douglas D. Smith, Helix High School principal, of the sexual relationship.

Subsequently, the alleged victim, a senior at the school, said that he had consensual sex with Kahal about five times in various areas of the county since August. Kahal resigned her position with the school last Friday.

The unmarried, childless Kahal was booked into Las Colinas women's jail in Santee on two counts of unlawful sexual contact with a minor. Bail was set at $20,000.


[Update 12/07/07]

Kahal pleads guilty. Sentencing in February 2008.


[Update 02/14/08]

Kahal sentenced to probation.

Teacher Kills Cat

(Lakewood, Colorado) A teacher in the Jefferson County School District, Michele Eshleman, and her boyfriend, Mark Lewis, have been charged with animal cruelty for intentionally drowning a poor, defenseless cat. They said they killed the cat to end its suffering.

The couple said they couldn't afford to have a professional cat killer do the job.

Mom Breaks Her Baby's Skull

(Erie, Pennsylvania) A 28-year-old mother-of-five, Chytoria Graham, was convicted by an Erie County Common Pleas Court jury yesterday of breaking her 4-month-old son's skull.

Graham swung the baby, Jarron, like a baseball bat during a fight she had with her boyfriend in October 2006. The infant suffered brain bleeding and bruising and, fortunately, recovered.

Graham, a ninth-grade dropout and 28-year-old mother of five, bowed her head into her arms and wept as Judge William R. Cunningham read the verdict: guilty of charges of aggravated assault, recklessly endangering another person, simple assault and endangering the welfare of a child.

Later, after the jury left the room, Cunningham reminded Graham that she would face a five-year mandatory minimum sentence on the charge of aggravated assault and set her sentencing for Dec. 12. He revoked her $7,500 bail because of the serious nature of the conviction.

As he spoke, Graham crumpled to the ground and curled into a fetal position.

"Oh my God," she cried. "Oh my God, Oh my God. No, no, no."

Sheriff's deputies removed her from the courtroom in a wheelchair.

Graham essentially sealed her conviction by confessing three times.

First Assistant Public Defender James Pitonyak argued that Graham had been tired, confused, injured and had low intelligence. It's also believed that her boyfriend, and the baby's father, 21-year-old Deangelo Troop, shares responsibility for the criminal assault.

Graham's mother and father are caring for her five children.


[Update 12/17/07]

Graham sentenced to prison.

Woman, 40, and Boy, 12

(Los Angeles, California) A 40-year-old woman, Nilda Ruth Wery,has been arrested for allegedly kidnapping and engaging in sex with a 12-year-old, cerebral palsy-afflicted boy. Wery was jailed on suspicion of kidnapping, performing a lewd act on a child under 14 and forced oral copulation.

The boy was initially reported as a runaway by his parents when he did not return home from school Friday afternoon, according to Riverside police.

But an investigation revealed an "inordinately close relationship" with the suspect, police said.

A civilian spotted Wery's red Jeep Wrangler, followed it and phoned authorities, said CHP Sgt. Miles Ingraham.

Wery pulled into an apartment complex in the 13000 block of Amar Road, south of the 10 Freeway, in Baldwin Park, where CHP officers found the Jeep and then located her hiding underneath a pickup about 2:15 a.m., Ingraham said.

I'd say that innocent people rarely hide, much less underneath pickup trucks.

Wery was booked into custody at the Robert Presley Detention Center with bail set at $50,000.

Tip: Don Morgenstern

Mom Arrested for Molesting Daughter, 3

(Ozark, Alabama) A 23-year-old mother from Barbour County, Jennifer Elizabeth Bowman, surrendered to Dale County authorities last week to face a charge of first-degree sexual abuse of her three-year-old daughter.

Bowman was booked into custody with bond set at $10,000.

Unfortunately, scant information has been reported on this story. I can understand if someone deems it too ugly to know. I don't agree but I understand.

Prison for Killing Baby 19 Years Ago

(Greenville, South Carolina) Last year, a 45-year-old woman, Elaine Theresa Patterson, contacted authorities and confessed to killing her 8-month-old son in 1988. Prosecutors filed a charge of murder against Patterson but later reduced it to voluntary manslaughter.

Despite defense attorney John Farnsworth's request for leniency, Judge Mark Hayes sentenced Patterson to 30 years in prison under 1988 sentencing guidelines. Judge Hayes indicated that Patterson already received leniency through a reduced charge.

Frankly, I don't see any substantive reason for mitigating the sentence.

Myanmar: Generals Refuse to Shoot Monks

(Yangon, Myanmar) There appears to be disagreement in the ranks of the Myanmar's military junta.

Myanmar's ruling junta have detained five generals and more than 400 soldiers for disobeying orders to shoot and beat monks and other activists who took part in recent protests in Yangon, an official said Monday.

The official, who asked for anonymity out of fear he would be punished by the junta, said it was the first sign of divisions in the country's secretive establishment.

"The five generals expressed their refusal to deploy their troops against the monks openly. They were then quickly put into detention by the junta.

"Some 400 soldiers of the Sikai Division near Mandalay (Myanmar's second largest city) also put down their guns in front of the monks, and asked for their forgiveness as they fully realized they had committed the biggest sin," he told The Jakarta Post.

The official refused to disclose the names of the generals or give further details on where the generals and the soldiers were detained.

Also being reported is a wide disparity in the numbers of deaths. The government announced about 10 people were killed during last week's protests. Other sources contend that the death count is much higher.

Companion post at The Jawa Report.

Jailed Mexican Drug Queen Complains of Bed Bugs

(Mexico City) Arrested two weeks ago, Mexico's drug priestess, Sandra Avila, is complaining about the bed bugs and other fauna in jail.

The forty-something Avila, known by the nickname "Queen of the Pacific," is accused of helping organize the Sinaloa drug cartel on Mexico's Pacific coast in the 1990s.

Avila has been heralded as the most glamorous of the narcotics traffickers and is recognized as a vital go-between for the Mexican and Colombian cartels. She is a third-generation member of a family of narco-operatives.

Sandra Avila telephoned Mexico City's Human Rights Commission to moan about the biting bugs and complain she cannot receive gifts of food while behind bars.

She was caught alone driving a BMW sport utility vehicle near her house in the Mexican capital and has been jailed pending trial on charges of organized crime and money laundering in Mexico and the United States.

Also, Avila is famous -- enough so that a song, called a narcocorrido, has been written about her.

The narcocorrido is a contemporary form of the corrido -- a genre of Mexican folk music with its roots in Spain. The narcocorrido sings about the exploits of drug smugglers and narco-barons.

The Mexican band Los Tucanes de Tijuana, noted narcocorrido performers, sang about Sandra Avila in a 2004 song entitled "Fiesta en la Sierra." The ballad describes an exclusive, invitation-only birthday party hosted by a powerful drug capo, at his ranchito escondido ("little hidden ranch") in the mountains. All the guests must arrive in helicopters and airplanes. When one of them steps out of her aircraft, she is immediately recognized as "The Queen of the Pacific."

Frankly, I wouldn't make too much of the fact that a song has been written about her since the Mexicans also have a very popular song which trumpets cockroaches, La Cucaracha.

Sandra Avila is currently sharing a cell with bed bugs at the women's prison of Santa Martha Acatitla.

Drug-Dealing Teacher Bronwyn Kugle Gets Prison

(Kailua, Hawaii) In February 2007, math and reading teacher at Kaelepule Elementary School, Bronwyn Kugle, was arrested on federal drug charges and for possessing a loaded weapon not registered to her. Kugle allegedly conspired to distribute cocaine and Ecstasy.

In June, Kugle pleaded guilty to federal drug and firearms charges including conspiring to distribute one kilogram of cocaine, over 1,000 tablets of Ecstasy and possession of a loaded firearm. Kugle was also found to possess user amounts of crystal methamphetamine. Kugle expressed embarrassment and apologies to the court.

Yesterday, U.S. District Judge Susan Oki Mollway sentenced 39-year-old Kugle to 37 months in federal prison and criminal forfeiture of her interest in a Kailua residence.

Ed Kubo, U.S. Attorney for the Hawai'i District, described Kugle as a user of cocaine and methamphetamine who had turned to selling drugs in order to support her habit. She had provided financing for drug deals by utilizing the equity of her residence, said Kubo.

Kugle was arrested after she accepted a parcel shipped from California containing drugs that had been previously intercepted by federal agents.

Mortgaging real property to facilitate drug dealing shows a fairly substantial commitment to the criminal activity.

Cat Urine, Not Methamphetamine

(Tampa, Florida) In August, a 38-year-old single mother, Cynthia Hunter, was arrested for theft of merchandise at Wal-Mart and found to also be in possession of a vial of powder that a presumptive test identified as methamphetamine.

Hunter was charged with theft and drug possession. However, after spending 50 days in jail, a conclusive test of the powder determined that it wasn't meth. Hunter claims it was cat urine that she had dehydrated.

Consequently, Hunter is angry that she had to spend time in jail on a bogus charge.

She was released from jail Thursday, after pleading guilty to the petty theft charge. But now she's looking for a lawyer to help her pursue a civil lawsuit against the Sheriff's Office for jailing her on a charge that turned out to be false.

"This ruined my life," she said.

Hunter related two different stories regarding why she was carrying the vial of cat urine. She told detectives that it was for her son to test negative during mandatory drug screening since he is on probation. She also said it was a novelty item, the latest on the market. However, a records search found no drug arrests for either of her two sons.

While the Sheriff's deputies are interested in knowing why Hunter was carrying the cat urine, I'm a bit curious about how she obtained it. I imagine it's not an easy task. "Here, Kitty, Kitty! Come to Mamma."

In conclusion, Hunter did 50 days in jail for theft and a probation violation. And, since the drug charge was dropped, she's looking for a lawyer to sue the city for false imprisonment -- or something like that. It's anyone's guess on how the case will end.

Philly Coach Arrested for Sex with Girl

(Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) In August 2007, a 42-year-old girls' basketball coach for Neumann-Goretti High School and for an Amateur Athletic Union team, Carolyn Hayes, was arrested for allegedly engaging in a two-year sexual relationship with a female player, starting when the girl was 14 years old.

An arrest warrant stated Hayes allegedly gave gifts and money to the teen and engaged in sexual contact with the young girl on numerous occasions from January 2005 until February 2007. Officials said many of the alleged encounters occurred in Hayes' South Philadelphia home.

Hayes has been charged with contact with a minor, aggravated indecent assault, statutory sexual assault, sexual assault, corruption of minors, indecent exposure, and indecent assault, according to court records.

Hayes was suspended from her coaching position at Neumann-Goretti High School. A preliminary hearing has been scheduled for November 14th.

Tip: WW

White Lobster

The Caribbean coastal waters off Nicaragua are part of the Colombian drug smugglers' speedboat highway to the United States. And, as would be expected, not all of the smugglers' go-fast boats make it without being intercepted. When they are, the contraband drug shipments are jettisoned overboard.

For the fishing villages scattered across these remote central American shores there was seldom reason to welcome visits from the outside world.

But that was before the "white lobster", and before everything changed. Now the villagers rise at first light to scan the horizon in hope of seeing a very different type of intruder.

What they are looking for, and what they have coyly euphemised, are big, bulging bags of Colombian cocaine. A combination of law enforcement, geography and ocean currents has washed tonnes of the drug, and millions of dollars, into what was one of the Caribbean's most desolate and isolated regions. Villages that once eked an existence on shrimp and red-tinged lobster have been transformed. In place of thatched wooden huts there are brick houses, mansions and satellite dishes.

"They consider it a blessing from God. You see people all day just walking up and down the beaches keeping a lookout to sea," said Louis Perez, the police chief in Bluefields, the main port on Nicaragua's Caribbean coast.

Anecdotally, there's a story from a few years ago where 15 villagers died after mistaking a bale of cocaine for baking powder. Don't you just hate when that happens?

Making Mushy Minds Mushier

(Toronto, Ontario) Last Sunday, three Niagara Region male teens, ages 14 to 17, were hospitalized after eating jimson weed seeds for recreation. Two of the Niagara teens remain in critical condition.

Jimson weed is poisonous and consumption can be fatal. Nevertheless, its used for its hallucinogenic properties by young people with minds full of mush.

Last October, four Hamilton teens were sent to hospital after smoking jimson-laced cigarettes during their lunch break at school.

In October 2005, a Simcoe boy went into a coma and was airlifted to Sick Kids hospital in Toronto after ingesting jimson weed.

In September 2003, a 13-year-old boy landed in the intensive care unit after eating the plant. It was also linked to at least one death in 2000 in the Niagara Region.

Heh.

Today's Read-Before-Eating Headline

(New York City) Apparently, this incident occurred several months ago.

"Face Off," Funeral Home Accused of Allowing Rats to Eat a Man's Face

The story was originally reported in The Village Voice and involved the remains of drug drealer William Ragland who was murdered during a transaction. Pics at the links.

Cheer Coach Arrested for Indecency with Boy

(Powhatan County, Virginia) A 37-year-old cheerleading coach at Dominion Cheer and Tumble in Midlothian, Tammie Fleming, was arrested last week for allegedly engaging in an intimate relationship with a 17-year-old male student. The relationship has allegedly been ongoing for several months.

Fleming has been charged with taking indecent liberties with a minor.

Along with an appearance in Powhatan Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court, Fleming was booked and released on bond.

Fleming has another court appearance scheduled for next month.

Tip: WW


[Update 11/01/07]

Fleming sentenced.

Saudis Want Terrorism De-Linked From Islam

The Saudi Arabian Human Rights Commission (HRC) has requested that its European Union counterparts and their governments not link terrorism to Islam.

The Commission is also asking the EU to draw up regulations to protect Muslims from prejudice and discrimination because of their faith.

The HRC claims Muslims are treated with disrespect, physically or mentally abused, or not allowed to practice their faith freely such as Muslim girls being prevented from wearing the hijab (head cover) in some schools.

The request will be made official at the Second Arab-European Dialogue on Human Rights and Terrorism later this month in Copenhagen. No information was provided about guaranteeing the human rights of Christians and Jews in Saudi Arabia.

Heh.

Wisconsin Teacher and Boy

(Ellsworth, Wisconsin) A 39-year-old teacher at Prescott Middle School, Anne Knopf, has been charged with second-degree sexual assault for allegedly engaging in sex with a 13-year-old male student.

The student's father alleged he found the two together at a late-night rendezvous after the boy stole his mother's car.

The father filed a restraining order which claims the two had sexual intercourse. He said he has copies of e-mails between the two.

Knopf has a court appearance scheduled for November 5th.


[Update 11/06/07]

Judge orders Knopf to stand trial.

Radical Speaker Slotted for Ohio Capitol

(Columbus, Ohio) The President of the National Association of Muslim American Women, Anisa Abd El Fattah, is scheduled to deliver an address at the Ohio State Capitol this month. This is curious.

Due to her relationships with terrorism-supporting organizations, notably HAMAS, and her extremist writings, Abd El Fattah has been whisper-close to being fingered as a co-conspirator on terrorism-related charges. Consequently, it's damn curious that she is speaking before Ohio's legislators. At present, it's not clear why nor how she was booked to speak.

Even so, it is fairly clear what Abd El Fattah is going to say. Based upon her writings, statements and affiliations, I believe the following will match her podium notes quite comfortably.

- The 9/11 hijackers cannot be called Muslims,

- Jewish Zionists have undermined the United States,

- American leaders are hateful, control a hateful media and have bankrupted the Treasury to feed Halliburton,

- The US and Israel have carried out more evil in the Middle East than anyone can document,

- Israeli civilians are not civilians, they are military targets,

- The United States starved and killed more than 500,000 Iraqi children prior to the present war against Iraq,

- Allah is sovereign over the United States and secularism "Godless."

Paraphrased cosmetically, if at all, the above statements have been uttered by Anisa Abd El Fattah. Therefore, those legislators who are forced to skip her presentation at the Ohio Capitol will be apprised of the essential themes of her message by simply reading this post. Or, just do an Internet search and you'll find that Abd El Fattah doesn't skimp at telling what she thinks.

Now, some may argue about her close relationships with terrorists and terrorist-supporting organizations and some may argue about the extent of Abd El Fattah's extremist viewpoints, but I suggest that no one would argue that she desires that the Constitution become subservient to the Quran and that the United States ceases being a democratic republic and becomes a Muslim nation.

Additionally, I would argue that permitting a terrorist-supporting presentation at the Ohio Capitol is tacit endorsement of the content of the presentation. Ohio's Senators and Representatives should rethink whether this is what they want.

Bleach Used to Overcome Loneliness

(Japan) A 44-year-old man, Yuitsu Senoo, was arrested Friday night after he splattered bleach on a woman's handbag as she stood reading a magazine in a convenience store. Senoo was charged with willful destruction of property.

"I've done it to about 50 women since around 2002 to get over the loneliness I've felt since my wife and I separated," Senno told the police.

Police said that they have received 33 reports from women who had been splashed with bleach in places like Chiyoda-ku and Bunkyo-ku since July 2005. They used security footage from some of the places where the incidents occurred, which put them on to Senoo.

I'd suggest that Senoo was motivated by something other than loneliness. Hey, Senoo, if you're lonely, find another woman. However, by using bleach, it seems that your mind is twisted in a visceral knot of misogyny.

Ostrich Killer Sentenced

(Half Moon Bay, California) In July, a 19-year-old student, Timothy Andrew McKevitt, pleaded guilty to animal cruelty for his part in the death of an ostrich named Gaylord. McKevitt was among a group of drunken friends on Halloween night 2006 when Gaylord was killed.

This week, Judge Jack Grandsaert sentenced McKevitt to five months in jail and the payment of $5,000 restitution to Gaylord's owner Karen Schmidt.

Meanwhile, Mary Winkler has completed her five-month jail sentence for shotgunning her sleeping husband, Matthew Winkler, in the back. Unlike McKevitt, however, Winkler was not required to pay restitution.

Sherry Enema Homicide Charges Dropped

(Lake Jackson, Texas) In February 2005, 42-year-old Tammy Warner was charged with negligent homicide for giving her husband a sherry enema that killed him. Michael Warner, 58, had a blood alcohol level of 0.47 at the time of his May 2004 death.

Apparently, Warner's doctor told him not to drink because he had ulcers and would get heartburn. As an alternative, he coaxed his wife into giving him the enema which proved to be fatal.

This week, Brazoria County District Attorney Jeri Yenne said the charges were dismissed due to lack of evidence.

The dead man had had "a severe alcohol issue" and it was not clear his wife had committed a crime, Yenne said in a telephone interview.

"Let's say I have lung cancer and I continue to smoke. If you provide cigarettes to me, is that negligent homicide?" Yenne said.

"I really wrestled with the consent issue and negligence issue. I didn't think it rose to the level of negligent homicide."

I have to agree with the DA. For Warner to take two large bottles of sherry up the exhaust pipe, there had to be a whole lotta consentin' goin' on.

Tip: Steerage Kid

Teacher Sentenced for Minor, Isolated Lesbian Incident

(Boise, Idaho) In May 2007, a 22-year-old assistant softball coach and substitute teacher at Centennial High School, Lauren Kathleen Palmer, was arrested for alleged "inappropriate touching" of a 16-year-old female student.

An Asa County Sheriff's Deputy investigating a parked car early one morning caught Palmer and the girl on a blanket outside the vehicle. Inappropriate contact was suspected and Palmer was arrested.

After questioning Palmer and the girl, investigators determined that inappropriate touching had occurred. Palmer was charged with sexual battery of a minor.

In July, Lauren K. Palmer pleaded guilty to a charge of injury to a child. In August, she was sentenced to probation.

Fourth District Judge Deborah Bail ruled that it appears to be a relatively minor, isolated incident.

She sentenced Palmer to two years probation and withheld judgment, a 30-day jail sentenced deferred to Feb. 4th, restitution for counseling for the girl and she will be required to undergo thinking errors and one-on-one counseling.

The description of her sentence is confusing to me but it sounds like a hand slap.

Tip: Don Morgenstern

Crocked Homecoming Queen Loses Crown

(Oak Creek, Wisconsin) A 17-year-old honor student, star athlete and elected homecoming queen did something stupid. Enough so that it's making headlines.

The Oak Creek homecoming queen was stripped of her crown after she was arrested for underage drinking at the homecoming dance.

Police say the 17-year-old girl was allegedly telling friends at the dance she had an alcoholic drink before the dance. Police say her blood alcohol level was .04 to .05.

School officials say a second homecoming election will be held and photos of the new homecoming court may be shot for the school yearbook. [ ... ]

Police arrested the queen and officials at Oak Creek High suspended her and stripped her of her title. The girl's parents were at the school to see their daughter crowned. They had to go to the police station to pick her up.

So, it's reported that a "friend" couldn't keep a secret, told a teacher and, strangely, a "friend" is the new homecoming queen. I wonder if there's a link between the tattler and the new queen -- like, maybe they're the same person! Imagine that.

Forty Gays Arrested for Sex in Public Parks

(Johnson City, Tennessee) Forty men from Tennessee, Virginia and North Carolina have been arrested over the past two weeks for engaging in sex at the Winged Deer and Buffalo Mountain public parks in Johnson City.

Undercover officers launched a concentrated law enforcement sweep after receiving complaints from the public. Indecent exposure and disorderly conduct charges are pending.

"Our parks are for family use. People should not be exposed to this while they are out there with their family or trying to enjoy the walking trails," Johnson City Police Chief John Lowry said. "They are not built nor maintained for sexual activity, be it homosexual activity or heterosexual activity."

The undercover officers were solicited for sex, groped and even had men expose themselves to them. Those arrested ranged in age from 26 to 85.

Notably, among those arrested were two teachers and a minister. James Thayer teaches at Bluff City Middle School, Brent Leach is a System Diagnostician with Johnson City Schools and Pastor Robert Riley tends the congregation at the First Baptist Church in Rogersville.

Thayer and Leach have been placed on paid leave pending the results of an investigation. Robert Riley resigned his position as pastor.

Teacher Caught with 400 Lbs. of Pot

(Roma, Texas) A teacher's aide at Ema Vera Elementary School, Elizabeth Garza, was arrested last weekend by the Starr County Drug Task Force in possession of more than 400 pounds of marijuana.

Garza was arrested near the town of Salineno, presumably in a vehicle, with the 400 pounds of pot. Salineno is about 15 miles west of Roma. Both towns are within rock-skipping distance of the Rio Grande River, the international border with Mexico.

The school system placed Garza on suspension without pay pending the outcome of an investigation.

Due to the quantity, it's assumed that Garza faces felony drug trafficking charges. Of course, recognizing that the Rio Grande Valley has the reputation of being a generally unpredictable legal environment, Garza may convince the authorities that she found the drugs or they were a misdemeanor personal use quantity.

Teacher Arrested in Meth Sweep

(Johnston County, North Carolina) A 36-year-old second-grade teacher at Polenta Elementary School, Amy Lee Snead (aka Sneed), was arrested at the school this week as part of a two-county roundup of suspects in a methamphetamine production and distribution ring. After her arrest, Johnston County Schools suspended her with pay.

The Johnston and Sampson County Sheriff's Departments conducted the law enforcement sweep, known as Operation Pill Crusher, with 50 people targeted. Investigators reviewed pharmacy logbooks to determine those individuals who purchased greater than the legal limit of pseudoephedrine, a chemical precursor needed to manufacture methamphetamine.

Four other key individuals were also arrested: Kenneth Scott West Jr., 39; Richard Glenn Turnage, 46; Stewart Lavon McLeod, 23; and Christopher Charles Lawhorn, 32. A sixth person was later arrested but the name wasn't reported. Each faces charges of possession of a precursor chemical, possession of a precursor chemical with intent to distribute and misdemeanor exceeding the limit.

Snead was charged with misdemeanor exceeding the limit and possession of a precursor chemical. Snead was booked into the Johnston County jail with bond set at $20,000.

Change Clothes or Don't Fly

Last Sunday, a man was told to change his shirt or get thrown off a Southwest Airlines flight from Ohio to Florida.

Largo resident Joe Winiecki said he was sitting in the last row of a Columbus-to-Tampa flight when an employee told him he had to change his T-shirt, turn it inside out or get off the plane.

The shirt, bought in the Virgin Islands, uses sexual double entendre to promote a fictional fishing tackle shop. The largest lettering reads "Master Baiter."

Winiecki argued that the airline was violating his right to free speech but changed rather than risk getting kicked off the flight and missing a day of work.

Southwest Airlines later said "Oops!" and blamed its employee. Interestingly, this incident is the second in recent history that Southwest has gotten a wedgie because of how people dress. Readers may recall the July story of Kayla Ebbert who was told to change her revealing denim miniskirt outfit or get thrown off the plane. One might suggest that, intentionally or otherwise, Southwest is developing a reputation for being overly prudish in a liberal society.

On the other hand, Reader Rob contends that these incidents regarding unwritten airline behavior-, hygiene- and/or fashion-related standards can easily be avoided by co-locating airports with bus stations. When travelers arrive, a designated agent would decide whether they are appropriate for air travel or the bus.

Heh.

Too Toasted to Teach

(Valparaiso, Indiana) A 49-year-old first-grade teacher at Cooks Corners Elementary School, Sharon Duerring, was arrested yesterday for being intoxicated in class.

Duerring allegedly arrived at school drunk and officials removed her from the classroom before calling police. She registered 0.20 blood alcohol content on a breathalyzer and police confiscated two beers from her purse.

Duerring, who has been teaching for 25 years, was escorted from the school and handcuffed outside the school by police before being taken to Porter County Jail and charged with public intoxication.

Police gave Duerring a trespass warning not to return the school and her school keys were confiscated at the request of the school, police said.

Superintendent Michael Benway refused to comment on the incident, saying it is a personnel matter.

What a way to stain a decades-long career of teaching, eh?


[Update 10/06/07]

The Indiana Department of Education has taken an interest in the Duerring case since it has been disclosed that she had a previous public intoxication arrest. Duerring tested at 0.275 blood alcohol concentration when arrested during an incident at the Wal-Mart automotive center in Portage last March.

"Cavemen" Should Be Buried

I started to watch the heralded first episode of Cavemen on ABC and quickly realized that I'd made a big mistake. It was five minutes of my life that I won't recover nor be paid for nor be able to erase from my memory.

Frankly, by the first commercial I concluded that Cavemen was DOA. There was no humor from what I saw and the program didn't have much to do with cavemen. Correct me if I'm wrong but are not cavemen named cavemen because they live in caves? In fact, if the actors shaved and the name of the show was changed to Three Guys in an Apartment, I doubt if the viewers would notice.

I'll give it no more than four weeks before it's pulled. Other critics have similar observations.

China Boosting Coal Production

(Beijing, China) According to Wang Xianzheng, Deputy Director of the State Administration of Work Safety, China is streamlining the coal industry to boost output.

As part of the streamlining process the country plans to build 10 large strip-mines with a production capacity of 10 million tonnes each and another 10 pits with a yield of 10 million tonnes each, Wang said.

China estimates coal production will rise from 2.3 billion tons last year to 2.6 billion tons by 2010. So, while Americans are being bombarded with alarm messages of global warming and the plight of the planet Earth, the Chinese are digging and burning coal with apparent abandon.

Over a billion global warming deniers and Al Gore hasn't been bugging any of them. It sure seems to me that Al Gore should go to China and beat on Wang. He's the official who should be encouraged to reduce reliance on coal.

For comparison of coal production and usage, check out this chart from the World Coal Institute. Compared to the U.S., China easily pumps out twice the greenhouse gases from coal into the atmosphere.


Either the Chinese are ignoring or didn't receive Al Gore's inconvenient warnings of global catastrophe from greenhouse gases.

Dinkel Reports to Jail

(Covington, Kentucky) Yesterday afternoon, the 51-year-old Hollywood makeup artist and wife of former Cincinnati Bengals football player Tom Dinkel, Jeni Lee Dinkel, reported to the Kenton County Jail to begin serving her 60-day sentence for rape of a 15-year-old boy.

Although she was sentenced months ago, Dinkel was allowed to delay serving her time because her son is ill. Even so, she will be home in plenty of time to do her Christmas shopping.

There is no way to view Dinkel's treatment by the court as anything other than a mild hand slap. Given the details of her offenses, the justice system should have meted out much harsher punishment.


[Update 12/02/07]

Dinkel released from jail.


[Update 02/19/08]

Dinkel arrested for violating her probation.

Brits Are Freaking Nuts!

Here's the latest politically correct absurdity from Great Britain.

Firemen who shone their torches at four men they found having sex in bushes have been disciplined by their bosses.

The crew spotted the men engaged in illegal 'dogging' - outdoor sexual activity with strangers - on parkland known as the Downs in Bristol late one night.

After embarrassing the men by pointing their torches at them, the crew continued on their way to their fire station.

One would imagine that that would be the end of the incident and hardly worth mentioning -- except, someone complained that the four-man crew of Avon Fire and Rescue were homophobic. As a result, all four were suspended for three months and ...

Yesterday it emerged that two have been fined £1,000 each, another demoted to a rank which will see him forfeit a similar amount of money, while a fourth has received a stern written warning.

It is believed Avon Fire and Rescue plans to give the money raised from the fines to a gay rights charity.

Among those being considered is the Jamaican Forum for Lesbians All-Sexuals and Gays.

The crew have been transferred to other stations and ordered to attend an equality course.

Now, correct me if I'm wrong, but a torch is a flashlight, right? And the firemen aimed a flashlight on some men engaging in public sexual activity and then walked away. For that, they get suspended, demoted, transferred and fined! That's outrageous!

It's not my preference to bash the Brits but, in this case, it's warranted. You're all freakin' nuts! No person should ever be punished just because some homosexuals were embarrassed. If so, the government should be canned for embarrassing the entire population of the United Kingdom. And, whoever is in charge of Avon Fire and Rescue deserves a size 12 fireman's boot to his cushy, politically correct arse for not supporting his men.

Tip: slwlion

Companion post at The Jawa Report.

Texas Probation Officer Accused of Sex with Boy

(College Station, Texas) A 29-year-old juvenile probation officer, Sarah Celeste Farmer, surrendered to College Station Police on Monday to faces charges of sex assault of a 16-year-old boy.

Reportedly, Farmer and the boy had been engaged in a sexual relationship since January 2007, shortly after he was released from the Brazos County Juvenile Detention Center where she was a shift supervisor.

Both Farmer and the boy admitted to the relationship when interviewed by police. Farmer is no longer working as a probation officer.

Farmer faces a charge of second-degree sexual assault. She was booked and released on $5,000 bail. If convicted of the sex assault charge, Farmer faces a possible 20 years in prison.

Tip: Don Morgenstern

Hot Chili Prompts Neighborhood Evacuation

(London, England) Authorities sealed off roads and people were evacuated from the heart of London's SoHo District on Monday due to a hot chili emergency. Firefighters entered after donning special breathing masks.

[F]irefighters smashed down the door of the Thai Cottage restaurant and seized extra-hot bird's eye chilis which had been left dry-frying. It said they were being prepared as part of a batch of Nam Prik Pao, a spicy Thai dip.

"The smoke didn't go up into the sky because of the rain and the heavy air," The Times quoted Thai Cottage owner Sue Wasboonma as saying. "It's the hottest thing we make."

Nam Prik Pao, eh? Jeez, if it's that powerful before you eat it, just imagine the fireworks on the back end.

Iraq Seeking Chinese Weapons

Word from Iraqi President Jalal Talabani is that the U.S. cannot supply light military equipment expeditiously so his government will be buying Chinese arms -- $100 million worth. U.S. officials concede that delivery problems exist.

Heh. Why some Western nation can't fulfill the needs of the Iraqis is unknown. Therefore, capital will be infused into the weapons industry of a communist nation.

New York Woman Sentenced in Child Rape Case

(Lockport, New York) A 36-year-old woman from Medina in neighboring Orleans County, Sherrie L. Joy, has pleaded guilty in Niagara County Court to 3rd degree rape of 15-year-old boy.

As a result, Niagara County Judge Sara Sheldon Sperrazza sentenced Joy to six months in jail in conjunction with 10 years probation.

Interestingly, it's reported that most of the sex (all but one episode) associated with the lengthy relationship with the boy occurred in Orleans County but Joy avoided prosecution in that jurisdiction by accepting the plea deal in Niagara County. Lenient? You make the call.

Tip: Don Morgenstern

Christine Marie Johanson

The enduring cases of 37-year-old former teacher Christine Marie Johanson have finally reached their conclusions. As a reminder, Johanson faced charges for committing child sex crimes in two states, Oregon and Washington, regarding an extended term sexual relationship with a 15-year-old boy, starting in November 2006. History of cases.

In August 2007, Johanson was sentenced to six months in jail in Cowlitz County, Washington, after pleading guilty to rape.

In September 2007, Johanson pleaded guilty to rape in Columbia County, Oregon. Yesterday, a tearful and apologetic Johanson was sentenced to 360 days in the Columbia County Jail.

Her sentencing revealed new details about the case and included testimony from the victim's mother.

During the sentencing phase of her trial, which began Wednesday morning, the 15-year-old victim's mother said Johanson became involved in every part of her son's life -- school, home and church.

Arlene Keppinger said Johanson even asked if she could go with the family on their summer vacation.

The mother of a second boy said Johanson befriended her son to make the victim jealous.

In addition, the victim's therapist, Charlotte Rosen, said the boy suffered Post Traumatic Stress Disorder as a result of his relationship with Johanson.

In summary, Johanson will spend a total of about 18 months in jail for sex with a 15-year-old student.

Thousands Trapped in Gold Mine

(Carletonville, South Africa) Breaking news! Reportedly, at least 3,200 miners are trapped more than 7,000 feet below ground.

From CNN:

More than 3,000 mine workers are trapped at Harmony Gold's Elandsrand mine in Carletonville, South Africa, according to the South African Press Association.

No injuries have been reported. Carletonville is about 50 miles southwest of Johannesburg, South Africa.

The workers were trapped when a falling pipe column cut power to the lift used to hoist them to the surface, the press association said.

The mineworkers union said a water pipe burst and probably caused the shaft to collapse, The Associated Press reported.

There has been extensive damage to the steel work and the electrical feeder cords attached to the lift, according to a Harmony Gold spokesperson quoted by SAPA.

Workers above ground are trying to configure a second cage to rescue the 3,200 people who are trapped.

The lift is expected to be functioning within a couple of hours, but the cage can take only 300 workers to the surface every half hour, the spokesperson said, according to the press association.

An official with mine said the trapped workers would be evacuated over the next 24 hours, AP reported.

However, concern has been expressed about the danger of suffocation as a result of high temperatures. The temperatures range between 86 and 104 degrees Fahrenheit.


[Update 10/04/07, 1600 EDT]

CNN reports that all miners have been rescued with no major injuries.

New Mexico Woman, 30, and Boy, 8

(Las Cruces, New Mexico) A 30-year-old local woman, Michelle A. Tufts, was arrested Monday for allegedly engaging in sex with an 8-year-old boy.

According to Las Cruces Police spokesman Dan Trujillo, the boy's grandmother alerted authorities about suspicions she had regarding Tuft's relationship with the boy. Subsequently, police determined that the grandmother's suspicions were substantiated.

Tufts has been charged with two felony counts of criminal sexual penetration of a child under age of 13 and one count of contributing to the delinquency of a minor.

Tufts was booked into custody at the Dona Ana County Detention Center with bond set at $50,000.

Tip: Don Morgenstern


[Update 01/30/08]

Tufts pleads no contest.

Nevada Teacher Guilty of Meth Trafficking

(Fernley, Nevada) In March 2007, a former special-education teacher at Fernley Intermediate School, Kymberly Tamburello, was arraigned on charges of methamphetamine and marijuana possession and trafficking. Tamburello was originally charged in October 2006 after a search by authorities found significant quantities of drugs in her home.

In a related case, Kymberly's husband, Charles Tamburello, pleaded guilty to trafficking methamphetamine. In January 2007, he was sentenced to one to four years in the Nevada State Prison.

Kymberly Tamburello originally pleaded not guilty to all charges but later decided to accept a deal. This week, Tamburello, 44, pleaded guilty in the Third Judicial District Court in Yerington to trafficking methamphetamine.

Sentencing is scheduled for November 26th when Tamburello faces one to six years in the Nevada State Prison and up to a $50,000 fine.


[Update 11/29/07]

Tamburello sentenced.

Maryland Teacher Gets Jail on Drug Charge

(Montgomery County, Maryland) In February 2007, a 26-year-old teacher at Robert Frost Middle School in Rockville, Erin Jennifer Marks, was arrested for allegedly distributing cocaine and other drugs.

In July, Marks pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute a controlled dangerous substance (cocaine). Last week, Montgomery County Circuit Court Judge Paul H. Weinstein sentenced Marks, now 27, to 18 months in jail with all but nine months suspended. According to her attorney, David Felsen, Marks will serve her time as determined by the Montgomery County Department of Correction and Rehabilitation.

Montgomery County Public Schools spokesman Kate Harrison said that Marks had resigned her teaching position last April. Also, there has been no evidence that Marks distributed drugs to students.

Teen Counselor Suspended in Candy for Sex Case

(Seattle, Washington) A 39-year-old female youth counselor at the King County Youth Services Center, Flor Mari Crisostomo, has lost credentials to practice as a family therapist and registered counselor. Crisostomo is accused of trading candy and phone calls for sex with a 17-year-old male patient.

Emergency orders were announced Monday by the state Health Department indefinitely suspending Crisostomo.

Crisostomo is unable to control "her deviant sexual desires," the orders state. "A counselor that is willing to seduce a minor client should not be allowed to practice until such abhorrent behavior is explained, if such an explanation is even possible."

Crisostomo is a University of Washington counselor who has worked with juveniles at the county detention center.

No charges nor arrests have been made but the Seattle police continue to investigate.

Pennsylvania Caregiver Accused of Sex with Boy

(Ephrata, Pennsylvania) A 24-year-old psychiatric aide at Summit Quest Academy, Elizabeth Gaska, has been accused of engaging in sex with a 16-year-old male patient.

Ephrata police Lt. Chris McKim said Gaska had relations with the boy starting in May at the behavioral center and at other locations.

"Over the course of a few months, the (boy) and Gaska had several sexual contacts, (in) rooms at the facility and while they were on field trips with other patients," McKim said.

An Ephrata police detective was making arrangements with Gaska's attorney Tuesday for the suspect to turn herself in.

The third-degree felony charge was filed Tuesday. Gaska faces maximum penalties of 7 years in prison and a $15,000 fine upon conviction.

Summit Quest Academy treats male teens with behavioral problems.

Tip: Don Morgenstern

Mom Accused of Snorting Coke Off Baby's Belly

(Schenectady, New York) A 37-year-old downstreet Saratoga Springs woman, Wendy Cook, was arrested Monday by Schenectady police in a prostitution sweep.

According to Schenectady Police Lt. Brian Kilcullen, Cook offered to perform sex acts on an undercover police officer. Additionally, investigators have accused Cook of child endangerment.

Through interviews with others who had interacted with Cook near the time of her arrest, Kilcullen said investigators determined that she had performed oral sex on a pair of customers while her two children, an 8-week-old son and a 5-year-old daughter, were awake in the back seat of her car.

Authorities also allege that Cook used drugs in the car with the children, including smoking crack cocaine and using her son as a tool to ingest cocaine.

"We learned throughout our investigation that while breast-feeding, she snorted cocaine off the stomach of the infant," Kilcullen said.

Cook has been charged with first-degree reckless endangerment, five counts of first-degree endangering the welfare of a child and prostitution.

According to Dawn Constantine, senior counselor with St. Peter's Addiction Recovery, Cook has been heard to say she has thought of selling her children for money to buy drugs.

At a hearing yesterday, New York City Court Judge Vince Versaci set bail at $15,000 after Cook signed an order acknowledging that she is forbidden from having contact with her two children who were taken into protective custody of Children and Family Services before being released to family members.

Colorado Child Molester Pornographer Gets Hand Slap

(Grand Junction, Colorado) In March 2007, a 49-year-old grandmother, Debra Slaughenhaupt, was arrested for investigation of multiple counts of sexual assault, sexual exploitation of a child and child abuse.

Slaughenhaupt's arrest came after she was linked to an Internet child pornography operation involving a Toronto, Ontario, man named Matthew Hughes. Hughes apparently beguiled Slaughenhaupt into forcing two children, ages 3 and 9, to perform sexual acts on her and send webcam images of the child porn to him on the Internet. Federal agents ultimately tracked the images to Slaughenhaupt.

In June 2007, Slaughenhaupt pleaded guilty in accordance with an agreement with the prosecution to felony counts of sexual assault on a child by a person in a position of trust, sexual exploitation of a child and a misdemeanor count of child abuse.

Yesterday, Mesa County District Judge Richard Gurley sentenced Slaughenhaupt, now 50. Despite probation officials recommending four years to life in prison and indicating that Slaughenhaupt was not remorseful, Judge Gurley imposed 20 years to life probation and 15 months in jail.

Judge Gurley also prohibited Slaughenhaupt from owning or using a computer or accessing the Internet. She also can't be around children and she must undergo sex offender treatment.

Hand slap? I think so. As I understand, a child pornography conviction in federal court would have netted Slaughenhaupt many years in prison. Why the feds didn't prosecute, I don't know.

Instead, Slaughenhaupt was prosecuted locally and Judge Gurley rejected all recommendations for a term in prison. I cannot even comprehend a man receiving the same sentence for molesting children, producing child pornography and transmitting it over the Internet.

Woman Arrested for Tree House Sex with Boy

(Pickens County, South Carolina) A 34-year-old Marietta woman, Lisa Gale Stone, was arrested last Friday by Pickens County Sheriff's deputies for allegedly engaging in sex repeatedly with a 13-year-old boy in a tree house near his home.

Reportedly, Stone worked in the boy's home and has admitted to having sex with him in the tree house.

Deputies say that Stone forced the boy to have intercourse and performed oral sex on him on several occasions between September 18th and September 28th. Authorities were alerted after the boy's mother saw the two lying together.

Stone faces counts of criminal sexual conduct with a minor and committing a lewd act on a minor. She was booked into custody at the Pickens County Detention Center.

Tip: Don Morgenstern

Zimbabwe's Last White Hopes

Whittle another notch for police-state socialism. Zimbabwe's last white landowners will soon be history.

Scores of white farmers, the last survivors of President Robert Mugabe's land grab, and thousands of their black workers are going through similar agonies.

They now face the final deadline. As from today, any white farmer still on his land will be deemed to be trespassing on state property.

All agricultural land was officially nationalised last year -- with the seizure to take effect from Oct 1 this year.

In advance of this deadline, Zimbabwe's army and the Central Intelligence Organisation have been tormenting the last handful of white farmers and their workers.

About 50 have been summoned to appear at magistrates' courts. Some have surrendered their farms and homes in despair in the last few weeks.

Soldiers with automatic weapons are performing the evictions.

Meanwhile, the UN estimates that four million Zimbabweans will go hungry next year, a turnaround from the pre-Mugabe days when Zimbabwe exported food.

Across the ocean, keep an eye on Hugo Chavez as he uses the proven Mugabe (and others) methods to turn Venezuela into a police-state socialist s**thole.

Companion post at The Jawa Report.

Upstate NY Woman Gets Prison for Rape of Boy

(Glens Falls, New York) In June 2007, a 53-year-old Queensbury woman, Debra Mehnert, was arraigned in Glens Falls City Court on sex charges including the rape of a 13-year-old boy.

Upon learning of the sexual relationship, the boy's mother alerted the authorities. At the time, Mehnert reportedly admitted to the offenses.

Today it's reported that Mehnert pleaded guilty to felony second-degree rape. As a result, Warren County Judge John Hall sentenced her to a term of one to three years in prison. Mehnert will also be required to pay a $1,000 sex offender fee.

Despite having to pay a fee, it wasn't reported that Mehnert will be required to register as a sex offender.

[Note: Two spellings have been used in the reporting of this case -- Mehnert and Menhert. According to WhitePages.com, Mehnert is correct.]

GM-UAW Playing Hot Potato

Tom Blumer of BizzyBlog has put up a great post on the new General Motors/United Auto Workers contract.

For those who want to be informed enough to speak intelligently about the issue, it's a must read.

Interesting fact: While proclaiming that the union guarantees job security, UAW membership has dwindled from 246,000 in 1994 to about 74,000 today. Doing the math, the UAW has been losing members at a rate of more than 1,000 a week, every week, for the past 13 years. Some security, eh?

Go visit BizzyBlog.

Polish Women Seek Power

(Warsaw, Poland) The Polish Women's Party members are "beautiful, nude, proud," says novelist Manuela Gretkowska, the party's founder.

To attract attention, interest and new members, the party has created a poster featuring seven prominent Women's Party candidates in the nude. The seven are hoping to win seats in the October 21st parliamentary elections.

According to Gretkowska,

"This poster is intended to shatter stereotypes in the anachronistic world of politics, which is more often dominated by uncommunicative men with their black tie outfits." [ ... ]

"This is not pornography, there is nothing to see in terms of sex. Our faces are intelligent, concerned, proud."

The party has around 1,500 members with some celebrities and is intended to be a counterbalance to the ruling Law and Justice Party. Unfortunately, recent polling indicates that the Women's Party doesn't have much support.

Rather than being photographed nude, I'd suggest that overwhelming interest and support would be garnered if they campaigned in frilly nighties and resolved caucus disagreements through videotaped pillow fights.

Study: Biofuels Worse Than Fossil Fuels

Wait a minute! I thought all the details about alternative energy sources were known and settled. How could it be that corn is worse than coal?

From Spiegel Online:

A team of researchers led by Nobel-prize winning chemist Paul Crutzen has found that growing and using biofuels emits up to 70 percent more greenhouse gases than fossil fuels. They are warning that the cure could end up being worse than the disease.

[ ... ]

Crutzen is widely respected in the field of climate research, having received the Nobel Prize in 1995 for his research into the ozone layer. The study, published in the scientific journal Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics, finds that the growth and use of biofuels produced from rapeseed and maize can produce 70 percent and 50 percent more greenhouse gases respectively than fossil fuels.

How much you want to bet that the environmental socialists won't pay a lick of attention to what Crutzen reports?

Pot Festival in California

The Santa Cruz City Council lifted the local ban on smoking marijuana in public places to allow dopers to get wasted at the Wo/Men's Alliance for Medical Marijuana annual festival at Lorenzo Park on Saturday. Organizers contend the event was focused on awareness, not on using marijuana.

Police reported no problems, however, it's believed that a number of people actually used the event to surreptitiously light up a Marlboro, camouflaging their illegal behavior among groups of marijuana smokers.

Tip: slwlion