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Friday, May 01, 2015

Serial drunk driver who ‘crashed into mother and her child, 2, but was let off & kills boy, 6, two hours later

The decision to drive drunk is generally reviled in our society, and it’s because of lowlifes like this one. Blaine Boudreaux went on a drunk driving rampage, and the carnage he left in his wake left a six-year-old boy dead.

Police in Houston say a 34-year-old man got behind the wheel of his car while under the influence Sunday, leaving a path of destruction in his wake and killing two people, one of them a 6-year-old boy.

Blaine Boudreaux has been charged with intoxication manslaughter, intoxicated assault and failure to stop and render aid involving death in connection to at least three separate DUI collisions that took place within three hours in Houston.

Boudreaux, who also has an extensive DUI record in his native Louisiana, was allegedly drunk when he ran a red light on Lockwood Drive at around 6.3opm and slammed his Dodge pickup truck into a Honda Civic.

Joshua Medrano, 6, who was a passenger in the sedan, was fatally injured. His mother, Cynthia, was hospitalized with a punctured lung and broken bones.

Boudreaux was arrested at the scene after failing a field sobriety test.


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What You Won’T Hear From The Media And Gay Activists About Same-Sex ‘Marriage’

Yesterday, the Supreme Court heard what could be the defining case on whether marriage in America is legally restructured from a relationship between people of the opposite sex with an eye towards procreation to an “anything goes” system.

The media has responded as expected, with articles and reports brimming with support for changing marriage. Therefore, it is important to explicitly spell out a few realities of marriage and same-sex relationships.

Most importantly, marriage is between a man and a woman — no matter how much some wish it weren’t so. As Chief Justice John Roberts pointed out yesterday, this has been the definition for millennia, and as such allowing same-sex “marriage” does not expand marriage, but instead redefines it.

Why is marriage between a man and a woman? For starters, sexual intercourse is a reality for the survival of the human species, and lifelong marital fidelity is the best environment for procreation. Sexual relationships between people of the same sex cannot propagate the species, and even immoral child creation practices like IVF — which treats unborn children like chatteland often results in death for embryos — that are popular among same-sex couples require the reproductive assistance of both a man and a woman.

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UPDATE: SUSPECT INVOLVED WITH STABBING FIRE HOSE CHARGED

SUSPECT INVOLVED WITH STABBING FIRE HOSE CHARGED Deputy State Fire Marshals have charged Greg Bailey (22) after...

Posted by Office of the Maryland State Fire Marshal on Friday, May 1, 2015

FIRE INVESTIGATORS IN NEED OF COMMUNITY ASSISTANCE



Deputy State Fire Marshals and the Baltimore City Fire Investigation Bureau are seeking help from the public to assist with locating the individual responsible for damaging water supply fire hose during extinguishment operations at the CVS store location at W. North Avenue and Pennsylvania Avenue on Monday, April 27, 2015.

Pictures below reveal the suspect of interest that was observed in the area using a knife to stab holes in the pressurized fire hose. The individual pictured below appears to be a black male of medium build wearing a grey and red hooded sweatshirt, blue jeans and a gas mask.

The Office of the State Fire Marshal requests those living in the community and anyone passing through, to contact Metro Crime Stoppers at 410-276-8888 or the Arson Hotline at 1-800-492-7529 with any information about this incident.

One Man’s Riot

Consider the following scenarios. In Ferguson, Missouri, a young black man fights with a cop and ends up dead. In Cleveland, Ohio, cops approach a black 12- year-old with an Airsoft gun tucked in his waistband. The boy reaches for the pistol and ends up dead. In Staten Island, New York, a black man selling loose cigarettes on the street resists arrest and ends up dead. In North Charleston, South Carolina, a 50- year-old black man ends up dead after bolting from his car and allegedly attempting to take an officer’s Taser. In Baltimore, Maryland, a young black man with a switchblade in his pocket runs from the cops and ends up dead.

Each of these stories has a vital common element. Can you identify it?

If you said, “Cops all around the country are killing black men,” then you probably watched last night’s violence in Baltimore with a fair amount of sympathy for the rioters. To you, burning down your own city is a legitimate expression of rage against institutionalized racism and unrestrained police brutality. You understand why Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake said she wanted to give the rioters “space” to destroy property. To you, the indignities suffered by black men at the hands of the police have gone on too long. You nod your head in something like agreement when you hear Morehouse College professor Marc Lamont Hilltell CNN host Don Lemon: “We’ve been dying in the streets for months, years, decades, centuries. I think there can be resistance to oppression.” To you, the time for resistance has finally arrived.

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Another Thrilling Episode of Blacks Behaving Badly

My brother texted me in Florida reporting from Baltimore, our hometown. He said the thugs have gotten crazy and need to be dealt with. My nephew who is a video journalist said it was appalling witnessing local black ministers arguing over street corners for their group of protesters, jockeying for position for the TV cameras.

A friend called interrupting me watching Bizarre Foods TV show, wanting to know if I was watching the coverage of the Baltimore riots. Upon turning the channel to watch the mainstream media coverage, I had to turn the channel away from it. It was too much to stomach.

All I saw was people behaving badly; from Baltimore’s insanely liberal mayor to black talking head liberal operatives spewing idiotic excuses to domestic terrorist thugs turning the city into a war zone.

I thought, I have seen this stupid evil horror movie before (Ferguson) and I “ain’t gonna” watch it again.

The media is reporting that some black leaders are calling for peace. Well, I am sorry, but that is too little too late. How do you expect black youths to react to the Left’s orchestrated campaign to convince them that white Republicans and conservatives are racist and out to get them; white cops murder them at will, the rich got rich stealing from them and business owners are selfish and evil?

These lies have been sold to black youths by the highest black voices in the country – Obama, Oprah, Democrats, Sharpton, Holder, Jackson, the NAACP, the Congressional Black Caucus and assorted other race exploiting scumbags. If I sound angry it is because I am.

What was that mantra George’s dad on Seinfeld used to keep calm? Oh yeah, he said, “Serenity now! Serenity now!”

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Developer Vow To Rebuild Senior Housing Cntr. Torched In Baltimore

BALTIMORE (WJZ)–As our city tries to move on from Monday’s riots–WJZ revisits North Chester Street where a huge fire caused major damage.

Amy Yensi has the latest.

Days later the smell of smoke fills the air. The burned rubble and debris that represent the height of the violence and destruction–for some, now a symbol of hope.

Broken bricks and metal slabs–the skeletal remains of what would have been a senior housing facility for the Southern Baptist Church.

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Catholic Archbishop: SCOTUS Has ‘No Business Redefining Marriage'

(CNSNews.com) – Archbishop William Lori of Baltimore, chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Ad Hoc Committee on Religious Liberty, said that people should hope and pray “that the Supreme Court will recognize that they have no business redefining marriage” in the upcoming same sex “marriage” case, adding that if marriage is redefined “it raises enormous religious freedom issues.”

He also explained that the Catholic Church’s teaching on marriage as being between one man and one woman will never change because it is defined by God Himself in the Bible and that the Scripture “begins with marriage and ends with marriage,” in reference to not only man and woman but also the relationship between Christ and His Church.

At the March for Marriage on Saturday in Washington, D.C., CNSNews.com asked Archbp. Lori, “The Supreme Court is having oral arguments coming up and a decision will be coming down in June on this -- what is it going to look like for you and the Church if that decision favors same-sex marriage?”

Archbp. Lori said, “Let's hope and pray that they will, that the Supreme Court will recognize that they have no business redefining marriage, that really when you take, when you redefine marriage as many people want to do today it becomes more a relationship of affection, an emotional relationship.”

“Government should have no interest in that,” he said. “Friendships between people should not be of any particular interest to the government -- bringing children into the world and having good homes for them and new citizens, that's something they should be interested in.”

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5-year-old's adorable 911 call saves diabetic mom's life

AURORA, Colo. (ABC News) -- Aydhun Byars may be only five years old, but he saved his mom's life this week.

Aydhun, who has a medical condition that affects his hands, dialed 911 when his mom went into diabetic shock on Monday.

Although he didn't know his address, he eventually got the help his mom needed.

"I don't know what mom is doing, but I need someone's help," he told the 911 operator, who tried to help him figure out his address for several minutes. "I don't know what apartment we live in, and I'm not tall enough to reach the doorknob."

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In 1 in 5 Families in U.S., No One Works

(CNSNews.com) -- In 19.9 percent of American families in 2014, according to data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), no one in the family worked.

A family, as defined by the BLS, is a “group of two or more persons residing together who are related by birth, marriage, or adoption. In 2014, there were 80,889,000 families in the United States, and in 16,057,000 of those families, or 19.9 percent, no one had a job.

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Oscar Mayer Wienermobile spotted in Rehoboth

Visitors of downtown Rehoboth Beach April 29 were greeted by one of the most recognizable vehicles in history – the Oscar Mayer Wienermobile.

Parked across three parking spaces on Rehoboth Avenue near the intersection with Second Street, the vehicle shaped like a hot dog on a bun attracted a lot of attention.

No Oscar Mayer representatives were with the vehicle about 3 p.m., so the reason the Wienermobile was in the Cape Region is unknown.

According to Oscar Mayer's website, the vehicle that visited Rehoboth is one of six Wienermobiles traveling across the country. The first Wienermobile was created by Carl Mayer in 1936.

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'White Privilege' Is Not What Is Holding Blacks Back Today

The death of Freddie Gray in Baltimore is just one more example of “white supremacy” to the mob in the street – but is it really?

First, let’s look at what white supremacy is understood to be: the belief, theory, or doctrine that white people are inherently superior to other racial groups and therefore should politically, economically and socially rule non-whites.

This is said to go back to America’s founding – whites made blacks slaves, abused Native Americans and Christianized (how horrible!) racial minorities.

Whites had historical advantages that lasted well beyond slavery into Jim Crow and supposedly even now, say strident black activists. This translated into better educational and economic opportunities as well as the transfer of generational wealth.
There is certainly truth in this, but two points must be made:

None of this history explains the crime and rampant immorality that permeates the black community today. Even though blacks had it tough during Jim Crow, black families were intact and crime was relatively low, because blacks then, for the most part, were a moral people. Today the overall American illegitimacy rate is about 33 percent (26 percent for whites). For blacks, it’s over 70 percent – approximately three times the level of black out of wedlock births that existed when the War on Poverty began in 1964!

This is 2015, people! Since Lyndon B. Johnson’s “War on Poverty” began there has been a massive wealth transfer to black Americans in the form of welfare and other handouts. And affirmative action, designed to grant special consideration to minorities and women in employment and education, has given blacks unprecedented advantages. Today it’s safe to say that if “white privilege” (which supposedly flows from “white supremacy”) were weighed against “black privilege,” there’s really no comparison. And the above advantages don’t even scratch the surface of the social advantages of being black today.


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Statement From Governor Larry Hogan

ANNAPOLIS, MD – Governor Larry Hogan today released the following statement:

"For the safety and well-being of all Baltimore residents, I strongly urge everyone to continue to conduct themselves in a peaceful manner in the days ahead. The last week has been very difficult for the people of Baltimore and emotions are still running high following the indictments issued this morning by State’s Attorney Mosby. I believe in the criminal justice system, and we will all see this process play out over the coming months.

"I also want to thank the Baltimore residents who kept their protests calm and nonviolent over the last several days, including community leaders who worked to keep the peace in their neighborhoods. The incredibly hardworking men and women in the National Guard and State Police, as well as police and firefighters from Baltimore and the surrounding states and counties, deserve our thanks for their tireless efforts in protecting our citizens."

Black Assailant Stabs White Female Houston Cop in ‘Revenge for Baltimore’

A female Houston police officer miraculously survived an brutal assassination attempt after being stabbed by her assailant 14 times in a reported racial “revenge” attack in retaliation for the death of Freddy Gray in Baltimore.

The officer was saved by civilians who stepped in and stopped the attacker. The attacker told investigators he did this to get back at police for their “brutality”.

A spokesman from the family said it was “related to the Baltimore riots”.

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Cable Box Swiped To Watch Wrestling

OCEAN CITY — An Ocean City man was arrested on first-degree burglary and other charges this week after allegedly breaking into a vacant seasonal residence in the resort and swiping a cable box before running up hundreds of dollars in pay-per-view programs including professional wrestling.

On April 11, an OCPD officer was dispatched to a residence on 146th Street for a reported breaking and entering that had already occurred. The officer met with the victim, who advised police he had not been in his residence since mid-December and had returned for the first time this year on April 3. The victim told police upon his return he found two containers of change, totaling roughly $280, were missing along with one of the unit’s three cable television boxes.

The victim told police a screen in a spare back bedroom window had been removed and a light in the room had been left on. The victim told police he paid the reduced monthly rate of $11.72 for cable because his unit was only seasonally active. However, the last cable bill he received for the seasonal unit came to $465.56. When the victim saw the high balance, he contacted Comcast, which informed him the only way his account could be charged was through his cable box registered to his address and through his cable wires. Comcast cancelled the victim’s account after another mysterious charge appeared April 8.

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'Death to All White Cops' Facebook Post Leads to Quick Arrest

According to WSB-TV, a 33-year old East Point, Ga. mother accused of making serious threats against police officers on her Facebook page is in jail.

The FBI, Homeland Security, the District Attorney’s office and the New York Police Department assisted East Point police with Ebony Dickens’ arrest.

Dickens is accused of writing a Facebook post Monday using the name Tiffany Milan in which she called for "death to all white cops nationwide."

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Pregnant Popeye's worker fired after robbery threatens to sue

CHANNELVIEW, Texas - A pregnant manager at a Houston-area Popeye's who says she was fired after a robbery is demanding $5.5 million from the fast-food chain for emotional distress.

Marissa Holcomb's attorney tells CBS affiliate KHOU they are giving Popeye's and the local franchise, Z&H Foods, 30 days to respond or they plan to file a lawsuit.

Holcomb says she was fired after a March 31 robbery at a Popeye's in Channelview for not paying back $400 stolen by a gunman.

The franchise owner says Holcomb, who was a shift manager, broke policy by leaving too much cash in the register.

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Gallup: Less Than 1% of Adult Population Part of a Same-Sex Couple

According to a recent Gallup survey, of the total U.S. adult population (approximately 243 million U.S. adults), less than 1 percent, only .8 percent (approximately 2 million U.S. adults), are part of a same-sex couple.

The same survey finds that approximately .3 percent (.3%) of U.S. adults are married to a same-sex spouse, a mere .5 percent (.5%) identify as being in a same-sex domestic partnership and, of the estimated .8 percent (.8%) of the total U.S. adult population that are a part of a same-sex couple, 780,000 are married. In other words, of the estimated 2 million adults that are a part of a same-sex couple, 39 percent (39%) are married.

Gallup’s survey also has statistics for “All others.” “All others” account for the estimated 241,000,000 U.S. adults (99.2%) that are not either married with a same-sex spouse or unmarried and living with a same-sex domestic partner.

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SHA IMPROVES PEDESTRIAN SAFETY AND RIDE QUALITY ALONG BALTIMORE AVENUE IN OCEAN CITY


Motorists will Encounter Daily Single Lane Closures through mid-May

(April 30, 2015) – Moving forward with pedestrian and pavement improvements in advance of the busy vacation season, the Maryland Department of Transportation’s State Highway Administration (SHA) is completing pedestrian safety improvements on MD 378 (Baltimore Avenue) between 9th and 15th streets.

Crews started in early March by installing “bump-outs,” which are areas that extend into the road or median and “calm” or slow down motorists. Additionally, the bump-out provides a shorter distance for pedestrians to cross.

Beginning Monday, May 4, SHA and its contractor, American Infrastructure of Fallston, will mill (remove the top layer of asphalt), resurface and restripe the same section of Baltimore Avenue. The entire $165,000 project should be complete by mid-May.

Obama: We've seen police-related deaths 'too often now'

The Baltimore riots show that police departments must hold officers accountable for wrongdoing, President Obama said Wednesday.

Obama told Steve Harvey on his morning show that though he supports the Baltimore police officers injured by rioters — adding that there is no excuse for that kind of violence — police departments need to work on accountability and transparency in order to build more trust in minority communities.

"It's in their interest to root out folks who aren't doing the right thing, to hold accountable people when they do something wrong, instead of just the closing-ranks approach that all too often we see that ends up just feeding greater frustration and ultimately, I think, putting more police officers in danger," Obama said. The interview was taped Tuesday and broadcast on radio stations nationwide Wednesday morning.

Retraining police and providing them with body cameras isn't going to be the end-all-be-all solution, he said. Issues like poor education, drugs, absent fathers and limited job opportunities need to be addressed.

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Ever wonder what happens to teachers when the bell rings for summer....????

Ever wonder what happens to teachers when the bell rings for summer....???? Watch this.....

Posted by Amy Abbott Skipper on Friday, June 6, 2014

A fine line between bullying and free speech

In her response to news that the man she accused of sexual assault was suing their university over the way it — and she — harassed him after he was exonerated, Emma Sulkowicz claimed that what she was doing was art.

"[It's] ridiculous that he would read it as a 'bullying strategy,' especially given his continued public attempts to smear my reputation, when really it's just an artistic expression of the personal trauma I've experienced at Columbia," Sulkowicz told the Associated Press.

In her mind, it seemed, carrying a mattress around Columbia University, giving interview after interview and allowing his name to be published as an unpunished rapist, constituted her free speech. When Paul Nungesser tried to defend himself from the relentless accusation — which both Columbia University and New York police found to be without merit — that was bullying.

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FDA approves California company's drug to reduce double-chin fat

LOS ANGELES — The Food and Drug Administration has approved a Westlake Village company's injectable drug as a treatment to reduce double-chin fat in adults.

Kythera Biopharmaceuticals Inc. said in a news release that injections of the drug have been shown in clinical studies to be safe and effective in reducing fat under the chin.

It will sell the drug under the brand name Kybella. The company plans to launch the drug this summer through physicians who complete a training program.

"For the first time, people have access to an FDA-approved, non-surgical treatment" for double chins, said Keith Leonard, chief executive of Kythera.

In an interview with the Los Angeles Times in 2013, Leonard said he thought the drug could eventually generate more than $500 million in annual sales.

"We really think we're going to be the next big thing in aesthetics," he said.

Kythera's stock fell $2.05, or 4.3 percent, to $45.59. The FDA approval had been widely expected.

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Amid Concerns About Vaccine Adherence, Rubella Declared Eliminated

Effective vaccination programs mean German measles are no longer considered a threat in the Americas.

An outbreak of measles this winter that originated at Disneyland in Anaheim, California, sparked a backlash among Americans incredulous that pockets of children and adults were not being vaccinated. Government health officials reminded the public that repeated research had shown the vaccine against the virus was safe and effective. Until 2014, measles had been declared eradicated for more than a decade thanks to vaccine policies that mandated children get their shots.

Further proof of the effectiveness of vaccines came to light Wednesday, when the World Health Organization announced that another illness has been eradicated that also is prevented by the vaccine that shields from measles: Rubella, sometimes called German measles, has been declared eliminated in North and South America – encompassing 45 countries and territories.

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Could genetically-engineered humans become a reality?

Science is closer to creating genetically engineered human beings, and the advances in technology are sparking ethical arguments over making "a new kind of person."

The National Institutes of Health said Wednesday it would not fund any research into the gene editing of human embryos. The decision comes after Chinese researchers announced last week results from the first study to edit human embryo genes.

Gene editing, as the term implies, enables a scientist to cut DNA from a genome and insert it into another genome.

Theoretically an edited human embryo could then be implanted in a woman's uterus.

The goal is to edit the group of cells called the germline that could hand down diseases from one generation to the next. Researchers hope to prevent inherited diseases such as cystic fibrosis or sickle cell anemia from being passed on from a parent to a child.

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Tighter Rules Proposed For OC Street Performers; Rotating Schedule Eyed For Congested Areas

OCEAN CITY – With the Boardwalk Task Force’s recommendations regarding street performers in hand, the Mayor and City Council will next meet with the town’s First Amendment counsel to discuss how strict the changes can be without breaking the law.

The Town of Ocean City has been struggling with the proliferation of street performers on the Boardwalk for several years. Issues have grown as the number of performers increase every year and the acts diversify from spray paint fumes to costumed characters to a pole dancer. However, court rulings in recent years protecting street performer’s First Amendment rights have prevented the town from strictly regulating the acts on the Boardwalk.

In the beginning of the year, the Boardwalk Task Force was created to specifically look into these concerns. Membership consisted of Chair Greg Shockley, owner of Shenanigan’s on the Boardwalk and Ocean City Development Corporation board member; Frank Knight, representing the Boardwalk Development Committee; Lee Gerachis, owner of Malibu’s Surf Shop on the Boardwalk; Bob Rothermel, representing the Downtown Association; and street performer Mark Chase.

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The 5 wackiest media comments on the Baltimore riot

Newsrooms began the week by dedicating an enormous amount of space to the gala White House Correspondents Dinner, but they had to shift gears after riots broke out just an hour from the nation's capital.

The Baltimore protests went from peaceful to violent to peaceful again, and reporters long accustomed to giving little thought to Charm City were forced to play play catch-up.

However, even as a spectacular but non-lethal riot broke out early Monday, newsrooms were still fascinated with the glitzy Saturday night dinner — also known as "Nerd Prom" — which dominated coverage right up until the heaviest day of domestic disturbances.

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White House stands by Obama's use of term 'thugs'

The White House is standing by President Obama’s use of the word “thugs” to describe people rioting in Baltimore.

“I don’t think the president would in any way revise the remarks he shared with you,” White House press secretary Josh Earnest told reporters on Wednesday.

“Whether it was arson or the looting of a liquor store — those were thuggish acts.”

The president on Tuesday denounced the actions of “criminals and thugs” who he said were exploiting the death of Freddie Gray. During a radio interview Wednesday morning, the president refrained from using the term.

Critics say the term is racially charged. Baltimore City Council member Carl Stokessaid Tuesday that those who describe the young rioters as “thugs” should just call them the n-word.

Baltimore Mayor Stephanie-Rawlings Blake (D) on Wednesday took back her use of “thug” to describe demonstrators in her city.

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Women want sex before bed while men want it in the morning, study finds

They say women are from Venus and men are from Mars – but a new sex survey suggests that members of the opposite sex seem to operate in different time zones too.

While women like to get steamy between 11:21pm on average, men are more likely to be turned on at the rather inconvenient time of 7:54am.

These times fall into the broader timeslots of 11pm and 2am for women, and 6am and 9am for men.

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Trans woman arrested in Baltimore riots, jailed among men

A transgender woman collared among the multitude of rioters during Baltimore's chaotic unrest on Monday is being detained in men's quarters at the city jail, a defense attorney that oversaw the woman’s bail hearing says.

Deairra Venable was forced to go braless when she appeared before a judge on Wednesday on misdemeanor burglary charges, attorney Mirriam Seddiq told the Daily News.

“They took away her bra. You can see she has breasts,” Seddiq said. “She’s a woman.”

A glass panel separated Venable from one of Seddiq’s attorneys on Thursday evening. The two spoke of the other inmates “ogling” at her naked body through a small window after being told to strip for an intake search.

The guards are “taunting” her, too, Venable has claimed. Because of Maryland’s state of emergency, the correctional guards overseeing her time in custody can apparently get away with mistreatment.

“The whole situation is degrading,” one of the firm’s four attorneys, Astrid Munn, told The News.

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FATHER SAYS COP SHOT MENTALLY ILL SON 11 TIMES

Suit says police knew man was mentally ill and 'had not engaged in any criminal or violent act'

A Texas sheriff’s deputy shot a schizophrenic suicidal man 11 times and killed him “execution style” while the man was being hit with a Taser, the man’s father claims in court.

Darrell Turk sued four Fort Bend County sheriff’s deputies for the estate of his son Michael Blair in Federal Court.

Fort Bend County is part of Greater Houston.

Turk says his family member called 911 on Nov. 4, 2013 and told the dispatcher Blair had locked himself in the family home’s bathroom and was contemplating suicide.

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Clinton Charities Raked in Millions of Taxpayer Dollars

The Clinton Foundation and its major health charity have raked in more than $7 million from the U.S. government in recent years, according to an analysis of public records conducted by the Washington Free Beacon.

The Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI), chaired by Bill Clinton and run by the former president’s long-time associate Ira Magaziner, has received $6,010,898 from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) since 2010. CHAI, the biggest arm of the Clinton family’s charitable efforts, accounting for 60 percent of all spending, received $3,193,500 in fiscal years 2010, 2011, and 2012, according to federal contracts, during Hillary Clinton’s tenure as secretary of state. The organization received an additional $2,817,398 from the CDC in FYs 2013, 2014, and 2015.

The grants, including $200,000 awarded as recently as January, have gone to CHAI’s Global AIDS program, and are filed under “Global Health and Child Survival.” The CDC is listed as a $1 to $10 million contributor to CHAI, according to its donor list released earlier this month.

The Boston-based health arm of the Clinton Foundation has come under scrutiny for failing to disclose donations from foreign governments—in violation of a pledge Clinton made to the Obama administration before she assumed office as secretary of state.

A Reuters report found that the health initiative stopped making its annual disclosure in 2010 and that “no complete list of donors to the Clintons’ charities has been published” since. The group only recently published a partial donor list, which its spokesperson Maura Daley told Reuters “made up for” CHAI’s “oversight” of failing to meet the disclosure agreement.

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Baltimore State Attorney Marilyn Mosby: Officers charged in death of Freddie Gray

All six Baltimore police officers involved in the arrest of Freddie Gray have been criminally charged, Baltimore State Attorney Marilyn Mosby said Friday at a press conference. Warrants have been issued for their arrest. Mosby’s announcement was met with cheers from those in attendance.

Gray, a 25-year-old black man, died April 19 of a severe spinal cord injury while in police custody. Gray was arrested on April 12. Officials have ruled his death a homicide. Gray was not secured in a seat belt after he was placed in a police van following his arrest, according to police. He “should have received medical attention and did not,” Deputy Commissioner Kevin Davis said last Friday.

Office Caesar Goodson faces the most severe charge, second-degree depraved heart murder, which carries a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison. Other charges include manslaughter and second-degree assault. A full list of the officers’ names and charges is below.

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Freddie Gray death ruled homicide; officers charged

Six police officers have been charged in the death of Freddie Gray, Baltimore State's Attorney Marilyn Mosby said Friday. One officer -- the driver of the police van -- has been charged with several counts, including second-degree depraved-heart murder. Another officer has been charged with several counts, including manslaughter and involuntary manslaughter. Two other officers have been charged with several counts, including involuntary manslaughter. An additional two officers are charged with several counts, including second-degree assault.

[Breaking news update at 11:01 a.m.]

A warrant has been issued for the arrest of six officers involved in the death of Freddie Gray, Baltimore City State's Attorney Marilyn Mosby said.

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CONGRESSMAN ANDY HARRIS PRAISES NIH FOR STRATEGIC PLAN

WASHINGTON, DC: Congressman Andy Harris, M.D. (MD-01), the only physician member of Congress to have conducted research funded by the NIH, praised the testimony by National Institutes of Health (NIH) Director Francis Collins today announcing that they will be performing an NIH-wide strategic planning and portfolio analysis. Dr. Harris, through both House Appropriations bill language and the House Energy and Commerce 21st Century Cures Discussion draft, has been urging the NIH to take this action.

“Dr. Collins deserves credit for listening to the will of Congress and preparing a strategic plan. The NIH receives nearly thirty billion dollars a year, and yet it has had no NIH-wide strategic plan,” said Dr. Harris. “As we look for ways to fund more biomedical research, Congress needs to know the NIH is wisely spending the money it currently receives. I look forward to working with Dr. Collins and his team on developing a structure for the strategic plan and seeing the results of his work.”

Congressman Harris, a member of the Appropriations subcommittee that determines NIH funding, performed research into fetal cerebral blood flow while on the faculty at the Johns Hopkins Hospital.

No, Riots Are Not a 'Legitimate Political Strategy'

Reading the liberal media, you’d think the Baltimore rioters are the reincarnation of Lexington and Concord’s minutemen, bravely facing tyrants to defend their freedom. Well, Paul Revere might disagree. Somehow, ruining businesses and running off with condoms doesn’t quite equate to Patrick Henry’s speech “Give me Liberty or give me death.”

But the Left wants America to think it does.

A particularly absurd Salon headline this week reads, “Baltimore’s violent protesters are right: Smashing police cars is a legitimate political strategy.” The author’s argument is that non-violence is “a tactic, not a philosophy” and that black communities are struggling against “premeditated economic exploitation.” Riots are simply “reasonable responses to generations of extreme state violence, and logical decisions about what kind of actions yield the desired political results.”

According to Fordham University sociology professor Heather Gautney, “Riots like the ones we are seeing in Baltimore … should be viewed as rational responses to injustice. Riots highlight the injustice and violence that’s prevalent in impoverished neighborhoods in this country.”

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Vietnam War 40 years on, enemies now friends but still pain

HO CHI MINH CITY, Vietnam — This city once known as Saigon was blanketed in red banners on Thursday that read "Long Live the Glorious Communist Party of Vietnam," 40 years after northern forces seized control of the country and America walked away from a divisive and bloody war that remains a painful sore.

Thousands of Vietnamese, including war veterans in uniforms heavy with medals, lined up to watch goose-stepping soldiers and traditional performers parade through the streets of what is now Ho Chi Minh City.

On April 30, 1975, North Vietnamese tanks rolled into Saigon, then the capital of South Vietnam. They crashed through the gates of the presidential palace and hoisted the communist flag. It was an incredible victory for the revolutionary forces that had waged guerrilla warfare for more than a decade against the better equipped U.S., and before that against the French colonialists.

"The tank crashing the gates ... was a symbol of victory for the Vietnamese nation and the Vietnamese People's Army, marking the end of the 30 years of national resistance against the French and then the Americans," said Nguyen Van Tap, 64, who drove Tank 390 through the iron bars and reunited with members of his company Wednesday.

And even after four decades, he said, the winners who fought for the north should be given priority and privileges over those who were branded traitors for siding with the south.

"For the Vietnamese," he said, "April 30 is a day of festivities and national reunification."

For the U.S. and its South Vietnamese allies, the day was one of panic, chaos and defeat known simply as the fall of Saigon.

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Brace Yourself for More Baltimores

The sad scenes playing out in Baltimore are made sadder by the fact that more such incidents are likely over the coming years.

That’s because the problems in Baltimore did not begin with the arrest and death of Freddie Gray. Tensions have been building for a very long time. Other cities from coast to coast have similar tensions ready to boil over.

Some tensions are common to all cities — pockets of economic devastation, laws that are enforced more strictly in some parts of town than others, bad apples among the police, thugs in the community and more.

Some are specific to each city. In Baltimore, the tensions became apparent more than a decade ago when the city inadvertently assumed a prominent role in the Stop Snitchin’ movement. Before that, in 2002, a Baltimore woman and her entire family were murdered after alerting police to illegal activities in her neighborhood.

The good news is that there are people on all sides in this tough situation who want to heal their cities. The bad news is that most people — and certainly most media coverage — are focused on who to blame. In the blame game, people from different walks of life see what they want to see.

Some see oppressive and racist police. Others see criminal thugs looking to destroy and steal.

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This 'Radical' Republican President Righted Wrongs

Born April 27, 1822, into a Methodist family in Ohio, Ulysses Grant was nominated at age 17 for a position at West Point by Congressman Thomas Hamer, who mistakenly added the middle initial “S” to his name.

When the Civil War began, Grant responded to the call for volunteers. He was quickly promoted to brigadier general and captured Fort Henry and Fort Donelson, gaining the nickname “Unconditional Surrender” Grant. When Grant captured Vicksburg, it gave control of the Mississippi to the Union and split the Confederacy. Lincoln made him commanding general of the United States Army.

Grant ended the Civil War at Appomattox, saying: “The war is over. The Rebels are again our countrymen.”

Five days later Lincoln was shot by John Wilkes Booth, April 14, 1865.

In 1868, Grant was elected the 18th U.S. president.

Considered a radical Republican, Grant worked to end the Democrat policies of racial discrimination in the South, fought the Klu Klux Klan and supported the 15th Amendment guaranteeing freed slaves the right to vote.

Grant stated in his second inaugural address, March 4, 1873: “Under Providence I have been called a second time to act as Executive over this great nation. … The effects of the late civil strife have been to free the slave and make him a citizen. Yet he is not possessed of the civil rights which citizenship should carry with it. This is wrong, and should be corrected. To this correction I stand committed.”

Grant ended the Democrat policy of Indian removal. He appointed the first Native American to serve as commissioner of Indian Affairs, Ely S. Parker of the Seneca tribe.

Read more here

Massive Great White Pings Off Assateague Coast

ASSATEAGUE — A satellite tracker on a massive great white shark pinged just off the coast of Assateague early Thursday morning, becoming the latest tagged big shark to make its presence known in the resort area.

In September 2012, OCEARCH, a research organization that tracks the movements of big sharks all over the world, tagged a 16-foot, 3,500-pound-plus mature female great white off the coast of Cape Cod. The shark, named “Mary Lee,” was fitted with a satellite tag that allows researchers to track her movements, migration habits and feeding habits in order to gain a better understanding of the largely misunderstood creatures.

Since being tagged in September 2012, Mary Lee has traveled some 19,000-plus miles from the New England coast to the northern Caribbean and beyond. Early Thursday morning, the massive great white reportedly cruised by just off the coast of Assateague.

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Can't Get A Job Because Of A Criminal Record? A Lawsuit Is Trying To Change That

Outside an apartment building on Broad Street, along the county line in Philadelphia, birds outnumber the rush-hour traffic.

"It's nice and quiet compared to other neighborhoods which I lived in," said Tyrone Peake, 52.

In 1981, when he was just 18, Peake was arrested with a friend for trying to steal a car to take a girl home after a long weekend.

"No, we never got the car," Peake said. "We broke the ignition column and then the cops came."

Peake couldn't even drive back then. He says he was just along for the ride. He never went to prison. Instead, he got probation. But that single charge years ago still haunts him, sometimes even after he's gotten work.

One in four Americans has a criminal record that will show up on a routine background check. Those black marks can slam the door to employment in fast-growing sectors of the economy — even if the convictions are for minor offenses and decades old.

A new lawsuit in Pennsylvania is trying to change that.

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Michael Moore calls for full disarmament of police, wants prisons cleared

Michael Moore turned to Twitter Thursday morning to voice his demands to society in the wake of civil unrest in Baltimore

Michael Moore turned to Twitter Thursday morning to voice his demands to society in the wake of civil unrest in Baltimore.

“Imprison u, shoot u, sever your spine, crush your larynx, send u to war, keep u poor, call u a thug, not let u vote. But u can sing for us,” the controversial film director tweeted to his 1.83 million followers.

He went on to demand that all African-Americans currently incarcerated for non-violent or drug crimes to be released immediately. “I don’t believe 50% of them did what they’re accused of,” he said. “Lies. Greed. A modern day slave system.”

“Poor whites 2,” he added.

He also called for the disarmament of all police, claiming that privately owned guns will work just as well among citizens “til the right cops r hired.”

“Local cops now militarized. Founding Fathers said NO army policing on our soil. Why do cops have tanks? Oh, right – the Enemy: The Black Man,” he concluded.

The director’s tweets are in reaction to the recent case of Freddie Gray in Baltimore, who died a week after his arrest from a severed spinal cord allegedly sustained while in custody.

A federal investigation is still underway regarding the 25-year-old’s death while citizens wait impatiently for answers.

Copyright 2015 United Press International, Inc. (UPI). Any reproduction, republication, redistribution and/or modification of any UPI content is expressly prohibited without UPI’s prior written consent.

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What A Week Its Been On SBYNews

I'm going to start by welcoming the many thousands of new people that have been visiting Salisbury News this past week. We've enjoyed record numbers each and every day and we certainly appreciate that very much.

I'd like to remind all of our viewers that we have certain policies when it comes to comments. Considering what is going on in Baltimore we've experienced thousands of racial comments as well as curse words and that simply will not be tolerated here. 

To our regulars, come on people, you know better. If you want to waste your time writing comments you know are going to be rejected, so be it. However, we do read each and every one of them and while we thank you for the laughs at you at times, you will be rejected.

As for this weekend, expect a busy day today and tomorrow post wise. Have a great weekend! 

Baltimore mayor defends absence at protests

Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake (D) in an interview Thursday defended her decision not to personally go and calm angry crowds in the city’s streets.

“I know that my presence can be a calming presence and can be a flashpoint,” she said on CNN’s “New Day.”

“I’m not going to risk inserting myself — you know, it might look good to some people — but I’m not going to insert myself in a situation that we know is potentially hostile and very fragile when I have leaders like Elijah Cummings and Senator Pugh who are willing to stand in and do that work that needs to be done,” she said.

Some elected officials, including Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.), have been a presence among protesters — looking to convince residents to obey a curfew that took effect on Tuesday night. Rawlings-Blake said that “everybody has their role and their place to bring peace in our community.”

“There are a lot of moving pieces, there’s a lot of work that needs to be done operationally, and I’m doing that role,” she added. “I can’t be eight different places at one time.”

The mayor has been visible at media briefings during protests in the city over the way the police department treats minority communities. Those protests were sparked by the death of Freddie Gray, a 25-year-old black man who sustained a fatal spinal injury while in police custody.

Most of the protests have been peaceful, but on Monday there were riots that saw residents burn cars and buildings over the course of the afternoon and evening.

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COP TICKETED FOR PARKING IN HANDICAP SPOT

"Thank You for being transparent and holding him accountable!"

Citizens are applauding after a police department in Wisconsin held one of their own accountable.

Earlier this week, a Monroe officer received unwanted attention when he was photographed parking his cruiser in a handicap spot at a Kwik Trip convenience store.

The photo made its rounds on social media and eventually made its way back to the department which, along with various complaints, prompted them to investigate the incident.

In an update today, police said their investigation found the officer in question violated the law and would be issued a parking ticket, “the same parking ticket that would have been issued to anyone else that had parked in a handicapped stall without handicapped status.”

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Michigan Proposes Bill to Require Official Visits to Parents Homeschooling Their Children

Will require two annual home inspections and official state registration

The busybodies in Michigan have proposed a new bill directed at children who are homeschooled, which will require two annual home inspections and official state registration.

Stephanie Chang, a Michigan State Representative, is worried that homeschool parents will abuse their children while no one is watching. Apparently, the state wants to be the sole authority on child abuse; including indoctrination, a daily statist pledge for 5-year-olds, and the distribution of criminal records to teens who decide to smoke a plant.

Like dogs and sex offenders, the state wants children registered. As a result, thousands of decent and caring homeschool parents may soon be forced to allow an inspection of their family or be in violation of the law.

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Whistleblower Targeted for Exposing UN Troops Raping Children

United Nations “peacekeeping” troops deployed on a UN “peace” mission in the Central African Republic were systematically raping and sexually exploiting starving young children, according to a leaked internal report that the global organization was seeking to conceal. Because UN leadership failed to take action against their soldiers’ widespread sexual abuse of children — some of whom were less than 10 years old — an aid worker with the organization in the war-torn African nation handed the document to French authorities. As hasbecome the norm when UN military forces are exposed raping, abusing, and murderingthe populations they are ostensibly supposed to “protect,” the UN responded to the leak by suspending the whistleblower from his post and trying to cover it all up rather than dealing with the savagery.

On April 29, though, despite the ham-handed effort to quash the news, the explosive UN report documenting the organization’s crimes was making headlines around the world after first being reported by the U.K.Guardian. According to the British newspaper, which cited sources close to the case and other information, the whistleblower who first alerted French authorities about the problem was Anders Kompass. The Geneva-based director of field operations for UN programs, a Swede working in humanitarian missions for three decades, was reportedly suspended from his post and is now being investigated by the UN Office for Internal Oversight Service (OIOS). He could be fired for leaking the material, and the official inquiry of his case is “severely restricted,” according to reports.

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Jeffrey Dahmer's Killer Speaks Out

It’s been 20 years since cannibal killer Jeffrey Dahmer was fatally beaten in Wisconsin’s Columbia Correctional Institution. Now, Christopher Scarver, the man responsible for Dahmer’s 1994 death, has spoken out for the first time in an interview with the New York Post published Tuesday.

Scarver, 45, developed a deep disdain for Dahmer after he entered prison in 1992. “He crossed the line with some people -- prisoners, prison staff," Scarver told the Post. "Some people who are in prison are repentant -- but he was not one of them.”

Dahmer, known as the Milwaukee Cannibal, was imprisoned after he raped, murdered and dismembered 17 men and boys between 1978 and 1991. Some of his murders also involved cannibalism and necrophilia. These acts deeply disgusted Scarver, who was convicted of murder after he killed his former boss during a robbery. He even carried a newspaper article about Dahmer’s crimes.

On the day Scarver killed Dahmer and another inmate, Jesse Anderson, one of them had nudged him in the back. “I turned around, and [Dahmer] and Jesse were kind of laughing under their breath,” Scarver said. “I looked right into their eyes, and I couldn’t tell which had done it.”

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Are We Being Psychologically Conditioned To Accept Martial Law In America?

Have you noticed that we are starting to be bombarded with images of troops in the streets? Have you noticed that the term “martial law” is coming up a lot in movies, news broadcasts and even in television commercials? In recent years, it seems like the solution to almost every major crisis involves bringing in troops. In fact, it has already gotten to the point where when something really bad happens a lot of Americans immediately cry out for troops to be brought in. And we are seeing the same patterns over and over again. Just remember what happened in Ferguson – protesters were whipped up to a frenzy, when the riots began the police were ordered to stand down and not intervene, and finally National Guard troops were brought in as the “solution” to a crisis that had escalated wildly out of control. This is the exact same pattern that we are witnessing in Baltimore, and as you will see below, National Guard troops all over the nation have been training for this exact type of scenario. A couple of decades ago, many Americans would have regarded the notion of “martial law in America” as absolutely unthinkable, but these days the threat of civil unrest is causing an increasing number of Americans to embrace the idea of troops patrolling our city streets.

The anger toward the police that we see in the city of Baltimore is very real, but there also seem to be a lot of signs that the events of the past several days have been orchestrated and manipulated. This is something that I covered in my previous article entitled “12 Unanswered Questions About The Baltimore Riots That They Don’t Want Us To Ask“. But what we have found out since then is that high school kids appear to have been “herded” by the police into the Mondawmin neighborhood in Baltimore when school was let out on Monday

When school let out that afternoon, police were in the area equipped with full riot gear. According to eyewitnesses in the Mondawmin neighborhood, the police were stopping busses and forcing riders, including many students who were trying to get home, to disembark. Cops shut down the local subway stop. They also blockaded roads near the Mondawmin Mall and Frederick Douglass High School, which is across the street from the mall, and essentially corralled young people in the area. That is, they did not allow the after-school crowd to disperse.

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The Roundtable: 'Wheels Coming Off' Hillary's Campaign

There are signs that Hillary Clinton's second try at the White House is already stalling out, two veteran political activists told Newsmax TV's John Bachman and Miranda Khan on Wednesday.

Ed Pozzuoli, a Fox News political analyst and former co-chairman of the Jeb Bush for Governor campaign, and Larry Pratt, executive director of Gun Owners of America, joined "The Roundtable" on "Newsmax Now" to take stock of the former secretary of state's nascent run for president — and found it to be in early trouble.

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Obama Rejects Request to Investigate Guest-worker Program Abuse

The Obama administration this week rejected a request from Congress to investigate potential abuses in the country’s key guest-worker program for tech workers, insisting it would “be premature” to look into Southern California Edison’s use of the controversial H-1B visa to outsource jobs.

A bipartisan group of senators, led by Republican Sen. Jeff Sessions and Democratic Sen. Richard J. Durbin, had asked for a probe after SCE employees testified they were booted from jobs and replaced with guest-workers.

Leon Rodriguez, director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, said his agency takes such allegations seriously — but said there isn’t enough evidence for him to look into SCE right now.

Mr. Durbin and Mr. Sessions were not pleased with the brush-off.

“We did not ask for speculation; we asked for an investigation,” they said in a joint statement.

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A Viewer Writes...

This is in reference to your 04/29/15 post about the Blue Fire Hydrant Markers. Paint has got to be cheaper than the markers and we could paint Ireton's picture on it so that the dog's would know where to pee!

David Simon on Baltimore’s Anguish

Freddie Gray, the drug war, and the decline of “real policing.”

David Simon is Baltimore’s best-known chronicler of life on the hard streets. He worked for The Baltimore Sun city desk for a dozen years, wrote “Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets” (1991) and with former homicide detective Ed Burns co-wrote “THE CORNER: A YEAR IN THE LIFE OF AN INNER-CITY NEIGHBORHOOD”1 (1997), which Simon adapted into an HBO miniseries. He is the creator, executive producer and head writer of the HBO television series “The Wire” (2002–2008). Simon is a member of The Marshall Project’s advisory board. He spoke with Bill Keller on Tuesday.

BK: What do people outside the city need to understand about what’s going on there — the death of Freddie Gray and the response to it?

DS: I guess there's an awful lot to understand and I’m not sure I understand all of it. The part that seems systemic and connected is that the drug war — which Baltimore waged as aggressively as any American city — was transforming in terms of police/community relations, in terms of trust, particularly between the black community and the police department. Probable cause was destroyed by the drug war. It happened in stages, but even in the time that I was a police reporter, which would have been the early 80s to the early 90s, the need for police officers to address the basic rights of the people they were policing in Baltimore was minimized. It was done almost as a plan by the local government, by police commissioners and mayors, and it not only made everybody in these poor communities vulnerable to the most arbitrary behavior on the part of the police officers, it taught police officers how not to distinguish in ways that they once did.

“If I had to guess and put a name on it, I’d say that at some point, the drug war was as much a function of class and social control as it was of racism.”

Governor Hogan Is Calling On Hometown Heroes For Help

As the cleanup in Baltimore begins and more peaceful tone takes over the streets of Baltimore, there is still work to be done in Charm City.

Maryland Governor Larry Hogan took to Twitter to ask for help from 43 various groups and individuals, including athletes, sports franchises, news outlets, government leaders and bands.

On the list was the Ravens organization, followed by tweets sent directly to players like Joe Flacco, Justin Forsett and Justin Tucker.

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Sharpton speaks out against mayor's critics

The Rev. Al Sharpton gave an aggressive defense Thursday of Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake's handling of recent unrest, saying it was time to "end the scapegoating."

At a summit of religious and other leaders at New Shiloh Baptist Church in West Baltimore, the New York-based civil rights activist said criticism of the mayor's performance during the violence of the past week has been unfair.

"Don't blame the mayor for what the last 50 years of mayors and governors didn't do," said Sharpton, president of the National Action Network and an MSNBC host.
He contended that the events that sparked looting and burning in Baltimore this week — particularly the death of Freddie Gray after suffering a spinal cord injury while in police custody — were a national issue. He pointed to a string of cases in which African-American men died after encounters with police — in Ferguson, Mo.; NorthCharleston, S.C. and on Staten Island, N.Y.

"We can't keep running like hamsters on a treadmill from one town to the next," he said.

Rawlings-Blake has faced criticism for waiting to request activation of the National Guard as rioting spread across the city Monday. Sharpton and others praised her Thursday for trying to change state law to make it easier to discipline police officers. Her proposal to change Maryland's "bill of rights" for police was rejected by the General Assembly.

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Thank God Its Friday 5-1-15

What will you be doing this weekend?

Five shot Thursday as violence in west Baltimore surges

Gun violence continued to surge on Baltimore's west side on Thursday, with at least five people reported shot in three separate incidents.

Since the National Guard and outside law enforcement agencies were deployed to certain areas of the city in response to Monday's unrest, the city has seen six homicides. Protests have been peaceful, but unrelated gun violence has spiked.

A police spokesman said the Northwestern District had been placed on tactical alert due to the violence.

Thursday's violence began at noon. Officers were called to the 800 block of McKean Ave. shortly after noon and found a 22-year-old man shot in the head and a 23-year-old man shot in the stomach.

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Ex-Cop: O'Malley Return Could Further Inflame Baltimore

Martin O'Malley cut short a trip to the British Isles to return to Baltimore amid unrest in his city, but a former police officer told MSNBC on Wednesday that O'Malley's return could cause even more trouble.

O'Malley's time as mayor of Baltimore is the reason for the turmoil caused after the death of Freddie Gray, 25, in police custody, former Baltimore police officer Neill Franklin told "Andrea Mitchell Reports."
"I don't want to say this, but I'm gonna say it anyway: If he's coming back to town, you may see a riot," Franklin said.

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VA Got $15B From Congress, Still Can't Fix Problems

Leaders of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs asked Congress for more than $15 billion to end long wait times for medical care for tens of thousands of vets. They got the money, but little has changed.

The agency has been slow to spend the funds, and instead of speedier care for the former soldiers the holdups have persisted. The centerpiece of the legislation Congress passed last year -- a $10 billion program to allow veterans to seek care outside the VA system -- has been so underused that the agency wants to divert some of the money to other purposes.

That request is a “non-starter,” said Representative Jeff Miller, chairman of the House Veterans Affairs Committee.

“I’m disappointed that VA has left the vast majority of this money, which department officials said was urgently needed, unspent,” said Miller, a Florida Republican. “We’re not seeing accountability proportionate to the enormous misconduct and breach of trust that occurred.”

The scandal engulfed the agency a year ago this month amid allegations that officials at VA hospitals and clinics across the country had falsified records to cover up delays. Reports that veterans had died while awaiting treatment in the Phoenix VA system sparked outrage among lawmakers, forcing Department Secretary Eric Shinseki to resign.

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Yard Sale

We are having a neighborhood YARD SALE this Saturday, May 2nd, from 7 am until. The rain date is the following Saturday, May 9th. (located corner Rockawalkin & Nanticoke Rds.)

Ben Carson: Residents Must 'Act Quickly' to Heal Baltimore

Republican presidential hopeful and retired pediatric neurosurgeon Dr. Ben Carson told Newsmax TV on Wednesday that "it's going to be important going forward for responsible citizens to be able to act quickly" to quell the unrest in Baltimore over the death of Freddie Gray in police custody.

"It's tough to see this happening, and to see people basically being manipulated into doing things that clearly don't make any sense," Carson, who has lived in Baltimore for 36 years, told "Newsmax Prime" host J.D. Hayworth. "Here's a city that hasn't fully recovered from the '68 riots, and in the same area, now we're exacerbating the situation.

"It's painful to see that happen in any of our cities, particularly when we know that people can think beyond that and that they have people who are agitating them," he added. "There are responsible citizens also, and they abound."

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Ted Cruz: Obama Has 'Inflamed Racial Tensions'

Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz charged that President Barack Obama had worsened race relations and been a divisive rather than unifying figure, Politico reported.

The junior senator from Texas, who is of Cuban heritage, was speaking before the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce in Washington, D.C.

"President Obama, when he was elected, he could have been a unifying figure. He could have chosen to be a leader on race relations and bring us together. And he hasn't done that, he's made decisions that I think have inflamed racial tensions that have divided us rather than bringing us together," Cruz said.

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US Seeks Criminal Charges Against Lumber Liquidators

NEW YORK (CBSMiami/AP) — The U.S. Department of Justice is seeking to file charges against Lumber Liquidator amid an investigation into imported products.

The company revealed the Justice Department push in a regulatory filing Wednesday while also posting a surprise loss for the quarter and announcing the departure of its chief financial officer.

Its shares plunged more than 17 percent in early trading.

The CBS news show “60 Minutes” reported in March that the company’s laminate flooring made in China contained high levels of formaldehyde, a carcinogen. Lumber Liquidators Holdings Inc. has said that it complies with applicable regulations for its products, including California standards for formaldehyde emissions.

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Dancing for Healing: Breast Cancer Takes Stage at the Wicomico Youth & Civic Center on Saturday, May 16

Salisbury, MD – Dancing for Healing: Breast Cancer will be hosted by Tamyra Hubbard on Saturday, May 16 at the Wicomico Youth & Civic Center. The event will start at 2 p.m. and will include light refreshments, vendors, motivational talks and dance performances.

Performances will include dance, liturgical, modern, ballet, jazz, hip hop and step. Come witness firsthand the healing powers of dance along with breast cancer survivor, author and motivational speaker Alisha Broughton and author Kathy Milner.

Tickets are $20 in advance and $25 at the door. For ticket information, contact Tamyra Hubbard at 410-330-3151 or at DancingForHealing@gmail.com.

Registration Open for Wicomico Recreation’s Sand Volleyball League

Salisbury, MD – Registration is open for Wicomico Recreation's 4 v 4 Sand Volleyball League for men and women ages 14 and up. Two sessions will be held this summer, Session I begins June 4 and Session II begins July 30. Each session will consist of six regular season games and playoffs. Games will be held Thursday nights from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the WinterPlace Park sand volleyball courts.

The team registration fee is $125 per session. Registration is available at the Wicomico Youth & Civic Center Box Office (M - F, 9 a.m. - 5 p.m.) or online at www.WicomicoRecandParks.org.

For more information, contact Ken Tustin at 410-548-4900 ext. 105 orktustin@wicomicocounty.org.