Mayor Bloomberg defended the accuracy of the NYPD's crime statistics on Monday - even as he acknowledged that some cops manipulate them.
"There's always going to be some fudging of the numbers, but it is tiny," the mayor said. "I have an enormous amount of confidence in the data."
The Daily News reported last week that the NYPD's Quality Assurance Division is probing Brooklyn's 81st Precinct after an officer complained that cops routinely downgraded felonies and refused to take victims' reports to keep numbers low.
Bloomberg complained that a recent survey of hundreds of retired NYPD commanders, which reported widespread pressure to tinker with crime statistics, may have been biased.
"This is a study that you're referring to that was paid for by one of the unions," the mayor said. "So you've got to start wondering whether it was an independent study."
In fact, the survey by two criminologists was done in conjunction with the union for superior officers, but was funded by Molloy College in Rockville Centre, L.I.
Bloomberg said studies by the state controller in 2001 and NYU Prof. Dennis Smith in 2006 validated the NYPD's numbers.
Eli Silverman, one of the two criminologists who surveyed the NYPD retirees, said yesterday the NYU report is based largely on what the department's own auditors said.
"It's a glorified press release masking as a study," Silverman said.
Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/ny_crime/2010/02/09/2010-02-09_mike_doesnt_budge_on_copstat_fudge.html#ixzz0f2VzFO3g
Truth From The Law Enforcement, Intel, & Medicolegal Communities!
John G Brenner Investigations LLC
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
Thursday, February 4, 2010
School Buses Seat Belt
I encourage the CT Legislature to pass seatbelt requirements for school-buses.
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Federal officials are looking at New Haven as a possible site for the trial of accused 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed.
We know New York City does not want to host the 9/11 terror trial, and there are reports the Justice Department is looking at New Haven's federal courthouse on Church Street.
Officials in New York city don't want Khalid Sheikh Mohammed's trial there because they say all the security would paralyze lower Manhattan, so the federal government is looking for someplace with a lot less to paralyze. New Haven is apparently on the list.
The courthouse here got a security upgrade a couple years ago. That's when it hosted a previous terrorism trial. You may remember Hassan Abu Jihad, a former sailor in the US Navy accused of leaking information to terrorists. They beefed up security for that, specifically in the tunnel that runs underneath the courthouse.
Abu Jihad's lawyer later talked about how a procession of black SUV's would take his client to and from the courthouse every day using a different route.
There's no official word that New Haven is under consideration, and the spokeswoman for the city says Mayor John DeStefano has not been contacted.
Other places rumored to be under consideration include White Plains, New York, Stewart Air Base in Newburgh, New York, and the federal prison in Otisville, New York.
We know New York City does not want to host the 9/11 terror trial, and there are reports the Justice Department is looking at New Haven's federal courthouse on Church Street.
Officials in New York city don't want Khalid Sheikh Mohammed's trial there because they say all the security would paralyze lower Manhattan, so the federal government is looking for someplace with a lot less to paralyze. New Haven is apparently on the list.
The courthouse here got a security upgrade a couple years ago. That's when it hosted a previous terrorism trial. You may remember Hassan Abu Jihad, a former sailor in the US Navy accused of leaking information to terrorists. They beefed up security for that, specifically in the tunnel that runs underneath the courthouse.
Abu Jihad's lawyer later talked about how a procession of black SUV's would take his client to and from the courthouse every day using a different route.
There's no official word that New Haven is under consideration, and the spokeswoman for the city says Mayor John DeStefano has not been contacted.
Other places rumored to be under consideration include White Plains, New York, Stewart Air Base in Newburgh, New York, and the federal prison in Otisville, New York.
Sunday, January 31, 2010
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
Andrew Young writes he arranged rendezvous for John Edwards, Rielle Hunter
Edwards denied he fathered a child with Hunter for more than a year
John Edwards, Elizabeth Edwards have separated, contest accounts in the book
Federal grand jury investigating payments made to Hunter
RELATED TOPICS
Andrew Young
John Edwards
Rielle Hunter
Washington (CNN) -- A new book about former Sen. John Edwards paints him as a cold, calculating and reckless politician willing to deny fathering a daughter, risking his marriage and putting the Democratic Party in potential political jeopardy -- all in the name of trying to win the presidency.
In "The Politician," former Edwards' aide Andrew Young details his efforts to conceal an ongoing extra-marital affair and the birth of a child out-of-wedlock.
"The Politician" went on sale Saturday.
Young described an elaborate plan that allowed Edwards to maintain a mistress while he sought the Democratic presidential nomination in 2008. The plan was funded by two wealthy benefactors, the late trial lawyer Fred Baron and banking heir widow Bunny Mellon, but Mellon was unaware that her money was being used for the mistress.
A federal grand jury is investigating payments the former senator's campaign and supporters made to Rielle Hunter, who was a videographer as Edwards was preparing a bid for 2008 White House run.
In the book, Young writes that "the prosecutors pressed me for exact information about checks that were written, the way the money was used and the timing of events. They wanted names, dates, and amounts in very specific terms."
Young, who portrays himself as a one-time idealistic loyal aide, said he was the point person in arranging rendezvous for Edwards and Hunter and helped to keep the affair a secret.
And when Edwards impregnated Hunter, Young said he agreed to the senator's request to lie and say he was the father even though Young, himself, was married with three children.
Young said he told his wife about agreeing to Edwards' request as the couple drove through a McDonald's drive through to pick up food for their son.
"After I finally got to holler for Chicken McNuggets with chocolate milk and the right toy, I turned to Cheri and in the time it took us to reach window number one (where you give them the money), I said, 'Edwards wants me to say I'm the father of Rielle's baby, and then Fred's gonna fly us off to someplace where we can all hide,' " Young said.
His wife, Young recounted, was dumbfounded.
"Are you out of your mind? Why would you even tell me about this? Why didn't you just say no?"
Young said Hunter was also initially against the idea but warmed up to it after being told her financial needs would be met. His wife, Cheri, eventually agreed to the plan, setting in motion a chaotic time for the family as they uprooted their lives in North Carolina and criss-crossed the country with Hunter and their children in an effort to evade the media.
Edwards denied that he was the girl's father for more than a year, saying the affair was over before Hunter became pregnant. Last week, he acknowledged paternity.
"I am Quinn's father," Edwards said in a statement. "I have been able to spend time with her during the past year and trust that future efforts to show her the love and affection she deserves can be done privately and in peace."
John Edwards and his wife, Elizabeth, have legally separated.
On Friday, John Edwards' lawyers released a statement saying that early reports about the book indicate there are problems with Young's account.
"While we have not had an opportunity to view the interview or read the book, we urge extreme caution by everyone involved," his attorneys wrote. "From media reports, it is obvious that there are many allegations which are simply false. It appears that Andrew Young is primarily motivated by financial gain and media attention."
Earlier in the week, Elizabeth Edwards also challenged accusations Young made in the book regarding her cancer and the couple's children.
"Elizabeth is moving on with her life and wants to put this difficult chapter behind her," her publisher Random House said in a statement.
"It was an excrutiatingly (sic) painful period for her and she (has) no interest in rehashing the past. Based on the limited portions of the book that have been made available, it is clear it contains many falsehoods and exaggerations.
"She will not engage in a dialogue on each of the false charges, but would like to set the record straight on two key points. First, the allegation that she sought to politicize her cancer is unconscionable, hurtful and patently false.
"Second, she believed Andrew Young to be the father of this child until her husband confessed his paternity (sic) to her this past summer. She will have nothing further to say."
In the book, Young accuses Elizabeth Edwards of engaging in a smear campaign to undermine his credibility.
Young said it wasn't until John Edwards privately expressed indifference about the birth of his daughter, Frances Quinn Hunter, in February 2008, that he realized the former senator cared only about himself.
"After watching and hearing John Edwards practice a thousand little deceptions and tell a thousand different lies, ostensibly in the service of some greater good, I finally recognized that he didn't care about anyone other than himself," Young writes.
"A precious living, breathing human being -- his daughter -- had come into the world, and he wasn't inclined to even call the woman who had given birth to her. Instead, I had to prompt him to do the right thing, to do the most basic, human thing.
"My faith in him died almost instantly, and I felt both ashamed of my naïveté and very afraid for the future of my family."
Young also writes that:
• He has a sex tape of Edwards in his possession showing the senator with a "naked pregnant woman" that Young says is Hunter. Young said he found the damaged tape in "a box of trash that Rielle had left behind after she stayed with us for a few weeks" in the Raleigh, North Carolina, home his family was renting. Young writes that even though the woman's face is obscured "it was safe to assume it was Rielle."
• Despite Edwards' carefully crafted image as a champion for everyday people, he was "irritated by ordinary events. He especially hated making appearances at state fairs, where 'fat rednecks try to shove food down my face. I know I'm the people's senator, but do I have to hang out with them?'"
• Edwards understood his audience and before appearing at a Service Employees International Union health care event in Las Vegas, Nevada, he instructed Young to take his Italian suit coat to a tailor to remove the label indicating it was Italian-made. In its place, Edwards had the tailor sew in a "Made in the USA" label that had been on Young's jacket.
• When Edwards was not on the Atkins diet, he "loved Cracker Barrel" restaurants as well as ribs.
• Edwards thought that 2004 Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry "just wasn't all that smart." Kerry, a senator from Massachusetts, would later pick Edwards to be his vice presidential running mate.
Andrew Young writes he arranged rendezvous for John Edwards, Rielle Hunter
Edwards denied he fathered a child with Hunter for more than a year
John Edwards, Elizabeth Edwards have separated, contest accounts in the book
Federal grand jury investigating payments made to Hunter
RELATED TOPICS
Andrew Young
John Edwards
Rielle Hunter
Washington (CNN) -- A new book about former Sen. John Edwards paints him as a cold, calculating and reckless politician willing to deny fathering a daughter, risking his marriage and putting the Democratic Party in potential political jeopardy -- all in the name of trying to win the presidency.
In "The Politician," former Edwards' aide Andrew Young details his efforts to conceal an ongoing extra-marital affair and the birth of a child out-of-wedlock.
"The Politician" went on sale Saturday.
Young described an elaborate plan that allowed Edwards to maintain a mistress while he sought the Democratic presidential nomination in 2008. The plan was funded by two wealthy benefactors, the late trial lawyer Fred Baron and banking heir widow Bunny Mellon, but Mellon was unaware that her money was being used for the mistress.
A federal grand jury is investigating payments the former senator's campaign and supporters made to Rielle Hunter, who was a videographer as Edwards was preparing a bid for 2008 White House run.
In the book, Young writes that "the prosecutors pressed me for exact information about checks that were written, the way the money was used and the timing of events. They wanted names, dates, and amounts in very specific terms."
Young, who portrays himself as a one-time idealistic loyal aide, said he was the point person in arranging rendezvous for Edwards and Hunter and helped to keep the affair a secret.
And when Edwards impregnated Hunter, Young said he agreed to the senator's request to lie and say he was the father even though Young, himself, was married with three children.
Young said he told his wife about agreeing to Edwards' request as the couple drove through a McDonald's drive through to pick up food for their son.
"After I finally got to holler for Chicken McNuggets with chocolate milk and the right toy, I turned to Cheri and in the time it took us to reach window number one (where you give them the money), I said, 'Edwards wants me to say I'm the father of Rielle's baby, and then Fred's gonna fly us off to someplace where we can all hide,' " Young said.
His wife, Young recounted, was dumbfounded.
"Are you out of your mind? Why would you even tell me about this? Why didn't you just say no?"
Young said Hunter was also initially against the idea but warmed up to it after being told her financial needs would be met. His wife, Cheri, eventually agreed to the plan, setting in motion a chaotic time for the family as they uprooted their lives in North Carolina and criss-crossed the country with Hunter and their children in an effort to evade the media.
Edwards denied that he was the girl's father for more than a year, saying the affair was over before Hunter became pregnant. Last week, he acknowledged paternity.
"I am Quinn's father," Edwards said in a statement. "I have been able to spend time with her during the past year and trust that future efforts to show her the love and affection she deserves can be done privately and in peace."
John Edwards and his wife, Elizabeth, have legally separated.
On Friday, John Edwards' lawyers released a statement saying that early reports about the book indicate there are problems with Young's account.
"While we have not had an opportunity to view the interview or read the book, we urge extreme caution by everyone involved," his attorneys wrote. "From media reports, it is obvious that there are many allegations which are simply false. It appears that Andrew Young is primarily motivated by financial gain and media attention."
Earlier in the week, Elizabeth Edwards also challenged accusations Young made in the book regarding her cancer and the couple's children.
"Elizabeth is moving on with her life and wants to put this difficult chapter behind her," her publisher Random House said in a statement.
"It was an excrutiatingly (sic) painful period for her and she (has) no interest in rehashing the past. Based on the limited portions of the book that have been made available, it is clear it contains many falsehoods and exaggerations.
"She will not engage in a dialogue on each of the false charges, but would like to set the record straight on two key points. First, the allegation that she sought to politicize her cancer is unconscionable, hurtful and patently false.
"Second, she believed Andrew Young to be the father of this child until her husband confessed his paternity (sic) to her this past summer. She will have nothing further to say."
In the book, Young accuses Elizabeth Edwards of engaging in a smear campaign to undermine his credibility.
Young said it wasn't until John Edwards privately expressed indifference about the birth of his daughter, Frances Quinn Hunter, in February 2008, that he realized the former senator cared only about himself.
"After watching and hearing John Edwards practice a thousand little deceptions and tell a thousand different lies, ostensibly in the service of some greater good, I finally recognized that he didn't care about anyone other than himself," Young writes.
"A precious living, breathing human being -- his daughter -- had come into the world, and he wasn't inclined to even call the woman who had given birth to her. Instead, I had to prompt him to do the right thing, to do the most basic, human thing.
"My faith in him died almost instantly, and I felt both ashamed of my naïveté and very afraid for the future of my family."
Young also writes that:
• He has a sex tape of Edwards in his possession showing the senator with a "naked pregnant woman" that Young says is Hunter. Young said he found the damaged tape in "a box of trash that Rielle had left behind after she stayed with us for a few weeks" in the Raleigh, North Carolina, home his family was renting. Young writes that even though the woman's face is obscured "it was safe to assume it was Rielle."
• Despite Edwards' carefully crafted image as a champion for everyday people, he was "irritated by ordinary events. He especially hated making appearances at state fairs, where 'fat rednecks try to shove food down my face. I know I'm the people's senator, but do I have to hang out with them?'"
• Edwards understood his audience and before appearing at a Service Employees International Union health care event in Las Vegas, Nevada, he instructed Young to take his Italian suit coat to a tailor to remove the label indicating it was Italian-made. In its place, Edwards had the tailor sew in a "Made in the USA" label that had been on Young's jacket.
• When Edwards was not on the Atkins diet, he "loved Cracker Barrel" restaurants as well as ribs.
• Edwards thought that 2004 Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry "just wasn't all that smart." Kerry, a senator from Massachusetts, would later pick Edwards to be his vice presidential running mate.
Friday, January 29, 2010
(CNN) -- Human remains found buried under recently-added concrete at a home in Plant City, Florida, are likely those of missing lottery millionaire Abraham Shakespeare, police said Thursday.
Deputies made the discovery after a tip came in, suggesting investigators would find a body near a home in Plant City, according to CNN affiliate WFTV.
Hillsborough County Sheriff David Gee said the body was slowly being uncovered. They are awaiting positive identification.
However, Gee said their investigation and information specifically led them to the area after they began to believe he might be dead because of "sinister means and motives."
"Our indications were it would be there," Gee said during a news conference Thursday night.
Police on Wednesday had scanned the newly finished concrete slabs near the home on Wednesday and removed it. On Thursday, Gee said they discovered the remains buried five feet below the surface, and it appeared the remains had been there for awhile.
Shakespeare, a 43-year-old truck driver, won a $31 million Florida lottery prize in 2006. A year later, he won a court challenge from a fellow trucker who accused Shakespeare of snatching the winning ticket out of his wallet while the two were delivering meat to Miami restaurants.
Shakespeare's family reported him missing on November 9, telling the Polk County sheriff's office they hadn't seen him since April.
Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said when their investigation began, they had hoped to find Shakespeare alive "and he truly had just wanted to hide from those who were asking him for money."
"As our investigation continued, the information we developed led us to believe he may very well have ended up with an untimely death," Judd said.
Both Judd and Gee said they would not comment on whether anything else was found inside the manmade grave, or whether a previous person of interest was connected to the area. The home, according to WFTV, belongs to the boyfriend of a person of interest in the disappearance of Shakespeare.
While they await identification of the remains, police said they would begin to shift their focus to a murder investigation.
"It's painfully obvious he didn't get there by himself," Judd said.
Gee said police from Polk and Hillsborough Counties were already working with prosecutors on the case and hope to bring to justice the person responsible for what they believe is clearly cold-blooded murder.
"Somebody put that body in that hole," Gee said. "This isn't by any means just where we find someone on the side of the road. Somebody has obviously put him there."
Deputies made the discovery after a tip came in, suggesting investigators would find a body near a home in Plant City, according to CNN affiliate WFTV.
Hillsborough County Sheriff David Gee said the body was slowly being uncovered. They are awaiting positive identification.
However, Gee said their investigation and information specifically led them to the area after they began to believe he might be dead because of "sinister means and motives."
"Our indications were it would be there," Gee said during a news conference Thursday night.
Police on Wednesday had scanned the newly finished concrete slabs near the home on Wednesday and removed it. On Thursday, Gee said they discovered the remains buried five feet below the surface, and it appeared the remains had been there for awhile.
Shakespeare, a 43-year-old truck driver, won a $31 million Florida lottery prize in 2006. A year later, he won a court challenge from a fellow trucker who accused Shakespeare of snatching the winning ticket out of his wallet while the two were delivering meat to Miami restaurants.
Shakespeare's family reported him missing on November 9, telling the Polk County sheriff's office they hadn't seen him since April.
Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said when their investigation began, they had hoped to find Shakespeare alive "and he truly had just wanted to hide from those who were asking him for money."
"As our investigation continued, the information we developed led us to believe he may very well have ended up with an untimely death," Judd said.
Both Judd and Gee said they would not comment on whether anything else was found inside the manmade grave, or whether a previous person of interest was connected to the area. The home, according to WFTV, belongs to the boyfriend of a person of interest in the disappearance of Shakespeare.
While they await identification of the remains, police said they would begin to shift their focus to a murder investigation.
"It's painfully obvious he didn't get there by himself," Judd said.
Gee said police from Polk and Hillsborough Counties were already working with prosecutors on the case and hope to bring to justice the person responsible for what they believe is clearly cold-blooded murder.
"Somebody put that body in that hole," Gee said. "This isn't by any means just where we find someone on the side of the road. Somebody has obviously put him there."
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
A little help please?
CNN) -- Investigators continued their search Tuesday for a 7-year-old girl who was reported missing after her mother was found dead in Oklahoma.
"We've got to find that little girl," Special Agent Ray Homer of the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation said. "We're doing what we can."
The girl -- Aja Daniell Johnson -- was reported missing from Geronimo, Oklahoma, late Sunday, the bureau said. Her 37-year-old mother, Tonya Hobbs, was found dead inside a parked RV.
They also are trying to find the dead woman's estranged husband, Lester William Hobbs, 46, the bureau has said. Lester Hobbs and Aja are presumed to be in Hobbs' car -- a white 1992 Toyota Paseo with Oklahoma tag No. 577-BPW, police said.
Police were looking for Hobbs and Aja in Oklahoma and Texas.
Authorities were working with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children on Tuesday to set up a toll-free phone line and put Aja's photo on a Web site of missing children, Homer said.
They have had no communication with Lester Hobbs or anyone else that would indicate Aja's location, he said.
Tonya Hobbs and her daughter visited Lester Hobbs at his sister's home, the bureau said. Lester Hobbs is not Aja's biological father, police said.
Video: Girl, 7, abducted, mom killed
RELATED TOPICS
Missing Children
Oklahoma
Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation
National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
Texas authorities also issued an Amber Alert, Texas Department of Public Safety spokeswoman Lisa Block said. Authorities believe Hobbs has connections to Rockport, Texas, and the alert was issued preemptively, she said.
Tonya Hobbs and her daughter were last seen Saturday night. Authorities did not say how Hobbs died, but the bureau said investigators believe someone killed her.
The RV belonged to Lester Hobbs and was parked at his relatives' home, Richard Goss, agent in charge of the bureau's Lawton, Oklahoma, office, told reporters.
Hobbs' relatives became suspicious Sunday after they did not see Tonya Hobbs or Aja. One of them pried open the RV door and discovered Tonya Hobbs' body, he said. Lester Hobbs and Aja were gone, Goss said.
The Hobbses were separated, but apparently Tonya Hobbs was visiting Lester Hobbs in an attempt to reconcile, Goss said. The couple had been together for about five years.
The Comanche County, Oklahoma, Sheriff's Office said Aja has a medical condition that requires medication.
"Our main concern at this time is to find the little girl," Comanche County Sheriff Kenny Stradley told reporters. "We know that she does need some medication," and authorities were checking leads regarding that, he said. He did not specify Aja's medical condition.
Goss said Lester Hobbs has an extensive criminal history, but did not elaborate. The sheriff's office said he had prior felony convictions.
Lester Hobbs was supposed to appear in court in Lincoln County, Oklahoma, on a DUI charge, Goss said, and did not appear, so a warrant has been issued for him.
Aja's biological father was awarded emergency custody of her in November, according to Oklahoma County District Court documents obtained by CNN affiliate KWTV of Oklahoma City. At a hearing, Tonya Hobbs -- identified as Tonya Dunkin in the documents -- and the girl's father, John Johnson, agreed that she would have supervised visitation with Aja and keep the girl away from Lester Hobbs, the documents said.
Aja is 4 feet tall and weighs 59 pounds, Goss said. She has brown eyes, and her hair is brown with the ends dyed black.
Lester Hobbs is about 6-foot-1 and 190 pounds, with hazel eyes and brown hair, according to the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation. The agency released a picture of him and said he has a mustache but no longer has a goatee.
Geronimo is about 12 miles south of Lawton, Oklahoma, in the south-central part of the state.
"We've got to find that little girl," Special Agent Ray Homer of the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation said. "We're doing what we can."
The girl -- Aja Daniell Johnson -- was reported missing from Geronimo, Oklahoma, late Sunday, the bureau said. Her 37-year-old mother, Tonya Hobbs, was found dead inside a parked RV.
They also are trying to find the dead woman's estranged husband, Lester William Hobbs, 46, the bureau has said. Lester Hobbs and Aja are presumed to be in Hobbs' car -- a white 1992 Toyota Paseo with Oklahoma tag No. 577-BPW, police said.
Police were looking for Hobbs and Aja in Oklahoma and Texas.
Authorities were working with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children on Tuesday to set up a toll-free phone line and put Aja's photo on a Web site of missing children, Homer said.
They have had no communication with Lester Hobbs or anyone else that would indicate Aja's location, he said.
Tonya Hobbs and her daughter visited Lester Hobbs at his sister's home, the bureau said. Lester Hobbs is not Aja's biological father, police said.
Video: Girl, 7, abducted, mom killed
RELATED TOPICS
Missing Children
Oklahoma
Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation
National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
Texas authorities also issued an Amber Alert, Texas Department of Public Safety spokeswoman Lisa Block said. Authorities believe Hobbs has connections to Rockport, Texas, and the alert was issued preemptively, she said.
Tonya Hobbs and her daughter were last seen Saturday night. Authorities did not say how Hobbs died, but the bureau said investigators believe someone killed her.
The RV belonged to Lester Hobbs and was parked at his relatives' home, Richard Goss, agent in charge of the bureau's Lawton, Oklahoma, office, told reporters.
Hobbs' relatives became suspicious Sunday after they did not see Tonya Hobbs or Aja. One of them pried open the RV door and discovered Tonya Hobbs' body, he said. Lester Hobbs and Aja were gone, Goss said.
The Hobbses were separated, but apparently Tonya Hobbs was visiting Lester Hobbs in an attempt to reconcile, Goss said. The couple had been together for about five years.
The Comanche County, Oklahoma, Sheriff's Office said Aja has a medical condition that requires medication.
"Our main concern at this time is to find the little girl," Comanche County Sheriff Kenny Stradley told reporters. "We know that she does need some medication," and authorities were checking leads regarding that, he said. He did not specify Aja's medical condition.
Goss said Lester Hobbs has an extensive criminal history, but did not elaborate. The sheriff's office said he had prior felony convictions.
Lester Hobbs was supposed to appear in court in Lincoln County, Oklahoma, on a DUI charge, Goss said, and did not appear, so a warrant has been issued for him.
Aja's biological father was awarded emergency custody of her in November, according to Oklahoma County District Court documents obtained by CNN affiliate KWTV of Oklahoma City. At a hearing, Tonya Hobbs -- identified as Tonya Dunkin in the documents -- and the girl's father, John Johnson, agreed that she would have supervised visitation with Aja and keep the girl away from Lester Hobbs, the documents said.
Aja is 4 feet tall and weighs 59 pounds, Goss said. She has brown eyes, and her hair is brown with the ends dyed black.
Lester Hobbs is about 6-foot-1 and 190 pounds, with hazel eyes and brown hair, according to the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation. The agency released a picture of him and said he has a mustache but no longer has a goatee.
Geronimo is about 12 miles south of Lawton, Oklahoma, in the south-central part of the state.
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Yale
murder
Suspect Raymond Clark scheduled for court today
Updated: Tuesday, 26 Jan 2010, 6:01 AM EST
Published : Tuesday, 26 Jan 2010, 5:28 AM EST
By: Crystal Haynes
Lawyers for a Yale lab technician charged in the death of Yale graduate student Annie Le are scheduled to be in a New Haven courtroom to enter a plea of not guilty.
Raymond Clark III, 24, is charged with murdering Le, whose body was found stuffed behind a Yale research lab wall in September.
According to the New Haven Register , Clark's lawyers are expected to waive the right to a probable cause hearing and enter the not guilty plea.
Le vanished back in September, 2009 from the Yale medical school research building where she and Clark worked. Her body was found five days later on what was to be her wedding day. She had been strangled.
Clark's hearing will be held this morning in New Haven Superior Court. There is no word on whether he will appear in person before the judge.
Suspect Raymond Clark scheduled for court today
Updated: Tuesday, 26 Jan 2010, 6:01 AM EST
Published : Tuesday, 26 Jan 2010, 5:28 AM EST
By: Crystal Haynes
Lawyers for a Yale lab technician charged in the death of Yale graduate student Annie Le are scheduled to be in a New Haven courtroom to enter a plea of not guilty.
Raymond Clark III, 24, is charged with murdering Le, whose body was found stuffed behind a Yale research lab wall in September.
According to the New Haven Register , Clark's lawyers are expected to waive the right to a probable cause hearing and enter the not guilty plea.
Le vanished back in September, 2009 from the Yale medical school research building where she and Clark worked. Her body was found five days later on what was to be her wedding day. She had been strangled.
Clark's hearing will be held this morning in New Haven Superior Court. There is no word on whether he will appear in person before the judge.
Monday, January 25, 2010
You think?
CT to stop inmates seeking guard info.
Prisoners threatening, harrassing guards
Updated: Monday, 25 Jan 2010, 4:06 PM EST
Published : Monday, 25 Jan 2010, 4:06 PM EST
Connecticut could join at least a dozen other states by restricting prison inmates from using FOI laws to get personal information to harass or threaten their guards -- and, in some cases, prosecutors or other inmates.
Inmates in Connecticut and around the country have swamped systems with information requests -- for guards' personnel and arrest records, files affecting the inmates' own legal cases, and details as mundane as meal ingredients.
No Connecticut correction officers have been harmed or harassed because no personnel records have yet been released. Prison officials say they are fighting the FOIs because they view them as a threat to the safety and security of staff and at the prisons.
Prisoners threatening, harrassing guards
Updated: Monday, 25 Jan 2010, 4:06 PM EST
Published : Monday, 25 Jan 2010, 4:06 PM EST
Connecticut could join at least a dozen other states by restricting prison inmates from using FOI laws to get personal information to harass or threaten their guards -- and, in some cases, prosecutors or other inmates.
Inmates in Connecticut and around the country have swamped systems with information requests -- for guards' personnel and arrest records, files affecting the inmates' own legal cases, and details as mundane as meal ingredients.
No Connecticut correction officers have been harmed or harassed because no personnel records have yet been released. Prison officials say they are fighting the FOIs because they view them as a threat to the safety and security of staff and at the prisons.
Thursday, January 21, 2010
'English only' policy at eatery
New Haven city leader outraged
Updated: Thursday, 21 Jan 2010, 6:48 PM EST
Published : Thursday, 21 Jan 2010, 4:35 PM EST
Jocelyn Maminta
New Haven (WTNH) - A popular eatery in New Haven has issued a new memo to their workers that says they must speak English in front of their customers.
Business is always bustling at Atticus Bookstore on Chapel Street.
"The food is good and there is a lovely atmosphere there," said Joy Moser, a patron.
But that atmosphere is changing. A memo issued by the owner, Charles Negaro, to the mostly Hispanic staff said that Spanish is not allowed on the floor. The intent is to make customers feel welcome and comfortable.
"I don't think it's right. If they are talking to the customers, yes, they need to speak to them in English, but when they are working and talking to each other it makes their job faster, it's their language. They know they speak English, they hired them, so they should be allowed to speak to each other in Spanish," said Mislal Lake, a patron.
Alderman Joseph Rodriguez says it is offensive.
"I encourage the owner to clarify his remarks but I can tell you as a Latino leader in the city of New Haven, from reading the content of that staff memo presented to the staff, explaining to them where they have to speak Spanish in their restaurant, that Spanish is off limits in certain areas, as a Latino I'm offended," he said.
The policy could also have legal ramifications.
"The Civil Rights Act bans discrimination based on national origin. And the courts and the EEOC have both concluded that English only language policies can have a discriminatory effect based on national origin," said John Thomas, a law professor at Quinnipiac University.
News Channel 8 tried to contact the owner of Atticus for comment, but he did not return our calls.
New Haven city leader outraged
Updated: Thursday, 21 Jan 2010, 6:48 PM EST
Published : Thursday, 21 Jan 2010, 4:35 PM EST
Jocelyn Maminta
New Haven (WTNH) - A popular eatery in New Haven has issued a new memo to their workers that says they must speak English in front of their customers.
Business is always bustling at Atticus Bookstore on Chapel Street.
"The food is good and there is a lovely atmosphere there," said Joy Moser, a patron.
But that atmosphere is changing. A memo issued by the owner, Charles Negaro, to the mostly Hispanic staff said that Spanish is not allowed on the floor. The intent is to make customers feel welcome and comfortable.
"I don't think it's right. If they are talking to the customers, yes, they need to speak to them in English, but when they are working and talking to each other it makes their job faster, it's their language. They know they speak English, they hired them, so they should be allowed to speak to each other in Spanish," said Mislal Lake, a patron.
Alderman Joseph Rodriguez says it is offensive.
"I encourage the owner to clarify his remarks but I can tell you as a Latino leader in the city of New Haven, from reading the content of that staff memo presented to the staff, explaining to them where they have to speak Spanish in their restaurant, that Spanish is off limits in certain areas, as a Latino I'm offended," he said.
The policy could also have legal ramifications.
"The Civil Rights Act bans discrimination based on national origin. And the courts and the EEOC have both concluded that English only language policies can have a discriminatory effect based on national origin," said John Thomas, a law professor at Quinnipiac University.
News Channel 8 tried to contact the owner of Atticus for comment, but he did not return our calls.
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
wow
Boston, Massachusetts (CNN) -- Republican Scott Brown won a major upset victory in Tuesday's special election for the U.S. Senate seat formerly held by liberal Democrat Ted Kennedy.
With 89 percent of the results counted, Brown had 52 percent of the vote to 47 percent for Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley, the Democratic candidate, according to the the National Election Pool, a consortium of media organizations including CNN. Independent candidate Joseph Kennedy, a libertarian who is not related to the Kennedy political family of Massachusetts, had 1 percent.
Brown's victory made real the once unthinkable prospect of a Republican filling the seat held by Kennedy, known as the liberal lion, for almost 47 years until his death from brain cancer in August.
Voters across Massachusetts braved winter cold and snow for an election with high stakes -- the domestic agenda of President Obama, including his priority of health care reform.
Brown's victory strips Democrats of the 60-seat Senate supermajority needed to overcome GOP filibusters against future Senate action on a broad range of White House priorities. Senate Democrats needed all 60 votes in their caucus to pass the health care bill, and the loss of one seat imperils generating that support again for a compromise measure worked out with the House.
Massachusetts Secretary of State Bill Galvin said last week that certifying Tuesday's election results could take more than two weeks -- potentially enough time to allow congressional Democrats to pass a final health care bill before Brown is seated.
But multiple Democratic sources said this is unlikely. Even if House and Senate Democrats could reach a deal to meld their bills and pass them in the next couple of weeks, there would be a huge outcry from not only Republicans, but also an increasingly distrustful public if they appeared to be rushing it through.
Galvin had predicted as many as 2.2 million of the state's 4.5 million registered voters would vote -- at least double the turnout from December's primary. In one sign of high interest, more than 100,000 absentee ballots were requested ahead of the election, according to Galvin's spokesman, Brian McNiff.
Coakley was initially expected to easily win the race to replace Kennedy, who made health care reform the centerpiece of his Senate career.
Until recently, Brown was underfunded and unknown statewide. In addition, no Republican has won a U.S. Senate race in Massachusetts since 1972, and Democrats control the governorship, both houses of the state legislature, and the state's entire congressional delegation.
However, Brown surged in the weeks preceding Tuesday's vote and led in all the final polls.
Democratic sources told CNN that Coakley called Brown on Tuesday night to concede.
In a sign of the high stakes involved, the Coakley campaign held an afternoon news conference Tuesday to complain that voters in three places received ballots already marked for Brown.
iReport: Send us your thoughts on the special election
McNiff confirmed that the secretary of state's offices received two reports of voters saying they got pre-marked ballots. The suspect ballots were invalidated and the voters received new ballots, McNiff said.
Kevin Conroy, the Coakley campaign manager, said the "disturbing incidents" raised questions about the integrity of the election. In response, the Brown campaign issued a statement criticizing Coakley's team.
"Reports that the Coakley campaign is making reckless accusations regarding the integrity of today's election is a reminder that they are a desperate campaign," Daniel B. Winslow, the counsel for the Brown campaign, said in the statement.
Obama has been both "surprised and frustrated" by the race, White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said Tuesday.
Obama and former President Bill Clinton hit the campaign trail over the past three days in an attempt to save Coakley's campaign, which observers say was hampered by complacency and missteps.
Obama crushed Sen. John McCain in Massachusetts in 2008, beating the GOP presidential nominee by 26 points.
"If you were fired up in the last election, I need you more fired up in this election," Obama urged a crowd at a Coakley campaign rally on Sunday.
Vicki Kennedy, the late senator's widow, called on state Democrats to turn out to save her husband's legacy.
"We need your help. We need your support. We need you to get out there and vote on Tuesday," Kennedy said. "We need you to bring your neighbors. We need you to bring your friends."
Brown, who has trumpeted his 30 years of service in the National Guard, hewed to traditional GOP themes at the end of the campaign. He promised at a rally Sunday that, if elected, he would back tax cuts and be tougher on terrorists than Coakley.
He also repeated a pledge to oppose Obama's health care reform effort.
Video: Who will get Kennedy's seat?
Video: CNN analyst assesses key race
Video: Race for Ted Kennedy's seat
Video: Obama campaigns in Massachusetts
RELATED TOPICS
Massachusetts
Martha Coakley
Scott Brown
Edward M. Kennedy
Health Care Reform
"Massachusetts wants real reform and not this trillion-dollar Obama health care that is being forced on the American people," he said. "As the 41st [Republican] senator I will make sure that we do it better."
Forty-four percent of Massachusetts voters cited the economy and jobs as their top concern in a recent 7 News/Suffolk University poll. Thirty-eight percent mentioned health care as their top concern.
Voters more concerned with the economy were split almost evenly between the two candidates; voters more worried about health care narrowly supported Coakley.
Brown's surprising strength came in part because some independents and conservatives who have supported Democrats in the past were having second thoughts.
Democrats far outnumber Republicans in Massachusetts, but there are more independents than Democrats and Republicans combined.
Several Democratic sources say multiple Obama advisers have told the party they believed Coakley was going to lose, despite Obama's campaign appearance for Coakley on Sunday.
Facing the possibility of Coakley's defeat, Democrats were trying to figure out if they could pass health care reform without that crucial 60th Senate vote.
The seat is currently held by former Kennedy aide and longtime friend Paul Kirk, who was appointed to the seat on an interim basis.
Two Democratic sources in close contact with the White House told CNN on Monday they've urged the administration, in the event of a Brown victory, to push House Democrats to pass the Senate's health care bill as currently written. Doing so would prevent the plan from having to be taken up by the Senate again.
"I think the Senate bill clearly is better than nothing," House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Maryland, said Tuesday.
A third option would be for Democrats to revisit the idea of trying to push health care through the Senate with only 51 votes -- a simple majority.
But to do that Democrats would have to use a process known as reconciliation, which presents technical and procedural issues that would delay the process for a long time. A number of Democrats are eager to put the health care debate behind them and move on to economic issues such as job creation as soon as possible this election year.
Senate Democrats could also try again to get moderate GOP Sen. Olympia Snowe of Maine to vote for a compromise health reform plan. Multiple Democratic sources, however, have said they believe that is unlikely now.
With 89 percent of the results counted, Brown had 52 percent of the vote to 47 percent for Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley, the Democratic candidate, according to the the National Election Pool, a consortium of media organizations including CNN. Independent candidate Joseph Kennedy, a libertarian who is not related to the Kennedy political family of Massachusetts, had 1 percent.
Brown's victory made real the once unthinkable prospect of a Republican filling the seat held by Kennedy, known as the liberal lion, for almost 47 years until his death from brain cancer in August.
Voters across Massachusetts braved winter cold and snow for an election with high stakes -- the domestic agenda of President Obama, including his priority of health care reform.
Brown's victory strips Democrats of the 60-seat Senate supermajority needed to overcome GOP filibusters against future Senate action on a broad range of White House priorities. Senate Democrats needed all 60 votes in their caucus to pass the health care bill, and the loss of one seat imperils generating that support again for a compromise measure worked out with the House.
Massachusetts Secretary of State Bill Galvin said last week that certifying Tuesday's election results could take more than two weeks -- potentially enough time to allow congressional Democrats to pass a final health care bill before Brown is seated.
But multiple Democratic sources said this is unlikely. Even if House and Senate Democrats could reach a deal to meld their bills and pass them in the next couple of weeks, there would be a huge outcry from not only Republicans, but also an increasingly distrustful public if they appeared to be rushing it through.
Galvin had predicted as many as 2.2 million of the state's 4.5 million registered voters would vote -- at least double the turnout from December's primary. In one sign of high interest, more than 100,000 absentee ballots were requested ahead of the election, according to Galvin's spokesman, Brian McNiff.
Coakley was initially expected to easily win the race to replace Kennedy, who made health care reform the centerpiece of his Senate career.
Until recently, Brown was underfunded and unknown statewide. In addition, no Republican has won a U.S. Senate race in Massachusetts since 1972, and Democrats control the governorship, both houses of the state legislature, and the state's entire congressional delegation.
However, Brown surged in the weeks preceding Tuesday's vote and led in all the final polls.
Democratic sources told CNN that Coakley called Brown on Tuesday night to concede.
In a sign of the high stakes involved, the Coakley campaign held an afternoon news conference Tuesday to complain that voters in three places received ballots already marked for Brown.
iReport: Send us your thoughts on the special election
McNiff confirmed that the secretary of state's offices received two reports of voters saying they got pre-marked ballots. The suspect ballots were invalidated and the voters received new ballots, McNiff said.
Kevin Conroy, the Coakley campaign manager, said the "disturbing incidents" raised questions about the integrity of the election. In response, the Brown campaign issued a statement criticizing Coakley's team.
"Reports that the Coakley campaign is making reckless accusations regarding the integrity of today's election is a reminder that they are a desperate campaign," Daniel B. Winslow, the counsel for the Brown campaign, said in the statement.
Obama has been both "surprised and frustrated" by the race, White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said Tuesday.
Obama and former President Bill Clinton hit the campaign trail over the past three days in an attempt to save Coakley's campaign, which observers say was hampered by complacency and missteps.
Obama crushed Sen. John McCain in Massachusetts in 2008, beating the GOP presidential nominee by 26 points.
"If you were fired up in the last election, I need you more fired up in this election," Obama urged a crowd at a Coakley campaign rally on Sunday.
Vicki Kennedy, the late senator's widow, called on state Democrats to turn out to save her husband's legacy.
"We need your help. We need your support. We need you to get out there and vote on Tuesday," Kennedy said. "We need you to bring your neighbors. We need you to bring your friends."
Brown, who has trumpeted his 30 years of service in the National Guard, hewed to traditional GOP themes at the end of the campaign. He promised at a rally Sunday that, if elected, he would back tax cuts and be tougher on terrorists than Coakley.
He also repeated a pledge to oppose Obama's health care reform effort.
Video: Who will get Kennedy's seat?
Video: CNN analyst assesses key race
Video: Race for Ted Kennedy's seat
Video: Obama campaigns in Massachusetts
RELATED TOPICS
Massachusetts
Martha Coakley
Scott Brown
Edward M. Kennedy
Health Care Reform
"Massachusetts wants real reform and not this trillion-dollar Obama health care that is being forced on the American people," he said. "As the 41st [Republican] senator I will make sure that we do it better."
Forty-four percent of Massachusetts voters cited the economy and jobs as their top concern in a recent 7 News/Suffolk University poll. Thirty-eight percent mentioned health care as their top concern.
Voters more concerned with the economy were split almost evenly between the two candidates; voters more worried about health care narrowly supported Coakley.
Brown's surprising strength came in part because some independents and conservatives who have supported Democrats in the past were having second thoughts.
Democrats far outnumber Republicans in Massachusetts, but there are more independents than Democrats and Republicans combined.
Several Democratic sources say multiple Obama advisers have told the party they believed Coakley was going to lose, despite Obama's campaign appearance for Coakley on Sunday.
Facing the possibility of Coakley's defeat, Democrats were trying to figure out if they could pass health care reform without that crucial 60th Senate vote.
The seat is currently held by former Kennedy aide and longtime friend Paul Kirk, who was appointed to the seat on an interim basis.
Two Democratic sources in close contact with the White House told CNN on Monday they've urged the administration, in the event of a Brown victory, to push House Democrats to pass the Senate's health care bill as currently written. Doing so would prevent the plan from having to be taken up by the Senate again.
"I think the Senate bill clearly is better than nothing," House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Maryland, said Tuesday.
A third option would be for Democrats to revisit the idea of trying to push health care through the Senate with only 51 votes -- a simple majority.
But to do that Democrats would have to use a process known as reconciliation, which presents technical and procedural issues that would delay the process for a long time. A number of Democrats are eager to put the health care debate behind them and move on to economic issues such as job creation as soon as possible this election year.
Senate Democrats could also try again to get moderate GOP Sen. Olympia Snowe of Maine to vote for a compromise health reform plan. Multiple Democratic sources, however, have said they believe that is unlikely now.
Capital Crime
A disgusting case and the very reason why we have the death penalty! My well wishes to Dr. P.
JB
Story By: Crystal Haynes (WTNH)
New Haven (WTNH) - Jury selection begins this morning for one of the suspects in the deadly Cheshire home invasion killings. Steven Hayes could face the death penalty if he is convicted.
Dr. William Petit, the man who lost his wife and his two daughters in the deadly home invasion, arrived to court to watch the proceedings.
Testimony won't begin until September, but the jury selection process is expected to be a long and daunting one. Courthouse insiders say finding an impartial group of 12 regular jurors, six alternates and two back-ups could take up to four to six months.
Hayes, 46., a native of Winsted, faces a list of charges including murder, first-degree robbery, first-degree arson, first-degree sexual assault and first-degree kidnapping in the 2007 murders of Jennifer Hawke-Petit and her daughters, Michaela, 11, and Hayley, 17.
If the jurors convict Hayes of murder, they would then commence a penalty phase to determine if he should receive the death sentence.
The other defendant, 29-year-old Joshua Komisarjevsky, is expected to be tried on similar charges next year
Monday, January 18, 2010
DV
After spending Saturday night in a police lockup on family violence charges, a West Haven man returned to his home early Sunday, killed his wife and then himself, according to police.
The West Haven Police Department said officers found the bodies of Shengyl Rasim and her husband, Selami Ozdemir, inside their home at 341 Blohm St. sometime around 4 a.m. The couple's two children, ages 6 years old and 7 months, are in the custody of the state.
Police believe that Ozdemir went back home after posting bond and shot his wife to death before turning the gun on himself, police said.
The incident is still under investigation, but police aren't seeking any additional suspects at this time, according to a press release issued by West Haven police
Sunday.
This was the second murder-suicide in the area this past weekend. On Saturday, the bodies of a man and woman were found in a car parked in a Black Rock Turnpike commuter lot off the Merritt Parkway in Fairfield. Police believe the couple, in their 70s, died in an apparent murder-suicide.
And just last Tuesday, a Bridgeport man was charged with murder after killing his wife in their Forestview Road home.
Neighbors of Rasim and Ozdemir said they were shocked by Sunday's incident, adding they were not aware of anything that would lead to Ozdemir's killing his wife in the two-story home they shared on Blohm Street.
In fact, Ozdemir was not supposed to be in that home at all on Sunday.
West Haven police said they had arrested him around 5:30 p.m. Saturday at his home for family violence charges. Ozdemir's bond was $25,000, which he was able to post, with the stipulation that he was not allowed to return to the residence until his court appearance.
Police aren't sure when he was released from their custody, but around 3:32 a.m., they responded to the Blohm Streeet home on a report of a domestic dispute. Rasim told police her husband had returned home and was "banging on the door." When police arrived, he had already left the scene.
Then, just before 4 a.m., a 911 call was received at the police department, but the dispatchers were "only able to hear the sound of crying and banging noises," police said.
Police responded to the home and had to force entry into the residence. Once inside, they found the bodies of Ozdemir and his wife, both dead from apparent gunshot wounds, according to police.
"Total shock," said the couple's next-door neighbor, Andre Cevillo, who described Ozdemir as a man who worked hard and was a "friend to everyone." Ozdemir owned Pizza Empire on Whalley Avenue in New Haven, Cevillo said, and kept long hours. Workers at the pizza restaurant, who asked not to be identified, said they were "very sad" to hear about the incident.
Cevillo said this wasn't the first time police were called to the couple's house, but said he thought "everything was OK." He said "the couple next door argued, but it was nothing out of the ordinary."
Sunday afternoon, crime-scene tape was still draped across the front of the couple's home.
Four pairs of shoes sat on a stand next to the door on the porch and a snow shovel leaned against it, ready for use. Three vehicles sat in the driveway of the house that fits in with the working class neighborhood of neatly kept, single- and multi-family homes, where American flags and small decorations adorn them.
Rasim was nice, Cevillo said. "Kind of quiet," he said. "She was from Turkey, but she was learning the language. She always said hello." This was Ozdemir's first home, Cevillo said, describing a man who was building a better life for himself and his family, which makes these events all the more confusing, he added.
A group of neighbors gathered a few houses down from the crime scene said they had heard that Ozdemir hid from the police when they came by the first time early Sunday, then, after they left, apparently went inside and killed Rasim.
Saturday was not the first time Ozdemir had been arrested for domestic violence. According to the state Judicial Branch's Web site, Ozdemir was arrested on Sept. 4 of last year and was facing charges of second-degree assault, risk of injury to a minor and threatening in the second degree. His next court date was to have been May 5 in Milford.
This is the latest in a string of violent crimes in the area.
Last Tuesday, Frank Dore was taken into custody and charged with murder soon after police discovered the body of his wife, Patti J. Rothermel-Dore, in their home on Forestview Road, Bridgeport. Dore, who also allegedly fatally shot his wife, remains in custody on a $3 million bond.
Saturday, the bodies of a couple in their 70s was found in a car in the commuter parking lot off the Merritt Parkway in Fairfield. State Police are investigating that incident as an apparent murder-suicide. No further details were released Sunday by Lt. J. Paul Vance, state police spokesman.
The West Haven Police Department said officers found the bodies of Shengyl Rasim and her husband, Selami Ozdemir, inside their home at 341 Blohm St. sometime around 4 a.m. The couple's two children, ages 6 years old and 7 months, are in the custody of the state.
Police believe that Ozdemir went back home after posting bond and shot his wife to death before turning the gun on himself, police said.
The incident is still under investigation, but police aren't seeking any additional suspects at this time, according to a press release issued by West Haven police
Sunday.
This was the second murder-suicide in the area this past weekend. On Saturday, the bodies of a man and woman were found in a car parked in a Black Rock Turnpike commuter lot off the Merritt Parkway in Fairfield. Police believe the couple, in their 70s, died in an apparent murder-suicide.
And just last Tuesday, a Bridgeport man was charged with murder after killing his wife in their Forestview Road home.
Neighbors of Rasim and Ozdemir said they were shocked by Sunday's incident, adding they were not aware of anything that would lead to Ozdemir's killing his wife in the two-story home they shared on Blohm Street.
In fact, Ozdemir was not supposed to be in that home at all on Sunday.
West Haven police said they had arrested him around 5:30 p.m. Saturday at his home for family violence charges. Ozdemir's bond was $25,000, which he was able to post, with the stipulation that he was not allowed to return to the residence until his court appearance.
Police aren't sure when he was released from their custody, but around 3:32 a.m., they responded to the Blohm Streeet home on a report of a domestic dispute. Rasim told police her husband had returned home and was "banging on the door." When police arrived, he had already left the scene.
Then, just before 4 a.m., a 911 call was received at the police department, but the dispatchers were "only able to hear the sound of crying and banging noises," police said.
Police responded to the home and had to force entry into the residence. Once inside, they found the bodies of Ozdemir and his wife, both dead from apparent gunshot wounds, according to police.
"Total shock," said the couple's next-door neighbor, Andre Cevillo, who described Ozdemir as a man who worked hard and was a "friend to everyone." Ozdemir owned Pizza Empire on Whalley Avenue in New Haven, Cevillo said, and kept long hours. Workers at the pizza restaurant, who asked not to be identified, said they were "very sad" to hear about the incident.
Cevillo said this wasn't the first time police were called to the couple's house, but said he thought "everything was OK." He said "the couple next door argued, but it was nothing out of the ordinary."
Sunday afternoon, crime-scene tape was still draped across the front of the couple's home.
Four pairs of shoes sat on a stand next to the door on the porch and a snow shovel leaned against it, ready for use. Three vehicles sat in the driveway of the house that fits in with the working class neighborhood of neatly kept, single- and multi-family homes, where American flags and small decorations adorn them.
Rasim was nice, Cevillo said. "Kind of quiet," he said. "She was from Turkey, but she was learning the language. She always said hello." This was Ozdemir's first home, Cevillo said, describing a man who was building a better life for himself and his family, which makes these events all the more confusing, he added.
A group of neighbors gathered a few houses down from the crime scene said they had heard that Ozdemir hid from the police when they came by the first time early Sunday, then, after they left, apparently went inside and killed Rasim.
Saturday was not the first time Ozdemir had been arrested for domestic violence. According to the state Judicial Branch's Web site, Ozdemir was arrested on Sept. 4 of last year and was facing charges of second-degree assault, risk of injury to a minor and threatening in the second degree. His next court date was to have been May 5 in Milford.
This is the latest in a string of violent crimes in the area.
Last Tuesday, Frank Dore was taken into custody and charged with murder soon after police discovered the body of his wife, Patti J. Rothermel-Dore, in their home on Forestview Road, Bridgeport. Dore, who also allegedly fatally shot his wife, remains in custody on a $3 million bond.
Saturday, the bodies of a couple in their 70s was found in a car in the commuter parking lot off the Merritt Parkway in Fairfield. State Police are investigating that incident as an apparent murder-suicide. No further details were released Sunday by Lt. J. Paul Vance, state police spokesman.
Sunday, January 17, 2010
New Haven
The weather warms up, and the crap starts, recover quickly my brothers and sisters in New Haven PD!
Suspect shot following police chase
Two police officers, suspect, bystander injured
Updated: Saturday, 16 Jan 2010, 10:47 PM EST
Published : Saturday, 16 Jan 2010, 8:40 PM EST
By: Rebecca Santillo
New Haven (WTNH) - It was a chaotic scene at a gas station in New Haven this evening that ended with two cops, the suspect and an innocent bystander being hospitalized.
Police say it started with a routine traffic stop in the city's Hill section. Police thought they had the suspect cornered at a gas station at the corner of Whalley and Sherman avenues, but that's when he began to ram police cruisers in a desperate attempt to get away.
"I never seen anything like that happen, only on TV, wildest chase, it was definitely a wild chase," said Larry Edlow, who witnessed the incident.
Two of the police officers got out of their cruisers and were struck by the suspect. One was actually on the hood of the suspect's car and then made the decision to shoot at the suspect through the windshield.
"Two officers saw the car in the parking lot spinning in circles, they approached the car on foot, the operator of the car hit one of the officers with the car at which point one of the officers fired a single shot striking the operator of the car," said Asst. Chief of Police, Peter Reichard.
One bystander was hurt in all the commotion. Police say as many as six civilian cars were struck by the suspect.
The suspect has not been identifed
Suspect shot following police chase
Two police officers, suspect, bystander injured
Updated: Saturday, 16 Jan 2010, 10:47 PM EST
Published : Saturday, 16 Jan 2010, 8:40 PM EST
By: Rebecca Santillo
New Haven (WTNH) - It was a chaotic scene at a gas station in New Haven this evening that ended with two cops, the suspect and an innocent bystander being hospitalized.
Police say it started with a routine traffic stop in the city's Hill section. Police thought they had the suspect cornered at a gas station at the corner of Whalley and Sherman avenues, but that's when he began to ram police cruisers in a desperate attempt to get away.
"I never seen anything like that happen, only on TV, wildest chase, it was definitely a wild chase," said Larry Edlow, who witnessed the incident.
Two of the police officers got out of their cruisers and were struck by the suspect. One was actually on the hood of the suspect's car and then made the decision to shoot at the suspect through the windshield.
"Two officers saw the car in the parking lot spinning in circles, they approached the car on foot, the operator of the car hit one of the officers with the car at which point one of the officers fired a single shot striking the operator of the car," said Asst. Chief of Police, Peter Reichard.
One bystander was hurt in all the commotion. Police say as many as six civilian cars were struck by the suspect.
The suspect has not been identifed
Saturday, January 16, 2010
OSS Greats
Allen Welsh Dulles
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to: navigation, search
Allen Welsh Dulles
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
5th Director of Central Intelligence
In office
February 26, 1953 – November 29, 1961
President Dwight D. Eisenhower
John F. Kennedy
Preceded by GEN Walter Bedell Smith, USA
Succeeded by John McCone
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Born April 7, 1893
Watertown, New York
Died January 29, 1969 (aged 75)
Allen Welsh Dulles (April 7, 1893 – January 29, 1969) was the first civilian and the longest serving (1953–61) director of central intelligence (de facto head of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency) and a member of the Warren Commission. Between stints of government service, Dulles was a corporate lawyer and partner at Sullivan & Cromwell. Allen W. Dulles was one of the directors of the J. Henry Schroder bank.
Contents [hide]
1 Early life and family
2 Background in intelligence
3 CIA career
4 Later life
5 In the media
6 Bibliography
7 Further reading
8 References
9 External links
10 See also
[edit] Early life and family
Allen Dulles was born on April 7, 1893, in Watertown, New York, and grew up in a family where public service was valued and world affairs were a common topic of discussion[citation needed]. Dulles was one of five children born to Presbyterian minister Allen Macy Dulles and his wife Edith (Foster). He was five years younger than his brother John Foster Dulles, Eisenhower's Secretary of State and chairman and senior partner of Sullivan & Cromwell, and the grandson of John W. Foster, another Secretary of State and brother to diplomat Eleanor Lansing Dulles. His paternal grandfather, John Welch Dulles, had been a Presbyterian missionary in China. His uncle (by marriage) Robert Lansing also was a U.S. Secretary of State.[1] His nephew, Avery Dulles, was a Roman Catholic cardinal, Jesuit priest and noted theologian who taught at Fordham University.
Allen Dulles graduated from Princeton University, and in 1916 entered the diplomatic service. Dulles was serving in Switzerland and was responsible for reviewing and rejecting Vladimir Lenin's application for a visa to the United States.[citation needed] In 1920 he married Clover Todd, daughter of a Columbia University professor; their only son, Allen Macy Dulles Jr., was wounded and permanently disabled in the Korean War when a mortar fragment penetrated his brain. In 1926 he earned a law degree from George Washington University Law School and took a job at the New York firm where his brother, John Foster Dulles, was a partner. He became a director of the Council on Foreign Relations in 1927, becoming the first new director since the Council's foundation in 1921. He was the Council's secretary from 1933.[2]
[edit] Background in intelligence
This section does not cite any references or sources.
Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (September 2009)
Dulles was appointed by William J. Donovan to become head of operations in New York for the Coordinator of Information (COI), which was set up in Room 3603 of Rockefeller Center, taking over offices staffed by Britain's MI6. The COI was the precursor to the Office of Strategic Services, renamed in 1942.
During the 1930s Allen Dulles gained much experience in Germany. An early foe of Adolf Hitler, Dulles was transferred from Britain to Berne, Switzerland for the rest of World War II. He was assisted in intellegence-gathering activities by a German emigrant Gero von Schulze-Gaevernitz. Dulles notably was heavily involved in the controversial and secret Operation Sunrise (secret negotiations in March 1945 to arrange a local surrender of German forces in northern Italy). He is featured in the classic Soviet TV series Seventeen Moments of Spring for his role in that operation. Dulles became the station chief in Berne, Switzerland, for the newly formed Office of Strategic Services (the precursor to the CIA), a logical one. Dulles supplied his government with much sensitive information about Nazi Germany.
Dulles worked on intelligence regarding German plans and activities. Dulles established wide contacts with German émigrés, resistance figures, and anti-Nazi intelligence officers (who linked him, through Hans Bernd Gisevius, to the tiny but daring opposition to Hitler in Germany itself). Although Washington barred Dulles from making firm commitments to the plotters of the 20 July 1944 attempt to assassinate Hitler, the conspirators nonetheless gave him reports on developments in Germany, including sketchy but accurate warnings of plans for Hitler’s V-1 and V-2 missiles.
Dulles's career was jump-started by the information provided by Fritz Kolbe, a German diplomat and a foe of the Nazis. Kolbe supplied secret documents regarding active German spies and plans regarding the Messerschmitt Me 262 jet fighter. In 1945, he played a central role in negotiations leading to the unconditional capitulation of German troops in Italy.
After the war in Europe, Dulles served for six months as the OSS Berlin station chief. In 1947, Congress created the Central Intelligence Agency. Dulles was closely involved with its development.
In the 1948 Presidential election, Allen Dulles was Republican nominee Thomas E. Dewey's chief advisor. The Dulles brothers and James Forrestal helped form the Office of Policy Coordination. Under President Eisenhower, Dulles became CIA director.
[edit] CIA career
In 1953, Dulles became the first civilian Director of Central Intelligence, which had been formed as part of the National Security Act of 1947; earlier directors had been military officers. The Agency's covert operations were an important part of the Eisenhower administration's new Cold War national security policy known as the "New Look". Under Dulles's direction, the CIA created MK-Ultra, a top secret mind control research project which was managed by Sidney Gottlieb. Dulles also personally oversaw Operation Mockingbird, a program which influenced American media companies as part of the "New Look".
At Dulles' request, President Eisenhower demanded that Senator Joseph McCarthy discontinue issuing subpoenas against the CIA. In March, McCarthy had initiated a series of investigations into potential communist subversion of the Agency. Although none of the investigations revealed any wrongdoing, the hearings were still potentially damaging, not only to the CIA's reputation but also to the security of sensitive information. Documents made public in 2004 revealed that the CIA had broken into McCarthy's Senate office and intentionally fed disinformation to him in order to discredit him.[3] In fact, the CIA had been seriously compromised and "duped by Soviet and Chinese intelligent services" from its inception. Dulles discredited McCarthy, knowing that revelations of these facts would lead to the agency's destruction[3] as well, presumably, as that of his own career and reputation.
In the early 1950s the U.S. Air Force conducted a competition for a new photo reconnaissance aircraft. Lockheed Aircraft Corporation's Skunk Works submitted a design number called the CL-282, which married sailplane-like wings to the body of a supersonic interceptor. This aircraft was rejected by the Air Force, but several of the civilians on the review board took notice, and Edwin Land presented a proposal for the aircraft to Dulles. The aircraft became what is known as the U-2 'spy plane', and it was initially operated by CIA pilots. Its introduction into operational service in 1957 greatly enhanced the CIA's ability to monitor Soviet activity through overhead photo surveillance. Ironically, the aircraft eventually entered service with the Air force, who still operate it today.
In 1953, Dulles was also involved in the covert operations that led to the removal of Mohammad Mossadeq, prime minister of Iran, by the Shah. Rumors of a Soviet takeover had surfaced due to the recent nationalization of the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company. In actuality, British diplomat Christopher Woodhouse had pitched the idea of a coup to President Eisenhower to try and regain British control of the oil company. He would later say, "Not wishing to be accused of using Americans to pull British chestnuts out of the fire, I decided to emphasize the communist threat [to Iran].
At the direction of President Eisenhower, Dulles established Operation 40, comprising 40 officials and agents whose primary area of operations was the Caribbean region, including Cuba. On 4 March, 1960, La Coubre, a ship flying a Belgian flag, exploded in Havana Bay. It was loaded with arms and ammunition destined for the armed forces of the Cuban government of Fidel Castro. The explosion killed 75 people and over 200 were injured. Fabian Escalante, an officer of the Department of State Security (G-2), later claimed that this was the first successful act carried out by Operation 40.
Operation 40 not only was involved in sabotage operations but also, in fact, evolved into a team of assassins. One member, Frank Sturgis, claimed: "this assassination group (Operation 40) would upon orders, naturally, assassinate either members of the military or the political parties of the foreign country that you were going to infiltrate, and if necessary some of your own members who were suspected of being foreign agents... We were concentrating strictly in Cuba at that particular time."
Over the next few years Operation 40 worked closely with several anti-Castro Cuban organizations including Alpha 66. CIA officials and freelance agents such as William Harvey, Thomas G. Clines, Porter Goss, Gerry Patrick Hemming, E. Howard Hunt, David Sánchez Morales, Carl Elmer Jenkins, Bernard Barker, Barry Seal, Frank Sturgis, William Robert Plumlee ("Tosh" Plumlee), and William C. Bishop also joined the project.
Dulles went on to be successful with the CIA's first attempts at removing foreign leaders by covert means. Notably, the elected Prime Minister Mohammed Mossadegh of Iran was deposed in 1953 (via Operation Ajax), and President Arbenz of Guatemala was removed in 1954. The Guatemalan coup was carried out under the CIA code-name Operation PBSUCCESS. Dulles was on the board of the United Fruit Company. Dulles saw these kind of clandestine activities as an essential part of the struggle against communism.
During the Kennedy Administration, Dulles faced increasing criticism. The failed Bay of Pigs Invasion and several failed assassination plots utilizing CIA-recruited operatives from the Mafia and anti-Castro Cubans directly against Fidel Castro undermined the CIA's credibility, and pro-American but unpopular regimes in Iran and Guatemala that he helped put in place were widely regarded as brutal and corrupt. The reputation of the agency and its director declined after the Bay of Pigs Invasion fiasco; he and his staff (including Deputy Director for Plans Richard M. Bissell, Jr. and Deputy Director Charles Cabell) were forced to resign (September 1961). President Kennedy did not trust the CIA, and he reportedly intended to dismantle it after the Bay of Pigs failure. Kennedy said he wanted to "splinter the CIA into a thousand pieces and scatter it into the winds."[4]
[edit] Later life
Dulles published the book The Craft of Intelligence (ISBN 1-59228-297-0) in 1963.
On November 29, 1963, President Lyndon Johnson appointed Dulles as one of seven commissioners of the Warren Commission to investigate the assassination of the U.S. President John F. Kennedy.
Despite his knowledge of the several assassination plots by the CIA against Castro, he is not documented to have mentioned these plots to any investigating authorities during the Warren Commission.
In 1969 Dulles died of influenza, complicated by pneumonia, at the age of 75. He was buried in Greenmount Cemetery in Baltimore, Maryland.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to: navigation, search
Allen Welsh Dulles
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
5th Director of Central Intelligence
In office
February 26, 1953 – November 29, 1961
President Dwight D. Eisenhower
John F. Kennedy
Preceded by GEN Walter Bedell Smith, USA
Succeeded by John McCone
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Born April 7, 1893
Watertown, New York
Died January 29, 1969 (aged 75)
Allen Welsh Dulles (April 7, 1893 – January 29, 1969) was the first civilian and the longest serving (1953–61) director of central intelligence (de facto head of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency) and a member of the Warren Commission. Between stints of government service, Dulles was a corporate lawyer and partner at Sullivan & Cromwell. Allen W. Dulles was one of the directors of the J. Henry Schroder bank.
Contents [hide]
1 Early life and family
2 Background in intelligence
3 CIA career
4 Later life
5 In the media
6 Bibliography
7 Further reading
8 References
9 External links
10 See also
[edit] Early life and family
Allen Dulles was born on April 7, 1893, in Watertown, New York, and grew up in a family where public service was valued and world affairs were a common topic of discussion[citation needed]. Dulles was one of five children born to Presbyterian minister Allen Macy Dulles and his wife Edith (Foster). He was five years younger than his brother John Foster Dulles, Eisenhower's Secretary of State and chairman and senior partner of Sullivan & Cromwell, and the grandson of John W. Foster, another Secretary of State and brother to diplomat Eleanor Lansing Dulles. His paternal grandfather, John Welch Dulles, had been a Presbyterian missionary in China. His uncle (by marriage) Robert Lansing also was a U.S. Secretary of State.[1] His nephew, Avery Dulles, was a Roman Catholic cardinal, Jesuit priest and noted theologian who taught at Fordham University.
Allen Dulles graduated from Princeton University, and in 1916 entered the diplomatic service. Dulles was serving in Switzerland and was responsible for reviewing and rejecting Vladimir Lenin's application for a visa to the United States.[citation needed] In 1920 he married Clover Todd, daughter of a Columbia University professor; their only son, Allen Macy Dulles Jr., was wounded and permanently disabled in the Korean War when a mortar fragment penetrated his brain. In 1926 he earned a law degree from George Washington University Law School and took a job at the New York firm where his brother, John Foster Dulles, was a partner. He became a director of the Council on Foreign Relations in 1927, becoming the first new director since the Council's foundation in 1921. He was the Council's secretary from 1933.[2]
[edit] Background in intelligence
This section does not cite any references or sources.
Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (September 2009)
Dulles was appointed by William J. Donovan to become head of operations in New York for the Coordinator of Information (COI), which was set up in Room 3603 of Rockefeller Center, taking over offices staffed by Britain's MI6. The COI was the precursor to the Office of Strategic Services, renamed in 1942.
During the 1930s Allen Dulles gained much experience in Germany. An early foe of Adolf Hitler, Dulles was transferred from Britain to Berne, Switzerland for the rest of World War II. He was assisted in intellegence-gathering activities by a German emigrant Gero von Schulze-Gaevernitz. Dulles notably was heavily involved in the controversial and secret Operation Sunrise (secret negotiations in March 1945 to arrange a local surrender of German forces in northern Italy). He is featured in the classic Soviet TV series Seventeen Moments of Spring for his role in that operation. Dulles became the station chief in Berne, Switzerland, for the newly formed Office of Strategic Services (the precursor to the CIA), a logical one. Dulles supplied his government with much sensitive information about Nazi Germany.
Dulles worked on intelligence regarding German plans and activities. Dulles established wide contacts with German émigrés, resistance figures, and anti-Nazi intelligence officers (who linked him, through Hans Bernd Gisevius, to the tiny but daring opposition to Hitler in Germany itself). Although Washington barred Dulles from making firm commitments to the plotters of the 20 July 1944 attempt to assassinate Hitler, the conspirators nonetheless gave him reports on developments in Germany, including sketchy but accurate warnings of plans for Hitler’s V-1 and V-2 missiles.
Dulles's career was jump-started by the information provided by Fritz Kolbe, a German diplomat and a foe of the Nazis. Kolbe supplied secret documents regarding active German spies and plans regarding the Messerschmitt Me 262 jet fighter. In 1945, he played a central role in negotiations leading to the unconditional capitulation of German troops in Italy.
After the war in Europe, Dulles served for six months as the OSS Berlin station chief. In 1947, Congress created the Central Intelligence Agency. Dulles was closely involved with its development.
In the 1948 Presidential election, Allen Dulles was Republican nominee Thomas E. Dewey's chief advisor. The Dulles brothers and James Forrestal helped form the Office of Policy Coordination. Under President Eisenhower, Dulles became CIA director.
[edit] CIA career
In 1953, Dulles became the first civilian Director of Central Intelligence, which had been formed as part of the National Security Act of 1947; earlier directors had been military officers. The Agency's covert operations were an important part of the Eisenhower administration's new Cold War national security policy known as the "New Look". Under Dulles's direction, the CIA created MK-Ultra, a top secret mind control research project which was managed by Sidney Gottlieb. Dulles also personally oversaw Operation Mockingbird, a program which influenced American media companies as part of the "New Look".
At Dulles' request, President Eisenhower demanded that Senator Joseph McCarthy discontinue issuing subpoenas against the CIA. In March, McCarthy had initiated a series of investigations into potential communist subversion of the Agency. Although none of the investigations revealed any wrongdoing, the hearings were still potentially damaging, not only to the CIA's reputation but also to the security of sensitive information. Documents made public in 2004 revealed that the CIA had broken into McCarthy's Senate office and intentionally fed disinformation to him in order to discredit him.[3] In fact, the CIA had been seriously compromised and "duped by Soviet and Chinese intelligent services" from its inception. Dulles discredited McCarthy, knowing that revelations of these facts would lead to the agency's destruction[3] as well, presumably, as that of his own career and reputation.
In the early 1950s the U.S. Air Force conducted a competition for a new photo reconnaissance aircraft. Lockheed Aircraft Corporation's Skunk Works submitted a design number called the CL-282, which married sailplane-like wings to the body of a supersonic interceptor. This aircraft was rejected by the Air Force, but several of the civilians on the review board took notice, and Edwin Land presented a proposal for the aircraft to Dulles. The aircraft became what is known as the U-2 'spy plane', and it was initially operated by CIA pilots. Its introduction into operational service in 1957 greatly enhanced the CIA's ability to monitor Soviet activity through overhead photo surveillance. Ironically, the aircraft eventually entered service with the Air force, who still operate it today.
In 1953, Dulles was also involved in the covert operations that led to the removal of Mohammad Mossadeq, prime minister of Iran, by the Shah. Rumors of a Soviet takeover had surfaced due to the recent nationalization of the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company. In actuality, British diplomat Christopher Woodhouse had pitched the idea of a coup to President Eisenhower to try and regain British control of the oil company. He would later say, "Not wishing to be accused of using Americans to pull British chestnuts out of the fire, I decided to emphasize the communist threat [to Iran].
At the direction of President Eisenhower, Dulles established Operation 40, comprising 40 officials and agents whose primary area of operations was the Caribbean region, including Cuba. On 4 March, 1960, La Coubre, a ship flying a Belgian flag, exploded in Havana Bay. It was loaded with arms and ammunition destined for the armed forces of the Cuban government of Fidel Castro. The explosion killed 75 people and over 200 were injured. Fabian Escalante, an officer of the Department of State Security (G-2), later claimed that this was the first successful act carried out by Operation 40.
Operation 40 not only was involved in sabotage operations but also, in fact, evolved into a team of assassins. One member, Frank Sturgis, claimed: "this assassination group (Operation 40) would upon orders, naturally, assassinate either members of the military or the political parties of the foreign country that you were going to infiltrate, and if necessary some of your own members who were suspected of being foreign agents... We were concentrating strictly in Cuba at that particular time."
Over the next few years Operation 40 worked closely with several anti-Castro Cuban organizations including Alpha 66. CIA officials and freelance agents such as William Harvey, Thomas G. Clines, Porter Goss, Gerry Patrick Hemming, E. Howard Hunt, David Sánchez Morales, Carl Elmer Jenkins, Bernard Barker, Barry Seal, Frank Sturgis, William Robert Plumlee ("Tosh" Plumlee), and William C. Bishop also joined the project.
Dulles went on to be successful with the CIA's first attempts at removing foreign leaders by covert means. Notably, the elected Prime Minister Mohammed Mossadegh of Iran was deposed in 1953 (via Operation Ajax), and President Arbenz of Guatemala was removed in 1954. The Guatemalan coup was carried out under the CIA code-name Operation PBSUCCESS. Dulles was on the board of the United Fruit Company. Dulles saw these kind of clandestine activities as an essential part of the struggle against communism.
During the Kennedy Administration, Dulles faced increasing criticism. The failed Bay of Pigs Invasion and several failed assassination plots utilizing CIA-recruited operatives from the Mafia and anti-Castro Cubans directly against Fidel Castro undermined the CIA's credibility, and pro-American but unpopular regimes in Iran and Guatemala that he helped put in place were widely regarded as brutal and corrupt. The reputation of the agency and its director declined after the Bay of Pigs Invasion fiasco; he and his staff (including Deputy Director for Plans Richard M. Bissell, Jr. and Deputy Director Charles Cabell) were forced to resign (September 1961). President Kennedy did not trust the CIA, and he reportedly intended to dismantle it after the Bay of Pigs failure. Kennedy said he wanted to "splinter the CIA into a thousand pieces and scatter it into the winds."[4]
[edit] Later life
Dulles published the book The Craft of Intelligence (ISBN 1-59228-297-0) in 1963.
On November 29, 1963, President Lyndon Johnson appointed Dulles as one of seven commissioners of the Warren Commission to investigate the assassination of the U.S. President John F. Kennedy.
Despite his knowledge of the several assassination plots by the CIA against Castro, he is not documented to have mentioned these plots to any investigating authorities during the Warren Commission.
In 1969 Dulles died of influenza, complicated by pneumonia, at the age of 75. He was buried in Greenmount Cemetery in Baltimore, Maryland.
CNN) -- Pennsylvania authorities say they arrested a former United Nations weapons inspector after he allegedly exchanged sexually explicit online messages with a police officer who was pretending to be a 15-year-old girl.
Scott Ritter, the former top U.N. weapons inspector in Iraq, was arrested in November, months after police said he sent sexual messages to a police officer posing as a 15-year-old girl named Emily, the Barrett Township, Pennsylvania, Police Department said in a news release Thursday.
Ritter's lawyer, Todd Henry, did not immediately respond to CNN's requests for comment about the arrest, which The Pocono Record first reported on Thursday.
According to an affidavit of probable cause, "delmar4fun" contacted Barrett Township Detective Ryan Venneman -- who was posing as "Emily," from Poconos, Pennsylvania -- in an online chat room on February 7, 2009, saying he was a 44-year-old man from Albany, New York.
Ritter, 48, lives in Delmar, New York, according to police. Delmar is in Albany County.
"Delmar4fun," whom police identified as Ritter, sent "Emily" a link to his Web camera and then masturbated on camera and said he was fantasizing about having sex with her, the affidavit said.
"Emily" told "delmar4fun" what her age was twice, the affidavit said. The second time, "delmar4fun," turned the camera off and said he didn't realize he was speaking to a 15-year-old and didn't want to get into trouble, the affidavit said.
However, Ritter allegedly later resent the camera link, and masturbated and ejaculated on camera, the affidavit said.
Venneman called a phone number that "delmar4fun" had given, and told him that "Emily" was a police officer. "Delmar4fun" identified himself to Venneman, the affidavit said.
Ritter was arrested on November 9, 2009, on a number of charges including indecent exposure, corruption of minors and criminal solicitation, according to the police news release.
Ritter is free on $25,000 unsecured bail, according to the Barrett Township Police Department.
Michael Rakaczewski, Monroe County, Pennsylvania, assistant district attorney, said Ritter could face up to seven years in prison if convicted.
Ritter served from 1991 to 1998 as the chief United Nations weapons inspector in Iraq.
Scott Ritter, the former top U.N. weapons inspector in Iraq, was arrested in November, months after police said he sent sexual messages to a police officer posing as a 15-year-old girl named Emily, the Barrett Township, Pennsylvania, Police Department said in a news release Thursday.
Ritter's lawyer, Todd Henry, did not immediately respond to CNN's requests for comment about the arrest, which The Pocono Record first reported on Thursday.
According to an affidavit of probable cause, "delmar4fun" contacted Barrett Township Detective Ryan Venneman -- who was posing as "Emily," from Poconos, Pennsylvania -- in an online chat room on February 7, 2009, saying he was a 44-year-old man from Albany, New York.
Ritter, 48, lives in Delmar, New York, according to police. Delmar is in Albany County.
"Delmar4fun," whom police identified as Ritter, sent "Emily" a link to his Web camera and then masturbated on camera and said he was fantasizing about having sex with her, the affidavit said.
"Emily" told "delmar4fun" what her age was twice, the affidavit said. The second time, "delmar4fun," turned the camera off and said he didn't realize he was speaking to a 15-year-old and didn't want to get into trouble, the affidavit said.
However, Ritter allegedly later resent the camera link, and masturbated and ejaculated on camera, the affidavit said.
Venneman called a phone number that "delmar4fun" had given, and told him that "Emily" was a police officer. "Delmar4fun" identified himself to Venneman, the affidavit said.
Ritter was arrested on November 9, 2009, on a number of charges including indecent exposure, corruption of minors and criminal solicitation, according to the police news release.
Ritter is free on $25,000 unsecured bail, according to the Barrett Township Police Department.
Michael Rakaczewski, Monroe County, Pennsylvania, assistant district attorney, said Ritter could face up to seven years in prison if convicted.
Ritter served from 1991 to 1998 as the chief United Nations weapons inspector in Iraq.
Friday, January 15, 2010
Yale Security
So a friend of mine at Yale University Security Department has been telling me for some time the frustrations he has had with the University and the H.R. folks. This friend has worked for me as a cop and later in my private practice, and I can assure you he was a damn good cop and continues to be a good friend who I trust.
So recently, late one night, I sent my attached CV to Yale H.R. for a routine security supervisor position, now I am not being grandiose when I tell you that I have a graduate degree in criminal justice, extensive investigative and command experience along with working for the CIA and being a grad of the FBI National Academy and I am an emergency medicine trained RN, thus I have a little bit of experience, so I figured lets test Yale and see if something is odd, so I sent my well published CV to Yale applying for this basic position in security and less than 24 hours later I got the below email, now I have no plans at all of working for Yale Security and the job is about a quarter of what I make financially, but I wanted to either prove or disprove my friends allegations, well I guess the facts speak for themselves!!!!! Read on….
Dear John Brenner,
Thank you for your interest in employment opportunities at Yale University. In light of the highly competitive candidate pool, you have not been selected among the final candidates considered for position 8928BR, Supervisor 2, Security.
We invite you to explore additional employment opportunities at www.yale.edu/jobs.
Recruiting Team
Yale University
The CV I used....(click)
So recently, late one night, I sent my attached CV to Yale H.R. for a routine security supervisor position, now I am not being grandiose when I tell you that I have a graduate degree in criminal justice, extensive investigative and command experience along with working for the CIA and being a grad of the FBI National Academy and I am an emergency medicine trained RN, thus I have a little bit of experience, so I figured lets test Yale and see if something is odd, so I sent my well published CV to Yale applying for this basic position in security and less than 24 hours later I got the below email, now I have no plans at all of working for Yale Security and the job is about a quarter of what I make financially, but I wanted to either prove or disprove my friends allegations, well I guess the facts speak for themselves!!!!! Read on….
Dear John Brenner,
Thank you for your interest in employment opportunities at Yale University. In light of the highly competitive candidate pool, you have not been selected among the final candidates considered for position 8928BR, Supervisor 2, Security.
We invite you to explore additional employment opportunities at www.yale.edu/jobs.
Recruiting Team
Yale University
The CV I used....(click)
Thursday, January 14, 2010
(CNN) -- The devastation caused by Tuesday's earthquake could decimate what fragile medical care exists and spawn a "perfect storm" in a country already struggling to fight rare tropical and infectious diseases, health experts said.
On Tuesday, a magnitude 7.0 earthquake ripped apart buildings, shearing huge slabs of concrete off structures in the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. About 3 million people -- one-third of Haiti's population -- were affected by the quake, the Red Cross estimated.
The disaster cut power, electricity and other utilities. This could leave people without clean drinking water and at greater risk of malnutrition and disease. The potential new mass of displaced persons could create crowded, unsanitary conditions that facilitate the spread of contagious respiratory infections, said Dr. Peter Hotez, head of the department of microbiology at George Washington University.
"What you have is the perfect storm of infection," Hotez said. "What you have is a breakdown. It is already a fragile infrastructure with high rates of infectious and neglected tropical disease. Now there are potential breakdowns in sanitation, clean water, housing and subsequent crowding. That's a terrible mix."
Even before the earthquake, the country has been the subject of intense public health efforts, as nearly half the causes of deaths have been attributed to HIV/AIDS, respiratory infections, meningitis and diarrheal diseases, according to the World Health Organization.
The first medical response would be to find the people who are trapped in the rubble.
Usually in natural disasters people suffer extreme physical and mental shock along with the initial injuries caused by the disaster, such as amputations and fractures, said Dr. Tamman Aloudat, senior health officer with the International Red Cross in Geneva, Switzerland.
Watch more on the brewing medical crisis in Haiti
Video: Haiti faces medical crisis What you're going to need, is something equivalent to a Marshall plan for Haiti. These are our neighbors.
--Dr. Peter Hotez, Chair of the Department of Microbiology, Immunology, & Tropical Medicine at George Washington University Medical Center
Historically, 90 percent of the casualties in major earthquakes occur within the first three to four days, he said. The likelihood of finding survivors dwindles in about three to four days.
For those who survive with injuries, blocked roads, lack of supplies and medical attention can hamper recovery.
"In Haiti, if you have a serious injury or illness, if you're lucky, you can make it to the hospital," said Dr. Ted Kaplan, a pediatrician from Orlando, Florida, who formed a network of clinics and health organizations in Haiti. "They don't have much they can offer you. The situation now is there's no ambulance. If you don't get to the hospital, you don't have an orthopedic surgeon, you don't have a CT scan -- there's no equipment to deal with the injury."
On Wednesday, he spoke to CNN while anxiously waiting to hear from his in-laws, who live in Haiti.
"It's quite a disaster in a place that has no safety net," he said.
The lack of a safety net means that if left untreated, minor injuries or fractures can become life-threatening because they're left open to bacterial infections such as tetanus, doctors said.
But even the uninjured can face medical risks.
Interruptions in basic services such as the water supply can increase the risk of waterborne disease outbreaks. Animal and human fecal matter and bodies can become sources of contamination if they're in the water supply, Hotez said.
"The risks in the short-term are diarrheal infections, diarrheal diseases including typhoid fever and cholera," he said. Risks also include bacterial infections such as shigellosis (which causes diarrhea) and salmonella enterocolitis (a common type of food poisoning).
Bacterial and mosquito-borne diseases such as dengue and malaria are also major risk factors, Aloudat said.
"The local Red Cross will attempt to go and start monitoring about outbreak epidemics," he said.
The International Red Cross said it is deploying stocks of non-food relief items to 10,000 families, and additional staff will be deployed as soon as possible.
I have the hope this situation may lead to improvements, because it's bringing lots of attention and help to the area.
--Dr. Ted Kaplan, founder of Cap Haitien Health Network
RELATED TOPICS
Haiti
Public Health Policy
Earthquakes
Some doctors worry that the major, long-term health initiatives to treat preventable diseases in Haiti could be upended. Many community-based health initiatives have been set up to administer medicine to treat elephantiasis (enlargement of limbs caused by worms), and diseases caused by intestinal worms and parasites.
Any interruptions in fighting these preventable diseases has disastrous consequences, Hotez said.
"This is going to a big setback for public health control measures, and you will see the impact of this earthquake at least for months and possibly for years," Hotez said. "What you're going to need is something equivalent to a Marshall plan for Haiti. These are our neighbors. You go to Haiti, it's like you go back in time 500 years and see incredible neglected tropical diseases that don't need to be there."
That's another tragedy of the earthquake, said Kaplan, who formed the Cap Haïtien Health Network to tackle preventable diseases such as diarrhea, malaria and malnutrition.
When the rubble is cleared and the bodies are buried, Kaplan worries that "the minor safety nets -- many of them are not going to be there."
"I have the hope this situation may lead to improvements, because it's bringing lots of attention and help to the area," Kaplan said. "There's that silver lining."
On Tuesday, a magnitude 7.0 earthquake ripped apart buildings, shearing huge slabs of concrete off structures in the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. About 3 million people -- one-third of Haiti's population -- were affected by the quake, the Red Cross estimated.
The disaster cut power, electricity and other utilities. This could leave people without clean drinking water and at greater risk of malnutrition and disease. The potential new mass of displaced persons could create crowded, unsanitary conditions that facilitate the spread of contagious respiratory infections, said Dr. Peter Hotez, head of the department of microbiology at George Washington University.
"What you have is the perfect storm of infection," Hotez said. "What you have is a breakdown. It is already a fragile infrastructure with high rates of infectious and neglected tropical disease. Now there are potential breakdowns in sanitation, clean water, housing and subsequent crowding. That's a terrible mix."
Even before the earthquake, the country has been the subject of intense public health efforts, as nearly half the causes of deaths have been attributed to HIV/AIDS, respiratory infections, meningitis and diarrheal diseases, according to the World Health Organization.
The first medical response would be to find the people who are trapped in the rubble.
Usually in natural disasters people suffer extreme physical and mental shock along with the initial injuries caused by the disaster, such as amputations and fractures, said Dr. Tamman Aloudat, senior health officer with the International Red Cross in Geneva, Switzerland.
Watch more on the brewing medical crisis in Haiti
Video: Haiti faces medical crisis What you're going to need, is something equivalent to a Marshall plan for Haiti. These are our neighbors.
--Dr. Peter Hotez, Chair of the Department of Microbiology, Immunology, & Tropical Medicine at George Washington University Medical Center
Historically, 90 percent of the casualties in major earthquakes occur within the first three to four days, he said. The likelihood of finding survivors dwindles in about three to four days.
For those who survive with injuries, blocked roads, lack of supplies and medical attention can hamper recovery.
"In Haiti, if you have a serious injury or illness, if you're lucky, you can make it to the hospital," said Dr. Ted Kaplan, a pediatrician from Orlando, Florida, who formed a network of clinics and health organizations in Haiti. "They don't have much they can offer you. The situation now is there's no ambulance. If you don't get to the hospital, you don't have an orthopedic surgeon, you don't have a CT scan -- there's no equipment to deal with the injury."
On Wednesday, he spoke to CNN while anxiously waiting to hear from his in-laws, who live in Haiti.
"It's quite a disaster in a place that has no safety net," he said.
The lack of a safety net means that if left untreated, minor injuries or fractures can become life-threatening because they're left open to bacterial infections such as tetanus, doctors said.
But even the uninjured can face medical risks.
Interruptions in basic services such as the water supply can increase the risk of waterborne disease outbreaks. Animal and human fecal matter and bodies can become sources of contamination if they're in the water supply, Hotez said.
"The risks in the short-term are diarrheal infections, diarrheal diseases including typhoid fever and cholera," he said. Risks also include bacterial infections such as shigellosis (which causes diarrhea) and salmonella enterocolitis (a common type of food poisoning).
Bacterial and mosquito-borne diseases such as dengue and malaria are also major risk factors, Aloudat said.
"The local Red Cross will attempt to go and start monitoring about outbreak epidemics," he said.
The International Red Cross said it is deploying stocks of non-food relief items to 10,000 families, and additional staff will be deployed as soon as possible.
I have the hope this situation may lead to improvements, because it's bringing lots of attention and help to the area.
--Dr. Ted Kaplan, founder of Cap Haitien Health Network
RELATED TOPICS
Haiti
Public Health Policy
Earthquakes
Some doctors worry that the major, long-term health initiatives to treat preventable diseases in Haiti could be upended. Many community-based health initiatives have been set up to administer medicine to treat elephantiasis (enlargement of limbs caused by worms), and diseases caused by intestinal worms and parasites.
Any interruptions in fighting these preventable diseases has disastrous consequences, Hotez said.
"This is going to a big setback for public health control measures, and you will see the impact of this earthquake at least for months and possibly for years," Hotez said. "What you're going to need is something equivalent to a Marshall plan for Haiti. These are our neighbors. You go to Haiti, it's like you go back in time 500 years and see incredible neglected tropical diseases that don't need to be there."
That's another tragedy of the earthquake, said Kaplan, who formed the Cap Haïtien Health Network to tackle preventable diseases such as diarrhea, malaria and malnutrition.
When the rubble is cleared and the bodies are buried, Kaplan worries that "the minor safety nets -- many of them are not going to be there."
"I have the hope this situation may lead to improvements, because it's bringing lots of attention and help to the area," Kaplan said. "There's that silver lining."
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Worse then lead.
Cadmium: The New Made-in-China Scare
Posted by: Bruce Einhorn on January 12
A new year, a new Chinese safety scandal. If 2007 was the year of lead-tainted toys, 2008 was the year of melamine-laced milk and 2009 was the year of defective Chinese drywall, the new year could be the year of the poisoned trinkets. According to an Associated Press investigative story published yesterday, Chinese manufacturers are putting cadmium into children’s costume jewelry. Because they can’t use lead anymore, the AP reports, some Chinese companies have been using the heavy metal in the production of items like charm bracelets and pendants. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission’s chairman, Inez Tenenbaum, is promising a crackdown, telling a toy safety conference here in Hong Kong today that “voluntary efforts will only take us so far.”
How dangerous is cadmium? Not very, according to the website Cadmium.org. (Yes, the mineral has its own website.) “Cadmium is recognized to produce toxic effects on humans. Long-term occupational exposure can cause adverse health effects on the lungs and kidneys. Under normal conditions, adverse human health effects have not been encountered from general population exposure to cadmium.” The website is published by the International Cadmium Association.
For a less sanguine take on cadmium, though, check out the web site of OSHA (the Occupational Safety and Health Administration) cadmium “is an extremely toxic metal commonly” and overexposure “may occur even in situations where trace quantities of cadmium are found.” Scary stuff. Following the melamine scandals, in which thousands of Chinese children ended up in the hospital and some died after drinking milk that contained the industrial chemical, it’s hard to give Chinese manufacturers the benefit of the doubt. The U.S. and Chinese governments now need to move fast to reassure worried parents both inside and outside China that their daughters’ play jewelry is safe.
TrackBack URL for this entry: http://blogs.businessweek.com/mt/mt-tb.cgi/16331.1413013109
Posted by: Bruce Einhorn on January 12
A new year, a new Chinese safety scandal. If 2007 was the year of lead-tainted toys, 2008 was the year of melamine-laced milk and 2009 was the year of defective Chinese drywall, the new year could be the year of the poisoned trinkets. According to an Associated Press investigative story published yesterday, Chinese manufacturers are putting cadmium into children’s costume jewelry. Because they can’t use lead anymore, the AP reports, some Chinese companies have been using the heavy metal in the production of items like charm bracelets and pendants. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission’s chairman, Inez Tenenbaum, is promising a crackdown, telling a toy safety conference here in Hong Kong today that “voluntary efforts will only take us so far.”
How dangerous is cadmium? Not very, according to the website Cadmium.org. (Yes, the mineral has its own website.) “Cadmium is recognized to produce toxic effects on humans. Long-term occupational exposure can cause adverse health effects on the lungs and kidneys. Under normal conditions, adverse human health effects have not been encountered from general population exposure to cadmium.” The website is published by the International Cadmium Association.
For a less sanguine take on cadmium, though, check out the web site of OSHA (the Occupational Safety and Health Administration) cadmium “is an extremely toxic metal commonly” and overexposure “may occur even in situations where trace quantities of cadmium are found.” Scary stuff. Following the melamine scandals, in which thousands of Chinese children ended up in the hospital and some died after drinking milk that contained the industrial chemical, it’s hard to give Chinese manufacturers the benefit of the doubt. The U.S. and Chinese governments now need to move fast to reassure worried parents both inside and outside China that their daughters’ play jewelry is safe.
TrackBack URL for this entry: http://blogs.businessweek.com/mt/mt-tb.cgi/16331.1413013109
Monday, January 11, 2010
BRIDGEPORT -- One person is dead after a car went into the Pequonnock River, according to Assistant Fire Chief Robert McLeod.
The body was pulled from the icy water behind a building at 688-700 North Washington Ave., near Lindley Street about 1 p.m. Sunday.
The name of the deceased was not immediately released, pending notification of next of kin. But the registration on the car, with expired plates, indicates it was owned by a Bridgeport resident.
McLeod, of Battalion 2, said there were skid marks in the driveway where the green Mercury Sable went into the river, "sometime within the last 24 hours," he said Sunday afternoon.
"It appears the car drove into the lot and went into the water," he said.
He said firefighters from Rescue 5 recovered the body.
Divers from the police department's Scuba Team checked to be sure there are no other victims, McLeod said. No one else was found.
An emergency call alerted police that a car was upside-down in the water. The tires and underbelly were visible around broken ice.
A crane, borrowed from the owner of a nearby company, was used to pull the vehicle from the river after the body was recovered.
"We are not sure right now exactly what happened," said Bridgeport Fire Capt. Luis Rivera. "We got a call from a caller who spotted the car," he said. That was around noontime Sunday. The caller insisted the car was not there the day before.
A number of rescue personnel were on the scene and at least two dozen bystanders stood on the opposite side of the river as rescuers first recovered the body, then pulled the crumpled car out from ice-coated water.
The body was pulled from the icy water behind a building at 688-700 North Washington Ave., near Lindley Street about 1 p.m. Sunday.
The name of the deceased was not immediately released, pending notification of next of kin. But the registration on the car, with expired plates, indicates it was owned by a Bridgeport resident.
McLeod, of Battalion 2, said there were skid marks in the driveway where the green Mercury Sable went into the river, "sometime within the last 24 hours," he said Sunday afternoon.
"It appears the car drove into the lot and went into the water," he said.
He said firefighters from Rescue 5 recovered the body.
Divers from the police department's Scuba Team checked to be sure there are no other victims, McLeod said. No one else was found.
An emergency call alerted police that a car was upside-down in the water. The tires and underbelly were visible around broken ice.
A crane, borrowed from the owner of a nearby company, was used to pull the vehicle from the river after the body was recovered.
"We are not sure right now exactly what happened," said Bridgeport Fire Capt. Luis Rivera. "We got a call from a caller who spotted the car," he said. That was around noontime Sunday. The caller insisted the car was not there the day before.
A number of rescue personnel were on the scene and at least two dozen bystanders stood on the opposite side of the river as rescuers first recovered the body, then pulled the crumpled car out from ice-coated water.
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