Missouri Girl, 15, Pleads Not Guilty to Killing 9-Year-Old Neighbor - Local News | News Articles | National News | US News - FOXNews.com
Posted using ShareThis
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — A 15-year-old Missouri girl pleaded not guilty Tuesday to killing a 9-year-old neighbor girl, who authorities say was murdered because the teen wanted to know what it felt like to kill someone. Alyssa Bustamante sat silently as an attorney entered a not guilty plea on her behalf to first-degree murder and armed criminal action in the Oct. 21 death of Elizabeth Olten. Bustamante often gazed down — her long bangs covering her eyes, her hands and feet shackled — during a Cole County court hearing that lasted less than a minute. Authorities say Bustamante plotted Elizabeth's slaying — digging two holes several days in advance — then strangled her without provocation, cut the girl's throat and stabbed her.
They say Bustamante led officers to Elizabeth's body in a wooded area near the girls' homes after hundreds of volunteers helped in a two-day search for the missing fourth-grader. The girls lived several houses apart in St. Martins, a small town just west of Jefferson City. During a court hearing last month, Missouri State Highway Patrol Sgt. David Rice testified that Bustamante had confessed to the killing to investigators. "Ultimately, she stated she wanted to know what it felt like," Rice said. Bustamante was certified last month to stand trial as an adult. Her arraignment Tuesday was necessary because Bustamante did not have an attorney during her initial Nov. 18 hearing, when Cole County Circuit Judge Patricia Joyce entered a not guilty plea on her behalf.
The hearing Tuesday also marked the first time that cameras and recorders were allowed in the courtroom for proceedings in the case. Juvenile justice officials testified last month that Bustamante had been receiving mental health treatment because of a history of depression and had tried to kill herself about two times. Her public defender, Jan King, asked the court to transfer her from jail to a state psychiatric hospital for a four-day evaluation because of depression. But the judge has not ruled on the request, and King said he did not want to take it up for consideration during Tuesday's court appearance. The judge scheduled a Feb. 16 hearing for an update on Bustamante's case.
Depression I understand but there's a limit to it happening on other circumstances, I personally think she should be held accountable for her actions. Life is to short and yet these kids at the teenage level are doing more hurting than they are helping and using depression as an escape ploy. I have a ten year old and if that were my daughter that had been hurt the girl would not walk let alone breathe. My kids are part of me and others should respect that as if I were to see a girl or boy being abused in public by a teenager I would not turn and walk away, I would interject as I would pray that someone would do it for my kids.
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Pearl Harbor Survivor Returns to Site for First Time Since War - Local News | News Articles | National News | US News - FOXNews.com
Pearl Harbor Survivor Returns to Site for First Time Since War - Local News | News Articles | National News | US News - FOXNews.com
Posted using ShareThis
PEARL HARBOR, Hawaii — Retired firefighter Ed Johann was a teenage apprentice seaman on Dec. 7, 1941, when he spotted Japanese planes coming in over Pearl Harbor. He thought they were U.S. aircraft conducting drills until explosions and flames erupted from stricken ships in the harbor. Then came screams of sailors; the stench of burning oil and flesh. The 86-year-old is due to return Monday to Pearl Harbor for the first time since World War II to attend a ceremony marking the 68th anniversary of the attack on the U.S. naval base that pulled America into the war.
"I really don't know how I'm going to handle it," said Johann, from his home in Oregon. "When I think about it, all I have is unpleasantness. I'm sure it's not like that now." Then, he and two other sailors were waiting to ferry passengers on a small boat to and from the USS Solace, a hospital ship that was moored in Pearl Harbor. Johann's motor launcher boat rushed to the USS Arizona, which was hit by several bombs, one of which struck her forward ammunition magazines and set off a massive explosion. Already fueled and manned when the attack began, their 30-foot boat was the first rescue vessel to arrive at the scene. They found the water littered with people — some wounded, some dead, some unharmed. Many were covered in the leaking oil from the ships. They loaded as many as they could and delivered them to the hospital ship before returning to the USS West Virginia for more. "As we're pulling them out of the water, a lot of times the skin would come right off the arm," Johann said. "They would just be black with oil, except maybe you could see the white of their eyes."
The planes kept coming. Dive-bombers plunged out of the sky, dropping bombs and strafing the water and ships with machine gun fire before roaring back up for another round. Torpedo bombers flew in level to drop their submersible weapons for underwater assaults. The burning, sinking vessels at first lowered men into Johann's makeshift rescue boat. But some sailors started to panic and jump into their small ship, forcing it to pull away so it wouldn't sink too. "Some of the sailors would be like in shock and some of 'em would be like going out of control, screaming and hollering," Johann said. The next morning — after nervously worrying the Japanese planes would return — Johann's boat unloaded men from the Solace who failed to make it through the night and delivered them to land.
"We had them stacked like cordwood in our boat. The open end where the feet was sticking out was these big brown tags that said 'unknown, unknown,"' Johann said. The military hadn't adopted dog tags yet and many couldn't be identified. The attack sank four U.S. battleships and destroyed 188 U.S. planes. Another four battleships were damaged, along with three cruisers and three destroyers. More than 2,200 sailors, Marines and soldiers were killed. "We didn't survive by any skill," Johann said of his boat. "It was just luck, pure luck. Because all we were concentrating on was trying to save people, and not save ourselves."
Johann served the rest of the war on the USS Wright, a seaplane tender. After 1945, he returned to California where he worked in sawmills before moving to Portland, Oregon. where he spent 28 years as a firefighter. He retired to a beach cottage in Lincoln City and where he served on the city council, helping build hiking trails and campaigning against domestic violence. Every Independence Day on July 4, he goes to bed early to avoid the fireworks because they remind him of Pearl Harbor's explosions. Even so, the blasts keep him awake. But the horrors he went through also led him to become a firefighter. "I think I had it in my mind," Johann said, "I wanted to help people."
For years, Johann said he wouldn't go to the annual observance in Hawaii in honor of those killed in the attack. But now that he's 86, it seemed liked a good idea. "If I'm ever going to do anything like that I'd better do it now," Johann said. His son, who lives on Maui, will accompany him. Organizers expect between 40 and 50 survivors of the attack to come. Overall, some 2,000 people are expected to attend the ceremony on a pier overlooking the spot where the Arizona sank. The bodies of more than 1,000 sailors and Marines are still on board, and small drops of oil continue to rise from the battleship.
This is amazing the story of pearl harbor still rocks my heart. My son is a freshman in high school this year and will be going to Hawaii in two years for the 70th reunion and I will be along beside him hes in High school band and I have never been and weeped over the stories of so many dieng there and thanking god everyday that nobody in my family served there at that time as I had two Grandfather's that servied in the second world war.
Posted using ShareThis
PEARL HARBOR, Hawaii — Retired firefighter Ed Johann was a teenage apprentice seaman on Dec. 7, 1941, when he spotted Japanese planes coming in over Pearl Harbor. He thought they were U.S. aircraft conducting drills until explosions and flames erupted from stricken ships in the harbor. Then came screams of sailors; the stench of burning oil and flesh. The 86-year-old is due to return Monday to Pearl Harbor for the first time since World War II to attend a ceremony marking the 68th anniversary of the attack on the U.S. naval base that pulled America into the war.
"I really don't know how I'm going to handle it," said Johann, from his home in Oregon. "When I think about it, all I have is unpleasantness. I'm sure it's not like that now." Then, he and two other sailors were waiting to ferry passengers on a small boat to and from the USS Solace, a hospital ship that was moored in Pearl Harbor. Johann's motor launcher boat rushed to the USS Arizona, which was hit by several bombs, one of which struck her forward ammunition magazines and set off a massive explosion. Already fueled and manned when the attack began, their 30-foot boat was the first rescue vessel to arrive at the scene. They found the water littered with people — some wounded, some dead, some unharmed. Many were covered in the leaking oil from the ships. They loaded as many as they could and delivered them to the hospital ship before returning to the USS West Virginia for more. "As we're pulling them out of the water, a lot of times the skin would come right off the arm," Johann said. "They would just be black with oil, except maybe you could see the white of their eyes."
The planes kept coming. Dive-bombers plunged out of the sky, dropping bombs and strafing the water and ships with machine gun fire before roaring back up for another round. Torpedo bombers flew in level to drop their submersible weapons for underwater assaults. The burning, sinking vessels at first lowered men into Johann's makeshift rescue boat. But some sailors started to panic and jump into their small ship, forcing it to pull away so it wouldn't sink too. "Some of the sailors would be like in shock and some of 'em would be like going out of control, screaming and hollering," Johann said. The next morning — after nervously worrying the Japanese planes would return — Johann's boat unloaded men from the Solace who failed to make it through the night and delivered them to land.
"We had them stacked like cordwood in our boat. The open end where the feet was sticking out was these big brown tags that said 'unknown, unknown,"' Johann said. The military hadn't adopted dog tags yet and many couldn't be identified. The attack sank four U.S. battleships and destroyed 188 U.S. planes. Another four battleships were damaged, along with three cruisers and three destroyers. More than 2,200 sailors, Marines and soldiers were killed. "We didn't survive by any skill," Johann said of his boat. "It was just luck, pure luck. Because all we were concentrating on was trying to save people, and not save ourselves."
Johann served the rest of the war on the USS Wright, a seaplane tender. After 1945, he returned to California where he worked in sawmills before moving to Portland, Oregon. where he spent 28 years as a firefighter. He retired to a beach cottage in Lincoln City and where he served on the city council, helping build hiking trails and campaigning against domestic violence. Every Independence Day on July 4, he goes to bed early to avoid the fireworks because they remind him of Pearl Harbor's explosions. Even so, the blasts keep him awake. But the horrors he went through also led him to become a firefighter. "I think I had it in my mind," Johann said, "I wanted to help people."
For years, Johann said he wouldn't go to the annual observance in Hawaii in honor of those killed in the attack. But now that he's 86, it seemed liked a good idea. "If I'm ever going to do anything like that I'd better do it now," Johann said. His son, who lives on Maui, will accompany him. Organizers expect between 40 and 50 survivors of the attack to come. Overall, some 2,000 people are expected to attend the ceremony on a pier overlooking the spot where the Arizona sank. The bodies of more than 1,000 sailors and Marines are still on board, and small drops of oil continue to rise from the battleship.
This is amazing the story of pearl harbor still rocks my heart. My son is a freshman in high school this year and will be going to Hawaii in two years for the 70th reunion and I will be along beside him hes in High school band and I have never been and weeped over the stories of so many dieng there and thanking god everyday that nobody in my family served there at that time as I had two Grandfather's that servied in the second world war.
Massachusetts Woman's Bag Gets Stuck in Moving Subway Train - Local News | News Articles | National News | US News - FOXNews.com
Massachusetts Woman's Bag Gets Stuck in Moving Subway Train - Local News | News Articles | National News | US News - FOXNews.com
Posted using ShareThis
A Massachusetts woman was trying to board a subway train at Boston’s South Station when the train’s doors closed on her, trapping her purse inside and leaving her on the platform, MyFoxBoston.com reported. The situation grew worse when the train began to move. The 34-year-old woman was screaming for help as she was forced to run alongside the train because her bag was still wedged in the train’s doors. Just before the train went into the tunnel, the woman let go of her purse and collided into a wall at the end of the platform. The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) is investigating the incident. The train attendant, whose job is to make sure the doors are cleared of people or objects before closing, was fired. The train’s operator has been placed on a 10-day suspension, MyFoxBoston.com reported. “When I was appointed Acting General Manager four months ago, I made it very clear that matters of safety will be my top priority for as long as I serve,” MBTA general manager William Mitchell, according to MyFoxBoston.com. “The behavior of the train crew in this incident was inexcusable, and won't be tolerated.
This is just crazy! How could someone not notice the safety of the public? I have no idea why people have no consideration of others in moments like this. They represent the public transportation system, how did they become employed to run the train if they can't watch out for others? the questions that are going through my mind are neverending and this just makes me sick. What if there was a buggy and a baby stuck in the doors would they still take off?
I think this it irresponsible and negligent on all sides as they need to reevaluate and do drug screens on these people as they are doing something or are into something that apparently has them distracted. I think this is just ludicrous on the situation and the actions that are taken that they seem to get away with.
Posted using ShareThis
A Massachusetts woman was trying to board a subway train at Boston’s South Station when the train’s doors closed on her, trapping her purse inside and leaving her on the platform, MyFoxBoston.com reported. The situation grew worse when the train began to move. The 34-year-old woman was screaming for help as she was forced to run alongside the train because her bag was still wedged in the train’s doors. Just before the train went into the tunnel, the woman let go of her purse and collided into a wall at the end of the platform. The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) is investigating the incident. The train attendant, whose job is to make sure the doors are cleared of people or objects before closing, was fired. The train’s operator has been placed on a 10-day suspension, MyFoxBoston.com reported. “When I was appointed Acting General Manager four months ago, I made it very clear that matters of safety will be my top priority for as long as I serve,” MBTA general manager William Mitchell, according to MyFoxBoston.com. “The behavior of the train crew in this incident was inexcusable, and won't be tolerated.
This is just crazy! How could someone not notice the safety of the public? I have no idea why people have no consideration of others in moments like this. They represent the public transportation system, how did they become employed to run the train if they can't watch out for others? the questions that are going through my mind are neverending and this just makes me sick. What if there was a buggy and a baby stuck in the doors would they still take off?
I think this it irresponsible and negligent on all sides as they need to reevaluate and do drug screens on these people as they are doing something or are into something that apparently has them distracted. I think this is just ludicrous on the situation and the actions that are taken that they seem to get away with.
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
FoxSexpert: Sex-Related Amnesia - Can It Happen to You? - Sexpert - FOXNews.com
FoxSexpert: Sex-Related Amnesia - Can It Happen to You? - Sexpert - FOXNews.com
Posted using ShareThis
You just had the most incredible sex of your life. Only you can’t remember it. Sounds like a sick joke, but forgetting the absolutely unforgettable is a real occurrence. Lovers have been known to blank out on entire sexual experiences, having no recollection of the event or their orgasmic responses. What exactly is this phenomenon? And could it ever happen to you? Sexual amnesia can happen to anyone, and most unexpectedly. Did you and your lover really have sex this morning or is your sweetie pulling your leg? Why do you have no recollection of that night of passion? What exactly happened with the hottie you brought home last night? In many of these baffling cases, alcohol or drugs aren’t to blame. But you can point the finger at another culprit. Well-described in medical literature since 1956, transient global amnesia (TGA) is known as "recurrent coital amnesia" when it is triggered by sex. During such sudden, temporary memory loss, a person’s ability to recall recent events and new information totally disappears.
Suddenly, you can’t remember where you are or how you got there. You do know who you are, and can recognize and name the familiar, including your sexual partner (unless you just met). You just can’t remember what happened during this memory impairment and possibly anything that happened several hours before its onset. So what brought on this state? Surprisingly, this rare, short-lived phenomenon isn’t due to a neurological condition, like epilepsy or stroke, or recent head injury. Instead, TGA is typically traced to a stressful emotional or physical event. These include:
— Hard physical exertion;
— Sudden cold or hot water immersion;
— Overwhelming emotional distress from bad news, conflict or working too hard;
— Medical procedures, like an endoscopy (a minimally invasive medical procedure);
— Sexual intercourse.
With sex in particular, TGA is typically triggered after climax. Medical practitioners have also noticed that using the Valsalva method -- a discouraged sex move involving squeezing the pelvic floor muscles while pressing down, as though having a bowel movement -- precedes TGA in some males. Sex-related or not, one thing all of these factors have in common is a sudden lack of blood flow to the brain. Brain scans indicate that blood flow to areas of the brain involving memory appears disrupted during TGA. And any time blood flow is restricted to the brain, a person’s ability to record new memory is severely impaired. Because it cannot be distinguished from other life-threatening conditions, immediate medical attention needs to be sought when TGA strikes during or after intercourse. Dead giveaways that something is wrong include babbling, apparent confusion and repeatedly asking questions about ongoing events like "What are we doing?" or "What time of year is it?" When asked by their partner or later by a doctor, they’re unable to correctly answer questions like "Who is the president?" or "What year is it?" Equally perplexing, however, is the fact that one’s vocabulary and movement are not impaired. There is no clouded consciousness.
Other symptoms may include headache, nausea, vomiting, anxiety, agitation, dizziness, chills, fear of dying, "pins-and-needles" sensation, trembling, sweating, visual disturbance, racing heartbeat, cold hands and feet, and great emotionality. TGA episodes last an average of six hours (going for no more than 24 hours), with one’s memory returning gradually. Thankfully, all indicators are that a person’s memory is OK afterward, and the TGA has apparently done no damage. One’s immediate recall ability appears to be preserved.
TGA is equal opportunity when it comes to sex and race, but those over 49 are at higher risk of experiencing this sudden memory loss. Physical events tend to precipitate TGA in men, while emotional events, a history of anxiety, or pathological personality are more associated with women. While the underlying cause is unknown, a history of migraines is a prime suspect for any individual. Experiences with migraines or coital headaches (sex headaches) have been linked to some who experience TGA.
Overall, incidence in the U.S. is 5.2 cases per 100,000 individuals. Interestingly, this is higher than incidence estimates in Alcoi, Spain, which is at 2.9 cases per 100,000, but lower than the 10 cases per 100,000 in Belluno, Italy. While the annual recurrence is low, over one’s lifetime, recurrence can be as high as 24 percent, which may work to your advantage. After all, almost any lover is open to a good excuse when it comes to rationalizing having done anything regrettable. TGA may just be the perfect fib for that unfortunate time you forget your partner’s birthday, anniversary or seemingly most amazing sex session. Dr. Yvonne K. Fulbright is a sex educator, relationship expert, columnist and founder of Sexuality Source Inc. She is the author of several books including, "Touch Me There! A Hands-On Guide to Your Orgasmic Hot Spots."
I don't think this is true. When in the world does a person forget a good night of sex let alone?
Posted using ShareThis
You just had the most incredible sex of your life. Only you can’t remember it. Sounds like a sick joke, but forgetting the absolutely unforgettable is a real occurrence. Lovers have been known to blank out on entire sexual experiences, having no recollection of the event or their orgasmic responses. What exactly is this phenomenon? And could it ever happen to you? Sexual amnesia can happen to anyone, and most unexpectedly. Did you and your lover really have sex this morning or is your sweetie pulling your leg? Why do you have no recollection of that night of passion? What exactly happened with the hottie you brought home last night? In many of these baffling cases, alcohol or drugs aren’t to blame. But you can point the finger at another culprit. Well-described in medical literature since 1956, transient global amnesia (TGA) is known as "recurrent coital amnesia" when it is triggered by sex. During such sudden, temporary memory loss, a person’s ability to recall recent events and new information totally disappears.
Suddenly, you can’t remember where you are or how you got there. You do know who you are, and can recognize and name the familiar, including your sexual partner (unless you just met). You just can’t remember what happened during this memory impairment and possibly anything that happened several hours before its onset. So what brought on this state? Surprisingly, this rare, short-lived phenomenon isn’t due to a neurological condition, like epilepsy or stroke, or recent head injury. Instead, TGA is typically traced to a stressful emotional or physical event. These include:
— Hard physical exertion;
— Sudden cold or hot water immersion;
— Overwhelming emotional distress from bad news, conflict or working too hard;
— Medical procedures, like an endoscopy (a minimally invasive medical procedure);
— Sexual intercourse.
With sex in particular, TGA is typically triggered after climax. Medical practitioners have also noticed that using the Valsalva method -- a discouraged sex move involving squeezing the pelvic floor muscles while pressing down, as though having a bowel movement -- precedes TGA in some males. Sex-related or not, one thing all of these factors have in common is a sudden lack of blood flow to the brain. Brain scans indicate that blood flow to areas of the brain involving memory appears disrupted during TGA. And any time blood flow is restricted to the brain, a person’s ability to record new memory is severely impaired. Because it cannot be distinguished from other life-threatening conditions, immediate medical attention needs to be sought when TGA strikes during or after intercourse. Dead giveaways that something is wrong include babbling, apparent confusion and repeatedly asking questions about ongoing events like "What are we doing?" or "What time of year is it?" When asked by their partner or later by a doctor, they’re unable to correctly answer questions like "Who is the president?" or "What year is it?" Equally perplexing, however, is the fact that one’s vocabulary and movement are not impaired. There is no clouded consciousness.
Other symptoms may include headache, nausea, vomiting, anxiety, agitation, dizziness, chills, fear of dying, "pins-and-needles" sensation, trembling, sweating, visual disturbance, racing heartbeat, cold hands and feet, and great emotionality. TGA episodes last an average of six hours (going for no more than 24 hours), with one’s memory returning gradually. Thankfully, all indicators are that a person’s memory is OK afterward, and the TGA has apparently done no damage. One’s immediate recall ability appears to be preserved.
TGA is equal opportunity when it comes to sex and race, but those over 49 are at higher risk of experiencing this sudden memory loss. Physical events tend to precipitate TGA in men, while emotional events, a history of anxiety, or pathological personality are more associated with women. While the underlying cause is unknown, a history of migraines is a prime suspect for any individual. Experiences with migraines or coital headaches (sex headaches) have been linked to some who experience TGA.
Overall, incidence in the U.S. is 5.2 cases per 100,000 individuals. Interestingly, this is higher than incidence estimates in Alcoi, Spain, which is at 2.9 cases per 100,000, but lower than the 10 cases per 100,000 in Belluno, Italy. While the annual recurrence is low, over one’s lifetime, recurrence can be as high as 24 percent, which may work to your advantage. After all, almost any lover is open to a good excuse when it comes to rationalizing having done anything regrettable. TGA may just be the perfect fib for that unfortunate time you forget your partner’s birthday, anniversary or seemingly most amazing sex session. Dr. Yvonne K. Fulbright is a sex educator, relationship expert, columnist and founder of Sexuality Source Inc. She is the author of several books including, "Touch Me There! A Hands-On Guide to Your Orgasmic Hot Spots."
I don't think this is true. When in the world does a person forget a good night of sex let alone?
Remains of Missing Gulf War Pilot Hidden in Iraqi Sand for 18 Years - Local News | News Articles | National News | US News - FOXNews.com
Remains of Missing Gulf War Pilot Hidden in Iraqi Sand for 18 Years - Local News | News Articles | National News | US News - FOXNews.com
Posted using ShareThis
WASHINGTON — The military says Capt. Michael "Scott" Speicher died when his fighter jet was shot down over Iraq in the 1991 Gulf War and was never captured or tortured. But Speicher's family is unconvinced. The Navy pilot's remains were identified earlier this year under about 18 inches of sand in the Iraqi desert. In an exclusive interview with The Associated Press, the chief of POW/MIA analysis at the Defense Intelligence Agency describes a series of twists and the duplicity of Saddam Hussein's government led to a number of false leads and rumors about Speicher's survival. Thomas Brown worked on Speicher's case for 15 years. He says while Speicher status was changed from killed in action to missing 10 years after the crash and intelligence suggested Iraq was either holding him prisoner or hiding his remains. But Brown says in the end, it turned out that Saddam's government had told the truth about the crash site in Anbar province at the start. The military has declared the Speicher case closed, but for his family, the ending is too neat. One family member sees it as an effort to whitewash the Pentagon's failure to launch a search and rescue mission in 1991.
Defense officials declared Speicher killed in action hours after his plane was shot down over west-central Iraq. Then-Defense Secretary Dick Cheney announced on television that Speicher was the first casualty of the Gulf War. Ten years after the crash, the Navy changed Speicher's status to missing in action, citing an absence of evidence that Speicher had died. In October 2002, the Navy switched his status to "missing/captured," although it has never said what evidence it had that he may have been in captivity.
Over the years, critics contended the Navy had not done enough, particularly right after the crash, to search for the 33-year-old pilot. The military recovered bones and multiple skeletal fragments, and Speicher was identified by matching a jawbone and dental records. The Armed Forces Institute of Pathology in Rockville, Md., is running DNA tests on the remains and comparing them with DNA reference samples from family members.
I feel mixed feelings on this story. If he was shot down just tell the truth, the family just needs the closure to move on. As in life there is death and we all need to let the negative energy pass on as in death. To torture the family Iraq has done and to let them believe that he has been mia or lost in action was just a farce to hang on to false hope at least the family will have the truth, eventually.
Posted using ShareThis
WASHINGTON — The military says Capt. Michael "Scott" Speicher died when his fighter jet was shot down over Iraq in the 1991 Gulf War and was never captured or tortured. But Speicher's family is unconvinced. The Navy pilot's remains were identified earlier this year under about 18 inches of sand in the Iraqi desert. In an exclusive interview with The Associated Press, the chief of POW/MIA analysis at the Defense Intelligence Agency describes a series of twists and the duplicity of Saddam Hussein's government led to a number of false leads and rumors about Speicher's survival. Thomas Brown worked on Speicher's case for 15 years. He says while Speicher status was changed from killed in action to missing 10 years after the crash and intelligence suggested Iraq was either holding him prisoner or hiding his remains. But Brown says in the end, it turned out that Saddam's government had told the truth about the crash site in Anbar province at the start. The military has declared the Speicher case closed, but for his family, the ending is too neat. One family member sees it as an effort to whitewash the Pentagon's failure to launch a search and rescue mission in 1991.
Defense officials declared Speicher killed in action hours after his plane was shot down over west-central Iraq. Then-Defense Secretary Dick Cheney announced on television that Speicher was the first casualty of the Gulf War. Ten years after the crash, the Navy changed Speicher's status to missing in action, citing an absence of evidence that Speicher had died. In October 2002, the Navy switched his status to "missing/captured," although it has never said what evidence it had that he may have been in captivity.
Over the years, critics contended the Navy had not done enough, particularly right after the crash, to search for the 33-year-old pilot. The military recovered bones and multiple skeletal fragments, and Speicher was identified by matching a jawbone and dental records. The Armed Forces Institute of Pathology in Rockville, Md., is running DNA tests on the remains and comparing them with DNA reference samples from family members.
I feel mixed feelings on this story. If he was shot down just tell the truth, the family just needs the closure to move on. As in life there is death and we all need to let the negative energy pass on as in death. To torture the family Iraq has done and to let them believe that he has been mia or lost in action was just a farce to hang on to false hope at least the family will have the truth, eventually.
Seattle Police: Cop-Killing Suspect on The Loose - Local News | News Articles | National News | US News - FOXNews.com
Seattle Police: Cop-Killing Suspect on The Loose - Local News | News Articles | National News | US News - FOXNews.com
Posted using ShareThis
PrintShareThis
Pierce County Sheriff's Department Lakewood Police officers Greg Richards, Mark Renninger, Tina Griswold and Ronald Owens. Police in Washington state said the suspect in the killings of four police officers in a Seattle-area coffee shop was not inside the house that they had surrounded since early Monday morning. Negotiators spent the night trying to communicate with 37-year-old Maurice Clemmons, but discovered after a search of the Seattle house and that the suspect was not inside.
Pierce County sheriff's spokesman Ed Troyer said the location of Clemmons is not known, and it's possible he may still be in the neighborhood staked out overnight by Seattle police. Troyer also said people who know Clemmons told investigators that he had been shot in the torso. Pierce County sheriff's spokesman Lt. Dave McDonald confirmed Monday that investigators searching the coffee shop had recovered a handgun carried by the shooter, but he did not know if it was the weapon used in Sunday's shootings. McDonald would not say what type of weapon it is.
The University of Washington police have alerted students to an unconfirmed report that the suspect in the Lakewood police shootings may have been sighted on or near the campus in Seattle. Cmdr. Jerome Solomon says someone reported that Maurice Clemmons was seen getting off a bus about 7 a.m. Monday near the university's hospital. He says police are checking the area. Troyer said warrants for first-degree murder have been issued against Clemmons. A $125,000 reward has been offered for information leading to the suspect's arrest, Troyer said, according to a Twitter post on The Seattle Times' Web site. Negotiators had been trying to communicate with Clemmons using loudspeakers, explosions and even a robot to try to prod him from hiding. At one point, gunshots rang through the neighborhood, about 30 miles from the original crime scene. "We have determined that in fact he has been shot," said Troyer. "He may be deceased from his gunshot wound."
Troyer said Clemmons was shot by one of the murdered police officers, according to The Seattle Times.
Police said they knew the suspect was injured because they have detained other people who reportedly assisted Clemmons after the shootings, The Seattle Times reported. Troyer would not comment on the number of people they have detained. Clemmons has a long criminal history, including a long prison sentence commuted by former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee nearly a decade ago and a recent arrest for allegedly assaulting a police officer in Washington. Huckabee issued a statement: "Should he be found to be responsible for this horrible tragedy, it will be the result of a series of failures in the criminal justice system in both Arkansas and Washington State."
"This is a horrible and tragic event and if found and convicted the offender should be held accountable to the fullest extent of the law." Clemmons allegedly went to a coffee house on Sunday morning and opened fire on the Lakewood officers, killing Sgt. Mark Renninger, 39, Ronald Owens, 37, Tina Griswold, 40, and Greg Richards, 42, as they caught up on paperwork at the beginning of their shifts. He fled but authorities believe he might have been wounded by one of his victims. "We don't know if he's still alive. If he isn't, it's because he succumbed to the wound he received yesterday when he was in the struggle with the police officer that managed to get a shot fired at him before he was killed," Troyer said on CBS television. Lakewood Police Chief Bret Farrar said all four victims had been with the department since its inception. "We're a young department. We put it together in 2004, and the four we lost yesterday were original members of the department," Lakewood Police Chief Bret Farrar said in a press conference Monday. "They were good people, good officers and we'll miss them very much."
Ferrar said many law enforcement agencies have rallied behind the departments effort to find Clemmons and comfort the victims families. "There's no way I could name every agency — federal, state and local — that has come to our aid." Police surrounded a house late Sunday where Clemmons was expected to be hiding, and a negotiator used a loudspeaker early Monday to call him out by name, saying: "Mr. Clemmons, I'd like to get you out of there safely. I can tell you this, we are not going away." Any response from inside the house was inaudible from the vantage of a photographer for The Associated Press. But shortly thereafter, police began using sirens outside the house, and there were several loud bangs before the negotiator resumed speaking. By 3 a.m., the loudspeakers and explosions had fallen silent. Seattle Police spokesman Jeff Kappel said Clemmons has never responded. It's not clear whose house it is. Clemmons is believed to have been in the area of the coffee shop around the time of the shooting, but Troyer declined to say what evidence might link him to the shooting.
Investigators say they know of no reason that Clemmons or anyone else might have had to open fire on the four as they sat working on their laptops Sunday. Court documents indicate that Clemmons is delusional and mentally unstable. "We're going to be surprised if there is a motive worth mentioning," said Troyer, who sketched out a scene of controlled and deliberate carnage that spared the employees and other customers at the coffee shop in suburban Parkland, about 35 miles south of Seattle.
The Lakewood Police Independent Guild, the union for the department, has set up a charity for the victims' families. Guild President Brian Wurts said since online donations started being accepted Sunday night, the charity has received contributions from all over the world ranging from $5 to $500. "Every cent is going to these families and to their kids to thelp them pay for college," Wurts said.
Personally, I think that anyone in this job position has my deepest respect as the job itself is not easy and to put your life on the line everyday is hard to do. I know I was an MP but these guys are street cops and they deal with the day to day b.s. that all of us take for granted. I couldn't do it now that I have kids but it was in my blood at one time in the past before I became a mother. The passion to serve the public is truly one of a kind and a rare breed. I am so sorry for the loss of these officers as they were mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles and daughters and sons to someone. The hardest thing is to just remember there are still others out there doing the same dam (pardon my language) job and keeping it straight. They protect the innocent and they deserve a break in prayer and their families as well.
Posted using ShareThis
PrintShareThis
Pierce County Sheriff's Department Lakewood Police officers Greg Richards, Mark Renninger, Tina Griswold and Ronald Owens. Police in Washington state said the suspect in the killings of four police officers in a Seattle-area coffee shop was not inside the house that they had surrounded since early Monday morning. Negotiators spent the night trying to communicate with 37-year-old Maurice Clemmons, but discovered after a search of the Seattle house and that the suspect was not inside.
Pierce County sheriff's spokesman Ed Troyer said the location of Clemmons is not known, and it's possible he may still be in the neighborhood staked out overnight by Seattle police. Troyer also said people who know Clemmons told investigators that he had been shot in the torso. Pierce County sheriff's spokesman Lt. Dave McDonald confirmed Monday that investigators searching the coffee shop had recovered a handgun carried by the shooter, but he did not know if it was the weapon used in Sunday's shootings. McDonald would not say what type of weapon it is.
The University of Washington police have alerted students to an unconfirmed report that the suspect in the Lakewood police shootings may have been sighted on or near the campus in Seattle. Cmdr. Jerome Solomon says someone reported that Maurice Clemmons was seen getting off a bus about 7 a.m. Monday near the university's hospital. He says police are checking the area. Troyer said warrants for first-degree murder have been issued against Clemmons. A $125,000 reward has been offered for information leading to the suspect's arrest, Troyer said, according to a Twitter post on The Seattle Times' Web site. Negotiators had been trying to communicate with Clemmons using loudspeakers, explosions and even a robot to try to prod him from hiding. At one point, gunshots rang through the neighborhood, about 30 miles from the original crime scene. "We have determined that in fact he has been shot," said Troyer. "He may be deceased from his gunshot wound."
Troyer said Clemmons was shot by one of the murdered police officers, according to The Seattle Times.
Police said they knew the suspect was injured because they have detained other people who reportedly assisted Clemmons after the shootings, The Seattle Times reported. Troyer would not comment on the number of people they have detained. Clemmons has a long criminal history, including a long prison sentence commuted by former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee nearly a decade ago and a recent arrest for allegedly assaulting a police officer in Washington. Huckabee issued a statement: "Should he be found to be responsible for this horrible tragedy, it will be the result of a series of failures in the criminal justice system in both Arkansas and Washington State."
"This is a horrible and tragic event and if found and convicted the offender should be held accountable to the fullest extent of the law." Clemmons allegedly went to a coffee house on Sunday morning and opened fire on the Lakewood officers, killing Sgt. Mark Renninger, 39, Ronald Owens, 37, Tina Griswold, 40, and Greg Richards, 42, as they caught up on paperwork at the beginning of their shifts. He fled but authorities believe he might have been wounded by one of his victims. "We don't know if he's still alive. If he isn't, it's because he succumbed to the wound he received yesterday when he was in the struggle with the police officer that managed to get a shot fired at him before he was killed," Troyer said on CBS television. Lakewood Police Chief Bret Farrar said all four victims had been with the department since its inception. "We're a young department. We put it together in 2004, and the four we lost yesterday were original members of the department," Lakewood Police Chief Bret Farrar said in a press conference Monday. "They were good people, good officers and we'll miss them very much."
Ferrar said many law enforcement agencies have rallied behind the departments effort to find Clemmons and comfort the victims families. "There's no way I could name every agency — federal, state and local — that has come to our aid." Police surrounded a house late Sunday where Clemmons was expected to be hiding, and a negotiator used a loudspeaker early Monday to call him out by name, saying: "Mr. Clemmons, I'd like to get you out of there safely. I can tell you this, we are not going away." Any response from inside the house was inaudible from the vantage of a photographer for The Associated Press. But shortly thereafter, police began using sirens outside the house, and there were several loud bangs before the negotiator resumed speaking. By 3 a.m., the loudspeakers and explosions had fallen silent. Seattle Police spokesman Jeff Kappel said Clemmons has never responded. It's not clear whose house it is. Clemmons is believed to have been in the area of the coffee shop around the time of the shooting, but Troyer declined to say what evidence might link him to the shooting.
Investigators say they know of no reason that Clemmons or anyone else might have had to open fire on the four as they sat working on their laptops Sunday. Court documents indicate that Clemmons is delusional and mentally unstable. "We're going to be surprised if there is a motive worth mentioning," said Troyer, who sketched out a scene of controlled and deliberate carnage that spared the employees and other customers at the coffee shop in suburban Parkland, about 35 miles south of Seattle.
The Lakewood Police Independent Guild, the union for the department, has set up a charity for the victims' families. Guild President Brian Wurts said since online donations started being accepted Sunday night, the charity has received contributions from all over the world ranging from $5 to $500. "Every cent is going to these families and to their kids to thelp them pay for college," Wurts said.
Personally, I think that anyone in this job position has my deepest respect as the job itself is not easy and to put your life on the line everyday is hard to do. I know I was an MP but these guys are street cops and they deal with the day to day b.s. that all of us take for granted. I couldn't do it now that I have kids but it was in my blood at one time in the past before I became a mother. The passion to serve the public is truly one of a kind and a rare breed. I am so sorry for the loss of these officers as they were mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles and daughters and sons to someone. The hardest thing is to just remember there are still others out there doing the same dam (pardon my language) job and keeping it straight. They protect the innocent and they deserve a break in prayer and their families as well.
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Girl May Have Arranged Classmate's Gang Rape - Local News | News Articles | National News | US News - FOXNews.com
Girl May Have Arranged Classmate's Gang Rape - Local News | News Articles | National News | US News - FOXNews.com
Posted using ShareThis
MONROEVILLE, Ala. — A 14-year-old Alabama girl might have helped arrange the gang rape of her ninth-grade classmate and could face charges as an accomplice based on her comments in a televised interview, a district attorney said.
The girl told reporters last week that she and her 14-year-old classmate had planned to have sex with the suspects who have been charged with rape. The girl under investigation is dating one of the three suspects who are 16, 17 and 20 years old. "The victim told police that the attack did begin as consensual contact," Monroe County District Attorney Tommy Chapman told the Press-Register of Mobile for a Monday story. "But when all three suspects began to join in, she told them no repeatedly, but they did not stop." Authorities said the girl required surgery after the Nov. 16 attack and was in intensive care for three days. "I am exceedingly angry, and you can quote me on that," Chapman said. Calls to Chapman's office by The Associated Press Monday were not immediately returned. Police took the girl who may be charged into custody on Chapman's orders Friday and she was later released. Investigators said the fellow ninth-graders left Monroe County High School with Steven Scott, 20, DeShon Riley, 16, and Justin Williams, 17, before the start of classes the day of the attack. Investigators said that the three took turns assaulting one of the girls at a home. The other girl claimed that they attempted to rape her, but that no intercourse occurred. A medical examination indicated that the girl had sex. The men then took the classmates back to school where the injured girl sat in bloody clothes for hours until school officials called police, investigators said.
Monroeville Police Chief Rudolph Munnerlyn said that interviews with the girls were continuing in what he called a "shocking crime" in the town about halfway between Mobile and Montgomery. Calls by AP to police were not returned. The three suspects were jailed last week and charged with felony rape. Bail was set at $500,000. A jail employee would not say if they were still jailed Monday and it was unknown if any had lawyers
I have no idea what these boys could have been thinking! NO means just that NO! How could anyone controlling hormones feel it's ok to hurt a young girl even if the intentions were let's all join in? Oh my god they should be castrated and burned at the stake for this one. I can't even phathom that they felt it's ok to do this to one human being. My heart goes out to her and her family in this time of grief. I know what its like to watch one suffer ler alone be one that has suffered in more ways than one. Those boys and the girl should pay for what had been done. I know girls now adays at that age are vicious and to hurt someone like that to get a boyfriend free and clear makes my heart sink and stomach ache. What if it had been her in that siuation?
I know as a single mom raising a girl myself and having two future step-daughters at one time this is inevitabley the most haneous and belligerent of all crimes and they need to pay for the crime. I would have a rifle behind my door for show and means of scaring the boys my daughter may date in the future, see I am not afraid to use it I am a ex-mp! But to sit and worry over every little boy right now shes only 10 years old would be insane but boys watch out when she is of age to date! Momma's got a gun!
Posted using ShareThis
MONROEVILLE, Ala. — A 14-year-old Alabama girl might have helped arrange the gang rape of her ninth-grade classmate and could face charges as an accomplice based on her comments in a televised interview, a district attorney said.
The girl told reporters last week that she and her 14-year-old classmate had planned to have sex with the suspects who have been charged with rape. The girl under investigation is dating one of the three suspects who are 16, 17 and 20 years old. "The victim told police that the attack did begin as consensual contact," Monroe County District Attorney Tommy Chapman told the Press-Register of Mobile for a Monday story. "But when all three suspects began to join in, she told them no repeatedly, but they did not stop." Authorities said the girl required surgery after the Nov. 16 attack and was in intensive care for three days. "I am exceedingly angry, and you can quote me on that," Chapman said. Calls to Chapman's office by The Associated Press Monday were not immediately returned. Police took the girl who may be charged into custody on Chapman's orders Friday and she was later released. Investigators said the fellow ninth-graders left Monroe County High School with Steven Scott, 20, DeShon Riley, 16, and Justin Williams, 17, before the start of classes the day of the attack. Investigators said that the three took turns assaulting one of the girls at a home. The other girl claimed that they attempted to rape her, but that no intercourse occurred. A medical examination indicated that the girl had sex. The men then took the classmates back to school where the injured girl sat in bloody clothes for hours until school officials called police, investigators said.
Monroeville Police Chief Rudolph Munnerlyn said that interviews with the girls were continuing in what he called a "shocking crime" in the town about halfway between Mobile and Montgomery. Calls by AP to police were not returned. The three suspects were jailed last week and charged with felony rape. Bail was set at $500,000. A jail employee would not say if they were still jailed Monday and it was unknown if any had lawyers
I have no idea what these boys could have been thinking! NO means just that NO! How could anyone controlling hormones feel it's ok to hurt a young girl even if the intentions were let's all join in? Oh my god they should be castrated and burned at the stake for this one. I can't even phathom that they felt it's ok to do this to one human being. My heart goes out to her and her family in this time of grief. I know what its like to watch one suffer ler alone be one that has suffered in more ways than one. Those boys and the girl should pay for what had been done. I know girls now adays at that age are vicious and to hurt someone like that to get a boyfriend free and clear makes my heart sink and stomach ache. What if it had been her in that siuation?
I know as a single mom raising a girl myself and having two future step-daughters at one time this is inevitabley the most haneous and belligerent of all crimes and they need to pay for the crime. I would have a rifle behind my door for show and means of scaring the boys my daughter may date in the future, see I am not afraid to use it I am a ex-mp! But to sit and worry over every little boy right now shes only 10 years old would be insane but boys watch out when she is of age to date! Momma's got a gun!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)