They obviously don't "confirm" addresses before raiding....not good!!
Black Lives Matter-Ugliness of Racism.
- Thread starter Ocean Breeze
- Start date
Well, luckily it was caught because they didn’t want us neighbours out on the street rubbernecking.
I can see where these cases of mistaken identity do happen though because of this. Mix something like that with the Castle law or doctrine and it becomes multiple obituaries.
I can see where these cases of mistaken identity do happen though because of this. Mix something like that with the Castle law or doctrine and it becomes multiple obituaries.
But 99% of them woulda. It was just Ron's bad luck that the entire chain of review and execution were from the 1%.
I'm sure if anyone who doesn't know how dogs play came around my Borders or my husky and border, they'd be sure the dogs were murdering one another. They're not, they just play hard.
Lovely dogs
(yes, OT, sorrynotsorry, need a distraction from the end vigil tonight.
They had the right address’s but just in the wrong blanks
.The drug house (at that time) was 1814, & our address was 1817. They just had the address is in the wrong places on the paperwork. It was caught before it was tragic but it opened my eyes as to how this sort of thing can happen.
This was many years ago and we’re all older, and the two dogs in the pictures have aged out with time. With time we’ve gone to smaller dogs that are more manageable as close to 300lbs as the ends of leashes are beyond what I should be doing at this point in time.
Second time capsule found under Robert E. Lee monument in Virginia
Northam ordered the statue removed in September after condemning it as a racist relic of the Lost Cause
Author of the article:
Washington Post
Washington Post
Gregory S. Schneider
Publishing date:
Dec 28, 2021 • 18 hours ago • 2 minute read •
Join the conversation
Officials say the copper box found under the statue of Robert E. Lee appears to match the description of the original time capsule in historical news accounts.
Officials say the copper box found under the statue of Robert E. Lee appears to match the description of the original time capsule in historical news accounts. Photo by Office of the Governor of Virgin /Handout
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RICHMOND, Va. — Lesson learned: Dig deeper.
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Workers removing chunks of granite that had once supported this city’s Robert E. Lee monument finally found what appears to be an elusive 1887 time capsule shortly before noon on Monday. It was in the spot where experts had looked for it unsuccessfully in September, but farther down in the ground.
This is the second time a capsule was discovered under the monument — a small lead box opened last week contained mementos of several men who had designed the memorial.
The good news: The latest box was made of copper and is roughly the right dimensions to be the long-rumoured official time capsule, which is expected to contain some 60 items of Confederate memorabilia – including, possibly, a rare photo of President Abraham Lincoln in his casket.
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The bad news: It was found sitting in water.
“It’s not clear whether water is in the box or not,” said Grant Neely, a spokesman for Democratic Gov. Ralph Northam.
X-ray images released Monday evening by Northam’s office suggested that at least some items inside the box remain intact. Shapes that seemed to represent coins, buttons and Minié balls – or bullets – appear clearly outlined, along with at least one book.
A statue of Confederate general Robert E. Lee is lifted off its pedestal in Market Street Park in Charlottesville on July 10. MUST CREDIT: Washington Post photo by John McDonnell
A statue of Confederate general Robert E. Lee is lifted off its pedestal in Market Street Park in Charlottesville on July 10. MUST CREDIT: Washington Post photo by John McDonnell Photo by John McDonnell /The Washington Post
The box is slated to be opened 1 p.m. Tuesday in a conservation lab at the state Department of Historic Resources.
Northam, who ordered the statue removed in September after condemning it as a racist relic of the Lost Cause, was on a coronavirus-related call with the National Governors Association when word of the find arrived, Neely said.
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More On This Topic
Chelsea Blake, a conservator with the Virginia Department of Historic Resources, attempts to open what is believed to be a time capsule found in Confederate General Robert E. Lee's monument, which was buried in 1887, in Richmond, Virginia, December 22, 2021.
1875 almanac, other books found in capsule from Robert E. Lee statue pedestal
A statue of Confederate general Robert E. Lee is lifted off its pedestal in Market Street Park in Charlottesville on July 10. MUST CREDIT: Washington Post photo by John McDonnell
Robert E. Lee statue will be melted down by African American history museum
The box was located beneath the northeast corner of the monument, which is where historians expected it to be, following Masonic tradition. Workers spent an entire day in September probing this spot but did not dig deeply enough into the granite rubble below the ground.
A smaller time capsule found inside the granite pedestal of the monument was opened last week to great fanfare, but it was apparent that it was not the official artifact that had been touted in historical news reports. The smaller box contained three books, at least one pamphlet, a photograph and a silver coin.
Most of the items appeared to relate to the men who designed or constructed the original monument. They were wet, but surprisingly intact, and are undergoing conservation so historians can better understand the tale they tell.
The bright copper box unearthed Monday was quickly whisked away to the historic resources department, where conservators X-rayed it to gauge its condition and formulate a plan for getting it open. If the contents have been soaking in water, any paper items might have been severely damaged.
torontosun.com
Northam ordered the statue removed in September after condemning it as a racist relic of the Lost Cause
Author of the article:
Washington Post
Washington Post
Gregory S. Schneider
Publishing date:
Dec 28, 2021 • 18 hours ago • 2 minute read •
Join the conversation
Officials say the copper box found under the statue of Robert E. Lee appears to match the description of the original time capsule in historical news accounts.
Officials say the copper box found under the statue of Robert E. Lee appears to match the description of the original time capsule in historical news accounts. Photo by Office of the Governor of Virgin /Handout
Article content
RICHMOND, Va. — Lesson learned: Dig deeper.
Advertisement
Story continues below
Article content
Workers removing chunks of granite that had once supported this city’s Robert E. Lee monument finally found what appears to be an elusive 1887 time capsule shortly before noon on Monday. It was in the spot where experts had looked for it unsuccessfully in September, but farther down in the ground.
This is the second time a capsule was discovered under the monument — a small lead box opened last week contained mementos of several men who had designed the memorial.
The good news: The latest box was made of copper and is roughly the right dimensions to be the long-rumoured official time capsule, which is expected to contain some 60 items of Confederate memorabilia – including, possibly, a rare photo of President Abraham Lincoln in his casket.
Advertisement
Story continues below
Article content
The bad news: It was found sitting in water.
“It’s not clear whether water is in the box or not,” said Grant Neely, a spokesman for Democratic Gov. Ralph Northam.
X-ray images released Monday evening by Northam’s office suggested that at least some items inside the box remain intact. Shapes that seemed to represent coins, buttons and Minié balls – or bullets – appear clearly outlined, along with at least one book.
A statue of Confederate general Robert E. Lee is lifted off its pedestal in Market Street Park in Charlottesville on July 10. MUST CREDIT: Washington Post photo by John McDonnell
A statue of Confederate general Robert E. Lee is lifted off its pedestal in Market Street Park in Charlottesville on July 10. MUST CREDIT: Washington Post photo by John McDonnell Photo by John McDonnell /The Washington Post
The box is slated to be opened 1 p.m. Tuesday in a conservation lab at the state Department of Historic Resources.
Northam, who ordered the statue removed in September after condemning it as a racist relic of the Lost Cause, was on a coronavirus-related call with the National Governors Association when word of the find arrived, Neely said.
Advertisement
Story continues below
Article content
Chelsea Blake, a conservator with the Virginia Department of Historic Resources, attempts to open what is believed to be a time capsule found in Confederate General Robert E. Lee's monument, which was buried in 1887, in Richmond, Virginia, December 22, 2021.
1875 almanac, other books found in capsule from Robert E. Lee statue pedestal
A statue of Confederate general Robert E. Lee is lifted off its pedestal in Market Street Park in Charlottesville on July 10. MUST CREDIT: Washington Post photo by John McDonnell
Robert E. Lee statue will be melted down by African American history museum
The box was located beneath the northeast corner of the monument, which is where historians expected it to be, following Masonic tradition. Workers spent an entire day in September probing this spot but did not dig deeply enough into the granite rubble below the ground.
A smaller time capsule found inside the granite pedestal of the monument was opened last week to great fanfare, but it was apparent that it was not the official artifact that had been touted in historical news reports. The smaller box contained three books, at least one pamphlet, a photograph and a silver coin.
Most of the items appeared to relate to the men who designed or constructed the original monument. They were wet, but surprisingly intact, and are undergoing conservation so historians can better understand the tale they tell.
The bright copper box unearthed Monday was quickly whisked away to the historic resources department, where conservators X-rayed it to gauge its condition and formulate a plan for getting it open. If the contents have been soaking in water, any paper items might have been severely damaged.
Second time capsule found under Robert E. Lee monument in Virginia
Northam ordered the statue removed in September after condemning it as a racist relic of the Lost Cause
Man freed 37 years after witness lied and took police bribe of drugs, sex
During Willie Stokes's murder trial, the witness recanted his testimony - which prosecutors argued was not credible given his own criminal history
Author of the article:
Washington Post
Washington Post
Paulina Villegas
Publishing date:
Jan 05, 2022 • 19 hours ago • 4 minute read •
15 Comments
Willie Stokes smiles after getting out of a state prison in Chester, Pa., on Tuesday, Jan. 4, 2022, after his 1984 murder conviction was overturned because of perjured witness testimony.
Willie Stokes smiles after getting out of a state prison in Chester, Pa., on Tuesday, Jan. 4, 2022, after his 1984 murder conviction was overturned because of perjured witness testimony. Photo by Matt Rourke /AP
Article content
A Philadelphia man walked out of prison on Monday, 37 years after he was convicted of murdering a woman, an accusation he has vehemently denied, and after a federal court found prosecutors suppressed evidence of false testimony given by a key witness, the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office said.
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Willie Stokes’s release comes after the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania vacated his murder conviction last week, concluding that the state violated Stokes’s constitutional rights by “withholding” crucial evidence about the false testimony of a key witness in the case, according to court documents.
The court ordered Stokes to be retried within 120 days or released, and the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office acknowledged that the suppressed evidence crumbled the legal basis of the prosecution and “fatally undermined confidence” in Stokes’s conviction.
Stokes is expected to appear in court Jan. 27, when the district attorney’s office will probably inform its final decision to dismiss the matter or retry him, his lawyer Michael Diamondstein said in an interview Monday.
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“He took his first free breaths this afternoon after almost 40 years, and he is very happy and humbled,” Diamondstein said, and added that Stokes’s first wish after being released was to go “get a corned beef hoagie.”
On Monday, Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner acknowledged that Stokes’s “remarkable” case was part of police and prosecutorial malpractices that were pervasive “during the so-called tough-on-crime 1980s and 1990s, and unfortunately persist in far too many jurisdictions today,” he said in a news release.
“Prosecutors have an obligation to seek justice, and to redefine prosecutorial success – not by ‘wins’ in the form of convictions, but by accuracy and fairness in resolving criminal investigations and prosecutions,” the statement added.
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Krasner noted that Stokes’s legal ordeal of nearly four decades – during which he filed numerous relief petitions and appeals to overturn his conviction, only to be rejected on procedural basis – underscored “the urgency of the criminal legal system seeking justice over finality.”
Willie Stokes, second right, and lawyer Michael Diamondstein, walk out of a prison in Chester, Pa., on Tuesday, Jan. 4, 2022, after Stokes’ 1984 murder conviction was overturned because of perjured witness testimony. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
Willie Stokes, second right, and lawyer Michael Diamondstein, walk out of a prison in Chester, Pa., on Tuesday, Jan. 4, 2022, after Stokes’ 1984 murder conviction was overturned because of perjured witness testimony. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
It was not until late November that the U.S. District Court in Pennsylvania agreed to hold a hearing. After reviewing the evidence, Judge Carol Sandra Moore Wells concluded that for 37 years prosecutors did not disclose to Stokes and his defence lawyers that Franklin Lee, the key witness who had accused him of murder, admitted that his testimony was a lie and that he had been convicted of perjury for it, and therefore Stokes was entitled to relief.
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In 1984, Lee was in prison facing murder and rape charges when he was approached by two homicide detectives who offered him “sex, drugs, and a deal,” in exchange for framing Stokes, according to his testimony in November.
“They said I wouldn’t do no more than two to five, the most seven years,” he said.
Lee added that to help persuade him to testify against Stokes, the detectives allowed his girlfriend to meet with him in private at police headquarters. Another time, he said, the detectives provided condoms and a sex worker, he said.
The two detectives, Lawrence Gerrard and Ernest Gilbert, have faced allegations of using similar “coercive methods” to obtain false testimonies from witnesses in other cases, court documents show.
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According to the Philadelphia Inquirer, the allegations first emerged more than 30 years ago, when a federal judge overturned the conviction of Arthur Lester, who said Gilbert and Gerrard used those tactics to coerce his confession. At least five other men are still in prison on convictions tainted by similar claims, the local newspaper reported.
During Stokes’s preliminary hearing in 1984, Lee claimed that Stokes was at his “house drinking, smoking, gambling,” and that in his basement, he admitted to killing Leslie Campbell in North Philadelphia, according to court documents.
There was no other evidence linking Stokes directly to the crime. A second surviving victim of the shooting attack testified that Stokes was not the shooter. Only one eyewitness said he saw Stokes at the scene holding a gun – but not shooting.
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But during Stokes’s murder trial, Lee surprisingly recanted his testimony – which prosecutors argued was not credible given his own criminal history.
Nevertheless, on Aug. 21, 1984, a jury convicted Stokes of first-degree murder and possession of an instrument of crime and sentenced him to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Soon after, they also charged Lee for perjury for his false hearing testimony. But that information was never disclosed to Stokes – who could have used it for his defense and appeals litigation.
It took decades for Stokes to discover that the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office had prosecuted Lee for falsely accusing him.
During the November hearing, Lee, 62 testified that his initial statement given to police and at the preliminary hearing implicating Stokes in Campbell’s murder was false.
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“Mr. Lee, did Willie Stokes ever tell you that he killed Leslie Campbell?” Diamondstein, Stokes’s attorney, asked Lee at the November hearing.
“No,” he answered.
“Did Willie Stokes ever tell you he committed any murder?” the lawyer asked.
“No,” he replied.
After his testimony, Lee apologized to Stokes – who had been listening via teleconference from the State Correctional Institution in Chester.
Willie Stokes reacts while talking with members of the media upon leaving a state prison in Chester, Pa., on Tuesday, Jan. 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
Willie Stokes reacts while talking with members of the media upon leaving a state prison in Chester, Pa., on Tuesday, Jan. 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
“And I’d like to for the record, if I can, apologize to Mr. Stokes and the family for the problem I caused, sincerely,” he said.
Stokes’s lawyer advised him not to respond.
“Let the record reflect he’s crying,” Moore, the district court judge, pointed out. “I’m going to take his tears to indicate he’s accepting the apology.”
After the hearing, Moore recommended that Stokes’s conviction be overturned, finding “reasonable probability” that Stokes would have been acquitted without Lee’s testimony and concluded that the trial’s verdict was “therefore unreliable.”
“What happened here was an abomination,” Diamondstein said. “For too many years, law enforcement in Philadelphia have treated Black and Brown people like they are expendable and this case is a stark reminder it has to stop,” he added.
Stokes was released from the State Correctional Institution Monday afternoon.
torontosun.com
During Willie Stokes's murder trial, the witness recanted his testimony - which prosecutors argued was not credible given his own criminal history
Author of the article:
Washington Post
Washington Post
Paulina Villegas
Publishing date:
Jan 05, 2022 • 19 hours ago • 4 minute read •
15 Comments
Willie Stokes smiles after getting out of a state prison in Chester, Pa., on Tuesday, Jan. 4, 2022, after his 1984 murder conviction was overturned because of perjured witness testimony.
Willie Stokes smiles after getting out of a state prison in Chester, Pa., on Tuesday, Jan. 4, 2022, after his 1984 murder conviction was overturned because of perjured witness testimony. Photo by Matt Rourke /AP
Article content
A Philadelphia man walked out of prison on Monday, 37 years after he was convicted of murdering a woman, an accusation he has vehemently denied, and after a federal court found prosecutors suppressed evidence of false testimony given by a key witness, the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office said.
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Article content
Willie Stokes’s release comes after the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania vacated his murder conviction last week, concluding that the state violated Stokes’s constitutional rights by “withholding” crucial evidence about the false testimony of a key witness in the case, according to court documents.
The court ordered Stokes to be retried within 120 days or released, and the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office acknowledged that the suppressed evidence crumbled the legal basis of the prosecution and “fatally undermined confidence” in Stokes’s conviction.
Stokes is expected to appear in court Jan. 27, when the district attorney’s office will probably inform its final decision to dismiss the matter or retry him, his lawyer Michael Diamondstein said in an interview Monday.
Advertisement
Story continues below
Article content
“He took his first free breaths this afternoon after almost 40 years, and he is very happy and humbled,” Diamondstein said, and added that Stokes’s first wish after being released was to go “get a corned beef hoagie.”
On Monday, Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner acknowledged that Stokes’s “remarkable” case was part of police and prosecutorial malpractices that were pervasive “during the so-called tough-on-crime 1980s and 1990s, and unfortunately persist in far too many jurisdictions today,” he said in a news release.
“Prosecutors have an obligation to seek justice, and to redefine prosecutorial success – not by ‘wins’ in the form of convictions, but by accuracy and fairness in resolving criminal investigations and prosecutions,” the statement added.
Advertisement
Story continues below
Article content
Krasner noted that Stokes’s legal ordeal of nearly four decades – during which he filed numerous relief petitions and appeals to overturn his conviction, only to be rejected on procedural basis – underscored “the urgency of the criminal legal system seeking justice over finality.”
Willie Stokes, second right, and lawyer Michael Diamondstein, walk out of a prison in Chester, Pa., on Tuesday, Jan. 4, 2022, after Stokes’ 1984 murder conviction was overturned because of perjured witness testimony. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
Willie Stokes, second right, and lawyer Michael Diamondstein, walk out of a prison in Chester, Pa., on Tuesday, Jan. 4, 2022, after Stokes’ 1984 murder conviction was overturned because of perjured witness testimony. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
It was not until late November that the U.S. District Court in Pennsylvania agreed to hold a hearing. After reviewing the evidence, Judge Carol Sandra Moore Wells concluded that for 37 years prosecutors did not disclose to Stokes and his defence lawyers that Franklin Lee, the key witness who had accused him of murder, admitted that his testimony was a lie and that he had been convicted of perjury for it, and therefore Stokes was entitled to relief.
Advertisement
Story continues below
Article content
In 1984, Lee was in prison facing murder and rape charges when he was approached by two homicide detectives who offered him “sex, drugs, and a deal,” in exchange for framing Stokes, according to his testimony in November.
“They said I wouldn’t do no more than two to five, the most seven years,” he said.
Lee added that to help persuade him to testify against Stokes, the detectives allowed his girlfriend to meet with him in private at police headquarters. Another time, he said, the detectives provided condoms and a sex worker, he said.
The two detectives, Lawrence Gerrard and Ernest Gilbert, have faced allegations of using similar “coercive methods” to obtain false testimonies from witnesses in other cases, court documents show.
Advertisement
Story continues below
Article content
According to the Philadelphia Inquirer, the allegations first emerged more than 30 years ago, when a federal judge overturned the conviction of Arthur Lester, who said Gilbert and Gerrard used those tactics to coerce his confession. At least five other men are still in prison on convictions tainted by similar claims, the local newspaper reported.
During Stokes’s preliminary hearing in 1984, Lee claimed that Stokes was at his “house drinking, smoking, gambling,” and that in his basement, he admitted to killing Leslie Campbell in North Philadelphia, according to court documents.
There was no other evidence linking Stokes directly to the crime. A second surviving victim of the shooting attack testified that Stokes was not the shooter. Only one eyewitness said he saw Stokes at the scene holding a gun – but not shooting.
Advertisement
Story continues below
Article content
But during Stokes’s murder trial, Lee surprisingly recanted his testimony – which prosecutors argued was not credible given his own criminal history.
Nevertheless, on Aug. 21, 1984, a jury convicted Stokes of first-degree murder and possession of an instrument of crime and sentenced him to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Soon after, they also charged Lee for perjury for his false hearing testimony. But that information was never disclosed to Stokes – who could have used it for his defense and appeals litigation.
It took decades for Stokes to discover that the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office had prosecuted Lee for falsely accusing him.
During the November hearing, Lee, 62 testified that his initial statement given to police and at the preliminary hearing implicating Stokes in Campbell’s murder was false.
Advertisement
Story continues below
Article content
“Mr. Lee, did Willie Stokes ever tell you that he killed Leslie Campbell?” Diamondstein, Stokes’s attorney, asked Lee at the November hearing.
“No,” he answered.
“Did Willie Stokes ever tell you he committed any murder?” the lawyer asked.
“No,” he replied.
After his testimony, Lee apologized to Stokes – who had been listening via teleconference from the State Correctional Institution in Chester.
Willie Stokes reacts while talking with members of the media upon leaving a state prison in Chester, Pa., on Tuesday, Jan. 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
Willie Stokes reacts while talking with members of the media upon leaving a state prison in Chester, Pa., on Tuesday, Jan. 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
“And I’d like to for the record, if I can, apologize to Mr. Stokes and the family for the problem I caused, sincerely,” he said.
Stokes’s lawyer advised him not to respond.
“Let the record reflect he’s crying,” Moore, the district court judge, pointed out. “I’m going to take his tears to indicate he’s accepting the apology.”
After the hearing, Moore recommended that Stokes’s conviction be overturned, finding “reasonable probability” that Stokes would have been acquitted without Lee’s testimony and concluded that the trial’s verdict was “therefore unreliable.”
“What happened here was an abomination,” Diamondstein said. “For too many years, law enforcement in Philadelphia have treated Black and Brown people like they are expendable and this case is a stark reminder it has to stop,” he added.
Stokes was released from the State Correctional Institution Monday afternoon.
Man freed 37 years after witness lied and took police bribe of drugs, sex
During Willie Stokes's murder trial, the witness recanted his testimony - which prosecutors argued was not credible given his own criminal history
Every time I hear something like this I want to scream!!
Slain officer's sister sues Facebook, alleging it pushed extremist content
Steven Carrillo and his accomplice, Robert Alvin Justus Jr., connected through a boogaloo group
Author of the article:
Washington Post
Washington Post
Faiz Siddiqui
Publishing date:
Jan 06, 2022 • 14 hours ago • 4 minute read •
5 Comments
Janie Taylor sings beside a photo of Federal Protective Services Officer Dave Patrick Underwood on Friday, June 19, 2020, in Pinole, Calif.
Janie Taylor sings beside a photo of Federal Protective Services Officer Dave Patrick Underwood on Friday, June 19, 2020, in Pinole, Calif. Photo by Ben Margot /AP
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SAN FRANCISCO — The sister of a slain federal officer is suing Facebook’s parent company Meta, alleging it bears responsibility for her brother’s killing during racial justice protests in 2020.
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Facebook facilitated the hateful far-right “boogaloo” movement, leading an adherent to murder officer Dave Patrick Underwood, the lawsuit filed in a California Superior Court late Wednesday alleges.
The Homeland Security protective security officer was fatally shot in May 2020 when a van pulled up outside the Ronald V. Dellums Federal Building in Oakland and a gunman inside the vehicle sprayed bullets at Underwood and his partner, who was wounded in the shooting. Federal authorities identified the shooter as Steven Carrillo, an adherent of the “boogaloo boys,” an online extremist movement that has sought to capitalize on racial justice protests to usher in a race war. Underwood was killed as racial justice protests were underway nearby following the police murder of George Floyd.
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Now Underwood’s sister, Angela Underwood Jacobs, is accusing Facebook of “knowingly promoting extremist content” and connecting individuals who “planned to engage in acts of violence against federal law enforcement officers,” according to the suit.
The suit alleges wrongful death and a survival action for the pain and suffering Underwood endured before he died, citing alleged general negligence and negligent design by Facebook.
Facebook wasn’t immediately available to comment.
This May 29, 2020 surveillance photo provided by the FBI shows a van with the passenger side door open as someone fires at a security kiosk at the Ronald V. Dellums Federal Building in Oakland, Calif. (FBI via AP)
This May 29, 2020 surveillance photo provided by the FBI shows a van with the passenger side door open as someone fires at a security kiosk at the Ronald V. Dellums Federal Building in Oakland, Calif. (FBI via AP)
The suit takes aim at Facebook and other social media companies’ long-standing legal immunity for harmful content that is posted on their platforms. Technology companies are generally protected from such lawsuits by Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, which says platforms are not publishers of the content posted on their sites, and thus aren’t responsible for the content that appears in such forums.
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But Section 230 is coming under fire on a variety of fronts. A series of bills that seek to erode the two decade-old law was proposed by lawmakers in both parties last year. Last month, a member of the Rohingya ethnic group based in the U.S. filed a wrongful-death lawsuit against Meta arguing that its platform fanned the flames of violence and led to a genocide in Myanmar in 2017. The lawsuit is seeking class action status to represent thousands of Rohingya refugees who have resettled in the U.S.
Lawyers for Underwood’s sister say Facebook should not be protected by Section 230.
Facebook said it took down hundreds of accounts and groups connected to the boogaloo movement in the wake of the violence in Oakland and an alleged plot to use explosives at a demonstration in Las Vegas, and designated the boogaloo group a “dangerous organization.” Facebook’s action came about a month after the shooting.
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Rather than simply allow information to be posted on the site, Facebook actively promoted inflammatory content and steered people toward it, the suit alleges.
“The algorithms are weighted to favor untrue, inflammatory, and divisive content that will grab and keep users’ attention,” the lawsuit says. “Furthermore, the recommendations are not based on Facebook user requests for recommendations – they are pushed onto users.”
This undated Department of Motor Vehicles photo provided by the FBI shows Robert Alvin Justus Jr., who has been charged with aiding and abetting the murder and attempted murder of two Federal Protective Services security officers in a shooting in Oakland, Calif., on May 29, 2020. (FBI via AP)
This undated Department of Motor Vehicles photo provided by the FBI shows Robert Alvin Justus Jr., who has been charged with aiding and abetting the murder and attempted murder of two Federal Protective Services security officers in a shooting in Oakland, Calif., on May 29, 2020. (FBI via AP)
That ultimately led the killer and his accomplice to meet over the platform, attorneys allege. They point to criminal complaints from the Justice Department that say Carrillo, then an active-duty Air Force staff sergeant, and his accomplice, Robert Alvin Justus Jr., connected through a boogaloo group on Facebook on May 28, 2020. They agreed to meet on May 29 and drive together to the protests, attorneys said.
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“Facebook bears responsibility for the murder of my brother,” Jacobs said in a news release. “Facebook must be held responsible for the harm it has caused not just my family, but so many others, by promoting extremist content and building extremist groups on its platform.” The firm Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll is representing Jacobs in the wrongful death case.
The complaint also alleges that Facebook “Helped Build” the boogaloo community that ushered in their planning.
Facebook’s argument that it does not bear responsibility for harmful content was undercut by a trove of documents brought forth in October by whistleblower Francis Haugen. The documents showed that Facebook is deeply involved in researching the effects of harmful content and turning the dials of its algorithms to decide how to promote it to over 2.9 billion monthly users.
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The boogaloo movement arose from fringe social media channels such as 4chan before moving to mainstream platforms such as Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, where their followings ballooned as their views found a wider audience. Researchers found some groups had at times amassed hundreds of thousands of followers.
The group’s emergence led to a wider examination of the effects of social media on the rise of violent movements, with some making comparisons to foreign militant groups such as the Islamic State.
Carrillo is also accused in a separate killing of a sheriff’s deputy in Santa Cruz County. His attorney previously cautioned against a “rush to judgment” in the cases.
torontosun.com
Steven Carrillo and his accomplice, Robert Alvin Justus Jr., connected through a boogaloo group
Author of the article:
Washington Post
Washington Post
Faiz Siddiqui
Publishing date:
Jan 06, 2022 • 14 hours ago • 4 minute read •
5 Comments
Janie Taylor sings beside a photo of Federal Protective Services Officer Dave Patrick Underwood on Friday, June 19, 2020, in Pinole, Calif.
Janie Taylor sings beside a photo of Federal Protective Services Officer Dave Patrick Underwood on Friday, June 19, 2020, in Pinole, Calif. Photo by Ben Margot /AP
Article content
SAN FRANCISCO — The sister of a slain federal officer is suing Facebook’s parent company Meta, alleging it bears responsibility for her brother’s killing during racial justice protests in 2020.
Advertisement
Story continues below
Article content
Facebook facilitated the hateful far-right “boogaloo” movement, leading an adherent to murder officer Dave Patrick Underwood, the lawsuit filed in a California Superior Court late Wednesday alleges.
The Homeland Security protective security officer was fatally shot in May 2020 when a van pulled up outside the Ronald V. Dellums Federal Building in Oakland and a gunman inside the vehicle sprayed bullets at Underwood and his partner, who was wounded in the shooting. Federal authorities identified the shooter as Steven Carrillo, an adherent of the “boogaloo boys,” an online extremist movement that has sought to capitalize on racial justice protests to usher in a race war. Underwood was killed as racial justice protests were underway nearby following the police murder of George Floyd.
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Now Underwood’s sister, Angela Underwood Jacobs, is accusing Facebook of “knowingly promoting extremist content” and connecting individuals who “planned to engage in acts of violence against federal law enforcement officers,” according to the suit.
The suit alleges wrongful death and a survival action for the pain and suffering Underwood endured before he died, citing alleged general negligence and negligent design by Facebook.
Facebook wasn’t immediately available to comment.
This May 29, 2020 surveillance photo provided by the FBI shows a van with the passenger side door open as someone fires at a security kiosk at the Ronald V. Dellums Federal Building in Oakland, Calif. (FBI via AP)
This May 29, 2020 surveillance photo provided by the FBI shows a van with the passenger side door open as someone fires at a security kiosk at the Ronald V. Dellums Federal Building in Oakland, Calif. (FBI via AP)
The suit takes aim at Facebook and other social media companies’ long-standing legal immunity for harmful content that is posted on their platforms. Technology companies are generally protected from such lawsuits by Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, which says platforms are not publishers of the content posted on their sites, and thus aren’t responsible for the content that appears in such forums.
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But Section 230 is coming under fire on a variety of fronts. A series of bills that seek to erode the two decade-old law was proposed by lawmakers in both parties last year. Last month, a member of the Rohingya ethnic group based in the U.S. filed a wrongful-death lawsuit against Meta arguing that its platform fanned the flames of violence and led to a genocide in Myanmar in 2017. The lawsuit is seeking class action status to represent thousands of Rohingya refugees who have resettled in the U.S.
Lawyers for Underwood’s sister say Facebook should not be protected by Section 230.
Facebook said it took down hundreds of accounts and groups connected to the boogaloo movement in the wake of the violence in Oakland and an alleged plot to use explosives at a demonstration in Las Vegas, and designated the boogaloo group a “dangerous organization.” Facebook’s action came about a month after the shooting.
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Rather than simply allow information to be posted on the site, Facebook actively promoted inflammatory content and steered people toward it, the suit alleges.
“The algorithms are weighted to favor untrue, inflammatory, and divisive content that will grab and keep users’ attention,” the lawsuit says. “Furthermore, the recommendations are not based on Facebook user requests for recommendations – they are pushed onto users.”
This undated Department of Motor Vehicles photo provided by the FBI shows Robert Alvin Justus Jr., who has been charged with aiding and abetting the murder and attempted murder of two Federal Protective Services security officers in a shooting in Oakland, Calif., on May 29, 2020. (FBI via AP)
This undated Department of Motor Vehicles photo provided by the FBI shows Robert Alvin Justus Jr., who has been charged with aiding and abetting the murder and attempted murder of two Federal Protective Services security officers in a shooting in Oakland, Calif., on May 29, 2020. (FBI via AP)
That ultimately led the killer and his accomplice to meet over the platform, attorneys allege. They point to criminal complaints from the Justice Department that say Carrillo, then an active-duty Air Force staff sergeant, and his accomplice, Robert Alvin Justus Jr., connected through a boogaloo group on Facebook on May 28, 2020. They agreed to meet on May 29 and drive together to the protests, attorneys said.
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“Facebook bears responsibility for the murder of my brother,” Jacobs said in a news release. “Facebook must be held responsible for the harm it has caused not just my family, but so many others, by promoting extremist content and building extremist groups on its platform.” The firm Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll is representing Jacobs in the wrongful death case.
The complaint also alleges that Facebook “Helped Build” the boogaloo community that ushered in their planning.
Facebook’s argument that it does not bear responsibility for harmful content was undercut by a trove of documents brought forth in October by whistleblower Francis Haugen. The documents showed that Facebook is deeply involved in researching the effects of harmful content and turning the dials of its algorithms to decide how to promote it to over 2.9 billion monthly users.
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The boogaloo movement arose from fringe social media channels such as 4chan before moving to mainstream platforms such as Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, where their followings ballooned as their views found a wider audience. Researchers found some groups had at times amassed hundreds of thousands of followers.
The group’s emergence led to a wider examination of the effects of social media on the rise of violent movements, with some making comparisons to foreign militant groups such as the Islamic State.
Carrillo is also accused in a separate killing of a sheriff’s deputy in Santa Cruz County. His attorney previously cautioned against a “rush to judgment” in the cases.
Slain officer's sister sues Facebook, alleging it pushed extremist content
Steven Carrillo and his accomplice, Robert Alvin Justus Jr., connected through a boogaloo group
Family claims Pittsburgh man ‘hunted down’ and killed in ‘modern-day lynching'
Author of the article
enette Wilford
Publishing date:Jan 28, 2022 • 21 hours ago • 1 minute read • Join the conversation
Jamaican immigrant Peter Bernardo Spencer, who was hunted down and killed.
Jamaican immigrant Peter Bernardo Spencer, who was hunted down and killed. PHOTO BY GOFUNDME
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The family of a Jamaican immigrant shot to death in rural Pennsylvania believes he was killed in a “modern-day lynching.”
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Peter Bernardo Spencer, 29, of Pittsburgh, was invited to a co-worker’s cabin in Rockland Township on Dec. 11 where they were joined by two other men and one woman – all white.
State police were called to the cabin early the following morning and Spencer was found dead on the front yard with multiple gunshot wounds, reported The Philadelphia Inquirer .
Cops found multiple firearms, “ballistic evidence,” and controlled substances at the home. The four people with Spencer were questioned and released by the Venango County District Attorney’s Office.
Six weeks later there have been no arrests, but investigators are still waiting results of a toxicology report and state police have asked Spencer’s family and the public to “remain patient,” according to the paper.
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The co-worker reportedly admitted to being the shooter but is claiming it was self-defence.
The coroner determined Spencer was shot nine times.
Pathologist Cyril Wecht, who is advising Spencer’s family, studied the autopsy and believes many of the bullets entered Spencer’s body from behind.
“My initial thought is that it’s absurd to talk about self-defence with nine gunshot wounds,” Wecht told The Inquirer.
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A GoFundMe campaign has been launched by Spencer’s pregnant fiancée, Carmela King, who detailed what she and his family believe went down last month.
“He was slaughtered and killed in what I consider an act of modern-day lynching,” a sibling wrote on the page.
Spencer had no ties to Venango County where, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, just 1.1% of the population is Black.
“Peter was an outdoorsman from Jamaica,” said Paul Jubas, a Pittsburgh civil rights attorney advising the family. “He loved being outside in nature.”
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Author of the article
enette WilfordPublishing date:Jan 28, 2022 • 21 hours ago • 1 minute read • Join the conversation
Jamaican immigrant Peter Bernardo Spencer, who was hunted down and killed.
Jamaican immigrant Peter Bernardo Spencer, who was hunted down and killed. PHOTO BY GOFUNDME
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The family of a Jamaican immigrant shot to death in rural Pennsylvania believes he was killed in a “modern-day lynching.”
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STORY CONTINUES BELOW
Article content
Peter Bernardo Spencer, 29, of Pittsburgh, was invited to a co-worker’s cabin in Rockland Township on Dec. 11 where they were joined by two other men and one woman – all white.
State police were called to the cabin early the following morning and Spencer was found dead on the front yard with multiple gunshot wounds, reported The Philadelphia Inquirer .
Cops found multiple firearms, “ballistic evidence,” and controlled substances at the home. The four people with Spencer were questioned and released by the Venango County District Attorney’s Office.
Six weeks later there have been no arrests, but investigators are still waiting results of a toxicology report and state police have asked Spencer’s family and the public to “remain patient,” according to the paper.
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STORY CONTINUES BELOW
Article content
The co-worker reportedly admitted to being the shooter but is claiming it was self-defence.
The coroner determined Spencer was shot nine times.
Pathologist Cyril Wecht, who is advising Spencer’s family, studied the autopsy and believes many of the bullets entered Spencer’s body from behind.
“My initial thought is that it’s absurd to talk about self-defence with nine gunshot wounds,” Wecht told The Inquirer.
Jennifer Lopez as US Marshal Karen Sisto in Out of Sight.
HUNTER: Women taking bigger roles in gangland, murder
Savannah Gold.
Florida man jailed for killing coworker, impersonating her to parents
Niesha Harris-Brazell, 16, was working the Burger King drive-thru with her best friend on Jan. 2, 2022 when she was found fatally shot.
Burger King employee killed in robbery helped set it up, accused man says
A GoFundMe campaign has been launched by Spencer’s pregnant fiancée, Carmela King, who detailed what she and his family believe went down last month.
“He was slaughtered and killed in what I consider an act of modern-day lynching,” a sibling wrote on the page.
Spencer had no ties to Venango County where, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, just 1.1% of the population is Black.
“Peter was an outdoorsman from Jamaica,” said Paul Jubas, a Pittsburgh civil rights attorney advising the family. “He loved being outside in nature.”
Donate to Justice for Peter!, organized by Carmela King
Hello, My name is Carmela King. This GoFundMe is to help The Spencer family receive justice for the… Carmela King needs your support for Justice for Peter!
Family believes Jamaican immigrant’s death in rural Pa. was a ‘modern-day lynching’
Family members of Peter Bernardo Spencer say the man who shot him 9 times may be claiming self-defense.
inquirer.com
Family claims Pittsburgh man ‘hunted down’ and killed in ‘modern-day lynching'
The family of a Jamaican immigrant shot to death in rural Pennsylvania believes he was killed in a “modern-day lynching.”
Marxist BLM Leader Patrisse Khan-Cullors Bought Four High-End Homes in US Before Stepping Down — And Is Now Linked to $6 Million Mansion in Canada
By Jim HoftPublished January 30, 2022 at 9:45am
281 Comments
Black Lives Matter finances scrutinized
Author of the articleostmedia News
Publishing date:Feb 01, 2022 • 9 hours ago • 2 minute read • Join the conversation
An Instagram image of Patrisse Khan-Cullors, a co-founder of Black Lives Matter Global Foundation Network (BLMGFN).
An Instagram image of Patrisse Khan-Cullors, a co-founder of Black Lives Matter Global Foundation Network (BLMGFN). PHOTO BY HTTP://INSTAGRAM.COM/P/CZQF3OTSDXM /Toronto Sun
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News stories purporting to dig into the finances of the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement appear to have a Canadian connection.
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In Toronto, BLM opened the Wildseed Centre for art and activism — a community hub unveiled with great fanfare last summer — at 24 Cecil Street.
The beautiful old red brick building was purchased for $6.3 million in July 2021, but a report in the New York Post claims a lack of transparency in its purchase.
The claim is that BLM transferred millions to a charity called M4BJ, a Toronto-based non-profit set up by Janaya Khan and other Canadian activists, to purchase the 10,000-square-foot property.
Khan is the spouse of Patrisse Khan-Cullors, a co-founder of Black Lives Matter Global Foundation Network (BLMGFN).
Khan-Cullers, again according to the New York Post in a 2021 story , purchased $3 million in personal properties in the U.S. but has denied using BLM funds for those purchases. She has stated she bought the properties with money earned through book sales and public speaking engagements.
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She resigned from BLM last May to focus on other projects about a month after the Post revealed her real estate wealth.
Two people who were to manage BLMGFN after her resignation never took on the posts, according to a report in the Washington Examiner.
Makani Themba and Monifa Bandele told the newspaper that they didn’t know who was managing the $66 million in the BLM coffers. They had not taken on the job because of disagreements with BLM’s leadership council.
The controversy seems rooted in a huge uptick in charitable donations to BLM after the death of George Floyd in May 2020.
Early in 2021, the BLMGFN told the Associated Press some $90 million in donations had poured in after George Floyd’s death; there are questions about where the money went and some confusion about how the organization is run, and by whom.
In Canada, two members of BLM resigned in January over the funding of the Wildseed Centre. A tweet from Sarah Jama on the subject states: “For BLM Canada to take money from BLM Global Network for a building without consulting the community was unethical. For BLM Canada to refuse to answer questions from young black organizers goes against the spirit of movement building.”
Requests for comment sent to Janaya Khan and to current BLM Toronto personnel Tuesday received no response.
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Author of the article
ostmedia NewsPublishing date:Feb 01, 2022 • 9 hours ago • 2 minute read • Join the conversation
An Instagram image of Patrisse Khan-Cullors, a co-founder of Black Lives Matter Global Foundation Network (BLMGFN).
An Instagram image of Patrisse Khan-Cullors, a co-founder of Black Lives Matter Global Foundation Network (BLMGFN). PHOTO BY HTTP://INSTAGRAM.COM/P/CZQF3OTSDXM /Toronto Sun
Article content
News stories purporting to dig into the finances of the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement appear to have a Canadian connection.
Advertisement
STORY CONTINUES BELOW
Article content
In Toronto, BLM opened the Wildseed Centre for art and activism — a community hub unveiled with great fanfare last summer — at 24 Cecil Street.
The beautiful old red brick building was purchased for $6.3 million in July 2021, but a report in the New York Post claims a lack of transparency in its purchase.
The claim is that BLM transferred millions to a charity called M4BJ, a Toronto-based non-profit set up by Janaya Khan and other Canadian activists, to purchase the 10,000-square-foot property.
Khan is the spouse of Patrisse Khan-Cullors, a co-founder of Black Lives Matter Global Foundation Network (BLMGFN).
Khan-Cullers, again according to the New York Post in a 2021 story , purchased $3 million in personal properties in the U.S. but has denied using BLM funds for those purchases. She has stated she bought the properties with money earned through book sales and public speaking engagements.
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She resigned from BLM last May to focus on other projects about a month after the Post revealed her real estate wealth.
Two people who were to manage BLMGFN after her resignation never took on the posts, according to a report in the Washington Examiner.
Makani Themba and Monifa Bandele told the newspaper that they didn’t know who was managing the $66 million in the BLM coffers. They had not taken on the job because of disagreements with BLM’s leadership council.
The controversy seems rooted in a huge uptick in charitable donations to BLM after the death of George Floyd in May 2020.
Early in 2021, the BLMGFN told the Associated Press some $90 million in donations had poured in after George Floyd’s death; there are questions about where the money went and some confusion about how the organization is run, and by whom.
In Canada, two members of BLM resigned in January over the funding of the Wildseed Centre. A tweet from Sarah Jama on the subject states: “For BLM Canada to take money from BLM Global Network for a building without consulting the community was unethical. For BLM Canada to refuse to answer questions from young black organizers goes against the spirit of movement building.”
Requests for comment sent to Janaya Khan and to current BLM Toronto personnel Tuesday received no response.
BLM’s millions unaccounted for after leaders quietly jumped ship - Washington Examiner
No one appears to have been in charge at Black Lives Matter for months. The address it lists on tax forms is wrong, and the charity's two board members won't say who controls its $60 million bankroll, a Washington Examiner investigation has found. BLM's shocking lack of transparency surrounding...
washingtonexaminer.com
Father of teen whose death sparked BLM blasts organization’s leadership
Michael Brown Sr. is questioning the organization’s leadership.
nypost.com
Black Lives Matter sent millions to Canada charity to buy mansion
Black Lives Matter transferred millions to M4BJ — a Canadian charity run by the wife of its co-founder — to purchase a sprawling mansion, public records show.
nypost.com
Black Lives Matter finances scrutinized
News stories purporting to dig into the finances of the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement appear to have a Canadian connection.
Taxman wants to hear from BLM
Author of the articleostmedia News
Publishing date:Feb 02, 2022 • 11 hours ago • 2 minute read • 7 Comments
Demonstrators hold Black Lives Matter signs as they participate in the Justice for George Floyd march outside the Minnesota State Capitol on March 19, 2021 in Saint Paul, Minn.
Demonstrators hold Black Lives Matter signs as they participate in the Justice for George Floyd march outside the Minnesota State Capitol on March 19, 2021 in Saint Paul, Minn. PHOTO BY FILE /GETTY IMAGES
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Media reports suggest that the Black Lives Matter organization risks losing its tax-free status.
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The Daily Mail reports that BLM has not filed a 2020 return and a Form 990 as required for any charitable organization.
BLM reportedly only established independent non-profit status with the IRS in December of 2020.
The organization is being scrutinized and criticized over a lack of clarity in finances and leadership.
A report from The Associated Press a year ago described some of the growing pains the organization was experiencing after the transition from grassroots organization to well-funded international movement.
BLM leapt to prominence after the public killing of George Floyd by police in May of 2020 prompted anti-racism demonstrations around the world.
Donations poured in to the organization at that time.
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Since May of last year when former director Patrisse Cullors stepped down as director of Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation (BLMGNF), BLM has allegedly had no one in charge of its finances.
While confusion reigns, Cullors and her wife are being accused of possible financial impropriety, including a transfer of funds to finance a community centre for BLM Toronto.
Cullors’ own financial status, which includes houses she has purchased, is under the microscope.
She is associated with other charities and is alleged to receive payments from those charities; for example, New York Magazine reports that one prison reform charity Cullors founded received a $1.4 million grant, $205,000 of which was paid to a consulting firm owned by Cullors and her spouse, Janaya Khan.
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BLMGNF has said it raised more than $90 million in 2020. Operating expenses were reportedly $8.4 million and $21.7 million was given in grants to more than 30 organizations. BLMGNF reported $60 million still in its coffers.
The disclosure of those funds created internal dissent, seemingly between chapters of BLM and BLMGNF over funding and transparency.
Now the California Department of Justice has stated it may hold leaders of BLM liable if the charity does not disclose financial records about its donations in the next 60 days.
The DOJ said the charity had failed to submit its annual financial reports and alleged it is in delinquent status — which could prohibit BLM from both soliciting and disbursing charitable funds.
The DOJ requested a copy of BLMGNF’s annual registration renewal fee report and its 2020 IRS tax forms; without those documents being submitted, the organization could lose its charitable exemption status.
apnews.com
dailymail.co.uk
torontosun.com
Author of the article
ostmedia NewsPublishing date:Feb 02, 2022 • 11 hours ago • 2 minute read • 7 Comments
Demonstrators hold Black Lives Matter signs as they participate in the Justice for George Floyd march outside the Minnesota State Capitol on March 19, 2021 in Saint Paul, Minn.
Demonstrators hold Black Lives Matter signs as they participate in the Justice for George Floyd march outside the Minnesota State Capitol on March 19, 2021 in Saint Paul, Minn. PHOTO BY FILE /GETTY IMAGES
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Media reports suggest that the Black Lives Matter organization risks losing its tax-free status.
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STORY CONTINUES BELOW
Article content
The Daily Mail reports that BLM has not filed a 2020 return and a Form 990 as required for any charitable organization.
BLM reportedly only established independent non-profit status with the IRS in December of 2020.
The organization is being scrutinized and criticized over a lack of clarity in finances and leadership.
A report from The Associated Press a year ago described some of the growing pains the organization was experiencing after the transition from grassroots organization to well-funded international movement.
BLM leapt to prominence after the public killing of George Floyd by police in May of 2020 prompted anti-racism demonstrations around the world.
Donations poured in to the organization at that time.
Advertisement
STORY CONTINUES BELOW
Article content
Since May of last year when former director Patrisse Cullors stepped down as director of Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation (BLMGNF), BLM has allegedly had no one in charge of its finances.
While confusion reigns, Cullors and her wife are being accused of possible financial impropriety, including a transfer of funds to finance a community centre for BLM Toronto.
Cullors’ own financial status, which includes houses she has purchased, is under the microscope.
She is associated with other charities and is alleged to receive payments from those charities; for example, New York Magazine reports that one prison reform charity Cullors founded received a $1.4 million grant, $205,000 of which was paid to a consulting firm owned by Cullors and her spouse, Janaya Khan.
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STORY CONTINUES BELOW
Article content
BLMGNF has said it raised more than $90 million in 2020. Operating expenses were reportedly $8.4 million and $21.7 million was given in grants to more than 30 organizations. BLMGNF reported $60 million still in its coffers.
The disclosure of those funds created internal dissent, seemingly between chapters of BLM and BLMGNF over funding and transparency.
Now the California Department of Justice has stated it may hold leaders of BLM liable if the charity does not disclose financial records about its donations in the next 60 days.
The DOJ said the charity had failed to submit its annual financial reports and alleged it is in delinquent status — which could prohibit BLM from both soliciting and disbursing charitable funds.
The DOJ requested a copy of BLMGNF’s annual registration renewal fee report and its 2020 IRS tax forms; without those documents being submitted, the organization could lose its charitable exemption status.
AP Exclusive: Black Lives Matter opens up about its finances
NEW YORK (AP) — The foundation widely seen as a steward of the Black Lives Matter movement says it took in just over $90 million last year, according to a financial snapshot shared exclusively with The Associated Press.
apnews.com
California threatens to hold BLM leaders liable over financial records
BLM has 60 days to disclose records about its $60 million in donations or it could have its tax exemption status revoked. It could also face fines for each month the reports are delinquent.
Taxman wants to hear from BLM
Media reports suggest that the Black Lives Matter organization risks losing its tax-free status.
Hundreds in Minneapolis protest police killing of Black man in raid
Author of the article:Reuters
Reuters
Publishing date:Feb 05, 2022 • 12 hours ago • 2 minute read • 9 Comments
Demonstrators take part in a protest for Amir Locke, a Black man who was shot and killed by Minneapolis police’s SWAT team, at a protest in Minneapolis, Minnesota, February 4, 2022.
Demonstrators take part in a protest for Amir Locke, a Black man who was shot and killed by Minneapolis police’s SWAT team, at a protest in Minneapolis, Minnesota, February 4, 2022. PHOTO BY TIM EVANS /REUTERS
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MINNEAPOLIS — Hundreds of protesters took to the streets of downtown Minneapolis on Saturday demanding justice in the fatal police shooting of a young Black man, Amir Locke, during a “no-knock” raid on his apartment earlier this week.
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The boisterous but peaceful crowd, chanting Locke’s name and the slogan “no justice, no peace,” rallied at Government Plaza in Minnesota’s largest city three days after Locke, 22, was shot on his couch by police.
The day after the killing, police released video footage from the raid, which showed Locke was holding a gun as he twisted beneath a blanket on his sofa after being roused by officers moments before he was slain.
Police have said the officers were exercising a “no-knock” search warrant, which authorizes police to enter private property without first alerting occupants or announcing their presence.
The warrant was issued in relation to a homicide probe led by detectives from the neighboring Saint Paul Police Department. Locke was not named in the warrant, and Minneapolis police have acknowledged it was unclear how or whether he was connected to that investigation.
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On Thursday, interim Minneapolis Police Chief Amelia Huffman told a news conference the county attorney’s office was reviewing the shooting, and that video from the incident appeared to show Locke’s gun pointed toward officers when they opened fire.
Activists at the protest said Locke had a right to possess a weapon in his own home and was never given the chance to disarm himself in the chaotic moments as police stormed into his apartment without warning.
At least 500 demonstrators assembled in below-freezing temperatures on Saturday, demanding an unconditional ban on no-knock warrants, the dismissal and arrest of officers involved in the shooting, and the resignation of the mayor and police chief.
A series of speakers led the crowd through chants demanding racial justice and denouncing police violence against Black people, who organizers said have been disproportionately targeted by heavy-handed, and discriminatory law enforcement tactics.
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Live video footage of the protest from Reuters showed the crowd remained orderly, while police kept a low profile presence on the fringes of the rally.
On Friday, Mayor Jacob Frey responded to the Locke shooting, ordering a moratorium on “no-knock” search warrants, saying he was acting to “ensure safety of both the public and officers until a new policy is crafted.”
The Locke shooting was the latest of a string of incidents to put Minneapolis-area police department under scrutiny.
Almost two years ago, George Floyd, an unarmed Black man, was killed by a white officer who knelt on Floyd’s neck for over nine minutes during an arrest on suspicion of trying to pass a counterfeit $20 bill. Outrage over Floyd’s death sparked a nationwide movement challenging police brutality and bias in the U.S. criminal justice system.
The video of Locke’s arrest showed police unlocking his apartment with a key and officers shouting, “Police, search warrant, get on the ground,” as they entered.
An officer then kicks at the couch where Locke was lying and as Locke turns, his arm emerges from under the blanket with a gun seen in his hand. Almost immediately, police fired at least three shots.
Lawyers for Locke’s family said he had no criminal history and legally possessed a firearm at the time of his death.
torontosun.com
Author of the article:Reuters
Reuters
Publishing date:Feb 05, 2022 • 12 hours ago • 2 minute read • 9 Comments
Demonstrators take part in a protest for Amir Locke, a Black man who was shot and killed by Minneapolis police’s SWAT team, at a protest in Minneapolis, Minnesota, February 4, 2022.
Demonstrators take part in a protest for Amir Locke, a Black man who was shot and killed by Minneapolis police’s SWAT team, at a protest in Minneapolis, Minnesota, February 4, 2022. PHOTO BY TIM EVANS /REUTERS
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MINNEAPOLIS — Hundreds of protesters took to the streets of downtown Minneapolis on Saturday demanding justice in the fatal police shooting of a young Black man, Amir Locke, during a “no-knock” raid on his apartment earlier this week.
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Article content
The boisterous but peaceful crowd, chanting Locke’s name and the slogan “no justice, no peace,” rallied at Government Plaza in Minnesota’s largest city three days after Locke, 22, was shot on his couch by police.
The day after the killing, police released video footage from the raid, which showed Locke was holding a gun as he twisted beneath a blanket on his sofa after being roused by officers moments before he was slain.
Police have said the officers were exercising a “no-knock” search warrant, which authorizes police to enter private property without first alerting occupants or announcing their presence.
The warrant was issued in relation to a homicide probe led by detectives from the neighboring Saint Paul Police Department. Locke was not named in the warrant, and Minneapolis police have acknowledged it was unclear how or whether he was connected to that investigation.
Advertisement
STORY CONTINUES BELOW
Article content
On Thursday, interim Minneapolis Police Chief Amelia Huffman told a news conference the county attorney’s office was reviewing the shooting, and that video from the incident appeared to show Locke’s gun pointed toward officers when they opened fire.
Activists at the protest said Locke had a right to possess a weapon in his own home and was never given the chance to disarm himself in the chaotic moments as police stormed into his apartment without warning.
At least 500 demonstrators assembled in below-freezing temperatures on Saturday, demanding an unconditional ban on no-knock warrants, the dismissal and arrest of officers involved in the shooting, and the resignation of the mayor and police chief.
A series of speakers led the crowd through chants demanding racial justice and denouncing police violence against Black people, who organizers said have been disproportionately targeted by heavy-handed, and discriminatory law enforcement tactics.
Advertisement
STORY CONTINUES BELOW
Article content
Live video footage of the protest from Reuters showed the crowd remained orderly, while police kept a low profile presence on the fringes of the rally.
On Friday, Mayor Jacob Frey responded to the Locke shooting, ordering a moratorium on “no-knock” search warrants, saying he was acting to “ensure safety of both the public and officers until a new policy is crafted.”
The Locke shooting was the latest of a string of incidents to put Minneapolis-area police department under scrutiny.
Almost two years ago, George Floyd, an unarmed Black man, was killed by a white officer who knelt on Floyd’s neck for over nine minutes during an arrest on suspicion of trying to pass a counterfeit $20 bill. Outrage over Floyd’s death sparked a nationwide movement challenging police brutality and bias in the U.S. criminal justice system.
The video of Locke’s arrest showed police unlocking his apartment with a key and officers shouting, “Police, search warrant, get on the ground,” as they entered.
An officer then kicks at the couch where Locke was lying and as Locke turns, his arm emerges from under the blanket with a gun seen in his hand. Almost immediately, police fired at least three shots.
Lawyers for Locke’s family said he had no criminal history and legally possessed a firearm at the time of his death.
Hundreds in Minneapolis protest police killing of Black man in raid
MINNEAPOLIS — Hundreds of protesters took to the streets of downtown Minneapolis on Saturday demanding justice in the fatal police shooting of a young Black man, Am…
In all honesty I have not heard of this one until a few minutes ago. what is the background on this one and how did this thing happen?? Below is pulled from the post above mine:
MINNEAPOLIS — Hundreds of protesters took to the streets of downtown Minneapolis on Saturday demanding justice in the fatal police shooting of a young Black man, Amir Locke, during a “no-knock” raid on his apartment earlier this week.
Police have said the officers were exercising a “no-knock” search warrant, which authorizes police to enter private property without first alerting occupants or announcing their presence.
The warrant was issued in relation to a homicide probe led by detectives from the neighboring Saint Paul Police Department. Locke was not named in the warrant, and Minneapolis police have acknowledged it was unclear how or whether he was connected to that investigation.
Lawyers for Locke’s family said he had no criminal history and legally possessed a firearm at the time of his death.
The video of Locke’s arrest showed police unlocking his apartment with a key and officers shouting, “Police, search warrant, get on the ground,” as they entered.
An officer then kicks at the couch where Locke was lying and as Locke turns, his arm emerges from under the blanket with a gun seen in his hand. Almost immediately, police fired at least three shots.
Personally, some days I wake up easier than others…& luckily I have two Pitbulls that sleep on my bed…. So I do not feel the urge to sleep with a gun under my pillow…but holy shit!!
MINNEAPOLIS — Hundreds of protesters took to the streets of downtown Minneapolis on Saturday demanding justice in the fatal police shooting of a young Black man, Amir Locke, during a “no-knock” raid on his apartment earlier this week.
Police have said the officers were exercising a “no-knock” search warrant, which authorizes police to enter private property without first alerting occupants or announcing their presence.
The warrant was issued in relation to a homicide probe led by detectives from the neighboring Saint Paul Police Department. Locke was not named in the warrant, and Minneapolis police have acknowledged it was unclear how or whether he was connected to that investigation.
Lawyers for Locke’s family said he had no criminal history and legally possessed a firearm at the time of his death.
The video of Locke’s arrest showed police unlocking his apartment with a key and officers shouting, “Police, search warrant, get on the ground,” as they entered.
An officer then kicks at the couch where Locke was lying and as Locke turns, his arm emerges from under the blanket with a gun seen in his hand. Almost immediately, police fired at least three shots.
Personally, some days I wake up easier than others…& luckily I have two Pitbulls that sleep on my bed…. So I do not feel the urge to sleep with a gun under my pillow…but holy shit!!
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