Parents cleared of abuse told they may not be reunited with their child Karrissa Cox and Richard Carter unlikely to get family court to overturn decision to put baby up for adoption, shadow justice secretary suggests Karrissa Cox sends a message to her child, who was taken into care at six weeks old. The parents of a baby taken into care and given up for adoption after they were wrongly accused of abuse are unlikely to be reunited with the child, the shadow justice secretary has suggested, as they vow to fight the initial decision. Karrissa Cox and Richard Carter said they would launch a legal battle to overturn the adoption. The couple were cleared of abuse more than three years after they took their six-week-old baby to hospital with bleeding in the mouth following a feed. The baby was taken into care and the couple were charged with child cruelty after doctors noticed bruises and what were thought to be fractures on the baby’s body. Social services later found adoptive parents after a ruling of abuse by the family courts. But the criminal case against Cox and Carter collapsed on Wednesday after they were found not guilty of child cruelty and neglect at Guildford crown court. Defence experts discovered the child was suffering from Von Willebrand disease, a blood disorder that causes a person to bruise easily, as well as a vitamin D deficiency, which causes infantile rickets. An independent radiologist, commissioned by the prosecution, concluded that he doubted there were any fractures at all. But the shadow justice secretary, Lord Falconer, said appealing against the decision of a family court from four years ago would present significant hurdles. The court would have to consider the consequences of uprooting the child after being raised for so long by other parents, he said. Falconer told the Today programme: “Assuming that the criminal case produced some new evidence, procedurally it would be perfectly open to the parents to apply to have the order set aside. But in considering whether to set aside the orders, the family court will ask itself one question – what’s in the best interest of the child? Three or four years with a new family might mean the disruption is too much.” In a statement, Cox and Carter, both 25, from Guildford, Surrey, said: “We took our child to hospital seeking help and they stole our baby from us.” The couple were allowed supervised contact with their first and only child until about a year ago. Cox told the Daily Mirror: “It is heartbreaking to know our child is out there, living and breathing in someone else’s arms. We miss our child a lot. We wish we had our child back.” Carter, a former soldier, added: “We will fight till our last breath. No parent should go through this, ever. This just rips your soul away from you. We wouldn’t wish this on anyone.” Lawyers have criticised the decision of the family court to finalise the adoption before the criminal court had made its ruling. The couple’s barrister, Michael Turner QC, said: “These innocent parents have been spared a criminal conviction and a prison sentence for a crime they never committed. Their life sentence is that they are likely never to see their baby again.” Turner said he presented expert evidence to the family court within a few moments of the final adoption order being made. He told the Today programme: “[The expert witness] said immediately not only are these not fractures, but this child has eight classical signs of infantile rickets. I served that report on the family court within moments of them making the final adoption order. Do they review it? No. They confirm the final adoption order.” Emma Fenn, also of Garden Court chambers, said: “This tragic case highlights the real dangers of the government’s drive to increase adoption and speed up family proceedings at all costs. It also shows the perils of the continued inaction relating to a nationwide epidemic of vitamin D deficiency and rickets, and the grave injustice that can result when relying on the opinions of medical professionals alone to conclude child abuse.” Falconer said: “The problem here is that the criminal case took place quite a long time after the main hearing in the family case. You’d want them to be heard much more closer together so that if one case threw light on another, then both courts would have the same degree of information before coming to their separate conclusions.” He noted, however, that the parents were in contact with the child for two and a half years after the incident, “which means that no final decision had been made for at least two and a half years. So it may not be completely futile in this case to make an application. But that’s a matter for the family court to decide”. A Crown Prosecution Service spokesman said the criminal case was brought after expert medical evidence that supported the original charges of cruelty. “The case was then reviewed following new medical evidence which concluded that there was no longer a realistic prospect of conviction on any of the charges,” he said. A spokesman for the Royal Surrey county hospital said “children’s safety is paramount” to all staff but “extensive bruising in a non-independently mobile child is always a trigger for further questions to be asked”. In a statement, he added: “In this particular case, for the child’s safety, the baby was admitted to the Royal Surrey on the day of presentation and full assessments were undertaken by senior doctors in paediatrics and radiology, one of whom was our named doctor for safeguarding. Based on these assessments, a referral was made to children’s social care. No decision about a child’s wellbeing is based on a single agency opinion. Decisions are made over time by health, police and children’s social care and are based on a range of factors.” A Surrey county council spokesman said: “Any case like this is really difficult and we’re always sensitive to the distress it will cause all involved, but our main concern has to be the welfare of the child. Our decision in this case was taken on the basis of the medical evidence provided and the finding of the family court which, having heard the evidence, took the view [that] it was right for the child to be removed from their parents.”

USA Today High-speed police chases have killed thousands of innocent bystanders Victims include small children, teenage drivers and the elderly. A death a day from police chases Running red lights at 100-mph plus More than 5,000 bystanders and passengers have been killed in police car chases since 1979, and tens of thousands more were injured as officers repeatedly pursued drivers at high speeds and in hazardous conditions, often for minor infractions, a USA TODAY analysis shows. The bystanders and the passengers in chased cars account for nearly half of all people killed in police pursuits from 1979 through 2013,USA TODAY found. Most bystanders were killed in their own cars by a fleeing driver. Police across the USA chase tens of thousands of people each year -- usually for traffic violations or misdemeanors -- often causing drivers to speed away recklessly. Recent cases show the danger of the longstanding police practice of chasing minor offenders. A 25-year-old New Jersey man was killed July 18 by a driver police chased for running a red light. A 63-year-old Indianapolis grandmother was killed June 7 by a driver police chased four miles for shoplifting. A 60-year-old federal worker was killed March 19 near Washington, D.C., by a driver police chased because his headlights were off. "The police shouldn't have been chasing him. That was a big crowded street," said Evelyn Viverette, 83, mother of federal worker Charlie Viverette. "He wouldn't have hit my son if the police hadn't been chasing him." Nearly every day, someone is killed during a high-speed chase between police and a suspect. Some police say drivers who flee are suspicious, and chasing them maintains law and order. "When crooks think they can do whatever they choose, that will just fester and foster more crimes," said Milwaukee Police Detective Michael Crivello, who is president of the city's police union. Many in law enforcement, including the Justice Department, have recognized the danger of high-speed chases and urge officers to avoid or abort pursuits that endanger pedestrians, nearby motorists or themselves. At least 139 police have been killed in chases, federal records show. "A pursuit is probably the most unique and dangerous job law enforcement can do," said Tulsa Police Maj. Travis Yates, who runs a national pursuit-training academy. The Justice Department called pursuits "the most dangerous of all ordinary police activities" in 1990 and urged police departments to adopt policies listing exactly when officers can and cannot pursue someone. "Far more police vehicle chases occur each year than police shootings," the department said. Police chases have killed nearly as many people as justifiable police shootings, according to government figures, which are widely thought to under count fatal shootings. Yet chases have escaped the national attention paid to other potentially lethal police tactics. Despite the Justice Department's warning, the number of chase-related deaths in 2013 was higher than the number in 1990 — 322 compared to 317, according to records of the Department of Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), which analyzes all fatal motor-vehicle crashes. Many police departments still let officers make on-the-spot judgments about whether to chase based on their perception of a driver's danger to the public. Officers continue to violate pursuit policies concerning when to avoid or stop a chase, police records show. And federally funded high-tech systems that would obviate chases, such as vehicle tracking devices, are undeveloped or rarely used due to cost. While cities such as Milwaukee and Orlando allow chases only of suspected violent felons, many departments let officers chase anyone if they decide the risk of letting someone go free outweighs the risk of a pursuit. At least 11,506 people, including 6,300 fleeing suspects, were killed in police chases from 1979 through 2013, most recent year for which NHTSA records are available. That's an average of 329 a year — nearly one person a day. But those figures likely understate the actual death toll because NHTSA uses police reports to determine if a crash was chase-related, and some reports do not disclose that a chase occurred. Kansas, Michigan and Minnesota state records all show more chase-related deaths than NHTSA shows for those states. "It's an embarrassment," said Geoffrey Alpert of the University of South Carolina, a leading researcher on police pursuits who has done numerous Justice Department studies. NHTSA records "are the only national database we have on these fatalities, and it's been consistently wrong." The number of innocent bystanders killed is impossible to pinpoint because hundreds of NHTSA's records fail to show whether a victim was killed in a car fleeing police or in a car that happened to be hit during a chase. Analyzing each fatal crash, USA TODAY determined that at least 2,456 bystanders were killed, although the death toll could be as high as 2,750. The newspaper found that 55% of those killed were drivers fleeing police. They ranged from armed-robbery suspects to a 10-year-old boy chased as he drove a pick-up truck 85 mph on a county road before hitting a tree, killing himself and his 7-year-old passenger. Injuries are even harder to count because NHTSA keeps records of only fatal crashes. However, records from six states show that 17,600 people were hurt in chases from 2004 through 2013 — an average of 1,760 injuries a year in those states, which make up 24% of the U.S. population. Those numbers suggest that chases nationwide may have injured 7,400 people a year — more than 270,000 people since 1979. The uncertainty about the death and injury tolls obscures the danger of police chases, said Jonathan Farris, who became an advocate for pursuit safety after his son Paul, 23, was killed in 2007 by a motorist being chased for an illegal driving maneuver. "If the public understood the number of pursuits that were going on and the number of people who were being injured or killed, there would be a much better dialogue as to what types of crimes should be pursued," Farris said. Minor infractions trigger chases "It could have been Ted Bundy" Although police-camera footage often depicts the drama of squad cars racing after motorists, most chases begin benignly, with an attempted traffic stop. And most end quickly — 76% were over within five minutes, according to records of tens of thousands of chases in California. California records of 63,500 chases from 2002 through 2014 show that: More than 89% were for vehicle-code violations, including speeding, vehicle theft, reckless driving, and 4,898 instances of a missing license plate or an expired registration Just 5% were an attempt to nab someone suspected of a violent crime, usually assault or robbery; 168 sought a known murder suspect Nearly 1,000 were for safety violations that endangered a driver only, including 850 drivers not wearing a seat belt and 23 motorcycle riders not wearing a helmet In 90 instances, police chased someone for driving too slowly "We don't know that the person in that car is just speeding or just had a headlight out ... [or] if they had just committed a felony," said Joseph Farrow, commissioner of the California Highway Patrol, which chased 14,628 motorists from 2007 through 2014, resulting in 4,052 crashes, 2,198 injuries and 103 deaths. That's a 28% crash rate and a 15% injury rate. Jonathan Farris lost his son Paul Farris on Memorial Day weekend in 2007 by a fleeing driver being chased by a Massachusetts State Trooper. The offending driver was being chased for making an illegal u-turn.(USA NEWS, USA TODAY) Minnesota safety researchers found in 2008 that 35% to 40% of chases resulted in a crash. "There's no question that when you're engaging in a chase, you're engaging in something that can turn out many ways, and many are bad outcomes," said John Firman of the International Association of Chiefs of Police, whose survey of 17,000 chases nationally since 2001 shows that 92% began for a traffic violation, misdemeanor or non-violent felony such as car theft. Police often suspect fleeing drivers are wanted for a serious offense. And they dislike letting a violator get away. During a chase police can be overcome by "a need to 'win' and make the arrest," which blinds them to the danger they are helping create, a 2010 FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin reported. "These are folks who are proud and who see their job as going out and putting the bad guy in jail," said Assistant Chief Randall Blankenbaker of the Dallas Police Department, which sharply restricts chases. When police in Beech Grove, Ind., were called June 8 at 8:07 a.m. about a shoplifting from a Walmart, they pulled behind the suspect's car in a parking lot and flashed their emergency lights. Driver Matthew Edmonds allegedly sped off on a busy thoroughfare, with police chasing for four miles until stopping because of the danger. Moments later, Edmonds allegedly sped through an intersection and hit a pick-up truck driven by 63-year-old Donna Niblock, killing her and seriously injuring her daughter and 11-year-old grandson. The chase followed department guidelines, which allow "high-risk" pursuits for drivers suspected of property crimes, Beech Grove Detective Capt. Robert Mercuri said. "We don't know who may be in that vehicle. We don't know if they have somebody tied up in the back seat," Mercuri said. "It could have been Ted Bundy." Few drivers fleeing police are wanted felons, according to statistics and research. Most committed minor offenses and "made very bad decisions to flee," a 2008 paper by the Police Foundation said. In Pennsylvania, records of 32,000 chases since 1997 show that the most common charge against fleeing drivers was theft, including stealing or illegally possessing the car they were driving. The other most-frequent charges were resisting arrest, underage drinking and misdemeanor assault. A Justice Department-funded 1998 study found after interviewing fleeing drivers that 32% drove off because they were in a stolen car, 27% because they had a suspended driver's license, 27% wanted to avoid arrest and 21% because they were driving drunk. "Overwhelmingly, someone is fleeing because they've got a minor warrant, their car isn't insured, they've had too much to drink," said Milwaukee Police Chief Edward Flynn, who sharply restricted his department's pursuits in 2010 after four bystanders were killed in a three-month span. For more serious offenses such as stealing a vehicle, "the sanctions imposed by courts nationwide for merely stealing a car don't justify anybody taking any risk," Flynn said. On June 15, 2012, at 3:20 p.m., Austin, Texas, police chased a driver in a stolen pickup truck at 90 to 95 mph onto a highway and along a frontage road lined with service stations and fast-food restaurants. At an intersection, the truck slammed into a Mitsubishi driven by James Williford, 32, killing him instantly. Driver Reynaldo Hernandez was convicted of murdering Williford and sentenced to 55 years. The Austin police chief cleared the two officers, saying they followed the policy of the department, which had been cracking down on auto thefts. Esther Seoanes lost her best friend, her husband James Williford in 2012 by a fleeing driver being chased by the Austin Police Department. She is now involved with Pursuit Safety a group advocating for changes in police pursuit policies. (USA NEWS, USA TODAY) Williford's widow Esther Seoanes holds the officers responsible for deciding to chase a stolen car. "My husband," Seoanes said, "was essentially killed for a stolen vehicle." "The moment the officer crossed over the median with lights and sirens and started the pursuit, he (Hernandez) immediately turned into one of those criminals and suspects who doesn't care about anything," said Seoanes, executive director of PursuitSAFETY, a nonprofit seeking to reduce chase-related deaths. "Drivers, they don't care about anyone's safety, and so the burden falls on the police to protect the public." Austin police declined to comment due to Seoanes' pending lawsuit against them. Some relatives of killed bystanders don't hold police responsible for deaths in chases. "I'm not blaming the police," Nicole Jackson of Detroit said after a driver who allegedly had a gun sped away from police on June 24 and killed Jackson's granddaughter and grandson, age 3 and 6, while they were riding scooters near their home. "I'm blaming the person who did all this." High-risk chases include teens, icy roads Motorcyclists often get killed Chases are inherently dangerous because of their speed, and police often compound the danger by chasing drivers in hazardous conditions. At least 3,440 people were killed in crashes when a driver was fleeing at 25 mph or more over the speed limit, NHTSA records show. The actual death toll from such high-speed chases is likely much higher, but is not known because only half of NHTSA's records show a fleeing driver's speed and the speed limit. Particularly dangerous are chases on wet or icy roads, and pursuits of inexperienced and risk-prone teen-age drivers and of motorcyclists, who have little crash protection. In Michigan over the past decade, 74% of motorcyclists fleeing police were killed, injured or possibly injured when they crashed, state records show. Just 18% of chased car drivers were killed, injured or possibly injured in a crash. Wreckage of the chased vehicle involved in a fatal high speed puruit that killed Cathedral City officer Jermaine Gibson, and injured two others in Palm Springs, March 18, 2011. Police departments routinely warn officers about hazardous road conditions and high-risk drivers. Some bar motorcycle cops from pursuits because of the danger if an officer crashes. Yet nearly one-third of the police-chase deaths involved one of those three high-risk factors, USA TODAY found. That includes 1,132 motorcyclists who were killed while being chased. More than half — 589 — were not wearing a helmet. "Most police departments don't allow their motorcycles to be in pursuits, so why would you chase one?" said Alpert, the South Carolina researcher. "Motorcycle drivers are either going to get away or they're going to get killed." Michigan State Police must consider "road and weather conditions" in deciding whether to chase, and can pursue only people suspected of a "life-threatening felony" or drivers who pose "an immediate threat to the safety of the public." The policy cautions, "It is better to either delay the arrest or abandon the pursuit than to needlessly injure or kill innocent people." The Michigan State Police have been involved in 44 deadly chases over the past decade, 120 motorcycle chases that resulted in a crash, and 212 chases on wet or icy roads that resulted in a crash, state records show. Most chases are short, said state police Chief of Staff Capt. Greg Zarotney, and in those cases "road condition rarely has a bearing on the crash." As for motorcycle chases, Zarotney said, "keep in mind that a pursuit only occurs when a decision is made by a driver to flee." Limited pursuit training for police Using decades-old technology Although police chases have been recognized as dangerous for nearly half a century, both training and technology remain inadequate, experts say. The average police trainee received 72 hours of weapons training compared to 40 hours of driving training, only a portion of which covered chases, according to a 2006 Justice Department study of police training academies. A 2007 survey of Florida Highway Patrol sergeants showed that 80% thought that patrol officers "did not have adequate training in the area of pursuit driving." Highway Patrol spokesman Lieut. Ryan Martina did not respond to repeated inquires about how the patrol responded to the poll. Major Travis Yates of the Tulsa, Oklahoma Police Department is a advocate for developing new strategies for the execution of police pursuits. He advocates training and addressing pursuit policies to make them more defined for officers to follow. (USA NEWS, USA TODAY) "We're not taking it seriously enough because we think that one day of training that an officer may have gotten in their academy is going to take effect 10 years later when a pursuit begins," said Maj. Travis Yates, the Tulsa expert on police chases. "Most officers will never fire their firearms ever, but we train one to four times a year" on using guns. Chases have been left behind in the modernization of police equipment that is now moving toward outfitting officers with body cameras. President Obama in December proposed $75 million in federal funds to buy 50,000 body cameras in the effort to "build and sustain trust" between police and communities. Police use of Tasers, body armor, cameras and computers in patrol cars has soared, Justice Department reports show. In 2007, 90% of police worked for a department that used portable computers. In 1990, that figure was 30%. Yet the principal "technology" for chases are tire spikes — two decades old and seldom used because police must know where a fleeing car is heading so they can pull a strip of spikes across a road. Police in Minnesota used spikes in only 3% of the nearly 1,000 chases in the state in 2014, state records show. A Justice Department overview notes that spikes "can put both the officers and other motorists in danger." Houston police officer Richard Martin was killed May 18 when a fleeing driver swerved and hit him as he was laying spikes. "There's been a lot of advances in police technology in the last 15 years. The pursuit-termination devices we envisioned haven't kept up with those advances," said Farrow, the California Highway Patrol commissioner. A federal effort to develop advanced systems has fallen well short of the hype of a 1996 Justice Department bulletin headline, "High-Speed Pursuit: New Technologies Around the Corner." Federal justice and transportation officials began studying improvements to pursuit safety after a controversial 1968 study by Physicians for Automotive Safety said that 70% of police chases result in crashes. Devices that would shut off the engines of moving cars by transmitting microwaves are not commercially available a decade after the Justice Department funded their development. "It's very frustrating that we haven't gotten to that next stage," said Bill Miera, owner of Fiore Industries of New Mexico, which tried to build the devices with the help of a $300,000 federal grant but ran short of money. Alisha Jackson is surrounded by neighbors during a Alisha Jackson is surrounded by neighbors during a vigil held to help the families that had children killed and injured during a high speed chase in Detroit's east side on June 26. Jackson's children Makiah Jackson, 3, and Michaelangelo Jackson, 6, were hit and killed while playing outside of their house during the high speed chase. (Photo: Ryan Garza, Detroit Free Press) A device that shoots a small, adhesive GPS tag onto a car exterior was introduced for police in 2010, but is used by only 20 of the nation's 18,000 police departments. Attaching a GPS tag lets police stop their chase — which prompts fleeing drivers to slow down — and follow the car by computer until it stops, where they can make an arrest. The Arizona Department of Public Safety has embedded the systems in seven cars and uses them every time an officer can get within 30 feet of a fleeing vehicle, Capt. Chris Hemmen said. After tagging a car, police shadow it from a couple of blocks away. "As soon as they stop, we're able to pounce," Hemmen said. Houston Police considered the devices after Martin's death but declined because officers still have to pursue a car and get close enough to fire the remote-controlled GPS tag from a launcher mounted behind the grill of a police car, department spokeswoman Jodi Silva said. The $5,000 purchase cost also deters departments, which often spend capital funds and federal grants on routine items such as car tires and hiring more officers, said Trevor Fischbach, president of StarChase LLC, the manufacturer, which got a $380,000 federal grant. "We're in the 21st Century," Fischbach said. "We should be using 21st-century tools that are available." Milwaukee slaps limits on chases "A menace to innocent people" Police departments that restrict chases have faced resistance from officers. In 2012, the Florida Highway Patrol changed from a policy that allowed officers to chase anyone, to a policy that allowed pursuits only of suspected felons, drunk drivers and reckless drivers. The number of highway patrol pursuits fell almost in half: from 697 in 2010 - 2011, to 374 in 2013 - 2014. But 35% of the pursuits in 2013 and 2014 violated the new chase restrictions, state reports show. Dallas police used to ignore a policy that required them to stop chasing drivers who fled for traffic violations and appeared unlikely to stop, said Randall Blankenbaker, the assistant police chief. When the department in 2006 adopted an even stricter policy limiting chases to suspected violent felons, "there were some folks who were resistant," said Blankenbaker, who wrote the policy. Milwaukee police still oppose Chief Flynn's 2010 policy restricting chases to suspected violent felons and people who present "a clear and imminent threat to the safety of others." "The crooks understand that this is our process," said Michael Crivello, the police union president. "Criminals know their car is almost like their safe locker. They can keep drugs and guns in their safe locker." Motor-vehicle thefts in Milwaukee policy spiked to 18 a day in 2014, from 12 a day in 2013. Flynn said car theft "became sport" among juveniles. "These kids were finding out, well, nothing happens to me. They had the prestige of being cool to their friends, the thrill of the danger and no consequences," Flynn said, adding that 70% of cars stolen in the city are recovered. Other cities have seen crime plunge since restricting chases. The Dallas crime rate has plummeted since 2006 — from 81 crimes per 1,000 residents to 48 crimes per 1,000 residents in 2013, according to FBI crime reports. City police have been involved in only one fatal chase since 2006, Blankenbaker said. Phoenix and Orlando also have seen their crime rates fall substantially since adopting policies that allow pursuits only for suspected violent felons, FBI reports show. Milwaukee Police Chief Ed Flynn. In 2010, after four Milwaukee Police Chief Ed Flynn. In 2010, after four bystanders will killed in Milwaukee during police chases, Flynn adopted a highly restrictive policy that allows chases only of suspected violent felons. (Photo: Darren Hauck, for USA TODAY) Many departments base their chase policies on a three-page model the International Association of Chiefs of Police wrote in 1996. The model stops short of the Justice Department recommendation to list the offenses and conditions such as time of day in which a chase is allowed. The model instead lists factors to consider such as road and weather conditions, traffic levels, and the seriousness of a driver's offense. Flynn restricted chases after four bystanders were killed over three months in 2009 and 2010. Immediately after the deaths, Flynn defended his officers, noting they followed department policy and had actually stopped their pursuits only to have the fleeing drivers continue speeding away and hit the bystanders. Fleeing drivers typically continue speeding for a minute or two after police stop their chase, studies show. "I thought to myself, it's not enough that we have a policy that tells our officers to terminate pursuits when they become unsafe. That was the industry standard," Flynn said. "I needed an extra line to stop the pursuit in the first place, not because the officers were driving recklessly, but because we can't control the behavior for those who refuse to stop for police."

USA Today Across the U.S., more than 180,000 fugitives can escape justice just by crossing state lines, a USA TODAY investigation finds. An unwanted fugitive Police won't chase 186,000 felony suspects PHILADELPHIA — For a man on the run from charges that he sexually assaulted a 14-year-old girl, Thomas Terlecky has surprisingly little to fear from the law. The police here know exactly where to find him, but they will not go get him. Terlecky got away by catching a Greyhound bus to Miami. The police in his new hometown know that Terlecky is a fugitive, and they have tried repeatedly to return him to Philadelphia — both before and after he was convicted of having sex with two other underage girls in Florida. As recently as November, police handcuffed Terlecky and called Philadelphia authorities to tell them their fugitive had been found. But just like every time before, the authorities in Philadelphia refused to take him back. Across the United States, police and prosecutors are allowing tens of thousands of wanted felons — including more than 3,300 people accused of sexual assaults, robberies and homicides — to escape justice merely by crossing a state border, a USA TODAY investigation found. Those decisions, almost always made in secret, permit fugitives to go free in communities across the country, leaving their crimes unpunished, their victims outraged and the public at risk. Each fugitive's case is chronicled in a confidential FBI database that police use to track outstanding warrants. In 186,873 of those cases, police indicated that they would not spend the time or money to retrieve the fugitive from another state, a process known as extradition. That's true even if the fugitives are just across a bridge in the state next door. Another 78,878 felony suspects won't be extradited from anyplace but neighboring states. Few places are immune. Police in Philadelphia, Atlanta and Little Rock — all among the nation's highest-crime cities — told the FBI they wouldn't pursue 90% or more of their felony suspects into other states. Los Angeles police said they would not extradite 77 people for murder or attempted murder, 141 for robbery and 84 for sexual assault. The FBI refuses to say who or where those fugitives are. But USA TODAY identified thousands of them using records and databases from courts and law enforcement agencies. Among the fugitives police said they would not pursue: a man accused in Collier County, Fla., of hacking his roommate's neck with a machete during a fight over two cans of beer; a man charged with drawing a gun on a Newport News, Va., store manager during a robbery, and even one of the men Pittsburgh identified as among its "most wanted" fugitives. Such fugitives should be among the easiest targets in the nation's fragmented justice system. The police typically don't hunt them; instead, they wait for officers to come across them again, during traffic stops or when they're arrested on new charges. More often than not, the suspects are found locked up in another city's jail. But if that jail happens to be in a different state, local law-enforcement officials regularly refuse to get them because they don't want to pay the cost or jump through the legal hoops required to extradite them. That process can be either swift or surreal: In many cases, it costs no more than a few hundred dollars, but it can also require months of paperwork and the signature of both states' governors. The police let them get away instead. Even Terlecky, wanted in Philadelphia for a first-degree felony, was surprised. "Why would they not extradite on a felony warrant?" he said in an interview. His only guess: "This wasn't a case where I forcefully grabbed the kid. That's the only reason I'm thinking why they won't push to bring me back." Thomas Terlecky talks about the charges he’s facing, why he fled Philadelphia, and why officials there won’t take him back. Brad Heath, Jennifer Harnish, Shannon Rae Green, Steve Elfers Terlecky said that in the 17 years he has been a fugitive, he has lost count of how many times Florida police threw him in jail in hopes of returning him to Pennsylvania. But the arrests all end the same way. In November, Miami-Dade police detained him after he was pulled over for an obscured license plate. A few hours later, Philadelphia officials "asked that (he) be released" because they were unwilling to travel beyond Pennsylvania's neighboring states to get him, [62]according to police records. An officer drove him home. Terlecky is wanted on [63]charges that he had what prosecutors called "consensual" sex with a 14-year-old girl in a downtown Philadelphia hotel in 1996, a felony because of her age. He was convicted of having sex with two other girls in Florida — one 14, the other 15 — in the years that followed and is now a registered sex offender. Terlecky said in interviews that he is innocent of the Philadelphia charges, that he fled because he was afraid of being locked up awaiting a trial, and that he would gladly go back if he could be assured that he would not spend time in jail. Prosecutors said they didn't chase Terlecky because the woman he is accused of assaulting was uncooperative. "That's not true," the woman said when USA TODAY contacted her this year. She asked not to be identified to protect her privacy. Her father took her to court on her 15th birthday to testify against Terlecky at a preliminary hearing. "We walked out of there with our heads held high thinking he's going to jail for what he did to me," she said. It was the last she heard of the case; she assumed Terlecky was in prison. Pennsylvania's Victim Advocate, Jennifer Storm, said victims need to be informed whenever officials choose to let a defendant get away. "It is alarming that there are victims who are further harmed by denying them the opportunity for justice, restitution and safety," she said. The woman Terlecky is charged with assaulting said no one told her that he fled Philadelphia or that prosecutors there had decided not to pursue him as long as he stayed in Florida, where he started a general contracting business that he said counts police officers among its customers. "He got away with it," she said when she found out. "That makes me sick to my stomach. It's disgraceful." Fugitives go 'scot-free' in New Jersey Thousands of fugitives can cross a bridge to get away Few places present a clearer illustration of just how easy it is to get away than Philadelphia. FBI records show that police, prosecutors and court officials here have decided not to collect 93% of the city's wanted felons from anyplace outside Pennsylvania — not from Florida, not even from Camden, N.J., three subway stops from Philadelphia's towering courthouse. For a city whose metropolis sprawls over four states (Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware and a sliver of Maryland), that means people accused of everything from drunken driving to robbery can and do escape serious charges by going home to the suburbs. (Some states, including Pennsylvania, classify some of those crimes as misdemeanors; the FBI counts them as felonies because they can lead to prison sentences of more than a year.) The skyline of the city of Philadelphia The Philadelphia skyline can be seen through bars and glass inside the Camden County (N.J.) Correctional Facility. "People figure I can commit any crime I want, go to New Jersey and just stay there because I have family and no one will come look for me," former Philadelphia district attorney Lynne Abraham said. The city's extradition practices are at the root of a remarkable criminal diaspora. Nearly 3,000 of the fugitives Philadelphia said it won't pursue across a state border lived in other states at the time they were arrested, a USA TODAY analysis of court records found. At least 414 of them lived in Camden. The addresses are based on what fugitives last reported to the police or court officials. Using court records and telephone directories, USA TODAY tracked them to state prisons, inner-city slums and suburban cul-de-sacs; it found them as far away as San Diego and as close as the Camden jail, whose upper windows look out on Philadelphia's skyline. Philadelphia police did not pursue Kevin Mena-Carmona, who was charged with [66]cutting someone with a knife during a 2011 robbery, even though he was jailed at least four times in Camden. They didn't go after John Ross, wanted for [67]kissing and fondling a bedridden 73-year-old stroke victim, when he was arrested in Camden the next year. And they didn't go after Darrell Matthews, who has been wanted in Philadelphia for drunken driving since shortly after he collided with an unmarked police car on his way home from a nightclub in 2001. "They had their opportunities to come get me. They don't want me," Matthews said. "They were just comfortable with letting me go." To that, Laurie Malone, the deputy district attorney who supervises extradition in Philadelphia, said: "He's right in his assessment of our decision not to extradite." "These questions are all legitimate and they're all very good ones, but there are some that I just can't give you good, solid answers that can be understood by the average layperson who does not work in this system and does not understand the full weight of this job," she said. The result is that Camden police catch and release Philadelphia fugitives "all the time," said Capt. John Fetzer, the head of a sheriff's fugitive-tracking unit there. Most are "pretty much scot-free here as long as they stay here in New Jersey." Camden is one of only a handful of U.S. cities with a violent crime rate significantly worse than Philadelphia's; the door to the mayor's fourth-floor office there looks out on a line of people waiting to pay fines and post bail. Camden County's jail doesn't count the Philadelphia fugitives it is forced to free because authorities won't cross the river to get them, but jailers say they know it happens routinely. Captain John Fetzer of the Camden County Sheriff's Office explains how many fugitives fleeing Philadelphia can go 'scot-free' in New Jersey. Eileen Blass, Sarah Cartron, Shannon Rae Green, Brad Heath, Steve Elfers "As a Camden County resident, to the extent we can get people who commit crimes in Philadelphia out of our community and back in Philadelphia, the better off it'll be for us," the jail's warden, David Owens, said. For police in the New Jersey suburbs, letting Philadelphia fugitives go is so unremarkable that if they run a background check on someone and see a warrant marked as not extraditable, "we don't bother going any further," said Chris Eife, who, until December, supervised extraditions for the Camden County Sheriff's Office. Many towns along state borders face similar headaches. Police in rural Washington County, Va., have told the FBI they will not extradite some felony suspects whose last known address was in Bristol, Tenn., a twin city whose downtown straddles the state line. Authorities in Augusta, Ga., have declined to retrieve suspects from neighboring South Carolina. Still, the second in command of the Philadelphia district attorney's office, Ed McCann, said the ease and regularity with which that city's fugitives can escape by traveling to New Jersey suggests something should change. If police there find fugitives who are "dangerous" or repeat offenders, "we should be in discussions with them about a better way to ensure that we're notified and we can consider the extradition," he said. Cost, red tape complicate corralling of fugitives Prosecutors blame limited resources and a tedious extradition process Every time police officers stop a person on the highway or book him into a jail, they check his name against the FBI's vast fugitive tracking database, known as the National Crime Information Center. The system can tell them within seconds whether the person is wanted, and for what. And it will tell them how far the agency that wants him is willing to travel to pick him up, a decision that police and prosecutors are required to make in advance. Those records, obtained by USA TODAY, offer the first public accounting of the extradition practices of more than 8,100 law enforcement agencies in big cities and small towns throughout the United States. The fugitives included 2,610 people accused of drunken driving, 2,036 accused of robbery, 3,347 accused of sex crimes, 6,554 wanted for assault, and 9,254 wanted for fraud as of last May — all marked in FBI records with a code telling police officers not to arrest them if they're found in another state. The FBI repeatedly refused to provide any information that could identify the fugitives in its database in order to protect their privacy. Some states make it a crime to disclose information from their fugitive databases. The Philadelphia Police Department, like many other agencies, refused to turn over records related to its extradition practices. But police and court files nonetheless detail one serious case after another in which police said they would let suspects go if they surfaced in another state: a man wanted for his role in a gunfight outside a Hialeah, Fla., strip club. A man wanted for shooting his girlfriend to death point-blank in a migrant work camp in Collier County, Fla. A man wanted for rape in Roanoke, Va. Detectives had no difficulty tracking the Roanoke rape suspect, Jerry Lee Wiggins. Not long after a woman accused him of raping her in 2008, police found him locked up in a Jacksonville jail on charges (later dropped) that he had stolen a car. But instead of going to get him, [71]police reports show, authorities waited to see whether two other Virginia counties that wanted Wiggins for probation violations would do it. Neither did, so a month later, [72]Wiggins went free. The city's prosecutor, Commonwealth's Attorney Donald Caldwell, said he wouldn't extradite Wiggins because he "did not feel our case had been particularly strong." Like prosecutors in many other cities, he said extradition makes sense only if he's confident he can win a conviction. Many cases don't make the cut. Nearly half of Roanoke's felony warrants are listed as not extraditable in the FBI's database. "When I look at it, I just use the global generic taxpayer. It's still my tax dollars bringing him back. As an elected official, I think you've got an obligation to consider that," he said. Wiggins, who has since been arrested at least twice in Alabama, could not be reached to comment. The detective who investigated Wiggins, Dean Boitnott, said he wasn't surprised. "If it's iffy in any way, a lot of times, they'll just let it go, especially in something like rape," because of the he-said-she-said nature of those prosecutions, Boitnott said. "Unless you've got a rock-solid case, a prosecutor's not going to go for it." Authorities say a cumbersome extradition process leaves them little choice; to extradite more fugitives, they'd have to divert time and money from other cases. "It's not as simple as they walk up to the middle of the Ben Franklin Bridge and we meet them and bring them back," said John Delaney, who supervises the trial division of the Philadelphia district attorney's office. "State borders are significant." Part of the difficulty is stitched into the United States' basic political structure. Every state is its own sovereign government, so the police can't drag a suspect from one state to another without his permission. Instead, they need to extradite him, a simplified version of the process the United States uses when it wants to retrieve suspects from Canada or France. The U.S. Constitution requires that states turn over fugitives to one another, but it doesn't require that the task be simple. Unless a suspect agrees to waive extradition, the signatures of both states' governors and a court order are needed. That means that the paper trail from Camden to Philadelphia winds through the state capitols in Harrisburg and Trenton, a route that can take as little as a few days or as long as four months. Watch this motion graphic to learn about the extradition process, and how non-extraditable warrants allow fugitives to go free. Keith Carter, Shannon Rae Green Still, prosecutors in other parts of Pennsylvania said the process is far less cumbersome than Philadelphia authorities make it out to be. Many fugitives waive formal extradition proceedings and agree to be returned quickly because they don't want to sit in jail waiting to be picked up. A whole industry of contractors has sprung up to transport them, usually charging only a few hundred dollars to pick someone up from as far away as North Carolina. Pennsylvania law allows the city to bill suspects for the cost of extradition if they're ultimately convicted. And besides all that, Camden's jail is 7 miles closer to the Philadelphia courthouse than Philadelphia's own jail is. "Really, it's pretty easy. There's paperwork, but it's all just forms," National District Attorneys Association Executive Director Scott Burns said. "For a felony, especially a violent felony, it's unconscionable that you wouldn't come go to get them." Other approaches are potentially simpler. Bail bondsmen, for example, are typically authorized to haul a suspect back to court, even from other states. But Philadelphia, along with other large cities, has largely stamped out its private bail bonds industry because of a history of abuses. Records show Philadelphia does extradite some fugitives, particularly those charged with serious offenses like murder and rape. Officials from the district attorney's office said they were unable to determine how often they do so, but Camden County officials said their jail sent 164 people to Pennsylvania last year, though not all of them necessarily went to Philadelphia. Nationwide, police and prosecutors are becoming less willing to chase suspects into other states as tight budgets force them to further narrow the list of crimes for which they'll extradite. In the nine months between August 2012 and May 2013, the number of felony warrants marked as not extraditable in the FBI's fugitive database increased more than 31%. "We have a fixed amount of money and we have to be selective about who we spend it on," said Guilford County, N.C., Chief Assistant District Attorney Howard Neumann. For crime victims, that reality can be dismaying. Robin Samson [73]told the police her husband stood 4 feet from her and aimed a shotgun at her face the day she tried to leave him in 2010. She stopped packing and ran. Police in Polk County, Fla., charged her husband, Jonathan Aten, with aggravated assault, but they have yet to arrest him. Aten moved to Michigan, and state records show Polk County officials won't pursue him past the state line. "I don't think they wanted him caught because they didn't want to spend the money to go pick him up," Samson said. "I just want him to be held accountable — for once — for his actions." Many cities say they'll extradite, then don't Baltimore turned down 60% of extradition requests It is impossible to say whether cities like Philadelphia are unusually reluctant to pursue their fugitives, or merely unusually candid about it. Despite years of requests from federal authorities, many law enforcement agencies [74]still don't enter all of their fugitives' names into the FBI's nearly 50-year-old database, meaning police in other states likely wouldn't know that a person is wanted. For example, the police in Buffalo — which ranks among the nation's most violent big cities — had listed just 59 warrants in the database as of May. Stockton, Calif., a similar-sized and similarly dangerous city, listed more than five times as many. Other cities claim they will extradite any fugitives from anyplace in the United States, then don't show up to get them. Some high-crime cities like Chicago and Detroit told the FBI that they would extradite suspects on nearly every warrant they entered into the database — about 35,000 as of May — but don't always do so. "Just because they put it in as extraditable doesn't mean they will," Milwaukee County, Wis., Sheriff David Clarke said. Either way, the result is the same: Fugitives go free. Judges in Washington, D.C., ordered more than 2,400 fugitives to be released over the past decade because the agencies that wanted them — usually suburban counties in Maryland and Virginia — didn't pick them up, USA TODAY found by analyzing the city's court dockets. Even that number almost certainly understates the true number of fugitives the district has put back on the street because it includes only people who were jailed on other states' warrants, and D.C. police are allowed to arrest fugitives only if the authorities have approved extradition. Baltimore police marked only 1% of their warrants as non-extraditable in the FBI's database. But prosecutors' [75]records show they nonetheless have turned down nearly 60% of police requests to extradite suspects back to the city to face charges since 2010. They declined to extradite an kidnapping suspect from California, a robbery suspect from nearby York, Pa., and murder suspects who were caught in Indiana and West Virginia. Baltimore officials would not identify the suspects. Many did not have to go far: Prosecutors declined to extradite fugitives charged with burglary, assault and resisting arrest. Deputy State's Attorney Elizabeth Embry said that usually means prosecutors thought the case wasn't viable. But even in that fragmented landscape, warrants marked as not extraditable reflect a peculiar shortcoming. For the most part, they are not accidents or oversights. Each one reflects an upfront decision by the police and prosecutors that the person can get away. "Other cities are just like we are. They just might not tell the truth about it," said Abraham, the former Philadelphia district attorney. In cities like Philadelphia, a policy of not policing Letting fugitives go is usually no accident Before 2010, most of Philadelphia's fugitives — more than 30,000 people wanted by the police, probation officials and the courts — weren't listed in the FBI's database. Now, most of them are listed automatically along with a code indicating that police won't leave Pennsylvania to pick them up. The only way to change that is if a prosecutor gets approval from two supervisors, something officials say they do only when the charges are especially serious and the likelihood of winning a conviction is high. They did not do that in 38 cases of sexual assault, 731 robberies, 1,230 cases of assault, 535 burglaries and 1,830 drunken driving cases, according to FBI records. Most of the fugitives USA TODAY tracked down said they knew the police wouldn't pursue them. "The average person, the average citizen, wouldn't know that," said Shane Littles, wanted since 2007 after he skipped court on charges that he possessed almost a quarter-pound of marijuana with the intent to distribute it. Despite repeated arrests in the New Jersey suburbs, the Philadelphia warrant "just never came up," he said. "I know a lot of guys, they've got plenty of warrants in other states. Sometimes it comes up, sometimes it doesn't come up." Prosecutors said they stand by their decision not to pursue Littles and most of the rest of the city's fugitives. But they acknowledged they have also overlooked some who should have been approved for extradition. Michael Laurito is one. City judges issued two warrants for his arrest after he bolted from the courthouse where he was facing a pair of drunken driving cases in 2011. If he's found guilty — assuming he's ever brought to court — he would rack up his third and fourth drunken driving convictions in Philadelphia. One of those charges could have sent him to prison for at least a year because of Pennsylvania's mandatory sentencing laws for repeat drunken drivers. Laurito said both arrests were "bogus." Feeling pressured to plead guilty and spend time in jail, he did what thousands of criminal defendants do every year: He walked out of court and drove home to Elkton, Md. "I chose the option that was best for me to provide for my family," he said. "At least I have my head above water, even though I'm taking a gamble." It may not be much of one. Both warrants were marked for Pennsylvania pickup only, according to state police and FBI records, even though Laurito lives just outside the state, on a quiet street less than an hour's drive from downtown Philadelphia. "On paper I look like a mass danger on the highway," Laurito said. McCann, Philadelphia's first assistant district attorney, said prosecutors made the wrong call. "If he's looking at a year or more in prison, we should be bringing him back, and that's something we have to constantly reinforce with our assistants," he said. Prosecutors are supposed to review their cases each day to decide whether to seek permission to extradite people who don't show up to court, but McCann said busy lawyers don't always do that. Malone said she asked a supervisor to review Laurito's case. After USA TODAY presented officials with its findings, Malone said she instructed supervisors to review every one of the most serious outstanding warrants to make sure none was overlooked; prosecutors have already approved extradition for several hundred of them. "You made me look at a list that may have gone largely ignored," she said. Authorities in neighboring Montgomery County, Pa., changed the status of their warrants after USA TODAY contacted them last year about warrants for serious felonies in that county that were marked as not extraditable in FBI records. Deputy District Attorney Steven Latzer said the entries were inadvertent. "The way that was set up was a recipe for disaster," he said, though he added that he was unaware of any fugitives who got away as a result. Latzer said Montgomery County prosecutors seek extradition in all but the most "extreme" cases. "Just because somebody leaves Pennsylvania means we're not going to prosecute them? That makes no sense to me." Philadelphia's court system, which maintains a 50-man police force to hunt fugitives, took new steps to track out-of-state fugitives in December. Police still don't go to get the fugitives, but now, every time one is located in another state, they note that fact in court records and send the fugitive a letter asking him to turn himself in. A handful of suspects have. But for the most part, the records merely memorialize the near-daily messages the city's police send out when their fugitives are found in other states. "DECLINE," officials wrote when a man wanted for aggravated assault and drug possession was found in Atlantic City in February. "NON-EXTRADITABLE. AGENCY IS LOCATED OUT OF STATE." A mockery of justice Serious crimes go unresolved, and victims aren’t told Advocates for crime victims say the decision to let fugitives escape is particularly troubling when they are fleeing charges of violent crime or sexual assault. "It's just wrong. It's a mockery of the justice process," said Will Marling, the executive director of the National Organization for Victim Assistance. In each case, he said, the police have done the work to identify and charge a suspect. Letting him get away so easily "says to victims that this really isn't that important, because otherwise we'd try to do something about it." But even in those cases, suspects have had no trouble getting away. Police charged Kevin Hinds with [80]raping a neighbor in 1999. The woman [81]testified at a preliminary hearing that when she tried to stop him, Hinds beat her "unmercifully" with his fists until she blacked out. After she escaped down the back steps of his apartment, he threatened to "ax my brothers and my sons," she testified. It wasn't until six years after Hinds skipped a court hearing, on Oct. 25, 2006, that Philadelphia authorities decided to extradite him if he was ever found. Malone said she couldn't explain officials' change of heart because prosecutors can no longer find his file. But the only rape warrant Philadelphia authorities entered into the FBI's fugitive database on that day was marked for extradition from surrounding states only. And when Hinds was arrested in Charlotte for trespassing the next year, the sheriff's department let him go after he finished serving a two-day jail sentence, a department spokeswoman said. USA TODAY was unable to locate Hinds to ask him about the charges. Angelo Hall has been wanted in Philadelphia since September 1986. (Photo: New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services) "I understand resource limitations and I understand why they would not want to spend the money to create a problem in their own state, but still, you'd think that rapes, like murders, would be taken more seriously than that," said Scott Berkowitz, president of RAINN, an organization that advocates for sexual assault victims. Angelo Hall has been wanted in Philadelphia since September 1986 on [82]charges of sexually assaulting a Jehovah's Witness, charges that could have sent him to prison for as long as two years. Two weeks after he was charged in Philadelphia, Hall sodomized a woman in Suffolk County, N.Y., and was [83]sentenced to 25 years in a New York state prison. He got out in 2011 and moved to Rochester, N.Y., where he's registered as a "high risk" sex offender, a fact never related to the woman he is accused of attacking. Malone could not say why prosecutors decided not to extradite Hall. The case is so old they could not find his file. She said she cannot recall a case in which prosecutors consulted with a crime victim on their decision not to extradite. Hall said he "doesn't know anything about any Philadelphia charges," before shutting his apartment door on a reporter in January. But the Rochester police, with whom he is required to register once a year, know about the charges. They can't arrest Hall because Philadelphia authorities won't leave Pennsylvania to get him, Sgt. Jacqueline Shuman, a police spokeswoman, said. "When they want to come get him, we'll arrest him," she said.

In midtown Manhattan on Oct 9., a molotov cocktail aimed at Jewish students Yosef Rachimi and Yisroel Gadafi, both 20 years old, exploded when it hit a bicycle. Police have released a video of the unhinged man who lobbed a flaming bottle of liquid at two yeshiva students who were encouraging people to commit good deeds in Midtown, officials said Tuesday. “I want to kill you!” the balding, heavyset man — who was apparently drunk — screamed before he threw the makeshift explosive at Yosef Rachimi and Yisroel Gadafi, both 20, on W. 37th St. near Ninth Ave. about 1:30 p.m. Friday. The two victims noticed a flash of heat across their legs when the bottle topped with a burning rag exploded near their feet, according to police. The bottle started a small fire, but no one was injured, according to police. “Some guy put alcohol in a bottle of Snapple. The bottle broke and he left,” said Barry Sugar, a spokesman for the Jewish Leadership Council, which tracks anti-Semitism. Police are searching for man who threw a Molotov cocktail at yeshiva students on Oct. 9 in Midtown Manhattan. Police are searching for man who threw a Molotov cocktail at yeshiva students on Oct. 9 in Midtown Manhattan. The white assailant was around 5-foot-9, about 215 pounds and was wearing a black and blue t-shirt and a backpack. The video police released shows the man holding a brown paper bag that held the bottle, officials said. The yeshiva students were on the sidewalk encouraging people to do a Mitzvah, a good deed, Sugar said. Chabad Hasidim are known to hang out at the location before the Sabbath, he added. Anyone with information regarding the incident is urged to call CrimeStoppers at (800) 577-TIPS. All calls will be kept confidential.
Woman found dead in Queens park with bruises, deep cut to stomach: police Police investigate the scene in Kissena Corridor Park in Queens on Sunday where a woman was found dead with bruises on her neck and a deep cut to her stomach. Gardiner Anderson for New York Daily News Police investigate the scene in Kissena Corridor Park in Queens on Sunday where a woman was found dead with bruises on her neck and a deep cut to her stomach. A woman was found dead in a Queens park Sunday with bruises on her neck and a cut to her stomach so deep that it exposed her organs, police sources said. Qing Qing Kiemde, 28, was found fully clothed on a dirt path about 300 feet from the entrance of Kissena Corridor Park at 3:40 p.m., according to police sources. Her body was found next to a gated garden, the sources said. The city’s medical examiner was determining the cause of death. Regulars to the idyllic park were shocked by the grisly discovery. The unidentified woman was found about 300 feet from the entrance of Kissena Corridor Park at 3:40 p.m., according to police sources. The unidentified woman was found about 300 feet from the entrance of Kissena Corridor Park at 3:40 p.m., according to police sources. “That’s really scary!” said Nicole Park, 30, who had brought her mother to the garden. “Older people come here and work in the garden all day long. It’s not dangerous at all. This is a really nice neighborhood.” Neighbor Jennifer Ramos, 39, said she’d think twice before wandering into the isolated corners of the park. “There’s nothing about (the park) that would make me feel unsafe,” Ramos said. “But I guess things can happen anywhere.”

Ramiz Povataj is one of three men accused of the elaborate bank jobs. A cunning crew of bank burglars pulled two daring heists involving cellphone jammers, disguises, drilled passageways into vaults and narrow escapes from the cops, documents charge. Nedzad Korac, Jamarb Duhanxiu and Ramiz Povataj are accused of the elaborate bank jobs at a Citibank on Park Ave. South and a Santander Bank in Hoboken, N.J. The trio was indicted last week and will be arraigned in Manhattan Federal Court on Friday. In the first heist, on July 18, surveillance video captured three masked men enter an office in the Citibank through a hole cut in the floor at 2:30 a.m., court papers charge. They broke into the vault behind a bank of ATMs, smashing surveillance cameras with hammers. The perps fled the bank undetected when police arrived at 2:45 a.m., and then returned once the boys in blue left with the mistaken belief nothing was afoot, according to documents. At 4 a.m., cops returned and noticed the ATMs were off. Officers heard a voice from behind the machines and smelled burning metal, according to court papers. By the time the cops got into the vault, the bandits were gone, leaving behind a grinder, crowbars, an ax, a mallet, cutting wheels and an extension cord, papers show. Documents don’t indicate they succeeded in getting any cash. Detectives said the suspects swiped a DVR machine that stored a trove of surveillance video. But cops also caught a break. An attentive Citibank employee had run into four shady men claiming to be Verizon workers who were snooping around the building’s basement earlier in the week. The men were so suspicious the bank worker recorded surveillance footage of them on his cellphone, papers show. That proved to be the break in the case the NYPD needed. Nedzad Korac has also been indicted for the alleged bank heists. Nedzad Korac has also been indicted for the alleged bank heists. Cops were able to get an unnamed cooperator who cased the joint with the crew to snitch, papers indicate. Authorities then spied on the crew as it held a planning session at a Starbucks at Second Ave. and 80th St. for the Santander Bank break-in, according to a criminal complaint. The men bought $2,000 in tools, as well as a police radio scanner using a stolen credit card, according to papers. Cops say they recorded Povataj discussing a cellphone jammer he referred to as “the motor” that disrupted bank alarms. On Sept. 7, the crew allegedly attempted the burglary, cutting through the floor of a Hoboken yoga studio leading into the Santander bank vault. That’s when cops closed in. Povataj, 40, was busted wearing two earpieces and speaking into a small microphone on his wrist, prosecutors said. Duhanxiu, 40, and Korac, 43, were also arrested. At Korac’s apartment, police found a face mask and a list of numbers that correspond to frequencies used by all NYPD precincts, documents show. Korac and Povataj have lengthy criminal histories. All three were in custody and being held without bail.

Teen accused of raping 8-year-old niece in Brooklyn slapped with four felony charges The perverted teen forced the young girl onto his bedroom floor while she visited his apartment in Canarsie on July 24, authorities say. A teen accused of raping his 8-year-old niece was slapped with four felony charges during his arraignment in Brooklyn Criminal Court, a criminal complaint shows. The 17-year-old creep was charged with two sex abuse counts and two rape counts, including rape in the first degree, during his arraignment Monday. His name is being withheld by the Daily News to protect the identity of the young victim. The perverted teen forced the young girl onto his bedroom floor while she visited his apartment in Canarsie on July 24, authorities say. He then forced himself on her as she tried to escape his grasp, according to the criminal complaint. The teen was also hit with five lesser charges, records show.

Hip hop producer who was friend of rapper Fabolous killed after gunman opens fire on SUV in Brooklyn: police sources Brooklyn-born rapper Fabolous took to Instagram to mourn the death of a man shot to death in Brooklyn last night. Eric (Carl) McKinney, 31, was a long-time friend of the artist. myfabolouslife via Instagram Brooklyn-born rapper Fabolous took to Instagram to mourn the death of a man shot to death in Brooklyn last night. Eric (Carl) McKinney, 31, was a long-time friend of the artist. A hip hop producer who’s a friend of rapper Fabolous was killed when a gunman opened fire on his SUV in Brooklyn, police sources said. Eric (Carl) McKinney, 31, tried to drive himself to the hospital shortly after a man shot him as he sat in his black Jeep Wrangler that was parked at Ashland Place and Fulton St. around 10:40 p.m. Sunday, police said. He crashed the car at Ashland and DeKalb Ave. in Fort Greene and died after emergency workers rushed him to Brooklyn Hospital Center. McKinney, a father of three, was a hip-hop producer, family told NB New York. His brother, Shamel McKinney, 25, was fatally stabbed in a Flatiron club in 2007. The two men were both longtime friends with the Brooklyn-born rapper Fabolous, who took to Instagram to mourn McKinney’s death. Crime scene officers process the scene where hip-hop producer Eric (Carl) McKinney was shot on Ashland Pl. and Fulton St. on Monday. McKinney drove 2 blocks to Rockwell Place and Dekalb Ave where he crashed. “My brother. Love Forever,” the 37-year-old star, whose real name is John Jackson, wrote on Instagram with a picture of McKinney. Rapper Paul Cain, who is on Fabolous’ label Street Family Records also grieved for his friend on a social media site. “I Love You Lil Bro!!! Wish I Could Hug You. I Can’t Stop Crying,” he wrote. Police had made no arrests in the killing and the motive was not immediately clear.

NEW YORK DAILY NEWS Police inspect a Jeep which crashed at the corner of DeKalb Avenue and Rockwell Place after its driver was shot on Sunday, October 11 2015. Gardiner Anderson/for New York Daily News Police inspect a Jeep which crashed at the corner of DeKalb Avenue and Rockwell Place after its driver was shot on Sunday, October 11 2015. A man was shot in gunplay near the Brooklyn Academy of Music on Sunday night. He was fired on in a car at Ashland Pl. and Fulton St., just steps from the BAM Harvey Theater in Fort Greene, around 11 p.m., said police sources. The shooting victim had attempted to drive his black Jeep Wrangler, which had a shattered passenger window, down the street but crashed into a metal fence at Dekalb Ave. and Rockwell Pl., the sources said. The shooting victim had attempted to drive his black Jeep Wrangler but crashed into a metal fence at Dekalb Ave. and Rockwell Pl., the sources said. Gardiner Anderson/for New York Daily News The shooting victim had attempted to drive his black Jeep Wrangler but crashed into a metal fence at Dekalb Ave. and Rockwell Pl., the sources said. The man was rushed to Brooklyn Hospital Center in critical condition, according to the police. It was not immediately clear what sparked the violence. jstepansky@nydailynews.com Related Stories Bronx stripper fight leads to shooting death of club regular Pro-gun residents unhappy with Obama visiting Ore. town Freshman killed in Texas Southern University shooting named.

Serial creep who robbed 2 women in Brooklyn may be behind other muggings: cops The brute, believed to be in his 20s, robbed two women in Brooklyn. A serial creep robbed two women in Brooklyn early Sunday -- putting one in a chokehold -- and may be behind two other muggings, cops said. The brute, believed to be in his 20s, robbed an 18-year-old after putting her in a chokehold on Belmont Ave. near Warwick St. in East New York around 8:20 a.m., police said. He fled with her property and she was uninjured, police said. About 10 minutes earlier and four blocks away, cops believe the same man pushed a 77-year-old woman to the ground after running up behind on Ashford St., police said. The attacker made off with the woman’s purse and she suffered scrapes to her hands and knees. Investigators believe the man may have also been responsible for the robbery of a 59-year-old woman and a 51-year-old woman during the spree, but details of those robberies were not immediately available.

NEW YORK DAILY NEWS Rikers guard nabbed for smuggling razor-edged tool into the prison AP PROVIDES ACCESS TO THIS PUBLICLY DISTRIBUTED HANDOUT PHOTO PROVIDED BY THE NEW YORK CITY DEPARTMENT OF INVESTIGATION AP In this photo provided by the New York City Department of Investigation, a sharp edged multi-tool is shown, Sunday, Oct. 11, 2015, in New York. A Rikers Island correction officer was busted trying to smuggle in a razor-edged tool, authorities said Sunday. Officer Charles Bracey, 47, hid the tool in a paper sleeve, wrapped in electrical tape, in his backpack as he arrived for his shift at the Anna M. Kross Center, according to Department of Investigation Commissioner Mark Peters. Bracey, of Queens, was charged with promoting prison contraband. He has worked for the department since 2006 and earned nearly $76,500 annually. NYC PAPERS OUT. Social media use restricted to low res file max 184 x 128 pixels and 72 dpi Joe Marino/New York Daily News Department of Investigation Commissioner Mark Peters holds a press conference on the findings of DOI's investigation into failures by Corizon Health, inc., and lack of oversight by Department of Correction and Health in City jails. The officer’s arrest marks the seventh time in the past five weeks that a correction staffer was caught and charged with smuggling contraband to inmates. “More arrests can be expected as DOI continues to intensify its widespread investigation into smuggling and violence at Rikers,” Peters said.

EXCLUSIVE: Former security manager accused of arson at two NYC hotel in charges dismissed Charges were dismissed last week against a former security manager accused of setting a series of blazes at two Manhattan hotels where he worked. Mariano Barbosa insisted he was innocent of causing mayhem at Yotel New York and the SoHo Grand Hotel after prosecutors dropped the charges Wednesday because they could not be proven beyond a reasonable doubt. His attorney Ryan Clark blamed fire marshals, saying their gumshoe work was bogus. “They did not crack the case, they extracted a confession and then ceased the investigation,” Clark said. Prosecutors moved to dismiss arson, reckless endangerment and criminal mischief charges in Manhattan Supreme Court after a judge threw out Barbosa’s confession on the basis that it was taken without him having been properly read his Miranda rights, according to Clark. The exhausted father of six, who was working two jobs at the time, caved under pressure from fire marshal investigators and admitted to crimes he didn’t commit, the lawyer said. Clark had also obtained several sworn alibi statements from colleagues who attested to Barbosa’s whereabouts when fires were set. Authorities had accused Barbosa of creating eight fires at Yotel on 10th Ave. and the SoHo Grand on West Broadway between 2009 and 2013 “to lighten his workload.” Barbosa, 32, of Brooklyn, said at the time of his admissions he was working two jobs and had no days off to support his six young boys, including two who are autistic. Since his arrest, he lost his FDNY license, which allowed him to serve as a fire safety director, and he has been working other jobs for half the pay. He said the ordeal has been “like being on a roller coaster,” that his father had a heart attack “due to a lot of stress” and that his children are feeling the brunt of it. “I haven’t been able to do what I usually do for them — working two jobs,” he said. “We don’t get assistance like that.” The FDNY and the Manhattan district attorney’s office declined to comment.

Police search for suspects in a botched Bronx robbery that sent a 60-year-old woman to the hospital Police are searching for suspects who put a 60-year-old woman in a chokehold while attempting to rob her in the Bronx on Oct. 10. Cops are searching for three punks who put a 60-year-old woman in a chokehold and broke her wrist during an attempted robbery in the Bronx on Saturday, police said. The woman was walking down the street near Westchester and Prospect Aves. in Morrisania when the suspects attacked her from behind, threw her in a chokehold and tried to wrestle her purse away at 2:45 a.m.,authorities said. The victim managed to break free, but as she ran for safety one of the goons gave chase, kicking her leg and causing her to fall down and break her wrist, police said. The suspects ran off empty handed and remained at large Sunday morning. The woman was taken to a nearby hospital where she was treated and released. Police released surveillance photos of the men. Anyone with information about the incident is asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers Hotline at 800-577-TIPS.

EXCLUSIVE: Seventeen years after Antoine Reid shot by off-duty cop, lawsuit against city still pending NEW YORK DAILY NEWS “They were hoping I dropped the case or died . . . (that) it would just go away,” Reid, 55, told the Daily News. Seventeen years after he was shot by an off-duty cop, ex-squeegee man Antoine Reid’s lawsuit against the city remains stalled like a car outside the Holland Tunnel. Several delays have hindered Reid’s 1998 case against the city, the NYPD and Michael Meyer, the former officer who opened fire on him in a confrontation in the South Bronx. “They were hoping I dropped the case or died . . . (that) it would just go away,” Reid, 55, told the Daily News. PARENTS OF WHITE TEEN SHOT DEAD BY POLICE FILE LAWSUIT, CLAIM S.C. COP MOCKED DEAD BODY, SHOULTED 'I'LL BLOW YOUR F------ HEAD OFF!' But Reid insists he isn’t going anywhere — even though he’s now a shell of the man who plied his controversial trade throughout the 1990s. Police Officer Michael Meyer (L.), on trial in the 1998 shooting of squeegee man Antoine Reid, leaving the courtroom in Bronx Supreme Court as his trial went into recess. He is accompanied by his attorney Murray Richman. Reid was an unemployed factory worker with a drug problem and a long rap sheet when he approached Meyer’s car at his usual corner — 138th St. near the Major Deegan Expressway — on June 14, 1998. Meyer was on his way home from a Yankee game with his girlfriend and her 6-year-old son when Reid started soaping up his windshield. Meyer, then 28, shot the unarmed squeegee man in the chest at point-blank range. “I thought I was going to die,” Reid recalled. “I was looking up in the sky thinking this is how death feels,” he added. “Even now I want to cry just talking about it.” Antoine Reid, squeegee man shot by off-duty cop Michael Meyer in 1998, filed a $100M lawsuit against the city. Schwartz, Michael Antoine Reid, squeegee man shot by off-duty cop Michael Meyer in 1998, filed a $100M lawsuit against the city. Meyer was acquitted of attempted murder at a bench trial in the Bronx. But the former Marine — who was the subject of six prior excessive force complaints — was dismissed from the NYPD in 2000 after a departmental trial found he’d “overreacted” to Reid and had shot him “without required justification.” The shooting marked a rare moment when a squeegee man — seen as the scourge of the 1980s and early 1990s — gained the sympathy of the city. While his $100 million lawsuit was inching along in the court system, Reid’s body was breaking down. He now limps around with the aid of a cane. He has painful back problems. And he has trouble going to the bathroom because parts of his intestines were removed. Gash marks on his torso reveal the trajectory of the bullet that entered and exited his body — and forced doctors to remove his spleen. NYC MAY BE HELD LIABLE FOR WOMAN'S MURDER BY COP BOYFRIEND, JUDGES DECIDE “I relive it every day because you look on TV, people getting beat up and shot — I have flashbacks,” Reid told The News. Murray Richman, who defended Meyer with co-counsel Steven Kartagener and Anthony Ricco, said Reid was “overwhelmingly intimidating” in the incident and was just as aggressive on the witness stand. “The public sentiment was pro-squeegee man and subsequent public sentiment was this is so outrageous, that it was clear (Meyer) was acting in self-defense,” Richman said. Antoine Reid gives his sister a hug. Antoine Reid insists he isn’t going anywhere — even though he’s now a shell of the man who plied his controversial trade throughout the 1990s. But Reid’s lawyer Robert Brown said the case in Bronx Supreme Court is not a “he-said, she-said.” “There are several independent witnesses that all say the same thing — Antoine had his hands up and was unarmed,” Brown said. Brown said that although the NYPD determined Meyer was trying to make an arrest, city lawyers argue it was “not within the scope of his employment.” OFF-DUTY NYPD OFFICER PLEADS GUILTY, FACES 9 YEARS IN PRISON FOR DRUNKEN SHOOTING IN WESTCHESTER He hopes a favorable recent appellate court decision on this question will cause them “to reevaluate the case.” Brown is not aware of any settlement offers through the years. The city deemed the matter a “no pay” case, he said. A spokesman from the Law Department declined to comment. “I’m going to do everything in my power to get this case in front of a jury in the Bronx as fast as I possibly can so Antoine can have his day in court,” Reid’s lawyer said.

Fight between strippers outside Bronx club sparked fatal shooting of club regular: police sources NEW YORK DAILY NEWS The fight broke out after dancers started arguing in the parking lot outside the nightclub. A smackdown between strippers sparked the early morning Bronx shooting that left a 45-year-old man dead, police sources said Saturday. Murder victim Jose Feliciano, a regular at the Key Club Cabaret on Boston Road in Eastchester, was exiting the jiggle joint at 4:15 a.m. Friday when a fight broke out between two of the dancers in the parking lot, the sources said. Feliciano ran over to defend one of the women in the fight when the other woman’s boyfriend started arguing with him, witnesses told police. The two began brawling and Feliciano punched the other man, cops said. Police released images of those who they believe may have witnessed the fight. Seconds later, the suspect whipped out a pistol and started blasting away, hitting Feliciano in the stomach. Felicano ran for cover behind a car, but the callous gunman ran after him and kept firing, blasting him in the head before sprinting from the scene, cops said. Feliciano was rushed to Montefiore Medical Center, but doctors couldn’t save him, officials said. The club manager said the victim was beloved at the jiggle joint. Feliciano was shot outside of the Key Club Cabaret in the Bronx. Two dancers at the club got into a fight outside the club around 4 a.m., and Feliciano ran over to defend one of the girls. “He was a humble dude, he always came alone,” Dennis De Jesus told the Daily News. “He was well loved by the entertainers.” Police have released surveillance images of people who witnessed the fight. Cops ask anyone with information on the shooting to call Crime Stoppers at (800) 577-TIPS. Feliciano has an extensive criminal record with nearly 20 prior arrests for assault, robbery, and rape, officials said.

Cops identify man who fatally shot Brooklyn metal worker trying to stop car break-in spree NEW YORK DAILY NEWS Bryan Aponte, 26, is the man who shot dead 53-year-old Michael Matusiak after the Good Samaritan confronted the bandits breaking into parked cars. One man was fatally shot while another man and a woman received graze wounds at 60 Grattan Street near Knickerbocker Avenue in Brooklyn. One man was fatally shot while another man and a woman received graze wounds at 60 Grattan Street near Knickerbocker Avenue in Brooklyn. Cops have identified the man who they say fatally shot a Brooklyn metal worker who tried to stop a car break-in spree Tuesday. Bryan Aponte, 20, is the man who shot dead 53-year-old Michael Matusiak after the Good Samaritan confronted Aponte and two other bandits breaking into parked cars around 7:50 a.m in East Williamsburg, according to a wanted poster tweeted Friday by NYPD Chief of Detectives Robert Boyce. TWO BOOKLYN MEN CHARGED FOR ATTEMPTED MURDER OF COPS IN UNMARKED POLICE CAR Matusiak was shot three times in the chest after he questioned the men on Grattan St. near Knickerbocker Ave. Matusiak's co-worker Derrick Robinson survived two shots. A 13-year-old girl walking to school was also wounded. On Saturday, cops released several images of the suspect.

Gun recovered at the scene in Fort Greene. The suspects fired on the black Ford SUV from the front and the back after they were spotted arguing on Park Ave. near N. Portland Ave., Prosecutor David Reskin said. Gun recovered at the scene in Fort Greene. Enlarge Two Brooklyn men were arraigned Saturday on attempted murder charges for allegedly opening fire on three plainclothes cops riding in an unmarked police car. Prosecutor David Reskin said the suspects — Davon Morrison, 24, and Quashawn Smith, 23 — were well aware they were targeting a police vehicle in the Oct. 7 incident in Fort Greene. Morrison was ordered held on $250,000 bail. Smith’s bail was set at $100,000. POLICE NAB SUSPECTS WHO SPRAYED COPS' UNMARKED SUV WITH BULLETS IN BROOKLYN AFTER OFFICERS TRIED TO INVESTIGATE THEIR ARGUMENT The suspects fired on the black Ford SUV from the front and the back after they were spotted arguing on Park Ave. near N. Portland Ave., Reskin said. None of the officers were injured. They returned fire, wounding Smith who limped into Brooklyn Criminal Court Saturday. Related Stories Cops fire 84 shots at robbery suspect, hit him once: police Man questioned for Ariz. shootings not prime suspect: police Man alleges NYPD cop called him n-word repeatedly in suit

Cops: Perv exposed himself, masturbated in front of woman on R train BY Thomas Tracy NEW YORK DAILY NEWS Police say the man masturbated in front of a woman aboard an R train. DCPI Police say the man masturbated in front of a woman aboard an R train. A young woman, the victim of a man who exposed himself to her during a Friday morning subway commute, managed to snap a picture of him before leaving the train, officials said. With the R train rumbling toward the Lexington Ave./59th St. station around 8:30 a.m., the 27-year-old woman saw the man rubbing his exposed erection, officials said. The victim’s picture shows the man in the act. He is a bearded black man in blue jeans, a plaid shirt, blue and red vest and a black knit cap. If apprehended, the man faces public lewdness charges officials said. Anyone with information regarding the man’s whereabouts is urged to call Crime Stoppers at (800) 577-TIPS. All calls will be kept confidential.
New photos released by NYPD as search continues for Plaza Hotel robber who stole 3,000 euros from currency exchange BY Thomas Tracy NEW YORK DAILY NEWS On October 5, the suspect entered the Travelex Currency Exchange located in The Plaza Hotel and requested to purchase 500 euros. As the employee was counting the money, the suspect displayed a handgun and grabbed the currency out of the employee's hand and fled. On October 5, the suspect entered the Travelex Currency Exchange located in The Plaza Hotel and requested to purchase 500 euros. As the employee was counting the money, the suspect displayed a handgun and grabbed the currency out of the employee's hand and fled. Cops released additional surveillance photos late Thursday as they continue to hunt for the gunman who robbed 3,000 euros from a shop inside The Plaza Hotel in Midtown. The new images of the suspect, sporting a pair of glasses and a black peacoat, were taken on the street just before he entered the posh Fifth Ave. hotel about 11 a.m. Monday, cops said. The robber entered the posh midtown hotel around 11 a.m. Monday, and was last seen walking down W 58th St. Andrew Savulich/New York Daily News The robber entered the posh midtown hotel around 11 a.m. Monday, and was last seen walking down W 58th St. The robber entered the Travelex Currency Exchange in the basement of the hotel and asked to purchase 500 euros, according to police. As the clerk counted the currency the crook flashed a gun and grabbed the money out of the employee’s hand. He ran off with the loot — worth just under $3,400 U.S. dollars — and was last seen walking down W. 58th St., police said. No injuries were reported. The suspect is described as black, bald, 5-foot-9 and 160-pounds. NYC PAPERS OUT. Social media use restricted to low res file max 184 x 128 pixels and 72 dpi Andrew Savulich/New York Daily News Police investigate the armed robbery of a currency exchange shop inside the Plaza Hotel on Monday. NYC PAPERS OUT. Social media use restricted to low res file max 184 x 128 pixels and 72 dpi Andrew Savulich/New York Daily News The robber, who is still being sought by the NYPD, walked away with 3,00 meuros, equal to just under $3,400. Anyone with information is asked to call Crime Stoppers at (800) 577-TIPS. All calls will be kept confidential.
Boy, 7, and mother shot by gunman amid spiralling violence following 'Mr Big' murder A SEVEN-year-old boy and his mother were shot by a gunman amid spiralling violence in their home city following the murder of a "Mr Big" security boss. Police at the scene in Salford where the youngster and his mother suffered leg wounds PAPolice at the scene in Salford where the youngster and his mother suffered leg wounds The "truly shocking" incident happened in the doorway of their home in Salford - marking the fifth shooting in the area in just three days. The youngster and his mother are currently recovering in hospital after suffering leg wounds. Their injuries are not believed to be life threatening and both are in a serious but stable condition. Police have not ruled out if the shootings in the area are linked. The latest attack, which happened last night at around 9:30pm, came as a £50,000 reward was offered for information relating to the murder of Salford "Mr Big" Paul Massey. Salford has suffered a series of shootings since Mr Massey, 55, was gunned down outside his home in the city on July 26. He was a well-known figure in Salford and had been involved in security firms operating in Manchester and beyond. Detective Superintendent Joanne Rawlinson of Greater Manchester Police, said of the mother and son shooting: "This is a truly shocking set of circumstances in which a young boy and a woman have been injured after they were shot at by a gunman at their home. "This incident has only just happened, but there is a huge police effort under way to investigate this attack and find those responsible. "At this early stage, we do not yet know the motive behind this incident, but I would ask the community, as upset as they may be when they hear news of this attack, to please let the police carry out this investigation." Today one local dropping his children off at St Gilbert's RC Primary School nearby said: "It is frightening if you have children. "There was a shooting on Sutherland Street not far from here not long ago. "It's frightening that kids are being caught in the crossfire of what's going on in Salford."
Beaten with an iron bar: Michael Winner's widow subjected to brutal attack at home THE widow of late film director and restaurant critic Michael Winner was beaten with an IRON BAR during a terrifying raid at her home. Geraldine Winner, 77, suffered a head injury and was rushed to hospital after a man and a woman forced their way into her £3.8million South Kensington penthouse and spent a frightening THREE HOURS ransacking the building. The pair broke into her home at 10pm on Friday, not leaving until gone 1am on Saturday, and stole a number of valuable items, reportedly including jewellery given to Mrs Winner by her late husband. Police believe the thieves may have hidden in the communal area of the seven-storey block, close to the Royal Albert Hall, which is home to a number of well-heeled residents including international economist Cornelia Meyer. Mrs Winner returned home at 1pm today in a black cab, accompanied by two middle-aged male friends. Her left arm was bandaged in a sling and she appeared frail as the men helped her into the lobby, where she asked: “Are the police here?” One of the men said: "Yes, she's okay,” before asking reporters to leave the building and respect her privacy. Scenes of crime officers have been carrying out a fingertip search of the penthouse while footage from CCTV cameras is also being studied. A Metropolitan Police spokesman said officers were called to the flat at about 2am on Saturday following a report of aggravated burglary. He said: "Two suspects, a male and a female, forced their way into the home of a woman in her 70s and assaulted her with an iron bar before stealing a number of items. "The woman was taken to a west London hospital by ambulance. Inquiries continue. There have been no arrests." Mr Winner started out in the movie business and made more than 30 films, including the blockbuster Death Wish series. Later on he reinvented himself as a restaurant critic and was given a column in the Sunday Times called Winner’s Dinners. Younger people will remember him from the Esure car insurance adverts where his catchphrase was: “Calm down dear, it’s just a commercial.” He also founded and funded the Police Memorial Trust following the murder of WPC Yvonne Fletcher outside the Libyan embassy in London in 1984. He died at his home in January 2013, aged 77, after a long battle with liver disease. After his death, Mrs Winner, a former dancer who he married in 2011 despite meeting her when she was a teenager, described him as a wonderful man who was “brilliant, funny and generous”. Mrs Winner, who has two sons, one each from previous marriages, added: “A light has gone out in my life."

Teenager jailed after terrifying drunken hammer attack A TEENAGE girl has been locked up after she used a claw hammer to smash the windscreen of a passing car. Lauren Weaver, 18, who had downed 22 bottles of lager, armed herself with the hammer before attacking the car and terrifying its four occupants. Carlisle Crown Court heard she was arrested by Cumbria Police as part of Operation Rodeo – a probe into gang violence in the seaside town of Workington. Judge Paul Batty branded the “lawlessness” as “ludicrous” and remarked that Weaver appeared to “revel” in the terror of her innocent victims. Weaver was arrested at her Workington home after police recovered the hammer. Weaver claimed to have no recollection of how she came into possession of the hammer She denied any involvement in the attack in August, saying the hammer was her father’s. She accused witnesses of being “untruthful”. Prosecutor Gerard Rogerson said: “There have been offences by a group of youths in the area who were arming themselves and behaving in what might be described as gang-type activity.” Laura Nash, defending, said Weaver denied being in any gang and had no recollection of how she came into possession of the hammer. A line up of beer and ale GETTY Ms Weaver had reportedly downed 22 lagers the night of the attack Miss Nash said: “Alcohol and violence are the biggest problems that Miss Weaver faces as she begins her adult life.” The court simply will not tolerate this sort of lawlessness Judge Batty highlighted a probation officer’s observations that Weaver seemed to “revel” in violent behaviour and appeared to have “absolutely no victim empathy”. The judge added: “It is said on your behalf that you are not an active member of a gang but, of course, you associate yourself with others who are. “This offence is a manifestation of this type of activity. The court simply will not tolerate this sort of lawlessness.” Police on a beat patrol GETTY Operation Rodeo has been set up by Cumbria Police to target an increase of crime in the area The judge concluded that he would be “wholly failing” in his public duty if he did not impose a custodial sentence in an attempt to deter those involved in violence. Weaver admitted affray and was sentenced to 16 months’ youth detention on Friday. Operation Rodeo was set up by Cumbria Police to target an increase of crime in the area. There have been 43 arrests so far, with a large haul of weapons recovered.
Fury at soft sentence for paedophile who RAPED five-year-old A PAEDOPHILE who raped a girl of five after being freed from jail could be back on the streets in just six-and-a-half years. Terry Bishop with three previous convictions for child sex crimes – befriended the mother of his victim to get access to the youngster without her knowing his past. He took the girl shopping, to the beach and picked her up from school after gaining the trust of the pair. But his sick behaviour was uncovered when the girl revealed he had abused her. Bishop, 48, from Bournemouth, admitted raping and sexually assaulting his victim four times. Judge John Harrow gave him 10 years but he could be out in six-and-a-half. He could have been given life. Peter Saunders, of the National Association of People Abused in Childhood, said: “You see tough sentences handed out for crimes such as theft which, while despicable, do not have the same effect on the victims as raping a child. It is outrageous that a man with this history can be free in six-and-a-half years. “The judge does not appear to have taken the harm caused to this child and her mother into account. The consequences of this hideous crime are potentially a lifetime of misery.” No child should have to be subjected to such despicable crimes Kerry Maylin, prosecuting Bournemouth Crown Court heard how Bishop had been in and out of jail after twice being convicted of indecent assaults on girls under 14 and once for indecent assault on a girl under 16. Bishop took the mother and daughter on trips. The girl eventually revealed that Bishop had touched her inappropriately which sparked an investigation. Detectives discovered a sexual picture in the child’s notebook which was used in evidence. He pleaded guilty to four charges including rape and sexual touching of a child under 13 between January and August this year. He was given 10 years in jail and another five years on extended licence. Kerry Maylin, of the Crown Prosecution Service, said: “No child should have to be subjected to such despicable crimes.”



Child abuser deserves a much tougher sentence PAEDOPHILE Terry Bishop has admitted to raping and sexually assaulting a five-year-old girl four times and he already has three prior convictions for child sex crimes. In a just world he would never see the light of day again but a soft judge has sentenced him to just 10 years in jail. If he avoids trouble, he could be out in only six-and-a-half years. Judge John Harrow should take a moment to imagine how he would feel if it was his own daughter or granddaughter who fell victim to such a despicable crime. In six-and-a-half years the suffering for that poor girl will still be far from over for she will be living with a life sentence. Many children who suffer such heinous abuse never fully recover. Moreover one has to feel desperate sympathy for her loved ones. Such a terrible event is a parent’s worst nightmare. For her mother the fact that Bishop befriended her in order to gain access to the child will have made it even harder to bear. His actions will take an enormous toll on the whole of the victim’s family, something that should have been reflected in his sentence. Bishop is a repeat offender whose latest crimes were a series of cold, cunning and calculated acts of abuse. The thought that in all likelihood he will be walking the streets again in less than a decade is a chilling one.
Heartbroken dad speaks of anguish after his son was killed in car concrete block tragedy A GRIEVING father has revealed his anguish after his teenage son was killed when a lump of concrete was thrown at the car he was travelling in. Nassem Galleze and car PANassem died after the horror incident Police have rearrested a 21-year-old man on suspicion of violent disorder and possession of an offensive weapon on Wednesday. He was originally arrested and bailed last week. Student Nassem Galleze, 17, received multiple injuries after the mint green Vauxhall Corsa hit a lamp post on Saturday September 26. Officers are appealing for those who rushed to help the teenager to come forward. Damaged mint green Vauxhall Corsa PA The Vauxhall Corsa hit a lamppost Nassem's dad Hakim said: "I am numb with pain. Every time my phone rings or there's a knock at the door, I pray it is Nassem. "Our beloved Nassem's life has been brutally ended and my family are devastated. "People will have seen what happened and they will have heard things; you might be thinking, 'Do I talk to the police?' "Take a look at the car where my son died and you know there's only one thing to do for Nassem and our family. Please assist the police." The suspects ran off leaving passersby to help The Metropolitan Police said it is believed the vehicle came under attack on the Turnham Estate in Brockley, south-east London. It is thought that the block was hurled as the car made to leave, smashing the windscreen and causing it to crash. The suspects ran off, leaving passers-by to rush to the aid of Nassem and the two friends who had been in the car with him. Detective Chief Inspector Noel McHugh, who is leading the investigation, said: "This arrest further demonstrates the thorough and meticulous work of my officers as they continue to work through the evidence surrounding Nassem's murder. "We will find those responsible for this crime and they will face justice." New Scotland Yard sign in London PA Police are asking the public for information about the incident Six men aged between 19 and 23 were initially arrested in connection with the investigation, and four have since been bailed pending further inquiries. A 22-year-old man has been charged with violent disorder in connection with the death, police said.
Conmebol insists Michel Platini ‘can lead Fifa towards a brighter future’ South American confederation denounces Fifa ban on Platini French FA also supports suspended Uefa president Uefa president Michel Platini Conmebol described Michel Platini’s 90-day ban from “all footballing activities” as “untimely and disproportionate” Photograph: Ronald Zak/AP The embattled Uefa president, Michel Platini, has been backed by his home French football federation (the FFF) and the South American confederation Conmebol despite being embroiled in criminal investigations in Switzerland and suspended by Fifa. Platini on Saturday lodged an appeal against his 90-day suspension from all football activities, which has dealt a fundamental blow to his candidacy for the Fifa presidency. The appeals committee, chaired by the Bermudan Larry Mussenden, is expected to decide within eight days whether to overturn the suspension, imposed pending a full investigation. The Swiss attorney general, Michael Lauber, has opened criminal proceedings against Sepp Blatter over a £1,3m payment to Platini, which both men have said related to work Platini did at Fifa in 1998-2002. Platini has been questioned by Swiss prosecutors as “a person providing information”, a legal status which allows for the possibility of being charged in the future. The Fifa ethics committee’s suspensions are designed to ensure that a full investigation can take place without any possibility of interference by those accused of wrongdoing. Platini filed his candidacy papers for president before he was suspended, but it is thought unlikely he could still stand if the suspension is not overturned, as he would need to pass a Fifa integrity process. The FFF said that if Mussenden’s committee does not overturn the suspension it will appeal against the decision to the court of arbitration for sport. Conmebol, two of whose former presidents, Nicolás Leoz and Eugenio Figueredo, and two directors, Rafael Esquivel and José Maria Marin, are among the nine high-ranking Fifa officials indicted on corruption charges by the US department of justice, denounced the ban on Platini, calling it “untimely and disproportionate”. Conmebol said in a statement: “The presumption of innocence is a fundamental right that has to be considered. Mr Platini has not been found guilty of any charge, therefore the provisional ban jeopardises the integrity of the electoral process … These are trying times that demand an integral reform of Fifa. [Conmebol] fully believes in Mr Platini’s capacity to lead Fifa and the football world towards a brighter future.” The Fifa executive committee meeting later this month may discuss whether to delay the presidential election, which remains scheduled for 26 February, due to the still unfolding crisis.
Teenagers murdered two men in ‘grotesque’ attacks Harry Reekie and Steven Mitchell were murdered a few streets apart in Bathgate, West Lothian Harry Reekie and Steven Mitchell were murdered a few streets apart in Bathgate, West Lothian Andy Barr. Two teenagers have been convicted of murdering two men in the space of 36 hours in separate “grotesque” attacks. Andrew Moran and Paul Erskine, both now 19, bound, robbed and stabbed Harry Reekie, 65, at his home in Bathgate, West Lothian, on September 16 last year. They then killed Steven Mitchell, 31, with a knife and a hammer on September 17, at a house a few streets from Mr Reekie’s home. The motive behind his murder remains unclear. Mr Reekie was able to identify his attackers to police before he died on January 4, having been unable to recover from
Usha Patel murder: suspect arrested after police hunt Officers arrest Miles Donnelly, also known as Miles Ryan, in Paddington, central London, on Sunday on suspicion of murder Miles Ryan also known as Miles Donnelly was arrested on Sunday Detectives investigating the murder of a mother found dead at the home she shared with her young son have arrested a man. Scotland Yard launched an appeal to trace Miles Donnelly, also known as Miles Ryan, after the body of Usha Patel, 44, was discovered at her flat in Cricklewood, north-west London, on Thursday morning. 'She was a very nice lady. She invited me to a Zumba class. She was very friendly' Neighbour Sali Aboudali Donnelly, 34, was arrested on suspicion of murder by officers in Paddington, central London, this morning. He has been taken to a north London police station where he remains in custody. A post-mortem examination found Ms Patel died from "strangulation", a Metropolitan Police spokesman said. Neighbours expressed shock at the death and paid tribute to Ms Patel, who they said was a full-time carer for her young autistic son. Usha Patel was found dead at the home in Cricklewood, north-west London The boy, thought to be aged five, was seen holding the hand of a police community support officer outside his home after the body was found. One neighbour, who would only give his name as Tony, 76, said: "I feel very sorry for her son. There was a young PCSO entertaining the kid. He was humouring the boy in the police car by starting the engine and letting him play with the steering wheel." Woman held on suspicion of murder after death at a party Becky Watts murder trial: suspect's mother 'joked about kidnap' Tony's partner Belinda added: "A copper walked past holding him by the hand." Another neighbour, who lived in the flat below Ms Patel, said he heard someone enter the building on Thursday morning and noticed her front door was ajar when he left for work. Police officers said her son had been taken to a "safe place" following the discovery of the body, he added. Miles Donnelly, also known as Miles Ryan was arrested at Paddington station on Sunday Miles Donnelly, also known as Miles Ryan was arrested at Paddington station on Sunday Photo: Scotland Yard Another man, who did not wish to be named, said: "She was hippy looking. She was like a female John Lennon. Very jolly and bubbly. She had a happy look about her." Neighbour Sali Aboudali, 42, said her child went to school with Ms Patel's son and he would spend weekends with his father. 'She was hippy looking. She was like a female John Lennon. Very jolly and bubbly. She had a happy look about her' Neighbour "She was a very nice lady," she said. "She invited me to a Zumba class. She was very friendly. All the neighbours listened to her singing. "Her son depended on her for everything. She said he had autism." A man thought to be the boy's grandfather attended the property on Thursday after police discovered Ms Patel's body, Ms Aboudali added. Neighbours said Ms Patel had lived for about nine years at her home in Melrose Avenue, which is in a semi-detached building containing three flats.
Friend of Charleston shooting suspect, Dylann Roof, arrested Joey Meek, friend of Dylann Roof, arrested following a month long investigation by federal authorities Roof faces murder and race hate charges Charleston shooting suspectDylann Roof holds a gun in pictures that accompany his racist manifesto A friend of the alleged Charleston church shooter was arrested Thursday, more than a month after authorities told him he was under federal investigation for lying to them and failing to report a crime, an official close to the probe said. Joey Meek, 21, was arrested Thursday, the official told The Associated Press, speaking only on the condition of anonymity because the person was not authorized to publicly talk about the case. The official didn't immediately say what charges Meek faces. Meek has said that Dylann Roof, who is accused of killing nine black church members during Bible study on June 17, stayed with him before the shootings. Meek told The Associated Press that Roof had drunkenly complained that "blacks were taking over the world" and "someone needed to do something about it for the white race." Roof faces federal hate crime charges as well as nine counts of murder in state court. Meek told the AP that Roof occasionally stayed with him at a mobile home in Red Bank, about 20 miles (32 kilometers) from Columbia, before the shootings at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church. Dylann Roof pictured on his website holding a Civil War Confederate flag Dylann Roof pictured on his website Meek, of Lexington, told AP that Roof said he used birthday money from his parents to buy a .45-caliber Glock semi-automatic handgun, which Meek took away from him the night of his drunken rant but gave back to him when Roof had sobered up. Meek also said he called authorities after recognizing Roof from surveillance footage from the church. But, according to a federal law enforcement official, authorities believe Meek was dishonest with them during their investigation. That official also was not authorized to speak publicly about the investigation and requested anonymity. Meek's girlfriend, Lindsey Fry, said he called her on his mobile phone Thursday afternoon and said it looked like federal agents were approaching him as he was at his job repairing air conditioners. "They want to talk to me, but I think I'm going to jail," Fry recalled Meek saying. He said goodbye and she hasn't heard from Meek since, Fry said outside the mobile home where they live. Fry said she doesn't know if Meek has an attorney or where he is being held, but earlier told AP that Meek is innocent. He is expected to have a hearing Friday. Federal officials can keep investigations secret until someone is charged, or they can opt to let subjects know they are under investigation - as they did with Meek in a letter Aug. 6 - in hopes that the subject will get an attorney, according to Rene Josey, a former U.S. Attorney now in private practice in South Carolina. Meek is currently on probation, having pleaded guilty earlier this year to possessing a stolen vehicle, according to Lexington County court records. No other family or friends who spent extensive time with Roof at the mobile home have received target letters, Fry said.
Fugitives only have to cross state lines to escape justice Florida officials refused to come to Tennessee for Jacob Allen Bennett; later, he was accused of killing four people Fugitives Next Door Investigation Fugitives Next Door Investigation: A USA TODAY investigation has found that fugitives by the tens of thousands are escaping justice by crossing a state border. Brian Haas When police take out a warrant on someone suspected of a crime, they can choose whether theyre willing to extradite, or pick up that suspect if they are arrested in other states. The following shows Middle Tennessee counties and the number of cases as of May 29 in which authorities were unwilling to pick up suspects who were stopped or arrested across state lines. The tally includes sheriffs offices and police departments. County Total Warrants Total Non-Extradition Warrants Total Violent Crime Warrants Non-Extradition Violent Crime Warrants Sex Crime Warrants Non-Extradition Sex Crime Warrants Total Non-Extradition % Non-Extradition Violent Crime % Non-Extradition Sex Crime % Cheatham 125 113 1 1 1 1 90.4% 100.0% 100.0% Davidson 363 73 51 10 74 13 20.1% 19.6% 17.6% Dickson 393 349 3 3 7 4 88.8% 100.0% 57.1% Robertson 451 265 21 7 11 2 58.8% 33.3% 18.2% Rutherford 515 432 21 17 20 9 83.9% 81.0% 45.0% Sumner 347 141 7 1 15 10 40.6% 14.3% 66.7% Williamson 429 78 9 3 4 - 18.2% 33.3% 0.0% Wilson 197 181 6 3 8 2 91.9% 50.0% 25.0% Tennessee Counties Total 9,111 3,967 422 147 422 124 43.5% 34.8% 29.4% SOURCE: FBI National Crime Information Center Wanted Person File More ADVERTISEMENT If authorities in Florida wanted to pick up Jacob Allen Bennett on the felony larceny charge he has been wanted on since 2008, they had to only come to Tennessee and snatch him. Bennett had been arrested multiple times here since 2008. In 2013 he even called down to Florida to see if he could make that charge go away. Database: See if Tennessee law enforcement agencies fail to chase down fugitives Instead, Bennett was left to go about his life on Renegade Mountain in East Tennessee. And on Sept. 12, 2013, police say, he shot and killed Rikki Jacobsen, 22; her nephew, Dominic Davis, 17; and their friends Steven Presley, 17, and John Lajeunesse, 16. While the larceny warrant was but one of many missed opportunities authorities had to lock up Bennett, it isnt a surprise he was able to evade Florida authorities so easily. In fact, for many suspects nationwide even some accused of murders and rapes escaping justice is as simple as crossing state lines. Thats according to data obtained by USA TODAY from the National Crime Information Centers Wanted Person File. An analysis of more than 1 million active NCIC records as of May 29 shows that authorities were unwilling to spend the time or money to pick up 186,873 fugitives from another state, a process known as extradition. In Philadelphia, for example, even violent fugitives only had to hop three bus stops to Camden, N.J., to escape justice. Some in Middle Tennessee only have to drive 40 miles north to Kentucky to escape charges here. An additional 78,878 would only be picked up if caught in a neighboring state. Bennett was one of those cases in which police and prosecutors decided it wasnt worth pursuing him beyond Floridas neighboring states. Thats hard to fathom for Tim Tapia, whose son Dominic was among the four found dead on Renegade Mountain that September day. You commit a crime, you need to pay for it. Its not, Well, we dont have the money for it or were just going to let it ride, Tapia said. Letting it ride look what happened. Four people are now dead because they chose not to do anything about it. Escaping justice in Tennessee In Tennessee, NCIC data showed that two out of every five fugitives needed only to leave the state to escape justice here. A third of violent crime suspects and almost three out of 10 sex crime suspects have a similar escape route. In all, Tennessee had 271 suspects wanted on either violent or sex crime warrants that were listed as non-extradition warrants. That included nine homicide cases, six of which originated in Nashville. Davidson County District Attorney Torry Johnson said his offices policy is to extradite all homicide suspects, despite the NCIC findings. We extradite on all homicides, period, he said. As a general rule, well extradite on rape cases. His spokeswoman explained that the six homicide fugitives were already in custody elsewhere. The ones that are listed here, the best we can tell, are ones that are being held in Tennessee by another agency, either federally, or by another county with a Tennessee hold on it, said spokeswoman Susan Niland. Generally, that rule applies on rapes as well. Davidson County compared favorably in the state, with relatively few cases in which authorities were unwilling to cross state lines to pick up suspects, according to the data. Other counties, such as Rutherford and Wilson, told the FBI they were unwilling to pick up more than eight out of 10 fugitives, even if they were arrested just 45 minutes to the north in Kentucky. Rutherford County reported it was unwilling to go get 84 percent of wanted felons if they were picked up in a different state. Lisa Marchesoni, spokeswoman for the Rutherford County Sheriffs Office, said it was impossible to dissect those numbers without the names of the suspects or warrant numbers. Each case is considered on its merits if the suspect will be extradited, she said. Some minor felonies are considered non-extraditable; however, we aggressively pursue those individuals listed as violent offenders. If located out of state, we seek extradition approval from the District Attorneys Office. In Wilson County, prosecutors put the onus on law enforcement. The law enforcement agencies on the front end actually make the initial determination, said Assistant District Attorney General Jason Lawson, who handles prosecutions in Wilson County. But that initial determination doesnt really have much relation to the ultimate decision of whether someone is actually extradited. He said some of those non-extradition warrants are cases in which a suspect is already in prison or jail. Other times, the cases are nonviolent crimes such as violations of probation or drug charges, he said. But when it comes to serious crimes, he said, their answer is always yes. There are occasions where we say no, but anybody who has a crime against a person or a sex crime, we absolutely do extradite those, he said. I dont know of any cases where thats not been done. But not picking up suspects even on seemingly minor crimes can have serious consequences. Wanted for larceny Bennett was wanted on one such crime felony larceny. Authorities in Santa Rosa County, Fla., accused him of clearing out more than $1,000 from his girlfriends bank account in 2008. But he moved to Tennessee before deputies could catch him. Within months of putting his name into the FBIs database in 2009, authorities were fielding calls from Tennessee police telling them that their fugitive had been found, records show. In all, authorities had at least six chances to come pick him up between 2009 and September 2013. He wasnt hard to find he was in a Tennessee prison from March 2010 to March 2013. Police records show Florida authorities knew exactly where he was and considered whether to extradite him on multiple occasions. But every time, the answer was the same: Tennessee was too far away. Authorities there last heard from Bennett in March of 2013 shortly after he was released from a Tennessee prison. He called to ask whether there was any way to take care of this (Florida charge) without being arrested, according to a police report. When the officer said no, he hung up. Six months later, four bodies were found on Renegade Mountain near Bennetts home. He was arrested on four counts of premeditated murder, four counts of felony murder and two counts of aggravated robbery. Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty. His attorney, Robert Marlowe, declined to discuss the case against his client. But he said he was unsurprised Florida authorities didnt pick him up. Considering the amount of money involved, it probably wasn't worth it, he said. Assistant State Attorney John Parker, who handles all extradition requests in Santa Rosa County, confirmed as much. He said the cost was too high and the charges would probably have only led to probation. Even if Bennett was locked up in 2009, he would have been out well before the Renegade Mountain murders, he said. Parker doesnt second-guess the decision not to extradite. Im saddened about what happened, but we dont have a crystal ball, he said. For Tapia and other relatives of the four killed on Renegade Mountain, thats little solace. Our laws here are so easy for people to commit crimes and continue keep on committing crimes where eventually it leads to murder, he said. And thats when they decide to get serious about it. Tennessee totals The number of statewide cases as of May 29 in which authorities were unwilling to pick up suspects who were stopped or arrested across state lines. The tally includes sheriffs offices and police departments. Warrants: 9,111 The total number of warrants 3,967 The total number of non-extradition warrants 43.5% Total non-extradition percentage Violent crimes: 422 The total number of violent crime warrants 147 The total number of non-extradition violent crime warrants 34.8% Non-extradition violent crime percentage Sex crimes: 422 The number of sex crime warrants 124 The number of non-extradition sex crime warrants 29.4% Non-extradition sex crime percentage SOURCE: FBI National Crime Information Center Wanted Person File Warrants in Tennessee When police take out a warrant on someone suspected of a crime, they can choose whether theyre willing to extradite, or pick up that suspect if they are arrested in other states. The following shows Middle Tennessee counties and the number of cases as of May 29 in which authorities were unwilling to pick up suspects who were stopped or arrested across state lines. The tally includes sheriffs offices and police departments. County Total Warrants Total Non-Extradition Warrants Total Violent Crime Warrants Non-Extradition Violent Crime Warrants Sex Crime Warrants Non-Extradition Sex Crime Warrants Total Non-Extradition % Non-Extradition Violent Crime % Non-Extradition Sex Crime % Cheatham 125 113 1 1 1 1 90.4% 100.0% 100.0% Davidson 363 73 51 10 74 13 20.1% 19.6% 17.6% Dickson 393 349 3 3 7 4 88.8% 100.0% 57.1% Robertson 451 265 21 7 11 2 58.8% 33.3% 18.2% Rutherford 515 432 21 17 20 9 83.9% 81.0% 45.0% Sumner 347 141 7 1 15 10 40.6% 14.3% 66.7% Williamson 429 78 9 3 4 - 18.2% 33.3% 0.0% Wilson 197 181 6 3 8 2 91.9% 50.0% 25.0% Tennessee Counties Total 9,111 3,967 422 147 422 124 43.5% 34.8% 29.4% SOURCE: FBI National Crime Information Center Wanted Person File Brad Heath and John Kelly of USA TODAY, Nathan Higgins of WBIR-Knoxville and Rob Johnson of the Pensacola News Journal contributed to this report. Fugitives only have to cross state lines to escape justice An analysis of more than 1 million records shows that authorities were unwilling to spend the time or money to pick up 186,873 fugitives from another state, a process known as extradition.
Thailand arrests 'main suspect' in Bangkok blast investigation The male suspect was arrested east of Bangkok on the border with Cambodia, Prayuth Chan-ocha, the prime minister says Royal Thai Army soldiers lead the Erawan Shrine bombing suspect after they arrested him in Sa Kaeo district, near the Thai-Cambodian border Royal Thai Army soldiers lead the Erawan Shrine bombing suspect after they arrested him in Sa Kaeo district. A key suspect in the Bangkok shrine bombing who resembles the man seen leaving a backpack at the blast site was captured at Thailand's border with Cambodia. The detained man was reported by some Thai media outlets to be carrying a passport for a Chinese citizen with an apparently Islamic name from the restive western province of Xinjiang, where there is a large Muslim Uighur population. Thai police have taken the suspect to Bangkok for interrogation but officials denied media reports that he was captured inside Cambodia and handed over to Thailand. The police also issued new arrest warrants for three suspects believed to be Turkish amid growing speculation that Thailand’s worst terrorist atrocity was conducted by a nexus of Turks and their fellow ethnic Turkic Uighurs. Prayuth Chan-o-cha, the prime minister, described the man as a "main suspect" in the deadly Bangkok bombing that claimed the lives of 20 people – six Thais and 14 ethnic Chinese tourists from other Asian countries. "It would be great if he were (the bomber). Then we will know who they are, where they came from, who's behind this," said Gen Prayuth, noting that the suspect resembled a yellow-shirted man seen in a surveillance video apparently planting the bomb. Experts investigating the Erawan shrine at the site of the deadly blast in central Bangkok, Thailand Experts investigating the Erawan shrine at the site of the deadly blast in central Bangkok, Thailand Photo: REUTERS Prawut Thavornsiri, the national police spokesman, said that investigators believed the suspect was "an important person in the network" behind the bombing. He also described him as appearing "similar" to the prime suspect captured on security camera footage. There have been no claims of responsibility for the August 17 atrocity or a second aborted bomb attack when a similar device was abandoned in a canal shortly afterwards and exploded with no casualties the next day. Immediate suspicion focused on Thailand’s domestic turmoil, a Muslim insurgency in the south and international Islamic terror groups. But the recent breakthroughs have now thrown attention on a possible link-up between Turkish-Uighur militants, notably a radical ultra-nationalist Turkish terror faction called the Grey Wolves, and human trafficking crime gangs. Thailand deported more than 100 Uighur men to China in July, despite widespread protests that they faced persecution there, and sent their wives and children to Turkey. The expulsions prompted violent anti-Thai protests in Turkey led by the Grey Wolves. Flames burn after the explosion in Bangkok Flames burn after the explosion in Bangkok Photo: AP The Erawan shrine is known to be popular with Chinese visitors as well as Thais. “It is important the security services recognise squarely that the Erawan atrocity was the not the fumbling revenge of a locally-based criminal gang facing a police "crackdown", but rather a well-planned and technically sophisticated international terrorist operation,” said Tony Davis, a respected Bangkok-based security analyst who first publicised the possible Grey Wolves connection. He said that the terror attack appeared to be a "joint venture" operation in which foreign-based "ideological" extremists teamed up with criminal gangs with a Bangkok network. Thai police have recently raided two Bangkok apartments containing troves of bomb-making paraphernalia – an indication that the network planned further attacks in the city. In the first raid, they detained a suspect who had about 200 fake Turkish passports. Bangkok is known to be a hub for gangs smuggling Uighurs from China via Thailand and Malaysia to Turkey with counterfeit paperwork. In another Turkish connection, the Thai Muslim woman renting the second apartment where explosive material was recovered was said be her family to be married to a Turk and to have moved to her husband’s homeland two months ago.
Suspected Belgian serial killer 'filmed himself murdering girlfriend' Police suspect eccentric Belgian who confessed to filming girlfriend's murder is a serial killer linked to actress attack Detectives in Belgium believe they have unearthed a serial killer after seizing a film he shot of himself beating his girlfriend to death. In his small home town of Malines, north of Brussels, Renaud Hardy, an eccentric 52-year old who always carried his camera over his shoulder, went by the nickname of “Renaud Le Fou” (Renaud the Madman). Officially caretaker of a sports hall, Hardy had been on sick leave for the past decade, spending much time taking pictures on his Canon around town. He offered to take studio shots of some women in his home and could turn aggressive when they refused. He had a few run-ins with locals for annoying them with his drone or remote-controlled car and was banned from the local bar after turning up with a giant photo he had taken of the owner's wife without her consent. In a more serious incident, this month he appeared in court on charges of shooting at a female cyclist with an air rifle. The naked corpse of Hardy's girlfriend, Linda Doms, was found two weeks ago in her bed with numerous marks suggesting she had been bludgeoned to death. Hardy was briefly taken in for questioning but released due to lack of proof. However, he later confessed to murdering Ms Doms to two friends. Police then raided his flat and found a memory card. To their horror, it contained footage of Hardy beating his girlfriend to death with a wooden stick in a clearly staged attack; he had made sure his GoPro camera was rolling beforehand in order to “review the scene”, according to Le Parisien newspaper. Detectives are reportedly now convinced they have a serial killer on their hands. After checking his DNA with other cases, they have linked him to the death of Maria Walshaerts, an 82-year-old who lived near Hardy and was found last year with a smashed skull. “The inquiry has allowed us to link the suspect to the murder,” said Nele Poelmans, spokesman for the local prosecutor. His recent air gun attack led them to reopen the unexplained case of Ann Bourgoin, a 38-year old mother shot dead by a small-calibre bullet in 2006 while riding her bike in the area. He is suspected of being behind the attempted murder of a 69-year old woman this month. Police are also looking into whether he may have been behind the violent attack of Veerle Eyckermans, a well-known Flemish actress who played Queen Paola in a recent TV series called Albert II. She was brutally beaten with an iron bar by a stranger who broke into her home in Hofstade in February. Hardy had lived in her village for a number of years. While he has admitted to murdering his girlfriend, Hardy denies being behind any of the other murders or attacks. “I’m struggling to come to terms with Parkinson’s disease and I acted out of frustration,” he told police during questioning. Along with the murder footage, police found child pornography and cocaine at his home. Detectives suspect he may have flown his drone over local gardens to hunt new victims.
Gentleman thief suspected of double statue heist Art thief suspected of stealing two valuable sculptures within a fortnight hunted by police. A 'gentleman' thief who is suspected have stolen a prized £40,000 Elizabeth Frink statue is believed to have taken a second £100,000 bronze just days after. The criminal was captured on CCTV stuffing the 1925 5.5ins by 14.5ins (14x37cms) statue by French sculptur Francois Pompon under his jacket at the Masterpiece Art Fair at the Royal Hospital Chelsea on July 1 this year. An assistant for the gallery selling the statue realised the piece was missing from its display plinth at about 1.30pm. It is believed that after the theft the man took a cab to the City where he was dropped off near Liverpool Street station. The prized £40,000 Elizabeth Frink statue The prized £40,000 Elizabeth Frink statue Detective Constable Pete O'Brien, from Kensington and Chelsea CID, said: "Security was immediately notified and subsequent CCTV enquiries shows the suspect taking the sculpture off the display and putting it under his jacket. He then left the building. "We know he left in a taxi which dropped him at Appold Street at the junction with Primrose Street near Liverpool Street station. "If you recognise the man or know of his whereabouts please contact police." A few days before the robbery another sneak thief stole a 40,000 Elisabeth Frink piece from the Beaux Arts Gallery in Mayfair. On that occasion the thief, described as a 6ft tall white male with greying hair chatted to the assistant on the morning of June 26th before returning just before closing. He was then caught on CCTV stuffing the Frink under a coat he was carrying before coolly walking out the door. Any witnesses to the theft of the panther are asked to call police.
Body found and suspect arrested in Spanish search for US hiker Denise Thiem from Arizona disappeared on Easter Sunday while walking the famed Camino de Santiago pilgrimage route in Spain Spanish police believe they have found the body of Denise Thiem, a US hiker who disappeared on the Camino de Santiago pilgrimage route, after arresting a 39-year-old male suspect in a bar in the country's north. According to sources from the investigation, a body in an extremely decomposed state was found at the home of the suspect, a Spanish man identified as Miguel Ángel M. B., following his arrest on Friday. The remains "seem to correspond to those of Denise and the man arrested (on Friday) could be the perpetrator," Interior Minister Jorge Fernandez Diaz told reporters on Saturday. Ms Thiem was 40 when she vanished near Astorga, a cathedral city in León province, on Easter Sunday, April 5. She had been inspired to walk the Camino de Santiago route after seeing the 2010 film The Way, in which Martin Sheen plays a man who decides to follow the path to Santiago de Compostela as a way to deal with his son's death. Her family in Arizona insisted that her disappearance was suspicious and appealed to the Spanish authorities to step up efforts to find her after an initial investigation failed to throw up any strong leads. Last month Arizona Senator John McCain wrote a letter to Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, asking him to allow the FBI to assist in the probe. A reply from Mr Rajoy which was leaked to the press did not address the offer, but on Thursday the chief of Spain's National Police force said finding Ms Thiem was “a priority case” as 300 officers were dispatched to comb the countryside outside Astorga. The police caught up with the suspect the next day in a bar in Grandes de Salime, a village in Asturias around 100 miles from his wooden prefab house near Castrillo de los Polvozares, just outside Astorga. Local residents described the suspect in the local press as a loner, who wandered in and out of the village wearing a balaclava. They said that he had not been seen in the past week. He is believed to have been involved in minor incidents involving female pilgrims on the route, and the police interviewed him shortly after Ms Thiem was reported as having gone missing. Sources from the investigation are reported as saying that the suspect changed $1,000 into euros at a bank shortly after the woman's disappearance. Ms Thiem gave up her job as an IT project manager in Phoenix, Arizona, late last year to travel around the world. She visited Asia countries before travelling to Europe. The hiker was about three-quarters of the way along the pilgrimage route when she was last seen at breakfast in a hostel in Astorga, where she talked to an Italian man before going to Easter Sunday Mass. “After Mass, she went on her way and he went on his way,” her brother, Cedric Thiem, told Fox News in June. Mr Thiem said he had been talking to his sister via Skype every other day during her travels so he quickly grew worried when the communication stopped. After appealing via social networks and via the US Embassy in Spain for information, Mr Thiem decided to fly to Spain two weeks after her disappearance, spending time in Astorga asking pilgrims and locals for information.
Dylann Roof pleads not guilty over church shooting Roof wants to plead guilty but is waiting until prosecutors declare if they will seek death penalty, court hears Charleston killer Dylann Roof holds a gun in pictures that accompany his racist manifesto Charleston shooting suspect Dylann Roof holds a gun in pictures that accompany his racist manifesto A white supremacist has pleaded not guilty to hate crime charges over the massacre of nine black churchgoers in South Carolina. Dylann Roof, 21, was in shackles when he appeared in court in Charleston six weeks after the shootings at Emanuel African Methodist Church on June 17. His lawyer David Bruck said Roof was ready to plead guilty, but prosecutors have yet to declare if they will seek the death penalty. He said: "Mr Roof has told us that he wishes to plead guilty. (But) until we know whether the government will be seeking the death penalty, we are not able to advise Mr Roof." Federal magistrate judge Bristow Marchant entered not guilty pleas. Marchant also heard briefly from victims' family members. Leroy Singleton, brother of victim Myra Thompson, said: "We don't hold no ill will. We're going to let the system work it out." Emanuel's interim pastor Norvel Goff told reporters outside court: "The process has started. This is a long journey, but we are committed to the task to make sure justice is done." Roof was arrested in North Carolina the day after the mass shooting whose victims included Emanuel's chief pastor. On a website attributed to him Roof espoused racist views towards African-Americans and posed with firearms and the Confederate battle flag. Roof is charged with nine murders and three attempted murders under hate crime laws. The massacre at the church shocked the United States and set off a nationwide conversation about race relations and gun control.
Nick Gordon accused of injecting Bobbi Kristina Brown with a 'toxic mixture' in new court filing Nick Gordon has been accused of injecting Bobbi Kristina Brown with a 'toxic mixture' before her death. The allegations have been made in a new filing in a $10million lawsuit against Nick, the former boyfriend of Whitney Houston's late daughter. Aspiring singer Bobbi died in July, almost six months after she was found unresponsive in a bathtub at her home in Georgia. Documents filed by Bobbi's conservator, seen by Entertainment Tonight, claim 22-year-old Bobbi died after "a violent altercation with defendant after which he placed her in the bathtub unconscious, after he injected her with a toxic mixture". Nick has previously furiously denied all allegations against him and called the wrongful death civil lawsuit "slanderous and merit-less". Getty Bobbi Kristina Brown and Nick Gordon Bobbi Kristina Brown and Nick Gordon Nick has not been arrested in connection with her death and has previously asked for the lawsuit to be dismissed. No comment has yet been made on the new claims, although gossip website TMZ report lawyers for Nick say the 'documents are just attention grabber to convict him in the public's eye'. Earlier this week Nick fired back at the Brown family for painting him as a "murderer", according to US reports. He asked a judge to delay the civil case because he believes it would force him to answer questions that could be used against him if criminal charges are filed in the future. Bobbi Kristina Brown and Nick Gordon According to legal documents, obtained by TMZ, Nick claims he would never get a fair trial if he's criminally prosecuted because the Brown family has painted him as "murderer, a habitual batterer of women, a seducer of young white females, a thief and/or con man fuelled by monetary gain, and a chemist capable of making a toxic cocktail." A source told People a grand jury is currently being put together in Georgia to decide whether or not to pursue criminal charges against Nick. The District Attorney also said: "The case remains open and under investigation. "Bobbi Kristina, 22, was found unresponsive in a bathtub at her home last January and suffered brain damage. She died in a hospice facility on July 26, but her official cause of death has been sealed." The Real Nick's legal team previously branded the lawsuit against him "slanderous." In a statement, they said: "The recent lawsuit against nick is slanderous and meritless. Nick has been heartbroken and destroyed over the loss of his love, and it's shameful that such baseless allegations have been presented publicly. "Nick has engaged civil counsel and intends to defend the lawsuit vigorously and expose it for what it is: a fictitious assault against the person who loved Krissy most."
Man accused of murdering two British backpackers in Thailand claims he was 'sexually tortured during a violent interrogation before being told to confess' Wei Phyo alleged police stripped him naked and flicked him in the groin 22-year-old also claimed senior officer persuaded him to confess to crime Wei and co-accused Zaw Lin have pleaded not guilty to the murders Hannah Witheridge and David Miller were killed on Kah Tao in september A Burmese man accused of murdering British backpackers Hannah Witheridge and David Miller has alleged police sexually tortured him during a violent interrogation. Wei Phyo told three judges at Koh Samui court that police stripped him naked in a very cold room and 'flicked' him in the groin 'very hard'. The 22-year-old also claimed it was a senior officer in plain clothes who persuaded him to confess. Wie Phyo, who is accused of murdering British backpackers Hannah Witheridge and David Miller, has alleged police sexually tortured him during a violent interrogation. He is pictured (rear) with his co-accused Zaw Lin, (front) Wie Phyo, who is accused of murdering British backpackers Hannah Witheridge and David Miller, has alleged police sexually tortured him during a violent interrogation. He is pictured (rear) with his co-accused Zaw Lin, (front) Wei has since pleaded not guilty to the murders. His co-accused Zaw Lin, also 22, has done the same. Wei told the judges yesterday: '[Police] left me naked and handcuffed in a freezing room for more than an hour and during that time a police officer came into the room and flicked me very hard. 'I tried to protect myself but he pulled my legs apart and then they took photographs of me naked.' He added that as police continued to try to force him to confess to the killings on neighbouring island Koh Tao they kicked him in the back, punched him and slapped him. He alleged: 'They threatened to chop off my arms and legs and throw my body into the sea to feed the fish. 'They also said they would push me into another room and electrocute me.' The British backpackers - Miss Witheridge, from Great Yarmouth in Norfolk, and Mr Miller, from Jersey - were killed on the island of Kah Tao in September The British backpackers - Miss Witheridge, from Great Yarmouth in Norfolk, and Mr Miller, from Jersey - were killed on the island of Kah Tao in September The British backpackers - Miss Witheridge, from Great Yarmouth in Norfolk, and Mr Miller, from Jersey - were killed on the island of Kah Tao in September Their semi-naked bodies were discovered on the beach (pictured) near rocks only 100 yards from bars and other buildings Their semi-naked bodies were discovered on the beach (pictured) near rocks only 100 yards from bars and other buildings Wei also claimed it was a senior officer in plain clothes who ultimately persuaded him to confess to the rape and murder of 23-year-old Miss Witheridge, from Great Yarmouth, and to the murder of Mr Miller, 24, from Jersey. He said: 'He told me I was young and I could just say I did it and just go to prison for several years. 'If I didn't say I did it I would certainly be killed. An interpreter said he could help me so I then signed many documents but I didn't know what they said.' Police and the translator then instructed him on how he should say he killed the British couple, he claimed. Prosecutors also told the court that a mobile phone, said to belong to Mr Miller, linked Wei to the murders. Wei, 22, also claimed it was a senior officer in plain clothes who persuaded him to confess Wei, 22, also claimed it was a senior officer in plain clothes who persuaded him to confess CCTV footage from the evening showed Miss Witheridge with a friend walking along a street near some bars CCTV footage from the evening showed Miss Witheridge with a friend walking along a street near some bars Wei said he had found the mobile, which was discovered near a house where he was staying, on Sairee beach and had taken it home but could not unlock it. He alleged that when he heard about the murders the following day he was worried the phone might be related to someone involved in the killings so his friend smashed the phone and tossed it into bushes near the house. Defence lawyers said the British embassy had not confirmed the phone belonged to Mr Miller. They added that this was because the case could end in a death sentence for the accused men and the UK was opposed to supporting charges that could result in prisoners being executed. The trial continues.
Cyclist accused of assaulting pregnant woman talks to police Investigators have yet to determine if charges will be recommended Cyclist accused of assaulting pregnant woman talks to police Mandy Pappas, who is five months' pregnant, says she was assaulted by a cyclist on Friday night. A man accused of assaulting a pregnant woman after he sped through a stop sign on his bike has spoken to investigators, according to Vancouver police. Mandy Pappas, who says she is five months pregnant, posted an account of the alleged assault on Facebook Friday night, and it soon went viral. In it, she wrote that she was on her way to vote at an advance poll when she was almost run over by a man on a bike as he blew through a stop sign without slowing down. She said she yelled that he had missed a stop sign, and “He stopped, turned his bike around and came directly for me, hit and knocked me over. I tried to hold on to his backpack to keep him at the scene after I got up but I wasn't able to.“ But a witness snapped a photo of her alleged attacker, and by Sunday morning it had been shared by more than 13,000 Facebook users. The man who appears in the photo came forward on Saturday and spoke with police, according to Vancouver police spokesman Const. Brian Montague. However, investigators have yet to determine if charges will be recommended. “There would have to be evidence to support a criminal charge for us to forward a report to Crown including some level of intent or negligence and charges, if any, would ultimately be the decision of Crown,” Montague wrote in an email. Pappas has since posted online that both she and the baby are fine. The investigation into the alleged attack is ongoing.
The criminal’s alphabet Can’t tell your turtles from your hotplate hamsters? Wise up with this indispensable guide to prison slang Porridge, prison comedy Fletcher (Ronnie Barker, on left), fellow prisoner Godber (Richard Beckinsale) and prison officer Mackay (Fulton Mackay) in the BBC television series, Porridge. Across the pavement To go across the pavement is criminal parlance for robbing banks and security vans. The Wembley Mob (a gang of bank robbers from the late 1960s and early 70s) pioneered the method of driving the getaway vehicle up on to the pavement outside a bank and blocking the entrance. They were known as a “crash-bang gang” – they would rely on the element of surprise by “crashing” the bank doors open and then firing a shotgun into the ceiling in order to elicit fear and compliance. April A weapon, as in April fool = tool. If a villain tells you he is going to sort you out with his April, don’t think: “Well, it’s only June now so I’ve got plenty of time.” It means they are going to get a weapon and intend to inflict serious injury on you. Baron An old-fashioned term for the prisoner who would run the black market on each prison wing. It dates back to the days when tobacco was the only currency in prison and whoever had access to large amounts of “snout” could virtually control their wing. Battle taxi Any police vehicle used to transport riot squad officers to an incident or protest; the name derives from the fact that the officers are hyped up and ready to face “the enemy”. Bed and breakfast A night in the punishment block before appearing in front of the governor for adjudication, or an overnight stay in any prison while en route to another one. Bilking The practice of eluding payment for goods or services by making a quick getaway. These days, it is mostly the preserve of motorised bandits and car thieves, who will pull into a petrol station, fill their tank with fuel and then drive off without paying. Bottle squad An undercover squad dedicated to investigating and catching pickpockets, who mingle with crowds in railway stations and shopping centres and try to catch them in the act. It’s known as the bottle squad because of the criminal slang for working pickpockets, “on the bottle”, meaning to follow someone closely (rhyming slang: bottle and glass = arse; “be on someone’s arse”). Budgie syndrome What a lot of those who regularly use the prison gym seem to suffer from. It’s a disease that makes them pose or parade up and down in front of the full-length mirrors, preening and chirping at their own reflection. Every prison gym will have a large cohort of body-builders who act as though they are on Muscle Beach, grunting and stretching and working out, but always with one eye on themselves in the mirror. Bujo/bag game A Gypsy fortune-telling con that goes back at least 200 years. It involves convincing the mark that their money has been cursed. They are told to seal it in a cloth bag and bring it to the elder, or shaman, in order for it to be blessed and have the curse lifted. During the “blessing” the money is secretly removed from the bag and replaced with worthless paper or stones. Charlie Big Spuds The generic insult for anyone who walks around giving it the Barry (Barry McGuigan = big ’un = acting in a cocky way), a bully who may have a tendency to fold when confronted. It’s particularly used in prisons, where some criminals try to reinvent themselves. Other forms are Billy Big Bollocks or Jack the Biscuit. Commy burgs Commercial burglars, the people who will break into warehouses, shops or factories in their pursuit of ill-gotten gains. Commy burgs are unlikely to come across anyone during their crime, so theirs is seen as an entirely impersonal offfence, acquisitive rather than violent. Copsicles A slang term for the new breed of police officers who patrol on bicycles, particularly apt in the winter months, when they have to brave the bad weather. Diesel Slang for prison tea. Made with one huge netting teabag in a copper boiler the size of the average family bath, weaker than a knock-kneed sparrow with emphysema and more bitter than a miser who has lost a penny down a bottomless well, prison tea is not for the faint-hearted. Drummer A word dating from the 1920s for a burglar who can get into places even when they are “as tight as a drum”. Houses are sometimes referred to as “drums”, as in “I went up to his drum but he wasn’t in.” If someone in prison were to tell you he was in for “drumming”, you shouldn’t therefore assume that he’s a percussionist. Ekky Another word for the police and comes from the fact that, when seen in the rear-view mirror of a vehicle, the “police” sign reads – ECILOP (“ekkylop”, which is shortened to ekky). Slang names for the police can be extremely localised and rarely heard beyond a specific manor or region. For example, in Streatham, south London, the police are known as “the shrubs” because Streatham police station is situated on Shrubbery Road. Fido An acronym (Fuck it, drive on) used by the police for any crime or offence they witness but deem unworthy of their attention. FTS Fuck the System is the common cry of the prisoner, and a common way of signing off jail mail to others in the same position. To British prisoners, “the system” is everything from straight society and the police to the courts and prison – one big mass which they believe is permanently against them. Growlers at the ready ... Keith Carradine in 'The Duellists'. Growlers An 18th-century criminal word for pistols, as in “I’d have been taken by the watchman if I’d not had my growlers with me.” Pistols were also known as barkers because of the noise they made when discharged. In those days, even burglars tended to carry at least one pistol: homeowners tended to dish out their own brand of justice when catching criminals in the act. Have it up! In the typical illegal street-trading team there will be the trader, the one who has the patter and does the selling, and the look-out, or “doggy’s” (doggy’s eye = spy). The doggy’s will hump the gear, help set up the pitch, then keep an eye out for police and trading standards officers. The warning cry of “Have it up!” means pack everything fast, the cops are coming. A cry of “Have it up!” on any criminal enterprise is cause for concern. Hobbit shop Almost every prison has a hobbit shop – a workshop where mind-numbing, repetitive work, such as putting washers on bolts or making prison brooms, can be undertaken for a wage of around 10p a day. Any prisoner with an ounce of self-respect will try to avoid the hobbit shop – only hobbits are happy to work there. Hotplate hamster A screw who wangles duty on the hotplate in order to eat prisoners’ rations rather than pay the price of a meal in the subsidised staff canteen. IC8 This is an addition to police identification codes – the shorthand for a person’s national or racial origin; it is code for a “ginger male”. Jekyll If something is classed as Jekyll, it means it is false, a fake, not the real thing. It is second-level rhyming slang: Jekyll and Hyde = snide = fake. Jiggling and scissoring Jiggling can be used on older vehicles, using a car key (pretty much any one will do) in a fast up-and-down and side- to-side action to catch the tumblers in motion – give it a sharp twist when you get a bite. Scissoring is using a large pair of stainless-steel scissors: insert the point into the lock, wrench them up and down to break the tumblers, give them a quick twist, and the lock should spring open. It should take no more than a few seconds. John Wayne This is prison-issue toilet paper, because it is so very tough, just like the cowboys played by the actor. Kanga Slang for a prison officer (kangaroo = screw). The word, is widely used in every prison in the country by cons. Little fellas A slang phrase for cigarette ends, the term is widely used in northern prisons, as in “Blimey, I’m dying for a smoke, you got any little fellas?” LOB Police acronym meaning “load of bollocks”, usually marked on forms and personal notebooks to indicate that the officer does not believe a word of what they are being told. Moon In prison moon is taken to mean “month”, as in “I see Jerry got three moon for that bit of work.” MOP A police acronym for “member of the public”, used as shorthand when filling in notebooks and reports. The police use many acronyms, and different forces often use their own local versions. MOP, however, is standard for the majority of, if not all, police forces. The cup that cheers ... hot chocolate. Non-stimulant pack This is issued to Mormons in the British prison system instead of the normal brew pack, which is given to those of all other religious denominations. It contains hot-chocolate powder and Ovaltine instead of teabags and coffee sachets. The packs are issued weekly in prison. The other people This term may be London specific, as I’ve never heard anyone from outside the Smoke using it. It’s a name for the police, as in “Don’t trust the geezer, I hear he’s been having a trade with the other people.” The Out This is how prisoners refer to the big world outside of the prison walls and fences, as in “I knew him on The Out”. The Out is where all prisoners long to be. And, yes, it should always have capital letters. Polo If someone tells you they are polo it means they have no money (rhyming slang: Polo mint = skint). Quack Probably from the Afrikaans kwaksalwer, meaning a “hawker of salve”, or somebody who sells medicines, this is a prison doctor. They are doctors, but not as you know them. Though it doesn’t apply to every one, in my own personal experience of more than three decades of imprisonment, the majority of prison doctors don’t really prioritise their bedside manner and are more interested in pleasing the governor than in easing pain or healing the sick. Most are prison officers who have taken a first aid course which entitles them to wear a white coat and work in the prison hospital, dispensing aspirin and plasters. They are not to be confused with real doctors. RTFL Used between police officers, this stands for “Read the fucking log” – an instruction for officers to familiarise themselves with the log recording what has been going on before they come on duty. Snow-droppers This means someone who makes a living by stealing clothes from washing lines (as opposed to someone who steals only underwear and who is known as a “pervert”). This crime was particularly prevalent in the Victorian era, when cotton and linen sheets were a pretty lucrative lay (criminal specialism). These days, snow-droppers usually go for designer clothing. Although it can be a fairly profitable crime, it is still way down on the scale of serious theft and is practised mainly by kids and amateurs. Touching dogs’ arses The charge of stealing cars used to be called TDA (Taking and Driving Away a motor vehicle), and young criminals found it amusing to insult amateur car thieves by saying they were into touching dogs’ arses. Amateur car thieves steal cars just for the fun of it. Don't forget the turtles ... Turtles If you are going to commit any sort of crime, the minimum you are going to need in order to avoid detection, arrest and imprisonment is a decent pair of turtles (turtle doves = gloves). Undies Undies is youth slang for undercover police officers. Unfortunately, the laws of the UK do not include a defence of agent provocateur (as does the law in some countries), so if a police officer (undercover or in plain sight) incites a citizen to commit a crime there would be no defence for that citizen. Watch out for the undies! Vegetable patch Some prisons do not have a specific room for the communal television and so it is placed centrally on the wing and prisoners must bring their cell chairs to sit on. This spread of chairs is usually known as the vegetable patch because it’s where the “vegetables” (those who want to watch) sit. When a prisoner ends up in the vegetable patch they are classed as a cabbage or Cabbage Patch Kid (after the freaky-looking American dolls of the 1980s), or as a hobbit. Whizzer/whiz mob These slang terms for a pickpocket have largely fallen out of vogue since their heyday in the 1940s and 50s. Whiz mobs used to work the crowds at racecourses, picking pockets then blending into the throng. The origin of “whiz” is uncertain, but some people say it’s to do with the speed with which these criminals could dip a crowd. You want some? The battle cry that has led to violence outside every pub, club and football ground and on every prison landing. It means: “Would you like me to nut you or punch you in the face, ’cos I’m ready for action?” It’s a warning not to be ignored. The “some” mentioned in this phrase is violence. You want some, or what? Again, a possible precursor to violence, but this time with a get-out clause. The antagonist, while ready and willing to offer violence, may also be looking for a way out and be open to a bit of verbal being the end result – as long as the target is suitably contrite. Zombie A zombie is what the police call an officer close to retirement and now merely going through the motions. It can also mean a lazy officer. Most police officers hate zombies with a passion, as they tend to make everyone else’s job harder.
ATF uses fake drugs, big bucks to snare suspects Targeting trigger pullers The U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives has locked up more than 1,000 people using controversial sting operations that entice suspects to rob nonexistent drug stash houses. See how the stings work and who they target. ATF stings that promise loads of easy money snared 1,000 would-be criminals, a USA TODAY investigation finds. These fake drug stashes have led to hard time, begging the question: Is this 'good law enforcement' or has the government gone too far? ROMEOVILLE, Ill. — The three men in the back seat were supposed to be ready for battle. They were waiting for a phone call that would launch a daring and dangerous crime, sending them charging through the front door of a Mexican drug ring's stash house to steal 50 pounds or more of cocaine from three armed guards. Their plan was to disguise themselves as police officers, tie up the guards, and slip away with a half-million dollars worth of drugs. If tying them up didn't work, they'd kill them all. Only the small army of federal agents watching them knew that it was all a lie. There was no house. No drugs. And the only things waiting for them when the call came were a team of camouflaged federal agents with rifles and stun grenades, and the promise of a long prison sentence for a plot to steal and re-sell non-existent cocaine. stash houses 6 The U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the agency in charge of enforcing the nation's gun laws, has locked up more than 1,000 people by enticing them to rob drug stash houses that did not exist. The ploy has quietly become a key part of the ATF's crime-fighting arsenal, but also a controversial one: The stings are so aggressive and costly that some prosecutors have refused to allow them. They skirt the boundaries of entrapment, and in the past decade they have left at least seven suspects dead. The ATF has more than quadrupled its use of such drug house operations since 2003, and officials say it intends to conduct even more as it seeks to lock up the "trigger pullers" who menace some of the most dangerous parts of inner-city America. Yet the vast scale of that effort has so far remained unknown outside the U.S. Justice Department. To gauge its extent, USA TODAY reviewed thousands of pages of court records and agency files, plus hours of undercover recordings. Those records — many of which had never been made public — tell the story of how an ATF strategy meant to target armed and violent criminals has regularly used risky and expensive undercover stings to ensnare low-level crooks who jump at the bait of a criminal windfall. “Do you want police to solve crimes, or do you want them to go out and prevent crimes that haven't occurred yet?” Former ATF supervisor David Chipman In many cases, the records show the ATF accomplished precisely what it set out to do, arresting men outfitted with heavy weapons and body armor, and linked to repeated, and sometimes bloody, crimes. In the process, however, the agency also scooped up small-time drug dealers and even people with no criminal records at all, including Army Rangers. It has offered would-be robbers the chance to score millions of dollars of cocaine for a few hours of work. In at least one case, the ATF had to supply its supposed armed robbers with a gun. The stings are the latest and perhaps clearest reflection of a broad shift by federal law enforcement away from solving crimes in favor of investigating people the government thinks are criminals. Such tactics are common in law enforcement's efforts to prevent terrorist attacks, but they are also becoming a staple of its fight against everyday street crime. Critics, among them federal judges, say the ATF's operations are flawed. In an opinion last year, Judge Richard Posner of the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago dismissed the drug-house stings as a "disreputable tactic" that creates "an increased risk of entrapment because of the potential for the extensive use of inducements and unrealistic temptations to encourage the suspects' criminal conduct." The stings work like this: When agents identify someone they suspect is ripping off drug dealers, they send in an undercover operative posing as a disgruntled courier or security guard to pitch the idea of stealing a shipment from his bosses. The potential score is almost always more than 5 kilograms of cocaine — enough drugs to fetch hundreds of thousands of dollars on the street, or to trigger sentences of 10 years or more in prison. When the target shows up ready to commit the robbery, he and anyone else he brings with him are arrested and charged with a raft of federal crimes, the most serious of which is conspiring to sell the non-existent cocaine. The arrests don't come cheap. A single case can go on for months and require dozens of federal agents and local police officers. Former ATF supervisor David Chipman, who left the agency last year, said the public deserves to know more about how the ATF is using its resources. "There are huge benefits, and there are huge downsides," he said. "Do you want police to solve crimes, or do you want them to go out and prevent crimes that haven't occurred yet? What are the things you're willing to do so that your kid doesn't get shot?" A CRACK DEALER AND A BIG SCORE William Alexander boasted that he was exactly the type of armed and dangerous criminal the ATF is after. He was an experienced drug robber, he told an undercover agent, and a chief of Chicago's notorious Four Corner Hustlers, who commanded 17 blocks on the city's west side and had men ready to kill at his command. “Are we supposed to wait for him to commit a (obscenity) murder before we start to target him as a bad guy?” Charlie Smith, ATF Alexander was 32 years old the afternoon in January 2011 when he first slid into the passenger seat of an undercover ATF agent's pickup in a 7-Eleven parking lot in Woodridge, Ill., one of the middle-class suburbs that sprawl out west of Chicago. Alexander, 5 feet tall, introduced himself as "Little." He was, by then, a career crack dealer and recent cosmetology school dropout, though he was also out of jail and off parole for the first time in his adult life. And while his record was long, it hardly identified him as dangerous. Most of the people the ATF arrested in drug-house stings last year — about 80% — already had criminal records that included at least two felony convictions before the agency targeted them. But 13% had never before been found guilty of a serious crime, and even some of those with long rap sheets had not been charged with anything that would mark them as violent. ATF officials reject the idea that they should focus only on people with violent records. "Are we supposed to wait for him to commit a (obscenity) murder before we start to target him as a bad guy?" said Charlie Smith, the head of ATF's Special Operations Division, which is responsible for approving each sting. "Are we going to sit back and say, well, this guy doesn't have a bad record? OK, so you know, throw him back out there, let him kill somebody, then when he gets a bad record, then we're going to put him in jail?" For all the times Alexander was arrested — court records list dozens — police never found him with a gun, and he was charged with a violent crime only once, after his girlfriend, Demonisha Winters, accused him of domestic battery. The charge was dropped a few weeks later, and Winters said in an interview that Alexander never hit her. What he did do was sell crack, though seldom more than a gram or two at a time. When Alexander was 18, police in Kokomo, Ind., caught him trying to flush two baggies of crack down an apartment toilet. Four years after that, Chicago police arrested him with a half-gram. The next year, they caught him with 10 baggies of crack. Two years later, they caught him carrying a gram of crack and a half-gram of heroin, worth about $40, according to police reports and court files. The ATF was about to offer him something much bigger. stash houses 2 The undercover agent, Andrew Karceski, introduced himself as Joe. He pulled his truck around the corner, cut the engine and flipped a switch to show Alexander a hidden compartment, called a "trap," commonly used for running drugs. "They promise you one thing, and they (obscenity), they make all the money, and I take all the (obscenity) risk," he said in an exchange captured on a blurry hidden-camera video. "They haven't paid me in two months now, and that's (obscenity)," he said. "It's just got to a point where I got to feed my kids, too, you know what I'm saying?" "You're (obscenity) right," Alexander replied. Then the agent laid out the basics of his proposal: Once a month, he said, his bosses had him pick up a load of cocaine from a house in the suburbs. They used a different house every time, always with two or three men inside, always armed. But the payoff would be big: "I know there's going to be (obscenity) in there. I know that," he said, a reference to drugs. "How much I can't guarantee, but I know there's going to be big (obscenity) in there. I've never seen cash, but I don't know." Alexander said it wouldn't be a problem. "I got guys I could just say, 'Go in there and shoot everybody.' I got guys that I'll say they're smart enough to know go in there and lay everybody down without hurting anybody. I know (obscenity) that will get it done," he said. "We'll plan it right," he promised. "We've got enough time." 'I CALL THIS GOOD LAW ENFORCEMENT' The ATF's drug-house stings began in Miami in the early 1990s. Drug cartels were moving huge quantities of cocaine through South Florida, creating rich targets for criminals brazen enough to try to poach the shipments. The robberies were turning into shootouts — or, worse, attacks on innocent people when the robbers got the wrong address — and ATF agents wanted a way to stop them. At first, agents actually set up fake drug houses, loaded with fake cocaine. When that led to car chases and shootings in residential neighborhoods, they adopted a fictional approach instead. The stings proliferated over the past decade. Last year, the ATF said it arrested 208 people in drug-house operations, compared with 41 a decade earlier. Most of the operations took place in Miami, Chicago, Phoenix and a few other cities, though court records show the ATF has conducted them in at least 22 states. At the same time, the ATF dispatched agents around the country to teach the technique to other local and federal police agencies, including the U.S. Border Patrol. As drug-house operations became more common, the agency issued a confidential order laying down the ground rules for conducting them. Officials instructed agents to make sure Justice Department lawyers would be willing to prosecute "home invasion" cases, and told them to try other techniques first, including executing search warrants. Most of the rules covered the tactical details of safely arresting the suspects. The undated manual, a copy of which was obtained by USA TODAY, included no guidelines for selecting appropriate targets. ATF spokesman Mike Campbell said the agency has since updated the rules; ATF would not provide a copy. He said the agency's tactics have been approved by ATF lawyers and federal prosecutors; each operation must also be reviewed by field supervisors and senior officials in Washington who can shut it down if it's clear to them the targets aren't armed robbers. "We lay out the scenario. So if they're not career robbers, I'm not for that," said Richard Marianos, an assistant ATF director who supervised some of the investigations when he led the agency's Washington field office. Distinguishing drug robbers from loudmouths isn't easy. Drug dealers seldom report robberies to the police, so few of the robberies are investigated, let alone solved. Agents rely instead on scraps of intelligence gathered from informants (usually other criminals), convicts, 911 calls, neighborhood complaints and local police to identify and target robbery crews. A year after the ATF arrested Alexander's crew, for example, one of its informants arranged a meeting at a Baltimore train station with two men whom city police believed to be "armed drug traffickers." One of them, Edward Ellis, had been convicted a decade earlier of armed robbery; the other, Corey Barnes, had been convicted only of street-level drug sales. The informant told them they could score up to 15 kilograms of cocaine (easily worth more than $300,000). "You can't beat free money," Ellis replied, according to court records. “I call this good law enforcement.” U.S. District Court Judge James Bredar The informant warned them that the guards would be armed, but Ellis said they would be ready. "We got some artillery; it's just making sure you got the right artillery for the job," he said. "We ain't coming with just two handguns when a (obscenity) need more than that." But when it was time for the robbery two weeks later, none of the would-be robbers could find a car. They paid a friend to drive them. Two had pistols; a third man showed up armed with a pellet gun, according to court records. Ellis was sentenced in April to eight years and four months in federal prison. His lawyer, Tamara Theiss, told the judge that as the case unfolded, it had become clear that the men had to go out and find weapons to use during the robbery, suggesting that if they were robbers, they were not actually armed until after the ATF approached them. "This was simply an overwhelming temptation," she said, involving "a great deal of money … in a relatively easy way." The ATF's stings "are intended to ensnare the worst of the worst, the most dangerous people in society. It's clear that they ensnared someone very different," she said. U.S. District Court Judge James Bredar cut her off. "In our society, what we say is the touchstone of culpability is what's in your mind, what did you intend to do," he told Ellis. People who kill by accident generally aren't punished; people who plan to kill but don't are. "No actual crime was committed, nor could it have been," but Ellis nonetheless "demonstrated a propensity to commit a very serious offense," Bredar said. "This is a city where violence is rampant and the government is bound to undertake operations like this to find and stop those who are predisposed to this," said Bredar. "I call this good law enforcement." A HALF-MILLION DOLLARS OF COCAINE Alexander met the undercover agent again in early February 2011, climbing into the passenger seat of the agent's pickup in the parking lot of his apartment complex. He had a plan: When the agent went inside to pick up his regular shipment of cocaine, Alexander and his crew would follow close behind him, guns drawn. They could tie up the guards, Alexander said. Or they could start shooting. "If you want us to get rid of 'em, (obscenity) get rid of them, too," he said. "It's whatever. … You just said as long as we get in and get out we good, right?" Right, the agent said — especially if they got to the house early, before other couriers had a chance to pick up their own shipments. "When I get there early, there's a stack. There's 20 — 20, 30 40 (kilos). There's a ton if I'm first," he said. But to get it, the agent reminded him, they'd have to get past two or three armed men. "You were saying revolver, man," the agent said, turning the conversation back to the guns the robbers would need. "You get on anything else? You were talking you're trying to get something a little better than that. … Find anything?" stash houses 5 Alexander paused. "Tools? Nah," he said, referring to guns. But it wouldn't be a problem. A friend of his would be coming down to meet them in a few minutes, and he had the guns they needed, Alexander said. But he seemed more interested in talking about the money. Alexander predicted he could unload 1-kilogram bricks of cocaine quickly for $20,000 to $22,000, putting the value of the heist at between $400,000 and $880,000. He said he could make even more by cooking it into crack and selling it on the street. Alexander looked around and wondered what was taking his friend so long to show up. What happens if the police roll through and see them talking, he asked. "Nothing against the law about talking," the agent said. DOES IT GO TOO FAR? Federal courts have largely approved of the ATF stings, though some have also expressed unease. “... If these guys have an opportunity and we can knock that off before it gets to that, it's better for us.” Charlie Smith, ATF A little more than three months after agents first approached Alexander, for example, a federal appeals court in Chicago called the stings "tawdry," saying the ploy "seems to be directed at unsophisticated, and perhaps desperate, defendants who easily snap at the bait." The judges faulted agents for violating their own rules about recording meetings, but ultimately rejected the idea that the stings amount to entrapment. Entrapment is a narrow concept. The government can't pressure an innocent person to commit a crime. But it can — and routinely does — offer people who are predisposed to crime the opportunity to commit one. Police agencies have been conducting sting operations for decades to ensnare child abusers, drug dealers, even congressmen, though the drug-house stings rely more heavily on fiction than most. "It wears me out when you hear people sit there and say, 'Well, you created the dope,' " Smith, ATF's special operations chief, said. "Yeah, you know what? In this scenario, we did. And thank God we did. Because you know what? Now because of the fact that we did create this, my home, the home next door to me … isn't going to get their door kicked in looking for drugs that may have existed or maybe didn't exist because they had the wrong address. So when are we going to start sitting back and realizing, hey, if these guys have an opportunity and we can knock that off before it gets to that, it's better for us." Still, the combination of the fictional nature of the crimes and the government's reliance on confidential informants to help entice prospective robbers has caused problems. In one case, an ATF informant named David Villamonte testified that he targeted a Florida man named Cassio Slowden for a drug-house sting after parking next to him at a gas station and chatting about prison tattoos. "By his demeanor, I could tell he was young, and that he was involved in the elements," Villamonte said. When Slowden told him he had some marijuana to sell, Villamonte concluded he must have stolen it. Slowden's lawyer argued that he had been entrapped; a jury acquitted him of federal drug and weapons charges last year. Another informant, Victor Bugarin, testified that he spoke to a suspected San Diego drug robber named Thomas Johnson only a few times before enticing him to participate in a 30-kilogram cocaine heist. Confronted with phone records showing he'd been making repeated phone calls to Johnson over more than four months, the informant admitted that his story was "apparently not" true. Johnson said he went through with the robbery plan only because Bugarin said he needed the money to keep from being evicted. A jury last year acquitted him of all but one charge; the remaining count is on appeal. The ATF's Marianos said such conduct is not allowed. "We have many of these cases where we've stood down and said we're not going to do this because this informant is way off the playbook here," he said. Other cases were abandoned because supervisors thought the targets were inappropriate, he said. Acquittals are uncommon. USA TODAY was able to track 512 completed prosecutions; among those, juries acquitted 22 people, because jurors either thought that they had been entrapped or weren't convinced that they had been involved enough to be part of the conspiracy. At least 89 other prosecutions are still pending in federal court. William Alexander is shown meeting with an undercover ATF agent to discuss how he could rob a drug stash house in 2011. William Alexander is shown meeting with an undercover ATF agent to discuss how he could rob a drug stash house in 2011. ATF William Alexander, center, and two other suspects go over the details of a planned stash house robbery. Alexander doesn't know that the stash house doesn't exist and that he and his accomplices will soon be arrested as part of an ATF sting. William Alexander, center, and two other suspects go over the details of a planned stash house robbery. Alexander doesn't know that the stash house doesn't exist and that he and his accomplices will soon be arrested as part of an ATF sting. ATF William Alexander, left, and Devin Saunders put their hands up as a team of heavily armed ATF agents surrounds them at the conclusion of a sting operation. William Alexander, left, and Devin Saunders put their hands up as a team of heavily armed ATF agents surrounds them at the conclusion of a sting operation. ATF William Alexander and his two accomplices were arrested with a single gun, a five-shot revolver that an ATF report concluded had been manufactured before 1918. The gun was unloaded; agents found ammunition in a van in which the suspects were transported after they were arrested, but the bullets were the wrong size for the gun. William Alexander and his two accomplices were arrested with a single gun, a five-shot revolver that an ATF report concluded had been manufactured before 1918. The gun was unloaded; agents found ammunition in a van in which the suspects were transported after they were arrested, but the bullets were the wrong size for the gun. ATF Hugh Midderhoff is arrested after an ATF sting in which he plotted to rob a non-existent drug stash house. Midderhoff has pleaded guilty but has not yet been sentenced. Hugh Midderhoff is arrested after an ATF sting in which he plotted to rob a non-existent drug stash house. Midderhoff has pleaded guilty but has not yet been sentenced. ATF Devin Saunders is arrested as part of an ATF sting. The operation targeted a non-existent drug stash house. He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to seven years and nine months in prison. Devin Saunders is arrested as part of an ATF sting. The operation targeted a non-existent drug stash house. He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to seven years and nine months in prison. ATF William Alexander, who told ATF agents he was a chief in Chicago's notorious Four Corner Hustlers gang, was arrested in an ATF sting. If convicted, he faces at least 25 years in prison. William Alexander, who told ATF agents he was a chief in Chicago's notorious Four Corner Hustlers gang, was arrested in an ATF sting. If convicted, he faces at least 25 years in prison. ATF 'I WAS SUPPOSED TO BE PREPARED, MAN' The day before Alexander was to commit the robbery, the ATF agent pulled into the parking lot of his apartment building to go over the plan one more time. Alexander asked him to come upstairs while he and a friend smoked marijuana. The agent declined. Then Alexander asked for a ride to a store so they could pick up some police costumes. Later, the agent said. Did they have the pistols all lined up, he asked? "Ah, yeah," Alexander replied and bit at his fingernails. "I'm gonna get on top of that today, though." "I'm saying, man, if it's gonna be half-assed, let's just blow it off and not (obscenity) do it and wait," the agent said. "This is a one-time deal, dude." Another man, Hugh Midderhoff, 18, sat in the back seat, wrapped in a checkered jacket and big black hat. Like Alexander, he had a criminal record, including an arrest for possessing his neighbor's stolen television, but none of the charges were related to guns. "Hey, we can get another banger," he said to the agent. "That ain't going to be (obscenity)." The agent told them he would know the next day where to pick up his drug shipment. They would meet again at lunchtime so they could be ready when the call came. Nine minutes before noon the next day, Alexander called to say he still did not have enough guns. He was going to meet a friend to "grab the extra utensils," he said. A half-hour later, Alexander called again. He couldn't get any more guns. "I was supposed to be prepared, man. I been waiting for this day all this time," he said. But he was undeterred. "I'm willing to go, man. I'll do it." The agent was quiet for a minute. "Let me call you right back, man, and see what I can come up with," he said. He called back a few minutes later. His cousin had another pistol they could borrow, the agent said. "He got one of those things," the agent said. "He could give it to you guys, and he'll just be in the car as you guys do your thing." The robbery was on. 'POLICE. POLICE.' The agent and another officer posing as his cousin picked Alexander up outside his apartment. Midderhoff and another accomplice, Devin Saunders, joined him. Saunders packed a revolver into a locked compartment in the back of the agents' pickup truck, next to the pistol that the ATF supplied, and the suspects piled into the back seat. Saunders pulled on a mask and gloves. The agents drove them 6 miles to a parking lot in a tiny forest preserve sandwiched between warehouses and trucking companies where they said they could wait for the call that would tell them the location of the stash house. On the way, they went over the plan one last time; the agents confirmed that everyone knew what they were getting into, exchanges captured by a camera hidden on the dashboard. When they got to the preserve, one of the agents said he needed to make sure his car was locked and disappeared. A minute later, the other answered his phone and climbed out into the parking lot to take the call. Alexander sat in the back seat, talking on a cellphone with a girlfriend who was trying to follow them in a taxi. A few seconds later, he saw something and lowered the phone. "Police," he said softly and pointed out the window. "Police." Then came the boom of a pair of stun grenades that shook the truck as a team of agents in camouflage and olive body armor rushed toward them, rifles raised. "Out of the car," one yelled, as agents yanked the three men one at a time onto the asphalt. The process took less than 30 seconds. William Alexander, left, and Devin Saunders put their hands up as a team of heavily armed ATF agents surrounds them at the conclusion of a sting operation. Those seconds are the most dangerous and costly step of a drug-house sting. They are dangerous because, if everything goes the way agents expect, they will be confronting a crew of heavily armed men amped up to commit an especially violent crime. To deal with that risk, the ATF steers the takedowns to remote places such as forest preserves or warehouses where it's easier to take suspects by surprise and where stray bullets won't endanger the public. Then it assembles a small army of federal agents and local police officers. Smith said he recalled one pre-arrest briefing with 170 officers. Court records show ATF agents and local police officers working with them have shot at least 13 people during takedowns in drug-house stings since 2004, killing at least seven of them. Six were killed by local police officers conducting sting operations as part of an ATF task force. Most came after suspects fired at police or tried to run them down with cars. Four months after Alexander was arrested, a Miami-Dade Police Department SWAT team shot and killed four members of a robbery crew after they showed up at a house they thought was packed with marijuana. One of the dead was the police informant who arranged the phony robbery. "He did it out of his own good, and he got killed for it," his brother, Rudy Betancourt, said. "He planned his funeral." THE 15-YEAR MARK By the time agents had Alexander in handcuffs, the ATF had spent more than a month investigating him. It was clear by then the agents weren't the only ones who had been lying. Despite his promises of a police-style raid, Alexander and the others had brought no police uniforms or handcuffs. And despite his boasts that he was a gang chief who had men ready to kill at his command, he and his accomplices had managed to come up with only a single gun, a rusted five-shot revolver with a broken handle, old enough that an ATF report concluded it had been made sometime before World War I. The report confirmed the gun could have been lethal with the right kind of ammunition, but the men didn't have that, either. The six bullets they brought were the wrong size and, when loaded, would slide harmlessly out the front. In court, though, none of that matters. The drug-house stings are engineered to produce long prison sentences, and they typically do precisely that. Using court records, USA TODAY identified 484 people convicted as a result of the stings, though there are almost certainly others. Two-thirds were sent to prison for more than a decade, a sentence longer than some states impose for shootings or robberies. At least 106 are serving 20-year sentences, and nine are serving life. It's the drugs — though non-existent — that make that possible because federal law usually imposes tougher mandatory sentences for drugs than for guns. The more drugs the agents say are likely to be in the stash house, the longer the targets' sentence is likely to be. Conspiring to distribute 5 kilograms of cocaine usually carries a mandatory 10-year sentence — or 20 years if the target has already been convicted of a drug crime. “When you go in there and you stamp him out with a 15-to-life sentence, you make an impact in that community.” Charlie Smith, ATF That fact has not escaped judges' notice. The ATF's stings give agents "virtually unfettered ability to inflate the amount of drugs supposedly in the house and thereby obtain a greater sentence," a federal appeals court in California said in 2010. "The ease with which the government can manipulate these factors makes us wary." Still, most courts have said tough federal sentencing laws leave them powerless to grant shorter prison terms. To the ATF, long sentences are the point. Fifteen years "is the mark," Smith said. "You get the guy, you get him with a gun, and you can lock him up for 18 months for the gun. All you did was give this guy street creds," Smith said. "When you go in there and you stamp him out with a 15-to-life sentence, you make an impact in that community." That emphasis has led to another significant shift for ATF. Over the past decade, the total number of people prosecuted in weapons cases as a result of its investigations has dropped by about 28%, according to records compiled by Syracuse University's Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse. The number of people charged by the agency with drug offenses jumped 26%. Prosecutors typically classify cases based on the charges likely to produce the longest sentence. The ATF and federal prosecutors declined to comment on Alexander's case. Unless he strikes a deal with prosecutors, Alexander is facing a minimum of 25 years in federal prison — and maybe more, based on the quantity of drugs he planned to steal and his long rap sheet. Saunders, whose participation in the plot lasted only a few hours, was sentenced to seven years and nine months in prison. He signed on, he said in an e-mail to USA TODAY, because "the money was tempting." Midderhoff has agreed to plead guilty and cooperate with the government; he won't be sentenced until Alexander's case is resolved. His lawyer, James Young, declined to comment. Alexander's lawyer, Michael Falconer, said he wouldn't be opposed to the drug-house stings if he thought the ATF could make sure they were aimed only at people who were already ripping off drug dealers. "But on some level," he said, "it's Orwellian that they have to create crime to prevent crime." In a controversial and aggressive program, the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives has sent hundreds of people to prison for plotting to rob drug stash houses.
Suspect in shooting of San Francisco tourist has extensive criminal record Francisco Sanchez has seven felony convictions and has been deported five times, according to a federal agency Francisco Sanchez US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) had turned Sanchez over to authorities in San Francisco on 26 March on an outstanding drug warrant, agency spokeswoman Virginia Kice said. A man suspected in the shooting death of a woman at a busy San Francisco tourist destination has seven felony convictions and has been deported five times, most recently in 2009, a federal agency said on Friday. Related: Donald Trump links shooting death in San Francisco with border control The case provided further fuel for the Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, who on Friday claimed it was “yet another example of why we must secure our border immediately”. Trump has been condemned by Hispanic leaders, the Mexican government and some other 2016 hopefuls, for a series of derogatory remarks about illegal immigrants to the US. “This is an absolutely disgraceful situation and I am the only one that can fix it,” the billionaire developer and television personality said. “Nobody else has the guts to even talk about it.” US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) had turned Francisco Sanchez over to authorities in San Francisco on 26 March on an outstanding drug warrant, agency spokeswoman Virginia Kice said. He was booked into the San Francisco County jail from federal prison, according to a statement from the San Francisco sheriff’s department, which operates the jail. Police officers arrested Sanchez about an hour after Wednesday’s seemingly random shooting dead of Kathryn Steinle at Pier 14 – one of the busiest attractions in the city. People gather there to take in the views, joggers exercise and families push strollers at all hours. Sanchez was on probation for an unspecified conviction, police sergeant Michael Andraychak said on Thursday. Kice said ICE issued a detainer for Sanchez in March, requesting notification of his release and that he stay in custody until immigration authorities could pick him up. The detainer was not honored, she said. Freya Horne, counsel for the sheriff’s office, said Friday that federal detention orders are not a legal basis to hold someone, so Sanchez was released 15 April. San Francisco is a sanctuary city, and local money cannot be spent to cooperate with federal immigration law. The city does not turn over people who are in the country illegally unless there’s an active warrant for their arrest, she said. Horne said they checked and found none. ICE could have issued an active warrant if they wanted the city to keep him, she said. “It’s not legal to hold someone on a request to detain. This is not just us. This is a widely adopted position,” Horne said. Steinle was gunned down while out for an evening stroll with her father along the waterfront. Police said witnesses heard no argument or dispute before the shooting, suggesting it was a random attack. Liz Sullivan told the San Francisco Chronicle the killing of her daughter was unbelievable and surreal. “I don’t think I’ve totally grasped it,” Sullivan said. Police sergeant Michael Andraychak said witnesses snapped photos of Sanchez immediately after the shooting, and the images helped police make the arrest while he was walking on a sidewalk a few blocks away. Police were still waiting for fingerprint identification on Sanchez, who is believed to be a 45-year-old whose last address was in Texas. Authorities said he does not yet have a lawyer who could be reached for comment. Sullivan told the Chronicle that her 32-year-old daughter turned to her father after she was shot and said she didn’t feel well before collapsing. “She just kept saying, ‘Dad, help me, help me,’” Sullivan said. Her father immediately began CPR before paramedics rushed the woman to the hospital. “She fought for her life,” Sullivan said. Steinle went to high school and previously lived about 40 miles east of San Francisco, the newspaper said. She recently moved just blocks from the waterfront and worked for a medical technology company.
David Petraeus facing possible criminal charges – reports General who quit as head of CIA after extramarital affair has been investigated over lover’s possible access to classified material David Petraeus, the former CIA director, could face criminal charges, according to reports. David Petraeus, the former CIA director, could face criminal charges, according to reports. Photograph: S Sabawoon/EPA The US justice department is reported to be weighing up criminal charges against David Petraeus stemming from an investigation of whether the former CIA director gave a lover access to classified information. The New York Times on Friday quoted an unnamed official as saying prosecutors had recommended felony charges against the former general, who quit his CIA post in 2012 after admitting he had an affair with Paula Broadwell, an army reserve officer, while she was writing his biography. The Associated Press later similarly reported that charges were being considered, quoting its own confidential source. Federal investigators have been looking into whether Petraeus provided classified information to his biographer. A lawyer for Petraeus declined to comment on Friday night, as did the justice department and the FBI. The justice department investigation has focused on whether Petraeus gave Broadwell access to his CIA email account and other highly classified information. A recommendation to prosecute would leave the US attorney general, Eric Holder, with a decision to make on whether to seek an indictment against Petraeus, one of the leading US military commanders in recent times, having served as commander of American forces in both Iraq and Afghanistan. The Times reported that Petraeus had indicated to the justice department he was not interested in a plea deal that would enable him to avoid a trial. Petraeus has said he did not provide classified information to Broadwell. Senator John McCain of Arizona, a leading Republican voice on national security issues and an ally of Petraeus, in December sent a letter to Holder expressing concern about the justice department’s handling of the investigation. “I cannot ignore the broader concerns raised by the fact that this investigation apparently remains unresolved nearly two years later and that the only information that has come to light is through leaks by unnamed sources within the US intelligence community with knowledge of the matter,” McCain wrote. An FBI spokesman declined comment on the Times report. Reuters and the Associated Press contributed to this report
Vladimir Katriuk, alleged Nazi war criminal, dies in Canada Ukrainian-born beekeeper, who was charged with genocide in absentia by Russia for alleged involvement in 1943 Khatyn massacre, dies after long illness. The second most wanted man on the Simon Wiesenthal Centre’s list of Nazi war criminals has died at 93 after a long illness, his lawyer has said. News of Vladimir Katriuk’s death emerged several hours after the Canadian Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs said Ottawa should take the necessary steps to ensure he be held accountable if he were found guilty of war crimes. Russia charged Katriuk with genocide this month in connection with the 1943 killing of civilians in Khatyn, now part of Belarus. According to war reports, Katriuk was a member of a Ukrainian battalion of the SS, the elite Nazi storm troops, between 1942 and 1944. He had denied the accusations against him. The Russian embassy in Ottawa called on the Canadian government a few weeks ago to support a criminal case against Katriuk. The Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation, a law enforcement body that reports only to President Vladimir Putin, called on Canada to deliver Katriuk to Moscow so he could be tried for alleged war crimes. Canada ignored the request and said it would never recognise Moscow’s annexation of Crimea and its interference in Ukraine. A study three years ago alleged Katriuk was a key participant in a village massacre during the second world war. A man with Katriuk’s name lay in wait in March 1943 outside a barn that had been set ablaze, operating a machine-gun and firing on civilians as they tried to flee the burning building, it said. “One witness stated that Katriuk was a particularly active participant in the atrocity: he reportedly lay behind the stationary machine-gun, firing rounds on anyone attempting to escape the flames,” the study by Lund University historian Per Anders Rudling says. Rudling, whose research was published in spring 2012 issue of Holocaust and Genocide Studies, attributed these details to KGB interrogations released for the first time in 2008. Katriuk allegedly deserted his SS unit when it moved to France from eastern Europe in 1944. He lived in Paris before moving to Canada in 1951, according to court documents. He later became a Canadian citizen and lived with his French-born wife in Ontario, working as a beekeeper. In 1999, Canada’s federal court ruled Katriuk obtained Canadian citizenship under false pretences, by not telling authorities about his collaboration with the Nazis, but could find no evidence he committed atrocities. In 2007, the Harper cabinet decided not to revoke his citizenship.
How Nazi guard Oskar Gröning escaped justice in 1947 for crimes at Auschwitz Exclusive: UN war crimes files reveal that SS guard Gröning faced trial after the war for his role in the Holocaust but US cold war fears led to Nazis being released SS Unterscharführer Oskar Gröning. His UN War Crimes Commission file shows that he was one of 300 Auschwitz staff whom the Polish government intended to prosecute for ‘complicity in murder and ill-treatment’ at Auschwitz. SS Unterscharführer Oskar Gröning. His UN War Crimes Commission file shows that he was one of 300 Auschwitz staff whom Poland intended to prosecute. Owen Bowcott in London and Kate Connolly in Berlin Oskar Gröning, the convicted Auschwitz death camp guard, escaped prosecution in Britain nearly 70 years ago because of the United States’ desire to fight the cold war, according to newly discovered documents. Researchers in London combing through the archives of the UN War Crimes Commission (UNWCC) have discovered that charges against him were being prepared just as the entire judicial process against Germans accused of committing war crimes was closed down after political intervention from above. Gröning escaped justice until this week when the former SS bookkeeper at Auschwitz, now aged 94, was finally found guilty of being an accessory to the murder of 300,000 people and sentenced to four years in prison. It is likely to be one of the last Holocaust trials. Related: 'Accountant of Auschwitz' jailed for the murder of 300,000 Jews Although he did not kill anyone while working at the camp in Nazi-occupied Poland during the second world war, prosecutors argued that by sorting banknotes taken from the trainloads of arriving Jews he helped support a regime responsible for mass murder. Gröning had admitted moral guilt but said it was up to the court to decide whether he was legally guilty. The trial raised the issue of whether those deemed to be small cogs in the Nazi machinery, but who did not actively participate in the killing of 6 million Jews, were guilty of crimes. British forces captured Gröning in Germany at the end of the war and, probably as an act of revenge, initially imprisoned him in an old Nazi concentration camp. The historian Laurence Rees recorded that he was shipped to England in 1946. Gröning worked as a forced labourer but reportedly “ate good food and earned money to spend”. He joined a YMCA choir and “for four months travelled through the Midlands and Scotland giving concerts”. Rees wrote that he “sang German hymns and traditional English folk songs” to appreciative British audiences who competed to have one of the Germans stay with them overnight. Justice, however, was attempting to catch up with him. Records discovered by Dan Plesch, the director of the centre for international studies and diplomacy at Soas, University of London, show that Gröning’s name appears in UNWCC files dated 6 March 1947. Gröning’s entry in the UNWCC file, listing him as a camp guard. Gröning’s entry in the UNWCC file, listing him as a camp guard. He is described as SS Unterscharführer, which translates as junior squad commander and roughly equates to senior corporal or sergeant. His date of birth is given as 10 June 1921. The “date and place of alleged crime” is entered as Auschwitz 1940-45. The words “complicity in murder and ill-treatment” are written underneath. Gröning’s war crime is recorded as “common design” – the term used by investigators at the time to denote conspiracy in acts said to include “killings, death by gas chamber, cremations of living persons and corpses, use of human beings as guinea pigs for medical experimentation … beatings, tortures, starvation, abuse and indignities”. His file number, 4771/P/G/139-137, shows that he was number 137 in a list of 300 Auschwitz staff whom the Polish government intended to prosecute for war crimes. Another recovered document is the minutes of a UNWCC meeting held at the Royal Courts of Justice in London on 20 March 1947. It considered, among other cases, those of the 300 Auschwitz staff on the list drawn up by Dr Marian Muszkat, the commission’s Polish representative. Gröning was one of those listed in the proceedings as “S” – meaning suspect. “The commission was making a prima facie judgment as to whether there was a case to answer,” explained Plesch, who has examined the files. “The prosecution was required to give evidence of what the defence [in that category of cases] would be. It wrote: ‘Probable defence that they are acting under orders.’” Oskar Gröning listens to the verdict at his trial in Lüneburg, Germany. He was convicted on 300,000 counts of accessory to murder and given a four-year sentence. Oskar Gröning listens to the verdict at his trial in Lüneburg, Germany. He was convicted on 300,000 counts of accessory to murder and given a four-year sentence. The secret archive, now at Soas, contains lists of internationally approved war crimes indictments of tens of thousands of Nazis. Sixteen states, including the UK and US, worked together in London on the investigation of more than 36,000 international criminal cases between 1943 and 1948. “Gröning’s name popped up when I searched,” Plesch said. The process of drawing up a formal summons against the captured camp guard, however, coincided with diplomatic manoeuvres to wind down the UNWCC. On 24 April 1947, Sir Robert Craigie, a Foreign Office official who was present at the meeting the previous month that considered Gröning’s case, announced that the commission should not take any more cases. “The priority became to rebuild Germany,” Plesch said. Consequently, a decision was taken, despite fierce opposition by countries such as Poland and Yugoslavia, to release SS suspects being held. Even though Gröning was indicted as a suspected war criminal almost 70 years ago, he was never tried at the time. “The grand lie is that we never knew anything” about these Nazi suspects, Plesch said. “The dangerous myth is that nothing was ever done except against the Nazi leadership at Nuremberg war trials, but there was a huge effort by many countries that would have seen the likes of Gröning face trial, had it not been for the shift in policy from America. “It was said that the west had to release these Nazis to mobilise Germany against communism but why that mobilisation should involve Nazis has never been explained. Mothers with their children step off the train bringing them to the Auschwitz-Birkenau death camp in Nazi-occupied Poland. Mothers with their children step off the train bringing them to the Auschwitz-Birkenau death camp in Nazi-occupied Poland. “The British were not keen to pick arguments with the Americans. The last attempt at pursuing justice was a hunt for the camp guards responsible for executing the Allied inmates who took part in the ‘Great Escape’ from Stalag Luft III. “By that stage no one was going to prosecute minnows like Gröning. He went back to Germany and was released.” By the early 1950s, virtually all of those being held had been set free. Another victim of the sudden ideological obsession with the cold war was the film made by Alfred Hitchcock about Bergen-Belsen concentration camp. It was never shown when completed due to fear of upsetting the Germans at a time when the Soviet spectre was looming. “Gröning should have been punished at the time,” Plesch added. “It was a mistaken policy that anti-communism meant liberating the Nazis.” One of the photographs on this article was replaced on 17 July 2015.
Jury finds man guilty of pushing wife off cliff during hike on anniversary Harold Henthorn, 59, guilty of first-degree murder in the death of Toni Henthorn, who died when they were hiking Colorado’s Rocky Mountain National Park Barry Bertolet, right, the brother of Toni Henthorn, walks with his wife Paula from a federal courthouse on Friday, following closing arguments in the murder trial of Harold Henthorn. A federal jury has found a man guilty of murder for pushing his wife to her death off a cliff as they hiked in Colorado’s Rocky Mountain National Park to celebrate their wedding anniversary, rejecting his claim that her fall was a tragic accident. It took the jury about 10 hours to find Harold Henthorn, 59, guilty of first-degree murder over the death of his second wife, a wealthy Mississippi native. She died after plummeting about 130 feet off a cliff in a remote, rocky area where the couple had been hiking on 29 September 2012, their 12th wedding anniversary. Henthorn told investigators that his wife paused to take photo of the view and fell face-first over the ledge. His attorney, Craig Truman, said prosecutors failed to prove he killed her. But prosecutors argued during a two-week trial that Henthorn carefully staged Toni Henthorn’s death to look like an accident because he stood to benefit from her $4.7m in life insurance policies, which she didn’t know existed. They seized on Harold Henthorn’s inconsistent accounts of the fatal fall and said the evidence did not match his shifting stories. Harold Henthorn scouted the remote area of the popular park 75 miles (120km) north of Denver nine times before bringing his wife with him. He was searching for the “perfect place to murder someone”, where there would be no witnesses and no chance of her surviving, prosecutor Suneeta Hazra said. Toni Henthorn, 50, wasn’t an avid hiker, so it didn’t make sense that she would have gone willingly into such dangerous terrain, investigators testified. A coroner said he could not determine whether she fell or was pushed, but he said he found no evidence that Harold Henthorn actually performed CPR on his wife, despite what he told dispatchers. And park rangers said Henthorn could not explain why he had a park map with an “X” drawn at the spot where his wife fell. Prosecutors argued the fatal fall was reminiscent of the death of Henthorn’s first wife, Sandra Lynn Henthorn, who was crushed when a car slipped off a jack while they were changing a flat tire in 1995 – several months after their 12th wedding anniversary. Henthorn has not been charged in that case, but police reopened the investigation after Toni Henthorn’s death. Details of the earlier case dominated the trial. A paramedic who responded to the 1995 accident testified that Henthorn didn’t seem upset by what had happened, and an investigator said a shoe print found on the vehicle suggested it might have been pushed. Though the investigation into Sandra Lynn Henthorn’s death was initially closed after a week, Truman argued that the investigation had been thorough and the case only received new scrutiny after Henthorn was charged with murder. The first wife’s death was an accident, he said, as was a 2011 incident in which a 20-foot (6-meter) beam fell on Toni Henthorn while the couple was working at their mountain cabin. It hit her in the head and fractured her vertebra. Toni Henthorn was a successful ophthalmologist from Mississippi who also earned money from her family’s thriving oil business. Harold Henthorn told her he was an entrepreneur and persuaded her to move with him to the Denver suburb of Highlands Ranch. They had a daughter, now nine. Prosecutors said Harold Henthorn made phony business cards to make it seem like he was a hard-working fundraiser for churches and nonprofits, but investigators found no evidence that he had any income from regular employment.
Casey Anthony found not guilty of murdering daughter Caylee Florida jury acquits mother of killing two-year-old toddler who went missing in 2008 and found dead six months later A Florida jury has cleared a young mother, Casey Anthony, of murdering her two-year-old daughter, rejecting the portrayal of her as "a lying, no-good slut" who would rather go nightclubbing than rear her child. The jury unanimously found Anthony, 25, not guilty on murder, manslaughter and child abuse charges in a case that has gripped US talk shows and cable news television. But as she cried with relief at the verdicts on the more serious charges, she was convicted of lying to the police after claiming that her daughter, Caylee, had been abducted by a nanny when Anthony was driving around with the body of the child in the boot of her car. Anthony would have faced a possible death sentence had she been convicted of first degree murder but will serve no more than four years in prison when she is sentenced on Thursday. The verdict was met with outrage by some outside the court who denounced it as a miscarriage of justice comparable to OJ Simpson's acquittal for murder. But Anthony's lawyers praised the jury for resisting what they portrayed as the "media assassination" of their client since her arrest, particularly by television talkshow hosts and celebrity lawyers who pronounced her guilty before the trial was over. Prosecutors had alleged that Anthony murdered Caylee because she stood in the way of her party lifestyle and interest in men. They told the jury that she killed her daughter, in part with the use of chloroform, in 2008 and then buried her body in woods near the family home in Orlando several weeks later. Caylee's body was found with three strips of duct tape over her mouth and nose. Anthony's father, George, told the court his daughter left home in June, 2008 taking Caylee with her and did not return for a month. Anthony's parents asked repeatedly to see the child but their daughter told them she was too busy with work. Anthony also claimed that Caylee was being looked after by a nanny. It was later established that the nanny did not exist. Anthony maintained that claim until her parents received a notice that their daughter's car had been towed away. When they went to pick it up, George Anthony said that he noticed a strong odour from the boot that he and a worker in the tow yard both told the court smelled like a decomposing body. Anthony's mother, Cindy, then called the police and reported Caylee missing. "There is something wrong. I found my daughter's car today and it smells like there's been a dead body in the damn car," she told the emergency operator. The prosecution honed in on Anthony's failure to report her daughter missing during those 31 days. "Responses to grief are as varied as the day is long, but responses to guilt are oh, so predictable," the lead prosecutor, Linda Drane Burdick, said. "What do guilty people do? They lie. They avoid. They run. They mislead, not just to their family, but the police. They divert attention away from themselves and they act like nothing is wrong. That's why you heard about what happened in those 31 days." The prosecution relied on controversial scientific evidence including the testing of air taken from the boot of Anthony's car, which the court was told revealed the presence of decomposing human flesh and chloroform. The defence challenged the reliability of the tests. The judge refused to permit the prosecution to have the jury sniff a can containing an air sample from the car. Before the case went to the jury, Burdick showed two images of Anthony at a nightclub after Caylee went missing and of a tattoo with the words "beautiful life" in Italian that the prosecution said she obtained after her daughter was already dead. "At the end of this case, all you have to ask yourself is whose life was better without Caylee?" the prosecutor said. "This is your answer." But the jury rejected that explanation and accepted the defence's contention that Anthony was guilty of nothing more than being a panic stricken young mother who covered up an accidental death out of fear. The defence said that Caylee had drowned in the family swimming pool and that her mother then panicked. It claimed that Anthony's father knew about the accident and helped his daughter dispose of the body. It said that George Anthony, a former police officer, placed the tape over the dead girl's face to make it look like murder in order to cover up the failure to report the death. The man denied his daughter's account. The defence also claimed that Casey Anthony had been sexually abused by her father and brother and that was a factor in her erratic behaviour Anthony's lawyer, Jose Baez, said the prosecution had attempted to portray his client as "a lying, no-good slut" who murdered her daughter in order to go nightclubbing when in fact Caylee's death was "an accident that snowballed out of control". One of the prosecutors, Jeff Ashton, told the jury the defence failed to present any real evidence to back any of its claims and that the allegation that George Anthony staged a murder to cover up a lesser crime made no sense. "That's absurd. Nothing has been presented to you to make that any less absurd," he said. But the jury was not persuaded that Anthony killed her daughter either deliberately or by accident. The prosecution's case appears to have foundered on the lack of a definitive medical assessment of how Caylee died, uncertainty about what role the chloroform was meant to have played and the lack of any scientific evidence tying Anthony to her daughter's death. Outside the court, the verdict was met with astonishment and anger. "Where's justice for Caylee?" Janine Gonzalez told the Orlando Sentinel. "Do you mean to tell me that in Florida you can kill your child, toss her on the side of the road and go free? She [Casey Anthony[ better move and move to a faraway place." Ti McLeod, a neighbour of the Anthony family, said: "The justice system has failed Caylee." But Joe Adamson, an Orlando businessman, was sceptical about the prosecution's use of forensics. "I think it is really great that we have science, but we also have common sense," Adamson told the Sentinel. "These guys [jurors[ didn't buy into science fiction." Prosecutors were clearly stunned by the verdict, saying that they were amazed the jury rejected what they portrayed as a wealth of evidence against Anthony. Lawson Lamar, the Florida state attorney, said: "We're disappointed in the verdict today because we know the facts and we've put in absolutely every piece of evidence that existed. ... This is a dry-bones case. Very, very difficult to prove. The delay in recovering little Caylee's remains worked to our considerable disadvantage." Anthony's parents were reported to have gone in to hiding following death threats. "The family may never know what happened to Caylee Marie Anthony," said Mark Lippman, a lawyer for the parents. "Despite the baseless defence chosen by Casey Anthony, the family believes that the jury made a fair decision based on the evidence presented, the testimony presented, the scientific information presented and the rules that they were given by the Honorable Judge Perry to guide them." After the verdict, one of Anthony's lawyers, Cheney Mason, condemned the "media assassination" of his client since her arrest, including by other lawyers who appeared on television talkshows to pronounce her guilty before the trial was over. "Bias and prejudice and incompetent 'talking heads' saying what would be and how to be - I'm disgusted by some of the lawyers that have done this. I can tell you that my colleagues from coast to coast and border to border have condemned this whole process of lawyers getting on television and talking about cases they don't know a damn thing about," he said. Among those who have been the focus of criticism is Nancy Grace, the presenter of a show on CNN, who has almost doubled her ratings since the trial began with ritual pronouncements that the "tot mom", as she calls Anthony, was guilty. Grace defended the media in comments on the CNN website. "I find it interesting that his first reaction was to attack the media like we had something to do with it," she said. "We didn't have anything to do with it; this was all tot mom ... There is no way that this is a verdict that speaks the truth." But Baez, said: "I think we should all take this as an opportunity to learn and to realise that you cannot convict someone until they've had their day in court."
Dzhokhar Tsarnaev guilty of Boston bombing and may face death penalty Tsarnaev convicted on all 30 counts related to attack on Boston in April 2013 Same jury to decide whether to sentence Tsarnaev to death or life in prison Tsarnaev remained impassive as the verdict was read out. After two months of jury selection and 17 days of moving and often disturbing testimony from 95 witnesses, it took a Boston jury just over 11 hours to convict Dzhokhar Tsarnaev on all charges relating to the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing. Tsarnaev, 21, was found guilty of all 30 counts against him, including conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction, for his role in the attack that left three people dead and 264 injured two years ago. Seventeen charges carried the death penalty, and the same jury will now decide whether to sentence Tsarnaev to death or life in prison without possibility of parole. Outside the courthouse afterward, survivors of the attack said they were grateful for the outcome. “It’s not a happy occasion,” said Karen Brassard, who was wounded along with her husband and daughter. “But we’re glad to put it behind us.” She said that it had been a difficult process, but the survivors had gotten through it together. United States attorney Carmen M Ortiz applauded the verdict: “As we enter this next phase, we are focused on the work that remains to be done.” The jury officially began their deliberation on Tuesday morning following closing statements from the prosecution, the defence, and a brief prosecution rebuttal. Assistant US attorney Aloke Chakravarty gave an emotional closing argument which aimed to ram home the horror of Tsarnaev’s crimes. Sorry, your browser is unable to play this video. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Karen Brassard, who was injured in the bombing, says the guilty verdict will help the city to move on As the clerk slowly delivered the verdict, Tsarnaev, dressed in a charcoal jacket and blue-grey sweater, remained impassive. He fiddled with his hands, hugged himself, scratched his hair and beard, but did not appear to react as the guilty verdicts were read. Briefly, at the end, he placed his head in his hands, before returning them to his pockets. Next to him as the judge called for recess, his attorney Judy Clarke appeared to offer some words of encouragement. Bill and Denise Richard, the parents of Martin Richard, the eight-year-old victim of the bomb placed by Tsarnaev outside the Forum restaurant, were in court to hear the verdict read out. They have been here almost every day as the trial progressed. Following the closing statements from the opposing lawyers on Monday, judge George O’Toole addressed the jury to underscore the weight of their responsibility. “Your oath as jurors requires you to determine the facts of the case without fear or favour based solely on the evidence,” he said. Having finally dispensed with the question of guilt, the trial will now move quickly to the sentencing phase. In the sentencing phase, the same jury – seven women and five men – will hear more witness testimony to help them decide whether or not to sentence Tsarnaev to death. If they vote for death – a vote which must be unanimous – the 21-year-old bomber will be transferred to a federal facility in Terra Haute, Indiana, and eventually executed, though a lengthy appeals process is likely. Evidence from the trial included a pressure-cooker bomb recovered from the Watertown crime scene. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Evidence from the trial included a pressure-cooker bomb recovered from the Watertown crime scene. The question of Tsarnaev’s fate is likely to cause much soul-searching in Massachusetts, a state which ruled capital punishment unconstitutional over three decades ago. The process of finding a jury took as long as it did partly because of the necessity of finding 12 jurors – and six alternates – who would be “death-qualified”, which is to say, neither implacably opposed to the death penalty nor wholeheartedly in favour. Clarke, defending Tsarnaev, has striven to portray him throughout the trial as an ordinary kid, who tweeted song lyrics and talked about girls on Facebook, but was in thrall to his radicalised elder brother Tamerlan. Tamerlan, who was killed following a shootout with police in the days following the attack, was ever-present in the defence’s tactics. In her closing argument, Clarke said that there was “no excuse” for her client’s actions, calling them“senseless”. But she also aimed to mitigate Tsarnaev’s involvement in the bombing through reference to Tamerlan, whom she named 93 times in her closing argument. William Weinreb, for the prosecution, gave short shrift to Clarke’s approach in a rebuttal that may well presage the second phase of the trial. “He’s entitled to try to pin the blame on somebody else if that’s what he wants to do,” he said. But you should see that for what it is. It’s an attempt to sidestep responsibility; not to take responsibility. “It’s up to you to hold the defendant fully responsible. You should find him guilty because he is guilty.” Now that the jury have done so, the second phase of the trial is set to start next week, according to court officials.
Oscar Pistorius found guilty of culpable homicide Athlete to be sentenced on 13 October after judge says athlete used excessive force when he shot into toilet cubicle, killing Reeva Steenkamp Latest updates on the Oscar Pistorius trial verdict The Olympic and Paralympic athlete Oscar Pistorius has been found guilty of culpable homicide for the fatal shooting of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp and bailed ahead of sentencing. The guilty verdict on the manslaughter charge, a day after the judge Thokozile Masipa cleared him of murder, means Pistorius could receive anything from 15 years in prison to a suspended sentence, which would potentially allow the double amputee a chance to resurrect his sporting career. The court will resume for sentencing on 13 October. Masipa ordered Pistorius to stand as she delivered the guilty verdict. He stood ramrod with his hands folded in front of him. Steenkamp's parents, Barry and June, and other family members sat sombrely on the front row of the public gallery. After the verdict, Pistorius turned to his family while members of Steenkamp's family comforted each other. When the court adjourned, June could be seen shaking her head and Steenkamp's close friend Gina Myers broke down and wept. Reeva's mother June Steenkamp shaking head and hugging and comforting another family member who is visibly upset. Masipa made it clear that that although the state did not have to prove a motive for murder, there was no evidence in front of the court to say that Pistorius wanted to kill Steenkamp. But Masipa said Pistorius had acted negligently when he shot Steenkamp through a closed toilet door and was guilty of culpable homicide. "A reasonable person, with a similar disability, would have foreseen that the person behind the door would be killed, and the accused failed to take action to avoid this," she told the court. Pistorius was granted bail at the close of the hearing ahead of sentencing. He left the Pretoria high court escorted by police and bodyguards through a scrum of television cameras. Journalist: "Oscar, are you relieved?" #Pistorius's eyes swivel momentarily but he keeps on walking out of the courtroom. With no mandatory sentence for culpable homicide, Masipa - known for handing out stiff sentences - will have a great deal of discretion over the punishment. South Africa's prosecuting authority said on Friday it was "disappointed" with the verdict but defended its decision to pursue a murder charge. "The prosecutors held the view that there was sufficient evidence to secure a successful prosecution on the charges that were preferred against the accused," spokesperson Nathi Mncube said in a statement. Asked if the Steenkamp family was disappointed by the outcome, their lawyer Dup de Bruyn said: "There's no comment at the moment." The family would give interviews to media organisations after Friday's hearing according to their present contractual arrangements, he added. Oscar Pistorius Is Cleared Of Murdering Girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp Barry Steenkamp sits during Oscar Pistorius' trial. Arnold Pistorius, who has spoken for his nephew before, delivered a short Pistorius family statement before leaving the court. Pistorius and his father, Henke, are estranged. "There are no victors in this. We as a family remain deeply affected by the devastating tragedy … It won't bring Reeva back but our hearts still go out for her family and friends." He said the family would make no further statement due to the ongoing legal proceedings but was grateful to the judge for clearing him of the murder charge as it had always believed his version of events. Pistorius has said he mistook Steenkamp for an intruder when he shot four times through a locked bathroom door, killing her almost instantly. He was also cleared on two unrelated firearms charges - of firing a firearm through a sunroof and of illegal possession of ammunition - but found guilty on a third of illegally discharging a firearm in a crowded restaurant in January 2013, weeks before Steenkamp's death.
Dzhokhar Tsarnaev guilty of Boston bombing and may face death penalty Tsarnaev convicted on all 30 counts related to attack on Boston in April 2013 Same jury to decide whether to sentence Tsarnaev to death or life in prison Tsarnaev remained impassive as the verdict was read out. After two months of jury selection and 17 days of moving and often disturbing testimony from 95 witnesses, it took a Boston jury just over 11 hours to convict Dzhokhar Tsarnaev on all charges relating to the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing. Tsarnaev, 21, was found guilty of all 30 counts against him, including conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction, for his role in the attack that left three people dead and 264 injured two years ago. Seventeen charges carried the death penalty, and the same jury will now decide whether to sentence Tsarnaev to death or life in prison without possibility of parole. Outside the courthouse afterward, survivors of the attack said they were grateful for the outcome. “It’s not a happy occasion,” said Karen Brassard, who was wounded along with her husband and daughter. “But we’re glad to put it behind us.” She said that it had been a difficult process, but the survivors had gotten through it together. United States attorney Carmen M Ortiz applauded the verdict: “As we enter this next phase, we are focused on the work that remains to be done.” The jury officially began their deliberation on Tuesday morning following closing statements from the prosecution, the defence, and a brief prosecution rebuttal. Assistant US attorney Aloke Chakravarty gave an emotional closing argument which aimed to ram home the horror of Tsarnaev’s crimes. Sorry, your browser is unable to play this video. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Karen Brassard, who was injured in the bombing, says the guilty verdict will help the city to move on As the clerk slowly delivered the verdict, Tsarnaev, dressed in a charcoal jacket and blue-grey sweater, remained impassive. He fiddled with his hands, hugged himself, scratched his hair and beard, but did not appear to react as the guilty verdicts were read. Briefly, at the end, he placed his head in his hands, before returning them to his pockets. Next to him as the judge called for recess, his attorney Judy Clarke appeared to offer some words of encouragement. Bill and Denise Richard, the parents of Martin Richard, the eight-year-old victim of the bomb placed by Tsarnaev outside the Forum restaurant, were in court to hear the verdict read out. They have been here almost every day as the trial progressed. Following the closing statements from the opposing lawyers on Monday, judge George O’Toole addressed the jury to underscore the weight of their responsibility. “Your oath as jurors requires you to determine the facts of the case without fear or favour based solely on the evidence,” he said. Having finally dispensed with the question of guilt, the trial will now move quickly to the sentencing phase. In the sentencing phase, the same jury – seven women and five men – will hear more witness testimony to help them decide whether or not to sentence Tsarnaev to death. If they vote for death – a vote which must be unanimous – the 21-year-old bomber will be transferred to a federal facility in Terra Haute, Indiana, and eventually executed, though a lengthy appeals process is likely. Evidence from the trial included a pressure-cooker bomb recovered from the Watertown crime scene. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Evidence from the trial included a pressure-cooker bomb recovered from the Watertown crime scene. Photograph: Dominick Reuter/Reuters The question of Tsarnaev’s fate is likely to cause much soul-searching in Massachusetts, a state which ruled capital punishment unconstitutional over three decades ago. The process of finding a jury took as long as it did partly because of the necessity of finding 12 jurors – and six alternates – who would be “death-qualified”, which is to say, neither implacably opposed to the death penalty nor wholeheartedly in favour. Clarke, defending Tsarnaev, has striven to portray him throughout the trial as an ordinary kid, who tweeted song lyrics and talked about girls on Facebook, but was in thrall to his radicalised elder brother Tamerlan. Tamerlan, who was killed following a shootout with police in the days following the attack, was ever-present in the defence’s tactics. In her closing argument, Clarke said that there was “no excuse” for her client’s actions, calling them“senseless”. But she also aimed to mitigate Tsarnaev’s involvement in the bombing through reference to Tamerlan, whom she named 93 times in her closing argument. William Weinreb, for the prosecution, gave short shrift to Clarke’s approach in a rebuttal that may well presage the second phase of the trial. “He’s entitled to try to pin the blame on somebody else if that’s what he wants to do,” he said. But you should see that for what it is. It’s an attempt to sidestep responsibility; not to take responsibility. “It’s up to you to hold the defendant fully responsible. You should find him guilty because he is guilty.” Now that the jury have done so, the second phase of the trial is set to start next week, according to court officials.
Oscar Pistorius culpable homicide verdict causes uproar in South Africa 'This verdict is not justice for Reeva,' says mother of Reeva Steenkamp, who died after being shot by athlete The parents of Reeva Steenkamp expressed anger and disbelief on Friday after Oscar Pistorius was formally acquitted of their daughter's murder, insisting: "Justice was not served." Amid growing discontent in South Africa at the verdict, the Steenkamps criticised judge Thokozile Masipa for being too lenient on the athlete, who was instead convicted of culpable homicide, the South African equivalent of manslaughter, and granted bail. "This verdict is not justice for Reeva," her mother, June Steenkamp, told NBC News. "I just want the truth." Steenkamp, a 29-year-old model and law graduate, died in a small toilet cubicle when Pistorius shot her four times through the locked door just after 3am on Valentine's day last year. The court heard how his hollow tipped bullets opened and mushroomed on impact, tearing through her flesh and killing her almost instantly. He claims he mistook her for an intruder, a version that the judge accepted. She died a "horrible, painful, terrible" death, June added. "He shot through the door and I can't believe that they believe it was an accident." Although Pistorius looked relieved at the judgment, he will return to court on 13 October for a sentencing hearing and could face up to 15 years in jail, though a shorter jail sentence of perhaps five years is considered more likely. June Steenkamp told NBC News: "I really don't care what happens to Oscar. It's not going to change anything because my daughter is never coming back. He's still living and breathing and she's gone, you know, forever." Jacqui Mofokeng, a spokeswoman for the African National Congress women's league, who supported the Steenkamps in court, said: "They are saddened by the verdict. It's like they're mourning Reeva again. Emotions are high. Some of the family were crying when the verdict was given." After a six-month trial that saw the double-amputee athlete sob, moan and vomit into a bucket, on Friday the high court in Pretoria was besieged by camera crews, photographers and reporters from all over the world. Yet Masipa's final verdict came in low-key circumstances, with her decisions having already become clear during the reading of her judgment. "Mr Pistorius, please stand up," she instructed the accused. Wearing a dark suit, Pistorius rose in the dock and stood ramrod straight, his hands folded in front of him, and showed little emotion as the judge read her final verdict. "Having regard to the totality of this evidence in this matter, the unanimous decision of this court is the following: on count one, murder … the accused is found not guilty and is discharged," Masipa said. "Instead he is found guilty of culpable homicide." There was little instant reaction from members of the Pistorius and Steenkamp families sitting on the front row. But when the court adjourned for lunch, June Steenkamp could be seen shaking her head and putting an arm around another family member, while Steenkamp's friend Gina Myers openly wept. Meanwhile Pistorius's estranged father Henke offered him a smile and comforting hand. The athlete seemed to acknowledge him but quickly ended the encounter. The mood was sombre rather than celebratory. Pistorius, 27, was also found not guilty of illegally possessing ammunition, and firing his weapon through a car sunroof. But he was convicted of negligence relating to an incident in which a gun went off in his possession at a restaurant where more than 200 people were present in January last year. Masipa turned down an application by prosecutors to refuse bail. It means the sprinter, nicknamed the "blade runner" because of his prosthetic limbs, will continue to live with his uncle Arnold in Pretoria, his residence for the 18 months since the shooting. Arnold Pistorius said the family were grateful to the judge for finding the sportsman not guilty of murder. "It's a big burden off us, off our shoulders and Oscar. "We always knew the facts of the matter and we never had any doubt in Oscar's version of this tragic incident. We as a family remain deeply affected by the devastating tragedy … It won't bring Reeva back, but our hearts still go out for her family and friends." Across South Africa, there was consternation at the judge's verdict. Many people took to radio phone-ins and social media to vent their bewilderment and the hashtag #Justice4Reeva quickly started trending on Twitter. Some suggested that Pistorius had been given exceptional treatment because of his celebrity, wealth and race. Eusebius McKaiser, a talkshow host on the Johannesburg-based radio station Power FM, said he had received hundreds of calls and text messages during his morning show and "99% of them think it was a mistake". McKaiser, an author and columnist, took the same view: "She should have found him guilty of murder. There are good prospects for the state to appeal on a point of law. The higher court might even rebuke her for getting it wrong. The mistake she made really was elementary." The judge was wrong to use details of Pistorius's conduct after the killing, such as praying to God to save Steenkamp's life, as evidence of his intention when he pulled the trigger, McKaiser added. "That's the bit I deem to be embarrassing and not just wrong. It doesn't matter what happened afterwards. These facts are irrelevant to the case." Lawyers also joined the criticism. Martin Hood, an attorney specialising in firearms offences, said: "There has been a widespread expression of outrage across the board. There are many people in the legal profession who believe she got it wrong. It has met with a lot of disappointment in the court of public opinion, including on the part of gun owners." He added: "I would be bitterly disappointed and angry if I was Reeva Steenkamp's family." The national debate quickly drew comparisons to Molemo "Jub Jub" Maarohanye, a black rapper sentenced to 20 years in prison for murder after crashing into a group of boys while drag-racing through the streets of Soweto. Trevor Noah, one of South Africa's leading comedians, tweeted: "I'm very confused. Jub Jub raced a car high and was found guilty of murder, Oscar went to fetch a gun but he gets less time?" Another Twitter user, "prince akeem", posted: "Jubjub didn't even mean to kill those kids but he got murder but pointing a gun and shooting four times is an accident." The conviction of culpable homicide can bring a maximum prison sentence of 15 years, although legal experts pointed to five years as a guideline. The prosecution gave no indication of whether it planned to appeal. The National Prosecuting Authority said: "We respect the court decision to convict the accused on culpable homicide, which is in fact a serious crime. We are, however, disappointed that we were not successful in securing a conviction on the original charge of premeditated murder. "NPA will await until the matter is concluded and will then comment on any further legal steps that might be envisaged."
Makers of tainted supplements have criminal pasts A USA TODAY investigation finds that a wide array of dietary supplement companies caught with drug-spiked products are run by people with criminal backgrounds and regulatory run-ins. Tainted supplements, criminal pasts A number of supplement firms caught with drug-spiked products are run by executives with criminal backgrounds and regulatory run-ins. Tests have found their supposedly all-natural pills and powders have contained potentially dangerous ingredients including methamphetamine-like compounds and anti-psychotic drugs. Like many pills and powders sold as dietary supplements, Dr. Larry's Tranquility pills were not what they seemed. And neither was Dr. Larry. The pills promised insomniacs a great night's sleep with an all-natural blend of ingredients such as figwort root and licorice. Then, earlier this summer, these particular pills — out of an estimated 85,000 supplement products on the market — happened to get tested in a lab by regulators from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The agency is budgeted to run just 1,000 tests a year in its limited oversight of the $30 billion industry. The tests showed Tranquility was spiked with two powerful prescription drugs: an anti-psychotic medication best known as Thorazine, and the anti-depressant and sleep medication called doxepin. Research by USA TODAY shows that Larry LeGunn is a convicted criminal and not a licensed doctor. He's a former chiropractor who had to give up his Florida license in 2010 after being charged with grand theft and insurance fraud relating to his treatment of auto accident victims, according to court and licensing records. LeGunn ultimately pleaded no contest to an amended charge of misleading solicitation of payments. Far from an isolated case, a USA TODAY investigation finds that a wide array of dietary supplement companies caught with drug-spiked products are run by people with criminal backgrounds and regulatory run-ins. Consumers buying products from these firms are in some cases entrusting their health and safety to people with rap sheets for crimes involving barbiturates, crack cocaine, Ecstacy and other narcotics, as well as arrests for selling or possessing steroids and human growth hormone. Other supplement company executives have records of fraud, theft, assault, weapons offenses, money laundering or other offenses, the investigation shows. • Jeffrey Bolanos, who runs Beamonstar Products in Queen Creek, Ariz., has twice been convicted on drug charges, most recently in a 2008 case that notes possession of crack cocaine and a relapse with methamphetamines, court records show. In May, his company, which has received industry awards for its sexual enhancement supplements, recalled three supposedly all-natural products after FDA tests found that two contained tadalafil, the medication in the prescription erectile dysfunction drug Cialis. The third was potentially spiked. One of Beamonstar's tainted supplements was marketed for women. Bolanos had no comment. • Martin McDermott, president of Kilo Sports in Phoenix, was indicted in 2004 with three felony counts of dangerous drug possession involving the steroid boldenone and testosterone, and one felony count of possession of prescription drugs, specifically human growth hormone, for sale. He later pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor count of possession of drug paraphernalia and received probation. In 2009, three Kilo Sports products were recalled for ingredients the FDA said should be classified as steroids. The company recalled another supplement in 2010 because of concerns it contained an anti-estrogen drug. McDermott didn't respond to interview requests. • Barry Nevins, who runs DrBarrysVitamins.com, isn't really a doctor and under an agreement with prosecutors isn't supposed to represent himself as one in his vitamin store. Yet as recently as this week, his website touted "Dr. Barry" — whose only Florida health care license was as a massage therapist — as "a leading formulator, developer and manufacturer of natural pharmaceuticals." In 2011, Nevins was charged with unlicensed practice of the health care profession, a felony, records show. While facing those charges, FDA tests found one of Barry's Vitamins & Herbs' products, Virility Max, was secretly spiked with a drug that's a chemical cousin to Viagra. Prosecutors in Palm Beach County, Fla., said they are now reviewing the website to determine whether Nevins has violated a deferred prosecution agreement reached in March in the 2011 case. Nevins declined to be interviewed. • Jay Cohen, CEO of IQ Formulations, was arrested on a charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon in 2008 for wielding a machete and striking the driver's side mirror of a teenager's car parked outside Cohen's home blaring music, police and court records show. Cohen, who told USA TODAY he was protecting his family, pleaded no contest in 2010 to assault and received probation. In November, IQ Formulations recalled its Hydravax weight-loss supplement after the FDA told the company it contained a prescription-only diuretic drug. A company spokesman said the recall was the result of a supplier providing a tainted ingredient. USA TODAY scrutinized about 100 companies that have been caught selling supplements secretly spiked with drugs and potentially dangerous chemicals since 2007. The examination found that at least 14 were run by people with criminal records beyond traffic infractions. The newspaper researched corporation records to identify the company executives and owners, then examined police, court and professional licensing records, ordering files from across the country to determine what they had done in the past. There are likely many more supplement company executives with criminal records. The FDA's tainted-supplements database lists 123 companies that have been caught selling about 460 spiked products in the past six years, but the corporate records of nearly three dozen of the companies couldn't be located. For about 150 spiked products, the FDA's database doesn't list a manufacturer, in many cases because it was unclear to the agency who made them. And many companies selling sketchy products aren't listed in the FDA's database. Supplement executives with criminal records who granted interviews generally said their pasts had nothing to do with their ability to make good supplements and they often blamed suppliers for putting drugs in their products without their knowledge. "China will lie, just lie and tell you it's all herbal and they slip in a little trace of something," LeGunn said, adding that he no longer has supplements made there. But most didn't respond to interview requests or refused to talk about their backgrounds. "I'm not going to discuss anything. I have the right to remain silent," said Gisselle Lopez, a partner in Svelte 30 Nutritional Consultants LLC in Kissimmee, Fla., when a reporter asked about a 2003 theft conviction and why her staff referred to her as "Dr. Gisselle." Florida records don't show her as having a medical license. Her company recalled one of its weight loss supplements in 2011 after FDA tests showed it was spiked with sibutramine, the active ingredient in the prescription weight loss drug Meridia that was pulled off the U.S. market because of heart attack and stroke risks. 'A TALE OF TWO INDUSTRIES' USA TODAY's ongoing investigation has shown that consumers of tainted diet supplements have paid dearly in some cases, suffering side effects ranging from severe bleeding and dangerous effects on diabetes control to liver damage, strokes and death. Athletes have had their sports careers jeopardized after testing positive for ingredients laced into sports supplements. Dallas-based USPlabs has been linked to a recent outbreak of serious liver injury cases among people taking its OxyElite Pro weight-loss supplement. Its CEO, Jacob Geissler, has a criminal history involving anabolic steroids and has clashed repeatedly with the FDA. USPlabs recalled OxyElite Pro in November. Until recently, Geissler served on the board of trustees of the American Herbal Products Association, a major industry trade group. Driven Sports Vice President Matt Cahill, whose pre-workout powder Craze has been found by teams of scientists to contain a methamphetamine-like compound, is a convicted felon with a history of putting risky products on the market.Craze was named 2012's "New Supplement of the Year" by Bodybuilding.com, a major online retailer of sports supplements. "All industries are going to have people with criminal problems in their background," said Steve Mister, president of the Council for Responsible Nutrition, a supplement industry trade group that lists major corporations such as Procter & Gamble, Bayer HealthCare and Abbott Nutrition among its members. Histories of financial fraud or violent behavior may not have much relevance when it comes to making supplements, Mister said. "But I do think when you talk about people with a history of criminal convictions with controlled substances and illicit drugs, and they are making products where they have the opportunity to bring that prior background into their product, that is concerning." "It is unfortunately a tale of two industries. There's a mainstream, responsible industry," Mister said of the supplement business. "Then there is this sort of shadow industry, the smaller guys playing around the fringes. The problem is how we distinguish between the two." WHAT CAN BE DONE ABOUT IT Under the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994, known by the acronym DSHEA, the FDA must show that a product is unsafe before it can take any action to restrict its use or seek its removal from the market. Nutritional supplements such as the vitamins, minerals, protein powders and herbal blends used by more than half of Americans are treated like foods and assumed to be all-natural and safe — unless proven otherwise. Although supplements are often sold and used as remedies for various conditions, they aren't required to prove their safety and effectiveness before being put on the market, as is required with medications. "Supplements are under-regulated by the FDA," said June Rogers, director of drug program and policy at the NFL Players Association, whose members are tested for a variety of performance-enhancing drugs. "Anyone is allowed to go out and make a supplement and basically sell it until the FDA comes knocking at your door. But before that happens, there's a lot of profits to be made." Loren Israelsen, a top supplement industry association official who is credited as a key architect behind the DSHEA supplement law, said that 20 years ago nobody envisioned the kinds of rogue players, advanced chemistry and drug-spiked products being seen today. "It is so counterintuitive and opposite to the really fundamental principles of what this industry is about that we probably didn't fully recognize it because it was so not a part of us," Israelsen, president of the United Natural Products Alliance, said in an interview this week. Israelsen was convicted in 1997 of conspiracy to defraud the United States, for a scheme that involved falsifying documents to import evening primrose oil despite an FDA ban on its importation. The documents falsely declared that the shipments were such things as "Vitamin E" to avoid seizure and sought to conceal that Health Products International was the company importing the material, federal records show. During the conspiracy, Israelsen was a vice president and general counsel at Health Products International, which he described as the manufacturing arm of Nature's Way, where he also was a top executive. He said his actions should be viewed in the context of a time when the industry felt the FDA was taking overzealous and unjustified actions against natural products. "I was much younger and breathing more fire," he said. "In retrospect, would we do it that way again? No." Israelsen said there's a difference between standing up for evening primrose oil and supplement company executives fighting the FDA over substances with questionable chemical origins. He said recent media coverage of supplement makers like Cahill and Geissler and their potentially dangerous products has altered the way the industry views calls for additional regulation. "It has been fundamental. Things have changed. That's a reality," Israelsen said. "We have to just look at where we are and what needs to be done to best address it — because it's in our best interest to address it." In what could be considered an important conciliation for his industry, Israelsen said he's open to having discussions about whether new tools are needed to make it easier and faster for the FDA to take action. In the past, the industry has opposed and defeated legislation that would require supplements to be registered with the FDA, arguing that criminals wouldn't register and that good companies would be overly burdened. But Israelsen says he now thinks it's possible that requiring registration could give the FDA a "faster, easier way to say they're not in compliance." A bill reintroduced this summer by Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., and Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., would require supplement firms to register products with the FDA within 30 days after being marketed, including providing a description of each product, its ingredients and a copy of the label. Other supplement industry trade groups emphasize that better enforcement would address the industry's bad actors. Under existing laws, any person who markets a supplement that violates the law can be found guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by up to a year in jail and $1,000 in fines, notes the Council for Responsible Nutrition. Such criminal cases appear to be rare, however, and they can take years and can involve more complex felony charges. The FDA has so far not provided data, requested under the Freedom of Information Act, on how often the agency has sought criminal prosecution of supplement makers. "More executives should be subject to these misdemeanor cases," said Mister, who heads the council. "That would send a very strong message to the industry." Supplement makers also can be subject to individual and corporate fines of up to $500,000 for a series of violations in a case, Mister noted. "If you don't have a cop watching the speed limit, people will speed." Daniel Fabricant, director of the FDA's dietary supplements division, said: "We're doing all we can with the tools we have." He noted that limited resources at the agency are a factor, along with competing priorities among the many food and medical products regulated by the agency. In some recent cases, the FDA has used its authority to detain and seize adulterated or misbranded dietary supplements, as it did this year with supplements made by USPlabs and Hi-Tech Pharmaceuticals that contained the controversial stimulant DMAA. The FDA has the authority to order a recall of supplements if a manufacturer refuses to do so, and the agency threatened this in a letter to USPlabs that prompted the company to recall OxyElite Pro last month. But the FDA still should do more, argues Patrick Arnold, who was convicted in 2006 as the Illinois steroid chemist in the "Balco" scandal that involved distributing performance-enhancing drugs to high-profile athletes. "Obviously, we want to avoid regulatory interference as much as we can because it never ends up being a good thing," Arnold said. But without better FDA oversight, Arnold said, it will become increasingly difficult for supplement makers to compete without spiking their products. He pointed to the lack of any public action by the FDA to address repeated findings by independent labs — including by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency in June 2012, and various teams of international researchers — of undisclosed amphetamine- and methamphetamine-like compounds in Craze. This week, another peer-reviewed journal article reported tests showing similar findings in additional samples of Craze, as well as in Detonate. Driven Sports says the tests are wrong; Gaspari officials have not responded to interview requests. "When stuff like this happens with Craze and Detonate, that just makes people so pissed off that they're ready for some regulation," Arnold said. "That's so unfair to competitors and it's a public health issue." Arnold pointed out that there have been people with criminal backgrounds making supplements as long as he's been in the business. "When I first got started in the 1990s, just about every major supplement owner was an ex-steroid dealer," he said. "You make money selling steroids, then start your supplement company." With the Internet, he said, it doesn't take much to start selling the pills and powders. "It's a very low barrier of entry," Arnold said. "And you don't have to be that smart. You just pretend that you know science." Arnold says prison time, his notoriety and the increased scrutiny his products have drawn from regulators have changed the way he does business. But his products still have pushed into gray areas. In 2009, two of his products — Ergopharm's 60-OXO Xtreme and 6-OXO — were the subject of a recall after the FDA said they contained substances that should be classified as steroids. In recent years, Arnold has taken credit for being the first supplement maker to put the controversial stimulant DMAA into his products. He says he removed it after the FDA crackdown and after more scientific evidence emerged raising questions about whether it's naturally in geraniums. Elizabeth Stapleton shakes up a sample of supplements that were sent in for testing at Aegis Sciences Corp. in Nashville. Aegis is among the private groups doing testing for athletes and others seeking to detect spiked supplements that have the potential to damage careers and cause health problems. HIDING DANGEROUS INGREDIENTS IN PLAIN SIGHT The problem of supplement adulteration is significant, whether it occurs with criminal intent or is the result of lax quality control and insufficient oversight of suppliers. Just over half of all Class 1 drug recalls in the USA from 2004 to 2012 — those that could cause serious health problems or death — involved supposedly all-natural dietary supplements that were spiked with hidden pharmaceuticals, according to research published this year in the scientific journal JAMA Internal Medicine. Of the 237 supplements recalled for hidden drugs, 40% were sold for sexual enhancement; 31% for bodybuilding and 27% for weight loss, the researchers said. But hidden drugs have been found in other categories of supplements as well, including diabetes and arthritis remedies. This summer, Purity First Health Products recalled various lots of Vitamin B50 capsules, Vitamin C capsules and multi-mineral capsules after FDA tests indicated the presence of steroids. With minimal testing being done by the FDA, a growing number of private companies are doing their own tests to identify problems that aren't being detected and addressed by regulators. The U.S. Anti-Doping Agency tests and reviews labels of supplements of interest to athletes, and maintains a list of "high-risk" supplements, many of which have not been subject to FDA action. Sometimes troubling ingredients hide in plain sight on the products' labels under names most consumers would never recognize. "At least 200 different names are being used for testosterone," said David Black, founder of Aegis Sciences Corp. in Nashville, which has created a database of supplements to help clients at 140 universities, the NFL Players Association and other sports organizations. A mobile Aegis Shield app has recently been made available to the public. While there are about 2,475 ingredients in the products in the Aegis database, more than 35,000 aliases are used for the ingredients on their labels. For example, there were 167 aliases for marijuana and 82 aliases for methylhexanamine, better known as DMAA. Aegis also found other ingredients that might make consumers think twice, including "Wu Ling Zhi" — which is flying-squirrel feces, and "Putrescine," which is also known as the foul odor of decomposing flesh. "In our experience, we've seen so many products out there that are not what they're represented to be," Black said. "If a product has a great claim and actually does what it claims to do, it probably has an ingredient that shouldn't be in there." And the people who pay the price, ultimately, are those who — knowingly or unknowingly — indulge. U.S. Olympic Committee athlete ombudsman John Ruger noted in an e-mail to USA TODAY this week that "despite our aggressive efforts to educate them on the potential pitfalls, the harsh reality is that we will have athlete(s) who miss the Olympic Games because they take a supplement that includes a banned substance."
Mikaeel Kular's mother pleads guilty to killing three-year-old Rosdeep Adekoya admits reduced charge of culpable homicide of son, who was reported missing from Edinburgh home Mikaeel Kular was reported missing by his mother, Rosdeep Adekoya The mother of Mikaeel Kular, the three-year-old boy reported missing from their Edinburgh home in January, has admitted killing her son. Rosdeep Adekoya, who has pleaded guilty to killing her three-year-old son Mikaeel Kular Rosdeep Adekoya, 34, had been charged with murder but pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of culpable homicide when she appeared at the high court in Edinburgh on Friday. Adekoya sparked a major police and public search for Mikaeel after claiming he had disappeared from her home in Drylaw overnight. Hundreds of people helped police, coastguards and other volunteers search for him in local streets, woods and along the shoreline in the two days before his body was found 20 miles away in woodland in Fife. The crown accused Adekoya of punching Mikaeel on various occasions between 12 and 15 January, striking his body against a hard object and inflicting blunt force trauma injuries to his head and body. She was also accused of failing to seek medical attention and murder. Prosecutors said she wrapped the boy in a duvet, put his body in a suitcase and drove him to a house in Fife where the family used to live with a relative before burying him. Advocate depute Alex Prentice told the court: "The basis for the plea tendered being accepted is that the crown accepts that the accused had no intention to kill Mikaeel and that the assault perpetrated upon him, although severe, fell short of the wicked recklessness required for murder." The court heard that Adekoya's internet history showed searches including "I find it hard to love my son", "I love all of my children except one", "Why am I so aggressive with my son" and "Get rid of bruises". Mikaeel died on the night of Tuesday 14 January from injuries inflicted the previous Sunday. His mother lost her temper when he was repeatedly sick after a trip to a Nando's restaurant at the city's Fountain Park, the court heard. She smacked him and struck him on the body and head with a clenched fist. When Mikaeel was sick for a third time, she dragged him to the shower by his arms and beat him heavily on his back as he lay over the bath edge. Prentice said: "It's likely that the internal damage was inflicted during this last beating." Over the next few days Mikaeel's condition worsened and he was kept out of nursery. He was assaulted again on the Monday after being sick and became listless. His mother did not take him to a doctor because of the bruising, the court heard. By Tuesday night, Mikaeel was said to be quiet and was giving a limited response to his mother's questions. "He would have been in significant pain but was put to bed," Prentice said. "The pain would have increased significantly while Mikaeel became dangerously ill and finally dying as a result of the injuries inflicted upon him by the accused. "It was during that night that he died. The accused discovered his body on the floor when wakening the children in the morning." After the discovery, Adekoya took his twin sister to nursery before driving straight to Fife. Prentice said: "At the time, it appears that the accused had placed Mikaeel's body in a suitcase and put him in the boot of her car." Masts captured signals that showed her mobile phone travelling from Edinburgh across the Forth bridge. Adekoya dabbed her eyes repeatedly with tissues as the narrative of her crimes was read to the court. She waited until 7.15am on 16 January to dial 999 and report her son missing. Officers who attended the flat reported that she initially appeared "very upset and distressed". But inconsistencies began to appear in her account of events to police, who by the Friday evening "suspected that all was not as she had indicated". During a police interview she broke down and told officers: "It was an accident and I panicked. I am going to go to the jail." Asked where Mikaeel was, she replied: "In the woods behind my sister's house". Adekoya then took officers to her son's body in the woods, telling them he was "to the left under trees in a suitcase" which she had covered with branches. Prentice said: "Detective Sergeant Phil Richards undid the straps of the suitcase and opened the camouflage material within which was the body of Mikaeel Kular, who was quite clearly dead." The final cause of death was found to be "blunt force abdominal trauma". Mikaeel had more than 40 injuries to his body, including bruises to his back, chin and cheek, trauma to the brain, haemorrhage in the spinal cord and injuries to his arms. Prentice said: "If medical assistance had been called for, death might not have resulted." Defence counsel Brian McConnachie QC said the case was "truly tragic … above all else for Mikaeel Kular in his loss of life at such an early age". He also pointed to the tragedy faced by the boy's father and the "extraordinarily difficult" time for the family of the accused who were having to come to terms with their grief and the fact that Adekoya caused the death. McConnachie told the court the case was also a tragedy for Adekoya: "Rosdeep Adekoya is not a monster. It would appear she has been a young mother with a number of underlying problems, which the court will hear about in due course, with five young children." He went on: "It seems that there has been an accumulation of circumstances which have caused Rosdeep Adekoya to act towards Mikaeel over a relatively short period of time, less than 24 hours, in a manner she has never acted in the past towards him, or to any of her other children … It appears from every source … that this has been a brief period when this young woman has lost her temper and behaved in a way which is totally out of character for her." He said she had to live with the consequences of her actions for the rest of her life. McConnachie said Adekoya initially tried to act as if nothing had happened and had panicked. The QC said that, until the next court hearing, the defence would still be investigating "psychological aspects of this case as far as Mrs Adekoya is concerned". Mikaeel's father left the court after the hearing without making any comment. Assistant Chief Constable Malcolm Graham of Police Scotland said: "Mikaeel's disappearance and death deeply impacted on his family. It also resonated across the community in which he lived. "During the initial stages of the inquiry we appealed for information about Mikaeel's whereabouts as concern for him grew. The local community assisted us greatly in that search. What followed was an incredible level of support and assistance to one of the biggest missing person inquiries Police Scotland has undertaken." He said the search was helped by specialist police investigative and search support officers. "Sadly our inquiries led us to Kirkcaldy the night after he was reported missing and the discovery of his body," he said. "I would like to take this opportunity to sincerely thank the public for all of their help during the search efforts and the continued support provided to police and Mikaeel's family during the course of this investigation." A spokesperson for the Crown Office said Adekoya had pleaded guilty toculpable homicide, attempting to defeat the ends of justice by concealing Mikaeel's bodyand falsely claiming that he was a missing person, instigating a large scale search. "It would be inappropriate for us to comment further until the case has concluded and sentence has been passed." Sentencing will take place at the high court in Edinburgh on 25 August 25.
Investigation into Edward Heath child abuse claims to go national Nationally coordinated police inquiry to be set up by end of week, as former brothel keeper denies knowledge of any misconduct by former PM A nationally coordinated police investigation into claims that the former prime minister Edward Heath sexually abused children is to be set up by the end of the week. The inquiry will be led by a senior investigating officer who is likely to be appointed from either the Kent, Wiltshire or Hampshire force, all of which are investigating separate allegations that Heath sexually abused children. But a central plank of the allegations against the former prime minister, who died in 2005, was denied on Wednesday by a former brothel keeper – said to be the original source of claims in the 1990s that Heath abused boys. On Monday, the Independent Police Complaints Commission announced it was investigating claims that a trial was halted in the 1990s because it would have resulted in the exposure of the allegations about Heath. The IPCC said the claims originated from a former senior Wiltshire police officer. But Myra Forde, 67, said on Wednesday she had no knowledge of any misconduct by Heath, and denied threatening to expose him to escape prosecution in the 1990s. A prosecution against Forde was dropped in 1992. In a statement issued to the Salisbury Journal, Richard Griffiths, a solicitor who acted for Forde, said: “My former client wishes me to make it very clear that at no stage did she state that Ted Heath was a client and at no stage did she threaten to expose him as a client of hers if the prosecution was continued.” He added: “For the avoidance of any doubt Myra Forde wishes me to make it clear that she had no involvement with Ted Heath of any kind and has no knowledge of any misconduct on his part.” He said the 1992 trial did not proceed because of difficulties with a witness. Forde was later jailed twice for operating a brothel in Salisbury. In the Times, the barriester who prosecuted the original case, Nigel Seed, said he was told by police that Forde planned to make the allegation about Heath but denied this was the reason for stopping the trial. None of the three witnesses in the case would give evidence, so there was no option but to halt the case, he said. The IPCC which is investigating claims from a retired senior officer that Wiltshire police covered up allegations against Heath in the 90s said it could not confirm or deny whether Forde was the original source. Wiltshire police, which referred itself to the IPCC, said it would not comment on Forde’s denial. The nationally coordinated response to the emerging allegations against Heath is seen as necessary to bring together inquiries being carried out by at least four forces. It is likely to be announced by the end of this week and will be carried out under the umbrella of Operation Hydrant, the overarching operation pulling together a number of investigations into alleged sexual abuse in the past by members of institutions, and high-profile individuals. A spokesman for the National Police Chiefs’ Council said: “Staff from Operation Hydrant are working closely with relevant forces to assess the extend of reported information concerning the late Sir Edward Heath, and at the conclusion of that process a lead force will be appointed to oversee the police investigations.” An NSPCC helpline – which is being used as part of the inquiries into Heath – has received a small number of calls since his name was first released into the public domain by the IPCC this week. Heath is one of around 76 politicians – some alive and some dead – who have been or are still being investigated by forces across the country examining allegations of sexual abuse of children. The identities of most of the politicians have been kept out of the public domain. Wiltshire police on Monday appealed for any “witnesses or victims who support the allegations of child sex abuse” to come forward, saying Heath had been named in relation to offences concerning children, and they wanted to hear from anyone who had relevant information. Since the announcement – made by a Wiltshire officer outside Heath’s former home near Salisbury – the Hampshire, Kent and Jersey forces have also said they are investigating allegations of abuse by Heath. Kent police said they had received an allegation on Tuesday relating to an allegation of sexual assault in the east Kent area in the 1960s and detectives were making initial inquiries. Hampshire police confirmed they were investigating allegations of abuse relating to Heath, and the Jersey force confirmed he had been a suspect for months in its investigation into historical abuse on the island. The Metropolitan police do not have an ongoing investigation into allegations of abuse by Heath. The force said it had interviewed a complainant in April who alleged in the Mirror newspaper this week that he was raped by Heath as a 12-year-old boy. But the force said that, after making a full assessment, there were no lines of inquiry that could “proportionately” be pursued. The force has refused to confirm whether Heath features in Operation Midland – its ongoing investigation into claims that three murders were carried out to cover up abuse by a paedophile ring made up of politicians and other high-profile individuals at locations across southern England. Earlier this year, Simon Bailey, who runs Operation Hydrant, said forces across the country were investigating or had investigated 1,433 men since 2014 over allegations of child abuse in the past. The suspects included 261 high-profile individuals, of whom 76 were politicians – both local and national figures – 43 were from the music industry, 135 from TV, film, or radio, and seven from the world of sport. He said 216 of those named were dead.
Benjamin Netanyahu 'threatens to strip Jerusalem residency from 230,000 Palestinians' Palestinian representatives say, they will be “turned into criminals”. According to official Palestinian ... Phone-hacking case casts doubt over Director of Public Prosecutions ruling which Ms Saunders had recently described as “insufficient” to merit criminal proceedings going ahead. ... investigating Rupert Murdoch’s UK print business on potential charges of corporate criminal liability, ... Michael Gove urged to act over 'massive rise' in prison suicides is key to happy marriage Michael Gove urged to scrap criminal courts charge by Christmas Eve Michael Gove ... marriage Tax on justice: Michael Gove urged to scrap criminal courts charge before Christmas Eve deadline ... Scrapping the criminal courts charge is not enough- Michael Gove must undo the damage it has wrought Michael ... Lord Janner dead: Former Labour peer found unfit to stand trial for alleged child sex abuse dies aged 87 to face a court to answer the claims of a dozen alleged victims. The Criminal Prosecution Service decided ... criminal justice reform for a while, and this book was highly recommended by several people ... Jermaine Baker: Detectives carry out fresh investigation at scene where 28-year-old was shot dead by police a potential criminal offence may have been committed by the officer in his use of lethal force”. The IPCC says ... suspended over fatal Wood Green shooting The launching of a criminal homicide investigation and the arrest ... Poisoned legacy of Bhopal: Campaigners call on Dow Chemical to answer criminal charges, 31 years after toxic explosion Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had failed to pursue a criminal prosecution against the company ... demanded that Dow produce its officers in court to answer the criminal charges of culpable homicide. Dow ... Campaigners call on Dow Chemical to answer criminal charges, 31 years after toxic explosion Photographer Alex ... Italian mafia sees huge increase in women mobsters- and they're often more violent than the men a former Naples prosecutor said: “I think that for every active woman inside the criminal ... in mafia trials, said differences remained in the roles assumed by the different sexes in criminal ... of women in the ‘Ndrangheta, a Calabrian criminal organisation, were also expanding, he said. “They know ... Beware the return of stop-and-search has fled their home is automatically a criminal. How about “focused” frisking at airports for anyone ... The human rights crisis in Honduras their work puts them in extreme danger. “Impunity, threats, attacks, harassment and criminal defamation ... has, in an unprecedented step, been barred from practicing journalism as part of a criminal defamation ...
Annie Teriba: Alleged victims say Oxford student accused of rape is 'painting herself as the victim' The undergraduate student resigned her positions last week after admitting she had 'failed to properly establish consent' Annie Teriba resigned from her position in the Oxford Student Union last week Two women who accuse a female Oxford University student of sexual violence have claimed she "tried to paint herself as the victim" to gain sympathy. Annie Teriba, 20, a third-year history and politics student at Wadham College, resigned from her roles as people-of-colour and racial equality officer at Wadham Student Union and as editor of No HeterOx** magazine after admitting she had "failed to properly establish consent" during a sexual encounter earlier that year. In a Facebook post, which has since been deleted, she also admitted she had inappropriately touched someone on a previous occasion. Ms Teriba wrote: "At this year’s NUS Black Students’ Conference, I had sex with someone. "The other party later informed me that the sex was not consensual. I failed to properly establish consent before every act. I apologise sincerely and profoundly for my actions. "In a separate incident, in my first year of university, I was alerted to my inappropriate behaviour whilst drunk in a club, where I had touched somebody in a sexual manner without their consent. Therefore this is not an isolated incident. I apologise sincerely and profoundly for my actions.” But her alleged victims say the apology is not good enough. In an online statement, published on microblogging site Tumblr, they said: "We find it particularly ironic that she has been a prominent voice against the very actions she herself has committed. "Annie has been incredibly narcissistic and has constantly attempted to centre everything on herself rather than consider the survivors and how she is impacting on them," the statement said. "Her initial statement was extremely inappropriate and hurtful. It read like a creative writing piece, poetically shifting the blame away from herself, and it was also rife with apologism and excuses." The joint statement alleges that when the victim of the alleged rape first confronted her, Ms Teriba "initially appeared shocked, but then explained that she was very drunk and that she had no recollection of any events from the night in which the incident took place". "She then left in a flood of tears which centred the conversation on her reaction and her feelings, rather than those of the survivor," the statement said.
Jagmeet Singh: Sikh charity calls on British media to provide coverage of treatment of Sikhs in India 'The lack of coverage in Britain will further add to a growing sentiment about how much our government values what Sikhs have brought to this community' Jagmeet Singh interrupting Sian Williams live on-air BBC Sikhs are being persecuted because of their faith - and the media is completely ignoring their plight, according to campaigners. In recent weeks, tensions with police have increased in the Punjab amid protests at the alleged desecration of the Sikh holy book, the Guru Granth Sahib, in an number of villages in the region. Clashes with police last week left two Sikhs dead and scores injured in Kotkapura, Punjab, according to The Tribune India. Reports allege police used teargas and water cannons to disperse the crowd, as well as firing at protesters, leading to the deaths. Police said they acted in self-defence and "used minimal force". Protesters were demanding the arrest of those responsible for tearing up pages from the Sikh holy scripture, Guru Granth Sahib. The warning follows a Sikh man's on-air protest on British television, in which he attempted to highlight the lack of media coverage of the violence against Sikhs. Appearing on Sunday Morning Live, Jagmeet Singh, from the educational charity Basics of Sikhi, said: "I have to say Sikhs are being killed in Punjab and nobody is reporting it. Please report it." Jasveer Singh Gill, a spokesman for the Sikh Press Association, said: "Jagmeet was protesting about the lack of mainstream media coverage, particularly in the West, about something that’s been going on in India, and Punjab specifically. "What Jagmeet did in pushing for coverage of what's going on in Punjab isn't about the deaths that have occured recently, it's about something that's been going on for many years. "For a number of years now, unarmed Sikhs have been killed during peaceful protests. This is what Jagmeet was trying to highlight on the show. Basics of Sikhi, an educational charity based in the UK, later accused presenter Sian Williams of belittling Mr Singh. A BBC spokesperson said: "On live TV unplanned things happen and this was dealt with professionally and appropriately by Sian." The Sikh charity also linked to a petition against the BBC, signed by 76,000 supporters, urging them to end the "media blackout" on violence against Sikhs in India. Mr Gill said that while India portrays itself as the largest democracy in the world, a lot of its practices would be considered undemocratic, "especially the use of the army and police" towards protesters.
Doctor accused of selling false hope to families The 6-year-old boy had been fighting an inoperable brain tumor for 10 months. When his mother, Niasia Cotto, found him in his bed, unresponsive and unable to open his eyes, "we knew there was nothing else that we could do," she said. An ambulance took Josia to a hospice room at a local hospital. His parents covered him in a soft, blue-and-white blanket, hugged him and held his small hand for the last time. "We told him the choice was his, whether to keep fighting or be in peace with God," said his mother. "He chose." Josia's parents would have paid any price to save him. A Texas doctor, two months, earlier, had given them one: $25,000 upfront, by cash or check. Clinging to hope, the Linden, N.J., couple took Josia to see Stanislaw Burzynski, a Houston doctor claiming to be able to do what no one else can: cure inoperable pediatric brainstem tumors. Virtually any other doctor might have recited the same sad statistics: Although doctors can now cure 83% of pediatric cancers in the U.S., there is usually no hope for kids with Josia's tumor. Perhaps 5% survive five years. Burzynski — an internist with no board certification or formal training in oncology — has said publicly that he can cure half of the estimated 200 children a year diagnosed with brainstem tumors. The Cottos were told that treatment could cost over $100,000, mostly out of pocket, because insurance plans often refuse to cover Burzynski Clinic treatments. Burzynski, 70, calls his drugs "antineoplastons" and says he has given them to more than 8,000 patients since 1977. He originally synthesized these sodium-rich drugs from blood and urine — the urine collected from public parks, bars and penitentiaries. Although they've been made in a lab since 1980, they still carry a distinctive and unpleasant odor. And while the experimental drugs have not been approved by the Food and Drug Administration, Burzynski has described them like the holy grail of cancer therapy: safe, natural and highly effective. He has also prescribed them as a treatment for AIDS, lupus and other conditions. Some patients are convinced that he saved their lives. Mary Jo Siegel of Ventura, Calif., says she believes Burzynski cured her lymphoma. James Treadwell from Coronado, Calif., credits Burzynski with curing his brain tumor. Jenny Gettino of Syracuse, N.Y., says Burzynski cured her daughter of an infant brain tumor. Yet the National Cancer Institute says there is no evidence that Burzynski has cured a single patient, or even helped one live longer. He has not backed up his claims by publishing results from a randomized, controlled trial — considered the gold standard of medical evidence — in a respected, peer-reviewed journal. And Burzynski's drugs pose a risk of serious harm, including coma, swelling near the brain and death, according to the NCI and informed consent documents that patients sign before beginning treatment. While Burzynski has touted his treatments as an alternative to chemotherapy, a 1999 NCI study found that antineoplastons can cause many of the same side effects as conventional chemo: nausea, vomiting, headaches, muscle pain, confusion and seizures. Many blame the system for failing to protect patients. "He's a snake oil salesman," says pediatric oncologist Peter Adamson, a professor of pediatrics and pharmacology at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. "This has gone on for so many years, it's really unbelievable." For 36 years, critics say, Burzynski has been selling false hope to desperate families at the most vulnerable time of their lives. "When you want so hard to believe something, you end up listening to your heart and not your head," says Lisa Merritt of Armuchee, Ga., whose husband, Wayne, was treated briefly by Burzynski in 2009. The couple say that Burzynski misled them about the type of treatment that would be offered, as well as the cost. Burzynski, she says, is "the worst kind of predator." There are many reasons why Burzynski has been able to stay in business so long. He has benefited from state laws that limit the Texas Medical Board's authority to remove his license, as well as the ability of terminally ill patients to collect damages. His devoted followers are willing to fight for him. He also has exploited the public's growing fascination with alternative medicine and suspicion of the medical establishment. At times, Burzynski also has had an especially influential ally: the Food and Drug Administration. FDA CHANGES COURSE Although "there were some stormy relations with the FDA" in the past, Burzynski said in an interview, "now, we have a productive relationship." For years, the FDA tried to prevent Burzynski from prescribing unapproved drugs. In 1995, a federal grand jury indicted Burzynski on 75 felony charges, including criminal contempt, mail fraud and violations of the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act. As a condition of his bail, a judge ordered him to stop prescribing antineoplastons. For a time, it looked as if Burzynski might never treat another patient. Dozens of Burzynski's patients flocked to Washington to defend him, arguing that taking away antineoplastons was akin to a death sentence. Siegel, who credits Burzynski with curing her lymphoma 22 years ago, has testified on his behalf five times — once at his criminal trial and four times at hearings on Capitol Hill. Facing both a political and public relations firestorm, the FDA in 1996 abruptly changed course. It offered to allow Burzynski to continue treating patients, but only through an official trial. "With one stroke of the pen, the FDA made legal what it had previously said was illegal," says Burzynski's attorney, Richard Jaffe. Yet even Jaffe has acknowledged that the trial — now in its 17th year — was more about politics than science. In his 2008 memoirs, Galileo's Lawyer, Jaffe called it "a joke." "It was all an artifice, a vehicle we and the FDA created to legally give the patients Burzynski's treatment," Jaffe said. "With political help, you can get the FDA to say yes," says Siegel, 63. The indictments led to two trials. In 1997, one of Burzynski's criminal trials ended in a hung jury; the other, an acquittal. Today, the FDA refuses to comment on Burzynski. NO NEW DRUG APPLICATION Even his staunchest supporters wonder why Burzynski's drugs are nowhere close to receiving FDA approval. "He's curing cancer," says Siegel, who co-founded the Burzynski Patient Group to spread the word about his therapies. "So why, why won't the FDA approve it?" Like many of Burzynski's supporters, Siegel suspects that the medical community and drug industry are aligned against him. "Why does a doctor who can produce such extraordinary results continue to be attacked today?" Siegel asks. "The reason is because Dr. Burzynski and his patented discovery pose the greatest threat to an entrenched medical monopoly." In fact, the FDA hasn't had a chance to approve Burzynski's drugs. He has never officially asked. Although Burzynski said he has completed 14 intermediate-phase studies, he has yet to file a new drug application, the final step toward getting a drug approved. That hasn't stopped Burzynski from using his relationship with the FDA to recruit patients. Stacey Huntington says she took her daughter to see Burzynski last year partly because the FDA's oversight made his therapies seem safer and more promising. "My fear took us to Houston, and the hope he gave us made us proceed," says Huntington, of Chehalis, Wash. In an interview, Burzynski said developing new drugs is complex and takes time. Yet the FDA has approved 108 cancer drugs since Burzynski began his trial. Cure rates for one type of pediatric brain tumor — medulloblastoma — are now 85%, according to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis. Doctors can cure 95% of kids with Hodgkin lymphoma (a cancer of the lymph system), acute lymphoblastic leukemia (a blood cancer) and retinoblastoma (an eye tumor). Fran Visco, president of the National Breast Cancer Coalition, describes the FDA's tolerance of Burzynski as "outrageous." "They have put people at risk for a long time," says Visco, an attorney and breast cancer survivor. "That's completely unacceptable. How can anyone look at these facts and believe that there is a real clinical trial going on ... rather than just using the FDA and the clinical trial system to make money?" Burzynski dismisses criticism of his work, referring to his detractors as "hooligans" and "hired assassins." As for criticism from former patients, Burzynski says, "We see patients from various walks of life. We see great people. We see crooks. We have prostitutes. We have thieves. We have mafia bosses. We have Secret Service agents. Many people are coming to us, OK? Not all of them are the greatest people in the world. And many of them would like to get money from us. They pretend they got sick and they would like to extort money from us." History will vindicate him, Burzynski says, just as it has vindicated other persecuted medical "pioneers," such as Louis Pasteur. In the future, Burzynski says, everyone will use his therapies, and the cancer treatments used today — such as surgery, chemotherapy and radiation — will be regarded as barbaric. "There will be a time when people will see the light," he says, "and our treatments will be used by everyone." FDA IMPOSES NEW RESTRICTIONS The FDA's patience with Burzynski apparently wore out after Josia died. In a report sent to the FDA after the boy's death, Burzynski's staff acknowledged that his last blood sample, taken the day he passed away,showed a blood sodium level of 205 millimoles per liter, a level that is typically fatal. Burzynski's staff blamed that reading on a "false laboratory report based on a contaminated sample." Yet hypernatremia is one of antineoplastons' most common side effects, known to doctors for two decades. One of Burzynski's own informed consent documents — the form that patients sign before they begin treatment — put the risk at 21%. On July 30, 2012 — six weeks after Josia's death — the FDA forbade Burzynski from giving antineoplastons to any new children. Six months later, the FDA expanded its "partial clinical hold," forbidding Burzynski from giving the drugs to new adult patients, according to the Burzynski Research Institute's 2013 filing to the Securities and Exchange Commission. About 10 patients who were already receiving antineoplastons were allowed to continue, to avoid interruption of care. According to FDA inspections performed after Josia's death, Burzynski has failed to report at least 18 hypernatremia cases. The FDA publicly announced the restrictions on Burzynski's clinical trial for the first time in September. According to the FDA, the Burzynski institutional review board — an outside body charged with protecting patients — failed that most basic duty. In a letter announcing the restrictions, the agency said it has "no assurance" that the board was "adequately protecting the rights and welfare of the human subjects." The FDA based its decision on "objectionable conditions" and a "continuing pattern of deficiencies found during the last three inspections," the letter said. FDA inspectors also faulted Burzynski personally, as principal investigator of the study, according to inspections conducted from January to March. Copies of these reports were obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request. Addressing Burzynski, the inspectors wrote, "you failed to protect the rights, safety and welfare of subjects under your care." Inspectors charged Burzynski, as principal investigator, with a variety of other serious offenses, some dating to 2001. Among them: • Inflating success rates in 67% of cases, by inaccurately reporting how tumors responded to treatment. • Destroying patients' original records. • Failing to report "unanticipated problems" to the institutional review board — sometimes for six or seven years. In the inspections conducted this spring, officials noted four cases from 1998 or 1999 in which patients were hospitalized for serious issues — such as pneumonia, lack of consciousness or bleeding in the skull — that Burzynski researchers failed to report until 2005. The FDA found similar problems in a 2001 inspection, when officials noted that Burzynski failed to report problems such as pneumonia, blood infections and pancreatitis, a life-threatening inflammation of the pancreas. • Failing to protect patients from overdosing. Forty-eight patients suffered a total of 102 drug overdoses from 2005 to 2013. While the overdoses made some of these patients excessively sleepy, one had a seizure and another was hospitalized in intensive care with a breathing tube. This represents a continuing problem, dating to reports of overdoses in inspections as early as 2001. Burzynski's review board also repeatedly rubber-stamped his requests to give patients antineoplastons outside of a clinical trial, the FDA's September letter suggests. In some cases, those decisions were made without consulting patients' medical records, or were made not by oncologists, but by a single member of the board, a "water rehabilitation" specialist with no medical training. Although researchers do sometimes provide experimental drugs outside of clinical trials, exceptions should be rare, with perhaps one or two cases per trial, Adamson says. In Burzynski's case, these "compassionate use" exceptions were common, FDA records show. Enrolling patients for compassionate use can be lucrative. Although researchers cannot charge for experimental drugs, Burzynski does bill patients for related supplies and services. In Burzynski's defense, Jaffe notes that inspection reports represent preliminary findings. The FDA has not yet issued final conclusions. And Burzynski has taken issue with many of the FDA's findings. In his written response about the FDA's claims that he inflated his success rates, Burzynski said that he "complied with all criteria for evaluation of response and made accurate assessments for tumor response." As for overdoses, Burzynski said in an interview that his staff works hard to train patients and their families to administer antineoplastons correctly. None of the overdoses was fatal, he said. "The amount of medication that these patients receive is not dangerous," Burzynski said. "At worst, they would sleep for a few hours." Visco, the breast cancer advocate, says she's encouraged to hear that the FDA has put Burzynski's trial on hold. "It is about time that the FDA stepped in to stop Burzynski from subjecting more patients to harm," she says. "I do not know why it took so long." BURZYNSKI STILL HAS OPTIONS The FDA can't put Burzynski out of business. No matter what happens to his trial, Burzynski holds a license to practice medicine in Texas. So does his son, Gregory Burzynski, a doctor who's helping to carry on his father's business. As vice president of the Burzynski Clinic, his son, 34, works closely with his father and "oversees many operations" of the clinic, according to its website. These days, doctors at the Burzynski Clinic are looking beyond antineoplastons. They mostly prescribe chemotherapy. That's a huge shift. During Burzynski's criminal trial in the 1990s, patients who rallied to his defense carried signs reading, "Say No to Chemo." But the Texas Medical Board, which has repeatedly tried and failed to put Burzynski out of business over the years, still questions Burzynski's care. The board charged Burzynski in 2010 with violating state medical standards by prescribing legal cancer drugs in "random" and unapproved combinations, with no known benefits but clear harms. Burzynski got those charges dropped in 2012, by successfully arguing that he didn't sign any of the prescriptions in question. Burzynski is scheduled to go before the medical board again in January, based on a complaint filed by Stacey Huntington, whose daughter was treated with antineoplastons for a brain tumor. At the meeting, a board panel "will hear the case and make recommendation to the full board about what disciplinary action, if any, is appropriate." Huntington, who paid Burzynski nearly $34,000 for about six weeks of care, says she's concerned about both billing irregularities and the quality of her daughter's treatment. Her daughter, Abra Hall, 27, developed a life-threatening blood infection called sepsis after leaving the clinic to continue treatment at home. The infection developed in a catheter in Hall's chest, which was used to administer the antineoplastons, Huntington says. One month after developing sepsis, Hall was hospitalized again with a lung infection. Hall also developed serious complications from high doses of steroids, Huntington says. Huntington says she decided to speak out to prevent other families from being taken advantage of. "When you get a diagnosis of cancer, you are pretty vulnerable," she says. "I think they take advantage of that." Niasia and Jose Cotto hold a photo of son Josia in their Linden, N.J., home on Oct. 12. The boy died of a brain tumor. No one told Josia's parents about any of this. Not Burzynski. Not the FDA. Jose and Niasia Cotto had no idea that their son's death prompted an investigation by the FDA, until they were contacted by USA TODAY. The Cottos had long believed that Burzynski could have cured their son if only they had taken Josia to see him first, before giving him radiation and chemotherapy. They had even hoped to launch a non-profit, A Life for Josia Foundation, to help other children with cancer gain access to Burzynski's treatment. Now, they don't know what to think. Although more than a year has passed since they lost their son, the Cottos say they see reminders of him everywhere. Niasia, 32, says she feels his presence in simple things, such as the light of a bright star on a dark night. "He's still with us," says Jose, 33. "I know God had his plan and his purpose for Josia." Doctor Stanislaw Burzynski makes his way to the federal courthouse for jury selection in his 1997 criminal trial, as supporters demonstrate outside the courthouse Jan. 6, 1997, in Houston. Burzynski pleaded innocent to a 75-count federal indictment that charged him with mail fraud and violating Food and Drug Administration regulations in the use of antineoplastons, experimental substances he created to treat cancer. One of his criminal trials ended in a hung jury. In the other, he was acquitted. Stanislaw Burzynski, 70, opened his Houston clinic in 1977. He said he has treated more than 8,000 patients with experimental substances that he calls antineoplastons, and has treated around 15,000 patients during his career. The Food and Drug Administration has allowed him to test antineoplastons legally through a clinical trial. Politicians rallied around doctor Stanislaw Burzynski in the 1990s, when he was prosecuted for mail fraud and other felonies. Georgia state Sen. Ed Gochenour spoke during a rally May 19, 1997, outside the federal courthouse in Houston. Gochenour was a patient of the controversial doctor. He died from a pulmonary embolism in 1999. Walter Murach comforts his wife, Barbara, as he carries her medicine distributor during a demonstration to show support for doctor Stanislaw Burzynski on Jan. 2, 1997, outside the federal courthouse in Houston. She had been diagnosed with ovarian cancer and was a patient of Burzynski's. Burzynski pleaded innocent to a 75-count federal indictment that charged him with mail fraud and violating Food and Drug Administration regulations in the use of his experimental drugs, which he calls antineoplastons. The indictments resulted in two criminal trials. In 1997, one ended in a hung jury; the other, an acquittal. Niasia and Jose Cotto hold a photo of their 6-year-old son, Josia. They took Josia to see doctor Stanislaw Burzynski last year, hoping that he would cure their son's inoperable brain tumor. Josia died two months after beginning treatment in June 2012. Josia's younger brother, 1-year-old Noah, is seen here with his parents at their home in Linden, N.J. Abra Hall, 27, still has purple stretch marks on her skin, caused by Cushing syndrome, which she developed after taking high doses of steroids that she received at the Burzynski Research Institute, where she was treated in 2012 for a brain tumor. Cushing syndrome also caused her to gain a lot weight. Hall has an advanced, inoperable brain tumor, but sought treatment from Burzynski because her family urged her to seek alternatives to radiation and chemotherapy. Hall said she abandoned the Burzynski treatment after developing serious side effects and has since received conventional cancer care -- including radiation and chemotherapy. Abra Hall, of Chehalis, Wash., says her chemotherapy cancer treatment makes her feel fatigued and sensitive to light. Hall went to the Burzynski Research Institute in Houston for experimental drug treatments until severe complications forced her to stop taking Burzynski's experimental therapies, which included substances that he synthesized, called antineoplastons, as well as other drugs. Abra Hall's mother, Stacey Huntington, borrowed $40,000 from friends and family to pay for her medical care, as well as travel and hotel expenses related to staying in Houston while being treated at the Burzynski Research Institute. Like many other Burzynski patients, she created a website to solicit donations. Other patients' families hold fundraisers and turn to the media for help, telling their stories in newspapers and on local TV. Many of Abra Hall's friends offered to pitch in to help pay for her cancer treatment. She's one of many Burzynski patients who rely on community help. In many cases, schools and local businesses hold charity events to help patients raise money. "When you get a diagnosis like cancer, you are pretty vulnerable," says Stacey Huntington, Abra Hall's mother. "I think they take advantage of that." Stacey Huntington, left, was desperate with worry when she took her daughter, Abra Hall, to see Stanislaw Burzynski. She now says he preyed on her vulnerability. "In the initial meeting with Burzynski, he himself claimed a minimum 40% cure rate," says Huntington of Chehalis, Wash. "He is selling hope to dying people." Wayne Merritt, a farmer from Armuchee, Ga., went to see Burzynski in 2009 after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. He had hoped to receive antineoplastons, an unapproved drug that Burzynski legally prescribes through an FDA-approved clinical trial. Merritt didn't qualify for the trial, and was disappointed to realize that the drugs he had been prescribed were conventional chemotherapy. Merritt abandoned the treatments after only a few weeks after learning that they would cost $30,000 a month. Lisa Merritt keeps this note on her kitchen window declaring her husband, Wayne, has been healed of cancer. He sought other care after abandoning the Burzynski Clinic. Wayne Merritt and his wife, Lisa, say they got a "high-pressure sales pitch" from the Burzynski Clinic. "We felt like he was out to get every penny he could get from us in a short amount of time," said Lisa Merritt, from Armuchee, Ga. The Merritts, who tell their story at burzynskiscam.com, said one of Burzynski's employees, Marc Stephens, called them in 2011 to say that they could face legal action if they did not take down the site. The couple refused, said Lisa Merritt, also a cancer survivor. "I said, 'I have had breast cancer and faced death. My husband was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and he's facing death,' " Lisa Merritt told Burzynski's representative at the time. "What do you think you can threaten us with that is going to scare me after this?'" Jim Treadwell walks with his wife, Victoria, near their home in Coronado, Calif. He was diagnosed with an aggressive brain tumor in 2004 and underwent surgery, chemotherapy and radiation. At the conclusion of treatment, his doctors told him there was nothing more they could do for him, Treadwell said. He decided to see Burzynski and enrolled in an FDA-approved clinical trial of antineoplastons, given along with steroids and other medications. Treadwell developed serious side effects after beginning therapy, including congestive heart failure, liver problems and swelling. He stopped taking antineoplastons after six months, but his cancer has not returned. Victoria Treadwell wrote a book detailing their experiences. Although many oncologists are skeptical of Burzynski’s success stories, Treadwell, a retired lieutenant colonel in the Marines, is convinced the antineoplastons cured his brain tumor. “I really don’t care what people think," he says. "We know what we know." An employee walks past a sign whose letters were rearranged by patients of doctor Stanislaw Burzynski years ago to read: "Hope Exists" at his clinic. Stanislaw Burzynski has treated patients with drugs that he calls antineoplastons since the 1970s. Although the drugs are experimental, the FDA allowed Burzynski to dispense them legally, through a clinical trial, in 1996. That trial is now on hold, and no new patients may received the drugs, according to the FDA. Burzynski also is scheduled to appear before the Texas Medical Board in January. Doctor Stanislaw Burzynski makes his way to the federal courthouse for jury selection in his 1997 criminal trial, as supporters demonstrate outside the courthouse Jan. 6, 1997, in Houston. Burzynski pleaded innocent to a 75-count federal indictment that charged him with mail fraud and violating Food and Drug Administration regulations in the use of antineoplastons, experimental substances he created to treat cancer. One of his criminal trials ended in a hung jury. In the other, he was acquitted. Stanislaw Burzynski, 70, opened his Houston clinic in 1977. He said he has treated more than 8,000 patients with experimental substances that he calls antineoplastons, and has treated around 15,000 patients during his career. The Food and Drug Administration has allowed him to test antineoplastons legally through a clinical trial. Politicians rallied around doctor Stanislaw Burzynski in the 1990s, when he was prosecuted for mail fraud and other felonies. Georgia state Sen. Ed Gochenour spoke during a rally May 19, 1997, outside the federal courthouse in Houston. Gochenour was a patient of the controversial doctor. He died from a pulmonary embolism in 1999. Walter Murach comforts his wife, Barbara, as he carries her medicine distributor during a demonstration to show support for doctor Stanislaw Burzynski on Jan. 2, 1997, outside the federal courthouse in Houston. She had been diagnosed with ovarian cancer and was a patient of Burzynski's. Burzynski pleaded innocent to a 75-count federal indictment that charged him with mail fraud and violating Food and Drug Administration regulations in the use of his experimental drugs, which he calls antineoplastons. The indictments resulted in two criminal trials. In 1997, one ended in a hung jury; the other, an acquittal. Niasia and Jose Cotto hold a photo of their 6-year-old son, Josia. They took Josia to see doctor Stanislaw Burzynski last year, hoping that he would cure their son's inoperable brain tumor. Josia died two months after beginning treatment in June 2012. Josia's younger brother, 1-year-old Noah, is seen here with his parents at their home in Linden, N.J. Abra Hall, 27, still has purple stretch marks on her skin, caused by Cushing syndrome, which she developed after taking high doses of steroids that she received at the Burzynski Research Institute, where she was treated in 2012 for a brain tumor. Cushing syndrome also caused her to gain a lot weight. Hall has an advanced, inoperable brain tumor, but sought treatment from Burzynski because her family urged her to seek alternatives to radiation and chemotherapy. Hall said she abandoned the Burzynski treatment after developing serious side effects and has since received conventional cancer care -- including radiation and chemotherapy. Abra Hall developed life-threatening complications after returning home from the Burzynski Research Institute, where she and her caregivers continued to administer antineoplastons themselves through a catheter in her chest. Hall was hospitalized for a dangerous blood infection called sepsis, which developed after the catheter became infected. She later developed pneumonia. She has recovered from those infections and is now getting conventional treatment, including oral chemotherapy medications. Abra Hall, of Chehalis, Wash., says her chemotherapy cancer treatment makes her feel fatigued and sensitive to light. Hall went to the Burzynski Research Institute in Houston for experimental drug treatments until severe complications forced her to stop taking Burzynski's experimental therapies, which included substances that he synthesized, called antineoplastons, as well as other drugs. Abra Hall's mother, Stacey Huntington, borrowed $40,000 from friends and family to pay for her medical care, as well as travel and hotel expenses related to staying in Houston while being treated at the Burzynski Research Institute. Like many other Burzynski patients, she created a website to solicit donations. Other patients' families hold fundraisers and turn to the media for help, telling their stories in newspapers and on local TV. Many of Abra Hall's friends offered to pitch in to help pay for her cancer treatment. She's one of many Burzynski patients who rely on community help. In many cases, schools and local businesses hold charity events to help patients raise money. "When you get a diagnosis like cancer, you are pretty vulnerable," says Stacey Huntington, Abra Hall's mother. "I think they take advantage of that." Stacey Huntington, left, was desperate with worry when she took her daughter, Abra Hall, to see Stanislaw Burzynski. She now says he preyed on her vulnerability. "In the initial meeting with Burzynski, he himself claimed a minimum 40% cure rate," says Huntington of Chehalis, Wash. "He is selling hope to dying people." Wayne Merritt, a farmer from Armuchee, Ga., went to see Burzynski in 2009 after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. He had hoped to receive antineoplastons, an unapproved drug that Burzynski legally prescribes through an FDA-approved clinical trial. Merritt didn't qualify for the trial, and was disappointed to realize that the drugs he had been prescribed were conventional chemotherapy. Merritt abandoned the treatments after only a few weeks after learning that they would cost $30,000 a month. Lisa Merritt keeps this note on her kitchen window declaring her husband, Wayne, has been healed of cancer. He sought other care after abandoning the Burzynski Clinic. Wayne Merritt and his wife, Lisa, say they got a "high-pressure sales pitch" from the Burzynski Clinic. "We felt like he was out to get every penny he could get from us in a short amount of time," said Lisa Merritt, from Armuchee, Ga. The Merritts, who tell their story at burzynskiscam.com, said one of Burzynski's employees, Marc Stephens, called them in 2011 to say that they could face legal action if they did not take down the site. The couple refused, said Lisa Merritt, also a cancer survivor. "I said, 'I have had breast cancer and faced death. My husband was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and he's facing death,' " Lisa Merritt told Burzynski's representative at the time. "What do you think you can threaten us with that is going to scare me after this?'" Jim Treadwell walks with his wife, Victoria, near their home in Coronado, Calif. He was diagnosed with an aggressive brain tumor in 2004 and underwent surgery, chemotherapy and radiation. At the conclusion of treatment, his doctors told him there was nothing more they could do for him, Treadwell said. He decided to see Burzynski and enrolled in an FDA-approved clinical trial of antineoplastons, given along with steroids and other medications. Treadwell developed serious side effects after beginning therapy, including congestive heart failure, liver problems and swelling. He stopped taking antineoplastons after six months, but his cancer has not returned. Victoria Treadwell wrote a book detailing their experiences. Although many oncologists are skeptical of Burzynski’s success stories, Treadwell, a retired lieutenant colonel in the Marines, is convinced the antineoplastons cured his brain tumor. “I really don’t care what people think," he says. "We know what we know." An employee walks past a sign whose letters were rearranged by patients of doctor Stanislaw Burzynski years ago to read: "Hope Exists" at his clinic. Stanislaw Burzynski has treated patients with drugs that he calls antineoplastons since the 1970s. Although the drugs are experimental, the FDA allowed Burzynski to dispense them legally, through a clinical trial, in 1996. That trial is now on hold, and no new patients may received the drugs, according to the FDA. Burzynski also is scheduled to appear before the Texas Medical Board in January.
Scores in N.C. are legally 'innocent,' yet still imprisoned ELIZABETHTOWN, N.C. – Terrell McCullum did not commit a federal crime by carrying a shotgun and a rifle out of his ex-girlfriend's house. But he is serving a federal prison sentence for it. And the fact that everyone — including the U.S.Justice Department— agrees that he is legally innocent might not be enough to set him free. A USA TODAY investigation, based on court records and interviews with government officials and attorneys, found more than 60 men who went to prison for violating federal gun possession laws, even though courts have since determined that it was not a federal crime for them to have a gun. Many of them don't even know they're innocent. The legal issues underlying their situation are complicated, and are unique to North Carolina. But the bottom line is that each of them went to prison for breaking a law that makes it a federal crime for convicted felons to possess a gun. The problem is that none of them had criminal records serious enough to make them felons under federal law. Still, the Justice Department has not attempted to identify the men, has made no effort to notify them, and, in a few cases in which the men have come forward on their own, has argued in court that they should not be released. Justice Department officials said it is not their job to notify prisoners that they might be incarcerated for something that they now concede is not a crime. And although they have agreed in court filings that the men are innocent, they said they must still comply with federal laws that put strict limits on when and how people can challenge their convictions in court. "We can't be outcome driven," said Anne Tompkins, the U.S. attorney in Charlotte. "We've got to make sure we follow the law, and people should want us to do that." She said her office is "looking diligently for ways, within the confines of the law, to recommend relief for defendants who are legally innocent." These cases are largely unknown outside the courthouses here, but they have raised difficult questions about what, if anything, the government owes to innocent people locked in prisons. "It's been tough," said Ripley Rand, the U.S. attorney in Greensboro, N.C. "We've spent a lot of time talking about issues of fundamental fairness, and what is justice." It's also unusual. Wrongful conviction cases are seldom open-and-shut — usually they depend on DNA or other new evidence that undermines the government's case, but does not always prove someone is innocent. Yet in the North Carolina gun cases, it turns out, there simply were no federal crimes. Using state and federal court records, USA TODAY identified 23 other men who had been sent to federal prison for having a firearm despite criminal records too minor to make that a federal crime. Nine of them remain in prison, serving sentences of up to 10 years; others are still serving federal probation. The newspaper's review was limited to only a small fraction of cases from one of the three federal court districts in North Carolina. Federal public defenders have so far identified at least 39 others in additional court districts, and are certain to find more. And prosecutors have already agreed to drop dozens of cases in which prisoners' convictions were not yet final. Some of the prisoners USA TODAY contacted — and their lawyers — were stunned to find out that they were imprisoned for something that turned out not to be a federal crime. And their lawyers said they were troubled by the idea that innocence alone might not get them out. "If someone is innocent, I would think that would change the government's reaction, and it's sad that it hasn't," said Debra Graves, an assistant federal public defender in Raleigh. "I have trouble figuring out how you rationalize this. These are innocent people. That has to matter at some point." WHO CAN HAVE A GUN? Terrell McCullum conceded in interviews that he has made plenty of bad decisions — including having the two guns that sent him to federal prison. But there is little dispute that his criminal record wouldn't now be serious enough to make having the guns a federal crime. Even so, government lawyers have said in court filings that he should remain in the Farmville, Va., jail where he is serving the end of his federal sentence. "At most," the Justice Department said in an April court filing, McCullum "has become legally innocent of the charge against him." In other words, the law may have changed, but the facts of his case didn't — he did possess the gun, and he had a criminal record — so he isn't entitled to be released. His request to be released is still pending. "I don't know what's going to happen," McCullum said during a recent phone call. "I'm just praying on it." The key to McCullum's innocence lies at the complicated intersection of state and federal criminal laws. Decades ago, Congress made it a federal crime for convicted felons to have a gun. The law proved to be a powerful tool for police and prosecutors to target repeat offenders who managed to escape stiff punishment in state courts. In some cases, federal courts can put people in prison for significantly longer for merely possessing a gun than state courts can for using the gun to shoot at someone. To make that law work in every state, Congress wrote one national definition of who cannot own a gun: someone who has been convicted of a crime serious enough that he or she could have been sentenced to more than a year in prison. Figuring out who fits that definition in North Carolina is not as simple as it sounds. In 1993, state lawmakers adopted a unique system called "structured sentencing" that changes the maximum prison term for a crime, based on the record of the person who committed it. People with relatively short criminal records who commit crimes such as distributing cocaine and writing bad checks face no more than a few months in jail; people with more extensive records face much longer sentences. For years, federal courts in North Carolina said that did not matter. The courts said, in effect: If someone with a long record could have gone to prison for more than a year for the crime, then everyone who committed that crime is a felon, and all of them are legally barred from possessing a gun. Last year, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit said federal courts (including itself) had been getting the law wrong. Only people who could have actually faced more than a year in prison for their crimes qualify as felons under federal law. The 4th Circuit's decision came in a little-noticed drug case, United States v. Simmons, but its implications could be dramatic. For one thing, tens of thousands of people in North Carolina have criminal records that no longer make having a gun a federal crime. About half of the felony convictions in North Carolina's state courts over the past decade were for offenses that no longer count as felonies under federal law. No one yet knows precisely how many people were incorrectly convicted for having a gun, but the number could be significant. Rand, the U.S. attorney in Greensboro, estimated that more than a third of the gun cases his office prosecuted might be in question, either because the defendants didn't commit a federal crime at all by possessing a gun or because their sentences were calculated incorrectly. "We're going to be addressing this for a while," he said. The Justice Department and federal courts moved quickly to clean up cases that were pending when the 4th Circuit announced its decision. Prosecutors dropped pending charges against people whose records no longer qualified them as felons; the 4th Circuit reversed convictions in more than 40 cases that were on appeal at the time. Some of the men were given shorter sentences; others were simply let go. But the next question has proved far harder to answer: What should the government do with the prisoners whose legal cases were already over? STILL LOCKED UP The men in McCullum's position have little hope of inspiring much public sympathy. All had racked up at least modest criminal records, frequently for selling drugs. Many only wound up in federal court because police had already arrested them for breaking state laws (including a state law, not affected by the 4th Circuit's ruling, barring them from having guns). One man went to federal prison after a shootout; another led police officers on a high-speed chase. One shot a police dog. McCullum hadn't done anything so serious. His mother, Rebecca Farris, concedes he had a knack for getting in trouble, but said he's still "softhearted." McCullum, now 26, has been diagnosed as mentally disabled, and quit school in the 11th grade after he was kicked out for fighting. On a recent afternoon, Elizabethtown Police Chief Bobby Kinlaw squinted at the computer in his small office and rattled through an inventory of McCullum's frequent encounters with his officers, including arrests for larceny, fighting, making threats and driving without insurance. "He seemed to be on the radar on a regular basis," Kinlaw said. McCullum's most serious scrape with the law came in September 2007, when he pleaded guilty to stealing a gun and was put on probation. Under North Carolina law, he could have been sentenced to no more than 10 months in prison. A month later, McCullum broke up with his girlfriend and came to her small house to collect his things. The two quickly got into an argument, and McCullum knocked over a cocktail table and yanked a telephone cord out of the wall, Kinlaw said. His ex-girlfriend's son called the police, and an officer waited outside to keep the peace while McCullum carried his belongings out to his truck. He carried out his clothes. Then, while the officer watched, he carried out a 22-caliber rifle and a shotgun. Police checked the guns' serial numbers and learned the shotgun had been reported stolen, so they arrested McCullum. (They didn't realize until later that the gun had been stolen nine years earlier, by someone else, when McCullum was 12.) When they found out McCullum had a criminal record, they charged him with possession of a firearm by a felon, and turned the case over to the federal government. McCullum says the guns weren't loaded, and he insists he didn't know he wasn't supposed to have firearms. He kept them because they had belonged to his grandfather. In 2009, McCullum went to federal court and pleaded guilty to the charge of illegally possessing a firearm. At the time, even his lawyers thought that his prior conviction for stealing a gun made him a felon under federal law. The judge sentenced him to a year and a day in custody, and the government sent him to Big Sandy, a high-security penitentiary in the mountains of eastern Kentucky. It was the first time McCullum had been to prison. "I ain't no bad person. I made mistakes, but I ain't that bad," McCullum said. "I just was young back then, just made some stupid mistakes." He got out in 2010 but quickly violated his supervised release by robbing a man. ("I saw him with a whole bunch of money and I just got him like that," McCullum said during one phone call.) The judge sent him back to prison. Now he's finishing his sentence at the local jail in Farmville, counting the days until he can go home. SHUT OUT OF COURT? Whether McCullum — or the dozens of others like him — can go home depends on federal laws that put strict limits on when and how people who have already been convicted of a crime can come back to court to plead their innocence. Those laws let prisoners challenge their convictions if they uncover new evidence, or if the U.S. Supreme Court limits the sweep of a criminal law. But none of the exceptions is a clear fit, meaning that, innocent or not, they may not be able to get into court at all. Federal courts have so far split on whether they can even hear the prisoners' cases. Habeas corpus — the main legal tool for challenging unlawful detention — is currently ill-suited to such cases, said Nancy King, a Vanderbilt Law School professor who has studied the issue. Habeas mainly safeguards people's constitutional right to a fair process, she said, and the problem is that "saying, 'I'm innocent' isn't, on its face, that type of constitutional claim." Still, she said, "innocent people should be able to get out of prison." Prosecutors don't disagree, though most said they are not convinced the law allows it. Rand, the U.S. attorney in Greensboro, said he is "not aware of any procedural mechanism by which they can be afforded relief," though he said lawyers in his office "have not been pounding on the table" to keep the men in jail. "No one wants anyone to spend time in jail who should not be there," said Thomas Walker, the U.S. attorney in Raleigh. That's why he said prosecutors were quick to dismiss charges that were pending when the 4th Circuit ruled. But cases in which convictions are already final "are in a totally different posture and require us to follow the existing statutory habeas law," he said. But there's also an even more basic question: How would the prisoners even know? Rand said he personally reviewed all of the gun-possession cases his office had filed in recent years, often bringing home stacks of documents to examine after his kids went to bed. A former state judge, he figured he would have the easiest time identifying problems. Some of the cases he looked at, he said, would no longer qualify as federal crimes. But he said he did not notify those defendants. Instead, courts have asked public defenders to seek them out. Those lawyers said the Justice Department should do more to help, because it has better information and more resources, an assertion prosecutors dispute. "We're doing it with our hands tied," said Eric Placke, a federal public defender in Greensboro. "I appreciate the compelling considerations they have to deal with. But I do think in cases of actual innocence that it would be nice, to say the least, if they would be a little more proactive." Placke and other public defenders said the reviews have been difficult because they often have limited access to records from the men's prior convictions, which has left them to hunt through files in courthouses across the state. USA TODAY conducted a similar, though far more limited review, examining every gun conviction in western North Carolina between 2005 and 2011. The review was limited to people who had been convicted only of gun possession, and included only those cases in which federal prosecutors had specifically identified the prior offense that made possession a crime. USA TODAY used state court records to find those cases in which the men's prior convictions were, in hindsight, not serious enough to convict them of the federal crime. 'A BETTER LIFE' Travis Bowman said he "got cold chills" when USA TODAY told him that he's innocent of the gun charge that landed him in a federal prison in Coleman, Fla., for 10 years. He said he'd never considered the possibility that what he did wasn't a federal crime. He pleaded guilty to illegally possessing a sawed-off shotgun. He's not scheduled to get out of prison until 2016. Police arrested Bowman in 2007 after a 110-mph chase through Murphy, N.C. It began when North Carolina Highway Patrol Sgt. Chris Wood pulled Bowman over for speeding, planning only to write him a warning. But a routine records check showed Bowman had been affiliated with a gang known as Folk Nation, and that he was wanted in Georgia. "I got a real eerie feeling," Wood said. He drew his gun and told Bowman to put his hands on the steering wheel. Bowman took off. With his pregnant, 15-year-old girlfriend in the seat next to him, he raced down the highway, swerved through a McDonald's parking lot and collided with four police cars. He didn't stop until his girlfriend threw the speeding car into park. State officials didn't prosecute Bowman for the shotgun, or for the chase, or for crashing into the police cars, or for refusing to let his girlfriend out of the car. Instead, they turned the case over to the Justice Department, which sent him to prison for a decade just for having an unloaded shotgun on the floor behind the passenger seat. (Bowman said he was taking the gun to his brother.) But Bowman's prior convictions — for habitual misdemeanor assault and having drugs in prison — aren't serious enough to make owning the gun a federal crime. Neither could have put him in prison for more than a year. Bowman says he plans to ask a federal judge to declare him innocent and let him out. "Hopefully I'll get the chance to be out there soon," Bowman wrote in an e-mail."I just want a better life than this. I have to prove to a lot of people that I'm not the old me. I want to be a person my kids will look up to and be proud of." Going home is far from a safe bet. Even if a court ultimately decides to let Bowman out, he could still face all the charges state officials dropped when his case went to federal court.
3 women shot, 1 fatally, outside Flatiron District nightclub; dad of victim rips suspected gangbanger: 'He's a coward' NEW YORK DAILY NEWS Updated: Tuesday, October 13, 2015, 1:14 AM A Bronx dad whose daughter died in a shooting at a Flatiron District club early Monday had a warning for the punk suspected of pulling the trigger: Turn yourself in before I get my hands on you. “I just hope the police catch him before I do,” Wally Faussett said outside Bellevue Hospital, just hours after his daughter Walikque died of a gunshot wound to the back. “I will search for him myself because he should pay,” the father said. “A coward runs, shooting with a gun into a crowd. He’s a coward. He should die, right there on the street that he started shooting.” Directly addressing the suspect, identified by cops as [32]26-year-old ex-con Dalone (Smack) Jamison, the angry dad added: “You should’ve been a victim. The bullet should’ve ricocheted off something and came back and hit you in the head.” Walikque Faussett, 24, was gunned down early Monday outside a Manhattan club. She appears to have been the unintended victim of a furious clubgoer who was thrown out by the bouncers. Lauren Renee Rondat, 25, was in stable condition after being struck in the hip and left foot. Walikque Faussett (l.) was gunned down early Monday outside a Manhattan club. Lauren Renee Rondat (r.) was in stable condition after being struck in the hip and left foot. Shortly after the shooting, Jamison posted a photo of himself with the 24-year-old victim on his Instagram account. The photo appears to have been taken within the past week — and Jamison tries to distance himself from her murder at Club Motivo in the caption. [35]SENATE DEMOCRATS GATHER ON CAPITOL STEPS TO RALLY FOR ACTION AGAINST GUN VIOLENCE “What’s goin on in these streets smh (shaking my head) hope lil sis ok I would loose it if not,” the caption says. He later posted another message in which he said, “I’m not hiding.” “everybody got something to say that was my F---ing friend I would never do no dumb s--- people make story’s and everybody run with it.” Dalone (Smack) Jamison, 26, is suspected in the shooting early Monday outside a Flatiron District club. Dalone (Smack) Jamison, 26, is suspected in the shooting early Monday outside a Flatiron District club. A mutual friend defended Jamison, saying the aspiring rapper wouldn’t put Faussett in danger. “They are close friends,” said 23-year-old Mike Whitte, who grew up with the suspect. “We all eat together. We go out together, we party together.” [36]CUOMO CALLS ON THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT TO KEEP WEAPONS OUT OF NEW YORK Police said the single mom of a 3-year-old boy was the unintended victim of Jamison, who was gunning for the bouncers who had just thrown him out of the Manhattan nightspot. “My daughter was a good girl. She loved her son,” the victim’s heartbroken mom, Wendi Rodriguez, 41, said before railing about gun violence. Suspected shooter Dalone (Smack) Jamison posted this Instagram picture, which shows him with the victim, Walikque (Grace) Faussett. It was posted shortly after the shooting and appears to have been taken in the the last few weeks at a different location. Instagram Suspected shooter Dalone (Smack) Jamison posted this Instagram picture, which shows him with the victim, Walikque (Grace) Faussett. It was posted shortly after the shooting and appears to have been taken in the the last few weeks at a different location. “How does anyone get a gun these days?” she said, breaking down in tears. “How do you do that? You going around with a gun, killing people? How can I bury my firstborn? She was the oldest of three. I feel like this is a bad nightmare." Two other women were also wounded by the short-fused suspect with braided hair, who remains at large. Police said they, too, were innocent victims. A petty criminal, Jamison has been arrested a dozen times going back to 2005, including one bust in 2010 after allegedly beating and cutting a man. The victim needed 60 stitches to his face and arms. Manhattan Theodore Parisienne/for New York Daily News Blood on the ground at the scene where three woman were shot outside of a Manhattan nightclub on Monday. Manhattan Theodore Parisienne/for New York Daily News A spent bullet is recovered at the scene where three women were shot, one fatally, outside of the club at 915 Broadway in Manhattan on Monday. Manhattan Theodore Parisienne/for New York Daily News Three women were shot, one fatally, outside the Motivo Night Club in Manhattan on Monday. The wounded women were identified by sources as 30-year-old Deborah Raji of Brooklyn, who was grazed in the left shoulder, and 25-year-old Lauren Rondat, who was struck in the hip and left foot. Both were in stable condition. Raji’s worried mom said she was relieved her daughter survived the shooting — but deeply upset that she was partying in a nightclub. [38]CUOMO SPEAKS OUT AGAINST 'PLAGUE' OF GUN VIOLENCE IN NYC AS DE BLASIO GIVES VOTE OF CONFIDENCE TO NYPD “Children of God should be home in bed by midnight,” said Funmilayo Adekunle, 60, of Maryland. Bullets began flying a little after 4 a.m. as the club was closing, witnesses said. Jamison, who is also from the Bronx and believed to be a member of the Dymes R Us rap group, got into a fight with somebody inside the club and vowed revenge after he got tossed out, sources said. Manhattan Theodore Parisienne/for New York Daily News Police mark the scene outside of Motivo where the women were shot early Monday. “I’m going to get my gun,” he said, the sources said. Minutes later, gunfire erupted and Faussett was cut down. “It started out with some altercation in the club,” 25-year-old witness Ashley Valle said. “When I looked, the bouncers were trying to get him out the club, scuffling with him. We were about to step out when shots rang out and everybody scattered.” Police tape off the scene where the women were shot in the Flatiron District on Monday. Vic Nicastro for New York Daily News Police tape off the scene where the women were shot in the Flatiron District on Monday. While the shooter fled in what witnesses described as a dark-colored BMW, the doomed woman lay bleeding on the sidewalk. “We were about to step back out and at this point we see the two women laying on the ground on the sidewalk. They were shot,” Valle said. “EMS was trying to resuscitate one of the females but nothing was working. They were trying to revive her but she was not responding at all.” As for the other woman, Valle said “she was laying on her side and there was blood on the lower part of her dress. You could tell she was shot.” “The guy who started the fight, he was outside,” a man who works next door to the club told WCBS radio. “The other guy was inside because the other guy didn’t want to fight. But the one that was outside, he tried to get inside the club again, but the security did not let him go inside.” After the shooter split, police found five shell casings at the scene. Police said Faussett was shot in the back and died at 5:21 a.m. at Bellevue, leaving her son, Alex, motherless. “We don’t know what to tell him,” Faussett’s 21-year-old brother, Prince, said of the little boy. Police at the scene where three were shot outside of a club in the Flatiron District early Monday morning. Vic Nicastro for New York Daily News Police at the scene where three were shot outside of a club in the Flatiron District early Monday morning. Rodriguez said a city cop tried to save her daughter’s life and that she’s grateful. “He was so sweet,” she said. “He was the first officer there. He was there with her. He gave her CPR. He was there until they took her away.” There have been 275 murders citywide so far this year through Sunday — the latest stats available — up 8.3% from the 254 this time last year. Serious overall crime is down 3.1%, as are the number of shooting incidents — 908 versus 925 last year, a 1.8% drop. The number of shooting victims is also down, 1,078 versus 1,096 last year, which is a 1.6% drop.
Parents cleared of abuse told they may not be reunited with their child Karrissa Cox and Richard Carter unlikely to get family court to overturn decision to put baby up for adoption, shadow justice secretary suggests Karrissa Cox sends a message to her child, who was taken into care at six weeks old. The parents of a baby taken into care and given up for adoption after they were wrongly accused of abuse are unlikely to be reunited with the child, the shadow justice secretary has suggested, as they vow to fight the initial decision. Karrissa Cox and Richard Carter said they would launch a legal battle to overturn the adoption. The couple were cleared of abuse more than three years after they took their six-week-old baby to hospital with bleeding in the mouth following a feed. The baby was taken into care and the couple were charged with child cruelty after doctors noticed bruises and what were thought to be fractures on the baby’s body. Social services later found adoptive parents after a ruling of abuse by the family courts. But the criminal case against Cox and Carter collapsed on Wednesday after they were found not guilty of child cruelty and neglect at Guildford crown court. Defence experts discovered the child was suffering from Von Willebrand disease, a blood disorder that causes a person to bruise easily, as well as a vitamin D deficiency, which causes infantile rickets. An independent radiologist, commissioned by the prosecution, concluded that he doubted there were any fractures at all. But the shadow justice secretary, Lord Falconer, said appealing against the decision of a family court from four years ago would present significant hurdles. The court would have to consider the consequences of uprooting the child after being raised for so long by other parents, he said. Falconer told the Today programme: “Assuming that the criminal case produced some new evidence, procedurally it would be perfectly open to the parents to apply to have the order set aside. But in considering whether to set aside the orders, the family court will ask itself one question – what’s in the best interest of the child? Three or four years with a new family might mean the disruption is too much.” In a statement, Cox and Carter, both 25, from Guildford, Surrey, said: “We took our child to hospital seeking help and they stole our baby from us.” The couple were allowed supervised contact with their first and only child until about a year ago. Cox told the Daily Mirror: “It is heartbreaking to know our child is out there, living and breathing in someone else’s arms. We miss our child a lot. We wish we had our child back.” Carter, a former soldier, added: “We will fight till our last breath. No parent should go through this, ever. This just rips your soul away from you. We wouldn’t wish this on anyone.” Lawyers have criticised the decision of the family court to finalise the adoption before the criminal court had made its ruling. The couple’s barrister, Michael Turner QC, said: “These innocent parents have been spared a criminal conviction and a prison sentence for a crime they never committed. Their life sentence is that they are likely never to see their baby again.” Turner said he presented expert evidence to the family court within a few moments of the final adoption order being made. He told the Today programme: “[The expert witness] said immediately not only are these not fractures, but this child has eight classical signs of infantile rickets. I served that report on the family court within moments of them making the final adoption order. Do they review it? No. They confirm the final adoption order.” Emma Fenn, also of Garden Court chambers, said: “This tragic case highlights the real dangers of the government’s drive to increase adoption and speed up family proceedings at all costs. It also shows the perils of the continued inaction relating to a nationwide epidemic of vitamin D deficiency and rickets, and the grave injustice that can result when relying on the opinions of medical professionals alone to conclude child abuse.” Falconer said: “The problem here is that the criminal case took place quite a long time after the main hearing in the family case. You’d want them to be heard much more closer together so that if one case threw light on another, then both courts would have the same degree of information before coming to their separate conclusions.” He noted, however, that the parents were in contact with the child for two and a half years after the incident, “which means that no final decision had been made for at least two and a half years. So it may not be completely futile in this case to make an application. But that’s a matter for the family court to decide”. A Crown Prosecution Service spokesman said the criminal case was brought after expert medical evidence that supported the original charges of cruelty. “The case was then reviewed following new medical evidence which concluded that there was no longer a realistic prospect of conviction on any of the charges,” he said. A spokesman for the Royal Surrey county hospital said “children’s safety is paramount” to all staff but “extensive bruising in a non-independently mobile child is always a trigger for further questions to be asked”. In a statement, he added: “In this particular case, for the child’s safety, the baby was admitted to the Royal Surrey on the day of presentation and full assessments were undertaken by senior doctors in paediatrics and radiology, one of whom was our named doctor for safeguarding. Based on these assessments, a referral was made to children’s social care. No decision about a child’s wellbeing is based on a single agency opinion. Decisions are made over time by health, police and children’s social care and are based on a range of factors.” A Surrey county council spokesman said: “Any case like this is really difficult and we’re always sensitive to the distress it will cause all involved, but our main concern has to be the welfare of the child. Our decision in this case was taken on the basis of the medical evidence provided and the finding of the family court which, having heard the evidence, took the view [that] it was right for the child to be removed from their parents.” In midtown Manhattan on Oct 9., a molotov cocktail aimed at Jewish students Yosef Rachimi and Yisroel Gadafi, both 20 years old, exploded when it hit a bicycle. Police have released a video of the unhinged man who lobbed a flaming bottle of liquid at two yeshiva students who were encouraging people to commit good deeds in Midtown, officials said Tuesday. “I want to kill you!” the balding, heavyset man — who was apparently drunk — screamed before he threw the makeshift explosive at Yosef Rachimi and Yisroel Gadafi, both 20, on W. 37th St. near Ninth Ave. about 1:30 p.m. Friday. The two victims noticed a flash of heat across their legs when the bottle topped with a burning rag exploded near their feet, according to police. The bottle started a small fire, but no one was injured, according to police. “Some guy put alcohol in a bottle of Snapple. The bottle broke and he left,” said Barry Sugar, a spokesman for the Jewish Leadership Council, which tracks anti-Semitism. Police are searching for man who threw a Molotov cocktail at yeshiva students on Oct. 9 in Midtown Manhattan. Police are searching for man who threw a Molotov cocktail at yeshiva students on Oct. 9 in Midtown Manhattan. The white assailant was around 5-foot-9, about 215 pounds and was wearing a black and blue t-shirt and a backpack. The video police released shows the man holding a brown paper bag that held the bottle, officials said. The yeshiva students were on the sidewalk encouraging people to do a Mitzvah, a good deed, Sugar said. Chabad Hasidim are known to hang out at the location before the Sabbath, he added. Anyone with information regarding the incident is urged to call CrimeStoppers at (800) 577-TIPS. All calls will be kept confidential. Woman found dead in Queens park with bruises, deep cut to stomach: police Police investigate the scene in Kissena Corridor Park in Queens on Sunday where a woman was found dead with bruises on her neck and a deep cut to her stomach. Gardiner Anderson for New York Daily News Police investigate the scene in Kissena Corridor Park in Queens on Sunday where a woman was found dead with bruises on her neck and a deep cut to her stomach. A woman was found dead in a Queens park Sunday with bruises on her neck and a cut to her stomach so deep that it exposed her organs, police sources said. Qing Qing Kiemde, 28, was found fully clothed on a dirt path about 300 feet from the entrance of Kissena Corridor Park at 3:40 p.m., according to police sources. Her body was found next to a gated garden, the sources said. The city’s medical examiner was determining the cause of death. Regulars to the idyllic park were shocked by the grisly discovery. The unidentified woman was found about 300 feet from the entrance of Kissena Corridor Park at 3:40 p.m., according to police sources. The unidentified woman was found about 300 feet from the entrance of Kissena Corridor Park at 3:40 p.m., according to police sources. “That’s really scary!” said Nicole Park, 30, who had brought her mother to the garden. “Older people come here and work in the garden all day long. It’s not dangerous at all. This is a really nice neighborhood.” Neighbor Jennifer Ramos, 39, said she’d think twice before wandering into the isolated corners of the park. “There’s nothing about (the park) that would make me feel unsafe,” Ramos said. “But I guess things can happen anywhere.” Ramiz Povataj is one of three men accused of the elaborate bank jobs. A cunning crew of bank burglars pulled two daring heists involving cellphone jammers, disguises, drilled passageways into vaults and narrow escapes from the cops, documents charge. Nedzad Korac, Jamarb Duhanxiu and Ramiz Povataj are accused of the elaborate bank jobs at a Citibank on Park Ave. South and a Santander Bank in Hoboken, N.J. The trio was indicted last week and will be arraigned in Manhattan Federal Court on Friday. In the first heist, on July 18, surveillance video captured three masked men enter an office in the Citibank through a hole cut in the floor at 2:30 a.m., court papers charge. They broke into the vault behind a bank of ATMs, smashing surveillance cameras with hammers. The perps fled the bank undetected when police arrived at 2:45 a.m., and then returned once the boys in blue left with the mistaken belief nothing was afoot, according to documents. At 4 a.m., cops returned and noticed the ATMs were off. Officers heard a voice from behind the machines and smelled burning metal, according to court papers. By the time the cops got into the vault, the bandits were gone, leaving behind a grinder, crowbars, an ax, a mallet, cutting wheels and an extension cord, papers show. Documents don’t indicate they succeeded in getting any cash. Detectives said the suspects swiped a DVR machine that stored a trove of surveillance video. But cops also caught a break. An attentive Citibank employee had run into four shady men claiming to be Verizon workers who were snooping around the building’s basement earlier in the week. The men were so suspicious the bank worker recorded surveillance footage of them on his cellphone, papers show. That proved to be the break in the case the NYPD needed. Nedzad Korac has also been indicted for the alleged bank heists. Nedzad Korac has also been indicted for the alleged bank heists. Cops were able to get an unnamed cooperator who cased the joint with the crew to snitch, papers indicate. Authorities then spied on the crew as it held a planning session at a Starbucks at Second Ave. and 80th St. for the Santander Bank break-in, according to a criminal complaint. The men bought $2,000 in tools, as well as a police radio scanner using a stolen credit card, according to papers. Cops say they recorded Povataj discussing a cellphone jammer he referred to as “the motor” that disrupted bank alarms. On Sept. 7, the crew allegedly attempted the burglary, cutting through the floor of a Hoboken yoga studio leading into the Santander bank vault. That’s when cops closed in. Povataj, 40, was busted wearing two earpieces and speaking into a small microphone on his wrist, prosecutors said. Duhanxiu, 40, and Korac, 43, were also arrested. At Korac’s apartment, police found a face mask and a list of numbers that correspond to frequencies used by all NYPD precincts, documents show. Korac and Povataj have lengthy criminal histories. All three were in custody and being held without bail. Teen accused of raping 8-year-old niece in Brooklyn slapped with four felony charges The perverted teen forced the young girl onto his bedroom floor while she visited his apartment in Canarsie on July 24, authorities say. A teen accused of raping his 8-year-old niece was slapped with four felony charges during his arraignment in Brooklyn Criminal Court, a criminal complaint shows. The 17-year-old creep was charged with two sex abuse counts and two rape counts, including rape in the first degree, during his arraignment Monday. His name is being withheld by the Daily News to protect the identity of the young victim. The perverted teen forced the young girl onto his bedroom floor while she visited his apartment in Canarsie on July 24, authorities say. He then forced himself on her as she tried to escape his grasp, according to the criminal complaint. The teen was also hit with five lesser charges, records show. Hip hop producer who was friend of rapper Fabolous killed after gunman opens fire on SUV in Brooklyn: police sources Brooklyn-born rapper Fabolous took to Instagram to mourn the death of a man shot to death in Brooklyn last night. Eric (Carl) McKinney, 31, was a long-time friend of the artist. myfabolouslife via Instagram Brooklyn-born rapper Fabolous took to Instagram to mourn the death of a man shot to death in Brooklyn last night. Eric (Carl) McKinney, 31, was a long-time friend of the artist. A hip hop producer who’s a friend of rapper Fabolous was killed when a gunman opened fire on his SUV in Brooklyn, police sources said. Eric (Carl) McKinney, 31, tried to drive himself to the hospital shortly after a man shot him as he sat in his black Jeep Wrangler that was parked at Ashland Place and Fulton St. around 10:40 p.m. Sunday, police said. He crashed the car at Ashland and DeKalb Ave. in Fort Greene and died after emergency workers rushed him to Brooklyn Hospital Center. McKinney, a father of three, was a hip-hop producer, family told NB New York. His brother, Shamel McKinney, 25, was fatally stabbed in a Flatiron club in 2007. The two men were both longtime friends with the Brooklyn-born rapper Fabolous, who took to Instagram to mourn McKinney’s death. Crime scene officers process the scene where hip-hop producer Eric (Carl) McKinney was shot on Ashland Pl. and Fulton St. on Monday. McKinney drove 2 blocks to Rockwell Place and Dekalb Ave where he crashed. “My brother. Love Forever,” the 37-year-old star, whose real name is John Jackson, wrote on Instagram with a picture of McKinney. Rapper Paul Cain, who is on Fabolous’ label Street Family Records also grieved for his friend on a social media site. “I Love You Lil Bro!!! Wish I Could Hug You. I Can’t Stop Crying,” he wrote. Police had made no arrests in the killing and the motive was not immediately clear. NEW YORK DAILY NEWS Police inspect a Jeep which crashed at the corner of DeKalb Avenue and Rockwell Place after its driver was shot on Sunday, October 11 2015. Gardiner Anderson/for New York Daily News Police inspect a Jeep which crashed at the corner of DeKalb Avenue and Rockwell Place after its driver was shot on Sunday, October 11 2015. A man was shot in gunplay near the Brooklyn Academy of Music on Sunday night. He was fired on in a car at Ashland Pl. and Fulton St., just steps from the BAM Harvey Theater in Fort Greene, around 11 p.m., said police sources. The shooting victim had attempted to drive his black Jeep Wrangler, which had a shattered passenger window, down the street but crashed into a metal fence at Dekalb Ave. and Rockwell Pl., the sources said. The shooting victim had attempted to drive his black Jeep Wrangler but crashed into a metal fence at Dekalb Ave. and Rockwell Pl., the sources said. Gardiner Anderson/for New York Daily News The shooting victim had attempted to drive his black Jeep Wrangler but crashed into a metal fence at Dekalb Ave. and Rockwell Pl., the sources said. The man was rushed to Brooklyn Hospital Center in critical condition, according to the police. It was not immediately clear what sparked the violence. jstepansky@nydailynews.com Related Stories Bronx stripper fight leads to shooting death of club regular Pro-gun residents unhappy with Obama visiting Ore. town Freshman killed in Texas Southern University shooting named Serial creep who robbed 2 women in Brooklyn may be behind other muggings: cops The brute, believed to be in his 20s, robbed two women in Brooklyn. A serial creep robbed two women in Brooklyn early Sunday -- putting one in a chokehold -- and may be behind two other muggings, cops said. The brute, believed to be in his 20s, robbed an 18-year-old after putting her in a chokehold on Belmont Ave. near Warwick St. in East New York around 8:20 a.m., police said. He fled with her property and she was uninjured, police said. About 10 minutes earlier and four blocks away, cops believe the same man pushed a 77-year-old woman to the ground after running up behind on Ashford St., police said. The attacker made off with the woman’s purse and she suffered scrapes to her hands and knees. Investigators believe the man may have also been responsible for the robbery of a 59-year-old woman and a 51-year-old woman during the spree, but details of those robberies were not immediately available. NEW YORK DAILY NEWS Rikers guard nabbed for smuggling razor-edged tool into the prison AP PROVIDES ACCESS TO THIS PUBLICLY DISTRIBUTED HANDOUT PHOTO PROVIDED BY THE NEW YORK CITY DEPARTMENT OF INVESTIGATION AP In this photo provided by the New York City Department of Investigation, a sharp edged multi-tool is shown, Sunday, Oct. 11, 2015, in New York. A Rikers Island correction officer was busted trying to smuggle in a razor-edged tool, authorities said Sunday. Officer Charles Bracey, 47, hid the tool in a paper sleeve, wrapped in electrical tape, in his backpack as he arrived for his shift at the Anna M. Kross Center, according to Department of Investigation Commissioner Mark Peters. Bracey, of Queens, was charged with promoting prison contraband. He has worked for the department since 2006 and earned nearly $76,500 annually. NYC PAPERS OUT. Social media use restricted to low res file max 184 x 128 pixels and 72 dpi Joe Marino/New York Daily News Department of Investigation Commissioner Mark Peters holds a press conference on the findings of DOI's investigation into failures by Corizon Health, inc., and lack of oversight by Department of Correction and Health in City jails. The officer’s arrest marks the seventh time in the past five weeks that a correction staffer was caught and charged with smuggling contraband to inmates. “More arrests can be expected as DOI continues to intensify its widespread investigation into smuggling and violence at Rikers,” Peters said. EXCLUSIVE: Former security manager accused of arson at two NYC hotel in charges dismissed Charges were dismissed last week against a former security manager accused of setting a series of blazes at two Manhattan hotels where he worked. Mariano Barbosa insisted he was innocent of causing mayhem at Yotel New York and the SoHo Grand Hotel after prosecutors dropped the charges Wednesday because they could not be proven beyond a reasonable doubt. His attorney Ryan Clark blamed fire marshals, saying their gumshoe work was bogus. “They did not crack the case, they extracted a confession and then ceased the investigation,” Clark said. Prosecutors moved to dismiss arson, reckless endangerment and criminal mischief charges in Manhattan Supreme Court after a judge threw out Barbosa’s confession on the basis that it was taken without him having been properly read his Miranda rights, according to Clark. The exhausted father of six, who was working two jobs at the time, caved under pressure from fire marshal investigators and admitted to crimes he didn’t commit, the lawyer said. Clark had also obtained several sworn alibi statements from colleagues who attested to Barbosa’s whereabouts when fires were set. Authorities had accused Barbosa of creating eight fires at Yotel on 10th Ave. and the SoHo Grand on West Broadway between 2009 and 2013 “to lighten his workload.” Barbosa, 32, of Brooklyn, said at the time of his admissions he was working two jobs and had no days off to support his six young boys, including two who are autistic. Since his arrest, he lost his FDNY license, which allowed him to serve as a fire safety director, and he has been working other jobs for half the pay. He said the ordeal has been “like being on a roller coaster,” that his father had a heart attack “due to a lot of stress” and that his children are feeling the brunt of it. “I haven’t been able to do what I usually do for them — working two jobs,” he said. “We don’t get assistance like that.” The FDNY and the Manhattan district attorney’s office declined to comment. Police search for suspects in a botched Bronx robbery that sent a 60-year-old woman to the hospital Police are searching for suspects who put a 60-year-old woman in a chokehold while attempting to rob her in the Bronx on Oct. 10. Cops are searching for three punks who put a 60-year-old woman in a chokehold and broke her wrist during an attempted robbery in the Bronx on Saturday, police said. The woman was walking down the street near Westchester and Prospect Aves. in Morrisania when the suspects attacked her from behind, threw her in a chokehold and tried to wrestle her purse away at 2:45 a.m.,authorities said. The victim managed to break free, but as she ran for safety one of the goons gave chase, kicking her leg and causing her to fall down and break her wrist, police said. The suspects ran off empty handed and remained at large Sunday morning. The woman was taken to a nearby hospital where she was treated and released. Police released surveillance photos of the men. Anyone with information about the incident is asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers Hotline at 800-577-TIPS. USA Today High-speed police chases have killed thousands of innocent bystanders Victims include small children, teenage drivers and the elderly. A death a day from police chases Running red lights at 100-mph plus More than 5,000 bystanders and passengers have been killed in police car chases since 1979, and tens of thousands more were injured as officers repeatedly pursued drivers at high speeds and in hazardous conditions, often for minor infractions, a USA TODAY analysis shows. The bystanders and the passengers in chased cars account for nearly half of all people killed in police pursuits from 1979 through 2013,USA TODAY found. Most bystanders were killed in their own cars by a fleeing driver. Police across the USA chase tens of thousands of people each year -- usually for traffic violations or misdemeanors -- often causing drivers to speed away recklessly. Recent cases show the danger of the longstanding police practice of chasing minor offenders. A 25-year-old New Jersey man was killed July 18 by a driver police chased for running a red light. A 63-year-old Indianapolis grandmother was killed June 7 by a driver police chased four miles for shoplifting. A 60-year-old federal worker was killed March 19 near Washington, D.C., by a driver police chased because his headlights were off. "The police shouldn't have been chasing him. That was a big crowded street," said Evelyn Viverette, 83, mother of federal worker Charlie Viverette. "He wouldn't have hit my son if the police hadn't been chasing him." Nearly every day, someone is killed during a high-speed chase between police and a suspect. Some police say drivers who flee are suspicious, and chasing them maintains law and order. "When crooks think they can do whatever they choose, that will just fester and foster more crimes," said Milwaukee Police Detective Michael Crivello, who is president of the city's police union. Many in law enforcement, including the Justice Department, have recognized the danger of high-speed chases and urge officers to avoid or abort pursuits that endanger pedestrians, nearby motorists or themselves. At least 139 police have been killed in chases, federal records show. "A pursuit is probably the most unique and dangerous job law enforcement can do," said Tulsa Police Maj. Travis Yates, who runs a national pursuit-training academy. The Justice Department called pursuits "the most dangerous of all ordinary police activities" in 1990 and urged police departments to adopt policies listing exactly when officers can and cannot pursue someone. "Far more police vehicle chases occur each year than police shootings," the department said. Police chases have killed nearly as many people as justifiable police shootings, according to government figures, which are widely thought to under count fatal shootings. Yet chases have escaped the national attention paid to other potentially lethal police tactics. Despite the Justice Department's warning, the number of chase-related deaths in 2013 was higher than the number in 1990 — 322 compared to 317, according to records of the Department of Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), which analyzes all fatal motor-vehicle crashes. Many police departments still let officers make on-the-spot judgments about whether to chase based on their perception of a driver's danger to the public. Officers continue to violate pursuit policies concerning when to avoid or stop a chase, police records show. And federally funded high-tech systems that would obviate chases, such as vehicle tracking devices, are undeveloped or rarely used due to cost. While cities such as Milwaukee and Orlando allow chases only of suspected violent felons, many departments let officers chase anyone if they decide the risk of letting someone go free outweighs the risk of a pursuit. At least 11,506 people, including 6,300 fleeing suspects, were killed in police chases from 1979 through 2013, most recent year for which NHTSA records are available. That's an average of 329 a year — nearly one person a day. But those figures likely understate the actual death toll because NHTSA uses police reports to determine if a crash was chase-related, and some reports do not disclose that a chase occurred. Kansas, Michigan and Minnesota state records all show more chase-related deaths than NHTSA shows for those states. "It's an embarrassment," said Geoffrey Alpert of the University of South Carolina, a leading researcher on police pursuits who has done numerous Justice Department studies. NHTSA records "are the only national database we have on these fatalities, and it's been consistently wrong." The number of innocent bystanders killed is impossible to pinpoint because hundreds of NHTSA's records fail to show whether a victim was killed in a car fleeing police or in a car that happened to be hit during a chase. Analyzing each fatal crash, USA TODAY determined that at least 2,456 bystanders were killed, although the death toll could be as high as 2,750. The newspaper found that 55% of those killed were drivers fleeing police. They ranged from armed-robbery suspects to a 10-year-old boy chased as he drove a pick-up truck 85 mph on a county road before hitting a tree, killing himself and his 7-year-old passenger. Injuries are even harder to count because NHTSA keeps records of only fatal crashes. However, records from six states show that 17,600 people were hurt in chases from 2004 through 2013 — an average of 1,760 injuries a year in those states, which make up 24% of the U.S. population. Those numbers suggest that chases nationwide may have injured 7,400 people a year — more than 270,000 people since 1979. The uncertainty about the death and injury tolls obscures the danger of police chases, said Jonathan Farris, who became an advocate for pursuit safety after his son Paul, 23, was killed in 2007 by a motorist being chased for an illegal driving maneuver. "If the public understood the number of pursuits that were going on and the number of people who were being injured or killed, there would be a much better dialogue as to what types of crimes should be pursued," Farris said. Minor infractions trigger chases "It could have been Ted Bundy" Although police-camera footage often depicts the drama of squad cars racing after motorists, most chases begin benignly, with an attempted traffic stop. And most end quickly — 76% were over within five minutes, according to records of tens of thousands of chases in California. California records of 63,500 chases from 2002 through 2014 show that: More than 89% were for vehicle-code violations, including speeding, vehicle theft, reckless driving, and 4,898 instances of a missing license plate or an expired registration Just 5% were an attempt to nab someone suspected of a violent crime, usually assault or robbery; 168 sought a known murder suspect Nearly 1,000 were for safety violations that endangered a driver only, including 850 drivers not wearing a seat belt and 23 motorcycle riders not wearing a helmet In 90 instances, police chased someone for driving too slowly "We don't know that the person in that car is just speeding or just had a headlight out ... [or] if they had just committed a felony," said Joseph Farrow, commissioner of the California Highway Patrol, which chased 14,628 motorists from 2007 through 2014, resulting in 4,052 crashes, 2,198 injuries and 103 deaths. That's a 28% crash rate and a 15% injury rate. Jonathan Farris lost his son Paul Farris on Memorial Day weekend in 2007 by a fleeing driver being chased by a Massachusetts State Trooper. The offending driver was being chased for making an illegal u-turn.(USA NEWS, USA TODAY) Minnesota safety researchers found in 2008 that 35% to 40% of chases resulted in a crash. "There's no question that when you're engaging in a chase, you're engaging in something that can turn out many ways, and many are bad outcomes," said John Firman of the International Association of Chiefs of Police, whose survey of 17,000 chases nationally since 2001 shows that 92% began for a traffic violation, misdemeanor or non-violent felony such as car theft. Police often suspect fleeing drivers are wanted for a serious offense. And they dislike letting a violator get away. During a chase police can be overcome by "a need to 'win' and make the arrest," which blinds them to the danger they are helping create, a 2010 FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin reported. "These are folks who are proud and who see their job as going out and putting the bad guy in jail," said Assistant Chief Randall Blankenbaker of the Dallas Police Department, which sharply restricts chases. When police in Beech Grove, Ind., were called June 8 at 8:07 a.m. about a shoplifting from a Walmart, they pulled behind the suspect's car in a parking lot and flashed their emergency lights. Driver Matthew Edmonds allegedly sped off on a busy thoroughfare, with police chasing for four miles until stopping because of the danger. Moments later, Edmonds allegedly sped through an intersection and hit a pick-up truck driven by 63-year-old Donna Niblock, killing her and seriously injuring her daughter and 11-year-old grandson. The chase followed department guidelines, which allow "high-risk" pursuits for drivers suspected of property crimes, Beech Grove Detective Capt. Robert Mercuri said. "We don't know who may be in that vehicle. We don't know if they have somebody tied up in the back seat," Mercuri said. "It could have been Ted Bundy." Few drivers fleeing police are wanted felons, according to statistics and research. Most committed minor offenses and "made very bad decisions to flee," a 2008 paper by the Police Foundation said. In Pennsylvania, records of 32,000 chases since 1997 show that the most common charge against fleeing drivers was theft, including stealing or illegally possessing the car they were driving. The other most-frequent charges were resisting arrest, underage drinking and misdemeanor assault. A Justice Department-funded 1998 study found after interviewing fleeing drivers that 32% drove off because they were in a stolen car, 27% because they had a suspended driver's license, 27% wanted to avoid arrest and 21% because they were driving drunk. "Overwhelmingly, someone is fleeing because they've got a minor warrant, their car isn't insured, they've had too much to drink," said Milwaukee Police Chief Edward Flynn, who sharply restricted his department's pursuits in 2010 after four bystanders were killed in a three-month span. For more serious offenses such as stealing a vehicle, "the sanctions imposed by courts nationwide for merely stealing a car don't justify anybody taking any risk," Flynn said. On June 15, 2012, at 3:20 p.m., Austin, Texas, police chased a driver in a stolen pickup truck at 90 to 95 mph onto a highway and along a frontage road lined with service stations and fast-food restaurants. At an intersection, the truck slammed into a Mitsubishi driven by James Williford, 32, killing him instantly. Driver Reynaldo Hernandez was convicted of murdering Williford and sentenced to 55 years. The Austin police chief cleared the two officers, saying they followed the policy of the department, which had been cracking down on auto thefts. Esther Seoanes lost her best friend, her husband James Williford in 2012 by a fleeing driver being chased by the Austin Police Department. She is now involved with Pursuit Safety a group advocating for changes in police pursuit policies. (USA NEWS, USA TODAY) Williford's widow Esther Seoanes holds the officers responsible for deciding to chase a stolen car. "My husband," Seoanes said, "was essentially killed for a stolen vehicle." "The moment the officer crossed over the median with lights and sirens and started the pursuit, he (Hernandez) immediately turned into one of those criminals and suspects who doesn't care about anything," said Seoanes, executive director of PursuitSAFETY, a nonprofit seeking to reduce chase-related deaths. "Drivers, they don't care about anyone's safety, and so the burden falls on the police to protect the public." Austin police declined to comment due to Seoanes' pending lawsuit against them. Some relatives of killed bystanders don't hold police responsible for deaths in chases. "I'm not blaming the police," Nicole Jackson of Detroit said after a driver who allegedly had a gun sped away from police on June 24 and killed Jackson's granddaughter and grandson, age 3 and 6, while they were riding scooters near their home. "I'm blaming the person who did all this." High-risk chases include teens, icy roads Motorcyclists often get killed Chases are inherently dangerous because of their speed, and police often compound the danger by chasing drivers in hazardous conditions. At least 3,440 people were killed in crashes when a driver was fleeing at 25 mph or more over the speed limit, NHTSA records show. The actual death toll from such high-speed chases is likely much higher, but is not known because only half of NHTSA's records show a fleeing driver's speed and the speed limit. Particularly dangerous are chases on wet or icy roads, and pursuits of inexperienced and risk-prone teen-age drivers and of motorcyclists, who have little crash protection. In Michigan over the past decade, 74% of motorcyclists fleeing police were killed, injured or possibly injured when they crashed, state records show. Just 18% of chased car drivers were killed, injured or possibly injured in a crash. Wreckage of the chased vehicle involved in a fatal high speed puruit that killed Cathedral City officer Jermaine Gibson, and injured two others in Palm Springs, March 18, 2011. Police departments routinely warn officers about hazardous road conditions and high-risk drivers. Some bar motorcycle cops from pursuits because of the danger if an officer crashes. Yet nearly one-third of the police-chase deaths involved one of those three high-risk factors, USA TODAY found. That includes 1,132 motorcyclists who were killed while being chased. More than half — 589 — were not wearing a helmet. "Most police departments don't allow their motorcycles to be in pursuits, so why would you chase one?" said Alpert, the South Carolina researcher. "Motorcycle drivers are either going to get away or they're going to get killed." Michigan State Police must consider "road and weather conditions" in deciding whether to chase, and can pursue only people suspected of a "life-threatening felony" or drivers who pose "an immediate threat to the safety of the public." The policy cautions, "It is better to either delay the arrest or abandon the pursuit than to needlessly injure or kill innocent people." The Michigan State Police have been involved in 44 deadly chases over the past decade, 120 motorcycle chases that resulted in a crash, and 212 chases on wet or icy roads that resulted in a crash, state records show. Most chases are short, said state police Chief of Staff Capt. Greg Zarotney, and in those cases "road condition rarely has a bearing on the crash." As for motorcycle chases, Zarotney said, "keep in mind that a pursuit only occurs when a decision is made by a driver to flee." Limited pursuit training for police Using decades-old technology Although police chases have been recognized as dangerous for nearly half a century, both training and technology remain inadequate, experts say. The average police trainee received 72 hours of weapons training compared to 40 hours of driving training, only a portion of which covered chases, according to a 2006 Justice Department study of police training academies. A 2007 survey of Florida Highway Patrol sergeants showed that 80% thought that patrol officers "did not have adequate training in the area of pursuit driving." Highway Patrol spokesman Lieut. Ryan Martina did not respond to repeated inquires about how the patrol responded to the poll. Major Travis Yates of the Tulsa, Oklahoma Police Department is a advocate for developing new strategies for the execution of police pursuits. He advocates training and addressing pursuit policies to make them more defined for officers to follow. (USA NEWS, USA TODAY) "We're not taking it seriously enough because we think that one day of training that an officer may have gotten in their academy is going to take effect 10 years later when a pursuit begins," said Maj. Travis Yates, the Tulsa expert on police chases. "Most officers will never fire their firearms ever, but we train one to four times a year" on using guns. Chases have been left behind in the modernization of police equipment that is now moving toward outfitting officers with body cameras. President Obama in December proposed $75 million in federal funds to buy 50,000 body cameras in the effort to "build and sustain trust" between police and communities. Police use of Tasers, body armor, cameras and computers in patrol cars has soared, Justice Department reports show. In 2007, 90% of police worked for a department that used portable computers. In 1990, that figure was 30%. Yet the principal "technology" for chases are tire spikes — two decades old and seldom used because police must know where a fleeing car is heading so they can pull a strip of spikes across a road. Police in Minnesota used spikes in only 3% of the nearly 1,000 chases in the state in 2014, state records show. A Justice Department overview notes that spikes "can put both the officers and other motorists in danger." Houston police officer Richard Martin was killed May 18 when a fleeing driver swerved and hit him as he was laying spikes. "There's been a lot of advances in police technology in the last 15 years. The pursuit-termination devices we envisioned haven't kept up with those advances," said Farrow, the California Highway Patrol commissioner. A federal effort to develop advanced systems has fallen well short of the hype of a 1996 Justice Department bulletin headline, "High-Speed Pursuit: New Technologies Around the Corner." Federal justice and transportation officials began studying improvements to pursuit safety after a controversial 1968 study by Physicians for Automotive Safety said that 70% of police chases result in crashes. Devices that would shut off the engines of moving cars by transmitting microwaves are not commercially available a decade after the Justice Department funded their development. "It's very frustrating that we haven't gotten to that next stage," said Bill Miera, owner of Fiore Industries of New Mexico, which tried to build the devices with the help of a $300,000 federal grant but ran short of money. Alisha Jackson is surrounded by neighbors during a Alisha Jackson is surrounded by neighbors during a vigil held to help the families that had children killed and injured during a high speed chase in Detroit's east side on June 26. Jackson's children Makiah Jackson, 3, and Michaelangelo Jackson, 6, were hit and killed while playing outside of their house during the high speed chase. (Photo: Ryan Garza, Detroit Free Press) A device that shoots a small, adhesive GPS tag onto a car exterior was introduced for police in 2010, but is used by only 20 of the nation's 18,000 police departments. Attaching a GPS tag lets police stop their chase — which prompts fleeing drivers to slow down — and follow the car by computer until it stops, where they can make an arrest. The Arizona Department of Public Safety has embedded the systems in seven cars and uses them every time an officer can get within 30 feet of a fleeing vehicle, Capt. Chris Hemmen said. After tagging a car, police shadow it from a couple of blocks away. "As soon as they stop, we're able to pounce," Hemmen said. Houston Police considered the devices after Martin's death but declined because officers still have to pursue a car and get close enough to fire the remote-controlled GPS tag from a launcher mounted behind the grill of a police car, department spokeswoman Jodi Silva said. The $5,000 purchase cost also deters departments, which often spend capital funds and federal grants on routine items such as car tires and hiring more officers, said Trevor Fischbach, president of StarChase LLC, the manufacturer, which got a $380,000 federal grant. "We're in the 21st Century," Fischbach said. "We should be using 21st-century tools that are available." Milwaukee slaps limits on chases "A menace to innocent people" Police departments that restrict chases have faced resistance from officers. In 2012, the Florida Highway Patrol changed from a policy that allowed officers to chase anyone, to a policy that allowed pursuits only of suspected felons, drunk drivers and reckless drivers. The number of highway patrol pursuits fell almost in half: from 697 in 2010 - 2011, to 374 in 2013 - 2014. But 35% of the pursuits in 2013 and 2014 violated the new chase restrictions, state reports show. Dallas police used to ignore a policy that required them to stop chasing drivers who fled for traffic violations and appeared unlikely to stop, said Randall Blankenbaker, the assistant police chief. When the department in 2006 adopted an even stricter policy limiting chases to suspected violent felons, "there were some folks who were resistant," said Blankenbaker, who wrote the policy. Milwaukee police still oppose Chief Flynn's 2010 policy restricting chases to suspected violent felons and people who present "a clear and imminent threat to the safety of others." "The crooks understand that this is our process," said Michael Crivello, the police union president. "Criminals know their car is almost like their safe locker. They can keep drugs and guns in their safe locker." Motor-vehicle thefts in Milwaukee policy spiked to 18 a day in 2014, from 12 a day in 2013. Flynn said car theft "became sport" among juveniles. "These kids were finding out, well, nothing happens to me. They had the prestige of being cool to their friends, the thrill of the danger and no consequences," Flynn said, adding that 70% of cars stolen in the city are recovered. Other cities have seen crime plunge since restricting chases. The Dallas crime rate has plummeted since 2006 — from 81 crimes per 1,000 residents to 48 crimes per 1,000 residents in 2013, according to FBI crime reports. City police have been involved in only one fatal chase since 2006, Blankenbaker said. Phoenix and Orlando also have seen their crime rates fall substantially since adopting policies that allow pursuits only for suspected violent felons, FBI reports show. Milwaukee Police Chief Ed Flynn. In 2010, after four Milwaukee Police Chief Ed Flynn. In 2010, after four bystanders will killed in Milwaukee during police chases, Flynn adopted a highly restrictive policy that allows chases only of suspected violent felons. (Photo: Darren Hauck, for USA TODAY) Many departments base their chase policies on a three-page model the International Association of Chiefs of Police wrote in 1996. The model stops short of the Justice Department recommendation to list the offenses and conditions such as time of day in which a chase is allowed. The model instead lists factors to consider such as road and weather conditions, traffic levels, and the seriousness of a driver's offense. Flynn restricted chases after four bystanders were killed over three months in 2009 and 2010. Immediately after the deaths, Flynn defended his officers, noting they followed department policy and had actually stopped their pursuits only to have the fleeing drivers continue speeding away and hit the bystanders. Fleeing drivers typically continue speeding for a minute or two after police stop their chase, studies show. "I thought to myself, it's not enough that we have a policy that tells our officers to terminate pursuits when they become unsafe. That was the industry standard," Flynn said. "I needed an extra line to stop the pursuit in the first place, not because the officers were driving recklessly, but because we can't control the behavior for those who refuse to stop for police." EXCLUSIVE: Seventeen years after Antoine Reid shot by off-duty cop, lawsuit against city still pending NEW YORK DAILY NEWS “They were hoping I dropped the case or died . . . (that) it would just go away,” Reid, 55, told the Daily News. Seventeen years after he was shot by an off-duty cop, ex-squeegee man Antoine Reid’s lawsuit against the city remains stalled like a car outside the Holland Tunnel. Several delays have hindered Reid’s 1998 case against the city, the NYPD and Michael Meyer, the former officer who opened fire on him in a confrontation in the South Bronx. “They were hoping I dropped the case or died . . . (that) it would just go away,” Reid, 55, told the Daily News. PARENTS OF WHITE TEEN SHOT DEAD BY POLICE FILE LAWSUIT, CLAIM S.C. COP MOCKED DEAD BODY, SHOULTED 'I'LL BLOW YOUR F------ HEAD OFF!' But Reid insists he isn’t going anywhere — even though he’s now a shell of the man who plied his controversial trade throughout the 1990s. Police Officer Michael Meyer (L.), on trial in the 1998 shooting of squeegee man Antoine Reid, leaving the courtroom in Bronx Supreme Court as his trial went into recess. He is accompanied by his attorney Murray Richman. Reid was an unemployed factory worker with a drug problem and a long rap sheet when he approached Meyer’s car at his usual corner — 138th St. near the Major Deegan Expressway — on June 14, 1998. Meyer was on his way home from a Yankee game with his girlfriend and her 6-year-old son when Reid started soaping up his windshield. Meyer, then 28, shot the unarmed squeegee man in the chest at point-blank range. “I thought I was going to die,” Reid recalled. “I was looking up in the sky thinking this is how death feels,” he added. “Even now I want to cry just talking about it.” Antoine Reid, squeegee man shot by off-duty cop Michael Meyer in 1998, filed a $100M lawsuit against the city. Schwartz, Michael Antoine Reid, squeegee man shot by off-duty cop Michael Meyer in 1998, filed a $100M lawsuit against the city. Meyer was acquitted of attempted murder at a bench trial in the Bronx. But the former Marine — who was the subject of six prior excessive force complaints — was dismissed from the NYPD in 2000 after a departmental trial found he’d “overreacted” to Reid and had shot him “without required justification.” The shooting marked a rare moment when a squeegee man — seen as the scourge of the 1980s and early 1990s — gained the sympathy of the city. While his $100 million lawsuit was inching along in the court system, Reid’s body was breaking down. He now limps around with the aid of a cane. He has painful back problems. And he has trouble going to the bathroom because parts of his intestines were removed. Gash marks on his torso reveal the trajectory of the bullet that entered and exited his body — and forced doctors to remove his spleen. NYC MAY BE HELD LIABLE FOR WOMAN'S MURDER BY COP BOYFRIEND, JUDGES DECIDE “I relive it every day because you look on TV, people getting beat up and shot — I have flashbacks,” Reid told The News. Murray Richman, who defended Meyer with co-counsel Steven Kartagener and Anthony Ricco, said Reid was “overwhelmingly intimidating” in the incident and was just as aggressive on the witness stand. “The public sentiment was pro-squeegee man and subsequent public sentiment was this is so outrageous, that it was clear (Meyer) was acting in self-defense,” Richman said. Antoine Reid gives his sister a hug. Antoine Reid insists he isn’t going anywhere — even though he’s now a shell of the man who plied his controversial trade throughout the 1990s. But Reid’s lawyer Robert Brown said the case in Bronx Supreme Court is not a “he-said, she-said.” “There are several independent witnesses that all say the same thing — Antoine had his hands up and was unarmed,” Brown said. Brown said that although the NYPD determined Meyer was trying to make an arrest, city lawyers argue it was “not within the scope of his employment.” OFF-DUTY NYPD OFFICER PLEADS GUILTY, FACES 9 YEARS IN PRISON FOR DRUNKEN SHOOTING IN WESTCHESTER He hopes a favorable recent appellate court decision on this question will cause them “to reevaluate the case.” Brown is not aware of any settlement offers through the years. The city deemed the matter a “no pay” case, he said. A spokesman from the Law Department declined to comment. “I’m going to do everything in my power to get this case in front of a jury in the Bronx as fast as I possibly can so Antoine can have his day in court,” Reid’s lawyer said. Fight between strippers outside Bronx club sparked fatal shooting of club regular: police sources NEW YORK DAILY NEWS The fight broke out after dancers started arguing in the parking lot outside the nightclub. A smackdown between strippers sparked the early morning Bronx shooting that left a 45-year-old man dead, police sources said Saturday. Murder victim Jose Feliciano, a regular at the Key Club Cabaret on Boston Road in Eastchester, was exiting the jiggle joint at 4:15 a.m. Friday when a fight broke out between two of the dancers in the parking lot, the sources said. Feliciano ran over to defend one of the women in the fight when the other woman’s boyfriend started arguing with him, witnesses told police. The two began brawling and Feliciano punched the other man, cops said. Police released images of those who they believe may have witnessed the fight. Seconds later, the suspect whipped out a pistol and started blasting away, hitting Feliciano in the stomach. Felicano ran for cover behind a car, but the callous gunman ran after him and kept firing, blasting him in the head before sprinting from the scene, cops said. Feliciano was rushed to Montefiore Medical Center, but doctors couldn’t save him, officials said. The club manager said the victim was beloved at the jiggle joint. Feliciano was shot outside of the Key Club Cabaret in the Bronx. Two dancers at the club got into a fight outside the club around 4 a.m., and Feliciano ran over to defend one of the girls. “He was a humble dude, he always came alone,” Dennis De Jesus told the Daily News. “He was well loved by the entertainers.” Police have released surveillance images of people who witnessed the fight. Cops ask anyone with information on the shooting to call Crime Stoppers at (800) 577-TIPS. Feliciano has an extensive criminal record with nearly 20 prior arrests for assault, robbery, and rape, officials said. Cops identify man who fatally shot Brooklyn metal worker trying to stop car break-in spree NEW YORK DAILY NEWS Bryan Aponte, 26, is the man who shot dead 53-year-old Michael Matusiak after the Good Samaritan confronted the bandits breaking into parked cars. One man was fatally shot while another man and a woman received graze wounds at 60 Grattan Street near Knickerbocker Avenue in Brooklyn. One man was fatally shot while another man and a woman received graze wounds at 60 Grattan Street near Knickerbocker Avenue in Brooklyn. Cops have identified the man who they say fatally shot a Brooklyn metal worker who tried to stop a car break-in spree Tuesday. Bryan Aponte, 20, is the man who shot dead 53-year-old Michael Matusiak after the Good Samaritan confronted Aponte and two other bandits breaking into parked cars around 7:50 a.m in East Williamsburg, according to a wanted poster tweeted Friday by NYPD Chief of Detectives Robert Boyce. TWO BOOKLYN MEN CHARGED FOR ATTEMPTED MURDER OF COPS IN UNMARKED POLICE CAR Matusiak was shot three times in the chest after he questioned the men on Grattan St. near Knickerbocker Ave. Matusiak's co-worker Derrick Robinson survived two shots. A 13-year-old girl walking to school was also wounded. On Saturday, cops released several images of the suspect. Gun recovered at the scene in Fort Greene. The suspects fired on the black Ford SUV from the front and the back after they were spotted arguing on Park Ave. near N. Portland Ave., Prosecutor David Reskin said. Gun recovered at the scene in Fort Greene. Enlarge Two Brooklyn men were arraigned Saturday on attempted murder charges for allegedly opening fire on three plainclothes cops riding in an unmarked police car. Prosecutor David Reskin said the suspects — Davon Morrison, 24, and Quashawn Smith, 23 — were well aware they were targeting a police vehicle in the Oct. 7 incident in Fort Greene. Morrison was ordered held on $250,000 bail. Smith’s bail was set at $100,000. POLICE NAB SUSPECTS WHO SPRAYED COPS' UNMARKED SUV WITH BULLETS IN BROOKLYN AFTER OFFICERS TRIED TO INVESTIGATE THEIR ARGUMENT The suspects fired on the black Ford SUV from the front and the back after they were spotted arguing on Park Ave. near N. Portland Ave., Reskin said. None of the officers were injured. They returned fire, wounding Smith who limped into Brooklyn Criminal Court Saturday. Related Stories Cops fire 84 shots at robbery suspect, hit him once: police Man questioned for Ariz. shootings not prime suspect: police Man alleges NYPD cop called him n-word repeatedly in suit Cops: Perv exposed himself, masturbated in front of woman on R train BY Thomas Tracy NEW YORK DAILY NEWS Police say the man masturbated in front of a woman aboard an R train. DCPI Police say the man masturbated in front of a woman aboard an R train. A young woman, the victim of a man who exposed himself to her during a Friday morning subway commute, managed to snap a picture of him before leaving the train, officials said. With the R train rumbling toward the Lexington Ave./59th St. station around 8:30 a.m., the 27-year-old woman saw the man rubbing his exposed erection, officials said. The victim’s picture shows the man in the act. He is a bearded black man in blue jeans, a plaid shirt, blue and red vest and a black knit cap. If apprehended, the man faces public lewdness charges officials said. Anyone with information regarding the man’s whereabouts is urged to call Crime Stoppers at (800) 577-TIPS. All calls will be kept confidential. New photos released by NYPD as search continues for Plaza Hotel robber who stole 3,000 euros from currency exchange BY Thomas Tracy NEW YORK DAILY NEWS On October 5, the suspect entered the Travelex Currency Exchange located in The Plaza Hotel and requested to purchase 500 euros. As the employee was counting the money, the suspect displayed a handgun and grabbed the currency out of the employee's hand and fled. On October 5, the suspect entered the Travelex Currency Exchange located in The Plaza Hotel and requested to purchase 500 euros. As the employee was counting the money, the suspect displayed a handgun and grabbed the currency out of the employee's hand and fled. Cops released additional surveillance photos late Thursday as they continue to hunt for the gunman who robbed 3,000 euros from a shop inside The Plaza Hotel in Midtown. The new images of the suspect, sporting a pair of glasses and a black peacoat, were taken on the street just before he entered the posh Fifth Ave. hotel about 11 a.m. Monday, cops said. The robber entered the posh midtown hotel around 11 a.m. Monday, and was last seen walking down W 58th St. Andrew Savulich/New York Daily News The robber entered the posh midtown hotel around 11 a.m. Monday, and was last seen walking down W 58th St. The robber entered the Travelex Currency Exchange in the basement of the hotel and asked to purchase 500 euros, according to police. As the clerk counted the currency the crook flashed a gun and grabbed the money out of the employee’s hand. He ran off with the loot — worth just under $3,400 U.S. dollars — and was last seen walking down W. 58th St., police said. No injuries were reported. The suspect is described as black, bald, 5-foot-9 and 160-pounds. NYC PAPERS OUT. Social media use restricted to low res file max 184 x 128 pixels and 72 dpi Andrew Savulich/New York Daily News Police investigate the armed robbery of a currency exchange shop inside the Plaza Hotel on Monday. NYC PAPERS OUT. Social media use restricted to low res file max 184 x 128 pixels and 72 dpi Andrew Savulich/New York Daily News The robber, who is still being sought by the NYPD, walked away with 3,00 meuros, equal to just under $3,400. Anyone with information is asked to call Crime Stoppers at (800) 577-TIPS. All calls will be kept confidential. Boy, 7, and mother shot by gunman amid spiralling violence following 'Mr Big' murder A SEVEN-year-old boy and his mother were shot by a gunman amid spiralling violence in their home city following the murder of a "Mr Big" security boss. Police at the scene in Salford where the youngster and his mother suffered leg wounds PAPolice at the scene in Salford where the youngster and his mother suffered leg wounds The "truly shocking" incident happened in the doorway of their home in Salford - marking the fifth shooting in the area in just three days. The youngster and his mother are currently recovering in hospital after suffering leg wounds. Their injuries are not believed to be life threatening and both are in a serious but stable condition. Police have not ruled out if the shootings in the area are linked. The latest attack, which happened last night at around 9:30pm, came as a £50,000 reward was offered for information relating to the murder of Salford "Mr Big" Paul Massey. Salford has suffered a series of shootings since Mr Massey, 55, was gunned down outside his home in the city on July 26. He was a well-known figure in Salford and had been involved in security firms operating in Manchester and beyond. Detective Superintendent Joanne Rawlinson of Greater Manchester Police, said of the mother and son shooting: "This is a truly shocking set of circumstances in which a young boy and a woman have been injured after they were shot at by a gunman at their home. "This incident has only just happened, but there is a huge police effort under way to investigate this attack and find those responsible. "At this early stage, we do not yet know the motive behind this incident, but I would ask the community, as upset as they may be when they hear news of this attack, to please let the police carry out this investigation." Today one local dropping his children off at St Gilbert's RC Primary School nearby said: "It is frightening if you have children. "There was a shooting on Sutherland Street not far from here not long ago. "It's frightening that kids are being caught in the crossfire of what's going on in Salford." Beaten with an iron bar: Michael Winner's widow subjected to brutal attack at home THE widow of late film director and restaurant critic Michael Winner was beaten with an IRON BAR during a terrifying raid at her home. Geraldine Winner, 77, suffered a head injury and was rushed to hospital after a man and a woman forced their way into her £3.8million South Kensington penthouse and spent a frightening THREE HOURS ransacking the building. The pair broke into her home at 10pm on Friday, not leaving until gone 1am on Saturday, and stole a number of valuable items, reportedly including jewellery given to Mrs Winner by her late husband. Police believe the thieves may have hidden in the communal area of the seven-storey block, close to the Royal Albert Hall, which is home to a number of well-heeled residents including international economist Cornelia Meyer. Mrs Winner returned home at 1pm today in a black cab, accompanied by two middle-aged male friends. Her left arm was bandaged in a sling and she appeared frail as the men helped her into the lobby, where she asked: “Are the police here?” One of the men said: "Yes, she's okay,” before asking reporters to leave the building and respect her privacy. Scenes of crime officers have been carrying out a fingertip search of the penthouse while footage from CCTV cameras is also being studied. A Metropolitan Police spokesman said officers were called to the flat at about 2am on Saturday following a report of aggravated burglary. He said: "Two suspects, a male and a female, forced their way into the home of a woman in her 70s and assaulted her with an iron bar before stealing a number of items. "The woman was taken to a west London hospital by ambulance. Inquiries continue. There have been no arrests." Mr Winner started out in the movie business and made more than 30 films, including the blockbuster Death Wish series. Later on he reinvented himself as a restaurant critic and was given a column in the Sunday Times called Winner’s Dinners. Younger people will remember him from the Esure car insurance adverts where his catchphrase was: “Calm down dear, it’s just a commercial.” He also founded and funded the Police Memorial Trust following the murder of WPC Yvonne Fletcher outside the Libyan embassy in London in 1984. He died at his home in January 2013, aged 77, after a long battle with liver disease. After his death, Mrs Winner, a former dancer who he married in 2011 despite meeting her when she was a teenager, described him as a wonderful man who was “brilliant, funny and generous”. Mrs Winner, who has two sons, one each from previous marriages, added: “A light has gone out in my life." Teenager jailed after terrifying drunken hammer attack A TEENAGE girl has been locked up after she used a claw hammer to smash the windscreen of a passing car. Lauren Weaver, 18, who had downed 22 bottles of lager, armed herself with the hammer before attacking the car and terrifying its four occupants. Carlisle Crown Court heard she was arrested by Cumbria Police as part of Operation Rodeo – a probe into gang violence in the seaside town of Workington. Judge Paul Batty branded the “lawlessness” as “ludicrous” and remarked that Weaver appeared to “revel” in the terror of her innocent victims. Weaver was arrested at her Workington home after police recovered the hammer. Weaver claimed to have no recollection of how she came into possession of the hammer She denied any involvement in the attack in August, saying the hammer was her father’s. She accused witnesses of being “untruthful”. Prosecutor Gerard Rogerson said: “There have been offences by a group of youths in the area who were arming themselves and behaving in what might be described as gang-type activity.” Laura Nash, defending, said Weaver denied being in any gang and had no recollection of how she came into possession of the hammer. A line up of beer and ale GETTY Ms Weaver had reportedly downed 22 lagers the night of the attack Miss Nash said: “Alcohol and violence are the biggest problems that Miss Weaver faces as she begins her adult life.” The court simply will not tolerate this sort of lawlessness Judge Batty highlighted a probation officer’s observations that Weaver seemed to “revel” in violent behaviour and appeared to have “absolutely no victim empathy”. The judge added: “It is said on your behalf that you are not an active member of a gang but, of course, you associate yourself with others who are. “This offence is a manifestation of this type of activity. The court simply will not tolerate this sort of lawlessness.” Police on a beat patrol GETTY Operation Rodeo has been set up by Cumbria Police to target an increase of crime in the area The judge concluded that he would be “wholly failing” in his public duty if he did not impose a custodial sentence in an attempt to deter those involved in violence. Weaver admitted affray and was sentenced to 16 months’ youth detention on Friday. Operation Rodeo was set up by Cumbria Police to target an increase of crime in the area. There have been 43 arrests so far, with a large haul of weapons recovered. Fury at soft sentence for paedophile who RAPED five-year-old A PAEDOPHILE who raped a girl of five after being freed from jail could be back on the streets in just six-and-a-half years. Terry Bishop with three previous convictions for child sex crimes – befriended the mother of his victim to get access to the youngster without her knowing his past. He took the girl shopping, to the beach and picked her up from school after gaining the trust of the pair. But his sick behaviour was uncovered when the girl revealed he had abused her. Bishop, 48, from Bournemouth, admitted raping and sexually assaulting his victim four times. Judge John Harrow gave him 10 years but he could be out in six-and-a-half. He could have been given life. Peter Saunders, of the National Association of People Abused in Childhood, said: “You see tough sentences handed out for crimes such as theft which, while despicable, do not have the same effect on the victims as raping a child. It is outrageous that a man with this history can be free in six-and-a-half years. “The judge does not appear to have taken the harm caused to this child and her mother into account. The consequences of this hideous crime are potentially a lifetime of misery.” No child should have to be subjected to such despicable crimes Kerry Maylin, prosecuting Bournemouth Crown Court heard how Bishop had been in and out of jail after twice being convicted of indecent assaults on girls under 14 and once for indecent assault on a girl under 16. Bishop took the mother and daughter on trips. The girl eventually revealed that Bishop had touched her inappropriately which sparked an investigation. Detectives discovered a sexual picture in the child’s notebook which was used in evidence. He pleaded guilty to four charges including rape and sexual touching of a child under 13 between January and August this year. He was given 10 years in jail and another five years on extended licence. Kerry Maylin, of the Crown Prosecution Service, said: “No child should have to be subjected to such despicable crimes.” USA Today Across the U.S., more than 180,000 fugitives can escape justice just by crossing state lines, a USA TODAY investigation finds. An unwanted fugitive Police won't chase 186,000 felony suspects PHILADELPHIA — For a man on the run from charges that he sexually assaulted a 14-year-old girl, Thomas Terlecky has surprisingly little to fear from the law. The police here know exactly where to find him, but they will not go get him. Terlecky got away by catching a Greyhound bus to Miami. The police in his new hometown know that Terlecky is a fugitive, and they have tried repeatedly to return him to Philadelphia — both before and after he was convicted of having sex with two other underage girls in Florida. As recently as November, police handcuffed Terlecky and called Philadelphia authorities to tell them their fugitive had been found. But just like every time before, the authorities in Philadelphia refused to take him back. Across the United States, police and prosecutors are allowing tens of thousands of wanted felons — including more than 3,300 people accused of sexual assaults, robberies and homicides — to escape justice merely by crossing a state border, a USA TODAY investigation found. Those decisions, almost always made in secret, permit fugitives to go free in communities across the country, leaving their crimes unpunished, their victims outraged and the public at risk. Each fugitive's case is chronicled in a confidential FBI database that police use to track outstanding warrants. In 186,873 of those cases, police indicated that they would not spend the time or money to retrieve the fugitive from another state, a process known as extradition. That's true even if the fugitives are just across a bridge in the state next door. Another 78,878 felony suspects won't be extradited from anyplace but neighboring states. Few places are immune. Police in Philadelphia, Atlanta and Little Rock — all among the nation's highest-crime cities — told the FBI they wouldn't pursue 90% or more of their felony suspects into other states. Los Angeles police said they would not extradite 77 people for murder or attempted murder, 141 for robbery and 84 for sexual assault. The FBI refuses to say who or where those fugitives are. But USA TODAY identified thousands of them using records and databases from courts and law enforcement agencies. Among the fugitives police said they would not pursue: a man accused in Collier County, Fla., of hacking his roommate's neck with a machete during a fight over two cans of beer; a man charged with drawing a gun on a Newport News, Va., store manager during a robbery, and even one of the men Pittsburgh identified as among its "most wanted" fugitives. Such fugitives should be among the easiest targets in the nation's fragmented justice system. The police typically don't hunt them; instead, they wait for officers to come across them again, during traffic stops or when they're arrested on new charges. More often than not, the suspects are found locked up in another city's jail. But if that jail happens to be in a different state, local law-enforcement officials regularly refuse to get them because they don't want to pay the cost or jump through the legal hoops required to extradite them. That process can be either swift or surreal: In many cases, it costs no more than a few hundred dollars, but it can also require months of paperwork and the signature of both states' governors. The police let them get away instead. Even Terlecky, wanted in Philadelphia for a first-degree felony, was surprised. "Why would they not extradite on a felony warrant?" he said in an interview. His only guess: "This wasn't a case where I forcefully grabbed the kid. That's the only reason I'm thinking why they won't push to bring me back." Thomas Terlecky talks about the charges he’s facing, why he fled Philadelphia, and why officials there won’t take him back. Brad Heath, Jennifer Harnish, Shannon Rae Green, Steve Elfers Terlecky said that in the 17 years he has been a fugitive, he has lost count of how many times Florida police threw him in jail in hopes of returning him to Pennsylvania. But the arrests all end the same way. In November, Miami-Dade police detained him after he was pulled over for an obscured license plate. A few hours later, Philadelphia officials "asked that (he) be released" because they were unwilling to travel beyond Pennsylvania's neighboring states to get him, [62]according to police records. An officer drove him home. Terlecky is wanted on [63]charges that he had what prosecutors called "consensual" sex with a 14-year-old girl in a downtown Philadelphia hotel in 1996, a felony because of her age. He was convicted of having sex with two other girls in Florida — one 14, the other 15 — in the years that followed and is now a registered sex offender. Terlecky said in interviews that he is innocent of the Philadelphia charges, that he fled because he was afraid of being locked up awaiting a trial, and that he would gladly go back if he could be assured that he would not spend time in jail. Prosecutors said they didn't chase Terlecky because the woman he is accused of assaulting was uncooperative. "That's not true," the woman said when USA TODAY contacted her this year. She asked not to be identified to protect her privacy. Her father took her to court on her 15th birthday to testify against Terlecky at a preliminary hearing. "We walked out of there with our heads held high thinking he's going to jail for what he did to me," she said. It was the last she heard of the case; she assumed Terlecky was in prison. Pennsylvania's Victim Advocate, Jennifer Storm, said victims need to be informed whenever officials choose to let a defendant get away. "It is alarming that there are victims who are further harmed by denying them the opportunity for justice, restitution and safety," she said. The woman Terlecky is charged with assaulting said no one told her that he fled Philadelphia or that prosecutors there had decided not to pursue him as long as he stayed in Florida, where he started a general contracting business that he said counts police officers among its customers. "He got away with it," she said when she found out. "That makes me sick to my stomach. It's disgraceful." Fugitives go 'scot-free' in New Jersey Thousands of fugitives can cross a bridge to get away Few places present a clearer illustration of just how easy it is to get away than Philadelphia. FBI records show that police, prosecutors and court officials here have decided not to collect 93% of the city's wanted felons from anyplace outside Pennsylvania — not from Florida, not even from Camden, N.J., three subway stops from Philadelphia's towering courthouse. For a city whose metropolis sprawls over four states (Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware and a sliver of Maryland), that means people accused of everything from drunken driving to robbery can and do escape serious charges by going home to the suburbs. (Some states, including Pennsylvania, classify some of those crimes as misdemeanors; the FBI counts them as felonies because they can lead to prison sentences of more than a year.) The skyline of the city of Philadelphia The Philadelphia skyline can be seen through bars and glass inside the Camden County (N.J.) Correctional Facility. "People figure I can commit any crime I want, go to New Jersey and just stay there because I have family and no one will come look for me," former Philadelphia district attorney Lynne Abraham said. The city's extradition practices are at the root of a remarkable criminal diaspora. Nearly 3,000 of the fugitives Philadelphia said it won't pursue across a state border lived in other states at the time they were arrested, a USA TODAY analysis of court records found. At least 414 of them lived in Camden. The addresses are based on what fugitives last reported to the police or court officials. Using court records and telephone directories, USA TODAY tracked them to state prisons, inner-city slums and suburban cul-de-sacs; it found them as far away as San Diego and as close as the Camden jail, whose upper windows look out on Philadelphia's skyline. Philadelphia police did not pursue Kevin Mena-Carmona, who was charged with [66]cutting someone with a knife during a 2011 robbery, even though he was jailed at least four times in Camden. They didn't go after John Ross, wanted for [67]kissing and fondling a bedridden 73-year-old stroke victim, when he was arrested in Camden the next year. And they didn't go after Darrell Matthews, who has been wanted in Philadelphia for drunken driving since shortly after he collided with an unmarked police car on his way home from a nightclub in 2001. "They had their opportunities to come get me. They don't want me," Matthews said. "They were just comfortable with letting me go." To that, Laurie Malone, the deputy district attorney who supervises extradition in Philadelphia, said: "He's right in his assessment of our decision not to extradite." "These questions are all legitimate and they're all very good ones, but there are some that I just can't give you good, solid answers that can be understood by the average layperson who does not work in this system and does not understand the full weight of this job," she said. The result is that Camden police catch and release Philadelphia fugitives "all the time," said Capt. John Fetzer, the head of a sheriff's fugitive-tracking unit there. Most are "pretty much scot-free here as long as they stay here in New Jersey." Camden is one of only a handful of U.S. cities with a violent crime rate significantly worse than Philadelphia's; the door to the mayor's fourth-floor office there looks out on a line of people waiting to pay fines and post bail. Camden County's jail doesn't count the Philadelphia fugitives it is forced to free because authorities won't cross the river to get them, but jailers say they know it happens routinely. Captain John Fetzer of the Camden County Sheriff's Office explains how many fugitives fleeing Philadelphia can go 'scot-free' in New Jersey. Eileen Blass, Sarah Cartron, Shannon Rae Green, Brad Heath, Steve Elfers "As a Camden County resident, to the extent we can get people who commit crimes in Philadelphia out of our community and back in Philadelphia, the better off it'll be for us," the jail's warden, David Owens, said. For police in the New Jersey suburbs, letting Philadelphia fugitives go is so unremarkable that if they run a background check on someone and see a warrant marked as not extraditable, "we don't bother going any further," said Chris Eife, who, until December, supervised extraditions for the Camden County Sheriff's Office. Many towns along state borders face similar headaches. Police in rural Washington County, Va., have told the FBI they will not extradite some felony suspects whose last known address was in Bristol, Tenn., a twin city whose downtown straddles the state line. Authorities in Augusta, Ga., have declined to retrieve suspects from neighboring South Carolina. Still, the second in command of the Philadelphia district attorney's office, Ed McCann, said the ease and regularity with which that city's fugitives can escape by traveling to New Jersey suggests something should change. If police there find fugitives who are "dangerous" or repeat offenders, "we should be in discussions with them about a better way to ensure that we're notified and we can consider the extradition," he said. Cost, red tape complicate corralling of fugitives Prosecutors blame limited resources and a tedious extradition process Every time police officers stop a person on the highway or book him into a jail, they check his name against the FBI's vast fugitive tracking database, known as the National Crime Information Center. The system can tell them within seconds whether the person is wanted, and for what. And it will tell them how far the agency that wants him is willing to travel to pick him up, a decision that police and prosecutors are required to make in advance. Those records, obtained by USA TODAY, offer the first public accounting of the extradition practices of more than 8,100 law enforcement agencies in big cities and small towns throughout the United States. The fugitives included 2,610 people accused of drunken driving, 2,036 accused of robbery, 3,347 accused of sex crimes, 6,554 wanted for assault, and 9,254 wanted for fraud as of last May — all marked in FBI records with a code telling police officers not to arrest them if they're found in another state. The FBI repeatedly refused to provide any information that could identify the fugitives in its database in order to protect their privacy. Some states make it a crime to disclose information from their fugitive databases. The Philadelphia Police Department, like many other agencies, refused to turn over records related to its extradition practices. But police and court files nonetheless detail one serious case after another in which police said they would let suspects go if they surfaced in another state: a man wanted for his role in a gunfight outside a Hialeah, Fla., strip club. A man wanted for shooting his girlfriend to death point-blank in a migrant work camp in Collier County, Fla. A man wanted for rape in Roanoke, Va. Detectives had no difficulty tracking the Roanoke rape suspect, Jerry Lee Wiggins. Not long after a woman accused him of raping her in 2008, police found him locked up in a Jacksonville jail on charges (later dropped) that he had stolen a car. But instead of going to get him, [71]police reports show, authorities waited to see whether two other Virginia counties that wanted Wiggins for probation violations would do it. Neither did, so a month later, [72]Wiggins went free. The city's prosecutor, Commonwealth's Attorney Donald Caldwell, said he wouldn't extradite Wiggins because he "did not feel our case had been particularly strong." Like prosecutors in many other cities, he said extradition makes sense only if he's confident he can win a conviction. Many cases don't make the cut. Nearly half of Roanoke's felony warrants are listed as not extraditable in the FBI's database. "When I look at it, I just use the global generic taxpayer. It's still my tax dollars bringing him back. As an elected official, I think you've got an obligation to consider that," he said. Wiggins, who has since been arrested at least twice in Alabama, could not be reached to comment. The detective who investigated Wiggins, Dean Boitnott, said he wasn't surprised. "If it's iffy in any way, a lot of times, they'll just let it go, especially in something like rape," because of the he-said-she-said nature of those prosecutions, Boitnott said. "Unless you've got a rock-solid case, a prosecutor's not going to go for it." Authorities say a cumbersome extradition process leaves them little choice; to extradite more fugitives, they'd have to divert time and money from other cases. "It's not as simple as they walk up to the middle of the Ben Franklin Bridge and we meet them and bring them back," said John Delaney, who supervises the trial division of the Philadelphia district attorney's office. "State borders are significant." Part of the difficulty is stitched into the United States' basic political structure. Every state is its own sovereign government, so the police can't drag a suspect from one state to another without his permission. Instead, they need to extradite him, a simplified version of the process the United States uses when it wants to retrieve suspects from Canada or France. The U.S. Constitution requires that states turn over fugitives to one another, but it doesn't require that the task be simple. Unless a suspect agrees to waive extradition, the signatures of both states' governors and a court order are needed. That means that the paper trail from Camden to Philadelphia winds through the state capitols in Harrisburg and Trenton, a route that can take as little as a few days or as long as four months. Watch this motion graphic to learn about the extradition process, and how non-extraditable warrants allow fugitives to go free. Keith Carter, Shannon Rae Green Still, prosecutors in other parts of Pennsylvania said the process is far less cumbersome than Philadelphia authorities make it out to be. Many fugitives waive formal extradition proceedings and agree to be returned quickly because they don't want to sit in jail waiting to be picked up. A whole industry of contractors has sprung up to transport them, usually charging only a few hundred dollars to pick someone up from as far away as North Carolina. Pennsylvania law allows the city to bill suspects for the cost of extradition if they're ultimately convicted. And besides all that, Camden's jail is 7 miles closer to the Philadelphia courthouse than Philadelphia's own jail is. "Really, it's pretty easy. There's paperwork, but it's all just forms," National District Attorneys Association Executive Director Scott Burns said. "For a felony, especially a violent felony, it's unconscionable that you wouldn't come go to get them." Other approaches are potentially simpler. Bail bondsmen, for example, are typically authorized to haul a suspect back to court, even from other states. But Philadelphia, along with other large cities, has largely stamped out its private bail bonds industry because of a history of abuses. Records show Philadelphia does extradite some fugitives, particularly those charged with serious offenses like murder and rape. Officials from the district attorney's office said they were unable to determine how often they do so, but Camden County officials said their jail sent 164 people to Pennsylvania last year, though not all of them necessarily went to Philadelphia. Nationwide, police and prosecutors are becoming less willing to chase suspects into other states as tight budgets force them to further narrow the list of crimes for which they'll extradite. In the nine months between August 2012 and May 2013, the number of felony warrants marked as not extraditable in the FBI's fugitive database increased more than 31%. "We have a fixed amount of money and we have to be selective about who we spend it on," said Guilford County, N.C., Chief Assistant District Attorney Howard Neumann. For crime victims, that reality can be dismaying. Robin Samson [73]told the police her husband stood 4 feet from her and aimed a shotgun at her face the day she tried to leave him in 2010. She stopped packing and ran. Police in Polk County, Fla., charged her husband, Jonathan Aten, with aggravated assault, but they have yet to arrest him. Aten moved to Michigan, and state records show Polk County officials won't pursue him past the state line. "I don't think they wanted him caught because they didn't want to spend the money to go pick him up," Samson said. "I just want him to be held accountable — for once — for his actions." Many cities say they'll extradite, then don't Baltimore turned down 60% of extradition requests It is impossible to say whether cities like Philadelphia are unusually reluctant to pursue their fugitives, or merely unusually candid about it. Despite years of requests from federal authorities, many law enforcement agencies [74]still don't enter all of their fugitives' names into the FBI's nearly 50-year-old database, meaning police in other states likely wouldn't know that a person is wanted. For example, the police in Buffalo — which ranks among the nation's most violent big cities — had listed just 59 warrants in the database as of May. Stockton, Calif., a similar-sized and similarly dangerous city, listed more than five times as many. Other cities claim they will extradite any fugitives from anyplace in the United States, then don't show up to get them. Some high-crime cities like Chicago and Detroit told the FBI that they would extradite suspects on nearly every warrant they entered into the database — about 35,000 as of May — but don't always do so. "Just because they put it in as extraditable doesn't mean they will," Milwaukee County, Wis., Sheriff David Clarke said. Either way, the result is the same: Fugitives go free. Judges in Washington, D.C., ordered more than 2,400 fugitives to be released over the past decade because the agencies that wanted them — usually suburban counties in Maryland and Virginia — didn't pick them up, USA TODAY found by analyzing the city's court dockets. Even that number almost certainly understates the true number of fugitives the district has put back on the street because it includes only people who were jailed on other states' warrants, and D.C. police are allowed to arrest fugitives only if the authorities have approved extradition. Baltimore police marked only 1% of their warrants as non-extraditable in the FBI's database. But prosecutors' [75]records show they nonetheless have turned down nearly 60% of police requests to extradite suspects back to the city to face charges since 2010. They declined to extradite an kidnapping suspect from California, a robbery suspect from nearby York, Pa., and murder suspects who were caught in Indiana and West Virginia. Baltimore officials would not identify the suspects. Many did not have to go far: Prosecutors declined to extradite fugitives charged with burglary, assault and resisting arrest. Deputy State's Attorney Elizabeth Embry said that usually means prosecutors thought the case wasn't viable. But even in that fragmented landscape, warrants marked as not extraditable reflect a peculiar shortcoming. For the most part, they are not accidents or oversights. Each one reflects an upfront decision by the police and prosecutors that the person can get away. "Other cities are just like we are. They just might not tell the truth about it," said Abraham, the former Philadelphia district attorney. In cities like Philadelphia, a policy of not policing Letting fugitives go is usually no accident Before 2010, most of Philadelphia's fugitives — more than 30,000 people wanted by the police, probation officials and the courts — weren't listed in the FBI's database. Now, most of them are listed automatically along with a code indicating that police won't leave Pennsylvania to pick them up. The only way to change that is if a prosecutor gets approval from two supervisors, something officials say they do only when the charges are especially serious and the likelihood of winning a conviction is high. They did not do that in 38 cases of sexual assault, 731 robberies, 1,230 cases of assault, 535 burglaries and 1,830 drunken driving cases, according to FBI records. Most of the fugitives USA TODAY tracked down said they knew the police wouldn't pursue them. "The average person, the average citizen, wouldn't know that," said Shane Littles, wanted since 2007 after he skipped court on charges that he possessed almost a quarter-pound of marijuana with the intent to distribute it. Despite repeated arrests in the New Jersey suburbs, the Philadelphia warrant "just never came up," he said. "I know a lot of guys, they've got plenty of warrants in other states. Sometimes it comes up, sometimes it doesn't come up." Prosecutors said they stand by their decision not to pursue Littles and most of the rest of the city's fugitives. But they acknowledged they have also overlooked some who should have been approved for extradition. Michael Laurito is one. City judges issued two warrants for his arrest after he bolted from the courthouse where he was facing a pair of drunken driving cases in 2011. If he's found guilty — assuming he's ever brought to court — he would rack up his third and fourth drunken driving convictions in Philadelphia. One of those charges could have sent him to prison for at least a year because of Pennsylvania's mandatory sentencing laws for repeat drunken drivers. Laurito said both arrests were "bogus." Feeling pressured to plead guilty and spend time in jail, he did what thousands of criminal defendants do every year: He walked out of court and drove home to Elkton, Md. "I chose the option that was best for me to provide for my family," he said. "At least I have my head above water, even though I'm taking a gamble." It may not be much of one. Both warrants were marked for Pennsylvania pickup only, according to state police and FBI records, even though Laurito lives just outside the state, on a quiet street less than an hour's drive from downtown Philadelphia. "On paper I look like a mass danger on the highway," Laurito said. McCann, Philadelphia's first assistant district attorney, said prosecutors made the wrong call. "If he's looking at a year or more in prison, we should be bringing him back, and that's something we have to constantly reinforce with our assistants," he said. Prosecutors are supposed to review their cases each day to decide whether to seek permission to extradite people who don't show up to court, but McCann said busy lawyers don't always do that. Malone said she asked a supervisor to review Laurito's case. After USA TODAY presented officials with its findings, Malone said she instructed supervisors to review every one of the most serious outstanding warrants to make sure none was overlooked; prosecutors have already approved extradition for several hundred of them. "You made me look at a list that may have gone largely ignored," she said. Authorities in neighboring Montgomery County, Pa., changed the status of their warrants after USA TODAY contacted them last year about warrants for serious felonies in that county that were marked as not extraditable in FBI records. Deputy District Attorney Steven Latzer said the entries were inadvertent. "The way that was set up was a recipe for disaster," he said, though he added that he was unaware of any fugitives who got away as a result. Latzer said Montgomery County prosecutors seek extradition in all but the most "extreme" cases. "Just because somebody leaves Pennsylvania means we're not going to prosecute them? That makes no sense to me." Philadelphia's court system, which maintains a 50-man police force to hunt fugitives, took new steps to track out-of-state fugitives in December. Police still don't go to get the fugitives, but now, every time one is located in another state, they note that fact in court records and send the fugitive a letter asking him to turn himself in. A handful of suspects have. But for the most part, the records merely memorialize the near-daily messages the city's police send out when their fugitives are found in other states. "DECLINE," officials wrote when a man wanted for aggravated assault and drug possession was found in Atlantic City in February. "NON-EXTRADITABLE. AGENCY IS LOCATED OUT OF STATE." A mockery of justice Serious crimes go unresolved, and victims aren’t told Advocates for crime victims say the decision to let fugitives escape is particularly troubling when they are fleeing charges of violent crime or sexual assault. "It's just wrong. It's a mockery of the justice process," said Will Marling, the executive director of the National Organization for Victim Assistance. In each case, he said, the police have done the work to identify and charge a suspect. Letting him get away so easily "says to victims that this really isn't that important, because otherwise we'd try to do something about it." But even in those cases, suspects have had no trouble getting away. Police charged Kevin Hinds with [80]raping a neighbor in 1999. The woman [81]testified at a preliminary hearing that when she tried to stop him, Hinds beat her "unmercifully" with his fists until she blacked out. After she escaped down the back steps of his apartment, he threatened to "ax my brothers and my sons," she testified. It wasn't until six years after Hinds skipped a court hearing, on Oct. 25, 2006, that Philadelphia authorities decided to extradite him if he was ever found. Malone said she couldn't explain officials' change of heart because prosecutors can no longer find his file. But the only rape warrant Philadelphia authorities entered into the FBI's fugitive database on that day was marked for extradition from surrounding states only. And when Hinds was arrested in Charlotte for trespassing the next year, the sheriff's department let him go after he finished serving a two-day jail sentence, a department spokeswoman said. USA TODAY was unable to locate Hinds to ask him about the charges. Angelo Hall has been wanted in Philadelphia since September 1986. (Photo: New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services) "I understand resource limitations and I understand why they would not want to spend the money to create a problem in their own state, but still, you'd think that rapes, like murders, would be taken more seriously than that," said Scott Berkowitz, president of RAINN, an organization that advocates for sexual assault victims. Angelo Hall has been wanted in Philadelphia since September 1986 on [82]charges of sexually assaulting a Jehovah's Witness, charges that could have sent him to prison for as long as two years. Two weeks after he was charged in Philadelphia, Hall sodomized a woman in Suffolk County, N.Y., and was [83]sentenced to 25 years in a New York state prison. He got out in 2011 and moved to Rochester, N.Y., where he's registered as a "high risk" sex offender, a fact never related to the woman he is accused of attacking. Malone could not say why prosecutors decided not to extradite Hall. The case is so old they could not find his file. She said she cannot recall a case in which prosecutors consulted with a crime victim on their decision not to extradite. Hall said he "doesn't know anything about any Philadelphia charges," before shutting his apartment door on a reporter in January. But the Rochester police, with whom he is required to register once a year, know about the charges. They can't arrest Hall because Philadelphia authorities won't leave Pennsylvania to get him, Sgt. Jacqueline Shuman, a police spokeswoman, said. "When they want to come get him, we'll arrest him," she said. Child abuser deserves a much tougher sentence PAEDOPHILE Terry Bishop has admitted to raping and sexually assaulting a five-year-old girl four times and he already has three prior convictions for child sex crimes. In a just world he would never see the light of day again but a soft judge has sentenced him to just 10 years in jail. If he avoids trouble, he could be out in only six-and-a-half years. Judge John Harrow should take a moment to imagine how he would feel if it was his own daughter or granddaughter who fell victim to such a despicable crime. In six-and-a-half years the suffering for that poor girl will still be far from over for she will be living with a life sentence. Many children who suffer such heinous abuse never fully recover. Moreover one has to feel desperate sympathy for her loved ones. Such a terrible event is a parent’s worst nightmare. For her mother the fact that Bishop befriended her in order to gain access to the child will have made it even harder to bear. His actions will take an enormous toll on the whole of the victim’s family, something that should have been reflected in his sentence. Bishop is a repeat offender whose latest crimes were a series of cold, cunning and calculated acts of abuse. The thought that in all likelihood he will be walking the streets again in less than a decade is a chilling one. Heartbroken dad speaks of anguish after his son was killed in car concrete block tragedy A GRIEVING father has revealed his anguish after his teenage son was killed when a lump of concrete was thrown at the car he was travelling in. Nassem Galleze and car PANassem died after the horror incident Police have rearrested a 21-year-old man on suspicion of violent disorder and possession of an offensive weapon on Wednesday. He was originally arrested and bailed last week. Student Nassem Galleze, 17, received multiple injuries after the mint green Vauxhall Corsa hit a lamp post on Saturday September 26. Officers are appealing for those who rushed to help the teenager to come forward. Damaged mint green Vauxhall Corsa PA The Vauxhall Corsa hit a lamppost Nassem's dad Hakim said: "I am numb with pain. Every time my phone rings or there's a knock at the door, I pray it is Nassem. "Our beloved Nassem's life has been brutally ended and my family are devastated. "People will have seen what happened and they will have heard things; you might be thinking, 'Do I talk to the police?' "Take a look at the car where my son died and you know there's only one thing to do for Nassem and our family. Please assist the police." The suspects ran off leaving passersby to help The Metropolitan Police said it is believed the vehicle came under attack on the Turnham Estate in Brockley, south-east London. It is thought that the block was hurled as the car made to leave, smashing the windscreen and causing it to crash. The suspects ran off, leaving passers-by to rush to the aid of Nassem and the two friends who had been in the car with him. Detective Chief Inspector Noel McHugh, who is leading the investigation, said: "This arrest further demonstrates the thorough and meticulous work of my officers as they continue to work through the evidence surrounding Nassem's murder. "We will find those responsible for this crime and they will face justice." New Scotland Yard sign in London PA Police are asking the public for information about the incident Six men aged between 19 and 23 were initially arrested in connection with the investigation, and four have since been bailed pending further inquiries. A 22-year-old man has been charged with violent disorder in connection with the death, police said. Conmebol insists Michel Platini ‘can lead Fifa towards a brighter future’ South American confederation denounces Fifa ban on Platini French FA also supports suspended Uefa president Uefa president Michel Platini Conmebol described Michel Platini’s 90-day ban from “all footballing activities” as “untimely and disproportionate” Photograph: Ronald Zak/AP The embattled Uefa president, Michel Platini, has been backed by his home French football federation (the FFF) and the South American confederation Conmebol despite being embroiled in criminal investigations in Switzerland and suspended by Fifa. Platini on Saturday lodged an appeal against his 90-day suspension from all football activities, which has dealt a fundamental blow to his candidacy for the Fifa presidency. The appeals committee, chaired by the Bermudan Larry Mussenden, is expected to decide within eight days whether to overturn the suspension, imposed pending a full investigation. The Swiss attorney general, Michael Lauber, has opened criminal proceedings against Sepp Blatter over a £1,3m payment to Platini, which both men have said related to work Platini did at Fifa in 1998-2002. Platini has been questioned by Swiss prosecutors as “a person providing information”, a legal status which allows for the possibility of being charged in the future. The Fifa ethics committee’s suspensions are designed to ensure that a full investigation can take place without any possibility of interference by those accused of wrongdoing. Platini filed his candidacy papers for president before he was suspended, but it is thought unlikely he could still stand if the suspension is not overturned, as he would need to pass a Fifa integrity process. The FFF said that if Mussenden’s committee does not overturn the suspension it will appeal against the decision to the court of arbitration for sport. Conmebol, two of whose former presidents, Nicolás Leoz and Eugenio Figueredo, and two directors, Rafael Esquivel and José Maria Marin, are among the nine high-ranking Fifa officials indicted on corruption charges by the US department of justice, denounced the ban on Platini, calling it “untimely and disproportionate”. Conmebol said in a statement: “The presumption of innocence is a fundamental right that has to be considered. Mr Platini has not been found guilty of any charge, therefore the provisional ban jeopardises the integrity of the electoral process … These are trying times that demand an integral reform of Fifa. [Conmebol] fully believes in Mr Platini’s capacity to lead Fifa and the football world towards a brighter future.” The Fifa executive committee meeting later this month may discuss whether to delay the presidential election, which remains scheduled for 26 February, due to the still unfolding crisis. Teenagers murdered two men in ‘grotesque’ attacks Harry Reekie and Steven Mitchell were murdered a few streets apart in Bathgate, West Lothian Harry Reekie and Steven Mitchell were murdered a few streets apart in Bathgate, West Lothian Andy Barr. Two teenagers have been convicted of murdering two men in the space of 36 hours in separate “grotesque” attacks. Andrew Moran and Paul Erskine, both now 19, bound, robbed and stabbed Harry Reekie, 65, at his home in Bathgate, West Lothian, on September 16 last year. They then killed Steven Mitchell, 31, with a knife and a hammer on September 17, at a house a few streets from Mr Reekie’s home. The motive behind his murder remains unclear. Mr Reekie was able to identify his attackers to police before he died on January 4, having been unable to recover from Usha Patel murder: suspect arrested after police hunt Officers arrest Miles Donnelly, also known as Miles Ryan, in Paddington, central London, on Sunday on suspicion of murder Miles Ryan also known as Miles Donnelly was arrested on Sunday Detectives investigating the murder of a mother found dead at the home she shared with her young son have arrested a man. Scotland Yard launched an appeal to trace Miles Donnelly, also known as Miles Ryan, after the body of Usha Patel, 44, was discovered at her flat in Cricklewood, north-west London, on Thursday morning. 'She was a very nice lady. She invited me to a Zumba class. She was very friendly' Neighbour Sali Aboudali Donnelly, 34, was arrested on suspicion of murder by officers in Paddington, central London, this morning. He has been taken to a north London police station where he remains in custody. A post-mortem examination found Ms Patel died from "strangulation", a Metropolitan Police spokesman said. Neighbours expressed shock at the death and paid tribute to Ms Patel, who they said was a full-time carer for her young autistic son. Usha Patel was found dead at the home in Cricklewood, north-west London The boy, thought to be aged five, was seen holding the hand of a police community support officer outside his home after the body was found. One neighbour, who would only give his name as Tony, 76, said: "I feel very sorry for her son. There was a young PCSO entertaining the kid. He was humouring the boy in the police car by starting the engine and letting him play with the steering wheel." Woman held on suspicion of murder after death at a party Becky Watts murder trial: suspect's mother 'joked about kidnap' Tony's partner Belinda added: "A copper walked past holding him by the hand." Another neighbour, who lived in the flat below Ms Patel, said he heard someone enter the building on Thursday morning and noticed her front door was ajar when he left for work. Police officers said her son had been taken to a "safe place" following the discovery of the body, he added. Miles Donnelly, also known as Miles Ryan was arrested at Paddington station on Sunday Miles Donnelly, also known as Miles Ryan was arrested at Paddington station on Sunday Photo: Scotland Yard Another man, who did not wish to be named, said: "She was hippy looking. She was like a female John Lennon. Very jolly and bubbly. She had a happy look about her." Neighbour Sali Aboudali, 42, said her child went to school with Ms Patel's son and he would spend weekends with his father. 'She was hippy looking. She was like a female John Lennon. Very jolly and bubbly. She had a happy look about her' Neighbour "She was a very nice lady," she said. "She invited me to a Zumba class. She was very friendly. All the neighbours listened to her singing. "Her son depended on her for everything. She said he had autism." A man thought to be the boy's grandfather attended the property on Thursday after police discovered Ms Patel's body, Ms Aboudali added. Neighbours said Ms Patel had lived for about nine years at her home in Melrose Avenue, which is in a semi-detached building containing three flats. Friend of Charleston shooting suspect, Dylann Roof, arrested Joey Meek, friend of Dylann Roof, arrested following a month long investigation by federal authorities Roof faces murder and race hate charges Charleston shooting suspectDylann Roof holds a gun in pictures that accompany his racist manifesto A friend of the alleged Charleston church shooter was arrested Thursday, more than a month after authorities told him he was under federal investigation for lying to them and failing to report a crime, an official close to the probe said. Joey Meek, 21, was arrested Thursday, the official told The Associated Press, speaking only on the condition of anonymity because the person was not authorized to publicly talk about the case. The official didn't immediately say what charges Meek faces. Meek has said that Dylann Roof, who is accused of killing nine black church members during Bible study on June 17, stayed with him before the shootings. Meek told The Associated Press that Roof had drunkenly complained that "blacks were taking over the world" and "someone needed to do something about it for the white race." Roof faces federal hate crime charges as well as nine counts of murder in state court. Meek told the AP that Roof occasionally stayed with him at a mobile home in Red Bank, about 20 miles (32 kilometers) from Columbia, before the shootings at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church. Dylann Roof pictured on his website holding a Civil War Confederate flag Dylann Roof pictured on his website Meek, of Lexington, told AP that Roof said he used birthday money from his parents to buy a .45-caliber Glock semi-automatic handgun, which Meek took away from him the night of his drunken rant but gave back to him when Roof had sobered up. Meek also said he called authorities after recognizing Roof from surveillance footage from the church. But, according to a federal law enforcement official, authorities believe Meek was dishonest with them during their investigation. That official also was not authorized to speak publicly about the investigation and requested anonymity. Meek's girlfriend, Lindsey Fry, said he called her on his mobile phone Thursday afternoon and said it looked like federal agents were approaching him as he was at his job repairing air conditioners. "They want to talk to me, but I think I'm going to jail," Fry recalled Meek saying. He said goodbye and she hasn't heard from Meek since, Fry said outside the mobile home where they live. Fry said she doesn't know if Meek has an attorney or where he is being held, but earlier told AP that Meek is innocent. He is expected to have a hearing Friday. Federal officials can keep investigations secret until someone is charged, or they can opt to let subjects know they are under investigation - as they did with Meek in a letter Aug. 6 - in hopes that the subject will get an attorney, according to Rene Josey, a former U.S. Attorney now in private practice in South Carolina. Meek is currently on probation, having pleaded guilty earlier this year to possessing a stolen vehicle, according to Lexington County court records. No other family or friends who spent extensive time with Roof at the mobile home have received target letters, Fry said. Fugitives only have to cross state lines to escape justice Florida officials refused to come to Tennessee for Jacob Allen Bennett; later, he was accused of killing four people Fugitives Next Door Investigation Fugitives Next Door Investigation: A USA TODAY investigation has found that fugitives by the tens of thousands are escaping justice by crossing a state border. Brian Haas When police take out a warrant on someone suspected of a crime, they can choose whether theyre willing to extradite, or pick up that suspect if they are arrested in other states. The following shows Middle Tennessee counties and the number of cases as of May 29 in which authorities were unwilling to pick up suspects who were stopped or arrested across state lines. The tally includes sheriffs offices and police departments. County Total Warrants Total Non-Extradition Warrants Total Violent Crime Warrants Non-Extradition Violent Crime Warrants Sex Crime Warrants Non-Extradition Sex Crime Warrants Total Non-Extradition % Non-Extradition Violent Crime % Non-Extradition Sex Crime % Cheatham 125 113 1 1 1 1 90.4% 100.0% 100.0% Davidson 363 73 51 10 74 13 20.1% 19.6% 17.6% Dickson 393 349 3 3 7 4 88.8% 100.0% 57.1% Robertson 451 265 21 7 11 2 58.8% 33.3% 18.2% Rutherford 515 432 21 17 20 9 83.9% 81.0% 45.0% Sumner 347 141 7 1 15 10 40.6% 14.3% 66.7% Williamson 429 78 9 3 4 - 18.2% 33.3% 0.0% Wilson 197 181 6 3 8 2 91.9% 50.0% 25.0% Tennessee Counties Total 9,111 3,967 422 147 422 124 43.5% 34.8% 29.4% SOURCE: FBI National Crime Information Center Wanted Person File More ADVERTISEMENT If authorities in Florida wanted to pick up Jacob Allen Bennett on the felony larceny charge he has been wanted on since 2008, they had to only come to Tennessee and snatch him. Bennett had been arrested multiple times here since 2008. In 2013 he even called down to Florida to see if he could make that charge go away. Database: See if Tennessee law enforcement agencies fail to chase down fugitives Instead, Bennett was left to go about his life on Renegade Mountain in East Tennessee. And on Sept. 12, 2013, police say, he shot and killed Rikki Jacobsen, 22; her nephew, Dominic Davis, 17; and their friends Steven Presley, 17, and John Lajeunesse, 16. While the larceny warrant was but one of many missed opportunities authorities had to lock up Bennett, it isnt a surprise he was able to evade Florida authorities so easily. In fact, for many suspects nationwide even some accused of murders and rapes escaping justice is as simple as crossing state lines. Thats according to data obtained by USA TODAY from the National Crime Information Centers Wanted Person File. An analysis of more than 1 million active NCIC records as of May 29 shows that authorities were unwilling to spend the time or money to pick up 186,873 fugitives from another state, a process known as extradition. In Philadelphia, for example, even violent fugitives only had to hop three bus stops to Camden, N.J., to escape justice. Some in Middle Tennessee only have to drive 40 miles north to Kentucky to escape charges here. An additional 78,878 would only be picked up if caught in a neighboring state. Bennett was one of those cases in which police and prosecutors decided it wasnt worth pursuing him beyond Floridas neighboring states. Thats hard to fathom for Tim Tapia, whose son Dominic was among the four found dead on Renegade Mountain that September day. You commit a crime, you need to pay for it. Its not, Well, we dont have the money for it or were just going to let it ride, Tapia said. Letting it ride look what happened. Four people are now dead because they chose not to do anything about it. Escaping justice in Tennessee In Tennessee, NCIC data showed that two out of every five fugitives needed only to leave the state to escape justice here. A third of violent crime suspects and almost three out of 10 sex crime suspects have a similar escape route. In all, Tennessee had 271 suspects wanted on either violent or sex crime warrants that were listed as non-extradition warrants. That included nine homicide cases, six of which originated in Nashville. Davidson County District Attorney Torry Johnson said his offices policy is to extradite all homicide suspects, despite the NCIC findings. We extradite on all homicides, period, he said. As a general rule, well extradite on rape cases. His spokeswoman explained that the six homicide fugitives were already in custody elsewhere. The ones that are listed here, the best we can tell, are ones that are being held in Tennessee by another agency, either federally, or by another county with a Tennessee hold on it, said spokeswoman Susan Niland. Generally, that rule applies on rapes as well. Davidson County compared favorably in the state, with relatively few cases in which authorities were unwilling to cross state lines to pick up suspects, according to the data. Other counties, such as Rutherford and Wilson, told the FBI they were unwilling to pick up more than eight out of 10 fugitives, even if they were arrested just 45 minutes to the north in Kentucky. Rutherford County reported it was unwilling to go get 84 percent of wanted felons if they were picked up in a different state. Lisa Marchesoni, spokeswoman for the Rutherford County Sheriffs Office, said it was impossible to dissect those numbers without the names of the suspects or warrant numbers. Each case is considered on its merits if the suspect will be extradited, she said. Some minor felonies are considered non-extraditable; however, we aggressively pursue those individuals listed as violent offenders. If located out of state, we seek extradition approval from the District Attorneys Office. In Wilson County, prosecutors put the onus on law enforcement. The law enforcement agencies on the front end actually make the initial determination, said Assistant District Attorney General Jason Lawson, who handles prosecutions in Wilson County. But that initial determination doesnt really have much relation to the ultimate decision of whether someone is actually extradited. He said some of those non-extradition warrants are cases in which a suspect is already in prison or jail. Other times, the cases are nonviolent crimes such as violations of probation or drug charges, he said. But when it comes to serious crimes, he said, their answer is always yes. There are occasions where we say no, but anybody who has a crime against a person or a sex crime, we absolutely do extradite those, he said. I dont know of any cases where thats not been done. But not picking up suspects even on seemingly minor crimes can have serious consequences. Wanted for larceny Bennett was wanted on one such crime felony larceny. Authorities in Santa Rosa County, Fla., accused him of clearing out more than $1,000 from his girlfriends bank account in 2008. But he moved to Tennessee before deputies could catch him. Within months of putting his name into the FBIs database in 2009, authorities were fielding calls from Tennessee police telling them that their fugitive had been found, records show. In all, authorities had at least six chances to come pick him up between 2009 and September 2013. He wasnt hard to find he was in a Tennessee prison from March 2010 to March 2013. Police records show Florida authorities knew exactly where he was and considered whether to extradite him on multiple occasions. But every time, the answer was the same: Tennessee was too far away. Authorities there last heard from Bennett in March of 2013 shortly after he was released from a Tennessee prison. He called to ask whether there was any way to take care of this (Florida charge) without being arrested, according to a police report. When the officer said no, he hung up. Six months later, four bodies were found on Renegade Mountain near Bennetts home. He was arrested on four counts of premeditated murder, four counts of felony murder and two counts of aggravated robbery. Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty. His attorney, Robert Marlowe, declined to discuss the case against his client. But he said he was unsurprised Florida authorities didnt pick him up. Considering the amount of money involved, it probably wasn't worth it, he said. Assistant State Attorney John Parker, who handles all extradition requests in Santa Rosa County, confirmed as much. He said the cost was too high and the charges would probably have only led to probation. Even if Bennett was locked up in 2009, he would have been out well before the Renegade Mountain murders, he said. Parker doesnt second-guess the decision not to extradite. Im saddened about what happened, but we dont have a crystal ball, he said. For Tapia and other relatives of the four killed on Renegade Mountain, thats little solace. Our laws here are so easy for people to commit crimes and continue keep on committing crimes where eventually it leads to murder, he said. And thats when they decide to get serious about it. Tennessee totals The number of statewide cases as of May 29 in which authorities were unwilling to pick up suspects who were stopped or arrested across state lines. The tally includes sheriffs offices and police departments. Warrants: 9,111 The total number of warrants 3,967 The total number of non-extradition warrants 43.5% Total non-extradition percentage Violent crimes: 422 The total number of violent crime warrants 147 The total number of non-extradition violent crime warrants 34.8% Non-extradition violent crime percentage Sex crimes: 422 The number of sex crime warrants 124 The number of non-extradition sex crime warrants 29.4% Non-extradition sex crime percentage SOURCE: FBI National Crime Information Center Wanted Person File Warrants in Tennessee When police take out a warrant on someone suspected of a crime, they can choose whether theyre willing to extradite, or pick up that suspect if they are arrested in other states. The following shows Middle Tennessee counties and the number of cases as of May 29 in which authorities were unwilling to pick up suspects who were stopped or arrested across state lines. The tally includes sheriffs offices and police departments. County Total Warrants Total Non-Extradition Warrants Total Violent Crime Warrants Non-Extradition Violent Crime Warrants Sex Crime Warrants Non-Extradition Sex Crime Warrants Total Non-Extradition % Non-Extradition Violent Crime % Non-Extradition Sex Crime % Cheatham 125 113 1 1 1 1 90.4% 100.0% 100.0% Davidson 363 73 51 10 74 13 20.1% 19.6% 17.6% Dickson 393 349 3 3 7 4 88.8% 100.0% 57.1% Robertson 451 265 21 7 11 2 58.8% 33.3% 18.2% Rutherford 515 432 21 17 20 9 83.9% 81.0% 45.0% Sumner 347 141 7 1 15 10 40.6% 14.3% 66.7% Williamson 429 78 9 3 4 - 18.2% 33.3% 0.0% Wilson 197 181 6 3 8 2 91.9% 50.0% 25.0% Tennessee Counties Total 9,111 3,967 422 147 422 124 43.5% 34.8% 29.4% SOURCE: FBI National Crime Information Center Wanted Person File Brad Heath and John Kelly of USA TODAY, Nathan Higgins of WBIR-Knoxville and Rob Johnson of the Pensacola News Journal contributed to this report. Fugitives only have to cross state lines to escape justice An analysis of more than 1 million records shows that authorities were unwilling to spend the time or money to pick up 186,873 fugitives from another state, a process known as extradition. Thailand arrests 'main suspect' in Bangkok blast investigation The male suspect was arrested east of Bangkok on the border with Cambodia, Prayuth Chan-ocha, the prime minister says Royal Thai Army soldiers lead the Erawan Shrine bombing suspect after they arrested him in Sa Kaeo district, near the Thai-Cambodian border Royal Thai Army soldiers lead the Erawan Shrine bombing suspect after they arrested him in Sa Kaeo district. A key suspect in the Bangkok shrine bombing who resembles the man seen leaving a backpack at the blast site was captured at Thailand's border with Cambodia. The detained man was reported by some Thai media outlets to be carrying a passport for a Chinese citizen with an apparently Islamic name from the restive western province of Xinjiang, where there is a large Muslim Uighur population. Thai police have taken the suspect to Bangkok for interrogation but officials denied media reports that he was captured inside Cambodia and handed over to Thailand. The police also issued new arrest warrants for three suspects believed to be Turkish amid growing speculation that Thailand’s worst terrorist atrocity was conducted by a nexus of Turks and their fellow ethnic Turkic Uighurs. Prayuth Chan-o-cha, the prime minister, described the man as a "main suspect" in the deadly Bangkok bombing that claimed the lives of 20 people – six Thais and 14 ethnic Chinese tourists from other Asian countries. "It would be great if he were (the bomber). Then we will know who they are, where they came from, who's behind this," said Gen Prayuth, noting that the suspect resembled a yellow-shirted man seen in a surveillance video apparently planting the bomb. Experts investigating the Erawan shrine at the site of the deadly blast in central Bangkok, Thailand Experts investigating the Erawan shrine at the site of the deadly blast in central Bangkok, Thailand Photo: REUTERS Prawut Thavornsiri, the national police spokesman, said that investigators believed the suspect was "an important person in the network" behind the bombing. He also described him as appearing "similar" to the prime suspect captured on security camera footage. There have been no claims of responsibility for the August 17 atrocity or a second aborted bomb attack when a similar device was abandoned in a canal shortly afterwards and exploded with no casualties the next day. Immediate suspicion focused on Thailand’s domestic turmoil, a Muslim insurgency in the south and international Islamic terror groups. But the recent breakthroughs have now thrown attention on a possible link-up between Turkish-Uighur militants, notably a radical ultra-nationalist Turkish terror faction called the Grey Wolves, and human trafficking crime gangs. Thailand deported more than 100 Uighur men to China in July, despite widespread protests that they faced persecution there, and sent their wives and children to Turkey. The expulsions prompted violent anti-Thai protests in Turkey led by the Grey Wolves. Flames burn after the explosion in Bangkok Flames burn after the explosion in Bangkok Photo: AP The Erawan shrine is known to be popular with Chinese visitors as well as Thais. “It is important the security services recognise squarely that the Erawan atrocity was the not the fumbling revenge of a locally-based criminal gang facing a police "crackdown", but rather a well-planned and technically sophisticated international terrorist operation,” said Tony Davis, a respected Bangkok-based security analyst who first publicised the possible Grey Wolves connection. He said that the terror attack appeared to be a "joint venture" operation in which foreign-based "ideological" extremists teamed up with criminal gangs with a Bangkok network. Thai police have recently raided two Bangkok apartments containing troves of bomb-making paraphernalia – an indication that the network planned further attacks in the city. In the first raid, they detained a suspect who had about 200 fake Turkish passports. Bangkok is known to be a hub for gangs smuggling Uighurs from China via Thailand and Malaysia to Turkey with counterfeit paperwork. In another Turkish connection, the Thai Muslim woman renting the second apartment where explosive material was recovered was said be her family to be married to a Turk and to have moved to her husband’s homeland two months ago. Suspected Belgian serial killer 'filmed himself murdering girlfriend' Police suspect eccentric Belgian who confessed to filming girlfriend's murder is a serial killer linked to actress attack Detectives in Belgium believe they have unearthed a serial killer after seizing a film he shot of himself beating his girlfriend to death. In his small home town of Malines, north of Brussels, Renaud Hardy, an eccentric 52-year old who always carried his camera over his shoulder, went by the nickname of “Renaud Le Fou” (Renaud the Madman). Officially caretaker of a sports hall, Hardy had been on sick leave for the past decade, spending much time taking pictures on his Canon around town. He offered to take studio shots of some women in his home and could turn aggressive when they refused. He had a few run-ins with locals for annoying them with his drone or remote-controlled car and was banned from the local bar after turning up with a giant photo he had taken of the owner's wife without her consent. In a more serious incident, this month he appeared in court on charges of shooting at a female cyclist with an air rifle. The naked corpse of Hardy's girlfriend, Linda Doms, was found two weeks ago in her bed with numerous marks suggesting she had been bludgeoned to death. Hardy was briefly taken in for questioning but released due to lack of proof. However, he later confessed to murdering Ms Doms to two friends. Police then raided his flat and found a memory card. To their horror, it contained footage of Hardy beating his girlfriend to death with a wooden stick in a clearly staged attack; he had made sure his GoPro camera was rolling beforehand in order to “review the scene”, according to Le Parisien newspaper. Detectives are reportedly now convinced they have a serial killer on their hands. After checking his DNA with other cases, they have linked him to the death of Maria Walshaerts, an 82-year-old who lived near Hardy and was found last year with a smashed skull. “The inquiry has allowed us to link the suspect to the murder,” said Nele Poelmans, spokesman for the local prosecutor. His recent air gun attack led them to reopen the unexplained case of Ann Bourgoin, a 38-year old mother shot dead by a small-calibre bullet in 2006 while riding her bike in the area. He is suspected of being behind the attempted murder of a 69-year old woman this month. Police are also looking into whether he may have been behind the violent attack of Veerle Eyckermans, a well-known Flemish actress who played Queen Paola in a recent TV series called Albert II. She was brutally beaten with an iron bar by a stranger who broke into her home in Hofstade in February. Hardy had lived in her village for a number of years. While he has admitted to murdering his girlfriend, Hardy denies being behind any of the other murders or attacks. “I’m struggling to come to terms with Parkinson’s disease and I acted out of frustration,” he told police during questioning. Along with the murder footage, police found child pornography and cocaine at his home. Detectives suspect he may have flown his drone over local gardens to hunt new victims. Gentleman thief suspected of double statue heist Art thief suspected of stealing two valuable sculptures within a fortnight hunted by police. A 'gentleman' thief who is suspected have stolen a prized £40,000 Elizabeth Frink statue is believed to have taken a second £100,000 bronze just days after. The criminal was captured on CCTV stuffing the 1925 5.5ins by 14.5ins (14x37cms) statue by French sculptur Francois Pompon under his jacket at the Masterpiece Art Fair at the Royal Hospital Chelsea on July 1 this year. An assistant for the gallery selling the statue realised the piece was missing from its display plinth at about 1.30pm. It is believed that after the theft the man took a cab to the City where he was dropped off near Liverpool Street station. The prized £40,000 Elizabeth Frink statue The prized £40,000 Elizabeth Frink statue Detective Constable Pete O'Brien, from Kensington and Chelsea CID, said: "Security was immediately notified and subsequent CCTV enquiries shows the suspect taking the sculpture off the display and putting it under his jacket. He then left the building. "We know he left in a taxi which dropped him at Appold Street at the junction with Primrose Street near Liverpool Street station. "If you recognise the man or know of his whereabouts please contact police." A few days before the robbery another sneak thief stole a 40,000 Elisabeth Frink piece from the Beaux Arts Gallery in Mayfair. On that occasion the thief, described as a 6ft tall white male with greying hair chatted to the assistant on the morning of June 26th before returning just before closing. He was then caught on CCTV stuffing the Frink under a coat he was carrying before coolly walking out the door. Any witnesses to the theft of the panther are asked to call police. Body found and suspect arrested in Spanish search for US hiker Denise Thiem from Arizona disappeared on Easter Sunday while walking the famed Camino de Santiago pilgrimage route in Spain Spanish police believe they have found the body of Denise Thiem, a US hiker who disappeared on the Camino de Santiago pilgrimage route, after arresting a 39-year-old male suspect in a bar in the country's north. According to sources from the investigation, a body in an extremely decomposed state was found at the home of the suspect, a Spanish man identified as Miguel Ángel M. B., following his arrest on Friday. The remains "seem to correspond to those of Denise and the man arrested (on Friday) could be the perpetrator," Interior Minister Jorge Fernandez Diaz told reporters on Saturday. Ms Thiem was 40 when she vanished near Astorga, a cathedral city in León province, on Easter Sunday, April 5. She had been inspired to walk the Camino de Santiago route after seeing the 2010 film The Way, in which Martin Sheen plays a man who decides to follow the path to Santiago de Compostela as a way to deal with his son's death. Her family in Arizona insisted that her disappearance was suspicious and appealed to the Spanish authorities to step up efforts to find her after an initial investigation failed to throw up any strong leads. Last month Arizona Senator John McCain wrote a letter to Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, asking him to allow the FBI to assist in the probe. A reply from Mr Rajoy which was leaked to the press did not address the offer, but on Thursday the chief of Spain's National Police force said finding Ms Thiem was “a priority case” as 300 officers were dispatched to comb the countryside outside Astorga. The police caught up with the suspect the next day in a bar in Grandes de Salime, a village in Asturias around 100 miles from his wooden prefab house near Castrillo de los Polvozares, just outside Astorga. Local residents described the suspect in the local press as a loner, who wandered in and out of the village wearing a balaclava. They said that he had not been seen in the past week. He is believed to have been involved in minor incidents involving female pilgrims on the route, and the police interviewed him shortly after Ms Thiem was reported as having gone missing. Sources from the investigation are reported as saying that the suspect changed $1,000 into euros at a bank shortly after the woman's disappearance. Ms Thiem gave up her job as an IT project manager in Phoenix, Arizona, late last year to travel around the world. She visited Asia countries before travelling to Europe. The hiker was about three-quarters of the way along the pilgrimage route when she was last seen at breakfast in a hostel in Astorga, where she talked to an Italian man before going to Easter Sunday Mass. “After Mass, she went on her way and he went on his way,” her brother, Cedric Thiem, told Fox News in June. Mr Thiem said he had been talking to his sister via Skype every other day during her travels so he quickly grew worried when the communication stopped. After appealing via social networks and via the US Embassy in Spain for information, Mr Thiem decided to fly to Spain two weeks after her disappearance, spending time in Astorga asking pilgrims and locals for information. Dylann Roof pleads not guilty over church shooting Roof wants to plead guilty but is waiting until prosecutors declare if they will seek death penalty, court hears Charleston killer Dylann Roof holds a gun in pictures that accompany his racist manifesto Charleston shooting suspect Dylann Roof holds a gun in pictures that accompany his racist manifesto A white supremacist has pleaded not guilty to hate crime charges over the massacre of nine black churchgoers in South Carolina. Dylann Roof, 21, was in shackles when he appeared in court in Charleston six weeks after the shootings at Emanuel African Methodist Church on June 17. His lawyer David Bruck said Roof was ready to plead guilty, but prosecutors have yet to declare if they will seek the death penalty. He said: "Mr Roof has told us that he wishes to plead guilty. (But) until we know whether the government will be seeking the death penalty, we are not able to advise Mr Roof." Federal magistrate judge Bristow Marchant entered not guilty pleas. Marchant also heard briefly from victims' family members. Leroy Singleton, brother of victim Myra Thompson, said: "We don't hold no ill will. We're going to let the system work it out." Emanuel's interim pastor Norvel Goff told reporters outside court: "The process has started. This is a long journey, but we are committed to the task to make sure justice is done." Roof was arrested in North Carolina the day after the mass shooting whose victims included Emanuel's chief pastor. On a website attributed to him Roof espoused racist views towards African-Americans and posed with firearms and the Confederate battle flag. Roof is charged with nine murders and three attempted murders under hate crime laws. The massacre at the church shocked the United States and set off a nationwide conversation about race relations and gun control. Nick Gordon accused of injecting Bobbi Kristina Brown with a 'toxic mixture' in new court filing Nick Gordon has been accused of injecting Bobbi Kristina Brown with a 'toxic mixture' before her death. The allegations have been made in a new filing in a $10million lawsuit against Nick, the former boyfriend of Whitney Houston's late daughter. Aspiring singer Bobbi died in July, almost six months after she was found unresponsive in a bathtub at her home in Georgia. Documents filed by Bobbi's conservator, seen by Entertainment Tonight, claim 22-year-old Bobbi died after "a violent altercation with defendant after which he placed her in the bathtub unconscious, after he injected her with a toxic mixture". Nick has previously furiously denied all allegations against him and called the wrongful death civil lawsuit "slanderous and merit-less". Getty Bobbi Kristina Brown and Nick Gordon Bobbi Kristina Brown and Nick Gordon Nick has not been arrested in connection with her death and has previously asked for the lawsuit to be dismissed. No comment has yet been made on the new claims, although gossip website TMZ report lawyers for Nick say the 'documents are just attention grabber to convict him in the public's eye'. Earlier this week Nick fired back at the Brown family for painting him as a "murderer", according to US reports. He asked a judge to delay the civil case because he believes it would force him to answer questions that could be used against him if criminal charges are filed in the future. Bobbi Kristina Brown and Nick Gordon According to legal documents, obtained by TMZ, Nick claims he would never get a fair trial if he's criminally prosecuted because the Brown family has painted him as "murderer, a habitual batterer of women, a seducer of young white females, a thief and/or con man fuelled by monetary gain, and a chemist capable of making a toxic cocktail." A source told People a grand jury is currently being put together in Georgia to decide whether or not to pursue criminal charges against Nick. The District Attorney also said: "The case remains open and under investigation. "Bobbi Kristina, 22, was found unresponsive in a bathtub at her home last January and suffered brain damage. She died in a hospice facility on July 26, but her official cause of death has been sealed." The Real Nick's legal team previously branded the lawsuit against him "slanderous." In a statement, they said: "The recent lawsuit against nick is slanderous and meritless. Nick has been heartbroken and destroyed over the loss of his love, and it's shameful that such baseless allegations have been presented publicly. "Nick has engaged civil counsel and intends to defend the lawsuit vigorously and expose it for what it is: a fictitious assault against the person who loved Krissy most." Man accused of murdering two British backpackers in Thailand claims he was 'sexually tortured during a violent interrogation before being told to confess' Wei Phyo alleged police stripped him naked and flicked him in the groin 22-year-old also claimed senior officer persuaded him to confess to crime Wei and co-accused Zaw Lin have pleaded not guilty to the murders Hannah Witheridge and David Miller were killed on Kah Tao in september A Burmese man accused of murdering British backpackers Hannah Witheridge and David Miller has alleged police sexually tortured him during a violent interrogation. Wei Phyo told three judges at Koh Samui court that police stripped him naked in a very cold room and 'flicked' him in the groin 'very hard'. The 22-year-old also claimed it was a senior officer in plain clothes who persuaded him to confess. Wie Phyo, who is accused of murdering British backpackers Hannah Witheridge and David Miller, has alleged police sexually tortured him during a violent interrogation. He is pictured (rear) with his co-accused Zaw Lin, (front) Wie Phyo, who is accused of murdering British backpackers Hannah Witheridge and David Miller, has alleged police sexually tortured him during a violent interrogation. He is pictured (rear) with his co-accused Zaw Lin, (front) Wei has since pleaded not guilty to the murders. His co-accused Zaw Lin, also 22, has done the same. Wei told the judges yesterday: '[Police] left me naked and handcuffed in a freezing room for more than an hour and during that time a police officer came into the room and flicked me very hard. 'I tried to protect myself but he pulled my legs apart and then they took photographs of me naked.' He added that as police continued to try to force him to confess to the killings on neighbouring island Koh Tao they kicked him in the back, punched him and slapped him. He alleged: 'They threatened to chop off my arms and legs and throw my body into the sea to feed the fish. 'They also said they would push me into another room and electrocute me.' The British backpackers - Miss Witheridge, from Great Yarmouth in Norfolk, and Mr Miller, from Jersey - were killed on the island of Kah Tao in September The British backpackers - Miss Witheridge, from Great Yarmouth in Norfolk, and Mr Miller, from Jersey - were killed on the island of Kah Tao in September The British backpackers - Miss Witheridge, from Great Yarmouth in Norfolk, and Mr Miller, from Jersey - were killed on the island of Kah Tao in September Their semi-naked bodies were discovered on the beach (pictured) near rocks only 100 yards from bars and other buildings Their semi-naked bodies were discovered on the beach (pictured) near rocks only 100 yards from bars and other buildings Wei also claimed it was a senior officer in plain clothes who ultimately persuaded him to confess to the rape and murder of 23-year-old Miss Witheridge, from Great Yarmouth, and to the murder of Mr Miller, 24, from Jersey. He said: 'He told me I was young and I could just say I did it and just go to prison for several years. 'If I didn't say I did it I would certainly be killed. An interpreter said he could help me so I then signed many documents but I didn't know what they said.' Police and the translator then instructed him on how he should say he killed the British couple, he claimed. Prosecutors also told the court that a mobile phone, said to belong to Mr Miller, linked Wei to the murders. Wei, 22, also claimed it was a senior officer in plain clothes who persuaded him to confess Wei, 22, also claimed it was a senior officer in plain clothes who persuaded him to confess CCTV footage from the evening showed Miss Witheridge with a friend walking along a street near some bars CCTV footage from the evening showed Miss Witheridge with a friend walking along a street near some bars Wei said he had found the mobile, which was discovered near a house where he was staying, on Sairee beach and had taken it home but could not unlock it. He alleged that when he heard about the murders the following day he was worried the phone might be related to someone involved in the killings so his friend smashed the phone and tossed it into bushes near the house. Defence lawyers said the British embassy had not confirmed the phone belonged to Mr Miller. They added that this was because the case could end in a death sentence for the accused men and the UK was opposed to supporting charges that could result in prisoners being executed. The trial continues. Cyclist accused of assaulting pregnant woman talks to police Investigators have yet to determine if charges will be recommended Cyclist accused of assaulting pregnant woman talks to police Mandy Pappas, who is five months' pregnant, says she was assaulted by a cyclist on Friday night. A man accused of assaulting a pregnant woman after he sped through a stop sign on his bike has spoken to investigators, according to Vancouver police. Mandy Pappas, who says she is five months pregnant, posted an account of the alleged assault on Facebook Friday night, and it soon went viral. In it, she wrote that she was on her way to vote at an advance poll when she was almost run over by a man on a bike as he blew through a stop sign without slowing down. She said she yelled that he had missed a stop sign, and “He stopped, turned his bike around and came directly for me, hit and knocked me over. I tried to hold on to his backpack to keep him at the scene after I got up but I wasn't able to.“ But a witness snapped a photo of her alleged attacker, and by Sunday morning it had been shared by more than 13,000 Facebook users. The man who appears in the photo came forward on Saturday and spoke with police, according to Vancouver police spokesman Const. Brian Montague. However, investigators have yet to determine if charges will be recommended. “There would have to be evidence to support a criminal charge for us to forward a report to Crown including some level of intent or negligence and charges, if any, would ultimately be the decision of Crown,” Montague wrote in an email. Pappas has since posted online that both she and the baby are fine. The investigation into the alleged attack is ongoing. The criminal’s alphabet Can’t tell your turtles from your hotplate hamsters? Wise up with this indispensable guide to prison slang Porridge, prison comedy Fletcher (Ronnie Barker, on left), fellow prisoner Godber (Richard Beckinsale) and prison officer Mackay (Fulton Mackay) in the BBC television series, Porridge. Across the pavement To go across the pavement is criminal parlance for robbing banks and security vans. The Wembley Mob (a gang of bank robbers from the late 1960s and early 70s) pioneered the method of driving the getaway vehicle up on to the pavement outside a bank and blocking the entrance. They were known as a “crash-bang gang” – they would rely on the element of surprise by “crashing” the bank doors open and then firing a shotgun into the ceiling in order to elicit fear and compliance. April A weapon, as in April fool = tool. If a villain tells you he is going to sort you out with his April, don’t think: “Well, it’s only June now so I’ve got plenty of time.” It means they are going to get a weapon and intend to inflict serious injury on you. Baron An old-fashioned term for the prisoner who would run the black market on each prison wing. It dates back to the days when tobacco was the only currency in prison and whoever had access to large amounts of “snout” could virtually control their wing. Battle taxi Any police vehicle used to transport riot squad officers to an incident or protest; the name derives from the fact that the officers are hyped up and ready to face “the enemy”. Bed and breakfast A night in the punishment block before appearing in front of the governor for adjudication, or an overnight stay in any prison while en route to another one. Bilking The practice of eluding payment for goods or services by making a quick getaway. These days, it is mostly the preserve of motorised bandits and car thieves, who will pull into a petrol station, fill their tank with fuel and then drive off without paying. Bottle squad An undercover squad dedicated to investigating and catching pickpockets, who mingle with crowds in railway stations and shopping centres and try to catch them in the act. It’s known as the bottle squad because of the criminal slang for working pickpockets, “on the bottle”, meaning to follow someone closely (rhyming slang: bottle and glass = arse; “be on someone’s arse”). Budgie syndrome What a lot of those who regularly use the prison gym seem to suffer from. It’s a disease that makes them pose or parade up and down in front of the full-length mirrors, preening and chirping at their own reflection. Every prison gym will have a large cohort of body-builders who act as though they are on Muscle Beach, grunting and stretching and working out, but always with one eye on themselves in the mirror. Bujo/bag game A Gypsy fortune-telling con that goes back at least 200 years. It involves convincing the mark that their money has been cursed. They are told to seal it in a cloth bag and bring it to the elder, or shaman, in order for it to be blessed and have the curse lifted. During the “blessing” the money is secretly removed from the bag and replaced with worthless paper or stones. Charlie Big Spuds The generic insult for anyone who walks around giving it the Barry (Barry McGuigan = big ’un = acting in a cocky way), a bully who may have a tendency to fold when confronted. It’s particularly used in prisons, where some criminals try to reinvent themselves. Other forms are Billy Big Bollocks or Jack the Biscuit. Commy burgs Commercial burglars, the people who will break into warehouses, shops or factories in their pursuit of ill-gotten gains. Commy burgs are unlikely to come across anyone during their crime, so theirs is seen as an entirely impersonal offfence, acquisitive rather than violent. Copsicles A slang term for the new breed of police officers who patrol on bicycles, particularly apt in the winter months, when they have to brave the bad weather. Diesel Slang for prison tea. Made with one huge netting teabag in a copper boiler the size of the average family bath, weaker than a knock-kneed sparrow with emphysema and more bitter than a miser who has lost a penny down a bottomless well, prison tea is not for the faint-hearted. Drummer A word dating from the 1920s for a burglar who can get into places even when they are “as tight as a drum”. Houses are sometimes referred to as “drums”, as in “I went up to his drum but he wasn’t in.” If someone in prison were to tell you he was in for “drumming”, you shouldn’t therefore assume that he’s a percussionist. Ekky Another word for the police and comes from the fact that, when seen in the rear-view mirror of a vehicle, the “police” sign reads – ECILOP (“ekkylop”, which is shortened to ekky). Slang names for the police can be extremely localised and rarely heard beyond a specific manor or region. For example, in Streatham, south London, the police are known as “the shrubs” because Streatham police station is situated on Shrubbery Road. Fido An acronym (Fuck it, drive on) used by the police for any crime or offence they witness but deem unworthy of their attention. FTS Fuck the System is the common cry of the prisoner, and a common way of signing off jail mail to others in the same position. To British prisoners, “the system” is everything from straight society and the police to the courts and prison – one big mass which they believe is permanently against them. Growlers at the ready ... Keith Carradine in 'The Duellists'. Growlers An 18th-century criminal word for pistols, as in “I’d have been taken by the watchman if I’d not had my growlers with me.” Pistols were also known as barkers because of the noise they made when discharged. In those days, even burglars tended to carry at least one pistol: homeowners tended to dish out their own brand of justice when catching criminals in the act. Have it up! In the typical illegal street-trading team there will be the trader, the one who has the patter and does the selling, and the look-out, or “doggy’s” (doggy’s eye = spy). The doggy’s will hump the gear, help set up the pitch, then keep an eye out for police and trading standards officers. The warning cry of “Have it up!” means pack everything fast, the cops are coming. A cry of “Have it up!” on any criminal enterprise is cause for concern. Hobbit shop Almost every prison has a hobbit shop – a workshop where mind-numbing, repetitive work, such as putting washers on bolts or making prison brooms, can be undertaken for a wage of around 10p a day. Any prisoner with an ounce of self-respect will try to avoid the hobbit shop – only hobbits are happy to work there. Hotplate hamster A screw who wangles duty on the hotplate in order to eat prisoners’ rations rather than pay the price of a meal in the subsidised staff canteen. IC8 This is an addition to police identification codes – the shorthand for a person’s national or racial origin; it is code for a “ginger male”. Jekyll If something is classed as Jekyll, it means it is false, a fake, not the real thing. It is second-level rhyming slang: Jekyll and Hyde = snide = fake. Jiggling and scissoring Jiggling can be used on older vehicles, using a car key (pretty much any one will do) in a fast up-and-down and side- to-side action to catch the tumblers in motion – give it a sharp twist when you get a bite. Scissoring is using a large pair of stainless-steel scissors: insert the point into the lock, wrench them up and down to break the tumblers, give them a quick twist, and the lock should spring open. It should take no more than a few seconds. John Wayne This is prison-issue toilet paper, because it is so very tough, just like the cowboys played by the actor. Kanga Slang for a prison officer (kangaroo = screw). The word, is widely used in every prison in the country by cons. Little fellas A slang phrase for cigarette ends, the term is widely used in northern prisons, as in “Blimey, I’m dying for a smoke, you got any little fellas?” LOB Police acronym meaning “load of bollocks”, usually marked on forms and personal notebooks to indicate that the officer does not believe a word of what they are being told. Moon In prison moon is taken to mean “month”, as in “I see Jerry got three moon for that bit of work.” MOP A police acronym for “member of the public”, used as shorthand when filling in notebooks and reports. The police use many acronyms, and different forces often use their own local versions. MOP, however, is standard for the majority of, if not all, police forces. The cup that cheers ... hot chocolate. Non-stimulant pack This is issued to Mormons in the British prison system instead of the normal brew pack, which is given to those of all other religious denominations. It contains hot-chocolate powder and Ovaltine instead of teabags and coffee sachets. The packs are issued weekly in prison. The other people This term may be London specific, as I’ve never heard anyone from outside the Smoke using it. It’s a name for the police, as in “Don’t trust the geezer, I hear he’s been having a trade with the other people.” The Out This is how prisoners refer to the big world outside of the prison walls and fences, as in “I knew him on The Out”. The Out is where all prisoners long to be. And, yes, it should always have capital letters. Polo If someone tells you they are polo it means they have no money (rhyming slang: Polo mint = skint). Quack Probably from the Afrikaans kwaksalwer, meaning a “hawker of salve”, or somebody who sells medicines, this is a prison doctor. They are doctors, but not as you know them. Though it doesn’t apply to every one, in my own personal experience of more than three decades of imprisonment, the majority of prison doctors don’t really prioritise their bedside manner and are more interested in pleasing the governor than in easing pain or healing the sick. Most are prison officers who have taken a first aid course which entitles them to wear a white coat and work in the prison hospital, dispensing aspirin and plasters. They are not to be confused with real doctors. RTFL Used between police officers, this stands for “Read the fucking log” – an instruction for officers to familiarise themselves with the log recording what has been going on before they come on duty. Snow-droppers This means someone who makes a living by stealing clothes from washing lines (as opposed to someone who steals only underwear and who is known as a “pervert”). This crime was particularly prevalent in the Victorian era, when cotton and linen sheets were a pretty lucrative lay (criminal specialism). These days, snow-droppers usually go for designer clothing. Although it can be a fairly profitable crime, it is still way down on the scale of serious theft and is practised mainly by kids and amateurs. Touching dogs’ arses The charge of stealing cars used to be called TDA (Taking and Driving Away a motor vehicle), and young criminals found it amusing to insult amateur car thieves by saying they were into touching dogs’ arses. Amateur car thieves steal cars just for the fun of it. Don't forget the turtles ... Turtles If you are going to commit any sort of crime, the minimum you are going to need in order to avoid detection, arrest and imprisonment is a decent pair of turtles (turtle doves = gloves). Undies Undies is youth slang for undercover police officers. Unfortunately, the laws of the UK do not include a defence of agent provocateur (as does the law in some countries), so if a police officer (undercover or in plain sight) incites a citizen to commit a crime there would be no defence for that citizen. Watch out for the undies! Vegetable patch Some prisons do not have a specific room for the communal television and so it is placed centrally on the wing and prisoners must bring their cell chairs to sit on. This spread of chairs is usually known as the vegetable patch because it’s where the “vegetables” (those who want to watch) sit. When a prisoner ends up in the vegetable patch they are classed as a cabbage or Cabbage Patch Kid (after the freaky-looking American dolls of the 1980s), or as a hobbit. Whizzer/whiz mob These slang terms for a pickpocket have largely fallen out of vogue since their heyday in the 1940s and 50s. Whiz mobs used to work the crowds at racecourses, picking pockets then blending into the throng. The origin of “whiz” is uncertain, but some people say it’s to do with the speed with which these criminals could dip a crowd. You want some? The battle cry that has led to violence outside every pub, club and football ground and on every prison landing. It means: “Would you like me to nut you or punch you in the face, ’cos I’m ready for action?” It’s a warning not to be ignored. The “some” mentioned in this phrase is violence. You want some, or what? Again, a possible precursor to violence, but this time with a get-out clause. The antagonist, while ready and willing to offer violence, may also be looking for a way out and be open to a bit of verbal being the end result – as long as the target is suitably contrite. Zombie A zombie is what the police call an officer close to retirement and now merely going through the motions. It can also mean a lazy officer. Most police officers hate zombies with a passion, as they tend to make everyone else’s job harder. ATF uses fake drugs, big bucks to snare suspects Targeting trigger pullers The U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives has locked up more than 1,000 people using controversial sting operations that entice suspects to rob nonexistent drug stash houses. See how the stings work and who they target. ATF stings that promise loads of easy money snared 1,000 would-be criminals, a USA TODAY investigation finds. These fake drug stashes have led to hard time, begging the question: Is this 'good law enforcement' or has the government gone too far? ROMEOVILLE, Ill. — The three men in the back seat were supposed to be ready for battle. They were waiting for a phone call that would launch a daring and dangerous crime, sending them charging through the front door of a Mexican drug ring's stash house to steal 50 pounds or more of cocaine from three armed guards. Their plan was to disguise themselves as police officers, tie up the guards, and slip away with a half-million dollars worth of drugs. If tying them up didn't work, they'd kill them all. Only the small army of federal agents watching them knew that it was all a lie. There was no house. No drugs. And the only things waiting for them when the call came were a team of camouflaged federal agents with rifles and stun grenades, and the promise of a long prison sentence for a plot to steal and re-sell non-existent cocaine. stash houses 6 The U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the agency in charge of enforcing the nation's gun laws, has locked up more than 1,000 people by enticing them to rob drug stash houses that did not exist. The ploy has quietly become a key part of the ATF's crime-fighting arsenal, but also a controversial one: The stings are so aggressive and costly that some prosecutors have refused to allow them. They skirt the boundaries of entrapment, and in the past decade they have left at least seven suspects dead. The ATF has more than quadrupled its use of such drug house operations since 2003, and officials say it intends to conduct even more as it seeks to lock up the "trigger pullers" who menace some of the most dangerous parts of inner-city America. Yet the vast scale of that effort has so far remained unknown outside the U.S. Justice Department. To gauge its extent, USA TODAY reviewed thousands of pages of court records and agency files, plus hours of undercover recordings. Those records — many of which had never been made public — tell the story of how an ATF strategy meant to target armed and violent criminals has regularly used risky and expensive undercover stings to ensnare low-level crooks who jump at the bait of a criminal windfall. “Do you want police to solve crimes, or do you want them to go out and prevent crimes that haven't occurred yet?” Former ATF supervisor David Chipman In many cases, the records show the ATF accomplished precisely what it set out to do, arresting men outfitted with heavy weapons and body armor, and linked to repeated, and sometimes bloody, crimes. In the process, however, the agency also scooped up small-time drug dealers and even people with no criminal records at all, including Army Rangers. It has offered would-be robbers the chance to score millions of dollars of cocaine for a few hours of work. In at least one case, the ATF had to supply its supposed armed robbers with a gun. The stings are the latest and perhaps clearest reflection of a broad shift by federal law enforcement away from solving crimes in favor of investigating people the government thinks are criminals. Such tactics are common in law enforcement's efforts to prevent terrorist attacks, but they are also becoming a staple of its fight against everyday street crime. Critics, among them federal judges, say the ATF's operations are flawed. In an opinion last year, Judge Richard Posner of the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago dismissed the drug-house stings as a "disreputable tactic" that creates "an increased risk of entrapment because of the potential for the extensive use of inducements and unrealistic temptations to encourage the suspects' criminal conduct." The stings work like this: When agents identify someone they suspect is ripping off drug dealers, they send in an undercover operative posing as a disgruntled courier or security guard to pitch the idea of stealing a shipment from his bosses. The potential score is almost always more than 5 kilograms of cocaine — enough drugs to fetch hundreds of thousands of dollars on the street, or to trigger sentences of 10 years or more in prison. When the target shows up ready to commit the robbery, he and anyone else he brings with him are arrested and charged with a raft of federal crimes, the most serious of which is conspiring to sell the non-existent cocaine. The arrests don't come cheap. A single case can go on for months and require dozens of federal agents and local police officers. Former ATF supervisor David Chipman, who left the agency last year, said the public deserves to know more about how the ATF is using its resources. "There are huge benefits, and there are huge downsides," he said. "Do you want police to solve crimes, or do you want them to go out and prevent crimes that haven't occurred yet? What are the things you're willing to do so that your kid doesn't get shot?" A CRACK DEALER AND A BIG SCORE William Alexander boasted that he was exactly the type of armed and dangerous criminal the ATF is after. He was an experienced drug robber, he told an undercover agent, and a chief of Chicago's notorious Four Corner Hustlers, who commanded 17 blocks on the city's west side and had men ready to kill at his command. “Are we supposed to wait for him to commit a (obscenity) murder before we start to target him as a bad guy?” Charlie Smith, ATF Alexander was 32 years old the afternoon in January 2011 when he first slid into the passenger seat of an undercover ATF agent's pickup in a 7-Eleven parking lot in Woodridge, Ill., one of the middle-class suburbs that sprawl out west of Chicago. Alexander, 5 feet tall, introduced himself as "Little." He was, by then, a career crack dealer and recent cosmetology school dropout, though he was also out of jail and off parole for the first time in his adult life. And while his record was long, it hardly identified him as dangerous. Most of the people the ATF arrested in drug-house stings last year — about 80% — already had criminal records that included at least two felony convictions before the agency targeted them. But 13% had never before been found guilty of a serious crime, and even some of those with long rap sheets had not been charged with anything that would mark them as violent. ATF officials reject the idea that they should focus only on people with violent records. "Are we supposed to wait for him to commit a (obscenity) murder before we start to target him as a bad guy?" said Charlie Smith, the head of ATF's Special Operations Division, which is responsible for approving each sting. "Are we going to sit back and say, well, this guy doesn't have a bad record? OK, so you know, throw him back out there, let him kill somebody, then when he gets a bad record, then we're going to put him in jail?" For all the times Alexander was arrested — court records list dozens — police never found him with a gun, and he was charged with a violent crime only once, after his girlfriend, Demonisha Winters, accused him of domestic battery. The charge was dropped a few weeks later, and Winters said in an interview that Alexander never hit her. What he did do was sell crack, though seldom more than a gram or two at a time. When Alexander was 18, police in Kokomo, Ind., caught him trying to flush two baggies of crack down an apartment toilet. Four years after that, Chicago police arrested him with a half-gram. The next year, they caught him with 10 baggies of crack. Two years later, they caught him carrying a gram of crack and a half-gram of heroin, worth about $40, according to police reports and court files. The ATF was about to offer him something much bigger. stash houses 2 The undercover agent, Andrew Karceski, introduced himself as Joe. He pulled his truck around the corner, cut the engine and flipped a switch to show Alexander a hidden compartment, called a "trap," commonly used for running drugs. "They promise you one thing, and they (obscenity), they make all the money, and I take all the (obscenity) risk," he said in an exchange captured on a blurry hidden-camera video. "They haven't paid me in two months now, and that's (obscenity)," he said. "It's just got to a point where I got to feed my kids, too, you know what I'm saying?" "You're (obscenity) right," Alexander replied. Then the agent laid out the basics of his proposal: Once a month, he said, his bosses had him pick up a load of cocaine from a house in the suburbs. They used a different house every time, always with two or three men inside, always armed. But the payoff would be big: "I know there's going to be (obscenity) in there. I know that," he said, a reference to drugs. "How much I can't guarantee, but I know there's going to be big (obscenity) in there. I've never seen cash, but I don't know." Alexander said it wouldn't be a problem. "I got guys I could just say, 'Go in there and shoot everybody.' I got guys that I'll say they're smart enough to know go in there and lay everybody down without hurting anybody. I know (obscenity) that will get it done," he said. "We'll plan it right," he promised. "We've got enough time." 'I CALL THIS GOOD LAW ENFORCEMENT' The ATF's drug-house stings began in Miami in the early 1990s. Drug cartels were moving huge quantities of cocaine through South Florida, creating rich targets for criminals brazen enough to try to poach the shipments. The robberies were turning into shootouts — or, worse, attacks on innocent people when the robbers got the wrong address — and ATF agents wanted a way to stop them. At first, agents actually set up fake drug houses, loaded with fake cocaine. When that led to car chases and shootings in residential neighborhoods, they adopted a fictional approach instead. The stings proliferated over the past decade. Last year, the ATF said it arrested 208 people in drug-house operations, compared with 41 a decade earlier. Most of the operations took place in Miami, Chicago, Phoenix and a few other cities, though court records show the ATF has conducted them in at least 22 states. At the same time, the ATF dispatched agents around the country to teach the technique to other local and federal police agencies, including the U.S. Border Patrol. As drug-house operations became more common, the agency issued a confidential order laying down the ground rules for conducting them. Officials instructed agents to make sure Justice Department lawyers would be willing to prosecute "home invasion" cases, and told them to try other techniques first, including executing search warrants. Most of the rules covered the tactical details of safely arresting the suspects. The undated manual, a copy of which was obtained by USA TODAY, included no guidelines for selecting appropriate targets. ATF spokesman Mike Campbell said the agency has since updated the rules; ATF would not provide a copy. He said the agency's tactics have been approved by ATF lawyers and federal prosecutors; each operation must also be reviewed by field supervisors and senior officials in Washington who can shut it down if it's clear to them the targets aren't armed robbers. "We lay out the scenario. So if they're not career robbers, I'm not for that," said Richard Marianos, an assistant ATF director who supervised some of the investigations when he led the agency's Washington field office. Distinguishing drug robbers from loudmouths isn't easy. Drug dealers seldom report robberies to the police, so few of the robberies are investigated, let alone solved. Agents rely instead on scraps of intelligence gathered from informants (usually other criminals), convicts, 911 calls, neighborhood complaints and local police to identify and target robbery crews. A year after the ATF arrested Alexander's crew, for example, one of its informants arranged a meeting at a Baltimore train station with two men whom city police believed to be "armed drug traffickers." One of them, Edward Ellis, had been convicted a decade earlier of armed robbery; the other, Corey Barnes, had been convicted only of street-level drug sales. The informant told them they could score up to 15 kilograms of cocaine (easily worth more than $300,000). "You can't beat free money," Ellis replied, according to court records. “I call this good law enforcement.” U.S. District Court Judge James Bredar The informant warned them that the guards would be armed, but Ellis said they would be ready. "We got some artillery; it's just making sure you got the right artillery for the job," he said. "We ain't coming with just two handguns when a (obscenity) need more than that." But when it was time for the robbery two weeks later, none of the would-be robbers could find a car. They paid a friend to drive them. Two had pistols; a third man showed up armed with a pellet gun, according to court records. Ellis was sentenced in April to eight years and four months in federal prison. His lawyer, Tamara Theiss, told the judge that as the case unfolded, it had become clear that the men had to go out and find weapons to use during the robbery, suggesting that if they were robbers, they were not actually armed until after the ATF approached them. "This was simply an overwhelming temptation," she said, involving "a great deal of money … in a relatively easy way." The ATF's stings "are intended to ensnare the worst of the worst, the most dangerous people in society. It's clear that they ensnared someone very different," she said. U.S. District Court Judge James Bredar cut her off. "In our society, what we say is the touchstone of culpability is what's in your mind, what did you intend to do," he told Ellis. People who kill by accident generally aren't punished; people who plan to kill but don't are. "No actual crime was committed, nor could it have been," but Ellis nonetheless "demonstrated a propensity to commit a very serious offense," Bredar said. "This is a city where violence is rampant and the government is bound to undertake operations like this to find and stop those who are predisposed to this," said Bredar. "I call this good law enforcement." A HALF-MILLION DOLLARS OF COCAINE Alexander met the undercover agent again in early February 2011, climbing into the passenger seat of the agent's pickup in the parking lot of his apartment complex. He had a plan: When the agent went inside to pick up his regular shipment of cocaine, Alexander and his crew would follow close behind him, guns drawn. They could tie up the guards, Alexander said. Or they could start shooting. "If you want us to get rid of 'em, (obscenity) get rid of them, too," he said. "It's whatever. … You just said as long as we get in and get out we good, right?" Right, the agent said — especially if they got to the house early, before other couriers had a chance to pick up their own shipments. "When I get there early, there's a stack. There's 20 — 20, 30 40 (kilos). There's a ton if I'm first," he said. But to get it, the agent reminded him, they'd have to get past two or three armed men. "You were saying revolver, man," the agent said, turning the conversation back to the guns the robbers would need. "You get on anything else? You were talking you're trying to get something a little better than that. … Find anything?" stash houses 5 Alexander paused. "Tools? Nah," he said, referring to guns. But it wouldn't be a problem. A friend of his would be coming down to meet them in a few minutes, and he had the guns they needed, Alexander said. But he seemed more interested in talking about the money. Alexander predicted he could unload 1-kilogram bricks of cocaine quickly for $20,000 to $22,000, putting the value of the heist at between $400,000 and $880,000. He said he could make even more by cooking it into crack and selling it on the street. Alexander looked around and wondered what was taking his friend so long to show up. What happens if the police roll through and see them talking, he asked. "Nothing against the law about talking," the agent said. DOES IT GO TOO FAR? Federal courts have largely approved of the ATF stings, though some have also expressed unease. “... If these guys have an opportunity and we can knock that off before it gets to that, it's better for us.” Charlie Smith, ATF A little more than three months after agents first approached Alexander, for example, a federal appeals court in Chicago called the stings "tawdry," saying the ploy "seems to be directed at unsophisticated, and perhaps desperate, defendants who easily snap at the bait." The judges faulted agents for violating their own rules about recording meetings, but ultimately rejected the idea that the stings amount to entrapment. Entrapment is a narrow concept. The government can't pressure an innocent person to commit a crime. But it can — and routinely does — offer people who are predisposed to crime the opportunity to commit one. Police agencies have been conducting sting operations for decades to ensnare child abusers, drug dealers, even congressmen, though the drug-house stings rely more heavily on fiction than most. "It wears me out when you hear people sit there and say, 'Well, you created the dope,' " Smith, ATF's special operations chief, said. "Yeah, you know what? In this scenario, we did. And thank God we did. Because you know what? Now because of the fact that we did create this, my home, the home next door to me … isn't going to get their door kicked in looking for drugs that may have existed or maybe didn't exist because they had the wrong address. So when are we going to start sitting back and realizing, hey, if these guys have an opportunity and we can knock that off before it gets to that, it's better for us." Still, the combination of the fictional nature of the crimes and the government's reliance on confidential informants to help entice prospective robbers has caused problems. In one case, an ATF informant named David Villamonte testified that he targeted a Florida man named Cassio Slowden for a drug-house sting after parking next to him at a gas station and chatting about prison tattoos. "By his demeanor, I could tell he was young, and that he was involved in the elements," Villamonte said. When Slowden told him he had some marijuana to sell, Villamonte concluded he must have stolen it. Slowden's lawyer argued that he had been entrapped; a jury acquitted him of federal drug and weapons charges last year. Another informant, Victor Bugarin, testified that he spoke to a suspected San Diego drug robber named Thomas Johnson only a few times before enticing him to participate in a 30-kilogram cocaine heist. Confronted with phone records showing he'd been making repeated phone calls to Johnson over more than four months, the informant admitted that his story was "apparently not" true. Johnson said he went through with the robbery plan only because Bugarin said he needed the money to keep from being evicted. A jury last year acquitted him of all but one charge; the remaining count is on appeal. The ATF's Marianos said such conduct is not allowed. "We have many of these cases where we've stood down and said we're not going to do this because this informant is way off the playbook here," he said. Other cases were abandoned because supervisors thought the targets were inappropriate, he said. Acquittals are uncommon. USA TODAY was able to track 512 completed prosecutions; among those, juries acquitted 22 people, because jurors either thought that they had been entrapped or weren't convinced that they had been involved enough to be part of the conspiracy. At least 89 other prosecutions are still pending in federal court. William Alexander is shown meeting with an undercover ATF agent to discuss how he could rob a drug stash house in 2011. William Alexander is shown meeting with an undercover ATF agent to discuss how he could rob a drug stash house in 2011. ATF William Alexander, center, and two other suspects go over the details of a planned stash house robbery. Alexander doesn't know that the stash house doesn't exist and that he and his accomplices will soon be arrested as part of an ATF sting. William Alexander, center, and two other suspects go over the details of a planned stash house robbery. Alexander doesn't know that the stash house doesn't exist and that he and his accomplices will soon be arrested as part of an ATF sting. ATF William Alexander, left, and Devin Saunders put their hands up as a team of heavily armed ATF agents surrounds them at the conclusion of a sting operation. William Alexander, left, and Devin Saunders put their hands up as a team of heavily armed ATF agents surrounds them at the conclusion of a sting operation. ATF William Alexander and his two accomplices were arrested with a single gun, a five-shot revolver that an ATF report concluded had been manufactured before 1918. The gun was unloaded; agents found ammunition in a van in which the suspects were transported after they were arrested, but the bullets were the wrong size for the gun. William Alexander and his two accomplices were arrested with a single gun, a five-shot revolver that an ATF report concluded had been manufactured before 1918. The gun was unloaded; agents found ammunition in a van in which the suspects were transported after they were arrested, but the bullets were the wrong size for the gun. ATF Hugh Midderhoff is arrested after an ATF sting in which he plotted to rob a non-existent drug stash house. Midderhoff has pleaded guilty but has not yet been sentenced. Hugh Midderhoff is arrested after an ATF sting in which he plotted to rob a non-existent drug stash house. Midderhoff has pleaded guilty but has not yet been sentenced. ATF Devin Saunders is arrested as part of an ATF sting. The operation targeted a non-existent drug stash house. He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to seven years and nine months in prison. Devin Saunders is arrested as part of an ATF sting. The operation targeted a non-existent drug stash house. He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to seven years and nine months in prison. ATF William Alexander, who told ATF agents he was a chief in Chicago's notorious Four Corner Hustlers gang, was arrested in an ATF sting. If convicted, he faces at least 25 years in prison. William Alexander, who told ATF agents he was a chief in Chicago's notorious Four Corner Hustlers gang, was arrested in an ATF sting. If convicted, he faces at least 25 years in prison. ATF 'I WAS SUPPOSED TO BE PREPARED, MAN' The day before Alexander was to commit the robbery, the ATF agent pulled into the parking lot of his apartment building to go over the plan one more time. Alexander asked him to come upstairs while he and a friend smoked marijuana. The agent declined. Then Alexander asked for a ride to a store so they could pick up some police costumes. Later, the agent said. Did they have the pistols all lined up, he asked? "Ah, yeah," Alexander replied and bit at his fingernails. "I'm gonna get on top of that today, though." "I'm saying, man, if it's gonna be half-assed, let's just blow it off and not (obscenity) do it and wait," the agent said. "This is a one-time deal, dude." Another man, Hugh Midderhoff, 18, sat in the back seat, wrapped in a checkered jacket and big black hat. Like Alexander, he had a criminal record, including an arrest for possessing his neighbor's stolen television, but none of the charges were related to guns. "Hey, we can get another banger," he said to the agent. "That ain't going to be (obscenity)." The agent told them he would know the next day where to pick up his drug shipment. They would meet again at lunchtime so they could be ready when the call came. Nine minutes before noon the next day, Alexander called to say he still did not have enough guns. He was going to meet a friend to "grab the extra utensils," he said. A half-hour later, Alexander called again. He couldn't get any more guns. "I was supposed to be prepared, man. I been waiting for this day all this time," he said. But he was undeterred. "I'm willing to go, man. I'll do it." The agent was quiet for a minute. "Let me call you right back, man, and see what I can come up with," he said. He called back a few minutes later. His cousin had another pistol they could borrow, the agent said. "He got one of those things," the agent said. "He could give it to you guys, and he'll just be in the car as you guys do your thing." The robbery was on. 'POLICE. POLICE.' The agent and another officer posing as his cousin picked Alexander up outside his apartment. Midderhoff and another accomplice, Devin Saunders, joined him. Saunders packed a revolver into a locked compartment in the back of the agents' pickup truck, next to the pistol that the ATF supplied, and the suspects piled into the back seat. Saunders pulled on a mask and gloves. The agents drove them 6 miles to a parking lot in a tiny forest preserve sandwiched between warehouses and trucking companies where they said they could wait for the call that would tell them the location of the stash house. On the way, they went over the plan one last time; the agents confirmed that everyone knew what they were getting into, exchanges captured by a camera hidden on the dashboard. When they got to the preserve, one of the agents said he needed to make sure his car was locked and disappeared. A minute later, the other answered his phone and climbed out into the parking lot to take the call. Alexander sat in the back seat, talking on a cellphone with a girlfriend who was trying to follow them in a taxi. A few seconds later, he saw something and lowered the phone. "Police," he said softly and pointed out the window. "Police." Then came the boom of a pair of stun grenades that shook the truck as a team of agents in camouflage and olive body armor rushed toward them, rifles raised. "Out of the car," one yelled, as agents yanked the three men one at a time onto the asphalt. The process took less than 30 seconds. William Alexander, left, and Devin Saunders put their hands up as a team of heavily armed ATF agents surrounds them at the conclusion of a sting operation. Those seconds are the most dangerous and costly step of a drug-house sting. They are dangerous because, if everything goes the way agents expect, they will be confronting a crew of heavily armed men amped up to commit an especially violent crime. To deal with that risk, the ATF steers the takedowns to remote places such as forest preserves or warehouses where it's easier to take suspects by surprise and where stray bullets won't endanger the public. Then it assembles a small army of federal agents and local police officers. Smith said he recalled one pre-arrest briefing with 170 officers. Court records show ATF agents and local police officers working with them have shot at least 13 people during takedowns in drug-house stings since 2004, killing at least seven of them. Six were killed by local police officers conducting sting operations as part of an ATF task force. Most came after suspects fired at police or tried to run them down with cars. Four months after Alexander was arrested, a Miami-Dade Police Department SWAT team shot and killed four members of a robbery crew after they showed up at a house they thought was packed with marijuana. One of the dead was the police informant who arranged the phony robbery. "He did it out of his own good, and he got killed for it," his brother, Rudy Betancourt, said. "He planned his funeral." THE 15-YEAR MARK By the time agents had Alexander in handcuffs, the ATF had spent more than a month investigating him. It was clear by then the agents weren't the only ones who had been lying. Despite his promises of a police-style raid, Alexander and the others had brought no police uniforms or handcuffs. And despite his boasts that he was a gang chief who had men ready to kill at his command, he and his accomplices had managed to come up with only a single gun, a rusted five-shot revolver with a broken handle, old enough that an ATF report concluded it had been made sometime before World War I. The report confirmed the gun could have been lethal with the right kind of ammunition, but the men didn't have that, either. The six bullets they brought were the wrong size and, when loaded, would slide harmlessly out the front. In court, though, none of that matters. The drug-house stings are engineered to produce long prison sentences, and they typically do precisely that. Using court records, USA TODAY identified 484 people convicted as a result of the stings, though there are almost certainly others. Two-thirds were sent to prison for more than a decade, a sentence longer than some states impose for shootings or robberies. At least 106 are serving 20-year sentences, and nine are serving life. It's the drugs — though non-existent — that make that possible because federal law usually imposes tougher mandatory sentences for drugs than for guns. The more drugs the agents say are likely to be in the stash house, the longer the targets' sentence is likely to be. Conspiring to distribute 5 kilograms of cocaine usually carries a mandatory 10-year sentence — or 20 years if the target has already been convicted of a drug crime. “When you go in there and you stamp him out with a 15-to-life sentence, you make an impact in that community.” Charlie Smith, ATF That fact has not escaped judges' notice. The ATF's stings give agents "virtually unfettered ability to inflate the amount of drugs supposedly in the house and thereby obtain a greater sentence," a federal appeals court in California said in 2010. "The ease with which the government can manipulate these factors makes us wary." Still, most courts have said tough federal sentencing laws leave them powerless to grant shorter prison terms. To the ATF, long sentences are the point. Fifteen years "is the mark," Smith said. "You get the guy, you get him with a gun, and you can lock him up for 18 months for the gun. All you did was give this guy street creds," Smith said. "When you go in there and you stamp him out with a 15-to-life sentence, you make an impact in that community." That emphasis has led to another significant shift for ATF. Over the past decade, the total number of people prosecuted in weapons cases as a result of its investigations has dropped by about 28%, according to records compiled by Syracuse University's Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse. The number of people charged by the agency with drug offenses jumped 26%. Prosecutors typically classify cases based on the charges likely to produce the longest sentence. The ATF and federal prosecutors declined to comment on Alexander's case. Unless he strikes a deal with prosecutors, Alexander is facing a minimum of 25 years in federal prison — and maybe more, based on the quantity of drugs he planned to steal and his long rap sheet. Saunders, whose participation in the plot lasted only a few hours, was sentenced to seven years and nine months in prison. He signed on, he said in an e-mail to USA TODAY, because "the money was tempting." Midderhoff has agreed to plead guilty and cooperate with the government; he won't be sentenced until Alexander's case is resolved. His lawyer, James Young, declined to comment. Alexander's lawyer, Michael Falconer, said he wouldn't be opposed to the drug-house stings if he thought the ATF could make sure they were aimed only at people who were already ripping off drug dealers. "But on some level," he said, "it's Orwellian that they have to create crime to prevent crime." In a controversial and aggressive program, the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives has sent hundreds of people to prison for plotting to rob drug stash houses. Suspect in shooting of San Francisco tourist has extensive criminal record Francisco Sanchez has seven felony convictions and has been deported five times, according to a federal agency Francisco Sanchez US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) had turned Sanchez over to authorities in San Francisco on 26 March on an outstanding drug warrant, agency spokeswoman Virginia Kice said. A man suspected in the shooting death of a woman at a busy San Francisco tourist destination has seven felony convictions and has been deported five times, most recently in 2009, a federal agency said on Friday. Related: Donald Trump links shooting death in San Francisco with border control The case provided further fuel for the Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, who on Friday claimed it was “yet another example of why we must secure our border immediately”. Trump has been condemned by Hispanic leaders, the Mexican government and some other 2016 hopefuls, for a series of derogatory remarks about illegal immigrants to the US. “This is an absolutely disgraceful situation and I am the only one that can fix it,” the billionaire developer and television personality said. “Nobody else has the guts to even talk about it.” US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) had turned Francisco Sanchez over to authorities in San Francisco on 26 March on an outstanding drug warrant, agency spokeswoman Virginia Kice said. He was booked into the San Francisco County jail from federal prison, according to a statement from the San Francisco sheriff’s department, which operates the jail. Police officers arrested Sanchez about an hour after Wednesday’s seemingly random shooting dead of Kathryn Steinle at Pier 14 – one of the busiest attractions in the city. People gather there to take in the views, joggers exercise and families push strollers at all hours. Sanchez was on probation for an unspecified conviction, police sergeant Michael Andraychak said on Thursday. Kice said ICE issued a detainer for Sanchez in March, requesting notification of his release and that he stay in custody until immigration authorities could pick him up. The detainer was not honored, she said. Freya Horne, counsel for the sheriff’s office, said Friday that federal detention orders are not a legal basis to hold someone, so Sanchez was released 15 April. San Francisco is a sanctuary city, and local money cannot be spent to cooperate with federal immigration law. The city does not turn over people who are in the country illegally unless there’s an active warrant for their arrest, she said. Horne said they checked and found none. ICE could have issued an active warrant if they wanted the city to keep him, she said. “It’s not legal to hold someone on a request to detain. This is not just us. This is a widely adopted position,” Horne said. Steinle was gunned down while out for an evening stroll with her father along the waterfront. Police said witnesses heard no argument or dispute before the shooting, suggesting it was a random attack. Liz Sullivan told the San Francisco Chronicle the killing of her daughter was unbelievable and surreal. “I don’t think I’ve totally grasped it,” Sullivan said. Police sergeant Michael Andraychak said witnesses snapped photos of Sanchez immediately after the shooting, and the images helped police make the arrest while he was walking on a sidewalk a few blocks away. Police were still waiting for fingerprint identification on Sanchez, who is believed to be a 45-year-old whose last address was in Texas. Authorities said he does not yet have a lawyer who could be reached for comment. Sullivan told the Chronicle that her 32-year-old daughter turned to her father after she was shot and said she didn’t feel well before collapsing. “She just kept saying, ‘Dad, help me, help me,’” Sullivan said. Her father immediately began CPR before paramedics rushed the woman to the hospital. “She fought for her life,” Sullivan said. Steinle went to high school and previously lived about 40 miles east of San Francisco, the newspaper said. She recently moved just blocks from the waterfront and worked for a medical technology company. David Petraeus facing possible criminal charges – reports General who quit as head of CIA after extramarital affair has been investigated over lover’s possible access to classified material David Petraeus, the former CIA director, could face criminal charges, according to reports. David Petraeus, the former CIA director, could face criminal charges, according to reports. Photograph: S Sabawoon/EPA The US justice department is reported to be weighing up criminal charges against David Petraeus stemming from an investigation of whether the former CIA director gave a lover access to classified information. The New York Times on Friday quoted an unnamed official as saying prosecutors had recommended felony charges against the former general, who quit his CIA post in 2012 after admitting he had an affair with Paula Broadwell, an army reserve officer, while she was writing his biography. The Associated Press later similarly reported that charges were being considered, quoting its own confidential source. Federal investigators have been looking into whether Petraeus provided classified information to his biographer. A lawyer for Petraeus declined to comment on Friday night, as did the justice department and the FBI. The justice department investigation has focused on whether Petraeus gave Broadwell access to his CIA email account and other highly classified information. A recommendation to prosecute would leave the US attorney general, Eric Holder, with a decision to make on whether to seek an indictment against Petraeus, one of the leading US military commanders in recent times, having served as commander of American forces in both Iraq and Afghanistan. The Times reported that Petraeus had indicated to the justice department he was not interested in a plea deal that would enable him to avoid a trial. Petraeus has said he did not provide classified information to Broadwell. Senator John McCain of Arizona, a leading Republican voice on national security issues and an ally of Petraeus, in December sent a letter to Holder expressing concern about the justice department’s handling of the investigation. “I cannot ignore the broader concerns raised by the fact that this investigation apparently remains unresolved nearly two years later and that the only information that has come to light is through leaks by unnamed sources within the US intelligence community with knowledge of the matter,” McCain wrote. An FBI spokesman declined comment on the Times report. Reuters and the Associated Press contributed to this report Vladimir Katriuk, alleged Nazi war criminal, dies in Canada Ukrainian-born beekeeper, who was charged with genocide in absentia by Russia for alleged involvement in 1943 Khatyn massacre, dies after long illness. The second most wanted man on the Simon Wiesenthal Centre’s list of Nazi war criminals has died at 93 after a long illness, his lawyer has said. News of Vladimir Katriuk’s death emerged several hours after the Canadian Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs said Ottawa should take the necessary steps to ensure he be held accountable if he were found guilty of war crimes. Russia charged Katriuk with genocide this month in connection with the 1943 killing of civilians in Khatyn, now part of Belarus. According to war reports, Katriuk was a member of a Ukrainian battalion of the SS, the elite Nazi storm troops, between 1942 and 1944. He had denied the accusations against him. The Russian embassy in Ottawa called on the Canadian government a few weeks ago to support a criminal case against Katriuk. The Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation, a law enforcement body that reports only to President Vladimir Putin, called on Canada to deliver Katriuk to Moscow so he could be tried for alleged war crimes. Canada ignored the request and said it would never recognise Moscow’s annexation of Crimea and its interference in Ukraine. A study three years ago alleged Katriuk was a key participant in a village massacre during the second world war. A man with Katriuk’s name lay in wait in March 1943 outside a barn that had been set ablaze, operating a machine-gun and firing on civilians as they tried to flee the burning building, it said. “One witness stated that Katriuk was a particularly active participant in the atrocity: he reportedly lay behind the stationary machine-gun, firing rounds on anyone attempting to escape the flames,” the study by Lund University historian Per Anders Rudling says. Rudling, whose research was published in spring 2012 issue of Holocaust and Genocide Studies, attributed these details to KGB interrogations released for the first time in 2008. Katriuk allegedly deserted his SS unit when it moved to France from eastern Europe in 1944. He lived in Paris before moving to Canada in 1951, according to court documents. He later became a Canadian citizen and lived with his French-born wife in Ontario, working as a beekeeper. In 1999, Canada’s federal court ruled Katriuk obtained Canadian citizenship under false pretences, by not telling authorities about his collaboration with the Nazis, but could find no evidence he committed atrocities. In 2007, the Harper cabinet decided not to revoke his citizenship. How Nazi guard Oskar Gröning escaped justice in 1947 for crimes at Auschwitz Exclusive: UN war crimes files reveal that SS guard Gröning faced trial after the war for his role in the Holocaust but US cold war fears led to Nazis being released SS Unterscharführer Oskar Gröning. His UN War Crimes Commission file shows that he was one of 300 Auschwitz staff whom the Polish government intended to prosecute for ‘complicity in murder and ill-treatment’ at Auschwitz. SS Unterscharführer Oskar Gröning. His UN War Crimes Commission file shows that he was one of 300 Auschwitz staff whom Poland intended to prosecute. Owen Bowcott in London and Kate Connolly in Berlin Oskar Gröning, the convicted Auschwitz death camp guard, escaped prosecution in Britain nearly 70 years ago because of the United States’ desire to fight the cold war, according to newly discovered documents. Researchers in London combing through the archives of the UN War Crimes Commission (UNWCC) have discovered that charges against him were being prepared just as the entire judicial process against Germans accused of committing war crimes was closed down after political intervention from above. Gröning escaped justice until this week when the former SS bookkeeper at Auschwitz, now aged 94, was finally found guilty of being an accessory to the murder of 300,000 people and sentenced to four years in prison. It is likely to be one of the last Holocaust trials. Related: 'Accountant of Auschwitz' jailed for the murder of 300,000 Jews Although he did not kill anyone while working at the camp in Nazi-occupied Poland during the second world war, prosecutors argued that by sorting banknotes taken from the trainloads of arriving Jews he helped support a regime responsible for mass murder. Gröning had admitted moral guilt but said it was up to the court to decide whether he was legally guilty. The trial raised the issue of whether those deemed to be small cogs in the Nazi machinery, but who did not actively participate in the killing of 6 million Jews, were guilty of crimes. British forces captured Gröning in Germany at the end of the war and, probably as an act of revenge, initially imprisoned him in an old Nazi concentration camp. The historian Laurence Rees recorded that he was shipped to England in 1946. Gröning worked as a forced labourer but reportedly “ate good food and earned money to spend”. He joined a YMCA choir and “for four months travelled through the Midlands and Scotland giving concerts”. Rees wrote that he “sang German hymns and traditional English folk songs” to appreciative British audiences who competed to have one of the Germans stay with them overnight. Justice, however, was attempting to catch up with him. Records discovered by Dan Plesch, the director of the centre for international studies and diplomacy at Soas, University of London, show that Gröning’s name appears in UNWCC files dated 6 March 1947. Gröning’s entry in the UNWCC file, listing him as a camp guard. Gröning’s entry in the UNWCC file, listing him as a camp guard. He is described as SS Unterscharführer, which translates as junior squad commander and roughly equates to senior corporal or sergeant. His date of birth is given as 10 June 1921. The “date and place of alleged crime” is entered as Auschwitz 1940-45. The words “complicity in murder and ill-treatment” are written underneath. Gröning’s war crime is recorded as “common design” – the term used by investigators at the time to denote conspiracy in acts said to include “killings, death by gas chamber, cremations of living persons and corpses, use of human beings as guinea pigs for medical experimentation … beatings, tortures, starvation, abuse and indignities”. His file number, 4771/P/G/139-137, shows that he was number 137 in a list of 300 Auschwitz staff whom the Polish government intended to prosecute for war crimes. Another recovered document is the minutes of a UNWCC meeting held at the Royal Courts of Justice in London on 20 March 1947. It considered, among other cases, those of the 300 Auschwitz staff on the list drawn up by Dr Marian Muszkat, the commission’s Polish representative. Gröning was one of those listed in the proceedings as “S” – meaning suspect. “The commission was making a prima facie judgment as to whether there was a case to answer,” explained Plesch, who has examined the files. “The prosecution was required to give evidence of what the defence [in that category of cases] would be. It wrote: ‘Probable defence that they are acting under orders.’” Oskar Gröning listens to the verdict at his trial in Lüneburg, Germany. He was convicted on 300,000 counts of accessory to murder and given a four-year sentence. Oskar Gröning listens to the verdict at his trial in Lüneburg, Germany. He was convicted on 300,000 counts of accessory to murder and given a four-year sentence. The secret archive, now at Soas, contains lists of internationally approved war crimes indictments of tens of thousands of Nazis. Sixteen states, including the UK and US, worked together in London on the investigation of more than 36,000 international criminal cases between 1943 and 1948. “Gröning’s name popped up when I searched,” Plesch said. The process of drawing up a formal summons against the captured camp guard, however, coincided with diplomatic manoeuvres to wind down the UNWCC. On 24 April 1947, Sir Robert Craigie, a Foreign Office official who was present at the meeting the previous month that considered Gröning’s case, announced that the commission should not take any more cases. “The priority became to rebuild Germany,” Plesch said. Consequently, a decision was taken, despite fierce opposition by countries such as Poland and Yugoslavia, to release SS suspects being held. Even though Gröning was indicted as a suspected war criminal almost 70 years ago, he was never tried at the time. “The grand lie is that we never knew anything” about these Nazi suspects, Plesch said. “The dangerous myth is that nothing was ever done except against the Nazi leadership at Nuremberg war trials, but there was a huge effort by many countries that would have seen the likes of Gröning face trial, had it not been for the shift in policy from America. “It was said that the west had to release these Nazis to mobilise Germany against communism but why that mobilisation should involve Nazis has never been explained. Mothers with their children step off the train bringing them to the Auschwitz-Birkenau death camp in Nazi-occupied Poland. Mothers with their children step off the train bringing them to the Auschwitz-Birkenau death camp in Nazi-occupied Poland. “The British were not keen to pick arguments with the Americans. The last attempt at pursuing justice was a hunt for the camp guards responsible for executing the Allied inmates who took part in the ‘Great Escape’ from Stalag Luft III. “By that stage no one was going to prosecute minnows like Gröning. He went back to Germany and was released.” By the early 1950s, virtually all of those being held had been set free. Another victim of the sudden ideological obsession with the cold war was the film made by Alfred Hitchcock about Bergen-Belsen concentration camp. It was never shown when completed due to fear of upsetting the Germans at a time when the Soviet spectre was looming. “Gröning should have been punished at the time,” Plesch added. “It was a mistaken policy that anti-communism meant liberating the Nazis.” One of the photographs on this article was replaced on 17 July 2015. Jury finds man guilty of pushing wife off cliff during hike on anniversary Harold Henthorn, 59, guilty of first-degree murder in the death of Toni Henthorn, who died when they were hiking Colorado’s Rocky Mountain National Park Barry Bertolet, right, the brother of Toni Henthorn, walks with his wife Paula from a federal courthouse on Friday, following closing arguments in the murder trial of Harold Henthorn. A federal jury has found a man guilty of murder for pushing his wife to her death off a cliff as they hiked in Colorado’s Rocky Mountain National Park to celebrate their wedding anniversary, rejecting his claim that her fall was a tragic accident. It took the jury about 10 hours to find Harold Henthorn, 59, guilty of first-degree murder over the death of his second wife, a wealthy Mississippi native. She died after plummeting about 130 feet off a cliff in a remote, rocky area where the couple had been hiking on 29 September 2012, their 12th wedding anniversary. Henthorn told investigators that his wife paused to take photo of the view and fell face-first over the ledge. His attorney, Craig Truman, said prosecutors failed to prove he killed her. But prosecutors argued during a two-week trial that Henthorn carefully staged Toni Henthorn’s death to look like an accident because he stood to benefit from her $4.7m in life insurance policies, which she didn’t know existed. They seized on Harold Henthorn’s inconsistent accounts of the fatal fall and said the evidence did not match his shifting stories. Harold Henthorn scouted the remote area of the popular park 75 miles (120km) north of Denver nine times before bringing his wife with him. He was searching for the “perfect place to murder someone”, where there would be no witnesses and no chance of her surviving, prosecutor Suneeta Hazra said. Toni Henthorn, 50, wasn’t an avid hiker, so it didn’t make sense that she would have gone willingly into such dangerous terrain, investigators testified. A coroner said he could not determine whether she fell or was pushed, but he said he found no evidence that Harold Henthorn actually performed CPR on his wife, despite what he told dispatchers. And park rangers said Henthorn could not explain why he had a park map with an “X” drawn at the spot where his wife fell. Prosecutors argued the fatal fall was reminiscent of the death of Henthorn’s first wife, Sandra Lynn Henthorn, who was crushed when a car slipped off a jack while they were changing a flat tire in 1995 – several months after their 12th wedding anniversary. Henthorn has not been charged in that case, but police reopened the investigation after Toni Henthorn’s death. Details of the earlier case dominated the trial. A paramedic who responded to the 1995 accident testified that Henthorn didn’t seem upset by what had happened, and an investigator said a shoe print found on the vehicle suggested it might have been pushed. Though the investigation into Sandra Lynn Henthorn’s death was initially closed after a week, Truman argued that the investigation had been thorough and the case only received new scrutiny after Henthorn was charged with murder. The first wife’s death was an accident, he said, as was a 2011 incident in which a 20-foot (6-meter) beam fell on Toni Henthorn while the couple was working at their mountain cabin. It hit her in the head and fractured her vertebra. Toni Henthorn was a successful ophthalmologist from Mississippi who also earned money from her family’s thriving oil business. Harold Henthorn told her he was an entrepreneur and persuaded her to move with him to the Denver suburb of Highlands Ranch. They had a daughter, now nine. Prosecutors said Harold Henthorn made phony business cards to make it seem like he was a hard-working fundraiser for churches and nonprofits, but investigators found no evidence that he had any income from regular employment. Casey Anthony found not guilty of murdering daughter Caylee Florida jury acquits mother of killing two-year-old toddler who went missing in 2008 and found dead six months later A Florida jury has cleared a young mother, Casey Anthony, of murdering her two-year-old daughter, rejecting the portrayal of her as "a lying, no-good slut" who would rather go nightclubbing than rear her child. The jury unanimously found Anthony, 25, not guilty on murder, manslaughter and child abuse charges in a case that has gripped US talk shows and cable news television. But as she cried with relief at the verdicts on the more serious charges, she was convicted of lying to the police after claiming that her daughter, Caylee, had been abducted by a nanny when Anthony was driving around with the body of the child in the boot of her car. Anthony would have faced a possible death sentence had she been convicted of first degree murder but will serve no more than four years in prison when she is sentenced on Thursday. The verdict was met with outrage by some outside the court who denounced it as a miscarriage of justice comparable to OJ Simpson's acquittal for murder. But Anthony's lawyers praised the jury for resisting what they portrayed as the "media assassination" of their client since her arrest, particularly by television talkshow hosts and celebrity lawyers who pronounced her guilty before the trial was over. Prosecutors had alleged that Anthony murdered Caylee because she stood in the way of her party lifestyle and interest in men. They told the jury that she killed her daughter, in part with the use of chloroform, in 2008 and then buried her body in woods near the family home in Orlando several weeks later. Caylee's body was found with three strips of duct tape over her mouth and nose. Anthony's father, George, told the court his daughter left home in June, 2008 taking Caylee with her and did not return for a month. Anthony's parents asked repeatedly to see the child but their daughter told them she was too busy with work. Anthony also claimed that Caylee was being looked after by a nanny. It was later established that the nanny did not exist. Anthony maintained that claim until her parents received a notice that their daughter's car had been towed away. When they went to pick it up, George Anthony said that he noticed a strong odour from the boot that he and a worker in the tow yard both told the court smelled like a decomposing body. Anthony's mother, Cindy, then called the police and reported Caylee missing. "There is something wrong. I found my daughter's car today and it smells like there's been a dead body in the damn car," she told the emergency operator. The prosecution honed in on Anthony's failure to report her daughter missing during those 31 days. "Responses to grief are as varied as the day is long, but responses to guilt are oh, so predictable," the lead prosecutor, Linda Drane Burdick, said. "What do guilty people do? They lie. They avoid. They run. They mislead, not just to their family, but the police. They divert attention away from themselves and they act like nothing is wrong. That's why you heard about what happened in those 31 days." The prosecution relied on controversial scientific evidence including the testing of air taken from the boot of Anthony's car, which the court was told revealed the presence of decomposing human flesh and chloroform. The defence challenged the reliability of the tests. The judge refused to permit the prosecution to have the jury sniff a can containing an air sample from the car. Before the case went to the jury, Burdick showed two images of Anthony at a nightclub after Caylee went missing and of a tattoo with the words "beautiful life" in Italian that the prosecution said she obtained after her daughter was already dead. "At the end of this case, all you have to ask yourself is whose life was better without Caylee?" the prosecutor said. "This is your answer." But the jury rejected that explanation and accepted the defence's contention that Anthony was guilty of nothing more than being a panic stricken young mother who covered up an accidental death out of fear. The defence said that Caylee had drowned in the family swimming pool and that her mother then panicked. It claimed that Anthony's father knew about the accident and helped his daughter dispose of the body. It said that George Anthony, a former police officer, placed the tape over the dead girl's face to make it look like murder in order to cover up the failure to report the death. The man denied his daughter's account. The defence also claimed that Casey Anthony had been sexually abused by her father and brother and that was a factor in her erratic behaviour Anthony's lawyer, Jose Baez, said the prosecution had attempted to portray his client as "a lying, no-good slut" who murdered her daughter in order to go nightclubbing when in fact Caylee's death was "an accident that snowballed out of control". One of the prosecutors, Jeff Ashton, told the jury the defence failed to present any real evidence to back any of its claims and that the allegation that George Anthony staged a murder to cover up a lesser crime made no sense. "That's absurd. Nothing has been presented to you to make that any less absurd," he said. But the jury was not persuaded that Anthony killed her daughter either deliberately or by accident. The prosecution's case appears to have foundered on the lack of a definitive medical assessment of how Caylee died, uncertainty about what role the chloroform was meant to have played and the lack of any scientific evidence tying Anthony to her daughter's death. Outside the court, the verdict was met with astonishment and anger. "Where's justice for Caylee?" Janine Gonzalez told the Orlando Sentinel. "Do you mean to tell me that in Florida you can kill your child, toss her on the side of the road and go free? She [Casey Anthony[ better move and move to a faraway place." Ti McLeod, a neighbour of the Anthony family, said: "The justice system has failed Caylee." But Joe Adamson, an Orlando businessman, was sceptical about the prosecution's use of forensics. "I think it is really great that we have science, but we also have common sense," Adamson told the Sentinel. "These guys [jurors[ didn't buy into science fiction." Prosecutors were clearly stunned by the verdict, saying that they were amazed the jury rejected what they portrayed as a wealth of evidence against Anthony. Lawson Lamar, the Florida state attorney, said: "We're disappointed in the verdict today because we know the facts and we've put in absolutely every piece of evidence that existed. ... This is a dry-bones case. Very, very difficult to prove. The delay in recovering little Caylee's remains worked to our considerable disadvantage." Anthony's parents were reported to have gone in to hiding following death threats. "The family may never know what happened to Caylee Marie Anthony," said Mark Lippman, a lawyer for the parents. "Despite the baseless defence chosen by Casey Anthony, the family believes that the jury made a fair decision based on the evidence presented, the testimony presented, the scientific information presented and the rules that they were given by the Honorable Judge Perry to guide them." After the verdict, one of Anthony's lawyers, Cheney Mason, condemned the "media assassination" of his client since her arrest, including by other lawyers who appeared on television talkshows to pronounce her guilty before the trial was over. "Bias and prejudice and incompetent 'talking heads' saying what would be and how to be - I'm disgusted by some of the lawyers that have done this. I can tell you that my colleagues from coast to coast and border to border have condemned this whole process of lawyers getting on television and talking about cases they don't know a damn thing about," he said. Among those who have been the focus of criticism is Nancy Grace, the presenter of a show on CNN, who has almost doubled her ratings since the trial began with ritual pronouncements that the "tot mom", as she calls Anthony, was guilty. Grace defended the media in comments on the CNN website. "I find it interesting that his first reaction was to attack the media like we had something to do with it," she said. "We didn't have anything to do with it; this was all tot mom ... There is no way that this is a verdict that speaks the truth." But Baez, said: "I think we should all take this as an opportunity to learn and to realise that you cannot convict someone until they've had their day in court." Dzhokhar Tsarnaev guilty of Boston bombing and may face death penalty Tsarnaev convicted on all 30 counts related to attack on Boston in April 2013 Same jury to decide whether to sentence Tsarnaev to death or life in prison Tsarnaev remained impassive as the verdict was read out. After two months of jury selection and 17 days of moving and often disturbing testimony from 95 witnesses, it took a Boston jury just over 11 hours to convict Dzhokhar Tsarnaev on all charges relating to the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing. Tsarnaev, 21, was found guilty of all 30 counts against him, including conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction, for his role in the attack that left three people dead and 264 injured two years ago. Seventeen charges carried the death penalty, and the same jury will now decide whether to sentence Tsarnaev to death or life in prison without possibility of parole. Outside the courthouse afterward, survivors of the attack said they were grateful for the outcome. “It’s not a happy occasion,” said Karen Brassard, who was wounded along with her husband and daughter. “But we’re glad to put it behind us.” She said that it had been a difficult process, but the survivors had gotten through it together. United States attorney Carmen M Ortiz applauded the verdict: “As we enter this next phase, we are focused on the work that remains to be done.” The jury officially began their deliberation on Tuesday morning following closing statements from the prosecution, the defence, and a brief prosecution rebuttal. Assistant US attorney Aloke Chakravarty gave an emotional closing argument which aimed to ram home the horror of Tsarnaev’s crimes. Sorry, your browser is unable to play this video. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Karen Brassard, who was injured in the bombing, says the guilty verdict will help the city to move on As the clerk slowly delivered the verdict, Tsarnaev, dressed in a charcoal jacket and blue-grey sweater, remained impassive. He fiddled with his hands, hugged himself, scratched his hair and beard, but did not appear to react as the guilty verdicts were read. Briefly, at the end, he placed his head in his hands, before returning them to his pockets. Next to him as the judge called for recess, his attorney Judy Clarke appeared to offer some words of encouragement. Bill and Denise Richard, the parents of Martin Richard, the eight-year-old victim of the bomb placed by Tsarnaev outside the Forum restaurant, were in court to hear the verdict read out. They have been here almost every day as the trial progressed. Following the closing statements from the opposing lawyers on Monday, judge George O’Toole addressed the jury to underscore the weight of their responsibility. “Your oath as jurors requires you to determine the facts of the case without fear or favour based solely on the evidence,” he said. Having finally dispensed with the question of guilt, the trial will now move quickly to the sentencing phase. In the sentencing phase, the same jury – seven women and five men – will hear more witness testimony to help them decide whether or not to sentence Tsarnaev to death. If they vote for death – a vote which must be unanimous – the 21-year-old bomber will be transferred to a federal facility in Terra Haute, Indiana, and eventually executed, though a lengthy appeals process is likely. Evidence from the trial included a pressure-cooker bomb recovered from the Watertown crime scene. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Evidence from the trial included a pressure-cooker bomb recovered from the Watertown crime scene. The question of Tsarnaev’s fate is likely to cause much soul-searching in Massachusetts, a state which ruled capital punishment unconstitutional over three decades ago. The process of finding a jury took as long as it did partly because of the necessity of finding 12 jurors – and six alternates – who would be “death-qualified”, which is to say, neither implacably opposed to the death penalty nor wholeheartedly in favour. Clarke, defending Tsarnaev, has striven to portray him throughout the trial as an ordinary kid, who tweeted song lyrics and talked about girls on Facebook, but was in thrall to his radicalised elder brother Tamerlan. Tamerlan, who was killed following a shootout with police in the days following the attack, was ever-present in the defence’s tactics. In her closing argument, Clarke said that there was “no excuse” for her client’s actions, calling them“senseless”. But she also aimed to mitigate Tsarnaev’s involvement in the bombing through reference to Tamerlan, whom she named 93 times in her closing argument. William Weinreb, for the prosecution, gave short shrift to Clarke’s approach in a rebuttal that may well presage the second phase of the trial. “He’s entitled to try to pin the blame on somebody else if that’s what he wants to do,” he said. But you should see that for what it is. It’s an attempt to sidestep responsibility; not to take responsibility. “It’s up to you to hold the defendant fully responsible. You should find him guilty because he is guilty.” Now that the jury have done so, the second phase of the trial is set to start next week, according to court officials. Oscar Pistorius found guilty of culpable homicide Athlete to be sentenced on 13 October after judge says athlete used excessive force when he shot into toilet cubicle, killing Reeva Steenkamp Latest updates on the Oscar Pistorius trial verdict The Olympic and Paralympic athlete Oscar Pistorius has been found guilty of culpable homicide for the fatal shooting of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp and bailed ahead of sentencing. The guilty verdict on the manslaughter charge, a day after the judge Thokozile Masipa cleared him of murder, means Pistorius could receive anything from 15 years in prison to a suspended sentence, which would potentially allow the double amputee a chance to resurrect his sporting career. The court will resume for sentencing on 13 October. Masipa ordered Pistorius to stand as she delivered the guilty verdict. He stood ramrod with his hands folded in front of him. Steenkamp's parents, Barry and June, and other family members sat sombrely on the front row of the public gallery. After the verdict, Pistorius turned to his family while members of Steenkamp's family comforted each other. When the court adjourned, June could be seen shaking her head and Steenkamp's close friend Gina Myers broke down and wept. Reeva's mother June Steenkamp shaking head and hugging and comforting another family member who is visibly upset. Masipa made it clear that that although the state did not have to prove a motive for murder, there was no evidence in front of the court to say that Pistorius wanted to kill Steenkamp. But Masipa said Pistorius had acted negligently when he shot Steenkamp through a closed toilet door and was guilty of culpable homicide. "A reasonable person, with a similar disability, would have foreseen that the person behind the door would be killed, and the accused failed to take action to avoid this," she told the court. Pistorius was granted bail at the close of the hearing ahead of sentencing. He left the Pretoria high court escorted by police and bodyguards through a scrum of television cameras. Journalist: "Oscar, are you relieved?" #Pistorius's eyes swivel momentarily but he keeps on walking out of the courtroom. With no mandatory sentence for culpable homicide, Masipa - known for handing out stiff sentences - will have a great deal of discretion over the punishment. South Africa's prosecuting authority said on Friday it was "disappointed" with the verdict but defended its decision to pursue a murder charge. "The prosecutors held the view that there was sufficient evidence to secure a successful prosecution on the charges that were preferred against the accused," spokesperson Nathi Mncube said in a statement. Asked if the Steenkamp family was disappointed by the outcome, their lawyer Dup de Bruyn said: "There's no comment at the moment." The family would give interviews to media organisations after Friday's hearing according to their present contractual arrangements, he added. Oscar Pistorius Is Cleared Of Murdering Girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp Barry Steenkamp sits during Oscar Pistorius' trial. Arnold Pistorius, who has spoken for his nephew before, delivered a short Pistorius family statement before leaving the court. Pistorius and his father, Henke, are estranged. "There are no victors in this. We as a family remain deeply affected by the devastating tragedy … It won't bring Reeva back but our hearts still go out for her family and friends." He said the family would make no further statement due to the ongoing legal proceedings but was grateful to the judge for clearing him of the murder charge as it had always believed his version of events. Pistorius has said he mistook Steenkamp for an intruder when he shot four times through a locked bathroom door, killing her almost instantly. He was also cleared on two unrelated firearms charges - of firing a firearm through a sunroof and of illegal possession of ammunition - but found guilty on a third of illegally discharging a firearm in a crowded restaurant in January 2013, weeks before Steenkamp's death. Dzhokhar Tsarnaev guilty of Boston bombing and may face death penalty Tsarnaev convicted on all 30 counts related to attack on Boston in April 2013 Same jury to decide whether to sentence Tsarnaev to death or life in prison Tsarnaev remained impassive as the verdict was read out. After two months of jury selection and 17 days of moving and often disturbing testimony from 95 witnesses, it took a Boston jury just over 11 hours to convict Dzhokhar Tsarnaev on all charges relating to the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing. Tsarnaev, 21, was found guilty of all 30 counts against him, including conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction, for his role in the attack that left three people dead and 264 injured two years ago. Seventeen charges carried the death penalty, and the same jury will now decide whether to sentence Tsarnaev to death or life in prison without possibility of parole. Outside the courthouse afterward, survivors of the attack said they were grateful for the outcome. “It’s not a happy occasion,” said Karen Brassard, who was wounded along with her husband and daughter. “But we’re glad to put it behind us.” She said that it had been a difficult process, but the survivors had gotten through it together. United States attorney Carmen M Ortiz applauded the verdict: “As we enter this next phase, we are focused on the work that remains to be done.” The jury officially began their deliberation on Tuesday morning following closing statements from the prosecution, the defence, and a brief prosecution rebuttal. Assistant US attorney Aloke Chakravarty gave an emotional closing argument which aimed to ram home the horror of Tsarnaev’s crimes. Sorry, your browser is unable to play this video. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Karen Brassard, who was injured in the bombing, says the guilty verdict will help the city to move on As the clerk slowly delivered the verdict, Tsarnaev, dressed in a charcoal jacket and blue-grey sweater, remained impassive. He fiddled with his hands, hugged himself, scratched his hair and beard, but did not appear to react as the guilty verdicts were read. Briefly, at the end, he placed his head in his hands, before returning them to his pockets. Next to him as the judge called for recess, his attorney Judy Clarke appeared to offer some words of encouragement. Bill and Denise Richard, the parents of Martin Richard, the eight-year-old victim of the bomb placed by Tsarnaev outside the Forum restaurant, were in court to hear the verdict read out. They have been here almost every day as the trial progressed. Following the closing statements from the opposing lawyers on Monday, judge George O’Toole addressed the jury to underscore the weight of their responsibility. “Your oath as jurors requires you to determine the facts of the case without fear or favour based solely on the evidence,” he said. Having finally dispensed with the question of guilt, the trial will now move quickly to the sentencing phase. In the sentencing phase, the same jury – seven women and five men – will hear more witness testimony to help them decide whether or not to sentence Tsarnaev to death. If they vote for death – a vote which must be unanimous – the 21-year-old bomber will be transferred to a federal facility in Terra Haute, Indiana, and eventually executed, though a lengthy appeals process is likely. Evidence from the trial included a pressure-cooker bomb recovered from the Watertown crime scene. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Evidence from the trial included a pressure-cooker bomb recovered from the Watertown crime scene. Photograph: Dominick Reuter/Reuters The question of Tsarnaev’s fate is likely to cause much soul-searching in Massachusetts, a state which ruled capital punishment unconstitutional over three decades ago. The process of finding a jury took as long as it did partly because of the necessity of finding 12 jurors – and six alternates – who would be “death-qualified”, which is to say, neither implacably opposed to the death penalty nor wholeheartedly in favour. Clarke, defending Tsarnaev, has striven to portray him throughout the trial as an ordinary kid, who tweeted song lyrics and talked about girls on Facebook, but was in thrall to his radicalised elder brother Tamerlan. Tamerlan, who was killed following a shootout with police in the days following the attack, was ever-present in the defence’s tactics. In her closing argument, Clarke said that there was “no excuse” for her client’s actions, calling them“senseless”. But she also aimed to mitigate Tsarnaev’s involvement in the bombing through reference to Tamerlan, whom she named 93 times in her closing argument. William Weinreb, for the prosecution, gave short shrift to Clarke’s approach in a rebuttal that may well presage the second phase of the trial. “He’s entitled to try to pin the blame on somebody else if that’s what he wants to do,” he said. But you should see that for what it is. It’s an attempt to sidestep responsibility; not to take responsibility. “It’s up to you to hold the defendant fully responsible. You should find him guilty because he is guilty.” Now that the jury have done so, the second phase of the trial is set to start next week, according to court officials. Oscar Pistorius culpable homicide verdict causes uproar in South Africa 'This verdict is not justice for Reeva,' says mother of Reeva Steenkamp, who died after being shot by athlete The parents of Reeva Steenkamp expressed anger and disbelief on Friday after Oscar Pistorius was formally acquitted of their daughter's murder, insisting: "Justice was not served." Amid growing discontent in South Africa at the verdict, the Steenkamps criticised judge Thokozile Masipa for being too lenient on the athlete, who was instead convicted of culpable homicide, the South African equivalent of manslaughter, and granted bail. "This verdict is not justice for Reeva," her mother, June Steenkamp, told NBC News. "I just want the truth." Steenkamp, a 29-year-old model and law graduate, died in a small toilet cubicle when Pistorius shot her four times through the locked door just after 3am on Valentine's day last year. The court heard how his hollow tipped bullets opened and mushroomed on impact, tearing through her flesh and killing her almost instantly. He claims he mistook her for an intruder, a version that the judge accepted. She died a "horrible, painful, terrible" death, June added. "He shot through the door and I can't believe that they believe it was an accident." Although Pistorius looked relieved at the judgment, he will return to court on 13 October for a sentencing hearing and could face up to 15 years in jail, though a shorter jail sentence of perhaps five years is considered more likely. June Steenkamp told NBC News: "I really don't care what happens to Oscar. It's not going to change anything because my daughter is never coming back. He's still living and breathing and she's gone, you know, forever." Jacqui Mofokeng, a spokeswoman for the African National Congress women's league, who supported the Steenkamps in court, said: "They are saddened by the verdict. It's like they're mourning Reeva again. Emotions are high. Some of the family were crying when the verdict was given." After a six-month trial that saw the double-amputee athlete sob, moan and vomit into a bucket, on Friday the high court in Pretoria was besieged by camera crews, photographers and reporters from all over the world. Yet Masipa's final verdict came in low-key circumstances, with her decisions having already become clear during the reading of her judgment. "Mr Pistorius, please stand up," she instructed the accused. Wearing a dark suit, Pistorius rose in the dock and stood ramrod straight, his hands folded in front of him, and showed little emotion as the judge read her final verdict. "Having regard to the totality of this evidence in this matter, the unanimous decision of this court is the following: on count one, murder … the accused is found not guilty and is discharged," Masipa said. "Instead he is found guilty of culpable homicide." There was little instant reaction from members of the Pistorius and Steenkamp families sitting on the front row. But when the court adjourned for lunch, June Steenkamp could be seen shaking her head and putting an arm around another family member, while Steenkamp's friend Gina Myers openly wept. Meanwhile Pistorius's estranged father Henke offered him a smile and comforting hand. The athlete seemed to acknowledge him but quickly ended the encounter. The mood was sombre rather than celebratory. Pistorius, 27, was also found not guilty of illegally possessing ammunition, and firing his weapon through a car sunroof. But he was convicted of negligence relating to an incident in which a gun went off in his possession at a restaurant where more than 200 people were present in January last year. Masipa turned down an application by prosecutors to refuse bail. It means the sprinter, nicknamed the "blade runner" because of his prosthetic limbs, will continue to live with his uncle Arnold in Pretoria, his residence for the 18 months since the shooting. Arnold Pistorius said the family were grateful to the judge for finding the sportsman not guilty of murder. "It's a big burden off us, off our shoulders and Oscar. "We always knew the facts of the matter and we never had any doubt in Oscar's version of this tragic incident. We as a family remain deeply affected by the devastating tragedy … It won't bring Reeva back, but our hearts still go out for her family and friends." Across South Africa, there was consternation at the judge's verdict. Many people took to radio phone-ins and social media to vent their bewilderment and the hashtag #Justice4Reeva quickly started trending on Twitter. Some suggested that Pistorius had been given exceptional treatment because of his celebrity, wealth and race. Eusebius McKaiser, a talkshow host on the Johannesburg-based radio station Power FM, said he had received hundreds of calls and text messages during his morning show and "99% of them think it was a mistake". McKaiser, an author and columnist, took the same view: "She should have found him guilty of murder. There are good prospects for the state to appeal on a point of law. The higher court might even rebuke her for getting it wrong. The mistake she made really was elementary." The judge was wrong to use details of Pistorius's conduct after the killing, such as praying to God to save Steenkamp's life, as evidence of his intention when he pulled the trigger, McKaiser added. "That's the bit I deem to be embarrassing and not just wrong. It doesn't matter what happened afterwards. These facts are irrelevant to the case." Lawyers also joined the criticism. Martin Hood, an attorney specialising in firearms offences, said: "There has been a widespread expression of outrage across the board. There are many people in the legal profession who believe she got it wrong. It has met with a lot of disappointment in the court of public opinion, including on the part of gun owners." He added: "I would be bitterly disappointed and angry if I was Reeva Steenkamp's family." The national debate quickly drew comparisons to Molemo "Jub Jub" Maarohanye, a black rapper sentenced to 20 years in prison for murder after crashing into a group of boys while drag-racing through the streets of Soweto. Trevor Noah, one of South Africa's leading comedians, tweeted: "I'm very confused. Jub Jub raced a car high and was found guilty of murder, Oscar went to fetch a gun but he gets less time?" Another Twitter user, "prince akeem", posted: "Jubjub didn't even mean to kill those kids but he got murder but pointing a gun and shooting four times is an accident." The conviction of culpable homicide can bring a maximum prison sentence of 15 years, although legal experts pointed to five years as a guideline. The prosecution gave no indication of whether it planned to appeal. The National Prosecuting Authority said: "We respect the court decision to convict the accused on culpable homicide, which is in fact a serious crime. We are, however, disappointed that we were not successful in securing a conviction on the original charge of premeditated murder. "NPA will await until the matter is concluded and will then comment on any further legal steps that might be envisaged." Makers of tainted supplements have criminal pasts A USA TODAY investigation finds that a wide array of dietary supplement companies caught with drug-spiked products are run by people with criminal backgrounds and regulatory run-ins. Tainted supplements, criminal pasts A number of supplement firms caught with drug-spiked products are run by executives with criminal backgrounds and regulatory run-ins. Tests have found their supposedly all-natural pills and powders have contained potentially dangerous ingredients including methamphetamine-like compounds and anti-psychotic drugs. Like many pills and powders sold as dietary supplements, Dr. Larry's Tranquility pills were not what they seemed. And neither was Dr. Larry. The pills promised insomniacs a great night's sleep with an all-natural blend of ingredients such as figwort root and licorice. Then, earlier this summer, these particular pills — out of an estimated 85,000 supplement products on the market — happened to get tested in a lab by regulators from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The agency is budgeted to run just 1,000 tests a year in its limited oversight of the $30 billion industry. The tests showed Tranquility was spiked with two powerful prescription drugs: an anti-psychotic medication best known as Thorazine, and the anti-depressant and sleep medication called doxepin. Research by USA TODAY shows that Larry LeGunn is a convicted criminal and not a licensed doctor. He's a former chiropractor who had to give up his Florida license in 2010 after being charged with grand theft and insurance fraud relating to his treatment of auto accident victims, according to court and licensing records. LeGunn ultimately pleaded no contest to an amended charge of misleading solicitation of payments. Far from an isolated case, a USA TODAY investigation finds that a wide array of dietary supplement companies caught with drug-spiked products are run by people with criminal backgrounds and regulatory run-ins. Consumers buying products from these firms are in some cases entrusting their health and safety to people with rap sheets for crimes involving barbiturates, crack cocaine, Ecstacy and other narcotics, as well as arrests for selling or possessing steroids and human growth hormone. Other supplement company executives have records of fraud, theft, assault, weapons offenses, money laundering or other offenses, the investigation shows. • Jeffrey Bolanos, who runs Beamonstar Products in Queen Creek, Ariz., has twice been convicted on drug charges, most recently in a 2008 case that notes possession of crack cocaine and a relapse with methamphetamines, court records show. In May, his company, which has received industry awards for its sexual enhancement supplements, recalled three supposedly all-natural products after FDA tests found that two contained tadalafil, the medication in the prescription erectile dysfunction drug Cialis. The third was potentially spiked. One of Beamonstar's tainted supplements was marketed for women. Bolanos had no comment. • Martin McDermott, president of Kilo Sports in Phoenix, was indicted in 2004 with three felony counts of dangerous drug possession involving the steroid boldenone and testosterone, and one felony count of possession of prescription drugs, specifically human growth hormone, for sale. He later pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor count of possession of drug paraphernalia and received probation. In 2009, three Kilo Sports products were recalled for ingredients the FDA said should be classified as steroids. The company recalled another supplement in 2010 because of concerns it contained an anti-estrogen drug. McDermott didn't respond to interview requests. • Barry Nevins, who runs DrBarrysVitamins.com, isn't really a doctor and under an agreement with prosecutors isn't supposed to represent himself as one in his vitamin store. Yet as recently as this week, his website touted "Dr. Barry" — whose only Florida health care license was as a massage therapist — as "a leading formulator, developer and manufacturer of natural pharmaceuticals." In 2011, Nevins was charged with unlicensed practice of the health care profession, a felony, records show. While facing those charges, FDA tests found one of Barry's Vitamins & Herbs' products, Virility Max, was secretly spiked with a drug that's a chemical cousin to Viagra. Prosecutors in Palm Beach County, Fla., said they are now reviewing the website to determine whether Nevins has violated a deferred prosecution agreement reached in March in the 2011 case. Nevins declined to be interviewed. • Jay Cohen, CEO of IQ Formulations, was arrested on a charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon in 2008 for wielding a machete and striking the driver's side mirror of a teenager's car parked outside Cohen's home blaring music, police and court records show. Cohen, who told USA TODAY he was protecting his family, pleaded no contest in 2010 to assault and received probation. In November, IQ Formulations recalled its Hydravax weight-loss supplement after the FDA told the company it contained a prescription-only diuretic drug. A company spokesman said the recall was the result of a supplier providing a tainted ingredient. USA TODAY scrutinized about 100 companies that have been caught selling supplements secretly spiked with drugs and potentially dangerous chemicals since 2007. The examination found that at least 14 were run by people with criminal records beyond traffic infractions. The newspaper researched corporation records to identify the company executives and owners, then examined police, court and professional licensing records, ordering files from across the country to determine what they had done in the past. There are likely many more supplement company executives with criminal records. The FDA's tainted-supplements database lists 123 companies that have been caught selling about 460 spiked products in the past six years, but the corporate records of nearly three dozen of the companies couldn't be located. For about 150 spiked products, the FDA's database doesn't list a manufacturer, in many cases because it was unclear to the agency who made them. And many companies selling sketchy products aren't listed in the FDA's database. Supplement executives with criminal records who granted interviews generally said their pasts had nothing to do with their ability to make good supplements and they often blamed suppliers for putting drugs in their products without their knowledge. "China will lie, just lie and tell you it's all herbal and they slip in a little trace of something," LeGunn said, adding that he no longer has supplements made there. But most didn't respond to interview requests or refused to talk about their backgrounds. "I'm not going to discuss anything. I have the right to remain silent," said Gisselle Lopez, a partner in Svelte 30 Nutritional Consultants LLC in Kissimmee, Fla., when a reporter asked about a 2003 theft conviction and why her staff referred to her as "Dr. Gisselle." Florida records don't show her as having a medical license. Her company recalled one of its weight loss supplements in 2011 after FDA tests showed it was spiked with sibutramine, the active ingredient in the prescription weight loss drug Meridia that was pulled off the U.S. market because of heart attack and stroke risks. 'A TALE OF TWO INDUSTRIES' USA TODAY's ongoing investigation has shown that consumers of tainted diet supplements have paid dearly in some cases, suffering side effects ranging from severe bleeding and dangerous effects on diabetes control to liver damage, strokes and death. Athletes have had their sports careers jeopardized after testing positive for ingredients laced into sports supplements. Dallas-based USPlabs has been linked to a recent outbreak of serious liver injury cases among people taking its OxyElite Pro weight-loss supplement. Its CEO, Jacob Geissler, has a criminal history involving anabolic steroids and has clashed repeatedly with the FDA. USPlabs recalled OxyElite Pro in November. Until recently, Geissler served on the board of trustees of the American Herbal Products Association, a major industry trade group. Driven Sports Vice President Matt Cahill, whose pre-workout powder Craze has been found by teams of scientists to contain a methamphetamine-like compound, is a convicted felon with a history of putting risky products on the market.Craze was named 2012's "New Supplement of the Year" by Bodybuilding.com, a major online retailer of sports supplements. "All industries are going to have people with criminal problems in their background," said Steve Mister, president of the Council for Responsible Nutrition, a supplement industry trade group that lists major corporations such as Procter & Gamble, Bayer HealthCare and Abbott Nutrition among its members. Histories of financial fraud or violent behavior may not have much relevance when it comes to making supplements, Mister said. "But I do think when you talk about people with a history of criminal convictions with controlled substances and illicit drugs, and they are making products where they have the opportunity to bring that prior background into their product, that is concerning." "It is unfortunately a tale of two industries. There's a mainstream, responsible industry," Mister said of the supplement business. "Then there is this sort of shadow industry, the smaller guys playing around the fringes. The problem is how we distinguish between the two." WHAT CAN BE DONE ABOUT IT Under the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994, known by the acronym DSHEA, the FDA must show that a product is unsafe before it can take any action to restrict its use or seek its removal from the market. Nutritional supplements such as the vitamins, minerals, protein powders and herbal blends used by more than half of Americans are treated like foods and assumed to be all-natural and safe — unless proven otherwise. Although supplements are often sold and used as remedies for various conditions, they aren't required to prove their safety and effectiveness before being put on the market, as is required with medications. "Supplements are under-regulated by the FDA," said June Rogers, director of drug program and policy at the NFL Players Association, whose members are tested for a variety of performance-enhancing drugs. "Anyone is allowed to go out and make a supplement and basically sell it until the FDA comes knocking at your door. But before that happens, there's a lot of profits to be made." Loren Israelsen, a top supplement industry association official who is credited as a key architect behind the DSHEA supplement law, said that 20 years ago nobody envisioned the kinds of rogue players, advanced chemistry and drug-spiked products being seen today. "It is so counterintuitive and opposite to the really fundamental principles of what this industry is about that we probably didn't fully recognize it because it was so not a part of us," Israelsen, president of the United Natural Products Alliance, said in an interview this week. Israelsen was convicted in 1997 of conspiracy to defraud the United States, for a scheme that involved falsifying documents to import evening primrose oil despite an FDA ban on its importation. The documents falsely declared that the shipments were such things as "Vitamin E" to avoid seizure and sought to conceal that Health Products International was the company importing the material, federal records show. During the conspiracy, Israelsen was a vice president and general counsel at Health Products International, which he described as the manufacturing arm of Nature's Way, where he also was a top executive. He said his actions should be viewed in the context of a time when the industry felt the FDA was taking overzealous and unjustified actions against natural products. "I was much younger and breathing more fire," he said. "In retrospect, would we do it that way again? No." Israelsen said there's a difference between standing up for evening primrose oil and supplement company executives fighting the FDA over substances with questionable chemical origins. He said recent media coverage of supplement makers like Cahill and Geissler and their potentially dangerous products has altered the way the industry views calls for additional regulation. "It has been fundamental. Things have changed. That's a reality," Israelsen said. "We have to just look at where we are and what needs to be done to best address it — because it's in our best interest to address it." In what could be considered an important conciliation for his industry, Israelsen said he's open to having discussions about whether new tools are needed to make it easier and faster for the FDA to take action. In the past, the industry has opposed and defeated legislation that would require supplements to be registered with the FDA, arguing that criminals wouldn't register and that good companies would be overly burdened. But Israelsen says he now thinks it's possible that requiring registration could give the FDA a "faster, easier way to say they're not in compliance." A bill reintroduced this summer by Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., and Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., would require supplement firms to register products with the FDA within 30 days after being marketed, including providing a description of each product, its ingredients and a copy of the label. Other supplement industry trade groups emphasize that better enforcement would address the industry's bad actors. Under existing laws, any person who markets a supplement that violates the law can be found guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by up to a year in jail and $1,000 in fines, notes the Council for Responsible Nutrition. Such criminal cases appear to be rare, however, and they can take years and can involve more complex felony charges. The FDA has so far not provided data, requested under the Freedom of Information Act, on how often the agency has sought criminal prosecution of supplement makers. "More executives should be subject to these misdemeanor cases," said Mister, who heads the council. "That would send a very strong message to the industry." Supplement makers also can be subject to individual and corporate fines of up to $500,000 for a series of violations in a case, Mister noted. "If you don't have a cop watching the speed limit, people will speed." Daniel Fabricant, director of the FDA's dietary supplements division, said: "We're doing all we can with the tools we have." He noted that limited resources at the agency are a factor, along with competing priorities among the many food and medical products regulated by the agency. In some recent cases, the FDA has used its authority to detain and seize adulterated or misbranded dietary supplements, as it did this year with supplements made by USPlabs and Hi-Tech Pharmaceuticals that contained the controversial stimulant DMAA. The FDA has the authority to order a recall of supplements if a manufacturer refuses to do so, and the agency threatened this in a letter to USPlabs that prompted the company to recall OxyElite Pro last month. But the FDA still should do more, argues Patrick Arnold, who was convicted in 2006 as the Illinois steroid chemist in the "Balco" scandal that involved distributing performance-enhancing drugs to high-profile athletes. "Obviously, we want to avoid regulatory interference as much as we can because it never ends up being a good thing," Arnold said. But without better FDA oversight, Arnold said, it will become increasingly difficult for supplement makers to compete without spiking their products. He pointed to the lack of any public action by the FDA to address repeated findings by independent labs — including by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency in June 2012, and various teams of international researchers — of undisclosed amphetamine- and methamphetamine-like compounds in Craze. This week, another peer-reviewed journal article reported tests showing similar findings in additional samples of Craze, as well as in Detonate. Driven Sports says the tests are wrong; Gaspari officials have not responded to interview requests. "When stuff like this happens with Craze and Detonate, that just makes people so pissed off that they're ready for some regulation," Arnold said. "That's so unfair to competitors and it's a public health issue." Arnold pointed out that there have been people with criminal backgrounds making supplements as long as he's been in the business. "When I first got started in the 1990s, just about every major supplement owner was an ex-steroid dealer," he said. "You make money selling steroids, then start your supplement company." With the Internet, he said, it doesn't take much to start selling the pills and powders. "It's a very low barrier of entry," Arnold said. "And you don't have to be that smart. You just pretend that you know science." Arnold says prison time, his notoriety and the increased scrutiny his products have drawn from regulators have changed the way he does business. But his products still have pushed into gray areas. In 2009, two of his products — Ergopharm's 60-OXO Xtreme and 6-OXO — were the subject of a recall after the FDA said they contained substances that should be classified as steroids. In recent years, Arnold has taken credit for being the first supplement maker to put the controversial stimulant DMAA into his products. He says he removed it after the FDA crackdown and after more scientific evidence emerged raising questions about whether it's naturally in geraniums. Elizabeth Stapleton shakes up a sample of supplements that were sent in for testing at Aegis Sciences Corp. in Nashville. Aegis is among the private groups doing testing for athletes and others seeking to detect spiked supplements that have the potential to damage careers and cause health problems. HIDING DANGEROUS INGREDIENTS IN PLAIN SIGHT The problem of supplement adulteration is significant, whether it occurs with criminal intent or is the result of lax quality control and insufficient oversight of suppliers. Just over half of all Class 1 drug recalls in the USA from 2004 to 2012 — those that could cause serious health problems or death — involved supposedly all-natural dietary supplements that were spiked with hidden pharmaceuticals, according to research published this year in the scientific journal JAMA Internal Medicine. Of the 237 supplements recalled for hidden drugs, 40% were sold for sexual enhancement; 31% for bodybuilding and 27% for weight loss, the researchers said. But hidden drugs have been found in other categories of supplements as well, including diabetes and arthritis remedies. This summer, Purity First Health Products recalled various lots of Vitamin B50 capsules, Vitamin C capsules and multi-mineral capsules after FDA tests indicated the presence of steroids. With minimal testing being done by the FDA, a growing number of private companies are doing their own tests to identify problems that aren't being detected and addressed by regulators. The U.S. Anti-Doping Agency tests and reviews labels of supplements of interest to athletes, and maintains a list of "high-risk" supplements, many of which have not been subject to FDA action. Sometimes troubling ingredients hide in plain sight on the products' labels under names most consumers would never recognize. "At least 200 different names are being used for testosterone," said David Black, founder of Aegis Sciences Corp. in Nashville, which has created a database of supplements to help clients at 140 universities, the NFL Players Association and other sports organizations. A mobile Aegis Shield app has recently been made available to the public. While there are about 2,475 ingredients in the products in the Aegis database, more than 35,000 aliases are used for the ingredients on their labels. For example, there were 167 aliases for marijuana and 82 aliases for methylhexanamine, better known as DMAA. Aegis also found other ingredients that might make consumers think twice, including "Wu Ling Zhi" — which is flying-squirrel feces, and "Putrescine," which is also known as the foul odor of decomposing flesh. "In our experience, we've seen so many products out there that are not what they're represented to be," Black said. "If a product has a great claim and actually does what it claims to do, it probably has an ingredient that shouldn't be in there." And the people who pay the price, ultimately, are those who — knowingly or unknowingly — indulge. U.S. Olympic Committee athlete ombudsman John Ruger noted in an e-mail to USA TODAY this week that "despite our aggressive efforts to educate them on the potential pitfalls, the harsh reality is that we will have athlete(s) who miss the Olympic Games because they take a supplement that includes a banned substance." Mikaeel Kular's mother pleads guilty to killing three-year-old Rosdeep Adekoya admits reduced charge of culpable homicide of son, who was reported missing from Edinburgh home Mikaeel Kular was reported missing by his mother, Rosdeep Adekoya The mother of Mikaeel Kular, the three-year-old boy reported missing from their Edinburgh home in January, has admitted killing her son. Rosdeep Adekoya, who has pleaded guilty to killing her three-year-old son Mikaeel Kular Rosdeep Adekoya, 34, had been charged with murder but pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of culpable homicide when she appeared at the high court in Edinburgh on Friday. Adekoya sparked a major police and public search for Mikaeel after claiming he had disappeared from her home in Drylaw overnight. Hundreds of people helped police, coastguards and other volunteers search for him in local streets, woods and along the shoreline in the two days before his body was found 20 miles away in woodland in Fife. The crown accused Adekoya of punching Mikaeel on various occasions between 12 and 15 January, striking his body against a hard object and inflicting blunt force trauma injuries to his head and body. She was also accused of failing to seek medical attention and murder. Prosecutors said she wrapped the boy in a duvet, put his body in a suitcase and drove him to a house in Fife where the family used to live with a relative before burying him. Advocate depute Alex Prentice told the court: "The basis for the plea tendered being accepted is that the crown accepts that the accused had no intention to kill Mikaeel and that the assault perpetrated upon him, although severe, fell short of the wicked recklessness required for murder." The court heard that Adekoya's internet history showed searches including "I find it hard to love my son", "I love all of my children except one", "Why am I so aggressive with my son" and "Get rid of bruises". Mikaeel died on the night of Tuesday 14 January from injuries inflicted the previous Sunday. His mother lost her temper when he was repeatedly sick after a trip to a Nando's restaurant at the city's Fountain Park, the court heard. She smacked him and struck him on the body and head with a clenched fist. When Mikaeel was sick for a third time, she dragged him to the shower by his arms and beat him heavily on his back as he lay over the bath edge. Prentice said: "It's likely that the internal damage was inflicted during this last beating." Over the next few days Mikaeel's condition worsened and he was kept out of nursery. He was assaulted again on the Monday after being sick and became listless. His mother did not take him to a doctor because of the bruising, the court heard. By Tuesday night, Mikaeel was said to be quiet and was giving a limited response to his mother's questions. "He would have been in significant pain but was put to bed," Prentice said. "The pain would have increased significantly while Mikaeel became dangerously ill and finally dying as a result of the injuries inflicted upon him by the accused. "It was during that night that he died. The accused discovered his body on the floor when wakening the children in the morning." After the discovery, Adekoya took his twin sister to nursery before driving straight to Fife. Prentice said: "At the time, it appears that the accused had placed Mikaeel's body in a suitcase and put him in the boot of her car." Masts captured signals that showed her mobile phone travelling from Edinburgh across the Forth bridge. Adekoya dabbed her eyes repeatedly with tissues as the narrative of her crimes was read to the court. She waited until 7.15am on 16 January to dial 999 and report her son missing. Officers who attended the flat reported that she initially appeared "very upset and distressed". But inconsistencies began to appear in her account of events to police, who by the Friday evening "suspected that all was not as she had indicated". During a police interview she broke down and told officers: "It was an accident and I panicked. I am going to go to the jail." Asked where Mikaeel was, she replied: "In the woods behind my sister's house". Adekoya then took officers to her son's body in the woods, telling them he was "to the left under trees in a suitcase" which she had covered with branches. Prentice said: "Detective Sergeant Phil Richards undid the straps of the suitcase and opened the camouflage material within which was the body of Mikaeel Kular, who was quite clearly dead." The final cause of death was found to be "blunt force abdominal trauma". Mikaeel had more than 40 injuries to his body, including bruises to his back, chin and cheek, trauma to the brain, haemorrhage in the spinal cord and injuries to his arms. Prentice said: "If medical assistance had been called for, death might not have resulted." Defence counsel Brian McConnachie QC said the case was "truly tragic … above all else for Mikaeel Kular in his loss of life at such an early age". He also pointed to the tragedy faced by the boy's father and the "extraordinarily difficult" time for the family of the accused who were having to come to terms with their grief and the fact that Adekoya caused the death. McConnachie told the court the case was also a tragedy for Adekoya: "Rosdeep Adekoya is not a monster. It would appear she has been a young mother with a number of underlying problems, which the court will hear about in due course, with five young children." He went on: "It seems that there has been an accumulation of circumstances which have caused Rosdeep Adekoya to act towards Mikaeel over a relatively short period of time, less than 24 hours, in a manner she has never acted in the past towards him, or to any of her other children … It appears from every source … that this has been a brief period when this young woman has lost her temper and behaved in a way which is totally out of character for her." He said she had to live with the consequences of her actions for the rest of her life. McConnachie said Adekoya initially tried to act as if nothing had happened and had panicked. The QC said that, until the next court hearing, the defence would still be investigating "psychological aspects of this case as far as Mrs Adekoya is concerned". Mikaeel's father left the court after the hearing without making any comment. Assistant Chief Constable Malcolm Graham of Police Scotland said: "Mikaeel's disappearance and death deeply impacted on his family. It also resonated across the community in which he lived. "During the initial stages of the inquiry we appealed for information about Mikaeel's whereabouts as concern for him grew. The local community assisted us greatly in that search. What followed was an incredible level of support and assistance to one of the biggest missing person inquiries Police Scotland has undertaken." He said the search was helped by specialist police investigative and search support officers. "Sadly our inquiries led us to Kirkcaldy the night after he was reported missing and the discovery of his body," he said. "I would like to take this opportunity to sincerely thank the public for all of their help during the search efforts and the continued support provided to police and Mikaeel's family during the course of this investigation." A spokesperson for the Crown Office said Adekoya had pleaded guilty toculpable homicide, attempting to defeat the ends of justice by concealing Mikaeel's bodyand falsely claiming that he was a missing person, instigating a large scale search. "It would be inappropriate for us to comment further until the case has concluded and sentence has been passed." Sentencing will take place at the high court in Edinburgh on 25 August 25. Investigation into Edward Heath child abuse claims to go national Nationally coordinated police inquiry to be set up by end of week, as former brothel keeper denies knowledge of any misconduct by former PM A nationally coordinated police investigation into claims that the former prime minister Edward Heath sexually abused children is to be set up by the end of the week. The inquiry will be led by a senior investigating officer who is likely to be appointed from either the Kent, Wiltshire or Hampshire force, all of which are investigating separate allegations that Heath sexually abused children. But a central plank of the allegations against the former prime minister, who died in 2005, was denied on Wednesday by a former brothel keeper – said to be the original source of claims in the 1990s that Heath abused boys. On Monday, the Independent Police Complaints Commission announced it was investigating claims that a trial was halted in the 1990s because it would have resulted in the exposure of the allegations about Heath. The IPCC said the claims originated from a former senior Wiltshire police officer. But Myra Forde, 67, said on Wednesday she had no knowledge of any misconduct by Heath, and denied threatening to expose him to escape prosecution in the 1990s. A prosecution against Forde was dropped in 1992. In a statement issued to the Salisbury Journal, Richard Griffiths, a solicitor who acted for Forde, said: “My former client wishes me to make it very clear that at no stage did she state that Ted Heath was a client and at no stage did she threaten to expose him as a client of hers if the prosecution was continued.” He added: “For the avoidance of any doubt Myra Forde wishes me to make it clear that she had no involvement with Ted Heath of any kind and has no knowledge of any misconduct on his part.” He said the 1992 trial did not proceed because of difficulties with a witness. Forde was later jailed twice for operating a brothel in Salisbury. In the Times, the barriester who prosecuted the original case, Nigel Seed, said he was told by police that Forde planned to make the allegation about Heath but denied this was the reason for stopping the trial. None of the three witnesses in the case would give evidence, so there was no option but to halt the case, he said. The IPCC which is investigating claims from a retired senior officer that Wiltshire police covered up allegations against Heath in the 90s said it could not confirm or deny whether Forde was the original source. Wiltshire police, which referred itself to the IPCC, said it would not comment on Forde’s denial. The nationally coordinated response to the emerging allegations against Heath is seen as necessary to bring together inquiries being carried out by at least four forces. It is likely to be announced by the end of this week and will be carried out under the umbrella of Operation Hydrant, the overarching operation pulling together a number of investigations into alleged sexual abuse in the past by members of institutions, and high-profile individuals. A spokesman for the National Police Chiefs’ Council said: “Staff from Operation Hydrant are working closely with relevant forces to assess the extend of reported information concerning the late Sir Edward Heath, and at the conclusion of that process a lead force will be appointed to oversee the police investigations.” An NSPCC helpline – which is being used as part of the inquiries into Heath – has received a small number of calls since his name was first released into the public domain by the IPCC this week. Heath is one of around 76 politicians – some alive and some dead – who have been or are still being investigated by forces across the country examining allegations of sexual abuse of children. The identities of most of the politicians have been kept out of the public domain. Wiltshire police on Monday appealed for any “witnesses or victims who support the allegations of child sex abuse” to come forward, saying Heath had been named in relation to offences concerning children, and they wanted to hear from anyone who had relevant information. Since the announcement – made by a Wiltshire officer outside Heath’s former home near Salisbury – the Hampshire, Kent and Jersey forces have also said they are investigating allegations of abuse by Heath. Kent police said they had received an allegation on Tuesday relating to an allegation of sexual assault in the east Kent area in the 1960s and detectives were making initial inquiries. Hampshire police confirmed they were investigating allegations of abuse relating to Heath, and the Jersey force confirmed he had been a suspect for months in its investigation into historical abuse on the island. The Metropolitan police do not have an ongoing investigation into allegations of abuse by Heath. The force said it had interviewed a complainant in April who alleged in the Mirror newspaper this week that he was raped by Heath as a 12-year-old boy. But the force said that, after making a full assessment, there were no lines of inquiry that could “proportionately” be pursued. The force has refused to confirm whether Heath features in Operation Midland – its ongoing investigation into claims that three murders were carried out to cover up abuse by a paedophile ring made up of politicians and other high-profile individuals at locations across southern England. Earlier this year, Simon Bailey, who runs Operation Hydrant, said forces across the country were investigating or had investigated 1,433 men since 2014 over allegations of child abuse in the past. The suspects included 261 high-profile individuals, of whom 76 were politicians – both local and national figures – 43 were from the music industry, 135 from TV, film, or radio, and seven from the world of sport. He said 216 of those named were dead. Benjamin Netanyahu 'threatens to strip Jerusalem residency from 230,000 Palestinians' Palestinian representatives say, they will be “turned into criminals”. According to official Palestinian ... Phone-hacking case casts doubt over Director of Public Prosecutions ruling which Ms Saunders had recently described as “insufficient” to merit criminal proceedings going ahead. ... investigating Rupert Murdoch’s UK print business on potential charges of corporate criminal liability, ... Michael Gove urged to act over 'massive rise' in prison suicides is key to happy marriage Michael Gove urged to scrap criminal courts charge by Christmas Eve Michael Gove ... marriage Tax on justice: Michael Gove urged to scrap criminal courts charge before Christmas Eve deadline ... Scrapping the criminal courts charge is not enough- Michael Gove must undo the damage it has wrought Michael ... Lord Janner dead: Former Labour peer found unfit to stand trial for alleged child sex abuse dies aged 87 to face a court to answer the claims of a dozen alleged victims. The Criminal Prosecution Service decided ... criminal justice reform for a while, and this book was highly recommended by several people ... Jermaine Baker: Detectives carry out fresh investigation at scene where 28-year-old was shot dead by police a potential criminal offence may have been committed by the officer in his use of lethal force”. The IPCC says ... suspended over fatal Wood Green shooting The launching of a criminal homicide investigation and the arrest ... Poisoned legacy of Bhopal: Campaigners call on Dow Chemical to answer criminal charges, 31 years after toxic explosion Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had failed to pursue a criminal prosecution against the company ... demanded that Dow produce its officers in court to answer the criminal charges of culpable homicide. Dow ... Campaigners call on Dow Chemical to answer criminal charges, 31 years after toxic explosion Photographer Alex ... Italian mafia sees huge increase in women mobsters- and they're often more violent than the men a former Naples prosecutor said: “I think that for every active woman inside the criminal ... in mafia trials, said differences remained in the roles assumed by the different sexes in criminal ... of women in the ‘Ndrangheta, a Calabrian criminal organisation, were also expanding, he said. “They know ... Beware the return of stop-and-search has fled their home is automatically a criminal. How about “focused” frisking at airports for anyone ... The human rights crisis in Honduras their work puts them in extreme danger. “Impunity, threats, attacks, harassment and criminal defamation ... has, in an unprecedented step, been barred from practicing journalism as part of a criminal defamation ... Annie Teriba: Alleged victims say Oxford student accused of rape is 'painting herself as the victim' The undergraduate student resigned her positions last week after admitting she had 'failed to properly establish consent' Annie Teriba resigned from her position in the Oxford Student Union last week Two women who accuse a female Oxford University student of sexual violence have claimed she "tried to paint herself as the victim" to gain sympathy. Annie Teriba, 20, a third-year history and politics student at Wadham College, resigned from her roles as people-of-colour and racial equality officer at Wadham Student Union and as editor of No HeterOx** magazine after admitting she had "failed to properly establish consent" during a sexual encounter earlier that year. In a Facebook post, which has since been deleted, she also admitted she had inappropriately touched someone on a previous occasion. Ms Teriba wrote: "At this year’s NUS Black Students’ Conference, I had sex with someone. "The other party later informed me that the sex was not consensual. I failed to properly establish consent before every act. I apologise sincerely and profoundly for my actions. "In a separate incident, in my first year of university, I was alerted to my inappropriate behaviour whilst drunk in a club, where I had touched somebody in a sexual manner without their consent. Therefore this is not an isolated incident. I apologise sincerely and profoundly for my actions.” But her alleged victims say the apology is not good enough. In an online statement, published on microblogging site Tumblr, they said: "We find it particularly ironic that she has been a prominent voice against the very actions she herself has committed. "Annie has been incredibly narcissistic and has constantly attempted to centre everything on herself rather than consider the survivors and how she is impacting on them," the statement said. "Her initial statement was extremely inappropriate and hurtful. It read like a creative writing piece, poetically shifting the blame away from herself, and it was also rife with apologism and excuses." The joint statement alleges that when the victim of the alleged rape first confronted her, Ms Teriba "initially appeared shocked, but then explained that she was very drunk and that she had no recollection of any events from the night in which the incident took place". "She then left in a flood of tears which centred the conversation on her reaction and her feelings, rather than those of the survivor," the statement said. Jagmeet Singh: Sikh charity calls on British media to provide coverage of treatment of Sikhs in India 'The lack of coverage in Britain will further add to a growing sentiment about how much our government values what Sikhs have brought to this community' Jagmeet Singh interrupting Sian Williams live on-air BBC Sikhs are being persecuted because of their faith - and the media is completely ignoring their plight, according to campaigners. In recent weeks, tensions with police have increased in the Punjab amid protests at the alleged desecration of the Sikh holy book, the Guru Granth Sahib, in an number of villages in the region. Clashes with police last week left two Sikhs dead and scores injured in Kotkapura, Punjab, according to The Tribune India. Reports allege police used teargas and water cannons to disperse the crowd, as well as firing at protesters, leading to the deaths. Police said they acted in self-defence and "used minimal force". Protesters were demanding the arrest of those responsible for tearing up pages from the Sikh holy scripture, Guru Granth Sahib. The warning follows a Sikh man's on-air protest on British television, in which he attempted to highlight the lack of media coverage of the violence against Sikhs. Appearing on Sunday Morning Live, Jagmeet Singh, from the educational charity Basics of Sikhi, said: "I have to say Sikhs are being killed in Punjab and nobody is reporting it. Please report it." Jasveer Singh Gill, a spokesman for the Sikh Press Association, said: "Jagmeet was protesting about the lack of mainstream media coverage, particularly in the West, about something that’s been going on in India, and Punjab specifically. "What Jagmeet did in pushing for coverage of what's going on in Punjab isn't about the deaths that have occured recently, it's about something that's been going on for many years. "For a number of years now, unarmed Sikhs have been killed during peaceful protests. This is what Jagmeet was trying to highlight on the show. Basics of Sikhi, an educational charity based in the UK, later accused presenter Sian Williams of belittling Mr Singh. A BBC spokesperson said: "On live TV unplanned things happen and this was dealt with professionally and appropriately by Sian." The Sikh charity also linked to a petition against the BBC, signed by 76,000 supporters, urging them to end the "media blackout" on violence against Sikhs in India. Mr Gill said that while India portrays itself as the largest democracy in the world, a lot of its practices would be considered undemocratic, "especially the use of the army and police" towards protesters. Doctor accused of selling false hope to families The 6-year-old boy had been fighting an inoperable brain tumor for 10 months. When his mother, Niasia Cotto, found him in his bed, unresponsive and unable to open his eyes, "we knew there was nothing else that we could do," she said. An ambulance took Josia to a hospice room at a local hospital. His parents covered him in a soft, blue-and-white blanket, hugged him and held his small hand for the last time. "We told him the choice was his, whether to keep fighting or be in peace with God," said his mother. "He chose." Josia's parents would have paid any price to save him. A Texas doctor, two months, earlier, had given them one: $25,000 upfront, by cash or check. Clinging to hope, the Linden, N.J., couple took Josia to see Stanislaw Burzynski, a Houston doctor claiming to be able to do what no one else can: cure inoperable pediatric brainstem tumors. Virtually any other doctor might have recited the same sad statistics: Although doctors can now cure 83% of pediatric cancers in the U.S., there is usually no hope for kids with Josia's tumor. Perhaps 5% survive five years. Burzynski — an internist with no board certification or formal training in oncology — has said publicly that he can cure half of the estimated 200 children a year diagnosed with brainstem tumors. The Cottos were told that treatment could cost over $100,000, mostly out of pocket, because insurance plans often refuse to cover Burzynski Clinic treatments. Burzynski, 70, calls his drugs "antineoplastons" and says he has given them to more than 8,000 patients since 1977. He originally synthesized these sodium-rich drugs from blood and urine — the urine collected from public parks, bars and penitentiaries. Although they've been made in a lab since 1980, they still carry a distinctive and unpleasant odor. And while the experimental drugs have not been approved by the Food and Drug Administration, Burzynski has described them like the holy grail of cancer therapy: safe, natural and highly effective. He has also prescribed them as a treatment for AIDS, lupus and other conditions. Some patients are convinced that he saved their lives. Mary Jo Siegel of Ventura, Calif., says she believes Burzynski cured her lymphoma. James Treadwell from Coronado, Calif., credits Burzynski with curing his brain tumor. Jenny Gettino of Syracuse, N.Y., says Burzynski cured her daughter of an infant brain tumor. Yet the National Cancer Institute says there is no evidence that Burzynski has cured a single patient, or even helped one live longer. He has not backed up his claims by publishing results from a randomized, controlled trial — considered the gold standard of medical evidence — in a respected, peer-reviewed journal. And Burzynski's drugs pose a risk of serious harm, including coma, swelling near the brain and death, according to the NCI and informed consent documents that patients sign before beginning treatment. While Burzynski has touted his treatments as an alternative to chemotherapy, a 1999 NCI study found that antineoplastons can cause many of the same side effects as conventional chemo: nausea, vomiting, headaches, muscle pain, confusion and seizures. Many blame the system for failing to protect patients. "He's a snake oil salesman," says pediatric oncologist Peter Adamson, a professor of pediatrics and pharmacology at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. "This has gone on for so many years, it's really unbelievable." For 36 years, critics say, Burzynski has been selling false hope to desperate families at the most vulnerable time of their lives. "When you want so hard to believe something, you end up listening to your heart and not your head," says Lisa Merritt of Armuchee, Ga., whose husband, Wayne, was treated briefly by Burzynski in 2009. The couple say that Burzynski misled them about the type of treatment that would be offered, as well as the cost. Burzynski, she says, is "the worst kind of predator." There are many reasons why Burzynski has been able to stay in business so long. He has benefited from state laws that limit the Texas Medical Board's authority to remove his license, as well as the ability of terminally ill patients to collect damages. His devoted followers are willing to fight for him. He also has exploited the public's growing fascination with alternative medicine and suspicion of the medical establishment. At times, Burzynski also has had an especially influential ally: the Food and Drug Administration. FDA CHANGES COURSE Although "there were some stormy relations with the FDA" in the past, Burzynski said in an interview, "now, we have a productive relationship." For years, the FDA tried to prevent Burzynski from prescribing unapproved drugs. In 1995, a federal grand jury indicted Burzynski on 75 felony charges, including criminal contempt, mail fraud and violations of the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act. As a condition of his bail, a judge ordered him to stop prescribing antineoplastons. For a time, it looked as if Burzynski might never treat another patient. Dozens of Burzynski's patients flocked to Washington to defend him, arguing that taking away antineoplastons was akin to a death sentence. Siegel, who credits Burzynski with curing her lymphoma 22 years ago, has testified on his behalf five times — once at his criminal trial and four times at hearings on Capitol Hill. Facing both a political and public relations firestorm, the FDA in 1996 abruptly changed course. It offered to allow Burzynski to continue treating patients, but only through an official trial. "With one stroke of the pen, the FDA made legal what it had previously said was illegal," says Burzynski's attorney, Richard Jaffe. Yet even Jaffe has acknowledged that the trial — now in its 17th year — was more about politics than science. In his 2008 memoirs, Galileo's Lawyer, Jaffe called it "a joke." "It was all an artifice, a vehicle we and the FDA created to legally give the patients Burzynski's treatment," Jaffe said. "With political help, you can get the FDA to say yes," says Siegel, 63. The indictments led to two trials. In 1997, one of Burzynski's criminal trials ended in a hung jury; the other, an acquittal. Today, the FDA refuses to comment on Burzynski. NO NEW DRUG APPLICATION Even his staunchest supporters wonder why Burzynski's drugs are nowhere close to receiving FDA approval. "He's curing cancer," says Siegel, who co-founded the Burzynski Patient Group to spread the word about his therapies. "So why, why won't the FDA approve it?" Like many of Burzynski's supporters, Siegel suspects that the medical community and drug industry are aligned against him. "Why does a doctor who can produce such extraordinary results continue to be attacked today?" Siegel asks. "The reason is because Dr. Burzynski and his patented discovery pose the greatest threat to an entrenched medical monopoly." In fact, the FDA hasn't had a chance to approve Burzynski's drugs. He has never officially asked. Although Burzynski said he has completed 14 intermediate-phase studies, he has yet to file a new drug application, the final step toward getting a drug approved. That hasn't stopped Burzynski from using his relationship with the FDA to recruit patients. Stacey Huntington says she took her daughter to see Burzynski last year partly because the FDA's oversight made his therapies seem safer and more promising. "My fear took us to Houston, and the hope he gave us made us proceed," says Huntington, of Chehalis, Wash. In an interview, Burzynski said developing new drugs is complex and takes time. Yet the FDA has approved 108 cancer drugs since Burzynski began his trial. Cure rates for one type of pediatric brain tumor — medulloblastoma — are now 85%, according to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis. Doctors can cure 95% of kids with Hodgkin lymphoma (a cancer of the lymph system), acute lymphoblastic leukemia (a blood cancer) and retinoblastoma (an eye tumor). Fran Visco, president of the National Breast Cancer Coalition, describes the FDA's tolerance of Burzynski as "outrageous." "They have put people at risk for a long time," says Visco, an attorney and breast cancer survivor. "That's completely unacceptable. How can anyone look at these facts and believe that there is a real clinical trial going on ... rather than just using the FDA and the clinical trial system to make money?" Burzynski dismisses criticism of his work, referring to his detractors as "hooligans" and "hired assassins." As for criticism from former patients, Burzynski says, "We see patients from various walks of life. We see great people. We see crooks. We have prostitutes. We have thieves. We have mafia bosses. We have Secret Service agents. Many people are coming to us, OK? Not all of them are the greatest people in the world. And many of them would like to get money from us. They pretend they got sick and they would like to extort money from us." History will vindicate him, Burzynski says, just as it has vindicated other persecuted medical "pioneers," such as Louis Pasteur. In the future, Burzynski says, everyone will use his therapies, and the cancer treatments used today — such as surgery, chemotherapy and radiation — will be regarded as barbaric. "There will be a time when people will see the light," he says, "and our treatments will be used by everyone." FDA IMPOSES NEW RESTRICTIONS The FDA's patience with Burzynski apparently wore out after Josia died. In a report sent to the FDA after the boy's death, Burzynski's staff acknowledged that his last blood sample, taken the day he passed away,showed a blood sodium level of 205 millimoles per liter, a level that is typically fatal. Burzynski's staff blamed that reading on a "false laboratory report based on a contaminated sample." Yet hypernatremia is one of antineoplastons' most common side effects, known to doctors for two decades. One of Burzynski's own informed consent documents — the form that patients sign before they begin treatment — put the risk at 21%. On July 30, 2012 — six weeks after Josia's death — the FDA forbade Burzynski from giving antineoplastons to any new children. Six months later, the FDA expanded its "partial clinical hold," forbidding Burzynski from giving the drugs to new adult patients, according to the Burzynski Research Institute's 2013 filing to the Securities and Exchange Commission. About 10 patients who were already receiving antineoplastons were allowed to continue, to avoid interruption of care. According to FDA inspections performed after Josia's death, Burzynski has failed to report at least 18 hypernatremia cases. The FDA publicly announced the restrictions on Burzynski's clinical trial for the first time in September. According to the FDA, the Burzynski institutional review board — an outside body charged with protecting patients — failed that most basic duty. In a letter announcing the restrictions, the agency said it has "no assurance" that the board was "adequately protecting the rights and welfare of the human subjects." The FDA based its decision on "objectionable conditions" and a "continuing pattern of deficiencies found during the last three inspections," the letter said. FDA inspectors also faulted Burzynski personally, as principal investigator of the study, according to inspections conducted from January to March. Copies of these reports were obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request. Addressing Burzynski, the inspectors wrote, "you failed to protect the rights, safety and welfare of subjects under your care." Inspectors charged Burzynski, as principal investigator, with a variety of other serious offenses, some dating to 2001. Among them: • Inflating success rates in 67% of cases, by inaccurately reporting how tumors responded to treatment. • Destroying patients' original records. • Failing to report "unanticipated problems" to the institutional review board — sometimes for six or seven years. In the inspections conducted this spring, officials noted four cases from 1998 or 1999 in which patients were hospitalized for serious issues — such as pneumonia, lack of consciousness or bleeding in the skull — that Burzynski researchers failed to report until 2005. The FDA found similar problems in a 2001 inspection, when officials noted that Burzynski failed to report problems such as pneumonia, blood infections and pancreatitis, a life-threatening inflammation of the pancreas. • Failing to protect patients from overdosing. Forty-eight patients suffered a total of 102 drug overdoses from 2005 to 2013. While the overdoses made some of these patients excessively sleepy, one had a seizure and another was hospitalized in intensive care with a breathing tube. This represents a continuing problem, dating to reports of overdoses in inspections as early as 2001. Burzynski's review board also repeatedly rubber-stamped his requests to give patients antineoplastons outside of a clinical trial, the FDA's September letter suggests. In some cases, those decisions were made without consulting patients' medical records, or were made not by oncologists, but by a single member of the board, a "water rehabilitation" specialist with no medical training. Although researchers do sometimes provide experimental drugs outside of clinical trials, exceptions should be rare, with perhaps one or two cases per trial, Adamson says. In Burzynski's case, these "compassionate use" exceptions were common, FDA records show. Enrolling patients for compassionate use can be lucrative. Although researchers cannot charge for experimental drugs, Burzynski does bill patients for related supplies and services. In Burzynski's defense, Jaffe notes that inspection reports represent preliminary findings. The FDA has not yet issued final conclusions. And Burzynski has taken issue with many of the FDA's findings. In his written response about the FDA's claims that he inflated his success rates, Burzynski said that he "complied with all criteria for evaluation of response and made accurate assessments for tumor response." As for overdoses, Burzynski said in an interview that his staff works hard to train patients and their families to administer antineoplastons correctly. None of the overdoses was fatal, he said. "The amount of medication that these patients receive is not dangerous," Burzynski said. "At worst, they would sleep for a few hours." Visco, the breast cancer advocate, says she's encouraged to hear that the FDA has put Burzynski's trial on hold. "It is about time that the FDA stepped in to stop Burzynski from subjecting more patients to harm," she says. "I do not know why it took so long." BURZYNSKI STILL HAS OPTIONS The FDA can't put Burzynski out of business. No matter what happens to his trial, Burzynski holds a license to practice medicine in Texas. So does his son, Gregory Burzynski, a doctor who's helping to carry on his father's business. As vice president of the Burzynski Clinic, his son, 34, works closely with his father and "oversees many operations" of the clinic, according to its website. These days, doctors at the Burzynski Clinic are looking beyond antineoplastons. They mostly prescribe chemotherapy. That's a huge shift. During Burzynski's criminal trial in the 1990s, patients who rallied to his defense carried signs reading, "Say No to Chemo." But the Texas Medical Board, which has repeatedly tried and failed to put Burzynski out of business over the years, still questions Burzynski's care. The board charged Burzynski in 2010 with violating state medical standards by prescribing legal cancer drugs in "random" and unapproved combinations, with no known benefits but clear harms. Burzynski got those charges dropped in 2012, by successfully arguing that he didn't sign any of the prescriptions in question. Burzynski is scheduled to go before the medical board again in January, based on a complaint filed by Stacey Huntington, whose daughter was treated with antineoplastons for a brain tumor. At the meeting, a board panel "will hear the case and make recommendation to the full board about what disciplinary action, if any, is appropriate." Huntington, who paid Burzynski nearly $34,000 for about six weeks of care, says she's concerned about both billing irregularities and the quality of her daughter's treatment. Her daughter, Abra Hall, 27, developed a life-threatening blood infection called sepsis after leaving the clinic to continue treatment at home. The infection developed in a catheter in Hall's chest, which was used to administer the antineoplastons, Huntington says. One month after developing sepsis, Hall was hospitalized again with a lung infection. Hall also developed serious complications from high doses of steroids, Huntington says. Huntington says she decided to speak out to prevent other families from being taken advantage of. "When you get a diagnosis of cancer, you are pretty vulnerable," she says. "I think they take advantage of that." Niasia and Jose Cotto hold a photo of son Josia in their Linden, N.J., home on Oct. 12. The boy died of a brain tumor. No one told Josia's parents about any of this. Not Burzynski. Not the FDA. Jose and Niasia Cotto had no idea that their son's death prompted an investigation by the FDA, until they were contacted by USA TODAY. The Cottos had long believed that Burzynski could have cured their son if only they had taken Josia to see him first, before giving him radiation and chemotherapy. They had even hoped to launch a non-profit, A Life for Josia Foundation, to help other children with cancer gain access to Burzynski's treatment. Now, they don't know what to think. Although more than a year has passed since they lost their son, the Cottos say they see reminders of him everywhere. Niasia, 32, says she feels his presence in simple things, such as the light of a bright star on a dark night. "He's still with us," says Jose, 33. "I know God had his plan and his purpose for Josia." Doctor Stanislaw Burzynski makes his way to the federal courthouse for jury selection in his 1997 criminal trial, as supporters demonstrate outside the courthouse Jan. 6, 1997, in Houston. Burzynski pleaded innocent to a 75-count federal indictment that charged him with mail fraud and violating Food and Drug Administration regulations in the use of antineoplastons, experimental substances he created to treat cancer. One of his criminal trials ended in a hung jury. In the other, he was acquitted. Stanislaw Burzynski, 70, opened his Houston clinic in 1977. He said he has treated more than 8,000 patients with experimental substances that he calls antineoplastons, and has treated around 15,000 patients during his career. The Food and Drug Administration has allowed him to test antineoplastons legally through a clinical trial. Politicians rallied around doctor Stanislaw Burzynski in the 1990s, when he was prosecuted for mail fraud and other felonies. Georgia state Sen. Ed Gochenour spoke during a rally May 19, 1997, outside the federal courthouse in Houston. Gochenour was a patient of the controversial doctor. He died from a pulmonary embolism in 1999. Walter Murach comforts his wife, Barbara, as he carries her medicine distributor during a demonstration to show support for doctor Stanislaw Burzynski on Jan. 2, 1997, outside the federal courthouse in Houston. She had been diagnosed with ovarian cancer and was a patient of Burzynski's. Burzynski pleaded innocent to a 75-count federal indictment that charged him with mail fraud and violating Food and Drug Administration regulations in the use of his experimental drugs, which he calls antineoplastons. The indictments resulted in two criminal trials. In 1997, one ended in a hung jury; the other, an acquittal. Niasia and Jose Cotto hold a photo of their 6-year-old son, Josia. They took Josia to see doctor Stanislaw Burzynski last year, hoping that he would cure their son's inoperable brain tumor. Josia died two months after beginning treatment in June 2012. Josia's younger brother, 1-year-old Noah, is seen here with his parents at their home in Linden, N.J. Abra Hall, 27, still has purple stretch marks on her skin, caused by Cushing syndrome, which she developed after taking high doses of steroids that she received at the Burzynski Research Institute, where she was treated in 2012 for a brain tumor. Cushing syndrome also caused her to gain a lot weight. Hall has an advanced, inoperable brain tumor, but sought treatment from Burzynski because her family urged her to seek alternatives to radiation and chemotherapy. Hall said she abandoned the Burzynski treatment after developing serious side effects and has since received conventional cancer care -- including radiation and chemotherapy. Abra Hall, of Chehalis, Wash., says her chemotherapy cancer treatment makes her feel fatigued and sensitive to light. Hall went to the Burzynski Research Institute in Houston for experimental drug treatments until severe complications forced her to stop taking Burzynski's experimental therapies, which included substances that he synthesized, called antineoplastons, as well as other drugs. Abra Hall's mother, Stacey Huntington, borrowed $40,000 from friends and family to pay for her medical care, as well as travel and hotel expenses related to staying in Houston while being treated at the Burzynski Research Institute. Like many other Burzynski patients, she created a website to solicit donations. Other patients' families hold fundraisers and turn to the media for help, telling their stories in newspapers and on local TV. Many of Abra Hall's friends offered to pitch in to help pay for her cancer treatment. She's one of many Burzynski patients who rely on community help. In many cases, schools and local businesses hold charity events to help patients raise money. "When you get a diagnosis like cancer, you are pretty vulnerable," says Stacey Huntington, Abra Hall's mother. "I think they take advantage of that." Stacey Huntington, left, was desperate with worry when she took her daughter, Abra Hall, to see Stanislaw Burzynski. She now says he preyed on her vulnerability. "In the initial meeting with Burzynski, he himself claimed a minimum 40% cure rate," says Huntington of Chehalis, Wash. "He is selling hope to dying people." Wayne Merritt, a farmer from Armuchee, Ga., went to see Burzynski in 2009 after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. He had hoped to receive antineoplastons, an unapproved drug that Burzynski legally prescribes through an FDA-approved clinical trial. Merritt didn't qualify for the trial, and was disappointed to realize that the drugs he had been prescribed were conventional chemotherapy. Merritt abandoned the treatments after only a few weeks after learning that they would cost $30,000 a month. Lisa Merritt keeps this note on her kitchen window declaring her husband, Wayne, has been healed of cancer. He sought other care after abandoning the Burzynski Clinic. Wayne Merritt and his wife, Lisa, say they got a "high-pressure sales pitch" from the Burzynski Clinic. "We felt like he was out to get every penny he could get from us in a short amount of time," said Lisa Merritt, from Armuchee, Ga. The Merritts, who tell their story at burzynskiscam.com, said one of Burzynski's employees, Marc Stephens, called them in 2011 to say that they could face legal action if they did not take down the site. The couple refused, said Lisa Merritt, also a cancer survivor. "I said, 'I have had breast cancer and faced death. My husband was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and he's facing death,' " Lisa Merritt told Burzynski's representative at the time. "What do you think you can threaten us with that is going to scare me after this?'" Jim Treadwell walks with his wife, Victoria, near their home in Coronado, Calif. He was diagnosed with an aggressive brain tumor in 2004 and underwent surgery, chemotherapy and radiation. At the conclusion of treatment, his doctors told him there was nothing more they could do for him, Treadwell said. He decided to see Burzynski and enrolled in an FDA-approved clinical trial of antineoplastons, given along with steroids and other medications. Treadwell developed serious side effects after beginning therapy, including congestive heart failure, liver problems and swelling. He stopped taking antineoplastons after six months, but his cancer has not returned. Victoria Treadwell wrote a book detailing their experiences. Although many oncologists are skeptical of Burzynski’s success stories, Treadwell, a retired lieutenant colonel in the Marines, is convinced the antineoplastons cured his brain tumor. “I really don’t care what people think," he says. "We know what we know." An employee walks past a sign whose letters were rearranged by patients of doctor Stanislaw Burzynski years ago to read: "Hope Exists" at his clinic. Stanislaw Burzynski has treated patients with drugs that he calls antineoplastons since the 1970s. Although the drugs are experimental, the FDA allowed Burzynski to dispense them legally, through a clinical trial, in 1996. That trial is now on hold, and no new patients may received the drugs, according to the FDA. Burzynski also is scheduled to appear before the Texas Medical Board in January. Doctor Stanislaw Burzynski makes his way to the federal courthouse for jury selection in his 1997 criminal trial, as supporters demonstrate outside the courthouse Jan. 6, 1997, in Houston. Burzynski pleaded innocent to a 75-count federal indictment that charged him with mail fraud and violating Food and Drug Administration regulations in the use of antineoplastons, experimental substances he created to treat cancer. One of his criminal trials ended in a hung jury. In the other, he was acquitted. Stanislaw Burzynski, 70, opened his Houston clinic in 1977. He said he has treated more than 8,000 patients with experimental substances that he calls antineoplastons, and has treated around 15,000 patients during his career. The Food and Drug Administration has allowed him to test antineoplastons legally through a clinical trial. Politicians rallied around doctor Stanislaw Burzynski in the 1990s, when he was prosecuted for mail fraud and other felonies. Georgia state Sen. Ed Gochenour spoke during a rally May 19, 1997, outside the federal courthouse in Houston. Gochenour was a patient of the controversial doctor. He died from a pulmonary embolism in 1999. Walter Murach comforts his wife, Barbara, as he carries her medicine distributor during a demonstration to show support for doctor Stanislaw Burzynski on Jan. 2, 1997, outside the federal courthouse in Houston. She had been diagnosed with ovarian cancer and was a patient of Burzynski's. Burzynski pleaded innocent to a 75-count federal indictment that charged him with mail fraud and violating Food and Drug Administration regulations in the use of his experimental drugs, which he calls antineoplastons. The indictments resulted in two criminal trials. In 1997, one ended in a hung jury; the other, an acquittal. Niasia and Jose Cotto hold a photo of their 6-year-old son, Josia. They took Josia to see doctor Stanislaw Burzynski last year, hoping that he would cure their son's inoperable brain tumor. Josia died two months after beginning treatment in June 2012. Josia's younger brother, 1-year-old Noah, is seen here with his parents at their home in Linden, N.J. Abra Hall, 27, still has purple stretch marks on her skin, caused by Cushing syndrome, which she developed after taking high doses of steroids that she received at the Burzynski Research Institute, where she was treated in 2012 for a brain tumor. Cushing syndrome also caused her to gain a lot weight. Hall has an advanced, inoperable brain tumor, but sought treatment from Burzynski because her family urged her to seek alternatives to radiation and chemotherapy. Hall said she abandoned the Burzynski treatment after developing serious side effects and has since received conventional cancer care -- including radiation and chemotherapy. Abra Hall developed life-threatening complications after returning home from the Burzynski Research Institute, where she and her caregivers continued to administer antineoplastons themselves through a catheter in her chest. Hall was hospitalized for a dangerous blood infection called sepsis, which developed after the catheter became infected. She later developed pneumonia. She has recovered from those infections and is now getting conventional treatment, including oral chemotherapy medications. Abra Hall, of Chehalis, Wash., says her chemotherapy cancer treatment makes her feel fatigued and sensitive to light. Hall went to the Burzynski Research Institute in Houston for experimental drug treatments until severe complications forced her to stop taking Burzynski's experimental therapies, which included substances that he synthesized, called antineoplastons, as well as other drugs. Abra Hall's mother, Stacey Huntington, borrowed $40,000 from friends and family to pay for her medical care, as well as travel and hotel expenses related to staying in Houston while being treated at the Burzynski Research Institute. Like many other Burzynski patients, she created a website to solicit donations. Other patients' families hold fundraisers and turn to the media for help, telling their stories in newspapers and on local TV. Many of Abra Hall's friends offered to pitch in to help pay for her cancer treatment. She's one of many Burzynski patients who rely on community help. In many cases, schools and local businesses hold charity events to help patients raise money. "When you get a diagnosis like cancer, you are pretty vulnerable," says Stacey Huntington, Abra Hall's mother. "I think they take advantage of that." Stacey Huntington, left, was desperate with worry when she took her daughter, Abra Hall, to see Stanislaw Burzynski. She now says he preyed on her vulnerability. "In the initial meeting with Burzynski, he himself claimed a minimum 40% cure rate," says Huntington of Chehalis, Wash. "He is selling hope to dying people." Wayne Merritt, a farmer from Armuchee, Ga., went to see Burzynski in 2009 after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. He had hoped to receive antineoplastons, an unapproved drug that Burzynski legally prescribes through an FDA-approved clinical trial. Merritt didn't qualify for the trial, and was disappointed to realize that the drugs he had been prescribed were conventional chemotherapy. Merritt abandoned the treatments after only a few weeks after learning that they would cost $30,000 a month. Lisa Merritt keeps this note on her kitchen window declaring her husband, Wayne, has been healed of cancer. He sought other care after abandoning the Burzynski Clinic. Wayne Merritt and his wife, Lisa, say they got a "high-pressure sales pitch" from the Burzynski Clinic. "We felt like he was out to get every penny he could get from us in a short amount of time," said Lisa Merritt, from Armuchee, Ga. The Merritts, who tell their story at burzynskiscam.com, said one of Burzynski's employees, Marc Stephens, called them in 2011 to say that they could face legal action if they did not take down the site. The couple refused, said Lisa Merritt, also a cancer survivor. "I said, 'I have had breast cancer and faced death. My husband was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and he's facing death,' " Lisa Merritt told Burzynski's representative at the time. "What do you think you can threaten us with that is going to scare me after this?'" Jim Treadwell walks with his wife, Victoria, near their home in Coronado, Calif. He was diagnosed with an aggressive brain tumor in 2004 and underwent surgery, chemotherapy and radiation. At the conclusion of treatment, his doctors told him there was nothing more they could do for him, Treadwell said. He decided to see Burzynski and enrolled in an FDA-approved clinical trial of antineoplastons, given along with steroids and other medications. Treadwell developed serious side effects after beginning therapy, including congestive heart failure, liver problems and swelling. He stopped taking antineoplastons after six months, but his cancer has not returned. Victoria Treadwell wrote a book detailing their experiences. Although many oncologists are skeptical of Burzynski’s success stories, Treadwell, a retired lieutenant colonel in the Marines, is convinced the antineoplastons cured his brain tumor. “I really don’t care what people think," he says. "We know what we know." An employee walks past a sign whose letters were rearranged by patients of doctor Stanislaw Burzynski years ago to read: "Hope Exists" at his clinic. Stanislaw Burzynski has treated patients with drugs that he calls antineoplastons since the 1970s. Although the drugs are experimental, the FDA allowed Burzynski to dispense them legally, through a clinical trial, in 1996. That trial is now on hold, and no new patients may received the drugs, according to the FDA. Burzynski also is scheduled to appear before the Texas Medical Board in January. Scores in N.C. are legally 'innocent,' yet still imprisoned ELIZABETHTOWN, N.C. – Terrell McCullum did not commit a federal crime by carrying a shotgun and a rifle out of his ex-girlfriend's house. But he is serving a federal prison sentence for it. And the fact that everyone — including the U.S.Justice Department— agrees that he is legally innocent might not be enough to set him free. A USA TODAY investigation, based on court records and interviews with government officials and attorneys, found more than 60 men who went to prison for violating federal gun possession laws, even though courts have since determined that it was not a federal crime for them to have a gun. Many of them don't even know they're innocent. The legal issues underlying their situation are complicated, and are unique to North Carolina. But the bottom line is that each of them went to prison for breaking a law that makes it a federal crime for convicted felons to possess a gun. The problem is that none of them had criminal records serious enough to make them felons under federal law. Still, the Justice Department has not attempted to identify the men, has made no effort to notify them, and, in a few cases in which the men have come forward on their own, has argued in court that they should not be released. Justice Department officials said it is not their job to notify prisoners that they might be incarcerated for something that they now concede is not a crime. And although they have agreed in court filings that the men are innocent, they said they must still comply with federal laws that put strict limits on when and how people can challenge their convictions in court. "We can't be outcome driven," said Anne Tompkins, the U.S. attorney in Charlotte. "We've got to make sure we follow the law, and people should want us to do that." She said her office is "looking diligently for ways, within the confines of the law, to recommend relief for defendants who are legally innocent." These cases are largely unknown outside the courthouses here, but they have raised difficult questions about what, if anything, the government owes to innocent people locked in prisons. "It's been tough," said Ripley Rand, the U.S. attorney in Greensboro, N.C. "We've spent a lot of time talking about issues of fundamental fairness, and what is justice." It's also unusual. Wrongful conviction cases are seldom open-and-shut — usually they depend on DNA or other new evidence that undermines the government's case, but does not always prove someone is innocent. Yet in the North Carolina gun cases, it turns out, there simply were no federal crimes. Using state and federal court records, USA TODAY identified 23 other men who had been sent to federal prison for having a firearm despite criminal records too minor to make that a federal crime. Nine of them remain in prison, serving sentences of up to 10 years; others are still serving federal probation. The newspaper's review was limited to only a small fraction of cases from one of the three federal court districts in North Carolina. Federal public defenders have so far identified at least 39 others in additional court districts, and are certain to find more. And prosecutors have already agreed to drop dozens of cases in which prisoners' convictions were not yet final. Some of the prisoners USA TODAY contacted — and their lawyers — were stunned to find out that they were imprisoned for something that turned out not to be a federal crime. And their lawyers said they were troubled by the idea that innocence alone might not get them out. "If someone is innocent, I would think that would change the government's reaction, and it's sad that it hasn't," said Debra Graves, an assistant federal public defender in Raleigh. "I have trouble figuring out how you rationalize this. These are innocent people. That has to matter at some point." WHO CAN HAVE A GUN? Terrell McCullum conceded in interviews that he has made plenty of bad decisions — including having the two guns that sent him to federal prison. But there is little dispute that his criminal record wouldn't now be serious enough to make having the guns a federal crime. Even so, government lawyers have said in court filings that he should remain in the Farmville, Va., jail where he is serving the end of his federal sentence. "At most," the Justice Department said in an April court filing, McCullum "has become legally innocent of the charge against him." In other words, the law may have changed, but the facts of his case didn't — he did possess the gun, and he had a criminal record — so he isn't entitled to be released. His request to be released is still pending. "I don't know what's going to happen," McCullum said during a recent phone call. "I'm just praying on it." The key to McCullum's innocence lies at the complicated intersection of state and federal criminal laws. Decades ago, Congress made it a federal crime for convicted felons to have a gun. The law proved to be a powerful tool for police and prosecutors to target repeat offenders who managed to escape stiff punishment in state courts. In some cases, federal courts can put people in prison for significantly longer for merely possessing a gun than state courts can for using the gun to shoot at someone. To make that law work in every state, Congress wrote one national definition of who cannot own a gun: someone who has been convicted of a crime serious enough that he or she could have been sentenced to more than a year in prison. Figuring out who fits that definition in North Carolina is not as simple as it sounds. In 1993, state lawmakers adopted a unique system called "structured sentencing" that changes the maximum prison term for a crime, based on the record of the person who committed it. People with relatively short criminal records who commit crimes such as distributing cocaine and writing bad checks face no more than a few months in jail; people with more extensive records face much longer sentences. For years, federal courts in North Carolina said that did not matter. The courts said, in effect: If someone with a long record could have gone to prison for more than a year for the crime, then everyone who committed that crime is a felon, and all of them are legally barred from possessing a gun. Last year, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit said federal courts (including itself) had been getting the law wrong. Only people who could have actually faced more than a year in prison for their crimes qualify as felons under federal law. The 4th Circuit's decision came in a little-noticed drug case, United States v. Simmons, but its implications could be dramatic. For one thing, tens of thousands of people in North Carolina have criminal records that no longer make having a gun a federal crime. About half of the felony convictions in North Carolina's state courts over the past decade were for offenses that no longer count as felonies under federal law. No one yet knows precisely how many people were incorrectly convicted for having a gun, but the number could be significant. Rand, the U.S. attorney in Greensboro, estimated that more than a third of the gun cases his office prosecuted might be in question, either because the defendants didn't commit a federal crime at all by possessing a gun or because their sentences were calculated incorrectly. "We're going to be addressing this for a while," he said. The Justice Department and federal courts moved quickly to clean up cases that were pending when the 4th Circuit announced its decision. Prosecutors dropped pending charges against people whose records no longer qualified them as felons; the 4th Circuit reversed convictions in more than 40 cases that were on appeal at the time. Some of the men were given shorter sentences; others were simply let go. But the next question has proved far harder to answer: What should the government do with the prisoners whose legal cases were already over? STILL LOCKED UP The men in McCullum's position have little hope of inspiring much public sympathy. All had racked up at least modest criminal records, frequently for selling drugs. Many only wound up in federal court because police had already arrested them for breaking state laws (including a state law, not affected by the 4th Circuit's ruling, barring them from having guns). One man went to federal prison after a shootout; another led police officers on a high-speed chase. One shot a police dog. McCullum hadn't done anything so serious. His mother, Rebecca Farris, concedes he had a knack for getting in trouble, but said he's still "softhearted." McCullum, now 26, has been diagnosed as mentally disabled, and quit school in the 11th grade after he was kicked out for fighting. On a recent afternoon, Elizabethtown Police Chief Bobby Kinlaw squinted at the computer in his small office and rattled through an inventory of McCullum's frequent encounters with his officers, including arrests for larceny, fighting, making threats and driving without insurance. "He seemed to be on the radar on a regular basis," Kinlaw said. McCullum's most serious scrape with the law came in September 2007, when he pleaded guilty to stealing a gun and was put on probation. Under North Carolina law, he could have been sentenced to no more than 10 months in prison. A month later, McCullum broke up with his girlfriend and came to her small house to collect his things. The two quickly got into an argument, and McCullum knocked over a cocktail table and yanked a telephone cord out of the wall, Kinlaw said. His ex-girlfriend's son called the police, and an officer waited outside to keep the peace while McCullum carried his belongings out to his truck. He carried out his clothes. Then, while the officer watched, he carried out a 22-caliber rifle and a shotgun. Police checked the guns' serial numbers and learned the shotgun had been reported stolen, so they arrested McCullum. (They didn't realize until later that the gun had been stolen nine years earlier, by someone else, when McCullum was 12.) When they found out McCullum had a criminal record, they charged him with possession of a firearm by a felon, and turned the case over to the federal government. McCullum says the guns weren't loaded, and he insists he didn't know he wasn't supposed to have firearms. He kept them because they had belonged to his grandfather. In 2009, McCullum went to federal court and pleaded guilty to the charge of illegally possessing a firearm. At the time, even his lawyers thought that his prior conviction for stealing a gun made him a felon under federal law. The judge sentenced him to a year and a day in custody, and the government sent him to Big Sandy, a high-security penitentiary in the mountains of eastern Kentucky. It was the first time McCullum had been to prison. "I ain't no bad person. I made mistakes, but I ain't that bad," McCullum said. "I just was young back then, just made some stupid mistakes." He got out in 2010 but quickly violated his supervised release by robbing a man. ("I saw him with a whole bunch of money and I just got him like that," McCullum said during one phone call.) The judge sent him back to prison. Now he's finishing his sentence at the local jail in Farmville, counting the days until he can go home. SHUT OUT OF COURT? Whether McCullum — or the dozens of others like him — can go home depends on federal laws that put strict limits on when and how people who have already been convicted of a crime can come back to court to plead their innocence. Those laws let prisoners challenge their convictions if they uncover new evidence, or if the U.S. Supreme Court limits the sweep of a criminal law. But none of the exceptions is a clear fit, meaning that, innocent or not, they may not be able to get into court at all. Federal courts have so far split on whether they can even hear the prisoners' cases. Habeas corpus — the main legal tool for challenging unlawful detention — is currently ill-suited to such cases, said Nancy King, a Vanderbilt Law School professor who has studied the issue. Habeas mainly safeguards people's constitutional right to a fair process, she said, and the problem is that "saying, 'I'm innocent' isn't, on its face, that type of constitutional claim." Still, she said, "innocent people should be able to get out of prison." Prosecutors don't disagree, though most said they are not convinced the law allows it. Rand, the U.S. attorney in Greensboro, said he is "not aware of any procedural mechanism by which they can be afforded relief," though he said lawyers in his office "have not been pounding on the table" to keep the men in jail. "No one wants anyone to spend time in jail who should not be there," said Thomas Walker, the U.S. attorney in Raleigh. That's why he said prosecutors were quick to dismiss charges that were pending when the 4th Circuit ruled. But cases in which convictions are already final "are in a totally different posture and require us to follow the existing statutory habeas law," he said. But there's also an even more basic question: How would the prisoners even know? Rand said he personally reviewed all of the gun-possession cases his office had filed in recent years, often bringing home stacks of documents to examine after his kids went to bed. A former state judge, he figured he would have the easiest time identifying problems. Some of the cases he looked at, he said, would no longer qualify as federal crimes. But he said he did not notify those defendants. Instead, courts have asked public defenders to seek them out. Those lawyers said the Justice Department should do more to help, because it has better information and more resources, an assertion prosecutors dispute. "We're doing it with our hands tied," said Eric Placke, a federal public defender in Greensboro. "I appreciate the compelling considerations they have to deal with. But I do think in cases of actual innocence that it would be nice, to say the least, if they would be a little more proactive." Placke and other public defenders said the reviews have been difficult because they often have limited access to records from the men's prior convictions, which has left them to hunt through files in courthouses across the state. USA TODAY conducted a similar, though far more limited review, examining every gun conviction in western North Carolina between 2005 and 2011. The review was limited to people who had been convicted only of gun possession, and included only those cases in which federal prosecutors had specifically identified the prior offense that made possession a crime. USA TODAY used state court records to find those cases in which the men's prior convictions were, in hindsight, not serious enough to convict them of the federal crime. 'A BETTER LIFE' Travis Bowman said he "got cold chills" when USA TODAY told him that he's innocent of the gun charge that landed him in a federal prison in Coleman, Fla., for 10 years. He said he'd never considered the possibility that what he did wasn't a federal crime. He pleaded guilty to illegally possessing a sawed-off shotgun. He's not scheduled to get out of prison until 2016. Police arrested Bowman in 2007 after a 110-mph chase through Murphy, N.C. It began when North Carolina Highway Patrol Sgt. Chris Wood pulled Bowman over for speeding, planning only to write him a warning. But a routine records check showed Bowman had been affiliated with a gang known as Folk Nation, and that he was wanted in Georgia. "I got a real eerie feeling," Wood said. He drew his gun and told Bowman to put his hands on the steering wheel. Bowman took off. With his pregnant, 15-year-old girlfriend in the seat next to him, he raced down the highway, swerved through a McDonald's parking lot and collided with four police cars. He didn't stop until his girlfriend threw the speeding car into park. State officials didn't prosecute Bowman for the shotgun, or for the chase, or for crashing into the police cars, or for refusing to let his girlfriend out of the car. Instead, they turned the case over to the Justice Department, which sent him to prison for a decade just for having an unloaded shotgun on the floor behind the passenger seat. (Bowman said he was taking the gun to his brother.) But Bowman's prior convictions — for habitual misdemeanor assault and having drugs in prison — aren't serious enough to make owning the gun a federal crime. Neither could have put him in prison for more than a year. Bowman says he plans to ask a federal judge to declare him innocent and let him out. "Hopefully I'll get the chance to be out there soon," Bowman wrote in an e-mail."I just want a better life than this. I have to prove to a lot of people that I'm not the old me. I want to be a person my kids will look up to and be proud of." Going home is far from a safe bet. Even if a court ultimately decides to let Bowman out, he could still face all the charges state officials dropped when his case went to federal court. 3 women shot, 1 fatally, outside Flatiron District nightclub; dad of victim rips suspected gangbanger: 'He's a coward' NEW YORK DAILY NEWS Updated: Tuesday, October 13, 2015, 1:14 AM A Bronx dad whose daughter died in a shooting at a Flatiron District club early Monday had a warning for the punk suspected of pulling the trigger: Turn yourself in before I get my hands on you. “I just hope the police catch him before I do,” Wally Faussett said outside Bellevue Hospital, just hours after his daughter Walikque died of a gunshot wound to the back. “I will search for him myself because he should pay,” the father said. “A coward runs, shooting with a gun into a crowd. He’s a coward. He should die, right there on the street that he started shooting.” Directly addressing the suspect, identified by cops as [32]26-year-old ex-con Dalone (Smack) Jamison, the angry dad added: “You should’ve been a victim. The bullet should’ve ricocheted off something and came back and hit you in the head.” Walikque Faussett, 24, was gunned down early Monday outside a Manhattan club. She appears to have been the unintended victim of a furious clubgoer who was thrown out by the bouncers. Lauren Renee Rondat, 25, was in stable condition after being struck in the hip and left foot. Walikque Faussett (l.) was gunned down early Monday outside a Manhattan club. Lauren Renee Rondat (r.) was in stable condition after being struck in the hip and left foot. Shortly after the shooting, Jamison posted a photo of himself with the 24-year-old victim on his Instagram account. The photo appears to have been taken within the past week — and Jamison tries to distance himself from her murder at Club Motivo in the caption. [35]SENATE DEMOCRATS GATHER ON CAPITOL STEPS TO RALLY FOR ACTION AGAINST GUN VIOLENCE “What’s goin on in these streets smh (shaking my head) hope lil sis ok I would loose it if not,” the caption says. He later posted another message in which he said, “I’m not hiding.” “everybody got something to say that was my F---ing friend I would never do no dumb s--- people make story’s and everybody run with it.” Dalone (Smack) Jamison, 26, is suspected in the shooting early Monday outside a Flatiron District club. Dalone (Smack) Jamison, 26, is suspected in the shooting early Monday outside a Flatiron District club. A mutual friend defended Jamison, saying the aspiring rapper wouldn’t put Faussett in danger. “They are close friends,” said 23-year-old Mike Whitte, who grew up with the suspect. “We all eat together. We go out together, we party together.” [36]CUOMO CALLS ON THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT TO KEEP WEAPONS OUT OF NEW YORK Police said the single mom of a 3-year-old boy was the unintended victim of Jamison, who was gunning for the bouncers who had just thrown him out of the Manhattan nightspot. “My daughter was a good girl. She loved her son,” the victim’s heartbroken mom, Wendi Rodriguez, 41, said before railing about gun violence. Suspected shooter Dalone (Smack) Jamison posted this Instagram picture, which shows him with the victim, Walikque (Grace) Faussett. It was posted shortly after the shooting and appears to have been taken in the the last few weeks at a different location. Instagram Suspected shooter Dalone (Smack) Jamison posted this Instagram picture, which shows him with the victim, Walikque (Grace) Faussett. It was posted shortly after the shooting and appears to have been taken in the the last few weeks at a different location. “How does anyone get a gun these days?” she said, breaking down in tears. “How do you do that? You going around with a gun, killing people? How can I bury my firstborn? She was the oldest of three. I feel like this is a bad nightmare." Two other women were also wounded by the short-fused suspect with braided hair, who remains at large. Police said they, too, were innocent victims. A petty criminal, Jamison has been arrested a dozen times going back to 2005, including one bust in 2010 after allegedly beating and cutting a man. The victim needed 60 stitches to his face and arms. Manhattan Theodore Parisienne/for New York Daily News Blood on the ground at the scene where three woman were shot outside of a Manhattan nightclub on Monday. Manhattan Theodore Parisienne/for New York Daily News A spent bullet is recovered at the scene where three women were shot, one fatally, outside of the club at 915 Broadway in Manhattan on Monday. Manhattan Theodore Parisienne/for New York Daily News Three women were shot, one fatally, outside the Motivo Night Club in Manhattan on Monday. The wounded women were identified by sources as 30-year-old Deborah Raji of Brooklyn, who was grazed in the left shoulder, and 25-year-old Lauren Rondat, who was struck in the hip and left foot. Both were in stable condition. Raji’s worried mom said she was relieved her daughter survived the shooting — but deeply upset that she was partying in a nightclub. [38]CUOMO SPEAKS OUT AGAINST 'PLAGUE' OF GUN VIOLENCE IN NYC AS DE BLASIO GIVES VOTE OF CONFIDENCE TO NYPD “Children of God should be home in bed by midnight,” said Funmilayo Adekunle, 60, of Maryland. Bullets began flying a little after 4 a.m. as the club was closing, witnesses said. Jamison, who is also from the Bronx and believed to be a member of the Dymes R Us rap group, got into a fight with somebody inside the club and vowed revenge after he got tossed out, sources said. Manhattan Theodore Parisienne/for New York Daily News Police mark the scene outside of Motivo where the women were shot early Monday. “I’m going to get my gun,” he said, the sources said. Minutes later, gunfire erupted and Faussett was cut down. “It started out with some altercation in the club,” 25-year-old witness Ashley Valle said. “When I looked, the bouncers were trying to get him out the club, scuffling with him. We were about to step out when shots rang out and everybody scattered.” Police tape off the scene where the women were shot in the Flatiron District on Monday. Vic Nicastro for New York Daily News Police tape off the scene where the women were shot in the Flatiron District on Monday. While the shooter fled in what witnesses described as a dark-colored BMW, the doomed woman lay bleeding on the sidewalk. “We were about to step back out and at this point we see the two women laying on the ground on the sidewalk. They were shot,” Valle said. “EMS was trying to resuscitate one of the females but nothing was working. They were trying to revive her but she was not responding at all.” As for the other woman, Valle said “she was laying on her side and there was blood on the lower part of her dress. You could tell she was shot.” “The guy who started the fight, he was outside,” a man who works next door to the club told WCBS radio. “The other guy was inside because the other guy didn’t want to fight. But the one that was outside, he tried to get inside the club again, but the security did not let him go inside.” After the shooter split, police found five shell casings at the scene. Police said Faussett was shot in the back and died at 5:21 a.m. at Bellevue, leaving her son, Alex, motherless. “We don’t know what to tell him,” Faussett’s 21-year-old brother, Prince, said of the little boy. Police at the scene where three were shot outside of a club in the Flatiron District early Monday morning. Vic Nicastro for New York Daily News Police at the scene where three were shot outside of a club in the Flatiron District early Monday morning. Rodriguez said a city cop tried to save her daughter’s life and that she’s grateful. “He was so sweet,” she said. “He was the first officer there. He was there with her. He gave her CPR. He was there until they took her away.” There have been 275 murders citywide so far this year through Sunday — the latest stats available — up 8.3% from the 254 this time last year. Serious overall crime is down 3.1%, as are the number of shooting incidents — 908 versus 925 last year, a 1.8% drop. The number of shooting victims is also down, 1,078 versus 1,096 last year, which is a 1.6% drop. Parents cleared of abuse told they may not be reunited with their child Karrissa Cox and Richard Carter unlikely to get family court to overturn decision to put baby up for adoption, shadow justice secretary suggests Karrissa Cox sends a message to her child, who was taken into care at six weeks old. The parents of a baby taken into care and given up for adoption after they were wrongly accused of abuse are unlikely to be reunited with the child, the shadow justice secretary has suggested, as they vow to fight the initial decision. Karrissa Cox and Richard Carter said they would launch a legal battle to overturn the adoption. The couple were cleared of abuse more than three years after they took their six-week-old baby to hospital with bleeding in the mouth following a feed. The baby was taken into care and the couple were charged with child cruelty after doctors noticed bruises and what were thought to be fractures on the baby’s body. Social services later found adoptive parents after a ruling of abuse by the family courts. But the criminal case against Cox and Carter collapsed on Wednesday after they were found not guilty of child cruelty and neglect at Guildford crown court. Defence experts discovered the child was suffering from Von Willebrand disease, a blood disorder that causes a person to bruise easily, as well as a vitamin D deficiency, which causes infantile rickets. An independent radiologist, commissioned by the prosecution, concluded that he doubted there were any fractures at all. But the shadow justice secretary, Lord Falconer, said appealing against the decision of a family court from four years ago would present significant hurdles. The court would have to consider the consequences of uprooting the child after being raised for so long by other parents, he said. Falconer told the Today programme: “Assuming that the criminal case produced some new evidence, procedurally it would be perfectly open to the parents to apply to have the order set aside. But in considering whether to set aside the orders, the family court will ask itself one question – what’s in the best interest of the child? Three or four years with a new family might mean the disruption is too much.” In a statement, Cox and Carter, both 25, from Guildford, Surrey, said: “We took our child to hospital seeking help and they stole our baby from us.” The couple were allowed supervised contact with their first and only child until about a year ago. Cox told the Daily Mirror: “It is heartbreaking to know our child is out there, living and breathing in someone else’s arms. We miss our child a lot. We wish we had our child back.” Carter, a former soldier, added: “We will fight till our last breath. No parent should go through this, ever. This just rips your soul away from you. We wouldn’t wish this on anyone.” Lawyers have criticised the decision of the family court to finalise the adoption before the criminal court had made its ruling. The couple’s barrister, Michael Turner QC, said: “These innocent parents have been spared a criminal conviction and a prison sentence for a crime they never committed. Their life sentence is that they are likely never to see their baby again.” Turner said he presented expert evidence to the family court within a few moments of the final adoption order being made. He told the Today programme: “[The expert witness] said immediately not only are these not fractures, but this child has eight classical signs of infantile rickets. I served that report on the family court within moments of them making the final adoption order. Do they review it? No. They confirm the final adoption order.” Emma Fenn, also of Garden Court chambers, said: “This tragic case highlights the real dangers of the government’s drive to increase adoption and speed up family proceedings at all costs. It also shows the perils of the continued inaction relating to a nationwide epidemic of vitamin D deficiency and rickets, and the grave injustice that can result when relying on the opinions of medical professionals alone to conclude child abuse.” Falconer said: “The problem here is that the criminal case took place quite a long time after the main hearing in the family case. You’d want them to be heard much more closer together so that if one case threw light on another, then both courts would have the same degree of information before coming to their separate conclusions.” He noted, however, that the parents were in contact with the child for two and a half years after the incident, “which means that no final decision had been made for at least two and a half years. So it may not be completely futile in this case to make an application. But that’s a matter for the family court to decide”. A Crown Prosecution Service spokesman said the criminal case was brought after expert medical evidence that supported the original charges of cruelty. “The case was then reviewed following new medical evidence which concluded that there was no longer a realistic prospect of conviction on any of the charges,” he said. A spokesman for the Royal Surrey county hospital said “children’s safety is paramount” to all staff but “extensive bruising in a non-independently mobile child is always a trigger for further questions to be asked”. In a statement, he added: “In this particular case, for the child’s safety, the baby was admitted to the Royal Surrey on the day of presentation and full assessments were undertaken by senior doctors in paediatrics and radiology, one of whom was our named doctor for safeguarding. Based on these assessments, a referral was made to children’s social care. No decision about a child’s wellbeing is based on a single agency opinion. Decisions are made over time by health, police and children’s social care and are based on a range of factors.” A Surrey county council spokesman said: “Any case like this is really difficult and we’re always sensitive to the distress it will cause all involved, but our main concern has to be the welfare of the child. Our decision in this case was taken on the basis of the medical evidence provided and the finding of the family court which, having heard the evidence, took the view [that] it was right for the child to be removed from their parents.” In midtown Manhattan on Oct 9., a molotov cocktail aimed at Jewish students Yosef Rachimi and Yisroel Gadafi, both 20 years old, exploded when it hit a bicycle. Police have released a video of the unhinged man who lobbed a flaming bottle of liquid at two yeshiva students who were encouraging people to commit good deeds in Midtown, officials said Tuesday. “I want to kill you!” the balding, heavyset man — who was apparently drunk — screamed before he threw the makeshift explosive at Yosef Rachimi and Yisroel Gadafi, both 20, on W. 37th St. near Ninth Ave. about 1:30 p.m. Friday. The two victims noticed a flash of heat across their legs when the bottle topped with a burning rag exploded near their feet, according to police. The bottle started a small fire, but no one was injured, according to police. “Some guy put alcohol in a bottle of Snapple. The bottle broke and he left,” said Barry Sugar, a spokesman for the Jewish Leadership Council, which tracks anti-Semitism. Police are searching for man who threw a Molotov cocktail at yeshiva students on Oct. 9 in Midtown Manhattan. Police are searching for man who threw a Molotov cocktail at yeshiva students on Oct. 9 in Midtown Manhattan. The white assailant was around 5-foot-9, about 215 pounds and was wearing a black and blue t-shirt and a backpack. The video police released shows the man holding a brown paper bag that held the bottle, officials said. The yeshiva students were on the sidewalk encouraging people to do a Mitzvah, a good deed, Sugar said. Chabad Hasidim are known to hang out at the location before the Sabbath, he added. Anyone with information regarding the incident is urged to call CrimeStoppers at (800) 577-TIPS. All calls will be kept confidential. Woman found dead in Queens park with bruises, deep cut to stomach: police Police investigate the scene in Kissena Corridor Park in Queens on Sunday where a woman was found dead with bruises on her neck and a deep cut to her stomach. Gardiner Anderson for New York Daily News Police investigate the scene in Kissena Corridor Park in Queens on Sunday where a woman was found dead with bruises on her neck and a deep cut to her stomach. A woman was found dead in a Queens park Sunday with bruises on her neck and a cut to her stomach so deep that it exposed her organs, police sources said. Qing Qing Kiemde, 28, was found fully clothed on a dirt path about 300 feet from the entrance of Kissena Corridor Park at 3:40 p.m., according to police sources. Her body was found next to a gated garden, the sources said. The city’s medical examiner was determining the cause of death. Regulars to the idyllic park were shocked by the grisly discovery. The unidentified woman was found about 300 feet from the entrance of Kissena Corridor Park at 3:40 p.m., according to police sources. The unidentified woman was found about 300 feet from the entrance of Kissena Corridor Park at 3:40 p.m., according to police sources. “That’s really scary!” said Nicole Park, 30, who had brought her mother to the garden. “Older people come here and work in the garden all day long. It’s not dangerous at all. This is a really nice neighborhood.” Neighbor Jennifer Ramos, 39, said she’d think twice before wandering into the isolated corners of the park. “There’s nothing about (the park) that would make me feel unsafe,” Ramos said. “But I guess things can happen anywhere.” Ramiz Povataj is one of three men accused of the elaborate bank jobs. A cunning crew of bank burglars pulled two daring heists involving cellphone jammers, disguises, drilled passageways into vaults and narrow escapes from the cops, documents charge. Nedzad Korac, Jamarb Duhanxiu and Ramiz Povataj are accused of the elaborate bank jobs at a Citibank on Park Ave. South and a Santander Bank in Hoboken, N.J. The trio was indicted last week and will be arraigned in Manhattan Federal Court on Friday. In the first heist, on July 18, surveillance video captured three masked men enter an office in the Citibank through a hole cut in the floor at 2:30 a.m., court papers charge. They broke into the vault behind a bank of ATMs, smashing surveillance cameras with hammers. The perps fled the bank undetected when police arrived at 2:45 a.m., and then returned once the boys in blue left with the mistaken belief nothing was afoot, according to documents. At 4 a.m., cops returned and noticed the ATMs were off. Officers heard a voice from behind the machines and smelled burning metal, according to court papers. By the time the cops got into the vault, the bandits were gone, leaving behind a grinder, crowbars, an ax, a mallet, cutting wheels and an extension cord, papers show. Documents don’t indicate they succeeded in getting any cash. Detectives said the suspects swiped a DVR machine that stored a trove of surveillance video. But cops also caught a break. An attentive Citibank employee had run into four shady men claiming to be Verizon workers who were snooping around the building’s basement earlier in the week. The men were so suspicious the bank worker recorded surveillance footage of them on his cellphone, papers show. That proved to be the break in the case the NYPD needed. Nedzad Korac has also been indicted for the alleged bank heists. Nedzad Korac has also been indicted for the alleged bank heists. Cops were able to get an unnamed cooperator who cased the joint with the crew to snitch, papers indicate. Authorities then spied on the crew as it held a planning session at a Starbucks at Second Ave. and 80th St. for the Santander Bank break-in, according to a criminal complaint. The men bought $2,000 in tools, as well as a police radio scanner using a stolen credit card, according to papers. Cops say they recorded Povataj discussing a cellphone jammer he referred to as “the motor” that disrupted bank alarms. On Sept. 7, the crew allegedly attempted the burglary, cutting through the floor of a Hoboken yoga studio leading into the Santander bank vault. That’s when cops closed in. Povataj, 40, was busted wearing two earpieces and speaking into a small microphone on his wrist, prosecutors said. Duhanxiu, 40, and Korac, 43, were also arrested. At Korac’s apartment, police found a face mask and a list of numbers that correspond to frequencies used by all NYPD precincts, documents show. Korac and Povataj have lengthy criminal histories. All three were in custody and being held without bail. Teen accused of raping 8-year-old niece in Brooklyn slapped with four felony charges The perverted teen forced the young girl onto his bedroom floor while she visited his apartment in Canarsie on July 24, authorities say. A teen accused of raping his 8-year-old niece was slapped with four felony charges during his arraignment in Brooklyn Criminal Court, a criminal complaint shows. The 17-year-old creep was charged with two sex abuse counts and two rape counts, including rape in the first degree, during his arraignment Monday. His name is being withheld by the Daily News to protect the identity of the young victim. The perverted teen forced the young girl onto his bedroom floor while she visited his apartment in Canarsie on July 24, authorities say. He then forced himself on her as she tried to escape his grasp, according to the criminal complaint. The teen was also hit with five lesser charges, records show. Hip hop producer who was friend of rapper Fabolous killed after gunman opens fire on SUV in Brooklyn: police sources Brooklyn-born rapper Fabolous took to Instagram to mourn the death of a man shot to death in Brooklyn last night. Eric (Carl) McKinney, 31, was a long-time friend of the artist. myfabolouslife via Instagram Brooklyn-born rapper Fabolous took to Instagram to mourn the death of a man shot to death in Brooklyn last night. Eric (Carl) McKinney, 31, was a long-time friend of the artist. A hip hop producer who’s a friend of rapper Fabolous was killed when a gunman opened fire on his SUV in Brooklyn, police sources said. Eric (Carl) McKinney, 31, tried to drive himself to the hospital shortly after a man shot him as he sat in his black Jeep Wrangler that was parked at Ashland Place and Fulton St. around 10:40 p.m. Sunday, police said. He crashed the car at Ashland and DeKalb Ave. in Fort Greene and died after emergency workers rushed him to Brooklyn Hospital Center. McKinney, a father of three, was a hip-hop producer, family told NB New York. His brother, Shamel McKinney, 25, was fatally stabbed in a Flatiron club in 2007. The two men were both longtime friends with the Brooklyn-born rapper Fabolous, who took to Instagram to mourn McKinney’s death. Crime scene officers process the scene where hip-hop producer Eric (Carl) McKinney was shot on Ashland Pl. and Fulton St. on Monday. McKinney drove 2 blocks to Rockwell Place and Dekalb Ave where he crashed. “My brother. Love Forever,” the 37-year-old star, whose real name is John Jackson, wrote on Instagram with a picture of McKinney. Rapper Paul Cain, who is on Fabolous’ label Street Family Records also grieved for his friend on a social media site. “I Love You Lil Bro!!! Wish I Could Hug You. I Can’t Stop Crying,” he wrote. Police had made no arrests in the killing and the motive was not immediately clear. NEW YORK DAILY NEWS Police inspect a Jeep which crashed at the corner of DeKalb Avenue and Rockwell Place after its driver was shot on Sunday, October 11 2015. Gardiner Anderson/for New York Daily News Police inspect a Jeep which crashed at the corner of DeKalb Avenue and Rockwell Place after its driver was shot on Sunday, October 11 2015. A man was shot in gunplay near the Brooklyn Academy of Music on Sunday night. He was fired on in a car at Ashland Pl. and Fulton St., just steps from the BAM Harvey Theater in Fort Greene, around 11 p.m., said police sources. The shooting victim had attempted to drive his black Jeep Wrangler, which had a shattered passenger window, down the street but crashed into a metal fence at Dekalb Ave. and Rockwell Pl., the sources said. The shooting victim had attempted to drive his black Jeep Wrangler but crashed into a metal fence at Dekalb Ave. and Rockwell Pl., the sources said. Gardiner Anderson/for New York Daily News The shooting victim had attempted to drive his black Jeep Wrangler but crashed into a metal fence at Dekalb Ave. and Rockwell Pl., the sources said. The man was rushed to Brooklyn Hospital Center in critical condition, according to the police. It was not immediately clear what sparked the violence. jstepansky@nydailynews.com Related Stories Bronx stripper fight leads to shooting death of club regular Pro-gun residents unhappy with Obama visiting Ore. town Freshman killed in Texas Southern University shooting named Serial creep who robbed 2 women in Brooklyn may be behind other muggings: cops The brute, believed to be in his 20s, robbed two women in Brooklyn. A serial creep robbed two women in Brooklyn early Sunday -- putting one in a chokehold -- and may be behind two other muggings, cops said. The brute, believed to be in his 20s, robbed an 18-year-old after putting her in a chokehold on Belmont Ave. near Warwick St. in East New York around 8:20 a.m., police said. He fled with her property and she was uninjured, police said. About 10 minutes earlier and four blocks away, cops believe the same man pushed a 77-year-old woman to the ground after running up behind on Ashford St., police said. The attacker made off with the woman’s purse and she suffered scrapes to her hands and knees. Investigators believe the man may have also been responsible for the robbery of a 59-year-old woman and a 51-year-old woman during the spree, but details of those robberies were not immediately available. NEW YORK DAILY NEWS Rikers guard nabbed for smuggling razor-edged tool into the prison AP PROVIDES ACCESS TO THIS PUBLICLY DISTRIBUTED HANDOUT PHOTO PROVIDED BY THE NEW YORK CITY DEPARTMENT OF INVESTIGATION AP In this photo provided by the New York City Department of Investigation, a sharp edged multi-tool is shown, Sunday, Oct. 11, 2015, in New York. A Rikers Island correction officer was busted trying to smuggle in a razor-edged tool, authorities said Sunday. Officer Charles Bracey, 47, hid the tool in a paper sleeve, wrapped in electrical tape, in his backpack as he arrived for his shift at the Anna M. Kross Center, according to Department of Investigation Commissioner Mark Peters. Bracey, of Queens, was charged with promoting prison contraband. He has worked for the department since 2006 and earned nearly $76,500 annually. NYC PAPERS OUT. Social media use restricted to low res file max 184 x 128 pixels and 72 dpi Joe Marino/New York Daily News Department of Investigation Commissioner Mark Peters holds a press conference on the findings of DOI's investigation into failures by Corizon Health, inc., and lack of oversight by Department of Correction and Health in City jails. The officer’s arrest marks the seventh time in the past five weeks that a correction staffer was caught and charged with smuggling contraband to inmates. “More arrests can be expected as DOI continues to intensify its widespread investigation into smuggling and violence at Rikers,” Peters said. EXCLUSIVE: Former security manager accused of arson at two NYC hotel in charges dismissed Charges were dismissed last week against a former security manager accused of setting a series of blazes at two Manhattan hotels where he worked. Mariano Barbosa insisted he was innocent of causing mayhem at Yotel New York and the SoHo Grand Hotel after prosecutors dropped the charges Wednesday because they could not be proven beyond a reasonable doubt. His attorney Ryan Clark blamed fire marshals, saying their gumshoe work was bogus. “They did not crack the case, they extracted a confession and then ceased the investigation,” Clark said. Prosecutors moved to dismiss arson, reckless endangerment and criminal mischief charges in Manhattan Supreme Court after a judge threw out Barbosa’s confession on the basis that it was taken without him having been properly read his Miranda rights, according to Clark. The exhausted father of six, who was working two jobs at the time, caved under pressure from fire marshal investigators and admitted to crimes he didn’t commit, the lawyer said. Clark had also obtained several sworn alibi statements from colleagues who attested to Barbosa’s whereabouts when fires were set. Authorities had accused Barbosa of creating eight fires at Yotel on 10th Ave. and the SoHo Grand on West Broadway between 2009 and 2013 “to lighten his workload.” Barbosa, 32, of Brooklyn, said at the time of his admissions he was working two jobs and had no days off to support his six young boys, including two who are autistic. Since his arrest, he lost his FDNY license, which allowed him to serve as a fire safety director, and he has been working other jobs for half the pay. He said the ordeal has been “like being on a roller coaster,” that his father had a heart attack “due to a lot of stress” and that his children are feeling the brunt of it. “I haven’t been able to do what I usually do for them — working two jobs,” he said. “We don’t get assistance like that.” The FDNY and the Manhattan district attorney’s office declined to comment. Police search for suspects in a botched Bronx robbery that sent a 60-year-old woman to the hospital Police are searching for suspects who put a 60-year-old woman in a chokehold while attempting to rob her in the Bronx on Oct. 10. Cops are searching for three punks who put a 60-year-old woman in a chokehold and broke her wrist during an attempted robbery in the Bronx on Saturday, police said. The woman was walking down the street near Westchester and Prospect Aves. in Morrisania when the suspects attacked her from behind, threw her in a chokehold and tried to wrestle her purse away at 2:45 a.m.,authorities said. The victim managed to break free, but as she ran for safety one of the goons gave chase, kicking her leg and causing her to fall down and break her wrist, police said. The suspects ran off empty handed and remained at large Sunday morning. The woman was taken to a nearby hospital where she was treated and released. Police released surveillance photos of the men. Anyone with information about the incident is asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers Hotline at 800-577-TIPS. USA Today High-speed police chases have killed thousands of innocent bystanders Victims include small children, teenage drivers and the elderly. A death a day from police chases Running red lights at 100-mph plus More than 5,000 bystanders and passengers have been killed in police car chases since 1979, and tens of thousands more were injured as officers repeatedly pursued drivers at high speeds and in hazardous conditions, often for minor infractions, a USA TODAY analysis shows. The bystanders and the passengers in chased cars account for nearly half of all people killed in police pursuits from 1979 through 2013,USA TODAY found. Most bystanders were killed in their own cars by a fleeing driver. Police across the USA chase tens of thousands of people each year -- usually for traffic violations or misdemeanors -- often causing drivers to speed away recklessly. Recent cases show the danger of the longstanding police practice of chasing minor offenders. A 25-year-old New Jersey man was killed July 18 by a driver police chased for running a red light. A 63-year-old Indianapolis grandmother was killed June 7 by a driver police chased four miles for shoplifting. A 60-year-old federal worker was killed March 19 near Washington, D.C., by a driver police chased because his headlights were off. "The police shouldn't have been chasing him. That was a big crowded street," said Evelyn Viverette, 83, mother of federal worker Charlie Viverette. "He wouldn't have hit my son if the police hadn't been chasing him." Nearly every day, someone is killed during a high-speed chase between police and a suspect. Some police say drivers who flee are suspicious, and chasing them maintains law and order. "When crooks think they can do whatever they choose, that will just fester and foster more crimes," said Milwaukee Police Detective Michael Crivello, who is president of the city's police union. Many in law enforcement, including the Justice Department, have recognized the danger of high-speed chases and urge officers to avoid or abort pursuits that endanger pedestrians, nearby motorists or themselves. At least 139 police have been killed in chases, federal records show. "A pursuit is probably the most unique and dangerous job law enforcement can do," said Tulsa Police Maj. Travis Yates, who runs a national pursuit-training academy. The Justice Department called pursuits "the most dangerous of all ordinary police activities" in 1990 and urged police departments to adopt policies listing exactly when officers can and cannot pursue someone. "Far more police vehicle chases occur each year than police shootings," the department said. Police chases have killed nearly as many people as justifiable police shootings, according to government figures, which are widely thought to under count fatal shootings. Yet chases have escaped the national attention paid to other potentially lethal police tactics. Despite the Justice Department's warning, the number of chase-related deaths in 2013 was higher than the number in 1990 — 322 compared to 317, according to records of the Department of Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), which analyzes all fatal motor-vehicle crashes. Many police departments still let officers make on-the-spot judgments about whether to chase based on their perception of a driver's danger to the public. Officers continue to violate pursuit policies concerning when to avoid or stop a chase, police records show. And federally funded high-tech systems that would obviate chases, such as vehicle tracking devices, are undeveloped or rarely used due to cost. While cities such as Milwaukee and Orlando allow chases only of suspected violent felons, many departments let officers chase anyone if they decide the risk of letting someone go free outweighs the risk of a pursuit. At least 11,506 people, including 6,300 fleeing suspects, were killed in police chases from 1979 through 2013, most recent year for which NHTSA records are available. That's an average of 329 a year — nearly one person a day. But those figures likely understate the actual death toll because NHTSA uses police reports to determine if a crash was chase-related, and some reports do not disclose that a chase occurred. Kansas, Michigan and Minnesota state records all show more chase-related deaths than NHTSA shows for those states. "It's an embarrassment," said Geoffrey Alpert of the University of South Carolina, a leading researcher on police pursuits who has done numerous Justice Department studies. NHTSA records "are the only national database we have on these fatalities, and it's been consistently wrong." The number of innocent bystanders killed is impossible to pinpoint because hundreds of NHTSA's records fail to show whether a victim was killed in a car fleeing police or in a car that happened to be hit during a chase. Analyzing each fatal crash, USA TODAY determined that at least 2,456 bystanders were killed, although the death toll could be as high as 2,750. The newspaper found that 55% of those killed were drivers fleeing police. They ranged from armed-robbery suspects to a 10-year-old boy chased as he drove a pick-up truck 85 mph on a county road before hitting a tree, killing himself and his 7-year-old passenger. Injuries are even harder to count because NHTSA keeps records of only fatal crashes. However, records from six states show that 17,600 people were hurt in chases from 2004 through 2013 — an average of 1,760 injuries a year in those states, which make up 24% of the U.S. population. Those numbers suggest that chases nationwide may have injured 7,400 people a year — more than 270,000 people since 1979. The uncertainty about the death and injury tolls obscures the danger of police chases, said Jonathan Farris, who became an advocate for pursuit safety after his son Paul, 23, was killed in 2007 by a motorist being chased for an illegal driving maneuver. "If the public understood the number of pursuits that were going on and the number of people who were being injured or killed, there would be a much better dialogue as to what types of crimes should be pursued," Farris said. Minor infractions trigger chases "It could have been Ted Bundy" Although police-camera footage often depicts the drama of squad cars racing after motorists, most chases begin benignly, with an attempted traffic stop. And most end quickly — 76% were over within five minutes, according to records of tens of thousands of chases in California. California records of 63,500 chases from 2002 through 2014 show that: More than 89% were for vehicle-code violations, including speeding, vehicle theft, reckless driving, and 4,898 instances of a missing license plate or an expired registration Just 5% were an attempt to nab someone suspected of a violent crime, usually assault or robbery; 168 sought a known murder suspect Nearly 1,000 were for safety violations that endangered a driver only, including 850 drivers not wearing a seat belt and 23 motorcycle riders not wearing a helmet In 90 instances, police chased someone for driving too slowly "We don't know that the person in that car is just speeding or just had a headlight out ... [or] if they had just committed a felony," said Joseph Farrow, commissioner of the California Highway Patrol, which chased 14,628 motorists from 2007 through 2014, resulting in 4,052 crashes, 2,198 injuries and 103 deaths. That's a 28% crash rate and a 15% injury rate. Jonathan Farris lost his son Paul Farris on Memorial Day weekend in 2007 by a fleeing driver being chased by a Massachusetts State Trooper. The offending driver was being chased for making an illegal u-turn.(USA NEWS, USA TODAY) Minnesota safety researchers found in 2008 that 35% to 40% of chases resulted in a crash. "There's no question that when you're engaging in a chase, you're engaging in something that can turn out many ways, and many are bad outcomes," said John Firman of the International Association of Chiefs of Police, whose survey of 17,000 chases nationally since 2001 shows that 92% began for a traffic violation, misdemeanor or non-violent felony such as car theft. Police often suspect fleeing drivers are wanted for a serious offense. And they dislike letting a violator get away. During a chase police can be overcome by "a need to 'win' and make the arrest," which blinds them to the danger they are helping create, a 2010 FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin reported. "These are folks who are proud and who see their job as going out and putting the bad guy in jail," said Assistant Chief Randall Blankenbaker of the Dallas Police Department, which sharply restricts chases. When police in Beech Grove, Ind., were called June 8 at 8:07 a.m. about a shoplifting from a Walmart, they pulled behind the suspect's car in a parking lot and flashed their emergency lights. Driver Matthew Edmonds allegedly sped off on a busy thoroughfare, with police chasing for four miles until stopping because of the danger. Moments later, Edmonds allegedly sped through an intersection and hit a pick-up truck driven by 63-year-old Donna Niblock, killing her and seriously injuring her daughter and 11-year-old grandson. The chase followed department guidelines, which allow "high-risk" pursuits for drivers suspected of property crimes, Beech Grove Detective Capt. Robert Mercuri said. "We don't know who may be in that vehicle. We don't know if they have somebody tied up in the back seat," Mercuri said. "It could have been Ted Bundy." Few drivers fleeing police are wanted felons, according to statistics and research. Most committed minor offenses and "made very bad decisions to flee," a 2008 paper by the Police Foundation said. In Pennsylvania, records of 32,000 chases since 1997 show that the most common charge against fleeing drivers was theft, including stealing or illegally possessing the car they were driving. The other most-frequent charges were resisting arrest, underage drinking and misdemeanor assault. A Justice Department-funded 1998 study found after interviewing fleeing drivers that 32% drove off because they were in a stolen car, 27% because they had a suspended driver's license, 27% wanted to avoid arrest and 21% because they were driving drunk. "Overwhelmingly, someone is fleeing because they've got a minor warrant, their car isn't insured, they've had too much to drink," said Milwaukee Police Chief Edward Flynn, who sharply restricted his department's pursuits in 2010 after four bystanders were killed in a three-month span. For more serious offenses such as stealing a vehicle, "the sanctions imposed by courts nationwide for merely stealing a car don't justify anybody taking any risk," Flynn said. On June 15, 2012, at 3:20 p.m., Austin, Texas, police chased a driver in a stolen pickup truck at 90 to 95 mph onto a highway and along a frontage road lined with service stations and fast-food restaurants. At an intersection, the truck slammed into a Mitsubishi driven by James Williford, 32, killing him instantly. Driver Reynaldo Hernandez was convicted of murdering Williford and sentenced to 55 years. The Austin police chief cleared the two officers, saying they followed the policy of the department, which had been cracking down on auto thefts. Esther Seoanes lost her best friend, her husband James Williford in 2012 by a fleeing driver being chased by the Austin Police Department. She is now involved with Pursuit Safety a group advocating for changes in police pursuit policies. (USA NEWS, USA TODAY) Williford's widow Esther Seoanes holds the officers responsible for deciding to chase a stolen car. "My husband," Seoanes said, "was essentially killed for a stolen vehicle." "The moment the officer crossed over the median with lights and sirens and started the pursuit, he (Hernandez) immediately turned into one of those criminals and suspects who doesn't care about anything," said Seoanes, executive director of PursuitSAFETY, a nonprofit seeking to reduce chase-related deaths. "Drivers, they don't care about anyone's safety, and so the burden falls on the police to protect the public." Austin police declined to comment due to Seoanes' pending lawsuit against them. Some relatives of killed bystanders don't hold police responsible for deaths in chases. "I'm not blaming the police," Nicole Jackson of Detroit said after a driver who allegedly had a gun sped away from police on June 24 and killed Jackson's granddaughter and grandson, age 3 and 6, while they were riding scooters near their home. "I'm blaming the person who did all this." High-risk chases include teens, icy roads Motorcyclists often get killed Chases are inherently dangerous because of their speed, and police often compound the danger by chasing drivers in hazardous conditions. At least 3,440 people were killed in crashes when a driver was fleeing at 25 mph or more over the speed limit, NHTSA records show. The actual death toll from such high-speed chases is likely much higher, but is not known because only half of NHTSA's records show a fleeing driver's speed and the speed limit. Particularly dangerous are chases on wet or icy roads, and pursuits of inexperienced and risk-prone teen-age drivers and of motorcyclists, who have little crash protection. In Michigan over the past decade, 74% of motorcyclists fleeing police were killed, injured or possibly injured when they crashed, state records show. Just 18% of chased car drivers were killed, injured or possibly injured in a crash. Wreckage of the chased vehicle involved in a fatal high speed puruit that killed Cathedral City officer Jermaine Gibson, and injured two others in Palm Springs, March 18, 2011. Police departments routinely warn officers about hazardous road conditions and high-risk drivers. Some bar motorcycle cops from pursuits because of the danger if an officer crashes. Yet nearly one-third of the police-chase deaths involved one of those three high-risk factors, USA TODAY found. That includes 1,132 motorcyclists who were killed while being chased. More than half — 589 — were not wearing a helmet. "Most police departments don't allow their motorcycles to be in pursuits, so why would you chase one?" said Alpert, the South Carolina researcher. "Motorcycle drivers are either going to get away or they're going to get killed." Michigan State Police must consider "road and weather conditions" in deciding whether to chase, and can pursue only people suspected of a "life-threatening felony" or drivers who pose "an immediate threat to the safety of the public." The policy cautions, "It is better to either delay the arrest or abandon the pursuit than to needlessly injure or kill innocent people." The Michigan State Police have been involved in 44 deadly chases over the past decade, 120 motorcycle chases that resulted in a crash, and 212 chases on wet or icy roads that resulted in a crash, state records show. Most chases are short, said state police Chief of Staff Capt. Greg Zarotney, and in those cases "road condition rarely has a bearing on the crash." As for motorcycle chases, Zarotney said, "keep in mind that a pursuit only occurs when a decision is made by a driver to flee." Limited pursuit training for police Using decades-old technology Although police chases have been recognized as dangerous for nearly half a century, both training and technology remain inadequate, experts say. The average police trainee received 72 hours of weapons training compared to 40 hours of driving training, only a portion of which covered chases, according to a 2006 Justice Department study of police training academies. A 2007 survey of Florida Highway Patrol sergeants showed that 80% thought that patrol officers "did not have adequate training in the area of pursuit driving." Highway Patrol spokesman Lieut. Ryan Martina did not respond to repeated inquires about how the patrol responded to the poll. Major Travis Yates of the Tulsa, Oklahoma Police Department is a advocate for developing new strategies for the execution of police pursuits. He advocates training and addressing pursuit policies to make them more defined for officers to follow. (USA NEWS, USA TODAY) "We're not taking it seriously enough because we think that one day of training that an officer may have gotten in their academy is going to take effect 10 years later when a pursuit begins," said Maj. Travis Yates, the Tulsa expert on police chases. "Most officers will never fire their firearms ever, but we train one to four times a year" on using guns. Chases have been left behind in the modernization of police equipment that is now moving toward outfitting officers with body cameras. President Obama in December proposed $75 million in federal funds to buy 50,000 body cameras in the effort to "build and sustain trust" between police and communities. Police use of Tasers, body armor, cameras and computers in patrol cars has soared, Justice Department reports show. In 2007, 90% of police worked for a department that used portable computers. In 1990, that figure was 30%. Yet the principal "technology" for chases are tire spikes — two decades old and seldom used because police must know where a fleeing car is heading so they can pull a strip of spikes across a road. Police in Minnesota used spikes in only 3% of the nearly 1,000 chases in the state in 2014, state records show. A Justice Department overview notes that spikes "can put both the officers and other motorists in danger." Houston police officer Richard Martin was killed May 18 when a fleeing driver swerved and hit him as he was laying spikes. "There's been a lot of advances in police technology in the last 15 years. The pursuit-termination devices we envisioned haven't kept up with those advances," said Farrow, the California Highway Patrol commissioner. A federal effort to develop advanced systems has fallen well short of the hype of a 1996 Justice Department bulletin headline, "High-Speed Pursuit: New Technologies Around the Corner." Federal justice and transportation officials began studying improvements to pursuit safety after a controversial 1968 study by Physicians for Automotive Safety said that 70% of police chases result in crashes. Devices that would shut off the engines of moving cars by transmitting microwaves are not commercially available a decade after the Justice Department funded their development. "It's very frustrating that we haven't gotten to that next stage," said Bill Miera, owner of Fiore Industries of New Mexico, which tried to build the devices with the help of a $300,000 federal grant but ran short of money. Alisha Jackson is surrounded by neighbors during a Alisha Jackson is surrounded by neighbors during a vigil held to help the families that had children killed and injured during a high speed chase in Detroit's east side on June 26. Jackson's children Makiah Jackson, 3, and Michaelangelo Jackson, 6, were hit and killed while playing outside of their house during the high speed chase. (Photo: Ryan Garza, Detroit Free Press) A device that shoots a small, adhesive GPS tag onto a car exterior was introduced for police in 2010, but is used by only 20 of the nation's 18,000 police departments. Attaching a GPS tag lets police stop their chase — which prompts fleeing drivers to slow down — and follow the car by computer until it stops, where they can make an arrest. The Arizona Department of Public Safety has embedded the systems in seven cars and uses them every time an officer can get within 30 feet of a fleeing vehicle, Capt. Chris Hemmen said. After tagging a car, police shadow it from a couple of blocks away. "As soon as they stop, we're able to pounce," Hemmen said. Houston Police considered the devices after Martin's death but declined because officers still have to pursue a car and get close enough to fire the remote-controlled GPS tag from a launcher mounted behind the grill of a police car, department spokeswoman Jodi Silva said. The $5,000 purchase cost also deters departments, which often spend capital funds and federal grants on routine items such as car tires and hiring more officers, said Trevor Fischbach, president of StarChase LLC, the manufacturer, which got a $380,000 federal grant. "We're in the 21st Century," Fischbach said. "We should be using 21st-century tools that are available." Milwaukee slaps limits on chases "A menace to innocent people" Police departments that restrict chases have faced resistance from officers. In 2012, the Florida Highway Patrol changed from a policy that allowed officers to chase anyone, to a policy that allowed pursuits only of suspected felons, drunk drivers and reckless drivers. The number of highway patrol pursuits fell almost in half: from 697 in 2010 - 2011, to 374 in 2013 - 2014. But 35% of the pursuits in 2013 and 2014 violated the new chase restrictions, state reports show. Dallas police used to ignore a policy that required them to stop chasing drivers who fled for traffic violations and appeared unlikely to stop, said Randall Blankenbaker, the assistant police chief. When the department in 2006 adopted an even stricter policy limiting chases to suspected violent felons, "there were some folks who were resistant," said Blankenbaker, who wrote the policy. Milwaukee police still oppose Chief Flynn's 2010 policy restricting chases to suspected violent felons and people who present "a clear and imminent threat to the safety of others." "The crooks understand that this is our process," said Michael Crivello, the police union president. "Criminals know their car is almost like their safe locker. They can keep drugs and guns in their safe locker." Motor-vehicle thefts in Milwaukee policy spiked to 18 a day in 2014, from 12 a day in 2013. Flynn said car theft "became sport" among juveniles. "These kids were finding out, well, nothing happens to me. They had the prestige of being cool to their friends, the thrill of the danger and no consequences," Flynn said, adding that 70% of cars stolen in the city are recovered. Other cities have seen crime plunge since restricting chases. The Dallas crime rate has plummeted since 2006 — from 81 crimes per 1,000 residents to 48 crimes per 1,000 residents in 2013, according to FBI crime reports. City police have been involved in only one fatal chase since 2006, Blankenbaker said. Phoenix and Orlando also have seen their crime rates fall substantially since adopting policies that allow pursuits only for suspected violent felons, FBI reports show. Milwaukee Police Chief Ed Flynn. In 2010, after four Milwaukee Police Chief Ed Flynn. In 2010, after four bystanders will killed in Milwaukee during police chases, Flynn adopted a highly restrictive policy that allows chases only of suspected violent felons. (Photo: Darren Hauck, for USA TODAY) Many departments base their chase policies on a three-page model the International Association of Chiefs of Police wrote in 1996. The model stops short of the Justice Department recommendation to list the offenses and conditions such as time of day in which a chase is allowed. The model instead lists factors to consider such as road and weather conditions, traffic levels, and the seriousness of a driver's offense. Flynn restricted chases after four bystanders were killed over three months in 2009 and 2010. Immediately after the deaths, Flynn defended his officers, noting they followed department policy and had actually stopped their pursuits only to have the fleeing drivers continue speeding away and hit the bystanders. Fleeing drivers typically continue speeding for a minute or two after police stop their chase, studies show. "I thought to myself, it's not enough that we have a policy that tells our officers to terminate pursuits when they become unsafe. That was the industry standard," Flynn said. "I needed an extra line to stop the pursuit in the first place, not because the officers were driving recklessly, but because we can't control the behavior for those who refuse to stop for police." EXCLUSIVE: Seventeen years after Antoine Reid shot by off-duty cop, lawsuit against city still pending NEW YORK DAILY NEWS “They were hoping I dropped the case or died . . . (that) it would just go away,” Reid, 55, told the Daily News. Seventeen years after he was shot by an off-duty cop, ex-squeegee man Antoine Reid’s lawsuit against the city remains stalled like a car outside the Holland Tunnel. Several delays have hindered Reid’s 1998 case against the city, the NYPD and Michael Meyer, the former officer who opened fire on him in a confrontation in the South Bronx. “They were hoping I dropped the case or died . . . (that) it would just go away,” Reid, 55, told the Daily News. PARENTS OF WHITE TEEN SHOT DEAD BY POLICE FILE LAWSUIT, CLAIM S.C. COP MOCKED DEAD BODY, SHOULTED 'I'LL BLOW YOUR F------ HEAD OFF!' But Reid insists he isn’t going anywhere — even though he’s now a shell of the man who plied his controversial trade throughout the 1990s. Police Officer Michael Meyer (L.), on trial in the 1998 shooting of squeegee man Antoine Reid, leaving the courtroom in Bronx Supreme Court as his trial went into recess. He is accompanied by his attorney Murray Richman. Reid was an unemployed factory worker with a drug problem and a long rap sheet when he approached Meyer’s car at his usual corner — 138th St. near the Major Deegan Expressway — on June 14, 1998. Meyer was on his way home from a Yankee game with his girlfriend and her 6-year-old son when Reid started soaping up his windshield. Meyer, then 28, shot the unarmed squeegee man in the chest at point-blank range. “I thought I was going to die,” Reid recalled. “I was looking up in the sky thinking this is how death feels,” he added. “Even now I want to cry just talking about it.” Antoine Reid, squeegee man shot by off-duty cop Michael Meyer in 1998, filed a $100M lawsuit against the city. Schwartz, Michael Antoine Reid, squeegee man shot by off-duty cop Michael Meyer in 1998, filed a $100M lawsuit against the city. Meyer was acquitted of attempted murder at a bench trial in the Bronx. But the former Marine — who was the subject of six prior excessive force complaints — was dismissed from the NYPD in 2000 after a departmental trial found he’d “overreacted” to Reid and had shot him “without required justification.” The shooting marked a rare moment when a squeegee man — seen as the scourge of the 1980s and early 1990s — gained the sympathy of the city. While his $100 million lawsuit was inching along in the court system, Reid’s body was breaking down. He now limps around with the aid of a cane. He has painful back problems. And he has trouble going to the bathroom because parts of his intestines were removed. Gash marks on his torso reveal the trajectory of the bullet that entered and exited his body — and forced doctors to remove his spleen. NYC MAY BE HELD LIABLE FOR WOMAN'S MURDER BY COP BOYFRIEND, JUDGES DECIDE “I relive it every day because you look on TV, people getting beat up and shot — I have flashbacks,” Reid told The News. Murray Richman, who defended Meyer with co-counsel Steven Kartagener and Anthony Ricco, said Reid was “overwhelmingly intimidating” in the incident and was just as aggressive on the witness stand. “The public sentiment was pro-squeegee man and subsequent public sentiment was this is so outrageous, that it was clear (Meyer) was acting in self-defense,” Richman said. Antoine Reid gives his sister a hug. Antoine Reid insists he isn’t going anywhere — even though he’s now a shell of the man who plied his controversial trade throughout the 1990s. But Reid’s lawyer Robert Brown said the case in Bronx Supreme Court is not a “he-said, she-said.” “There are several independent witnesses that all say the same thing — Antoine had his hands up and was unarmed,” Brown said. Brown said that although the NYPD determined Meyer was trying to make an arrest, city lawyers argue it was “not within the scope of his employment.” OFF-DUTY NYPD OFFICER PLEADS GUILTY, FACES 9 YEARS IN PRISON FOR DRUNKEN SHOOTING IN WESTCHESTER He hopes a favorable recent appellate court decision on this question will cause them “to reevaluate the case.” Brown is not aware of any settlement offers through the years. The city deemed the matter a “no pay” case, he said. A spokesman from the Law Department declined to comment. “I’m going to do everything in my power to get this case in front of a jury in the Bronx as fast as I possibly can so Antoine can have his day in court,” Reid’s lawyer said. Fight between strippers outside Bronx club sparked fatal shooting of club regular: police sources NEW YORK DAILY NEWS The fight broke out after dancers started arguing in the parking lot outside the nightclub. A smackdown between strippers sparked the early morning Bronx shooting that left a 45-year-old man dead, police sources said Saturday. Murder victim Jose Feliciano, a regular at the Key Club Cabaret on Boston Road in Eastchester, was exiting the jiggle joint at 4:15 a.m. Friday when a fight broke out between two of the dancers in the parking lot, the sources said. Feliciano ran over to defend one of the women in the fight when the other woman’s boyfriend started arguing with him, witnesses told police. The two began brawling and Feliciano punched the other man, cops said. Police released images of those who they believe may have witnessed the fight. Seconds later, the suspect whipped out a pistol and started blasting away, hitting Feliciano in the stomach. Felicano ran for cover behind a car, but the callous gunman ran after him and kept firing, blasting him in the head before sprinting from the scene, cops said. Feliciano was rushed to Montefiore Medical Center, but doctors couldn’t save him, officials said. The club manager said the victim was beloved at the jiggle joint. Feliciano was shot outside of the Key Club Cabaret in the Bronx. Two dancers at the club got into a fight outside the club around 4 a.m., and Feliciano ran over to defend one of the girls. “He was a humble dude, he always came alone,” Dennis De Jesus told the Daily News. “He was well loved by the entertainers.” Police have released surveillance images of people who witnessed the fight. Cops ask anyone with information on the shooting to call Crime Stoppers at (800) 577-TIPS. Feliciano has an extensive criminal record with nearly 20 prior arrests for assault, robbery, and rape, officials said. Cops identify man who fatally shot Brooklyn metal worker trying to stop car break-in spree NEW YORK DAILY NEWS Bryan Aponte, 26, is the man who shot dead 53-year-old Michael Matusiak after the Good Samaritan confronted the bandits breaking into parked cars. One man was fatally shot while another man and a woman received graze wounds at 60 Grattan Street near Knickerbocker Avenue in Brooklyn. One man was fatally shot while another man and a woman received graze wounds at 60 Grattan Street near Knickerbocker Avenue in Brooklyn. Cops have identified the man who they say fatally shot a Brooklyn metal worker who tried to stop a car break-in spree Tuesday. Bryan Aponte, 20, is the man who shot dead 53-year-old Michael Matusiak after the Good Samaritan confronted Aponte and two other bandits breaking into parked cars around 7:50 a.m in East Williamsburg, according to a wanted poster tweeted Friday by NYPD Chief of Detectives Robert Boyce. TWO BOOKLYN MEN CHARGED FOR ATTEMPTED MURDER OF COPS IN UNMARKED POLICE CAR Matusiak was shot three times in the chest after he questioned the men on Grattan St. near Knickerbocker Ave. Matusiak's co-worker Derrick Robinson survived two shots. A 13-year-old girl walking to school was also wounded. On Saturday, cops released several images of the suspect. Gun recovered at the scene in Fort Greene. The suspects fired on the black Ford SUV from the front and the back after they were spotted arguing on Park Ave. near N. Portland Ave., Prosecutor David Reskin said. Gun recovered at the scene in Fort Greene. Enlarge Two Brooklyn men were arraigned Saturday on attempted murder charges for allegedly opening fire on three plainclothes cops riding in an unmarked police car. Prosecutor David Reskin said the suspects — Davon Morrison, 24, and Quashawn Smith, 23 — were well aware they were targeting a police vehicle in the Oct. 7 incident in Fort Greene. Morrison was ordered held on $250,000 bail. Smith’s bail was set at $100,000. POLICE NAB SUSPECTS WHO SPRAYED COPS' UNMARKED SUV WITH BULLETS IN BROOKLYN AFTER OFFICERS TRIED TO INVESTIGATE THEIR ARGUMENT The suspects fired on the black Ford SUV from the front and the back after they were spotted arguing on Park Ave. near N. Portland Ave., Reskin said. None of the officers were injured. They returned fire, wounding Smith who limped into Brooklyn Criminal Court Saturday. Related Stories Cops fire 84 shots at robbery suspect, hit him once: police Man questioned for Ariz. shootings not prime suspect: police Man alleges NYPD cop called him n-word repeatedly in suit Cops: Perv exposed himself, masturbated in front of woman on R train BY Thomas Tracy NEW YORK DAILY NEWS Police say the man masturbated in front of a woman aboard an R train. DCPI Police say the man masturbated in front of a woman aboard an R train. A young woman, the victim of a man who exposed himself to her during a Friday morning subway commute, managed to snap a picture of him before leaving the train, officials said. With the R train rumbling toward the Lexington Ave./59th St. station around 8:30 a.m., the 27-year-old woman saw the man rubbing his exposed erection, officials said. The victim’s picture shows the man in the act. He is a bearded black man in blue jeans, a plaid shirt, blue and red vest and a black knit cap. If apprehended, the man faces public lewdness charges officials said. Anyone with information regarding the man’s whereabouts is urged to call Crime Stoppers at (800) 577-TIPS. All calls will be kept confidential. New photos released by NYPD as search continues for Plaza Hotel robber who stole 3,000 euros from currency exchange BY Thomas Tracy NEW YORK DAILY NEWS On October 5, the suspect entered the Travelex Currency Exchange located in The Plaza Hotel and requested to purchase 500 euros. As the employee was counting the money, the suspect displayed a handgun and grabbed the currency out of the employee's hand and fled. On October 5, the suspect entered the Travelex Currency Exchange located in The Plaza Hotel and requested to purchase 500 euros. As the employee was counting the money, the suspect displayed a handgun and grabbed the currency out of the employee's hand and fled. Cops released additional surveillance photos late Thursday as they continue to hunt for the gunman who robbed 3,000 euros from a shop inside The Plaza Hotel in Midtown. The new images of the suspect, sporting a pair of glasses and a black peacoat, were taken on the street just before he entered the posh Fifth Ave. hotel about 11 a.m. Monday, cops said. The robber entered the posh midtown hotel around 11 a.m. Monday, and was last seen walking down W 58th St. Andrew Savulich/New York Daily News The robber entered the posh midtown hotel around 11 a.m. Monday, and was last seen walking down W 58th St. The robber entered the Travelex Currency Exchange in the basement of the hotel and asked to purchase 500 euros, according to police. As the clerk counted the currency the crook flashed a gun and grabbed the money out of the employee’s hand. He ran off with the loot — worth just under $3,400 U.S. dollars — and was last seen walking down W. 58th St., police said. No injuries were reported. The suspect is described as black, bald, 5-foot-9 and 160-pounds. NYC PAPERS OUT. Social media use restricted to low res file max 184 x 128 pixels and 72 dpi Andrew Savulich/New York Daily News Police investigate the armed robbery of a currency exchange shop inside the Plaza Hotel on Monday. NYC PAPERS OUT. Social media use restricted to low res file max 184 x 128 pixels and 72 dpi Andrew Savulich/New York Daily News The robber, who is still being sought by the NYPD, walked away with 3,00 meuros, equal to just under $3,400. Anyone with information is asked to call Crime Stoppers at (800) 577-TIPS. All calls will be kept confidential. Boy, 7, and mother shot by gunman amid spiralling violence following 'Mr Big' murder A SEVEN-year-old boy and his mother were shot by a gunman amid spiralling violence in their home city following the murder of a "Mr Big" security boss. Police at the scene in Salford where the youngster and his mother suffered leg wounds PAPolice at the scene in Salford where the youngster and his mother suffered leg wounds The "truly shocking" incident happened in the doorway of their home in Salford - marking the fifth shooting in the area in just three days. The youngster and his mother are currently recovering in hospital after suffering leg wounds. Their injuries are not believed to be life threatening and both are in a serious but stable condition. Police have not ruled out if the shootings in the area are linked. The latest attack, which happened last night at around 9:30pm, came as a £50,000 reward was offered for information relating to the murder of Salford "Mr Big" Paul Massey. Salford has suffered a series of shootings since Mr Massey, 55, was gunned down outside his home in the city on July 26. He was a well-known figure in Salford and had been involved in security firms operating in Manchester and beyond. Detective Superintendent Joanne Rawlinson of Greater Manchester Police, said of the mother and son shooting: "This is a truly shocking set of circumstances in which a young boy and a woman have been injured after they were shot at by a gunman at their home. "This incident has only just happened, but there is a huge police effort under way to investigate this attack and find those responsible. "At this early stage, we do not yet know the motive behind this incident, but I would ask the community, as upset as they may be when they hear news of this attack, to please let the police carry out this investigation." Today one local dropping his children off at St Gilbert's RC Primary School nearby said: "It is frightening if you have children. "There was a shooting on Sutherland Street not far from here not long ago. "It's frightening that kids are being caught in the crossfire of what's going on in Salford." Beaten with an iron bar: Michael Winner's widow subjected to brutal attack at home THE widow of late film director and restaurant critic Michael Winner was beaten with an IRON BAR during a terrifying raid at her home. Geraldine Winner, 77, suffered a head injury and was rushed to hospital after a man and a woman forced their way into her £3.8million South Kensington penthouse and spent a frightening THREE HOURS ransacking the building. The pair broke into her home at 10pm on Friday, not leaving until gone 1am on Saturday, and stole a number of valuable items, reportedly including jewellery given to Mrs Winner by her late husband. Police believe the thieves may have hidden in the communal area of the seven-storey block, close to the Royal Albert Hall, which is home to a number of well-heeled residents including international economist Cornelia Meyer. Mrs Winner returned home at 1pm today in a black cab, accompanied by two middle-aged male friends. Her left arm was bandaged in a sling and she appeared frail as the men helped her into the lobby, where she asked: “Are the police here?” One of the men said: "Yes, she's okay,” before asking reporters to leave the building and respect her privacy. Scenes of crime officers have been carrying out a fingertip search of the penthouse while footage from CCTV cameras is also being studied. A Metropolitan Police spokesman said officers were called to the flat at about 2am on Saturday following a report of aggravated burglary. He said: "Two suspects, a male and a female, forced their way into the home of a woman in her 70s and assaulted her with an iron bar before stealing a number of items. "The woman was taken to a west London hospital by ambulance. Inquiries continue. There have been no arrests." Mr Winner started out in the movie business and made more than 30 films, including the blockbuster Death Wish series. Later on he reinvented himself as a restaurant critic and was given a column in the Sunday Times called Winner’s Dinners. Younger people will remember him from the Esure car insurance adverts where his catchphrase was: “Calm down dear, it’s just a commercial.” He also founded and funded the Police Memorial Trust following the murder of WPC Yvonne Fletcher outside the Libyan embassy in London in 1984. He died at his home in January 2013, aged 77, after a long battle with liver disease. After his death, Mrs Winner, a former dancer who he married in 2011 despite meeting her when she was a teenager, described him as a wonderful man who was “brilliant, funny and generous”. Mrs Winner, who has two sons, one each from previous marriages, added: “A light has gone out in my life." Teenager jailed after terrifying drunken hammer attack A TEENAGE girl has been locked up after she used a claw hammer to smash the windscreen of a passing car. Lauren Weaver, 18, who had downed 22 bottles of lager, armed herself with the hammer before attacking the car and terrifying its four occupants. Carlisle Crown Court heard she was arrested by Cumbria Police as part of Operation Rodeo – a probe into gang violence in the seaside town of Workington. Judge Paul Batty branded the “lawlessness” as “ludicrous” and remarked that Weaver appeared to “revel” in the terror of her innocent victims. Weaver was arrested at her Workington home after police recovered the hammer. Weaver claimed to have no recollection of how she came into possession of the hammer She denied any involvement in the attack in August, saying the hammer was her father’s. She accused witnesses of being “untruthful”. Prosecutor Gerard Rogerson said: “There have been offences by a group of youths in the area who were arming themselves and behaving in what might be described as gang-type activity.” Laura Nash, defending, said Weaver denied being in any gang and had no recollection of how she came into possession of the hammer. A line up of beer and ale GETTY Ms Weaver had reportedly downed 22 lagers the night of the attack Miss Nash said: “Alcohol and violence are the biggest problems that Miss Weaver faces as she begins her adult life.” The court simply will not tolerate this sort of lawlessness Judge Batty highlighted a probation officer’s observations that Weaver seemed to “revel” in violent behaviour and appeared to have “absolutely no victim empathy”. The judge added: “It is said on your behalf that you are not an active member of a gang but, of course, you associate yourself with others who are. “This offence is a manifestation of this type of activity. The court simply will not tolerate this sort of lawlessness.” Police on a beat patrol GETTY Operation Rodeo has been set up by Cumbria Police to target an increase of crime in the area The judge concluded that he would be “wholly failing” in his public duty if he did not impose a custodial sentence in an attempt to deter those involved in violence. Weaver admitted affray and was sentenced to 16 months’ youth detention on Friday. Operation Rodeo was set up by Cumbria Police to target an increase of crime in the area. There have been 43 arrests so far, with a large haul of weapons recovered. Fury at soft sentence for paedophile who RAPED five-year-old A PAEDOPHILE who raped a girl of five after being freed from jail could be back on the streets in just six-and-a-half years. Terry Bishop with three previous convictions for child sex crimes – befriended the mother of his victim to get access to the youngster without her knowing his past. He took the girl shopping, to the beach and picked her up from school after gaining the trust of the pair. But his sick behaviour was uncovered when the girl revealed he had abused her. Bishop, 48, from Bournemouth, admitted raping and sexually assaulting his victim four times. Judge John Harrow gave him 10 years but he could be out in six-and-a-half. He could have been given life. Peter Saunders, of the National Association of People Abused in Childhood, said: “You see tough sentences handed out for crimes such as theft which, while despicable, do not have the same effect on the victims as raping a child. It is outrageous that a man with this history can be free in six-and-a-half years. “The judge does not appear to have taken the harm caused to this child and her mother into account. The consequences of this hideous crime are potentially a lifetime of misery.” No child should have to be subjected to such despicable crimes Kerry Maylin, prosecuting Bournemouth Crown Court heard how Bishop had been in and out of jail after twice being convicted of indecent assaults on girls under 14 and once for indecent assault on a girl under 16. Bishop took the mother and daughter on trips. The girl eventually revealed that Bishop had touched her inappropriately which sparked an investigation. Detectives discovered a sexual picture in the child’s notebook which was used in evidence. He pleaded guilty to four charges including rape and sexual touching of a child under 13 between January and August this year. He was given 10 years in jail and another five years on extended licence. Kerry Maylin, of the Crown Prosecution Service, said: “No child should have to be subjected to such despicable crimes.” USA Today Across the U.S., more than 180,000 fugitives can escape justice just by crossing state lines, a USA TODAY investigation finds. An unwanted fugitive Police won't chase 186,000 felony suspects PHILADELPHIA — For a man on the run from charges that he sexually assaulted a 14-year-old girl, Thomas Terlecky has surprisingly little to fear from the law. The police here know exactly where to find him, but they will not go get him. Terlecky got away by catching a Greyhound bus to Miami. The police in his new hometown know that Terlecky is a fugitive, and they have tried repeatedly to return him to Philadelphia — both before and after he was convicted of having sex with two other underage girls in Florida. As recently as November, police handcuffed Terlecky and called Philadelphia authorities to tell them their fugitive had been found. But just like every time before, the authorities in Philadelphia refused to take him back. Across the United States, police and prosecutors are allowing tens of thousands of wanted felons — including more than 3,300 people accused of sexual assaults, robberies and homicides — to escape justice merely by crossing a state border, a USA TODAY investigation found. Those decisions, almost always made in secret, permit fugitives to go free in communities across the country, leaving their crimes unpunished, their victims outraged and the public at risk. Each fugitive's case is chronicled in a confidential FBI database that police use to track outstanding warrants. In 186,873 of those cases, police indicated that they would not spend the time or money to retrieve the fugitive from another state, a process known as extradition. That's true even if the fugitives are just across a bridge in the state next door. Another 78,878 felony suspects won't be extradited from anyplace but neighboring states. Few places are immune. Police in Philadelphia, Atlanta and Little Rock — all among the nation's highest-crime cities — told the FBI they wouldn't pursue 90% or more of their felony suspects into other states. Los Angeles police said they would not extradite 77 people for murder or attempted murder, 141 for robbery and 84 for sexual assault. The FBI refuses to say who or where those fugitives are. But USA TODAY identified thousands of them using records and databases from courts and law enforcement agencies. Among the fugitives police said they would not pursue: a man accused in Collier County, Fla., of hacking his roommate's neck with a machete during a fight over two cans of beer; a man charged with drawing a gun on a Newport News, Va., store manager during a robbery, and even one of the men Pittsburgh identified as among its "most wanted" fugitives. Such fugitives should be among the easiest targets in the nation's fragmented justice system. The police typically don't hunt them; instead, they wait for officers to come across them again, during traffic stops or when they're arrested on new charges. More often than not, the suspects are found locked up in another city's jail. But if that jail happens to be in a different state, local law-enforcement officials regularly refuse to get them because they don't want to pay the cost or jump through the legal hoops required to extradite them. That process can be either swift or surreal: In many cases, it costs no more than a few hundred dollars, but it can also require months of paperwork and the signature of both states' governors. The police let them get away instead. Even Terlecky, wanted in Philadelphia for a first-degree felony, was surprised. "Why would they not extradite on a felony warrant?" he said in an interview. His only guess: "This wasn't a case where I forcefully grabbed the kid. That's the only reason I'm thinking why they won't push to bring me back." Thomas Terlecky talks about the charges he’s facing, why he fled Philadelphia, and why officials there won’t take him back. Brad Heath, Jennifer Harnish, Shannon Rae Green, Steve Elfers Terlecky said that in the 17 years he has been a fugitive, he has lost count of how many times Florida police threw him in jail in hopes of returning him to Pennsylvania. But the arrests all end the same way. In November, Miami-Dade police detained him after he was pulled over for an obscured license plate. A few hours later, Philadelphia officials "asked that (he) be released" because they were unwilling to travel beyond Pennsylvania's neighboring states to get him, [62]according to police records. An officer drove him home. Terlecky is wanted on [63]charges that he had what prosecutors called "consensual" sex with a 14-year-old girl in a downtown Philadelphia hotel in 1996, a felony because of her age. He was convicted of having sex with two other girls in Florida — one 14, the other 15 — in the years that followed and is now a registered sex offender. Terlecky said in interviews that he is innocent of the Philadelphia charges, that he fled because he was afraid of being locked up awaiting a trial, and that he would gladly go back if he could be assured that he would not spend time in jail. Prosecutors said they didn't chase Terlecky because the woman he is accused of assaulting was uncooperative. "That's not true," the woman said when USA TODAY contacted her this year. She asked not to be identified to protect her privacy. Her father took her to court on her 15th birthday to testify against Terlecky at a preliminary hearing. "We walked out of there with our heads held high thinking he's going to jail for what he did to me," she said. It was the last she heard of the case; she assumed Terlecky was in prison. Pennsylvania's Victim Advocate, Jennifer Storm, said victims need to be informed whenever officials choose to let a defendant get away. "It is alarming that there are victims who are further harmed by denying them the opportunity for justice, restitution and safety," she said. The woman Terlecky is charged with assaulting said no one told her that he fled Philadelphia or that prosecutors there had decided not to pursue him as long as he stayed in Florida, where he started a general contracting business that he said counts police officers among its customers. "He got away with it," she said when she found out. "That makes me sick to my stomach. It's disgraceful." Fugitives go 'scot-free' in New Jersey Thousands of fugitives can cross a bridge to get away Few places present a clearer illustration of just how easy it is to get away than Philadelphia. FBI records show that police, prosecutors and court officials here have decided not to collect 93% of the city's wanted felons from anyplace outside Pennsylvania — not from Florida, not even from Camden, N.J., three subway stops from Philadelphia's towering courthouse. For a city whose metropolis sprawls over four states (Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware and a sliver of Maryland), that means people accused of everything from drunken driving to robbery can and do escape serious charges by going home to the suburbs. (Some states, including Pennsylvania, classify some of those crimes as misdemeanors; the FBI counts them as felonies because they can lead to prison sentences of more than a year.) The skyline of the city of Philadelphia The Philadelphia skyline can be seen through bars and glass inside the Camden County (N.J.) Correctional Facility. "People figure I can commit any crime I want, go to New Jersey and just stay there because I have family and no one will come look for me," former Philadelphia district attorney Lynne Abraham said. The city's extradition practices are at the root of a remarkable criminal diaspora. Nearly 3,000 of the fugitives Philadelphia said it won't pursue across a state border lived in other states at the time they were arrested, a USA TODAY analysis of court records found. At least 414 of them lived in Camden. The addresses are based on what fugitives last reported to the police or court officials. Using court records and telephone directories, USA TODAY tracked them to state prisons, inner-city slums and suburban cul-de-sacs; it found them as far away as San Diego and as close as the Camden jail, whose upper windows look out on Philadelphia's skyline. Philadelphia police did not pursue Kevin Mena-Carmona, who was charged with [66]cutting someone with a knife during a 2011 robbery, even though he was jailed at least four times in Camden. They didn't go after John Ross, wanted for [67]kissing and fondling a bedridden 73-year-old stroke victim, when he was arrested in Camden the next year. And they didn't go after Darrell Matthews, who has been wanted in Philadelphia for drunken driving since shortly after he collided with an unmarked police car on his way home from a nightclub in 2001. "They had their opportunities to come get me. They don't want me," Matthews said. "They were just comfortable with letting me go." To that, Laurie Malone, the deputy district attorney who supervises extradition in Philadelphia, said: "He's right in his assessment of our decision not to extradite." "These questions are all legitimate and they're all very good ones, but there are some that I just can't give you good, solid answers that can be understood by the average layperson who does not work in this system and does not understand the full weight of this job," she said. The result is that Camden police catch and release Philadelphia fugitives "all the time," said Capt. John Fetzer, the head of a sheriff's fugitive-tracking unit there. Most are "pretty much scot-free here as long as they stay here in New Jersey." Camden is one of only a handful of U.S. cities with a violent crime rate significantly worse than Philadelphia's; the door to the mayor's fourth-floor office there looks out on a line of people waiting to pay fines and post bail. Camden County's jail doesn't count the Philadelphia fugitives it is forced to free because authorities won't cross the river to get them, but jailers say they know it happens routinely. Captain John Fetzer of the Camden County Sheriff's Office explains how many fugitives fleeing Philadelphia can go 'scot-free' in New Jersey. Eileen Blass, Sarah Cartron, Shannon Rae Green, Brad Heath, Steve Elfers "As a Camden County resident, to the extent we can get people who commit crimes in Philadelphia out of our community and back in Philadelphia, the better off it'll be for us," the jail's warden, David Owens, said. For police in the New Jersey suburbs, letting Philadelphia fugitives go is so unremarkable that if they run a background check on someone and see a warrant marked as not extraditable, "we don't bother going any further," said Chris Eife, who, until December, supervised extraditions for the Camden County Sheriff's Office. Many towns along state borders face similar headaches. Police in rural Washington County, Va., have told the FBI they will not extradite some felony suspects whose last known address was in Bristol, Tenn., a twin city whose downtown straddles the state line. Authorities in Augusta, Ga., have declined to retrieve suspects from neighboring South Carolina. Still, the second in command of the Philadelphia district attorney's office, Ed McCann, said the ease and regularity with which that city's fugitives can escape by traveling to New Jersey suggests something should change. If police there find fugitives who are "dangerous" or repeat offenders, "we should be in discussions with them about a better way to ensure that we're notified and we can consider the extradition," he said. Cost, red tape complicate corralling of fugitives Prosecutors blame limited resources and a tedious extradition process Every time police officers stop a person on the highway or book him into a jail, they check his name against the FBI's vast fugitive tracking database, known as the National Crime Information Center. The system can tell them within seconds whether the person is wanted, and for what. And it will tell them how far the agency that wants him is willing to travel to pick him up, a decision that police and prosecutors are required to make in advance. Those records, obtained by USA TODAY, offer the first public accounting of the extradition practices of more than 8,100 law enforcement agencies in big cities and small towns throughout the United States. The fugitives included 2,610 people accused of drunken driving, 2,036 accused of robbery, 3,347 accused of sex crimes, 6,554 wanted for assault, and 9,254 wanted for fraud as of last May — all marked in FBI records with a code telling police officers not to arrest them if they're found in another state. The FBI repeatedly refused to provide any information that could identify the fugitives in its database in order to protect their privacy. Some states make it a crime to disclose information from their fugitive databases. The Philadelphia Police Department, like many other agencies, refused to turn over records related to its extradition practices. But police and court files nonetheless detail one serious case after another in which police said they would let suspects go if they surfaced in another state: a man wanted for his role in a gunfight outside a Hialeah, Fla., strip club. A man wanted for shooting his girlfriend to death point-blank in a migrant work camp in Collier County, Fla. A man wanted for rape in Roanoke, Va. Detectives had no difficulty tracking the Roanoke rape suspect, Jerry Lee Wiggins. Not long after a woman accused him of raping her in 2008, police found him locked up in a Jacksonville jail on charges (later dropped) that he had stolen a car. But instead of going to get him, [71]police reports show, authorities waited to see whether two other Virginia counties that wanted Wiggins for probation violations would do it. Neither did, so a month later, [72]Wiggins went free. The city's prosecutor, Commonwealth's Attorney Donald Caldwell, said he wouldn't extradite Wiggins because he "did not feel our case had been particularly strong." Like prosecutors in many other cities, he said extradition makes sense only if he's confident he can win a conviction. Many cases don't make the cut. Nearly half of Roanoke's felony warrants are listed as not extraditable in the FBI's database. "When I look at it, I just use the global generic taxpayer. It's still my tax dollars bringing him back. As an elected official, I think you've got an obligation to consider that," he said. Wiggins, who has since been arrested at least twice in Alabama, could not be reached to comment. The detective who investigated Wiggins, Dean Boitnott, said he wasn't surprised. "If it's iffy in any way, a lot of times, they'll just let it go, especially in something like rape," because of the he-said-she-said nature of those prosecutions, Boitnott said. "Unless you've got a rock-solid case, a prosecutor's not going to go for it." Authorities say a cumbersome extradition process leaves them little choice; to extradite more fugitives, they'd have to divert time and money from other cases. "It's not as simple as they walk up to the middle of the Ben Franklin Bridge and we meet them and bring them back," said John Delaney, who supervises the trial division of the Philadelphia district attorney's office. "State borders are significant." Part of the difficulty is stitched into the United States' basic political structure. Every state is its own sovereign government, so the police can't drag a suspect from one state to another without his permission. Instead, they need to extradite him, a simplified version of the process the United States uses when it wants to retrieve suspects from Canada or France. The U.S. Constitution requires that states turn over fugitives to one another, but it doesn't require that the task be simple. Unless a suspect agrees to waive extradition, the signatures of both states' governors and a court order are needed. That means that the paper trail from Camden to Philadelphia winds through the state capitols in Harrisburg and Trenton, a route that can take as little as a few days or as long as four months. Watch this motion graphic to learn about the extradition process, and how non-extraditable warrants allow fugitives to go free. Keith Carter, Shannon Rae Green Still, prosecutors in other parts of Pennsylvania said the process is far less cumbersome than Philadelphia authorities make it out to be. Many fugitives waive formal extradition proceedings and agree to be returned quickly because they don't want to sit in jail waiting to be picked up. A whole industry of contractors has sprung up to transport them, usually charging only a few hundred dollars to pick someone up from as far away as North Carolina. Pennsylvania law allows the city to bill suspects for the cost of extradition if they're ultimately convicted. And besides all that, Camden's jail is 7 miles closer to the Philadelphia courthouse than Philadelphia's own jail is. "Really, it's pretty easy. There's paperwork, but it's all just forms," National District Attorneys Association Executive Director Scott Burns said. "For a felony, especially a violent felony, it's unconscionable that you wouldn't come go to get them." Other approaches are potentially simpler. Bail bondsmen, for example, are typically authorized to haul a suspect back to court, even from other states. But Philadelphia, along with other large cities, has largely stamped out its private bail bonds industry because of a history of abuses. Records show Philadelphia does extradite some fugitives, particularly those charged with serious offenses like murder and rape. Officials from the district attorney's office said they were unable to determine how often they do so, but Camden County officials said their jail sent 164 people to Pennsylvania last year, though not all of them necessarily went to Philadelphia. Nationwide, police and prosecutors are becoming less willing to chase suspects into other states as tight budgets force them to further narrow the list of crimes for which they'll extradite. In the nine months between August 2012 and May 2013, the number of felony warrants marked as not extraditable in the FBI's fugitive database increased more than 31%. "We have a fixed amount of money and we have to be selective about who we spend it on," said Guilford County, N.C., Chief Assistant District Attorney Howard Neumann. For crime victims, that reality can be dismaying. Robin Samson [73]told the police her husband stood 4 feet from her and aimed a shotgun at her face the day she tried to leave him in 2010. She stopped packing and ran. Police in Polk County, Fla., charged her husband, Jonathan Aten, with aggravated assault, but they have yet to arrest him. Aten moved to Michigan, and state records show Polk County officials won't pursue him past the state line. "I don't think they wanted him caught because they didn't want to spend the money to go pick him up," Samson said. "I just want him to be held accountable — for once — for his actions." Many cities say they'll extradite, then don't Baltimore turned down 60% of extradition requests It is impossible to say whether cities like Philadelphia are unusually reluctant to pursue their fugitives, or merely unusually candid about it. Despite years of requests from federal authorities, many law enforcement agencies [74]still don't enter all of their fugitives' names into the FBI's nearly 50-year-old database, meaning police in other states likely wouldn't know that a person is wanted. For example, the police in Buffalo — which ranks among the nation's most violent big cities — had listed just 59 warrants in the database as of May. Stockton, Calif., a similar-sized and similarly dangerous city, listed more than five times as many. Other cities claim they will extradite any fugitives from anyplace in the United States, then don't show up to get them. Some high-crime cities like Chicago and Detroit told the FBI that they would extradite suspects on nearly every warrant they entered into the database — about 35,000 as of May — but don't always do so. "Just because they put it in as extraditable doesn't mean they will," Milwaukee County, Wis., Sheriff David Clarke said. Either way, the result is the same: Fugitives go free. Judges in Washington, D.C., ordered more than 2,400 fugitives to be released over the past decade because the agencies that wanted them — usually suburban counties in Maryland and Virginia — didn't pick them up, USA TODAY found by analyzing the city's court dockets. Even that number almost certainly understates the true number of fugitives the district has put back on the street because it includes only people who were jailed on other states' warrants, and D.C. police are allowed to arrest fugitives only if the authorities have approved extradition. Baltimore police marked only 1% of their warrants as non-extraditable in the FBI's database. But prosecutors' [75]records show they nonetheless have turned down nearly 60% of police requests to extradite suspects back to the city to face charges since 2010. They declined to extradite an kidnapping suspect from California, a robbery suspect from nearby York, Pa., and murder suspects who were caught in Indiana and West Virginia. Baltimore officials would not identify the suspects. Many did not have to go far: Prosecutors declined to extradite fugitives charged with burglary, assault and resisting arrest. Deputy State's Attorney Elizabeth Embry said that usually means prosecutors thought the case wasn't viable. But even in that fragmented landscape, warrants marked as not extraditable reflect a peculiar shortcoming. For the most part, they are not accidents or oversights. Each one reflects an upfront decision by the police and prosecutors that the person can get away. "Other cities are just like we are. They just might not tell the truth about it," said Abraham, the former Philadelphia district attorney. In cities like Philadelphia, a policy of not policing Letting fugitives go is usually no accident Before 2010, most of Philadelphia's fugitives — more than 30,000 people wanted by the police, probation officials and the courts — weren't listed in the FBI's database. Now, most of them are listed automatically along with a code indicating that police won't leave Pennsylvania to pick them up. The only way to change that is if a prosecutor gets approval from two supervisors, something officials say they do only when the charges are especially serious and the likelihood of winning a conviction is high. They did not do that in 38 cases of sexual assault, 731 robberies, 1,230 cases of assault, 535 burglaries and 1,830 drunken driving cases, according to FBI records. Most of the fugitives USA TODAY tracked down said they knew the police wouldn't pursue them. "The average person, the average citizen, wouldn't know that," said Shane Littles, wanted since 2007 after he skipped court on charges that he possessed almost a quarter-pound of marijuana with the intent to distribute it. Despite repeated arrests in the New Jersey suburbs, the Philadelphia warrant "just never came up," he said. "I know a lot of guys, they've got plenty of warrants in other states. Sometimes it comes up, sometimes it doesn't come up." Prosecutors said they stand by their decision not to pursue Littles and most of the rest of the city's fugitives. But they acknowledged they have also overlooked some who should have been approved for extradition. Michael Laurito is one. City judges issued two warrants for his arrest after he bolted from the courthouse where he was facing a pair of drunken driving cases in 2011. If he's found guilty — assuming he's ever brought to court — he would rack up his third and fourth drunken driving convictions in Philadelphia. One of those charges could have sent him to prison for at least a year because of Pennsylvania's mandatory sentencing laws for repeat drunken drivers. Laurito said both arrests were "bogus." Feeling pressured to plead guilty and spend time in jail, he did what thousands of criminal defendants do every year: He walked out of court and drove home to Elkton, Md. "I chose the option that was best for me to provide for my family," he said. "At least I have my head above water, even though I'm taking a gamble." It may not be much of one. Both warrants were marked for Pennsylvania pickup only, according to state police and FBI records, even though Laurito lives just outside the state, on a quiet street less than an hour's drive from downtown Philadelphia. "On paper I look like a mass danger on the highway," Laurito said. McCann, Philadelphia's first assistant district attorney, said prosecutors made the wrong call. "If he's looking at a year or more in prison, we should be bringing him back, and that's something we have to constantly reinforce with our assistants," he said. Prosecutors are supposed to review their cases each day to decide whether to seek permission to extradite people who don't show up to court, but McCann said busy lawyers don't always do that. Malone said she asked a supervisor to review Laurito's case. After USA TODAY presented officials with its findings, Malone said she instructed supervisors to review every one of the most serious outstanding warrants to make sure none was overlooked; prosecutors have already approved extradition for several hundred of them. "You made me look at a list that may have gone largely ignored," she said. Authorities in neighboring Montgomery County, Pa., changed the status of their warrants after USA TODAY contacted them last year about warrants for serious felonies in that county that were marked as not extraditable in FBI records. Deputy District Attorney Steven Latzer said the entries were inadvertent. "The way that was set up was a recipe for disaster," he said, though he added that he was unaware of any fugitives who got away as a result. Latzer said Montgomery County prosecutors seek extradition in all but the most "extreme" cases. "Just because somebody leaves Pennsylvania means we're not going to prosecute them? That makes no sense to me." Philadelphia's court system, which maintains a 50-man police force to hunt fugitives, took new steps to track out-of-state fugitives in December. Police still don't go to get the fugitives, but now, every time one is located in another state, they note that fact in court records and send the fugitive a letter asking him to turn himself in. A handful of suspects have. But for the most part, the records merely memorialize the near-daily messages the city's police send out when their fugitives are found in other states. "DECLINE," officials wrote when a man wanted for aggravated assault and drug possession was found in Atlantic City in February. "NON-EXTRADITABLE. AGENCY IS LOCATED OUT OF STATE." A mockery of justice Serious crimes go unresolved, and victims aren’t told Advocates for crime victims say the decision to let fugitives escape is particularly troubling when they are fleeing charges of violent crime or sexual assault. "It's just wrong. It's a mockery of the justice process," said Will Marling, the executive director of the National Organization for Victim Assistance. In each case, he said, the police have done the work to identify and charge a suspect. Letting him get away so easily "says to victims that this really isn't that important, because otherwise we'd try to do something about it." But even in those cases, suspects have had no trouble getting away. Police charged Kevin Hinds with [80]raping a neighbor in 1999. The woman [81]testified at a preliminary hearing that when she tried to stop him, Hinds beat her "unmercifully" with his fists until she blacked out. After she escaped down the back steps of his apartment, he threatened to "ax my brothers and my sons," she testified. It wasn't until six years after Hinds skipped a court hearing, on Oct. 25, 2006, that Philadelphia authorities decided to extradite him if he was ever found. Malone said she couldn't explain officials' change of heart because prosecutors can no longer find his file. But the only rape warrant Philadelphia authorities entered into the FBI's fugitive database on that day was marked for extradition from surrounding states only. And when Hinds was arrested in Charlotte for trespassing the next year, the sheriff's department let him go after he finished serving a two-day jail sentence, a department spokeswoman said. USA TODAY was unable to locate Hinds to ask him about the charges. Angelo Hall has been wanted in Philadelphia since September 1986. (Photo: New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services) "I understand resource limitations and I understand why they would not want to spend the money to create a problem in their own state, but still, you'd think that rapes, like murders, would be taken more seriously than that," said Scott Berkowitz, president of RAINN, an organization that advocates for sexual assault victims. Angelo Hall has been wanted in Philadelphia since September 1986 on [82]charges of sexually assaulting a Jehovah's Witness, charges that could have sent him to prison for as long as two years. Two weeks after he was charged in Philadelphia, Hall sodomized a woman in Suffolk County, N.Y., and was [83]sentenced to 25 years in a New York state prison. He got out in 2011 and moved to Rochester, N.Y., where he's registered as a "high risk" sex offender, a fact never related to the woman he is accused of attacking. Malone could not say why prosecutors decided not to extradite Hall. The case is so old they could not find his file. She said she cannot recall a case in which prosecutors consulted with a crime victim on their decision not to extradite. Hall said he "doesn't know anything about any Philadelphia charges," before shutting his apartment door on a reporter in January. But the Rochester police, with whom he is required to register once a year, know about the charges. They can't arrest Hall because Philadelphia authorities won't leave Pennsylvania to get him, Sgt. Jacqueline Shuman, a police spokeswoman, said. "When they want to come get him, we'll arrest him," she said. Child abuser deserves a much tougher sentence PAEDOPHILE Terry Bishop has admitted to raping and sexually assaulting a five-year-old girl four times and he already has three prior convictions for child sex crimes. In a just world he would never see the light of day again but a soft judge has sentenced him to just 10 years in jail. If he avoids trouble, he could be out in only six-and-a-half years. Judge John Harrow should take a moment to imagine how he would feel if it was his own daughter or granddaughter who fell victim to such a despicable crime. In six-and-a-half years the suffering for that poor girl will still be far from over for she will be living with a life sentence. Many children who suffer such heinous abuse never fully recover. Moreover one has to feel desperate sympathy for her loved ones. Such a terrible event is a parent’s worst nightmare. For her mother the fact that Bishop befriended her in order to gain access to the child will have made it even harder to bear. His actions will take an enormous toll on the whole of the victim’s family, something that should have been reflected in his sentence. Bishop is a repeat offender whose latest crimes were a series of cold, cunning and calculated acts of abuse. The thought that in all likelihood he will be walking the streets again in less than a decade is a chilling one. Heartbroken dad speaks of anguish after his son was killed in car concrete block tragedy A GRIEVING father has revealed his anguish after his teenage son was killed when a lump of concrete was thrown at the car he was travelling in. Nassem Galleze and car PANassem died after the horror incident Police have rearrested a 21-year-old man on suspicion of violent disorder and possession of an offensive weapon on Wednesday. He was originally arrested and bailed last week. Student Nassem Galleze, 17, received multiple injuries after the mint green Vauxhall Corsa hit a lamp post on Saturday September 26. Officers are appealing for those who rushed to help the teenager to come forward. Damaged mint green Vauxhall Corsa PA The Vauxhall Corsa hit a lamppost Nassem's dad Hakim said: "I am numb with pain. Every time my phone rings or there's a knock at the door, I pray it is Nassem. "Our beloved Nassem's life has been brutally ended and my family are devastated. "People will have seen what happened and they will have heard things; you might be thinking, 'Do I talk to the police?' "Take a look at the car where my son died and you know there's only one thing to do for Nassem and our family. Please assist the police." The suspects ran off leaving passersby to help The Metropolitan Police said it is believed the vehicle came under attack on the Turnham Estate in Brockley, south-east London. It is thought that the block was hurled as the car made to leave, smashing the windscreen and causing it to crash. The suspects ran off, leaving passers-by to rush to the aid of Nassem and the two friends who had been in the car with him. Detective Chief Inspector Noel McHugh, who is leading the investigation, said: "This arrest further demonstrates the thorough and meticulous work of my officers as they continue to work through the evidence surrounding Nassem's murder. "We will find those responsible for this crime and they will face justice." New Scotland Yard sign in London PA Police are asking the public for information about the incident Six men aged between 19 and 23 were initially arrested in connection with the investigation, and four have since been bailed pending further inquiries. A 22-year-old man has been charged with violent disorder in connection with the death, police said. Conmebol insists Michel Platini ‘can lead Fifa towards a brighter future’ South American confederation denounces Fifa ban on Platini French FA also supports suspended Uefa president Uefa president Michel Platini Conmebol described Michel Platini’s 90-day ban from “all footballing activities” as “untimely and disproportionate” Photograph: Ronald Zak/AP The embattled Uefa president, Michel Platini, has been backed by his home French football federation (the FFF) and the South American confederation Conmebol despite being embroiled in criminal investigations in Switzerland and suspended by Fifa. Platini on Saturday lodged an appeal against his 90-day suspension from all football activities, which has dealt a fundamental blow to his candidacy for the Fifa presidency. The appeals committee, chaired by the Bermudan Larry Mussenden, is expected to decide within eight days whether to overturn the suspension, imposed pending a full investigation. The Swiss attorney general, Michael Lauber, has opened criminal proceedings against Sepp Blatter over a £1,3m payment to Platini, which both men have said related to work Platini did at Fifa in 1998-2002. Platini has been questioned by Swiss prosecutors as “a person providing information”, a legal status which allows for the possibility of being charged in the future. The Fifa ethics committee’s suspensions are designed to ensure that a full investigation can take place without any possibility of interference by those accused of wrongdoing. Platini filed his candidacy papers for president before he was suspended, but it is thought unlikely he could still stand if the suspension is not overturned, as he would need to pass a Fifa integrity process. The FFF said that if Mussenden’s committee does not overturn the suspension it will appeal against the decision to the court of arbitration for sport. Conmebol, two of whose former presidents, Nicolás Leoz and Eugenio Figueredo, and two directors, Rafael Esquivel and José Maria Marin, are among the nine high-ranking Fifa officials indicted on corruption charges by the US department of justice, denounced the ban on Platini, calling it “untimely and disproportionate”. Conmebol said in a statement: “The presumption of innocence is a fundamental right that has to be considered. Mr Platini has not been found guilty of any charge, therefore the provisional ban jeopardises the integrity of the electoral process … These are trying times that demand an integral reform of Fifa. [Conmebol] fully believes in Mr Platini’s capacity to lead Fifa and the football world towards a brighter future.” The Fifa executive committee meeting later this month may discuss whether to delay the presidential election, which remains scheduled for 26 February, due to the still unfolding crisis. Teenagers murdered two men in ‘grotesque’ attacks Harry Reekie and Steven Mitchell were murdered a few streets apart in Bathgate, West Lothian Harry Reekie and Steven Mitchell were murdered a few streets apart in Bathgate, West Lothian Andy Barr. Two teenagers have been convicted of murdering two men in the space of 36 hours in separate “grotesque” attacks. Andrew Moran and Paul Erskine, both now 19, bound, robbed and stabbed Harry Reekie, 65, at his home in Bathgate, West Lothian, on September 16 last year. They then killed Steven Mitchell, 31, with a knife and a hammer on September 17, at a house a few streets from Mr Reekie’s home. The motive behind his murder remains unclear. Mr Reekie was able to identify his attackers to police before he died on January 4, having been unable to recover from Usha Patel murder: suspect arrested after police hunt Officers arrest Miles Donnelly, also known as Miles Ryan, in Paddington, central London, on Sunday on suspicion of murder Miles Ryan also known as Miles Donnelly was arrested on Sunday Detectives investigating the murder of a mother found dead at the home she shared with her young son have arrested a man. Scotland Yard launched an appeal to trace Miles Donnelly, also known as Miles Ryan, after the body of Usha Patel, 44, was discovered at her flat in Cricklewood, north-west London, on Thursday morning. 'She was a very nice lady. She invited me to a Zumba class. She was very friendly' Neighbour Sali Aboudali Donnelly, 34, was arrested on suspicion of murder by officers in Paddington, central London, this morning. He has been taken to a north London police station where he remains in custody. A post-mortem examination found Ms Patel died from "strangulation", a Metropolitan Police spokesman said. Neighbours expressed shock at the death and paid tribute to Ms Patel, who they said was a full-time carer for her young autistic son. Usha Patel was found dead at the home in Cricklewood, north-west London The boy, thought to be aged five, was seen holding the hand of a police community support officer outside his home after the body was found. One neighbour, who would only give his name as Tony, 76, said: "I feel very sorry for her son. There was a young PCSO entertaining the kid. He was humouring the boy in the police car by starting the engine and letting him play with the steering wheel." Woman held on suspicion of murder after death at a party Becky Watts murder trial: suspect's mother 'joked about kidnap' Tony's partner Belinda added: "A copper walked past holding him by the hand." Another neighbour, who lived in the flat below Ms Patel, said he heard someone enter the building on Thursday morning and noticed her front door was ajar when he left for work. Police officers said her son had been taken to a "safe place" following the discovery of the body, he added. Miles Donnelly, also known as Miles Ryan was arrested at Paddington station on Sunday Miles Donnelly, also known as Miles Ryan was arrested at Paddington station on Sunday Photo: Scotland Yard Another man, who did not wish to be named, said: "She was hippy looking. She was like a female John Lennon. Very jolly and bubbly. She had a happy look about her." Neighbour Sali Aboudali, 42, said her child went to school with Ms Patel's son and he would spend weekends with his father. 'She was hippy looking. She was like a female John Lennon. Very jolly and bubbly. She had a happy look about her' Neighbour "She was a very nice lady," she said. "She invited me to a Zumba class. She was very friendly. All the neighbours listened to her singing. "Her son depended on her for everything. She said he had autism." A man thought to be the boy's grandfather attended the property on Thursday after police discovered Ms Patel's body, Ms Aboudali added. Neighbours said Ms Patel had lived for about nine years at her home in Melrose Avenue, which is in a semi-detached building containing three flats. Friend of Charleston shooting suspect, Dylann Roof, arrested Joey Meek, friend of Dylann Roof, arrested following a month long investigation by federal authorities Roof faces murder and race hate charges Charleston shooting suspectDylann Roof holds a gun in pictures that accompany his racist manifesto A friend of the alleged Charleston church shooter was arrested Thursday, more than a month after authorities told him he was under federal investigation for lying to them and failing to report a crime, an official close to the probe said. Joey Meek, 21, was arrested Thursday, the official told The Associated Press, speaking only on the condition of anonymity because the person was not authorized to publicly talk about the case. The official didn't immediately say what charges Meek faces. Meek has said that Dylann Roof, who is accused of killing nine black church members during Bible study on June 17, stayed with him before the shootings. Meek told The Associated Press that Roof had drunkenly complained that "blacks were taking over the world" and "someone needed to do something about it for the white race." Roof faces federal hate crime charges as well as nine counts of murder in state court. Meek told the AP that Roof occasionally stayed with him at a mobile home in Red Bank, about 20 miles (32 kilometers) from Columbia, before the shootings at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church. Dylann Roof pictured on his website holding a Civil War Confederate flag Dylann Roof pictured on his website Meek, of Lexington, told AP that Roof said he used birthday money from his parents to buy a .45-caliber Glock semi-automatic handgun, which Meek took away from him the night of his drunken rant but gave back to him when Roof had sobered up. Meek also said he called authorities after recognizing Roof from surveillance footage from the church. But, according to a federal law enforcement official, authorities believe Meek was dishonest with them during their investigation. That official also was not authorized to speak publicly about the investigation and requested anonymity. Meek's girlfriend, Lindsey Fry, said he called her on his mobile phone Thursday afternoon and said it looked like federal agents were approaching him as he was at his job repairing air conditioners. "They want to talk to me, but I think I'm going to jail," Fry recalled Meek saying. He said goodbye and she hasn't heard from Meek since, Fry said outside the mobile home where they live. Fry said she doesn't know if Meek has an attorney or where he is being held, but earlier told AP that Meek is innocent. He is expected to have a hearing Friday. Federal officials can keep investigations secret until someone is charged, or they can opt to let subjects know they are under investigation - as they did with Meek in a letter Aug. 6 - in hopes that the subject will get an attorney, according to Rene Josey, a former U.S. Attorney now in private practice in South Carolina. Meek is currently on probation, having pleaded guilty earlier this year to possessing a stolen vehicle, according to Lexington County court records. No other family or friends who spent extensive time with Roof at the mobile home have received target letters, Fry said. Fugitives only have to cross state lines to escape justice Florida officials refused to come to Tennessee for Jacob Allen Bennett; later, he was accused of killing four people Fugitives Next Door Investigation Fugitives Next Door Investigation: A USA TODAY investigation has found that fugitives by the tens of thousands are escaping justice by crossing a state border. Brian Haas When police take out a warrant on someone suspected of a crime, they can choose whether theyre willing to extradite, or pick up that suspect if they are arrested in other states. The following shows Middle Tennessee counties and the number of cases as of May 29 in which authorities were unwilling to pick up suspects who were stopped or arrested across state lines. The tally includes sheriffs offices and police departments. County Total Warrants Total Non-Extradition Warrants Total Violent Crime Warrants Non-Extradition Violent Crime Warrants Sex Crime Warrants Non-Extradition Sex Crime Warrants Total Non-Extradition % Non-Extradition Violent Crime % Non-Extradition Sex Crime % Cheatham 125 113 1 1 1 1 90.4% 100.0% 100.0% Davidson 363 73 51 10 74 13 20.1% 19.6% 17.6% Dickson 393 349 3 3 7 4 88.8% 100.0% 57.1% Robertson 451 265 21 7 11 2 58.8% 33.3% 18.2% Rutherford 515 432 21 17 20 9 83.9% 81.0% 45.0% Sumner 347 141 7 1 15 10 40.6% 14.3% 66.7% Williamson 429 78 9 3 4 - 18.2% 33.3% 0.0% Wilson 197 181 6 3 8 2 91.9% 50.0% 25.0% Tennessee Counties Total 9,111 3,967 422 147 422 124 43.5% 34.8% 29.4% SOURCE: FBI National Crime Information Center Wanted Person File More ADVERTISEMENT If authorities in Florida wanted to pick up Jacob Allen Bennett on the felony larceny charge he has been wanted on since 2008, they had to only come to Tennessee and snatch him. Bennett had been arrested multiple times here since 2008. In 2013 he even called down to Florida to see if he could make that charge go away. Database: See if Tennessee law enforcement agencies fail to chase down fugitives Instead, Bennett was left to go about his life on Renegade Mountain in East Tennessee. And on Sept. 12, 2013, police say, he shot and killed Rikki Jacobsen, 22; her nephew, Dominic Davis, 17; and their friends Steven Presley, 17, and John Lajeunesse, 16. While the larceny warrant was but one of many missed opportunities authorities had to lock up Bennett, it isnt a surprise he was able to evade Florida authorities so easily. In fact, for many suspects nationwide even some accused of murders and rapes escaping justice is as simple as crossing state lines. Thats according to data obtained by USA TODAY from the National Crime Information Centers Wanted Person File. An analysis of more than 1 million active NCIC records as of May 29 shows that authorities were unwilling to spend the time or money to pick up 186,873 fugitives from another state, a process known as extradition. In Philadelphia, for example, even violent fugitives only had to hop three bus stops to Camden, N.J., to escape justice. Some in Middle Tennessee only have to drive 40 miles north to Kentucky to escape charges here. An additional 78,878 would only be picked up if caught in a neighboring state. Bennett was one of those cases in which police and prosecutors decided it wasnt worth pursuing him beyond Floridas neighboring states. Thats hard to fathom for Tim Tapia, whose son Dominic was among the four found dead on Renegade Mountain that September day. You commit a crime, you need to pay for it. Its not, Well, we dont have the money for it or were just going to let it ride, Tapia said. Letting it ride look what happened. Four people are now dead because they chose not to do anything about it. Escaping justice in Tennessee In Tennessee, NCIC data showed that two out of every five fugitives needed only to leave the state to escape justice here. A third of violent crime suspects and almost three out of 10 sex crime suspects have a similar escape route. In all, Tennessee had 271 suspects wanted on either violent or sex crime warrants that were listed as non-extradition warrants. That included nine homicide cases, six of which originated in Nashville. Davidson County District Attorney Torry Johnson said his offices policy is to extradite all homicide suspects, despite the NCIC findings. We extradite on all homicides, period, he said. As a general rule, well extradite on rape cases. His spokeswoman explained that the six homicide fugitives were already in custody elsewhere. The ones that are listed here, the best we can tell, are ones that are being held in Tennessee by another agency, either federally, or by another county with a Tennessee hold on it, said spokeswoman Susan Niland. Generally, that rule applies on rapes as well. Davidson County compared favorably in the state, with relatively few cases in which authorities were unwilling to cross state lines to pick up suspects, according to the data. Other counties, such as Rutherford and Wilson, told the FBI they were unwilling to pick up more than eight out of 10 fugitives, even if they were arrested just 45 minutes to the north in Kentucky. Rutherford County reported it was unwilling to go get 84 percent of wanted felons if they were picked up in a different state. Lisa Marchesoni, spokeswoman for the Rutherford County Sheriffs Office, said it was impossible to dissect those numbers without the names of the suspects or warrant numbers. Each case is considered on its merits if the suspect will be extradited, she said. Some minor felonies are considered non-extraditable; however, we aggressively pursue those individuals listed as violent offenders. If located out of state, we seek extradition approval from the District Attorneys Office. In Wilson County, prosecutors put the onus on law enforcement. The law enforcement agencies on the front end actually make the initial determination, said Assistant District Attorney General Jason Lawson, who handles prosecutions in Wilson County. But that initial determination doesnt really have much relation to the ultimate decision of whether someone is actually extradited. He said some of those non-extradition warrants are cases in which a suspect is already in prison or jail. Other times, the cases are nonviolent crimes such as violations of probation or drug charges, he said. But when it comes to serious crimes, he said, their answer is always yes. There are occasions where we say no, but anybody who has a crime against a person or a sex crime, we absolutely do extradite those, he said. I dont know of any cases where thats not been done. But not picking up suspects even on seemingly minor crimes can have serious consequences. Wanted for larceny Bennett was wanted on one such crime felony larceny. Authorities in Santa Rosa County, Fla., accused him of clearing out more than $1,000 from his girlfriends bank account in 2008. But he moved to Tennessee before deputies could catch him. Within months of putting his name into the FBIs database in 2009, authorities were fielding calls from Tennessee police telling them that their fugitive had been found, records show. In all, authorities had at least six chances to come pick him up between 2009 and September 2013. He wasnt hard to find he was in a Tennessee prison from March 2010 to March 2013. Police records show Florida authorities knew exactly where he was and considered whether to extradite him on multiple occasions. But every time, the answer was the same: Tennessee was too far away. Authorities there last heard from Bennett in March of 2013 shortly after he was released from a Tennessee prison. He called to ask whether there was any way to take care of this (Florida charge) without being arrested, according to a police report. When the officer said no, he hung up. Six months later, four bodies were found on Renegade Mountain near Bennetts home. He was arrested on four counts of premeditated murder, four counts of felony murder and two counts of aggravated robbery. Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty. His attorney, Robert Marlowe, declined to discuss the case against his client. But he said he was unsurprised Florida authorities didnt pick him up. Considering the amount of money involved, it probably wasn't worth it, he said. Assistant State Attorney John Parker, who handles all extradition requests in Santa Rosa County, confirmed as much. He said the cost was too high and the charges would probably have only led to probation. Even if Bennett was locked up in 2009, he would have been out well before the Renegade Mountain murders, he said. Parker doesnt second-guess the decision not to extradite. Im saddened about what happened, but we dont have a crystal ball, he said. For Tapia and other relatives of the four killed on Renegade Mountain, thats little solace. Our laws here are so easy for people to commit crimes and continue keep on committing crimes where eventually it leads to murder, he said. And thats when they decide to get serious about it. Tennessee totals The number of statewide cases as of May 29 in which authorities were unwilling to pick up suspects who were stopped or arrested across state lines. The tally includes sheriffs offices and police departments. Warrants: 9,111 The total number of warrants 3,967 The total number of non-extradition warrants 43.5% Total non-extradition percentage Violent crimes: 422 The total number of violent crime warrants 147 The total number of non-extradition violent crime warrants 34.8% Non-extradition violent crime percentage Sex crimes: 422 The number of sex crime warrants 124 The number of non-extradition sex crime warrants 29.4% Non-extradition sex crime percentage SOURCE: FBI National Crime Information Center Wanted Person File Warrants in Tennessee When police take out a warrant on someone suspected of a crime, they can choose whether theyre willing to extradite, or pick up that suspect if they are arrested in other states. The following shows Middle Tennessee counties and the number of cases as of May 29 in which authorities were unwilling to pick up suspects who were stopped or arrested across state lines. The tally includes sheriffs offices and police departments. County Total Warrants Total Non-Extradition Warrants Total Violent Crime Warrants Non-Extradition Violent Crime Warrants Sex Crime Warrants Non-Extradition Sex Crime Warrants Total Non-Extradition % Non-Extradition Violent Crime % Non-Extradition Sex Crime % Cheatham 125 113 1 1 1 1 90.4% 100.0% 100.0% Davidson 363 73 51 10 74 13 20.1% 19.6% 17.6% Dickson 393 349 3 3 7 4 88.8% 100.0% 57.1% Robertson 451 265 21 7 11 2 58.8% 33.3% 18.2% Rutherford 515 432 21 17 20 9 83.9% 81.0% 45.0% Sumner 347 141 7 1 15 10 40.6% 14.3% 66.7% Williamson 429 78 9 3 4 - 18.2% 33.3% 0.0% Wilson 197 181 6 3 8 2 91.9% 50.0% 25.0% Tennessee Counties Total 9,111 3,967 422 147 422 124 43.5% 34.8% 29.4% SOURCE: FBI National Crime Information Center Wanted Person File Brad Heath and John Kelly of USA TODAY, Nathan Higgins of WBIR-Knoxville and Rob Johnson of the Pensacola News Journal contributed to this report. Fugitives only have to cross state lines to escape justice An analysis of more than 1 million records shows that authorities were unwilling to spend the time or money to pick up 186,873 fugitives from another state, a process known as extradition. Thailand arrests 'main suspect' in Bangkok blast investigation The male suspect was arrested east of Bangkok on the border with Cambodia, Prayuth Chan-ocha, the prime minister says Royal Thai Army soldiers lead the Erawan Shrine bombing suspect after they arrested him in Sa Kaeo district, near the Thai-Cambodian border Royal Thai Army soldiers lead the Erawan Shrine bombing suspect after they arrested him in Sa Kaeo district. A key suspect in the Bangkok shrine bombing who resembles the man seen leaving a backpack at the blast site was captured at Thailand's border with Cambodia. The detained man was reported by some Thai media outlets to be carrying a passport for a Chinese citizen with an apparently Islamic name from the restive western province of Xinjiang, where there is a large Muslim Uighur population. Thai police have taken the suspect to Bangkok for interrogation but officials denied media reports that he was captured inside Cambodia and handed over to Thailand. The police also issued new arrest warrants for three suspects believed to be Turkish amid growing speculation that Thailand’s worst terrorist atrocity was conducted by a nexus of Turks and their fellow ethnic Turkic Uighurs. Prayuth Chan-o-cha, the prime minister, described the man as a "main suspect" in the deadly Bangkok bombing that claimed the lives of 20 people – six Thais and 14 ethnic Chinese tourists from other Asian countries. "It would be great if he were (the bomber). Then we will know who they are, where they came from, who's behind this," said Gen Prayuth, noting that the suspect resembled a yellow-shirted man seen in a surveillance video apparently planting the bomb. Experts investigating the Erawan shrine at the site of the deadly blast in central Bangkok, Thailand Experts investigating the Erawan shrine at the site of the deadly blast in central Bangkok, Thailand Photo: REUTERS Prawut Thavornsiri, the national police spokesman, said that investigators believed the suspect was "an important person in the network" behind the bombing. He also described him as appearing "similar" to the prime suspect captured on security camera footage. There have been no claims of responsibility for the August 17 atrocity or a second aborted bomb attack when a similar device was abandoned in a canal shortly afterwards and exploded with no casualties the next day. Immediate suspicion focused on Thailand’s domestic turmoil, a Muslim insurgency in the south and international Islamic terror groups. But the recent breakthroughs have now thrown attention on a possible link-up between Turkish-Uighur militants, notably a radical ultra-nationalist Turkish terror faction called the Grey Wolves, and human trafficking crime gangs. Thailand deported more than 100 Uighur men to China in July, despite widespread protests that they faced persecution there, and sent their wives and children to Turkey. The expulsions prompted violent anti-Thai protests in Turkey led by the Grey Wolves. Flames burn after the explosion in Bangkok Flames burn after the explosion in Bangkok Photo: AP The Erawan shrine is known to be popular with Chinese visitors as well as Thais. “It is important the security services recognise squarely that the Erawan atrocity was the not the fumbling revenge of a locally-based criminal gang facing a police "crackdown", but rather a well-planned and technically sophisticated international terrorist operation,” said Tony Davis, a respected Bangkok-based security analyst who first publicised the possible Grey Wolves connection. He said that the terror attack appeared to be a "joint venture" operation in which foreign-based "ideological" extremists teamed up with criminal gangs with a Bangkok network. Thai police have recently raided two Bangkok apartments containing troves of bomb-making paraphernalia – an indication that the network planned further attacks in the city. In the first raid, they detained a suspect who had about 200 fake Turkish passports. Bangkok is known to be a hub for gangs smuggling Uighurs from China via Thailand and Malaysia to Turkey with counterfeit paperwork. In another Turkish connection, the Thai Muslim woman renting the second apartment where explosive material was recovered was said be her family to be married to a Turk and to have moved to her husband’s homeland two months ago. Suspected Belgian serial killer 'filmed himself murdering girlfriend' Police suspect eccentric Belgian who confessed to filming girlfriend's murder is a serial killer linked to actress attack Detectives in Belgium believe they have unearthed a serial killer after seizing a film he shot of himself beating his girlfriend to death. In his small home town of Malines, north of Brussels, Renaud Hardy, an eccentric 52-year old who always carried his camera over his shoulder, went by the nickname of “Renaud Le Fou” (Renaud the Madman). Officially caretaker of a sports hall, Hardy had been on sick leave for the past decade, spending much time taking pictures on his Canon around town. He offered to take studio shots of some women in his home and could turn aggressive when they refused. He had a few run-ins with locals for annoying them with his drone or remote-controlled car and was banned from the local bar after turning up with a giant photo he had taken of the owner's wife without her consent. In a more serious incident, this month he appeared in court on charges of shooting at a female cyclist with an air rifle. The naked corpse of Hardy's girlfriend, Linda Doms, was found two weeks ago in her bed with numerous marks suggesting she had been bludgeoned to death. Hardy was briefly taken in for questioning but released due to lack of proof. However, he later confessed to murdering Ms Doms to two friends. Police then raided his flat and found a memory card. To their horror, it contained footage of Hardy beating his girlfriend to death with a wooden stick in a clearly staged attack; he had made sure his GoPro camera was rolling beforehand in order to “review the scene”, according to Le Parisien newspaper. Detectives are reportedly now convinced they have a serial killer on their hands. After checking his DNA with other cases, they have linked him to the death of Maria Walshaerts, an 82-year-old who lived near Hardy and was found last year with a smashed skull. “The inquiry has allowed us to link the suspect to the murder,” said Nele Poelmans, spokesman for the local prosecutor. His recent air gun attack led them to reopen the unexplained case of Ann Bourgoin, a 38-year old mother shot dead by a small-calibre bullet in 2006 while riding her bike in the area. He is suspected of being behind the attempted murder of a 69-year old woman this month. Police are also looking into whether he may have been behind the violent attack of Veerle Eyckermans, a well-known Flemish actress who played Queen Paola in a recent TV series called Albert II. She was brutally beaten with an iron bar by a stranger who broke into her home in Hofstade in February. Hardy had lived in her village for a number of years. While he has admitted to murdering his girlfriend, Hardy denies being behind any of the other murders or attacks. “I’m struggling to come to terms with Parkinson’s disease and I acted out of frustration,” he told police during questioning. Along with the murder footage, police found child pornography and cocaine at his home. Detectives suspect he may have flown his drone over local gardens to hunt new victims. Gentleman thief suspected of double statue heist Art thief suspected of stealing two valuable sculptures within a fortnight hunted by police. A 'gentleman' thief who is suspected have stolen a prized £40,000 Elizabeth Frink statue is believed to have taken a second £100,000 bronze just days after. The criminal was captured on CCTV stuffing the 1925 5.5ins by 14.5ins (14x37cms) statue by French sculptur Francois Pompon under his jacket at the Masterpiece Art Fair at the Royal Hospital Chelsea on July 1 this year. An assistant for the gallery selling the statue realised the piece was missing from its display plinth at about 1.30pm. It is believed that after the theft the man took a cab to the City where he was dropped off near Liverpool Street station. The prized £40,000 Elizabeth Frink statue The prized £40,000 Elizabeth Frink statue Detective Constable Pete O'Brien, from Kensington and Chelsea CID, said: "Security was immediately notified and subsequent CCTV enquiries shows the suspect taking the sculpture off the display and putting it under his jacket. He then left the building. "We know he left in a taxi which dropped him at Appold Street at the junction with Primrose Street near Liverpool Street station. "If you recognise the man or know of his whereabouts please contact police." A few days before the robbery another sneak thief stole a 40,000 Elisabeth Frink piece from the Beaux Arts Gallery in Mayfair. On that occasion the thief, described as a 6ft tall white male with greying hair chatted to the assistant on the morning of June 26th before returning just before closing. He was then caught on CCTV stuffing the Frink under a coat he was carrying before coolly walking out the door. Any witnesses to the theft of the panther are asked to call police. Body found and suspect arrested in Spanish search for US hiker Denise Thiem from Arizona disappeared on Easter Sunday while walking the famed Camino de Santiago pilgrimage route in Spain Spanish police believe they have found the body of Denise Thiem, a US hiker who disappeared on the Camino de Santiago pilgrimage route, after arresting a 39-year-old male suspect in a bar in the country's north. According to sources from the investigation, a body in an extremely decomposed state was found at the home of the suspect, a Spanish man identified as Miguel Ángel M. B., following his arrest on Friday. The remains "seem to correspond to those of Denise and the man arrested (on Friday) could be the perpetrator," Interior Minister Jorge Fernandez Diaz told reporters on Saturday. Ms Thiem was 40 when she vanished near Astorga, a cathedral city in León province, on Easter Sunday, April 5. She had been inspired to walk the Camino de Santiago route after seeing the 2010 film The Way, in which Martin Sheen plays a man who decides to follow the path to Santiago de Compostela as a way to deal with his son's death. Her family in Arizona insisted that her disappearance was suspicious and appealed to the Spanish authorities to step up efforts to find her after an initial investigation failed to throw up any strong leads. Last month Arizona Senator John McCain wrote a letter to Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, asking him to allow the FBI to assist in the probe. A reply from Mr Rajoy which was leaked to the press did not address the offer, but on Thursday the chief of Spain's National Police force said finding Ms Thiem was “a priority case” as 300 officers were dispatched to comb the countryside outside Astorga. The police caught up with the suspect the next day in a bar in Grandes de Salime, a village in Asturias around 100 miles from his wooden prefab house near Castrillo de los Polvozares, just outside Astorga. Local residents described the suspect in the local press as a loner, who wandered in and out of the village wearing a balaclava. They said that he had not been seen in the past week. He is believed to have been involved in minor incidents involving female pilgrims on the route, and the police interviewed him shortly after Ms Thiem was reported as having gone missing. Sources from the investigation are reported as saying that the suspect changed $1,000 into euros at a bank shortly after the woman's disappearance. Ms Thiem gave up her job as an IT project manager in Phoenix, Arizona, late last year to travel around the world. She visited Asia countries before travelling to Europe. The hiker was about three-quarters of the way along the pilgrimage route when she was last seen at breakfast in a hostel in Astorga, where she talked to an Italian man before going to Easter Sunday Mass. “After Mass, she went on her way and he went on his way,” her brother, Cedric Thiem, told Fox News in June. Mr Thiem said he had been talking to his sister via Skype every other day during her travels so he quickly grew worried when the communication stopped. After appealing via social networks and via the US Embassy in Spain for information, Mr Thiem decided to fly to Spain two weeks after her disappearance, spending time in Astorga asking pilgrims and locals for information. Dylann Roof pleads not guilty over church shooting Roof wants to plead guilty but is waiting until prosecutors declare if they will seek death penalty, court hears Charleston killer Dylann Roof holds a gun in pictures that accompany his racist manifesto Charleston shooting suspect Dylann Roof holds a gun in pictures that accompany his racist manifesto A white supremacist has pleaded not guilty to hate crime charges over the massacre of nine black churchgoers in South Carolina. Dylann Roof, 21, was in shackles when he appeared in court in Charleston six weeks after the shootings at Emanuel African Methodist Church on June 17. His lawyer David Bruck said Roof was ready to plead guilty, but prosecutors have yet to declare if they will seek the death penalty. He said: "Mr Roof has told us that he wishes to plead guilty. (But) until we know whether the government will be seeking the death penalty, we are not able to advise Mr Roof." Federal magistrate judge Bristow Marchant entered not guilty pleas. Marchant also heard briefly from victims' family members. Leroy Singleton, brother of victim Myra Thompson, said: "We don't hold no ill will. We're going to let the system work it out." Emanuel's interim pastor Norvel Goff told reporters outside court: "The process has started. This is a long journey, but we are committed to the task to make sure justice is done." Roof was arrested in North Carolina the day after the mass shooting whose victims included Emanuel's chief pastor. On a website attributed to him Roof espoused racist views towards African-Americans and posed with firearms and the Confederate battle flag. Roof is charged with nine murders and three attempted murders under hate crime laws. The massacre at the church shocked the United States and set off a nationwide conversation about race relations and gun control. Nick Gordon accused of injecting Bobbi Kristina Brown with a 'toxic mixture' in new court filing Nick Gordon has been accused of injecting Bobbi Kristina Brown with a 'toxic mixture' before her death. The allegations have been made in a new filing in a $10million lawsuit against Nick, the former boyfriend of Whitney Houston's late daughter. Aspiring singer Bobbi died in July, almost six months after she was found unresponsive in a bathtub at her home in Georgia. Documents filed by Bobbi's conservator, seen by Entertainment Tonight, claim 22-year-old Bobbi died after "a violent altercation with defendant after which he placed her in the bathtub unconscious, after he injected her with a toxic mixture". Nick has previously furiously denied all allegations against him and called the wrongful death civil lawsuit "slanderous and merit-less". Getty Bobbi Kristina Brown and Nick Gordon Bobbi Kristina Brown and Nick Gordon Nick has not been arrested in connection with her death and has previously asked for the lawsuit to be dismissed. No comment has yet been made on the new claims, although gossip website TMZ report lawyers for Nick say the 'documents are just attention grabber to convict him in the public's eye'. Earlier this week Nick fired back at the Brown family for painting him as a "murderer", according to US reports. He asked a judge to delay the civil case because he believes it would force him to answer questions that could be used against him if criminal charges are filed in the future. Bobbi Kristina Brown and Nick Gordon According to legal documents, obtained by TMZ, Nick claims he would never get a fair trial if he's criminally prosecuted because the Brown family has painted him as "murderer, a habitual batterer of women, a seducer of young white females, a thief and/or con man fuelled by monetary gain, and a chemist capable of making a toxic cocktail." A source told People a grand jury is currently being put together in Georgia to decide whether or not to pursue criminal charges against Nick. The District Attorney also said: "The case remains open and under investigation. "Bobbi Kristina, 22, was found unresponsive in a bathtub at her home last January and suffered brain damage. She died in a hospice facility on July 26, but her official cause of death has been sealed." The Real Nick's legal team previously branded the lawsuit against him "slanderous." In a statement, they said: "The recent lawsuit against nick is slanderous and meritless. Nick has been heartbroken and destroyed over the loss of his love, and it's shameful that such baseless allegations have been presented publicly. "Nick has engaged civil counsel and intends to defend the lawsuit vigorously and expose it for what it is: a fictitious assault against the person who loved Krissy most." Man accused of murdering two British backpackers in Thailand claims he was 'sexually tortured during a violent interrogation before being told to confess' Wei Phyo alleged police stripped him naked and flicked him in the groin 22-year-old also claimed senior officer persuaded him to confess to crime Wei and co-accused Zaw Lin have pleaded not guilty to the murders Hannah Witheridge and David Miller were killed on Kah Tao in september A Burmese man accused of murdering British backpackers Hannah Witheridge and David Miller has alleged police sexually tortured him during a violent interrogation. Wei Phyo told three judges at Koh Samui court that police stripped him naked in a very cold room and 'flicked' him in the groin 'very hard'. The 22-year-old also claimed it was a senior officer in plain clothes who persuaded him to confess. Wie Phyo, who is accused of murdering British backpackers Hannah Witheridge and David Miller, has alleged police sexually tortured him during a violent interrogation. He is pictured (rear) with his co-accused Zaw Lin, (front) Wie Phyo, who is accused of murdering British backpackers Hannah Witheridge and David Miller, has alleged police sexually tortured him during a violent interrogation. He is pictured (rear) with his co-accused Zaw Lin, (front) Wei has since pleaded not guilty to the murders. His co-accused Zaw Lin, also 22, has done the same. Wei told the judges yesterday: '[Police] left me naked and handcuffed in a freezing room for more than an hour and during that time a police officer came into the room and flicked me very hard. 'I tried to protect myself but he pulled my legs apart and then they took photographs of me naked.' He added that as police continued to try to force him to confess to the killings on neighbouring island Koh Tao they kicked him in the back, punched him and slapped him. He alleged: 'They threatened to chop off my arms and legs and throw my body into the sea to feed the fish. 'They also said they would push me into another room and electrocute me.' The British backpackers - Miss Witheridge, from Great Yarmouth in Norfolk, and Mr Miller, from Jersey - were killed on the island of Kah Tao in September The British backpackers - Miss Witheridge, from Great Yarmouth in Norfolk, and Mr Miller, from Jersey - were killed on the island of Kah Tao in September The British backpackers - Miss Witheridge, from Great Yarmouth in Norfolk, and Mr Miller, from Jersey - were killed on the island of Kah Tao in September Their semi-naked bodies were discovered on the beach (pictured) near rocks only 100 yards from bars and other buildings Their semi-naked bodies were discovered on the beach (pictured) near rocks only 100 yards from bars and other buildings Wei also claimed it was a senior officer in plain clothes who ultimately persuaded him to confess to the rape and murder of 23-year-old Miss Witheridge, from Great Yarmouth, and to the murder of Mr Miller, 24, from Jersey. He said: 'He told me I was young and I could just say I did it and just go to prison for several years. 'If I didn't say I did it I would certainly be killed. An interpreter said he could help me so I then signed many documents but I didn't know what they said.' Police and the translator then instructed him on how he should say he killed the British couple, he claimed. Prosecutors also told the court that a mobile phone, said to belong to Mr Miller, linked Wei to the murders. Wei, 22, also claimed it was a senior officer in plain clothes who persuaded him to confess Wei, 22, also claimed it was a senior officer in plain clothes who persuaded him to confess CCTV footage from the evening showed Miss Witheridge with a friend walking along a street near some bars CCTV footage from the evening showed Miss Witheridge with a friend walking along a street near some bars Wei said he had found the mobile, which was discovered near a house where he was staying, on Sairee beach and had taken it home but could not unlock it. He alleged that when he heard about the murders the following day he was worried the phone might be related to someone involved in the killings so his friend smashed the phone and tossed it into bushes near the house. Defence lawyers said the British embassy had not confirmed the phone belonged to Mr Miller. They added that this was because the case could end in a death sentence for the accused men and the UK was opposed to supporting charges that could result in prisoners being executed. The trial continues. Cyclist accused of assaulting pregnant woman talks to police Investigators have yet to determine if charges will be recommended Cyclist accused of assaulting pregnant woman talks to police Mandy Pappas, who is five months' pregnant, says she was assaulted by a cyclist on Friday night. A man accused of assaulting a pregnant woman after he sped through a stop sign on his bike has spoken to investigators, according to Vancouver police. Mandy Pappas, who says she is five months pregnant, posted an account of the alleged assault on Facebook Friday night, and it soon went viral. In it, she wrote that she was on her way to vote at an advance poll when she was almost run over by a man on a bike as he blew through a stop sign without slowing down. She said she yelled that he had missed a stop sign, and “He stopped, turned his bike around and came directly for me, hit and knocked me over. I tried to hold on to his backpack to keep him at the scene after I got up but I wasn't able to.“ But a witness snapped a photo of her alleged attacker, and by Sunday morning it had been shared by more than 13,000 Facebook users. The man who appears in the photo came forward on Saturday and spoke with police, according to Vancouver police spokesman Const. Brian Montague. However, investigators have yet to determine if charges will be recommended. “There would have to be evidence to support a criminal charge for us to forward a report to Crown including some level of intent or negligence and charges, if any, would ultimately be the decision of Crown,” Montague wrote in an email. Pappas has since posted online that both she and the baby are fine. The investigation into the alleged attack is ongoing. The criminal’s alphabet Can’t tell your turtles from your hotplate hamsters? Wise up with this indispensable guide to prison slang Porridge, prison comedy Fletcher (Ronnie Barker, on left), fellow prisoner Godber (Richard Beckinsale) and prison officer Mackay (Fulton Mackay) in the BBC television series, Porridge. Across the pavement To go across the pavement is criminal parlance for robbing banks and security vans. The Wembley Mob (a gang of bank robbers from the late 1960s and early 70s) pioneered the method of driving the getaway vehicle up on to the pavement outside a bank and blocking the entrance. They were known as a “crash-bang gang” – they would rely on the element of surprise by “crashing” the bank doors open and then firing a shotgun into the ceiling in order to elicit fear and compliance. April A weapon, as in April fool = tool. If a villain tells you he is going to sort you out with his April, don’t think: “Well, it’s only June now so I’ve got plenty of time.” It means they are going to get a weapon and intend to inflict serious injury on you. Baron An old-fashioned term for the prisoner who would run the black market on each prison wing. It dates back to the days when tobacco was the only currency in prison and whoever had access to large amounts of “snout” could virtually control their wing. Battle taxi Any police vehicle used to transport riot squad officers to an incident or protest; the name derives from the fact that the officers are hyped up and ready to face “the enemy”. Bed and breakfast A night in the punishment block before appearing in front of the governor for adjudication, or an overnight stay in any prison while en route to another one. Bilking The practice of eluding payment for goods or services by making a quick getaway. These days, it is mostly the preserve of motorised bandits and car thieves, who will pull into a petrol station, fill their tank with fuel and then drive off without paying. Bottle squad An undercover squad dedicated to investigating and catching pickpockets, who mingle with crowds in railway stations and shopping centres and try to catch them in the act. It’s known as the bottle squad because of the criminal slang for working pickpockets, “on the bottle”, meaning to follow someone closely (rhyming slang: bottle and glass = arse; “be on someone’s arse”). Budgie syndrome What a lot of those who regularly use the prison gym seem to suffer from. It’s a disease that makes them pose or parade up and down in front of the full-length mirrors, preening and chirping at their own reflection. Every prison gym will have a large cohort of body-builders who act as though they are on Muscle Beach, grunting and stretching and working out, but always with one eye on themselves in the mirror. Bujo/bag game A Gypsy fortune-telling con that goes back at least 200 years. It involves convincing the mark that their money has been cursed. They are told to seal it in a cloth bag and bring it to the elder, or shaman, in order for it to be blessed and have the curse lifted. During the “blessing” the money is secretly removed from the bag and replaced with worthless paper or stones. Charlie Big Spuds The generic insult for anyone who walks around giving it the Barry (Barry McGuigan = big ’un = acting in a cocky way), a bully who may have a tendency to fold when confronted. It’s particularly used in prisons, where some criminals try to reinvent themselves. Other forms are Billy Big Bollocks or Jack the Biscuit. Commy burgs Commercial burglars, the people who will break into warehouses, shops or factories in their pursuit of ill-gotten gains. Commy burgs are unlikely to come across anyone during their crime, so theirs is seen as an entirely impersonal offfence, acquisitive rather than violent. Copsicles A slang term for the new breed of police officers who patrol on bicycles, particularly apt in the winter months, when they have to brave the bad weather. Diesel Slang for prison tea. Made with one huge netting teabag in a copper boiler the size of the average family bath, weaker than a knock-kneed sparrow with emphysema and more bitter than a miser who has lost a penny down a bottomless well, prison tea is not for the faint-hearted. Drummer A word dating from the 1920s for a burglar who can get into places even when they are “as tight as a drum”. Houses are sometimes referred to as “drums”, as in “I went up to his drum but he wasn’t in.” If someone in prison were to tell you he was in for “drumming”, you shouldn’t therefore assume that he’s a percussionist. Ekky Another word for the police and comes from the fact that, when seen in the rear-view mirror of a vehicle, the “police” sign reads – ECILOP (“ekkylop”, which is shortened to ekky). Slang names for the police can be extremely localised and rarely heard beyond a specific manor or region. For example, in Streatham, south London, the police are known as “the shrubs” because Streatham police station is situated on Shrubbery Road. Fido An acronym (Fuck it, drive on) used by the police for any crime or offence they witness but deem unworthy of their attention. FTS Fuck the System is the common cry of the prisoner, and a common way of signing off jail mail to others in the same position. To British prisoners, “the system” is everything from straight society and the police to the courts and prison – one big mass which they believe is permanently against them. Growlers at the ready ... Keith Carradine in 'The Duellists'. Growlers An 18th-century criminal word for pistols, as in “I’d have been taken by the watchman if I’d not had my growlers with me.” Pistols were also known as barkers because of the noise they made when discharged. In those days, even burglars tended to carry at least one pistol: homeowners tended to dish out their own brand of justice when catching criminals in the act. Have it up! In the typical illegal street-trading team there will be the trader, the one who has the patter and does the selling, and the look-out, or “doggy’s” (doggy’s eye = spy). The doggy’s will hump the gear, help set up the pitch, then keep an eye out for police and trading standards officers. The warning cry of “Have it up!” means pack everything fast, the cops are coming. A cry of “Have it up!” on any criminal enterprise is cause for concern. Hobbit shop Almost every prison has a hobbit shop – a workshop where mind-numbing, repetitive work, such as putting washers on bolts or making prison brooms, can be undertaken for a wage of around 10p a day. Any prisoner with an ounce of self-respect will try to avoid the hobbit shop – only hobbits are happy to work there. Hotplate hamster A screw who wangles duty on the hotplate in order to eat prisoners’ rations rather than pay the price of a meal in the subsidised staff canteen. IC8 This is an addition to police identification codes – the shorthand for a person’s national or racial origin; it is code for a “ginger male”. Jekyll If something is classed as Jekyll, it means it is false, a fake, not the real thing. It is second-level rhyming slang: Jekyll and Hyde = snide = fake. Jiggling and scissoring Jiggling can be used on older vehicles, using a car key (pretty much any one will do) in a fast up-and-down and side- to-side action to catch the tumblers in motion – give it a sharp twist when you get a bite. Scissoring is using a large pair of stainless-steel scissors: insert the point into the lock, wrench them up and down to break the tumblers, give them a quick twist, and the lock should spring open. It should take no more than a few seconds. John Wayne This is prison-issue toilet paper, because it is so very tough, just like the cowboys played by the actor. Kanga Slang for a prison officer (kangaroo = screw). The word, is widely used in every prison in the country by cons. Little fellas A slang phrase for cigarette ends, the term is widely used in northern prisons, as in “Blimey, I’m dying for a smoke, you got any little fellas?” LOB Police acronym meaning “load of bollocks”, usually marked on forms and personal notebooks to indicate that the officer does not believe a word of what they are being told. Moon In prison moon is taken to mean “month”, as in “I see Jerry got three moon for that bit of work.” MOP A police acronym for “member of the public”, used as shorthand when filling in notebooks and reports. The police use many acronyms, and different forces often use their own local versions. MOP, however, is standard for the majority of, if not all, police forces. The cup that cheers ... hot chocolate. Non-stimulant pack This is issued to Mormons in the British prison system instead of the normal brew pack, which is given to those of all other religious denominations. It contains hot-chocolate powder and Ovaltine instead of teabags and coffee sachets. The packs are issued weekly in prison. The other people This term may be London specific, as I’ve never heard anyone from outside the Smoke using it. It’s a name for the police, as in “Don’t trust the geezer, I hear he’s been having a trade with the other people.” The Out This is how prisoners refer to the big world outside of the prison walls and fences, as in “I knew him on The Out”. The Out is where all prisoners long to be. And, yes, it should always have capital letters. Polo If someone tells you they are polo it means they have no money (rhyming slang: Polo mint = skint). Quack Probably from the Afrikaans kwaksalwer, meaning a “hawker of salve”, or somebody who sells medicines, this is a prison doctor. They are doctors, but not as you know them. Though it doesn’t apply to every one, in my own personal experience of more than three decades of imprisonment, the majority of prison doctors don’t really prioritise their bedside manner and are more interested in pleasing the governor than in easing pain or healing the sick. Most are prison officers who have taken a first aid course which entitles them to wear a white coat and work in the prison hospital, dispensing aspirin and plasters. They are not to be confused with real doctors. RTFL Used between police officers, this stands for “Read the fucking log” – an instruction for officers to familiarise themselves with the log recording what has been going on before they come on duty. Snow-droppers This means someone who makes a living by stealing clothes from washing lines (as opposed to someone who steals only underwear and who is known as a “pervert”). This crime was particularly prevalent in the Victorian era, when cotton and linen sheets were a pretty lucrative lay (criminal specialism). These days, snow-droppers usually go for designer clothing. Although it can be a fairly profitable crime, it is still way down on the scale of serious theft and is practised mainly by kids and amateurs. Touching dogs’ arses The charge of stealing cars used to be called TDA (Taking and Driving Away a motor vehicle), and young criminals found it amusing to insult amateur car thieves by saying they were into touching dogs’ arses. Amateur car thieves steal cars just for the fun of it. Don't forget the turtles ... Turtles If you are going to commit any sort of crime, the minimum you are going to need in order to avoid detection, arrest and imprisonment is a decent pair of turtles (turtle doves = gloves). Undies Undies is youth slang for undercover police officers. Unfortunately, the laws of the UK do not include a defence of agent provocateur (as does the law in some countries), so if a police officer (undercover or in plain sight) incites a citizen to commit a crime there would be no defence for that citizen. Watch out for the undies! Vegetable patch Some prisons do not have a specific room for the communal television and so it is placed centrally on the wing and prisoners must bring their cell chairs to sit on. This spread of chairs is usually known as the vegetable patch because it’s where the “vegetables” (those who want to watch) sit. When a prisoner ends up in the vegetable patch they are classed as a cabbage or Cabbage Patch Kid (after the freaky-looking American dolls of the 1980s), or as a hobbit. Whizzer/whiz mob These slang terms for a pickpocket have largely fallen out of vogue since their heyday in the 1940s and 50s. Whiz mobs used to work the crowds at racecourses, picking pockets then blending into the throng. The origin of “whiz” is uncertain, but some people say it’s to do with the speed with which these criminals could dip a crowd. You want some? The battle cry that has led to violence outside every pub, club and football ground and on every prison landing. It means: “Would you like me to nut you or punch you in the face, ’cos I’m ready for action?” It’s a warning not to be ignored. The “some” mentioned in this phrase is violence. You want some, or what? Again, a possible precursor to violence, but this time with a get-out clause. The antagonist, while ready and willing to offer violence, may also be looking for a way out and be open to a bit of verbal being the end result – as long as the target is suitably contrite. Zombie A zombie is what the police call an officer close to retirement and now merely going through the motions. It can also mean a lazy officer. Most police officers hate zombies with a passion, as they tend to make everyone else’s job harder. ATF uses fake drugs, big bucks to snare suspects Targeting trigger pullers The U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives has locked up more than 1,000 people using controversial sting operations that entice suspects to rob nonexistent drug stash houses. See how the stings work and who they target. ATF stings that promise loads of easy money snared 1,000 would-be criminals, a USA TODAY investigation finds. These fake drug stashes have led to hard time, begging the question: Is this 'good law enforcement' or has the government gone too far? ROMEOVILLE, Ill. — The three men in the back seat were supposed to be ready for battle. They were waiting for a phone call that would launch a daring and dangerous crime, sending them charging through the front door of a Mexican drug ring's stash house to steal 50 pounds or more of cocaine from three armed guards. Their plan was to disguise themselves as police officers, tie up the guards, and slip away with a half-million dollars worth of drugs. If tying them up didn't work, they'd kill them all. Only the small army of federal agents watching them knew that it was all a lie. There was no house. No drugs. And the only things waiting for them when the call came were a team of camouflaged federal agents with rifles and stun grenades, and the promise of a long prison sentence for a plot to steal and re-sell non-existent cocaine. stash houses 6 The U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the agency in charge of enforcing the nation's gun laws, has locked up more than 1,000 people by enticing them to rob drug stash houses that did not exist. The ploy has quietly become a key part of the ATF's crime-fighting arsenal, but also a controversial one: The stings are so aggressive and costly that some prosecutors have refused to allow them. They skirt the boundaries of entrapment, and in the past decade they have left at least seven suspects dead. The ATF has more than quadrupled its use of such drug house operations since 2003, and officials say it intends to conduct even more as it seeks to lock up the "trigger pullers" who menace some of the most dangerous parts of inner-city America. Yet the vast scale of that effort has so far remained unknown outside the U.S. Justice Department. To gauge its extent, USA TODAY reviewed thousands of pages of court records and agency files, plus hours of undercover recordings. Those records — many of which had never been made public — tell the story of how an ATF strategy meant to target armed and violent criminals has regularly used risky and expensive undercover stings to ensnare low-level crooks who jump at the bait of a criminal windfall. “Do you want police to solve crimes, or do you want them to go out and prevent crimes that haven't occurred yet?” Former ATF supervisor David Chipman In many cases, the records show the ATF accomplished precisely what it set out to do, arresting men outfitted with heavy weapons and body armor, and linked to repeated, and sometimes bloody, crimes. In the process, however, the agency also scooped up small-time drug dealers and even people with no criminal records at all, including Army Rangers. It has offered would-be robbers the chance to score millions of dollars of cocaine for a few hours of work. In at least one case, the ATF had to supply its supposed armed robbers with a gun. The stings are the latest and perhaps clearest reflection of a broad shift by federal law enforcement away from solving crimes in favor of investigating people the government thinks are criminals. Such tactics are common in law enforcement's efforts to prevent terrorist attacks, but they are also becoming a staple of its fight against everyday street crime. Critics, among them federal judges, say the ATF's operations are flawed. In an opinion last year, Judge Richard Posner of the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago dismissed the drug-house stings as a "disreputable tactic" that creates "an increased risk of entrapment because of the potential for the extensive use of inducements and unrealistic temptations to encourage the suspects' criminal conduct." The stings work like this: When agents identify someone they suspect is ripping off drug dealers, they send in an undercover operative posing as a disgruntled courier or security guard to pitch the idea of stealing a shipment from his bosses. The potential score is almost always more than 5 kilograms of cocaine — enough drugs to fetch hundreds of thousands of dollars on the street, or to trigger sentences of 10 years or more in prison. When the target shows up ready to commit the robbery, he and anyone else he brings with him are arrested and charged with a raft of federal crimes, the most serious of which is conspiring to sell the non-existent cocaine. The arrests don't come cheap. A single case can go on for months and require dozens of federal agents and local police officers. Former ATF supervisor David Chipman, who left the agency last year, said the public deserves to know more about how the ATF is using its resources. "There are huge benefits, and there are huge downsides," he said. "Do you want police to solve crimes, or do you want them to go out and prevent crimes that haven't occurred yet? What are the things you're willing to do so that your kid doesn't get shot?" A CRACK DEALER AND A BIG SCORE William Alexander boasted that he was exactly the type of armed and dangerous criminal the ATF is after. He was an experienced drug robber, he told an undercover agent, and a chief of Chicago's notorious Four Corner Hustlers, who commanded 17 blocks on the city's west side and had men ready to kill at his command. “Are we supposed to wait for him to commit a (obscenity) murder before we start to target him as a bad guy?” Charlie Smith, ATF Alexander was 32 years old the afternoon in January 2011 when he first slid into the passenger seat of an undercover ATF agent's pickup in a 7-Eleven parking lot in Woodridge, Ill., one of the middle-class suburbs that sprawl out west of Chicago. Alexander, 5 feet tall, introduced himself as "Little." He was, by then, a career crack dealer and recent cosmetology school dropout, though he was also out of jail and off parole for the first time in his adult life. And while his record was long, it hardly identified him as dangerous. Most of the people the ATF arrested in drug-house stings last year — about 80% — already had criminal records that included at least two felony convictions before the agency targeted them. But 13% had never before been found guilty of a serious crime, and even some of those with long rap sheets had not been charged with anything that would mark them as violent. ATF officials reject the idea that they should focus only on people with violent records. "Are we supposed to wait for him to commit a (obscenity) murder before we start to target him as a bad guy?" said Charlie Smith, the head of ATF's Special Operations Division, which is responsible for approving each sting. "Are we going to sit back and say, well, this guy doesn't have a bad record? OK, so you know, throw him back out there, let him kill somebody, then when he gets a bad record, then we're going to put him in jail?" For all the times Alexander was arrested — court records list dozens — police never found him with a gun, and he was charged with a violent crime only once, after his girlfriend, Demonisha Winters, accused him of domestic battery. The charge was dropped a few weeks later, and Winters said in an interview that Alexander never hit her. What he did do was sell crack, though seldom more than a gram or two at a time. When Alexander was 18, police in Kokomo, Ind., caught him trying to flush two baggies of crack down an apartment toilet. Four years after that, Chicago police arrested him with a half-gram. The next year, they caught him with 10 baggies of crack. Two years later, they caught him carrying a gram of crack and a half-gram of heroin, worth about $40, according to police reports and court files. The ATF was about to offer him something much bigger. stash houses 2 The undercover agent, Andrew Karceski, introduced himself as Joe. He pulled his truck around the corner, cut the engine and flipped a switch to show Alexander a hidden compartment, called a "trap," commonly used for running drugs. "They promise you one thing, and they (obscenity), they make all the money, and I take all the (obscenity) risk," he said in an exchange captured on a blurry hidden-camera video. "They haven't paid me in two months now, and that's (obscenity)," he said. "It's just got to a point where I got to feed my kids, too, you know what I'm saying?" "You're (obscenity) right," Alexander replied. Then the agent laid out the basics of his proposal: Once a month, he said, his bosses had him pick up a load of cocaine from a house in the suburbs. They used a different house every time, always with two or three men inside, always armed. But the payoff would be big: "I know there's going to be (obscenity) in there. I know that," he said, a reference to drugs. "How much I can't guarantee, but I know there's going to be big (obscenity) in there. I've never seen cash, but I don't know." Alexander said it wouldn't be a problem. "I got guys I could just say, 'Go in there and shoot everybody.' I got guys that I'll say they're smart enough to know go in there and lay everybody down without hurting anybody. I know (obscenity) that will get it done," he said. "We'll plan it right," he promised. "We've got enough time." 'I CALL THIS GOOD LAW ENFORCEMENT' The ATF's drug-house stings began in Miami in the early 1990s. Drug cartels were moving huge quantities of cocaine through South Florida, creating rich targets for criminals brazen enough to try to poach the shipments. The robberies were turning into shootouts — or, worse, attacks on innocent people when the robbers got the wrong address — and ATF agents wanted a way to stop them. At first, agents actually set up fake drug houses, loaded with fake cocaine. When that led to car chases and shootings in residential neighborhoods, they adopted a fictional approach instead. The stings proliferated over the past decade. Last year, the ATF said it arrested 208 people in drug-house operations, compared with 41 a decade earlier. Most of the operations took place in Miami, Chicago, Phoenix and a few other cities, though court records show the ATF has conducted them in at least 22 states. At the same time, the ATF dispatched agents around the country to teach the technique to other local and federal police agencies, including the U.S. Border Patrol. As drug-house operations became more common, the agency issued a confidential order laying down the ground rules for conducting them. Officials instructed agents to make sure Justice Department lawyers would be willing to prosecute "home invasion" cases, and told them to try other techniques first, including executing search warrants. Most of the rules covered the tactical details of safely arresting the suspects. The undated manual, a copy of which was obtained by USA TODAY, included no guidelines for selecting appropriate targets. ATF spokesman Mike Campbell said the agency has since updated the rules; ATF would not provide a copy. He said the agency's tactics have been approved by ATF lawyers and federal prosecutors; each operation must also be reviewed by field supervisors and senior officials in Washington who can shut it down if it's clear to them the targets aren't armed robbers. "We lay out the scenario. So if they're not career robbers, I'm not for that," said Richard Marianos, an assistant ATF director who supervised some of the investigations when he led the agency's Washington field office. Distinguishing drug robbers from loudmouths isn't easy. Drug dealers seldom report robberies to the police, so few of the robberies are investigated, let alone solved. Agents rely instead on scraps of intelligence gathered from informants (usually other criminals), convicts, 911 calls, neighborhood complaints and local police to identify and target robbery crews. A year after the ATF arrested Alexander's crew, for example, one of its informants arranged a meeting at a Baltimore train station with two men whom city police believed to be "armed drug traffickers." One of them, Edward Ellis, had been convicted a decade earlier of armed robbery; the other, Corey Barnes, had been convicted only of street-level drug sales. The informant told them they could score up to 15 kilograms of cocaine (easily worth more than $300,000). "You can't beat free money," Ellis replied, according to court records. “I call this good law enforcement.” U.S. District Court Judge James Bredar The informant warned them that the guards would be armed, but Ellis said they would be ready. "We got some artillery; it's just making sure you got the right artillery for the job," he said. "We ain't coming with just two handguns when a (obscenity) need more than that." But when it was time for the robbery two weeks later, none of the would-be robbers could find a car. They paid a friend to drive them. Two had pistols; a third man showed up armed with a pellet gun, according to court records. Ellis was sentenced in April to eight years and four months in federal prison. His lawyer, Tamara Theiss, told the judge that as the case unfolded, it had become clear that the men had to go out and find weapons to use during the robbery, suggesting that if they were robbers, they were not actually armed until after the ATF approached them. "This was simply an overwhelming temptation," she said, involving "a great deal of money … in a relatively easy way." The ATF's stings "are intended to ensnare the worst of the worst, the most dangerous people in society. It's clear that they ensnared someone very different," she said. U.S. District Court Judge James Bredar cut her off. "In our society, what we say is the touchstone of culpability is what's in your mind, what did you intend to do," he told Ellis. People who kill by accident generally aren't punished; people who plan to kill but don't are. "No actual crime was committed, nor could it have been," but Ellis nonetheless "demonstrated a propensity to commit a very serious offense," Bredar said. "This is a city where violence is rampant and the government is bound to undertake operations like this to find and stop those who are predisposed to this," said Bredar. "I call this good law enforcement." A HALF-MILLION DOLLARS OF COCAINE Alexander met the undercover agent again in early February 2011, climbing into the passenger seat of the agent's pickup in the parking lot of his apartment complex. He had a plan: When the agent went inside to pick up his regular shipment of cocaine, Alexander and his crew would follow close behind him, guns drawn. They could tie up the guards, Alexander said. Or they could start shooting. "If you want us to get rid of 'em, (obscenity) get rid of them, too," he said. "It's whatever. … You just said as long as we get in and get out we good, right?" Right, the agent said — especially if they got to the house early, before other couriers had a chance to pick up their own shipments. "When I get there early, there's a stack. There's 20 — 20, 30 40 (kilos). There's a ton if I'm first," he said. But to get it, the agent reminded him, they'd have to get past two or three armed men. "You were saying revolver, man," the agent said, turning the conversation back to the guns the robbers would need. "You get on anything else? You were talking you're trying to get something a little better than that. … Find anything?" stash houses 5 Alexander paused. "Tools? Nah," he said, referring to guns. But it wouldn't be a problem. A friend of his would be coming down to meet them in a few minutes, and he had the guns they needed, Alexander said. But he seemed more interested in talking about the money. Alexander predicted he could unload 1-kilogram bricks of cocaine quickly for $20,000 to $22,000, putting the value of the heist at between $400,000 and $880,000. He said he could make even more by cooking it into crack and selling it on the street. Alexander looked around and wondered what was taking his friend so long to show up. What happens if the police roll through and see them talking, he asked. "Nothing against the law about talking," the agent said. DOES IT GO TOO FAR? Federal courts have largely approved of the ATF stings, though some have also expressed unease. “... If these guys have an opportunity and we can knock that off before it gets to that, it's better for us.” Charlie Smith, ATF A little more than three months after agents first approached Alexander, for example, a federal appeals court in Chicago called the stings "tawdry," saying the ploy "seems to be directed at unsophisticated, and perhaps desperate, defendants who easily snap at the bait." The judges faulted agents for violating their own rules about recording meetings, but ultimately rejected the idea that the stings amount to entrapment. Entrapment is a narrow concept. The government can't pressure an innocent person to commit a crime. But it can — and routinely does — offer people who are predisposed to crime the opportunity to commit one. Police agencies have been conducting sting operations for decades to ensnare child abusers, drug dealers, even congressmen, though the drug-house stings rely more heavily on fiction than most. "It wears me out when you hear people sit there and say, 'Well, you created the dope,' " Smith, ATF's special operations chief, said. "Yeah, you know what? In this scenario, we did. And thank God we did. Because you know what? Now because of the fact that we did create this, my home, the home next door to me … isn't going to get their door kicked in looking for drugs that may have existed or maybe didn't exist because they had the wrong address. So when are we going to start sitting back and realizing, hey, if these guys have an opportunity and we can knock that off before it gets to that, it's better for us." Still, the combination of the fictional nature of the crimes and the government's reliance on confidential informants to help entice prospective robbers has caused problems. In one case, an ATF informant named David Villamonte testified that he targeted a Florida man named Cassio Slowden for a drug-house sting after parking next to him at a gas station and chatting about prison tattoos. "By his demeanor, I could tell he was young, and that he was involved in the elements," Villamonte said. When Slowden told him he had some marijuana to sell, Villamonte concluded he must have stolen it. Slowden's lawyer argued that he had been entrapped; a jury acquitted him of federal drug and weapons charges last year. Another informant, Victor Bugarin, testified that he spoke to a suspected San Diego drug robber named Thomas Johnson only a few times before enticing him to participate in a 30-kilogram cocaine heist. Confronted with phone records showing he'd been making repeated phone calls to Johnson over more than four months, the informant admitted that his story was "apparently not" true. Johnson said he went through with the robbery plan only because Bugarin said he needed the money to keep from being evicted. A jury last year acquitted him of all but one charge; the remaining count is on appeal. The ATF's Marianos said such conduct is not allowed. "We have many of these cases where we've stood down and said we're not going to do this because this informant is way off the playbook here," he said. Other cases were abandoned because supervisors thought the targets were inappropriate, he said. Acquittals are uncommon. USA TODAY was able to track 512 completed prosecutions; among those, juries acquitted 22 people, because jurors either thought that they had been entrapped or weren't convinced that they had been involved enough to be part of the conspiracy. At least 89 other prosecutions are still pending in federal court. William Alexander is shown meeting with an undercover ATF agent to discuss how he could rob a drug stash house in 2011. William Alexander is shown meeting with an undercover ATF agent to discuss how he could rob a drug stash house in 2011. ATF William Alexander, center, and two other suspects go over the details of a planned stash house robbery. Alexander doesn't know that the stash house doesn't exist and that he and his accomplices will soon be arrested as part of an ATF sting. William Alexander, center, and two other suspects go over the details of a planned stash house robbery. Alexander doesn't know that the stash house doesn't exist and that he and his accomplices will soon be arrested as part of an ATF sting. ATF William Alexander, left, and Devin Saunders put their hands up as a team of heavily armed ATF agents surrounds them at the conclusion of a sting operation. William Alexander, left, and Devin Saunders put their hands up as a team of heavily armed ATF agents surrounds them at the conclusion of a sting operation. ATF William Alexander and his two accomplices were arrested with a single gun, a five-shot revolver that an ATF report concluded had been manufactured before 1918. The gun was unloaded; agents found ammunition in a van in which the suspects were transported after they were arrested, but the bullets were the wrong size for the gun. William Alexander and his two accomplices were arrested with a single gun, a five-shot revolver that an ATF report concluded had been manufactured before 1918. The gun was unloaded; agents found ammunition in a van in which the suspects were transported after they were arrested, but the bullets were the wrong size for the gun. ATF Hugh Midderhoff is arrested after an ATF sting in which he plotted to rob a non-existent drug stash house. Midderhoff has pleaded guilty but has not yet been sentenced. Hugh Midderhoff is arrested after an ATF sting in which he plotted to rob a non-existent drug stash house. Midderhoff has pleaded guilty but has not yet been sentenced. ATF Devin Saunders is arrested as part of an ATF sting. The operation targeted a non-existent drug stash house. He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to seven years and nine months in prison. Devin Saunders is arrested as part of an ATF sting. The operation targeted a non-existent drug stash house. He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to seven years and nine months in prison. ATF William Alexander, who told ATF agents he was a chief in Chicago's notorious Four Corner Hustlers gang, was arrested in an ATF sting. If convicted, he faces at least 25 years in prison. William Alexander, who told ATF agents he was a chief in Chicago's notorious Four Corner Hustlers gang, was arrested in an ATF sting. If convicted, he faces at least 25 years in prison. ATF 'I WAS SUPPOSED TO BE PREPARED, MAN' The day before Alexander was to commit the robbery, the ATF agent pulled into the parking lot of his apartment building to go over the plan one more time. Alexander asked him to come upstairs while he and a friend smoked marijuana. The agent declined. Then Alexander asked for a ride to a store so they could pick up some police costumes. Later, the agent said. Did they have the pistols all lined up, he asked? "Ah, yeah," Alexander replied and bit at his fingernails. "I'm gonna get on top of that today, though." "I'm saying, man, if it's gonna be half-assed, let's just blow it off and not (obscenity) do it and wait," the agent said. "This is a one-time deal, dude." Another man, Hugh Midderhoff, 18, sat in the back seat, wrapped in a checkered jacket and big black hat. Like Alexander, he had a criminal record, including an arrest for possessing his neighbor's stolen television, but none of the charges were related to guns. "Hey, we can get another banger," he said to the agent. "That ain't going to be (obscenity)." The agent told them he would know the next day where to pick up his drug shipment. They would meet again at lunchtime so they could be ready when the call came. Nine minutes before noon the next day, Alexander called to say he still did not have enough guns. He was going to meet a friend to "grab the extra utensils," he said. A half-hour later, Alexander called again. He couldn't get any more guns. "I was supposed to be prepared, man. I been waiting for this day all this time," he said. But he was undeterred. "I'm willing to go, man. I'll do it." The agent was quiet for a minute. "Let me call you right back, man, and see what I can come up with," he said. He called back a few minutes later. His cousin had another pistol they could borrow, the agent said. "He got one of those things," the agent said. "He could give it to you guys, and he'll just be in the car as you guys do your thing." The robbery was on. 'POLICE. POLICE.' The agent and another officer posing as his cousin picked Alexander up outside his apartment. Midderhoff and another accomplice, Devin Saunders, joined him. Saunders packed a revolver into a locked compartment in the back of the agents' pickup truck, next to the pistol that the ATF supplied, and the suspects piled into the back seat. Saunders pulled on a mask and gloves. The agents drove them 6 miles to a parking lot in a tiny forest preserve sandwiched between warehouses and trucking companies where they said they could wait for the call that would tell them the location of the stash house. On the way, they went over the plan one last time; the agents confirmed that everyone knew what they were getting into, exchanges captured by a camera hidden on the dashboard. When they got to the preserve, one of the agents said he needed to make sure his car was locked and disappeared. A minute later, the other answered his phone and climbed out into the parking lot to take the call. Alexander sat in the back seat, talking on a cellphone with a girlfriend who was trying to follow them in a taxi. A few seconds later, he saw something and lowered the phone. "Police," he said softly and pointed out the window. "Police." Then came the boom of a pair of stun grenades that shook the truck as a team of agents in camouflage and olive body armor rushed toward them, rifles raised. "Out of the car," one yelled, as agents yanked the three men one at a time onto the asphalt. The process took less than 30 seconds. William Alexander, left, and Devin Saunders put their hands up as a team of heavily armed ATF agents surrounds them at the conclusion of a sting operation. Those seconds are the most dangerous and costly step of a drug-house sting. They are dangerous because, if everything goes the way agents expect, they will be confronting a crew of heavily armed men amped up to commit an especially violent crime. To deal with that risk, the ATF steers the takedowns to remote places such as forest preserves or warehouses where it's easier to take suspects by surprise and where stray bullets won't endanger the public. Then it assembles a small army of federal agents and local police officers. Smith said he recalled one pre-arrest briefing with 170 officers. Court records show ATF agents and local police officers working with them have shot at least 13 people during takedowns in drug-house stings since 2004, killing at least seven of them. Six were killed by local police officers conducting sting operations as part of an ATF task force. Most came after suspects fired at police or tried to run them down with cars. Four months after Alexander was arrested, a Miami-Dade Police Department SWAT team shot and killed four members of a robbery crew after they showed up at a house they thought was packed with marijuana. One of the dead was the police informant who arranged the phony robbery. "He did it out of his own good, and he got killed for it," his brother, Rudy Betancourt, said. "He planned his funeral." THE 15-YEAR MARK By the time agents had Alexander in handcuffs, the ATF had spent more than a month investigating him. It was clear by then the agents weren't the only ones who had been lying. Despite his promises of a police-style raid, Alexander and the others had brought no police uniforms or handcuffs. And despite his boasts that he was a gang chief who had men ready to kill at his command, he and his accomplices had managed to come up with only a single gun, a rusted five-shot revolver with a broken handle, old enough that an ATF report concluded it had been made sometime before World War I. The report confirmed the gun could have been lethal with the right kind of ammunition, but the men didn't have that, either. The six bullets they brought were the wrong size and, when loaded, would slide harmlessly out the front. In court, though, none of that matters. The drug-house stings are engineered to produce long prison sentences, and they typically do precisely that. Using court records, USA TODAY identified 484 people convicted as a result of the stings, though there are almost certainly others. Two-thirds were sent to prison for more than a decade, a sentence longer than some states impose for shootings or robberies. At least 106 are serving 20-year sentences, and nine are serving life. It's the drugs — though non-existent — that make that possible because federal law usually imposes tougher mandatory sentences for drugs than for guns. The more drugs the agents say are likely to be in the stash house, the longer the targets' sentence is likely to be. Conspiring to distribute 5 kilograms of cocaine usually carries a mandatory 10-year sentence — or 20 years if the target has already been convicted of a drug crime. “When you go in there and you stamp him out with a 15-to-life sentence, you make an impact in that community.” Charlie Smith, ATF That fact has not escaped judges' notice. The ATF's stings give agents "virtually unfettered ability to inflate the amount of drugs supposedly in the house and thereby obtain a greater sentence," a federal appeals court in California said in 2010. "The ease with which the government can manipulate these factors makes us wary." Still, most courts have said tough federal sentencing laws leave them powerless to grant shorter prison terms. To the ATF, long sentences are the point. Fifteen years "is the mark," Smith said. "You get the guy, you get him with a gun, and you can lock him up for 18 months for the gun. All you did was give this guy street creds," Smith said. "When you go in there and you stamp him out with a 15-to-life sentence, you make an impact in that community." That emphasis has led to another significant shift for ATF. Over the past decade, the total number of people prosecuted in weapons cases as a result of its investigations has dropped by about 28%, according to records compiled by Syracuse University's Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse. The number of people charged by the agency with drug offenses jumped 26%. Prosecutors typically classify cases based on the charges likely to produce the longest sentence. The ATF and federal prosecutors declined to comment on Alexander's case. Unless he strikes a deal with prosecutors, Alexander is facing a minimum of 25 years in federal prison — and maybe more, based on the quantity of drugs he planned to steal and his long rap sheet. Saunders, whose participation in the plot lasted only a few hours, was sentenced to seven years and nine months in prison. He signed on, he said in an e-mail to USA TODAY, because "the money was tempting." Midderhoff has agreed to plead guilty and cooperate with the government; he won't be sentenced until Alexander's case is resolved. His lawyer, James Young, declined to comment. Alexander's lawyer, Michael Falconer, said he wouldn't be opposed to the drug-house stings if he thought the ATF could make sure they were aimed only at people who were already ripping off drug dealers. "But on some level," he said, "it's Orwellian that they have to create crime to prevent crime." In a controversial and aggressive program, the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives has sent hundreds of people to prison for plotting to rob drug stash houses. Suspect in shooting of San Francisco tourist has extensive criminal record Francisco Sanchez has seven felony convictions and has been deported five times, according to a federal agency Francisco Sanchez US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) had turned Sanchez over to authorities in San Francisco on 26 March on an outstanding drug warrant, agency spokeswoman Virginia Kice said. A man suspected in the shooting death of a woman at a busy San Francisco tourist destination has seven felony convictions and has been deported five times, most recently in 2009, a federal agency said on Friday. Related: Donald Trump links shooting death in San Francisco with border control The case provided further fuel for the Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, who on Friday claimed it was “yet another example of why we must secure our border immediately”. Trump has been condemned by Hispanic leaders, the Mexican government and some other 2016 hopefuls, for a series of derogatory remarks about illegal immigrants to the US. “This is an absolutely disgraceful situation and I am the only one that can fix it,” the billionaire developer and television personality said. “Nobody else has the guts to even talk about it.” US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) had turned Francisco Sanchez over to authorities in San Francisco on 26 March on an outstanding drug warrant, agency spokeswoman Virginia Kice said. He was booked into the San Francisco County jail from federal prison, according to a statement from the San Francisco sheriff’s department, which operates the jail. Police officers arrested Sanchez about an hour after Wednesday’s seemingly random shooting dead of Kathryn Steinle at Pier 14 – one of the busiest attractions in the city. People gather there to take in the views, joggers exercise and families push strollers at all hours. Sanchez was on probation for an unspecified conviction, police sergeant Michael Andraychak said on Thursday. Kice said ICE issued a detainer for Sanchez in March, requesting notification of his release and that he stay in custody until immigration authorities could pick him up. The detainer was not honored, she said. Freya Horne, counsel for the sheriff’s office, said Friday that federal detention orders are not a legal basis to hold someone, so Sanchez was released 15 April. San Francisco is a sanctuary city, and local money cannot be spent to cooperate with federal immigration law. The city does not turn over people who are in the country illegally unless there’s an active warrant for their arrest, she said. Horne said they checked and found none. ICE could have issued an active warrant if they wanted the city to keep him, she said. “It’s not legal to hold someone on a request to detain. This is not just us. This is a widely adopted position,” Horne said. Steinle was gunned down while out for an evening stroll with her father along the waterfront. Police said witnesses heard no argument or dispute before the shooting, suggesting it was a random attack. Liz Sullivan told the San Francisco Chronicle the killing of her daughter was unbelievable and surreal. “I don’t think I’ve totally grasped it,” Sullivan said. Police sergeant Michael Andraychak said witnesses snapped photos of Sanchez immediately after the shooting, and the images helped police make the arrest while he was walking on a sidewalk a few blocks away. Police were still waiting for fingerprint identification on Sanchez, who is believed to be a 45-year-old whose last address was in Texas. Authorities said he does not yet have a lawyer who could be reached for comment. Sullivan told the Chronicle that her 32-year-old daughter turned to her father after she was shot and said she didn’t feel well before collapsing. “She just kept saying, ‘Dad, help me, help me,’” Sullivan said. Her father immediately began CPR before paramedics rushed the woman to the hospital. “She fought for her life,” Sullivan said. Steinle went to high school and previously lived about 40 miles east of San Francisco, the newspaper said. She recently moved just blocks from the waterfront and worked for a medical technology company. David Petraeus facing possible criminal charges – reports General who quit as head of CIA after extramarital affair has been investigated over lover’s possible access to classified material David Petraeus, the former CIA director, could face criminal charges, according to reports. David Petraeus, the former CIA director, could face criminal charges, according to reports. Photograph: S Sabawoon/EPA The US justice department is reported to be weighing up criminal charges against David Petraeus stemming from an investigation of whether the former CIA director gave a lover access to classified information. The New York Times on Friday quoted an unnamed official as saying prosecutors had recommended felony charges against the former general, who quit his CIA post in 2012 after admitting he had an affair with Paula Broadwell, an army reserve officer, while she was writing his biography. The Associated Press later similarly reported that charges were being considered, quoting its own confidential source. Federal investigators have been looking into whether Petraeus provided classified information to his biographer. A lawyer for Petraeus declined to comment on Friday night, as did the justice department and the FBI. The justice department investigation has focused on whether Petraeus gave Broadwell access to his CIA email account and other highly classified information. A recommendation to prosecute would leave the US attorney general, Eric Holder, with a decision to make on whether to seek an indictment against Petraeus, one of the leading US military commanders in recent times, having served as commander of American forces in both Iraq and Afghanistan. The Times reported that Petraeus had indicated to the justice department he was not interested in a plea deal that would enable him to avoid a trial. Petraeus has said he did not provide classified information to Broadwell. Senator John McCain of Arizona, a leading Republican voice on national security issues and an ally of Petraeus, in December sent a letter to Holder expressing concern about the justice department’s handling of the investigation. “I cannot ignore the broader concerns raised by the fact that this investigation apparently remains unresolved nearly two years later and that the only information that has come to light is through leaks by unnamed sources within the US intelligence community with knowledge of the matter,” McCain wrote. An FBI spokesman declined comment on the Times report. Reuters and the Associated Press contributed to this report Vladimir Katriuk, alleged Nazi war criminal, dies in Canada Ukrainian-born beekeeper, who was charged with genocide in absentia by Russia for alleged involvement in 1943 Khatyn massacre, dies after long illness. The second most wanted man on the Simon Wiesenthal Centre’s list of Nazi war criminals has died at 93 after a long illness, his lawyer has said. News of Vladimir Katriuk’s death emerged several hours after the Canadian Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs said Ottawa should take the necessary steps to ensure he be held accountable if he were found guilty of war crimes. Russia charged Katriuk with genocide this month in connection with the 1943 killing of civilians in Khatyn, now part of Belarus. According to war reports, Katriuk was a member of a Ukrainian battalion of the SS, the elite Nazi storm troops, between 1942 and 1944. He had denied the accusations against him. The Russian embassy in Ottawa called on the Canadian government a few weeks ago to support a criminal case against Katriuk. The Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation, a law enforcement body that reports only to President Vladimir Putin, called on Canada to deliver Katriuk to Moscow so he could be tried for alleged war crimes. Canada ignored the request and said it would never recognise Moscow’s annexation of Crimea and its interference in Ukraine. A study three years ago alleged Katriuk was a key participant in a village massacre during the second world war. A man with Katriuk’s name lay in wait in March 1943 outside a barn that had been set ablaze, operating a machine-gun and firing on civilians as they tried to flee the burning building, it said. “One witness stated that Katriuk was a particularly active participant in the atrocity: he reportedly lay behind the stationary machine-gun, firing rounds on anyone attempting to escape the flames,” the study by Lund University historian Per Anders Rudling says. Rudling, whose research was published in spring 2012 issue of Holocaust and Genocide Studies, attributed these details to KGB interrogations released for the first time in 2008. Katriuk allegedly deserted his SS unit when it moved to France from eastern Europe in 1944. He lived in Paris before moving to Canada in 1951, according to court documents. He later became a Canadian citizen and lived with his French-born wife in Ontario, working as a beekeeper. In 1999, Canada’s federal court ruled Katriuk obtained Canadian citizenship under false pretences, by not telling authorities about his collaboration with the Nazis, but could find no evidence he committed atrocities. In 2007, the Harper cabinet decided not to revoke his citizenship. How Nazi guard Oskar Gröning escaped justice in 1947 for crimes at Auschwitz Exclusive: UN war crimes files reveal that SS guard Gröning faced trial after the war for his role in the Holocaust but US cold war fears led to Nazis being released SS Unterscharführer Oskar Gröning. His UN War Crimes Commission file shows that he was one of 300 Auschwitz staff whom the Polish government intended to prosecute for ‘complicity in murder and ill-treatment’ at Auschwitz. SS Unterscharführer Oskar Gröning. His UN War Crimes Commission file shows that he was one of 300 Auschwitz staff whom Poland intended to prosecute. Owen Bowcott in London and Kate Connolly in Berlin Oskar Gröning, the convicted Auschwitz death camp guard, escaped prosecution in Britain nearly 70 years ago because of the United States’ desire to fight the cold war, according to newly discovered documents. Researchers in London combing through the archives of the UN War Crimes Commission (UNWCC) have discovered that charges against him were being prepared just as the entire judicial process against Germans accused of committing war crimes was closed down after political intervention from above. Gröning escaped justice until this week when the former SS bookkeeper at Auschwitz, now aged 94, was finally found guilty of being an accessory to the murder of 300,000 people and sentenced to four years in prison. It is likely to be one of the last Holocaust trials. Related: 'Accountant of Auschwitz' jailed for the murder of 300,000 Jews Although he did not kill anyone while working at the camp in Nazi-occupied Poland during the second world war, prosecutors argued that by sorting banknotes taken from the trainloads of arriving Jews he helped support a regime responsible for mass murder. Gröning had admitted moral guilt but said it was up to the court to decide whether he was legally guilty. The trial raised the issue of whether those deemed to be small cogs in the Nazi machinery, but who did not actively participate in the killing of 6 million Jews, were guilty of crimes. British forces captured Gröning in Germany at the end of the war and, probably as an act of revenge, initially imprisoned him in an old Nazi concentration camp. The historian Laurence Rees recorded that he was shipped to England in 1946. Gröning worked as a forced labourer but reportedly “ate good food and earned money to spend”. He joined a YMCA choir and “for four months travelled through the Midlands and Scotland giving concerts”. Rees wrote that he “sang German hymns and traditional English folk songs” to appreciative British audiences who competed to have one of the Germans stay with them overnight. Justice, however, was attempting to catch up with him. Records discovered by Dan Plesch, the director of the centre for international studies and diplomacy at Soas, University of London, show that Gröning’s name appears in UNWCC files dated 6 March 1947. Gröning’s entry in the UNWCC file, listing him as a camp guard. Gröning’s entry in the UNWCC file, listing him as a camp guard. He is described as SS Unterscharführer, which translates as junior squad commander and roughly equates to senior corporal or sergeant. His date of birth is given as 10 June 1921. The “date and place of alleged crime” is entered as Auschwitz 1940-45. The words “complicity in murder and ill-treatment” are written underneath. Gröning’s war crime is recorded as “common design” – the term used by investigators at the time to denote conspiracy in acts said to include “killings, death by gas chamber, cremations of living persons and corpses, use of human beings as guinea pigs for medical experimentation … beatings, tortures, starvation, abuse and indignities”. His file number, 4771/P/G/139-137, shows that he was number 137 in a list of 300 Auschwitz staff whom the Polish government intended to prosecute for war crimes. Another recovered document is the minutes of a UNWCC meeting held at the Royal Courts of Justice in London on 20 March 1947. It considered, among other cases, those of the 300 Auschwitz staff on the list drawn up by Dr Marian Muszkat, the commission’s Polish representative. Gröning was one of those listed in the proceedings as “S” – meaning suspect. “The commission was making a prima facie judgment as to whether there was a case to answer,” explained Plesch, who has examined the files. “The prosecution was required to give evidence of what the defence [in that category of cases] would be. It wrote: ‘Probable defence that they are acting under orders.’” Oskar Gröning listens to the verdict at his trial in Lüneburg, Germany. He was convicted on 300,000 counts of accessory to murder and given a four-year sentence. Oskar Gröning listens to the verdict at his trial in Lüneburg, Germany. He was convicted on 300,000 counts of accessory to murder and given a four-year sentence. The secret archive, now at Soas, contains lists of internationally approved war crimes indictments of tens of thousands of Nazis. Sixteen states, including the UK and US, worked together in London on the investigation of more than 36,000 international criminal cases between 1943 and 1948. “Gröning’s name popped up when I searched,” Plesch said. The process of drawing up a formal summons against the captured camp guard, however, coincided with diplomatic manoeuvres to wind down the UNWCC. On 24 April 1947, Sir Robert Craigie, a Foreign Office official who was present at the meeting the previous month that considered Gröning’s case, announced that the commission should not take any more cases. “The priority became to rebuild Germany,” Plesch said. Consequently, a decision was taken, despite fierce opposition by countries such as Poland and Yugoslavia, to release SS suspects being held. Even though Gröning was indicted as a suspected war criminal almost 70 years ago, he was never tried at the time. “The grand lie is that we never knew anything” about these Nazi suspects, Plesch said. “The dangerous myth is that nothing was ever done except against the Nazi leadership at Nuremberg war trials, but there was a huge effort by many countries that would have seen the likes of Gröning face trial, had it not been for the shift in policy from America. “It was said that the west had to release these Nazis to mobilise Germany against communism but why that mobilisation should involve Nazis has never been explained. Mothers with their children step off the train bringing them to the Auschwitz-Birkenau death camp in Nazi-occupied Poland. Mothers with their children step off the train bringing them to the Auschwitz-Birkenau death camp in Nazi-occupied Poland. “The British were not keen to pick arguments with the Americans. The last attempt at pursuing justice was a hunt for the camp guards responsible for executing the Allied inmates who took part in the ‘Great Escape’ from Stalag Luft III. “By that stage no one was going to prosecute minnows like Gröning. He went back to Germany and was released.” By the early 1950s, virtually all of those being held had been set free. Another victim of the sudden ideological obsession with the cold war was the film made by Alfred Hitchcock about Bergen-Belsen concentration camp. It was never shown when completed due to fear of upsetting the Germans at a time when the Soviet spectre was looming. “Gröning should have been punished at the time,” Plesch added. “It was a mistaken policy that anti-communism meant liberating the Nazis.” One of the photographs on this article was replaced on 17 July 2015. Jury finds man guilty of pushing wife off cliff during hike on anniversary Harold Henthorn, 59, guilty of first-degree murder in the death of Toni Henthorn, who died when they were hiking Colorado’s Rocky Mountain National Park Barry Bertolet, right, the brother of Toni Henthorn, walks with his wife Paula from a federal courthouse on Friday, following closing arguments in the murder trial of Harold Henthorn. A federal jury has found a man guilty of murder for pushing his wife to her death off a cliff as they hiked in Colorado’s Rocky Mountain National Park to celebrate their wedding anniversary, rejecting his claim that her fall was a tragic accident. It took the jury about 10 hours to find Harold Henthorn, 59, guilty of first-degree murder over the death of his second wife, a wealthy Mississippi native. She died after plummeting about 130 feet off a cliff in a remote, rocky area where the couple had been hiking on 29 September 2012, their 12th wedding anniversary. Henthorn told investigators that his wife paused to take photo of the view and fell face-first over the ledge. His attorney, Craig Truman, said prosecutors failed to prove he killed her. But prosecutors argued during a two-week trial that Henthorn carefully staged Toni Henthorn’s death to look like an accident because he stood to benefit from her $4.7m in life insurance policies, which she didn’t know existed. They seized on Harold Henthorn’s inconsistent accounts of the fatal fall and said the evidence did not match his shifting stories. Harold Henthorn scouted the remote area of the popular park 75 miles (120km) north of Denver nine times before bringing his wife with him. He was searching for the “perfect place to murder someone”, where there would be no witnesses and no chance of her surviving, prosecutor Suneeta Hazra said. Toni Henthorn, 50, wasn’t an avid hiker, so it didn’t make sense that she would have gone willingly into such dangerous terrain, investigators testified. A coroner said he could not determine whether she fell or was pushed, but he said he found no evidence that Harold Henthorn actually performed CPR on his wife, despite what he told dispatchers. And park rangers said Henthorn could not explain why he had a park map with an “X” drawn at the spot where his wife fell. Prosecutors argued the fatal fall was reminiscent of the death of Henthorn’s first wife, Sandra Lynn Henthorn, who was crushed when a car slipped off a jack while they were changing a flat tire in 1995 – several months after their 12th wedding anniversary. Henthorn has not been charged in that case, but police reopened the investigation after Toni Henthorn’s death. Details of the earlier case dominated the trial. A paramedic who responded to the 1995 accident testified that Henthorn didn’t seem upset by what had happened, and an investigator said a shoe print found on the vehicle suggested it might have been pushed. Though the investigation into Sandra Lynn Henthorn’s death was initially closed after a week, Truman argued that the investigation had been thorough and the case only received new scrutiny after Henthorn was charged with murder. The first wife’s death was an accident, he said, as was a 2011 incident in which a 20-foot (6-meter) beam fell on Toni Henthorn while the couple was working at their mountain cabin. It hit her in the head and fractured her vertebra. Toni Henthorn was a successful ophthalmologist from Mississippi who also earned money from her family’s thriving oil business. Harold Henthorn told her he was an entrepreneur and persuaded her to move with him to the Denver suburb of Highlands Ranch. They had a daughter, now nine. Prosecutors said Harold Henthorn made phony business cards to make it seem like he was a hard-working fundraiser for churches and nonprofits, but investigators found no evidence that he had any income from regular employment. Casey Anthony found not guilty of murdering daughter Caylee Florida jury acquits mother of killing two-year-old toddler who went missing in 2008 and found dead six months later A Florida jury has cleared a young mother, Casey Anthony, of murdering her two-year-old daughter, rejecting the portrayal of her as "a lying, no-good slut" who would rather go nightclubbing than rear her child. The jury unanimously found Anthony, 25, not guilty on murder, manslaughter and child abuse charges in a case that has gripped US talk shows and cable news television. But as she cried with relief at the verdicts on the more serious charges, she was convicted of lying to the police after claiming that her daughter, Caylee, had been abducted by a nanny when Anthony was driving around with the body of the child in the boot of her car. Anthony would have faced a possible death sentence had she been convicted of first degree murder but will serve no more than four years in prison when she is sentenced on Thursday. The verdict was met with outrage by some outside the court who denounced it as a miscarriage of justice comparable to OJ Simpson's acquittal for murder. But Anthony's lawyers praised the jury for resisting what they portrayed as the "media assassination" of their client since her arrest, particularly by television talkshow hosts and celebrity lawyers who pronounced her guilty before the trial was over. Prosecutors had alleged that Anthony murdered Caylee because she stood in the way of her party lifestyle and interest in men. They told the jury that she killed her daughter, in part with the use of chloroform, in 2008 and then buried her body in woods near the family home in Orlando several weeks later. Caylee's body was found with three strips of duct tape over her mouth and nose. Anthony's father, George, told the court his daughter left home in June, 2008 taking Caylee with her and did not return for a month. Anthony's parents asked repeatedly to see the child but their daughter told them she was too busy with work. Anthony also claimed that Caylee was being looked after by a nanny. It was later established that the nanny did not exist. Anthony maintained that claim until her parents received a notice that their daughter's car had been towed away. When they went to pick it up, George Anthony said that he noticed a strong odour from the boot that he and a worker in the tow yard both told the court smelled like a decomposing body. Anthony's mother, Cindy, then called the police and reported Caylee missing. "There is something wrong. I found my daughter's car today and it smells like there's been a dead body in the damn car," she told the emergency operator. The prosecution honed in on Anthony's failure to report her daughter missing during those 31 days. "Responses to grief are as varied as the day is long, but responses to guilt are oh, so predictable," the lead prosecutor, Linda Drane Burdick, said. "What do guilty people do? They lie. They avoid. They run. They mislead, not just to their family, but the police. They divert attention away from themselves and they act like nothing is wrong. That's why you heard about what happened in those 31 days." The prosecution relied on controversial scientific evidence including the testing of air taken from the boot of Anthony's car, which the court was told revealed the presence of decomposing human flesh and chloroform. The defence challenged the reliability of the tests. The judge refused to permit the prosecution to have the jury sniff a can containing an air sample from the car. Before the case went to the jury, Burdick showed two images of Anthony at a nightclub after Caylee went missing and of a tattoo with the words "beautiful life" in Italian that the prosecution said she obtained after her daughter was already dead. "At the end of this case, all you have to ask yourself is whose life was better without Caylee?" the prosecutor said. "This is your answer." But the jury rejected that explanation and accepted the defence's contention that Anthony was guilty of nothing more than being a panic stricken young mother who covered up an accidental death out of fear. The defence said that Caylee had drowned in the family swimming pool and that her mother then panicked. It claimed that Anthony's father knew about the accident and helped his daughter dispose of the body. It said that George Anthony, a former police officer, placed the tape over the dead girl's face to make it look like murder in order to cover up the failure to report the death. The man denied his daughter's account. The defence also claimed that Casey Anthony had been sexually abused by her father and brother and that was a factor in her erratic behaviour Anthony's lawyer, Jose Baez, said the prosecution had attempted to portray his client as "a lying, no-good slut" who murdered her daughter in order to go nightclubbing when in fact Caylee's death was "an accident that snowballed out of control". One of the prosecutors, Jeff Ashton, told the jury the defence failed to present any real evidence to back any of its claims and that the allegation that George Anthony staged a murder to cover up a lesser crime made no sense. "That's absurd. Nothing has been presented to you to make that any less absurd," he said. But the jury was not persuaded that Anthony killed her daughter either deliberately or by accident. The prosecution's case appears to have foundered on the lack of a definitive medical assessment of how Caylee died, uncertainty about what role the chloroform was meant to have played and the lack of any scientific evidence tying Anthony to her daughter's death. Outside the court, the verdict was met with astonishment and anger. "Where's justice for Caylee?" Janine Gonzalez told the Orlando Sentinel. "Do you mean to tell me that in Florida you can kill your child, toss her on the side of the road and go free? She [Casey Anthony[ better move and move to a faraway place." Ti McLeod, a neighbour of the Anthony family, said: "The justice system has failed Caylee." But Joe Adamson, an Orlando businessman, was sceptical about the prosecution's use of forensics. "I think it is really great that we have science, but we also have common sense," Adamson told the Sentinel. "These guys [jurors[ didn't buy into science fiction." Prosecutors were clearly stunned by the verdict, saying that they were amazed the jury rejected what they portrayed as a wealth of evidence against Anthony. Lawson Lamar, the Florida state attorney, said: "We're disappointed in the verdict today because we know the facts and we've put in absolutely every piece of evidence that existed. ... This is a dry-bones case. Very, very difficult to prove. The delay in recovering little Caylee's remains worked to our considerable disadvantage." Anthony's parents were reported to have gone in to hiding following death threats. "The family may never know what happened to Caylee Marie Anthony," said Mark Lippman, a lawyer for the parents. "Despite the baseless defence chosen by Casey Anthony, the family believes that the jury made a fair decision based on the evidence presented, the testimony presented, the scientific information presented and the rules that they were given by the Honorable Judge Perry to guide them." After the verdict, one of Anthony's lawyers, Cheney Mason, condemned the "media assassination" of his client since her arrest, including by other lawyers who appeared on television talkshows to pronounce her guilty before the trial was over. "Bias and prejudice and incompetent 'talking heads' saying what would be and how to be - I'm disgusted by some of the lawyers that have done this. I can tell you that my colleagues from coast to coast and border to border have condemned this whole process of lawyers getting on television and talking about cases they don't know a damn thing about," he said. Among those who have been the focus of criticism is Nancy Grace, the presenter of a show on CNN, who has almost doubled her ratings since the trial began with ritual pronouncements that the "tot mom", as she calls Anthony, was guilty. Grace defended the media in comments on the CNN website. "I find it interesting that his first reaction was to attack the media like we had something to do with it," she said. "We didn't have anything to do with it; this was all tot mom ... There is no way that this is a verdict that speaks the truth." But Baez, said: "I think we should all take this as an opportunity to learn and to realise that you cannot convict someone until they've had their day in court." Dzhokhar Tsarnaev guilty of Boston bombing and may face death penalty Tsarnaev convicted on all 30 counts related to attack on Boston in April 2013 Same jury to decide whether to sentence Tsarnaev to death or life in prison Tsarnaev remained impassive as the verdict was read out. After two months of jury selection and 17 days of moving and often disturbing testimony from 95 witnesses, it took a Boston jury just over 11 hours to convict Dzhokhar Tsarnaev on all charges relating to the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing. Tsarnaev, 21, was found guilty of all 30 counts against him, including conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction, for his role in the attack that left three people dead and 264 injured two years ago. Seventeen charges carried the death penalty, and the same jury will now decide whether to sentence Tsarnaev to death or life in prison without possibility of parole. Outside the courthouse afterward, survivors of the attack said they were grateful for the outcome. “It’s not a happy occasion,” said Karen Brassard, who was wounded along with her husband and daughter. “But we’re glad to put it behind us.” She said that it had been a difficult process, but the survivors had gotten through it together. United States attorney Carmen M Ortiz applauded the verdict: “As we enter this next phase, we are focused on the work that remains to be done.” The jury officially began their deliberation on Tuesday morning following closing statements from the prosecution, the defence, and a brief prosecution rebuttal. Assistant US attorney Aloke Chakravarty gave an emotional closing argument which aimed to ram home the horror of Tsarnaev’s crimes. Sorry, your browser is unable to play this video. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Karen Brassard, who was injured in the bombing, says the guilty verdict will help the city to move on As the clerk slowly delivered the verdict, Tsarnaev, dressed in a charcoal jacket and blue-grey sweater, remained impassive. He fiddled with his hands, hugged himself, scratched his hair and beard, but did not appear to react as the guilty verdicts were read. Briefly, at the end, he placed his head in his hands, before returning them to his pockets. Next to him as the judge called for recess, his attorney Judy Clarke appeared to offer some words of encouragement. Bill and Denise Richard, the parents of Martin Richard, the eight-year-old victim of the bomb placed by Tsarnaev outside the Forum restaurant, were in court to hear the verdict read out. They have been here almost every day as the trial progressed. Following the closing statements from the opposing lawyers on Monday, judge George O’Toole addressed the jury to underscore the weight of their responsibility. “Your oath as jurors requires you to determine the facts of the case without fear or favour based solely on the evidence,” he said. Having finally dispensed with the question of guilt, the trial will now move quickly to the sentencing phase. In the sentencing phase, the same jury – seven women and five men – will hear more witness testimony to help them decide whether or not to sentence Tsarnaev to death. If they vote for death – a vote which must be unanimous – the 21-year-old bomber will be transferred to a federal facility in Terra Haute, Indiana, and eventually executed, though a lengthy appeals process is likely. Evidence from the trial included a pressure-cooker bomb recovered from the Watertown crime scene. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Evidence from the trial included a pressure-cooker bomb recovered from the Watertown crime scene. The question of Tsarnaev’s fate is likely to cause much soul-searching in Massachusetts, a state which ruled capital punishment unconstitutional over three decades ago. The process of finding a jury took as long as it did partly because of the necessity of finding 12 jurors – and six alternates – who would be “death-qualified”, which is to say, neither implacably opposed to the death penalty nor wholeheartedly in favour. Clarke, defending Tsarnaev, has striven to portray him throughout the trial as an ordinary kid, who tweeted song lyrics and talked about girls on Facebook, but was in thrall to his radicalised elder brother Tamerlan. Tamerlan, who was killed following a shootout with police in the days following the attack, was ever-present in the defence’s tactics. In her closing argument, Clarke said that there was “no excuse” for her client’s actions, calling them“senseless”. But she also aimed to mitigate Tsarnaev’s involvement in the bombing through reference to Tamerlan, whom she named 93 times in her closing argument. William Weinreb, for the prosecution, gave short shrift to Clarke’s approach in a rebuttal that may well presage the second phase of the trial. “He’s entitled to try to pin the blame on somebody else if that’s what he wants to do,” he said. But you should see that for what it is. It’s an attempt to sidestep responsibility; not to take responsibility. “It’s up to you to hold the defendant fully responsible. You should find him guilty because he is guilty.” Now that the jury have done so, the second phase of the trial is set to start next week, according to court officials. Oscar Pistorius found guilty of culpable homicide Athlete to be sentenced on 13 October after judge says athlete used excessive force when he shot into toilet cubicle, killing Reeva Steenkamp Latest updates on the Oscar Pistorius trial verdict The Olympic and Paralympic athlete Oscar Pistorius has been found guilty of culpable homicide for the fatal shooting of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp and bailed ahead of sentencing. The guilty verdict on the manslaughter charge, a day after the judge Thokozile Masipa cleared him of murder, means Pistorius could receive anything from 15 years in prison to a suspended sentence, which would potentially allow the double amputee a chance to resurrect his sporting career. The court will resume for sentencing on 13 October. Masipa ordered Pistorius to stand as she delivered the guilty verdict. He stood ramrod with his hands folded in front of him. Steenkamp's parents, Barry and June, and other family members sat sombrely on the front row of the public gallery. After the verdict, Pistorius turned to his family while members of Steenkamp's family comforted each other. When the court adjourned, June could be seen shaking her head and Steenkamp's close friend Gina Myers broke down and wept. Reeva's mother June Steenkamp shaking head and hugging and comforting another family member who is visibly upset. Masipa made it clear that that although the state did not have to prove a motive for murder, there was no evidence in front of the court to say that Pistorius wanted to kill Steenkamp. But Masipa said Pistorius had acted negligently when he shot Steenkamp through a closed toilet door and was guilty of culpable homicide. "A reasonable person, with a similar disability, would have foreseen that the person behind the door would be killed, and the accused failed to take action to avoid this," she told the court. Pistorius was granted bail at the close of the hearing ahead of sentencing. He left the Pretoria high court escorted by police and bodyguards through a scrum of television cameras. Journalist: "Oscar, are you relieved?" #Pistorius's eyes swivel momentarily but he keeps on walking out of the courtroom. With no mandatory sentence for culpable homicide, Masipa - known for handing out stiff sentences - will have a great deal of discretion over the punishment. South Africa's prosecuting authority said on Friday it was "disappointed" with the verdict but defended its decision to pursue a murder charge. "The prosecutors held the view that there was sufficient evidence to secure a successful prosecution on the charges that were preferred against the accused," spokesperson Nathi Mncube said in a statement. Asked if the Steenkamp family was disappointed by the outcome, their lawyer Dup de Bruyn said: "There's no comment at the moment." The family would give interviews to media organisations after Friday's hearing according to their present contractual arrangements, he added. Oscar Pistorius Is Cleared Of Murdering Girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp Barry Steenkamp sits during Oscar Pistorius' trial. Arnold Pistorius, who has spoken for his nephew before, delivered a short Pistorius family statement before leaving the court. Pistorius and his father, Henke, are estranged. "There are no victors in this. We as a family remain deeply affected by the devastating tragedy … It won't bring Reeva back but our hearts still go out for her family and friends." He said the family would make no further statement due to the ongoing legal proceedings but was grateful to the judge for clearing him of the murder charge as it had always believed his version of events. Pistorius has said he mistook Steenkamp for an intruder when he shot four times through a locked bathroom door, killing her almost instantly. He was also cleared on two unrelated firearms charges - of firing a firearm through a sunroof and of illegal possession of ammunition - but found guilty on a third of illegally discharging a firearm in a crowded restaurant in January 2013, weeks before Steenkamp's death. Dzhokhar Tsarnaev guilty of Boston bombing and may face death penalty Tsarnaev convicted on all 30 counts related to attack on Boston in April 2013 Same jury to decide whether to sentence Tsarnaev to death or life in prison Tsarnaev remained impassive as the verdict was read out. After two months of jury selection and 17 days of moving and often disturbing testimony from 95 witnesses, it took a Boston jury just over 11 hours to convict Dzhokhar Tsarnaev on all charges relating to the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing. Tsarnaev, 21, was found guilty of all 30 counts against him, including conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction, for his role in the attack that left three people dead and 264 injured two years ago. Seventeen charges carried the death penalty, and the same jury will now decide whether to sentence Tsarnaev to death or life in prison without possibility of parole. Outside the courthouse afterward, survivors of the attack said they were grateful for the outcome. “It’s not a happy occasion,” said Karen Brassard, who was wounded along with her husband and daughter. “But we’re glad to put it behind us.” She said that it had been a difficult process, but the survivors had gotten through it together. United States attorney Carmen M Ortiz applauded the verdict: “As we enter this next phase, we are focused on the work that remains to be done.” The jury officially began their deliberation on Tuesday morning following closing statements from the prosecution, the defence, and a brief prosecution rebuttal. Assistant US attorney Aloke Chakravarty gave an emotional closing argument which aimed to ram home the horror of Tsarnaev’s crimes. Sorry, your browser is unable to play this video. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Karen Brassard, who was injured in the bombing, says the guilty verdict will help the city to move on As the clerk slowly delivered the verdict, Tsarnaev, dressed in a charcoal jacket and blue-grey sweater, remained impassive. He fiddled with his hands, hugged himself, scratched his hair and beard, but did not appear to react as the guilty verdicts were read. Briefly, at the end, he placed his head in his hands, before returning them to his pockets. Next to him as the judge called for recess, his attorney Judy Clarke appeared to offer some words of encouragement. Bill and Denise Richard, the parents of Martin Richard, the eight-year-old victim of the bomb placed by Tsarnaev outside the Forum restaurant, were in court to hear the verdict read out. They have been here almost every day as the trial progressed. Following the closing statements from the opposing lawyers on Monday, judge George O’Toole addressed the jury to underscore the weight of their responsibility. “Your oath as jurors requires you to determine the facts of the case without fear or favour based solely on the evidence,” he said. Having finally dispensed with the question of guilt, the trial will now move quickly to the sentencing phase. In the sentencing phase, the same jury – seven women and five men – will hear more witness testimony to help them decide whether or not to sentence Tsarnaev to death. If they vote for death – a vote which must be unanimous – the 21-year-old bomber will be transferred to a federal facility in Terra Haute, Indiana, and eventually executed, though a lengthy appeals process is likely. Evidence from the trial included a pressure-cooker bomb recovered from the Watertown crime scene. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Evidence from the trial included a pressure-cooker bomb recovered from the Watertown crime scene. Photograph: Dominick Reuter/Reuters The question of Tsarnaev’s fate is likely to cause much soul-searching in Massachusetts, a state which ruled capital punishment unconstitutional over three decades ago. The process of finding a jury took as long as it did partly because of the necessity of finding 12 jurors – and six alternates – who would be “death-qualified”, which is to say, neither implacably opposed to the death penalty nor wholeheartedly in favour. Clarke, defending Tsarnaev, has striven to portray him throughout the trial as an ordinary kid, who tweeted song lyrics and talked about girls on Facebook, but was in thrall to his radicalised elder brother Tamerlan. Tamerlan, who was killed following a shootout with police in the days following the attack, was ever-present in the defence’s tactics. In her closing argument, Clarke said that there was “no excuse” for her client’s actions, calling them“senseless”. But she also aimed to mitigate Tsarnaev’s involvement in the bombing through reference to Tamerlan, whom she named 93 times in her closing argument. William Weinreb, for the prosecution, gave short shrift to Clarke’s approach in a rebuttal that may well presage the second phase of the trial. “He’s entitled to try to pin the blame on somebody else if that’s what he wants to do,” he said. But you should see that for what it is. It’s an attempt to sidestep responsibility; not to take responsibility. “It’s up to you to hold the defendant fully responsible. You should find him guilty because he is guilty.” Now that the jury have done so, the second phase of the trial is set to start next week, according to court officials. Oscar Pistorius culpable homicide verdict causes uproar in South Africa 'This verdict is not justice for Reeva,' says mother of Reeva Steenkamp, who died after being shot by athlete The parents of Reeva Steenkamp expressed anger and disbelief on Friday after Oscar Pistorius was formally acquitted of their daughter's murder, insisting: "Justice was not served." Amid growing discontent in South Africa at the verdict, the Steenkamps criticised judge Thokozile Masipa for being too lenient on the athlete, who was instead convicted of culpable homicide, the South African equivalent of manslaughter, and granted bail. "This verdict is not justice for Reeva," her mother, June Steenkamp, told NBC News. "I just want the truth." Steenkamp, a 29-year-old model and law graduate, died in a small toilet cubicle when Pistorius shot her four times through the locked door just after 3am on Valentine's day last year. The court heard how his hollow tipped bullets opened and mushroomed on impact, tearing through her flesh and killing her almost instantly. He claims he mistook her for an intruder, a version that the judge accepted. She died a "horrible, painful, terrible" death, June added. "He shot through the door and I can't believe that they believe it was an accident." Although Pistorius looked relieved at the judgment, he will return to court on 13 October for a sentencing hearing and could face up to 15 years in jail, though a shorter jail sentence of perhaps five years is considered more likely. June Steenkamp told NBC News: "I really don't care what happens to Oscar. It's not going to change anything because my daughter is never coming back. He's still living and breathing and she's gone, you know, forever." Jacqui Mofokeng, a spokeswoman for the African National Congress women's league, who supported the Steenkamps in court, said: "They are saddened by the verdict. It's like they're mourning Reeva again. Emotions are high. Some of the family were crying when the verdict was given." After a six-month trial that saw the double-amputee athlete sob, moan and vomit into a bucket, on Friday the high court in Pretoria was besieged by camera crews, photographers and reporters from all over the world. Yet Masipa's final verdict came in low-key circumstances, with her decisions having already become clear during the reading of her judgment. "Mr Pistorius, please stand up," she instructed the accused. Wearing a dark suit, Pistorius rose in the dock and stood ramrod straight, his hands folded in front of him, and showed little emotion as the judge read her final verdict. "Having regard to the totality of this evidence in this matter, the unanimous decision of this court is the following: on count one, murder … the accused is found not guilty and is discharged," Masipa said. "Instead he is found guilty of culpable homicide." There was little instant reaction from members of the Pistorius and Steenkamp families sitting on the front row. But when the court adjourned for lunch, June Steenkamp could be seen shaking her head and putting an arm around another family member, while Steenkamp's friend Gina Myers openly wept. Meanwhile Pistorius's estranged father Henke offered him a smile and comforting hand. The athlete seemed to acknowledge him but quickly ended the encounter. The mood was sombre rather than celebratory. Pistorius, 27, was also found not guilty of illegally possessing ammunition, and firing his weapon through a car sunroof. But he was convicted of negligence relating to an incident in which a gun went off in his possession at a restaurant where more than 200 people were present in January last year. Masipa turned down an application by prosecutors to refuse bail. It means the sprinter, nicknamed the "blade runner" because of his prosthetic limbs, will continue to live with his uncle Arnold in Pretoria, his residence for the 18 months since the shooting. Arnold Pistorius said the family were grateful to the judge for finding the sportsman not guilty of murder. "It's a big burden off us, off our shoulders and Oscar. "We always knew the facts of the matter and we never had any doubt in Oscar's version of this tragic incident. We as a family remain deeply affected by the devastating tragedy … It won't bring Reeva back, but our hearts still go out for her family and friends." Across South Africa, there was consternation at the judge's verdict. Many people took to radio phone-ins and social media to vent their bewilderment and the hashtag #Justice4Reeva quickly started trending on Twitter. Some suggested that Pistorius had been given exceptional treatment because of his celebrity, wealth and race. Eusebius McKaiser, a talkshow host on the Johannesburg-based radio station Power FM, said he had received hundreds of calls and text messages during his morning show and "99% of them think it was a mistake". McKaiser, an author and columnist, took the same view: "She should have found him guilty of murder. There are good prospects for the state to appeal on a point of law. The higher court might even rebuke her for getting it wrong. The mistake she made really was elementary." The judge was wrong to use details of Pistorius's conduct after the killing, such as praying to God to save Steenkamp's life, as evidence of his intention when he pulled the trigger, McKaiser added. "That's the bit I deem to be embarrassing and not just wrong. It doesn't matter what happened afterwards. These facts are irrelevant to the case." Lawyers also joined the criticism. Martin Hood, an attorney specialising in firearms offences, said: "There has been a widespread expression of outrage across the board. There are many people in the legal profession who believe she got it wrong. It has met with a lot of disappointment in the court of public opinion, including on the part of gun owners." He added: "I would be bitterly disappointed and angry if I was Reeva Steenkamp's family." The national debate quickly drew comparisons to Molemo "Jub Jub" Maarohanye, a black rapper sentenced to 20 years in prison for murder after crashing into a group of boys while drag-racing through the streets of Soweto. Trevor Noah, one of South Africa's leading comedians, tweeted: "I'm very confused. Jub Jub raced a car high and was found guilty of murder, Oscar went to fetch a gun but he gets less time?" Another Twitter user, "prince akeem", posted: "Jubjub didn't even mean to kill those kids but he got murder but pointing a gun and shooting four times is an accident." The conviction of culpable homicide can bring a maximum prison sentence of 15 years, although legal experts pointed to five years as a guideline. The prosecution gave no indication of whether it planned to appeal. The National Prosecuting Authority said: "We respect the court decision to convict the accused on culpable homicide, which is in fact a serious crime. We are, however, disappointed that we were not successful in securing a conviction on the original charge of premeditated murder. "NPA will await until the matter is concluded and will then comment on any further legal steps that might be envisaged." Makers of tainted supplements have criminal pasts A USA TODAY investigation finds that a wide array of dietary supplement companies caught with drug-spiked products are run by people with criminal backgrounds and regulatory run-ins. Tainted supplements, criminal pasts A number of supplement firms caught with drug-spiked products are run by executives with criminal backgrounds and regulatory run-ins. Tests have found their supposedly all-natural pills and powders have contained potentially dangerous ingredients including methamphetamine-like compounds and anti-psychotic drugs. Like many pills and powders sold as dietary supplements, Dr. Larry's Tranquility pills were not what they seemed. And neither was Dr. Larry. The pills promised insomniacs a great night's sleep with an all-natural blend of ingredients such as figwort root and licorice. Then, earlier this summer, these particular pills — out of an estimated 85,000 supplement products on the market — happened to get tested in a lab by regulators from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The agency is budgeted to run just 1,000 tests a year in its limited oversight of the $30 billion industry. The tests showed Tranquility was spiked with two powerful prescription drugs: an anti-psychotic medication best known as Thorazine, and the anti-depressant and sleep medication called doxepin. Research by USA TODAY shows that Larry LeGunn is a convicted criminal and not a licensed doctor. He's a former chiropractor who had to give up his Florida license in 2010 after being charged with grand theft and insurance fraud relating to his treatment of auto accident victims, according to court and licensing records. LeGunn ultimately pleaded no contest to an amended charge of misleading solicitation of payments. Far from an isolated case, a USA TODAY investigation finds that a wide array of dietary supplement companies caught with drug-spiked products are run by people with criminal backgrounds and regulatory run-ins. Consumers buying products from these firms are in some cases entrusting their health and safety to people with rap sheets for crimes involving barbiturates, crack cocaine, Ecstacy and other narcotics, as well as arrests for selling or possessing steroids and human growth hormone. Other supplement company executives have records of fraud, theft, assault, weapons offenses, money laundering or other offenses, the investigation shows. • Jeffrey Bolanos, who runs Beamonstar Products in Queen Creek, Ariz., has twice been convicted on drug charges, most recently in a 2008 case that notes possession of crack cocaine and a relapse with methamphetamines, court records show. In May, his company, which has received industry awards for its sexual enhancement supplements, recalled three supposedly all-natural products after FDA tests found that two contained tadalafil, the medication in the prescription erectile dysfunction drug Cialis. The third was potentially spiked. One of Beamonstar's tainted supplements was marketed for women. Bolanos had no comment. • Martin McDermott, president of Kilo Sports in Phoenix, was indicted in 2004 with three felony counts of dangerous drug possession involving the steroid boldenone and testosterone, and one felony count of possession of prescription drugs, specifically human growth hormone, for sale. He later pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor count of possession of drug paraphernalia and received probation. In 2009, three Kilo Sports products were recalled for ingredients the FDA said should be classified as steroids. The company recalled another supplement in 2010 because of concerns it contained an anti-estrogen drug. McDermott didn't respond to interview requests. • Barry Nevins, who runs DrBarrysVitamins.com, isn't really a doctor and under an agreement with prosecutors isn't supposed to represent himself as one in his vitamin store. Yet as recently as this week, his website touted "Dr. Barry" — whose only Florida health care license was as a massage therapist — as "a leading formulator, developer and manufacturer of natural pharmaceuticals." In 2011, Nevins was charged with unlicensed practice of the health care profession, a felony, records show. While facing those charges, FDA tests found one of Barry's Vitamins & Herbs' products, Virility Max, was secretly spiked with a drug that's a chemical cousin to Viagra. Prosecutors in Palm Beach County, Fla., said they are now reviewing the website to determine whether Nevins has violated a deferred prosecution agreement reached in March in the 2011 case. Nevins declined to be interviewed. • Jay Cohen, CEO of IQ Formulations, was arrested on a charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon in 2008 for wielding a machete and striking the driver's side mirror of a teenager's car parked outside Cohen's home blaring music, police and court records show. Cohen, who told USA TODAY he was protecting his family, pleaded no contest in 2010 to assault and received probation. In November, IQ Formulations recalled its Hydravax weight-loss supplement after the FDA told the company it contained a prescription-only diuretic drug. A company spokesman said the recall was the result of a supplier providing a tainted ingredient. USA TODAY scrutinized about 100 companies that have been caught selling supplements secretly spiked with drugs and potentially dangerous chemicals since 2007. The examination found that at least 14 were run by people with criminal records beyond traffic infractions. The newspaper researched corporation records to identify the company executives and owners, then examined police, court and professional licensing records, ordering files from across the country to determine what they had done in the past. There are likely many more supplement company executives with criminal records. The FDA's tainted-supplements database lists 123 companies that have been caught selling about 460 spiked products in the past six years, but the corporate records of nearly three dozen of the companies couldn't be located. For about 150 spiked products, the FDA's database doesn't list a manufacturer, in many cases because it was unclear to the agency who made them. And many companies selling sketchy products aren't listed in the FDA's database. Supplement executives with criminal records who granted interviews generally said their pasts had nothing to do with their ability to make good supplements and they often blamed suppliers for putting drugs in their products without their knowledge. "China will lie, just lie and tell you it's all herbal and they slip in a little trace of something," LeGunn said, adding that he no longer has supplements made there. But most didn't respond to interview requests or refused to talk about their backgrounds. "I'm not going to discuss anything. I have the right to remain silent," said Gisselle Lopez, a partner in Svelte 30 Nutritional Consultants LLC in Kissimmee, Fla., when a reporter asked about a 2003 theft conviction and why her staff referred to her as "Dr. Gisselle." Florida records don't show her as having a medical license. Her company recalled one of its weight loss supplements in 2011 after FDA tests showed it was spiked with sibutramine, the active ingredient in the prescription weight loss drug Meridia that was pulled off the U.S. market because of heart attack and stroke risks. 'A TALE OF TWO INDUSTRIES' USA TODAY's ongoing investigation has shown that consumers of tainted diet supplements have paid dearly in some cases, suffering side effects ranging from severe bleeding and dangerous effects on diabetes control to liver damage, strokes and death. Athletes have had their sports careers jeopardized after testing positive for ingredients laced into sports supplements. Dallas-based USPlabs has been linked to a recent outbreak of serious liver injury cases among people taking its OxyElite Pro weight-loss supplement. Its CEO, Jacob Geissler, has a criminal history involving anabolic steroids and has clashed repeatedly with the FDA. USPlabs recalled OxyElite Pro in November. Until recently, Geissler served on the board of trustees of the American Herbal Products Association, a major industry trade group. Driven Sports Vice President Matt Cahill, whose pre-workout powder Craze has been found by teams of scientists to contain a methamphetamine-like compound, is a convicted felon with a history of putting risky products on the market.Craze was named 2012's "New Supplement of the Year" by Bodybuilding.com, a major online retailer of sports supplements. "All industries are going to have people with criminal problems in their background," said Steve Mister, president of the Council for Responsible Nutrition, a supplement industry trade group that lists major corporations such as Procter & Gamble, Bayer HealthCare and Abbott Nutrition among its members. Histories of financial fraud or violent behavior may not have much relevance when it comes to making supplements, Mister said. "But I do think when you talk about people with a history of criminal convictions with controlled substances and illicit drugs, and they are making products where they have the opportunity to bring that prior background into their product, that is concerning." "It is unfortunately a tale of two industries. There's a mainstream, responsible industry," Mister said of the supplement business. "Then there is this sort of shadow industry, the smaller guys playing around the fringes. The problem is how we distinguish between the two." WHAT CAN BE DONE ABOUT IT Under the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994, known by the acronym DSHEA, the FDA must show that a product is unsafe before it can take any action to restrict its use or seek its removal from the market. Nutritional supplements such as the vitamins, minerals, protein powders and herbal blends used by more than half of Americans are treated like foods and assumed to be all-natural and safe — unless proven otherwise. Although supplements are often sold and used as remedies for various conditions, they aren't required to prove their safety and effectiveness before being put on the market, as is required with medications. "Supplements are under-regulated by the FDA," said June Rogers, director of drug program and policy at the NFL Players Association, whose members are tested for a variety of performance-enhancing drugs. "Anyone is allowed to go out and make a supplement and basically sell it until the FDA comes knocking at your door. But before that happens, there's a lot of profits to be made." Loren Israelsen, a top supplement industry association official who is credited as a key architect behind the DSHEA supplement law, said that 20 years ago nobody envisioned the kinds of rogue players, advanced chemistry and drug-spiked products being seen today. "It is so counterintuitive and opposite to the really fundamental principles of what this industry is about that we probably didn't fully recognize it because it was so not a part of us," Israelsen, president of the United Natural Products Alliance, said in an interview this week. Israelsen was convicted in 1997 of conspiracy to defraud the United States, for a scheme that involved falsifying documents to import evening primrose oil despite an FDA ban on its importation. The documents falsely declared that the shipments were such things as "Vitamin E" to avoid seizure and sought to conceal that Health Products International was the company importing the material, federal records show. During the conspiracy, Israelsen was a vice president and general counsel at Health Products International, which he described as the manufacturing arm of Nature's Way, where he also was a top executive. He said his actions should be viewed in the context of a time when the industry felt the FDA was taking overzealous and unjustified actions against natural products. "I was much younger and breathing more fire," he said. "In retrospect, would we do it that way again? No." Israelsen said there's a difference between standing up for evening primrose oil and supplement company executives fighting the FDA over substances with questionable chemical origins. He said recent media coverage of supplement makers like Cahill and Geissler and their potentially dangerous products has altered the way the industry views calls for additional regulation. "It has been fundamental. Things have changed. That's a reality," Israelsen said. "We have to just look at where we are and what needs to be done to best address it — because it's in our best interest to address it." In what could be considered an important conciliation for his industry, Israelsen said he's open to having discussions about whether new tools are needed to make it easier and faster for the FDA to take action. In the past, the industry has opposed and defeated legislation that would require supplements to be registered with the FDA, arguing that criminals wouldn't register and that good companies would be overly burdened. But Israelsen says he now thinks it's possible that requiring registration could give the FDA a "faster, easier way to say they're not in compliance." A bill reintroduced this summer by Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., and Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., would require supplement firms to register products with the FDA within 30 days after being marketed, including providing a description of each product, its ingredients and a copy of the label. Other supplement industry trade groups emphasize that better enforcement would address the industry's bad actors. Under existing laws, any person who markets a supplement that violates the law can be found guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by up to a year in jail and $1,000 in fines, notes the Council for Responsible Nutrition. Such criminal cases appear to be rare, however, and they can take years and can involve more complex felony charges. The FDA has so far not provided data, requested under the Freedom of Information Act, on how often the agency has sought criminal prosecution of supplement makers. "More executives should be subject to these misdemeanor cases," said Mister, who heads the council. "That would send a very strong message to the industry." Supplement makers also can be subject to individual and corporate fines of up to $500,000 for a series of violations in a case, Mister noted. "If you don't have a cop watching the speed limit, people will speed." Daniel Fabricant, director of the FDA's dietary supplements division, said: "We're doing all we can with the tools we have." He noted that limited resources at the agency are a factor, along with competing priorities among the many food and medical products regulated by the agency. In some recent cases, the FDA has used its authority to detain and seize adulterated or misbranded dietary supplements, as it did this year with supplements made by USPlabs and Hi-Tech Pharmaceuticals that contained the controversial stimulant DMAA. The FDA has the authority to order a recall of supplements if a manufacturer refuses to do so, and the agency threatened this in a letter to USPlabs that prompted the company to recall OxyElite Pro last month. But the FDA still should do more, argues Patrick Arnold, who was convicted in 2006 as the Illinois steroid chemist in the "Balco" scandal that involved distributing performance-enhancing drugs to high-profile athletes. "Obviously, we want to avoid regulatory interference as much as we can because it never ends up being a good thing," Arnold said. But without better FDA oversight, Arnold said, it will become increasingly difficult for supplement makers to compete without spiking their products. He pointed to the lack of any public action by the FDA to address repeated findings by independent labs — including by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency in June 2012, and various teams of international researchers — of undisclosed amphetamine- and methamphetamine-like compounds in Craze. This week, another peer-reviewed journal article reported tests showing similar findings in additional samples of Craze, as well as in Detonate. Driven Sports says the tests are wrong; Gaspari officials have not responded to interview requests. "When stuff like this happens with Craze and Detonate, that just makes people so pissed off that they're ready for some regulation," Arnold said. "That's so unfair to competitors and it's a public health issue." Arnold pointed out that there have been people with criminal backgrounds making supplements as long as he's been in the business. "When I first got started in the 1990s, just about every major supplement owner was an ex-steroid dealer," he said. "You make money selling steroids, then start your supplement company." With the Internet, he said, it doesn't take much to start selling the pills and powders. "It's a very low barrier of entry," Arnold said. "And you don't have to be that smart. You just pretend that you know science." Arnold says prison time, his notoriety and the increased scrutiny his products have drawn from regulators have changed the way he does business. But his products still have pushed into gray areas. In 2009, two of his products — Ergopharm's 60-OXO Xtreme and 6-OXO — were the subject of a recall after the FDA said they contained substances that should be classified as steroids. In recent years, Arnold has taken credit for being the first supplement maker to put the controversial stimulant DMAA into his products. He says he removed it after the FDA crackdown and after more scientific evidence emerged raising questions about whether it's naturally in geraniums. Elizabeth Stapleton shakes up a sample of supplements that were sent in for testing at Aegis Sciences Corp. in Nashville. Aegis is among the private groups doing testing for athletes and others seeking to detect spiked supplements that have the potential to damage careers and cause health problems. HIDING DANGEROUS INGREDIENTS IN PLAIN SIGHT The problem of supplement adulteration is significant, whether it occurs with criminal intent or is the result of lax quality control and insufficient oversight of suppliers. Just over half of all Class 1 drug recalls in the USA from 2004 to 2012 — those that could cause serious health problems or death — involved supposedly all-natural dietary supplements that were spiked with hidden pharmaceuticals, according to research published this year in the scientific journal JAMA Internal Medicine. Of the 237 supplements recalled for hidden drugs, 40% were sold for sexual enhancement; 31% for bodybuilding and 27% for weight loss, the researchers said. But hidden drugs have been found in other categories of supplements as well, including diabetes and arthritis remedies. This summer, Purity First Health Products recalled various lots of Vitamin B50 capsules, Vitamin C capsules and multi-mineral capsules after FDA tests indicated the presence of steroids. With minimal testing being done by the FDA, a growing number of private companies are doing their own tests to identify problems that aren't being detected and addressed by regulators. The U.S. Anti-Doping Agency tests and reviews labels of supplements of interest to athletes, and maintains a list of "high-risk" supplements, many of which have not been subject to FDA action. Sometimes troubling ingredients hide in plain sight on the products' labels under names most consumers would never recognize. "At least 200 different names are being used for testosterone," said David Black, founder of Aegis Sciences Corp. in Nashville, which has created a database of supplements to help clients at 140 universities, the NFL Players Association and other sports organizations. A mobile Aegis Shield app has recently been made available to the public. While there are about 2,475 ingredients in the products in the Aegis database, more than 35,000 aliases are used for the ingredients on their labels. For example, there were 167 aliases for marijuana and 82 aliases for methylhexanamine, better known as DMAA. Aegis also found other ingredients that might make consumers think twice, including "Wu Ling Zhi" — which is flying-squirrel feces, and "Putrescine," which is also known as the foul odor of decomposing flesh. "In our experience, we've seen so many products out there that are not what they're represented to be," Black said. "If a product has a great claim and actually does what it claims to do, it probably has an ingredient that shouldn't be in there." And the people who pay the price, ultimately, are those who — knowingly or unknowingly — indulge. U.S. Olympic Committee athlete ombudsman John Ruger noted in an e-mail to USA TODAY this week that "despite our aggressive efforts to educate them on the potential pitfalls, the harsh reality is that we will have athlete(s) who miss the Olympic Games because they take a supplement that includes a banned substance." Mikaeel Kular's mother pleads guilty to killing three-year-old Rosdeep Adekoya admits reduced charge of culpable homicide of son, who was reported missing from Edinburgh home Mikaeel Kular was reported missing by his mother, Rosdeep Adekoya The mother of Mikaeel Kular, the three-year-old boy reported missing from their Edinburgh home in January, has admitted killing her son. Rosdeep Adekoya, who has pleaded guilty to killing her three-year-old son Mikaeel Kular Rosdeep Adekoya, 34, had been charged with murder but pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of culpable homicide when she appeared at the high court in Edinburgh on Friday. Adekoya sparked a major police and public search for Mikaeel after claiming he had disappeared from her home in Drylaw overnight. Hundreds of people helped police, coastguards and other volunteers search for him in local streets, woods and along the shoreline in the two days before his body was found 20 miles away in woodland in Fife. The crown accused Adekoya of punching Mikaeel on various occasions between 12 and 15 January, striking his body against a hard object and inflicting blunt force trauma injuries to his head and body. She was also accused of failing to seek medical attention and murder. Prosecutors said she wrapped the boy in a duvet, put his body in a suitcase and drove him to a house in Fife where the family used to live with a relative before burying him. Advocate depute Alex Prentice told the court: "The basis for the plea tendered being accepted is that the crown accepts that the accused had no intention to kill Mikaeel and that the assault perpetrated upon him, although severe, fell short of the wicked recklessness required for murder." The court heard that Adekoya's internet history showed searches including "I find it hard to love my son", "I love all of my children except one", "Why am I so aggressive with my son" and "Get rid of bruises". Mikaeel died on the night of Tuesday 14 January from injuries inflicted the previous Sunday. His mother lost her temper when he was repeatedly sick after a trip to a Nando's restaurant at the city's Fountain Park, the court heard. She smacked him and struck him on the body and head with a clenched fist. When Mikaeel was sick for a third time, she dragged him to the shower by his arms and beat him heavily on his back as he lay over the bath edge. Prentice said: "It's likely that the internal damage was inflicted during this last beating." Over the next few days Mikaeel's condition worsened and he was kept out of nursery. He was assaulted again on the Monday after being sick and became listless. His mother did not take him to a doctor because of the bruising, the court heard. By Tuesday night, Mikaeel was said to be quiet and was giving a limited response to his mother's questions. "He would have been in significant pain but was put to bed," Prentice said. "The pain would have increased significantly while Mikaeel became dangerously ill and finally dying as a result of the injuries inflicted upon him by the accused. "It was during that night that he died. The accused discovered his body on the floor when wakening the children in the morning." After the discovery, Adekoya took his twin sister to nursery before driving straight to Fife. Prentice said: "At the time, it appears that the accused had placed Mikaeel's body in a suitcase and put him in the boot of her car." Masts captured signals that showed her mobile phone travelling from Edinburgh across the Forth bridge. Adekoya dabbed her eyes repeatedly with tissues as the narrative of her crimes was read to the court. She waited until 7.15am on 16 January to dial 999 and report her son missing. Officers who attended the flat reported that she initially appeared "very upset and distressed". But inconsistencies began to appear in her account of events to police, who by the Friday evening "suspected that all was not as she had indicated". During a police interview she broke down and told officers: "It was an accident and I panicked. I am going to go to the jail." Asked where Mikaeel was, she replied: "In the woods behind my sister's house". Adekoya then took officers to her son's body in the woods, telling them he was "to the left under trees in a suitcase" which she had covered with branches. Prentice said: "Detective Sergeant Phil Richards undid the straps of the suitcase and opened the camouflage material within which was the body of Mikaeel Kular, who was quite clearly dead." The final cause of death was found to be "blunt force abdominal trauma". Mikaeel had more than 40 injuries to his body, including bruises to his back, chin and cheek, trauma to the brain, haemorrhage in the spinal cord and injuries to his arms. Prentice said: "If medical assistance had been called for, death might not have resulted." Defence counsel Brian McConnachie QC said the case was "truly tragic … above all else for Mikaeel Kular in his loss of life at such an early age". He also pointed to the tragedy faced by the boy's father and the "extraordinarily difficult" time for the family of the accused who were having to come to terms with their grief and the fact that Adekoya caused the death. McConnachie told the court the case was also a tragedy for Adekoya: "Rosdeep Adekoya is not a monster. It would appear she has been a young mother with a number of underlying problems, which the court will hear about in due course, with five young children." He went on: "It seems that there has been an accumulation of circumstances which have caused Rosdeep Adekoya to act towards Mikaeel over a relatively short period of time, less than 24 hours, in a manner she has never acted in the past towards him, or to any of her other children … It appears from every source … that this has been a brief period when this young woman has lost her temper and behaved in a way which is totally out of character for her." He said she had to live with the consequences of her actions for the rest of her life. McConnachie said Adekoya initially tried to act as if nothing had happened and had panicked. The QC said that, until the next court hearing, the defence would still be investigating "psychological aspects of this case as far as Mrs Adekoya is concerned". Mikaeel's father left the court after the hearing without making any comment. Assistant Chief Constable Malcolm Graham of Police Scotland said: "Mikaeel's disappearance and death deeply impacted on his family. It also resonated across the community in which he lived. "During the initial stages of the inquiry we appealed for information about Mikaeel's whereabouts as concern for him grew. The local community assisted us greatly in that search. What followed was an incredible level of support and assistance to one of the biggest missing person inquiries Police Scotland has undertaken." He said the search was helped by specialist police investigative and search support officers. "Sadly our inquiries led us to Kirkcaldy the night after he was reported missing and the discovery of his body," he said. "I would like to take this opportunity to sincerely thank the public for all of their help during the search efforts and the continued support provided to police and Mikaeel's family during the course of this investigation." A spokesperson for the Crown Office said Adekoya had pleaded guilty toculpable homicide, attempting to defeat the ends of justice by concealing Mikaeel's bodyand falsely claiming that he was a missing person, instigating a large scale search. "It would be inappropriate for us to comment further until the case has concluded and sentence has been passed." Sentencing will take place at the high court in Edinburgh on 25 August 25. Investigation into Edward Heath child abuse claims to go national Nationally coordinated police inquiry to be set up by end of week, as former brothel keeper denies knowledge of any misconduct by former PM A nationally coordinated police investigation into claims that the former prime minister Edward Heath sexually abused children is to be set up by the end of the week. The inquiry will be led by a senior investigating officer who is likely to be appointed from either the Kent, Wiltshire or Hampshire force, all of which are investigating separate allegations that Heath sexually abused children. But a central plank of the allegations against the former prime minister, who died in 2005, was denied on Wednesday by a former brothel keeper – said to be the original source of claims in the 1990s that Heath abused boys. On Monday, the Independent Police Complaints Commission announced it was investigating claims that a trial was halted in the 1990s because it would have resulted in the exposure of the allegations about Heath. The IPCC said the claims originated from a former senior Wiltshire police officer. But Myra Forde, 67, said on Wednesday she had no knowledge of any misconduct by Heath, and denied threatening to expose him to escape prosecution in the 1990s. A prosecution against Forde was dropped in 1992. In a statement issued to the Salisbury Journal, Richard Griffiths, a solicitor who acted for Forde, said: “My former client wishes me to make it very clear that at no stage did she state that Ted Heath was a client and at no stage did she threaten to expose him as a client of hers if the prosecution was continued.” He added: “For the avoidance of any doubt Myra Forde wishes me to make it clear that she had no involvement with Ted Heath of any kind and has no knowledge of any misconduct on his part.” He said the 1992 trial did not proceed because of difficulties with a witness. Forde was later jailed twice for operating a brothel in Salisbury. In the Times, the barriester who prosecuted the original case, Nigel Seed, said he was told by police that Forde planned to make the allegation about Heath but denied this was the reason for stopping the trial. None of the three witnesses in the case would give evidence, so there was no option but to halt the case, he said. The IPCC which is investigating claims from a retired senior officer that Wiltshire police covered up allegations against Heath in the 90s said it could not confirm or deny whether Forde was the original source. Wiltshire police, which referred itself to the IPCC, said it would not comment on Forde’s denial. The nationally coordinated response to the emerging allegations against Heath is seen as necessary to bring together inquiries being carried out by at least four forces. It is likely to be announced by the end of this week and will be carried out under the umbrella of Operation Hydrant, the overarching operation pulling together a number of investigations into alleged sexual abuse in the past by members of institutions, and high-profile individuals. A spokesman for the National Police Chiefs’ Council said: “Staff from Operation Hydrant are working closely with relevant forces to assess the extend of reported information concerning the late Sir Edward Heath, and at the conclusion of that process a lead force will be appointed to oversee the police investigations.” An NSPCC helpline – which is being used as part of the inquiries into Heath – has received a small number of calls since his name was first released into the public domain by the IPCC this week. Heath is one of around 76 politicians – some alive and some dead – who have been or are still being investigated by forces across the country examining allegations of sexual abuse of children. The identities of most of the politicians have been kept out of the public domain. Wiltshire police on Monday appealed for any “witnesses or victims who support the allegations of child sex abuse” to come forward, saying Heath had been named in relation to offences concerning children, and they wanted to hear from anyone who had relevant information. Since the announcement – made by a Wiltshire officer outside Heath’s former home near Salisbury – the Hampshire, Kent and Jersey forces have also said they are investigating allegations of abuse by Heath. Kent police said they had received an allegation on Tuesday relating to an allegation of sexual assault in the east Kent area in the 1960s and detectives were making initial inquiries. Hampshire police confirmed they were investigating allegations of abuse relating to Heath, and the Jersey force confirmed he had been a suspect for months in its investigation into historical abuse on the island. The Metropolitan police do not have an ongoing investigation into allegations of abuse by Heath. The force said it had interviewed a complainant in April who alleged in the Mirror newspaper this week that he was raped by Heath as a 12-year-old boy. But the force said that, after making a full assessment, there were no lines of inquiry that could “proportionately” be pursued. The force has refused to confirm whether Heath features in Operation Midland – its ongoing investigation into claims that three murders were carried out to cover up abuse by a paedophile ring made up of politicians and other high-profile individuals at locations across southern England. Earlier this year, Simon Bailey, who runs Operation Hydrant, said forces across the country were investigating or had investigated 1,433 men since 2014 over allegations of child abuse in the past. The suspects included 261 high-profile individuals, of whom 76 were politicians – both local and national figures – 43 were from the music industry, 135 from TV, film, or radio, and seven from the world of sport. He said 216 of those named were dead. Benjamin Netanyahu 'threatens to strip Jerusalem residency from 230,000 Palestinians' Palestinian representatives say, they will be “turned into criminals”. According to official Palestinian ... Phone-hacking case casts doubt over Director of Public Prosecutions ruling which Ms Saunders had recently described as “insufficient” to merit criminal proceedings going ahead. ... investigating Rupert Murdoch’s UK print business on potential charges of corporate criminal liability, ... Michael Gove urged to act over 'massive rise' in prison suicides is key to happy marriage Michael Gove urged to scrap criminal courts charge by Christmas Eve Michael Gove ... marriage Tax on justice: Michael Gove urged to scrap criminal courts charge before Christmas Eve deadline ... Scrapping the criminal courts charge is not enough- Michael Gove must undo the damage it has wrought Michael ... Lord Janner dead: Former Labour peer found unfit to stand trial for alleged child sex abuse dies aged 87 to face a court to answer the claims of a dozen alleged victims. The Criminal Prosecution Service decided ... criminal justice reform for a while, and this book was highly recommended by several people ... Jermaine Baker: Detectives carry out fresh investigation at scene where 28-year-old was shot dead by police a potential criminal offence may have been committed by the officer in his use of lethal force”. The IPCC says ... suspended over fatal Wood Green shooting The launching of a criminal homicide investigation and the arrest ... Poisoned legacy of Bhopal: Campaigners call on Dow Chemical to answer criminal charges, 31 years after toxic explosion Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had failed to pursue a criminal prosecution against the company ... demanded that Dow produce its officers in court to answer the criminal charges of culpable homicide. Dow ... Campaigners call on Dow Chemical to answer criminal charges, 31 years after toxic explosion Photographer Alex ... Italian mafia sees huge increase in women mobsters- and they're often more violent than the men a former Naples prosecutor said: “I think that for every active woman inside the criminal ... in mafia trials, said differences remained in the roles assumed by the different sexes in criminal ... of women in the ‘Ndrangheta, a Calabrian criminal organisation, were also expanding, he said. “They know ... Beware the return of stop-and-search has fled their home is automatically a criminal. How about “focused” frisking at airports for anyone ... The human rights crisis in Honduras their work puts them in extreme danger. “Impunity, threats, attacks, harassment and criminal defamation ... has, in an unprecedented step, been barred from practicing journalism as part of a criminal defamation ... Annie Teriba: Alleged victims say Oxford student accused of rape is 'painting herself as the victim' The undergraduate student resigned her positions last week after admitting she had 'failed to properly establish consent' Annie Teriba resigned from her position in the Oxford Student Union last week Two women who accuse a female Oxford University student of sexual violence have claimed she "tried to paint herself as the victim" to gain sympathy. Annie Teriba, 20, a third-year history and politics student at Wadham College, resigned from her roles as people-of-colour and racial equality officer at Wadham Student Union and as editor of No HeterOx** magazine after admitting she had "failed to properly establish consent" during a sexual encounter earlier that year. In a Facebook post, which has since been deleted, she also admitted she had inappropriately touched someone on a previous occasion. Ms Teriba wrote: "At this year’s NUS Black Students’ Conference, I had sex with someone. "The other party later informed me that the sex was not consensual. I failed to properly establish consent before every act. I apologise sincerely and profoundly for my actions. "In a separate incident, in my first year of university, I was alerted to my inappropriate behaviour whilst drunk in a club, where I had touched somebody in a sexual manner without their consent. Therefore this is not an isolated incident. I apologise sincerely and profoundly for my actions.” But her alleged victims say the apology is not good enough. In an online statement, published on microblogging site Tumblr, they said: "We find it particularly ironic that she has been a prominent voice against the very actions she herself has committed. "Annie has been incredibly narcissistic and has constantly attempted to centre everything on herself rather than consider the survivors and how she is impacting on them," the statement said. "Her initial statement was extremely inappropriate and hurtful. It read like a creative writing piece, poetically shifting the blame away from herself, and it was also rife with apologism and excuses." The joint statement alleges that when the victim of the alleged rape first confronted her, Ms Teriba "initially appeared shocked, but then explained that she was very drunk and that she had no recollection of any events from the night in which the incident took place". "She then left in a flood of tears which centred the conversation on her reaction and her feelings, rather than those of the survivor," the statement said. Jagmeet Singh: Sikh charity calls on British media to provide coverage of treatment of Sikhs in India 'The lack of coverage in Britain will further add to a growing sentiment about how much our government values what Sikhs have brought to this community' Jagmeet Singh interrupting Sian Williams live on-air BBC Sikhs are being persecuted because of their faith - and the media is completely ignoring their plight, according to campaigners. In recent weeks, tensions with police have increased in the Punjab amid protests at the alleged desecration of the Sikh holy book, the Guru Granth Sahib, in an number of villages in the region. Clashes with police last week left two Sikhs dead and scores injured in Kotkapura, Punjab, according to The Tribune India. Reports allege police used teargas and water cannons to disperse the crowd, as well as firing at protesters, leading to the deaths. Police said they acted in self-defence and "used minimal force". Protesters were demanding the arrest of those responsible for tearing up pages from the Sikh holy scripture, Guru Granth Sahib. The warning follows a Sikh man's on-air protest on British television, in which he attempted to highlight the lack of media coverage of the violence against Sikhs. Appearing on Sunday Morning Live, Jagmeet Singh, from the educational charity Basics of Sikhi, said: "I have to say Sikhs are being killed in Punjab and nobody is reporting it. Please report it." Jasveer Singh Gill, a spokesman for the Sikh Press Association, said: "Jagmeet was protesting about the lack of mainstream media coverage, particularly in the West, about something that’s been going on in India, and Punjab specifically. "What Jagmeet did in pushing for coverage of what's going on in Punjab isn't about the deaths that have occured recently, it's about something that's been going on for many years. "For a number of years now, unarmed Sikhs have been killed during peaceful protests. This is what Jagmeet was trying to highlight on the show. Basics of Sikhi, an educational charity based in the UK, later accused presenter Sian Williams of belittling Mr Singh. A BBC spokesperson said: "On live TV unplanned things happen and this was dealt with professionally and appropriately by Sian." The Sikh charity also linked to a petition against the BBC, signed by 76,000 supporters, urging them to end the "media blackout" on violence against Sikhs in India. Mr Gill said that while India portrays itself as the largest democracy in the world, a lot of its practices would be considered undemocratic, "especially the use of the army and police" towards protesters. Doctor accused of selling false hope to families The 6-year-old boy had been fighting an inoperable brain tumor for 10 months. When his mother, Niasia Cotto, found him in his bed, unresponsive and unable to open his eyes, "we knew there was nothing else that we could do," she said. An ambulance took Josia to a hospice room at a local hospital. His parents covered him in a soft, blue-and-white blanket, hugged him and held his small hand for the last time. "We told him the choice was his, whether to keep fighting or be in peace with God," said his mother. "He chose." Josia's parents would have paid any price to save him. A Texas doctor, two months, earlier, had given them one: $25,000 upfront, by cash or check. Clinging to hope, the Linden, N.J., couple took Josia to see Stanislaw Burzynski, a Houston doctor claiming to be able to do what no one else can: cure inoperable pediatric brainstem tumors. Virtually any other doctor might have recited the same sad statistics: Although doctors can now cure 83% of pediatric cancers in the U.S., there is usually no hope for kids with Josia's tumor. Perhaps 5% survive five years. Burzynski — an internist with no board certification or formal training in oncology — has said publicly that he can cure half of the estimated 200 children a year diagnosed with brainstem tumors. The Cottos were told that treatment could cost over $100,000, mostly out of pocket, because insurance plans often refuse to cover Burzynski Clinic treatments. Burzynski, 70, calls his drugs "antineoplastons" and says he has given them to more than 8,000 patients since 1977. He originally synthesized these sodium-rich drugs from blood and urine — the urine collected from public parks, bars and penitentiaries. Although they've been made in a lab since 1980, they still carry a distinctive and unpleasant odor. And while the experimental drugs have not been approved by the Food and Drug Administration, Burzynski has described them like the holy grail of cancer therapy: safe, natural and highly effective. He has also prescribed them as a treatment for AIDS, lupus and other conditions. Some patients are convinced that he saved their lives. Mary Jo Siegel of Ventura, Calif., says she believes Burzynski cured her lymphoma. James Treadwell from Coronado, Calif., credits Burzynski with curing his brain tumor. Jenny Gettino of Syracuse, N.Y., says Burzynski cured her daughter of an infant brain tumor. Yet the National Cancer Institute says there is no evidence that Burzynski has cured a single patient, or even helped one live longer. He has not backed up his claims by publishing results from a randomized, controlled trial — considered the gold standard of medical evidence — in a respected, peer-reviewed journal. And Burzynski's drugs pose a risk of serious harm, including coma, swelling near the brain and death, according to the NCI and informed consent documents that patients sign before beginning treatment. While Burzynski has touted his treatments as an alternative to chemotherapy, a 1999 NCI study found that antineoplastons can cause many of the same side effects as conventional chemo: nausea, vomiting, headaches, muscle pain, confusion and seizures. Many blame the system for failing to protect patients. "He's a snake oil salesman," says pediatric oncologist Peter Adamson, a professor of pediatrics and pharmacology at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. "This has gone on for so many years, it's really unbelievable." For 36 years, critics say, Burzynski has been selling false hope to desperate families at the most vulnerable time of their lives. "When you want so hard to believe something, you end up listening to your heart and not your head," says Lisa Merritt of Armuchee, Ga., whose husband, Wayne, was treated briefly by Burzynski in 2009. The couple say that Burzynski misled them about the type of treatment that would be offered, as well as the cost. Burzynski, she says, is "the worst kind of predator." There are many reasons why Burzynski has been able to stay in business so long. He has benefited from state laws that limit the Texas Medical Board's authority to remove his license, as well as the ability of terminally ill patients to collect damages. His devoted followers are willing to fight for him. He also has exploited the public's growing fascination with alternative medicine and suspicion of the medical establishment. At times, Burzynski also has had an especially influential ally: the Food and Drug Administration. FDA CHANGES COURSE Although "there were some stormy relations with the FDA" in the past, Burzynski said in an interview, "now, we have a productive relationship." For years, the FDA tried to prevent Burzynski from prescribing unapproved drugs. In 1995, a federal grand jury indicted Burzynski on 75 felony charges, including criminal contempt, mail fraud and violations of the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act. As a condition of his bail, a judge ordered him to stop prescribing antineoplastons. For a time, it looked as if Burzynski might never treat another patient. Dozens of Burzynski's patients flocked to Washington to defend him, arguing that taking away antineoplastons was akin to a death sentence. Siegel, who credits Burzynski with curing her lymphoma 22 years ago, has testified on his behalf five times — once at his criminal trial and four times at hearings on Capitol Hill. Facing both a political and public relations firestorm, the FDA in 1996 abruptly changed course. It offered to allow Burzynski to continue treating patients, but only through an official trial. "With one stroke of the pen, the FDA made legal what it had previously said was illegal," says Burzynski's attorney, Richard Jaffe. Yet even Jaffe has acknowledged that the trial — now in its 17th year — was more about politics than science. In his 2008 memoirs, Galileo's Lawyer, Jaffe called it "a joke." "It was all an artifice, a vehicle we and the FDA created to legally give the patients Burzynski's treatment," Jaffe said. "With political help, you can get the FDA to say yes," says Siegel, 63. The indictments led to two trials. In 1997, one of Burzynski's criminal trials ended in a hung jury; the other, an acquittal. Today, the FDA refuses to comment on Burzynski. NO NEW DRUG APPLICATION Even his staunchest supporters wonder why Burzynski's drugs are nowhere close to receiving FDA approval. "He's curing cancer," says Siegel, who co-founded the Burzynski Patient Group to spread the word about his therapies. "So why, why won't the FDA approve it?" Like many of Burzynski's supporters, Siegel suspects that the medical community and drug industry are aligned against him. "Why does a doctor who can produce such extraordinary results continue to be attacked today?" Siegel asks. "The reason is because Dr. Burzynski and his patented discovery pose the greatest threat to an entrenched medical monopoly." In fact, the FDA hasn't had a chance to approve Burzynski's drugs. He has never officially asked. Although Burzynski said he has completed 14 intermediate-phase studies, he has yet to file a new drug application, the final step toward getting a drug approved. That hasn't stopped Burzynski from using his relationship with the FDA to recruit patients. Stacey Huntington says she took her daughter to see Burzynski last year partly because the FDA's oversight made his therapies seem safer and more promising. "My fear took us to Houston, and the hope he gave us made us proceed," says Huntington, of Chehalis, Wash. In an interview, Burzynski said developing new drugs is complex and takes time. Yet the FDA has approved 108 cancer drugs since Burzynski began his trial. Cure rates for one type of pediatric brain tumor — medulloblastoma — are now 85%, according to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis. Doctors can cure 95% of kids with Hodgkin lymphoma (a cancer of the lymph system), acute lymphoblastic leukemia (a blood cancer) and retinoblastoma (an eye tumor). Fran Visco, president of the National Breast Cancer Coalition, describes the FDA's tolerance of Burzynski as "outrageous." "They have put people at risk for a long time," says Visco, an attorney and breast cancer survivor. "That's completely unacceptable. How can anyone look at these facts and believe that there is a real clinical trial going on ... rather than just using the FDA and the clinical trial system to make money?" Burzynski dismisses criticism of his work, referring to his detractors as "hooligans" and "hired assassins." As for criticism from former patients, Burzynski says, "We see patients from various walks of life. We see great people. We see crooks. We have prostitutes. We have thieves. We have mafia bosses. We have Secret Service agents. Many people are coming to us, OK? Not all of them are the greatest people in the world. And many of them would like to get money from us. They pretend they got sick and they would like to extort money from us." History will vindicate him, Burzynski says, just as it has vindicated other persecuted medical "pioneers," such as Louis Pasteur. In the future, Burzynski says, everyone will use his therapies, and the cancer treatments used today — such as surgery, chemotherapy and radiation — will be regarded as barbaric. "There will be a time when people will see the light," he says, "and our treatments will be used by everyone." FDA IMPOSES NEW RESTRICTIONS The FDA's patience with Burzynski apparently wore out after Josia died. In a report sent to the FDA after the boy's death, Burzynski's staff acknowledged that his last blood sample, taken the day he passed away,showed a blood sodium level of 205 millimoles per liter, a level that is typically fatal. Burzynski's staff blamed that reading on a "false laboratory report based on a contaminated sample." Yet hypernatremia is one of antineoplastons' most common side effects, known to doctors for two decades. One of Burzynski's own informed consent documents — the form that patients sign before they begin treatment — put the risk at 21%. On July 30, 2012 — six weeks after Josia's death — the FDA forbade Burzynski from giving antineoplastons to any new children. Six months later, the FDA expanded its "partial clinical hold," forbidding Burzynski from giving the drugs to new adult patients, according to the Burzynski Research Institute's 2013 filing to the Securities and Exchange Commission. About 10 patients who were already receiving antineoplastons were allowed to continue, to avoid interruption of care. According to FDA inspections performed after Josia's death, Burzynski has failed to report at least 18 hypernatremia cases. The FDA publicly announced the restrictions on Burzynski's clinical trial for the first time in September. According to the FDA, the Burzynski institutional review board — an outside body charged with protecting patients — failed that most basic duty. In a letter announcing the restrictions, the agency said it has "no assurance" that the board was "adequately protecting the rights and welfare of the human subjects." The FDA based its decision on "objectionable conditions" and a "continuing pattern of deficiencies found during the last three inspections," the letter said. FDA inspectors also faulted Burzynski personally, as principal investigator of the study, according to inspections conducted from January to March. Copies of these reports were obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request. Addressing Burzynski, the inspectors wrote, "you failed to protect the rights, safety and welfare of subjects under your care." Inspectors charged Burzynski, as principal investigator, with a variety of other serious offenses, some dating to 2001. Among them: • Inflating success rates in 67% of cases, by inaccurately reporting how tumors responded to treatment. • Destroying patients' original records. • Failing to report "unanticipated problems" to the institutional review board — sometimes for six or seven years. In the inspections conducted this spring, officials noted four cases from 1998 or 1999 in which patients were hospitalized for serious issues — such as pneumonia, lack of consciousness or bleeding in the skull — that Burzynski researchers failed to report until 2005. The FDA found similar problems in a 2001 inspection, when officials noted that Burzynski failed to report problems such as pneumonia, blood infections and pancreatitis, a life-threatening inflammation of the pancreas. • Failing to protect patients from overdosing. Forty-eight patients suffered a total of 102 drug overdoses from 2005 to 2013. While the overdoses made some of these patients excessively sleepy, one had a seizure and another was hospitalized in intensive care with a breathing tube. This represents a continuing problem, dating to reports of overdoses in inspections as early as 2001. Burzynski's review board also repeatedly rubber-stamped his requests to give patients antineoplastons outside of a clinical trial, the FDA's September letter suggests. In some cases, those decisions were made without consulting patients' medical records, or were made not by oncologists, but by a single member of the board, a "water rehabilitation" specialist with no medical training. Although researchers do sometimes provide experimental drugs outside of clinical trials, exceptions should be rare, with perhaps one or two cases per trial, Adamson says. In Burzynski's case, these "compassionate use" exceptions were common, FDA records show. Enrolling patients for compassionate use can be lucrative. Although researchers cannot charge for experimental drugs, Burzynski does bill patients for related supplies and services. In Burzynski's defense, Jaffe notes that inspection reports represent preliminary findings. The FDA has not yet issued final conclusions. And Burzynski has taken issue with many of the FDA's findings. In his written response about the FDA's claims that he inflated his success rates, Burzynski said that he "complied with all criteria for evaluation of response and made accurate assessments for tumor response." As for overdoses, Burzynski said in an interview that his staff works hard to train patients and their families to administer antineoplastons correctly. None of the overdoses was fatal, he said. "The amount of medication that these patients receive is not dangerous," Burzynski said. "At worst, they would sleep for a few hours." Visco, the breast cancer advocate, says she's encouraged to hear that the FDA has put Burzynski's trial on hold. "It is about time that the FDA stepped in to stop Burzynski from subjecting more patients to harm," she says. "I do not know why it took so long." BURZYNSKI STILL HAS OPTIONS The FDA can't put Burzynski out of business. No matter what happens to his trial, Burzynski holds a license to practice medicine in Texas. So does his son, Gregory Burzynski, a doctor who's helping to carry on his father's business. As vice president of the Burzynski Clinic, his son, 34, works closely with his father and "oversees many operations" of the clinic, according to its website. These days, doctors at the Burzynski Clinic are looking beyond antineoplastons. They mostly prescribe chemotherapy. That's a huge shift. During Burzynski's criminal trial in the 1990s, patients who rallied to his defense carried signs reading, "Say No to Chemo." But the Texas Medical Board, which has repeatedly tried and failed to put Burzynski out of business over the years, still questions Burzynski's care. The board charged Burzynski in 2010 with violating state medical standards by prescribing legal cancer drugs in "random" and unapproved combinations, with no known benefits but clear harms. Burzynski got those charges dropped in 2012, by successfully arguing that he didn't sign any of the prescriptions in question. Burzynski is scheduled to go before the medical board again in January, based on a complaint filed by Stacey Huntington, whose daughter was treated with antineoplastons for a brain tumor. At the meeting, a board panel "will hear the case and make recommendation to the full board about what disciplinary action, if any, is appropriate." Huntington, who paid Burzynski nearly $34,000 for about six weeks of care, says she's concerned about both billing irregularities and the quality of her daughter's treatment. Her daughter, Abra Hall, 27, developed a life-threatening blood infection called sepsis after leaving the clinic to continue treatment at home. The infection developed in a catheter in Hall's chest, which was used to administer the antineoplastons, Huntington says. One month after developing sepsis, Hall was hospitalized again with a lung infection. Hall also developed serious complications from high doses of steroids, Huntington says. Huntington says she decided to speak out to prevent other families from being taken advantage of. "When you get a diagnosis of cancer, you are pretty vulnerable," she says. "I think they take advantage of that." Niasia and Jose Cotto hold a photo of son Josia in their Linden, N.J., home on Oct. 12. The boy died of a brain tumor. No one told Josia's parents about any of this. Not Burzynski. Not the FDA. Jose and Niasia Cotto had no idea that their son's death prompted an investigation by the FDA, until they were contacted by USA TODAY. The Cottos had long believed that Burzynski could have cured their son if only they had taken Josia to see him first, before giving him radiation and chemotherapy. They had even hoped to launch a non-profit, A Life for Josia Foundation, to help other children with cancer gain access to Burzynski's treatment. Now, they don't know what to think. Although more than a year has passed since they lost their son, the Cottos say they see reminders of him everywhere. Niasia, 32, says she feels his presence in simple things, such as the light of a bright star on a dark night. "He's still with us," says Jose, 33. "I know God had his plan and his purpose for Josia." Doctor Stanislaw Burzynski makes his way to the federal courthouse for jury selection in his 1997 criminal trial, as supporters demonstrate outside the courthouse Jan. 6, 1997, in Houston. Burzynski pleaded innocent to a 75-count federal indictment that charged him with mail fraud and violating Food and Drug Administration regulations in the use of antineoplastons, experimental substances he created to treat cancer. One of his criminal trials ended in a hung jury. In the other, he was acquitted. Stanislaw Burzynski, 70, opened his Houston clinic in 1977. He said he has treated more than 8,000 patients with experimental substances that he calls antineoplastons, and has treated around 15,000 patients during his career. The Food and Drug Administration has allowed him to test antineoplastons legally through a clinical trial. Politicians rallied around doctor Stanislaw Burzynski in the 1990s, when he was prosecuted for mail fraud and other felonies. Georgia state Sen. Ed Gochenour spoke during a rally May 19, 1997, outside the federal courthouse in Houston. Gochenour was a patient of the controversial doctor. He died from a pulmonary embolism in 1999. Walter Murach comforts his wife, Barbara, as he carries her medicine distributor during a demonstration to show support for doctor Stanislaw Burzynski on Jan. 2, 1997, outside the federal courthouse in Houston. She had been diagnosed with ovarian cancer and was a patient of Burzynski's. Burzynski pleaded innocent to a 75-count federal indictment that charged him with mail fraud and violating Food and Drug Administration regulations in the use of his experimental drugs, which he calls antineoplastons. The indictments resulted in two criminal trials. In 1997, one ended in a hung jury; the other, an acquittal. Niasia and Jose Cotto hold a photo of their 6-year-old son, Josia. They took Josia to see doctor Stanislaw Burzynski last year, hoping that he would cure their son's inoperable brain tumor. Josia died two months after beginning treatment in June 2012. Josia's younger brother, 1-year-old Noah, is seen here with his parents at their home in Linden, N.J. Abra Hall, 27, still has purple stretch marks on her skin, caused by Cushing syndrome, which she developed after taking high doses of steroids that she received at the Burzynski Research Institute, where she was treated in 2012 for a brain tumor. Cushing syndrome also caused her to gain a lot weight. Hall has an advanced, inoperable brain tumor, but sought treatment from Burzynski because her family urged her to seek alternatives to radiation and chemotherapy. Hall said she abandoned the Burzynski treatment after developing serious side effects and has since received conventional cancer care -- including radiation and chemotherapy. Abra Hall, of Chehalis, Wash., says her chemotherapy cancer treatment makes her feel fatigued and sensitive to light. Hall went to the Burzynski Research Institute in Houston for experimental drug treatments until severe complications forced her to stop taking Burzynski's experimental therapies, which included substances that he synthesized, called antineoplastons, as well as other drugs. Abra Hall's mother, Stacey Huntington, borrowed $40,000 from friends and family to pay for her medical care, as well as travel and hotel expenses related to staying in Houston while being treated at the Burzynski Research Institute. Like many other Burzynski patients, she created a website to solicit donations. Other patients' families hold fundraisers and turn to the media for help, telling their stories in newspapers and on local TV. Many of Abra Hall's friends offered to pitch in to help pay for her cancer treatment. She's one of many Burzynski patients who rely on community help. In many cases, schools and local businesses hold charity events to help patients raise money. "When you get a diagnosis like cancer, you are pretty vulnerable," says Stacey Huntington, Abra Hall's mother. "I think they take advantage of that." Stacey Huntington, left, was desperate with worry when she took her daughter, Abra Hall, to see Stanislaw Burzynski. She now says he preyed on her vulnerability. "In the initial meeting with Burzynski, he himself claimed a minimum 40% cure rate," says Huntington of Chehalis, Wash. "He is selling hope to dying people." Wayne Merritt, a farmer from Armuchee, Ga., went to see Burzynski in 2009 after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. He had hoped to receive antineoplastons, an unapproved drug that Burzynski legally prescribes through an FDA-approved clinical trial. Merritt didn't qualify for the trial, and was disappointed to realize that the drugs he had been prescribed were conventional chemotherapy. Merritt abandoned the treatments after only a few weeks after learning that they would cost $30,000 a month. Lisa Merritt keeps this note on her kitchen window declaring her husband, Wayne, has been healed of cancer. He sought other care after abandoning the Burzynski Clinic. Wayne Merritt and his wife, Lisa, say they got a "high-pressure sales pitch" from the Burzynski Clinic. "We felt like he was out to get every penny he could get from us in a short amount of time," said Lisa Merritt, from Armuchee, Ga. The Merritts, who tell their story at burzynskiscam.com, said one of Burzynski's employees, Marc Stephens, called them in 2011 to say that they could face legal action if they did not take down the site. The couple refused, said Lisa Merritt, also a cancer survivor. "I said, 'I have had breast cancer and faced death. My husband was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and he's facing death,' " Lisa Merritt told Burzynski's representative at the time. "What do you think you can threaten us with that is going to scare me after this?'" Jim Treadwell walks with his wife, Victoria, near their home in Coronado, Calif. He was diagnosed with an aggressive brain tumor in 2004 and underwent surgery, chemotherapy and radiation. At the conclusion of treatment, his doctors told him there was nothing more they could do for him, Treadwell said. He decided to see Burzynski and enrolled in an FDA-approved clinical trial of antineoplastons, given along with steroids and other medications. Treadwell developed serious side effects after beginning therapy, including congestive heart failure, liver problems and swelling. He stopped taking antineoplastons after six months, but his cancer has not returned. Victoria Treadwell wrote a book detailing their experiences. Although many oncologists are skeptical of Burzynski’s success stories, Treadwell, a retired lieutenant colonel in the Marines, is convinced the antineoplastons cured his brain tumor. “I really don’t care what people think," he says. "We know what we know." An employee walks past a sign whose letters were rearranged by patients of doctor Stanislaw Burzynski years ago to read: "Hope Exists" at his clinic. Stanislaw Burzynski has treated patients with drugs that he calls antineoplastons since the 1970s. Although the drugs are experimental, the FDA allowed Burzynski to dispense them legally, through a clinical trial, in 1996. That trial is now on hold, and no new patients may received the drugs, according to the FDA. Burzynski also is scheduled to appear before the Texas Medical Board in January. Doctor Stanislaw Burzynski makes his way to the federal courthouse for jury selection in his 1997 criminal trial, as supporters demonstrate outside the courthouse Jan. 6, 1997, in Houston. Burzynski pleaded innocent to a 75-count federal indictment that charged him with mail fraud and violating Food and Drug Administration regulations in the use of antineoplastons, experimental substances he created to treat cancer. One of his criminal trials ended in a hung jury. In the other, he was acquitted. Stanislaw Burzynski, 70, opened his Houston clinic in 1977. He said he has treated more than 8,000 patients with experimental substances that he calls antineoplastons, and has treated around 15,000 patients during his career. The Food and Drug Administration has allowed him to test antineoplastons legally through a clinical trial. Politicians rallied around doctor Stanislaw Burzynski in the 1990s, when he was prosecuted for mail fraud and other felonies. Georgia state Sen. Ed Gochenour spoke during a rally May 19, 1997, outside the federal courthouse in Houston. Gochenour was a patient of the controversial doctor. He died from a pulmonary embolism in 1999. Walter Murach comforts his wife, Barbara, as he carries her medicine distributor during a demonstration to show support for doctor Stanislaw Burzynski on Jan. 2, 1997, outside the federal courthouse in Houston. She had been diagnosed with ovarian cancer and was a patient of Burzynski's. Burzynski pleaded innocent to a 75-count federal indictment that charged him with mail fraud and violating Food and Drug Administration regulations in the use of his experimental drugs, which he calls antineoplastons. The indictments resulted in two criminal trials. In 1997, one ended in a hung jury; the other, an acquittal. Niasia and Jose Cotto hold a photo of their 6-year-old son, Josia. They took Josia to see doctor Stanislaw Burzynski last year, hoping that he would cure their son's inoperable brain tumor. Josia died two months after beginning treatment in June 2012. Josia's younger brother, 1-year-old Noah, is seen here with his parents at their home in Linden, N.J. Abra Hall, 27, still has purple stretch marks on her skin, caused by Cushing syndrome, which she developed after taking high doses of steroids that she received at the Burzynski Research Institute, where she was treated in 2012 for a brain tumor. Cushing syndrome also caused her to gain a lot weight. Hall has an advanced, inoperable brain tumor, but sought treatment from Burzynski because her family urged her to seek alternatives to radiation and chemotherapy. Hall said she abandoned the Burzynski treatment after developing serious side effects and has since received conventional cancer care -- including radiation and chemotherapy. Abra Hall developed life-threatening complications after returning home from the Burzynski Research Institute, where she and her caregivers continued to administer antineoplastons themselves through a catheter in her chest. Hall was hospitalized for a dangerous blood infection called sepsis, which developed after the catheter became infected. She later developed pneumonia. She has recovered from those infections and is now getting conventional treatment, including oral chemotherapy medications. Abra Hall, of Chehalis, Wash., says her chemotherapy cancer treatment makes her feel fatigued and sensitive to light. Hall went to the Burzynski Research Institute in Houston for experimental drug treatments until severe complications forced her to stop taking Burzynski's experimental therapies, which included substances that he synthesized, called antineoplastons, as well as other drugs. Abra Hall's mother, Stacey Huntington, borrowed $40,000 from friends and family to pay for her medical care, as well as travel and hotel expenses related to staying in Houston while being treated at the Burzynski Research Institute. Like many other Burzynski patients, she created a website to solicit donations. Other patients' families hold fundraisers and turn to the media for help, telling their stories in newspapers and on local TV. Many of Abra Hall's friends offered to pitch in to help pay for her cancer treatment. She's one of many Burzynski patients who rely on community help. In many cases, schools and local businesses hold charity events to help patients raise money. "When you get a diagnosis like cancer, you are pretty vulnerable," says Stacey Huntington, Abra Hall's mother. "I think they take advantage of that." Stacey Huntington, left, was desperate with worry when she took her daughter, Abra Hall, to see Stanislaw Burzynski. She now says he preyed on her vulnerability. "In the initial meeting with Burzynski, he himself claimed a minimum 40% cure rate," says Huntington of Chehalis, Wash. "He is selling hope to dying people." Wayne Merritt, a farmer from Armuchee, Ga., went to see Burzynski in 2009 after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. He had hoped to receive antineoplastons, an unapproved drug that Burzynski legally prescribes through an FDA-approved clinical trial. Merritt didn't qualify for the trial, and was disappointed to realize that the drugs he had been prescribed were conventional chemotherapy. Merritt abandoned the treatments after only a few weeks after learning that they would cost $30,000 a month. Lisa Merritt keeps this note on her kitchen window declaring her husband, Wayne, has been healed of cancer. He sought other care after abandoning the Burzynski Clinic. Wayne Merritt and his wife, Lisa, say they got a "high-pressure sales pitch" from the Burzynski Clinic. "We felt like he was out to get every penny he could get from us in a short amount of time," said Lisa Merritt, from Armuchee, Ga. The Merritts, who tell their story at burzynskiscam.com, said one of Burzynski's employees, Marc Stephens, called them in 2011 to say that they could face legal action if they did not take down the site. The couple refused, said Lisa Merritt, also a cancer survivor. "I said, 'I have had breast cancer and faced death. My husband was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and he's facing death,' " Lisa Merritt told Burzynski's representative at the time. "What do you think you can threaten us with that is going to scare me after this?'" Jim Treadwell walks with his wife, Victoria, near their home in Coronado, Calif. He was diagnosed with an aggressive brain tumor in 2004 and underwent surgery, chemotherapy and radiation. At the conclusion of treatment, his doctors told him there was nothing more they could do for him, Treadwell said. He decided to see Burzynski and enrolled in an FDA-approved clinical trial of antineoplastons, given along with steroids and other medications. Treadwell developed serious side effects after beginning therapy, including congestive heart failure, liver problems and swelling. He stopped taking antineoplastons after six months, but his cancer has not returned. Victoria Treadwell wrote a book detailing their experiences. Although many oncologists are skeptical of Burzynski’s success stories, Treadwell, a retired lieutenant colonel in the Marines, is convinced the antineoplastons cured his brain tumor. “I really don’t care what people think," he says. "We know what we know." An employee walks past a sign whose letters were rearranged by patients of doctor Stanislaw Burzynski years ago to read: "Hope Exists" at his clinic. Stanislaw Burzynski has treated patients with drugs that he calls antineoplastons since the 1970s. Although the drugs are experimental, the FDA allowed Burzynski to dispense them legally, through a clinical trial, in 1996. That trial is now on hold, and no new patients may received the drugs, according to the FDA. Burzynski also is scheduled to appear before the Texas Medical Board in January. Scores in N.C. are legally 'innocent,' yet still imprisoned ELIZABETHTOWN, N.C. – Terrell McCullum did not commit a federal crime by carrying a shotgun and a rifle out of his ex-girlfriend's house. But he is serving a federal prison sentence for it. And the fact that everyone — including the U.S.Justice Department— agrees that he is legally innocent might not be enough to set him free. A USA TODAY investigation, based on court records and interviews with government officials and attorneys, found more than 60 men who went to prison for violating federal gun possession laws, even though courts have since determined that it was not a federal crime for them to have a gun. Many of them don't even know they're innocent. The legal issues underlying their situation are complicated, and are unique to North Carolina. But the bottom line is that each of them went to prison for breaking a law that makes it a federal crime for convicted felons to possess a gun. The problem is that none of them had criminal records serious enough to make them felons under federal law. Still, the Justice Department has not attempted to identify the men, has made no effort to notify them, and, in a few cases in which the men have come forward on their own, has argued in court that they should not be released. Justice Department officials said it is not their job to notify prisoners that they might be incarcerated for something that they now concede is not a crime. And although they have agreed in court filings that the men are innocent, they said they must still comply with federal laws that put strict limits on when and how people can challenge their convictions in court. "We can't be outcome driven," said Anne Tompkins, the U.S. attorney in Charlotte. "We've got to make sure we follow the law, and people should want us to do that." She said her office is "looking diligently for ways, within the confines of the law, to recommend relief for defendants who are legally innocent." These cases are largely unknown outside the courthouses here, but they have raised difficult questions about what, if anything, the government owes to innocent people locked in prisons. "It's been tough," said Ripley Rand, the U.S. attorney in Greensboro, N.C. "We've spent a lot of time talking about issues of fundamental fairness, and what is justice." It's also unusual. Wrongful conviction cases are seldom open-and-shut — usually they depend on DNA or other new evidence that undermines the government's case, but does not always prove someone is innocent. Yet in the North Carolina gun cases, it turns out, there simply were no federal crimes. Using state and federal court records, USA TODAY identified 23 other men who had been sent to federal prison for having a firearm despite criminal records too minor to make that a federal crime. Nine of them remain in prison, serving sentences of up to 10 years; others are still serving federal probation. The newspaper's review was limited to only a small fraction of cases from one of the three federal court districts in North Carolina. Federal public defenders have so far identified at least 39 others in additional court districts, and are certain to find more. And prosecutors have already agreed to drop dozens of cases in which prisoners' convictions were not yet final. Some of the prisoners USA TODAY contacted — and their lawyers — were stunned to find out that they were imprisoned for something that turned out not to be a federal crime. And their lawyers said they were troubled by the idea that innocence alone might not get them out. "If someone is innocent, I would think that would change the government's reaction, and it's sad that it hasn't," said Debra Graves, an assistant federal public defender in Raleigh. "I have trouble figuring out how you rationalize this. These are innocent people. That has to matter at some point." WHO CAN HAVE A GUN? Terrell McCullum conceded in interviews that he has made plenty of bad decisions — including having the two guns that sent him to federal prison. But there is little dispute that his criminal record wouldn't now be serious enough to make having the guns a federal crime. Even so, government lawyers have said in court filings that he should remain in the Farmville, Va., jail where he is serving the end of his federal sentence. "At most," the Justice Department said in an April court filing, McCullum "has become legally innocent of the charge against him." In other words, the law may have changed, but the facts of his case didn't — he did possess the gun, and he had a criminal record — so he isn't entitled to be released. His request to be released is still pending. "I don't know what's going to happen," McCullum said during a recent phone call. "I'm just praying on it." The key to McCullum's innocence lies at the complicated intersection of state and federal criminal laws. Decades ago, Congress made it a federal crime for convicted felons to have a gun. The law proved to be a powerful tool for police and prosecutors to target repeat offenders who managed to escape stiff punishment in state courts. In some cases, federal courts can put people in prison for significantly longer for merely possessing a gun than state courts can for using the gun to shoot at someone. To make that law work in every state, Congress wrote one national definition of who cannot own a gun: someone who has been convicted of a crime serious enough that he or she could have been sentenced to more than a year in prison. Figuring out who fits that definition in North Carolina is not as simple as it sounds. In 1993, state lawmakers adopted a unique system called "structured sentencing" that changes the maximum prison term for a crime, based on the record of the person who committed it. People with relatively short criminal records who commit crimes such as distributing cocaine and writing bad checks face no more than a few months in jail; people with more extensive records face much longer sentences. For years, federal courts in North Carolina said that did not matter. The courts said, in effect: If someone with a long record could have gone to prison for more than a year for the crime, then everyone who committed that crime is a felon, and all of them are legally barred from possessing a gun. Last year, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit said federal courts (including itself) had been getting the law wrong. Only people who could have actually faced more than a year in prison for their crimes qualify as felons under federal law. The 4th Circuit's decision came in a little-noticed drug case, United States v. Simmons, but its implications could be dramatic. For one thing, tens of thousands of people in North Carolina have criminal records that no longer make having a gun a federal crime. About half of the felony convictions in North Carolina's state courts over the past decade were for offenses that no longer count as felonies under federal law. No one yet knows precisely how many people were incorrectly convicted for having a gun, but the number could be significant. Rand, the U.S. attorney in Greensboro, estimated that more than a third of the gun cases his office prosecuted might be in question, either because the defendants didn't commit a federal crime at all by possessing a gun or because their sentences were calculated incorrectly. "We're going to be addressing this for a while," he said. The Justice Department and federal courts moved quickly to clean up cases that were pending when the 4th Circuit announced its decision. Prosecutors dropped pending charges against people whose records no longer qualified them as felons; the 4th Circuit reversed convictions in more than 40 cases that were on appeal at the time. Some of the men were given shorter sentences; others were simply let go. But the next question has proved far harder to answer: What should the government do with the prisoners whose legal cases were already over? STILL LOCKED UP The men in McCullum's position have little hope of inspiring much public sympathy. All had racked up at least modest criminal records, frequently for selling drugs. Many only wound up in federal court because police had already arrested them for breaking state laws (including a state law, not affected by the 4th Circuit's ruling, barring them from having guns). One man went to federal prison after a shootout; another led police officers on a high-speed chase. One shot a police dog. McCullum hadn't done anything so serious. His mother, Rebecca Farris, concedes he had a knack for getting in trouble, but said he's still "softhearted." McCullum, now 26, has been diagnosed as mentally disabled, and quit school in the 11th grade after he was kicked out for fighting. On a recent afternoon, Elizabethtown Police Chief Bobby Kinlaw squinted at the computer in his small office and rattled through an inventory of McCullum's frequent encounters with his officers, including arrests for larceny, fighting, making threats and driving without insurance. "He seemed to be on the radar on a regular basis," Kinlaw said. McCullum's most serious scrape with the law came in September 2007, when he pleaded guilty to stealing a gun and was put on probation. Under North Carolina law, he could have been sentenced to no more than 10 months in prison. A month later, McCullum broke up with his girlfriend and came to her small house to collect his things. The two quickly got into an argument, and McCullum knocked over a cocktail table and yanked a telephone cord out of the wall, Kinlaw said. His ex-girlfriend's son called the police, and an officer waited outside to keep the peace while McCullum carried his belongings out to his truck. He carried out his clothes. Then, while the officer watched, he carried out a 22-caliber rifle and a shotgun. Police checked the guns' serial numbers and learned the shotgun had been reported stolen, so they arrested McCullum. (They didn't realize until later that the gun had been stolen nine years earlier, by someone else, when McCullum was 12.) When they found out McCullum had a criminal record, they charged him with possession of a firearm by a felon, and turned the case over to the federal government. McCullum says the guns weren't loaded, and he insists he didn't know he wasn't supposed to have firearms. He kept them because they had belonged to his grandfather. In 2009, McCullum went to federal court and pleaded guilty to the charge of illegally possessing a firearm. At the time, even his lawyers thought that his prior conviction for stealing a gun made him a felon under federal law. The judge sentenced him to a year and a day in custody, and the government sent him to Big Sandy, a high-security penitentiary in the mountains of eastern Kentucky. It was the first time McCullum had been to prison. "I ain't no bad person. I made mistakes, but I ain't that bad," McCullum said. "I just was young back then, just made some stupid mistakes." He got out in 2010 but quickly violated his supervised release by robbing a man. ("I saw him with a whole bunch of money and I just got him like that," McCullum said during one phone call.) The judge sent him back to prison. Now he's finishing his sentence at the local jail in Farmville, counting the days until he can go home. SHUT OUT OF COURT? Whether McCullum — or the dozens of others like him — can go home depends on federal laws that put strict limits on when and how people who have already been convicted of a crime can come back to court to plead their innocence. Those laws let prisoners challenge their convictions if they uncover new evidence, or if the U.S. Supreme Court limits the sweep of a criminal law. But none of the exceptions is a clear fit, meaning that, innocent or not, they may not be able to get into court at all. Federal courts have so far split on whether they can even hear the prisoners' cases. Habeas corpus — the main legal tool for challenging unlawful detention — is currently ill-suited to such cases, said Nancy King, a Vanderbilt Law School professor who has studied the issue. Habeas mainly safeguards people's constitutional right to a fair process, she said, and the problem is that "saying, 'I'm innocent' isn't, on its face, that type of constitutional claim." Still, she said, "innocent people should be able to get out of prison." Prosecutors don't disagree, though most said they are not convinced the law allows it. Rand, the U.S. attorney in Greensboro, said he is "not aware of any procedural mechanism by which they can be afforded relief," though he said lawyers in his office "have not been pounding on the table" to keep the men in jail. "No one wants anyone to spend time in jail who should not be there," said Thomas Walker, the U.S. attorney in Raleigh. That's why he said prosecutors were quick to dismiss charges that were pending when the 4th Circuit ruled. But cases in which convictions are already final "are in a totally different posture and require us to follow the existing statutory habeas law," he said. But there's also an even more basic question: How would the prisoners even know? Rand said he personally reviewed all of the gun-possession cases his office had filed in recent years, often bringing home stacks of documents to examine after his kids went to bed. A former state judge, he figured he would have the easiest time identifying problems. Some of the cases he looked at, he said, would no longer qualify as federal crimes. But he said he did not notify those defendants. Instead, courts have asked public defenders to seek them out. Those lawyers said the Justice Department should do more to help, because it has better information and more resources, an assertion prosecutors dispute. "We're doing it with our hands tied," said Eric Placke, a federal public defender in Greensboro. "I appreciate the compelling considerations they have to deal with. But I do think in cases of actual innocence that it would be nice, to say the least, if they would be a little more proactive." Placke and other public defenders said the reviews have been difficult because they often have limited access to records from the men's prior convictions, which has left them to hunt through files in courthouses across the state. USA TODAY conducted a similar, though far more limited review, examining every gun conviction in western North Carolina between 2005 and 2011. The review was limited to people who had been convicted only of gun possession, and included only those cases in which federal prosecutors had specifically identified the prior offense that made possession a crime. USA TODAY used state court records to find those cases in which the men's prior convictions were, in hindsight, not serious enough to convict them of the federal crime. 'A BETTER LIFE' Travis Bowman said he "got cold chills" when USA TODAY told him that he's innocent of the gun charge that landed him in a federal prison in Coleman, Fla., for 10 years. He said he'd never considered the possibility that what he did wasn't a federal crime. He pleaded guilty to illegally possessing a sawed-off shotgun. He's not scheduled to get out of prison until 2016. Police arrested Bowman in 2007 after a 110-mph chase through Murphy, N.C. It began when North Carolina Highway Patrol Sgt. Chris Wood pulled Bowman over for speeding, planning only to write him a warning. But a routine records check showed Bowman had been affiliated with a gang known as Folk Nation, and that he was wanted in Georgia. "I got a real eerie feeling," Wood said. He drew his gun and told Bowman to put his hands on the steering wheel. Bowman took off. With his pregnant, 15-year-old girlfriend in the seat next to him, he raced down the highway, swerved through a McDonald's parking lot and collided with four police cars. He didn't stop until his girlfriend threw the speeding car into park. State officials didn't prosecute Bowman for the shotgun, or for the chase, or for crashing into the police cars, or for refusing to let his girlfriend out of the car. Instead, they turned the case over to the Justice Department, which sent him to prison for a decade just for having an unloaded shotgun on the floor behind the passenger seat. (Bowman said he was taking the gun to his brother.) But Bowman's prior convictions — for habitual misdemeanor assault and having drugs in prison — aren't serious enough to make owning the gun a federal crime. Neither could have put him in prison for more than a year. Bowman says he plans to ask a federal judge to declare him innocent and let him out. "Hopefully I'll get the chance to be out there soon," Bowman wrote in an e-mail."I just want a better life than this. I have to prove to a lot of people that I'm not the old me. I want to be a person my kids will look up to and be proud of." Going home is far from a safe bet. Even if a court ultimately decides to let Bowman out, he could still face all the charges state officials dropped when his case went to federal court. 3 women shot, 1 fatally, outside Flatiron District nightclub; dad of victim rips suspected gangbanger: 'He's a coward' NEW YORK DAILY NEWS Updated: Tuesday, October 13, 2015, 1:14 AM A Bronx dad whose daughter died in a shooting at a Flatiron District club early Monday had a warning for the punk suspected of pulling the trigger: Turn yourself in before I get my hands on you. “I just hope the police catch him before I do,” Wally Faussett said outside Bellevue Hospital, just hours after his daughter Walikque died of a gunshot wound to the back. “I will search for him myself because he should pay,” the father said. “A coward runs, shooting with a gun into a crowd. He’s a coward. He should die, right there on the street that he started shooting.” Directly addressing the suspect, identified by cops as [32]26-year-old ex-con Dalone (Smack) Jamison, the angry dad added: “You should’ve been a victim. The bullet should’ve ricocheted off something and came back and hit you in the head.” Walikque Faussett, 24, was gunned down early Monday outside a Manhattan club. She appears to have been the unintended victim of a furious clubgoer who was thrown out by the bouncers. Lauren Renee Rondat, 25, was in stable condition after being struck in the hip and left foot. Walikque Faussett (l.) was gunned down early Monday outside a Manhattan club. Lauren Renee Rondat (r.) was in stable condition after being struck in the hip and left foot. Shortly after the shooting, Jamison posted a photo of himself with the 24-year-old victim on his Instagram account. The photo appears to have been taken within the past week — and Jamison tries to distance himself from her murder at Club Motivo in the caption. [35]SENATE DEMOCRATS GATHER ON CAPITOL STEPS TO RALLY FOR ACTION AGAINST GUN VIOLENCE “What’s goin on in these streets smh (shaking my head) hope lil sis ok I would loose it if not,” the caption says. He later posted another message in which he said, “I’m not hiding.” “everybody got something to say that was my F---ing friend I would never do no dumb s--- people make story’s and everybody run with it.” Dalone (Smack) Jamison, 26, is suspected in the shooting early Monday outside a Flatiron District club. Dalone (Smack) Jamison, 26, is suspected in the shooting early Monday outside a Flatiron District club. A mutual friend defended Jamison, saying the aspiring rapper wouldn’t put Faussett in danger. “They are close friends,” said 23-year-old Mike Whitte, who grew up with the suspect. “We all eat together. We go out together, we party together.” [36]CUOMO CALLS ON THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT TO KEEP WEAPONS OUT OF NEW YORK Police said the single mom of a 3-year-old boy was the unintended victim of Jamison, who was gunning for the bouncers who had just thrown him out of the Manhattan nightspot. “My daughter was a good girl. She loved her son,” the victim’s heartbroken mom, Wendi Rodriguez, 41, said before railing about gun violence. Suspected shooter Dalone (Smack) Jamison posted this Instagram picture, which shows him with the victim, Walikque (Grace) Faussett. It was posted shortly after the shooting and appears to have been taken in the the last few weeks at a different location. Instagram Suspected shooter Dalone (Smack) Jamison posted this Instagram picture, which shows him with the victim, Walikque (Grace) Faussett. It was posted shortly after the shooting and appears to have been taken in the the last few weeks at a different location. “How does anyone get a gun these days?” she said, breaking down in tears. “How do you do that? You going around with a gun, killing people? How can I bury my firstborn? She was the oldest of three. I feel like this is a bad nightmare." Two other women were also wounded by the short-fused suspect with braided hair, who remains at large. Police said they, too, were innocent victims. A petty criminal, Jamison has been arrested a dozen times going back to 2005, including one bust in 2010 after allegedly beating and cutting a man. The victim needed 60 stitches to his face and arms. Manhattan Theodore Parisienne/for New York Daily News Blood on the ground at the scene where three woman were shot outside of a Manhattan nightclub on Monday. Manhattan Theodore Parisienne/for New York Daily News A spent bullet is recovered at the scene where three women were shot, one fatally, outside of the club at 915 Broadway in Manhattan on Monday. Manhattan Theodore Parisienne/for New York Daily News Three women were shot, one fatally, outside the Motivo Night Club in Manhattan on Monday. The wounded women were identified by sources as 30-year-old Deborah Raji of Brooklyn, who was grazed in the left shoulder, and 25-year-old Lauren Rondat, who was struck in the hip and left foot. Both were in stable condition. Raji’s worried mom said she was relieved her daughter survived the shooting — but deeply upset that she was partying in a nightclub. [38]CUOMO SPEAKS OUT AGAINST 'PLAGUE' OF GUN VIOLENCE IN NYC AS DE BLASIO GIVES VOTE OF CONFIDENCE TO NYPD “Children of God should be home in bed by midnight,” said Funmilayo Adekunle, 60, of Maryland. Bullets began flying a little after 4 a.m. as the club was closing, witnesses said. Jamison, who is also from the Bronx and believed to be a member of the Dymes R Us rap group, got into a fight with somebody inside the club and vowed revenge after he got tossed out, sources said. Manhattan Theodore Parisienne/for New York Daily News Police mark the scene outside of Motivo where the women were shot early Monday. “I’m going to get my gun,” he said, the sources said. Minutes later, gunfire erupted and Faussett was cut down. “It started out with some altercation in the club,” 25-year-old witness Ashley Valle said. “When I looked, the bouncers were trying to get him out the club, scuffling with him. We were about to step out when shots rang out and everybody scattered.” Police tape off the scene where the women were shot in the Flatiron District on Monday. Vic Nicastro for New York Daily News Police tape off the scene where the women were shot in the Flatiron District on Monday. While the shooter fled in what witnesses described as a dark-colored BMW, the doomed woman lay bleeding on the sidewalk. “We were about to step back out and at this point we see the two women laying on the ground on the sidewalk. They were shot,” Valle said. “EMS was trying to resuscitate one of the females but nothing was working. They were trying to revive her but she was not responding at all.” As for the other woman, Valle said “she was laying on her side and there was blood on the lower part of her dress. You could tell she was shot.” “The guy who started the fight, he was outside,” a man who works next door to the club told WCBS radio. “The other guy was inside because the other guy didn’t want to fight. But the one that was outside, he tried to get inside the club again, but the security did not let him go inside.” After the shooter split, police found five shell casings at the scene. Police said Faussett was shot in the back and died at 5:21 a.m. at Bellevue, leaving her son, Alex, motherless. “We don’t know what to tell him,” Faussett’s 21-year-old brother, Prince, said of the little boy. Police at the scene where three were shot outside of a club in the Flatiron District early Monday morning. Vic Nicastro for New York Daily News Police at the scene where three were shot outside of a club in the Flatiron District early Monday morning. Rodriguez said a city cop tried to save her daughter’s life and that she’s grateful. “He was so sweet,” she said. “He was the first officer there. He was there with her. He gave her CPR. He was there until they took her away.” There have been 275 murders citywide so far this year through Sunday — the latest stats available — up 8.3% from the 254 this time last year. Serious overall crime is down 3.1%, as are the number of shooting incidents — 908 versus 925 last year, a 1.8% drop. The number of shooting victims is also down, 1,078 versus 1,096 last year, which is a 1.6% drop.