A British man who was shot three times on a London street claims the gunman was enraged over his Barack Obama T-shirt, the Daily Mail reported Tuesday.
Dube Egwuatu told the Mail he was purchasing a cell phone when a stranger started shouting racial slurs over his shirt featuring the presidential candidate’s face and the word “Believe.”
Egwuatu zipped up his jacket and headed for his car, but as he turned it on, the gunman opened the passenger side door and shot him three times, hitting him in the face, hand and shoulder.
Egwuatu managed to drive off while bleeding and call for help. A piece of metal was removed from his jaw from the attacker’s gas-powered ball-bearing pistol, the Mail reported.
“He was telling me that he was going to kill me,” Egwuatu told the Mail. “I couldn't believe it was happening — and just because I was wearing an Obama T-shirt. He was trying to make me walk somewhere quieter, saying: ‘I've got something for you,’ and ‘I'm going to kill you.’”
Local police are still looking for the gunman.
Source: foxnews.com
Saturday, October 11, 2008
Sunday, October 05, 2008
New City man charged with attacking 3 people, screaming racial slurs
NEW CITY - A 22-year-old man has been charged with attacking three younger males while screaming racial slurs at them on South Little Tor Road, Clarkstown police said yesterday.
Police said they weren't sure what precipitated the attack Tuesday afternoon. Sgt. Harry Baumann said Richard Giga, accused in the attack, had been drinking and just had an argument with his mother.
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Baumann said Giga also had fought with his former girlfriend, having burned her belongings in the family's outdoor fireplace.
Giga had left the house and was walking when he encountered the three males, police said.
"He didn't know them, as far as we know, and we don't know of any provocation," Baumann said. The attacker "just went off the wall," he said.
The three Nanuet residents - ages 15, 17 and 20 - were walking on South Little Tor Road near Pasta Cuccina at 3 p.m. when the attack occurred, Baumann said.
Giga is accused of first slamming his body into the 20-year-old, then punching the 15-year-old in the head while screaming anti-Hispanic slurs, Baumann said.
He is further accused of forcing all three against a rock wall and demanding their cell phones and personal belongings while still spewing slurs, Baumann said. As the incident escalated, the 17-year-old called police on his cell phone, Baumann said.
Giga is accused of then going after the teen, putting him in a headlock, grabbing the cell phone and breaking it into two pieces, Baumann said. Police found the broken phone in bushes nearby.
The 17-year-old was taken to Nyack Hospital for evaluation, police said. The left side of his head was swollen and discolored, Baumann said. His injuries were not considered serious.
Giga of Birch Lane, New City, was charged with one count of second-degree robbery, two counts of third-degree robbery and two counts of second-degree assault, all felonies; three counts of unlawful imprisonment and one count of third-degree criminal mischief, both misdemeanors; and second-degree harassment, a violation.
Giga was being held yesterday in the county jail with bail set at $25,000, pending a hearing Monday in Clarkstown Town Court.
The incident could go before a county grand jury.
Reach Steve Lieberman at slieberm@lohud.com or 845-578-2443.
Source: lohud.com
Police said they weren't sure what precipitated the attack Tuesday afternoon. Sgt. Harry Baumann said Richard Giga, accused in the attack, had been drinking and just had an argument with his mother.
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Baumann said Giga also had fought with his former girlfriend, having burned her belongings in the family's outdoor fireplace.
Giga had left the house and was walking when he encountered the three males, police said.
"He didn't know them, as far as we know, and we don't know of any provocation," Baumann said. The attacker "just went off the wall," he said.
The three Nanuet residents - ages 15, 17 and 20 - were walking on South Little Tor Road near Pasta Cuccina at 3 p.m. when the attack occurred, Baumann said.
Giga is accused of first slamming his body into the 20-year-old, then punching the 15-year-old in the head while screaming anti-Hispanic slurs, Baumann said.
He is further accused of forcing all three against a rock wall and demanding their cell phones and personal belongings while still spewing slurs, Baumann said. As the incident escalated, the 17-year-old called police on his cell phone, Baumann said.
Giga is accused of then going after the teen, putting him in a headlock, grabbing the cell phone and breaking it into two pieces, Baumann said. Police found the broken phone in bushes nearby.
The 17-year-old was taken to Nyack Hospital for evaluation, police said. The left side of his head was swollen and discolored, Baumann said. His injuries were not considered serious.
Giga of Birch Lane, New City, was charged with one count of second-degree robbery, two counts of third-degree robbery and two counts of second-degree assault, all felonies; three counts of unlawful imprisonment and one count of third-degree criminal mischief, both misdemeanors; and second-degree harassment, a violation.
Giga was being held yesterday in the county jail with bail set at $25,000, pending a hearing Monday in Clarkstown Town Court.
The incident could go before a county grand jury.
Reach Steve Lieberman at slieberm@lohud.com or 845-578-2443.
Source: lohud.com
Report: Student Attack May Have Been Racial
ATTLEBORO (WBZ) ― A middle school student was the victim of what appears to be a racial attack while riding the school bus home Friday afternoon, according to a newspaper report.
The Sun Chronicle reported that a seventh grade boy from the Wamsutta Middle School in Attleboro was allegedly held down, kicked and punched by a group of students when he wouldn't move from the back of the bus. The attackers were also uttering racial slurs to the boy, according to the paper.
The father of the young boy sent an e-mail to the school, saying their son was attacked because of the color of his skin, the paper reports.
School Business Manager Marc Furtado told the paper that they are taking the incident seriously "This is something that's not OK under any circumstances," he said.
Furtado told the paper that the incident started when the group of students told the seventh grader to leave the back of the bus, and when he refused, the group sat on him.
Furtado also told the Chronicle that one of the attackers later admitted to using a racial slur.
According to a police report obtained by the paper, the student was the victim of another attack that did not involve a school bus.
The students involved in the bus fight have had their bus privileges taken away.
Source: wbztv.com
Oakland landlady to pay $31,000 in bias case
(10-02) 12:38 PDT OAKLAND -- An Oakland landlady who allegedly berated an African American tenant with racial slurs and told him that "you're not going to turn this place into a ghetto" must pay the man and his wife $31,000 in damages, a state civil rights agency has ruled.
The remarks - which the landlady has denied making - amounted to racial discrimination in housing, the Fair Employment and Housing Commission said in a ruling last week.
The tenant, Dante Lemons, said he was sitting on the front porch of the Maryland Apartments at 3301 Telegraph Ave. in the spring or early summer of 2005, listening to the radio, when apartment co-owner Marlene O'Neill told him no loitering was allowed. When Lemons pointed out that he lived there, he said, O'Neill, who is white, replied that he shouldn't be outside and was turning the place into a ghetto.
Lemons said he had brushed off the incident at his wife's suggestion. However, O'Neill said the same thing when she saw him on the front steps another time, swore at him and unplugged his radio, Lemons said.
When he saw the landlady arguing with another black tenant in November 2005 and refused her order to return to his apartment, Lemons said, O'Neill asked, "What's wrong with you people?" and used a racial slur.
Lemons and his wife, Chanel Williams, who also complained of abuse by O'Neill, moved out with their young son in December 2005, saying they felt harassed.
O'Neill, who represented herself before the state commission, testified that she had ordered Lemons off the porch but denied calling him names or mistreating him. The commission said, however, that two other tenants with no involvement in the dispute had confirmed Lemons' account.
The damages covered the couple's increased rent at their next apartment, $22,500 for emotional distress and a $5,000 penalty.
O'Neill, who now lives in Florida, repeated her denial of the allegations in an interview this week and said she may appeal the ruling in Superior Court.
"I'd been nothing but nice to this young couple," she said. "He (Lemons) called the race card."
E-mail Bob Egelko at begelko@sfchronicle.com.
This article appeared on page B - 4 of the San Francisco Chronicle
Source: sfgate.com
The remarks - which the landlady has denied making - amounted to racial discrimination in housing, the Fair Employment and Housing Commission said in a ruling last week.
The tenant, Dante Lemons, said he was sitting on the front porch of the Maryland Apartments at 3301 Telegraph Ave. in the spring or early summer of 2005, listening to the radio, when apartment co-owner Marlene O'Neill told him no loitering was allowed. When Lemons pointed out that he lived there, he said, O'Neill, who is white, replied that he shouldn't be outside and was turning the place into a ghetto.
Lemons said he had brushed off the incident at his wife's suggestion. However, O'Neill said the same thing when she saw him on the front steps another time, swore at him and unplugged his radio, Lemons said.
When he saw the landlady arguing with another black tenant in November 2005 and refused her order to return to his apartment, Lemons said, O'Neill asked, "What's wrong with you people?" and used a racial slur.
Lemons and his wife, Chanel Williams, who also complained of abuse by O'Neill, moved out with their young son in December 2005, saying they felt harassed.
O'Neill, who represented herself before the state commission, testified that she had ordered Lemons off the porch but denied calling him names or mistreating him. The commission said, however, that two other tenants with no involvement in the dispute had confirmed Lemons' account.
The damages covered the couple's increased rent at their next apartment, $22,500 for emotional distress and a $5,000 penalty.
O'Neill, who now lives in Florida, repeated her denial of the allegations in an interview this week and said she may appeal the ruling in Superior Court.
"I'd been nothing but nice to this young couple," she said. "He (Lemons) called the race card."
E-mail Bob Egelko at begelko@sfchronicle.com.
This article appeared on page B - 4 of the San Francisco Chronicle
Source: sfgate.com
Teacher Suspended For Racial Slur Directed At Obama
By TimALoftis
A Florida teacher was suspended after students said he used a racial epithet directed at presidential candidate Barack Obama.
Seventh-grade social studies teacher Greg Howard of Marianna Middle School was given a written reprimand on Wednesday for "racially inappropriate comments" he made in his classroom on Sept. 26, according to a Jackson County School Board news release.
Howard reportedly wrote the word CHANGE as an acronym on the board and wrote an expletive with the letter "N." The phrase he wrote has been reported as "Can You Help A (expletive) Get Elected" and "Come Help A (expletive) Get Elected." School district officials did not return calls seeking comment Thursday, and Howard could not be reached.
Source: propeller.com
A Florida teacher was suspended after students said he used a racial epithet directed at presidential candidate Barack Obama.
Seventh-grade social studies teacher Greg Howard of Marianna Middle School was given a written reprimand on Wednesday for "racially inappropriate comments" he made in his classroom on Sept. 26, according to a Jackson County School Board news release.
Howard reportedly wrote the word CHANGE as an acronym on the board and wrote an expletive with the letter "N." The phrase he wrote has been reported as "Can You Help A (expletive) Get Elected" and "Come Help A (expletive) Get Elected." School district officials did not return calls seeking comment Thursday, and Howard could not be reached.
Source: propeller.com
Threats bring 45 days in jail
Raleigh man's e-mail targeted Washington rights groups
Kristin Collins, Staff Writer
RALEIGH - A Raleigh man who made graphic threats against national Hispanic and Islamic advocacy organizations will serve 45 days in federal prison.
Christopher Michael Szaz, 42, also must perform 100 hours of community service with an Islamic or Hispanic group, receive treatment for alcohol addiction and remain under supervision for a year, according to the sentence imposed Wednesday by U.S. Magistrate Judge James E. Gates.
Szaz pleaded guilty Tuesday to two misdemeanor charges of sending threatening e-mail to the National Council of La Raza and the Council of American-Islamic Relations, both based in Washington.
Prosecutors said he sent two e-mail messages on June 8, 2007, threatening to bomb the CAIR office and an e-mail message to La Raza on July 27, 2007, threatening to kill employees.
Janet Murgu'a, president of La Raza, said the e-mail her group received included promises to "splay" their bodies and used derogatory terms to refer to Latinos.
Murgu'a said Wednesday that she hoped Szaz's prosecution would send a message to an increasingly hostile faction of people who oppose illegal immigration.
"I think they sit down at their keyboards and they think they can write anything to anyone," Murgu'a said. "The First Amendment does not protect death threats."
Szaz, a self-employed web designer, testified this week that he had a drinking problem and sent the messages while extremely intoxicated.
Szaz, who lives with his elderly mother, asked for house arrest so he could continue to care for her. The judge declined to forgo jail time, but gave him far less than the maximum one year and allowed him to report to prison on Oct. 20 so he could participate in early voting in the presidential election.
kristin.collins@newsobserver.com or 919-829-4881
Source: newsobserver.com
Kristin Collins, Staff Writer
RALEIGH - A Raleigh man who made graphic threats against national Hispanic and Islamic advocacy organizations will serve 45 days in federal prison.
Christopher Michael Szaz, 42, also must perform 100 hours of community service with an Islamic or Hispanic group, receive treatment for alcohol addiction and remain under supervision for a year, according to the sentence imposed Wednesday by U.S. Magistrate Judge James E. Gates.
Szaz pleaded guilty Tuesday to two misdemeanor charges of sending threatening e-mail to the National Council of La Raza and the Council of American-Islamic Relations, both based in Washington.
Prosecutors said he sent two e-mail messages on June 8, 2007, threatening to bomb the CAIR office and an e-mail message to La Raza on July 27, 2007, threatening to kill employees.
Janet Murgu'a, president of La Raza, said the e-mail her group received included promises to "splay" their bodies and used derogatory terms to refer to Latinos.
Murgu'a said Wednesday that she hoped Szaz's prosecution would send a message to an increasingly hostile faction of people who oppose illegal immigration.
"I think they sit down at their keyboards and they think they can write anything to anyone," Murgu'a said. "The First Amendment does not protect death threats."
Szaz, a self-employed web designer, testified this week that he had a drinking problem and sent the messages while extremely intoxicated.
Szaz, who lives with his elderly mother, asked for house arrest so he could continue to care for her. The judge declined to forgo jail time, but gave him far less than the maximum one year and allowed him to report to prison on Oct. 20 so he could participate in early voting in the presidential election.
kristin.collins@newsobserver.com or 919-829-4881
Source: newsobserver.com
Wednesday, October 01, 2008
RI store owner apologizes for asking for ID cards
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) - The owner of a plumbing supply store has signed an apology for asking Spanish-speaking customers for their Social Security numbers.
David Richardson allegedly asked to see Jose Genao's Social Security card in March after listening to Genoa and a friend speak Spanish inside Richardson's store. Genao said Richardson complained that the majority of people who speak Spanish in Rhode Island are illegal immigrants.
Both customers are U.S. citizens. Besides apologizing, Richardson paid $500 to several charities after the Rhode Island Commission for Human Rights and the Providence Human Relations Commission found probable cause that he broke city and state law.
Richardson said he apologized to get the case "over and done with" and doesn't agree with the legal findings.
(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
Source: WPRI
David Richardson allegedly asked to see Jose Genao's Social Security card in March after listening to Genoa and a friend speak Spanish inside Richardson's store. Genao said Richardson complained that the majority of people who speak Spanish in Rhode Island are illegal immigrants.
Both customers are U.S. citizens. Besides apologizing, Richardson paid $500 to several charities after the Rhode Island Commission for Human Rights and the Providence Human Relations Commission found probable cause that he broke city and state law.
Richardson said he apologized to get the case "over and done with" and doesn't agree with the legal findings.
(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
Source: WPRI
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Federal judge issues "Operation Stonegarden" immigration injunction in Otero
by Sito Negron
Posted on September 22, 2008
A federal judge has issued an injunction barring members of the Otero County Sheriff's Department from enforcing immigration laws through the controversial Operation Stonegarden.
The injunction specifically bars the department from "engaging in unlawful discriminatory activities and racial profiling for the purpose of identifying and apprehending undocumented and illegal immigrants pursuant to Operation Stonegarden."
In addition, the order bars the department from "unlawful retaliation, coercion, harassment, threats and intimidation," and tells the department not to conduct "unlawful community-wide raids targeted low-income Latino residents in Otero County."
In the summer of 2007, Otero County sheriffs deputies, using federal grant funds under the program name "Operation Stonegarden," began "a series of increasingly aggressive campaigns aimed at identifying and apprehending undocumented immigrants," claimed the Border Network for Human Rights in a lawsuit aimed at stopping the practice.
Among the allegations, although not specifically part of the lawsuit, were that the actions included stopping people at traffic checkpoints and asking for immigration status. (Click on links below the article to view the lawsuit and response from the government.)
In October, the American Civil Liberties Union and the Mexican-American Legal Defense Fund filed one lawsuit, and the Border Network for Human Rights, represented by the Paso del Norte Civil Rights Project filed another. Click here for background on the issue.
In May, the ACLU and MALDEF reached an agreement with the Otero sheriff's department regarding policies and procedures. Click here for background on that settlement.
Meanwhile, the other lawsuit resulated in the order signed by U.S. District Judge Martha Vazquez Friday.
In the order, Vazquez referred to claims that sheriff's deputies have been harassing residents of the community since the lawsuit's filing.
Representatives of both the Otero County Sheriff's Department and the Border Network for Human Rights were not immediately available for comment.
View the 11-page order via the link below.
Related Documents:
Source: Newspaper Tree
Saturday, September 27, 2008
ACLU Applauds Senators Menendez and Kennedy for Bill to Protect U.S. Citizens from Unlawful Detention and Deportation
Long-awaited legislation establishes due process standards for immigration detention, raids and deportation
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: (202) 675-2312 or media@dcaclu.org
WASHINGTON, DC – Last night, Senators Robert Menendez (D-NJ) and Edward Kennedy (D-MA) introduced legislation to protect U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents from being unlawfully detained and deported by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). In the wake of sweeping immigration raids that have devastated communities across the country, the ACLU welcomes this bill, S.3594, The Protect Citizens and Residents from Unlawful Raids and Detention Act, as the first legislation to require DHS to follow due process standards in executing immigration raids.
“The Protect Citizens and Residents from Unlawful Raids and Detention Act is long overdue,” said Joanne Lin, ACLU Legislative Counsel. In recent years, immigration detention and deportation rates have grown exponentially: last year over 300,000 people were deported and over 30,000 people held in immigration detention daily. DHS’s immigration enforcement actions have been so sweeping and untargeted that they have ensnared U.S. citizens. Hundreds of U.S. citizens have been unlawfully detained by DHS, and at least one U.S. citizen was illegally deported to Mexico, a country he had never lived in. According to Lin, “These gross due process violations have occurred because there are no controls or regulations governing DHS’s conduct. This bill is a necessary antidote to DHS’s unchecked and unconstitutional immigration enforcement powers.”
The ACLU has sued DHS for illegal detaining and deporting people including U.S. citizens. One ACLU client, Pedro Guzman, a U.S. citizen born in California, was deported to Mexico in 2007. After he was deported, Mr. Guzman was forced to live on the streets, to bathe in rivers and to eat out of trash bins for several months before he was allowed to reenter his home country, the U.S. The ACLU of Southern California and the law firm of Morrison & Foerster have brought a damages action against DHS on behalf of Mr. Guzman and his mother.
"Local jail officials and federal immigration officers deported the undeportable, a United States citizen, based on appearance, prejudice and reckless failure to apply fair legal procedures," said ACLU of Southern California Legal Director Mark Rosenbaum, an attorney for Pedro Guzman and his mother. “Local law enforcement officials should do the jobs they're trained for, not enforce complicated federal immigration laws. We don't use local officials to audit IRS returns or conduct foreign wars; that's why we have a federal government. The same applies to enforcement of immigration laws.”
In another lawsuit, the ACLU, National Immigration Law Center and the National Lawyers’ Guild sued DHS for systematically denying access to counsel to workers swept up in an immigration raid. In February 2008, ICE agents descended on the premises of a printer supply company in Van Nuys, California, temporarily shutting down operations. The ACLU and other lawyers offered to represent all the arrested workers, but ICE refused to let the workers consult with immigration attorneys, both at the worksite and later at the local ICE field office in the days following the raid. Some of the workers who tried to assert their right to counsel were intimidated by ICE agents into making incriminating statements.
The ACLU, NILC and NLG had no choice but to sue DHS for violating the workers’ right to consult with immigration counsel. In March 2008, DHS settled the case and allowed immigration attorneys to sit in on the workers’ interviews with ICE officers. The workers were represented by Ahilan Arulanantham, director of immigrants’ rights and national security at the ACLU of Southern California. According to Mr. Arulanantham, “ICE enforcement actions repeatedly violated the Constitution and federal law in this case. U.S. citizens, lawful permanent residents and others living in this country are entitled to a federal government that follows the law and due process.”
These ACLU lawsuits highlight the urgent need for Congress to pass legislation that curbs ICE’s unconstitutional raids, detention and deportation practices. To this end, this legislation would do the following:
* Create due process protections, such as notification of immigration charges and access to counsel and phones, during immigration enforcement efforts;
* Require DHS to implement regulations to ensure that immigration detainees are treated humanely;
* Promote “alternatives to detention” programs that are more humane and cost-effective than traditional penal-style detention;
* Establish an ICE ombudsman to investigate complaints and to create DHS accountability; and
* Provide labor protections to ensure that ICE worksite raids do not undermine labor or employment law investigations.
Source: ACLU
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: (202) 675-2312 or media@dcaclu.org
WASHINGTON, DC – Last night, Senators Robert Menendez (D-NJ) and Edward Kennedy (D-MA) introduced legislation to protect U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents from being unlawfully detained and deported by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). In the wake of sweeping immigration raids that have devastated communities across the country, the ACLU welcomes this bill, S.3594, The Protect Citizens and Residents from Unlawful Raids and Detention Act, as the first legislation to require DHS to follow due process standards in executing immigration raids.
“The Protect Citizens and Residents from Unlawful Raids and Detention Act is long overdue,” said Joanne Lin, ACLU Legislative Counsel. In recent years, immigration detention and deportation rates have grown exponentially: last year over 300,000 people were deported and over 30,000 people held in immigration detention daily. DHS’s immigration enforcement actions have been so sweeping and untargeted that they have ensnared U.S. citizens. Hundreds of U.S. citizens have been unlawfully detained by DHS, and at least one U.S. citizen was illegally deported to Mexico, a country he had never lived in. According to Lin, “These gross due process violations have occurred because there are no controls or regulations governing DHS’s conduct. This bill is a necessary antidote to DHS’s unchecked and unconstitutional immigration enforcement powers.”
The ACLU has sued DHS for illegal detaining and deporting people including U.S. citizens. One ACLU client, Pedro Guzman, a U.S. citizen born in California, was deported to Mexico in 2007. After he was deported, Mr. Guzman was forced to live on the streets, to bathe in rivers and to eat out of trash bins for several months before he was allowed to reenter his home country, the U.S. The ACLU of Southern California and the law firm of Morrison & Foerster have brought a damages action against DHS on behalf of Mr. Guzman and his mother.
"Local jail officials and federal immigration officers deported the undeportable, a United States citizen, based on appearance, prejudice and reckless failure to apply fair legal procedures," said ACLU of Southern California Legal Director Mark Rosenbaum, an attorney for Pedro Guzman and his mother. “Local law enforcement officials should do the jobs they're trained for, not enforce complicated federal immigration laws. We don't use local officials to audit IRS returns or conduct foreign wars; that's why we have a federal government. The same applies to enforcement of immigration laws.”
In another lawsuit, the ACLU, National Immigration Law Center and the National Lawyers’ Guild sued DHS for systematically denying access to counsel to workers swept up in an immigration raid. In February 2008, ICE agents descended on the premises of a printer supply company in Van Nuys, California, temporarily shutting down operations. The ACLU and other lawyers offered to represent all the arrested workers, but ICE refused to let the workers consult with immigration attorneys, both at the worksite and later at the local ICE field office in the days following the raid. Some of the workers who tried to assert their right to counsel were intimidated by ICE agents into making incriminating statements.
The ACLU, NILC and NLG had no choice but to sue DHS for violating the workers’ right to consult with immigration counsel. In March 2008, DHS settled the case and allowed immigration attorneys to sit in on the workers’ interviews with ICE officers. The workers were represented by Ahilan Arulanantham, director of immigrants’ rights and national security at the ACLU of Southern California. According to Mr. Arulanantham, “ICE enforcement actions repeatedly violated the Constitution and federal law in this case. U.S. citizens, lawful permanent residents and others living in this country are entitled to a federal government that follows the law and due process.”
These ACLU lawsuits highlight the urgent need for Congress to pass legislation that curbs ICE’s unconstitutional raids, detention and deportation practices. To this end, this legislation would do the following:
* Create due process protections, such as notification of immigration charges and access to counsel and phones, during immigration enforcement efforts;
* Require DHS to implement regulations to ensure that immigration detainees are treated humanely;
* Promote “alternatives to detention” programs that are more humane and cost-effective than traditional penal-style detention;
* Establish an ICE ombudsman to investigate complaints and to create DHS accountability; and
* Provide labor protections to ensure that ICE worksite raids do not undermine labor or employment law investigations.
Source: ACLU
New Details About Plot To Kill Obama
Dencer, CO - Three men in Denver discussed assassinating U.S. Sen. Barack Obama during the Democratic National Convention in Denver by sneaking into one of his events and shooting him with a gun hidden inside of a camera.
Nathan Johnson's girlfriend, whom 9NEWS is not naming because she's a juvenile, said "it would have to be a suicide mission," according to federal court records.
The plot is similar to that in the 1992 movie "The Bodyguard" starring actors Kevin Costner and Whitney Houston. In the movie, Costner stops an assassination attempt against Houston by spotting a weapon hidden inside a gutted-out TV camera.
Johnson, Shawn Adolf and Tharin Gartrell all thought that Obama had a suite in the third floor of the Hyatt hotel, where they were staying. In fact, Obama was staying in another Denver hotel.
The men were doing methamphetamine inside the hotel with two women on Aug. 23 discussing the plot to kill Obama, according to federal records.
Adolf said, "It would not matter if he killed Senator Obama because police would simply add a murder charge to his pending charges," according to the records.
There were seven outstanding warrants for Adolf's arrest.
The underage woman told law enforcement that Adolf also talked about using "a high-powered rifle 22-250 from a high vantage point" to shoot Obama during his acceptance speech at INVESCO Field at Mile High.
One of the other women in the room, Kay Neb, told police she believes Adolf is affiliated with the Sons of Silence white supremacist group. Neb also told police that Adolf, Johnson and Gartrell are all racists because they made racially disparaging comments about Obama.
The Sons of Silence is a motorcycle group with chapters across the country.
"We don't know these people, we are not associated with them in any way and we don't want people like this in our group," said a spokesman for Sons of Silence.
The group also says it has no ties to white supremacists.
When police searched the hotel rooms and cars the men were using, they confiscated meth, needles, laptops, cell phones, a black mask, books indicating check fraud and forgery, bags of new clothes, tactical pants and bar coupons.
Based on the evidence, FBI special agent Robert Sawyer first believed there was probable cause to believe the men were conspiring to kill Obama.
However, U.S. Attorney Troy Eid last week said that further investigation revealed insufficient evidence to indicate a "true threat," plot or conspiracy against the senator.
The men were charged with various weapons and/or drug charges.
Aurora Police found two rifles, ammunition, bulletproof vests, walkie-talkies, wigs and fake identifications in the pickup truck that Gartrell was driving when they pulled him over Aug. 24. One of the weapons was stolen from Kansas.
Police also found a Wizzinator inside the pickup truck, which is a device made of a prosthetic penis and synthetic urine to cheat on drug tests.
(Copyright KUSA*TV, All Right Reserved)
Source: DigTriad
Nathan Johnson's girlfriend, whom 9NEWS is not naming because she's a juvenile, said "it would have to be a suicide mission," according to federal court records.
The plot is similar to that in the 1992 movie "The Bodyguard" starring actors Kevin Costner and Whitney Houston. In the movie, Costner stops an assassination attempt against Houston by spotting a weapon hidden inside a gutted-out TV camera.
Johnson, Shawn Adolf and Tharin Gartrell all thought that Obama had a suite in the third floor of the Hyatt hotel, where they were staying. In fact, Obama was staying in another Denver hotel.
The men were doing methamphetamine inside the hotel with two women on Aug. 23 discussing the plot to kill Obama, according to federal records.
Adolf said, "It would not matter if he killed Senator Obama because police would simply add a murder charge to his pending charges," according to the records.
There were seven outstanding warrants for Adolf's arrest.
The underage woman told law enforcement that Adolf also talked about using "a high-powered rifle 22-250 from a high vantage point" to shoot Obama during his acceptance speech at INVESCO Field at Mile High.
One of the other women in the room, Kay Neb, told police she believes Adolf is affiliated with the Sons of Silence white supremacist group. Neb also told police that Adolf, Johnson and Gartrell are all racists because they made racially disparaging comments about Obama.
The Sons of Silence is a motorcycle group with chapters across the country.
"We don't know these people, we are not associated with them in any way and we don't want people like this in our group," said a spokesman for Sons of Silence.
The group also says it has no ties to white supremacists.
When police searched the hotel rooms and cars the men were using, they confiscated meth, needles, laptops, cell phones, a black mask, books indicating check fraud and forgery, bags of new clothes, tactical pants and bar coupons.
Based on the evidence, FBI special agent Robert Sawyer first believed there was probable cause to believe the men were conspiring to kill Obama.
However, U.S. Attorney Troy Eid last week said that further investigation revealed insufficient evidence to indicate a "true threat," plot or conspiracy against the senator.
The men were charged with various weapons and/or drug charges.
Aurora Police found two rifles, ammunition, bulletproof vests, walkie-talkies, wigs and fake identifications in the pickup truck that Gartrell was driving when they pulled him over Aug. 24. One of the weapons was stolen from Kansas.
Police also found a Wizzinator inside the pickup truck, which is a device made of a prosthetic penis and synthetic urine to cheat on drug tests.
(Copyright KUSA*TV, All Right Reserved)
Source: DigTriad
Saturday, September 20, 2008
The Tanton Files: FAIR Founder’s Racism Revealed
ANN ARBOR, Mich. — The Bentley Historical Library at the University of Michigan is an unassuming place, more like a small-town library than a research institute. But hidden away in 17 cardboard boxes deep inside the simple facility are the papers of John Tanton, the retired Michigan opthamologist who has been the most important figure in the modern American anti-immigration movement for three decades. The papers, which include more than 20 years of letters from the founder of the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) and a batch of other nativist groups, contain explosive material about Tanton’s beliefs. They also show that FAIR, where Tanton still serves as a member of the board, has been well aware of Tanton’s views and activities for years.
Tanton has long claimed that he is no racist — that, in fact, he came to his immigration restrictionism through progressive concerns for population control and the environment, not disdain for the foreign born. He characterizes himself as a “fair person,” and on his website he condemns the “unsavory characters whose views can easily be characterized as anti-American, anti-Semitic and outright racist.”
Fair enough. But what do Tanton’s letters have to say?
As it turns out, quite a lot. Although Tanton has been linked to racist ideas in the past — fretting about the “educability” of Latinos, warning of whites being out-bred by others, and publishing a number of white nationalist authors — the papers in the Bentley Library show that Tanton has for decades been at the heart of the white nationalist scene. He has corresponded with Holocaust deniers, former Klan lawyers and the leading white nationalist thinkers of the era. He introduced key FAIR leaders to the president of the Pioneer Fund, a white supremacist group set up to encourage “race betterment,” at a 1997 meeting at a private club. He wrote a major funder to encourage her to read the work of a radical anti-Semitic professor — to “give you a new understanding of the Jewish outlook on life” — and suggested that the entire FAIR board discuss the professor’s theories on the Jews. He practically worshipped a principal architect of the Immigration Act of 1924 (instituting a national origin quota system and barring Asian immigration), a rabid anti-Semite whose pro-Nazi American Coalition of Patriotic Societies was indicted for sedition in 1942.
As early as 1969, Tanton showed a sharp interest in eugenics, the “science” of breeding a better human race that was utterly discredited by the Nazis, trying to find out if Michigan had laws allowing forced sterilization. His interest stemmed, he wrote in a letter of inquiry that year, from “a local pair of sisters who have nine illegitimate children between them.” Some 30 years later, he was still worrying about “less intelligent” people being allowed children, saying that “modern medicine and social programs are eroding the human gene pool.”
Throughout, FAIR — which, along with Tanton, refused repeated requests for comment for this story — has stood by its man. Its 2004 annual report praised him for “visionary qualities that have not waned one bit.” Around the same time, Dan Stein, who has led FAIR since 1988 as executive director or president and who was copied on scores of Tanton’s letters, insisted FAIR’s founder had “never asserted the inferiority or superiority of any racial, ethnic, or religious group. Never.”
Read more here: Southern Poverty Law Center
Sunday, September 14, 2008
Vandals damage, graffiti Chula Vista medical office
UNION-TRIBUNE
7:13 p.m. September 11, 2008
CHULA VISTA – Police say vandals caused more than $4,000 damage to a pediatrics medical office Wednesday night, smashing computers and scrawling Nazi swastikas and anti-Hispanic graffiti on the walls.
The vandalism was discovered about 8 a.m. Thursday by employees arriving for work at Heritage Park Pediatrics on East Palomar Street near Monarch Drive, said Pamela Fish, a pediatric nurse practitioner.
“They targeted an office that serves a huge Hispanic population, and we're very concerned,” Fish said. “We had to shut down in the morning to repair the damage.”
Officer Glenn Stark said the vandals forced open a rear door to the clinic, broke open file cabinets and stole two cash boxes with an undisclosed amount of money. They smashed three laptop computers and a computer keyboard and scrawled several 9-inch Nazi swastikas and obscenities on the clinic walls.
Chula Vista police said it was the fourth time in the last two months that vandals have defaced property in the city with racist messages.
Vandals painted swastikas and the number 666 on two Berean Baptist Church vans on July 7, and on a concrete sign in front of Mater Dei Catholic High School on Aug. 1, police said.
Also, swastikas were painted Aug. 5 on a wall in the 1200 block of Turtle Cay Place, and on Aug. 19 on a building at Heritage Park, police said.
Anyone with information is asked to call police at (619) 691-5151.
Source: SignOnSanDiego
7:13 p.m. September 11, 2008
CHULA VISTA – Police say vandals caused more than $4,000 damage to a pediatrics medical office Wednesday night, smashing computers and scrawling Nazi swastikas and anti-Hispanic graffiti on the walls.
The vandalism was discovered about 8 a.m. Thursday by employees arriving for work at Heritage Park Pediatrics on East Palomar Street near Monarch Drive, said Pamela Fish, a pediatric nurse practitioner.
“They targeted an office that serves a huge Hispanic population, and we're very concerned,” Fish said. “We had to shut down in the morning to repair the damage.”
Officer Glenn Stark said the vandals forced open a rear door to the clinic, broke open file cabinets and stole two cash boxes with an undisclosed amount of money. They smashed three laptop computers and a computer keyboard and scrawled several 9-inch Nazi swastikas and obscenities on the clinic walls.
Chula Vista police said it was the fourth time in the last two months that vandals have defaced property in the city with racist messages.
Vandals painted swastikas and the number 666 on two Berean Baptist Church vans on July 7, and on a concrete sign in front of Mater Dei Catholic High School on Aug. 1, police said.
Also, swastikas were painted Aug. 5 on a wall in the 1200 block of Turtle Cay Place, and on Aug. 19 on a building at Heritage Park, police said.
Anyone with information is asked to call police at (619) 691-5151.
Source: SignOnSanDiego
Community unites for arson victim
Sheriff, others hope actions will defuse racial tensions in the Jefferson Twp. neighborhood.
By Kristin McAllister
Staff Writer
Sunday, September 14, 2008
JEFFERSON TWP., Montgomery County — Despite living in fear of hate crimes, residents of a Jefferson Twp. neighborhood banded together Saturday during a block party in front of a home destroyed by an act of arson.
The Montgomery County Sheriff's Office sponsored the Saturday, Sept. 13, block party in front of the charred, two-story home of Saundra Ballard at 322 Albers Ave.
"I'm just really overjoyed to see the community coming out and embracing not only this event, but embracing our family," said Ballard, a nurse at Friendship Village Nursing Home. "This is what this community needs — to get back on track to let people know they're not going to put up with the nonsense and no matter what color you are, you're going to stick together and make sure that this doesn't happen."
Sheriff's deputies on July 31 arrested Earl McLearran, 39, of 304 Albers Ave., on two charges of ethnic intimidation after he allegedly yelled a racial slur at Ballard's son and threatened to burn down her house. He is being held on a $50,000 bond.
"They all are living in fear," said Sheriff Phil Plummer. "They're terrorized and said, 'We're moving. We can't handle this anymore. We can't come out on our porches. We're afraid he's going to burn us out.' That's when I said, this is ridiculous. We need to do something."
Plummer said McLearran's 16-year-old stepson and two other juveniles also are being investigated in connection with the fire.
Ballard said community strength will give pause to anyone considering committing a hate crime.
"They'll think about how many others are not with them on it, and they will think twice about doing it now," she said.
Still, Ballard said she's deeply shaken by what's happened.
"As long as that family is at the end of the street, I don't think I'll ever be safe here," she said.
Derrick L. Foward, president of the NAACP Dayton unit, said the block party is "a good start, but I do not want this block party to overshadow the severity of this crime and this family being displaced."
Foward pointed to the fact that the arson was the eighth call of deputies to Ballard's home.
"So, while this block party is a step in the right direction, we don't want to see what's happened here to have been in vain," he said. "Those responsible need to be held accountable for their actions."
Pat Hicks-Smith of the Dayton Dialogue on Race Relations said her group is striving to get neighbors together in combatting discrimination and hate crimes.
"We are hopeful that by working with the sheriff's department, we're going to be able to engage residents in a dialogue with the hope that the outcome will be an action plan to look at how they can address issues, concerns and make a difference in their neighborhood," Hicks-Smith said.
Ballard's neighbor, Agustin Peres, said block parties should be routine.
"It would be good to have one every month," he said. "It would help a lot, because everybody is on the lookout for each other."
Donations to the Ballard family may be made through a link at www.stmarydevelopment.org. An account under Ballard's name also has been set up through the Wright-Patt Credit Union.
Source: Dayton Daily News
By Kristin McAllister
Staff Writer
Sunday, September 14, 2008
JEFFERSON TWP., Montgomery County — Despite living in fear of hate crimes, residents of a Jefferson Twp. neighborhood banded together Saturday during a block party in front of a home destroyed by an act of arson.
The Montgomery County Sheriff's Office sponsored the Saturday, Sept. 13, block party in front of the charred, two-story home of Saundra Ballard at 322 Albers Ave.
"I'm just really overjoyed to see the community coming out and embracing not only this event, but embracing our family," said Ballard, a nurse at Friendship Village Nursing Home. "This is what this community needs — to get back on track to let people know they're not going to put up with the nonsense and no matter what color you are, you're going to stick together and make sure that this doesn't happen."
Sheriff's deputies on July 31 arrested Earl McLearran, 39, of 304 Albers Ave., on two charges of ethnic intimidation after he allegedly yelled a racial slur at Ballard's son and threatened to burn down her house. He is being held on a $50,000 bond.
"They all are living in fear," said Sheriff Phil Plummer. "They're terrorized and said, 'We're moving. We can't handle this anymore. We can't come out on our porches. We're afraid he's going to burn us out.' That's when I said, this is ridiculous. We need to do something."
Plummer said McLearran's 16-year-old stepson and two other juveniles also are being investigated in connection with the fire.
Ballard said community strength will give pause to anyone considering committing a hate crime.
"They'll think about how many others are not with them on it, and they will think twice about doing it now," she said.
Still, Ballard said she's deeply shaken by what's happened.
"As long as that family is at the end of the street, I don't think I'll ever be safe here," she said.
Derrick L. Foward, president of the NAACP Dayton unit, said the block party is "a good start, but I do not want this block party to overshadow the severity of this crime and this family being displaced."
Foward pointed to the fact that the arson was the eighth call of deputies to Ballard's home.
"So, while this block party is a step in the right direction, we don't want to see what's happened here to have been in vain," he said. "Those responsible need to be held accountable for their actions."
Pat Hicks-Smith of the Dayton Dialogue on Race Relations said her group is striving to get neighbors together in combatting discrimination and hate crimes.
"We are hopeful that by working with the sheriff's department, we're going to be able to engage residents in a dialogue with the hope that the outcome will be an action plan to look at how they can address issues, concerns and make a difference in their neighborhood," Hicks-Smith said.
Ballard's neighbor, Agustin Peres, said block parties should be routine.
"It would be good to have one every month," he said. "It would help a lot, because everybody is on the lookout for each other."
Donations to the Ballard family may be made through a link at www.stmarydevelopment.org. An account under Ballard's name also has been set up through the Wright-Patt Credit Union.
Source: Dayton Daily News
Beating Of Boy On School Bus Called Hate Crime
GARY, Ind. (Post-Tribune) ― A 14-year-old boy suffered a severe beating by fellow students while riding on his school bus on Wednesday in Gary, Indiana - in what is being investigated as a hate crime.
As Angel Garcia recovers from Wednesday's school bus beating, Gary school officials announced Friday they are investigating the attack.
"Our district in no way condones racial discrimination or any acts of negative behavior," Superintendent Mary Steele-Agee said in a written statement.
Garcia, 14, an eighth-grader at Tolleston Middle School, was attacked by a bus load of fellow students Wednesday afternoon, his mother said.
The victim told Cpl. Len Miller students "surrounded him ... said they would allow no whites at the school or bus," according to a police report.
The report, which classifies the beating as a hate crime, indicates there were about five assailants, while the school system describes the incident as "a fight with three neighborhood students who Angel called his friends."
Garcia suffered a broken nose, black eye and numerous bruises.
His mother, Maylee Garcia, said she moved her family to the west side of Gary from East Chicago, Ind. to get away from a bad neighborhood.
But shortly after school began, her son balked at riding the bus. On Wednesday morning, she went to Tolleston School and spoke with a vice principal and two security guards about the harassment her son has endured since the classes began.
He was attacked on the bus ride home that afternoon.
One teen was arrested Thursday. Juvenile division detectives hoped to view a security tape from the bus to identify other attackers.
Source: CBS2Chicago
As Angel Garcia recovers from Wednesday's school bus beating, Gary school officials announced Friday they are investigating the attack.
"Our district in no way condones racial discrimination or any acts of negative behavior," Superintendent Mary Steele-Agee said in a written statement.
Garcia, 14, an eighth-grader at Tolleston Middle School, was attacked by a bus load of fellow students Wednesday afternoon, his mother said.
The victim told Cpl. Len Miller students "surrounded him ... said they would allow no whites at the school or bus," according to a police report.
The report, which classifies the beating as a hate crime, indicates there were about five assailants, while the school system describes the incident as "a fight with three neighborhood students who Angel called his friends."
Garcia suffered a broken nose, black eye and numerous bruises.
His mother, Maylee Garcia, said she moved her family to the west side of Gary from East Chicago, Ind. to get away from a bad neighborhood.
But shortly after school began, her son balked at riding the bus. On Wednesday morning, she went to Tolleston School and spoke with a vice principal and two security guards about the harassment her son has endured since the classes began.
He was attacked on the bus ride home that afternoon.
One teen was arrested Thursday. Juvenile division detectives hoped to view a security tape from the bus to identify other attackers.
Source: CBS2Chicago
Saturday, September 13, 2008
Suspected white supremacist to serve five years in prison for MySpace threats
A man known to authorities as a white supremacist reached a plea agreement Monday with the county District Attorney’s Office for threatening a man from Templeton, according to spokesman Jarret Gran.
Jeffrey David Lodor, 27, of Porterville, pleaded no contest to committing an assault with a deadly weapon or using means likely to produce great bodily injury.
Lodor agreed to a five-year state prison term.
Lodor met the unidentified Templeton man while in jail and they became friends.
But after they were released and the local man made Jewish and Hispanic friends, Lodor threatened him on the social networking Web site MySpace.
Sheriff's Department investigators previously would not disclose the specifics of Lodor’s alleged threats, but said he was a known white supremacist.
— Nick Wilson
Source: San Luis Obispo
Jeffrey David Lodor, 27, of Porterville, pleaded no contest to committing an assault with a deadly weapon or using means likely to produce great bodily injury.
Lodor agreed to a five-year state prison term.
Lodor met the unidentified Templeton man while in jail and they became friends.
But after they were released and the local man made Jewish and Hispanic friends, Lodor threatened him on the social networking Web site MySpace.
Sheriff's Department investigators previously would not disclose the specifics of Lodor’s alleged threats, but said he was a known white supremacist.
— Nick Wilson
Source: San Luis Obispo
Man pleads not guilty to hate-crime charges
He and another alleged white supremacist are accused of knocking out a man.
By Joseph Serna and Michael Alexander
Updated: Wednesday, September 10, 2008 4:21 PM PDT
There are No comments posted.
A Huntington Beach man has pleaded not guilty to charges that he and a friend committed a hate crime by beating and robbing a man simply for his being Latino.
Ryan Joseph Swanson, 19, of Huntington Beach, and Nicholas Gibbs, 20, of Anaheim, are charged with aggravated assault, felony battery with committing serious bodily injury, second-degree robbery, stealing a car and committing a hate crime and causing great bodily injury after allegedly knocking out 24-year-old Ryan Honeycutt and stealing his car and phone.
Swanson pleaded not guilty to all charges at his arraignment Friday afternoon.
On May 26, prosecutors say Honeycutt was drinking with a female friend in Seal Beach.
When the two went to Honeycutt’s car to leave, Honeycutt discovered his car battery had died and the girl called her friends Swanson and Gibbs to give them a jump, prosecutors said.
All four went back to the girl’s house, and while they were talking, Honeycutt mentioned that he was half El Salvadoran, prosecutors said. Authorities say Swanson and Gibbs have white supremacist tattoos and told Honeycutt they were white supremacists before luring him outside as he prepared to leave because he was uncomfortable.
The men punched Honeycutt in the head, knocking him out, then stomped on him while he was unconscious, prosecutors said.
Honeycutt suffered a fractured clavicle, a concussion and cuts on his face, prosecutors said. Swanson and Gibbs went back into the girl’s house and grabbed Honeycutt’s keys, wallet and cellphone and left with his car, prosecutors said.
His car was found abandoned in a Long Beach parking lot three days later. Swanson was declared ineligible for bail, according to jail records. He is scheduled to appear for a preliminary hearing Tuesday.
JOSEPH SERNA may be reached at (714) 966-4619 or at joseph.serna@latimes.com.
Source: HBIndependent
By Joseph Serna and Michael Alexander
Updated: Wednesday, September 10, 2008 4:21 PM PDT
There are No comments posted.
A Huntington Beach man has pleaded not guilty to charges that he and a friend committed a hate crime by beating and robbing a man simply for his being Latino.
Ryan Joseph Swanson, 19, of Huntington Beach, and Nicholas Gibbs, 20, of Anaheim, are charged with aggravated assault, felony battery with committing serious bodily injury, second-degree robbery, stealing a car and committing a hate crime and causing great bodily injury after allegedly knocking out 24-year-old Ryan Honeycutt and stealing his car and phone.
Swanson pleaded not guilty to all charges at his arraignment Friday afternoon.
On May 26, prosecutors say Honeycutt was drinking with a female friend in Seal Beach.
When the two went to Honeycutt’s car to leave, Honeycutt discovered his car battery had died and the girl called her friends Swanson and Gibbs to give them a jump, prosecutors said.
All four went back to the girl’s house, and while they were talking, Honeycutt mentioned that he was half El Salvadoran, prosecutors said. Authorities say Swanson and Gibbs have white supremacist tattoos and told Honeycutt they were white supremacists before luring him outside as he prepared to leave because he was uncomfortable.
The men punched Honeycutt in the head, knocking him out, then stomped on him while he was unconscious, prosecutors said.
Honeycutt suffered a fractured clavicle, a concussion and cuts on his face, prosecutors said. Swanson and Gibbs went back into the girl’s house and grabbed Honeycutt’s keys, wallet and cellphone and left with his car, prosecutors said.
His car was found abandoned in a Long Beach parking lot three days later. Swanson was declared ineligible for bail, according to jail records. He is scheduled to appear for a preliminary hearing Tuesday.
JOSEPH SERNA may be reached at (714) 966-4619 or at joseph.serna@latimes.com.
Source: HBIndependent
Imprisoned racist leader launches new appeal
BY BILL DOLAN
bdolan@nwitimes.com
219.662.5328 | Thursday, September 11, 2008 | No comments posted.
CHICAGO | White supremacist Matthew Hale continues to file pleas in Hammond federal court to overturn his conviction and 40-year sentence for soliciting an FBI informant to murder a federal judge.
Hale, 37, who is being held at a federal prison in Florence, Colo., launched a new appeal this year alleging his 2004 trial was unjust because of mistakes by his defense lawyers.
Hale was the head of the World Church of the Creator, which preaches racial holy war against minorities. A jury convicted him of taking part in a plot to kill Illinois U.S. District Judge Joan Humphrey Lefkow. Lefkow had ordered Hale to stop using the name World Church of the Creator for his group because it was trademarked by an Oregon-based church group.
Hale faults his lawyers for allowing blacks and an assistant dean at Northwestern University with a black live-in boyfriend to serve on the jury.
One of Hale's racist associates, Benjamin Nathaniel Smith, went on a shooting spree in 1999 that killed two minorities, including Northwestern basketball coach Ricky Birdsong.
The Seventh Circuit Court denied an earlier appeal by Hale to win a new trial. U.S. District Court Judge James Moody, who presided over Hale's trial in Hammond, has yet to rule on the new appeal.
Source: NWITimes
bdolan@nwitimes.com
219.662.5328 | Thursday, September 11, 2008 | No comments posted.
CHICAGO | White supremacist Matthew Hale continues to file pleas in Hammond federal court to overturn his conviction and 40-year sentence for soliciting an FBI informant to murder a federal judge.
Hale, 37, who is being held at a federal prison in Florence, Colo., launched a new appeal this year alleging his 2004 trial was unjust because of mistakes by his defense lawyers.
Hale was the head of the World Church of the Creator, which preaches racial holy war against minorities. A jury convicted him of taking part in a plot to kill Illinois U.S. District Judge Joan Humphrey Lefkow. Lefkow had ordered Hale to stop using the name World Church of the Creator for his group because it was trademarked by an Oregon-based church group.
Hale faults his lawyers for allowing blacks and an assistant dean at Northwestern University with a black live-in boyfriend to serve on the jury.
One of Hale's racist associates, Benjamin Nathaniel Smith, went on a shooting spree in 1999 that killed two minorities, including Northwestern basketball coach Ricky Birdsong.
The Seventh Circuit Court denied an earlier appeal by Hale to win a new trial. U.S. District Court Judge James Moody, who presided over Hale's trial in Hammond, has yet to rule on the new appeal.
Source: NWITimes
Jury sees bat used to slay skinhead
By TRACY MCLAUGHLIN, SPECIAL TO SUN MEDIA
BARRIE -- Jury members squirmed and shuffled in their seats yesterday as they looked upon a murder weapon that was used to bash in the head of a white supremacist skinhead as he lay sleeping after a drunken party.
The weapon -- a wooden baseball bat which was fondly called a "nigger stick" by its skinhead owner, Vaughn Newman -- was engraved with symbols connected to Hitler's teachings and the words "Full out hate."
WHITE SUPREMACISTS
The trial is delving into the death of Stephen Long, 22, of Ottawa, who was beaten to death at a Collingwood house party on April 16, 2006. Court heard Long and his friends belonged to the Hammer Heads -- a white supremacist brotherhood of skinheads against blacks, Jews and gays.
On trial for first-degree murder is Christopher Broughton, 29, of Hamilton, who the jury heard was hoping to be accepted by the skinheads.
Brad Genno, 27, a Hammer Head from Toronto, testified he drove to the Collingwood party with Long and Broughton. He said he saw Broughton get into a fight with some of the partiers.
'SHOCKED, AFRAID'
The next morning he awoke on a couch to the sight of Broughton standing in front of him with the bat, so he fled.
"I bolted," said Genno. "I was, shocked ... afraid."
When he returned, police and paramedics were already there and Long was lying in a pool of blood on the floor.
Defence lawyer Michael Lacy suggested his client, Broughton, was involved in more than "just a fight" and that he was beaten, dragged by his feet, kicked in the head, stomped on, then made to kneel down and apologize for showing disrespect.
"I'm not sure about all of that," said Genno, who testified that he was drunk at the time.
"I've tried to black out the memory of that night for the past two years."
The trial continues Tuesday.
Source: CANOE
BARRIE -- Jury members squirmed and shuffled in their seats yesterday as they looked upon a murder weapon that was used to bash in the head of a white supremacist skinhead as he lay sleeping after a drunken party.
The weapon -- a wooden baseball bat which was fondly called a "nigger stick" by its skinhead owner, Vaughn Newman -- was engraved with symbols connected to Hitler's teachings and the words "Full out hate."
WHITE SUPREMACISTS
The trial is delving into the death of Stephen Long, 22, of Ottawa, who was beaten to death at a Collingwood house party on April 16, 2006. Court heard Long and his friends belonged to the Hammer Heads -- a white supremacist brotherhood of skinheads against blacks, Jews and gays.
On trial for first-degree murder is Christopher Broughton, 29, of Hamilton, who the jury heard was hoping to be accepted by the skinheads.
Brad Genno, 27, a Hammer Head from Toronto, testified he drove to the Collingwood party with Long and Broughton. He said he saw Broughton get into a fight with some of the partiers.
'SHOCKED, AFRAID'
The next morning he awoke on a couch to the sight of Broughton standing in front of him with the bat, so he fled.
"I bolted," said Genno. "I was, shocked ... afraid."
When he returned, police and paramedics were already there and Long was lying in a pool of blood on the floor.
Defence lawyer Michael Lacy suggested his client, Broughton, was involved in more than "just a fight" and that he was beaten, dragged by his feet, kicked in the head, stomped on, then made to kneel down and apologize for showing disrespect.
"I'm not sure about all of that," said Genno, who testified that he was drunk at the time.
"I've tried to black out the memory of that night for the past two years."
The trial continues Tuesday.
Source: CANOE
Friday, September 12, 2008
Overturning of Seale Verdict is Sad Reminder of Justice Denied in Civil Rights-Era Murders
The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has overturned the conviction of James Ford Seale, citing a five-year statute of limitations on the charges. The Klansman was convicted in 2007 on kidnapping-related charges in connection with the 1964 murders of Charles Eddie Moore and Henry Hezekiah Dee.
"The ruling is disappointing, but not surprising," said SPLC President Richard Cohen, who testified before Congress last year in support of the Emmett Till Unsolved Civil Rights Crime Act. "It's a sad reminder that justice delayed is, too often, justice denied.
"Charles Moore and Henry Dee were killed during a time when there simply was no justice for African Americans in the South. The whole criminal justice system — from the police, to the prosecutors, to the juries and to the judges — was perverted by racial bigotry. Were it not for the callous indifference of white law enforcement officials, Seale would have been in jail long ago and the statute of limitations would not have mattered."
Moore and Dee are among the 40 martyrs whose names are inscribed on the Civil Rights Memorial adjacent to the SPLC's office in Montgomery, Ala.
Source: SPLCenter
"The ruling is disappointing, but not surprising," said SPLC President Richard Cohen, who testified before Congress last year in support of the Emmett Till Unsolved Civil Rights Crime Act. "It's a sad reminder that justice delayed is, too often, justice denied.
"Charles Moore and Henry Dee were killed during a time when there simply was no justice for African Americans in the South. The whole criminal justice system — from the police, to the prosecutors, to the juries and to the judges — was perverted by racial bigotry. Were it not for the callous indifference of white law enforcement officials, Seale would have been in jail long ago and the statute of limitations would not have mattered."
Moore and Dee are among the 40 martyrs whose names are inscribed on the Civil Rights Memorial adjacent to the SPLC's office in Montgomery, Ala.
Source: SPLCenter
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Valley residents sue government after being denied passports
By A.J. Anderson
Rio Grande Valley resident David Hernandez fought back tears as he described the difficulties he had applying for a passport.
BROWNSVILLE, September 10 - Nine U.S. citizens from the Rio Grande Valley are suing the federal government, claiming they were discriminated against when applying for a passport.
Attorneys representing the nine plaintiffs say roadblocks were put up by the State Department because the citizens have a Hispanic surname and were born to a midwife.
On Tuesday, plaintiffs David Hernandez from San Benito and Juan Aranda from Weslaco spoke before a group of community members and media to share their story and explain the basis of the lawsuit.
They were joined by attorneys from the American Civil Liberties Union, Washington, D.C.-based Hogan & Hartson LLP, Refugio del Rio Grande, Inc., of San Benito, and the Rev. Mike Seifert of San Felipe de Jesus Catholic Church in Cameron Park.
The case involves Mexican American citizens who have applied for passports in advance of next year’s policy change, when passports will be required to travel to Mexico by land.
The State Department says it has tightened up security since 9/11 and vets the applications thoroughly because the Valley has a higher than average number of midwives who have been convicted of fraud.
Introducing the case, Robin Goldfaden, of the ACLU’s Immigration Rights Project, stated that “there was a clear pattern to the problem faced, and who was facing that problem: Mexican Americans delivered by a midwife in a Southwest border state, and Texas in particular.”
The state department lumped people in this category together, Goldfaden said, and subjected them to “unreasonable, burdensome and excessive demands for evidence of their birth in the United States, evidence which few people would actually possess” when they applied for a passport.
Attorney Lisa Brodyaga with Refugio del Valley explained that the types of documents requested by the government ranged from “easy to obtain, such as baptismal records, to difficult, to impossible.” Some institutions do not exist anymore, such as old schools or clinics, making some records impossible to acquire for elderly people.
Following the surge in passport applications for border residents who want to travel to Mexico, Refugio staff encountered a surge at their doorstep of those “who had received letters from the Department of State saying that their applications had been closed, or ‘filed without action’ because they either did not respond to the demand for these documents or they did not respond fully.”
Goldfaden said the applicants spent a great deal of time, effort, and money obtaining documents that were not being required of other applicants. She said the applicants were not specific with details of how to remedy the situation, thereby leaving the applicant with no passports and no hope of obtaining one.
“The constitution would not allow this,” Goldfaden said. “The state violated the law in three areas: it is a violation of due process – people should be judged by a fair, proper, non-arbitrary standard – a violation of equal protection, and it is arbitrary and capricious.” The government is clearly breaking the law, the attorney claimed.
“What the lawsuit seeks is a fair and legal process, in a way that is fair, non-discriminatory, individualized, and under the proper scrutiny that all other applicants are given,” Goldfaden said.
Seifert said he fully supports the legal proceedings of those filing suit. A few months back he held a community meeting on the subject and expected half a dozen people to show up. Instead, dozens filled the room to tell their “horror” about applying for passports. Seifert said the residents were angered at the way they were treated by the State Department.
“We put up with a lot, but we don’t put up with being humiliated. I think that’s been the sense of people who made these applications – they’re giving up on the process” because they’re being targeted for being born to midwives, meaning that family was too poor to afford to go to the hospital.
As the parish priest, Seifert hears a lot of anguish from his parish, such as families not being able to “see grandmother,” or “go to the doctor.” Seifert added: “It’s a blow to the heart of our community, not to mention the financial difficulties.”
Hernandez and Aranda told similar stories of how difficult it was to apply for a U.S. passport. Hernandez was born and baptized in San Benito, Texas, to a midwife, and has spent nearly his whole life in the U.S. He asserted that he is “a lawful abiding taxpayer,” who has “social security” and is “a registered voter.” He always thought he was an American citizen, and had no reason to ever question that until he applied for a passport in light of new laws requiring passports for travel between Mexico and Texas.
“I pledge allegiance to the flag, of the United States of American,” he said, holding back the tears. He said he has repeated that phrase all his life, and feels pride in his country. “I served my country in the Army and have worked ever since.” He feels he is a model citizen.
Along with many others this year, Hernandez applied for a passport to travel outside the country. He has family in Monterrey he would like to visit. He received a letter stating that he was not being granted a passport. “I rarely travel to Mexico but I would like to travel whenever I want. If they’re doing this to me then I’m sure they’re doing it to a lot of citizens,” Hernandez said.
Aranda, from Weslaco, has lived in the Valley his whole life. He said he is proud to be an American. “I support my troops and teach my kids to be proud to be American,” he said. Aranda applied for his passport because he does work in three states in Mexico and because “Mexico is part of our culture.” His family goes there regularly, especially on weekends.
After applying for a passport, Aranda said he received a letter requesting more information. He said he can’t believe the government refuses to believe his birth certificate. It has made him wonder about what his citizenship really is – he knows he’s an American, but his own country is denying him a passport. Aranda just wants to be treated fairly.
Lisa Graybill, legal director with ACLU Texas, believes this case is worthy of her group’s attention because of its clear injustice. “Although our office is based in Austin we’re very connected to this area and to doing more work here on the border, so we’re honored to be here and work with these folks.”
Adam Levin, of the law firm Hogan & Hartson, came to the Valley with colleague Melissa Henke. Levin said his firm has “a long tradition of service to the community and free legal service.” All six attorneys involved in the case said they are committed to winning this cause.
Anyone in a similar situation who would like to be part of the lawsuit should call 415-343-0784, or e-mail passport@aclu.org. More information can be obtained at www.aclu.org.
Source: Rio Grande Guardian
Rio Grande Valley resident David Hernandez fought back tears as he described the difficulties he had applying for a passport.
BROWNSVILLE, September 10 - Nine U.S. citizens from the Rio Grande Valley are suing the federal government, claiming they were discriminated against when applying for a passport.
Attorneys representing the nine plaintiffs say roadblocks were put up by the State Department because the citizens have a Hispanic surname and were born to a midwife.
On Tuesday, plaintiffs David Hernandez from San Benito and Juan Aranda from Weslaco spoke before a group of community members and media to share their story and explain the basis of the lawsuit.
They were joined by attorneys from the American Civil Liberties Union, Washington, D.C.-based Hogan & Hartson LLP, Refugio del Rio Grande, Inc., of San Benito, and the Rev. Mike Seifert of San Felipe de Jesus Catholic Church in Cameron Park.
The case involves Mexican American citizens who have applied for passports in advance of next year’s policy change, when passports will be required to travel to Mexico by land.
The State Department says it has tightened up security since 9/11 and vets the applications thoroughly because the Valley has a higher than average number of midwives who have been convicted of fraud.
Introducing the case, Robin Goldfaden, of the ACLU’s Immigration Rights Project, stated that “there was a clear pattern to the problem faced, and who was facing that problem: Mexican Americans delivered by a midwife in a Southwest border state, and Texas in particular.”
The state department lumped people in this category together, Goldfaden said, and subjected them to “unreasonable, burdensome and excessive demands for evidence of their birth in the United States, evidence which few people would actually possess” when they applied for a passport.
Attorney Lisa Brodyaga with Refugio del Valley explained that the types of documents requested by the government ranged from “easy to obtain, such as baptismal records, to difficult, to impossible.” Some institutions do not exist anymore, such as old schools or clinics, making some records impossible to acquire for elderly people.
Following the surge in passport applications for border residents who want to travel to Mexico, Refugio staff encountered a surge at their doorstep of those “who had received letters from the Department of State saying that their applications had been closed, or ‘filed without action’ because they either did not respond to the demand for these documents or they did not respond fully.”
Goldfaden said the applicants spent a great deal of time, effort, and money obtaining documents that were not being required of other applicants. She said the applicants were not specific with details of how to remedy the situation, thereby leaving the applicant with no passports and no hope of obtaining one.
“The constitution would not allow this,” Goldfaden said. “The state violated the law in three areas: it is a violation of due process – people should be judged by a fair, proper, non-arbitrary standard – a violation of equal protection, and it is arbitrary and capricious.” The government is clearly breaking the law, the attorney claimed.
“What the lawsuit seeks is a fair and legal process, in a way that is fair, non-discriminatory, individualized, and under the proper scrutiny that all other applicants are given,” Goldfaden said.
Seifert said he fully supports the legal proceedings of those filing suit. A few months back he held a community meeting on the subject and expected half a dozen people to show up. Instead, dozens filled the room to tell their “horror” about applying for passports. Seifert said the residents were angered at the way they were treated by the State Department.
“We put up with a lot, but we don’t put up with being humiliated. I think that’s been the sense of people who made these applications – they’re giving up on the process” because they’re being targeted for being born to midwives, meaning that family was too poor to afford to go to the hospital.
As the parish priest, Seifert hears a lot of anguish from his parish, such as families not being able to “see grandmother,” or “go to the doctor.” Seifert added: “It’s a blow to the heart of our community, not to mention the financial difficulties.”
Hernandez and Aranda told similar stories of how difficult it was to apply for a U.S. passport. Hernandez was born and baptized in San Benito, Texas, to a midwife, and has spent nearly his whole life in the U.S. He asserted that he is “a lawful abiding taxpayer,” who has “social security” and is “a registered voter.” He always thought he was an American citizen, and had no reason to ever question that until he applied for a passport in light of new laws requiring passports for travel between Mexico and Texas.
“I pledge allegiance to the flag, of the United States of American,” he said, holding back the tears. He said he has repeated that phrase all his life, and feels pride in his country. “I served my country in the Army and have worked ever since.” He feels he is a model citizen.
Along with many others this year, Hernandez applied for a passport to travel outside the country. He has family in Monterrey he would like to visit. He received a letter stating that he was not being granted a passport. “I rarely travel to Mexico but I would like to travel whenever I want. If they’re doing this to me then I’m sure they’re doing it to a lot of citizens,” Hernandez said.
Aranda, from Weslaco, has lived in the Valley his whole life. He said he is proud to be an American. “I support my troops and teach my kids to be proud to be American,” he said. Aranda applied for his passport because he does work in three states in Mexico and because “Mexico is part of our culture.” His family goes there regularly, especially on weekends.
After applying for a passport, Aranda said he received a letter requesting more information. He said he can’t believe the government refuses to believe his birth certificate. It has made him wonder about what his citizenship really is – he knows he’s an American, but his own country is denying him a passport. Aranda just wants to be treated fairly.
Lisa Graybill, legal director with ACLU Texas, believes this case is worthy of her group’s attention because of its clear injustice. “Although our office is based in Austin we’re very connected to this area and to doing more work here on the border, so we’re honored to be here and work with these folks.”
Adam Levin, of the law firm Hogan & Hartson, came to the Valley with colleague Melissa Henke. Levin said his firm has “a long tradition of service to the community and free legal service.” All six attorneys involved in the case said they are committed to winning this cause.
Anyone in a similar situation who would like to be part of the lawsuit should call 415-343-0784, or e-mail passport@aclu.org. More information can be obtained at www.aclu.org.
Source: Rio Grande Guardian
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